Chapter 11 – Responsibilities

Noah reached into his pocket and started to dig around. The intention was to grab his cell-phone and check for any missed texts or calls, which he was sure there were many of. Escaping from Robert's drunken stupor had left little room in his mind for much else besides Robin and Matthew's safety. A distinct and familiar kind of sickness churned his stomach as his pace slowed. Deliberately delaying his return was useless. Inevitably, he was going to end up walking through their door and he had a funny feeling he wasn't going to be welcomed with open arms.

Caught up in his worrying, Noah's fingers accidentally brushed against a cold key nestled at the bottom of his pocket.

He came to a dead stop and fished it out. By pure chance, he had managed to stop directly beneath the brilliant glow of one of Glasswater's antique street lamps. He held it up to the light and absentmindedly rolled it between his fingertips.

One little visit couldn't hurt. Noah thought.

There was a small drugstore nearby Catherine's apartment complex. Since the drugstore itself was far too small to house anything aside from the products being sold, the owners were forced to relocate the bathrooms to the side of the building. There was the male door on the left, and the female door on the right. Under normal circumstances, that would have been all.

Given Noah's possession of the key, he was granted access both in sight and in touch to a third option.

A blue, velvet door dead-center.

Noah's eyes bounced back and forth between the key shimmering in his hand and the apartment complex just a few blocks further down the street. His mind had already been made the moment his fingers had made contact with the key. Eager to postpone his arrival for as long as he possibly could, Noah started walking.

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"Welcome to the Velvet Room." Igor greeted as Noah stepped into the circular room. As per usual, Faith was seated next to him. She nodded as Noah took his seat at the opposite end of the rounded table.

"How may we be of assistance?" Faith asked. She took the compendium from its resting place on the sofa next to her and carefully placed it into her lap.

"I, um…" Noah squirmed in his seat uncomfortably and tapped his feet on the floor, trying to come up with a good excuse for coming here that didn't involve mentioning his cowardice towards his aunt and uncle. Were guests even allowed to come into the Velvet Room to just relax and hang out? Noah was a little too embarrassed to ask that straight out, so he smiled weakly and jabbed his thumb over his shoulder. "I just got back from, er… saving my friend. A different one."

Igor and Faith exchanged confused looks, but eventually, their attention returned to him "We are well aware of your endeavors." Igor stated formally as he rested his palms on the table. "Rest assured, our watchful eye is always keeping track of your progress."

It appeared to be business as usual for Igor. Noah glanced at him uncertainly, not confident enough to maintain eye contact. There was something about Igor's penetrating gaze that made it difficult to speak at length with him. It was as if, regardless of how well Noah tried to bottle his thoughts and emotions, Igor could still leaf through him like an open book. Though the Velvet Room's purpose seemed to be one more suited towards relief from stress, he sometimes felt that it did much the opposite.

"Cool!" Noah exclaimed, a little more exuberantly than he had intended. "Er… I mean, thanks."

"There is no need to thank either of us." Faith spoke up, her voice laced thick with her trademark cynicism. "It is our duty to assist the Wild Card in all matters related to his desires. We are here for you, nothing more, nothing less. It would be far more productive for all involved if you kept that in mind from here onwards."

Faith's tongue was as sharp as ever… coming here had been a mistake.

For someone who's supposed to help, Noah thought inwardly, you sure don't do a great job.

"What calls you to our domain on this hour?" Igor asked, eyes unwavering.

"N-Nothing, actually." Noah admitted. "I just didn't want to go home yet."

Another series of traded looks passed between Igor and Faith before they tilted their heads at him in unison. They stared at Noah. Noah stared at them. An awkward silence befell the Velvet Room as Noah shrank further and further into his seat, his chest beginning to dip below the height of the table. Apparently, his answer wasn't enough.

"It... it's my uncle." Noah spit out. The silence had started to become painful, and he decided that he ought to get his issues resolved now rather than later. "And my aunt, I guess. I'm not sure if I can keep up this Persona business without them getting on my ass about it."

Igor and Faith seemed to be at a loss. Noah wasn't surprised. Even Igor, with all of his infinite wisdom, couldn't help him. Perhaps this was an issue suited to more earthly denizens, rather than the supernatural occupants of the Velvet Room.

Igor scooted forward in her chair and spoke to Noah directly. "To be perfectly frank," He began, "guests of the Velvet Room have never confronted us with matters directly related to their personal lives. Aside from, perhaps, one case, they all visited this room with questions related to Personas in mind."

