Travis winked at Doc up on the control platform as he passed, made 
the cut-off motion for the outside mike pick-ups and headed for the 
east side of the little room and Tamanji as the soft murmur of 
conversations started back up between the Lab's crew.


	Hajime scowled in confusion as Travis and his chair disappeared from 
his sight. *Why had Travis said that? Was he really a possible ally or 
was he just playing mind games, trying to tighten his hold over them? 
But why would he need to do that? He had them all in an impossible 
situation and had intimated that he knew exactly what they were.* He 
rested his elbows on his knees, leaned his head into his hands and 
rubbed at his forehead, trying to focus his meandering thoughts. It 
was impossible to do at the moment. All he had where disjointed 
threads that refused to come together. He'd check Tsuzuku then have a 
cup of coffee and maybe by then, some of them would come together.

	Amaru stirred next to him, scowled and mumbled something in his sleep 
then curled into a tight knot. Hajime rested his hand on his brother's 
shoulder, felt how cool his skin was under his fingers. "It's all 
right, Amaru-kun. I'm here. You'll be O.K." He murmured soothingly as 
he reached down with his other hand and shook out the light blanket 
that was folded at the bottom of the cot and covered him. Amaru 
relaxed a little at his brother's touch and voice. "I'll be close, 
Amaru. You just sleep now." Hajime continued, then pushed himself up.

	He was pleased and relieved that his sense of balance was much 
improved as he crossed to Tsuzuku. He had feared for a while that it 
was caused by this damnable thing around his neck. Now he knew it was 
a side effect of the drugs and was wearing off. He carefully balanced 
on the edge of Tsuzuku's cot, reached across his chest to lift his 
hand and checked the monitor. It was green with the white lights 
blinking in a steady reassuring pace. He looked his second brother 
over, lifted the unbuttoned top of his shirt. Band aid at the base of 
his throat, the same as Amaru. He checked under it, just to make sure. 
A puncture wound surrounded by a raised welt. When the drugs wore off, 
would they heal as they should?

	He bent his arm around and ran his fingers over the sore spots on his 
back. He felt the square bumps of the bandages under his fingertips 
and winced as he put pressure on one of the wounds under them. He 
suddenly felt very vulnerable. He had come to rely on the gifts of his 
blood, the almost instantaneous healing of wounds and freedom from 
disease. Had their strength been affected also? He gripped the frame 
of the metal cot, squeezed, stopped when he felt it start to dimple 
under his fingers. No. At least they still had that. He glanced at 
Amaru. And their tough skins. Travis had said they'd had trouble 
getting an IV into Amaru.

	He rose, went to the sink and splashed some water on his face and 
dried with one of the towels, folded it neatly into lengthwise thirds 
and draped it over the facets then went to collect the tray.  His 
hands were steady as he poured the coffee into one of the cups even 
though his mind was in turmoil. How could he have been so stupid to 
assume that the house would be safe? His arrogance in the assumption 
that they could handle anything the Four Sister's threw at them had 
gotten them caught. He wasn't fit to lead his family. He should have 
taken them out of the country when he had the chance and hidden them 
away in some small nameless town in a vast country like America. Or 
better yet, surrendered himself and had Tsuzuku disappear with Owaru 
and Amaru.

	He leaned back against the clear wall, held the warm plastic mug 
between his hands. Owaru. He hoped he'd go to Shinkai and that their 
only true friend would keep him safe. And Matsuri-chan. Gods! She was 
so embroiled in this mess he didn't know what to do to ensure her 
safety. He might have failed in that task also. Why wasn't she with 
them? Did Travis have her in another part this place, holding her in 
reserve like a trump card? He wouldn't even consider the other 
possibility his mind whispered. She couldn't be dead. Not his Matsuri.

	He realized that he was in love with her when he was nineteen to her 
fourteen, that he had been ever since they were children and she'd 
come and coax him away from his books with those big brown eyes full 
of mischief to play with her and Tsuzuku. He watched her mature with a 
hope that had gone unfulfilled. Now at eighteen she was a woman and he 
still hadn't detected what he had been waiting for. The realization 
that she wasn't for him had been devastating, but he had dealt with it 
the best he could. He had tried for a while to push her away, but 
couldn't do it. He needed her quick laugh and gentle warmth. So he had 
buried his feelings and accepted her as what she was. His cousin. 	

	That train of thought fled when Tsuzuku moved suddenly, pushed 
himself up onto one elbow as he rolled off the cot and collapsed into 
a huddle on the floor with a little groan. Hajime was at his side in a 
flash.

	"Tsuzuku?"

	"Hajime, I think I'm going to be sick." Tsuzuku whispered in a small 
voice.

	"It's O.K." Hajime assured him as he quickly helped him up and half 
supported, half drug him to the toilet. He soaked the towel in cold 
water and wrung it out as his brother emptied his stomach.

