Rituke Family, I Have Some News...

Mamoru sighed, slowly materializing on the front steps of the Rituke household. That familiar wind energy would sweep through the house, gently awaking each of the Rituke family. It was well past midnight, but there was a message for each of them, spoken in Mamoru's slight accent and lilting tones of a court gentleman.

"At the front steps, meet me. I have news of the greatest importance. Maze, Aura, Mana... Awake. Una, Yoko... You'd better come, too."

Yawning cutely, Mana fell out of bed with a thump.

"Yeowie~!!"

She muttered, rubbing the back of her head. She slipped her feet into a pair of fuzzy pink slippers, her purple gown falling around her like a rippling pool. Slowly, she peeked out the door, curious as to who the voice she had heard belonged to.

"Hello~?"

She called quietly, pausing for only a moment before slipping out into the dark corridor. Her slippers made slight shuffling sounds as she skipped through the halls, and toward the front door. Looking over her shoulder, she smiled, then opened the front door to see a man there, silhouetted under the moonlight.

"Who're you, mister~? I'm Mana!!"

Smiling, Mamoru bowed slightly,

"It's been awhile, Milady Mana. You were only a baby when I saw you last. I am Mamoru, your Mother's Soul Partner."

His dark hair fell over his grey eyes before he straightened, adjusting the chains that made up his belt, and the leather vest that covered his torso.

Maze slowly awaking from the soft like whisper in his ear. He reached over to his bed stand and grabbed his glasses putting them on his face. He slipped out of bed and out of his room. Hearing the sound of conversation going on between two very familiar voices echoing off the walls. He followed it and found his daughter standing on the stoop.

"Mana what are you doing it's way past your-"

Maze stopped mid sentence noticing Mamoru standing there with her. Maze hadn't seen him since......the death of his partner and Maze's wife.

"Mamoru...."

Una and Yoko emerged from a portal of darkness both in there PJ's rubbing there sleepy eyes. They walked over toward Maze and stood at his side.

^Being the extremely lite sleeper that she was Aura awoke quite quickly hearing the whisper as well as all the moving going on in the house. She arose from her bed and made her way to were all the noise was coming from only to find her whole family out on the front porch.^

What's going on?

^She said walking over to her Father and clinging to his arm. She noticed the strange man. But she had a deep feeling that she had meet him before.^

Mamoru turned when Maze, Una and Yoko appeared, smiling as he also spotted Aura. He swept into a low bow, facing them.

"Maze, Una, Yoko, Aura... A pleasure to see you once more."

He seemed perfectly composed, even though he was now the center of attention. He watched as Mana slowly returned to her father's side, then began,

"Recently, I've been feeling something, something within my soul. It's a tug, almost. I know what it is, too. Lady Sadako is alive; her Soul calls to mine."

He paused, letting this sink in. Seeing the change that was no doubt in the family's eyes, he smiled, though a little sadly,

"I've felt this before, a long time ago. Usually, when one's Soul is calling for it's Partner, the pull is much stronger than this. It leaves me to think that Sadako is a great distance away, separated from us by not only just earth, but a dimension or two as well.

"Maze, you know that Sadako couldn't take her ring along with her. It was returned to you, correct? You then know that it will be impossible for you to locate her. It is also possible that she doesn't want to be found... At least, by you. But..."

His gaze softened, falling upon Aura and Mana,

"There is nothing that says that she would not want to see either of her children again. So I offer them a choice; to come with me and live with their mother, or stay here with you. They could use Sadako's ring to communicate with you, Maze, so please don't try to sway their decisions. I'm not going to take them away from you completely.

"But whatever your choice, I must go soon, less this feeling should fade. I'd like for the girls to make their decisions. Aura, Mana... What say you?"

"....Huh?"

Mana blinked, clinging to Daddy's other arm. She wasn't exactly shy, but more unsure. She hadn't felt unsure like this before. Looking up to Daddy, she looked for any sign of change in his demeanor.

"I... So, you mean, if we go with Uncle Mamoru, we get to see Mommy?"

