-)*(-

Miranda awoke with a start. Her fingernails dug into her poofy chair's overstuffed armrests as she stared blankly at her cold, ash-filled fireplace. How had she gotten here? Finally blinking, she relaxed back into the soft cushions behind her, spacing out for the next five minutes. Her thoughts muddled together as she tried recollecting what had happened previously. What had she been doing before passing out in her chair? Something felt wrong. Miranda glanced across her clean living room and looked out a window. It was late morning.

"What happened last night?" she asked herself. The question spun into the cloudy contents of her mind and got lost. This was starting to scare her. Looking to her stairs, she considered going up to her room for the aspirin bottle sitting on her nightstand. Though something about the stairs were different. They weren't messed up in any way; they were just as sturdy as always, but... She couldn't put her finger on it. Miranda stood from her chair.

"Something is missing," she said, almost sadly, as she turned in a full circle. Auburn hair then shook hastily from side-to-side. "Nah! You must have just had a bad trip. Oh! That's right!" She dug in her front pocket for her recently acquired bag of Angel Dust. It was gone.

"Well, shoot! I must have set it somewhere!" Her hands flew to her hips. That small bag had cost her a fortune! Not to mention it had taken her forever to obtain. People were getting scared on who to trust selling to with all the action the cops were taking. And why were her clothes so dirty? She shrugged, letting it all go. "Hell, it wasn't good for me anyway." Pausing, she wondered when it was she'd begun worrying about her health. The thought was interrupted by the refrigerator calling her name.

The metal doors opened easily to reveal a few treasured foods. An almost empty pot of soup caught her eye from the first row of shelves. When had she fixed that? Great, now she was back to trying to remember stuff. She sat on the floor in front of the opened fridge to think. The last thing she could recall was going for a walk like she usually did at night when she smoked some Mary J. But she had tried that new Angel Dust a little before that... Is that why she couldn't remember even coming home?

"Never again." She hung her head and swore right there and then that she'd never touch that stuff again. Nearly black-colored eyes gazed back up to land on the small pot of soup again. That earlier feeling that something was wrong became suddenly stronger. It was really getting on her nerves.

"AAAIIIEEEEE! That's cold!"

Miranda gasped as the voice flitted through her memories. A loud, wholehearted laugh, along with the sound of scrambling limbs over her sleek, wooden floor filled her ears as clearly as if a tape recorder was playing. "Who was here?" She jumped up, checking around the interior of the cottage. Nothing was different about her living room. Her bedroom looked untouched. The bathrooms were shiny and clean. Which was a bit unusual. Cleaning Day wasn't for a few more days and normal guests typically didn't do any housework. This wasn't setting well in her gut. Something had happened—something serious. She leaned against a wall and slipped down it, holding her head, trying desperately to remember any details of the hours before she'd awoken to stare like an idiot into the fireplace. But she couldn't even remember getting into her chair. Shutting her eyes, she concentrated harder.

Nothing came passed a blur.

Suddenly furious, tears in her eyes, she stood with a stomp and winced. That was peculiar. Her ankle had a healing cut and was a little swollen. A memento from her walk maybe? Somehow she didn't think so. Walking back to the living room, she sat back on one of her poofy chairs. It had a new smell about it. She lazily leaned to the side and folded her hand against her cheek.

"Febreeze is awesome," she commented, letting herself space out again. Absentmindedly, she reached into the cushion underneath her, trying to find her secret stash of marijuana. Well, okay, it wasn't really a secret stash considering that only she lived here. It was there for when she was too lazy to get up. Her fingers met with clean fibers. Not even the usual grit was down there. "Damn." Had she hired someone to clean her house and they'd also cleaned her out of her drugs? Annoyed, she flopped deeper into her chair. Some black object barely sticking out from between her floorboards captured her attention.

