Prologue – Loneliness
Grape-coloured eyes studied the hunched figure for what could have been hours on end. They noted that not once in all that time did the human move, their owner vaguely wondering exactly how long it'd been there, simply sitting and staring off into the distance.
It all made for a beautiful scene; if he were in to art, maybe he would have wanted to paint it. So far hidden from the world in that forest were they that not even the sky was visible, only the slivers of light that shone down through the trees allowing him to see the hooded person atop the huge moss-covered boulder. Though, this place did indeed lack a forest's norm; no birds sung their songs as they flew through the air; no rabbits dashed away from attacking predators; no deer drank at the stream mere metres away, only faintly babbling as if it, too, wanted to preserve the unnatural quiet of it all.
He was musing on these thoughts when a tired voice broke the silence, rough from disuse. "How long are you going to stand there?"
Startled, his heart thumped against his chest, its rhythm only quickening when his eyes met a pair that seemed so old; it was like they'd seen and lived all this world had to offer "You… you're him… right?"
"It depends on who you mean by 'him'. I admit to being male, but for all I know, it could be someone else you're looking for," the figure drawled, voice monotone.
"I'm looking for you; no one else would be all the way out here," the man reasoned, standing his ground, despite how being under this human's timeworn gaze made him feel uncomfortably exposed.
The human shifted, the beginnings of a smile at the corners of its lips. "What do you want with me, then?"
"I…" He licked at his lips, sweating nervously. He only had one chance at this. "I want to make a deal."
The smile dropped. "No."
"You didn't even ask wh-"
"I don't make deals anymore," the hooded person growled, drawing back in on itself and curling into a ball. It didn't want this. Gone were the days where it would make those damned deals that always ended in blood.
"Then call it a bet!" He tried. This had to work. This person here would be their saviour; they just needed him on their side.
This caught the figure's interest, and it motioned for the man to continue.
He'd known that would work. All that research he'd done hadn't been for nothing; all he had to do was press the right buttons.
"My name is Komui Lee," he introduced himself, tacking on a smile to disarm the figure, "and I'm currently the deputy principal at the Black Order of Innocence. It's an academy for inhuman beings."
"'Inhuman beings'?" The human's voice held a notable dubious tone, as if it was really being expected to believe such a thing. "Are you referring to werewolves or something?"
"Well, werewolves are one of the races we let in," he admitted with a nonchalant shrug.
"Are you alright? Like, in the head?"
Komui pushed his glasses back up his nose from where they'd slipped earlier, a brow raised. "Considering the kind of things you've seen, can you really find it so hard to believe me?"
"I don't believe in what I can't see with my own eyes." The hooded figure believed in a lot of things, but this… it was stupid.
'Inhuman Beings'? As if he could believe in that. Though, that man was right about something. After all these years of wandering, some of the things he'd seen… they did support the purple-haired man's claims.
"Then why don't you come by?"
"And do what?" The figure yawned. It was too early in the morning for all this…
"Enrol!" Komui answered cheerily, that grin on his face not diminishing in the slightest.
The human chuckled wryly, staring down at the other with perhaps a little interest. That happiness hadn't at all appeared false, but there was something more. There had to be a catch. "I'm far too old to be enrolling in an academy for children."
At that, Komui's hands went to his hips, as if he'd caught the lie of a child. "But you won't be soon."
The figure started, and then grinned. "My, you are well-informed."
"So? What do you say?"
His question was met with silence. The figure hadn't a clue what to do. On one hand, it didn't want to be caught up in the delusions of a madman, but on the other…
It sighed, the sound lost as the wind rustled through the trees, though barely heard at all.
"Think about it," Komui tried again, having trouble hiding his desperation. "If you agree… well… I guess I'll be seeing you in a decade or so." They couldn't wait too long… this had to end sometime within the century… or else…
"You'll be an old man by then," the human mumbled into its knees.
"How rude! I'm only twenty! And besides, supernatural beings like myself are immortal; I'll be looking like this forever!" Komui said with pride, a hand on his chest.
The figure's hooded head raised as something the man had said clicked in its mind. "Fine." It agreed, albeit reluctantly. "If I see you in my next cycle and you still look like that, then maybe I'll consider believing you."
"Splendid!"
"I do have one question, though." A pause. Then- "What are the rules for this little bet of ours?"
Komui smiled, relieved. "We'll talk about the details next time we meet." He saw the human's lips purse and raised his hands innocently. "Don't be like that! Besides, I know for a fact that you'll like the school!"
"Sure," The human drawled sarcastically, little by little becoming more relaxed while he spoke. Actually, when had it last spoken to another living person? It had to have been decades by now… surely…
"… mother is pregnant, you know." Komui had started talking again at one point, but the other had been too lost in its thoughts to really listen in. "Maybe you can befriend my younger sibling! And then you won't have to be stuck out here all alone anymore."
Dull chrome eyes widened, a sight lost to Komui due to the lack of light.
Those words… how long had it been since it'd last heard them? Only, this time, the context was completely different…
"Oh!" Komui stared up at the figure, leaning forward with eyes wide behind his black-rimmed glasses. "I almost forgot! You haven't told me your name yet!"
"I'm…" The figure went stiff, mouth hanging open as the words died on its tongue.
Name? What was it again? How many centuries… how long had it been? It was a simple name… it should have been a simple name… maybe a couple letters… or more…
This was awkward. The silence between them was growing. The human could actually see the excitement dimming in Komui's eyes as the silence continued.
Dammit!
Why couldn't…
Wait.
Wasn't it…
"A…llen…?"
That name sounded about right…
"I… my name… is 'Allen'."
Yes.
That was it.
It was the name of a monster.
It was the name of a murderer.
…
I'll update this when I can, but my main focus is on 'Days of Destruction' and 'The Taste of Freedom'