Disclaimer: Randomcat23 does not own Soul Eater.

"Here, this is the one."

Maka sucked in a breath of damp air and paused at the cackling coming from the dark cell. They had told her once, but she had to ask again, "How long has he been in there?"

"A month," came Stein's short reply.

The mad laughter echoed down the tunnel again. Maka steeled her nerves and approached the heavy steel door. The cell window offered a depressing scene in the dim light; the only furniture was a simple, unused, cot pressed up against the thick stone walls. On the opposite wall, laughing, sat a figure stooped over his chained arms and legs.

"I'll stay right here," Stein said as he dug around in his pocket for something. The warning went unvoiced: "In case something happens."

Maka tore her eyes away from the man in the cell and glanced back at her approaching professor. A key was produced and he unlocked the door, which swung back only after the older meister pushed it.

Maka could not repress her gulp, but she lifted her heavy feet and shuffled into the cell, closer now to the cackles and closer to her partner, Soul.

His normally white hair was now dingy gray and bounced lightly as his head bobbed. Maka stopped in front of his legs, now much too thin, and squatted down.

"I can help him, I can fix him," Maka promised to herself as she noted the sorry state of his clothes and the way those piercing red eyes had yet to meet hers. She found her heart thudding louder now that she was in front of him and could feel the madness coiling around the Death Scythe's form.

With a sudden jerk, Soul's head popped up and he cut his laughter mid breath. Maka froze on the spot too. She did not realize she was holding her breath until a moment later when Soul sucked in a deep guzzle of air and stared wide-eyed at his meister.

"I can help him, I can fix him."

A smile full of pointy teeth spread Soul's cheeks.

"I can help him."

Chains jangled at Soul's ankles as he shifted his feet. Still, his red gaze shone in the dark.

"I can fix him."

"HAH!"

Maka jumped and emitted a pathetic squeak.

"HahaaaHAAAHaaah!"

Soul's wicked laughter came in bursts, changed pitch randomly, but continued for minutes before he clamped his mouth shut and dipped his white mop of hair.

"I can help him."

"Soul?"

"Pffhhtt."

"Soul," she tried again, abet timidly.

He threw his head up against the stone wall, a blow that surely broke skin. But still, Soul grinned.

"Haaallo, Maka."

She was too startled to speak and he soon lapsed back into low giggles.

"Can't I?"

It was not easy seeing Soul sick with madness. Dr. Stein and Shinigami-sama had warned her about Soul's state of mind, but when they called her back from the deep jungle with such urgency, Maka should have prepared better. Granted, there were delays; it was not easy to drop one high priority mission for another; only once a year did they recruit in the isolated Asian jungles. The guilt had eaten at her stomach continuously, but when Maka made it back to Death City she thought that gnawing would cease.

Boy, was she wrong.

This was not going to be as simple as she thought. Soul had pulled her from madness, but that time, Maka had not seeped in insanity for over a month.

"Ouch!" Maka dropped the tea cup after burning her tongue. It was then she realized her hands were still shaking. A half hour in Dr. Stein's office was not long enough. The image of Soul cackling through his pointy grin was at the forefront of her mind and refused to dissipate.

"Here," Dr. Stein produced an ice cube like he had the cell key, with ease and no emotion. Maka took the cold object and sucked on it, frowning. "Are you sure you're alright?"

He was definitely was not talking about the burn. "I'm...fine."

"You know," Stein began as he turned away to light a cigarette, "Soul asked to be placed in a cell."

He had told her that previously. "Yes, I know." Maka let out a weighty sigh. "There's hope."

Stein simply nodded and puffed.

The walk back to her apartment took longer than usual. She wasn't ready to face the pouncing cat that surely would be at the door. Maka kept turning down side streets lined with brick buildings, increasing the distance as well as the time for her to think. As she splashed through a puddle, Maka replayed an earlier conversation with Dr. Stein.

"There was a lot of stress on him, to be sure. The deaths in his family, the injuries over the last year."

"But surely that isn't enough for him to dip into madness?"

