Monster Squad

Nauroth sat in the uncomfortable booth of the small and nearly empty coffee house that Ran had taken him to. /Why are we in a place like this? There are too many people here to be discussing past events./

\"You look uncomfortable, N-Nauroth.\" Aya had difficulty saying the name. There were still tears in his eyes, but none of them were shed as they continued to sit in silence among the clatter of dishes and whir of coffee machines.

\"This place seems too public for the road of nostalgia that we are about to travel,\" the dark vampire replied.

\"I\'d take you to my apartment, but that hardly seems fitting. Do you have someplace more suitable in mind?\" Aya settled his amethyst eyes on the purple-black of Nauroth.

\"No, I\'ve not been here long enough to know more than three places.\"

\"Only three? Here, OZ and where else?\"

\"Your apartment.\"

Aya\'s eyes narrowed in suspicion. \"What were you doing there?\"

\"My master was watching a battle, while I was watching you.\" Nauroth\'s eyes dropped to the wood tabletop. His clasped hands released one another, and he bared his scared forearm to Aya. \"What do you know of this?\"

Aya\'s eyes dropped to the arm, and he glanced back up at Nauroth\'s face. Sighing, he bared his own arm. \"What do you think of this?\" he asked quietly.

Nauroth stared at the identical scar on the other\'s arm. Emotions he\'d never felt before assaulted his mind, and his heart. Fear boiled to the top, and he shifted his stare to Aya\'s unguarded face. What he saw there was an undying affection, one that rocked his heart and what little soul he may have had trapped deep within his body. Images of a life long since past flew through his mind, and he had no choice but to sift through them. One in particular caught his attention. It was one of him, making love a beautiful redheaded boy. Love swelled through him, garbling the memory just enough to make it feel complete. Seeing the boy\'s face, he gasped.

\"It was you!\" Nauroth hissed. \"You were the one that I . . . I . . . ,\" he was unable to finish.

\"That you what?\" Aya asked softly.

\"I killed you,\" the other whispered.

\"You loved me.\"

\"But to take your humanity . . . I am beyond sorry,\" the darker one murmured.

\"You can\'t change the past, Jushin.\"

\"Jushin. No one has called me that in years. How - how have you been, Ran?\" Nauroth took Aya\'s hand in his and squeezed it gently.

\"I thought you were dead.\" Aya\'s breath hitched slightly. \"It took me awhile, but I moved on. It didn\'t keep me from missing you though. To outlive your sire is a miserable thing.\"

\"Yes, it is indeed,\" Nauroth paused, a flicker of something past fleeting from his memories. \"Is there somewhere else we can go? A rooftop, anything?\"

Nodding, Aya stood and edged his way out of the booth. Heading to the door, he stopped briefly as a pink-haired boy that reminded him of Omi burst through the entrance. His blonde lover sauntered in coolly after him, adjusting his glasses ever so slightly. The blonde glanced over Aya, but a call from his boy pulled him away.
Blinking at the familiar face of the man, Aya led the way to the roof of the building. Nauroth following closely behind. They sat close together on the edge of the roof that overlooked the alley.

\"Thank you, Ran. I feel much more comfortable here.\" Nauroth glanced at the redhead out of the corner of his eyes. \"If you don\'t mind my asking, why a human?\"

Aya visibly twitched at the question. \"I could ask you the same,\" he said shortly.

\"Ran, please forgive my bluntness. I am worried about you. The last time I saw you was the last I thought I\'d ever see of you. The men we ran into that night, they weren\'t just slayers. They were vampires. They\'re a clan bound by their blood to kill all other vampires. They feel they are the hands of their gods, doing what the greater beings wish. I\'m so glad that you got away.\"

\"I hated myself for leaving you there.\"

\"I know. I\'ve been looking for you ever since I escaped. All I had was the memory of your face, and your hair. As I got closer to finding you, more and more of my memories returned. And downstairs, just a few moments ago, I finally remembered what had been eluding me for centuries. You are my child, my former lover, and my eternal friend. There is nothing that I will not do to keep you safe.\" He edged closer to Aya, hoping that his former lover could find it in his heart to believe him.

