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That Dreaded Word	By : Platinumsabr Category: Bleach > Het - Male/Female Views: 11539 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, or the characters from it. I don't make any money from the writing of this story, but I do enjoy writing it. Any Original Characters are mine however, as is the story itself, and if you see it posted elsewhere pleas

Chapter List
- 8
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- 10
Fallen Mother

Their lips were so close, and
just as the spark jumped between them once again a roar unlike anything they
had heard but something just once tore through the heated atmosphere.

�Bloody hell!� she hissed.

His paranoia was well deserved
it seemed.

~~~~~~~~~~

Their reactions were
instantaneous. The frustration practically screaming to be vented was forgotten
in the bodies tensing for completely different reasons now, and both Soul
Reapers quickly swallowed their gikongan pills.

Gwydion nearly stumbled in place
when he saw Soi-Fong. She had never, ever, filled out
her kimono as well as she did now, and her statuesque posture made even what
was still a relatively small frame feminine and proud. Her uniform hadn�t
changed, yet it seemed like everything had, and her regular scowl
rightfully back on her face made her seem all the more intimidating.

God she looks beautiful,
he thought, before his mind returned to the Present and he was reminded of the
roars just outside the house.

She made the hand-seals to
destroy the barrier she had set up as she ran, and together they ran out the
door and through the corridors leading to the outside. Though they had both
been expecting it, for some reason they were unprepared for what awaited them
when they exited the doors. Not one, but two grisly abominations stood
in the starry sky as the light from the town�s streetlights illuminated what
nature couldn�t.

They were just like the last one
they had encountered, grotesque figures only marginally maintaining a human-like
form, with enlarged appendages unfit for the body they were attached to as the
white Resurrecion-like material covered parts of
their body yet not all of it. Mercifully, both males�or so they guessed�had
torn grey kimono�s covering what may or may not be their unmentionables, but still,
both were horrible to look at, even if they were disfigured in different ways
compared to the last one. Their masks were equally deformed, with eyes lacking
the intelligence of any sentient life-form as they held their swords in
whatever passed as their hands. The one, almost twice as tall as the other, had
hands reminiscent of misshapen putty, and the other looked like it had made a
wrong turn on its way to the bottom of the ocean.

�What the hell happens to these
things? One looks kinda like a crab I guess, but what�s
the other supposed to be?� Soi-Fong asked in disgust
as they looked at the two creations, who had yet to
move from their place staring down at them.

�I�d rather not know. Look�s like
it�s two against two this time.�

She closed her eyes and swallowed
resolutely before turning to him seriously. �Two against one.
You remember what happened to you last time you fought one of these
things, right?�

A familiar burning stung his
insides as he took that in. �You can�t mean��

�I�ll take care of this alone.
They want you remember? Why should we give them what they want on a
silver platter??�

It felt like he had swallowed
acid, and the burning of uselessness clawed at his being relentlessly. �I can
still fight! It�s my duty!�

She bit the inside of her cheek.
His eyes were panicked, and she could see the pain she was causing him clear in
his brilliant violet orb. She had never wanted to see it again, but she
couldn�t allow him to fight after coming so close to losing him last time they
had fought just one of the abominations in the sky.

They weren�t given any more of a
choice, because just then the two rushed them, and despite her protests, he
jumped away in the direction opposite to hers, and just as he had predicted,
one went after her and the other went after him, and he just had to get the
crustacean-like one that seemed to be the more agile of the two.

�Gwydion�!!�
She couldn�t say any more, because instantly after she was on the defensive,
weaving through the slashes the giant made with seemingly impossible speed for
its large size. However, not only was she one of the fastest Soul Reapers there
were, her body was also well-suited to that speed and her gracefulness was
second only to Yoruichi when evading blows. She wouldn�t have been made the
captain of the Second Division had her skill been anything but. She was
surprised that even with the changes her body had gone through,
it almost made her movements easier than they had been before. She had
thought she would have to get used to the growth during battle, but what she
found herself experiencing instead was her own abilities, increased and
effortless. She had the moment�s urge to laugh, before snarling when one of the
swings got too close to her head.

�What�s your deal anyways!?� she
yelled as she spun between his blows and delivered a powerful kick right to the
side of his head that sent the creature spinning. �We don�t even know what you
are, and you�re suddenly here wanting to attack us!? You might as well be
Hollows!�

The thing turned to face her
