This is a work of fan fiction and as such I don't own any of the characters or anything else from the Elfen Lied series (Though I wish I could claim I had something to do with such a wonderful series.). Anyways, this is in no way reflects actual plot line advances or character development as seen in the manga or anime series.

Chapter I: Shadow Play

Waning light played along the inn's walls. It raced and traced shadows that fluttered serenely upon the siding whilst not making a sound. A small honey bee flew by a young, dark haired boy who stood entranced in the middle of a garden path. It landed on a flower near by and began to suck the nectar out of it; however, it did not see the spider who waited eagerly for such a blessing on the underside of one of the petals. In a lightning-strike instant, the spider was upon the fly, injecting its poison. However, it could not have predicted that, in its death throws, the bee would deliver one, penetrating sting. One sting was all that was necessary for the spider and the bee to both succumb to one another and tumble, still intertwined, off the flower.

These events transpired, life subsided into death, yet the young man still stood in a stupor, his blue eyes not betraying any of the emotions he felt boiling within him. Reaching inwards, he saw a pair of pink eyes looking back into his. With these pink eyes, there was the feeling of burning desire, a desire to peel away the probabilities and to latch on to that one possibility of happiness that rested there with her. But, it was a dream within a dream. He realized this and brought himself, along with his emotions, to the present. He just didn't know if that's where he wanted to be.

Yet, if he stayed in the past, he would miss this. Everyday, that shadow, would appear there in the gateway and though he couldn't see who it was… he knew because he could feel her looking back at him with feelings that he felt roiling in his own chest. Everyday, he would start, one step closer, then another, and then, and then, his heart would fall from grace as he watched her walk away.

"Kouta?" Yuka called from the small, open dining room, "Are you going to invite that person in today?"

Kouta called out, "Hey," but the words that could have come next stuck in his throat as he observed the shadow garbed figure suddenly tense up. It stood there a moment as did he. A warm breeze picked up and carried one soft, sorrowful word to the young man's ears, "Kouta." Memories of pain, of warmth, of a world gone mad and the moment when clarity finally broke through the dull clouds of incredulity flooded through him. Kouta couldn't move. He stood, his mouth agape, flung open with words that never came to be, and stared into the place where the shadowy figure was standing a moment before.

Walking down the street, she pulled her cap low over her hair. One foot in front of the other she watched herself walk down the sidewalk. Every so often, she would look up as someone walked by. How would you hurt me? How would you like to see me hurt? Why do you want to make me suffer? These questions played through her mind. They wouldn't leave her alone. They burned in iridescent letters with the voices of harpies. She felt so unsafe. Yet, if she wished… oh, what she could do! The things she could do! Make people scream in octaves not previously achievable by human vocal chords. But no. Not since that night. Not since the inn. That stupid little in with its stupid human inhabitants who… who actually… loved her.

She stopped in mid-step. Instinctively, she put her arms around herself, all of them. She enfolded herself. She tried, almost, to close herself out of her own head. She couldn't stand these emotions because, with them, she was vulnerable. She didn't want to hurt anymore. The feelings slowly took up a dull thud inside her and she moved on.

The sun was combusting in radiant orange over the sea when Lucy got to the beach. She looked either way, up and down the beach before she found a small shack. She was fine with that. It was better than killing another family to live in a house for one night before moving on. Oh God, she thought, becoming aware of the sense of falling, Oh God, all those people. The things I did to them all because… But they would never have taken me in, right? They would never have loved, ME!" she cried as her thoughts reached a pitiful, vocal crescendo. On her knees, she clawed at the sand, glittering like diamonds, digging into her hands like needles. He couldn't love me, she repeated to herself again and again, crawling to the corrugated shack that overlooked the turbulent ocean.

Chapter II: Two Worlds Apart

"Oh my, oh my, oh my," exclaimed Nana in between mouthfuls. "This is so good." She paused, examined her bowl with a little scowl, then held it out with, "Can I have more Kouta-san, Yuka-san?" Her head pivoted quickly between Kouta and his cousin expectantly.

Yuka replied with a warm smile, "Don't ask us, ask the cook." She turned and smiled at Mayu who blushed furiously at the recognition.

"Mayu–san? Please!!" Nana practically crawled on Mayu with anticipation.

"Eh, ehm, sure. That's why I made it," Mayu stammered out with a smile on her lips as a blush continued to run across her face. Nana practically tackled her in appreciation then took another helping and scarfed that down with equal relish.

