(chapter one: unease)

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–

This was the fourth day Maka had been late to class in two weeks. Her attendance record had been, up to that point, spotless, and Stein happened to know that keeping it that way was a particular point of pride for her.

On opposite sides of the conspicuously empty seat she normally occupied, Chrona fidgeted nervously, and Soul tried not to look concerned. His nonchalance would have been more convincing if he hadn't been tapping his fingers on the desk irritably and tensing whenever someone addressed him.

"She's not feeling good, okay?" he growled in response to Black Star's stage-whispered inquiries about Maka's whereabouts. "I've told you that fifty times already. Lay off."

Chrona slunk lower in his seat, giving the impression that he wanted to disappear under the rim of the desk altogether. He'd tried to wait for Maka so they could go together – since walking to class with the others when she wasn't there was almost too awkward for him to handle – but she'd waved him ahead with a weak smile before plunging back into the bathroom and slamming the door. Chrona had the feeling Soul would have waited, too, but decided it would be better for both his and Maka's pride if he just went ahead as if nothing were the matter.

Just as the lecture portion of the class was finishing up, Stein dismissing the students into their individual groups for hands-on application practice, the door whooshed open and Maka stumbled in, resting her hands on her knees and looking as though she'd just sprinted the mile and a half from their apartment to the school.

"S-sorry I'm late, Professor," she wheezed quietly to Stein, ducking her head in apology before making her way to her seat.

"You okay?" Soul asked, moving his books so she could set her bag down.

"Yeah, fine now," she answered with a tight smile. "Hi, Chrona."

The slighter boy winced. "H-hi..."

She gave his wrist a gentle squeeze, smiling with a bit more effort at looking normal, before turning back to her weapon.

"Where were we? Can you catch me up a bit before we go outside?"

The conversation drifted to rehashing what Stein had told them about 'controlled resonance', and Maka did seem better – in her element, it was impossible to tell she'd been violently ill just an hour before. She lead the group outside, harassing Soul when he couldn't remember this or that detail of the lecture.

"He used some kind of analogy – something about oil paints – I don't know, Maka, it was just an analogy!"

"It's important, Soul! Next time write it down!"

Soul bristled, his irritation palpable. "How about next time, you come to class!"

They went back and forth like that the entire way, their argument rising and falling in pitch, until they caught up with Stein and the rest of the class.

"Today we'll be trying something a little different," the professor announced, looking bored. He paused to light a cigarette, exhaling into the sky. "Controlled chain resonance. Since you should all have understood the basics of the theory, we'll get right down to it. No more than three partners to a group, you'll be too unstable that way -"

"Professor, Chrona should be in our group," Maka piped up, grabbing the shy boy's hand.

"This is new material, Maka. You won't be able to sustain a four-sided resonance link and complete the assignment."

Chrona shifted nervously from foot to foot. "N-no, Maka, it's all right, I don't need to -"

"Don't be silly," she huffed, setting her jaw. "You're in our group. We'll manage, professor."

Stein gave her a tolerant look over the tops of his glasses. Stubborn Maka seemed ready to argue further, but Chrona tugged her hand softly, shaking his head. "No, i-it's really – I d-don't want to. I'll just – watch, okay?" he whispered.

She blinked at him, surprised and a little concerned. "Are you sure? I mean, really, it's no problem – we don't mind, right, guys?" The pointed look seemed to have been lost on Black Star, but all the others nodded their agreement.

This time the back-and-forth swish of Chrona's hair was vehement. "I r-really don't want to."

"Well...okay. If you change your mind, just tell me, okay?"

The boy bobbed his head nervously. He retreated to under one of the trees, watching the others form a circle and synch up their wavelengths. He felt guilty about telling her 'no' after she tried to include him, but if they resonated, she and all the others would see inside him, and he didn't want that. They might be able to see the ghost, too, and that was his secret. He hadn't even decided whether to tell Maka yet. He knew he should, but she would be angry. She would insist he tell Lord Death, and then he'd probably be kicked out again and that would be awful.