Aya turned and threw his arms around Nauroth. \"I still love you,\" he whispered. He pulled himself into his sire\'s lap and truly cried for the first time since he had thought he lost the man holding him.

~~~~~~~~
An army of undead marched through the small village as it lurched on its way toward Hydbourne Palace, which lay on the farthest coast of the western kingdom. Tsunami watched as his warriors met the mass of rotting bodies with torrents of raging water and falls of boiling hot rain. His soldiers were far enough away from the other army that he could only see one way to eliminate the current threat. Turning to his magi, the blue-haired god nodded. As the four readied their spells, another wave of water crashed against the oncoming monsters. Finally, four deadly bolts of lightning struck the ground in the center of the black mass. Electricity surged through the water and everything touching it, shorting out all of the bodies that had been pulled from their graves. The undead fell like dominos, one pushing the next deep into the mud. Sighing, the Water Lord looked up to the clearing skies.

In the east, Sirocco was fairing no better. The beasts that he faced were much more cunning and nimble than the bodies that lurched about in their unbidden torpor. The bloodsuckers were feeding off his men and several had managed to enter Windring Castle. Strange that such things could breathe at the altitude where only he could. Below him, the children of his kingdom were fighting valiantly against the beasts upon the Stardust Crags. Terrible screams wrenched their way through the battle cries and clawed at his ears. Sending his voice on the wind, Sirocco ordered his troops to prepare for the tornado he set down in the middle of the battle.

The north was still silent. Amor sat quietly on the throne of her sister, watching all that she could through the advisor\'s reflecting bowl. Taking a moment to search through the south for Blaze, she did not find him. Mortals were seeping into the heartland, but she cared not for butchering them. The generals in the south were having difficulty with the man-beasts that had flooded them just days ago. Considering sending a regiment to help them, she smacked the bowl aside. The silvery liquid inside spilled across the stone floor, running straight for her toes. Her mage uttered a spell of protection, but was too late as the liquid slipped through the pores of Amor\'s skin, freezing her heart.

\"Bring me Ko-ishi\'s sword,\" she ordered.

~~~~~~~
Ken woke to darkness, which didn\'t surprise him. Never once had he woken to a blindingly bright room. There were others in the room with him, the strange smelling guy and someone he\'d never met before. A flicker of light lit the far end of the room, a match. The soft glow of light grew as a candle\'s wick was set aflame. A door opened somewhere to his right, and a spicy scent of mandarin orange invaded the room. This one Ken recognized. He knew who it was that had him now.

Another candle was lit, and the two men holding them walked over to Ken. Long golden brown hair fell over him, shielding the light. Ken squirmed against the restraints he felt around his wrists and ankles. Feeling them give a little, he tugged harder.

\"If ya\'d hold on one damned second I\'ll get those things off ya,\" a tenor said in American accented Japanese.

Ken stilled and the manacles were removed. He sat up slowly, but doubled over in pain as he did so. His ribs were broken, but bandaged, and his back felt as though it had been snapped then stapled back together. Then the nausea came. Falling to his side, he puked his guts out. There was a mutter of disgust in Chinese, then he was lifted away from the offending splatter.

\"Are you sure it\'s ok to move him?\" the American asked.

A snort, then \"Yes, he\'ll be fine. Won\'t you, dunpeal?\"

Ken\'s eyes widened. They knew what he was. He swallowed rather audibly, then set to focusing his eyes on the face of the man who carried him. The man did not appear to be more than a boy in the dark, but then he didn\'t appear more than that in the light either. He remembered the Chinese vampire that had attacked Aya-kun. But he wondered if the other remembered him. Nothing pointed to any recognition on the behalf of the man who carried Ken.

The Japanese assassin shifted his gaze to the other slowly, the aphasic movement affording him the steadiness of his gorge. The American, it seemed, was a bishounen to the nines. Ken had thought Yohji to be the perfect blend of masculinity and feminine wiles, but he had to admit that this long-haired beauty may have had his lover beat. Sensing the scrutiny, the American turned indigo-violet eyes on him. Ken\'s breath caught in his throat. He\'d never expected anyone to have eyes so similar to Aya-kun\'s. Swallowing again, Siberian closed his eyes and rested against his transport. Weary and hurting like hell, he prayed that sleep would claim him sometime soon. These captors didn\'t have the feel of enemies. His prayers were answered, and he barely registered the soft sheets that he was gently deposited in.

Wufei looked down at the half-breed with a strange look in his eyes. Glancing up at Duo, he smiled. \"I don\'t think Heero is going to like any of this one bit,\" he murmured thickly.

\"Heero can suck himself,\" the Deathscythe pilot said, shrugging. He tugged the curtains of the room open, and furrowed his brow as the vampire in the bed grimaced. Closing the blinds a little ways, he hoped their guest wouldn\'t have any difficulties when he woke.