	"Here, Tsuzuku." Hajime knelt next to him, pressed the damp towel 
into his hands then steadied and supported him, his anger flaring 
again as Tsuzuku's body shuddered with small tremors as he leaned 
against him.

	He waited in silence for a few minutes while Tsuzuku pressed his face 
into the coolness of the towel, keeping his eye on the wrist monitor. 
When the shudders had  stopped he asked. "Are you O.K.?"

	Tsuzuku nodded, lifted his head from the towel. "I think so." He gave 
Hajime as small smile. "That was certainly a new experience. I'll have 
to remember to write it down in my diary when we get home. Is Amaru 
all right?" He asked with concern as he saw their little brother's 
form on the cot close to him.

	"Yes. He's going to be all right. He had a bad reaction to the drugs 
they used on us, but he's O.K. now."

	"You're sure?" Tsuzuku questioned as he studied Amaru's still shape.

	"No, I'm not sure." Hajime snapped, then closed his eyes in remorse 
as Tsuzuku looked at him in shocked surprise. "I'm sorry, brother. I'm 
not...feeling well either. But that's no excuse. I apologize."

	"Hajime-kun." Tsuzuku's pause held his own apology and understanding. 
"So, where are we?"

	"In trouble." Was Hajime's terse reply.

	"Ah. I see. Can you be a little more specific?"

	"Somewhere in the United States."

	"Wonderful. I've always wanted to travel." He said with soft sarcasm 
as he started to try to struggle to his feet. "I had just hoped to do 
so awake." He gave Hajime a brave smile.

	Hajime helped him up, grabbed him as Tsuzuku listed to almost 
forty-five degrees with a hissed "Nani?!", kept him steady with an arm 
around his waist as he led him back to his cot.

	"The dizziness and nausea are an after effect of the drugs. They'll 
pass." He assured his brother as he let him down, sat beside him.

	Tsuzuku reached up to touch the bandage at his throat, looked to 
Hajime's, then frowned, his fingers moving to the collar that was 
around his own neck.

	"They said they are neural scramblers. We all have one. It's why 
you're feeling a little muddled."

	Tsuzuku narrowed his eye's in fury, ready to tear it off. Hajime 
captured his hands in both of his own. "No. Leave it for the time 
being."

	"Why?" Tsuzuku growled at him.

	"We have to cooperate with them for the moment. If we don't, we'll be 
separated." He said it in a calm normal tone, then leaned close and 
whispered in his brothers ear. "I don't want that to happen yet. Not 
until I know that Amaru is all right and more about our captors. Maybe 
later it will serve our purposes, but now, just do what they ask." 
Hajime released his hands.

	"I don't like it." Tsuzuku frowned, referring to both the collar and 
Hajime's command.

	"Me either, brother." Hajime squeezed his shoulder, thankful that 
Tsuzuku would listen to reason.

	"Owaru-kun and Matsuri-chan?" Tsuzuku asked as he probed at the wound 
at his throat.

	"I don't know." There was something in his brother's tone that 
focused Tsuzuku's attention. Something had happened to one of them. 
Matsuri. It had to be. Owaru hadn't been home.

	"What happened, Hajime-kun?"

	"Matsuri-chan took the first dart meant for me. I didn't get to check 
to see if she was all right." His brother's eyes filled with shame and 
anger and fear.

	"Is she here?" Tsuzuku asked.

	"I don't know." Hajime growled back, his voice full of frustration 
and an anguish only Tsuzuku detected.

	"Hajime-kun, it was a drugged dart, not a bullet. I'm sure she's 
O.K." Tsuzuku soothed. He'd never seen his brother quite this close to 
the edge of loosing his composure. It unnerved him and frightened him 
a little. Hajime was always the rock that kept the rest of them 
anchored. That he was on such a short fuse meant they were in big 
trouble.

	"Why hasn't this healed?" He wondered out loud, trying to move 
Hajime's thoughts onto something else.

	"Something to do with the drugs and the collar. They say it's done 
something to our healing abilities. Amaru's got a pressure bandage on 
one of his arms because they had problems getting an IV in him."

	"An IV? Why?"

	Hajime was just starting to answer when a Travis' voice interrupted. 
"Tsuzuku-san. If you are finished with that towel, please give it to 
your brother."

	They both focused on the man who moved into their line of sight. He 
waited as Hajime stood, held out his hand for the towel. Tsuzuku 
handed it to him as he studied the man in the chair through the clear 
wall.

	"This is Travis. He's one of our captors." Hajime informed him 
coolly.

	Travis made a little half bow and gave a wry smile. "Please put it by 
the door, Ryudo-sama then go stand at the head of Amaru's cot. 
Tsuzuku-san, since you are still a little wobbly, you may stay were 
you are. But please stay there. I assume your brother has informed you 
of the consequences of any hasty actions?"

