Prologue
Gunshots

“Sankyuu!” Shouko called out, waving to the fans on the other side of the stage.  This concert, their first live, had been like a dream, everything had gone as planned.  The cheering and yells blended together, of course, but that in of itself proved the band’s success.  “Arrigatou, minna!” she yelled again, taking a deep bow.

BANG!

The pop star shot up in surprise.

BANG!  BANG!

Gunshots.  In her shock, everything moved in slow motion.  Shouko managed to avoid the second bullet.  The crowd was screaming, everyone shoving to reach an exit.  The shooter wasn’t there.  A ghost?  A hidden sniper?  There was a bullet coming right at her.

Shouko opened her mouth to scream, and was thrown aside by something.  The last thing that registered before she passed out was red hair hanging in her face.

Chapter One
The Cavalry Arrives

“Oneesan, wake up!”

Blinking at the blinding fluorescent lights, Shouko obliged.  “Haru?”

“Yokatta….” The young man groaned, slumping into a chair.  “We thought you were gonna die!”

Carefully, the pop star propped herself up.  As she had expected, she was in a hospital room.  The pure white of everything was almost disgusting, but someone-probably Haru-had removed the hospital standard pastel blanket and replaced it with something bright blue, which made it just tolerable.  Haru was next to the bed, watching her with his Overprotective Brother Look.  Across the room, Chiaki and Norie were slumped against each other on a couch, asleep.

“I bet Norie freaked out.”  Shouko managed a faint smile at the thought.  Despite being their manager, Norie treated the three band members like her children.  The proclivity for babying everyone she came across under twenty had probably arisen from having to raise her younger sister, the redhead currently asleep on her shoulder.

Haru smiled back at his own sister.  “They almost got you, Oneesan.”

“I know.”  She nodded, glancing out the window.  It was daylight outside; knowing those three, they had stayed up watching her all night.  “I remember three shots, and then…someone threw me out of the way.”  She looked to her brother, recalling the hair she’d seen.  “Was it Chiaki?”

“Iie…” Haru trailed off.

“Then who?”

“Saa…I’ll just let them in.”  Haru smiled reassuringly and crossed the room to the door to let whoever it was enter.

Four men trooped in.  The clear leader, a tight-lipped, angry-looking redhead, went right over to Shouko, while the other three took their time.  The youngest looking one gave Haru a large bouquet with a smile, saying, “For Shouko-san,” before stepping aside and inspecting a piece of equipment in the room.  Chiaki had woken up at some point, and was making eyes at the blonde, who just grinned, and returned the look.  The last one, who was strangely familiar to Shouko, stood aside from the door, next to Haru, as Chiaki and the blonde exited.

“Ah…we’ll be back later, Aya!” the blonde called over his shoulder.

The red next to Shouko snorted, and ignored them.

“You’re the one who saved me, aren’t you?” Shouko asked him.  He nodded, and she smiled and held out her hand.  “What can I do to thank you?”

He looked to the other four in the room, and Haru blinked.  “Do you want us to leave?”

“That may be for the best.  I’d like to speak to Shouko-san alone.”

Hesitantly, Haru left with Aya’s two companions, leaving only the sleeping Norie to keep an eye on Shouko.

“Ano…”

That wasn’t random, Asano-san.  The attack was premeditated.”

Shouko just blinked.  “What?”

“The attempt made on your life at the concert.  It was premeditated.”

“B-by who?”

“A group called Schwartz.  For some reason or another, they want you dead.”

“Just how do you know this?”

“They attacked you.  That’s proof enough.”

“And how do I know this ‘Schwartz’ is really behind it?  How do I know it isn’t a trick?”

“For one, I don’t have time to play tricks on silly little pop stars.”

Shouko scowled at him, but refrained from replying while the door opened, and a nurse entered, pushing a cart with lunch for Shouko on it.

“Thank you,” Shouko said, smiling.

The nurse left, leaving the food.  Shouko reached for it, but Aya grabbed her hand to stop her.

“What?” she snapped.

He lifted up the cloth covering the cart, and swore at what he saw.  “Childish,” he growled as he grabbed Shouko’s arm again and yanked her out of the bed.

“What, hey!  Cut it out!”

“There’s a bomb,” he growled, pulling her to the door.

“Wait, Norie-“

Norie, however, had woken up with all the yelling, and was blinking blearily.

“Follow me if you don’t want to die.  We have thirty-five seconds.”  Aya had stopped momentarily to speak, before he exited the room, pulling Shouko.  Though confused, Norie followed all the same. Aya led them as far down the hall as they could get before the three heard a distant boom.

Shouko covered her mouth.

“It was small.  They are only trying to get you.  You need…” He trailed off to look down at Shouko, and went red.  “W-what are you crying for?  You’re alive!”