again�at a more discernable distance this time�and she felt bile rise to the
back of her throat when she saw the chest under the tattered remnants of its
grey kimono. Written in bold, bloody letters, were three words. �HE IS MINE�.

Leaving the obvious implications
of that to later, she focused on what immediately mattered. If this one had
been specifically ordered after her, or whoever might
have been with him at the time, that meant that the other one�

�Oh shit.� This wasn�t good. She
couldn�t afford to hold back like she had last time, it had been her own desire
to have something she could hit that had stretched the battle out long enough
for Gwydion to be injured and almost captured to the extent he had been, and
this time whoever had sent these things knew he hadn�t been alone. The creature
charged and the fight resumed, but she was still able to rip off her sleeves
and discard her haori without too much difficulty after drawing her sword.

As the next strike loomed it was
suddenly stopped by a hand glowing with white energy, and Soi-Fong
glared venomously at the atrocity to nature that didn�t even have the good
grace to look surprised. To any outside observer it would have looked
ridiculous, a woman barely half the size of her opponent easily fending off her
attacker with just one hand, but the billowing winds and energy around her may
have clued them in to something tipping the scales in her favor. With her
limiter in place, this was the only thing she could do to even the odds.

�Second Dance: White Ripple!�

Her eyes widened before her body
instinctively jumped her back as the wave of ice overtook her opponent�s space
and froze him completely in its confines. She looked over confusedly to see
Rukia in her regular fighting stance, Sode No Shirayuki in hand as the other members of the Association
stood similarly on either sides of her.

�So that�s something like what
you two fought last time, hmm? Creepy,� Rangiku stated calmly, unperturbed by
the other battle still going on.

�W-What are you guys still doing
here!?� the Second Division captain hollered angrily.

�I wouldn�t be too concerned
about that right now, would you? This guy seems like he�s gonna
break out of there any minute now.�

�I don�t have time for this!
Don�t you know Gwydion�s��

�Fighting like he was just insulted?
Yeah, we can see that,� Yoruichi finished, her eyes hard.

�We thought you might want to
see, so we helped you out first,� Kin added darkly.

�I didn�t think guys were
even able to move like that�� Tsukiyomi said with a grimace.

Soi-Fong
turned around, and was struck frozen to the spot.

What she saw wasn�t what she was
familiar with, the angry movements of a man lost to his fury fighting only with
offense in mind, but the serene movements of an acrobat, not afraid to leap
between blows as he looked for an opening in his opponent�s technique. He used
flips like someone else would use steps, bounding easily away from what was
sent his way, always landing with his left side facing his opponent before
going into the next necessary action the situation demanded. He always made
sure he was seeing his entire opponent, and never revealing his blind right
side to their range. It made him a smaller target, though she could see that
his dodges weren�t as easy as they may look. The creature that had followed him
was gradually increasing its speed, fighting with the same animalistic vigor
that the others had, and it was getting perilously close with every passing
swing.

How he delivered some of
his kicks then during the process of his jumps was something that would make
some men wince in discomfort, but Soi-Fong
only saw the elegance of a well-trained gymnast, finessed further through years
of Second Division training. She had seen him fight three Menos
without any knowledge of backup coming to help him, and yet after one time, one
injury�and one life-changing decision�she had forgotten the strength she had
felt from him and instead instantly worried about the man she didn�t want to
lose. He looked magnificent when he fought, a shifting cloak of ink only seen
by the pale skin of his face when it wasn�t covered by his hair.

He was a warrior, just like she
was, and she shuddered to think of the blow she had just given his pride.

One quick spring away and the
swath of night drew his sword, a movement so quick only Yoruichi, Kin, Tatsuki and
Soi-Fong were able to see the blade returning to its
sheath before a pincer-like arm fell off the creature moments later. Just like
as she had noted last time, this one too voiced no pain, and only renewed its
effort against the Shinigami it had chosen to fight.

�Is he really an unseated
officer?� Momo asked curiously, and snapped Soi-Fong out of her stare. �These things have Steel Skin,
right? He just cleaved through it like it was nothing��

�C-Compared to Ichigo and the
rest of his family, everyone that gets assigned here is pretty much instantly
an unseated officer!� Yoruichi lied hastily, though there was enough truth
there for most of the women to nod in understanding.

�I�m sure those movements look
familiar though, you�re right�� Isane noted quietly.

�A monkey?�
Rangiku supplied with a chuckle, and nearly all of them rolled their eyes.

Soi-Fong,
on the other hand, regarded her mentor and idol with a stony face. �So I�m not