\"And the other?\" Wufei was asking. He sidestepped the vomit on the floor and nudged at the god with the toe of his shoe.

\"Heero said something along the lines of \'this motherfukker nearly killed me, don\'t get near him.\' So I am thinkin\' that it\'s not a safe thing to just leave him there like that. Maybe we should put those witch-cuffs on him?\"Again, Duo shrugged.

\"We\'d better, if he did indeed get Yuy in a piss-ass mood. Then we can take some more time to ourselves.\" Wufei could practically feel Duo\'s leer through the darkness. He was glad the idea pleased the other pilot so. Reaching down, he bound the god\'s ankles while Duo bound his wrists.

The two walked through the safehouse, curious as to where their leader could be. They found him pulling on some dirty jeans and a black jacket. Wufei nodded and walked past, as Duo sidled up to the stony pilot and pestered him with questions.

\"I\'m going for supplies. Quatre missed some stuff this time.\" And then he was gone.

\"Well, the nearest shop is several tens of miles away,\" Duo murmured. He smiled graciously as Wufei\'s facades fell and he bolted with a childish squeal into the bedroom that they had decided to share, yet unbeknownst to the other pilots.

There was a small window of time where Duo lazily made his way to their door, stripping off his clothes as he went. He leaned against the doorframe, his chestnut locks spilling over him. Wufei sat on the elegant four poster with a wide-eyed look of appreciation. Duo\'s lithe body was just as the Shen-long pilot had imagined. Lean and wanton.

Wufei had just crawled off the bed when a downstairs door slammed shut. \"Sounds like he\'s back,\" the Chinese man whispered.

\"So?\" Duo smiled and stepped into the room, closing and locking the door behind him. Not that it would do any good if Heero really wanted to come in. Waltzing over to the semi-shocked vampire before him, Duo smiled and gave him a languorous kiss. Sliding his hands into the long coat of the white gi, he untied the belt that held the baggy white pants in place.

Wufei grunted as the cool air brushed against his skin, then stepped back toward the bed. He felt Duo smile against the kiss and grinned himself.
~~~~~~~~
Blaze moaned as he rolled over. The room smelt of regurgitated something, and he was sore from the position in which they\'d manacled him. Tearing his eyelids apart, he found that he was in a dimly lit bedroom that looked to have once been a dungeon of sorts. Nearest the door was a night stand with low-burning candle on it. Gazing around, he found that an ornate daybed was tucked into a corner, complete with a person sleeping in it. Another candle was burning beside the bed. From what he could see through the blinds, Blaze could make out trees and deep gray storm clouds. His arms ached, and he couldn\'t sit with his hands tied behind his back and to his ankles. Bending farther back that his restraints forced him, the fire god slipped his hands around his feet and wriggled about until his knees slipped through his arms. Sitting up, he scooted back against a wall and watched the figure on the bed. He toyed with the idea of melting both the candles, but felt too drained of energy to do even that. Feeling like more sleep was a good option, Blaze carefully leaned his head against the wall and dozed.

A soft moan caught his attention a few hours later, as the figure in the bed moved. It sat up, and Blaze took a moment to analyze it. It was one of the mortals from the apartment complex he had been at earlier that day. The slender one with dark brown hair and blue-green eyes. The man grumbled something under his breath and leaned over to blow out the dying candle. Groaning again, he leaned against the wall.

\"Do you think you could open the blinds a bit, for some light?\" Blaze asked quietly.
The other man jumped, seemingly unaware that Blaze was in the room with him. \"If my eyes can stand it,\" he muttered. He got wobbly to his feet, and reached for the turn-stick on the blinds. Soft grey light poured in through the tiny slits, and the man stopped.

\"Is this enough?\" he asked.

\"Yes, thank you.\" There was a brief pause. \"Did they knock you unconscious too?\"

\"I was attacked by some kinda animal. Big red tiger, I think. Got thrown against a tree, and woke up here, with one helluva concussion.\"

\"I see.\" Another pause. \"My name is Blaze.\"

\"Hidaka Ken.\"

\"Well, Hidaka, it seems that we are in a similar situation.\"

Ken looked over at Blaze, his teal eyes shining. \"What were you doing at my apartment this morning?\" he asked.

\"Looking for my lover. She\'s seemed to have taken up residence with you.\"

\"Lover? You aren\'t Khushrenada, so do you really want with her?\"

\"I take it there are others looking for her.\"

Ken didn\'t respond. A wave of nausea rolled over him and he groaned. \"I\'m going back
to sleep,\" he muttered.