Unable to keep herself from rocketing up and over to the object, she practically pounced on it. Excitement coursed through her, but she didn't understand why. This couldn't be a reveal-all clue to the mysterious guests she'd been searching for, could it? Shoving the leg of the other poofy chair way out of the way, she gently plucked what was a long black feather out from the hardwood. She stared at it like it was made of gold. Twirling it by the stem of its base, the outside lighting caused a purple sheen to gloss over the feather.

It felt like a sledgehammer hit her full force on the back of her skull. Everything unlocked in her mind at once. Images, sounds. Ugh...Mat had been in her cottage...

Her breath was taken away as the image of Krad sitting in the sunlight on her porch swing came back. How on Earth could she have forgotten him? Had Dark carried out his threat to erase her memory after all? Her eyes widened and her heart actually stopped for an instant.

Dark...

Dark had been shot...by Mat...

She had heard it and had seen the aftermath. Blood had covered everything.

"Oh, God!" Miranda had tears flowing down her cheeks. They wouldn't stop. Not after Daisuke's last expression once again replayed within her mind.

There had been screaming after the incident. Lots of it. Krad's eyes had gone wild and had flickered through a range of blues and yellows before settling on an eerie, almost light-green color. At that moment she'd been forced to blink. Blinding white had flashed from some source to engulf absolutely everything. That was the true last thing she could remember.

Miranda bolted to her front porch. She yelled and cried in vain into the open expansion of her property. She promised one last thing before gathering herself to go back inside her cottage.

"IF I EVER SEE YOU GUYS AGAIN I'M GOING TO BE DOING SOME HOT BOXING!" So everyone better be alive!

No one was around to hear her front door slam.

-.-

Daisuke awoke to the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end. Had someone threatened him? A hand was draped on him, against the thick bandages wrapped across his chest. Crimson orbs followed the outstretched arm to its owner, slightly surprised to see Satoshi sleeping close by in the next bed over. The other bed was turned haphazardly, looking as if it had been carelessly shoved into position beside him.

Daisuke's inhaling breath unexpectedly constricted. Abrupt pain spiked through the left side of his chest. Had he gotten hurt? Oh yeah...the Glock. He took a moment to look around. They were in a huge hospital room. It had to be a recovery area. Not much light was let in through the windows, but he could easily see in various shades of gray. Monitors quietly kept track of his vital signs, and blue curtains on the right and left drew neatly back from more beds. A heavy wooden door sat at his far left, cutting them off from the sterile hallway outside.

Suddenly apprehensive, Daisuke tried moving. What had happened to Miranda and that little bird? Or even With? He must have made a noise in his failed efforts, because the next thing he knew Satoshi was crowding his line of sight. His features looked worn. The skin of his face appeared stretched and thin, dark circles were carved under sunken, dull eyes, and his complexion wasn't very healthy.

"S-satoshi?" Daisuke couldn't help but question, his voice rusty and slow from his injuries. Something about the Commander wasn't quite right.

"Daisuke," the other slurred, almost smiling. He then drooped in an awkward slump on the side of the redhead's bed.

"Satoshi! Are you all right?" The young thief tried to help him up, but he didn't have the strength enough to push. Satoshi put his hands firmly against the bed and small guardrail, finally managing to lift up.

"Evra'thangs 'ss all riight." The blue-haired teen teetered precariously where he stood, and Daisuke wasn't sure if Satoshi was speaking about the situation in general, or if he was talking about himself. "Farter ordered...meds..."

"Eh!" Daisuke exclaimed at the mispronunciation of "father". He had to suppress the urge to giggle. His chest just couldn't take it right now. Satoshi buried his face in hands, trying not to stumble in place like a drunk. He hated this feeling! Why did people do drugs? How could they stand this...this...

Forget it. He couldn't think.

The door to their room opened, revealing Kosuke and Emiko. A sharp gasp came almost simultaneously with the lights overhead snapping on. An unopened bag of pretzels and a bottle of water fell to the floor as the mother Niwa stampeded over to her awake son. A fuzzy-brained Satoshi just did jump back into the safety of his bed.

