This story starts right at the end of episode 13 of Elfen Lied.

Rated "M" for extreme violence.

A tale of Elfen Lied PT 1

There was something she needed to do.

That's what Lucy told Kouta as they parted from that glorious kiss he given her atop the stone steps that overlooked the bay. She still felt the sensation of his lips on hers. The feel of his arms as he held her so tight. Licking her lips, she swore she could still taste him too. She felt sad about what she had to do, but now that she knew Kouta did love her, it was fine. She had confessed her sins to Kouta, and although he didn't forgive her, he loved her anyway. She could die happy with that knowledge. There would be no 'spread' of her kind, no large groups of horned children to threaten Kouta's life. She would die to keep her love safe.

Looking back up to the top of the stairs, she saw him watching her walk away. She smiled and waved. He waved back. "Good bye Kouta, I will love you forever," she whispered to herself.

The dreamy feel of their intimate hug stayed with her as she went back to the bridge. Getting close enough to see it, she noted a couple shapes fade back into darkness of an alley. The whisper of quiet radio-talk drifted to her. They knew she was coming.

Not wanting anyone else to get hurt, she strode down the empty street and turned to walk past a set of barricades at the end of the bridge. From behind another set in front of her, a large pack of armed men popped up. Bright lights flashed into being, blinding her. Behind her, she heard running steps.

Knitting her brows at the injustice of this being the only way she could ever show Kouta how much she loved him, she said again, "Good bye, Kouta."

"FIRE!" came a command.

The bullets came in a heavy rain from in front and behind. By instinct, she stopped them or deflected them away. She hadn't meant to do that. Her reflexes had taken over. Fighting against her instinct to survive, she launched her vectors into the air. Right after she did so, her head exploded in pain as a bullet hit to knock off her other horn. She then hit the pavement hard as her feet were jerked out from under her. Cracking her head on the road brought stars to her eyes.

It impact shocked her. She had a brief thought that bullets don't knock people down like that.

Landing on her side, she saw the soldiers in front of her, shift quickly to the right. No, they didn't move. She was bring dragged. As this registered, she felt hands on her legs that now stuck through the guardrails. She was pulled through the guard rails, confused as to what was happening.

The next thing she knew, something had her and she was falling off the bridge. Again, instinct demanded she reach for the rails to stop her fall, but the pain in her head had disabled her vectors. Her fall slowed, stopping just above the water with a jerk. Her dazed eyes saw she was over what looked like a black, overturned boat. The surface was rounded, a small rudder like thing stuck above the water not far from where the boat hull disappeared into the water. A black clad arm was clamped around her, just under her breasts. The dark hull below her seemed to fill her whole vision. Lucy passed out.

Lucy stood inside the entrance of the Maple Inn. In front of her, Kouta cast his gentle smile at her. They raised their arms to hug, but Kouta was jerked away from her. Behind him several small red-eyed children stood, with grins full of jagged teeth. A mass of vectors pulled Kouta back into them in slow motion. Lucy tried to use her vectors to stop them, but her own refused to come out. She wanted to run and save him, but she couldn't move. She was powerless to stop them from dragging Kouta to them. Holding him above their heads, they laughed in horrid sounding giggles as they ripped him apart..

"Kooouuuutaaaa!" Lucy screamed, and snapped her eyes open. Panting in fear, she no longer saw the grisly scene, but a white ceiling.

Lifting her head, Lucy saw she lay in bed in a small, oddly shaped room. Thick covers lay over her. The room, like the ceiling, was white. Unlike a normal room, the walls of this one tipped in at the bottom, and by the head of her bed the walls closed to only the width of the narrow slatted wooden door by her head. Natural light came from narrow slot-type windows near the ceiling. In the other corner across from the solid wooden door by the foot of her bed, An oddly shaped glass that was wide at the bottom, and narrow at the top with water in it, and small plastic cup sat on a shelf. A paper with large letters was taped on the wall above the shelf. Confused, she took a moment to remember the night before. Yes, someone had pulled her down and taken her off the bridge.

She frowned at the paper and tried to read it. She knew the letters, but they made no sense. Studying it, she realized whoever wrote it had written it backwards. Instead of right to left, the letters read left to right, saying :

Bandage no take off

Eat pills drink water

Lucy moved to get up and pain stabbed her head. Clapping a hand to her head, she felt someone had bandaged her. A quick probing showed the thickest parts where her horns used to be. She had no idea where she was, but she doubted whoever had grabbed her was with the men of that facility she had escaped from. She'd been taken by some idiot who couldn't write properly.

