In. Out. Light. Dark. Alive. Dead. Cold. Warm.

Maka felt all of those things at once in the midst of her unconsciousness. She expected another dream, only to be greeted with the sweet embrace of darkness. A darkness that adorned only three beams of light. Golden light. As she was in and out of consciousness, she heard the muffled voices of people talking. They hadn't seemed familiar at first, but soon, she was able to make it out.

"...Will she be alright?"

"Oh, she'll be just fine..."

"What about... him?"

Chuckling.

"He healed quite quickly... though... it appeared to be a painful process. Ribs cracking in place, bruises seeping back into pale skin. But he's alright now."

"Which reminds me. Where did he go again, Stein?"

When Maka came to the conclusion that the other voice was indeed Stein's, her breathing was all she heard above everything else, and darkness replaced her blurred vision.

In. Out. In...

Maka felt a cold chill rush over her and her eyes opened slightly, the blurred vision returning as well as her hearing.

"Maka... Maka...? Are you alright...?"

"Please wake up. Please."

"Just let her be... She's been through quite a bit for the past few days."

"I know. I'm just so worried..."

Maka's eyes fluttered closed and once again, her own breathing and darkness washed over her.

Light. Dark. Light...

She tried to escape it. She wanted so much to be awake... But the darkness was like a hungry, sticky parasite that kept tugging her back down. It wanted her as much as she wanted to awake. She felt as if she was being smothered by a large, black sheet. It blocked her mouth from inhaling air and she felt her lungs begin to burn. Maka struggled and struggled.

Alive. Dead. Alive...

Her emerald eyes shot open and she can see everything clearly, her senses returning to her. Said eyes frantically looked around the room and her breathing increased, coming out from her lips in short, strangled pants. A light sheen of sweat coated her body and she shivered, closing her eyes as she tried to calm her ragged breathing. She was so glad that she was awake...

Cold...

"Maka."

...Warm.

Maka felt a warm hand on her shoulder and it gave her a pleasant feeling. She slowly reopened her eyes and her lips parted a bit.

"...Ye-yeah...?" Her voice was raspy and her throat hurt. She was in dire need of water. She has never wanted water so much in her whole life at that moment.

"Over here."

Maka looked over to the side to see Stein who was holding a glass of water out to her. She saw that on the opposite side of her, it was her father who rested a hand on her shoulder. Spirit smiled at her, relief flashing through his pale blue eyes.

"I'm so happy you woke up..." He pulled her up to him and wrapped his arms around her tightly. Maka, using one arm to hug her father and the other to grab the glass of water offered, giggling slightly.

"...I'm happy too."

Once her father let go, she pressed the edge of the glass to her lips, allowing the water to flow into her mouth and down her throat. She enjoyed the icy sensation as the liquid substance trickled down her esophagus and further down. She then gave the glass back to Stein, looking up at him questionably.

"...Who... who brought me here?" She asked, her words echoing the same she had spoken long ago, in the same bed, and in the same room, to the same person.

The Professor smiled and looked at the door, which began to open.

"... Death the Kid brought you here."

Maka's breath caught in her throat and her eyes trailed over to the one who stepped in, her eyes widening.

Standing there, in the doorway, was the golden-eyed reaper himself, smiling at her happily.

"Hello, Maka-"

Maka cut him off with a loud scream and she hopped out of bed, running up to him, and threw herself into his waiting arms, wrapping her own around his neck.

"Kid!" She screamed again, resting her head in the crook of his neck. Kid wrapped his arms around her, holding her to his chest tightly as she cried happily, her tears of joy running down her face heavily.

He received his golden eyes back for the price of saving a life, which added not purity to his non-existent soul, but to his well-being. But this touch of purity he had earned will not be able to cure the beast growing inside him.

Stein and Spirit stared in awe, feeling the guilt simply lift off their shoulders like a pile of bricks.