"Mom—please...!" She had him in a hug, and it felt like his head might pop off.

"Sorry!" She released, but hovered over him with fat tears in her light brown eyes. "You came so close...so close..." she choked. "We thought... YOU HAD NO VITAL SIGNS WHEN THEY WHEELED YOU FROM THE E.R.!" Emiko wailed. Kosuke came up behind her and put a hand calmly on her shoulder. "Oh, Kosuke!" She turned into her husband's chest. He gave her a light kiss on her forehead before smiling tenderly down at their son.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"My chest is a little tight. What happened to Miranda, and everyone else?"

There was a pause as Emiko collected herself and went to fetch a chair. Kosuke simply sat on the edge of Satoshi's bed. The bluenette managed to reposition and do the same on the adjacent edge. Emiko came back with a simple chair, pulling it up close to the beds while restraining a growl toward the Hikari. He had helped to save her son, after all. Still, it was a good thing that Kosuke was closest to her and not the blue-haired teen.

"The little bird didn't make it," Kosuke announced sadly. "The stress it went through was too much for it. We found it this morning."

Daisuke sank into his pillows some.

"AND DON'T YOU EVER RISK YOUR LIFE LIKE THAT FOR A BIRD! YOU'RE TOO IMPORTANT TO ME!" Emiko yelled. Daisuke flinched.

"I'm sorry..." he trailed off as his eyes started to water. He glanced away from his mother, noticing a newspaper spilled onto the tiled floor. The headline shown and he gasped at the unclear picture of an angelic figure flying across the sky of Azumano. He knew who it was immediately and what it was Krad was carrying. He felt mortified, even as he wondered why Krad had saved him. Kosuke spied what had his son's attention and rose to grab the paper.

"Your friend Saehara never goes without a camera, does he?" he asked with a laugh.

Daisuke swallowed. "Tell me the full story," he nearly begged. Kosuke turned to regard Satoshi. The teen nodded as if giving his consent.

Can't think...anyway, the bluenette thought.

"It's thanks to Krad that you're here," Kosuke began, as he sat back down on the bed. He looked his son in the eyes. "Krad had apparently tried healing you on his own before rushing you here. The doctors couldn't even tell it was a gunshot wound. From there we were alerted to the situation because of the APB we'd put out when you didn't return home, but by the time we'd made it, the doctors had already thought they'd lost you...again. They had been fighting for a while to keep your head above water, in a manner of speaking. But somehow, you came back every time."

"Whoa," Daisuke breathed shakily. Kosuke moved to rub his hair affectionately.

"Kei came here sometime later carrying Satoshi in for treatment of a few mild scratches, dehydration, and exhaustion. The reason he's got a foot in "la la land" is also because of Kei. He had to order heavy sedatives to calm Krad."

"But how could Satoshi be brought here if Krad had brought me here in the first place?"

"Krad had stormed back out soon after bringing you. My guess is that he went back to handle Miranda and the other two, right?" he questioned, glancing at Satoshi. Satoshi nodded before his head lolled back. Emiko chuckled, but Daisuke couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

"We haven't gotten much time to ask questions on account of the medication," Emiko explained their lack of knowledge.

Though no one else shared their room, Kosuke continued in a lower voice: "I believe that if one dies, the other dies. You and Dark were treading the line for a while. I think Krad nearly went insane from it, hence the sedative. Or sedatives—strong ones." They all looked as azure eyes blinked at them incredibly slowly. Satoshi looked ready to fall over. He hung his head very low once and it became clear why Kosuke had opted to sit so closely by him. He had to catch the blue-haired teen before he fell to the cold tiles below.

"What about Mat and Derek?" Daisuke asked, afraid of the answer. If Krad had went back after them in a rage, already closer than ever to losing it...

"So that's their names," Emiko said, looking much more cheerful now that the fact her young thief was alive and doing fine had sunk in. Daisuke nodded.

