Reunion.

1

"Damn! They just keep coming!"

Kuroh and Neko were surrounded by Jungle clansmen, all wearing green-tinted masks. The city street they found themselves on was crawling with them, all coming after the so-called "cat and dog". Only recently had the Green clan begun to move; their real plan was still unknown to everyone not involved. All Neko and Kuroh knew was that the Greens had it out for them, due to their status as Silver clansmen. Today, they had just been to visit the Red clan at Bar Homra; they had a lot more free time now that they had paused their search for their King. Little did they imagine they would be met with this on their way back to the Ashinaka School Island, even though this wasn't the first time it'd happened. Some of the Homra members had offered to escort the Silvers home, as it was well-known that the Green clan had been targeting them. They declined, but Kuroh was beginning to rethink that decision.

Kuroh fought the Greens off with his sword, the treasured Kotowari, which had been bestowed upon him by his late master, the former Colorless King. His swordsmanship was nothing to sneeze at, yet these masked people were relentless. Neko, on the other hand, was warding them off with her illusions. As a strain, she could easily use her powers to affect the perception of others to her advantage in battle. The two wound up back to back, as the Greens closed in on them. Kuroh pointed his sword out defensively, and muttered, "This is bad..."

"Don't give in, Kurosuke! We can take them!" Neko, swinging the red parasol around while fighting, let out a loud "meow" as she moved to cast one more illusion. Before anyone could take another step, their fight was interrupted by a sudden brilliant flash of white light. Neko, along with all of the Green clansmen, shielded their faces. Kuroh's back was to the source of the light, so his vision wasn't as greatly affected. Just as quickly as the light had appeared, it vanished. Kuroh watched as the clansmen all exchanged nods, then withdrew. He lowered his sword in confusion. "What was that about..?" he said under his breath. He proceeded to put his sword back into its sheath. But Neko wasn't paying attention to him, or the retreating Greens. She was staring up into the sky in front of her, encompassed in a dim white glow; her eyes wide and watering. Without breaking her gaze, she slowly reached her hand back and grabbed Kuroh's, whose back was still to her. "Kurosuke..." she whispered, her voice shaking. Kuroh, stunned by her sudden change in attitude, turned to stand next to her. He looked down at her and saw tears beginning to well up in her eyes. He then followed her unbroken gaze into the sky. His eyes widened in shock and his jaw dropped slightly as he saw what she had been staring at. "Shiro..." he whispered in disbelief. He tightened his grip on Neko's hand. The pair stood staring into the sky above them; staring at the Sword of Damocles. Every King had a sword unique to them, but this one was unmistakably that of the first King, the Silver King. Their King.

There were a few moments of silence as the two stood hand in hand, motionless. The silver glow of the massive, majestic sword covered them. It was comforting, like a shelter. Both Kuroh and Neko felt its warmth welling up inside them. The silence was finally broken by Neko, who suddenly popped back into her cheerful self. "Kurosuke, let's go!!! We have to meet Shiro!" She began to run in the direction of where the sword had materialized, pulling Kuroh by the hand. They didn't make it far before Kuroh released his tight grasp on her hand and stood in place. She ran a few more steps ahead before Kuroh spoke. "Hey, Neko..." She stopped and turned to face him, puzzled by his reluctance. Kuroh looked away, avoiding her bright and questioning eyes. "It's just... Are you sure... We're ready to meet him again? After all this time, I mean..." Neko's puzzled expression melted into a soft smile. She understood his feelings of hesitance, though she would never say it. Instead, she replied merrily with, "Of course we are! Shiro's the reason we've been searching this whole time, isn't he? Now let's hurry!" Kuroh's eyes widened a bit as he beheld her smiling face. He brushed his fingers lightly on the handle of his Kotowari, then returned the smile. "Yeah... You're right." He rushed to meet Neko's distance, his silky jet-black hair flowing behind him. The two Silver clansmen grabbed hands yet again. With their eyes on the sky, they sprinted together to reunite with their King who had finally returned home.