The stars glimmer in and out of brightness out on the clean sky. The crescent moon casting its gentle, harmonious light onto the car ridden Springdale. All shops were closed, the raccoons fighting each other for the scraps of food. This was a pleasant night for all.
Yokai all a-like too were slumbering, unlike the shady and eerie ghosts lurking in the dark. They were ready to pounce on their next unsuspecting prey of late night workers or joggers.
Venoct is out on patrol near Lucas' house, guard not to be put down for anything. Unlike his stoic attitude, the true heir to the yokai throne was sound asleep, dreaming of having a picnic with his nephew out at the beach watching the giant whales pounce from below the aqueous world.
The snake tank's sensitive ears picked up his soft snoring. Nothing in his senses told him going personal time was ever essential. Enma's conversation from what he deems some millennia ago always got him into a fluster of thoughts.
Taking things down a notch was a weakness he couldn't afford to do. Not during the heat of battles that is. He couldn't remember the last time he showed SOME form of affection to the true heir. Besides befriending Nate, having a meaningful talk with Enma, the snake child didn't think he had it in him.
He hovers down to Lucas' balcony, phasing through the glass into the warmth of his friends' room. Venoct doesn't remember having his own room when he was alive, nor sharing one for that matter. It called out to him to visit and stay awhile. Lucas was the remaining person to call out to him and tell him being serious all the time just isn't worth it.
His dragon scarves spoke to each other in little hisses and purrs seeing the sleeping child in the bed. The owner placed his hand to Lucas' hair, moving it aside gently like grass on the ground. Lucas' face shouted innocence and purity. Venoct kept his eyes on those cheeks of the king, blushing. Does having feelings like this really make you weak? In Venoct's case, weak in the knees.
The dragon heads gawked at the sleeping king. In his dream state, Lucas took hold of Venoct's hand. Shocked snake boy didn't pull away, afraid he'll throw him to a wall with his tremendous strength.
"Mhm." Lucas mumbled, bringing his protector down slowly. He didn't want to push a knee to the king's body but somehow Venoct became accustomed. Lucas wrapped his arms around the scarves covering his neck, blushing like he ate something out of this world spicy.
His instincts told him to leave, but the lessons Nate and Enma taught him prevented that. For once in his life (er afterlife) he didn't fight this. All the rage, the shredding fight within him from Rubeus J and Hardy Hound just dissipated. Slumber was calling to him, but with a friend to sleep with.
Venoct phases through the top layer of blanket, accompanying his friend in bed. The inviting warmth was something he couldn't fight and now he knew he never would.
Lucas smelled fresh of watermelon shampoo, indicating he took a bath before going to bed. A tiny smile spread across both of their faces, Venoct enveloping his friend in an embrace. Maybe this was what Enma was talking about?
Not far from Lucas' house, Nate's home was also dead asleep into the night. His parents and yokai for that matter.
Nate finds himself in rut. This is the 4th night he can't sleep, and his eyes hurt. Not the hurt like he was staring at the sun, the kind of hurt his eyelids were burning his eyes, screaming to let himself sleep. He couldn't figure out the problem. He thought it was his pillow, he fluffed it up but no luck.
Nate tried finding things under his mattress, there was little to be there. Nothing but the bottom hard part of the bed and lint. Was he doing anything strenuous at school? Was it something he ate?
The rampant snoring coming from Jibanyan and the sleep talk from Whisper wasn't helping him relax, not one bit. Whisper floating around as he slept was still as creepy as ever. He envied their states of bliss, off in dreamland doing who knows what.
He was tempted to stomp on his friends' whispy tail and make it seem like an accident. Sleep-walking as the excuse, but what kind of a friend would that make Nate? The 2 in the room were worried why he wasn't sleeping, they only needed their rest. They hoped he'd fall asleep eventually, not turning it into anything big.
It didn't occur to him Insomni was probably plaguing the room, maybe his house. That'd be bad, but if she was there the whole family would be under her spell of insomnia. He scratches his eyes for the 10th time, lifting himself up, and clicks the switch on the yokai watch.