"One case?" Noah asked.

"It would be prudent of you to avoid discussing the others." Faith warned.

"Oh." Noah sat up. "Well, er, if that's the case, I'm sorry for troubling you. I'll just—"

"But we can make an exception." Faith continued. "If you would like to discuss… personal affairs at length with us, we would be happy to assist you if you so desired. As I have mentioned, we are here to assist you in whatever manner you see fit. This is an open forum; do not hesitate to speak your heart. It is the most useful and powerful tool in your arsenal."

Of all the things that could have possibly come out of Faith's mouth, that had been the very last thing Noah expected. He openly gawked at her for a minute before collecting his scattered thoughts and sitting up straight in his chair. A bright smile crossed his lips and he respectfully nodded his head at Faith and Igor.

"Thank you so much." Noah said. "It means a lot."

A flicker of warmth briefly flashed in Faith's cheeks as she fought against the desire to return his smile. Taking note of this, Igor allowed himself the brevity of a perceptive chuckle before he folded his hands together and prepared to join the dialogue. Faith frowned at him before she turned to Noah and waited for him to begin.

"Well, there's a lot that's bugging me." Noah began. "My friend was telling me about HP and MP, and…"

A long while passed in the Velvet Room.

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Noah's fingers brushed against the doorknob to Catherine's apartment. Though his talk with Igor and Faith had been an unexpectedly fulfilling one, he was still nervous. There was much he had gotten of his chest, but anxiety was not one of them.

The door flew open on its own.

There was his aunt Catherine, eyes red and streaked with riverbeds of dry tears. The two of them stood there for a minute just staring at each other. Noah felt as if he hadn't seen his aunt in ages, even though they lived in the same apartment. He flinched when he saw tears start to form in her eyes. He felt terrible. This was his fault. Why hadn't he at least thought of her before leaving to rescue Robin?

Catherine slowly pulled Noah into an embrace, her arms shaking. Noah was about to speak before Catherine put her fingers to his lips, shushing him. Noah gave her an odd look, but tenderly returned her hug. He noticed Catherine's eyes flickering from his to the side every now and then, like she was watching and waiting for someone to show up.

"It's your uncle." Catherine whispered as she leaned in towards Noah's ear. "He just fell asleep."

Noah's stomach churned and his face went pale. "How mad is he?"

"I'm not sure if angry is strong enough an adjective," Catherine sighed. She chuckled darkly as she added, "Just to give you an idea." She threw a cautious look over her shoulder and, after confirming that Robert hadn't awoken to the sound of their secrecy, ushered herself and Noah out into the hallway. Quietly, Catherine shut the door and then turned to fix Noah with a stern look, but one that was colored with a mixture of worry and relief.

Her foot began to tap the floor impatiently. Noah could only manage a sheepish look as he pocketed his hands rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet.

"Care to explain where you've been all night?" Catherine asked keenly.

"A friend of mine needed my help with something." Noah said. It wasn't a lie. Robin and Matthew really did need to see him; otherwise they both would have died.

"Is that the truth…?" Catherine said with narrowed eyes. "The whole truth?"

This question was a little more difficult to answer. Lying, as he had been advised by Faith, was inevitable in his walk as the Wild Card, especially to elder figures such as Catherine and Robert. Among the many other sacrifices he would end up having to make as someone who bore the biggest burden of the growing number of Persona users, a wholly honest relationship with his aunt and uncle was a casualty of legitimacy in which he had little choice. A flicker of remorse flashed in his eyes before he spoke.

"Yes, auntie. That's the whole truth." He drew an X over his heart with one of his fingers. "Cross my heart and hope to die."

A nostalgic smile swept over Catherine's features and she put her hand to her mouth, stifling a whimsical giggle. "You used to love making that promise as a child!"

"Yup!" Noah beamed. "And you know it means what I mean with all of my heart and soul."

I'm doing this, Noah thought to himself silently, to protect you. Please, understand that.

Catherine softly stamped her foot on the floor and folded her arms. "I guess that means you win then, Noah. I trust that what you're telling me is true." Her stern expression faded in seconds. Her features softened and she took up Noah into another warm, affectionate hug. "I was so worried about you, sweetheart."

Noah smiled sadly to himself over her shoulder as he closed his eyes and struggled to let the moment pass without letting the guilt taunt him into submission. "I love you too, auntie."

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"Noah! Yo, dude! Over here!"