"How-How did you- How are you-?" Maka stuttered shakily, blinking repeatedly to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

Kid smiled, tears welling in his eyes as he looked down into her own emerald green, brushing strands of hair out of her tear-stained face.

"...Maka. I was never really dead to begin with." He whispered, caressing her cheek gently. He didn't wish to get too detailed with the process of his revival at a special moment such as this one. Maka closed her eyes, leaning into his touch. And then she remembered what had happened. Kid saved her. She re-opened her eyes and smiled up at him gratefully.

Lord Death stepped into the infirmary, tapping on Kid's shoulder. He looked up at his father in surprise. Death, wearing nothing but a nicely tailored suit and shiny shoes, smiled at the two of them.

"...Are you two happy?" He asked, hope lingering in the tone he used. He arranged for the two of them to reunite. He could've simply erased Maka's memories of Kid saving her, but he wouldn't want that for her. Besides, he didn't wish for Kid to hold a powerful, stress-filled grudge over him. Death didn't want to risk Kid's sanity to go over the edge of madness too soon. But the main reason why he did this for the both of them, for everyone, was because it would help slow down the process of Kid turning into a monster.

Maka hugged Kid to her even tighter, looking up at Death with the biggest smile she has ever worn in years since the times before her parents had divorced.

"...Yes." She whispered.

Kid nodded, resting his head on top of Maka's.

"Yes. Thank you, father."

Death's smile grew and he let out a happy chuckle under his breath. The main reason why he chose not to keep them apart furthermore, was for the sake of both Kid and Maka. Maka's wavelength had a positive effect on Kid and can lessen the effects of the Ancient blood surging throughout his body. This peculiar situation was similar to a time in the past, when Stein kept Marie by his side to slow down the effects of the madness he had caused by Medusa herself. Death also knew that if he kept Maka away from Kid any longer, she wouldn't hesitate to take her own life. The occurrence earlier that day scared the living daylights out of everyone; Stein, Spirit, Sid, Marie, Patty, and himself. But it scared Kid most, and Death was glad he was there when he was.

"Its no problem at all." Death's eyes flickered to Maka and the expression on his face turned apologetic. "..I... I'm sorry for keeping this from you as long as I did. Please forgive me."

Maka unwounded one arm from Kid's neck and rested it on Death's shoulder, causing his eyes to widen slightly at the contact.

"Shinigami-sama... You brought Kid back to me. That's all that matters to me now. You're already forgiven."

Death couldn't help but grin, seeing the happiness return to Maka's features. He looked up to Stein and Spirit, who were still watching the two in awe.

"Stein. Spirit."
The two adults' ears perked up to the sounds of their names and they looked up to their boss instantly. Death motioned for them to come closer to him and when they had, he brought his voice down to a whisper.

"Justin and Yumi should be here any minute now. Please wait for them outside the academy and alert me when they arrive. If it isn't any problem at all."

Stein shook his head while Spirit spoke, "No, not at all my Lord."

Death nodded once and stepped to the side to allow the two to walk out the door. He then turned to the two teens beside him, his eyes lighting up at the sight.

Kid and Maka looked up at him questionably.

Death closed his eyes and bowed his head respectably.

"I'll be leaving the two of you alone now. But be warned: Sid will be here at some point to take you two to Marie and Patty. Patty has been a nervous wreck lately. But the current twist of events a few hours ago put her into full panic mode." He chuckled a bit. "So I'll be careful when you two meet up with her again if I were you."

Kid and Maka nodded at him and Death turned, walking out of the room with a light hum under his breath, closing the door after him. After a moment of watching after him, Kid and Maka slowly turned their gazes to each other. Maka couldn't help but let out another happy scream as she clutched him close to her tightly, for the fear that this may all be another dream. Kid kissed her neck and tightened his arms around her, taking in the scent that was Maka. He was sure that if he had a normal heart beat, it would be oozing and squeezing with joy.