Eerie flash of blue scattered over his bed to find nothing. He waves it to his desk, there's nothing. Up around his bookcase, nada to be found. Next to his bed, ditto. The crook of the open door to the hallway, not even a shadow.
He was going to cry. This isn't ever to happen to kids, even him! He can't figure it out, his mind was in a frenzy. Nate takes a deep breath, massaging the sides of his temple and think of a rational solution to this… illness.
For about 5 minutes he pondered staying up late until morning, drinking some coffee, eating incredibly sweet snacks until he passed out from sugar crashes. "I'm not doing any of that." He succumbs to defeat, launching himself backwards. The covers fly as a result, part of it landing lightly on his arm.
Nate rolls himself in the cold blanket, squirming to his mangled pillow from positions to sleep on.
It was during the weekdays on school nights for Pete's sake! During classes he was dozing off, half of the time he'd stare ever so blankly into the void of the green chalkboard in Johnsons room. He let his face fall into hot soup on Tuesday and he didn't feel the scorching pain until five seconds later.
If it wasn't for Whisper's academic skill, Nate passed his assignments with… well C's. More than usual now due to the insomnia and Whisper was winging it the entire time. Jibanyan kept Nate awake, putting his soft giant head as a rest.
All he knows, is he doesn't want to go to school tomorrow. All his friends were catching on to his weirdness just like they always did when a yokai possessed them or just him. Katie was beginning to swim further and further away from talking to him. Eddie and Bear didn't want to catch what he had, though Eddie explained it wasn't contagious.
Nate was sure nothing was going to help him sleep and get over this. His tired eyes looked over to the closet, behind it being his parents room. In their bed, warm and cozy together.
'Maybe that's what I'm missing… and WHO I'm missing."
He feels his heart ache, begrudged that he didn't have anyone to sleep with him. He could go and have a sleepover with Eddie or Bear, but it's a school night. Also, he'd get all surprised and scream the whole neighborhood awake. He couldn't exactly drag anyone from their beds either, too creepy.
Jibanyan sleeps at the foot of his bed, but he was a very big drooler. Cat slobber in the morning didn't smell so good and after all the chocobars he eats, it only makes the stench worse.
Whisper was out of the picture. He felt cold all the time. Of course, all yokai take human energy for warmth but for Whisper, him being cold was something he couldn't get rid of. Nate would never mention it either. He noticed one time, when they were squeezed in the car. That's how much of a good friend Nate is.
Now, he just lies there with his face pressed to the wall on the blue pillow, waiting for the sandman to whisk him away to dreamland like everyone else.
Nate shook his head into his pillow, praying that would just happen.
Unbeknownst to him, the blue teardrop of his Yokai Watch was blinking in and out of bright to soft. The other 3 began following in the pattern. Blue started followed by purple, green and pink as if they were in a line.
The watch itself was shapeshifting. It began softly only to have the figure gain more speed. It was going in and out of the Yokai Watch Model Zero, creating a sapphire aura and envelops Nate's entire body.
He felt his surroundings change around him, as if an unknown Yokai came into the room blasting ice cold air around him. It wasn't like he was in the arctic, no, a relatively soft breeze. Maybe he left the window open to let in some of the air to remove the stuffiness of his room. He brings his head up to inhale oxygen.
The thing he sees in front of him was not his wall in his room. Just a familiar statue he only sees whenever he goes to visit his grandparents' house. Nate doesn't become shocked or anything. His eyes were already making him hallucinate things, might as well try to fight through this as well.
That doesn't stop him from being disoriented, as he puts a foot out to get out of bed he was already on the floor. He feels the nice wooden textures under his toes glad they were cool.
A breeze with the familiar scent of the outdoors fly in, whirling around Nate, as he gets up to walk around the home. Nate doesn't scream anyone's name, unsure if grandpa Nathaniel and his grandma Lucy are living in it.
Or could it be other owners before Nathaniel and Lucy ever moved into it?
"What… what happened?" He asked to himself, shuffling out to the living room. No furniture. Almost everything in the pantries were empty. To the corner was a very old model of the television. So many buttons, he was afraid one would make it explode. He brushed past that.