Stein shrugged, "We underestimated the importance of your anti-demon wavelength. He overestimated his strength." One second, two. "However, I imagine there was a catalyst."

A car rumbled down the cobblestone road, splashing water on to the sidewalk. Maka clutched her shirt and mumbled, "Yeah, there was a catalyst." Guilt crept back with a vengeance along with the memories.

"Maka...I," Soul, normally straight to the point, fumbled his words.

She stared at him like an idiot and continued to do so as he said those three, glorious and frightening words. Then when he leaned in, a spark of fear went off in her brain, burning all shock and maybe some joy. Maka leapt away from a stunned Soul.

He had stared at her then with disappointment weighing down his shoulders. There was sadness too.

Maka turned to run, and sprinted.

"The next day I was sent away," she remembered and swallowed a lump. Maka did not want to think she was responsible for Soul's madness, but the stone in her stomach made her accept the blame as fact.

Just as the light of her living room appeared around the corner, Maka set her jaw and pushed away the memories and the remorse, at least for the time. "I'll fix him," the mantra escaped her lips again.

Following Stein and Shinigami-sama's suggestion, Maka returned to Soul's cell the next day and sat on the cold floor. He was quiet today, but followed her movements with his eyes.

After sucking in a breath, Maka closed her eyes and sensed her partner's familiar soul. The lack of resistance was surprising, but welcome. Maka quickly found herself in the Black Room.

Thousands of splinters covered the floor. As she toured the space, Maka stepped around a broken piano key, separated from its home. There was an odd twist to the walls and the room reeked of madness and destruction. Maka narrowed her focus on the back of a tall figure to her right. "Soul."

"Maka," responded the figure. His voice peculiarly sounded twice, like one voice was layered on another. A hand brushed each of his pinstriped shoulders before he spun around on a heel.

"Soul."

"How...nice of you to appear," he sneered through gritted teeth.

It was not just his voice that was different. What she had thought were just shadows were actually small horns protruding out of the white hair. Maka took a step closer, not believing.

"Where's the ogre?" She asked, trying to keep her voice even. The little imp usually hung out in a corner, or near the piano.

A chuckle, "Come now, you know where he is." Soul tapped his chest and glared back with black eyes punctuated with red.

Scratchy jazz music erupted from somewhere, sending Soul into a fit of laughter. "Isn't it glorious, Maka? The music is finally loud enough to enjoy!" He whipped a leg around, smashing what remained of the piano.

"Soul, I'm here to bring you back." The music almost drowned her declaration. If Soul heard it, he made no remark.

In a split second, he stepped across the floor and thrust out a hand. "Dance with me, Maka!"

"No, thank you," she declined.

Soul curled and uncurled his hand, beckoning. When she shook her head, he growled just loud enough to travel over the jazz. "If you won't join me, leave!"

Why did she think this would be easy? In her head, Maka imagined entering his soul and finding her partner lost, but looking for escape. Instead, she was faced with a demon-Soul hybrid who did not listen to what she said, or answered her questions.

Persistently, Maka asked again, "Come back with me."

He paused then, tilted his head as if listening, and then cracked his knuckles. In a second, Soul grasped Maka's hand and whipped her out of the room's door. The only other response she received was the door slamming tightly behind her.

"Well, that didn't go well," Maka sighed and rubbed her weary eyes. After her encounter with Soul in the Black Room she left his cackling body behind and stalked over to Professor Stein's office to brainstorm.

"You need to dismantle the catalyst," came Stein's reply through a cloud of white smoke. "His madness is riding on something."

Maka nodded, "I know what set him off." Hesitation and guilt made her look away. "I'm just not sure how to stop it."

Marie entered the room with a tray of hot mugs. One steaming cup went to Maka while the older woman kept one for herself. "Sometimes persistence works," Marie offered with a glance at her meister and perched on the edge of the couch. "It might help if you simply spent more time with him."

"I suggest you attack it head on." Stein countered. "He's beyond preventive measures at this point." The strike of a match filled the gap in conversation.