Groaning her way to her feet, she heard a low, throaty motor pass by her tiny room. Right after that, the room bobbed and shifted side to side. Grabbing onto her bed, she braced herself. In a room beyond hers, some man yelled unintelligible words. If she had to guess, he was cursing at the motor that had passed by.

Where in the hell was she?

Picking up the glass, she took a sip of water to ease her thirst. The small cup had two white pills in it. They looked like the painkillers Yuka stocked the bathroom shelf with. Not knowing for sure, she didn't take them.

Standing up, she noted a wooden pole by the window on her left. Stretching on tip-toe, she noted a platform running past. On the other side of the platform, a boat rocked at it's anchor, just as her room was. She was on a boat.

More grumbling came from the other room. Someone was shifting papers. Lucy took another drink from the strange glass, then slowly opened the door.

A man was picking papers up off the floor and slapping them back onto a desk. He grumbled again as he got the last ones, then shuffle them together. His eyes were rounded, his light brown hair showed gray on his temples. He wore an insanely bright multi-colored shirt, shorts, and brown slip-on shoes. He moved to turn to the stove on his other side, and stopped mid motion as he saw her.

"Yes!" he said happily as he waved to her.

Lucy stared at the idiot. "Who are you?" she asked, sure that he couldn't have been the one to snap her off the bridge so efficiently.

He paused, then as if remembering how, he bowed to her and said in halting words. "Greetings, good morning." Pointing to the food on the stove, he added, "Breakfast, eat food."

This had to be the dumbest man on the face of the Earth.

"How about if you just get out of my way so I can leave?" Lucy asked heavily.

He paused again, as if thinking, then pointed to the papers he had picked up. "You leave ... anytime. Please show me ... island ... place run you from."

Although she could understand him, doing so was not easy. He had a strange accent that seemed to permeate every word. "You want to know how I escaped from that facility?" she guessed.

The man nodded, then shifted some papers, putting two photos and a long paper on top. Pointing to them he said, "Please, show ... path ... walked."

Tentatively approaching, Lucy looked at what he was pointing to. The photos showed the island facility. She recognized the jutting point she'd seen just before she was knocked out by the bullet. The long paper had a drawing on it. She realized it was a drawing of the floor she'd left through. She also noted that the notes he had made were illegible scribbles.

The man was watching her expectantly. She shook her head. "You do not want to go there," she said in warning.

The man bobbed his head, "Please show. Must go."

This imbicile wouldn't have a prayer against those men. Trying to make him understand, she waved her hands in a no-no gesture. "Do not go there. They kill people." she said sternly.

The man frowned at her. In his heavy accented, halting speech, he said, "Daughter there, I must go ... retrieve daughter."

Lucy's jaw dropped. They had taken his daughter, and he was going to try to rescue her. By the look in his eyes, he was dead serious about getting her back. Speaking slowly to be sure he understood, she said, "You cannot go. They will kill you. You will not save your daughter."

"Must go," he said firmly. "Must try ... until dead."

"You poor man," Lucy said softly.

"Please show," he said again in a pleading tone.

Part of her thought about showing him so he'd get out of her way. Another part hated to see this man who was willing to die to save his daughter, do just that. She noted a holstered pistol hanging by the harness on the other side of him. He was going to go, and he most likely was going to die in a hail of gunfire.

"What is name?" he asked, pointing to her.

Not wanting to admit who she was, she said, "Yuka."

"Yuka, if you ... had daughter, there ... you would not go?" he asked.

Right then, something ripped at Lucy's heart. Yes, she'd go. She'd search and destroy that place until either she found her daughter, or they killed her. Just as he was going to do now. He may be the dumbest man on Earth, but it was obvious he loved his daughter.

"Show me where. I ... have better chance if you show me," he said.

Lucy showed him. Once she traced her path as well as she could remember it back to the elevator, he raised fingers, and asked (she guessed) how many floors she had traveled. She held up four fingers. He shuffled through the papers and brought out another floor plan, and pointed to the elevator. It took her a minute, but she was able to trace back to the steel vault she had come from.

"Thank you, thank you," he said, then gestured to the stove. "Please, eat food."

Feeling sick knowing this clueless man was going to die for the sake of his daughter, she shook her head, saying, "I must go now."

The man pointed to an array of summer hats on the far wall. "Take one ... hide head," he said, smiling at her. He stepped against the wall by the stove so she could pass.