"Satoshi," Kosuke said, having to rouse the bluenette's attention as he sat him back up, "what happened to Mat and Derek?" In a hazy land faraway, Satoshi suddenly snorted. A creepy smile crossed his face. A psychotic laugh emerged from him a second later, ending only once he had completely exhausted his breath. It sent chills up the three Niwas' spines. Was this Krad? Had he...killed the two?

Satoshi drew in a deep breath. Lifting his shoulders and tilting his head oddly, he began talking in strangely clear, but fast pace. "Mat and Derek are in jail. Derek is fairly nice, so I pulled some strings to get him put within the same cell as Mat. They wanted to be together, and Mat promised that he'd take Bubba so as Derek wouldn't have to worry. Too bad Mat looked happy about that." Needless to say everyone was shocked at this admission. The creepy smile came back over the teen again. His blue eyes unfocused further.

"It's got to be the medication," Kosuke said, rubbing his chin as he studied the bluenette. They were all trying to digest what had been told, but it just wasn't kosher.

"No, it's the truth," Satoshi argued, before suddenly passing out with his mouth still open.

"Oi!" Kosuke barely caught him this time. Emiko couldn't stop laughing. Daisuke shrank back on his pillows, a soft smile on his face as he watched his father position his friend out on the bed. He was feeling quite tired...and hungry. But tiredness won over his uncomfortable, grumbling stomach.

"Wonder if rumors of an angel saving the day will spread through the hospital," Daisuke said drowsily.

"Most everyone knows what Krad looks like, if not his name because of sightings of him after Dark. He also didn't act like your stereotypical angel when he burst through the doors with demands," Kosuke commented. "Believe me. We've had our ears full of complaints and questions."

"Oh, Daisuke, before I forget," Emiko said, standing up next to him and reaching into her purse. "You've got to wear this necklace. It's made of silver, so it'll slow your healing rate down some. We've already had to blame most of your recovery on a miracle. If something isn't done about it we could get a lot of publicity on our hands. I don't want you whisked away and labeled as some research project." Out of her purse came a simple, chained silver orb, about as big as the center of his palm. In its indented middle sat a beautiful lightning ridge opal. It was clearly made for a woman. Daisuke held back a whine as she slipped it on him. Instantly, with the metal weighing against his bandages, he felt beyond tired.

Daisuke was fast asleep before Emiko straightened back up. A kiss was pressed to his cheek and both parents took the time to gently tuck the two boys in their separate beds, giving the promise that once they were released from the hospital, Emiko would have a home-cooked feast for both of them.

-.-

Everything was going according to plan. The heist was well underway and going smoothly. Dark landed on top of the first of two castle-like towers, viewing the black endless ocean straight ahead as he folded his wings neatly behind him. How good it was to be back out in the refreshing night with a waxing moon highlighting the area just enough. The landscape shone like a wonderland. A gentle ocean breeze brought slightly cooled air, tanged with salt. He opened his arms to welcome it, barely resisting the urge to flare his wings and ride out into the current. He had a job to do.

Dark grinned. Peace and quiet time would soon be over. He looked down at his sneaking suit, taking a black-gloved hand to fondly pat one of the three small brown pouches tied at his side. With a graceful lope, he was off to break into the privately owned structure underneath.

'This place is free from the jurisdiction of the Azumano Police, but it could still hold traps set by the owner. Not to mention there is a Hikari piece in here, so Krad will more than likely show his face.'

'Great. Just take care, Dark.'

'I will.' The last thing the thief wanted was to get laid up in bed again. That had been worse to deal with than the pain of being shot. Well, almost.

Dark descended the seemingly infinite spiral of old stone stairs slowly. Amethyst glanced over the unprotected side and off the hard steps, into the endless pit of inky darkness below. It was enough to give him a small thrill. If he fell he couldn't open his wings to fly; they were just too wide for this place.