Maka dipped her head knowing he was right. As much as she wanted Marie's plan to work, to just sit with Soul and watch the madness ebb away, Maka knew it would take something more drastic than that. She sipped her hot tea, but it did nothing to quell the cold remorse and fear growing in her stomach.

She tried again the next day. At first, Maka thought she should simply observe him, see how he acted. But the jangling chains, the howling laughter, and uneaten food convinced Maka there was no time to waste.

Maka entered the Black Room with goose bumps. There was an abnormal chill in the air, an aching coolness that floated up her legs and body. Maka rubbed her arms and glanced around for locate Soul. It was then she realized her attire was different. Instead of the usual elegant evening gown, there was an extremely short, low cut dress in its place. Instinctively, she tugged at the hem, embarrassed.

"I know what you're afraid of, Maka." Soul emerged from behind the shadow in the corner, dapper as always, and still stinking of madness. At his declaration he jerked his head confidently in her direction as if he had just discovered a grand secret.

There was no time to question the dress. Maka straightened her pose and walked closer, her shoes clacking on the floor. "Oh yeah?" Somehow she needed to find a weakness, some kind of hint as to how she could help him.

His horned head dipped in a nod. "I do. You're afraid of what I want," Soul's dual voice answered. The tall candles flickered in time with the jazz music, scattering the shadows over the cold tiles. Even though his hands were stuffed in pants pockets, there was something dangerous about his stance. It was so nonchalant and relaxed, like a predator confidently eyeing its prey.

She instinctively halted her walk and scrutinized him through narrowed eyes, "And what do you want?"

The movement was so fast that Maka was pressed up against the wall before she had time to blink. She struggled against his hold, but Soul pinned her arms over her head against the black wall. Once again, Maka found herself staring into the hooded, bloody eyes of her partner. There was a darkness swirling in them, even as a smirk tugged at his lips. A devious chuckle rumbled through him and Maka went cold.

Soul leaned in and whispered in her ear, "I want you." The throaty confession crawled over her skin. "I want to fuck you."

Horrified, Maka attempted to kick him away, but Soul simply blocked her leg with a knee and leaned in again, teeth scrapping the soft skin at her neck. She strained to get away from his mouth unsuccessfully and she inwardly cursed his strength. All those times Soul had carried her effortlessly flash before her mind.

Without a physical defense, she put up a verbal one, "Stop!"

"You know what else?" He asked, ignoring her plea. One hand grasped both her wrists and the other traveled down, brushing her neck, tracing the outline of her breasts, and finally rested just under the hem of the so short dress. Red eyes met paralyzed green ones. For each second of silence that passed Soul brought the hand higher up her thigh and more throaty chuckles. He paused to laugh and outline the band of her underwear, causing Maka to shake her head furiously and pull at her trapped hands. "You're afraid you want it too."

One final tug loosened his grip just enough so she could free one hand. Without thinking, Maka smacked Soul across his head and followed up her attack with a violent kick, which took out his legs. As she turned to run for the door, Soul managed to grab her ankle, and began pulling her across the floor through the piano splinters.

"You know I'm right," he scolded her, hands now on her calf, fingers pressing into her skin.

Maka inwardly cursed high heels, then pushed herself up and lunged at Soul. A perfectly placed punch sent the mad scythe skittering over the title and piano splitters. She did not look to see if he stopped tumbling; Maka stood and sprinted for the door.

The only thing that after chased her was manic laughter.

Maka scrambled away from her partner as soon as she opened her eyes. Surprisingly, Soul had done the same, clinging to the wall as he laughed mechanically, his thin chest heaving with the effort. She shuddered at the memory of the Black Room, of Soul's roaming, demanding hands.

Is that how it really was with him?

Her head rested against the stone wall. At the moment, she didn't feel like there was nearly enough distance between them. Maybe if she hugged the wall, Soul would not try anything. Another shudder wracked her body.

"Maka, do you still like me?"

The loud question made her dare to look at him. In between the laughter, he asked her again and rustled the chains. They were pulled taut, so tightly his wrists were bent at awkward angles.

