Nezumi dangled his legs off the side of the cliff. Far below him was a pitiful stream of water, churning sluggishly along. It reminded Nezumi of the time they were wasting here. He sighed. Not even his sense of urgency to get to No.6 could bring him to wake Shion, though. Nezumi looked over at his companion, who was wrapped up in his cloak a few feet away. His bare leg peaked out from the side. The pink scar curled around his ankle and up towards his torso. Nezumi thought back to the brown-haired kid he had met so long ago in the rain. How could Nezumi have changed so much since then, and Shion so little? When he'd carried him home only days before, it was as if no time had passed at all since they parted ways, as if all those places Nezumi had traveled to over the span of three years had been mere seconds. Nezumi heard Shion groan.

"What's for breakfast?" he mumbled, as if he was asking his mother. What a spoiled child, Nezumi thought.

"What makes you think I would have anything for you?" Nezumi said indignantly. "You're the one who packed for a big escape." Still, he dug around in Shion's backpack. There was barely anything to eat, only a few slices of banana bread.

"Typical." Nezumi grunted. He scooted towards Shion and offered him the bread, but Shion had fallen asleep again.

"Hey, breakfast." Nezumi said impatiently. Shion twitched.

"Hey, idiot. Breakfast." Shion opened one eye slowly, examined Nezumi and the bread, then shut his eye tight and curled up into a ball under the cloak.

"Do we have anything else? Warm?" He muttered.

"We would if you hadn't packed for a suicide excursion." Nezumi retorted haughtily. Shion gave him a sour look. Memories of the night before came flooding back to him, and Shion began blushing uncontrollably. He tried to cover his face, but it didn't help; the color of his cheeks were just as dark as the scar there. Nezumi gave a half smile and looked away from him.

"So… Does this mean we're…" Shion said softly. Nezumi tensed.

"You don't have to say-" Nezumi began.

"... Not having breakfast?" Shion finished. Nezumi scoffed at him.

"At least it was warm under there last night." Shion said sheepishly. Nezumi always avoided talking about things like that. He didn't respond. The two of them split a slice of bread and began scaling the side of the cliff to get back to the road. Nezumi carried all of their things, but was still one step ahead of Shion. When the climb was over, Shion was out of breath, but the visibility of No.6 was encouraging. Even though Nezumi had selected the destination, the sight of it made him cringe. It made Shion slightly homesick.

"We should be there by tonight, right?" Shion asked. Nezumi nodded. They soon fell into their familiar silence. Shion couldn't shake the memory of Nezumi pressed against him beneath the stars. He looked down at Nezumi's hand, which was shove in a pocket lazily. He longed to hold it.

"Nezumi, I know you don't like to talk about this, but are we-"

"Shh!" Nezumi silenced him. He was focused on a sound off in the distance. It was a low grumbling.

"Is that," Shion whispered, "an engine?" Nezumi nodded. The rumbling soon became a roar.

"More than one." Nezumi said. He looked around, but there was nowhere to hide. He cursed under his breath. "We have to get back to the cliff." They turned around and ran. Nezumi was surprised at Shion's pace; he seemed to have forgotten his illness as he raced alongside Nezumi. They could see the figures by the time they got back to the cliff, four motorcycles careening towards them.

"Hurry, climb down." Nezumi instructed. He turned away as Shion jump off the edge of the canyon and landed on the ledge. Nezumi stared at the approaching cyclists with suspicion.

"Uh, Nezumi." Shion called. Nezumi ignored him, sliding down. He turned around to face Shion and was greeted by a grinning man who held a knife up to Shion's throat.

"Well, well, well, boys," the greasy biker said to his four companions, "look who made things easier on us." Nezumi clenched his teeth.

"Let go of him." he said threateningly. Shion's eyes were filled with fear.

"Am I hurting your little princess?" the man said mockingly, caressing Shion's face with the knife. "He is a treat, isn't he? Strange hair, strange eyes…" he trailed off. "Restrain 'em." Two of the men approached Nezumi. One of them tried to grab his arm. Nezumi flipped him onto the ground and kicked him in the face. Blood sprayed onto the dusty ground.

"No, no, no," the man with Shion chastised him, "that wasn't very smart." he moved the knife up to Shion's cheek and sliced the skin there. Shion whimpered as blood trickled down his face. "Next time, it'll be his throat." the man warned calmly. Nezumi breathed with fury. "Now let the nice man tie you up."

Nezumi stood perfectly still as one of the men stepped forward and clipped a rusty pair of handcuffs onto Nezumi's wrists behind his back. Nezumi's expression was ice cold.

"Fuckin' feisty guy." the man on the ground groaned as he clutched his face and sat up. Another pair of handcuffs were put on Shion. The group threw the hostages over their shoulders as they climbed back up to the road. Their bikes were hidden behind a pile of dead bushes. They were soon joined by those Nezumi had originally spotted on the horizon.

"What's today's catch?" one of the newcomer's asked, removing his chrome helmet. He was the only one wearing one. He had a necklace on made of teeth.

"We've got one with strange looks, strange markings, and another that looks like a girl and likes a good wrestle." the man with Shion answered. The man with the tooth necklace inspected Shion. He raised his eyebrows.

"I think the chief would find this one interesting." he concluded. He looked at Nezumi. "Put 'em in the kennel." Shion and Nezumi were thrust into a small cage with two wheels that was attached to one of the bikes. Nezumi could feel Shion trembling.

"What did he mean by 'today's catch?'" Shion whispered. Nezumi looked into his eyes and responded calmly.

"They're cannibals, Shion."