A/N: Kurogane returns to the Scavenger's compound with Kamui and Madiha in tow. Things don't go according to anyone's plan.

Sorry this update took so long guys. My daughter caught a stomach bug and dealing with a sick toddler who refuses to sleep for more than an hour is not very productive when it comes to writing or revising. But! she's getting better and I will hopefully have a bit more time to write. If everything goes according to my plan, we can have this fic wrapped up in about six more chapters. *fingers crossed* remember, reviews help motivate the plot bunnies and muses which helps me turn the word vomit into a proper story so please guys, if you're still sticking around to read this story, lemme know your thoughts.

The spell deposited them in Emeraude's office, just outside the kid's room, as Kurogane had pictured it. He would have preferred to land right next to the kid, but he didn't want to risk the mage's spell reacting with the spells keeping the kid stable. He spotted Emeraude crouched by the filing cabinet, her claws extended and poised to attack, though she relaxed upon seeing Kurogane. "Kuanos, I had not realized that you would be arriving directly at my office."

"How's the kid?" he asked, ignoring her unvoiced demand for an explanation.

Emeraude frowned, throwing the tiniest of glances towards the hidden staircase.

"What happened?" he growled, pushing her out of his way before grabbing the filing cabinet.

"Kuanos, wait!" she called as he revealed the passageway and stomped down the stairs. The lights flickered to life as soon as he entered the room.

It was empty.

The kid's not here! He whirled on Emeraude, noting that Kamui and Lupa had also followed them. "Where is he? What did that bastard do to the kid? Where is he?"

"Have care of how you speak to her." Kamui's eyes flashed to vampire gold as he took a step towards Kurogane, fangs bared. "Lady Emeraude is an elder of our coven. Show her some respect, Kuanos."

"It is all right, little one," Emeraude said before Kurogane could turn on him. "He is only worried about his friend."

Kurogane's attention was drawn to Lupa's labored breathing. Between her healing being impaired and the blood loss, she was on her feet through sheer stubbornness. Under any other circumstance, he would have immediately taken a liking to her but with the sliver of resentment curling around his heart, he couldn't bring himself to care. It was obvious she was moments away from falling flat on her face. But so what? It was because of her that Kurogane had had to leave the mage. He'd done everything just to get the idiot back and... he'd fucking left him behind!

Gritting his teeth, Kurogane forced himself to change the direction of his spiraling thoughts. He needed to focus on the present. The kid was dying and Touya decided to play mind games with him? If the bastard thought Kurogane would play along, Kurogane would punch the bastard's teeth out. As though summoned by thought alone, the alpha appeared in a cloud of dark smoke with Souma by his side. Kurogane's skin itched at the sight of the bastard who grinned and spread his arms wide in welcome.

"Kuanos! You're back, I see." Touya made a show of looking around, his gaze lingering on Lupa, who seemed too out of it to notice the new arrivals. "Where's your hybrid friend? He didn't get seriously injured, I hope."

"As if you didn't see everything on screen," Kurogane spat, clenching his hands to keep himself from hitting the bastard. "Where's the kid?"

"We have no idea what happened." Touya replied.

"They cut off the broadcast soon after Naba showed up," Souma added hastily.

"The mage decided to stay behind." Kurogane came to stand next to Lupa. "I got Lupa like you asked. Now where the hell is the kid?"

Touya's voice gained a silky quality as he spoke. "I'm glad you remembered our deal."

"What the fuck did you do with my kid?" Kurogane moved to stand in front of Lupa when Touya started approaching them.

A flash of irritation passed across Touya's face, though he quickly masked it with a genial smile. "Relax. We moved him to an isolated room. Strigoi's brother and that white rabbit thing are with him."

"Why the fuck didn't you say so?" Kurogane growled, absently scratching at the inside of his arm as he stepped out of the way and Lupa finally seemed to notice Touya's presence.

The change in her demeanor was instantaneous as black bled into her sclera and she bared her teeth. "You!"

"Hello, little sister." Touya tried to embrace her only to be shoved back with a snarl.

"I'm not your sister, you fucker!" Unleashing her claws, Lupa leapt for the bastard's throat. Kurogane barely managed to grab and pull her away before she could succeed. "Let me go! I'm going to kill him!" Lupa's claws raked across Kurogane's forearms. He gritted his teeth. "I'll kill you!"

As much as Kurogane wanted to let her do that, the bastard still hadn't told him where the kid was. The isolated room could be anywhere in the compound, and he'd rather not waste time trying to find the boy.