~~~~~~~
Heero walked through the front door of the safehouse, this time carrying a bag of first-aid supplies and some WD-40. He paused briefly to listen for any evidence that Quatre and Trowa might have come back while he was shopping, but heard nothing that suggested they had. Putting the supplies under the first floor bathroom sink, he headed up to his room to lie down. As he approached his room, raunchy sounds echoed down the hall. Maybe Quatre and Trowa had come back after all.

\"OH GODS!!\"

Heero stopped, and cocked an eyebrow. The cries were coming from Wufei\'s room? If Treize was here, then the whole mission would be compromised. /Dammit Wufei!/ Heero turned the doorknob. It was locked. Pressing his pinky finger to the tiny hole in the doorknob, a tiny lock-pick burst through his skin. A half turn to the left and the lock clicked into its \'unlocked\' position. The door opened silently, and Heero peeked at what lay beyond. On the bed were two figures, steadfastly locked in the throes of passion. Duo he recognized immediately, but why would his lover be in Wufei\'s room?

Heero\'s eyes narrowed as he realized just who Duo was in the room with. Sliding into the room, he closed the door silently and stood in a corner as he watched the two on the bed. Wufei arched against the mattress, mewling in bliss as Duo thrust violently into him. Duo, whose long chestnut hair was dark with sweat and plastered to his sleekly muscled back. Duo, whose violet eyes were squeezed shut with pleasure. Duo, whose perfect buttocks were marked by the hand prints of the Chinese pilot beneath him. Duo, who had copper toned legs wrapped around his waist. Duo, who was kissing Wufei with untamed passions. Duo, who belonged to Heero.

Heero stood in silence, a grim expression on his face even as his body reacted to Duo\'s hand on Wufei\'s erection. Wufei\'s sable eyes flew open, and his mouth latched onto one of Duo\'s pert nipples. The other pilot groaned loudly, and cradled Wufei\'s head against his chest with his free arm. Normally, they would have fallen into the bed, but Duo\'s unnatural balance held them in place as they rocked to and fro. Wufei\'s tongue slid out of his mouth, licking up the other\'s neck and then claiming his mouth. Heero noticed Duo\'s hand tighten around Wufei\'s thick cock, and the Chinese man came as he howled Duo\'s name. The copper body stiffed, and Duo began chanting his name, or at least the first syllable of it. The American came, thrusting a few last times, and groaned as he collapsed atop the other. They laid there, slowly recovering from the star-bursts of heaven running through their bodies.

As they began making conscious movements, Heero cleared his throat. Both men froze. Duo cautiously turned to face him, a grin of expectance on his face. Wufei huddled around Duo\'s side, as if he were trying to protect his lover and himself at the same time. He eyed Heero warily, then placed a possessive hand on Duo\'s back.

\"Is there a mission?\" Duo asked as if Heero had walked in on him washing his socks.

\"No, but I\'d like to have a moment with Wufei if you don\'t mind.\" Heero\'s voice was the standard flat, and his eyes betrayed nothing. Duo didn\'t move. \"I\'m not going to kill him or hurt him in any way. But I do need to speak with him.\"

Duo silently rose and looked at Wufei. The Chinese boy nodded, and the American left. Wufei pulled the sheet over his hips and locked eyes with Heero. He was tense, and it was clear to Heero that the other did not trust him.

\"Wufei, I am perfectly willing to share him with you, but that\'s not what I want to talk about.\"

\"What? You aren\'t going to threaten my life for sleeping with your lover?\"

\"We\'ll be a happy threesome, Wu-man!\" Duo shouted through the door.
Heero and Wufei both brought their hands to their foreheads in annoyance. Recovering first, Heero asked, \"Is this alright with you?\"

Wufei glanced at Heero then the door. \"Does he get a say in this?\"

\"Oh alright, we\'ll discuss this first then the new hunter.\" Heero opened the door to find Duo crouching next to it. He jumped up and kissed the Wing pilot enthusiastically, bowling him to the floor. Heero responded to the kiss, and then pushed him away for a slight moment as he gestured to Wufei to join them. Wufei slid from the bed to the floor, and Heero pulled the other against him. Duo\'s eyes implored Wufei to try and be somewhat receptive to Heero. Wufei gingerly turned to lick Heero\'s jaw, then found his mouth under a full out assault. Wufei pulled away gasping for breath, and Heero snickered.

\"Well, now that we\'re all agreed on this. Can I please ask you about the new hunter in Treize\'s arsenal?\" Heero muttered.

