'98 Aug - Side A: Kidd makes him walk him to the door.

It was after midnight, and it didn't matter how quiet they tried to be, they'd barely got the front door open when the main lights came on, Kidd's mother standing there gawking at the two of them in her nightgown.

Killer slouched in on himself, not sure if he should be hiding behind Kidd or standing between him and his own mother. "Oh, my boys.." she whispered, deciding for them, closing the distance to pull them both into a hug, "What happened? Are you okay? Whats going on?"

"We're okay now mom," Kidd whispered to her, and god does Killer hope he was right. She pulled back, her hand over Killer's shoulder never moving as she wiped at the blood smeared under Kidd's nose. "Okay. okay," she said, studying her son for a moment longer. "Go wash your face up, lets see what we can do."

Killer didn't want Kidd to leave him right now, head still spinning from the night's events, and he's ready to grab Kidd and bolt for his truck again. Kidd's mom seemed to understand it on some level, because she turned to Killer fully now, making soft noises to him, "Oh baby, Sweetheart. Let's get you cleaned up."

She guided him to her little kitchen table, Kidd disappearing into the bathroom. Killer heard the sink run - the ancient pipes whining in the walls. Kidd's mom sat him at the table's end, and pulled the other chair up close so she could sit too, and her hands were on his face again.

It hurts, but her face is so kind, so different than the look his father gave him only moments ago. She studied his face, and Killer couldn't hold her gaze any longer, looking down ashamed. She took it in stride, hands sliding though his hair to feel at the back of his head. He flinched, and she whispered an apology, before sitting back, one hand on his shoulder, the other gently nudging his chin up until he can't help put look at her. "Killer, baby, I need you do something for me, okay?"

"Yes ma'am" he whispered.

She smiled at that, she always did, but it seemed sadder than usual tonight. "I need to make sure you don't have a concussion, okay. You've got a pretty bad goose-egg and I need to know if you need a doctor."

"I'm okay." he tried to reassure her.

"Look up at the light, please?"

Killer looked up at the kitchen light. It's bright and it hurts. "Look at me?"

That's harder, but Killer does as she asked of him. He heard Kidd turn the water off behind him. His mom studied him, eyes boring into his. When its too much and he started to squirm in place, she instructs him to look at the light again. "And back to me, one more time."

Kidd was at his side then, but stayed quiet; he's got a bloodied towel tucked under his stub and was carrying out the family's first aid kit. His mom took it from him and opened it on the table. Killer slumped down once he'd been released, rapidly loosing the strength to remain upright. Kidd sat in the last chair across from his mom, towel held against his nose where it was still slightly bleeding.

She can't help but notice how thin Killer seems when sitting next to her son, both boys barefoot and in nothing but their underwear. There are few reasons for them to come to her like this, but she's not doing to make them explain it tonight. She can make her own educated guesses.

The bruising is bad, but once she's washed the blood from Killer's face, she can start to relax. His lip is split, and he's going to have a terrible black eye for a while. But the worse of the blood is from the blow to his forehead, and it's nothing so terrible it can't be covered with a bandage for the night.

She wrapped him up in her own bathrobe then; she wanted to hug him tight and tell him everything will be okay now, but he's always seemed panicky when she's hugged him in the past, so the best she can do for now his wrap him up and keep him warm. He sat quietly as she looked over her son's nose. "Can you breathe okay?"

"Yeah, I mean, it hurts, but breathing's not a problem."

"Do you think we need to get it checked out tonight?"

Kidd shook his head, the night clearing catching up with him as well, "No mom... just.. tired. Wanna go to bed."

She patted his cheek, looked between them both, "Either of you dizzy? Light headed."

Both indicated no, so she agreed to let it go for the night.

"Okay, let's get you boys to bed. Killer, sweetie, you want me to make the couch up for you? Or I can get an air mattress if you wanna sleep in Kidd's room with him but it's gonna take a while to fill up"

"No - it's okay, I should go home-" Killer started, moving to shrug off the bathrobe.

"Killer and me'll share my bed," Kidd cut them both off, there was a cold tenseness to his voice she'd never heard from him. Like he was testing her. And expecting her to fail.

Killer looked terrified. He's as white as death, eyes wide as he clutched his arms across his chest, wilting in the chair before her.

She'd never seen him scared. Never like this. She knew he and his father butted heads - Killer being in and out of his own home stretching back for over half a decade now. The county's worse kept secret. They all knew that Hitokiri Bujin regularly kicked his son out, the boy skulking around the back roads in that truck of his until he was eventually allowed to come back home.

She'd of been delusional to think they got on well behind closed doors. But he'd always had a brave front around her. Always looked ready to take whatever the world threw at him and keep going. He'd never let his fear show.

She'd never known him to be afraid of her.

She pulled the robe back up over Killer's shoulders. "You boys let me know if you need anything else"

Kidd left them, assumingly to turn down the bed and hide anything he didn't want Killer to make fun of him for, like some of his models, she guessed.

Killer still looked worried, "You know, you really saved us back after the accident," she told him quietly, taking his hands in hers and holding them loosely in their laps.

'"No ma'am, I just..."

"All those bills that never got delivered - I was so busy worrying about Kidd, and I didn't even notice for months. I was terrified they where going to turn the power off, that we'd run out of propane..." She ran her thumb across his knuckle. His hands were battered, but not from trying to hit back. Purely defensive. "Imagine my surprise when I checked - and everything was paid in full. And I certainly couldn't afford it at the time, but there they all were... paid.."

Kidd stepped in, hovering in the archway to the hall at he bottom of the stairwell. He has a strange little look on his face, but remained quiet. It's so unlike him, she thinks.

"All ready?" she asks him, Killer looking up confused for a moment, before Kidd answers back, "Yeah."

She stand up, pulling Killer to his feet, before guiding him to her son, "You boys get some rest, okay?"

"Yea mom" "Yes ma'am"

She smiled, "I love you boys."

"Good night mom!" Kidd called, embarrassed, followed by Killer's quiet, "Goodnight."

Once the bedroom door closed, she retrieved one of the rifles from the den, and settled in to watch the driveway.

She didn't know what state Killer's dad was in when they left, but if he dared step foot on her property tonight to try anything, Mr. Bujin was in for a bi~g surprise.

She'd already lost two of the loves of her live. She'd already had to suffer burying two husbands. She certainly wasn't about to sit back and let anyone hurt her boys now.