Nate walked to the hallway and there was no sign anyone was cooking, or modernization to the kitchen area. Floor still rock, he was hesitant to step foot on it. If only his slippers were there to protect his feet from the onslaught. He didn't hesitate, placing one foot after the other, shivering. He pitter pattered to the bathroom, noticing only the old makeshift toilet. This was strange.
Puzzled, he calls out for his friends. "Jibanyan! Whisper! Where did you go?" He calls into the home. The little echoes made it seem so lonely inside the home, with nothing to cushion the drawbacks.
His curiosity turned to worry, afraid hallucinations starting to become all too real. He hears a shriek, jumping behind the entrance to the living room. Nate's teeth chatter, unwilling to look over beyond where he was. Maybe the place was haunted before anyone renovated?
The boy balls his hands to fists, finding the courage in himself to take a step out and see who was there. Fast and soft footsteps are heard, some of the floorboard creaking, he gulps, scared it could be an intruder. Or, if ANYONE is living here, he could be the intruder. Gosh darn it if Count Cavity was behind this stupid charade again, Nate will feed him to the Gargaros if they ever meet.
"H-Here goes nothing." He says to himself. He lifts his left arm, turns ninety degrees to the right. The fingers come up ready to pinch the sides of the Yokai watch. Nate taps his foot in the rhythm of three, two and one.
He hop's in the doorway, with another look-alike facing him in the same position. Only, he is wearing onesies of Moximous Mask. Model Zero is on his wrist and he too looked unbearably… distressed.
"Begone evil scum!" The boy screams, taking out his wooden hammer. Nate finally recognizing the voice and TV show icon, screams, dodging the swipe made at him. He quickly dashes by his side, crawling hastily to the living room once more.
"You will not escape my justice!" He shouts like a banshee.
"N-Nathaniel! It's only me, Nate! Your grandson!" He pleads on his knees, hoping Nathaniel wouldn't hit his future grandson. By the looks of Nathaniel's distraught face, he didn't pay any attention to the begging. Dream, hallucination or not he was on the verge of screaming. Nathaniel throws his arms up for a fatal blow!
"Liar! My grandson wouldn't come back here without telling me first!" Nate sees the black circles around his eyes. Was this just a figment of his imagination? Was this real life and his dream turned into a nightmare?
"I-I'm real! See!" He pulls his arm up with the Yokai Watch on. He clicks it open, letting the ghostly light immerse Nathaniel.
The tanner boy silently gasped, making sense of the same creation on… on… "N…Nate?" He says, guilt beginning to shroud his figure. He drops the weapon behind him, hands coming to his face.
"Wh-What's going on?" He says, trying to make sense of the situation. Nate got back on his feet, putting his hands to Nathaniel's shoulders. "I-I've been h-having no sleep for the past 4 d-days. I-I think it's starting to get to me" He shudders under Nate's touch.
The idea clicked into his head. "Wait. Y-You too?" That question made Nathaniel consider Nate's brown eyes with his own blue ones. It was more of surprise than melancholy, as he was afraid Nate was an illusion making fun of him.
"W-What do you mean you too?" Nathaniel remarks the dark circles around Nate's eyes. He wiggles his toes in his onesie, trying to think why they both had insomnia and now suddenly appearing before each other. Nathaniel feels a little relaxed, seeing someone else is going through the same dilemma. But how to fix it was their predicament.
They both sit face to face. "Y-Yeah. I don't know what it could be. I thought it was school or something I've been eating, but I've come up with nothing!" He grabs both his feet together in both hands.
Nathaniel squishes his eyelids, sick of having to live with the case of insomnia. He takes a deep breath, "Did you try the Yokai method?" He says waving his watch. Nate nodded, disbelief in his face.
"Then I'm lost for words. Something's bugging the both of us and we need help! Do you know of a Yokai who can help us get to sleep?" Nathaniel asks, begging even. This just wasn't something any child should go through, but at least neither of the two were alone.
"Baku makes people fall asleep and eat their dreams. Not that helpful in our case." They both sweat drop. The crickets chirping from outside catches Nate's attention. His young grandpa shakes his head, covering his ears from constantly hearing the insects singing and legs scratching their wings.