"Kouta," Yuka gently said, "is everything alright?" Yuka looked at Kouta's face which remained phlegmatic. "Is it that person that keeps showing up?"

"Yeah," Kouta responded despondently.

"Well," she slapped him in the back of the head, "wouldn't it be easier if you just asked the person to come in, baka?"

"It hurts, it hurts!" Kouta's hand moved to the back of his head where his gentle cousin's hand had made contact. "I just, I don't know. It's like I try to get there, but there's something holding me back."

Nana smiled deviously and sent out her vector which she used to poke Kouta's nose. "You mean like that?"

Flashes of what vectors had done in his past, what they meant to the future, caused Kouta to recoil in disgust, with fear. He had never seen them used for anything other than killing.

"I'm sorry!" Nana cried out when she saw his reaction. "I'm sorry," she reiterated and bowed her head.

Kouta tried to say it was alright but the pictures, the memories clawed deeper, so deep that the pain paralyzed his mouth.

"Kouta-san," Mayu interjected, "she can do lots of good things with her ghost arm. She won't hurt anybody." She didn't want to Kouta-san to be upset nor did she want poor Nana-san sad either.

"I…I know," replied Kouta apologetically. "I'm sorry Nana-chan, I really am." Kouta looked up and forced a smile. He didn't want to make her feel hurt. "I know you're a good person; you'd never hurt any one." His smile grew larger, grew more genuine when he saw her contriteness turn to that of happiness to one of contentment.

"Nana's… not… the bad guy," Nana said quietly, almost inaudibly. Suddenly she was startled and cried out as she found herself in the arms of Mayu.

"Nana-san's not a bad guy! Nana-san's a good guy and she's going to be a good cook too!" Mayu gave Nana a big smile which Nana returned happily. Kouta and Yuka couldn't help but giggle a little at the sight of the two cute little girls' happiness.

In the rusted, corrugated shack; sat a pink haired girl. She held on to her cap with white knuckles while she imagined that it was the warm, blue one she had treasured so long ago. She wanted it back; she wanted that day of happiness back. She wanted to smile again with that blue eyed boy who thought her horns were cool. Burning tears ran from her eyes, not just for herself and the things that she had been denied, but for all she had taken from the only one she had ever loved.

"Kouta! Kouta! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" she repeated again, again, into the desolate night. Tears rained down on the green dress she had gotten herself with some of the money she had gotten from beating a thug down. The light green deepened where her tears fell as they cascaded from her cheeks. Eventually, there was nothing left, not even the energy to lay herself down on the cold wooden floor boards. She just put her head back and let one final teat fall as she drifted into the accepting abyss.

Chapter III: Two-Way Dreams

Yuka, Mayu, and Nana stood outside the inn, each bundled in a warm sweater to guard against the encroaching cold of the fall. Kouta stood before them on the portico smiling at how cute thee three of them were together and how Mayu and Nana kept bouncing off of each other playfully. It was like a family.

"Kouta, are you sure you don't want to come with us? It's going to be fun!" Yuka enquired for the third time, just wanting to be sure that he knew that he could still come if he changed his mind. He didn't need to change his mind though. It wasn't a matter of mind but of heart, the places of the heart you're not supposed to tread, the places where little girls with horns dwell.

"No, I'm ok. But do one thing for me," asked Kouta with a stern face that gave way to a smile when he revealed his true intentions, "have a good time."

Mayu and Nana shouted cheerily in unison, "We will!" while Yuka smiled at his warmth. That's why she loved him all these years. He had been the type of boy who cared so much, who had such a big heart. He may be somewhat clueless, but he loved with all his heart. Yuka sent a large smile to Kouta who received it and sent back one of his own. He was happy here. He was happy to be with them, he loved taking care of them and that contentment shone out even now. But still, with talons of want still embedded in his soul, Kouta needed to feel one thing. There was still one loose end. One thought plaguing his mind that undermined the happiness he felt and threatened to take down this castle in the clouds he had found himself in.

Yuka, Mayu, and Nana turned to leave. Halfway down the path; Yuka called over her shoulder, "See you in a little while!"

"Ok, have fun!" replied Kouta. He waited, watching them close the gate, while the giggles of all three reached back and graced his ears. He didn't know what to do so he went back inside and lay down. He pivoted his head so he could look out of the open sliding door. Little, pink petals arched through the air, carried by the breeze, carried into his room where he lay reclined.

