~Incinerate~
Chapter 2 – The Afternoon Streets
"The daily things that keep us all busy are confusing me". Utada Hikaru, "Simple and Clean".
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts II. None of its characters belong to me. I make no profit off this work of fiction. The song lyrics I use belong to The Walt Disney Company and its creators. This story is only to amuse me in my spare time and to hopefully be enjoyed by the ones who choose to read it.
"Astrid! Honey, I know it's a bit early, but-" Her mom opened the door. "Oh! You're awake!"
"It's a miracle, I know." Astrid smirked in an attempt at humor. It was nine in the morning, and she'd been up since eight. She was sitting at her desk, crumpled pieces of paper littering the surface. She had the final result of her work in front of her. "I slept pretty well and woke up at a decent time, for once," she said as explanation. Her mom smiled, crossing the room to stand at her side. She stroked Astrid's hair, smoothing away her bangs to look at her forehead.
"The cut doesn't look as bad today," she commented.
"Doesn't hurt at all." Astrid hesitated for a moment before making a decision. "Mom, have you ever seen anything like this?" Astrid held up her sketch. It was the creature from the day before, as best she could remember. She couldn't quite capture the thing's fluidity on paper, but she didn't draw it to get an exact replica. She just wanted to know that the thing was real. She couldn't shake the feeling that she'd somehow seen it before. Her mom took the page, examining it silently.
"Is this like those shadow things you used to draw?"
"No," Astrid replied, shaking her head. It was funny that her mom mentioned them so nonchalantly. The first time Astrid had ever shown her the shadow drawings, she'd lost her mind. The lesson Astrid had taken from her mom's hysterics was that parents didn't like seeing dark, twisted things coming from their kids. Marie had had a similar experience with some of the poems and stories she'd written. "Mom, this thing was what cut me-"
"It's an interesting drawing, honey. Anyway, I came in here because I got you a job!"
"A job?" Astrid parroted back, feeling hurt. Her mom had never shut her down like that. "Did you hear what I said?"
"Did you hear what I said?" Her mom asked, irritated. "Tom came by this morning, trying to put posters on the windows. When I asked what in the world he was doing, he admitted that he was a bit overwhelmed. You know how he's been in charge of the Struggle tournament every year? He's desperate for some help, so I volunteered you for the day. He's promised to pay five hundred munny if you put up posters for him." Her mom beamed at her, her smile falling when she saw the look on Astrid's face. "I thought you'd be thrilled. You've been complaining all summer about not having any munny. Here's your chance! I doubt he'll pay that much again."
"I guess," Astrid agreed reluctantly. It sounded like hot, boring work. "I'll call Marie, see if she wants to do some drudgery with me."
"Marie's at work."
"You called her? Come on, Mom!"
"I thought you wouldn't get up unless you had some motivation. Besides, you're a big girl, you don't need Marie with you everywhere you go. And anyway, you need to start getting your butt out of bed at a decent time. School's coming up soon. Now, Tom will meet you at the Sandlot in an hour, so go get in the shower, get dressed, and head out there." Her mom leaned over and kissed the top of her head. "It'll be good for you, honey." With that she left the room, leaving Astrid in a bit of a stupor. She shook her head slowly, wondering if the whole world was going crazy.
Pulling a pair of capris and a blue, short-sleeved shirt out of her closet, she went to the bathroom. Just do it for the munny, she told herself, but a nagging thought followed her. Why was Mom avoiding talking about that thing? Was she freaked out and trying not to show it? I know she didn't like the shadows I drew. They'd never talked about it after that, and Astrid learned to keep her drawings to herself. She had more drawings of shadow creatures in a book underneath her mattress. But that creature from the day before hadn't just been a drawing. It had cut her. Astrid glanced in the mirror as she began to undress. The cut was barely there anymore, which came as a surprise considering how much it had bled. Now it was just a faint mark, nearly invisible.
Astrid gasped as she looked in the mirror again, spotting something she'd never seen before.
