Hajime rose and headed out for the porch. He had seen Jasmine and 
Tsuzuku go down the steps several minutes ago and felt the need to go 
and keep an eye on things. With Jasmine's short temper sparks just might 
erupt. He went and leaned against the rail and 'felt' for his brother. 
He was off to the left. He could hear the Detective's angry voice 
faintly from an open upstairs window. He closed his eyes and sighed. Why 
did it seem that the lives of everyone they came into contact with was 
destroyed? When he wandered down the hall he had heard Shinkai-sempai's 
frustration from behind the den door. Both men were on phones and trying 
to find out what remained of the lives and resources they had left 
behind in Japan. The only one of them that didn't seem to give a damn 
was the Lieutenant. And he could see nothing but more hardships coming. 
Yet all three seemed determined to stay with them. Once again the need 
to get to Dragon Springs came to the fore of his thoughts.

	He had sifted through the information waiting for him on the computer 
and it hadn't been very helpful. He knew the answers to all his 
questions were at that secluded place in China. But he had no way to get 
them there! They had no money, no passports. Well, he had one way to get 
there, but it was a method of last resort. Maybe Tita-san would be able 
to help with this. He just felt like they had already abused her 
hospitality to the utmost. Yet he had come to the conclusion that he had 
no other choice but to ask her. Perhaps he could leave Tsuzuku and his 
younger brothers here under Tita and the Orders protection and go by 
himself.

	He heard the screen and turned enough to see Matsuri come towards him. 
She flashed him a smile as she came and stood beside him and leaned 
also.

	"Are you all right, Hajime-san?" She finally asked after a minute or 
two of companionable silence.

	"Yes, Matsuri-chan. I am all right. Are you?"

	She smiled and nodded.

	"I'm sorry you got dragged into this. You should be at home getting 
ready for school to start and doing young lady things. I imagine your 
father is cursing me non-stop."

	Matsuri shrugged. "I told you that if you ever left Japan, Hajime-san, 
I wouldn't be left behind. Didn't you believe me?" Her voice held a 
teasing tone. "And besides, my father has been cursing you non-stop long 
before this."

	That brought a chuckle. That was very true. She laughed gently along 
with him for a moment.

	"What's so amusing?" Tita asked as she came to join them.

	"Nothing important, Tita-san." Matsuri answered her.

	Tita came and stood at his other side and looked off in the direction 
that Tsuzuku and Jasmine where. The screen opened again and Elenora came 
to jump up on the rail beside Matsuri and swing her legs over to kick in 
the space over the drop.

	Hajime got the feeling they were all waiting for something. He tensed 
when he felt the brush of Tsuzuku's power and was getting ready to go 
over the rail when Tita put her hand on his arm.

	"Wait, Hajime-san."

	The red glow crowned the tree tops. Gods! Where they under attack? He 
was going to give us all away! Why was Tita taking this so calmly? He 
heard Elenora giggle as a golden shimmer overtook and contained the red. 
Then with a wink both lights and the sense of power was gone.

	"Way to go, Sis!" Elenora laughed out as Amaru and Owaru stormed onto 
the porch.

	"What's wrong? Where's Tsuzuku?" They demanded.

	"It's all right, Brothers." Hajime hoped that the darkness hid his  
embarrassed blush. He should have known!

	"Tsuzuku felt...wierd!" Amaru put his hands on his hips and stared at 
his oldest brother.

	*Oh, Gods!* This was something he hadn't expected at all! "It's nothing 
to worry about, Amaru-kun. Tsuzuku is fine."

	"He didn't feel fine! He felt 'weird'!" Amaru was heading for the 
stairs determined to go and check on his brother for himself.

	Hajime reached out and grabbed his shoulder as Matsuri came to the 
rescue.

	"Amaru-kun," she put her hands on his shoulders and turned him around, 
"there is nothing wrong with Tsuzuku. He and Jasmine were just, together 
and he was very happy. O.K?"