She thought about this for a moment. When she thought about Mommy (Which she did often) she saw blue hair and blue eyes, and black feathery wings. She also saw a face that was quite like her own. She knew for a fact that her eyes were the same shape as Mommy's, and she had the same nose, and lips. But the rest of her memory was fuzzy. She didn't want to remember how Mommy's face had been all bloody, and her cheek bruised.

"Daddy... Can I go?"

She asked, her eyes wide. She really loved her Daddy, loved him oh so much... But she thought of Mommy everyday. Mommy was in her dreams... She couldn't think of anyone she wanted to meet more than her Mommy.

"Daddy, I love you... But I wanna see Mommy again. I never got to really meet her... If we use Mommy's ring to talk to you and stuff, it'll be okay, right~?"

^The news of all this was extremely shocking. Aura learned that her mother was still alive and that this man could take her to her......But....her father. Aura looked up at her dad still clinging to his arm and for the first time she saw a frown on his face.^

"Mana..."

Maze stood there clenching his fists and for the first time he had a look of hate on his face.

"Just who the HELL do you think you are...?!"

Una placed her on Maze's shoulder and looked up to him with a worried expression. "Maze?". Maze ignored touch and slowly started walking down the steps on the front porch brushing his daughters as wells as Una off of him.

"You dare try to come here from after disappearing to tell me some lie about my wife still being alive and try to take my daughters away from me?!"

Maze stopped but only a few feet away from Mamoru staring him down with cold glare. Yoko slowly floated her way toward Maze's side. Since she was a part of Maze she knew how he was feeling and what he was thinking....since she also felt the same way.

"Maze."

Mamoru was calm, sighing softly. He knew that his story was hard to believe. It had been hard for him to accept, after all. That's why it had taken him so long to acknowledge that Sadako was even out there still. This was going to be hard for Maze to understand, but he had to.

"Watch your language around the children."

His tone was even, staring Maze down, though his gaze softened slightly.

"But look at me. Look me in the eye and tell me I am lying. Tell me that your wife is dead. Tell me that you could never possibly believe that Sadako, a daughter of a goddess, a BirdWoman, could not have found a way to be reborn. Tell me that, Maze, though I am not going to believe you."

Taking a step toward Maze without hesitation, he continued.

"You have known me as long as you have Sadako, remember? I am practically your brother-in-law, Maze. I have never lied to you, and I do not intend to start now."

"Be that as it may?"

The image of Maze in everyone's view would began to fade as Maze would reappear right in front of Mamoru. Maze right in his face looked into Mamoru eyes his geass active and working. Instantly all knowledge and back ground of Mamoru flooded into Maze's brain thou he didn't care about all of it he just wanted the knowledge on his wife. His facilely expression slowly became unsettling as he walked back to the porch and sat down on the stoop. He buried his face into his hands tears starting to flow out. He had learned that what Mamoru was telling was no lie and that Sado was still alive.

"Sh....she's...she is alive.."

A little nervous about Maze's eyes shifting as they did, Mamoru didn't show it. Instead, he turned his attention to both Aura and Mana. They were, no doubt, confused about this whole thing. Seeing their father like this wasn't likely to help. However, after the geass deduced all that was needed, Mamoru's voice grew a little softer, knowing how hard this was for Maze.

"As I said. I would never lie to you."

"D-daddy...?"

Mana's voice wobbled a little as a few tears sprung to her eyes. At first, Daddy was being all scary, but now... He was really, really sad, and it was making her sad too! She was a little scared, too, clutching the crystal that had been made into a necklace. Now wasn't the time to admire it's sparkly-ness, and the cold stone held no comfort for her now. She felt like she was gonna cry...

"Wh-why're you... Crying..?"

As she said it, a few tears of her own began to overflow, trailing down her cheeks. She seemed almost her true age then, young, innocent... And feeling oh-so helpless.

"Dad...?"

<:Aura just stood there...looking on at her family. Her father broke down crying, her sister joining him. She.....she was scared, scared of what might happen. She struggled not to cry but it seemed that her eyes......were dry.:>

"Girls...girls come here.."

Maze pulled his girls close huddling all of them together. This all was just to much, but he just wasn't gonna let this girls go. He would make it their choice.