Shouko sniffed.  “But-but someone’s trying to kill me!” she sobbed.

“B-baka,” Aya stammered.  He was obviously the type who was weak against crying girls, Norie observed with a smirk.  “That’s why we’re here!”

“What?” She looked up, eyes already red.

Aya sighed and gave her a handkerchief from his pocket.  “The four of us were assigned to protect you.”

“Four…those other three boys?”

“Hn.”  He nodded once.

“So…so…”

“Consider us…your new bodyguards.”  He smirked faintly, and Shouko managed a weak smile.  Remembering his manners, he set Shouko on her feet-she had been leaning on him-and nodded his head in lieu of a bow.  “Fujimiya Aya.”

Shouko face-faulted.  Isn’t that a girl’s name?

The hospital released Shouko with their apologies that afternoon.  Aya led Shouko to his car with the boy who had brought the flowers, Omi, following.  Chiaki and Youji, her new blonde fanboy, went to her sports car, while Norie took the wheel of her own minivan to drive Haru and Ken, the last of Aya’s companions, home to the penthouse the band rented, which was large enough to accommodate eight people so long as the guys were willing to bunk up.

Aya and his three companions had spent a while at the hospital explaining themselves while the doctors and several policemen sorted out the bomb.  The four of them formed a group called Weiss, and, in investigating a crime their rival group, Schwartz, was involved in, would be guarding Shouko-“Since Schwartz is bound to try again.”

The four had also introduced themselves.  Aya was the stoic leader, an impression that would stick with Shouko for some time.  He was also the oldest, at twenty-four.  Kudou Youji was the next, a blonde flirt who, undoubtedly, would be happy to bunk with Chiaki.  According to Aya, he was the resident playboy, but as long as he did his job, he could “waste his time however he likes”.  Youji was, thus, a perfect match for Chiaki.  He and Hidaka Ken, the group’s muscle man, were both twenty-two.  Shouko had already figured out why Ken looked familiar; he had once been a professional soccer player.  He seemed loath to mention the subject, however, and Shouko left it alone-which was not to say Haru would.  The youngest member of the group was Tsukishiro Omi, at nineteen, which tagged him as perfect babying material for Norie.  That was why he had decided to ride with Aya and Shouko, sitting in the back, tapping away at his laptop (he was the brains of the gang, read: “computer geek”).  It kept his mind off his earlier encounter with Norie, which had been…harrowing, to say the most, and surprising, to say the least.

The eight arrived at the penthouse without an accident.  Aya and Omi explored the place to check for traps, while Ken staked out rooms, and Youji stuck close to Chiaki, saying she needed protection, too (which of course raised a plethora of questions, comments, and snappy comebacks about another kind of protection that Shouko decided to ignore).

Within the hour, everyone was more or less settled in; Haru would sacrifice his room to bunk with Norie, Ken and Omi would share the thus empty room, and Chiaki selflessly volunteered to let Youji sleep in her room.  That left Aya.

“I refuse to let a man sleep in my room.”

“If it weren’t my job to protect you, I’d let you take those words to an early grave.”

Shouko shook her head, not budging an inch.  “No.”

Aya paused, arms crossed, and face frozen in a scowl.  “All right, how about Omi?”

“No male, regardless of size or threat to my chastity, is staying in my room.”

“Too bad.”

“I’ll lock you out.”

“Then you can live with a broken in door.”

They scowled at each other, Shouko matching the redhead’s intensity.  Finally, Aya broke the gaze, and turned his back to her.

“I don’t have time to cater to what some spoiled pop star wants,” he snapped, storming downstairs.  Shouko smirked, until he yelled back up the stairwell, “You haven’t won yet!”

Indeed, she hadn’t; Aya was already in her room with his futon set up by the time she came upstairs for bed.  They scowled at each other, but didn’t say anything. Shouko closed the curtains around her canopy bed to change, and lay down to sleep without opening them.

Who did he think he was, barging into her house and acting like the king of the mountain? Shouko grumbled to herself as she drifted off.

“I’m turning the light off.”

She snorted, brought back to the world of the waking by the noise.  “Fine.”

Click.  Rustling, assumedly Aya settling down.

Shouko turned over so her back was to him.

That same air of irritation remained the same for the following nights.  They hardly talked, although Shouko was making friends easily with the other three Weiss members (the second day at the penthouse, Youji had made the mistake of trying to hit on her, and had been locked out of Chiaki’s room and forced to sleep on the couch.  He had been quite content with just being friends afterwards).  She and Omi took turns cooking dinner for the group (lunch and breakfast were strictly solitary endeavors), and she, Haru and Ken had spent their afternoons trading video game tips.  During the day, the three band members stayed at the house mostly, while Norie went out to do manager business, and three of the Weiss members went to their daytime job.  The four worked at a flower shop during the day, but always left behind one of their number to keep an eye on Pinky Typhoon.  After a week, Omi, Ken and Youji had gotten sick of staying behind, and decided it was Aya’s turn.

