Chapter Seven
Wow, the replies I got from chapter six were amazing! Such supportive people, thanks!
You'll have to be patient with me as I work to advance the story properly. I do have ideas, but I'm sure most (if not all) of you know that sometimes getting to the next major milestone in a story can be challenging. Some parts I have planned, and some parts are off the top of my head…maybe I can write it so that you can't tell which is which XP Wish me luck.
Enjoy
Sin's P.o.v.
The replica bolted upright, eyes wide in shock as the female voice in her head began to fade away from her dream.
"We can finally return to how we were. I'm so glad."
Sin pressed a clammy hand to her forehead, feeling a little shaken. She shook her head to calm herself and pushed her bangs out of her blurry eyes.
'Just a dream…' she thought with relief. It had taken a decent amount of time, but she was getting better at not letting dreams bother her too much anymore. There was a time when the tiniest nightmare could send her running for comfort.
"I'm fine…fine…" she murmured, raising her eyes a little.
She blinked at the room, surprised at first until her memory flourished.
"It's Baticul," Luke chirped. Her eyes roamed over the towering city not far in the distance.
"Whoa…" she breathed, dumbfounded.
"At the top is my father's manor," he continued cheerfully. "And I guess…your temporary home."
"Right…Baticul…" she stated quietly. It sounded weird on her tongue, like a foreign language.
"L-Luke…?" Sin called, feeling alone without cheerful red head to guide her.
A voice answered, and she might have mistaken it for Luke's if she hadn't known the tone down to its very roots, the heart.
"Not quite."
She whipped her head to the side, startled at the closeness. Her orange eyes fell onto the long crimson hair, and then locked with his emerald green eyes.
He was sitting in a chair to her left, a slight smile at the edge of his mouth.
Her chest constricted painfully at the sight of him, her eyes welling up with tears unhelpfully when all she wanted to do was see him clearly, believe he was sitting beside her.
Hastily she reached up and rubbed the tears away, and brushed her hair out of her eyes so she could see clearly.
Yep. It was him.
She slumped, so relieved that all she could to do stop herself from passing out was breathe deeply.
He shook his head, slightly amused, before coming over to the side of the bed…where she could reach him.
"Take it easy…" he murmured. "Lie down if you need to. I'm right here."
She sniffed, choking back a sob. "Don't ever do that again…"
His face softened slightly in response.
She swallowed before speaking. "Please…please tell me you're okay?" she asked but ridiculously, her voice cracked with her worry.
Suddenly he was taking her hand and his. She blinked up at him in teary curiosity as he pressed the flat of her hand against his chest. Underneath was his strong and steady heartbeat. No reflection of her own of course, which was fluttering in anxiousness, excitement and worry for him.
"I've got two legs and a heartbeat," he began, "I think I'll live."
Amazingly, a laugh escaped her. He could give quirky answers at the most inappropriate of times.
A slight blush stained her cheeks as she withdrew her hand from his chest, only to grasp the hand that had been holding hers and guide it to her own heartbeat. Her face heated up more at the personal contact, but she wanted him to understand it was harder for her to be calm than it was for him. She didn't know how he did it.
Underneath his hand she could feel the pressure of her own heart more clearly. Its rapid thumping made her smile sheepishly down at the bed she was kneeling on. She heard him give the quietest laugh and her own smile grew.
He kept his hand there. "You're going to wear yourself out like that."
"I can't exactly control it," she replied, sliding her eyes away in embarrassment.
"Interesting…"
She turned and looked up at him curiously, the relief she felt for him rushing back the moment her eyes landed on his face. It was going to be alright.
The former God-General began to lean slowly closer. "You can't control it…" he murmured, "But I bet I can…"
And it was true. When he leaned so close to her face that her lips began to tingle, her heartbeat also jumped to a new level of speed.
She held perfectly still in hopes that it would help calm her…but she should have known better. He swept his lips along hers deftly, challenging her heart rate to climb higher, his hand still feeling for all the proof he needed. There was no lying right now.
His other hand came to rest on the bed beside her, but she barely noticed before he had initiated another kiss.
As the kiss became more passionate, she was forced to lean back submissively, and instantly he followed. Along with the hammering of her heart, her insides began to feel like they were twisting…and she began to burn…longingly.
He pulled away just a little. "What's the rush?" he teased lowly, his hand telling him everything he needed about what was going on inside of her, about how her heart had betrayed her for him.
Sin glanced nervously at the door. "Is…is this r-really a good time?"
He seemed to ignore her, but she found she quickly forgot her question when suddenly his hand slipped under the edge of her shirt, making her heart lurch in a direction that made it increasingly difficult to concentrate.
