A/N: So this is a multi-chapter sequel to my story "Of Sound Mind". You should read that first and the one-shot sequel "The Sleepover" so that you can understand what's happening in this story. I hope that you enjoy the story. As always I appreciate any feedback.

Trigger Warnings (these are for the whole story): The antagonist in this story is basically a pedophile so there will be elements dealing with that throughout, there will be a later scene with discrimination against people with mental illness. Please, if you are sensitive to any of these subjects this probably is not the story for you. I'm still in the process of writing this story so if there are more trigger warnings later I will post them in the chapter they appear in.

Chapter 1: The Prey Meets The Predator

Kid sat next to Maka at a round table with a white tablecloth. They were both dressed up. Kid wore one of his nicest suits and Maka wore a red dress with ribbons in her hair. They were at an awards ceremony for Kid's dad's work. It was being hosted in the banquet hall of a hotel.

As soon as his dad had told him it would be appropriate to bring a date Kid called Maka and asked her to accompany him. She had seemed excited but nervous, yet here she was seemingly completely in her element.

The ceremony was over and dinner was being served. Maka's chair somehow kept getting closer to his. He wasn't really sure when that had happened, but Maka took advantage of it and reached over to squeeze his knee. Kid was shocked by her boldness. He jumped and his cheeks turned bright red as he attempted to chat with the other guests at their table. Maka pulled her hand back when she realized she had startled him. She looked apologetic but an amused smile pulled at the corners of her mouth.

"Are you feeling alright?" Mrs. Keller asked Kid in concern. "You look a little overheated."

"Yes, it is a bit warm in here. I think I should go get some air." Kid excused himself and as he got up from the table he could hear Maka quietly giggle.

Kid went to the restroom and splashed some water on his face. He glanced in the mirror only long enough to check that the redness had faded from his face. The three white lines on only one side of his hair still unnerved him too much to look in the mirror for long.

Kid shook his head to himself as he thought about how Maka surprised him sometimes. He liked that she was unpredictable but at the same time it could be infuriating. But even with all of her imperfections he couldn't help but think that those somehow made her so perfect. There were times when he couldn't believe that she was really his girlfriend.

When Kid was certain that his face had gone back to it's normal coloring he exited the restroom and headed back to the banquet hall. As he reached the doors he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, Kid." He turned around to find one of his father's employees Noah Eibon.

"Oh, hello, Mr. Eibon," Kid greeted. "I haven't seen you in a while. How are you?"

"Please, how many times do I have to tell you, call me Noah."

"Sorry, Noah," Kid corrected himself.

"I'm doing well. How are you? I heard that you went through a rough patch not that long ago."

Kid shifted uncomfortably. They were approaching a sensitive topic that he did not wish to discuss. He knew that his OCD was not something he should be ashamed of but he was still embarrassed that he had once let it control his life so completely. "I am doing much better," He replied stiffly. Noah took a step closer and Kid in turn tried to step back, the older man was starting to invade his personal space, but he stumbled back against the doors to the banquet hall.

Noah spoke in a low voice. "I was disappointed when I heard that your dad had put you into his mental hospital. No, 'disappointed' isn't the right word I was furious. You deserve better than that, Kid. I hated that he just tossed you aside like that."

"He didn't toss me aside," Kid corrected him indignantly. "My father put me there to help me learn how to cope. I don't appreciate you talking about him like that."

Noah reached up to touch the side of Kid's face. "I'm sorry. I just- you have to understand that I care a lot about you. You're special, one of a kind."

Kid suddenly realized that the area of the hotel they were in was deserted. The kitchen had a door straight into the banquet hall so there was no hotel staff around and all the guests were inside. They were isolated. Kid's heart was beating hard in a panic. Noah was too close. He loomed over Kid like a predator that had cornered its prey.

Kid pushed away Noah's hand. "I need to go back inside," he said as calmly as possible. "My date will be wondering where I am."

"You brought a date?" he asked in an odd voice.

The door behind Kid suddenly opened causing him to stumble backward into someone else. "What are you doing here, Noah?" It was his dad's voice. His dad placed his hands on Kid's shoulders and gripped them firmly, protectively. "You were fired. I told you to stop showing up at company events."

"I was just saying hi to your son."

Kid's father ignored Noah's excuse. "If you don't leave I will have the hotel security escort you off the premises."

Noah lifted his hands in surrender. "I'm leaving." He backed up a few steps before turning and walking away.

Kid sighed in relief once Noah was out of sight. His dad stepped fully outside the banquet hall and let the door close behind him. He turned Kid to face him and gripped his shoulders once more. "Are you okay? Did he do anything?"

Kid frowned in confusion. "No. What happened? Why was he fired?"

His dad sighed. "After you… went away Noah came to me in a rage demanding to know why I had put you in the hospital. I was surprised that he even knew about it. I tried to keep your situation very quiet. He acted like I had committed some horrible crime against you. I tried to get him to calm down but he was… he was out of control. I fired him. None of that was any of his business." Kid glanced at the direction Noah had left and shivered. "I'm going to call Mickey and have him take you home."

Kid was about to protest but his stomach twisted at the thought of Noah coming back. "Yeah, I'm just going to let Maka know that I'm leaving. Can you make sure she gets home safe?"

"Of course, Kiddo."

Kid went back inside the banquet hall. The guests seated closest to the door were glancing over curiously. He ignored them and made his way over to Maka.

He leaned down to tell her in a low voice. "I'm going home early. I'm not really feeling well. If you want to stay my dad will have a car take you home."