She had a scar running down her chest. Alarmed, she pulled off her bra and looked closer, feeling the scar with her fingertips. It ran from the top of her left collarbone to just underneath her right breast. The scar was pale, barely showing up against her skin, but she could feel the raised mark clearly. Where the hell did I get this? She thought, straining to think. Had she hurt herself in a Struggle match? She and Seifer occasionally fought just for fun, and they had left their marks on each other. This looks like a cut, though.
Three hard knocks on the door made her jump violently. "Honey! You have to get a move on! Tom won't wait all day!" Her mom called. Clapping a hand over her heart, Astrid stared at the door. Once her heart stopped racing, she leaned over to the tub faucet and turned it, yanking the valve up to turn on the shower. Waiting for the water to heat up, she traced the scar again. This is scary, she thought uneasily. What could leave a mark like that? She tried to think of what could have happened as she showered, but no matter what she thought she couldn't place it.
Drying herself off and hastily brushing her hair, a thought struck her. Could that creature have cut me again when I passed out? But the scar didn't hurt, and it looked too healed to have been anything recent. She dressed, put on makeup and deodorant, and stepped out of the bathroom.
"Mom? You don't remember me coming home with any gaping wounds, do you?" She asked as she entered the kitchen. Her mom was putting a box of cereal on the table, where the milk, a spoon, and a cut up apple was already waiting.
"What?" Her mom sounded distracted.
"I just saw this weird scar on my chest, and for the life of me I can't remember where-"
"Sorry, Astrid, I have to run. Work called me in. There's stuff for sandwiches in the fridge, and I should be home for dinner. I'll bring home pizza. Love you, and have fun with the job, okay?" Her mom pecked her on the cheek and was out the door before Astrid could protest.
"That's the second time you've blown me off today!" She called after her, frustration gnawing at her. Why does no one want to talk to me? She sat down heavily, grumbling all the way through her breakfast. She put the dishes in the sink without washing them, ran upstairs to quickly brush her teeth, and stormed out of the house. She wanted to stomp all the way to the Sandlot, but she discovered that stomping in sandals was highly impractical. She found Tom standing in front of the community announcements board, looking anxious. He was a portly man with two thin wisps of a mustache on the corners of his mouth. The brown mop on his head was styled upward, as if he had taken a large comb, dunked it into a tub of gel, and slicked his hair up. Despite the sweltering heat of the summer he wore heavy brown pants, a long-sleeved green shirt, and a bright yellow vest that clashed wonderfully with the rest of his outfit. She could smell the sweat coming off him as she approached.
"Astrid! Good to see you, my dear, good to see you!" Tom reached over, grabbing her hand and pumping it wildly. Astrid covertly wiped her hand on her pants as he turned away, making a face at how wet his palm had been. "The tournament is just two days away, and I have over four hundred posters to put up! I've just been running behind, I can't imagine how I let things slide like this!" The same way you let things slide every year? Astrid thought. Not a summer had gone by without Tom losing his mind over something or other concerning the Struggle tournament. The man absolutely loved Struggle, but the best he was good for was coordinating matches; everything else he let fall to the wayside until someone pitied him enough to help. Lucky me, I got shanghaied into helping you this time, she thought as he continued to babble.
"Now," he said loudly as he turned back to her. Astrid forced a smile. "I want the majority of the posters to be on the sign boards around town, but don't be afraid to ask the stores if they'd be willing to have a poster up in their windows or on the walls. Put them where you think they'll be noticed! I have the posters, the paste, and pins in the wagon. I'll come and check on you in a few hours. Thank you again, my dear!" Tom grinned happily at her before trundling off towards his office. "I'll be working on the registry for the tournament!" He paused. "You don't want to sign up right now, do you?"