A bottle of water rested on Noah's lips as he looked up at a student approaching him from the far end of the hallway. The plastic bottle cap fell from his hands and he cursed as it rolled away from him underneath the lockers. He sighed resignedly and faced the source of the voice with a tired look on his face.

"Griffith," Noah nodded, glaring at the open space between the bottoms of the lockers, "how are you?"

"Can't complain, can't complain," Griffith said energetically, bouncing lightly on the tips of his feet. His unzipped tracksuit bobbed and weaved with his movements. The white shirt underneath was moist with sweat, and the bottoms of his jogging pants were caked with patches of mud and grass. "What about you, you good?"

Brief, but distinct memories flashed in Noah's mind: Shadow Robin ripping through his arms and the venom that nearly killed him. A crazed Matthew clubbed a defenseless shadow to pieces. A destitute Robin sank to her knees and cried her heart out.

He smiled pleasantly and took a sip from his water. "Never been better."

"Hey man, that's awesome!" Griffith beamed. "So, anyways, I just came up here 'cause I wanted to ask you if you wanted to hang out with me and Lucia after school today. There's an ice cream shop we usually visit after school. Its Lucia's favorite in all of Glasswater. Well, it's the only one in Glasswater, but… never mind. Anyway, I thought we'd kick back, grab a few cones, fun times all 'round. What do you say? You down? First one's on the house, courtesy of yours truly."

"That actually sounds like a lot of fun." Noah admitted. He smiled and nodded eagerly. "I suppose I'll do that. I guess I'll see you by the front gate after school, then?"

"Yeah, yeah, sounds good." Griffith waved. Still jogging in place and rearing to go, the athlete turned and was about to head off before Noah tapped him on the shoulder. "Yeah? What's up man?"

"I was wondering if I could bring along some others," Noah said. "Would that be fine?"

"Er… hmph." Griffith hummed uneasily. The pace of his jog started to slow. "I guess. Who'd you have in mind, man?"

"I'm going to see if Matthew and Robin want to come too." Noah said. His hand tentatively brushed against the surface of his cell phone. "If that's okay with you."

With a visible and not-very-subtle cringe, Griffith groaned and put his hands on his hips. His jogging had come to a complete standstill and he blew a frustrated sigh. "Yeah, man, about that… shit, I dunno' what to tell you. You just had to be friends with those guys, huh?"

Noah looked at Griffith sharply. "Excuse me?"

"No, no, you got it all wrong man!" Griffith waved his hands frantically. "I'm cool with them. Don't know Matt all that well, kid's real quiet and all, but he seems like a cool guy. Doesn't seem to like me a whole lot, though. I know Robin though, and she's chill. She's a good friend to have, man. But Lucia… she probably wouldn't be too happy if either of them came along, you know what I'm saying?"

"I'm afraid you've lost me." Noah said. "You're going to have to explain."

"Let's see, how should I put this?" Griffith cupped his chin in one hand and adopted a thinking man's posture. "Lucia isn't exactly the patient type, you got me? She doesn't like to put up with a lot when it comes to people, and those two push her buttons in real different sort of ways. You know, kinda' like—"

The lively athlete stopped short of himself and looked pained for just a moment. Noah looked at him worriedly, but Griffith bounced back to where he left off without missing a beat.

"Well, Matt's super quiet all the time and she hates that, man. Like, that really gets on her nerves. She won't even try to deal with guys that won't speak up for themselves, and I'm sorry to say Matty fits that bill to a tee. Nothing personal, you feel me? Dude just isn't her type. As for Rob?" Griffith took the opportunity to whistle dramatically, his eyes rolling up to the ceiling. "I doubt Rob's told you anything, but they've got a history, man. Catfight and all that shit. It's crazy." He folded his arms and openly examined Noah with several quick nods of approval. "Yeah man, I'm sure if you got to know Lucia she'd tell you if you asked. But only if you got to know her, you know?"

Honestly, Noah didn't know. He hadn't caught everything Griffith had said, but he managed to catch all of the important bits with some effort.

Griffith: excitable, energetic, springy, youthful, athletic… not all-too-bright, but Noah would never tell him that to his face or to anyone else for that matter. That little tid-bit was his, personal, brutally honest observation.

Lucia (as told by Griffith): impatient, possibly misanthropic, ice cream enthusiast (?).

Tallying all of the information in his head, Noah gave Griffith the affirmative and nodded. "Sure! Where's Lucia now, by the way? Isn't she usually with you?"