allowed to be concerned when I see things that have almost killed him in the
past?�

�You know as well as I do that
that�s not what I meant,� Yoruichi retorted immediately, and Soi-Fong flinched mentally. �You�re both fighters, that�s what you�ve been trained to do. Sometimes what�s best
is to simply fight together. He knows you�re a captain, but how would you feel
if you were suddenly looked down on when all you�re trying to do is the same
job you�ve ever done? When the job you�ve always done suddenly means you�re
being targeted? If I was him, I�d want to fight more than ever. �

�I wasn�t looking down on him!�

�That�s what I heard. You should
know better than anyone how he�d react to something like that, right?�

She stiffened automatically as
she spun back to look at him. When she looked closer, she was able to see more
than just the fluidity of his movements and the shifting of his clothes. She
saw his eyes, and they were steely within his hard scowl. His breathing was
irregular, not because of exertion, but she knew the grit teeth and pumping
chest was because of his intense fight to remain calm when she could see he
wanted to snap. Thankfully, he hadn�t, because that had been what had caused
his injury the last time. That, and she hadn�t been
the kindest in her handling of their fight beforehand either, so he wasn�t in
top condition either.

Wait a minute! She
realized seconds later. He can�t use his zanpakutou with all these people
around!

Just as she thought that, the
beast under Sode No Shuriyuki�s
icy confinement broke free with a howl of rage, and she quickly whirled around,
Shunkou at the ready, and blasted off its head with one well-aimed punch. It was nothing she couldn't have done alone from the beginning, but she supposed the intervention had its purposes. �Haven�t you done enough tonight!? Will you all please leave
already!?�

They turned to Yoruichi, who
seemed to be acting leader seeing as Yachiru wasn�t among them, likely because
she wouldn�t have been able to keep her adorable voice down. �Go, I�m sure the
president�s gotten enough.�

Even with that said, most of them
only went down into the house, though technically they were gone from
the area. Yoruichi and Kin stayed however, as did Tatsuki, for obvious reasons.

�Lieutenant, you don�t need to be
here,� she repeated, but Tatsuki wasn�t about to back down.

�He�s an officer under my
authority. I have every right to be here if he needs help. Just because Ichigo
and I let him take most of the others that show up doesn�t mean we aren�t
prepared to back him up if the situation demands it. You aren�t the only one
who�s worried about him you know.�

She almost blushed again.

So, as cruel as it may seem, the
four stood there and watched as the two faced off, one the epitome of basic
instinct and the other a definition of caution and precision. There were nicks
in his shihakushou now, from where the beast�s claws had gotten closer than
they had previously, and yet his expression hadn�t changed. Looking closer,
they saw that he hadn�t escaped unscathed so far, but they were minor flesh
wounds at worse. If he was getting hit though, that meant either he was slowing
down or the creature was continuing to speed up, something he couldn�t afford
to do or allow.

�Dammit,
why hasn�t he used it yet?� she muttered under her breath, and Tatsuki looked
over at her confusedly.

�Used what?�

�Nothing!�
She replied quickly, but Yoruichi�s wide eyes spoke otherwise.

�You�ve seen him use his
zanpakutou!??� she cried in astonishment.

Crap. Of course, Yoruichi
had always been able to see right through her. �Yes.�

�Not even I know what it
does!�

Well, she hadn�t been expecting that,
but she supposed it made sense, he had been able to keep it a secret the
entire time he had been in the Second Division up until his saving of his
future lover, and even then it had stayed within a select group of people.

�Why would you?� Tatsuki asked
with an eyebrow raised, and both quickly backpedaled. �And is it just me, or is
there something written on that thing�s chest?�

It was hard to tell because of
the speed the two fighting were moving at, but thankfully the arm that would
have blocked their view even more had been cut off, and allowed them to see
that Tatsuki was indeed right. Soi-Fong�s suspicions
were confirmed when she made out the bright red letters cut into the beast�s
flesh.

�YOU ARE MINE�.

So not only did they know he had
been with someone, but apparently the woman that had met up with him earlier
wasn�t too happy about that fact. They were able to watch him and she had no
idea how they were doing it, which only made her heart constrict even more.

�He�s definitely a target,� Kin
whispered.

�If not the target,� her
mother completed.

�She�s just trying to get under
my skin!!�

They all jumped at Gwydion�s sudden exclamation between his weaving and
attacking. They had thought they were too far away for him to hear anything,
let alone over the noise of swinging fists and clashing blades whenever he was
forced to draw his for a necessary block.

His tone was furious. He was
furious.

So what if he wasn�t a captain?

He was going to show her that she
didn�t need to worry about him, that he could hold his own despite whatever was
thrown at him. He had been injured gravely in that last battle, but he learned
from his mistakes, and he hadn�t been at his best when he had fought the other