Lucy went past him and picked a wide brimmed hat. Looking back at him, she asked, "What's your daughter's name?"

"Kai ..Dee," he said.

Lucy cast him a sad smile and said, "I hope you find her."

"Thank you," he said again, and bowed to her.

Lucy walked to the steps in the back of the cabin to emerge in daylight. She crossed the board to the dock. As she walked down the dock, a nagging question filled her mind. Had either of her parents ever tried to find her? Since she was abandoned in an orphanage, she doubted it.

This Kai Dee was a lucky girl to have a father who cared so much for her.

.

Lucy was nervous about returning to the Maple Inn. Did Kouta share what he knew with Yuka? Would either of them want her back? Although Kouta said he loved her, would he be willing to live with her now he knew what she had done? Fearing being rejected by Kouta, she turned around and headed back to the docks where the man's boat was. That man was a simpleton, but that was the only other place she could feel safe going to sleep for the night.

Going back on board the boat, she tried the door into the cabin. It was locked. "Oh great," she muttered. As she turned to leave, the door opened.

"Eat breakfast ... food?" the man asked happily from the stairs.

Lucy beamed him back the same smile he gave her. "Please," she said.

He ushered her in and cleared off a place at the paper-strewn table for her. He retrieved a dish that was neither quite a plate or a bowl, and another of those wide bottomed glasses. Both bore soft rubber bottoms on them.

Tapping the bottom of the glass, Lucy asked, "Why are they like this?"

The man paused then picked up a flat tray and set her glass on it. He filled the glass with orange juice to it's neck, which was halfway up it's height. He then tipped the tray sharply to one side, then the other as he slowly lifted and dropped it. Lucy expected juice to go flying. The glass stayed in place on the tray and didn't loose a drop. He set the glass back down in front of her.

"Boat ... roll. Glass not dump," he said.

"That is amazing," Lucy said.

He cast her a grin, then picked up a pan and shoveled scrambled eggs and ham slices onto her plate.

"Stop, enough, I'm not THAT hungry," Lucy said as he was ready to pile another big scoop of eggs onto her plate.

"Eat, good," he said with a big smile.

The man had no chopsticks, but the spoon he had given her had short tine-like teeth on the end.

Lucy frowned at the thing, never having seen anything like this before.

Pointing to it, the man said, "Spork."

The word was so silly, Lucy giggled. "You made that up," she accused.

The man shook his head and again said, "Spork."

Lucy nodded. If she repeated it, she was afraid she'd fall into a laughing fit. "What is your name?" she asked, wanting to call him something other than 'dumb man'.

"Jonathan," he said, pointing to himself.

"Thank you for the food, Jonathan."

He nodded, and repeated, "Eat good." Sitting down across from her, he scanned his papers and scrutinizing the drawings. Every so often, he'd make another note.

Lucy watched him as he made his notes in some writing style she had never seen before. She also realized as she ate that she was really hungry. Watching him pour over his drawings and notes, she cleaned her plate.

A cell phone rang. Jonathan picked it up and spoke in his strange language as he looked over his work. He talked gibberish in a flowing way he couldn't do when speaking normally. He paused and grabbed a pack of notes. He wrote as he listened, then let out another string of words. After that he looked at his notebook, and said something she understood.

"Kurama" he'd said in a question as he spoke.

Lucy tried to listen, but understood nothing except one name. A name she knew too well. Once he closed his phone up, she asked, "Do you know Kurama?"

He looked up, paused and said, "Kurama dead. One less to ... be concerned with."

Lucy scanned the photos and drawings again. Somehow, Jonathan had gathered much information on that facility, including people who worked there. He was obviously much smarter than she thought he was. "Why do you speak so strange?" she asked.

"Japanese not first language. English first language. Yes it does show?" he asked.

"How did your daughter end up there?" she asked.

Jonathan stopped leafing through his notes. Folding his arms on the table, he explained in his broken speech, "Wife, Azusa, was Japanese. Azusa was with child. I had ... work far away. Azusa had child, daughter. I tried to talk to Azusa after daughter born. No answer on phone. I went home fast. No one there. Report was ... thief... killed Azusa. Very sad then. I wanted to kill thief. I searched for truth. No record of daughter found, but I know Azusa had child. After birth, I heard child cry with own ears."

Jonathan then laid a hand on his thick notebook. "I search, I write, I search and ... study. I found daughter ... tracks. I kept search ... long time. Island is where daughter is. I go there, retrieve daughter."