To her own surprise, Maka met her partner's gaze across the shadowed room and gasped. Even though his face was turned up in a grin, tears stained Soul's grubby face. There were more pooling in his eyes as a momentary silence swept over them.

"Huh?! Do you still want me for a partner? Sick, sick, hahaaaa, so SICK!" Soul yelled again as he tried to pull himself deeper into the corner of the room. The laughs and giggles did not stop, yet neither did the tears.

She took one step closer and then another. Maka's heart pounded powerfully in her chest, but she just had to see, just had to know. One more step and Soul jerked his body again toward the corner, away from her approach. Shoulders shaking, Soul lifted his head.

There was a sloppy grin on his face.

There was laughter bubbling in his chest.

But when Maka caught his gaze, her heart settled into a normal rhythm.

There was a darkness there, swirling in those red, red pupils. But there was something else too. There was fear in his eyes.

Maka knew then that Soul was not too far gone. Her partner was not completely succumbed to madness.

He was right. That scared her.

Some part of her wanted exactly what he wanted. The part of her that trusted Soul more than anything. The part of her that found his smile sexy, his protectiveness endearing. The part of her that stole glances at him when he exited the bathroom in nothing but a towel and a cloud of steam.

On the other hand, Maka quivered at the thought. Men had been her declared enemy for years. She was not supposed to like them, the cheating, lying, two-timing bastards that they all were. But Maka was no longer ten, she had out grown her generalized conviction. But that conviction was safe, cozy, and well known. There was no room for exceptions named Soul.

Maka buried under her comforter as if she could bury herself back into the belief that all men were cheats.

"Except Soul."

But what was she supposed to do now? The spark of his madness was her rejection. She was far away from understanding why that set him down the path to madness, but there were a few things she knew.

Soul, her partner, her best friend, loved her. Romantically.

When she ran away from Soul, it broke something inside of him.

And he was right that Maka felt the attraction too.

She blushed at the thought and squirmed deeper into her bed.

"What am I supposed to do?" Maka wondered out loud.

"Nya, why not tell him how you feel?"

The teenager shucked her blankets as she sat up and glared at the purple cat. "Blair!"

The magical cat chose to ignore Maka's blush and clean herself instead. Her ears twitched, picking up the breeze from the window.

"How could that help Soul?"

One more lick. Blair lowered her hind leg and cocked her head at the young meister. "You rejected him, nya?"

"Well, yes, but not really!" Maka stood up, suddenly too hot. She leaned out the open window and sighed. "I didn't say anything..."

"You rejected him," Blair confirmed. "Even though you felt the same way," she added with a low purr.

Maka spun around and crossed her arms. "What was I supposed to say? It happened all of a sudden!" Her feet made soft noises as she paced back and forth, pausing every four steps to glare at the cat.

Blair stretched and yawned, already annoyed with Maka's hesitation. "How long were you going to deny your feelings for him, hmm?"

The pacing stopped. "I...I, well, I don't know. Not forever! And I'm not denying them, I'm just not acting on them!" Maka declared.

The purple cat pawed to the edge of the bed and sat. Her golden eyes bored into Maka's green ones. "That's not fair," Blair scolded.

Her hands were already raised defensively, but Maka let the cat's words roll over her. She dropped her aggressive stance and took a place next to the purple cat.

"It's not, is it?" Maka conceded.

"Nope."

After a few moments, Maka admitted, "But I'm scared. What if..." They'd been dancing the same steps for years, her and Soul. Was she really ready to add new ones?

"Maka-chan, it's Soul," Blair reminded, reading the blonde's mind. "He's the most loyal guy I've ever met," she ended with a sniff.

Anticipation bubbled in Maka's heart. She shook her head at herself, "I've been selfish. I think I knew from the start what I needed to do. And I can't believe I've wasted so much time."

This was supposed to be a one-shot, but 15 pages later I decided to split it into two chapters. Chapter two will be posted soon. It's nearly complete.

In my head, Blair actually gives good relationship advice when she feels like it.

Feedback is greatly appreciated!-randomcat23