All of the dragon balls were gathered. Anja stood before them as the dragon rose out, but caught in the backlash of the dimensional rip the dragon came through, Anja was pulled toward the ‘tween lands again.

 "Anja!" Goku reached out.

 "It's ok!" She called as she felt consciousness fade away, "Wish Shura back, Prince Shura, son of
Yomi."

 "Ok! We will!"

 "Remember!" She called one last time, "Shura!" Then the portal closed around her and she felt
herself once again, falling.
 
 

*******
 
 

 The gatekeeper's home when they approached was small but well kept. In was like a country
cottage. Still an uneasy feeling crept over the group.

 A girl who looked remarkably like Shampoo walked through the door and dropped the bag of
potting soil she held, "Koenma?! Koenma!!!" She ran to him and threw her arms around his neck, "I
knew that someday, someday you'd come."

 "You are the gatekeeper." He said.

 "Yep, Lonni Ren at your service."

 "Did you send Anja into the scattered lands?"

 Her face grew dark, "Anja. Is that all you came for?"

 "Did you?" Wufei asked her this time.

 "What if I did?"

 "I love her Lonni."

 "No! No! Koenma, you're supposed to say you love me! We're supposed to live happily ever
after!"

 "I'm sorry." Koenma backed up, leaning into Wufei's embrace, "I can not give you what you want."

 "No. NO!"

 "Lonni I want Anja back. Please."

 "You are asking me to give her back? That's like asking me to rip out my heart! You'll go running to
her and I'll never see you again."

 "Lonni, listen."

 "Cousin Shampoo was right."

 "Cousin?!"

 "How do you think I knew? You gave her your fuukuman! Shampoo told me! She told me
everything and you don't even deny it!"

 "That is no denying the truth."

 "Well here's a truth for you! Your precious little Anja can rot in the shattered lands, No way am I
letting her out."

 "Lonni. . ."

 "NO! Never! You hear me! NEVER!!!!"
 
 
 
 

*******
 
 

 Anja, Canon and Mew fell from the sky into a ring of some sort. As she fell, the ningen girl felt a
strong punch crack her ribs, "Ung! Canon! Mew!  Daijoubu ka?"

 "Chir." Canon called from one of the ring posts.

 "Mew." Mew said from beside him.

 Anja pulled from her power and reached back into her hair. "Take this! Youkai Trap!"

 A huge flower burst from her palm and opened it's pod. The man who had hurt her was gone in an
instant and she placed the freshly fed seed away. Canon flew to her shoulder as the crowed broke
into applause, scaring both of them. "Where the fuck are we?!"

 "You are at a fighting tournament." The other man in the ring smiled, "I don't know what you just did, but this was my match."

 "Sorry, he hurt me."

 The man winked and smiled, "Come on out of the ring, let me see."

 Anja nodded and they both climbed down.

 "You've cracked three ribs, nothing horrible. Come on back to the dressing rooms and I'll patch you right up."

 "Hai. You are very kind to a person you don't know."

 "I can afford to give a little kindness."

 She grinned, "Arigato. I am Anja. Nightwind Anja."

 "Bogart Terry."

 "You are a fighter?"

 "Heh, you could say that." He chuckled, "You aren't from here are you."

 "No, I just kinda dropped in until Canon heals enough to make another jump."

 "Jump?"

 "Dimensional jump. I'm from the makai. It's a different dimension. I'm trying to get home to my
mates."

 "Plural huh?"

 "It's a long story, and you have another match to fight."

 "Are you going to join the competition?"

 "It would be something to do. . . But what's the prize?"

 "A new technique."

 "You mean you have to win them here?"

 "Well, Yeah."

 "Why not just teach each other?"

 "Then who would be the best?"

 "The. . . best."

 "Hai."

 Anja held in her laughter, "Ok, I'll fight for this technique."

 "Good, but you might want to remember that it isn't a fight to the death."

 "A tournament where no one dies?"

 "You just need to knock them down for a while."

 "This is an odd world."

 "You mean you fight to the death in your world?"

 "Of course."

 "But you still share techniques."

 "Sure."

 "Ha, and you say that my world is odd." He stood and helped her up, "Heh, how about sharing the
plant technique with me?"

 "I would, but only Youkos can do it."

 "Youkos?"

 "You'll see what I mean if these fights get good."

 "You'll see good."

 "Oh yeah?"

 "Yeah. Fighters from all over this world come to compete. Even better fighters than Krouser will be
here."

 "Krouser?"

 "He beat me once."

 "Hm. . . how good are you?"

 "Get high enough in the tournament and you'll see."

 "Hai, then we'll see."
 
 

******
 
 

 Hiei stood poised with his sword at Lonni's throat, "You attacked my family." He charged, "You
bring her back or I will kill you."

 "So kill me." She laughed, "You'll be put in prison for killing during probation. You'll never get out.
Then where would your precious little Anja be?"

 Kurama placed his hands on the Koorime's shoulders, "She's right."

 "Well then what do we do?"

 Wufei took in the girl coldly, "You look too weak to handle more power than the Gods."

 Koenma's eyes lit up, "She -is- too weak! She keeps the power in something!"

 Lonni started to run but Hiei had her back in an instant, "So what is it?"

 Koenma shrugged, "In my child form I have to hold my power in my fuukuman, So she must hold
hers in something similar in size, maybe smaller."

 Duo looked over her clothes and jewelry, "A ring or something?"

 Heero slid the tiara from her forehead, "How about these?"

 "NO! Give it back!" She started to squirm in Hiei's grasp.

 "Let me see." Koenma commanded and Heero pointed.

 "Look at these five stones here. The round blood stones. Look at the streaking through them."

 "This is it!"

 "NO!" Lonni was in tears as Wufei plucked each stone from it's setting.

 Koenma gabbed her arm and yanked her forward, "You are hereby relieved of your post. Get out."

 "But Koenma. . ."

 "I don't want to kill you Lonni Ren, but I will."

 Her eyes were full of tears, "I'll get you someday Koenma." She promised, "I'll make you watch her
die and then you'll love me."

 "You're confused." Quatre said softly, "Get some help."

 "You're the confused ones! She has you all under her thumb! Well someday I'll rip it off! Then you'll
see! Then you'll see!"

 Wufei drew his sword and she ran, then he turned to Koenma, "What now?"
 
 

******
 
 

 Anja stood ringside and watched Terry win fight after fight. He stood and watched her win fight after fight. When they got a break, they went to the fighters bar and ordered a couple drinks.

 Terry laughed, "Non alcoholic?"

 "I don't drink."

 "Why not?"

 "Don't like the taste."

 "What about the felling it gives you?"

 Anja grinned and licked her lips, "I can get -that- feeling other ways."

 "You're a weird girl Anja Nightwind." Terry laughed, "Are all the girls of your dimension like you?"

 "Ha, I hope not. They can't stand me. The only ones I've ever gotten along with were my mothers."

 "Plural again."

 "Hai, I have had four."

 "Tell me?"

 "One is dead, one kicked me out, and two are still with me."

 "Mm." Terry sipped his drink and smiled, "Hard life."

 "Not really, I've always been surrounded by love."

 "It must be nice."

 "Hai. I love my brothers and my lovers and my child. All of them."

 "All of my life I have known only the fight, and the emptiness left after."

 "There is so much more to life!"

 "Maybe some day I'll find it."

 Final fight 5 minuets.

 "I must go pray to Inari."

 "Who?"

 "The God of my people. My mother."

 "You're. . ." Terry stared after the retreating figure. "A child God?!"

 Anja stood in one corner of the ring, "Inari guide your child in her moments of weakness and
strength, help her to win even in defeat. Protect her and her family and let good come from her
hands."

 "The final fight of the night! Terry Bogart against an unknown who has risen from nowhere, Anja
Nightwind!"

 Anja stepped up and bowed, never taking her eyes from Terry. He did the same.

 "You know, whatever this technique is, if I win, I'll still teach it to you."

 "Same here." Terry grinned.

 Anja led into the fight with some routine punches and kicks in rapid order, only one hit, the rest were blocked, Terry did the same but all were blocked.

 "You're good."

 "Arigato, my family taught me."

 "Tough bunch." He commented as he charged his punches. "Knuckles!"

  Anja raised her hand and his punches seemed to bounce off of the air itself.

 "Sugoi!"

 "Arigato." She grinned and pulled a seed from her hair, "Briar whip!"

 The whip caught his feet and knocked him to the ground. "Woah! Earth wave!"

 The power slammed around her but Anja leapt into the air gracefully and landed behind the fighter.

 "Wha. . ." he began to turn around.

  "HA!" Anja slammed her fists out.

 "ARG!" Terry took a hit square in the chest.

 "Jaoi ensatsu ken!" A black sword of fire was clutched in her hand and she leapt to land on Terry's
chest, the tip poised. "Give?"

 "I give." He chuckled, "Get offa me!"

 "Why? I'm not that heavy am I?"

 "Oh no! I know better than to talk about weight to a girl."

 "I'm hurt."

 "I still don't know what a Youko is."

 "The fights weren't tough enough."

 "Oh fine, kill my ego even more."

 She laughed and helped him up.

 The ref just stared, Competitors helping each other after a match was unseen before.

 Anja smiled and raised her hands in victory, "Yeah!"

 They went wild! The ref handed her the mic, "You're unknown, where are you from, tell us a little
about yourself."

 "I am Anja Nightwind." She smirked.

 As she walked away the news people gathered, "Anja Nightwind who are you? Where did you
come from? Do you have a husband? Are you involved with Terry Bogart?"

 She disappeared.

 In the confusion, no one notice a silver fox dart into the dressing rooms hall, except Terry. When she changed back he was standing beside her, "You left these in the crowed, what were you going to do? Walk out of here naked?"

 "Maybe."

 "I'm liking you more and more."
 
 

*******
 
 

 Wufei turned to Koenma, "Now what?"