"Listen....listen to me ok? Mamoru was and is a great friend to your mother. I trust him with my life and he says that he can take you two to your mother."

Maze's eyes started to water again. He knew that it would be hard to understand that somehow their mother was still alive, but he was more worried that they might leave.

Salty tears were still trailing down her cheeks, but Mana blinked furiously, wiping at her eyes. She didn't wanna bawl like a little baby! Daddy seemed okay now, and so there was no reason for her to be all like that.

"Daddy, will we be able to come back?"

Her voice was still all trembly, and her bottom lip jutted out in a sort of pout. She wouldn't let herself cry anymore, though.

Mamoru sighed, turning away for a moment. He felt as if he were intruding on a personal moment... One which he didn't feel a part of in the slightest. Sadako had been his tie to this family, and she was far off at the moment. He felt the tug in his soul once more; she had said his name! Possibly, she could need him... But he couldn't go yet. He had only one ticket to get there, and Sadako's daughters were something that he couldn't return for.

His eyes were a tad sad as he glanced back at Maze... He hadn't told him the whole truth of what he had felt. Sadako... Had been in love. In fact, from what she could gather, there were two already, and she already had enough trouble deciding between them. He couldn't bring Maze back and cause drama like that...

"Mana... If you take your mother's ring, you will be able to."

He watched with a half smile as Mana's wide eyes turned to him, paying him mind, thank goodness.

Mommy's ring? Didn't Daddy keep that somewhere? Along with the other sparkly one that Daddy said was Mommy's too.

"Really? Daddy! What if I take Mommy's ring, then bring us all back?!"

Mana was grinning ear to ear... Ah, innocence.

Mamoru was about to tell Mana how that wasn't possible, that her mother was pretty well settled where she was, and wouldn't want to come back... But the words died on his lips. He couldn't. Something... Didn't seem right in that. Sadako was unsettled... Filled with rage, actually. No, now it was an overwhelming sadness. What in the world was going on? His eyes were glazed over, seeming to be very far away indeed. The five pairs of eyes from the Rituke family were riveted on him, but right now, he was paying much more attention to Sadako, then anyone.

He could feel that time flowed differently where-ever Sadako was, seeming to pass by more quickly then here on Vescrutia.

'Why couldn't I have just died peacefully?'

That was Sadako's voice!

Moved on, like everyone thinks you will? Why does my past seem to haunt me so? It seems to be a reoccurring theme in this second life of mine. Will I ever know the reason? Or maybe... Maybe this is my own personal Hell. Maybe I'm damned.

Ha... Certainly seems fitting. Daughter of an insane Goddess, driven so by the curse that her blood bestowed upon her. Maybe this is my part of that curse...

It's just not fair. Not right... Did I do something to deserve this? If I did, I'm sorry... For whoever's listening, I'm sorry. I try my best, I really do. I don't mean for this to happen...

Only a few seconds had passed, but Mamoru gasped,

"Sadako..."

He said softly, then closed his eyes once more, seeming to be concentrating quite intensely...

... "Elijah..."

She whispered his name, far too quietly for him to hear. Lowering her gaze, the rain slowly stopped. She had heard his outburst. Was he really thinking about her again? This was just unfair. She had to choose. Now.

"Sadako!"

Elijah bolted from the bench upon which he sat, and practically flew across the ash-covered field towards her. Without warning he pulled her close in a tight embrace. "I know you may not like this, but I had to hold you at least one more time." If he could, he would stay like this with her forever.

Still looking out over the rolling hills, she could practically feel the annoyance surging off him in waves. He longed for the answer... He needed it. A tiny bit of of ash had smudged her cheek, but she didn't seem to mind at all. Her sapphire gaze returned to him, betraying none of her emotions. Just an ocean of eerie calm, reflecting in their twin depths.

"Maze lost his entire family when he was seven. His entire village, in fact, was destroyed on his birthday. Not a single soul was saved. Everything he knew as a child... Gone. Do you have any idea what that would be like? It's a very good thing that his Soul Partner, Una, found him, else it's likely he never would have made it. And, no matter how much you might mumble that things would have been better if he hadn't made it, the fact of the matter is that without him, I would still be that child I was, living in the wilds of Vescrutia, running away from all my problems. I wouldn't be who I am today."