After a long argument, the fearless leader was left behind.  Chiaki, curious to “see the place”, left for the flower shop with them, while Haru went upstairs to his and Norie’s shared room to escape the palpable tension.

Aya and Shouko were left alone.  They passed the first hour or so in silence, watching television, before Shouko went to the kitchen to make and eat her lunch alone.  When she came back to the living room, Aya got up to get his lunch.  As she sat watching the television by herself, it occurred to Shouko that things had been blown out of proportion.

She got up and went to the kitchen.

“This is stupid,” she declared from the doorway.

Aya looked up, sandwich halfway to his mouth, and cocked an eyebrow.

“This silence thing,” Shouko explained.  “It’s stupid, and I can’t stand it anymore.”

“You started it.”

She bit back the argumentative response that came readily, and tried instead, “I’m sorry.”

Aya stared at her for a moment, before muttering “Me too,” and going back to his sandwich.

“So…can we try to be friends?”

He looked up at her again.  “I’m not a friendly kind of person.  But we don’t have to be enemies, at least,” he added.

Chapter Two
Gunshots Again

Their new agreement reached, the tension between Aya and Shouko dissipated, and a peace settled over the house.  Life went on normally for the odd group, until a Pinky Typhoon concert could be seen in the near future.

Two weeks prior, the three-member band and their manager went into a frenzy to get things ready.  Pinky Typhoon was out practicing late more often than not, which was clearly stressing their bodyguards.  Aya and Youji were chosen to take turns escorting the pop starts home from late practices, while Omi and Ken found it harder to watch the house with all the people Norie was bringing home to work on costumes, schedules, and the like.

The night before the concert, Shouko passed out on the couch at seven, dead to the world.  Aya carried her upstairs to sleep, and stayed up all night keeping an eye out.  Schwartz had been quiet for almost a month, and he didn’t like it a bit.

The next day was as crazy as the past fortnight had been, until the band made its way to the stage.  The concert itself went off without a hitch.  Ken and Youji watched things from the crowd, while Aya and Omi kept an eye on backstage.  Thankfully, Schwarz was not stupid enough to try to attack Shouko in a crowded concert hall again.

Once the performance was over, the eight met up backstage.

“Let’s go out for ice cream to celebrate!” Norie declared.

Shouko, Haru and Ken all agreed, and they left, with the exception of Shouko, who still hadn’t changed from her stage costume, and Aya, who insisted on watching her.  Since they had come in two cars, the parties agreed to meet at the nearest ice cream parlor.

It was eerily silent as Aya escorted Shouko to her dressing room.

“I’ll be out in a minute,” she told him, before entering and closing the door.

Outside, Aya settled for leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and looking the silent intimidating type.  Only a few minutes had passed before there was a crash, and a scream.  Aya practically dove into the dressing room, katana out of its sheath and ready.

Shouko ran to him, and he stepped in front of her to face a man he recognized all too well.  The strawberry blonde grinned at him and waved before disappearing into the shadows.  Aya turned to the shaking celebrity.

“Are you hurt?”

She shook her head, though it was hard to tell with her quivering.

Without thinking, Aya put his arm around her shoulder.  “Let’s go home.”

“No, we can’t let them down.”

“Shouko-san…”

“We said we’d meet them for ice cream.”  She was growing calmer in her resolve, so Aya let it go.  He nodded, and removed his arm so she could finish changing.  He wasn’t about to leave her alone, though, and Shouko was still shaken enough not to ask.

They left, Aya with his arm around her shoulders again, to protect her, and went to the car, which passed Aya’s inspection before they got in to drive to the ice cream parlor.

Shouko entered as her normal bouncy self, looking as if nothing had happened.  Aya watched, waiting for her to say something about the attack, but she didn’t, remaining decidedly silent on the subject.  He kept an eye on her throughout the whole dessert, wondering why he was wishing he could put his arms around her and protect her from everything forever.

Respecting Shouko’s wishes to keep the dressing room encounter a secret, Aya didn’t tell the rest of the Pinky Typhoon team.  It was, however, necessary to inform the other Weiss members, so he pulled them aside while exiting the parlor and told them in hushed tones as quickly as he could that there had been another attack.

The eight left to head home after an hour and a half of eating ice cream and carousing, to the relief of the rest of the place.

Aya and Shouko arrived home first, and he checked things over before leading her upstairs, insisting she needed sleep.  She seemed happy to drop her upbeat façade, and nodded, too exhausted to argue.

She was soon settled into her bed with Aya close by, keeping watch.  She rolled over to face him.

“Aya-san, thank you.”