A warped door came up on his left. He ignored it and continued to travel on down. Soon another door came up, and another. He passed all of them, finally coming to the fourth one. Cautiously, Dark pressed a palm flat against the deteriorated surface. Magic bit at the appendage, willing him to leave, but it was weak. The cursed artifact had been holed up here too long, but it was its own fault. Dark forced the door opened and immediately had to sidestep as something jumped out at him. Whatever it was flopped to the floor...

And kept flopping.

"What the..." Dark stared at it.

'It looks like a fish. A swordfish to be exact.'

"What were the Hikari thinking with this one?" Dark asked out loud. The fish was about the length of his entire arm, including the nasty looking needle it had for a nose. It flopped about knee-high, then it started shimmying and sliding down the stone stairs on its side, its thick needle-nose leading the way. Dark saved his thoughts for later, hurrying after the darn fish of an artwork.

"Wish it needed water," the kaito complained. Apparently with its magic, it could still breathe on land, seeing as how it never stopped moving. After about half an hour of useless groping and snatching, they finally made it to the bottom of the tower. The thief took a moment to hold his pinching side as he came away from the stairs. "We should have it now, since the force of gravity will no longer help it," Dark panted.

'I wouldn't be so sure...'

The fish was flopping about knee-high again, making its way to a missing brick in the wall, trying to get outside...to the ocean... They'd never catch it there. Then he heard it.

Voices.

And not just any voices. Reporter voices. They were outside, filming, waiting to get a glimpse of the Phantom Thief.

"Awe, hell!" It was all right if they saw him, just not the magical artwork. He dashed and made a desperate leap. The fish aimed its sharp nose in the air at him. Dark grinned, having predicted the defense. He purposely overshot the fish, catching himself along the wall ahead of it, then quickly spun, reaching fast to pluck the artifact up by its long nose. He held the thing before him, studying it.

"Fish stick!"

'More like fish on a stick,' Daisuke chuckled.

"So, we've got to head all the way back to the top." Dark craned his neck as far as it would go. With his incredible eyes, he could barely see the opening in which they'd came through.

'Let's get to it, then.'

Unexpectedly, the whole tower lit up. They were trapped in one gigantic spotlight. Dark threw his arms up to shield his eyes.

"Ready to play, Mousy?" Krad's voice drawled.

"Sure." Dark smiled smugly, blinking the dots from his vision. Amethyst orbs searched for the white angel, but he hadn't revealed himself yet. Dark raced for the stairs. Krad would expose himself at some point to attack, and he didn't have many angles available to him. Which made it good for them.

A quarter of the way up, Krad suddenly appeared in front of him. The hunter swung. Dark leaped hard to his left, descending until he landed on a lower portion of the spiral stairs. Krad followed suit. Grinning widely, Dark tugged open one of the pouches on his side.

"Fire one!"

Krad couldn't fully extend his wings, but they helped him dodge whatever his counterpart had thrown into the air.

POOF!

Something exploded into the wall behind him. Gold eyes looked back in midair, seeing flames curl upward and die. He faced back to Dark with an expression that almost made the black angel laugh. The white angel plucked a feather, nearly slicing Dark with it as he landed, but the kaito jumped back to their previous position higher up.

"Hey! I'm giving you some Hikari-inspired artwork here! The least you can do is catch them! Fire two!"

Krad had an instant to see this little phoenix chick—it was mostly white. Krad cursed as he was forced to duck. The thing merrily sailed over his head with a chirp, crashing in a burst of flames right behind him. The hunter was forced to jump down a ways, least he end up with roasted rump. The thief's carefree laughter rang out as he climbed upward in a sprint. The white angel pursued at a distance. About halfway up, Dark was stopped by a fireball exploding right in front of him. With wide eyes he faced backward. Krad was rearing his arm back like a professional pitcher.

"He's actually—" Dark's mumble was interrupted as he had to dodge. "Play with fire, Krad, and you're going to get burned!" he warned loudly, smiling haughtily. "These chicks are trained to follow me!"