Maka looked at him incredulously. "Don't be an idiot. I'm leaving with you. This is a date after all. People usually do these things together."

Kid nodded. He knew it would be unproductive to argue with her. After they said their goodbyes they left together.

Once they were in the car headed to Maka's house she turned to Kid. She took his hand in hers as she asked. "What happened? I heard people talking about something going on just outside the hall. Then you came back in pale as a sheet."

Kid gently pulled his hand away. "There was an incident with one of my father's former employees." He kept his expression purposely unreadable.

Maka looked a little hurt at his closed off behavior. "Kid, I may be your girlfriend now but that doesn't mean I've stopped being your friend. If something happened you can talk to me about it."

He hesitated for a moment as he looked out the window. Then he recounted his interaction with Noah. He told her about the man's odd and frightening behavior, how Noah had been fired yet still showed up at the award ceremony, and how his dad had showed up at just the right moment.. When he had finished he added. "He's always acted strange around me. I mean, he always seemed… off. I've known him since he started working for my dad when I was a child. I didn't think he would go as far as to act like this toward me."

"Some people just have issues. We of all people should know that."

Kid nodded in agreement. "I'm actually starting to look forward to the camping trip. Maybe it will take my mind off of this."

"You mean, obsessing over packing and whether the cabin will be symmetrical?"

"I think those are legitimate concerns."

They smiled at each other and Kid started to relax. Maybe he could just put the whole Noah incident out of his mind.

When they got to Maka's house Kid walked her to the door. They paused on the porch and Kid leaned in to kiss her good night. A good portion of their evening had been ruined but maybe it could still end well.

Just as their lips were about to touch the front door flew open with a bang. Kid and Maka jumped apart in surprise. "Maka, you're home early!" Spirit announced loudly.

"Mr. Albarn," Kid greeted with a nod.

"Kid, thank you for bringing her back safe and sound."

"You're welcome, sir."

The three of them stood there awkwardly until Spirit prodded. "You can go now."

"Dad!" Maka scolded.

"What? He brought you home, the date is over, isn't it?"

"No, we need to say goodbye."

"I'm not going to let him use 'saying goodbye' as an excuse for him to get his hands all over my daughter! I know how boys think. They're all perverts!"

"You're no better!" Maka argued. "And Kid has been nothing but respectful. Leave us alone for a minute, dad!"

Spirit hung his head and went back inside. Yet out of the corner of his eye Kid could see Maka's father peering through the blinds. Maka threw her father a pointed look and he disappeared. She sighed and shook her head. "He's such a hypocrite," she muttered.

"He just wants to protect you," Kid said wearily. "Most dads are like that."

"We have about thirty more seconds before he comes back out here. Do you really want to spend that time talking about our fathers?"

Kid took that as an invitation and leaned in to kiss her. The kiss was short and sweet. To Kid it was as perfect as every kiss they had shared since the first.

Once the kiss ended Maka pulled him into a hug and they held each other for a long moment. "Can we just stay like this forever?" she asked with a sigh.

"I would say yes but your dad is glaring at me through the blinds."

Maka groaned in frustration. She stepped back from the hug. "Bye, Kid. I'll see you later."

"Bye."

Maka went inside and Kid could hear them arguing as he walked back to the car. He got in and slumped in his seat. "Let's go home, Mickey," he said in an exhausted voice.

"Of course, sir."

Kid closed his eyes and within moments he had fallen asleep.

Kid was laying on the floor of his bedroom playing with a toy train his father had given him for his fifth birthday. There was an engine on both ends. Kid had put it together that way on purpose. His dad told him that trains aren't really built like that but Kid had insisted that it needed to be symmetrical.

He pushed the train around on the tracks. "Choo. Choo," he mimicked the train noises in a bored voice. Kid would much rather be downstairs reading in his dad's office.

The bedroom door opened and Noah Eibon poked his head in. "Hi, Kid, can I come in?"

"Sure." Kid pushed himself up into a sitting position.

Noah entered and sat down crossed legged across from him on the other side of the train tracks. "That's an interesting train."

"I built it myself," Kid said proudly.

Noah smiled at him. "It's very impressive."

"What were you talking to my dad about?"

"Well, he was offering me a promotion. That means I get more responsibility and I get paid more."

"I know what a promotion is," Kid said with a pout. "Grownups treat me like I'm stupid but I'm not."

"I'm sorry. I know that you're very smart. You're special, Kid. One of a kind." Noah reached over and patted him on the head his fingers lingering as they brushed through the young boy's hair. Noah reluctantly got to his feet. "I have to go. Your dad thinks I'm in the bathroom. Don't tell him I was up here. It's a secret."

"I can keep a secret. I'm not an idiot."

Noah chuckled. "I know."

"We're home, sir."

Kid woke with a start. Was that an actual memory, or just a dream? His hands were shaking.

Mickey opened the car door and Kid climbed out. "Are you okay, sir?"

Kid nodded. "Yeah, I just have a headache."

When he got up to his bedroom Kid stood exactly where he had been sitting in his dream. It seemed too real to have not really happened. The train was long gone. It had been thrown away after he had broken it when he was ten. The feeling of Dream-Noah's fingers lingered in his hair. He shivered and ran his hands through his hair to erase the feeling. After a moment he did his best to pat it back into place.

"It was just a dream," he said out loud in an attempt to make himself believe it. Kid pretended like it had worked and went to start packing for the camping trip to distract himself.