	"Aaay. They did it, huh?" Owaru whispered to Elenora with a wink as 
Hajime and Matsuri headed Amaru off.

	Amaru frowned at Matsuri then said very seriously, "They had sex?"

	Matsuri blushed furiously and nodded 'yes' as Owaru tried to muffle his 
laugh behind his hands. Hajime just shook his head.

	"Oh. That's O.K. then." Amaru smiled at Matsuri then scowled at the 
expression on Hajime's face. "I am not a baby, Elder Brother!"

	"No, you are not, Amaru." It was hard not to reach out and ruffle his 
youngest brother's hair. "I forget that sometimes."

	Amaru gave an almost regal nod and a pleased smile.

	Tita cleared her throat. "Well, I'm going to go and create something 
very decadent and very chocolate. Anybody care to join me?"

	Amaru and Owaru both gave an enthused 'Hai!"

	Amaru paused and put his hands on his hips, a miniature version of his 
oldest brother for a moment, as Elenora turned and jumped lightly back 
to the deck.

	"Forest fire. You are very ecchi for a little girl!" He shook his head 
sadly then turned to follow Owaru in.

	Elenora stood and blinked, stunned. She looked at Matsuri who just 
shrugged.

	"Well, you are." Hajime kept his tone light and teasing even though he 
agreed whole-heatedly with his youngest brothers evaluation. And he 
didn't approve of it at all.

	Elenora looked down for a moment and seemed chastised. She walked 
slowly toward the screen door then turned and raised her head. It was 
his turn to stand and blink in surprise as something very old regarded 
him out of her twelve year old eyes.

	"Who ever said I was a little girl, Ryudo-san?"

	"El! Where is the ice-cream scooper?" Tita's voice came from inside the 
house.

	"Coming Aunt!" Elenora called back and whatever it was he thought he 
had seen was gone as the little girl gave him an impish grin then 
skipped into the house.

	"Come on, Hajime!" Matsuri beckoned as she started to follow.

	"In a minute, Matsuri-chan."

	"All right. But don't be mad if those three bottomless pits eat it all 
before you come in!" She teased.

	He gave her a smile then turned back to lean on the rail and sighed 
into the night. He just wasn't sure what to make of Elenora. Well, maybe 
he would understand her better as he got more of a chance to be around 
her. Owaru and Matsuri both adored her and that was good enough. He 
reminded himself to tell Matsuri he liked her new perfume. It was very 
subtle. He hadn't even really been aware of it until she left and he 
realized that the delicate scent he had figured for some night blooming 
flower was gone.  He turned his thoughts to more serious things. Like 
the best way to approach Tita-san for help. Shinkai and Nijikawa's 
voices joined the muted conversation that floated through the screen. He 
decided he had found the right words and would ask in the morning as all 
three men came out onto the porch for a smoke, Shinkai and Nijikawa both 
grumbling and sympathizing with each other as the Lieutenant made 
soothing sounds.


						*****


		They lay cuddled together, hearts still pounding in time with each 
other. She kissed the hollow of his throat as he rested his cheek on the 
silk of her hair. The actual reality of their pairing had been beyond 
his wildest expectation! Far surpassing his first dream of her and 
totally eclipsing the thing Tamanji had done to him. He hugged her 
closer, loved the way her skin was like cool satin against his own. She 
made a happy little sound that was almost a purr. He hadn't been her 
first and that caused a spark of jealousy to flare in him. But she was 
his now and he would make certain that she would never feel the need to 
wander again.

	"Are you cold, Jasmine-chan?" He worried. She was so cool against him.

	She shook her head. "No. You are a very warm person, Dragon-sama."

	He chuckled softly as he realized that was going to be her personal pet 
name for him.

	"What?" She asked softly at his amusement.

	"Dragon-sama. It is just is a little...strange."

	"Why? It's what you are." She tipped her head enough to kiss the end of 
his chin.