"Hell if I know, man." Griffith shrugged. "Don't think she's cheerleading anymore. Don't know what she does now. Her business is her business, so I don't really want to follow her around like a creep. It's chill, though. Usually just means I can go for a few extra laps around the campus, you feel me? I ain't wasting time in the cafeteria, you can be sure of that!"

"Haha," Noah laughed delicately. Putting aside the fact that he was headed straight to the cafeteria as soon as they were finished, Griffith's constant outpour of energy was beginning to wear thinly on his nerves. He had just spent a night fighting all sorts of terrible creatures in some Godforsaken world. Getting some exercise was the very last thing he wanted to do. "Well, you go have fun running laps around the school. I'm just going to… stand here and drink water."

"What? Are you serious?" Griffith gawked at him incredulously as if he couldn't believe the words coming out of Noah's mouth. "Dude, come with me and burn some cals on the track! It'll be fun, I promise!" He leaned in and gently elbowed Noah in the chest while cupping a hand to Noah's ear. "Some of the cheerleading squad usually hangs out at the field during lunch. I know a lot of pretty girls who've got their eyes on you, man…"

Exasperated, Noah shook his head. "I-I'm fine, Griffith, really, its okay!"

"Huh. Okay, man." Griffith shrugged again. His eyes went wide, and then he winked suggestively at Noah. "So Robin's more your type, huh? She's pretty 'n all, but I have to be real with you man, she don't act like much of a girl, you know?"

"W… What!?" Noah exclaimed, horrified. He backed away from Griffith like prey trapped within the vicinity of its predator. "Um, I'm going to go now, if that's alright with you. I'll see you after school, okay? Wait up for me."

"Alright, man, catch you on the flipside." Griffith's knees bounced high as he started into another jog, dashing around the corner and off into Glasswater High School's courtyard.

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"What's up!"

Matthew greeted as he watched Noah take a seat at their table. Noah nodded at him and then proceeded to slam his forehead into the table. Matthew's tray of food bounced up, his plastic utensils scattering across the surface.

"Woah, woah!" Matthew exclaimed, concerned. "Are you okay?"

"No." Noah said bluntly. He lifted his head and rubbed the sore red spot that had formed on his skin. He briefly checked the other chairs on their table and then looked to Matthew. "Where's Robin? Did she really not come to school today?"

"Guess not." Matthew sighed, poking his phone on the table next to his food. "Hasn't answered any of my texts. I'm sure she just feels really tired after all that stuff we went through last night. Can't blame her for not wanting to come."

"I suppose that's true." Noah admitted.

A plastic tray slammed into the spot next to Noah which caused both him and Matthew to jump in their seats. Noah looked up to see Robin quietly sit in the unoccupied seat next to him. Her eyes were lidded and unfocused as if she hadn't slept in days. To be wholly honest, the same could have been said for Noah and Matthew, but there was something very peculiar about her expression.

Robin's blank stare wandered around the cafeteria before settling on Noah.

"Robin," Noah said worriedly, "is something the matter?"

Her gaze lingered on his face for a moment before lifting up to the space above his head. She cringed, made a face, and then buried it into her palms, letting out an audible groan as she did so.

Noah and Matthew traded looks. Robin watched them from the safety of her folded arms and mumbled something incoherently. Noah leaned in and put his ear close to her head, straining to hear what she was trying to tell them.

"You can't see 'em, can you?" Robin whispered.

"See… what, exactly?" Noah wondered, his eyes wandering around the cafeteria. Unable to identify what Robin was talking about, he shook his head. "Robin, we can't help you if you don't tell us what the issue is."

Reluctantly, Robin looked up and examined the cafeteria room. Her hands were like claws wrapped around her face, her eyes barely visible beneath the gaps between her outstretched fingers. Cautiously, Robin reached up and waved her hand for a split-second above Noah's head. After having done so, she quickly snapped it back to her side.

"Ever since I woke up," Robin began slowly, "I've been seein'… I've been seein' clocks. I know it sounds dumb, but… everyone's got one. And I can't… I can't make 'em go away."

"Clocks?" Matthew squinted and looked above Robin and Noah's heads. "I don't see anything, Robin. Did you get enough sleep last night?"

"That's 'cause it's just me." Robin lamented. "Everyone, every single damn person in this town has a clock just floatin' above their heads. I was walkin' to school and I see this bus stop for the elementary school pull up and all the fuckin' kids got clocks just floatin' above 'em."