"You've never seen her," Lucy stated more than asked.

Jonathan shook his head.

"They have an army there. How can you get her back?"

"No concern army. Concern retrieve daughter." His face then fell as he said, "Family ... loved ones ... hold them close. Yuka, when you go ... home, hold them close. Do not let go."

Lucy felt her lip quivering. What was it about this man that made her want to break down in tears? "How can I help you?" she asked.

"You showed me your path, I have good chance now. Thank you."

Stiffening herself, Lucy said," You'll have a better chance if I go with you."

"No," he said firmly. "You go home, hold family close. Loved ones need you."

Lucy was about to say that she didn't have any loved ones. That was untrue, she had Kouta. She also wanted to see him very badly. "I'm scared I won't be wanted," she said quietly.

Jonathan's voice became soft. "Yuka, I want daughter. I never ... see her, but she is my family. I know your family .. is same. They love Yuka. Want to see Yuka. Go home, hold family tight."

Despite her best efforts, a tear rolled down her cheek. "You are a good man. Thank you," she said softly.

Cracking a grin, Jonathan jerked his thumb behind him and said, "Go home ... before you wet floor."

.

It took Lucy the rest of the day to find the Maple Inn. As Jonathan told her, when Kouta opened the gate, a smile lit his face and he hugged her tight. Everyone else was happy to see her as Kouta steered her to her seat at the table, where she noticed Yuka had already set a place for her.

During the meal, Lucy told them about Jonathan and his search for his daughter. She left out the part where he was going. Yuka seemed a bit concerned that Jonathan did not know Japanese well. Their language could be tricky to someone like Jonathan. Discussing it, they decided to accompany Lucy back to Jonathan's boat to be sure he had not mis-interpreted information that may have mislead him on his search.

.

Jonathan sat watching Mr. N. work on his computer. His wild attire was gone, he wore a turtleneck sweater and gray slacks. "So, what is their tally from last night's battle?" he asked in English.

Scrutinizing the hacked information, Mr. N said in English, "It seems they killed Lucy, the one they were after. Though the haven't found her body, she was confirmed as falling. Number seven fell into the water and is presumed dead. The youngest Diclonius, Mariko, also died with Kurama. They also suffered significant losses."

"Anything about Kaidee?" Jonathan asked.

Mr. N shook his head. "No, but they only go by code names. I doubt 'Lucy' is a real name either."

"It's not. Her real name is Yuka," Jonathan told him.

Mr. N glanced at him. "And you know this how?" he asked.

"She told me this morning. She's not Kaidee, but at least she got away."

Mr. N stared at him. "From everything here, Lucy is a ruthless, cold blooded killer. How did you manage to talk to her?" he asked.

Jonathan shrugged. "A wild shirt, your boat and playing dumb. She was confused, curious, and convinced I was harmless."

"You harmless," Mr. N said with a humorless chuckle. "That mistake could cost someone their life."

"It has, but to people who deserve it, not victims," Jonathan reminded him. "Any clue on who number seven really is?" he asked again.

"Nothing unless they have it in an isolated system I can't get to. To search, you'd have to go there."

Jonathan left out a sigh, then said, "So be it, I have to head out there anyway. We'll just hack their system while I'm at it. Get ready to do a remote shutdown of their power if need be. You may have to re-route or intercept alarm traffic as well. I'll go tomorrow night, be ready."

"You want a lot." Mr N. told him.

"I want my daughter. I pay you well to help with that." Jonathan said sternly. "I have to go check out some phone traffic I tapped into. This lady was concerned about rumors of a horned girl living with her daughter and nephew." He got up and left.

Mr. N. watched him go then said, "Keep playing with dynamite, you're bound to get blown up."

.

The taxi dropped them off at the head of the docks. Noting the large boats laying at anchor, Yuka said, "So, this is how people with money live."

"Must be nice," Kouta noted.

"This way," Lucy said, and led them down to the largest boat on the left. She walked on board and knocked at the cabin door. There was no answer.

"Maybe he's not here," Kouta said. Looking at the bridge above them, he climbed up to see it empty.

Lucy tried the door, it opened. "Jonathan?" she called, peeking her head in. No one answered. She also noticed the interior was clean. No food on the stove, and the cluttered desk was clear. Leaning in farther, she took a couple steps down. There were no hats on the wall, nothing. A cabinet door was open by where his pistol had hung by it's holster. The cabinet like everything else, was empty. She got a bad feeling in her stomach.