His smile just managed to register before she drifted off.

Shouko was awoken what seemed like only a few minutes later by a commotion downstairs.

Aya had his hand on his katana, and glanced over when she sat up.  “Stay there,” he hissed, eyes darting around the room for anything out of the ordinary.  There were yells coming from downstairs.

Shouko nodded, still too tired to contradict him.

That was when it hit Aya.

“Get down!” he shouted, slashing at the curtains on the opposite side of the bed.

There was a yell, and a shadowy figure dashed out of the curtains, blood trailing after it, only to be struck down by Aya.

Shouko screamed and ducked under her covers.

Aya turned over the body and snorted.  “Careless.”  He turned to the door.

Ken, Omi and Youji were there.

“They’re gone,” Youji said, eyes on the man on the floor.  “I thought so.  They were just a distraction.”

“Figures.”  Aya turned back to the bed and spoke over his shoulder.  “Tell Norie-san to arrange a hotel for six for the rest of the night, and plane tickets tomorrow for eight.  And keep it quiet.”

Youji nodded, ushering the other two out.

Aya closed the door behind them.  “Shouko-san.”

She pulled her head up from the pillow she had latched to.  Her face was soaked, strands of pink hair plastered there.  Her eyes were bloodshot, and she hiccupped back a sob.

Aya’s expression softened, and he sat on the bed next to her.  “We’re going to leave.”

She nodded, adding in a tiny voice, “Hai.”

He hesitated for a moment before wrapping his arms around her and pulling her in.  She blinked in surprise and wrapped her own arms around his wider torso.  She let out a sob, breaking down completely.  Aya was silent, just holding her, while she cried.  “It’s going to be all right,” he said stiffly.

Shouko shook her head, and he looked down at her, eyes widening in shock as he noticed.

“Where…this blood, what…”

The sheets were soaked in it.

Aya jumped up, pulling Shouko with him.  There was a bullet wound in her shoulder.  “K’so,” he swore before raising his voice.  “Omi, call the hospital!  Youji, get the car!”

“Aya-sa…”  Shouko was unable to finish the word before falling over, out cold from the blood loss.

It was silent in the hospital waiting room.  Each member of the group kept their counsel to themselves.  The seven of them were spaced around the room; only Chiaki and Youji sat next to each other, Chiaki gripping his hand, his arm around her shoulder.

Aya was unable to look at any of them.  He knew they blamed him.  He could feel their eyes boring through his back as he stood leaning against the doorjamb.  How could they not?  He blamed himself; he knew he should have noticed sooner.

Haru spoke up once during the five hours they waited for Shouko to get out of surgery.  “It’s not your fault, Aya-san,” he had said, voice choked on tears.  It was unconvincing.  Aya wouldn’t have believed him, even if it was.

“Hn,” the redhead grunted, before going back to ignoring the rest of the group.

When Shouko got out of surgery, she was taken to a hospital room.  The group joined her.  Chiaki lasted only a few moments before declaring tearfully that she couldn’t stand it anymore, and left with Youji on her tail.  Ken left once to get drinks for the group, and came back with six.  He set Shouko’s at her bedside, although the doctors seemed hesitant to say when she might come to.  It was a depressing scene, five people tied together by the life of a sixth, which was spiraling towards another plane.

A week passed.  Six returned to their normal routines, albeit halfheartedly.  Aya, however, refused to leave.

The doctors insisted the policemen they had outside the room would be enough to guard Shouko, and Haru tried to make the Weiss leader return to the real world with him, but he would hear none of it.  He stayed by Shouko’s side, except to take care of certain bodily functions, and get food and fresh clothes.  He was never away for more than an hour.

Aya was coming back from one of his food excursions when he stopped.  He could hear talking behind the door.  He prepared himself before carefully opening it.  Whatever he had been expecting, he was not prepared for what he saw, and dropped his lunch.  “Shouko…”

She looked over.  “There’s nothing on te-“  She was cut off by Aya, who had jumped over the spilled lunch and was now pulling her to him in a tight embrace.  She squeaked.  “A-Aya-san…”

“I’m sorry,” he whispered.  “I’m sorry I let that happen to you.”

Chapter Three
Ran and Shouko

After a few minutes, Aya reluctantly let her go, and Shouko smiled at him.

“It’s not your fault.  If anything, it’s thanks to you I’m alive now.”  Aya actually began to tear up.  Shouko blinked in shock.  “N-nani?”

“I thought I was going to lose someone else…” He reached for a tissue and whipped his eyes.  He seemed fine afterwards, having overcome the sudden rush of emotion.

“Nani?” Shouko repeated.

“It…iie.  Another time.”

She knew better than to pry, instead smiling at him.  “Thank you,” she said.

“Iie, it’s my job,” he replied instantly, but paused after, watching her.