"Is… is there anything special about these clocks?" Noah asked. "Do they tell you the correct time?"

"No!" Robin's shouted as she kicked the lunch table with her feet. Several heads near them turned in their direction. Robin shrank into her seat and tried, in vain, to make herself appear less conspicuous. She leaned forward, folded her arms on the table, and rested her chin on top of them. "All of these damn clocks move at different speeds. Some go quicker than others. They don't all move second by second." She stopped, listened, and then groaned. "And if I stay quiet long enough, I can practically hear 'em tickin'. This is the worst."

Noah was at a loss for words.

"What about our clocks?" Matthew spoke up, intrigued.

"I was gettin' to that." Robin mumbled. She glanced up at Noah and Matthew one more time before retreating back into the safety of her arms. "Your guys' clocks are stuck at 12:00."

"Our clocks are stuck? At 12?" Matthew whispered quietly. "Why the hell are you even seeing clocks in the first place? What's going on? This didn't happen to Noah, didn't happen to me…"

Robin chose to remain silent. She didn't have any answers for him. Noah looked down and felt into his pocket for the Velvet Room key. Perhaps Igor or Faith would know something about Robin's affliction. Noah clenched his teeth together, struggling to contain the anger that burned in his throat.

"Robin, you going to be okay?" Noah asked. "Is there anything we can do to help?"

"Yeah," Robin muttered, "You can gouge my eyeballs out. That'd be real sweet of you."

"Try not to worry too hard about it, okay?" Noah said as he reassuringly placed his hand atop her dark hair. "We'll help find out what's wrong with you as soon as we possibly can. I'm pretty sure this has to do with you facing your Shadow, so I don't think visiting the doctor is going to help you—"

"Wasn't plannin' on it." Robin interrupted. "I hate goin' to the doc."

"Alright. Hey, you never know, maybe this is a blessing in disguise." Noah smiled. "And it's not like the clocks are trying to kill you, right?"

"Don't mean they ain't pissin' me off." Robin said. She peered up and examined Matthew's cloc once more. "I don't know the significance of it bein' stuck at 12, but I'm guessin' you guys' are frozen 'cause you have Personas. If I looked in a mirror, mine'd probably be frozen too."

"They're probably stuck at 12 because that's when these events occur." Noah replied. "Time is frozen in the labyrinths at exactly 12. None of this answers why you've started seeing clocks, obviously, but it's a start."

"Doesn't answer why that freakin' subway station changed back into my home, either." Robin snorted, sitting up in her chair and crossing her arms indignantly. "If I'd known that's what would've happened when I faced my Shadow, I think I would've just died right there instead. Now my mom thinks I'm a reject and a loose woman. My life just gets better and better, don't it?"

"Ah, it wasn't so bad." Matthew teased. "You made it out alive, that's got to count for something."

Robin glared at Matthew hotly. "Speakin' of bad, when're you plannin' on payin' me back for that bat you wrecked? You're lucky all that Shadow blood disappeared when we came back, otherwise I would've painted it red with yours."

"H-Hey now!" Matthew stammered as he leaned away from Robin. "At least I didn't break the damn thing—"

"Asshole!" Robin snapped, leaning over and slapping his head.

Noah chuckled and sat back, letting the two friends work out their minor differences. At least for now, Robin seemed to have let her attention drift away from the constant drone of the clocks she was seeing.

Ultimately, for the moment, that was all that mattered to him.

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"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Noah."

Lucia Kennedy stuck out her hand and smiled at Noah flatly. Noah took her hand uncertainly and gave it the firmest shake he could muster. With a curt nod, Lucia withdrew her hand and turned away.

"Shall we move along?" Lucia folded her hands behind her back and looked up at Griffith with a warmer, more genuine smile on her face. Noah watched Griffith stare blankly at her for a second before he returned her gesture with a pinch on the cheek and a rough hand ruining her silky blonde hair. Lucia pushed Griffith away crossly and stamped her foot on the ground. "Stop treating me as if I were a child! And in front of Noah, too? Jerk!" She pivoted on a heel and quickly walked away down the sidewalk, presumably in the direction of the ice cream shop.

Griffith just laughed and shrugged, giving Noah a sheepish sideways glance. He fumbled with the zipper to his tracksuit and said, "She's always like that, man. Chick gets mad really easy, but she forgives just as fast as she forgets. Which is pretty quick. So if you get on her bad side or something, don't worry too much about it."