 "We have to locate which scattered land she's on."

 "How do we do that?"

 "I'm not quite sure."

 "What do you mean you aren't sure?!"

 "Well I've never done this before!"

 Duo jumped between them, "Guys! Maybe we should go back to Anja's castle and think this
through, fighting each other won't help at all."

 Wufei lowered his fists, "Hai. You're right."

 Shadow looked at the pilot in awe, "She has a castle?!"

 Duo grinned, "It's a long story."

 Heero rolled his eyes, "And now we're all going to hear it again."

 "Damn right!"
 
 

******
 
 

 "So when do I learn this new move?"

 "The master of the competition will give it to you."

 "Come with me."

 "It isn't done. . ."

 "Then we'll make it a first."

 "Ha, ok."
 
 

 As they walked down the hall leaving the master's chambers Anja was almost bouncing, "That's so
cool! The. . . what did he call it? Final attack drilling missel kick."

 "It's incredible. More powerful than many final attacks I've seen."

 "I want to learn more."

 "Well there are other attacks, my brother and I both use them."

 "I have to wait until Canon heals to attempt another jump, teach me?"

 "It just so happens my brother was coming here for my victory celebration."

 "You spoke too soon."

 "He does that a lot."

 "Andy!" Terry caught the other man in a strong hug.

 "Hey Terry, long time no see."

 "You got that right!"

 "Hey and what am I?"

 "Joe!? You came too?!"

 "Was gonna celebrate your victory but this little dish stole it right from under you."

 "Oh, Andy, Joe, meet Anja Nightwind. She's a traveler from another dimension. Her little friend has
to rest up so I volunteered to show her some moves."

 "You are going to teach her your moves? Is that wise?"

 "She's already better than me it isn't like I could beat her before."

 "Who is she?"

 "She is right here you can stop talking about her like she wasn't." Anja frowned.

 "Heh, sorry Anja." Terry grinned sheepishly.

 "Who are you? I've never even heard of you before."

 "Like your brother said, I'm from another dimension. I'm just trying to get home."

 "She's the daughter of Inari the fox God and she's a Youko but so far doesn't seem inclined to
explain what that is to me." Terry leaned on Anja's shoulder in a teasing manner and she grinned at
him and tweaked his nose. "Hey!"

 That brought laughter all around and Andy looked from one to the other, "Are you two. ."

 Anja raised her hand to show her bonding ring and shook her head, "I have already completed my
soul."

 "We just get along real well that's all."

 "Oh."

 Anja looked at Joe who was watching Terry as he spoke. //Hmm.//

 "So. . . where are you staying?"

 "I don't have anywhere yet, I just fell into the middle of that match."

 "You can stay with us, we're all staying in an apartment near the arena."

 Anja nodded, "Ok."

 "Good, it's settled then, come on." Joe smiled.

 Anja nodded and followed the three friends. Canon and mew in her arms.

<Part 17>
 

 When they reached the city, the group realized right away that something wasn't right. There was a feeling to the air that something had happened.

 Koenma looked up at the castle, "There!"

 A swirling cloud of Ice crystals circled the highest tower. From the center a body fell right onto the
tower and down into the moat!

 Wufei hurried to fish the man out and almost dropped him back in when he saw the new arrivals
face. "S. . . Shura!"

 The Makai prince coughed the water from his lungs and stood shakily, leaning on Wufei for support.
"I was. . . what happened I. . ."

 "You were dead." Quatre stared at the sodden youth.

 Shura coughed again and collapsed, only Wufei's strong arms held him up, "What happened?"

 Duo snapped his fingers, "It must have been Anja."

 The others looked at him oddly.

 "No no no hear me out ‘k? Maybe she found a dimension where people have the power to revive a
spirit. If she did what do you think she would do?!"

 Heero nodded, "Bring her lover back."

 The hazy eyes slowly started to focus and he glanced up at the man holding him, "F. . . Fei-kun?"

 Wufei's voice was low and soft, "Hai." He felt their eyes lock and before either realized they were
kissing, pressed against each other, relearning every inch of the others body.

 "Anou. . ." Kuwabara started.

 Yuusuke stopped him, "Shh, let them be."

 When they parted their eyes still never left the others. "I. . . Shura, I never thought. . ."

 "You'd see me again?"

 "H. . . Hai."

 "Can not get rid of me so easily." He grinned and glomped back onto Wufei before his recovering
senses honed in on a different Ki. "I know that ki! Not the body, but the Ki is. . . Kuronue!" Before
anyone could stop him, the horned prince was attached at the hip to the startled boy. "God's I missed
you all!" His lips met with no resistance as he ground them firmly into the other boy's. All mouths
were silent when Shadow began to kiss him back. Black hair tangled with black hair and the horn on
Shura's forehead slid softly over Shadow's temples. When they broke, the other boy had an
expression on his face that no one had seen before.

 "Kuronue?" Shura asked.
 
 

*******
 
 

 Anja flopped on the sofa in Joe's rented pent house and smiled at the boxer. "You look like you
have something to say."

 "I just wanted to say. . . Wow!" He laughed, "I've never seen anyone fight like that!"

 "Like what?"

 "Like you were the moves! Like they were you! You know? Completely together and pure energy."

 "It's simple when you find your inner peace."

 "What is yours?"

 "My friends, family, lovers, child." She smiled as Canon and Mew curled together on her abdomen
and ran her hand over them in a soft stroking motion. "All of the people who love me."

 "You're lucky." Joe smiled but sadly.

 "Wanna talk about it before Andy and Terry get back with the food?"

 "It's just, All of the people. . . I don't have anyone who really loves me. I talk big but. . ."

 "Did you ever look closer to you than the fans?"

 "Like what?"

 "Like at Terry?"

 Joe snorted and waved his hand in a dismissive gesture, "Terry's had two lady loves and lost both I
don't think he's a ‘man's man' if you know what I mean."

 She smiled softly, "My brothers and lovers are and I can tell you, Terry might just surprise you."

 "Yeah but how do you approach your best friend for that?!"

 "Just like you would a girl. A stranger in a bar. Just scoot up close to him in a solitary, dim place and
say something like, ‘Terry, I know that neither of us has had mush luck with love, but something in
my soul tells me that we should give us a try.'"

 "And what if he says, ‘there is no us.'?"

 "Tell him, ‘There could be.'"

 "I don't know, everyone I love ends up dead."

 "I'm strong."

 "Others are stronger."

 "But I'll never leave you."

 "Nothing is for sure though."

 "So how do you know I'll die? Terry I can't explain it but you have the most pure and kind heart I
have ever known and I want to be a part of it. Of you."

 Joe looked stunned for a moment then turned away, "I'm not that eloquent."

 "So put it in your own words."

 "I don't think I know my own words."

 "Give yourself a chance."

 Terry opened the door holding a sack with his teeth and four pizza boxes in his hands. He spit the
sack out on the counter and smiled, "Chance for what?"

 Joe watched the beautiful motions of Terry's body as he worked his way around the kitchen, his
gaze was finally broken by Andy who walked into his line of vision and wiped the corner of his mouth
with a napkin, "Careful with that drool Joe."

 Anja's laughter tinkled through the air and Terry looked up with a mouth full of pizza, "What?!"
 
 

*************
 
 

 Shura studied the boy before him. "Kuronue?"

 "I. . ." He looked awestruck for a moment, "S. . . Shura?"

 "Who else?"

 "Shura!" He leapt onto the other boy surprising him so much they both tumbled to the dirt. He
looked up and caught sight of Wufei. "Fei!" Another mad glomp followed and all three of them were
soon piled on top of each other one way or another.

 "Kuronue what. . .?"

 Wufei smiled, "He lost his memory when he was reborn, Shura you made him remember! We're
together again all of us!"

 "Where's Anja?" Both asked.

 Wu-chan's smile faded, "We're working on that."

 Ranma and Ryoga stepped forward then, "Ok hold on! Shadow what is going on here? Who is
Shura and Kuronue, isn't that Anja's dead lover?"

 The boy blinked up at them as if just recalling another life, "Ryoga."

 "Yeah, me Ryoga, you Shadow."

 He shook his head and let his Youko form out for the first time since his rebirth, "No I'm not.
Pleased to meet you, my name is Kuronue."

 Ryoga feinted.

 "What is going on here?!"

 Kuwabara moaned, "Here we go again."
 
 

**********
 
 

 Something jolted through Anja and she jumped up, spilling Mew and Canon on to the floor.

 "Anja?" Andy looked at her with concern.

 "They're together again." She walked to the window in a daze and smiled out into the rain.

 "Who?"

 "My lovers, the other pieces of my soul. Shura is home and Kuronue remembers. We're whole
again."

 Terry smiled and slapped her on the back, "So next they'll be comin' after you then. You're almost
home."

 "Almost." She smiled and sat down again, "I'm sorry Canon, Mew, come back up here."

 They chirped and Mewed at her poutingly and went to sit on Andy's chest.

 "Oh fine. Pout."

 Terry and Joe laughed and Anja smiled and sent a knowing look to Joe. "Well I should go to bed if
you guys are going to teach me some moves tomorrow."

 As she passed she grabbed Andy and dragged him off with her, dimming the lights on her way out.

 "Wha. . .?" Terry looked back at her. "Must be a natural reaction deal."

 Joe chuckled nervously, "Hehheh, yeah."

 "You ok?"

 "I. . ."

 "Yeah?"

 "Remember when we first met?"

 "‘course!" Terry flicked his cap back and grinned, "That was some barfight!"

 "You threw someone into my table."

 "You said I inturrupted a good dream."

 "I wasn't dreaming."

 "Oh no?"

 "I was enjoying the view."

 "Lily -was- beautiful that night."

 Joe's eyes wavered and he jerked his gaze away, "Yeah. Sure."

 "What's wrong?"

 "I wasn't. . . I wasn't looking at Lily."

 "I didn't see any other ladies."