His eyes followed the small, delicate petals as they danced slowly, brushed by the wind upon the floor by his head. In concert, they danced about each other, coming closer, then falling away, circling, clashing, drawing together but ultimately falling away. The poetry of it made his heart beat slow-down with unspoken, hazy apprehension. He looked up at the ceiling then back outside, to the flowing trees that cried their petals to the wind. His mind faded in and out, and shut down with three cries fused into one harmony.

Outside the gate, the figure waited. She had been waiting for three quarters of an hour, the time telling on her as she bit her lip. This feeling of need was uncomfortable for her for she had never needed anyone. This feeling cut deeply into a part of her where she was still bound and helpless. Yet, she didn't feel helpless to him, not this human. She knew, deep down, that out of all of them, scurrying around the planet, this one person wouldn't hurt her. She smiled to herself, a bitter-sweet smile tinged with hope, with loneliness, and the fear of a future she never thought she could have seen.

Back inside, the blue-eyed boy tossed in his sleep to the horrors of the past. Yet, in the midst of the horror, was a patch of light that held the smiles of those he loved. Here was where he wanted to be; yet, with increasing horror, these scenes of happiness were moving away and by doing so took on a type of spiteful malevolence. They were all there smiling at him: his imouto, his father, Yuka, and even Lucy. But he could not reach them despite the cries and pleas for them to stay with him and save him from this mad world. Farther and farther from him they spiraled as his cries reached a frantic, desperate pitch; a waking pitch.

Kouta rocketed up-right, drenched in a cold sweat, out of breath. The sight and the feeling of those happy, lively smiles still ricocheting around his mind along with the burning piercing desire to reach out to them, to finally join them and add to join them in smiling. He pressed his hand to his face, rubbed his eyes, squeezed them shut, but the dream-vision persisted. It still lingered, light as air, as hot as the pits of hell.

Lucy cast her gaze down, taking deep breaths to calm herself. Is he alright? Maybe, I bet that he is tired of this! That girl, he must prefer her to… Or… He could never have loved me after the things I've done. I was a fool for ever believing he could. That is it. He never intended to make a move. He just waited it out, figured after a while I would just go away. Oh, Kouta… Her hand lingered on the cold iron gates that had now been warmed by her palms. Just a second more of contact with this place is all she needed; just a split second more to have some connection to this place where she had found a bit of happiness in this world. Her hand slowly relinquished its hold, and she slowly came to terms with relinquishing a dream.

Chapter IV: Wake Up to The Let Down

Kouta splashed water over his face at the sink, the thoughts of those smiling faces now fading in his mind. Some of those faces were gone and would never be seen again but some of them were still her, lingering in the shadows of the world. The idea suddenly sent lightning bolts through him. Lucy! Oh no, is she there? Baka, baka, baka! Why do you have to sleep so much? he roared and berated himself as he rushed out of the bathroom and down the hall to the door. He quickly threw it open to find the gate unattended, no shadows there.

Kouta ran, still berating himself in his head to the gate which he threw open to get to the sidewalk. He looked to his right, then his left but saw no one. Where could she be? She came to me, isn't it fair that I go to her once? Thoughts of their past, of places they'd been, of times they had shared. The thoughts crashed and somersaulted through his mind, making him more eager to find her. The night sky bellowed in Kouta's head. Crashes of lightning tore open the night and illuminated a lonely, sad girl sitting alone in the sand by the clawing waves. Kouta knew where he needed to head.

It was noon when Kouta reached the beach. The sea was sapphire blue farther out yet broke into a gentle froth closer in. He saw over the sparkling sand, the gently ebbing waves, a superimposed image of that night, how he had found Nyuu alone and dejected. Superimposed over this was the night when he lost two of the most important people in his life and he was alone on the speeding train. Truly alone. Nothing but the blood of his father, his imouto, who only wanted to protect him, and his own tears remained from that night.

His eyes, full of expectance, scanned the beach in both directions but did not see her. His heart sank low in his chest. The waves continued to roll in gently yet loud enough to conceal the sobbing of a broken girl in a green dress sitting in a small shack.

The sun beat down but was mitigated by the chill wind that drove in. Kouta just went with it, lost in his thoughts of how he could, should he even say it, love someone who took so much from him. There was no sense in it. But I do. And I don't think I'll be able to stop. That song, a melody by the name of Lilium danced in dolorous chords across his mind we both seem to fit in that song. Both of us are drawn by our own sorrows to it and in it, we find each other. Kouta came to the outside world when he detected the telltale sounds of misery that he was so accustomed to hearing. The waves muffled and distorted them but they were unmistakable. There was something else to them, they sounded hollowed, like they resounded from something. It was then he noticed the small tin shack he was standing beside.