"No, thanks. I'm not going to enter the tournament this year," she called back. Tom visibly deflated, but nodded. The longer a Struggle tournament was, the happier Tom would be. Astrid knew that she was too tired to be a good Struggle combatant this year. Hell, Vivi could probably take me down. She looked down at the rickety wooden wagon Tom had provided her with and sighed. There were four large stacks of posters, each teetering over the edge of the wagon's rails. Better get started. She pinned three posters up on the sign board where Tom had been standing. The blue of the posters brightened the drab corkboard. They had a Struggle bat held triumphantly by a gloved hand. The word 'STRUGGLE' was emblazoned at the top against a white header, and 'FIGHT' underscored the hand holding the bat. They were pretty basic compared to last year's, but Tom had just said he'd been running behind. Only three hundred and ninety-seven to go.
The work was just as hot and boring as she'd thought. She quickly fell into a routine, rolling the paste onto walls and putting up the posters, while putting up the posters with pins on the actual sign boards. The paste stuck to her fingers, and every fifty posters or so she had to run inside a store to wash her hands. Her shirt struck to her skin, and no matter how often she pulled the material away and fanned herself, it managed to cling to her just as tightly. Seifer and his gang saw her about two hours into her work and razzed her about the stupidity of the job. She took it without insult, telling herself that she'd been five hundred munny richer when the damn job was over.
"You want to meet me and Marie later?" She asked, smiling to herself as Seifer went quiet. Rai quickly agreed, Fuu nodded tersely, and Vivi nodded happily, always glad to be included. Seifer muttered a quick "Sure" before making up the excuse that they had to continue their rounds. He's got it so bad, she thought amusedly. She finished the Tram Common area and moved onto Market Street, heading her way up the hill to the train station when someone called out to her. Looking up, she spotted Roxas heading her way. He had a bag slung over his shoulder, which looked crammed full.
"Hey," she greeted.
"Hey. I never had a chance to give you these yesterday." He dug into the bag at his side and produced two photos. "They were in the pile of photos left behind by the thief."
"You can say photo now?!" Astrid was shocked and delighted that she, too, could say the word. "Finally! Did you ever find out who the thief was? And how he managed to steal the word too?"
"No," Roxas said, sounding disappointed. Astrid took the pictures from him. One was definitely Marie's. It was the one pinned to her bedroom mirror, of her and Astrid at the top of the Ferris wheel at the fair. They were eating ice cream and grinning at the camera. The other one was of her by herself, making a drawing. Her legs were tucked up, with the sketchbook balanced on her knees. She couldn't remember ever having seen the picture. It looked pretty recent, although she looked a lot livelier than she did now. Must be one of Mom's.
"Thanks. I'll bring it to Marie once I'm done here." Astrid gestured to her wagon with a self-depreciating grin. "The things you do for munny, right?" Roxas grinned.
"I know what you mean. Hayner, Pence, Olette, and I wanted to go to the beach today, but we're broke. I've been delivering letters to people all morning." Roxas patted the bag.
"Oh, that sounds fun." She hadn't gone to the beach this summer, having slept most of it away. Maybe Marie and I can go before it gets too cold, she mused to herself. "Well, good luck. I have to finish this before I get heat stroke." She grabbed the wagon handle and made to move on, but the look on Roxas's face made her pause. "What's up?"
"Astrid, about yesterday…" Roxas actually looked around to make sure no one was listening, and leaned closer. "You said you saw a silver thing go into the woods, right?"
Astrid suddenly felt cold despite the heat of the day. "Yeah. It was just before I passed out."
"No one else seems to remember it. I brought it up today and nobody knew what I was talking about." Roxas's eyes fixed on her. Those big blue eyes held so much emotion: fear, uncertainty, fragile hope.
"The same thing's been happening to me!" Astrid couldn't get the words out fast enough. Finally, someone's talking about it! "Everyone keeps dodging me whenever I mention it." Roxas's relief was palpable.
"I thought I was going crazy," he admitted. "I thought maybe I'd imagined it." He then looked troubled. "So it did happen, then." He shook his head ruefully, but Astrid knew exactly what he meant. "Listen, what happened before you passed out? Did it hurt you?"