	He sighed, too happy and contented to argue that with her and resigned 
himself to her nickname. He luxuriated in their cuddle a while longer 
then realized he had almost drifted off.

	"Jasmine-chan? Do you want to go in?"

	"um..." her voice was slow and sleepy. "...no. Right here is just fine. 
Do you?"

	"No. Right here is just fine." He echoed her and smiled softly down and 
watched her face relax into sleep. He followed soon after.

	His heat and uneven breathing jerked her out of sleep. She propped 
herself up and felt a little flutter of alarm at the distress on his 
face. Was he having a nightmare?

	She put her hand on his chest and called to him gently. "Tsuzuku-kun?"

	He shook his head from side to side and muttered 'no' as a red glow 
started around him and stung against her skin.

	"Tsuzuku-kun!" She said it firmly and gave him a shake.

	His eyes snapped open, unfocused and for a moment glazed white with 
power. "Amaru-kun!" He gasped out as he pushed himself up. He seemed 
confused for a moment as he looked at her, then awareness of the here 
and now came back into his eyes.

	"I've got to go. Something is wrong." He rose in a fast fluid motion 
and reached for his pants. Jasmine nodded and handed him his shirt and 
then his shoes. He seemed torn for a moment between answering his 
brother's call and his desire to stay with her.

	"Go on. I'll be up in a minute." She shooed at him with an 
understanding smile. He gave her a relieved nod, leaned down to give her 
a fast kiss on the forehead then was gone with a rustle of leaves.


						*****

		Amaru rose on the wind until the he was above the moonlight fantasy of 
the clouds. It was so beautiful and so perfect! A whisper voice called 
to him but he ignored it. He wanted to stay here and just watch the 
changing flow of the water vapor. Another voice joined the first. Then 
another and another and another so fast that it had evolved from a the 
soft sibilant sound into a thundering keen full of pain and terror 
before he had realized it! He screamed and tried to dive back to the 
ground but the voices pulled him across the sky.

	Then he struggled frantically to stay in the sky as the voices dragged 
him down through boiling and lightning-filled clouds. Then he saw as he 
hovered over the village. Oh Gods! He wanted to close his eyes against 
the nightmare forms and the dying but he could not! They beat against 
him like the laughter of the creatures that were wreaking such 
devastation and slaughter below. And the voices became one overwhelming 
cry of 'help us, Dragon Kings!' He tried, but found nothing to answer 
his reach for power. He was nothing more than a dream here! But a dream 
he couldn't wake up from!

	"Hajime!" He shrieked in panic.

	Amaru's whimper brought Hajime instantly out of his sleep. He pushed 
himself up onto one elbow and rubbed at his eyes as he tried to see his 
youngest brother on the bed next to him.

	"Ama..." he started then his night widened eyes were blinded by the 
aura of white power that crackled around his brother. He squinted and 
winced in pain as his forced his eyes to see. Amaru was hovering a half 
meter off the bed, every muscle stiff and contracted, his head was 
thrown back and his mouth open in a silent scream.

	"Gods!" Hajime flew off his own bed as he heard Amaru scream his name 
in his mind.

	He wrapped his arms around Amaru's chest intending to pull him down 
into his lap but instead was pulled into Amaru's nightmare with a 
stomach wrenching swirl of speed. The scene that was spinning out in 
slow motion beneath him made brought the sour taste of sickness into the 
back of his throat. And the voices! Gods! The voices! They pled and 
screamed in fury and terror for help. His help. He tried as Amaru had to 
bring his power into being and groaned out loud in helpless frustrated 
fury as nothing answered. He grabbed his brother and willed them back 
and awake.

	Amaru felt Hajime next to him as the nightmare got even worse. Those 
Gyushu, he knew suddenly that was who and what they were, had taken out 
the dangerous ones and were starting to play with the weaker 
inhabitants. Hajime grabbed him and then with a painful jolt he was back 
in the bedroom. He wrapped his arms around his eldest brother's neck and 
clung fiercely as he trembled with dry-eyed, shocked horror.