\"New hunter?\" his lovers chorused.

\"Nevermind.\"
~~~~~~~~~~~~
\"Kenken!\"

\"Ken-kun! Where are you!\"
\"
Kenken! C\'mon babe!\"

Ken woke to the arguably loud voices of his companions on his com-link. Groaning, he rolled over, which took him off the edge of the bed, and landed with a thud. Muttering to himself in Laric, he fumbled for his com in the now bright light.

\"Yoh-tan? Koi? Is that you?\" he mumbled into the device.

\"Ken-kun! You\'re ok!\" Omi squawked.

\"Yeah, calm down kid. I\'m fine, \'cept for a few slight bruises and a nasty headache.\"

\"Where are you Ken?\" Yohji asked.

\"Uhm, about halfway up the road after Kofu to Shirane-san. I left the Hachi-Roku there.
Don\'t bother coming for me. Stay there so you can take care of Hikaru. Ok?\"

\"Ken, you\'re not telling us something,\" Yohji said sternly.

\"That guy you\'re looking for is here, Omi. Tell Aya as soon as he gets back.\" Ken turned off his link and lay on the floor, emotionally exhausted. Staring up at the ceiling, he remembered that Blaze was in the same room. Turning his head, he saw that the other was sitting where he had been last, still sleeping. Grumbling, Ken rolled onto his stomach, got on all fours, and scrawled over to the redhead.
Blaze was breathing softly, but his face was constricted in pain. Ken glanced over the bindings on the god, shaking his head. There was no way he could get the magic-hampering rings of steel off him without ripping off his hands and feet. If he were a full vampire, on the other hand, there would be no such dilemma. Checking the other over for any wounds, he found none that were particularly life threatening. A few bruises and cuts, nothing that wouldn\'t heal in a few day\'s time. Ken smiled lightly, glad to have company in this predicament, even if company was the enemy. Settling beside Blaze, he waited for the other to wake.

~~~~~~~~
Zechs walked through the streets of Tokyo without the slightest inkling of where he was going. The nearest place that he could even register as being a rendezvous point for Aya was miles away. Sighing to himself, he stopped at a red light. A coffee shop was across the street, and he decided that if anything could help him clear his mind, it would be a tall iced chai latte. Moving with the crowd as the light turned green, he smiled lightly as he realized that it was Aya\'s favorite coffee house. Maybe this day would take a turn for the better.

Zechs slid into the shop, ordered his chai, and sat in a corner booth with his back to the wall. Silently, he watched the people inside. There was an über-genki pink-haired kid talking animatedly to a stoic blond that reminded him terribly of Aya.

\"Yuki!\" the boy was saying, \"Why don\'t you ever listen to what I am telling you? Hiro and Ryuichi are gonna kill me if I don\'t get this down! You\'re a writer, help me out.\"
The blond looked at the boy and said something that vaguely looked like \"you\'re annoying\" as he took a swig of his drink. The boy continued talking, and the blond nodded every so often.

Grinning a bit, Zechs looked around again. A man with thick orange-ish hair had just walked in, saying something about how he hated florists. The man who followed wore a crisp khaki suit and looked as if he had just come from work. He didn\'t look like a likely match to the redhead, who was wearing a cropped t-shirt and tight, worn jeans. He pushed his sunglasses atop his head and surveyed the shop. His green eyes fell on Zechs, and his face brightened. Turning to his ebony-haired, bespectacled companion, he whispered something in his ear. The other turned to Zechs, pinning him with an even, midnight blue gaze. He shrugged and ordered. The redhead sauntered over, his lean abs moving seductively.

\"Mind if we join you?\" he asked in German. Startled, Zechs shook his head. \"I noticed you\'re all alone today. Where\'s your friend? The redhead?\"

\"I don\'t know,\" Zechs murmured. \"Why do you ask?\" He narrowed his eyes and watched the other carefully. The man leaned back as if to show Zechs that there was plenty that he couldn\'t see, but it was available for a price. The dark haired man slid into the booth then, settling two tall cappuccinos onto the tabletop.

\"Would you stop harassing him?\" he muttered in perfect English.

\"I\'m not harassing him,\" the redhead snapped in German.

\"Can we all pick a language and stick to it?\" Zechs asked in quiet English.

\"Sure, we can, can\'t we Bradley?\" the redhead said in a sing-song voice. /He\'s more comfortable with Japanese than anything else. So we\'ll manage, ok? Mein Mann./
Explicit businessman that he was, Brad Crawford nodded curtly. Leaning against the booth-back, he crossed his legs and regarded Zechs coolly. A brief quirk of his lips crossed his otherwise unmoving countenance.