Kamui and Emeraude, watched them from the other side of the room. Souma had turned to smoke and was circling the room, most likely looking for an opportunity to grab either Lupa or Touya. The latter stood where he was, smiling indulgently at Lupa. "I know you're upset with me—"

Lupa cut him off with a howl of rage. She thrashed in Kurogane's arms, straining to claw off Touya's face. A hint of alarm wormed past his resentment as Kurogane noticed how cold and clammy Lupa's skin was growing the longer she struggled. Kurogane hated that he was worried for the Lupine when she was the reason the mage wasn't there with him. Her struggles grew weaker even if she showed no signs of relenting. She's going to hurt herself.

"'m a lot more'n upset." Her voice dropped in volume as her words grew slurred. "I was six. I was just a child and- and you fuckin' bit me. I'm gonna... 'm goin'to kill—" Lupa went limp in his arms.

"Shit." Kurogane lay her on the ground.

"Get Masooma! And bring Freya with her!" Touya ordered as he dropped to his knees next to Lupa. Souma vanished without a sound. "Damn it... This is not how I imagined our reunion to go," he muttered as he put pressure on the bleeding holes in her shoulders.

Kurogane looked from the deluded scavenger to the unconscious Lupine, watching the way her pulse fluttered beneath her skin. Her breathing was shallow and labored, though she didn't look any worse than she had when the mage had raced off with her in the arena. The itch spread from his arms to his chest though Kurogane refrained from scratching himself.

"You piss off everyone you meet?"

"It's a talent." Touya's flippant tone only made Kurogane hate him that much more.

Emeraude appeared with a medical kit and shooed them away. "I would appreciate it if the two of you were not here while I looked at my patient. I haven't forgotten the last time you two were together, and Lupa won't survive an altercation like that."

Kurogane scowled. He almost pointed out that he hadn't initiated those fights but thought better of it. After all, he had been the one to start their confrontations. But was it really his fault that this Touya was such an asshole?

"Why the fuck did you bite a six year old kid?" Kurogane asked once they'd moved to the other side of the room and watched Emeraude tend to Lupa.

"Mostly for revenge," Touya said, unashamed as Kamui joined them. "The elites took my sister from me. Their guards hurt her over and over again to keep me in line until one day they went too far. They caved in her skull. But somehow she didn't die from it. Being a Lupine, what didn't kill her… well she healed like every other time. But the scarring in her brain led to an irreversible coma. So I killed the soldiers, took the Cerellium mines and the scavengers with them. And then I hit the elites back where it hurt."

Kurogane growled. "So you went after an innocent child. Your so-called revenge ruined her life."

"What's one life in return for the thousands that the elites have ruined?"

Kamui glanced between the two of them, clenching his jaw to hold back whatever comments he had.

"You want Lupa as a trophy to rub in the elites' faces, don't you?" Damn it. Kurogane did not want to feel sorry for Lupa. He wanted to stay pissed at her. Wanted to let the resentment in his heart fester, and here the bastard was making him feel sympathy for her. This is all levels of fucked up.

"I do care for her," Touya insisted, and even Kamui looked dubious. "Everyone that I share the gift of my bite with becomes my family."

"By that definition, she's my family too," Kurogane pointed out and for the first time that evening, Touya looked alarmed.

"What are you getting at?"

"If she doesn't want to stay here with you, she won't have to." The mage had stayed behind so that she could have her freedom. Kurogane would be damned before he let this greedy bastard make that sacrifice be in vain. Especially when he was already berating himself for leaving Fai behind.

A part of him understood the mage's reasoning for staying. Kurogane knew why, but he didn't like it. He knew now that Fai had no intention of following tem to Clow. The idiot's fake smile as they'd said goodbye had given him away. Kurogane had held on to hope until then, but the idiot probably didn't think he could make it out of captivity alive. And that only added to rising despair curdling in his chest.

Kurogane should have done what he always did and hauled the idiot out of there kicking and screaming. But he knew what had stayed his hand: the desperation behind Fai's mask of stoicism, the unspoken promise that there would be no forgiveness for Kurogane this time if he refused to do as Fai had asked. The self-sacrificing idiot would rather his children and their mother live in his stead.

Well if the idiot believed he could just blackmail Kurogane into rescuing Lupa in his place and then just die... He better believe Kurogane would find a way to reach into the afterlife to strangle the bastard himself.

Touya growled and advanced on Kurogane. The wolf whimpered in Kurogane's head, but without the transformation, he had enough control not to give an outward reaction to the bastard. The itch spread to his back and crawled down his spine. "If you think you can just come in here and tell me what I can and cannot do—"

"You'll what? Kill me, brother?" Kurogane spat the term like a curse and was satisfied to see Touya bristle. He narrowed his eyes in challenge. "I'd love to see you try."