His hand slip upward, running slowly along her skin and making her shiver and close her eyes. She was confused with what he was doing, but she didn't even attempt to stop it.
'I thought he said this wasn't going to happen…'
But in truth, at the moment, she didn't care if he changed his mind. With how he was making her feel…she hoped he did. Her skin was searing in need.
But as soon as she had settled herself into accepting that it would happen, he pulled away fully. Even removing his hand from over her heart, seeming to have retrieved his answer and win the bet he had made with himself.
Startled and breathing deeply, she pushed herself up with what she was sure was an expression of disappointment on her face. He was breathing deeply too, but crossed his arms casually.
"Having too much control is frustrating…" he stated lowly while turning to the side as if nothing had even happened.
She blinked her clouded orange eyes at him. "You jerk."
He turned to her with a charming smirk. She just laughed a little and shook her head, hating him and loving him at the same time. That was just plain cruel.
He came over just then and settled himself in a sitting position on the side of the bed with her, extending his arm around her shoulders to draw her close. She leaned into him, resting her head against his shoulder.
"I'm so glad you're okay…" she murmured. He nodded a little, resting his head against hers.
"I should be saying that for you. If Luke hadn't found you…" he trailed off lowly, closing his eyes.
"I'd probably be dead?" she supplied helpfully, managing an awkward grin.
He laughed for a moment, before turning his arm around her into a tight headlock. She chirped a laugh as well as he proceeded to give her a proper noogy.
"Shush you," he chuckled. "I didn't say it for a reason."
"Oh…okay, okay!" she laughed loudly as he gripped her and the noogy continued. "I'll shut up next time, I promise!"
"Who says there will be a next time, small fry?" He replied teasingly, following up the noogy with a fake punch to her stomach, as if he was attempting to beat her up.
"That was below the belt!"
It became an odd sort of wrestling match.
"I'm surprised I can reach that far down."
Sin feigned a hurt gasp. "Oh you're in for it now, Sunshine!"
"Assuming you can reach the sun. Oh wait, you can ride the Albiore. Oh wait, no you cant," Asch laughed, trying to ruffle her feathers further. She didn't mean to faint back there!
"Okay, that thing is not normal!"
"I'm pretty familiar with things that aren't normal. Thanks for that."
She was just about to reply with something, but slight movement off to the side caught her attention.
There stood Luke, looking like he was having the time of his life watching them try to push each other around. Behind him was another taller man with decently long brown hair, glasses and red eyes. He looked slightly amused as well.
But that wasn't who caught her attention. The blond female did, standing there with what could have been an expression of confusion and contemplation.
'Natalia…' Sin realized. Not the same woman as before. Totally different. No part of them was alike, she had to tell herself that to start off on good terms. This was the woman Asch was missing when she first met him…this was the woman he had complete respect for.
It wasn't hard to see why either.
She was tall and very pretty, with slim, storming green eyes of nobility. She held herself as a grown woman should, with a polite charm and yet…she seemed soft and caring. The type of woman one could easily fall for. Definitely different from the other who had attempted to silence her forever.
"We can finally return to how we were. I'm so glad."
Sin's eyes widened slightly, realizing the words in the dream must have been hers. Was this her subconscious fear? It was merely unfortunate that Natalia had the same face as the other woman.
'Not the same person…it's not…' she continued to think to herself, as if repeating it would allow her to believe it. She felt the fright begin to seep into her mind.
Pretending as if they hadn't already been seen, she slowly began to untangle herself from his arms. He allowed this, perhaps feeling that playtime was over now as well.
It was so obvious that Natalia's eyes were on her, considering her.
Asch seemed to break the awkward moment then, shoving her one last time, lightly on the shoulder. She turned to him with a scowl, though she had to laugh. He just smirked ever so slightly and then shook his head, turning back to the crowd in the doorway.
"Ever heard of knocking?"
Sin flushed accidentally, so she slipped behind him in a shy manor. It was a good thing they hadn't walked in a couple minutes previous to the silly wrestling match.
Surprisingly, it was the older man with the glasses that spoke in response. "Oh we were about to knock," he mused while pushing his glasses up casually. "Until curiosity forced us to wonder how two reunited, modest people such as yourselves could be making such a distracting amount of noise."
Sin felt her face prickle in further embarrassment.
'W-why did he have to say it like that…!' she thought frantically as she clasped her hands over her eyes.
Asch nudged her a little, drawing her attention to his face. "Don't listen to him, the only noises he can make are the ones in his sleep…it's called snoring."
Her blush deepened again.
"Now, now. Is that any way to treat your elders?" Jade asked pleasantly.