"Oh my god, I missed you so much..." He heard Maka whisper, the sound of more tears coming evadable in her voice. His smile grew a bit upon hearing that and he gently pulled away just enough to peer down into her eyes, wiping the fresh tears away with his thumbs. She peered back up as she heard Kid chuckle slightly.

"...And I missed you..." He whispered in response, leaning forward to quickly capture Maka's lips with his own. Oh, how he missed this feeling; her lips moving against his in perfect sync, the warmth spreading from their lips to make every nerve in his body tingle in delight. They didn't pull apart for a while, only slightly to take in much needed breaths of air before pressing their lips together once again. Maka lifted her hands up and weaved them into Kid's hair carefully, as to not mess it up in a way he wouldn't want. He laughed against her lips and pulled her body closer to his own as they finally parted from their little kissing session. Kid's smile had grown twice as wide since before. A deep crimson blush colored Maka's cheeks and she wore an equally as wide smile, just looking up into Kid's eyes. Kid's hands gently grasped Maka's own and he laughed once more. He felt so very alive by her side, but knew that deep down, deep within him, he was a dead being, waiting to throb and explode at any lost moment of self-control. Those thoughts were quickly pushed aside though as Maka led him to the bed she had been in just fifteen minutes before, sitting down upon it with Kid easing down beside her. For a while, neither of them spoke. Just holding each others hand tightly.

"...Kid." Maka finally spoke up, not taking her eyes off of him. His gaze held hers and lit up when she spoke his name.

"Yes, Maka?"

"You never really..." She looked away for a moment before looking back up at him. "...explained to me of the cause. Of your return, I mean." She felt embarrassed to ask; afraid that it was too much of a touchy topic to him at the moment.

Kid took a deep breath and gazed ahead of him, giving Maka's hand a brief squeeze before he spoke.

"It's a long story to tell." He looked back at her and smirked. "...You may end up falling asleep." He teased, the memories of Soul and Black*Star sleeping in class flashing through both of their heads. Maka laughed slightly and rested her free hand on Kid's knee, capturing his gaze once more. Her eyes were pleading, yet the small smile on her face still lingered.

"Please tell me..." She whispered in way that told Kid that he didn't have to if he didn't want to. Kid leaned forward and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips before pulling away and looking into her eyes again.

"Alright." His features softened and he caressed her cheek with the back of his own free hand. "...If that is what you wish."

…:oOo:...

Stein and Spirit walked side by side down the hallway, silence basking in all its glory in the air around them. Once during their journey through the Dwma's corridors, Stein offered a cigarette, but Spirit rejected it kindly. And once more, they were in complete silence with the exceptions of the sounds of their footsteps.

Stein let out a small sigh, placing his hands into the pockets of his lab coat.

"Spirit, out of curiosity..."

At the sound of the word 'curiosity' escaping Stein's mouth, Spirit's gaze quickly snapped to Stein, filled with fear.

"Yes? What is it that you're curious about, Stein?" He asked quickly.

Stein couldn't help but laugh at the sheer fear written on his partner's face, his eyes gleaming with smug glee.

"Its not what you're thinking, Senpai." He spoke brightly to reassure him. But it did little to erase the look on Spirit's face. Spirit cleared his throat.

"Then... What is it?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

Stein withdrew one of his hands from one of the pockets of his lab coat to pull the cigarette out from between his lips, exhaling a small cloud of smoke.

"Senpai... What is it like having children?"

Spirit's eyes widened and he nearly choked on his own spit. Nope. He definitely didn't expect to hear a question like that escape his former meister's lips. Furthermore, he was surprised that Stein hadn't even considered the idea before.

"Wh-what?" He gasped.

Stein didn't even bother looking at the flabbergasted expression on his face.

"You heard me."

The two of them turned a corner. Still, Spirit couldn't believe it, his jaw hanging close to an inch lower.

"...Haven't you even thought about it?"

Stein shook his head, the screw protruding from the side of it gleaming with the movement.