"Where's she going?" Noah asked, his eyes watching her move farther and farther down the sidewalk. He had a pretty good idea where she was headed, but he wanted to ask for clarification.

"Ice cream shop." Griffith said. "It's in the shopping district near the coast. You've probably been there. Wintertime's coming so most of the surfers aren't catchin' waves unless they're fucking crazy, know what I mean? Our waves might not be as impressive as you lucky guys on the west coast, but we're dedicated. I should take you with me one of these days. Sometimes I go with just Seth and Lucia when we just want to chill for a spell."

"Do you surf?" Noah asked.

"Not so much anymore." Griffith sighed, shaking his head regretfully. "But you better believe I'm gonna' make a comeback one of these days. Just need to get into a good groove, s'all." He jabbed an arm out in the direction of the coast and triumphantly boasted, "Yessir, Griffith Triton's gonna' smash those waves like you wouldn't believe!"

"I'd like to see you try." Noah taunted lightheartedly.

Griffith gave him a surprised look, and then laughed. "Is that a challenge I hear?"

"If you're willing to accept it. One of these days," Noah said, "you're going to have to put your money where your mouth is."

"It's a deal!" Griffith bubbled excitedly. He jabbed his hand out and stared at Noah expectantly with cool, yet determined eyes.

Noah looked at Griffith, his chestnut hair swaying on a wind carried by the current of the ocean. Part of him sensed something more to Griffith's expression than what was being said on the surface. Noah knew there was something Griffith wasn't telling him. Though it had been hinted at lightly before, he was sure of it now. Whatever it was, Noah knew better than to ask him straight out. Noah curled his hand into a fist and bumped it against Griffith's outstretched palm.

Griffith looked at him with surprise, but smiled. "Sealed. That's a promise you just made. Don't let me down, Noah. The day I make my grand return to surfing, I expect you to be right there with me. You, me, Lucia, Seth… hell, maybe even Robin and Matt. Sounds good?"

Noah nodded. "You can count on me."

"Sick." Griffith shaded his eyes with a flat palm and swore lightheartedly. "Damn. Lucia's pretty far down. That girl must be hurtin' for a cone. C'mon, let's catch up."

As Noah and Griffith began to head down to the shopping district, Noah's gaze began to wonder. It drifted across the street, onto the other sidewalk, and then…

…His eyes settled onto one Nathaniel Blackwater. Time came to a standstill as their gazes met for that one, uncomfortable moment. Nathaniel adjusted the signature black-and-yellow striped beanie obscuring his vision and stared at Noah. There was another young man that looked to be about Nathaniel's age walking alongside him wearing a flat-brimmed cap who was busily chatting away, oblivious to where Nathaniel's attention really lay.

There were mixed signals coming from Nathaniel, that much was certain. There was one feeling Noah was receiving from Nathaniel that was particularly worrying to him, however. One that he could see above all others.

It was suspicion.

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"Vanilla?"

Griffith stared at Noah in disbelief and shook his head. He swept his hand over a folded-out menu hanging over the top of a row of several ice cream containers.

"Vanilla? Noah, are you serious?" He pressed his face up against the glass, staring at a rocky road container with hungry eyes. "You got all these choices man, and you want vanilla? C'mon, be a little more adventurous! You got your classics like strawberry, chocolate, French vanilla, you got your fancy ones like gelato, scones, and then you got your weird ones like… well, I dunno' what that purple shit is. I'm not eating it. But you can!"

"I think I'm alright." Noah said. "Vanilla sounds just fine."

Griffith blew air out of his cheeks and shrugged. "Alright man, suit yourself. Yo, I'll take one vanilla, one strawberry-banana, and one rocky road please!"

The cashier rang Griffith's total up and started to scoop up the ice cream behind the glass pane. Griffith clapped Noah on the back and directed him to a three-seat table where Lucia was waiting for them. Her legs were crossed and her full attention seemed to be focused on a lengthy phone call with one of her parents. Griffith dropped himself into his seat, propping his legs up onto an empty chair he had pulled up earlier. Noah set himself down lightly and politely waited for Lucia's call to end before talking.

"Yes, mother," Lucia sighed, twirling a strand of her hair in one of her fingers. Her eyes rolled up the ceiling as she leaned back in her chair. "Yes, I know. I'll be fine. Yes. Yes. Yes. Alright, alright, I understand. Bye!" One the call ended, Lucia snapped her cell phone shut and tossed it onto the table with disgust. "Honestly, what do they think I am, 12?"

