Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara!

Chapter Summary: Amu doesn't come home after a date with Tadase and Ikuto is frantic to find her.

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Frantic

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"You little mother-fucker!" Ikuto shouted, grabbing Tadase by the collar of his shirt, slamming him hard against the wall of the kitchen. After the blue-haired man's furious phone call, Tadase had raced to the apartment, demanding to know what kind of a sick joke he was trying to pull off. "Where the fuck is she?!"

"I dropped her off more than forty-five minutes ago! What the hell are you talking about?!" Tadase returned, yanking Ikuto's hands off of him. But he was just as frantic as the other man. How could Amu have notmade it up to her apartment? He'd watched her walk into the building, only pausing to hold the door open for another person that lived there. How hadn't she made it back up to rip Ikuto a new one?

"Then where did she go? Did you see her get into the building?"

Tadase had never heard Ikuto so…terrified. His voice trembled even though he tried to make it into an angry rumble. "I watched her walk in and then I left. She was on her way to kick your ass when I drove away!" To see that kind of fear, that kind of anxiety in Ikuto's face, in his eyes took the younger man completely by surprise and struck his own chord of fear.

Ikuto's eyes got a distant look to them before he murmured, "She's gotta be somewhere in the building."

Tadase found himself suddenly free and Ikuto rushing out of the apartment, flinging the door open hard enough for it to make a dent in the wall. The blonde man stared after the other before shaking his head to bring himself into the present, following after Ikuto.

"Tsukiyomi, wait!" he shouted as he dashed down the hall after him. When the blue-haired violinist didn't stop, the would-be king grabbed his arm to stop him. "Damnit, I want to find her just as much as you do, but we have to do this properly! If we don't, she might be gone forever. Now listen to me or I'll kick your lazy cat ass!"

Ikuto paused for a moment, thinking over what Tadase had said. It was true; if they didn't get to the security office and tell them to keep everyone that was inside there, the kidnapper could easily run off with her. But he couldn't just sit around and wait when anything could be happening to her. He wouldn't let anyone hurt her, no matter what he had to do to stop it.

"Fine. You go tell security; I'm going to break down some doors."

With that, he disappeared, racing away before Tadase could even think to catch up.

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Amu's P.O.V.

Oh, God, did my head hurt. I didn't want to open my eyes as I tried to think as little as possible. Whatever I'd done, it wasn't something I was going to do again any time soon.

Slowly, my eyes opened without my consent and I was relieved that darkness surrounded me. I didn't know if I'd be able to withstand a shower of light in my current predicament. Even as I sat up, everything around me blurred, causing me to fall backward with a moan. Ikuto had better be making something to eat; he'd know what happened and make fun of me for it, so the least he could do was provide me sustenance.

But wait; had I been with Ikuto? I could only remember Tadase-kun telling me…that he understood! Then we parted as friends and he dropped me off at home…but I didn't remember getting up to the apartment. I recalled opening the door for the new tenant and after that everything was blank. I could recollect the bitter taste in my mouth; in fact, it was still there. What had been that horrible smell? And that damp thing that had covered my mouth and nose? And whose voice had said—

"Don't worry, pretty girl; once we have Tsukiyomi, this is all over."

I sat up in a flash, my breathing ragged. That was it! Right before the darkness had completely taken over and I'd drifted into my own dream world, I'd heard a dark voice muttering about Ikuto and how he would pay for what he'd done…to Easter's headquarters!

"I wouldn't sit up too quickly, pretty girl. You're gonna have one helluva bad headache for awhile yet."

That voice again! I swiveled my head from side to side, trying to find the owner, ignoring the pain rushing through me. Fury powered me and I pushed myself to stand. Whoever this man was, I wasn't going to let him get the best of me. I had taken on a major corporation when I was only twelve years old; I was not someone to mess with!

'Amu-chan, be careful! You don't know what this man is planning to do with you!' Suu's maternal voice rang through my head, warning me. I had to think about it for a second; she and the others hadn't piped in for so long, I wasn't sure if I was just going crazy or not.

'Amu-chan can do anything! She'll beat this guy until he can't see straight anymore!' Ran cheered and I could practically feel her waving those pink pom-poms around in my heart.

'You will have to be very careful about how you do this, Amu-chan, if you don't want to get hurt or worse. Don't let him get you angry,' Miki's calm voice said.

"I won't," I replied quietly so as not to grab the man's attention. I slowly walked towards what I thought was a door; it had a small crack of light beneath it, so it gave the impression of a door, at least. But just as I would have reached for the knob, that voice echoed through the room once more.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," the man said mockingly. "That doorknob is electrically charged and will fry you if you touch it. There's no way for you to get out there, so just sit down and be terrified like any other damsel in distress. You're precious Tsukiyomi Ikuto will be here to save you in no time." A curt laugh followed the annoying summation of my situation and then everything was silent once more.