 "Wasn't a lady." Joe mumbled.

 "What?"

 "I wasn't looking at a lady."

 "Joe. . ."

 "I was awake you know."

 "When?"

 "When you covered me up that morning."

 "Then why. . .?"

 "I wanted to feel like you cared, just once."

 "I did though! I mean I do."

 "Not. . . like that."

 Terry's eyes widened in surprise, "I. . ."

 "The first time I saw you fight it only made me more sure that you were the one. You were so solid,
like a tree, I even told Andy as much. When I saw that gun. . ."

 "So you took that bullet for me. . ."

 "Because I couldn't have lived if you died before I could tell you."

 "Why didn't you. . .?"

 "You had Lily's memory and then another, I couldn't compete with a ghost. I ached inside for you
when you lost them both. I would have given my life if I could have brought Lily back for you."

 "You cared that much."

 "I still do. Why do you think I fought Geist? Or That Krouser guy? I knew I couldn't win, but both
of them had hurt you. I couldn't just let them go free after that."

 "You've done so much for me."

 "I don't want you to think you owe me anything." Joe said standing, "I just wanted you to know how
much I love you."

 Terry stared, awe clear in his eyes but Joe's back was turned.

 "When Ryden was pounding me, the only thing that gave me the strength to keep fighting was
knowing that if I didn't kill him he could hurt you. And when you faced Geist, I felt every blow he
landed, I was so afraid I'd lose you. If only you knew how much I wanted to hug you after that
match. . . but I couldn't. I was too scared."

 "So you left."

 "Every moment I was near you I died a little more knowing you weren't for me. I couldn't stay."

 "And now?"

 "I couldn't stay away either."

 "Joe."

 "I just wanted you to know."

 "What brought this on?"

 "Anja. . . she made me realize that it would eat at me until I told you. Until I knew that you knew I
cared."

 "And you've been steeling yourself for me to call you perverted and tell you to get out of my life."

 Joe flinched at the words.

 Terry stood and walked over to him. He placed his arms around him from behind and softly spoke,
"Joe, why do you think I was so worried when you were shot? Why do you think that you getting
hurt so badly gave me the courage to fight Krouser again? You wonderful idiot!" He laughed then
and squeezed harder, burying his face in the kick boxer's hair, "It was because I cared so much. Lily
was like a twin sister, we both knew pain and we both needed to be set free. And the other, I never
led her on, I didn't mean to, but she kept at me and you know me, I hate to hurt anyone's feelings.
They were both close to me sure but none of them reached all of my soul, because most of it was
already focused on you."

 "You mean it?"

 "Duh!" Terry and Joe both laughed at that. "Joe, do you want to give us a chance?"

 He nodded and cried a happy tear as he turned into his beloved's embrace. "Terry!"

 "Everyone too close to me dies."

 "I'm tough."

 "Yeah. You are aren't you." Terry smiled and pulled back slightly to meet Joe's eyes, they followed
their gaze in for a deep kiss.

 A couple snickers in the doorway broke them apart and both boys stared at Anja and Andy who
had seen the whole thing! Anja sniffed happily and grinned, "It's a Kodak moment."

 Andy cracked up then and Anja fell to the floor with him laughing.

<Part 18>
 

 "Now Anja, you pull up the power from the Earth and focus it around you, then open it up and let yourself spin with it." Terry explained then showed her.

 Anja blocked him final technique and Did the same thing. Where his energy was blue, hers was pure green. The Earth energy crackled in the air and she completed the move perfectly and with more force than Terry had ever seen!

 "How did you. . .?"

 She smiled, "I'm a Youko remember? My mother is the God of Earth."

 Andy smiled from the wall he and Joe were sitting on, "I still can't believe Terry is training a child
God."

 "If anyone could it's him." Joe grinned and watched the other boy.

 "I wondered if you'd ever tell him."

 That got his attention, "You knew?"

 Andy rolled his eyes, "You were never really discrete. I could tell you liked him the moment you
started commenting on his fighting style."

 "And here I thought I was being so secretive."

 "It's never been your strong point." Andy pointed out.

 Canon nodded agreement from Andy's shoulder and Mew flew to perch on Joe's head. They both
laughed. "Anja has the strangest pets!"

 In the yard, Terry attacked again, with all the power he had used against Mars. Anja put up her
arms to block it and a shimmering glow surrounded her. When the dust settled a seven foot creature
with fox ears and two tails stood and grinned, showing off it's fangs.

 "Anja?!" Terry gasped in surprise.

 The creature straightened her battle armor and shrugged, "This is a Youko."
 
 

***********
 
 

 Shura and Kuronue listened as the others explained what had happened. Their expressions growing
darker with every word. "Why didn't you kill that Ren creature?!" Shura insisted, "She stole Anja!"

 Koenma stood firm, "She was insane."

 "And that is more reason!" Kuronue pressed.

 Wufei held out the jewels they had taken, "We have her power, she might as well be ningen now."

 "So these will bring Anja home?"

 Hiei shook his head as he studied one, "They'll take us to her."

 Kurama seconded that, "Hiei is right. We will go after her and bring her home."

 "How though?"

 Shura jumped up, "The portal! The one that leads to the future, it jumped outer dimensions, why not
aim it to the scattered lands?"

 "We have no clue where that would lead though." Ranma reasoned.

 "It's an educated guess." Koenma nodded, "I can zero in a a certain cluster where she is, but after
that it's up to us."

 "Can that portal be enlarged?" Heero asked.

 Shura nodded, "Why?"

 "We're taking the Gundams."

 "Alright! Shinigami lives!" Duo cheered.

 The others sweatdropped.
 
 

*********
 
 

 The day drew to a close and Anja and Terry wrapped up their training session.

 "Well," Terry smiled, "I think we'll both have some new tricks to show when we fight again."

 Anja grinned and nodded.

 "So what are you going to do now?"

 She shrugged her shoulders, "I have to keep moving, maybe one of these jumps will send me home."

 Terry nodded, "I bet if we all focused our Ki we could open a gate for you."

 Anja nodded and as they focus their Ki onto a vortex, she called Mew and Canon to her. She took
out Mew's Pokeball, "Return."

 After she had secured the Pokeball and Canon she turned to her three new friends, "Ready?"

 Terry nodded and hugged her, "We'll miss ya."

 Joe smiled and locked arms with her, "Thank you."

 Andy smiled and placed his hand over hers, "You've made quite a mark on our lives."

 "Bye guys." Anja smiled and wiped a tear from her eyes. As she stepped backwards into the portal
they had opened. "Bye."
 
 

 When she landed in the next world she caused quite a stir! A cry of ‘Mutie!' was sounded and she
found herself running for her life!

 "What did I do?!"
 
 

********
 
 

 "Ok." Shura nodded, "This is it."

 "Do you think it will really work?"

 "All we can do is try. Koenma do you have the location?"

 "Scatter Land X. New York."

 "Even lost she finds America." Yuusuke snickered.

 "Ranma, Ryoga, Akane, we need you to wait here."

 "Why?"

 "To pull us back if something goes wrong."

 Ryoga nodded and Ranma grinned, "You can count on us."

 "Are we all ready then?"

 The answer was affirmative, "Well then let's go!"

 In a flash of light they were gone and the three ningen stood restlessly at the portal waiting for there
cue to bring them home.
 
 

************
 
 
 
 

 Anja studied the huge mansion in front of her. It had been a long time since she had practiced her
skills as a thief, but she had found no one in this newest world who would offer her friendship or
shelter. People were unusually hostel //I Must be in America//. The Youko moved slowly, calculating
each move for the best result. Anja grinned as she thought of her brother He always told her never go
in blind. . . then of course he ignored his own advice. So did she. It was more fun this way.

 Youko Anja studied the ground as she tucked Canon into her shirt.  The lawn was all rigged with
sensors, the whole yard. Whoever lived here had something very valuable to protect.

 Well she had wanted a challenge and in ningenkai, that was hard for a youko to find.  Anja turned
her attention to the trees, they were rigged too.

 *Which way?* She thought. *ground is harder. . . *

 Anja nodded to herself and took off across the yard. She dodged all of the sensors easily and soon
stood on the darkened patio. The Youko took a seed from her hair and grew it out through the
keyhole to disconnect th alarms on the door, *Silent and non* She smiled, *they're good with
security. Or at least they think so. it makes them sloppy.*

 The Youko grinned and licked her lips then pushed the door open without a sound.

 She almost seemed to float over the floor as she darted on graceful legs around the main level. It
seemed to be a private school. Hn, Ningen junk. Nothing worth the eyes of Youko Anja. The level
below that showed enough computer technology to keep Anja and Heero both in hacker heaven.
She caught herself and nodded with a soft smile, *another test for another time.*

 Creeping up to the higher level she found bedrooms. They flitted in and out and Anja snickered
*Dorm rooms. I went through all of this to break into a school!*

 She could almost see Kurama shaking his head, *That is why you research first.*

 *Anything I want? Could use?* Anja's eyes were flashing in the darkness, she grinned and decided
another trip to the computers would be fun.

 Her grin fell as the lights came on and She sprang into action. The Youko girl leapt over the rail and to the lower level moving like the wind until something like greyish skin wrapped around both of her legs forcing her to stop. Anja reached into her hair.

 [Briar whip!] Anja grinned and uncoiled her weapon gracefully.

 "Bienvenido Madre de Dios!" The boy hissed and backed off.

 She took in her attackers, a bunch of powered kids. . .but  none of them were even at A class. *No
threat* She grinned [To run or to fight. Not even A class. Not much of a fight. Running isn't a good
option either.] Anja slipped Canon carefully from her shirt and he perched on her shoulder signing.

 ‘Mad they are.'

 [Waiting for Reinforcements. Maybe they'll be more fun.]

 A screeching wave of sound threw them into the wall and the briar whip dropped. The Youko and
Chibiera fell into a heap unconscious.
 