Noticing the look, she glanced out the window.  “Is that all?”

He didn’t answer at first, but when the answer finally came, it was just what Shouko had expected.  “Iie.”

She turned to face him.  “Aya-san-“

“Ran.”

“Nani?”

“My name.  It’s Ran.  Aya is…a nickname.”

Shouko blushed faintly and looked down, unable to make eye contact with him.  She was still smiling, albeit embarrassedly.  “Ran-san, then.”

He lifted her chin up, forcing her to make eye contact, and smiled faintly.  “Just Ran.”  They both knew what was coming, and Shouko went even redder as he leaned in.  Lips met.  Shouko closed her eyes.  She sighed when they drew apart.

“Thank you, Ran.”

Though Shouko could leave the hospital, Ran did not believe that it was safe for her at the penthouse.  They went home only to pack clothes before leaving for the airport, where Norie had booked a small jet for them.

As soon as they were sure all of Shouko’s luggage was on board-“You don’t need three outfits for every day we’re gone!”-the eight trooped onto the plane.

The flight was almost thirteen hours, most of which was passed with Pinky Typhoon practicing some new songs (Weiss and Norie were equipped with earplugs) and sleeping.  When Chiaki decided she was tired, and curled up in her seat to sleep, the others were forced to stop.  Haru curled up for his own nap next to Norie-it was after ten, and the others had already gone to “bed”.  Shouko was left the only one awake, reading, until she noticed Ran was not in his seat near the door.

She got up, curious to find him, and headed for the back.  He was sitting in the last, lone seat, staring out the window.

“Daijobu ka?”

He looked up, not in the least surprised.  “Fine,” he answered.

Shouko sat next to him, on the floor due to the lack of another seat, and rested her head on his knee.  He smiled faintly and put his hand on her head before looking out the window again.  Several minutes passed.

“Do you really think we’ll be safe out of Japan?”

He shrugged.  “For a while, anyways.  It’ll take them a few weeks to find us, longer if we succeed in keeping a low profile.”

More silence.  Shouko had no idea what to say to that.  She had been looking forward to her first vacation in America, but now the grim truth was beginning to uncover itself; this wasn’t a vacation, it was just a safety measure, an escape from the danger that tracked her every move at home in Tokyo.

She stood up, sighing, but Ran grabbed her hand to stop her.

“I won’t let them get you.”

She blushed, debating whether to hug him, or pull her hand away; this intense atmosphere was getting to be too much for her.  “I-I know-“

Someone burst out laughing.  Ran shot up, pulling Shouko behind him, katana out, only to relax and scowl.

“Haru!” Shouko growled.

“Oneesan’s all red!” the younger snickered, leaning over the back of the seat.

“Shut up, you little brat!”

He just kept laughing, stopping only to yelp when Ken yanked him into his seat.

Shouko sighed, and turned to go back to her own seat, but Ran grabbed her hand to stop her again.

“Stay,” he said stiffly.  “Stay with me, please.”

They got into San Francisco in the small hours of the morning, and checked into the hotel bleary eyed.  The next afternoon, they would have a car service pick them up and take them to the place they intended on staying long term, a large bungalow on the beach a bit south of the large California town.

With the help of three bellhops, they got all the luggage up to the room, and Chiaki and Norie-who were not morning people, even at eleven AM-to bed.  Shouko and Haru settled into the large bed they would share for the night, and Haru rested his head on his older sister’s shoulder.

“Ne, Oneesan…” he began with a yawn.

Shouko sighed.  She knew what was coming.  “What?”

“If you and Aya-san have a girl, name it after Okaasan.”  He drifted off to sleep, not even noticing Shouko fuming above him.

“It seems like Youji-kun and Chiaki-san would be more likely to do that.”  Omi smirked at Shouko from across the room.  She snorted, and rolled over.

Somehow, even with the weather, crowds of fans, and Chiaki and Norie’s morning attitudes against them, they managed to leave the hotel and get to the bungalow without a mishap.  They all got out of the cars feeling refreshed, even with the thunderclouds looming overhead.

It waited until they had everything inside to rain; a sign that luck was beginning to change in their favor.

Haru whipped out a deck of cards, and a stack of index cards once they were settled, and Chiaki was whining about how bored she was.

“Let’s play cards!”

Everyone agreed, though some parties were quite reluctant.

“What are the index cards for, Haru?”

He smirked, a wicked glint coming into his eyes.  “Whoever loses draws one and has to do whatever it says.”

The first hand commenced.  Omi lost and had to let Chiaki and Shouko dress him up like a girl.  Chiaki lost the next hand, and drew a card that said to French kiss the person next to her.  Haru face-faulted.

“Why did I put that card in there?”

Needless to say, of course, she chose Youji, seated to her left, purposely lost the next round, and spent the next several minutes sitting still while Haru, Shouko and Omi drew on her with permanent marker.