"Where are you?" I demanded, putting my back to the door so I would be able to see all around me. But, even though my eyes had adjusted to the dark, I couldn't see even the faintest outline of another person in the room with me. "The least you could do is tell me where you are!"

"I'm using the intercom system I installed when I first moved in here, neighbor. I can see everything you're doing while I'm left in complete solitude. That way, you don't know who I am and can't report me once I let you go."

How could he sound so reasonable when doing something so completely paranoid? "Why did you kidnap me if you just want to let me go? Doesn't that defeat the purpose of taking me in the first place?" Other questions, like what he was going to do with me while I was there, rang through my mind, but I decided that I would find out soon enough.

"Poor Hinamori Amu. You are nothing more than bait. You see, I know that if I have you, Tsukiyomi Ikuto will come running to save you. Once I have repaid him for what he did to me, you will be free to go."

I was enraged at the thought that he was using me to get to Ikuto; I shouldn't be a weakness for him! "What has Ikuto ever done to you, you pompous prick?!"

"He destroyed Easter!" the man roared, making the room nearly vibrate with its intensity. "I had to get a real job that doesn't pay nearly as well! As a personal guard for Gozen, I had everything I could want! Now I have nothing!"

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. This man was certifiably insane. Working as a guard for Gozen was the first tip off. But now he blamed Easter's destruction on Ikuto? "How is it his fault that Easter's headquarters burnt down? It was a case of faulty wiring!" That was what the papers and police reports had said. And since the investigators were professionals, they had to be right. Didn't they?

"Ha! How hard could it have been for him to simply slash a few wires? He certainly had the motive; with his stepfather controlling him and keeping him away from his precious little girlfriend, why wouldn't he want to see the place burn to the ground!" The man's voice was nearly hysterical at this point and it frightened me. While I wasn't letting him get me riled up, I was certainly doing a good enough job getting him angry.

I just sat there for a moment, trying to think of a way to get him on my side. He might have said that he planned on letting me go freely, but that didn't mean he couldn't change his mind.

"Oh, how cute! You'll be happy to know that you're precious fiancé is tearing apart this building looking for you. How adorable; he thinks that if I wanted to do anything to you, he could stop me. You should really speak to him about that wishful thinking, if you ever see him again." More mirthless laughter followed his taunting and I couldn't help what I did next.

"How dare you use me as a pawn against Ikuto! You're disgusting, vile!" I spun to the door, banging my fists against the wood, silently wishing for the strength to knock the damn thing down.

"Ah, but I'm in charge. You should be happy I didn't decide to see what fun you are. I mean, unless you're doing something extra for the Tsukiyomi brat, how could you possibly keep his attention?"

My heart stopped at the words. Was it true? Was I just a conquest to Ikuto? No! Ikuto cares for me, that much is obvious. "Shut up! You don't know anything about our relationship!"

"Relationship? He merely drops in as he pleases, doesn't he? Then he leaves when you bore him. Tsk, you poor thing. You actually believe he could have feelings for anyone other than himself?"

'Amu-chan, you heard him before; Ikuto-kun is searching for you when he could have just walked away and left things to the police. Besides, this man keeps telling you that you are the perfect bait for Ikuto-kun because he will always come for you. Don't let him shake you!' Miki said and I felt Ran's overwhelming confidence and Suu's ability for unconditional love pulsing through me.

They were right. I couldn't listen to this man; he was only trying to rile me up as I did him.

But that didn't stop my anger and fury.

Just as I was about to rebuke him, he chuckled darkly. "Show time," he murmured before I heard something crash in the room beyond the one I was locked in.

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"Amu!" Ikuto shouted, racing to check every nook and cranny of the apartment he had just burst into. He flipped chairs, searched beneath desks, generally tore apart the room before he heard her.

"Ikuto! Get out of here; he's just using me to get to you!"

Amu. That was Amu's voice. But who…. "What do you mean—"

"You should have listened to your pretty little girlfriend, Tsukiyomi Ikuto. I have a lot to repay you for. Did you really think you could get away with taking my job away from me?"

Ikuto spun around, certain that the voice had been directly behind him. But all he found was an empty room. Where the hell is this guy? And what the fuck is he talking about? A chuckle sounded behind him and he swung around once again, ready to fight. But, again, nothing was there.