 

************
 
 

 Hiei shook Kurama awake and the Youko sat up slowly, holding him aching head, "How does Anja
do that?"

 "Hn." Hiei grinned and looked up at the five giant robots towering over them.

 A voice came from the one Fei was in, "Do you guys feel it?"

 Yuusuke looked up, "Fell what?"

 Shura and Kuronue smiled, "She's here."
 
 

*********
 
 

 When she woke up, Anja found herself  trapped in an odd looking cage Canon was laying on the
floor of a cage nearby. [Canon!]

 ‘Hi' he signed and forced himself to sit up, ‘I hurt'

 [You always were a pain.] She teased lightly, [can you get out?]

 He shook his head.

 "Kuso!" Anja started to work the bars and test the cage's limits.

 "Oh, you are both awake I see." A blue furred man stepped into the door. "I am doctor Hank
Mccoy. Do you possibly speak English?"

 [he doesn't know we understand him] Anja looked over to her friend. [We Should keep it that way.
I'll tell him I speak English, you don't, and that way we'll have both edges. ]

 Canon nodded.

 Anja turned back to the man when he cleared his throat. "I do."

 "Oh Good that will make this much easier." Hank smiled. "Now what were you doing in here last
night?"

 "Practicing."

 "Practicing?"

 "With your security systems."

 "So you are thieves."

 Anja shrugged, "Call us as you like."

 "And did you try to steal anything?"

 "You don't have anything worth stealing."

 That caught him off guard, "Nothing."

 "Not that we want."

 "Do you know who lives here?"

 Anja shrugged, "Buncha ningen."

 Hank regarded her carefully.

 "Listen we have some friends and family who will miss us and I have a little one to go home to so
could you let us go now? They're searching for me, I have to. . . "

 "You have a child? How old are you?"

 "Nineteen."

 "And him?"

 "He's my pet. He doesn't speak."

 "Can he understand?"

 "Only Japanese."

 "This is your form?"

 "Yeah, my brother looks like this too. So?"

 "It's odd for mutations to be the same for two members of the same family, are you twins?"

 "No. And what in Inari's Earth has a mutation to do with this?"

 "Mutants are persons with extra powers." He explained slowly, "Like you."

 "We are Youko."

 "Youko?"

 "Hai, now could you let me out? Much as I love bondage, this is hardly the time."

 The blue man blushed bright red and started to walk out."

 "Where are you going! Kisama! Get back here!"

 "I have to get my team mates, after they see you we will talk."

  "Get back here! Hiei with cut your throats for this! Kurama with feed you to his plants! Heero,
Trowa and Quatre with blow you into next year! Duo and Wufei will slice you to ribbons! Yuusuke
and Kuwabara with shoot their Ki right up your asses!" She fell back against the bars and swore,
"M~a~nnnnnn, Koenma is not going to like this!"

<Part 19>
 

The group of friends slipped unnoticed into the estate Kurama had tracked Anja to. "She's in there?" Wufei asked.

 Kurama nodded.

 Hiei unsheathed his katana and grinned, "let's go."

 "Wait!" Yuusuke held them all back, "Shouldn't we have a plan or something?"

 "I have a plan." Wufei grinned.

 "Oh?"

 The sound of the brick fence being crushed under the Gundam's feet answered the tantai's question.

 "Wufei!" Quatre hurried after the charging boy.

 Duo laughed over his intercom and Heero glared, "Hn. Baka." He reached out with Wing's hand to
grab Deathscythe by the arm, "Let's go."
 
 

**************
 
 

 "So Hank," Cyclopes asked, "How old is she?"

 "Nineteen."

 "What did she do?" Storm asked, "That was so wrong?"

 Beast led the other X-men to the danger room. "She showed up last night, only M's phsy- powers
caught them. She and her pet got past our defenses like they were some army obstical course and
then attacked Skin in self defense with a whip made of vines."

 "Vines." Wolverine puffed on his cigar.

 "Yes, barbed vines. They speak Japanese, one speaks English but I thought since Japanese seems
their main language Logan perhaps you could. . ."

 "Sure."

 When they entered the room their startled eyes caught the tall, silvery figure perching on top of the
little creature's cage. The pet was in worst shape obviously than she had thought she was holding him
tightly to her, a strange music surrounding them, un-whole but becoming more so each moment.

 Bright gold and green eyes darted up, the music stopped,  and she sprang to defense of her friend
settling him against the wall, "Stay back!" She yelled at them. [Canon how you doing?]

 ‘fine.' He signed.

 [Don't want to fight you girly, so don't make us.] Wolverine growled and unsheathed his claws.

 [you speak Japanese.] Anja noted.

 [I lived there for a while]

 [good for the gaijin] She snarled and showed her fangs.

 A smell of sulfur behind her caused her to turn and she cried out as a fuzzy blue man took Canon
and disappeared.

 "Canon! Give me back my Chibiera!"

 Nightcrawler settled the bat-like creature in a different room and teleported back to the danger
room where the others were. "I am sorry fraoline, but you left me no choice."

 "Omae wa Korosu!"

 "Wha. . ."

 "The kitten just threatened your life elf." Wolverine chuckled.

 "And I will collect on it." She spat and reached into her hair, "Briar whip!" Nightcrawler managed to
jump away just in time, "Mien Gott!"

 "That's it little one, say your final prayers!" She hissed and tossed some seeds into the air.

 The X-men scattered but the seeds burst open and nailed them to the ground, wrapping them in
tight living cocoons. "What the. . ."

 Anja hung them from the ceiling of the danger room so they dangled eye level to her and glared at
them, "Where is Canon? Tell me! No one hurts a friend of Youko Anja"

 "Youko?" Wolverine's eyes shot up. "Youko are a myth."

 "What are you talking about?" Cyclopes asked.

 "Youko are a race of fox demon from the demon world of Japanese mythology. They are supposed
to have extraordinary control over plants."

 "Well duh." Anja mocked him flicking her tails.

 "They are born brown and as they grow they become red then gold and then silver, after that they
gain extra tails to show status. One Youko Kurama was said to have been born silver and earned
five tails. He is the most famous thief in Japanese folklore."

 "That's my niisan." Anja boasted.

 "I never heard about him having a sister though."

 "Foster sister." Anja corrected. "I'm a more modern developement." She circled the bound X- men
slowly, "Now where is Canon?"

 "Are you meaning this?"

 Anja's flashing eyes shot to the doorway where a man made of living metal stood holding her
friend's limp body.

 "Canon!"

 "What is this you have done?" He asked in a thick Russian accent.

 Anja took in the big man and pinned him for a gentle giant, "Please. I want my friend back. That's
all. We didn't take anything. It was a game. He is hurt. I need to heal him."

 Colossus looked at the little girl before him but saw instead Illyana, pleading on his behalf. He
placed the boy in her arms and she smiled and kissed his armored cheek, "Arigato."

 His team mates groaned and Anja flicked a wrist in their direction letting them fall to the ground.
Then she pulled the tiny Chibiera into her lap and started healing him, the song filled the air again and
circled until it was complete.

 "Canon? Daijoubu ka?"

 He smiled and nodded, ‘you?'

 "Hai." She smiled and they both stood up. The X men looked at the two standing there, the Youko
seemed to glow, like a creature of the fare folk. Fay and delicate, deadly at the same time.  "How
long are you planing on keeping us here?" Anja asked, "Because if we aren't in our home dimension
soon I can promise you the tantai will come looking for us."

 "Tantai." Jean Grey asked.

 "Our group."

 "You are terrorists?" Rouge questioned.

 "No. We are spirit detectives."

 "I don't understand." Kitty Pryde said softly.

 "We keep everyone where they belong. Ningenkai, Makai, or Rekai." My brothers and I are Reikai
Tantai."

 "Brothers? Plural?"

 Anja sighed in acceptance of their current position, "You aren't planning on letting us go are you?
You know we could kill you all if we wanted. The strongest of you is only mid level A class. I am
highest A plus and a favored child of Inari-sama and Enma both."

 Wolverine and Kitty seemed to be the only ones who were understanding any of this.

 Anja sighed, "I am stronger than you and we have Gods on our side is that easier for you to
comprehend?"

 Storm placed a hand on the girls shoulders and her pet almost bit it off. The white haired woman
pulled it back quickly, "I meant only to calm." Storm said soothingly. "My name is Ororo."

 "Ororo." Anja nodded and melted into her human form. Canon took a slow breath and watched the
people around them carefully for any sign of danger to his Youko mother.

 The X-men all watched as the tall, silvery Youko became a slightly shorter, coppery haired human,
an American at that!

 "I am Anja Nightwind."

 Storm smiled, "We are the X-men."

 Anja nodded, "My first brothers and I used to read about you all the time."

 "First?"

 Anja's smile vanished, "They were killed in an explosion along with the rest of my ningen family."

 "I think this is a story we all would like to hear." Jean grey smiled, "Don't you Scott?"

 "Indeed."

 Anja sighed, "I'm telling you the Tantai is going to. . ."

 There was a huge explosion and half of the danger room was blown away.

 "Sentenals!" Kitty cried.

 The X Men prepaired to attack.

 Anja was afraid to let herself believe what she saw. "Fei?"

 "Anja are you alright?" Quatre asked over his speaker.

 "Wufei!"

 The hatch opened and the X-men watched the pilot emerge. A Chinese boy built like a fighter
stepped forward and was immidiatly tackle glomped to the ground by Anja.  "Anja!" the boy
encircled her in his strong arms.

 Anja licked every inch of his face in welcome. If she had been in her Youko form, both her tails
wound have been wagging uncontrollably. He in turn kissed her again and again. Neither noticed the
other Gundam pilots coming down from their machines, the world had no place in their fevered
greeting.

 "Are you ok? We tried to find you as soon as we could but. . ."

 "Shh."

 "Anja. I swear I'm never letting you out of my sight again."

 "That could be fun." She teased as she snuggled closer.