"You still playing that card?" Luke laughed, hanging his head.
Natalia was the next one to chime in, raising her hand to her mouth in what appeared to be realization. "Yes Jade, I do believe you have used that excuse on every one of us before."
"Oh my, have I really? My memory must be blurring with age."
"Yeah right," Luke stated, rolling his eyes good-naturedly. Natalia shook her head and turned back to observe her and Asch.
Sin had to admit, they seemed like an exciting group of people…and apparently this wasn't the full group. From what she remembered Asch telling her….three or so were still not present.
"So," Natalia's clear voice started curiously, "Is this your friend that you were separated from, Asch?"
Sin watched him nod. Then he stepped aside to let them see her more clearly, to which she responded with an even deeper blush and a shy wave.
"This is Sin'kara," Luke smiled while coming forward. "She's been sticking with Asch for the past little while, right?" he asked, turning to face them at her side. She nodded, a little nervous.
Jade was the first to come forward, extending his hand politely to her. She extended her own hand and shook it firmly.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," he stated. "I'm sure Asch will inform us all about you in time."
Oddly enough, the simple statement sent a shiver down her spine. How did he manage to do that?
She smiled slightly. "It's nice to meet you too…Jade the Necromancer."
His face turned pleasantly curious. "I see Asch has taken the time to relay to you about myself as well. How nice."
Sin nodded carefully, suddenly not sure if she had said more than she should have, besides just his name.
Just as she was about to release his hand however, he spoke again. "And if I may be so bold, your replication process was done nearly flawlessly."
Shocked, she blinked her orange orbs up at him, but his face was calm and still cheerful, as if he saw nothing wrong with his words. Perhaps there was nothing wrong with them? It was something to consider.
But apparently, Asch had a harder time holding himself back.
"Hey!" he snarled at the necromancer while forcibly pushing himself in between their handshake. "If you don't want to feel a few years older in the next five seconds, you'll take that back."
Sin's eyes widened. "No, it's fine," she stated quickly, grabbing his arm to pull the angry ex-general back. That was when she noticed Natalia's eyes instantly traveled to the area of contact, and she recoiled, pulling her hands away as if she had been burned.
Asch turned to her questioningly, probably thinking she wasn't acting like herself.
"No it's not," he replied. Jade raised his hands in a gesture of peace.
"My apologies. I meant the fact in the best way possible."
Asch was fuming, but she felt herself nod. "Thank you Jade, I know."
Clearly stunned by the information but attempting to quell the tension, Natalia came forward next and extended her hand. Surprisingly, her hands were smooth…except for the tips of her fingers which were slightly rough, strong. Sin realized this wasn't a princess that sat around and whined all day.
She relaxed.
"I don't believe we've ever met before," the princess stated as they grasped each others hand. "I'm Natalia. It's nice to meet you, Sin'kara."
The replica nodded, feeling Asch's eyes on her. "Likewise…and you can call me Sin."
"Alright, Sin."
"Ah! No way!" a young female voice sudden shouted. Sin blinked around Natalia, who was also turning around to look at another girl who had made herself suddenly present in the doorway. She was dressed in pink and some yellow, with bouncy, dark pigtails. Her eyes were large and brown, reflecting the spirit of a child rather than what appeared to be a sixteen or seventeen year old girl.
Her mouth was open in a speechless manner, her gloved finger pointing at Asch.
The rest of the crowd waited silently for her to speak.
Eyes wide, it didn't appear as if she remembered.
A hand came down onto the girl's shoulder gently, and from behind her, a boy stepped closer so that he was also visible.
Sin felt herself jump in surprise, her own orange orbs widening.
The boy looked exactly like Syft…though the clothes he was wearing were nothing like what Syft would ever willingly walk around in. His face was peaceful and happy, with the same sea-green eyes and hair that she was familiar with.
"What's the matter Fon Master Anise?" he asked curiously, his own tone boyish and young.
"It's…it's…!" she stammered, her finger still pointing at the ex-general.
The boy who looked like Syft turned around, his eyes falling onto the object of her shock.
"That's Asch, Anise. You've told me so."
The teenage girl seemed to come to her sense a little. She placed her hands on her hips and turned to him, an expression of disapproval.
"I know that, Florian!" she huffed. "He's only been gone for four years!"
"Oh…really?" the boy named Florian wondered, raising a hand to his mouth and looking up in obvious thought.
Fon master Anise sighed dramatically, waving her hand at her companion. "Honestly Florian, you're so out of it. Keep up will you?"
Sin felt a smile tugging at the edge of her lips. They both seemed a little out of it.