She stopped there, searching his face for a moment. She wondered if he understood anything she was saying at that moment, and what assumptions he was making... He would just have to make them.

"That is what I wanted you to understand."

Elijah didn't want to understand Maze's situation and his important role in Sadako's development. Right now, all he wanted was her answer, but she didn't seem to keen on telling her decision anytime soon. He was going to have to rip the answer from her...

Quickly, he brought both his hands against her temples, and began sending electrical tendrils into her body in an effort gain control of her nervous system.

Mamoru snapped back, his breath hissing from him. It had been about a minute since he had zoned out.

"Maze, I'm sorry. I'll be back as soon as I can! I give you my word!"

His usually calm demeanor was shattered, and there seemed to be a bit of panic to him. A quick burst of wind retrieved Sadako's wedding band as Mamoru took hold of Mana's hand. The little girl looked up at the Soul Weapon curiously, and he gave her a little half-smile.

"We're going to help your Mother."

And with a swirling of winds around the two, they were gone in a huge burst of chakra, likely enough to make anyone standing stumble. T'was unexpected, of course.

Where the two had once stood, there was nothing but a patch of slightly charred earth.

"Mana....Sado."

* For the first time in a long time Maze felt helpless. This was all out of his power and nothing he could of done but wait like he was. Una and Yoko comforted him each embracing him all just waiting. Maze held his daughter Aura and they all took one another as this happened.*

<: Aura just stayed in her fathers arms and wondered if........if her family was ever going to be the same. :>

In a flash of white light, Mana tumbled out of their little portal of sorts, in a state of shock. She'd wanted nothing more than to meet her Mommy, but to see Mommy like this... It was too much for the little girl. She started to cry soundlessly as Mamoru emerged from the light next, carrying Mommy while Mana shook like a leaf, staying there on her knees...

Stumbling behind were two figures that seemed to have been fried to a crisp. Even Mamoru, who was usually grey, looked charred... But more than anyone, the one who had changed the most was Sadako. Her kimono was all torn and charred, and her once beautifully kept hair was now wild and tangled... They looked like they had just been struck by lightning, but that shouldn't have been a problem because of Sadako's ability, correct?

Wrong. It had been Elijah's lightning that had done the most damage. Not just any lightning; positive lightning. The amount of power Sadako had had to use to fend off the worst of it had sent her deep into unconsciousness, her sapphire lashes brushing against her cheeks. There were several new markings there, as it turned out. A mark directly at the corner of her right eye in a light sort of purple, and a design upon her forehead that was partially obscured by her bangs.

On the verge of collapse himself because of the severity of his burns, and the internal injuries from the shock of the positive lightning (Mamoru didn't have any of Sadako's resistance to the stuff), he took a knee, setting Sadako down gently, breathing shallowly before he sat back, letting the Ritukes attend to their Sadako...

"Sadako!!!"

*Maze run toward his battered wife and feel to his kness in front of her. He repeated her name over and over as he touched her face looking at her wounds. She had gone threw a great ordeal, she must of. Maze wanted to do nothing more then grab her in an embrace and hold her but he knew that with her burns that it would only hurt her.*

"Mana.....get Mamoru."

*Sado would slowly left off the ground thanks to Maze's magics. Maze was many things but a healer wasn't one. So Maze was taking Sado to somewhere she could be heal..........immediately.*

Pulling herself together, the fiery, yet slightly shaken little girl stood. In but a moment a blueish purple-y pink cloud poofed into existence below Mamoru, and lifted him gently into the air without so much as jostling him. Looking to her twin for a little reassurance, Mana seemed a little distant as she followed her Daddy, hoping that Mommy would be okay. A little hiccup was all that indicated her distress, but Mana kept her tears at bay.

She heard Mamoru whisper that her mother would be fine, his voice all rough and parched.

"Don't worry, Uncle Mamoru, Daddy'll know where to take you and Mommy..."