 A little Youko child ran through the smoke and launched himself at the two of them.

 "Kuronue-chan!" Anja smiled and picked him up.

 "Kaasan!" He squealed as she tickled him, "Hanaseyo! Hanaseyo!" She set him down after a strong
hug and he froze and stared at the people standing watching them. "Who are you? Why did you take
my kaasan away?"

 "His what?" Jubilee asked.

 "His mom." Wolverine said.

 "I told you Gundam guys to wait!" A black haired boy growled stepping over the rubble.

 "Ohayo Yuusuke."

 "Anja!" A tall Youko boy with long black hair pulled into a ridiculous ponytail and wearing a very
odd, ragged hat, launched himself at her and Wufei and the three of them rolled together on the
danger room floor before they settled into a comfortable position. More kisses followed. When
Wufei kissed the new boy the X-men got decidedly less comfortable.

 "Kuronue! Gods I missed you! When did you remember? How. . .?"

 "Just a short time ago." He admitted, "I had a little help."

 "Who. . .?"

 "Ohayo Anja." A boy walked forward dressed in royal black with horns growing from five spots on
his head.

 "Shura."

 They were still for a moment before Anja flung herself into his arms, "Shura!"

 "We found him while we were looking for you." Wufei, Kuronue and Kuro embraced all of them.
Anja was sobbing happy tears.

 "Hn." A short boy with spiky hair highlighted with a white starburst walked up to them with Youko
Kurama and looked up at his sister. "Daijoubu Kitsune?"

 "Hai Hiei." Anja smiled and squeezed his hand, "Daijoubu."

 "I the great Kazuma Kuwabara will rescue you Anja!" A burly carrot top ran in holding a glowing
sword.

 "No need Kuwa-chan."

 Another American with a long chestnut braid, a Japanese boy with deep brown hair, an Arab with
blond hair and a European with brown hair and a very sharp bang stepped forward. "And here we
were ready for battle." The American grinned, "Hey Anja, what's up?"

 The X men were used to odd happenings but enough was enough!

 Anja noticed their bemused looks and smiled, "Guy's, These are the X men."

 "Hn." The spiky haired guy by Kurama glared.

 "These are my brothers Hiei and Kurama." Anja smiled.

 "Not a very talkative shrimp is he." Wolverine growled then yelped when Hiei caught fire to his feet.

 "Don't insult a Koorime." Anja advised.

 "Koorime are women!"

 "Forbidden child." Kurama explained.

 "Father was a fire demon." Wolverine growled, "Figures."

 Hiei sneered and Anja stepped between them, "He is one of my best friends and my brother, insult
him and you insult me."

 "How can he be your brother?" Bobby (Iceman) asked.

 "By marraige."

 "You have a sister?"

 "No."

 "Then how. . . You mean. . . "

 Kurama smiled and Bobby turned red as his leader's glasses. As did most of the X-men, though
most were not immidiatly pulled into another man's embrace.

 Gambit held his blushing cher close and chuckled, "he don' try ta be rude, jus' blushes eas'ly. We
un'er stand."

  Jubilee smiled and nodded, "You guys make a cute couple. So do you." She motioned to the two
sets of pilots and the three boys gathered around Anja.

 Rouge arched a brow. "You have a kid and you're in a foursome?"

 "I love my Da, my touchan and my papa." little Kuro growled and latched onto them,  "There is
nothing wrong with them!"

 "Anja." A brunet boy stepped forward.

 She reached into her shirt and pulled out a blue pacifier, "This belongs to you I think."

 He nodded, "You aren't hurt are you?"

 "I'm fine."

 "I'm glad."

 The undercurrents between the five were stifling.

 Anja smiled, "Koenma here is a Godling, he's our boss man."

 "Anja! I am a God in training not a Godling!"

 "Your a cute little Godling." She grinned and gave him a very wet, if chaste kiss.

 "Ok." Koenma moaned and hugged her closer, "I'll be a Godling."

 Anja's team mates roared with laughter at the sight of their boss brought to heel so quickly. The X
men only stared. Some held their noses to stop the bleeding.

 The laughter brought the next generation of X men running. They skidded to a halt and stared at the
group and the remains of the danger room. "Um, they escaped huh?" Paige, a blond girl with a thick
southern accent, said.

 Anja smiled when the X man who was obviously Paige's brother just shook his head at her.

  "So what will you do now?" Jubilee asked the content girl held in a tight cocoon of love.

 Anja leaned back into the strong chest of her Wu-chan and purred happily, "Can we go home now
Fei-koi?"

 He nodded and snuggled her closer, "Hai Anja. We can go home."

 "Um. . . a moment if you please." The burly blue man stopped them.

 "Nanda?" All asked in unison.

 "If I may point out the obvious you have demolished the wall of our domicile, might you be so kind
as to reconstruct before you depart?"

 Yuusuke looked at Kurama and waited for a translation. His English was bad in normal situations at
best and Beast was talking in any way but normally.

 Anja laughed at her brother's troubled look, [He want's you to fix the wall you smashed.]

 [Oh! Koenma couldn't you just. . . zap it back? You know?]

 [NO!]

 They all turned to Wolverine, "Nanda?"

 Anja walked away from her group and scooped her child up into her arms, "Doushite?"

 [We have trouble with dimensional warps in the danger room. If you use any magic it's a good bet
we'll all get pulled into somewhere else, with our luck nothing good.]

 She nodded and Duo smiled, "Let's get it on!"

 She flicked his nose and snickered, "As long as we keep you away from wet paint and power tools
ne Duo-kun?"

 "Aaw! That was just the one time!"
 
 

 The wall was fixed in one day and soon all that was left was to paint it to match the rest of the brick
red mansion.

 Wufei sat at the wheel of Logan's jeep and wondered why the hell he and his lovers had been
chosen to go get the paint for the new wall. It had been so long since they had all been together! All
he wanted to do was throw Anja, Kuronue, Shura, and Koenma onto the bed and ravish every one
of them until he had assured himself that they were really there. //Hn, ravish them? I've been spending to much time with Shura I'm starting to think like he talks. Anja would say ‘I just want to fuck like rabid weasels.'// That brought a smile to his face and Anja looked over at him with a smile of her own.

 "What'cha thinking ‘bout Fei-kun?"

 "Nothing."

 She slipped her hand into his lap and grinned at the hardness there while Wufei squirmed, "Awful
hard for nothing."

 He gasped and his eyes widened, "Anja we're in a jeep! In the middle of New York city!"

 She licked her lips, "Notice how slow traffic moves here?"

 "Of course! It's rush hour Onna no baka! We are surrounded by people returning from work!"

 The look on her face was worthy of her Youko brother as she slid closer, "So what? We can give
‘em a free show."

 Wufei yelped when she slid between his knees, kneeling under the steering wheel and rubbed her
cheek against his straining white pants.

 Kuronue shot Shura a ‘look' and shimmied into the front seat Anja had relenquished, crushing his
mouth down on the panting pilot's.

 Sweat rolled down over their brows as they panted hotly. Koenma and Shura watched with short
breaths and finally with a groan, shared an equally hot kiss.

 Anja slipped the baggy white pants of her lover open and licked the salty member that was standing
high and proud nestled between his thighs.

 Wufei cried out into Kuronue's mouth. The Chimera/Youko buried his hands in Wufei's hair and
deepened the kiss to an almost painful grinding. Wufei returned the force and more, his fingers
digging into Kuronue's head as he held him tighter.

 Beneath them Anja slid down over the pilot's rod using her magic to keep her choke reflex from
going and to let her go without breathing until Wufei was fulfilled. She took his huge member deep.
When fully aroused Wufei was nearly a foot long. She greedily opened the back of her throat, pulling
all of him in and suckling at him needily.

 The Chinese pilot felt his legs shaking and took his foot away from the accelerator he groaned and
threw his head back as he pumped in Anja's warm throat over and over.

 The wail of his climax was caught in Kuronue's kiss and both of them pulled back as Anja slid his
now soft shaft from her mouth and licked the last of his creamy flow from the head and her lips.
Wufei shuddered in his afterglow and Anja slid up to kiss him as she retied his pants carefully. He
could taste himself in her kiss and when she pulled away he drowned in her laughing eyes. "Gods."

 She smiled and licked his cheek affectionately, "Godlings actually."

 Kuronue panted and looked at them through dialated eyes, "Traffic is moving again."

 "Oh!" They jerked into motion and Anja chuckled then slid into the backseat where the other three
lovers waited.

 By the time they got back with the paint, they were all very happy.

 Wolverine took one look at them and sniffed the air around the jeep. "Bunch'a foxes in heat." He
growled, "I'm never going to get that scent out."

 All of the others looked up when the group walked over with the paint. Jean Grey, the local
telepath, blushed furiously at the thoughts they were projecting. Her husband Scott turned wide eyes
as he saw the thoughts through their connection. "What the Hell were you doing?!"

 Kuronue smiled and licked his lips, "Traffic is very slow during rush hour."

 Shura nodded, "We had want for something to. . . entertain the five of us."

 "I see you found something."

 Koenma lay his Head on Wufei's shoulder and let the Chinese youth hold him upright, "Aaaa.
Definitely."

 Quatre blushed as he realized what they were talking about. "Anou. . . Anja, the five of you. . . in
public. . .?"

 She nodded and grinned childishly, wrinkling her petite, turned up nose.

 Duo slid closer to Heero, "Kinky. Ne Hee-chan?"

 Heero flicked his gaze to Duo and then back to his work.

 Colossus' eyes widened at the sensual behavior.

 "Kaasan!" Little Kuro-chan ran up and launched himself into his Kaasan's arms giggling, "Okaasan!
Guess what! They have kids here just my age and they have skin different colors just like
George-san! And big eyes like this!" He held up his fingers to demonstrate."

 "Oh really?" Anja chuckled.