one anyways. He may not be a captain-class like she was, but he would show her
that he wasn�t helpless! Izanami granted him power
that made him anything but!

The thing�s movements were hard
to read, but as long as he kept moving he wouldn�t be hit too seriously. It
would be hard to keep up with its tenacity if it was anything like that last
one he had faced, but he needed to fight it, and kill it, alone this
time. This time his anger wasn�t merely directed inward, this time he was
honestly and truly angry. He had gotten lucky with the arm strike, his iaijutsu wasn�t the easiest to use tumbling around like he
had been, and thankfully he had given a large enough wound to the thing to even
the playing field a bit. He was surprised his sword had cut so cleanly though.

Maybe�I have been
getting stronger?

Unbeknownst to him, Izanami sighed.

Ai had come on very strong, and
how she knew he didn�t know, but if the �he� she had mentioned knew of his
fight with the last one then surely they had some way of monitoring the outside
world from wherever they were. He was still a bit sore from Soi-Fong�s
hit to his usefulness, but that was quickly absorbed into his rage at the
things that had interrupted their time together. He wasn�t an idiot, and
however much he wanted to read into it, the only thing he could see after the
initial hurt was that she was worried about him. Being who she was, she had
expressed it in the only way she knew how.

That almost brought a smile to
his face. Funny, considering a claw almost took it clean off a second later.

The next thing he knew he
couldn�t see it, and to his horror he realized it had learned from the
close-call of seconds before and moved into his blind spot! He tried to move quickly,
but he wasn�t quick enough, and the thing�s hilt smashed right into the side of
his head and sent him sprawling as hot liquid dribbled down the side of his
face. Obviously it had been ordered not to kill him, because it could have
easily removed his head, or maybe he had just spun into it before the slash
could be completed. He hoped it was the latter. He didn�t know if he wanted to
be that important to them.

Still, the opportunity was just what the creature had been looking for, and Gwydion heard a hiss of wind fly by his body, yet surprisingly he felt no pain. He heard cries of alarm from the side and hastily flipped himself upwards and away from any oncoming strike while he motioned his hand at the spectators not to come. His body did feel lighter though, and to his intense irritation when he looked over to the side he noticed that the creature had ripped off his right sleeve and his prosthetic arm. The creature seemed as surprised by this as he did, and when he saw the twisted remnant of what had once been his artificial arm lying on the ground below him, his already impressive anger rose dramatically.

�Princess, Lieutenant, I�m going
to have to ask that what you�re about to see remain a strict secret between
us!!� He yelled as he drew his sword to parry the newest assault.

The simultaneous, �Huh?� from
three out of the four had Soi-Fong glaring at them
again as she set up another quick barrier just in case anyone in the house had
chosen to get nosy. Not only had his secret been revealed, but his more important one was about to be. For a Soul Reaper to not use their zanpakutou at all in a
battle where the difference in power could be annulled by that one thing meant
he had been at a huge disadvantage over hundreds of years, and against
something so noticeably stronger like the creations seemed to be, he needed her.
She couldn�t very well say he wasn�t good enough when he wasn�t even using all
that was available to him in the first place.

With a deep breath and a
well-timed kick to the face that sent the creature flying, Gwydion straightened,
fury blazing in his bright violet eyes. �Know The Fruits Of Your Labor,
Righteous Goddess. Weep While You Destroy, Fallen Mother. Fulfill Your Promise:
Izanami.�

Just like the first time he had
released her, Soi-Fong felt her skin crawl nervously,
and the looks on the other three women as the sword shone and shrank into its
true form meant they had felt it too.

But then, right after that had
happened, the creature did something none of them had done. It spoke. �HHHHHHHeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrssssss.�

The voice was gnarled, not because
of the vocal chords making the sound, but because the mind ordering the sounds wasn�t
rational enough to make the words without difficulty.

Nevertheless, they had never seen
Gwydion as enraged as he looked after that. His face was frozen in a scowl so hard
the definition of his jaw stood out firm against his skin, and his dark
eyebrows were bent in a glare so fierce his violet eyes seemed to shine as if
by their own light.

The creature charged again, and
he jumped to the side with a graceful half-twist that landed him perfectly to
face the thing�s next charge without further movement, but when the words, �YYYYoooooouuuuuu aaaaaarrrrrrrreeeee
hhhhhheeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrsssssss� were slurred by the
creature, his scowl was joined by visibly grit teeth.

The next time he charged Gwydion�s flip wasn�t merely for defensive purposes, and a
string of blood flew through the air as the small bladed tip of the jeweled pen