The brewing fight was interrupted when Souma reappeared in a puff of inky blackness, Masooma and Chii in tow. Masooma motioned for Chii to go speak with Emeraude while taking stock of their surroundings. As soon as she spotted them, she rolled her eyes.

"I should have expected another pissing contest," she muttered as she stalked up to them. Souma hung back, watching the proceedings with an air of exasperation. "You three, out. Souma can fetch you once we're done here."

Touya turned his ire on the healer as he transformed and bared his teeth. Sparks of crimson magic glittered around Masooma, though she gave no other reaction to the alpha's threats. "If you want me to keep on healing your patients, you really need to tone down on the alpha-male vibe, Touya. It's almost like you're compensating for something else."

Kurogane couldn't bite back a snigger when Masooma's gaze strayed to Touya's crotch. The alpha growled and advanced on Masooma until Kurogane stepped in his way. "How about you show me where the kid is, brother?"

"And I would like to see Subaru." Kamui piped up.

Masooma let out an impatient huff and conjured a barrier between them before she headed back to Emeraude. For a moment it seemed that Touya might try to attack the barrier to bring it down, but in the end he turned and motioned for them to follow him. They headed up the stairs, out the cottage, and down a cobblestone path. It was late in the afternoon but the moon was already a silver disk rising beyond the horizon. The itching had spread all over his body and Kurogane dug his nails into the palms of his hands to keep from scratching.

Why the fuck did they move the kid out here? Kurogane wondered as they headed towards the mines. Much to his surprise, Touya led them straight past the entrance and down a narrow dirt track that ran alongside a series of fence markers at the very edge of the Scavenger's compound. They came around a bend in the road hidden by dense shrubbery and stopped in front of a stone building. It looked like some kind of outpost, though judging by the number of wooden crates piled around it, it was being used as a storage area. Touya knocked on the door, and a short while later, a black haired, red-eyed girl the same age as the kid answered.

"Has there been any change?" Touya asked as she let them in.

"Not since the last time you were here." The girl shook her head. "Who is this?"

"You already know Strigoi. This is Kuanos, and Kuanos, this is Meiling. She has been taking care of Syaoran in your absence."

"You're the dimension traveler, right? Did you manage to free Berserker?" she asked as she closed the door behind them and Kurogane almost sighed in relief as the itching lessened. Not wanting to look too closely into the reason for that just then, Kurogane turned his attention to scanning the sparse room. It only had a wooden table and a few chairs placed next to a dozen wooden crates. Beyond the crates were two closed doors and a short hallway.

"Where's the kid?" Kurogane asked instead of answering her question about Fai.

"This way." Meiling turned and led them to a third door at the end of the hallway. When Kurogane made to open it, however, she reached out to stop him. "I wouldn't go inside if I were you."

Like hell I wouldn't. Kurogane shrugged her off and yanked the door open to march inside. A blast of scalding air greeted him, and he staggered back with a hiss. The skin on his cheeks stung as he squinted into the room. "What the fuck?"

The kid was cocooned in an incandescent mass of magic, blood, and floating black goo. Charred remains of a couple of chairs and what appeared to have been a bed were strewn about the floor. Smoke and soot stained the peeling paint on the walls and there were cracks in the glass of the solitary window directly across from the door.

"He started doing that shortly after you left," Touya said as he stepped up behind Kurogane. "A day later, shit got weirder and well... We barely managed to get him out of there before that thing surrounding him hurt anyone."

"I thought you said Subaru was with him," Kamui said as he looked through the door once and turned to Touya.

The alpha shrugged and gestured to one of the rooms they had already passed. "He's in there with the rabbit creature."

Kamui had flashed to the door and was inside before Touya had finished speaking. Kurogane half-expected the manju to come hopping out of the room any instant; a part of him wanted to seek out the familiar comfort of having the creature close to him. The Kurogane that had been banished by Tomoyo all those years ago would have scoffed at him for wanting such a thing, but after the time he'd spent in Cavahall, he couldn't find it in himself feel ashamed for it. Heart beating faster with every step he took, Kurogane was strangely disappointed at the lack of Mokona's high-pitched cry of 'Kuro-puu'.

The room was dimly lit, Kamui's silhouette outlined by the glow of crimson runes that encircled a solitary cot. Back stiff and hands clenched by his sides, Kamui stared down at his injured, unconscious brother. Next to Subaru's head, resting on a pillow, was Mokona. Like Subaru, the meatbun was badly injured, its white fur charred and matted along the burns that covered its body. Subaru bore similar wounds on every visible part of his flesh.