Chapter V: The Floodgates

He peered inside and froze. There, with her head resting in her knees that were pulled tightly against her chest, sat Lucy. Kouta suppressed a gasp. Everything he had wanted to say disappeared like a drain had been pulled from his mind that let all his words and intentions disappear. He didn't mind though. He didn't need that many words. He stepped into the hut but saw that his presence inspired no response.

Suddenly, something caught him off guard. It hit him in the stomach so hard he nearly bent in half. He clenched his teeth to silence a rising yelp. His eyes never left the pink haired girl sitting on the bare floor boards. She was the source of it, the source of all this. He knew if he could just get to her, he would be alright. One step in front of the other, he drew closer till, when he was right beside her, he dropped slowly to his knees. He looked at her a moment then, in a quivering voice, he forced, "Lucy?"

She raised her head slowly, revealing bloodshot eyes, brimming with tears. All she could choke out was, "Kouta," before they were in each others arms, safe within an embrace. Both broke down, lost in the histrionics of the moment. Sobbing into one another, accepting the other's tears on their shoulders, they remained, locked safely away from the cold world. They sobbed against one another, their chests rising and falling in unison. Finally, like the sun penetrating the clouds, the tears began to ease.

They let go, slowly, then held each other a little apart so they could look and see. Lucy looked to the side, her already red cheeks staining a little more deeply, as her lips parted slowly then began to form words. "Kouta, you really came. You really came. I just can't believe that this is not some kind of dream." She ran her hand against his wet cheek as if to make sure he was real. "Do you…" the question exploded from her lips of its own accord. She saw the look on Kouta's face and could only imagine the look that was playing over her own. Her hand flew to cover her mouth to prevent any more out-bursts of this kind. It was so ironic she thought. She wanted to bare her soul to him but she was so afraid of giving in to this feeling that he could love this soul stained with blood.

Kouta's eyes expanded with the apprehension of the question. He didn't know what to say. His mind raced between the possibilities but none of them were good enough for all he could see was one right choice he was afraid to admit and a myriad of decisions that he feared would lead to more separation. He suddenly remembered what he had thought before about not needing too many words. With one liquid movement, Kouta pressed his lips to Lucy's. This response was all she needed. This is all she dreamed about for so long, this moment had become her raison d'etre and now, finally, it was hers.

But, did she have a right to this she wondered. After all the problems she caused him, all the pain; did she deserve to have any happiness? As much as she wanted to pull away, she was lost in Kouta's lips. Kouta was oblivious to the inner turmoil of Lucy but keenly aware of his own. His thoughts combated with the feelings rushing through him, the warmth spreading through his body, radiating from his lips and from his speeding heart. He didn't want this to end. He didn't want to loose her again, let the world swallow her and cut them off from each other. Their lips pressed together, their arms drew each other together, clinging greedily, not wanting the world to take this wonderful moment away. Their breaths came in racing bursts as they clung still tighter, almost trying to fuse so they would never have to be deprived of this feeling.

They separated reluctantly and again stared at one another with eyes that drank in what they saw. He ran his hand through her hair and smiled wanly into her eyes which still emitted a stream of tears.

"Kouta," Lucy began, "I can't, I can't understand how you can love me." The visions of what happened on that train burned through her vision, causing her to release a little shriek. She jumped to her feet, turned away, and ran to the other side of the shack before she fell to her knees. She couldn't face him. She clenched her teeth, the guilt beating down the doors of her heart. "You should hate me for everything I've done!" she yelled. "I have ruined your life, I have taken those you loved, I've nearly killed you! Please, please, just hate me!"

Kouta nearly fell over from the force of her pleas, of her misery but he couldn't bring himself to hate her, no more than he could honor her request from the bus that he kill her. The thought sent shrill shivers down his neck. Please Lucy, please don't push me away anymore he begged in his head as he walked over and took her face in his hands. "Listen," he pleaded as, again a wave of sorrow beat upon the shores of his mind, "I hate what this world has done to you; I hate what you did to me, and my sister, and my father; I hate seeing you cry like this," by now the tears were again cascading down his face in magma-hot torrents, "and I hate that I had to be without you for so long; and I hate how when we found each other again, you left; and I hate the thought that I could have to be without you again." He took a deep, unsteady breath, "But I don't hate you!"