 Banshee smiled, "‘e mus' ‘ave met Artie an' ‘is friends. Don' worry lass, they are good lads."

 Anja's eyes shined with pride, "I never worry about Kuro chan. He knows right and wrong and if
anything was wrong he would tell me or his touchan's or uncles." He kissed her son's forehead and
head him close, "He is a perfect little boy."

 He hugged her and kissed her closed lips with the fond innocence of a child, "I love you ‘Kaasan."

 Tears of happiness came to her eyes. And she slid to her knees, arms never letting go.

 "Why are you sad?"

 "I'm not baby."

 "But you're crying."

 "I'm crying good tears koibito." She assured, "Because I'm so proud of you, and I love you so very
very much."

 "Don' G'way again ok?"

 She laughed and cuddled him, "I didn't mean to go for so long love. I'll try not to worry you again."

 "Promise?"

 "Cross my heart."

 "Hope to cry?" He traced a tear path from her eyes softly.

 She traced the same path over his face and sniffled happily, "Uhuh. Hope to cry my baby."

 They sat there, cuddling until Artie stuck his head out of the greenhouse, "Friend Kuro coming?"

 Kuro-chan looked up at his mother with pleaded eyes, "Can I sleep in the tree house with them
tonight?"

 She smiled and nodded, "Of course, but no magic ok?"

 "Awe but mom!"

 "Remember what Logan-san said. You can use your plants because they are part of you, but none
of Mukuro's spells. Promise mamma this ok?"

 "‘k."

 "‘k, what?" She grinned and tickled him.

 He squirmed and giggled, "Ok! Ok! I promise!"

 "Good." She rubbed her nose to his and then turned him around, patting his little rear, "Go on then."

 "Arigato Okaasan!"

 "Don't play rough!" She called before he vanished into the greenhouse. When she turned around her
four guys had their shirts off and were setting up to paint. Her eyes grew at the site of four perfectly
shaped six pack hard chests. Each one of them was so different! Koenma was in great shape. His
body was hard and built, but still trim. Like he had gotten his muscle naturally. Being a Godling he
probably had. Shura was built harder and more visibly, like a weight trainer, not completely ripped,
just toned and firm. His pecks were hard and defined, like two slightly rounded squares of steel had
been slipped under his skin. Wufei was slightly slimmer than Shura, but just as hard and formed. He
was a martial artist and it showed in his shape and lithe grace. Then there was Kuronue. Her
Chimera/Youko. Her first love. He was the tallest of them all, almost seven feet! His muscles were
toned but willowy. His abs were clearly defined but smooth, like a dancer or an artist of some sort.
His pecks slopped a bit down ward from the middle of his chest instead of the hard blocks the other
three had. It added to his grace. All of them were amazing. All of them were hers.

 "Anou. . . Anja, if you keep looking at us like that. . ." Koenma began.

 Shura finished, "No work shall be done."

 She gave Wufei and Kuronue a quick and telling glance and then they had captured Shura and
Koenma over their shoulders while Anja dragged them on toward the mansion.

 "Anja! You are supposed to paint the wall!" Kuwabara said in his halting English.

 She called back in Japanese so that he wouldn't miss her meaning. [I haven't seen them in months
and the jeep is to small to do anything -well-.]

 Kurama looked up at his sister and sighed, "We'll do it, you go catch up."

 She shot him a foxy grin and answered in the language of the Makai ~[ I'll see you in a day or
two!]~

 ~[We leave tomorrow morning]~

 ~[But I REALLY need to catch up!]~

 ~[Little hentai.]~

 ~[With guys like these?! Hell yes!]~

 He laughed as they disappeared into the mansion.

 "What did she say?" Colossus asked as giggles and groans began to filter out to them from the guest
room.

 Kurama grinned and Hiei rolled his eyes, "Damn horny fox."

 Kurama nipped his lovers nose in answer and Hiei snatched the fox's hair, pulling him into the house.

 "Hiei! Itai! Not the hair!"

 "Hn."

 The X-men looked after them and blushed furiously, "Are they um, always this way?"

 Yuusuke sighed and picked up a roller brush, "You should see them during a full moon!"

 Quatre blushed prettily and nodded, "They each carry the blood of a certain God in them and most
also hold demon traits. They are very emotional and get excited quickly and easily. We have to keep
a constant watch over them."

 "Mein Gott!" Nightcrawler popped into existence behind them, a blush firmly settled over his blue
cheeks.

 "What is it Elf?"

 "The children. . . I mean. . . our guests. . . ah . . . the travelers they. . ."

 "They didn't close the door." Trowa guested, straight face.

 "Ja!" Nightcrawler was turning purple with the affect of his blushing.

 Hank cleared his throat and commented, "I would like to run some tests while you are all here
tonight."

 "Why?" Heero was instantly on guard.

 "Well we know nothing about you. I could learn very much by looking over your DNA, hormone
levels, and such."

 "Koenma is the boss." Yuusuke shrugged and looked at Wolvirine as he lapsed into Japanese , [I
have no problem but you gotta ask him.]

 "Gotta ask the boss." He told his friends.

 Cyclops began to ask, "Who is. . ."

 An amused smile covered the delinquent's face and he made an obscene jesture with his hands and
pointed the the fog covered guest room window.

 ". . . Oh."

<Part 20>
 

 Anja listened as her breath and that of her lovers returned to normal. Her head lay lovingly over Kuronue's heart, Wufei rested his on the chimera's shoulder. His breath rustled Anja's hair slightly as all five of them embraced. Koenma's head rested on Kuronue's tight abdomen and Shura (because of his horns) lay on his back, his head tucked beneath Anja's breasts.

 None of them spoke as afterglow sparkled around them. They only held each other close.
Marveling that through everything they were still together. All of them. One complete soul split
among five young bodies.

 The love felt so good. So warm and comforting. Like no matter what tomorrow might hold they
would conquer it as long as they were together.

 "I love you all." Anja sighed, running her fingers lazily through Koenma and Wufei's hair.

 Koenma snuggled closer and kissed Shura's neck, "we love you too."

 Wufei purred like he did in dragon form. Anja's and Kuronue's joined him.

 Shura's purr was deeper. A lion's compared to a housecat's.

 Koenma's purr was somewhere between the two.

 Their purring lulled the group to sleep. Smiles on their faces.
 
 

 When Ororo announce that dinner was ready, everybody hurried to the table but Anja and her
lovers.

 "Where's Anja?" Duo looked to Hiei for an answer.

 "Hn."

 "She and the other God's children are still asleep."

 The sound of a chair scraping caused them all to turn to Marrow who was standing, "I'll get them."

 She walked up to the room silently. After a life like hers one learned to make as little noise as
possible. She crept into the darkened room and her eyes fell to the bed. Five perfect bodies lay
there in repose. Such soft skin. Marrow turned away in sorrow, she could never look so innocent.

 "Mmm." A slight sound caused her to turn back. One of the men stretched on his back and sat up,
careful not to disturb his lovers. He smiled at Marrow through a curtain of silken blue/black hair.
"Konichiwa. Shura desu."

 She blinked.

 "Hello." He translated. "My name is Shura."

 She walked up carefully and touched a hand tentatively to his horn, "You have bone growing from
you too."

 He smiled and nodded, "As did my father." He sighed and raised a hand to them, "They will grow
longer as I age." He chuckled and she looked at his in question, "I believe I shall be very tough on
pillows when I sleep then."

 She smiled, "I'm Marrow."

 "An honor Marrow." His eyes sparkled with his laughter and Marrow couldn't help but smile wider.

 "Are you one of her harem?"

 Shura chuckled again, "I am one of her lovers." He clarified, "We are not a harem, we are five parts
of the same soul."

 The girl child nibbled her lip in thought, "and they accept you? Even with the bones?"

 His smile was soft now as he looked upon his lovers. "They do. I think they even find them erotic
some times." He ran a hand lightly over Kuronue's thigh and sighed, "I wouldn't be the Shura they
knew without my horns you see. They have never known me without them, it would be too odd."

 "I envy you."

 "Don't." He soundlessly slipped into his garments, "You already have someone if you chose to see."

 "Who? I am alone."

 "The man of metal." Shura hinted, "Pay more attention to him. You will see." Then he turned to
wake up the others with a kiss for each. "Koenma, Kuronue, Wufei, Anja, it's dinner time."

 They all yawned and stretched as one and Marrow couldn't help but gasp at the beauty of their
movements. Then Anja wrapped her arms around Shura from behind. She suckled at his neck and
caressed the horn growing from his forehead using it to pull him in for a deeper kiss. "Greetings Koi."

 He sighed and arched into her lips happily, "My love."

 "Did I hear the word dinner?" Kuronue smiled widely.

 Koenma smiled and kissed him softly, "You and your appetite."

 Wufei tossed their clothes onto the bed and they all helped each other dress before turning to
Marrow.

 Shura smiled, "Lead the way oh fair one."

 The mutant blushed at the praise and nodded.

 When they reached the dinning room all of the others looked up. Duo grinned, "Bought time! Oi
Wu-man! You look good with your hair down."

 Wufei blushed and reached up to pull it back but Anja nipped his collar bone in threat, "I like it
down."

 Jean Grey smiled at the young lovers and passed them their plates, "So, tell us about yourselves."
She smiled at their guests.

 Anja looked up and Kuronue swept his mouth over hers, stealing the food from her mouth with a
quick kiss. "Hey!"

 He grinned and swallowed then licked his lips, "Yum."

 "Hn!" Anja pouted playfully and her brothers laughed.

 As always, Kurama spoke for the group. He explained their vocation and how they had been led to
the scattered land, then smiled as he explained Anja's apperence in their lives. Wolverine scanned
the new arrivals carefully, he could sense their trust and smell their innocence along with their love for
the one called Anja. She seemed to be the one who tied them all, both groups, together. As he
thought this over she looked up and smiled at him. He looked quickly away but the smile stayed on
her face. She was a puzzle alright. Jubilee was, as always, very accepting of the new girl.