"Yeah! I was with Marie, and we were just leaving the café when it ran by. Look," she urged, drawing her bangs away from her forehead. "It's faint now, but that thing cut me before it went to the woods." Roxas squinted, frowning slightly. "I'm not making this up, Roxas, I swear it cut me!" Astrid lowered her voice; she'd nearly shouted at him. She felt jittery, like she could cry or scream. All she felt was that something had to happen, something had to move out of her.
"I know, I was there," he said hastily, reassuring her. "It's weird that it healed so fast, though. You were bleeding a lot when I caught up with you." He looked again, a troubled look coming over his face. "So it didn't hurt you after?"
"No. I went into the woods right after you did. When I saw it, I suddenly felt so afraid. I couldn't breathe…I couldn't do anything. I guess I fainted, and when I came to you were there." Astrid took a deep breath, trying to steady that jittery feeling crawling beneath her skin. "What did it do to you?"
"Hello there, Roxas!" Not again! Astrid watched as Tom trundled up to them, grinning despite the sweat pouring down his face.
"Hello, sir," Roxas replied, looking pained.
"I saw your name on the Struggle registry; good for you, son! I can't wait for another exciting tournament this year!" Tom's belly wobbled as he bounced on the balls of his face. Astrid suppressed a shudder. "And good work, Astrid! You've put up almost all the posters! And in such a short amount of time!"
"I sure have!" Astrid said with sarcastic cheer. "Roxas and I were just talking, he's going to keep me company while I put up the rest of the posters." Roxas smirked.
"I'm not paying you to talk." Astrid was so caught off guard by Tom's tone that she simply stared, unable to reply. Roxas looked equally stunned. Tom was glaring – actually glaring – his presence suddenly looming and unfriendly. "I think it'd be best if you did the job I hired you to do, Astrid. And I'm sure you have better things to do than distract her, Roxas."
"I…I'm sorry, Tom," Astrid managed to stammer.
"He's right. I have to deliver these letters anyway," Roxas said awkwardly, trying to lighten the mood. "I'll catch up with you later, okay?" He said to her, running off before she could reply. She watched him race down Market Street, unsure of what she'd done wrong and how to make Tom see that.
"Why don't you take a little break, Astrid? You've been working so hard, you deserve it!"
She unabashedly stared at him. Tom was suddenly all smiles and good cheer, practically radiating contentment. "Sir?" She offered, confused.
"I insist," he said firmly. "Why don't you get some ice cream? It's such a hot day, and it'll make the rest of the job go by a little easier." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a wallet, fiddling through it before handing her a ten-munny note. "A little bonus for doing such a great job! Once you're finished, come find me at my office. I'll pay you the rest there." He patted her on the shoulder and walked away, leaving her thoughts in complete disorder.
"What the hell just happened?" She asked out loud, ignoring the look a passerby gave her. She looked at the munny Tom had given her, the bill hot and somewhat sticky, before walking to the ice cream store, pulling the wagon half-heartedly behind her. She gave some sort of greeting to the owner of the store, purchased a bar of sea-salt ice cream, and took it to one of the picnic tables outside. She dropped the wagon's handle and sat down, puzzling through Tom's bipolar attitude. I've never seen him angry. Not even when he's been stressed over the tournament, she thought, taking a bite of the ice cream. The salty sweetness of the treat made her mouth water. So why did he get so pissed over us talking? And the minute Roxas left he went back to normal. Is it because of what happened yesterday? Do people still think he's a thief? But he returned all the photos!
Astrid finished her ice cream, checking the stick to see if she was a winner. She wasn't. Well, that just sums up my life, doesn't it? Sighing to herself, she tossed the stick away and continuing on with putting up posters. She tried to work through what had been happening over the last two days, but had no luck figuring it out. She put up the last poster just as the clock tower boomed out what time it was. Only one gong sounded, and Astrid was starting to get tired and hungry.