Ran lost the fourth hand.  He glared at Haru before picking up his penalty card.  “What is this supposed to be?”  He held it out.

Haru grinned as wide as his mouth would allow.  “Your penalty card, Aya-san.”

The others leaned in.

“Answer any five questions you’re asked,” Ken read aloud.

“Haru, that’s a good penalty!”

He grinned again.  “And it just so happens I have questions prepared.”

Ran narrowed his eyes and scowled at the younger man with all his might.  “You planned this.”

“You agreed to play, so you have to answer, Aya-kun,” Youji smirked at him.

“You’re all idiots,” the redhead snapped.

Haru shrugged, and went on with the questions.  “Is your hair color natural?”

He glared.  “Yes, and don’t even think about asking me to prove it.”

Haru held up his hands in a gesture of harmlessness, smiling innocently.  “Why do you scowl so much?”

“I’m surrounded by morons!”

“Hey!”

“Except Norie and Shouko.”  He paused.  “And Ken.”

Youji snorted.  “Guess he doesn’t like us now that we want to know his answers,” he said to Omi.  “Ken’s just smart enough not to show his interest.”

Haru waved a hand to go on with the next question.  “What’s your biggest fear?”

“To be stuck on a desert island with you,” Ran growled.

“Hey, you have to be truthful!”

“Next question, idiot.”

Haru put on a pout, but went on anyhow.  “All right, why are the bad guys after Oneesan?”

This sobered the atmosphere somewhat.

“Well?” Haru pressed when he didn’t get an answer.  “You’re the Weiss leader, you have to know.”

“I only know what I’m told, and I already told you all that,” Ran answered gruffly.

“But-“

Shouko put a hand on her brother’s shoulder.  “Let it go, Haru.”

He huffed a but, but finally moved on.  “All right, final question.”  He smirked.  “What were you and Oneesan doing on the plane while everyone else was asleep?”

“Wait a minute, they weren’t sleeping, too?” Chiaki cut in.

Haru shook his head.  “When I saw them they were practically about to kiss!” he crowed.

Ran scowled, and Shouko went red.

Youji grinned, leaning towards Ran to tease him.  “So did the ice prince finally get some?”

“Shut up.”

“Because it doesn’t seem like it…you’d be a lot less tense if you had.”

“I said, shut up.”

“So, I’ll take that as a no…too bad, I was going to congratulate you on getting laid by-“

“SHUT UP!”

Two hands hit the blonde full-force.

Shouko scowled at Chiaki.  “Your boyfriend’s a perv!”

“I know, that’s why I smacked him,” she replied, propping Youji up.

Norie put a hand on Shouko’s arm.  “Teasing idiots aside, we’d be happy for you and Aya-kun if you were an item,” she said with a smile.

Haru had the shame to look apologetic.  “I just want to know if my Oneesan’s finally going to have a boyfriend I can trust to take care of her.”

Omi nodded in agreement.  “And we’d all be supportive as long as you two were happy.”

Shouko blushed, looking down, and Ran, fairly pink, paused before putting an arm around her.

Haru grinned and cheered.  “I knew it, I knew it, I knew-“

THUNK.

Everyone stared, wide-eyed, as Haru went down.

“Omi-kun…kowai,” Shouko whispered.

“He had it coming,” Omi replied, bending over to pick up his book off of Haru’s face.

Norie smiled at Ran and Shouko, ignoring the others.  “So you two are an item…How cute.”

Shouko blushed more.  “Arrigatou.”

“So, what were you doing on the plane last night?”

The group of eight spent the next two weeks enjoying the sun, surf, sand, and each other’s company-to an extent. Days were spent lounging, swimming, building sandcastles, and trying not to be caught happing on the beach, lest one be buried by Ken and Haru, who seemed to be getting along very well.

By two weeks, however, they were mostly sick of it, and running out of food. When Chiaki got sick two days in a row and refused to eat sandwiches again, Ran declared it was time to go back to town, if only for a day or so.

Ran and Youji escorted Shouko and Chiaki into town the next day, leaving Ken, Haru, Omi and Norie to drive each other insane. The plan was to get Chiaki checked out by a doctor, spend the night in a hotel, and then go back to the bungalow the next day with supplies.

Chiaki made the other three wait outside when she was called in to see the doctor, and came out looking quite sobered.

“Chiaki?” Youji asked, looking worried.

Shouko put a hand on her friend’s shoulder as she passed.

The keyboardist opened her mouth a few times before finally succeeding in making some noise. “I’m pregnant.”

Shouko and Youji’s eyes went wide, Ran just snorted.

“You…Chiaki-chan, are you really?”

She nodded, though not seeming to believe it herself.