Although she hadn't done anything bad, and did seem very kind and...motherly, he was still a little afraid of Medusa. He thought maybe he should just forgive her so she could be free from her regrets and move on, but he couldn't do that, either. He was still uncertain how to feel about her. She said she wanted to help him, but she'd done so many awful things to him, and to Maka – it wasn't something he could force himself to just get over.

Chrona pulled his knees close to his chest. He watched Maka's hands tremble slightly as she gripped Soul, a sign that she was having trouble maintaining the resonance link. That was probably his fault. She might be distracted because she was worried about him. I'm always causing trouble, Chrona thought mournfully, even when I try not to. He hadn't given any kind of answer to Medusa's offer yet, but the more he thought about it, the more he felt like it wouldn't be any good for Maka if she loved him. In that case, even if he was unhappy, he should just leave her alone.

Besides, using magic to make someone love you – that was bad, wasn't it? He wasn't sure.

Chrona was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice when, in the circle, Maka's knees buckled. Only when Black Star shouted something did he startle into awareness of his surroundings, and the next moment Maka had collapsed onto the ground. Chrona scrambled to his feet to help, but Soul had already assumed his human form again and was pulling the blonde meister into a sitting position, cradling her against his chest.

"Holy shit, is she okay?" Black Star asked loudly, leaning in even as Tsubaki scolded him to give Maka space to breathe.

"Maka," said Soul, gently patting her cheek. "Hey, Maka -"

Feeling superfluous, Chrona hung around the outside of the tight circle of friends that had formed around Maka. He wanted to help, but what could he do? The professor was already making his way over, anyway, and he was a doctor. Much more useful.

"What happened?" Stein asked sternly, tilting the unconscious meister's face this way and that, checking her pulse and her soul wavelength. It appeared to be purely a physical issue, he concluded, noting that the calm, steady radiance of her soul seemed normal.

"We were resonating and trying to do that thing you explained and suddenly she just – passed out, I don't know. I didn't even see it coming," Soul growled. "It was like something in her...resisted resonating, suddenly. I dunno how to describe it. It's never happened before." He gritted his teeth, inwardly berating himself. He should have felt something before it was too late to act, but there was no warning, just typical bossy Maka giving orders one minute and then the suddenly-falling sensation of their resonance link breaking the next. As her weapon, he should have preempted it, known something was up, supported her – something. But he hadn't even had a clue.

The professor straightened up, frowning. "Can you take her to the infirmary? Have nurse Nygus take a look at her, and I'll be by as soon as class is finished."

Soul nodded and shifted his unconscious partner onto his back – he'd carried her like this plenty of times, sometimes because of an injury but also when she was just asleep, or tired. It felt familiar and easy, and calmed him a little to know that he was doing something to control the situation. Maka was going to be fine, he told himself. Just do what you can to help, and she'll be all right.

"The rest of you, please continue practicing," Stein was instructing the class, most of whom had gathered around to see what the commotion was. "No need to gawk, you've all fallen asleep during my class at one point or another," he added apparently jovially. It seemed to work to dispel the air of tension and worry, as some of the students laughed guiltily, Black Star's loud guffaw among them. Chrona started forward to help Soul, but at the last minute he flinched back, feeling out of place.

She'll be fine, Chrona, the ghost whispered, her invisible hands encircling his shoulders gently. Don't fret like that. That girl is tough, isn't she?

Y-yeah, he thought. I g-guess you're right.

Even unable to see her, he could sense that Medusa was smiling. She really did seem confident that this was nothing, and it was easier to trust in that than to continue worrying, so he did his best not to feel sick as he watched Soul piggyback Maka toward the school.

–

"I've ordered some blood tests," Nygus informed Maka curtly once she had woken up. "Professor Stein came by while you were unconscious, and it is our opinion that you may be anemic, though we won't know anything for certain without lab analysis. For now, try not to overexert yourself, and you'll be fine. I'll give you a call in three or four days."