Tom hadn't reverted back to his angry self. He was actually astounded that she'd completed the job so quickly. He was overly thankful as he handed over the munny, asking if she'd be available over the next couple days. "If you're interested, there's still lots to be done before the tournament!"
"I'll think about it," Astrid said with a smile, but rolled her eyes as she went out the door. She made a quick stop at the bank to deposit her payload before heading home. She collapsed on the couch with a groan of satisfaction, revelling in the air conditioning. She stayed that way for about ten minutes before boredom set in. She made herself a sandwich before turning on her computer and her game console. As she waited for the computer to start, she chose a Star Wars game out of the stack beside the TV. The plot was set thousands of years before the actual movies, and it was just as good as the original trilogy. As the game began its intro scene, Astrid finished her sandwich and turned back to her computer, logging onto the Twilight Town Messenger Service. She found Marie's name and typed out a question.
/To: Marie Skywalker080
From: Astrid DarkSideRising
Astrid says: hey. You around tonight? Bored./
Astrid remembered a beat later that Marie was at work. She groaned, hoping that Marie wasn't working the late shift. She turned back towards her game. She was about halfway through it, but previous a play-through had warned her of the upcoming level. She was currently on Tatooine, working on buffing her character. She'd levelled up three times and was ready to face the Krayt Dragon in its lair when she heard a familiar chime coming from her computer. Pausing the game, she whirled around and checked her messages.
/To: Astrid DarkSideRising
From: Marie Skywalker080
Marie says: Hey! Sorry, was at work. Just finished. You want to do a movie after dinner? Too tired to walk lol./
Astrid tapped out her reply.
/To: Marie Skywalker080
From: Astrid DarkSideRising
Astrid says: yeah, sounds fun your house or mine? And can Seifer & co. come?/
It took a while for Marie to reply. By that point Astrid had killed the dragon and was facing Darth Bandon and his Dark Jedi when her response came.
/To: Astrid DarkSideRising
From: Marie Skywalker080
Marie says: you already invited them, didn't you?/
Astrid smirked. Marie knew her so well.
/To: Marie Skywalker080
From: Astrid DarkSideRising
Astrid says: …I love you! And if Seifer won't shut up, I'll kick his ass./
It didn't take Marie as long to respond this time. Astrid killed two of the Dark Jedi and had tossed a frag grenade at Bandon before looking to see what she had said.
/To: Astrid DarkSideRising
From: Marie Skywalker080
Marie says: *sigh* the things I do for you. Fine. But if Seifer starts being an asshole I'm gone. And can we do the movie at your house? Renée has friends over./
Marie had a huge family, boasting herself, five sisters, and her parents. Hangouts at her house tended to be punctuated by loud noises, interference from her parents, and the sense of not having enough room to breathe.
/To: Marie Skywalker080
From: Astrid DarkSideRising
Astrid says: no problem! You can come at 6:30. And I'll tell Seifer to behave lol.
/To: Astrid DarkSideRising
From: Marie Skywalker080
Marie says: See you then, friend!
Astrid smiled, sending out the same invitation to Seifer. She didn't need to send one to Fuu, Rai, or Vivi. It was an unspoken rule that wherever Seifer went, his gang would follow. By the time she finished Tatooine and was ready to take on Saul Kareth and the Leviathan, Seifer had confirmed that he was coming as well. Content, Astrid settled into her game.
She lost track of time, only coming up for air when she heard her computer chime once again. She glanced back at it, surprised to see a message. She paused the game, interrupting a heated battle between her character and Darth Malak. She hoped it wasn't Marie cancelling on her. Her family was always insisting on spending time together, which often made Marie's attempts at having a social life die a bitter death. Peering at the screen, she read the message.
/To: Astrid DarkSideRising
From: DiZ
DiZ says: Keep your head down. They'll find you if you're not careful./
Astrid stared at the screen before glimpsing at the name of the messenger. Who's they? And what the hell does DiZ mean? She leaned over the keyboard. "Who is this?" She asked aloud as she typed. It took a few seconds for the unknown user to respond.