The girl with the pigtails came forward then, and Florian followed. It was weird to stand near someone so similar to her friend though, like meeting a long lost twin. She could only imaging what Luke must have felt like the first time he encountered Asch.
"So what rock did you crawl out from under?" Anise questioned, crossing her arms with a frown, like she was trying to be casual.
"Anise…" Luke warned gently, coming forward slightly with an outstretched hand. Anise glared heatedly. Sin furrowed her brows in slight confusion. Asch seemed almost like his was disappointed in himself.
"It was a fairly large rock…" the former god-general replied flatly. Sin was sure using the words 'large rock' to describe another planet was a bit of a simplified understatement.
"Well, I don't care," she stated, crossing her arms and turning away from him. "You have no right to come running back here after four years of goofing off."
Natalia cut in unsurely. "But Anise…we had no idea that he was even alive."
Sin watched Asch lower his eyes to the floor, and her heart hurt for him.
"Well he was alive, obviously! He doesn't even have an excuse for leaving y—"
Natalia cut her off rather hastily, her own words slightly frantic. "It does not matter Anise, he's back. That's what counts."
The princess turned to the rest of them, as if seeking confirmation. The rest nodded in agreement.
"Well whatever," Anise huffed in obvious disappointment, keeping her arms crossed and closing her eyes, as if to shun him anyway.
Just then, Florian came forward. When he was directly beside Anise, he leaned over, closing his eyes, and kissed her gently on the cheek. Her eyes flew open in surprise.
"Ah…F-Florian…" she stammered, flushing and clasping a gloved hand to her tanned cheek. "I told you not to do that in public!"
He blinked. "But…we're not outside."
"Public means around people!" she exclaimed, waving her arms. The group stared at them questioningly. Sin blinked at the two back and forth, having no idea what the heck the big deal was.
His eyebrows furrowed, making him look exceptionally confused. "But…you're a person…if I can't do it around people…then…" his expression turned to one of puzzling contemplation.
Anise slapped a hand to her forehead. "Forget it," she said while hanging her head in defeat. "They know now."
Jade pushed up his glasses as he spoke. "Well, well, it appears young love is present all around us today. Wouldn't our newest addition agree?"
Sin blinked at him, jolting out of thoughts of her own. She felt her face flush so conveniently and resisted looking at Asch.
"Oh…m-maybe?" she stammered lamely in a poor attempt seem clueless.
"Who's this?" Anise cut in, seeming to notice her for the first time.
"This is Sin, Anise," Natalia said politely. "She's a friend of Asch's."
The girl named Anise eyed her skeptically for her a moment. Sin felt herself lean back in nervousness.
"So, went out and got yourself some new friends?" she stated in a strange dark way, before huffing again. "And a girl at that."
Sin withdrew slightly, lowering her eyes to the floor. It didn't appear she had the Fon Master's approval. Asch seemed to shuffle in slight discomfort…or perhaps he was irritated?
Luke was the one that came forward then and surprisingly, he kicked Anise gently on the ankle. She scowled.
"Come on Anise, lighten up."
"Fine," she sighed, exaggerating greatly. Sin found a handshake extended to her, to which she took without too much hesitance.
"Nice to meet you…I guess…" Anise said, forcing a smile.
Sin nodded. "Nice to meet you too… Fon Master Anise."
The boy who looked like Syft approached next, his own hand extended. "I'm Fon Master Guardian, Florian," he smiled. "I'm just like you."
"Huh?" Sin murmured, tilting her head a little. Asch let a breath out through his nose, clearly getting what she was not.
Florian indicated her, before point to himself. "You're a replica. I'm a replica."
She blinked, bewildered. But it made sense quickly, seeing how he was confused about what seemed to be a lot of simple concepts. He was still learning. She shook his hand.
She couldn't help but smile, feeling a little at ease that she wasn't the only one that had no idea what was going on, or how things worked.
"But why are your hands so cold?" he wondered quietly, looking down at their handshake. He held it there while he dazed off, making it seem like they were holding hands. She gently tried to pry her hand loose, but he seemed too deep in thought to notice.
"If I may have permission, I believe I can answer that," Jade cut in, looking purposely at Asch. The redhead nodded reluctantly.
"Before, if you recall, I said 'nearly' flawlessly. Though it is not noticeable to the untrained eye, there are certain ways a person can be identified as a replica."
"Really?" Sin asked, intrigued. Jade nodded, closing his eyes and pushing up his glasses.
"For example," he gestured to her briefly. "There can be a slight absence of skin pigment if the replication process is done incorrectly or incompletely. Similarly, the same can happen with the body's internal temperature."