\"I hope my lover hasn\'t scared the life out of you?\" he said in flawless Japanese. \"I\'m Crawford, and this is Christian. Pleased to make your acquaintance.\"

\"I take it you are regulars here?\" Zechs asked. \"I\'m Zechs, by the way.\"

\"German, yes?\" Schuldich said, stretching languidly over the plastic covered booth.

\"Not quite. Would you mind answering my question, Crawford?\"

\"Yes, we\'re in here often. Chris, here, decided that you needed some company today, since you\'re usually not alone.\"

\"I see,\" Zechs muttered, taking a sip of his chai. \"Well, he\'s not available today. He ran into an old friend earlier today.\"

\"Oh? You don\'t sound to thrilled,\" Schuldich murmured.

\"I don\'t think that\'s any of our business, Christian,\" Crawford said, an edge of warning in his voice. \"Leave such things alone.\"

Zechs shook his head. \"No worries, Crawford. There\'s more to it than meets the eye, and Christian just pointed that out.\" He caught a flash of red out the window. Aya was walking away from the shop with Nauroth.

\"If you\'d excuse me a moment, I have a call to make.\" Zechs pulled out his phone and quickly punched in Aya\'s number. Outside, he saw Aya and Nauroth stop.

\"Hello,\" Aya said.

\"Moshimoshi, koi. Why don\'t you and your friend come into the shop and have some coffee with me? I\'ve met a couple that you might find interesting.\"

\"Roku? What are you doing here?\"

\"I needed some time to myself, and I think that time is over. Come on in.\"

\"Ok.\" Aya hung up. Smiling, Zechs did the same.

\"I hope you don\'t mind some more company?\" he asked with a grin.

\"No, not at all,\" Schu said, winking at the dark-haired man.

Aya and Nauroth entered the building again, a moment later. Aya\'s eyes narrowed as he approached, and this wasn\'t lost on Zechs. A flirty mask covered Aya\'s pretty face as he came within spitting distance, and he slid into the booth with a hot kiss to Zechs. Nauroth followed in silence, eyeing the new faces. There was something he didn\'t like about them. As Schuldich brushed his mind, Nauroth knew exactly what he didn\'t like about the two men sitting in front of him. Throwing up his psychic defenses, he glared at the long haired man. No slayer was going to take advantage of him in his own mind.

\"Hey there, gorgeous,\" Aya murmured. \"Didn\'t think I\'d see you today.\" He slid his arm around Zechs\' shoulders and looked lazily over the other two. They were members of Schwartz, and they were most definitely the enemy. No force on earth could make him leave his lover in the company of his most vile enemies.

\"Mmm, me either. What\'s up? I saw you at work, but then you ran into your friend here.\" Zechs smiled sweetly.

\"Oh yeah. Babe, this is Nauroth. I knew him in Germany. In fact, he taught me the language,\" Aya said brightly.

\"Hey,\" Nauroth said. \"Nice to meet ya, Zechs. I\'ve heard a lot about you.\"

\"You know, babe, we\'re about to catch dinner. You wanna come along?\"

\"Only if Nauroth doesn\'t mind. I mean, I don\'t want to intrude on your catch up time. I\'ve got plenty to keep me occupied here.\" Zechs smiled.

\"Oh no,\" Nauroth began. \"You\'re as welcome as I am. I\'d like to get to know you better. Especially after some of the things Aya has told me.\"

\"Alright, where you headed?\" Zechs murmured.

\"Probably Takuzaki\'s, is that ok?\" Aya said.

\"Well, then, we\'ll be on our way. Don\'t want to hinder your date,\"Schuldich said, running his mind across Aya\'s as briefly as possible. A flash of anger smacked him in the central cortex, and he started. Apparently, their cover had been blown. Yes, it was indeed time for them to leave. /Let\'s go Brad. They know./

Brad nodded curtly and edged his way out of the booth. \"It was nice to meet you Zechs. Perhaps we could talk again another time?\" he said, for normality\'s sake. He looped an arm through Schuldich\'s, and they walked out of the shop.

\"What was all of that about?\" Zechs asked, slightly confused.

\"They\'re slayers,\" Aya whispered. \"Well,\" he said more loudly. \"Shall we go to dinner?\"

\"Why not?\" Nauroth asked, his dark eyes skimming over the people in the shop with obvious hunger.