Lucy choked on her words. She sat, her mouth hanging open, trying to form words, trying to fight, to back away from this. She felt selfish, wanting to have him, to be with him, to be happy when she had taken his happiness. Kouta stared into her eyes and saw her torture. All he could do was hold her. He enfolded her in his arms, felt her, soft and warm yet trembling in his grip. Her breath came in short gasps as her mind flooded with words and feelings, each vying for attention, for the reigns to her actions. In her own skin she felt lost, swimming in an area she could not fathom the size of. Yet, she felt secure in his arms. He was the only one, always the only one. The only human that did not hurt her. In his arms now, she was lost in that feeling she had only experienced that day at the zoo. That time when they teased and laughed and splashed in the creek . There was no hurt here. There was safety, there was love.

Kouta was conscious of a relaxation of her breathing, a diminution of a tension, of something slipping, and falling away, spent, used, no longer necessary. He felt a return to something of his past, before the world fell apart and dripped with blood. He held Lucy tighter, his heart racing, something clicking into place. He wanted to hold it there, suspend it and keep it with him. Those smiles that he saw in the midst of the sea of the abyss, here with him, inside him, now, at last, he felt again like a child. The terrors of the past, for just a moment, disengaged their needles that supplied a constant drip of poison into the present. For a moment, the blood was wiped away by the tears of contrition. He pushed himself away, and looked upon the face of the girl he saw so many years ago. He looked into the eyes of a fallen angel.

Chapter VI: Songs for The Free or Address Changes

The shack was oppressive in its bleakness and heat. They were drenched in sweat. Their tears and sweat mixed as it ran down their faces. Kouta rose up and helped Lucy to her feet, then taking her hand, lead her out onto the beach. No one was around; this moment was shared with only them. They were here, making their own world, one in which they could exist. They stood there, Kouta with his arms secure around Lucy's waist and Lucy holding on to his hands, looking out to the gentle sea.

The sound of the sea rose and fell in unbreakable rhythm. The sound was relaxing, almost trance-like. Yet, a sound reached Lucy's ears, not the ocean, but a lower, sound. Wistfully, full of longing, the gentle melody rose and fell, reaching her ears and heart through Kouta's lips. The song from the music box played and resonated through her heart, placing her further into a time when there was so much hope. She closed her eyes and submersed herself in the feeling of peace, of a happiness she did not believe was real. Her half opened eyes saw both past and present at the same moment. Her lips parted and she joined Kouta in his song.

Kouta nuzzled his face into her neck and whisper her name or at least the name he thought was hers. But, she wanted this remaining vestige of the past gone as well. One more travesty to correct, one more tragic wound on her person to attend to. She turned and looked at him, this time with a small smile playing across her lips, the look of a person liberated in her eyes, "There's one more thing that you should know." Kouta cocked his a little to the side, waiting for what new revelation was at hand, a little anxiety causing his heart to beat against the inside of his rib cage. She began slowly, feeling each of the words release another latch, feeling the final mask loosening over her. "My real name," she began, "is Keade." It was just a change in addressing her but it seemed like the little girl he knew from so long ago had stepped out of the armor and put down her weapons. The childish, naïve nature of Nyuu and the tortured creature that was Lucy seemed as revenants, fading into the night of grim experiences.

"Keade," Kouta tried the word out. "Keade," he said again, as if sampling the word, seeing how it felt to his tongue. "Keade," he leaned in low, till their noses nearly touched. Keade recoiled as if shot. Through all her vectors this had penetrated, through her skin, down into her core. Three words packed more power than any of the bullets she had deflected. Three words made her head spin and tipped her world on its axis. She liked the feeling, she wanted to tip the world over further, invert it, and let the blood rush to her head. They moved together, almost instinctively, and held each other.

"Keade, will you come back to the inn with me? Come back home? Everyone would be so happy to have you back." He paused and then added, "I know I'll be."

"Home," Keade repeated. The word sounded strange. Kouta, held her head to his chest. The sun showered his face with warmth, a warmth that even the chill wind had no power to eradicate. "Let's, let's go home, Kouta," Keade finally affirmed. To have a home, not just walls surrounding her. Not a cage to be enclosed in like an animal nor the vermillion rust painted shack, but an actual place to belong. She was thankful, thankful that she was getting another chance. She wanted to leave every one of those memories; she wanted to start over with this boy, this little dream as she had called him. He took her hand and they began to walk.

Hand in hand, they started off down the beach with the golden sand shifting underfoot, leaving a serpentine trail, a temporary record of their travel. Their steps were not rushed, they had time. There was more time than they realized in their world even if time was beginning to run short outside of their sphere of peace. The cogs of a vicious machine began to rumble to life like a giant awakened from its slumber.