"Jonathan?" she called again, walking toward the room she'd awoken in.

"Hey don't do that, we weren't invited in," Kouta hissed in warning.

Lucy checked the bedroom, it was cleaned, the note on the wall was gone. No Jonathan. She turned to see Kouta leaning in, partway down the steps. "He's gone," she said.

"Then we should go too," Kouta said, and motioned her out.

Lucy noted the corner of a piece of paper sticking out from under the stove. She pulled it out. It was one of Jonathan's notes, written in his language. She handed it to Kouta. "Can you read this?"

Kouta took it. He frowned and said, "My English isn't very good."

"Let me see it, and get out of there before someone comes," Yuka said, holding her hand out from behind him.

Once they were all out on deck, Lucy shut the door and said, "We're too late. He's gone after her. He took everything, and he has weapons. This is bad."

Yuka studied the paper for a moment, then said, "This man really does butcher our language. He didn't even get his daughter's name right."

"What do you mean?" Kouta asked, leaning closer.

Pointing out the mistakes on the paper, Yuka said, "His translation here is wrong. These symbols he wrote out in English, he talks about the name he got from orphanage files. A girl that went missing after some terrorist type attack. He calls the girl 'Kai Dee'. That's not right, it's pronounced, 'Ka Da'."

"What?" Kouta gasped.

"Yes, his daughter's name is Kaede, he has it wrong," Yuka said, then noted Lucy was staring at her and turning pale.

Lucy felt disconnected. She couldn't have heard right. "What orphanage?" she asked weakly. "When was this?"

"I don't see a date, but that orphanage is the only one in Kamakura," Yuka said. "As far as when, he mentions here that he investigated other similar attacks. At a festival, and on a..." Yuka fell silent, then looked at Kouta and said, "Your name in on this. He was after the ones who killed your family. He believes they took his Kaede."

Lucy dropped in place to sit, staring off at nothing. Her head was spinning. He was right here, she was right here! "What have I done?" she asked weakly.

Kouta squatted down by Lucy. "What are you taking about?" he asked.

Looking at him with a blank face, Lucy said, "I told him my name was Yuka. If I hadn't lied to him, he might have figured out his mistake. He would not be going to that island where I was held, to the place all those soldiers came from. He's going to try to break me out of there. He'll be killed because of me!"

"Because of you?" Yuka asked.

"I'm Kaede," Lucy said.

Knowing shown in Kouta's eyes as well. "Your father has to go by water right? We're on his boat. We'll just stay right here until he comes back," he said confidently.

.

Jonathan had changed clothes again. This time, he was a tourist with a V neck sweater, cargo pants, and a camera with a huge lens dangling around his neck. He held the map and translation guide up as he walked, searching for this 'Maple Inn'. It wasn't on the tourist guide, but in a phone book, he did find the location from a phone number.

.

Nana didn't know why Wanta was barking, they had just fed him. She opened the door to see a tall, round eyed man inside the gate, admiring a wall.

"Who are you?" she asked cautiously.

The man turned to her and waved, saying "YES!"

Nana's eyed him. "Yes.. to what?" she asked.

The man frowned, then consulted a small book and said, "I come ... to Inn. This Maple Inn?"

Once she figured out what he said, she explained, "It is, but we are not open."

The man looked through his book, then said haltingly, " I am Jonathan ... pleased to meet you. I come to Inn."

Nana gapped at him, then turned and said over her shoulder, "Mayu, could you come here?"

The man said, "You Mayu!" then waved at her again.

"NO, my name is Nana. Mayu is coming to help you, because I have no idea why you are here," Nana said in an exasperated tone.

"Here for Inn," the man said with a big smile.

"This place is not open. Only our family lives here," Nana explained again.

"Family Inn," the man said with a happy nod.

Mayu came out and stopped short upon seeing the man. "Who is he?" Mayu asked.

The man pulled out a paper and held it out to them. "I come to see Kai Dee. Kai Dee at Inn?"

Mayu noted what the paper read. "That is not right, you paper says Ka-Da" she said, pointing at it. "And we don't know her."

"KaDa?" he asked, and turned the paper back to look at it.

"Mayu, what do we do? Yuka should be handling this." Nana said to her friend.

The man looked up at them. "Yuka live at Inn also?" he asked.

Mayu stepped forward and pointed to the gate. "Yes, Yuka does, but we are NOT OPEN. You will have to find another Inn."