He furrows his eyebrows in irritation, "You know, in times like these I thought I could sleep like a baby! The crickets and fresh air always helped me! But now, everything's gone down the toilet." Nate heard the insects singing. It annoyed him too. The window open didn't help him one bit. Mosquitoes and other unwelcome guests kept coming in.
They sighed, defeated in what could be ailing them. "Hold the phone, why are we both even here in the first place?" Nathaniel ponders, putting a finger to his chin. Nate is about to give him an answer, when the home started shaking.
The scared both boys, "I-I hope this isn't real!" Nate cowers, trying to keep himself nice and tight on the floor. The innards of the foundation began to fizzle, disappearing. "If this is Dame Dedtyme, I'm going to-!" Space around them turned a bright blue.
They covered their eyes, Nathaniel coming close to his grandson to protect him of anything inevitable.
No tremors happened, no Dame Dedtyme, no sneak attack from crud lurking into whatever soup of fog they were in. "Are…are we ok?" Nate asks, opening his eyes, followed by Nathaniel. The only thing surrounding them now was nothing but clouds.
Abundance of the whispy object. Nathaniel looked down, seeing as they were both standing on one. From what Hovernyan told him, clouds were just water and anything landing on them ended up passing through. Nate was panicked at first, until he was comforted with a touch to the shoulder by the latter. Thank goodness none of this was a result of a Yokai… or a BAD Yokai for that matter.
"This… this is incredible." Nate unbelievably claims. He put out one hand to touch one, feeling the soft touch, then having it disappear like cotton candy. "Do you think there's anyone up here?" Nathaniel asks, still weary of danger.
Both look back and forth for a possible outage of the twilight zone, only to see nothing. Nathaniel's ears come to pick up a delicate voice, singing out in the horizon. He waves for Nate to follow him. It was a mere short trip, when an outlet came along. They rushed towards it, and they meet the elegance of the full moon in their sites.
The boys gasped at the gigantic rock, mesmerized by its glamor and resplendence. "My gosh! This is so… so…" "Radical…" Nate finished for him. The same humming tickles their ears, as the singing gets a little louder. To their shock, the moon goes back a little, revealing the babies of the skies. Stars among stars, milky way just in a hair breadths view.
Nathaniel, still amazed by the scene in front of him, watches the glory. Nate looks to his right and he sees a boy in blue clothing, hair of the blackest raven, holding a star pillow to his chest. It was then the singing became more obvious. His voice melted away any uneasiness, slowly bouncing left and right to his tune.
"What'll I do, when you are far away and I'm blue, what'll I do?" He starts again. Nathaniel picks up on the child Nate is looking at. They stayed silent, trying to stay quiet and ninja-like to observe him.
"What'll I do, when I am wondering who is kissing you, what'll I do?" He tilts his face to the left. Automatically, that same face is unlocked into Nates memory. Just like the other three he once met when they were in Enma's Palace. 'He must be Charles.' He deduces.
His voice was singing a tune so… enthralled in missing someone. The tiniest of tears let flow from Charles' left eye, considering the craters of the moon.
"What'll I do, with JUST a photograph? To tell my troubles to." Like the wave of a wand, pictures of Nate star flying by, illuminated by the moonlight. The others catch on the pictures of Nate, the model himself blushing but intrigued at the same time. Some were embarrassing, others just him smiling.
"I think someone has a crush on you~!" Nathaniel sang, covering his mouth and wiggling his eyebrows at his grandson. Flustered, Nate waves his hands up in frustration. They never even remotely met, let alone the kid have pictures flying by of him!
"When I'm alone, with only dreams of you, that won't come true… What'll I do." Unbeknownst to the boy, pictures of Nathaniel start to float by. Just like Nate's 'photo's', they were merely of him either in an embarrassing situation, doing the Moximous Mask pose or plain smiling.
Both blushed slightly whenever a picture appeared. Nate was sure he'd die of shame to have his grandpa look at something like this. However, whenever a picture of Nathaniel popped up, his heart felt… at ease. Still blushing, but far more relaxed. Were they both struggling to sleep for a reason, and not just the coincidence both had insomnia?