/To: Astrid DarkSideRising
From: DiZ
DiZ says: DiZ/
Astrid snorted. Not helpful. She almost finished her response, but another message appeared before she could send it.
/To: Astrid DarkSideRising
From: DiZ
DiZ says: Search your feelings. You know that something's not right. But the more you question it, the closer they'll come./
Did this guy just quote Star Wars at me? Astrid thought, struggling between laughing at the absurdity of it all and being completely freaked out. She swallowed, her mouth going dry as another message popped up.
/To: Astrid DarkSideRising
From: DiZ
DiZ says: I promise, we'll tell you the truth soon. But for now you need to keep quiet./
Astrid jumped about a foot in the air when the front door suddenly opened. "Astrid? You home, honey?" Her mom called, sounding tired. Astrid just about sprinted to the door. Her mom was balancing a box of pizza, her briefcase, and a bag of groceries, staggering towards the island. "Hey, honey…you okay?"
"Mom, come look at this!" She started back towards the living room, her heart thundering in her chest. "Come on!"
"Okay, okay, give me a second!" Adalyn set down her load and followed her, worry etched on her face. Astrid jabbed a finger at the screen, turning to look for herself.
The message was gone.
"What the fuck?!"
"Astrid!" Her mom scolded. "What is going on with you? What did you want to show me?" Adalyn looked at the screen, a small line appearing between her brows. "You invited your friends over without asking me…again?" Her mom didn't look impressed. Astrid opened her mouth to protest, to explain the mysterious message, but DiZ's words suddenly loomed large in her mind.
The more you question it, the closer they'll come.
Does he mean that creature? Astrid shivered. Are there more like it?
"Never mind. I guess it timed out." Astrid and her mom looked at each other for a long moment before her mom sighed. For once Astrid was glad she didn't push for more details. Once upon a time she would've demanded an explanation, but these days she seemed content to let things be.
"What time are your friends coming over?"
"6:30."
"Well, let's eat. We'll have a bit of time to tidy up after." Adalyn went to the island and sat down, opening the pizza box. Astrid followed, taking her own slice. She was quiet during dinner, allowing her mom to dominate the conversation. Astrid didn't have much to contribute anyway. Once they cleared the table they tidied up the living room, finishing just in time for the doorbell to ring.
"Hey, friend," Marie said as Astrid opened the door. Marie was always the first to arrive, and she always brought something to contribute. Tonight she'd brought three bags of chips, which Astrid quickly separated into bowls. They chatted until Seifer and the others arrived, and Astrid gestured them into the living room.
"What do we want to watch?" She asked.
"Looks like you had Star Wars on the brain," Marie replied teasingly, pointing to the TV screen where the frozen image of her character fighting Darth Malak still stood. "I haven't seen The Empire Strikes Back in a while."
"Oh yeah! That one's the best, y'know?" Rai exclaimed enthusiastically.
"I like that one too," Vivi said shyly, shuffling his feet. Vivi, of all her friends, fit in the least. He was timid, extremely soft-spoken, and one of the biggest sweethearts Astrid had ever known. He hung out with Seifer, Rai, and Fuu to try and toughen up, but Vivi never seemed to get stronger. If anything, his appearance in the group made him look even weaker. The enormous hat he always wore wobbled precariously on his head as he spoke. He'd once confided to her that it made him feel taller.
"Looks like it's decided," Seifer said grandly, with Fuu nodding her agreement.
As Astrid put the disk into her console, her friends settled in around her. She noticed that Seifer waited until Marie chose her seat before joining her on the couch. Marie's face went very still, and as she and Astrid made eye contact she raised an eyebrow. Astrid hid a smirk. Astrid had told her that it was obvious whenever she was annoyed about something, so Marie went to great lengths to control her face. She sat back with her arms folded, tucking her legs in close to her body so Seifer couldn't move closer without it looking suspicious. Astrid kept a sigh to herself. It would be so cute if they got together.