	Tsuzuku nodded, worked on keeping his anger hidden as Hajime did as 
he was bidden. The outside doors slid open and a beautiful dark haired 
woman stepped through with a tray. He stiffened and whispered, 
"Nani?!" in shock as his mind dredged up why she looked so familiar as 
she bent over, placed the tray inside the second set of doors then 
raised her head and locked her eyes on his own.

	"Do I remind you of someone, Tsuzuku-kun?" She purred in a low 
throaty voice.

	"Tamanji." Travis' didn't raise his voice yet it was full of unspoken 
command and Hajime could see the anger dancing in his eyes.

	Tamanji gave Tsuzuku a strangely sensuous smile that made the fine 
hairs on the back of his neck stand up as she picked up the towel, 
never taking her eyes off of his own as she backed out.

	Travis followed her out with his eyes, closed them for a second when 
the doors slid shut and hid her from their sight. When he reopened 
them, there was no trace of anger in them. "I recommend you drink some 
of that tea, Tsuzuku-san. It will help settle your stomach. You should 
consider is also, Ryudo-sama. Then when either of you are ready, do 
eat. It's rather bland, but what our physician recommends. If you are 
still hungry, we'll get you something more. Anything else?"

	"Yes." Hajime said moving from the corner and coming to stand in 
front of him, arms crossed.

	Travis looked up at him expectantly.

	"Where are Owaru and Toba Matsuri?"

	"We missed Owaru. I assume he's home safe and sound. Our main 
contract was for one Ryudo dragon. The rest of you are bonus money." 
He said it in an apologetic tone and with a shrug. "Toba Matsuri was 
hit in the right shoulder with a dart holding the dosage for you, 
Ryudo-sama. It should have only made her sleep for about twenty-four 
hours straight and shouldn't have caused her any harm. She was fine 
when my people left." That last part was an outright lie, but he knew 
it was what they wanted to hear and he had been scrupulous in telling 
the truth on everything else except the incident with Amaru and he had 
mixed that with enough fact, just as he had done now, for it to be 
believable. They had no reason to doubt him. If someone hadn't 
discovered Matsuri Toba within an hour after the Dragon Ops had left, 
she was dead.

	He smiled at the looks of relief that appeared on both of his 
captive's faces. And something more in Hajime's eyes that confirmed a 
suspicion that he had formed as he had studied this oldest Ryudo. He 
chided himself mentally, reminded himself to next time heed his 
instincts. But then again, he didn't really need her to keep them 
under control. "Is there anything else?"

	Hajime looked over his shoulder at Tsuzuku who gave him a little 
shrug, focused on Travis again. "No."

	Travis turned his chair, was almost past the wall when Hajime called 
to him softly, "Domo arigato, Travis-san."

	"It is the least I can do, Ryudo-sama." Travis whispered back with 
out turning or slowing down, so softly Hajime almost didn't hear him.

	Hajime turned, went to the tray and poured a cup of the warm tea for 
Tsuzuku and himself, handed one to his brother as he sat next to him 
on the cot.

	"Do you trust him, Hajime?" Tsuzuku asked as he blew across the 
surface of the tea, trying to convince his stomach that it was a good 
idea to put something in it.

	"I don't know." Hajime answered with a half-smile, his eyes 
reflecting the confusion and trouble of his thoughts that his voice 
did not. He leaned close, spoke softly.

	"Did you notice his eye's, Tsuzuku?"

	Tsuzuku nodded. "You think he's like the Old Man?" He winced inwardly 
at the quiver of fear that accompanied his question. no Gozen had 
terrified him.

	Amaru had been screaming in pain. Tsuzuku could hear his human voice 
under the bellows of the Dragon as it echoed up from the chasm that 
his fall had created. The Old Man was on him before he could 
react...gods, he had been so fast, so strong...then the roar of the 
gun, he had seen the bullet exit the Old Man's forehead and no Gozen 
had fallen away. He had been so relieved, then horrified as no Gozen 
laughed, pushed himself up and stood to face them. He wanted their 
Blood to mingle with what he had stolen from the Dragon woman he had 
killed at Dragon Springs, had explained his demented plans as his body 
warped and mutated before Tsuzuku's eyes.

	Hajime had tried to take him, no Gozen knocked him away with ease, 
sent him flying backwards twenty feet to slam up hard against the jeep 
that held Matsuri and Lieutenant Mizuchi. Gods, he was lying so 
still...Owaru turned to run to Hajime and he put himself between his 
brother's and this hideous mutation of a Dragon, launched himself at 
no Gozen, hoping to buy his brother's time to get away.

	no Gozen simply caught his strike, grabbed his throat with one hand 
and sank his fangs into his upper arm, then started to suck. He tired 
to scream but couldn't get any air as the Old Man squeezed. It felt 
like his blood was turning to ice in his veins. He reached in panic 
for his unique powers which he had buried under years of the fear of 
discovery and the hatred he knew would follow, went beyond panic into 
soul numbing terror when he couldn't tap into them as no Gozen pulled 
the power and magic out of him with his blood.