"When I'm alone, with only dreams of you, that won't come true… What'll I do." His voice phases out, but with the background still glamorous as ever. Nate made the first step, shocking Nathaniel from his state of shock of all the photos. He was scared this kid had the power to bend space, but followed bravely next to Nate.
It didn't take long to reach him, as he was only a few meters within range. The boy stands there, also mesmerized by the moon. He didn't even feel them come close next to him.
"That was some singing, Charles." Nate says with kindness and sincerity. He zips into the air, far above the cloudy terrain. Maybe the boy went past the stratosphere, because he was falling back with Mach speed. The faint screaming of his high pitch voice made it seem like a girl. The poor boy comes crashing down into the cloud with a THUD.
Face down at that, Nate helped him up without hesitation. Nathaniel followed his gesture, lifting Charles whose mouth is full of the puff substance. He gulps it down, coughing some of it back out. It might have been water, but it tasted bad.
"Y-You h-h-heard m-me sing… an-and you-you're here… Ho-Ho-How?!" He stammered, trying to act as calm as possible. Nathaniel is baffled Nate even knows who this being is.
"So, you know each other?" Nathaniel asks, feeling left out. Nate waves it off, "It's a long story." He exclaims. Charles clears his voice.
"I am Charles, the fourth member created by Lord Enma himself. I reside in the Yokai watch of your… your…" He retraces the photos, giant magnifying glass in hand. He found a memory of Nates parents showing him Nathaniel as an old man. That panged something inside the boy.
"Grandson! We were created in hopes to relieve Enma's stress of being a king! It has caused him much discomfort and melancholy. My sisters and brother try our best to keep him company during his bad times." He puts the object down, revealing his brown eye gigantic and flicks it to come back to normal size.
Nate and Nathaniel sat down, ready for story time from the boy. They put their heads on a comforting cloud pillow, listening to him as he flies with wings in the moonlight. "His grandfather passed away some time ago, and they made him King. The true heir to the kingdom now is a boy named Lucas. However, he is of a Yokai-human hybrid and none of the Yokai took that well.
"He resides in Nate's present time, happily living his life-well without the memory of being a Yokai to begin with." Charles looks to the stars, trying to catch a glimpse of any shooting stars.
"Lucas was in grave danger, for enemies are still seeking the poor boy to wreak havoc among the human world. Enma, without a choice took the throne to keep the balance of Yokai and humans in peace." He flutters back down, spinning.
He lands next to the boys, looking at him in wonder and sympathy. "Your grandfather right there created the original watch, as you well know. With Enma finding it almost impossible to watch the Yokai AND human worlds, he created us to aide him with his stress. We live within the watch as our makeshift home. He wants us to experience the life of humans as well, sometimes himself if he ever gets the chance." He swiftly sits down in front of them.
"Lucas is also a friend we'd like to make later and protect him from harm. But we have a feeling his protection is already in his hands." He stretches in place and rolls around in the clouds. This kid sure was finicky.
"And as you can tell, you're in my home. Um, section of it that is." He scratches his nose, trying to remember where he made the small home in the first place. Nate yawned loudly but not out of boredom. Nathaniel did as well, causing the attention to shift from Enma to them. Charles looks at them with worry.
He sees the bags of their eyes, dark circles too. He smiles to himself, when he begins again. "Are you both alright? Sleep not in your nights?" Nathaniel would have thrown a rock at the being if he had one for being captain obvious.
"Those pictures you saw weren't of my memories." He says with clarification. This made the two perk their heads up. Charles gets into position of sitting on his legs to explain further. "I'm no psychologist, but I think you two are suffering from separation anxiety… from each other." Charles claims, hands in a triangle shape.
"Wh-What do you mean?" Nathaniel looks puzzled. Come to think of it, the last time he saw Nate before he left, he cried. Nathaniel didn't know why, but he did his best to comfort him. But he looks back upon the photos.
The one with him as an old man with Lucy. But he wasn't in any of the memories when Nate visited in his time.
"N…Nate. Is this what you were- "Nate looks off to the side, ashamed he didn't mention Nathaniel's future. 'So, I wasn't able to live long enough to see him be born.' He thought to himself, bringing a hand to his chest.