"Not ..open..." the man muttered and looked through his book. He then nodded and said, "So sorry, I leave now." He then paused adding, "You see Yuka, give Yuka big hug. Let Yuka ... know Yuka is important." He then wandered back out of the gate.

Nana and Mayu looked at each other, then burst into giggling. They went inside, mimicking Jonathan's bad speech.

"You Mayu, this Inn!" Nana said, then burst out giggling again.

"This Inn ... Not open. Lock door ... before he comes back!" Mayu said then locked the door.

.

"That was embarrassing," Kouta said as he went to open the door. Finding it locked, he unlocked the door and announced, "Mayu, Nana, we're home."

"That man was really upset we were on his boat. At least he didn't call the police," Yuka said, and eyed Lucy. As she kicked off her shoes.

"That wasn't the same man," Lucy insisted.

Nana appeared and pointed stiff-armed at Kouta. "Kouta home! Brought Yuka, Lucy! Yuka important. HUG YUKA!" she then ran over and gave Yuka a tight hug as she giggled.

Mayu appeared and stated in a halting voice. "We ... Not speak well! Like Visitor. Speak like ... cave man!" she too then burst out giggling again.

"What is wrong with you two?" Yuka asked.

Lucy immediately understood why they were talking like that. It was exactly how Jonathan spoke. "How long ago was he here, where did he go?" Lucy asked, poised to run.

Mayu raised her arm and annunced, "He left ... as sun drop from big blue..." , then Lucy cut her off.

"WHERE IS HE!" Lucy yelled.

Shocked by Lucy's anger, Nana frowned and said, "You should have heard him. He sounded like an idiot."

"Don't call my father names!" Lucy spat at Nana. "Which way did he go?"

"Your father?" Mayu asked in shock.

"I'm sorry, we didn't know," Nana offered.

"Which way?" Lucy asked in a growl.

"Up the walk, towards the shrine," Mayu said.

Lucy bolted out the door.

"Lucy has a father?" Nana asked.

Kouta watched Lucy run out and take off up the sidewalk. He then asked, "How did he know to come here?"

.

Jonathan made sure no one was watching, then unlocked the large padlock and slipped through the grating into the tunnel built during the second world war. He put the lock back on and went a few yards by memory before finally turning on his small flashlight. Even then, he kept the light covered, leaking out only enough to see directly in front of him until he reached the chamber to the old underground submarine base.

The football field sized chamber was dominated by crumbing buildings on the sides and a long concrete dock that was accessible only by an underwater tunnel that lead off shore. His small black submarine lay anchored at the dock. On the dock by it was the sheet metal shed that held his gear, and the small tent that held his inflatable mattress.

Opening the shed, he pulled out the rack with the building drawings on it then turned on the light in the shed. The light shown down on crates of tools and explosives. On the back wall, a rack held his rifles and the assault rifle. His pistols hung on hooks below them. All his weapons had silencers.

Scanning his weapons, he shook his head and said in perfectly fluent Japanese, "I had this stuff just in case. Never thought I'd actually have to use it."

He looked over the building plans again, memorizing every corner, wall and ceiling placement, material thickness, air vent and service pipe. "I'm coming Kaede, please be alive when I find you," he said to himself.

.

Kouta stayed up, or rather slept sitting against the wall of the entryway until Lucy finally got home. He heard the door open, and lifted his head. "Find him?" he asked. Even as he asked it, her look of frustration told him she hadn't.

Lucy settled down beside Kouta. "How can he do that?" she asked. "He pulled me off the bridge and took me to that boat, then disappeared before we got back there. He was here, right here! Yet he has vanished again."

"He's probably desperate. How long has it been since you last saw him?" Kouta asked.

Lucy shook her head. "Never. He admitted he has never seen me. I don't even remember my mother. He told me her name was Azusa." Lucy's face scrunched up in pain as she said, "Kouta, I lied to him. He has searched for me all these years, and I LIED to him."

"Did you tell him you were coming back here?" Kouta asked.

"Not specifically, I just said I was going home. Why?"

"Yet he came here looking for you," Kouta noted. "You know, for a man who can barely speak, he seems to know quite a few things most people don't know."

Lucy frowned and said, "Yes, he does. I hope he comes back, I really hope he knows I AM here."

"You told him your name was Yuka, right?" Kouta asked. Lucy nodded. Kouta shifted himself around so he was facing her. Casting her a soft smile, he said, "Apparently he made a point to Nana and Mayu that Yuka needs a hug. Yuka is important. To me, at least."

Lucy returned his smile. They fell into a hug.