Maka nodded, eyes fixed on her hands where she had rested them on her knees. She felt foolish, passing out for no reason and making everyone worry. And of course, on top of everything else, she'd missed more class. That was downright unacceptable.

The older woman gave her a keen look. "Is there anything else you wanted to mention? Other symptoms you forgot before?"

"Well..." She bit her lip, hesitating.

"You can wait outside," Nygus instructed Soul sharply, waving toward the door with her clipboard.

"Like hell -" Soul began, shifting instinctively closer to Maka, but a hand on his sleeve stopped him.

With a firm expression, Maka gave him a little push. "It's fine. I'll only be a minute – besides, you're not my dad."

Soul grumbled a little in protest, but he complied, slouching out of the office and leaving the two women alone. Nygus repeated her question, pen ready to take down whatever Maka told her.

"It's nothing, really -" the teenager began, fiddling with her fingernails. "I just didn't want to worry him, you know? I've been sick a little the past couple of weeks, and if he knew it was bothering me, then it would bother him even more."

"Hm." Nygus seemed thoughtful. "What kind of sickness?"

"Stomach trouble, mostly. I told you, it isn't a big deal – I think I might just be eating badly because I'm stressed about exams."

"I see." There was a long pause, in which the nurse scribbled something on her clipboard, and then she nodded politely to Maka. "Go join your partner, then. He's probably worrying."

"Thank you."

Outside, Soul was indeed worrying, pacing the hallway outside the door. He was wearing a ferocious scowl.

"Hey," Maka called to him, giving her best smile. "Don't make that face! Miss Nygus said I'm just fine."

"Yeah? Then what'd you have to kick me out for?"

"Oh, just girl talk. Don't worry, okay, Soul?" She grabbed his hand gently. Unexpectedly, it was Soul who pulled her closer by their joined hands, resting his forehead against hers.

When he sighed she could feel the reverberation of his chest through her body. She looked up at him expectantly and gave his hand a squeeze.

"Don't tell me not to worry and then go passing out like that, okay?" he mumbled. "It's really uncool. Idiot."

Maka laughed, tilting her face up until their lips met and pressing them together for a long moment. "Sorry," she said against his mouth. "But I'm really okay." When his hand rested on her waist, warm and solid, she did feel okay. More than okay – safe, and happy. This time, he kissed her.

At the end of the hall, Chrona, who had come to see how Maka was doing, drew back out of sight.

–

"Eat it, Maka!"

"I said I'm full!"

"Yeah, well, the nurse said you need to eat more!"

"That's not what she said -"

The heated scuffle going on across the table had pushed Chrona up against the far wall of the breakfast nook in his efforts to avoid being pulled into it. Soul was shoveling more food onto Maka's plate, and Maka kept trying to put it back into the pan, and they were shouting at each other at ear-shattering volume – fists flying seemed inevitable at any moment – but somehow there was an air of closeness underneath it all. Chrona didn't understand that, but he did understand that he was on the outside of that closeness; a part of him wanted in, but most of him didn't want to become involved. He didn't want Maka to yell at him, even if it was as part of some sort of unspoken agreement of friendship.

He scraped his eggs around his plate slowly, watching from under lidded eyes as Soul succeeded in stuffing a sausage into Maka's mouth, only for her to bite it viciously in half and cough out an infuriated "what the hell, you asshole! I almost choked!"

Abruptly, Chrona stood and shuffled away toward the kitchen. He couldn't take it, watching how even their fights came easily and looked like another form of closeness.

What is it, my dear Chrona? cooed Medusa's voice in his ear. He could feel the trace of her fingers light over his shoulders, squeezing reassuringly. She would never yell at you like that, you know. Isn't that an encouraging sign, that they're fighting?

"No," Chrona murmured to the empty kitchen, "she d-does like him. I think...I think it's wrong to mess with that. We should j-just leave them alone. She's happy this way."

