This is the Cirno News Network with a breaking news story. More news from the British Isles on the rapid expansion of the forests. Having been cut down over the centuries as the residents of the country continued to build up; the trees have made quite the sudden return in the past few years. Where before there had been nothing but empty houses and rolling hills, there was now young growth everywhere. We here do speculate as to the reasoning, and whether the abundance of monsters in the isles has lead to the return of nature on such a scale. Or, perhaps, these new forests are monsters themselves, hiding in a guise to snarl ignorant passerby?
Thank you, and enjoy the show. This has been THE STRONGEST! Now back to your irregularly scheduled fic.
Touhoumon: Gray Version
Chapter 12: Terminal Blues
I watched the monster closely, as my heart continued to beat. None of us said a word following its declaration, instead staring it down. It just looked between us all and began to grin widely, at the reactions of us all. "Oh, that is priceless, indeed! I hadn't thought that you would be so easily stunned…" She trailed a finger over my jaw line before giggling and floating away.
Wait, floating? I narrowed my eyes at her. Sparrows don't float. They walk, they fly, they kill, but they don't float. But as I watched, I realized that this wasn't one of them. There were no feathers on its head, in a crude cone instead of ears. There were no wings sprouting from its back, brown feathers a harbinger of doom. And there were none of the cruel claws that ached to dig into human flesh.
Instead, the girl was relatively normal looking. If a monster could be called that. The pink dress that for a moment was eerily familiar turned out to instead be different, if relatively shorter than was decent. And however unnatural her hair was, it was only blue. Eventually figuring out that this was not one of the sparrows, but indeed some other monster, my heartbeat began to slow.
However, the monster, whatever it was, only kept grinning. "Oh, shucks, I know I look good, but I didn't think I'd shut up four people, three of which are girls…" She tossed her hair. "Pity. Well, if you're not wanting to listen, I believe I'll just go flutter off, and you can figure out what to do on your own."
From my side, I heard sister shout out. "Wait a minute. We were… surprised at the appearance of a… stranger within this place. From our best estimates, this place was abandoned."
At that, the creature spun around. "Indeed… I wonder why that is the case?" Laughing airily, it spun around, once again approaching me. Instincts triggering even though it was not what I had suspected, I leapt from my seat and put as much distance between it and myself as possible.
Of course, my actions only drew humor from it. "Oh, I didn't think I was that scary… After all, I'm just an innocent little girl…" She grinned at me once again, making me shiver. "So, do you want to hear about my offer, or are you going to run away again?"
"We will… hear you out." Sister shot me a look. "Just speak, please. If you're going to bother us, then leave. We do not have time for such inanities."
"Inane, am I?" Oddly enough, the remark seemed to please her. "Oh, how it would to be inane, instead of such a nuisance. Or perhaps you meant insane? If so, then you're missing out." Tilting her head, she blinked. "But if you're about to go to bed, and I leave, you might have a few problems."
As she spoke, every piece of furniture in the room shimmered, and disappeared. Even the dust that coated it vanished, leaving an empty room with a few old lanterns lighting it up. And even then, every one save the one we took from the train also faded from sight, leaving us with but one source of light. Which seemed to fit the suddenly creepy grin of the monster quite well.
I once again reached for my weapon, and again not finding it. The others seemed to prepare themselves as well, in case we were to get into a firefight. However, the creature seemed to just be amused, that smile never leaving her face. "Oh, I wouldn't try that. After all, how could those things harm a spirit?"
Tokiko started, seeming to realize something. Notes of recognition tinting her voice, she asked, "You're… you're the poltergeist! The one who always played for the humans at the village!"
It laughed, turning its attention to the birdie. "Yes, yes I am. How thoughtful of you to remember me. I'm afraid I don't know you personally…" She suddenly clapped her hands together. "But I know of you! Yes yes! I saw many of your copies back at the human village. They were very indignant about the way you had been treated."
At that, Tokiko blanched, pulling in on herself. I had put the thought of other copies of my partners to the back of my mind after Chicago. But the words she spoke… Taking her hand and squeezing it to remind her that we were here, I narrowed my eyes at the spirit. "Lovely. But I'll ask about that later… Who are you supposed to be? A ghost? And an original?"
"I'm not a ghost, silly! I'm a poltergeist! After all, I'm not alive…" Spinning about in the air, she began to float oddly, turning upside down. "And even the original is a copy of what was more original. Could be why there are none others like me. After all, a copy of a copy is a pretty dreadful thing. Oh well." With that, she bowed, sweeping the hat from her head. As the blue ball on the end bobbled, she stuck her hand in, pulling out an antique instrument. "Merlin Prismriver, trumpeter of phantoms, and way too many fancy titles that have no practical use."