 "Hey, are those the only clothes you got?"

 Anja nodded, "I lost and gained some over my journey, that's why I look so pieced together."

 "It's a cool look, but hey I got closets full a stuff, you're taller than me but I got some roll up jeans
you could just leave down, or shorts, and it wont matter if the shirts ride high, you got a killer figure!"
She smiled and popped her gum.

 "Jubilee." Cyclops glared.

   "Wh~at?!"

 "No gum at the table."

 She groaned, took it out and plunked it down on the Xman's dinner plate, "There ya go Cyks.

 Anja giggled, "I'd love a change of clothes. Mmm, and a bath, a nice long bath sounds sooooooo
good right now!"

 Kuronue pulled her into his lap and grinned when she yelped out in indignation. "She's right you
know."

 "Oh yeah? Bought what?"

 "You do have a killer body." Her ran his tongue over her collar bone and down into her shirt,
between her soft breasts.

 "Kuronue!" Kurama gasped and slapped the questing mouth away from his sister, "Not at the
table!"

 "Hn, kitsune no baka." The chimera snorted and Anja scooted back into her seat laughing.

 The Xmen were for once, at a complete loss for words.
 
 

 Anja stepped out of Jubilee's bathroom clad in a huge fluffy towel. She had washed her human,
Youko, and dragon form and felt better than she hand in a long time.

 "Woah!" Jubilee smiled and circled her playfully, "You have got looooooong hair!"

 Anja smiled and nodded, "I haven't cut it for years."

 "Why not?"

 She chuckled and sat on the other girl's bed with her, "When I was younger and had just met
Kuronue, one of my brothers dared me to do something drastic to my hair. I used to wear it a lot
like yours, just a little longer. Anyway, he didn't think I'd do anything huge."

 "What'd you do?!"

 "I shaved it as short as my youngest brother. He had a 2nd degree military cut."

 "Holy!"

 "Yeah." She laughed, "Kuronue actually cried when he found out I'd cut it. He loved my hair. So I
haven't cut it since."

 "You are soooooo lucky to have all those cute guys at your beck and call!"

 "I love them." She smiled and lay back with a sigh, "Gods I love them so much!"

 "You got it bad girl!" Jubilee laughed.

 "I know! But it feels sooooo good!"

 They laughed together and Jubilee jumped up and went to her closet, "Well let's give them
something that'll reeeeeally light their fires!" She started digging through the clothes to find the perfect outfit.
 

 Wufei, Koenma, Kuronue and Shura were the last to be examined by Hank McCoy. They stood with the rest of their group in the med lab, waiting for him to finish. Suddenly all talk died down and they stared at the doorway. Jubilee stepped aside and Anja walked in with a smile. The pulse machines her lovers were on started to beep faster.

 "Well? Does it suit?"

 They tried to answer but couldn't find the words.

 Hiei jumped forward and growled, "Cover yourself!"

 "I did!" Anja smiled and turned in a circle.

 "Oh my stars and garters!" Hank coughed.

 The long, golden brown legs were completely visible and her hips were encased in black denim
shorts short enough to look like underwear and low enough to almost be indecent! Over her chest
was stretched a black tank top that barely covered her on which was written ‘I do what the voices in
my head tell me to', and her hands were encased in black leather weight training gloves. Her regular
braid hung down her back but she had no shoes on and her nails were painted black. "Well? You
like?"

 Hiei growled and snatched Jubilee's trench coat to cover his sister.

 "Hiei!"

 "Come with me." Hiei pulled her.

 "But I. . ."

 "NOW!"

 She grinned and flashed a victory sign behind her as they left.

 Kurama smiled and looked down at Jubilee, "She was just trying to get a rise out of him wasn't she."

 Jubilee nodded then looked over at the four boys on the med tables, "Looks like she got a whole
different kind of rise out of you four."

 The young mutant was chased from the room but froze when she got outside. "Holy shit!"

 The shimmering portal that would lead the travelers home slowly expanded before them. Kurama
looked up sharply, it wasn't right. Something was going wrong.

 "Guys!" Ranma's voice yelled through, "Can you hear me? It's acting really weird! You guys hafta
come through NOW!"

 Kuronue ran for Kuro-chan and the Gundam boys climbed into their mechanical partners and after
a quick good bye, all of them plunged head first into the void.

 Anja's eyes went wide as lightning shot around them and the world got burning hot all of a sudden.
She tucked Mew and Canon safely into the pockets of the borrowed duster.  "This isn't good this
reeeeealy isn't good!"

 Kuronue handed Kuro-chan to Hiei, "Get him out of here! Please!"

 The Koorime nodded and darted ahead then began returning for each of the others. They trudged
ahead but the Gundams seemed to be pulling back, "Wufei?"

 He tried to force the controls but they wouldn't listen, "Anja we can't control them, it's pulling us in!"

 Heero ran some quick calculation, "We're going back."

 "To your time?!" She gasped.

 He nodded and she cried out and pressed her palms against Shenlong's glowing eyes, knowing that
behind them Wufei was doing the same. "I love you Anja."

 "I love you too." She closed her eyes and lay her cheek against the cool glass unaware that the pilot
inside was now unconscious.

 "Anja!" Kuronue grabbed her arm, "We're the only ones left! Come on!"

 "I have to stay until their safe. What if we leave and the portal collapses on them?"

 "Anja. . ."

 "Go, I'll come soon."

 "You know I won't do that."

 They stood in the murky nothing that pulled the Gundams away until nothing was left but. . .
"RUN!!!!!!!"

 Anja and her lover tumbled out of the portal into Shura's castle. Kuronue's Chimera skin had turned to stone for protection against the backlash as flames hotter than liquid steel scorched the whole
room. The others ducked for cover and Anja tossed the coat with her pets inside out of the way just
in time. She wasn't so lucky. Kuronue cried out in pain as the American girl's helpless form was
engulfed in flames.
 
 

 Kuronue and Shura sped through the city on Firestarter, their vision blurred with hopeless tears.
//Hang on Anja! Hold on! I'll find someone to help you! I have to!//

 A police siren wailed behind him and he cursed in every language he knew. //Not now!//

 He pulled to the side of the rode and the policeman approached him carefully.

 //What do I say now?! Hello officer yes my skin is turquiose and yes as a matter of fact I do have
stones growing from my face, I'm racing to save my demon girlfriend who just got torched by the
aftershock of a dimensional portal collapse, looking for a doctor who actually has no legal degree
and goes around calling himself Blackjack!?//

 The policeman halted a few feat from them, "Sir do you know you were speeding?"

 "Shura go on, find him, I'll talk to him." Kuronue hopped off the bike and Shura sped off, his black
coat blowing out behind him like a vampire's cape.

 "Hey wait!"

 "Officer!" Kuronue stopped him, "Our friend is dying, let him go, talk to me."

 "What are you some kind of punk?"

 The chimera sighed, "No sir, I'm not."

 "Why were you going so fast?"

 The demon was not in the mood for this. "I had the gears all the way up and the accelorator fully
down. Feeds more gas through makes it go faster."

 He was taken aback by the answer, "You also ran a stop sign."

 "I don't believe everything I read."

 "Are you giving me lip?"

 "No sir I only give that to my lovers sorry."

 "Why you little. . ."

 "Listen PIG!" Kuronue growled, "My whole reason for living is lying on the cold hard ground with
our lover and her adopter family, trying to hold on long enough for Shura to find a doctor to help her. She is burned over more than half her body and lost one of her beautiful eyes. If she dies I can
promise you Ningenkai is going to have a really bad time when all her friends come to take revenge."

 The man just stood there looking dumb.

 "Hn. I thought so." Kuronue spread his wings, shredding the clothing covering them in the process, and took off, butt naked after Shura.
 

 Doctor BlackJack sat in his study while Pinnocol did a puzzle. He flew to his feet when a naked, winged figure crashed through his window. "Doctor BlackJack?!"

 "Yes."

 "You have to come with us! Please! She's dying!"

 He offered the man a robe but he shrugged it off, "Calm down. What happened."

 "She's burned! Burned so badly! You have to save her you have to!"

 "Pinnocol."

 "Yes sir!"

 "Get my bag, quickly." BlackJack followed the boy out to where another young man straddled a
fierce looking motorcycle. His helmet was decorated with horns and he wore all black. "What
exactly happened?"

 "You wouldn't believe us." The one on the bike assured him.
 
 

 When they reached the park where they had landed, Kuronue flew instantly to Anja's side, "How is
she Koenma?"

 "I'm fine." She smiled at her lovers. "I'm ok. Doesn't hurt bad."

 "Oh dear God." BlackJack's eyes went wide at the sight of the child laying there, half her naked
body blackened and charred. "Pinnocol, set up a sterile place to work."

 "Yes doctor."

 The boy with the horned helmet slipped it off, the horns slid through holes in the protective gear,
"Can you help her?"

 "We need a lot of skin and fast."

 A short, spiky haired youth nodded and seemed to vanish before them.

 "Hiei will get people to help." The red head holding the patient promised.

 "You're Minimino Shuuichi aren't you."

 "Hai" He nodded, "This is my imoto Anja. She means the world to us please, you have to save her."

 He nodded and lifted Anja from the boy's arms, placing her on the hood of his car where Pinnocol
had set up. "Are you in pain?"

 "Little."

 "I don't have any anesthsia."

 "Don't need any."

 "Tough girl ne?"

 "Could say that." She tried to smile and convulsed in pain.

 "Shh." He stroked her hair, "Now I'm going to start on your face. Your brothers and friends hear
will each give a little skin to you and I will grow it into a whole piece."

 "Will it hurt them?"

 "No."

 "‘K."

 "It will hurt you though."

 "S'fine."

 He smiled incouragingly. "Pinnocol."

 "Sir!"

 "Take skin samples from each man here and the others when Hiei brings them."