"I… I was afraid it would cause the future to get all wonky like it did when Dedtime did it." The tears come along in streams. Nathaniel let his flow out, finally understanding why Nate didn't tell him the truth about him in the future.
Charles sat there, with no words. He let the two work out their issue by themselves. But maybe he could fix the atmosphere once everything is finished.
Nathaniel kind of wanted to yell at Nate for not telling him something like this, but his grandson was right. If you bring anything back from the present to the past, even one lone fact, it would cause a domino effect for all years to come. Now he was blushing twice as much.
He takes hold of Nates hand, the latter gasping from crying. He rubs the knuckles tenderly. Maybe it was a domino effect in on itself, Nate throws himself over Nathaniels figure, breaking down about not revealing the truth. Come to think of it, he was feeling glum himself after Nate left.
Nathaniel wanted to see the boy be born, to hold his tiny hand with one finger, to laugh at him whenever he saw him. He takes ahold of Nates body, patting his back and rubbing circles. Maybe he'd never see him be born, but it was now or never to give him the sentiment he always needed. The dark feeling, he felt of not seeing him anymore disappeared, feeling his grandson crying into his arms.
"I-I'm sorry." He continued to gasp. "It's ok. I don't blame you for keeping it a secret." He whispers, tenderly into the boys' ear. Nathaniel gives his own whimpering, but he smiles into Nates shoulders.
"You'll always have a special place in my heart even if I never see you growing up. You're my grandson and I've never been prouder of you." Nate lifts his face from Nathaniel's shoulder, snot running down his nose. He smiled genuinely to his grandpa, hugging him even tighter.
Nate gave small kisses to his grandpa's face, to his forehead, cheek, nose. The mouth would be far too awkward. Besides, it's just nasty. The tanner boy wiped away those tears, giving Nate his rendition of kisses. This kind of love is what Nate needed, after he never met his grandpa at the elderly age. Nothing was going to stop him from loving him, and so long as no OTHER eyes see them, he couldn't help but be so free with his feelings.
Just out of pure possible embarrassment, or just one final touch of affection, Nathaniel did something he saw on TV. The one with the cheeky bunny in the cartoons, always trying to avoid his enemies with wit and comedy.
He cups Nates face into his hands, and gives him a long yet loving smooch to him. Charles' eyes pop out of the sockets, dangling from the head as he collapses back, beginning to cackle. Man did these two really miss each other. His jealousy towards Nathaniel was put aside, laughter in his voice.
They stopped after 5 seconds, with a pop and Nate's infuriating fluster. They too laugh like hyenas at the antic that just happened. "Not a Yokai? Not a Yokai." They agree, shaking hands. Nathaniel nuzzled his face into Nates hair, Nate into Nathaniel's chest. They lie there, getting comforted by the clouds, a hush snow-like blanket covering them.
The blue boy's chuckling died down, the moonlight transitioning from white to a light orange. He looks back to see the sun rising, another splendid scene in their eyes. Nathaniel and Nate's eyes get feathered with the soft light, blinking turning into eyelids closing slowly.
"Promise you'll love me after- "The elder boy lifted the blanket to cover them both up to their necks. "I love you. Never forget that, sideki- I mean… Nate." Their insomnias must have been cured.
"I love you too, Grandpa." Nate whispers once more, both now drifting into sleep. Charles looks out into the horizon, all the clouds painted in red, orange and on others purple. Maybe he prefers seeing his home like this.
He looks back at the sleeping boys, clinging to each other not wanting to let go. Charles can't wait to share the story with his siblings!
*Sometime Later*
"Do you think we should wake him for school, honey?" Nate's mom asks, voice hushed watching from the hallway with the light turned on. Nate was right there asleep in his bed, contempt and smiling.
Whisper and Jibanyan continued their own slumber. Nate's chest rose and fell in a cool, soft rhythm with the blanket over him.
"Nah. I think he deserves it." Aaron and his wife go inside and give their son a kiss to the forehead, one after the other. They walked back out to get ready for the day. They shut down the hallway light to let their son continue sleeping like a baby.
In Nate's hand, he holds a Moximous K medal clutched tightly in his hands, as if Nathaniel's hand was in its place.