The itching returned full force, skittering along his bones as the despair that Kurogane had been pushing back since leaving the mage behind returned with full force. The despair mutated into a rage that burned through his blood.

"What happened?" He wasn't sure if the growl issued from his mouth or Kamui's. All he knew was that if Touya had had anything to do with it, Kurogane would tear the bastard to shreds.

"They volunteered to help us move Syaoran out here once he began to float and burn everything around him. Your rabbit stabilized Syaoran long enough for them to get here, but they both had to touch him for that. The burning ball surrounding him took its toll on those two."

Meiling took over the explanation as she came up to stand beside them. "Masooma looked them over after they collapsed. According to her, they're both in a healing coma. Freya refused to come anywhere near here to heal them, and every time we tried moving them, they started having seizures. In the end, Masooma cast the stabilizing spells," she said, gesturing to the runes surrounding the bed, "and we're hoping their accelerated healing can take care of the rest."

Kurogane's heart sank as he stared at the unmoving manju. The blood pounding in his head made it impossible for him to think anything beyond a simple, 'We're so fucked.'

The spell that Fai had cast on him would be of no use without the manju, and who knew how long it would be before it awoke? The mage had made it sound so urgent that they send Syaoran away from Cavahall. A burning lump settled somewhere past his throat as he grit his teeth. Could they even afford to wait for however long it took the manju to awaken? I should have just brought the mage here.

Numbness crept along his arms and thighs, stinging like a thousand needles embedded just beneath his skin. They hadn't planned for any delays. Damn the idiot for forcing him to take Lupa along. Fuck!

Someone touched his shoulder and Kurogane nearly clawed off their head as he whirled around. Souma only managed to survive by turning back into a cloud of inky smoke and rematerializing near the doorway.

"No need to kill the messenger." She held up her hands in mock surrender. "I only came to tell you that Masooma has finished healing Lupa, and she's asking to see you."

"The healer?"

"No, Lupa."

Bitterness and resentment turned to poison in his veins and Kurogane turned back to the manju. "I don't want to see her."

"I'll let her know."

He waited until she was gone to look around the room, finding no sign of Touya or Meiling. Kamui had moved to sit on the other side of the bed, hands firmly wrapped around his brother's. Scratching at his wrists and the insides of his elbows, Kurogane leaned against the wall and tried to think of a way to help them.

The mage used to make fun of him for wanting to solve all his problems with violence and a sword, but Kurogane had never been good with magic anyway. The only thing he could do were the rudimentary forms he used when applying his family's techniques. Beyond that, he could only trigger spells that Fai cast on him. There was nothing for him to physically whack away at and make everything better, no enemies to fight, no demons to slay, no monsters to destroy. The kid was dying, the mage was beyond his reach, and the manju was comatose. Kurogane was completely helpless.

If only the mage had come along. The idiot would have known what to do. If nothing else, he would have been able to contact the wishing shop. Kurogane hated having to rely on the power of wishes, but at that moment, he would have given up almost anything in return for saving his family.

He didn't know how long he stood there watching over the manju and failing to come up with a solution but the sound of commotion outside the door drew him out of his spiraling thoughts.

"Where is he?" Lupa demanded from the other room. "Kuanos!"

Growling, Kurogane stomped over and made to lock the door, but before he could, Lupa wrenched it open. She was missing her glasses, her greasy hair was matted with blood, and she was looking at him completely wild-eyed. "Good, I found you."

"I have nothing to say to you," Kurogane snarled and tried to slam the door in her face. Lupa held fast, not budging an inch. "Go away."

"I don't care. I have plenty to say to you," she snarled back. Kurogane tried shoving the door closed once more, only to be met with more resistance as she stuck her foot in the doorway. His blood turned to ice when she screamed. "They're going to fucking kill him!"

"What did you say?" The itch was near maddening now as though something inside him was struggling to be let out. He wanted to claw through his flesh just to get it to stop. Barring that, he wanted to break something. Just… just get rid of the— but wait… this was more important. He had to pay attention. Gritting his teeth so hard his jaw hurt, Kurogane turned his focus back on Lupa.

"I just saw the broadcast. The directors, they've—" She gasped, throwing her whole weight into keeping the door open, and it was then that Kurogane realized he had still been trying to push her out. He let go and she stumbled inside, nearly falling flat on her face as the door swung wide open. "They've just confirmed a kill-order for Fai."