There was a tap on his shoulder suddenly and just as he twisted to see the man's face, he felt a hard punch to his stomach, strong enough to double him over. As he fell to his knees, he gave several hard coughs and tried to look up, only to be flooded with pain. How the hell had the guy managed to get behind him and land a solid punch? Had he really lost his edge so much?

"Ikuto! Ikuto, what's going on?!" Amu cried from the other room and he heard her slamming against the door, even though he couldn't turn to see what happened.

"Amu," he breathed just before he was sent sprawling by a kick to the head. He hissed, eyes flashing open as rage filled him and he struggled to stand, ready to attack with whatever he could.

"I wouldn't bother trying, Tsukiyomi. I was the highest ranking guard for Gozen; I know exactly what to do to knock you out, to make you feel a pain you will never forget. If I let you live, that is." The man stood directly in front of him, smirking down at the fallen blue-haired man. From the looks of it, he wasn't exaggerating. He was built like a truck with a thick head of black hair and bright green eyes. He seemed like he would have been recruited from a boxing ring, which wouldn't have surprised Ikuto for a moment.

"Ikuto, run! Get out of here!" Amu screamed, the banging becoming louder and the door rocking harder on its hinges.

"Shut up!" the man shouted. "Or else you'll be next, damnit!"

Ikuto, at the threat to Amu, launched himself despite his pain, swiftly kicking him in the chest and sending him stumbling backwards. "Don't talk to her that way," he growled. "You won't get near her."

The man glared at him, but both heads swung towards the door to the room holding Amu as it fell to the ground with a loud thwump!

Amu stood there, breathing hard, pointing one finger at the man who had started this whole thing. "I won't forgive you for doing this!" she shouted before launching herself at him, taking him off guard. Before he could do anything, she'd knocked him to the ground. She swiftly moved away to go to Ikuto's side, helping him stand as slowly as possible with one of his arms slung over her shoulders. "Are you okay? Can you get out of here?"

"You need to…go, Amu. He won't stay down long; you only knocked the wind out of him," Ikuto said, just as the man in question stood, stumbling towards them. The pair backed away, suddenly hitting the wall. "Get out of here!" Ikuto shouted, shoving Amu away just as the man swung a hard fist at them. It connected with the cat's temple, knocking him into the wall.

As he lay there, his body too shocked to move, he heard Amu cry out. But it wasn't in pain; this was that of a mother bear protecting her cubs. He watched, unable to move, as the woman lunged herself at the guard. He tried to say something, to force her back, but his body didn't respond.

"Stay away from him!"

That seemed to be her battle cry. Whenever he would get too close to Ikuto's slowly strengthening body, she would grab a lamp or a book and swing it as hard as she could at him. If he hadn't been so scared for her, he would have cheered her on.

His fears came true when the man caught one of her attacks, lifting her an inch or two off the ground by her hold on the small step stool she'd just swung at him. He growled, "Back off, you stupid little girl; I plan to let you live, if you don't make yourself a nuisance."

She spat in his face.

He flung her away and she hit the floor hard. "You're bait so act like it!" He stomped towards her, grabbing that stool on his way. As he lifted it above his head, the apartment door was filled with men scurrying inside.

"Amu-chan! Ikuto-onii-san*!" Tadase cried as he caught sight of both of them. The men he had led to the apartment surrounded the truck-like man and had him knocked to the ground in an instant. Amu put her hand to her head and rose, Tadase helping her up. "What happened to you?!"

"You…idiot," Ikuto snarled, finally pushing himself into a sitting position, glaring at the pink-haired girl that stumbled towards him. "What the…hell did you think you were doing? You could have…gotten hurt, you stupid girl!" Trying to level his breathing, he watched as her eyes flashed.

"I would think you would know all about doing something stupid for someone you love! Aren't you the one that used to try to either frighten or push me away because you thought I needed protection? I just did something a little blunter!" She kneeled down in front of him and poked him in the chest—hard.

In fact, it was hard enough to send a shooting pain through him.

"Oh, God, did I hurt you?!" Amu cried, forgetting her anger as Tadase and the security officers—now with the man, whose name turned out to be Ky, handcuffed and controlled—left the two alone. Her hands on either side of his hips, she asked in a nearly too-fast voice, "Are you all right? Where does it hurt? Please don't die!"

And, staring up at her worried yet incredibly beautiful face, Ikuto felt all his pain flee. His hands shot up, cupped her face, and pulled her mouth to his.

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Ta-da! I hope it wasn't too cliché for you, Natsuya801923!
And to the rest of my readers: I just barely got it done on deadline! And I left you with another cliff-hanger!
Niixx

* Please correct me if that isn't how it is spelled/said!

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There will be no preview for next chapter because it will be the long awaited chapter. –Starry o.O knows what I'm talking about. XD