tore through the creature�s shoulder. It stopped, as if confused by the small
cut that had been dealt before rearing back to charge again, but it had already
given Gwydion enough time to write one word on the air, bright in blood.

�STOP.�

The creature froze in place,
every muscle stopped perfectly in the process of its movement as its wide,
confused eyes darted around for an explanation to its body suddenly rejecting
its control. It was left staring at the furious eyes of the man it had come to
attack. �I could do any number of things to you, but I doubt your poor mind
even has any information in it other than that one sentence. You�ve made it
quite clear this is only a jealous fit, and the true trials are yet to come;
so, Ai, I�m going to make one thing perfectly clear to you.�

There was a tension in the air, a
ripple of fear done seemingly by the atmosphere itself even though nothing had
been done, and as the four women stared on, Gwydion flicked Izanami against the torn material covering his right shoulder, and his own dark red blood was put on her potentially lethal blade.

�The Time For Weeping Has Passed,
Fallen Mother! Your Knowledge Of Your Creation Shall Be Their Undoing,
Righteous Goddess! Fulfill Your Promise: Izanami!!�

He drew a slow circle in the air,
and pitch-black darkness seeped out from the edges in a caustic vapor as the
jeweled pen in his hand burst into unholy flame. He shot his hand into the void
he had drawn, and when he withdrew his hand what was in it wasn�t a pen, but a
handle. A halberd.

As he pulled back his blade, it
all came into focus. What looked like a smooth marble hilt was in fact bleached
bone somehow melded into shape, wrapped in worn, almost decayed black leather.� The blade attached to it was no more refined;
a jagged, nearly broken knife of dark metal with two spikes forking out from
the base that sent shivers down the spines of those who saw it. The butt of the
weapon wasn�t blunt, it too had a short, serrated
double-edged spike. It was a menacing weapon, both sleek and rough.

No expression remained on the
face with cold violet eyes, the hatred seemingly compounded and compressed into
a blade of pure loathing. He held the ominous halberd beside him coolly, an uneven picture with his right side as empty as it was, and with no warning stabbed it into the chest of the creature still held at bay in front of him, right into the middle of the carved message.

A howl of agony unlike anything
in the world was issued from the warped body of the creature as dark miasma floated
out from where the blade was held. As the women looked on in various degrees of
shock and horror, he twisted the blade in the wound and the forks dug in
deeper, ripping Ierro apart like it was just regular
flesh, and another shrieking scream of pain came forth from the body unable to
move. As it stood there, panting and fighting against the unfamiliar,
unbearable, and inescapable pain, Gwydion impassively broke his silence.

�I may be broken, but I am not
helpless. My life is my own to live, however I choose, and I chose to
say no to you!� With every emphasized word, another twist was given, and
the four looking on didn�t even have anything remotely close to compare the
screams to. �I�m�not alone anymore, so you can take your offer, and these�things,
and go to hell!�

He leaped away, and with a revolution
of his blade and a spin of his body, a crescent of menacingly dark purple
energy vaporized the creature where it stood, and its death wail tore through
the sky like it had been slowly and meticulously lowered into molten rock.

When he turned back towards them,
Soi-Fong almost gasped. His eyes were impossibly
cold, almost like no emotion was left in him whatsoever, and the ice-blue
pigments in the bright amethyst color were made to stand out all the more
because of that. With a spin of the Death-like halberd, Izanami
returned to her sealed form and he easily slipped her back into her sheath on
his back. She noticed the change in his eyes right away, but they were still
surprisingly hard considering he had just destroyed what had been sent after
him.

She almost trembled as he walked
towards her while the shredded remains of his right sleeve billowed behind him, expecting some kind of reference to her dismissal of his abilities, but instead he tenderly leaned down and gently pressed his lips against hers before pulling away, leaving her wide-eyed in confusion.

�I�m sorry about before. I
haven�t had someone worry about me in so long I guess I forgot what it was
like,� he said softly, and her relief was so profound and immediate she
accidentally jumped forward to hug her arms around his neck, regardless of the
people watching.

�What did I tell you about
apologizing all the time?� she recounted in a thankful whisper. �This time it�s
my turn to say I�m sorry.�

He put his one arm around her,
suddenly not even the least bit concerned about the battle that had just taken
place or the loss of his prosthetic. Her warmth was intoxicating, and all the comfort he needed. This was certainly a nice end to a first date. �I think you need to take your own
advice.�

She chuckled and nodded into his
shoulder.

�And I think you need to tell us what the hell that was,� Tatsuki interjected
carefully.

He felt Soi-Fong
stiffen against him, but he merely nodded. �I think it�s about time I do that
as well.�

~~~~~~~~~~~

Ai was trembling, staring over a
bank of consoles each with the most erratic readings she had ever seen before plummeting
off into a thin, unmoving line. Even the large monitor overtop them all was
displaying nothing but static, though that had happened as soon as the barrier
had been thrown up over the battlefield.

�Good God��

�Something the
matter?� A silken voice asked humorously.

She spun around in a defensive position
instantly, only to relax when she saw who it was. �Gah! Don�t do
that!�

�You�re not one to be surprised
so easily. Something happen? I noticed a couple of our friends were let out for
a stroll. I do hope if you decided to do something, at least one of them had
the proper bacteria on them.�

Her midnight blue eyes blazed at
the potential insult. �Of course I did! B-But what do you make of these readings!?�

His eyebrow quirked up curiously
before he glided over to her side to look over the screens. For most people,
what happened wasn�t much, but Ai had known him long enough to know that for
him, his eyes were wide. �Incredible�� he breathed in awe. �Whatever happened
to our little friend before he was destroyed put him through agony the likes of
which�� he chuckled throatily, �well, it�s not something one usually wants to
experience twice.�

�B-But didn�t we burn away all
their pain receptors!? If they weren�t any good to us but as
soldiers, w-we did do that right!?�

He nodded calmly as he continued
analyzing the all but impossible to understand readouts. �Yes, we did. Whatever
he did to our little failure had every facet of his
body screaming in chemical disarray. I can�t even begin to fathom what could do
something like that to a body otherwise perfectly made to withstand most any
internal attack. I notice there�s nothing more from the bacteria, so even that
was destroyed in the face of the killing blow dealt to him? Quite honestly, I
had figured the intervention of Soi-Fong to be a good
factor in his dealing with the first pursuer, but there are no records of
anyone but G.T. coming into contact with this one�. Impressive.
Most impressive indeed.�

�So there�s no doubt he�s hiding
more than just his power,� Ai concluded.