Fury surged through his body and Kurogane gave in to the urge to hit something. His fist slammed into the wall next to Lupa's head, punching straight through a foot and a half of stone he sent a cloud of dust and shrapnel flying into the air. Breathing hard, Kurogane pulled out his hand and realized he'd pulverized his knuckles. But then his Lupine healing kicked in and the muscles and bone swiftly mended. So Kurogane howled and punched through the stone a second time. His third attempt was blocked by Lupa grabbing his wrist, so Kurogane snarled and wrenched free of her grip.

She'd done this. This was all her fault! And for that he would kill her. Silver moonlight spilled across the floor from a solitary window and something inside him snapped as the wolf took over. He transformed.

Teeth bared, he snapped at the female's throat before she leapt back with a yelp. Ears flat against his skull, he scratched at the stone with his claws and crouched. The female shifted into the wolf-not-wolf state. Growling low in his throat, he leapt for her, snarling in annoyance when the female dodged out of his way. Her scent was unusual and it prickled at something in the back of his mind but the wolf didn't care. Wide-eyed, the female turned on her heels and shot out the room, so he gave chase. They raced through the corridor, past funny smelling crates that made him want to sneeze and out into the open.

He raged and he clawed at the female, who was always a second too fast for him to truly injure. She snarled and snapped back at him, though every time he struck out, she dodged and stuck to the defensive, taking special care to shield her stomach. There was something wrong with her. He sniffed, once again catching a whiff of that strange scent surrounding her.

Cubs… Family… No hurt. The wolf tried to recede as the realization struck but Kurogane refused to come out. He was fucking tired of dealing with this shit. It was like losing mother and father all over again. A numbing haze had enveloped his mind, and Kurogane didn't want it to end. He couldn't…

The wolf slumped to the ground and let out a long mournful howl. It howled and howled, its cries echoing around the hillside as the wolf mourned.

"I'm so sorry." A warm hand pressed against his muzzle as the female, once again in her not-wolf form sat down beside him.

"I know you resent me for being here in his place," she said, and the wolf whimpered in agreement. She pulled back her sleeve and showed him a bare arm. There was a whiff of ice and electricity about her skin, familiar. The wolf whined. "He cast a death curse on me, promising he would kill me when I asked… I asked, and instead of doing what he'd promised, he sent me here with you. I don't know why he didn't do it. He had the perfect opportunity, and yet he let me live."

They sat in silence for what felt like an eternity. The moon travelled through the sky and began dipping towards the horizon when Kurogane finally worked up the energy to end his transformation and look at the woman sitting beside him. "He's a liar," Kurogane said in the end, "and you were a fool to believe him."

What does that say about you? whispered a sinister voice in the back of his mind.

"He never had any intentions of escaping, did he?"

"No."

"Too bad for him." Lupa crossed her arms with a scoff. "I have no intention of letting him get killed."

"And how exactly are you planning on saving him?" Kurogane narrowed his eyes. Madiha met his gaze unflinchingly.

"My brother can disable his nanites."

"If he could do that, why the fuck did he leave you in that place?"

"It was different with me."

"How?"

"A combination of blackmail, family politics, and his position on the board tied his hands. Even if he did help me escape, I would have had no place to go. I sure as hell wasn't coming to hide with the monster who ruined my life. And the Liberalists… well, let's just say offering me shelter would have caused an all-out war between their faction and The Company. Tomoyo and Kurogane are all about helping the Unnaturals victimized by The Company, but they're also pragmatic about it."

"What made you so special?"

"I'm Madiha Shah." She gave him a wry smile, though it did little to mask her self-loathing. "Source of everlasting shame for the elites and the biggest controversy of this century. I'm too prominent."

"And the mage isn't?"

"After what he did to Naba?" There was that self-deprecating smile again. "I probably should have been the one to bite her. Maybe the directors wouldn't have ordered a hit on him then."

"You think your brother would help us rescue him when he's one of the people who ordered the hit?"

"Oh, no. Danish had nothing to do with that order. I checked with the healer witch, and he's still out of commission. Director Bia tried to have him assassinated after he brought her actions against Fai and me before the rest of the board."

The treacherous hope sparked a little flame in Kurogane's chest as he met Madiha's unflinching gaze. "You got a way to contact this brother of yours?"

"Not yet," She stood up and dusted off her clothes before offering a hand to Kurogane, "but ask me again in a few hours."

Though he had no need of her help in getting up, Kurogane took the proffered hand and was strangely relieved by the smirk that spread across her lips.

Maybe, there was a way for Kurogane to save his family after all.