 "Yes sir." She set to work quickly. As Pinnocol had grown she learned some useful techniques to
help the doctor. Skin grafting was on of them.

 "What about the nerves." Anja asked.

 "I can replace some with computorized sensors, but you wont really ‘feel' pain, you'll just know
something is hurting enough to stop it. Some of the nerves are unhurt though."

 "Aa."

 "D. . . d. . . doctor?"

 "What is it Pinno. . . co. . . my God."

 Hiei had returned with every Demon on Mukuro's payroll and any he had passed on the way who
wanted to help ‘She Who Cares'. "They'll give skin! Go!" The fire demon hissed.

 The procedure took hours. Anja passed out after the first hour and the doctor was glad for that
small blessing. Her pain had been obvious and it hurt him to see it, but not once had she cried out.
Her right forearm was beyond heeling and had to be amputated. But the new skin held up,
BlackJack insisted they take her home and wait a couple days to make sure it took and that no
infection set in. All of the demons and her family went with him. The apartment was completely full.
A little bat-like and pink, cat looking creature flew from a doll house sized castle to the prone girl and fussed over her. The pink thing formed a bubble in the bed pit so she was up a bit from the floor and sat at the foot of the bubble looking worried.

 "Wha. . ."

 "Her pets." Shuuichi explained.

 "Now do you want to explain this to me?"

 Koenma stood and lifted his hair to show the JR written on his forehead. "I am Koenma. Son of
lord Enma-Dowa. Anja, Shura, Kuronue, I and another called Wufei are children of the Gods.
Wufei and his friends were traveling back to our dimensional territory when a knot in the continueum
caught us and threw them back into their own time. Anja was trying to make the portal stay open for
him when the backlash sent a wave of fire through the castle. Seeing our distress. Anja fought to
save her pets, and won, but you can see the tole the events took on both her and Kuronue."

 "The rocky skin. . ."

 "A Chimera's defense. I have the parts of a rock Golem in me so when the fire hit, they surfaced for
protection."

 "I see."

 "It's a a lot to accept." Koenma shrugged, "But I assure you if you have saved her any price you
name will be given."

 One of the oni Hiei had brought slid a little closer, "You save ‘She Who Cares'?"

 "She who. . .?"

 "Anja." Shura smiled, "She earned the title ‘She Who Cares' during her time in Reikai prison. It
spread through the Makai and now she is known to all demons for the fact that if they are hurt or in
need or sad, she will care for them."

 "That's a big responsability for such a young girl."

 "She would never turn someone away." Mukuro said from the shadows.

 "And you are?"

 "Her mother." She stepped forward and BlackJack gapped at her face. "Now we will look even
more like a pair ne?"

 "I. . . I'm sorry! I have never seen such a thing."

 "Shigure works miracles." She patted a very pierced demon on the back, "But I didn't want my
daughter to end up looking like a piece of hardware."

 The doctor smiled and nodded.

 Shigure lifted the half an arm Anja was left and studied it carefully, "I can fix this."

 Mukuro nodded, "Then do. But make it as presentable as possible. Remember all she's done for
us."

 He nodded and began work. It was finished a few hours later and just as he reattetched it, Anja
began to stir.

 "Ung. . ."

 "Anja!" All of the origonal boys gathered around her. "Anja are you ok?!"

 "Couldn't save him." She sobbed weakly, "Wu-chan is gone back isn't he."

 "Anja, you will live long enough to see him again."

 "I miss him." She sobbed and the two animals flew closer, hugging her and trying to stop the tears.

 Her lovers all held her tightly, "We'll miss him too." Kuronue smiled sadly, "But he isn't gone forever
and we will find him again."

 She nodded and looked around the room, "K. . . Kuro-chan?"

 "Here Kaasan." He ran up and hugged his mother, "You didn't go'way again."

 "I promised I wouldn't." She sighed, "You ok?"

 "Uhuh." The child smiled and cuddled in his mother's arms, "Uncle Kurama wove a plant pod
around me. See? No burns!"

 "I'm so glad my baby."

 "Momma?"

 "Hm?"

 "Where's Wu-da?"

 Anja's eyes closed as she fought back tears, "He's gone baby."

 "Gone?"

 "For now."

 "When will I see him again?"

 "When you're Uncle Kurama's Youko age. A little sooner, I'm not sure when colonization happens."

 "I don' want him to be gone." The child sniffled.

 Anja wrapped him in her arms and cried, "Neither do I Kuro-chan. Neither do I my heart."
 
 

 The crisis started early the next morning. Most of the demons had returned to Makai leaving only
BlackJack, Pinnocol and Anja's closest friends and family. They were all asleep when her silent cry
echoed through their minds.

 "Anja!" The hurried over to her and tried to hold her down as she thrashed and screamed into their
thoughts without a sound.

 "Anja! Calm down!"

 BlackJack plunged a needle into her arm and sighed, "I was afraid of this."

 "What? What's wrong with her?" Kuwabara asked, unwilling to delve into the mind of his sister.

 "The shock has cleared and what happened to her is finally registering."

 "What does that mean for Anja?"

 "She is fighting against becoming insane."

 Kuro-chan held onto Kuronue's legs, burying his face and crying.

 The Chimera held his son and look toward Mukuro pleadingly.

 "Kuro-chan." His Obaasan smiled and took his hand, leading him out of the room, "Why don't we
go back to my castle. Alright? I think Shigure will pierce your ear for you this time."

 "Honto?!" He squealed, "I'm big enough now?"

 She nodded and closed the door behind them.

 Now the the child was gone they all turned to the doctor. Shura held Anja's arms down as the
sedative ran through her veins. "What can we do?"

 BlackJack frowned sadly, "I can't know. She will either survive this whole, partially, or go
completely insane. We can only wait."

 "Please doctor, could you treat her until one or the other happens?" Shuuichi asked worried. "We
will pay you anything."

 He nodded, "I live nearby, so I will visit daily to check up on her."

 "What should we do in the mean time?"

 "Do you have access to a strait jacket?"

 "Hai."

 "Put her in it." He sighed, "For her sake and your own." Then he and the girl left and Anja slipped
under the effect of the drug given her, and slept.
 
 

 After that, things progressed slowly at best. Anja showed some signs of getting better, but always
fell back into madness. She sat curled in on herself in the wicker chair she and Wufei had hung and
rocked back and forth, eyes unseeing. She wouldn't talk to anyone but Kuronue and when she did it
made little sense.

 Now he sat before the chair, watching her close, "Anja?"

 "You never looked at me like that before, why you looking at me like that?" She wasn't even
looking at him.

 He touched her and she hissed and drew back, "Sorry! I didn't mean to upset you."

 "Is God bleeding? Have I made god cry?"

 "Anja, why would God be bleeding?"

 "Because I want to hurt him. I want to kill God. Every time I bleed, so does he."

 "Then yes, God is bleeding, but so is my heart."

 "Why?"

 "Because I love you. Every time you hurt yourself I bleed for you too."

 "Don't."

 "I can't help it."

 "DON'T!!!" She screamed and hid her face.

 "I can't help it, I love you."

 "Don't love me! Don't bleed for me! When I die that will hurt God so much. I want him to hurt!" Her
smile was reflective and proud but then fell, "Don't wanna hurt you too."

 "If you die, so do I. So will Shura and Koenma and Wufei."

 She flung herself at him, "NO!"

 The startled Chimera caught her and held her hands.

 "What is life? What is life worth when God can rip it away from you why didn't I die, why did he
take him why will he take me and you and all of us soon I can't . . . I can't. . . we're already dead!
Me, you, we're already dead."

 "Anja, Anja," He shook her, "come back, look at me! It's me! I'm alive! You're ok, no one is dead
or dying."

 She blinked and gasped, "K. . . Kuronue."

 "Shh, it's ok."

 "He's gone."

 "We'll find him. We'll find him. You found me didn't you?"

 "I miss him, I need him, our bond is gone! He isn't dead, he isn't even born yet, our soul is broken.
Wu-chan. Wu-chan I need you! I need. . ."

 "Shhh." He smoothed her hair and calmed her gently, "Hush now."

 She sniffled, "w. . . Wufei."

 Shura walked in and hugged the two of them gently, tears coursing over his cheeks, "I wish you
would get better Anja-chan." He sighed, stroking her hair softly. "We need you."

 "Don't let go." She pleaded, her slight frame shivering.

 "Never."

 "Don't leave me in the darkness."

 "You aren't in the Darkness Anja. You are with people who love you. People you love. Look at
me."

 Tear filled eyes rose to meet Shura's, and for once they were clear and calm.

 "We love you Anja. We will see Wufei again, you can't stop hoping."

 She sobbed and fell into their embrace again. "I want to see Kuro-chan."

 Both men smiled. She was going to be ok. "Come on Anja. Lets bring Kuro-chan home."
 

_____________
 

 Wufei awoke in a hospital to Sally's concerned face. "S. . . sally."

 "Wufei! Thank goodness! You were down so long we didn't know if you'd make it."

 "A. . . anja."

 "Who?"

 "Where is Anja? Did she make it?"

 "I don't know who you're talking about."

 Wufei leapt to his feet, ripping his IVs out. "Duo! Heero! Quatre! Trowa! Get in here!"

 Sally fussed and tried to make him sit down but he refused. When his team mates ran inside Wufei
hurried to them, "Where is she?"

 Duo buried his face in Heero's shirt and the perfect soldier looked Wufei in the eye. "The portal
collapsed on the way through. They all made it back to their time but we were thrown back into ours as an after affect. She is safe. We are home."

 "No! No! I refuse to accept this! There must be a way to go back!"

 "Wufei." Duo sobbed softly, "She's gone."

 The dark sloe eyes widened and he shook his head, unable to believe it, "Anja." He fell to his knees
and fought the tears pouring forth. "NO!!!!!!!!!!"
 

~Owari~
[Wufei's story to be continued in ‘Shadows of the Past']