�Ah, but he�s a Shinigami, Ai.
Reiatsu is such an easy thing to control if one has reached the right level. In
order for him to be hiding power like this, it has to be��

Her eyes lit up. �His zanpakutou!�

The figure grinned sensually. �Don�t
fret, Ai. He will be ours, I refuse to let anything else be the case. Now do as you�re told this
time, they are not to be bothered any more until I say so. I�ll dismiss it this
time because it proved to have some invaluable information.�

Ai walked away briskly, her
confident strut not in the least bit perturbed by his threat. �I�d like to see
you try and follow through on that,� she taunted back in her low purr before
rounding the corner and disappearing from his sight.

He chuckled lowly as he turned
back to the readings, none of which gave him any insight into what might have
caused it, or any way to counteract it. �Positively interesting��

�So he�s really caught your eye
now too has he?� a shadowy voice asked breathily.

�You always know where to be, don�t
you?�

�I just like staying close to
you,� the feminine voice answered as she wrapped her around his torso. He gave
another amused chuckle as he nodded.

�Good. If this really is what it
seems to be, we may have found a trump card in the hand fate�s dealt us.�

�I like the sound of that. Poor
Ai may get restless again if you do nothing though. She�s held herself back
admirably.�

�For her,� he completed.

She grinned. �For
her.�

�Well, we�ll see what plays out.
It will be quite amusing watching their paranoia grow the longer we wait.
Truthfully, I cannot wait for the look on Soi-Fong�s
face when she realizes what has happened, but alas, I too must be patient.�

�I�m sure we can think of something to pass the time.�

His smoldering eyes burned into
hers. �Yes, I think we can. We have to do something about Ai however,
her impatience may result in more problems.�

�She has needs just like us,
lover. We can do something about those.�

�As long as
this infatuation hasn�t turned into something more already.�

Her eyes became concerned. �We�ll
make her forget all about him. Until we have him, he�s a liability.�

�Very true.�

~~~~~~~~~~

Author�s Notes: *Warning, this chapter has been edited! If you read it within the first four or so hours of it being posted, then it is now different in places!*

Within a week this time! Thanks to everyone that reviewed, but I�ll be honest when I say I�d like to hear from more people. I
can�t thank the people that continuously review enough, but I�d still like
others to tell me what they think. I�ll leave that as a challenge for this
time.

Watcher, you�re right. For the
length of the comment, it was kinda hypocritical, and
definitely unfairly vicious for just two words. A bit of advice, if you think
that already when you type it, take the time to use the backspace button. It�s
worth it. I take your�and everyone else�s�comments seriously, and because I�m a
nice guy and I too don�t want to fall victim to overuse of plain adjectives, I
changed the last chapter, but it did seem rather unnecessary at the time. Also,
you really need to stop reading so far into things, sometimes things are just
as they seem. I value your input, and I was giving you a compliment because one
of your comments amused me so much. I think when it�s all but a direct quote, you can feel a bit flattered. You were the one to inspire the last chapter
title.

And JHH, sorry about the lack of
dark clouds, but you�re right, I definitely lack your venomous personality, but
when I get to the bad I�ll get to the bad. Sorry I can�t give anything more
conclusive, but those�d be spoilers.

Moonymuch
and xSTALKERx, thanks so much for continuing to
review, I get just as much if not more out of your encouragement as I do from
constructive criticism. This story wouldn�t have even happened had Moonymuch not requested the first sequel, so you have a lot
to do with it!

I look forward to what everyone
has to say!

Thanks for reading and I hope you
enjoyed the chapter!
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That Dreaded Word