But you are not, the witch's ghost pointed out solicitously. Her hand cupped his cheek gently, an invisible touch lighter than air. It hurts me to see you so sad like this. You did say you'd let me help you, and I think I know best how to do that, don't you?

He bit his lip; the dishes rattled in his hands as they began to tremble. "M-maybe, but -"

"Chrona?"

The boy nearly jumped out of his skin at the very real, physical voice behind him, even though Maka had returned to the normal, softer tone she used with him. With still-shaking hands, he straightened the dishes guiltily to delay having to turn and face her.

"Is everything okay?" she asked gently. "I thought I heard you talking to someone."

"N-no one," Chrona whispered, turning around with effort. Maka looked more concerned than suspicious, her eyebrows knitted together and lips quirked up thoughtfully. He felt another hot surge of guilt in the pit of his stomach. "S-sorry, Maka."

Her smile took him off-guard. "No worries! But you know, Chrona, if anything is bothering you, you can always talk to me. You've got friends here, and we're looking out for you. I know Soul isn't always easy to get to know, but...he wants to be your friend, too."

Pink hair bobbed up and down once, Chrona trying to work out where she was going with this. Should he just tell her everything? Keeping his worries to himself had turned out so disastrously last time... But he couldn't possibly explain that his mother's ghost was speaking to him without sounding completely crazy. It would be ridiculous to expect her to be there for him when it came to that kind of bizarre thing, let alone the other problem that was on his mind. He absolutely couldn't tell her how he felt about her, and about her-and-Soul.

Chrona's lips tightened and he nodded again. "Th-thank you. But I'm all right."

"I'm glad!" Maka beamed, and pulled him into an unexpected hug. He thought of how she had embraced Soul in the hallway outside the infirmary – what was so different about this? To someone standing in the doorway, it would look the same as when Soul had tugged her close. Their chests were pressed together, he realized with a flush, in the same way. But they were not about to kiss. That much was certain.

Still, just the hug felt good, and he let himself enjoy it for a few brief moments before she pulled away, jerking her thumb toward the door. "Come on, we'd better get ready to go!"

"Y-yeah."

She grabbed his hand to pull him along, and Chrona squeezed her fingers, just a little. He thought maybe he felt her squeeze back.

They were on time to class, which Maka seemed overjoyed about, striding toward her usual seat with great enthusiasm as if to say 'look, I'm back to my old self! No more interrupting the lecture from this top student!' Stein, however, stopped her, calling her over to his desk but motioning Soul and Chrona to go on.

"Maka," he began, leafing through the lesson plan on his desk seemingly absentmindedly, "your test results have come back. Nygus would like to meet with you during the lunch period, so I'll walk you to her office after class."

For all his carefully nonchalant tone, Maka felt suspicion prick at her spine. "I can get there myself, Professor," she pointed out carefully.

Stein regarded her out of the corner of his eyes and was silent for a moment. "I wanted to speak to you as well." A gaggle of latecoming students spilled past them through the door, chattering loudly, and the professor appeared to rethink whatever he had been about to follow that comment up with. Instead he merely added, "Nurse Nygus values my medical opinion."

Something didn't sit right with Maka, especially the evasiveness and vague wording of his response, but just as she was about to press him further, the bell rang, signaling students to take their seats or suffer the consequences of a late mark – which she already had too many of for the grading period. Puzzled and a little anxious, she made her way up to where her friends sat, watching the exchange curiously.

"What was that all about?" asked Soul, peering up at her through his bangs.

"I'm not sure."

Tsubaki echoed his concern. "Is everything all right, Maka?"

The blonde meister cast a glance back at Stein's desk, where their professor had turned to the blackboard and begun to scratch something out in neat, precise handwriting. It was instructions for the day's activity, straightforward, standard academic work. Something Maka understood. It should have been comforting, anchoring her in the everyday that surrounded this mysterious business about her test results. But instead she felt strange, reading something so familiar and mundane while uncertainty tied hard knots in her stomach.

Belatedly, she realized she hadn't answered Tsubaki's question.

"I hope so."