Schuldich gripped the daisy with the careful fingers of one hand. The other hand was pulling petals off with delicate precision, making a pile on the windowsill that he stood by. He was staring out into the night, green eyes closed, loose red hair falling around his face. The sun had gone down hours ago but he hadn't moved from his spot and there was a disarrayed pile of stems and petals at his feet.

"You're thinking."

Schuldich's eyes slitted open and he looked at the figure reflected in the glass of the window with bright eyes. "I do that occassionally."

"Not this deeply."

He laughed quietly. "You always know what I'm thinking."

"Only because you let me, Schuldich."

He blinked his eyes open all the way. "Ane here I thought you just took what you wanted, when you liked."

"I would never do that."

"I wish you would. Just once."

"Why?"

"So that I can proove why I do this to myself. That I'm not alone."

"You have others with you in this mess you chose."

"I know. But they're not like you."

"Schuldich . . . you have to accept this life someday."

He grimaced. "Someday? I accepted it years ago."

Cool hands slid down his arm to the flowre, chilling him with their touch. "I tried to protect you. You know I did."

"I know."

"I just wish I could have done more."

"You did all you could. I don't hold it against you."

A bitter chuckle. "I hold it against myself."

"Don't You were as much a victim as I was--as I still am."

"You're both, you know. The victim and the victimizer. You always were."

"I always will be."

"So very true." Fingers slid over the petal that he held, thin, pale fingers attached to a hand that was achingly familiar. His own hand spasmed, the petal falling from his fingers.

"I can't change."

"I know."

"This is who I am."

"I know. My crazy little redhead."

"Liebe . . ."

"Who will save you now?"

The fingers faded away and he clenched his hand into a fist. A ghost. A memory. He didn't know anymore. A petal floated onto the back of his hand, whispering against his skin. He shook it off.

Liebe had always liked daisies.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Schuldich sighed and watched as Nagi typed on his computer with an almost fanatic reverence. "Are you done yet?"

"Iie."

"Then hurry up."

"I'll be done when I'm done, Schuldich. Don't rush me."

The German made a face and brushed some of his hair out of his eyes. "I can't believe we have to do this. It's so degrading. Someone else could have knocked these people off."

"We were ordered to do this and we follow orders. That's reason enough to do this," Nagi replied.

"You're as much a dog as Brad is. And speaking of dogs, why didn't our esteemed leader come with us?"

"He had better things to do," Farfarello said as he busied himself with cleaning his knife of blood by wiping it on his already stained and torn pants. They had been ordered to take down a drug lord's operation that had turned against Takatori. Brad had stayed behind after giving them their mission. Schuldich had been put in charge and had been told by Brad to enjoy himself. He hated when Brad knew things that he didn't.

"Like what? Jerk off in his office? Please," Schuldich retorted. "He didn't want to get blood on his expensive Armani suit."

They hadn't killed the drug lord yet but were currently in the process of destroying the man's business on the net and cutting off his contacts. They would go after him later on once they were finished here. Schuldich sighed and fingered the gun in his pocket. They had let Farfarello loose on the idiots inside the building. He had only picked off what the Irishman had missed.

A sharp click and beeping noise brought Schuldich back to himself. Nagi was closing his laptop and getting to his feet. "Done?" Schuldich asked.

"Hai. Their entire system has been corrupted. We can leave now," Nagi told him.

"Good. Let's finish this."

Schuldich headed for the door adn the other two followed him out into the blood splashed hallway. Silently they made their way out of the building adn to Schuldich's car.

"You're sucking the bloodstains out when we get home," Schuldich said to Farfarello as he started the engine.

"My pleasure."

Schuldich rolled his eyes and backed up. Moments later they were speeding down he street throught the city. Schuldich took them where they were supposed to be and upon arriving, he braked to a halt and stared up at the tall office building with unblinking eyes.

"Nani?" Nagi murmured.

A slow, dangerous smile slit up Schuldich's face. Brad *did* say to enjoy himself. "Company."

"Toys," Farfarello hissed.

"Hm. Maybe Weiss will do our job for us," Nagi said as they got out.

"I highly doubt it," Schuldich said as he headed for the doors to the office building. "Split up. Kill anyone that moves."

They parted in the lobby and for a moment, Schuldich stood still as he scanned the building. Then he moved forward with decisive steps for the stairwell and took it down to the parking garage beneath the building. He could faintly hear the sounds of a fight echoing up to him from one of the levels. He'd let Nagi and Farfarello finish the mission. He wanted to have some fun.

Coming into one of the dark levels he could see the shadowed outlines of bodies in motion and the faint gleam of silver of a weapon. With silent, purposeful steps, he headed for the fight, eyes trained on the person who was winning, body cloaked by his mind. As the last person fell to the ground from the fighter's blow, he was within touching distance, He dropped the telepathic cloak.

"You're good, Weiss," he said. "But not good enough."

Startled, the person before him turned, but far too slowly. Schuldich ws already moving as he turned, his fist snaking out to crack against a jaw. He followed through with a knee to the stomach, a blow that caused the other man to double over in pain. A cut of a weapon through air. A miss. Schuldich grabbed his arms and twisted them behind his back, dragging the young man against him. He smiled down into shocked wide eyes coldly.

"You lose."

And then Schuldich kissed him.