"All the better when they get under your feet!" The hunter launched upward into the small space of the tower. It was a risky move, knowing he couldn't fly if something went wrong. Dark untied the last pouch at his side.

"Here! This one's yours!" Instead of throwing the chick directly at him, he arched it. Krad automatically reached to catch it as it came close to him. Dark moved so that he could land beside him. The white angel gently clacked down to the stone, raising an eyebrow at the thief's actions. Dark just rolled his shoulders in a careless shrug.

"What are you trying to pull?"

"Nothing. I just figured you might want one, and I need some help raising them. There's a whole clutch at home. These ones can blow up anytime they get excited. They're a little unstable since With isn't exactly a phoenix."

"You think I want one?" Gold eyes glanced, perturbed, at the chick in his hand. The little thing was covered in white downy. Reddish-gold swirled within its tiny wings, almost as if it was already catching fire. Deep blue, beady eyes looked up at the angel. Krad looked up at Dark. "This changes nothing," he vowed mildly.

The kaito laughed as his gift was accepted. "Let's get back to the chase, shall we?" The thief somersaulted backward, landing to perch higher on the stairs.

Soon, explosions were shooting back and forth within the tower. They stopped as a yell went off. "KRAD! YOU MADE ME DROP THE FISH STICK!"

Another explosion went off. "OI!"

"DID THAT GIVE YOU A HOT FOOT, BASTARD?"

The reporters that had swarmed all around the outside of the tower didn't know what to think. They all just looked around at each other, dumbstruck by the absurd commotion going on inside. Someone spotted a flash of white feathers from far above. It had them all directing their bulky cameras up.

Dark took off from the tower first, flying out over the ocean. Krad stayed the vigilant hunter, closing in from behind. "I'm going to have to take him out of the sky," Dark reasoned, as a sudden bolt of white lightning brought out their usual round of aerial maneuvers.

They dipped low, nearly in perfect sync with each other. A heavy flap and a severe tilt saved Dark again. Krad was a way better aim than Mat had been. The kaito was actually starting to sweat. Another bolt came at him, and Dark angled his wings, soaring into a partial loop. Krad caught on to the move too late—Dark was already above him. Gravity took the hunter down as Dark kicked off from his back, sending the two breaking quickly apart in different directions. Krad recovered, tapping the ocean with the tip of a boot before rushing straight up.

"Kyuu!" With suddenly detached from Dark's back without warning. He felt himself plummeting even as he twisted in midair to see what the problem was. His familiar looked down at him from a lengthening distance above, just as confused.

'This is going to hurt!' They may be thankfully over the ocean, but the height they had gained would make it feel like they were slamming into concrete.

'I can land us right, at least. It's Krad's attacks that we have to worry about on the way down. I can't dodge like this.' Speaking of, a bolt coming up barely missed him. Dark wasted a precious second to glare down at the ever closer white angel.

'Dark! The fish!' Daisuke exclaimed.

'No worries. I can keep a hold of the fish.'

'No, look!'

Dark was busy with crucial calculations, but he couldn't ignore the glow in his hands. He gasped as the fish started melting between his fingers. Correction—melted into his fingers, and hands, and arms... The greenish light was spreading quickly underneath his suit. Dark was left speechless as they hit the water. Remarkably, it didn't hurt that much.

The kaito broke the simmering, rippling surface, sputtering. Moonlight glinted off the new shiny scales on his face. With swooped down and looked him over, jealous. The thief brought a hand above water, staring at the webbing between his fingers. "I'm compatible with a fish?" The thief pulled at his hair and whined. "I look like something out of a two-bit horror flick!" Even the purple strands were doctored in scales, though these smaller ones were interlaced more tightly.

Something hit the water near land, causing a distant hissing and spitting. It was followed by another, and lastly a third one. The continuous fireballs started to cross over—the phoenix chicks following their masters. Through his shock, Daisuke mumbled something about moving before the burning chicks made it to them.