“That’s…ano…” Shouko couldn’t find anything to say, but luckily, Youji burst in for her.

“Wonderful!” He pulled Chiaki to him, hugging her, and kissed her cheek.

She still seemed dumbfounded about the whole thing. “Huh? You’re happy?”

“Of course I am.” He looked wounded. “I’m going to be a father.”

Chiaki face-faulted. “Some baby this is going to be, with an assassin/bodyguard playboy for a father, and the bad girl in a pop band for a mother.”

She seemed a bit more upbeat afterwards, however, and they left to head to the hotel, Youji fussing over Chiaki until she yelled at him to leave her alone.

Shouko turned on the television later to block out the noise from the room next to her and Ran’s; she had no intention of listening to those two make up.

Ran came out of the bathroom a few minutes later, dressed for bed, toweling his hair roughly to dry it. He raised an eyebrow at the television. “The Powerpuff Girls?”

Shouko gave him an innocent grin.

“Can you even understand it? They’re speaking English.”

“Bits and pieces here and there. Plus, it’s a rerun.” She patted the bed next to her, and he turned back to hang the towel up before joining her. “Can you believe them?” she said finally.

He snorted. “Youji’s a horny playboy; it was bound to happen sooner or later. If not with Chiaki, then some other flame.”

“Hn…” Shouko trailed off, nodding, and he raised an eyebrow at her again.

“What, don’t tell me you want one, too.”

She went red. “Iie! Not now, at least. Eventually, though.” She made a face. “And I’m not naming any daughter of mind after Okaasan.”

Ran chuckled, and she hugged him.

“Even if it is get away from assassins who want my head, I’m having fun here…”

He nodded. “Me, too.”

“And I…” She trailed off, trying to think of how to phrase what she wanted to say.

“Nani?”

“I think…I think I love you.”

Instead of blinking in surprise and just staring at her as Shouko fully expected him to do, Ran smiled, and leaned in to kiss her. “Me, too.”

“You-you do?”

He nodded, and Shouko practically latched onto him in a hug. Ran picked up the TV remote from where Shouko had dropped it, and switched the machine off.

They slept well that night, safe in each other’s arms.

Chapter Four
Schwartz

The four arrived home the next day to a disturbing sight; The four they had left behind were in the living room, tied up.

Shouko went to run forward and release them, but Ran threw an arm around her waist to hold her back.

“Don’t be an idiot!”

“Best listen to Fujimiya-kun.”

Several shadowy figures stepped into the light.

“Schwartz,” Ran growled under his breath. Shouko shrank back into him, realizing it was likely to be the end.

“Peace,” the leader said, holding up his hands. He smiled innocently. “We came to negotiate.”

“Then why tie up our friends?” Chiaki snapped.

“Ah, that was to keep them from attacking us.”

“Let them go, Crawford.” Ran was seething, holding Shouko to him. He looked ready to chew nails.

The American stepped towards the captive men and woman. “As long as you all promise not to attack until you hear us out.”

There was muffled swearing from Ken and Haru, but Norie kicked the latter, and there was a general consensus to at least listen to Schwartz. They were untied, and went to stand next to their fellows. Haru practically threw himself at Shouko and latched on like a five-year-old.

“You have five minutes. Start talking,” Ran declared.

Schwartz did manage to explain themselves, although Ran was still skeptical. Apparently, the entity that had hired Schwartz had gotten sick of their attempts to kill Shouko being foiled, and had put out a bounty on their head. Seeing the profitable path ahead, Crawford had taken his companions out of the country to follow Weiss and Pinky Typhoon. Now, they just wanted to stick around for a while.

“We’re not asking to be best friends, just to keep an eye on each other’s backs until they give up on Asano, or go down in flames,” as Crawford put it.

“Why the hell should we trust you after all you’ve done?” Ken snapped.

“We were just doing our jobs,” the American replied smoothly.

“And what’s in it for us if we agree? You’d have a clear shot at Shouko, and it seems to me like all we’d get was betrayed.” Ran hugged Shouko, glaring at the others.

“You know what they say about strength and numbers.” Crawford shrugged. “It’s really no big deal if you don’t agree, no skin off our noses. We can blend ourselves in well enough. But do know that they’ll have another team on Asano within the week.” Crawford smiled congenially, reminding Shouko of some movie villain. “Though, of course, we do have information you might find useful. Why they’re after a marginally successful pop star, for example.”

Ran looked to the other three. They were already watching him.

“It’s up to you, fearless leader,” Youji supplied before the redhead had a chance to ask.

“Hn.” He turned back to Schwartz. “You tell us why they’re after her, and you can sleep in the car.”

Crawford held back his strawberry-blonde teammate who swore several times in some European language. “Deal. I’m sure, in time, however, you’ll come to see we mean no harm.”