"Incorrectly…or incompletely?" she repeated, trying to keep the sadness out of her voice.
"It is no cause for worry," Jade responded. "These are minor errors that pose no danger to your existence and are merely a disappointment to the instructor of the replication process. I, myself, have experienced such effects before."
"Oh…" she replied quietly. Not sure if she should feel better or worse that she didn't turn out according to plan. She didn't want to be the same…but she didn't want to be a mistake either.
Suddenly Florian was speaking again. "How did you get this scar?" he wondered gently. She looked down to see one of the healed over injuries on her palm.
"Oh…" she murmured, furrowing her eyebrows. "I was training alone once…and I fell on a blade…" she explained, distracted by the memory. It was a small one, but it had left its mark.
"I have one like that," Florian replied with a peaceful smile. He pushed up his sleeve to reveal it. Sin glanced at it curiously. It was more a series of smaller dents in his arm, crammed neatly side by side.
"Anise bit me," he explained, his smile growing. Sin felt her own eyes widen. Anise huffed in the background, muttering about 'learned his lesson.'
Florian lowered his eyes to the scar, and she was surprised to notice it was almost in a fond manner.
"I know at the time…it hurts," he explained gently. "But as time moves forward…and we experience things that are new to us, the memories and feelings become ours alone…just like your scar…and my own. Because of these experiences that change us…I don't think we're really replicas."
Sin blinked at him slowly, the words seeming to clear away the fog. Maybe it wasn't him that still had things to learn.
He let go of her hand. She brought it closer to her face in thought.
"You see?" he stated, his sea-green eyes lighting up. "It's impossible to be the same…perfect replica or not. Everyone changes."
Sin felt herself nod, understanding his logic instantly.
'I wouldn't have been the same as her anyway…I see…'
"You're right…" she murmured, closing her hand and lowering it. "I don't know how you did that…"
"Aw, Florian!" Anise chirped, clapping for a moment. "I'm so proud of you!"
"Really?" he beamed back, turning around. She nodded vigorously, her brown orbs alight with happiness.
Sin couldn't stop the smile that drifted onto her own face as well. Asch also seemed at peace beside her. Jade was the one to fill the silence that currently excluded Anise and Florian.
"Well I'm pleased with how our lovely reunion went, but I'm afraid that it must now come to a proper close."
Natalia tilted her head and blinked her storming green eyes. "Whatever do you mean, Jade?"
Jade pushed his hands into his pockets casually. "I am merely making an observation, seeing as how Luke will be running out the door in a few short seconds."
"Huh?" Luke wondered, zoning in on the mention of his name. "What do you m—"
The door opened then, revealing a soldier who saluted them all hastily.
"Master Luke, Lady Mystearica has arrived."
Luke's eyes widened. "Tear!" he shouted ecstatically, racing for the door. Jade followed with a calm smile. Natalia gestured for them to follow, a happy smile on her face as well. Anise pulled Florian along eagerly.
Nervous, but at the same time curious to learn more about these people and this world, Sin strode forward shyly. The others drifted out of sight in their excitement. Asch held the door open for her, flashing a triumphant smirk. The edge of her mouth curled upward in response, understanding that the danger of getting to this world had passed completely, and that all they could do now was hold each others hand as tightly as possible.
"There is no rush anymore," he stated, closing the door behind them. "But I won't forget why we're here, and neither should you."
Thinking about all the kind hearted people she had just met, it made it difficult to give the answer he wanted.
"…I can't guarantee that."
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Well not too much happened in the chapter, because I had to properly introduce the characters to Sin, but I still thought it was lively XP Had a little bit of romance in the start too, because I felt somehow I was skipping or missing what needed to be there. I had fun experimenting with the different personalities too, especially Florian for some odd reason…Anise was a fun one as well. It was an awful lot of explaining and meeting, but I hope it was satisfactory.
Ps: Yes I do watch the Abyss Anime! I love it! Except I haven't watched too much because I'm on dial up –sigh– I think I'm on episode six. Thanks for asking XP
Pss: Today was a snow day. That's where I got the time to write another chapter, lol. Oh and that gives me another thought. For all that are curious…it is NOT winter all year round. In Canada, there is summer…warm and green. Then there is fall, where all the leaves turn red and orange and fall of the trees. Then there is winter (ONE season) where there is snow. Then there is spring where everything blooms again XP Of course, WAY up north there is snow all year round…just not ALL of Canada all year round lmao. So all those people that thought we live in igloos, if a petition comes around asking you to sign to 'stop the polar bear hunt in Toronto' DON'T sign it because there are NO polar bears in Toronto ^_^ kay?
Kazink