	Owaru was running towards them, yelling in fury...gods no, Owaru! 
Stay away!

	"Amaru-kun!" Both he and the Dragon that slept inside him managed a 
pleading whisper around the hand that was keeping the air away from 
his lungs.

	"Tsuzuku!" Hajime called firmly as his brother's eye's went wide and 
grabbed the cup as it started to slide from his nerveless fingers.

	"Hai!" Tsuzuku jerked a little as Hajime's voice brought him back to 
the here and now.

	"Are you O.K.?" He asked quieter, his voice full of concern as he 
looked to his brother's wrist monitor. It was still green but the 
heart light was racing and respiration light was fast.

	"I...yes." Tsuzuku leaned forwards, put his face in his hands and 
took a few deep breaths, waited for his heart to slow down.

	"What happened?" Hajime asked softly.

	"Just a bad memory." Tsuzuku said from behind his hands.

	"Here." Hajime gave Tsuzuku's shoulder a squeeze offering what 
comfort he could as he offered the cup again, feeling helpless and 
hating it. "You should drink this, Tsuzuku-kun."

	Tsuzuku lifted his head, looked at the cup. "No thank-you, 
Hajime-kun. I have no desire to repeat that particular experience." He 
managed a wry smile, rubbed absentmindedly at his right arm.

	Kamadura no Gozen. That had been Tsuzuku's bad memory. He knew his 
brother was still haunted by that encounter as he himself was. 
Tsuzuku's physical scars where gone but the mental ones were still 
tender.

	"I'm not sure if he is or not, Tsuzuku. But I suspect so. Be very 
cautious around him." Hajime warned as he bent over and put the cups 
on the floor.

	"You think the chair is an act? To put us off our guard?" Tsuzuku 
asked.

	Hajime gave a tight smile. He hadn't even considered that 
possibility, and he should have. He thought about it for a moment, 
then shook his head. "No. He seems too comfortable with it. But why 
would he need it if he's drunk Dragon's Blood? Maybe I'm just 
over-reacting."

	"I doubt it, Elder Brother." Tsuzuku sighed. "But it doesn't make 
much sense. Is there anything else I should know?"

	"Travis intimated that he knows exactly what we are." Hajime frowned 
as those treads started to come together. "That The Four Sisters 
don't and that they do not have the drugs that Travis used to take us 
out or the ability to contain us." He touched the collar around this 
throat. Travis must believe that these would slow them down, but not 
hold them if they got determined. But why would Travis have access to 
drugs that The Four Sisters wouldn't? Or be so confident in his 
abilities to contain them and total belief that The Four Sisters could 
not? He blinked. "Other dragons." He whispered.

	"Nani?!" Tsuzuku questioned back in a startled voice.

	"Sssh. Keep it down. It has to be. There are other people with Dragon 
blood here. And strong Blood, like ours. How else could they have 
snuck up on us so easily?"

	Tsuzuku nodded. It did make sense.

	"Do what they ask, Tsuzuku-kun. Don't resist in any fashion. We'll 
use this time to get ready to escape when The Four Sisters take us and 
we can't afford to be separated or drugged into a stupor when they do. 
Do you agree?"

	"Hai, Eldest Brother." Tsuzuku answered firmly, hope coming into his 
eyes.

	They both looked to the doors as the outer ones separated and a 
strongly built older man with stepped through, a white case in his 
left hand. Hajime glanced at the clear wall as the man moved to the 
second doors and wondered where Travis was.

	The man stepped through, pointed at Hajime, then over to the cot he 
had wakened on as the doors closed behind him. For a moment Tsuzuku 
thought Hajime would go against the advise he'd just given, then his 
brother rose and went to sit on his cot.

	*Another test of our obedience. Plus a show of their confidence in 
their control over us.* Hajime growled mentally as he kept a close eye 
on the man as he went to Tsuzuku, knelt next to him, his back to 
Hajime as he put the box on the floor and opened the catches.

	Tsuzuku tried to relax as the man knelt next to him, his anxious 
tension threatening the uneasy truce he had with his stomach. He 
didn't understand why it was still so rebellious. There was nothing 
left in there to complain about. Was this man a Dragon like himself? 
How did one tell? The man nodded at him, his eyes full of caution, 
reached out slowly to place the fingers of his left hand on the 
underside of Tsuzuku's right wrist.

	*Why doesn't he just check the wrist monitor?* Hajime wondered as he 
assumed the man was going to take Tsuzuku's pulse.