"What's up?" Griffith asked.

"Nothing you ought to concern yourself with." Lucia snapped, turning away and folding her arms. "Your time and energy would be better spent elsewhere."

"So…" Griffith mumbled, "None of my business?"

"Exactly." Lucia nodded. She looked around the shop. There were a few customers seated at the other tables, some children, others also from Glasswater High. Her wandering eye landed on Noah and she stared at him with faint curiosity. Her eyes were cold, calculating, and they betrayed nothing short of what she wanted Noah to see. "So what brings you to our fair town of Glasswater?"

Noah had to admit that her icy demeanor was off-putting. In short, she was making it unnecessarily difficult to get along. It baffled Noah as to why Griffith seemed to consider her one of his best friends. She didn't seem to enjoy his company particularly all that much, and on the whole, their relationship seemed a little one-sided.

"Well," Noah began, "My mom's on a business trip in Japan. She couldn't exactly afford to drag me along with her, so she sent me out here to live with my aunt and uncle for all of Junior year until she gets back. That's the gist of it."

"I see." Lucia said. "Have you made any friends besides this klutz?"

"Hey!" Griffith interjected.

"…Yeah." Noah said. "I've made a couple. So far there's Seth, Matthew, Robin…" The instant her name left his lips, Noah clamped his hand over his mouth and stared at Griffith. Griffith had left the table, however, and had gone to the countertop to fetch their ice cream cones. He looked back to Lucia and noted that she was giving him an odd look.

"Is that all?" She asked with her head slightly cocked.

"Th-That's all that comes to mind." Noah said as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. Griffith, thankfully, came back and eased the tension that Noah had created. Rocky road sat alone in one hand. He passed the strawberry banana cone to Lucia and gingerly passed the vanilla cone to Noah. Noah tipped the cone towards Griffith. "Thank you, Griffith. I'm going to have to pay you back one of these days."

"What? Pfft, dude!" Griffith waved his hand at Noah and slung his arm around Lucia, bringing her in towards him. "Get a load of this guy, tryin' to get the moral high ground on me. Nah man, I told you that cone was on the house! You enjoy that. Look at it as a testament to our newfound friendship!"

"But I'm about to eat it." Noah pointed out.

"Eat it, snort it, use it as a weapon," Griffith shrugged and took a lick of his rocky road. "Makes no difference to me, man. It's the thought that counts, you know?"

Noah looked at Lucia who was trying to slip out from under Griffith's ironclad grip. He chuckled at her expense and raised the vanilla cone to the center of the table.

"See, now that's what I'm talkin' about!" Griffith boomed boisterously. He took his own cone and smashed it together with Noah's, causing the vanilla and rocky road to exchange flavors. Griffith nudged Lucia who was still trapped within his arm. "You're not getting out until you join the covenant!"

"I don't want to join your stupid covenant," Lucia pouted.

"Guess I'll just have to take a bite outta' yours then…" Griffith threatened cheerily.

"Ugh!" Lucia recoiled and relented unenthusiastically. "Fine, fine!" She took her cone and reluctantly raised it towards Noah and Griffith's mesh of flavors. Her strawberry-banana made contact with theirs, forming a triangular triple-ball pyramid in mid-air.

"Hell yeah!" Griffith boasted proudly. He withdrew his cone and immediately took a sizeable bite out of the ice cream. "Our ice cream pact's been sworn. We three are now best friends forever!"

In his heart, Noah highly, highly disagreed with that. Though he had to admit that he wasn't very fond of the idea of having 'best' friends in the first place, his heart still resided in the company of Matthew and Robin. Those two had been the very first ones to befriend him in Glasswater, and for that, his relationship with them would always be somewhat more meaningful compared to the others.

That did not mean, however, that Noah saw Griffith and Lucia's company as entirely unpleasant. Keeping up with Griffith's unrelenting passion and Lucia's frigid character, while taxing, would almost certainly end up proving worthwhile.

Social Links (new!):

Fool (The Team): 2
Magician (Matthew): 2
Justice (Robin): 2
(!) Emperor (Griffith): 1 + 1 = 2
(!) Priestess (Lucia): 1 + 1 = 2
Strength (Alice): 1
Tower (Seth): 2
(!) Temperance (Aunt Catherine + Robert): 1 + 1 = 2