"No, I haven't. I've been too busy with other things; that you may already be well aware of. But, to be quite frank with you, I've never even remotely considered the idea. The ideas of having a child were merely erased from my mind until recently. I saw the way you treated Maka, like she was your only exception. And I saw the way Death treated Kid with worry. Since then I thought to myself... Would it hurt to have at least one at some point in my life?"

Spirit felt absolutely speechless by this time. His throat felt dry and strained, as if his voice picked up and ran away from him, tripping in its haste. When he finally found his voice after a moment, he spoke.

"Well... If you really want to know how it feels... It could be... Quite stressful at times. You never know what kind of situations they can get themselves in, and you never actually know any way to help them get out of it. There are certain things that children do that may anger you as a parent, but in the end, all is forgiven, and broken pieces are picked up off the floor and put back into place. There may be a few cracks in it afterward, but at least its still put firmly back together. There are also certain things that they do that can make you so overwhelmingly proud, you can't help but at least shed a few happy tears." Spirit shook his head with a small smile and by now, Stein had his attention on him. "That's not even the best part, Stein. When you hear that you'll be a father for the first time... The mixed feelings you receive are pleasant. There's fear, anxiety, happiness, excitement- by the time they are all written out, it can take up a whole notebook. By the time your wife would feel the baby start to move... God, you'll be so jealous of her. You'd be so jealous of the fact that she can feel every movement of it while you can feel nothing but a firm kick or two, if you are touching her stomach just right. When the baby is born though... when you see it for the first time... It will be so beautiful. Seeing your traits and the traits of the woman you love fit together so perfectly like that... you'd just cry." Spirit looked back up at Stein to see that he was avoiding Spirit's gaze, breathing in the fumes of his cigarette.

"...That's... rather intense, Spirit."

Spirit nodded and put a hand on Stein's shoulder, gripping it slightly.

"Trust me, it is." The expression on his face turned into one of surprise when he heard Stein begin to laugh somewhat nervously.

"...I don't think I'll be having kids anytime soon."

Spirit found himself begin to laugh along with Stein, patting his shoulder.

"Take your time, take your time."

The two of them walked out the two front doors and out into the cold air of the night outside, their breaths becoming visible as snow fell around them. They stopped at the top of the stairs, staring down into the city surrounding the academy.

…:oOo:...

"-hence why I am here today. All of the events that had occurred, everything you and Patty have seen of me, must remain a secret. You can't tell anyone else." Kid finished explaining everything, and by now, Maka's eyes were captured in deep interest, yet concern.

"So, you have black blood coursing within you because of one of a deal your father made with Professor Stein... And... an Ancient wants you to become a kishin? Do you have any idea what for?"

Kid sighed and shook his head, running pale fingers through his raven-colored hair.

"I'm afraid not. The reason still remains a mystery to everyone, even to my father. But if I were asked to guess, I would say that this Ancient wants it for the show."

Maka shook her head, her decent pigtails dangling with the motion, the expression on her face serious.

"I highly doubt its even that. What if this being is planning something-"

"-dangerous, horrible, terrible, god-awful...?" Kid finished for her gently upon seeing the features upon Maka's face twist in a certain way, as if she was about to think of a word to describe what she was getting at. Maka merely nodded, resting her head on Kid's shoulder.

"All of the above... I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried about what could happen..."

Kid looked at her out of the corner of his eyes and he leaned forward, pecking her on the forehead.

"Well... If I were you... I wouldn't dwell on it. My father knows what he's doing. The Ancient will be killed before I go corrupt." If Maka had been looking close to his eyes, she would've seen a glimmer of crimson flash across golden.

I apologize for the wait. ^^" I've been stressed lately, since I start freshman year this year in high school. New school new teachers. I don't know anything. TAT Not to mention that I have other stories to update and such and I've been brain dead in the sort. So, I hope this can tide you through for at least another month or so. :/