Ran snorted. “I’m sure. Now out with it.”

“Actually, I’m sure ojouchan can tell you herself.” He looked to Shouko, who went red.

“Don’t you think if I knew why assassins were after me, I would have done something about it?”

“That depends on if you made the connection or not.” Crawford chuckled at her blank look. “Very well, I’ll make it for you.” He pulled a photo out of his jacket pocket and held it out to her.

“Okaasan!” she gasped.

Crawford nodded. “She was in their hands for a while, but she committed suicide when she found out what they intended to do with her. Pity.” He gave the photo to Shouko, who was staring at him in shock. “She was a lovely woman, in personality as well as looks.” He held out a handkerchief to Shouko when he noticed her teary eyes. “Do you realize why they’re after you, now?”

Shouko ignored the handkerchief, instead turning her back to him. Ran folded her into himself and sent Crawford a glare.

“What would they want with Shouko’s mother?”

“Saa…” He paused. “Perhaps we could discuss this over tea?”

“Don’t push your luck,” Ken growled.

“Touchy, touchy…All right, then. I’ll explain. Asano’s mother wasn’t exactly human.”

“What?”

He smirked. “Asano Miori was a…heavenly being, what one might call an angel. From what I understand, as I had the chance to speak with her on several occasions, she was checking on something in our realm, and fell in love with a human. She was allowed to stay until his natural time expired….What?”

All of Weiss and Chiaki were staring at him. “Shouko’s an angel?”

“Half, as it were.” Crawford cleared his throat. “In any case, they are conducting some kind of experiment that required an angel’s power. I suspect this project has great destructive potential, thus explaining why Asano-san would rather have died than have any part in it. Unfortunately, they knew she had a daughter, and that that daughter had the potential to stop their project and avenge her mother. With Pinky Typhoon being a popular band, it only took so long to put two and two together.” He smiled at Shouko, an expression that was almost fatherly. “You look just like Asano-san.”

The pop star blushed, face still buried in Ran’s shirt. He hugged her. “Leave us be for a while.”

“You want to talk, I understand.” Crawford pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “We will explore the perimeter, then.” He motioned to his teammates, who followed him out.

Ran waited until they had been gone a few minutes to turn and face the others, pulling Shouko with him. “Well?”

“They did give us a good deal of information,” Omi piped up. “But they left out the name of the ones who hired them…and they didn’t seem to realize Haru and Shouko are siblings.”

“They might have,” Haru said quietly. “But powers don’t run as strong in males, much less male half-breeds.”

“You’re saying you knew about your mother being an angel?” Ken asked in disbelief. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

“It’s not exactly something you go around telling people unless you want to be thrown in a loony bin!”

They all stared at Shouko.

“Yeah, we knew!” she continued, taking advantage of the silence. “How could you not know, growing up with a mother like that! But she disappeared when Otousan died…” She trailed off.

“We just assumed she’d gone home,” Haru finished. “We never imagined she could have been kidnapped, held captive.”

Chiaki hugged Haru. “None of us could have imagined it, Haru.”

Ran nodded. “As much as I know all this information is a shock, we have to decide what to do about Schwartz.”

Haru bit his lip. “Um…I know this is a bad time to bring it up, but I can kind of sense what people are thinking.”

This caused everyone but his sister to start staring again, and he went red.

“Out with it.”

“I didn’t feel any deceit,” he offered.

Ran looked to the woman in his arms. “Shouko?”

She nodded. “Let them stay.”

Schwartz was allowed to sleep in the living room of the bungalow, as Haru was insistent that they were being honest. It was decided that the fact of Haru and Shouko’s relation would be kept a secret, in case Schwartz didn’t already know.

Though Shouko and Chiaki weren’t concerned in the least, Haru and Norie made a point to introduce themselves to the Schwartz members, though Haru was careful to skirt around Farfarello, the Italian who “looks like a psychopath”. Brad Crawford, the American leader, seemed content to ignore Haru and Norie almost completely, which was also just fine with them. Schuldich, the strawberry-blonde (who was, as it turned out, German) tried to hit on Norie (“Aw, how cute, he’s a German Youji!”), but was put off by Norie latching onto the youngest, Nagi, who was around Omi’s age. As Norie put it, “Wai, more cute boys to take care of!”, only she certainly didn’t mean cute the way Chiaki might have.

Nagi ignored the poor woman with all his might, but, being Norie, nothing deterred her.

Life at the bungalow continued much as usual for several days, until the day all twelve were awoken by Chiaki’s tripping over a sleeping member of Schwartz on the way to get a snack from the kitchen.

“It’s gotten very crowded around here,” Omi stated over breakfast, which they were all eating together for once.

“A few of us could stay at my house,” Crawford offered, gaining looks from the others. He smiled innocently. “My wife lives in LA.”

Back