Dark rolled his eyes and began swimming for home, his legs automatically kicking out like a frog's due to his elongated, paddle-like feet. He'd had enough for one night.

That was it. Krad couldn't take it anymore. He skimmed just above the water's surface, close to dropping into the slightly wavy ocean. Although he didn't make a noise, he was holding his stomach as if not to let a laugh loose. Dark growled at him.

"You can have this for a familiar if you want! I don't need another!" With nodded strongly in approval as he flapped, keeping up by his master's side.

"But you look good in scales," Krad argued in a mocking fashion, his mirth sinking into every word.

Dark moved, quickly crossing the short distance to grab a pale wrist. Greenish light flashed again and, confused, Krad's white wings automatically banished as he fell head-first into the water. Tanned skin once more, Dark smirked, looking down into the surrounding liquid. He wanted to see how his counterpart handled being part fish. The smirk was wiped from his face as he was pulled under by an ankle. Krad must have gone around him. Darn artwork bestowed amazing agility to those within water.

Green flashed a third time from underneath, and then another, and another, and another. Finally, Dark lifted to the surface, coughing. A few feet away, so did a silver and gold scaled Krad. Dark traded his coughs for laughter, nearly choking in the process.

"You look like a Christmas ornament!"

Krad's retort was broken by the thief's yelp and almost clear jump above water. There came a whiff of something burning. The kaito looked behind him, then promptly took off in the direction of home. Krad hurried after as a speedy, floating little fireball of his own followed him.

On the shore, Miranda lowered her set of binoculars, laughing. Her new job as a local reporter gave her the perfect opportunity to watch her "friends'" spectacles. It looked like they were getting along fairly well, in a weird sort of way. She was still angry with them for trying to erase themselves from her life, but she'd get them back for that. She hadn't forgotten her promise of hot boxing the two. If only she had gotten last names! But her Google search for Dark Mousy only brought up legends and his patterns of thievery. No one really knew more about him. On that note, she couldn't help but constantly toy with the idea of revealing a few choice secrets.

She raised her binoculars again, hoping to learn of where they were going. She wasn't stalking them. No! She wasn't anything like Mat... She just didn't have any other way of getting their addresses. Miranda gawked at open ocean. They had disappeared! She swiveled to the left and right, sweeping her view everywhere.

"Well, shoot!" she exclaimed, lowering the device. Then, smiling, she turned for her brand new red Kia. Looked like she'd have to be in the business longer to get what she wanted. That was fine with her. Opening the driver door, she petted the mama bird that waited patiently within a box in the passenger seat. She'd rescued it from Mat's later that fateful day and discovered she had a talent when it came to feathery things.

Humming to herself, she started the car and headed for home, ready to write a report for her boss that only a former druggie could witness and stay sane.

-)*(-

A/N: I want to thank everyone sincerely. Those of you who reviewed kept me going by showing your interests. I now have a complete multi-chapter fic.

Special thanks to: Sno-Oki for helping me whenever possible, Dawns Eternal Twilight for the extensive feedback and for being with me from the very beginning, and my Tiger for being the driving force in what I do and for the super plots we go through. I also give a special thanks to Kathrine Daystar and TrintyEve for some cool ideas that helped build up this fan fiction, Sapphiet for her energy, and Dark Hearted Shinobi and The Lantern for always caring. And don't let me forget intelligenceisstupid for some suggestions for this chapter! I'm really glad to know each and every one of you at least on some level.

And to new reviewers: I'd love to hear from you in the future! Don't let time damper what you want to say to me! I hope to learn of many newcomers!

Oh, and guys, if there is a part in this story that you've read, questioning if I put it in there for you...then I probably did. My way of showing some love. A few have already realized this, but how many scenes have gone unnoticed by those for whom they were intended?

See ya later! Maybe in a few spin-offs, and a sequel! We've got to find out what happens when reporter Miranda finally gets the angels' attention again, right?