"If you die, I wanna die too!"

Those words struck a cord within Nigredo, but his emotions are strongly felt towards the twins' embrace rather than the sadness of the statement. He's still recoiling in horror as the two cry, though he settles that horror in a matter of moments and instead takes a few uneasy steps backward. Albedo's regeneration is too terrifying to put into words, though he finds himself vastly intrigued. Some sort of gross infatuation with the inability to die is definitely cause for concern.

Stepping back further from the emotional scene, Nigredo finds himself caught up in thought. If the Variants were subject to special abilities, he wonders what theirs are. Surely, Albedo's regeneration is something to admire, but Nigredo's feeling the same as his brother on this; without the other two in his eternity, there really is no particular need for such a terrible gift. "Come on," he finally says, bringing himself to look at the two. "We have to get back inside." His voice is as stoic as his green eyes, as though he's unfazed by what's been displayed before him. Truth be told, he's terrified, and he uses that to mop up any feelings towards Albedo he doesn't want to remember. Now, it is only fear. Fear and disgust plague him for the rest of the day, and he hardly registers the white-haired Varient as he escapes the two and runs off to do... something, on his own.

Rubedo looks to Nigredo, quickly wiping away the tears pooling in his bright blue eyes. "Do you think... do you think we should follow him? He's so upset, and I-"

"No, Rubedo. We gotta go back, he'll follow later. Let him be." Nigredo lends a hand to his brother, who takes it after a moment, bringing himself up to his feet and suppresses a sniffle, instead opting to use his shirt sleeve. He casts his gaze to Nigredo for a moment, who still holds his hand, then back towards where Albedo went, troubled. After a few moments of this, this staring out into nothingness, hoping for Albedo's return, the green-eyed sibling finally sighs and begins walking toward where their brother had run off to, shaking his head as Rubedo stumbles along beside him. Eventually, he is no longer in the lead, as Rubedo begins to speed up and pull Nigredo with him.

He doesn't see the point in doing so, but he supposes seeing their brother, even in the midst of horrifying turmoil, will grant the link master some sort of respite. Nigredo follows until he is deemed too slow by his red haired brother and is let go of, able to follow at his own pace now. He refuses really to leave the other two, but not for the reason Rubedo and Albedo stick together. He is supposed to keep tabs on the link master, unwillingly pouring the data back to their father. He supposes he should watch Albedo as well, seeing as how the boy proved unstable, though especially so after today. It takes a short while, but Rubedo returns to the still-walking Nigredo, Albedo in tow. None of them speak, though the redhead seems entirely different than before. Nigredo matches his pace to his white-haired sibling, who refuses to look anywhere but at Rubedo's legs as they walk. Silence is what governs the trio until they reach their respective compartments, all three slowly splitting up.

Nigredo settles on his cot, staring blankly at the unkempt sheets. It was not often he would leave his room less than immaculate, but something about today had him in a tizzy. No-one had brought up 621's disappearance, as though URTVs disappearing were the norm in the Institute. This, however, differed from the usual disposal of the boys. Their father had not done it, but rather, he did. Terrified of the standard with his own "consciousness", Nigredo had made the mistake of pushing him away too hard, causing 621 to stumble away. The next morning, there had been mumblings of a boy who'd tossed himself from the rooftop of the facility, crushed by his inability to sate his obsession and the rejection of his Variant.

The thought still sends shivers down his spine.

Feeling at fault for the accident, Nigredo had actually had it in him to cry for a fleeting moment when the tragic news had hit him. After that, he refused to use the standards for his own selfish greed. He had decided that if he were to experience overwhelming feelings, he would simply crush them until they disappeared.

This is what he had hoped to do, anyway. Despite this, his mind still drifts to Albedo, though he keeps his straying thoughts contained to himself, lest he project too far and begin transmitting them to anyone passing by. With Albedo on his mind, Nigredo finds it impossible to sleep, so he begins to make his "bed" and tidies up his small, sparsely decorated room. There wasn't much; a cot, a simple sidetable with two drawers for clothes, and a small window above his field of vision, portraying nothing but the things he's already seen before. They were never granted peace, and could never leave until their job was done. Or, so he was told, at least.

Sighing wistfully, Nigredo settles on the edge of his cot, face in his hands. His mind forces him to rewatch the horrifying image of Albedo blowing his own head off, which causes him to wince and shake his own. "Regenerate... god, Albedo." He shakes his head yet again and runs his (badly animated) fingers through his hair, flopping back on the cot until his head and arms are hanging over the other side, staring at rhe door to his room upside down. Curious teal eyes paint the image into his head, because being upside down is quite an oddity in itself and he really has never done this before. He's startled so bad when the door opens that, in his rush to sit up straight, he becomes incredibly dizzy.

"Nigredo."

The chilling voice is hauntingly familiar, and even with his head in his hands, he knows exactly who it is standing in his doorway.

"Father?" Confusion slips into his voice, albeit without his willing.

"I've noticed Rubedo is... troubled, today. Do you know why that is?" His voice is layered with synthetic emotion, as though he had conditioned himself to reformat each word as though he could not be sincere. Eyes cold as ice bore into Nigredo, expectantly awaiting a response.

"I-It was just something someone said to him, before we went into Sakura's subconscious," Nigredo replies a little unsteadily, reminded once more of the horrors of Albedo's power. Disgust is a close second, but he dismisses it quickly, thinking it absurd to call the white-haired boy disgusting. It wss just his gift, nothing more; there was certainly nothing wrong with it, since he was certain he was made for some different purpose. "I'm sure he's also partially unraveled by today's activites. Rubedo has witnessed a lot." He looks at his father now, confident in his words. "He should be all right soon. Give him time."