Astrid sat down in her mom's chair, relaxing as the opening theme blasted through the speakers. The credits began to roll, relating how the rebellion was struggling against the renewed assault from the Empire and Darth Vader's obsession with finding Luke Skywalker. Astrid had seen the movie over a hundred times and never got tired of it.
The movie went on, and Astrid was enjoying herself immensely. All of her friends watched Star Wars as obsessively as she did, so they were able to talk about it without ruining anything. "It can't be a coincidence that none of the Storm Troopers actually hit Luke," Marie commented at one point.
"But they're Storm Troopers," Rai argued. "And they're wearin' those helmets, y'know?"
"It doesn't matter that they're wearing helmets," Marie countered. "We've seen them actually hit their targets in other scenes."
"Vader could have ordered them to not hit him so he could meet Luke himself," Seifer offered. Astrid smiled as they discussed whether George Lucas had intentionally made the Storm Troopers miss in pivotal scenes. Something moved out of the corner of her eye, and as she turned to look out the window her heart lurched.
A hooded figure was looking at her.
Her stomach flipped, her heart suddenly in her mouth. She was overwhelmed by the same fear that had made her faint just yesterday. As she watched the figure lifted a hand, twiddling its fingers in greeting. A moment later it beckoned her to follow.
"Astrid!" She tore her eyes away, realizing that everyone was staring at her. "You're white as a ghost! Are you okay?" Marie demanded, standing up to go to her.
"That guy…in the black hood," she stammered. She pointed to the window, but the figure was gone. She jumped to her feet and crossed the room in two strides, shoving Vivi aside to get onto the couch and look outside.
There were two of them now, standing face to face. The skinnier of the two had his arms up, but the surrender seemed mocking. "Look! Don't you see them?!" Marie and Seifer came to her side, but in the time it took to blink they suddenly vanished as if they'd never been. Astrid stared, feeling her throat close up as that jittery sensation from earlier crawled through her skin.
"Astrid, there's no one there," Marie said slowly, worry plain on her face.
"Are you high?" Seifer demanded.
"No," Astrid exclaimed. "I swear, there were two guys just standing there!"
"Well, they're gone now," Marie said reasonably, taking her hand and pulling her away from the window. "Maybe it was Setzer being weird. You know how he likes to screw with people's heads." Astrid shook her head, but allowed Marie to bring her back to her seat. The movie played on, and she only just paid attention to the plot. Even Darth Vader's "I am your father" didn't bring goosebumps to her arms as it usually did. Astrid just couldn't shake the feeling that something was very wrong. The nervous energy that had followed her the last two days crawled up and down her spine, making her tap her foot until Seifer irritably told her to stop. She knew she wasn't being a good host in the end, but couldn't bring herself to relax. By the end of the movie, her friends looked eager to go.
"You want to go for a walk tomorrow morning? I don't have to work until later," Marie said as they headed towards the door.
"Sure," Astrid said distractedly.
"Cool. I'll come by around ten. Make sure you're up by then," Marie said, somewhat teasing but mostly serious. She was smiling right up until Seifer volunteered to walk her home. "It's right down the road."
"It's dark out. Let me be a gentleman," Seifer said mockingly.
"You, a gentleman? When elephants fly, maybe." They bickered their way out the door, with Rai grinning apologetically and Fuu rolling her eyes.
"See you later, Astrid!" Vivi waved cheerily to her.
As she waved goodbye to her friends, she realized that she'd never finished talking to Roxas.
The man in the black cloak stood back, quickly deleting the message. He backed out of the settings concerning her and restored the screen back to its original state. He hoped DiZ wouldn't find out. It was dangerous to contact her like this, but if she kept going the way she was, she'd find out what was going on and inadvertently give the Nobodies another way in. They would tell her the truth eventually, but they needed to deal with Roxas first.
"Soon," he promised, reaching out to touch the screen. A pixelated image of a teenaged girl took up the left corner of the screen, and the image dominating the right side was of a sleeping boy with spiky hair. "Won't be long now, Sora."