Dmitri crosses his arms for a moment, but reveals nothing outwardly about his thought process. He knows that Nigredo is hiding something for sure; the boy would never be able to lie about anything to his father, as was the law of his programming. So he was telling the truth, but seemed to not believe it himself. Interesting. "I see. Keep an eye on him. I trust there was no reaction of the red dragon?"

"No, sir."

"I see." The scientist nods once, lingers a moment, and then slowly turns around, seemingly deep in thought. "Rest well, Nigredo."

Odd. Still, some part of the boy revelled in his father's commentary. He looks to his pillow in distaste before settling down, laying on his side instead of his back. Teal eyes bore into the wall adjacent to him, as he makes a futile and, rather pitiful, attempt at falling asleep. Every time he closes his eyes, he sees one of two things:

One, Albedo, his hand to his throat with a swirl of dark energy, blowing his head clean off his shoulders. His blood, spattered, painted along the walls with chunks of debris. Splattered across the ground as his body moves unsteadily, as if wanting to collapse but steadied by some unseen force. His head, slowly beginning to reform, violet eyes excited. It had seemed the boy had been eager to prove his brothers wrong about something. The look of fear when he received the grim news of his brothers' mortality.

Oh, God. His eyes.

Or, Rubedo holding back tears poorly, his other half clinging to him as though for dear life. Both of them caught up in that moment. Drifting away from him, leaving him to cope with this newfound horror, leaving him alone throughout everything. Replays of intimate moments, tender and infected with true brotherly love, being reversed before his very eyes. The two of them only cared for themselves.

The second would often fill him to the brim with bitterness and would force him to open his eyes so as to not be trapped in the replaying scene. He dismisses the feeling as a subconscious reaction, which is true enough; a false memory, modified by his human imagination to make him feel worse about the current situation. His eyes welled up, and he quickly shook away the tears, grunting as he replaced his cheek on the pillow and finding it mildly wet. He sits up, then slides off of his cot, exiting his compartment in silence and slipping through the halls to find his brother's room.

But which?

Deep down, Nigredo wanted nothing more than to travel into Albedo's room and confide in him, and perhaps fall asleep beside him, should he ever grow tired in the white-haired sibling's presence. This had been the reason he faltered before the bedroom door marked for Albedo. He lingers for a moment, staring at the door's sensor for quite some time before slowly continuing his quiet trek to Rubedo's room.

The door opens with the soft sound of the mechanism at work, and he finds himself cautiously approaching Rubedo's cot. He hadn't really known what else to expect; the redhead is upright, leaning forward with his hands on his knees and his head hanging between his arms. At the sound of the door, he turns only in the slightest to look at the new addition to his room, only to breathe a sigh of relief at spotting Nigredo standing a few feet away from his cot.

"I thought you might be awake. You seemed agitated." Nigredo clearly makes his concern heard, though he masks the fact that it is quite an untruth. He was not at all here to help Rubedo; he sought help from his elder brother. Still, seeing Rubedo in such a state brought a pang of sadness to his heart. Despite his deeper feelings, the link master was still his brother.

"Seems like you had a hard time sleepin', too." Rubedo laughs bitterly. "At first, I thought you were Albedo. I don't know what I would say to him right now." His voice holds a slight pang of guilt. "He's so afraid of us leaving him. I just don't know what to say to him anymore." He shakes his head.

This isn't fair, Nigredo thinks, looking down.

"I'm just so scared, Nigredo. Something's happened to him and I don't know what it is. I don't wanna leave him, but it's just..."

He always does this. Hopelessness is the emotion that drives Nigredo now.

"Hey, Nigredo..."

He looks up, teal eyes catching blue. "Yes?"

"Can... will you stay here tonight? I don't think I can sleep by myself." There's a moment's hesitation before he laughs uneasily. "I know, we're not little kids anymore, but I-"

"It's okay, Rubedo. I understand." All the negatives washed away, melted down by the simpleness of the request. Despite being upset by Rubedo's selfishness, this happened to be the main reason he came. It isn't long before he's nestled into Rubedo's cot with the redhead curled up beside him, the elder sibling's breath soft and wisping over his chin. It isn't until he slowly begins to drift into unconsciousness that the jealousy begins to seep into his mind, causing the boy to make a bit of a face. Envy pulled at his heart, infected his mind. Would he ever get to be so selfish?

Nigredo, in his final attempts to soothe himself, decides that, as their leader, Rubedo is burdened with enough. Nigredo, just as Albedo, must learn to cope whilst alongside his brother. He had no right to be selfish. If Rubedo hurt, it was his job to make him feel better.

That night, Albedo had snuck out; unable to sleep, he had made his usual way to Rubedo's room, wishing to hear the other's heartbeat against his own. What a surprise it was, then, to see Nigredo slipping into bed beside their shared brother, seemingly troubled by the day's occurrences. Tinged with confusion, sadness, and the slightest shred of cold anger, he began making his way outside, through the courtyard and into the wooded area. He begins digging holes, two of them, tears in his eyes. They drip into the upturned soil, making him curse with a shaken voice. "No, no, Albedo. You mustn't cry..." The boy sniffles, digging faster.

"When they leave, I won't cry. I won't, they'll die happy next to each other."

His eyes water, and his arms tremble as he punches the ground, furiously filling up one hole and stamping it into the ground in a frenzied manner.

"I won't let you forget about me..."