I couldn't help but to snort at that. "Well, I suppose it's nice to meet you… Merlin. But what is the purpose of you coming here? You mentioned some help."
"I did?" She blinked, before nodding to herself. "Yes, I did! Thank you for reminding me. You say you're searching for a way to spread the word about some moon thing, yes?"
"That might be one way to put it, yes."
"Then I can help you!" Glancing back and forth she leaned in, using a stage whisper to speak to us. "I have powers over the humans, you see. I can convince any of them to do whatever I say…"
I gulped for a moment, stepping back. "Really now…" That left quite a few questions unanswered. "Then, why are you not using it on us?"
She tilted her head, peering at me. "Why would I? You seem like a good person. But you're right. Even good people are bad. I should just use it on you and get it over with."
Tokiko immediately spoke up, wings flaring out. "No, you won't. Not if I've anything to say."
The poltergeist spun her head around towards Tokiko. And then, she spun it all the way around like an owl, and faced me. "Oh, I'm sorry. I had a few screws loose. I just put one of them back in." She grinned even wider. "But I won't use my powers on you. Such a pity, too. You would have enjoyed it so…"
At that, Tokiko growled and summoned some of her magic, making a few lasers lazily spin around her in preparation to attack. Merlin just looked at her and laughed. "Oh, I can do that too! Let's see who's are bigger." At that, she summed her own bright, curving lasers, spinning them around her own body before sending them towards Tokiko.
She tensed up as they got near, but they stopped before reaching her. The lasers attempted to lie alongside hers, but barely were able to keep up as Tokiko's twisted. Eventually, Merlin shrugged and had them dissipate. "Oh poo. You're not playing along…"
Spotting the murderous look on my friend's face, I decided to intervene before she decided to test her magic on the poltergeist. "Alright. Say that we did agree to have you help us…" At that, Tokiko gripped my hand firmly, causing me to wince. "What is this cost that we'll have to pay, if you we want you to help us?"
The poltergeist spun again, before stroking her chin. "Oh, I don't know… Whatever I feel like. I'll have all night to think, after all."
Well, that was a pleasant thought. Glancing at the others, I asked, "So, what do you think we should do?"
Sister merely shrugged at me. "Don't care. But additional assistance could be useful… if she is being truthful, that is." Equivocating and not caring. She didn't think we absolutely needed her, but she still had our doubts as to our current objective.
Nitori seemed to be thinking somewhat similarly. "Never been to see them myself. So I can't truthfully tell you. But you saw their reaction earlier. So it's either that, or we show what we truly are. And there's not telling how that will go over."
Before I could even turn to Tokiko, she growled. "Don't need them. Annoying little bitch."
And again, before I could respond, Merlin glanced around, expression in shock. "There's a wolf tengu? Here? Oh, drat, I must have been spotted!" However, she turned into herself, as if her front had folded in, and came out the back. A rather disturbing sight, if I would every say. "Oh, just kidding. But you should lighten up. After all, your human here is going to die…"
Die? Alright, now where was death getting into this equation? And as my inner monologue decided to voice itself, Tokiko covered for me again, voice colder than ice. "What do you mean by that, spirit? Planning to off Gray yourself?"
She tilted her head to the side, contemplating. "I hadn't considered that. I don't remember humans having an off switch though." However, whatever thoughtful expression she wore was overridden by her grin. "And besides, everyone dies at some point or the other! Can't help but to accept it."
There's some things you don't see every day. And fatalistic ghosts are one of them. "That's indeed good to know. But enough. We need to sleep. As for your deal, I suppose we'll accept. As long as it's nothing harmful."
She faded out of sight, not saying a word. However, behind me, I heard whispers pass by my ear, as she leaned against me.
How a spirit, or ghost, or whatever had weight was beyond me, but she did have it.
"Well, it will be nothing permanent. Just think of it as a learning experiment…" At that, she disappeared again, this time not reappearing. But as she did, the light returned once more to the room, revealing four beds around a large fireplace. Over the cracking of her voice, I heard her sing out, "Sleep well. We'll have so much fun tomorrow."
Snorting at the voice, Tokiko marched over to one of the beds, dragging me over in the process. Apparently, she had forgotten that she had my hand locked in a death grip. Eying it warily, she sat down on it, seeming to expect the ghost to pop up any second. As she had no apparent intention of letting me go at the moment, I cleared my throat. "Tokiko, could you please-"
Before I could get any further, she whipped around. "I do not like her one little bit! So if this is some plea for me to get along, forget about it! And you should stay away from her! The poltergeists like her are… are…" She sputtered, and looked up. "They're not alive! So don't let them trick you with their words."
Somewhat at a loss as to her sudden outburst, I glanced over at Joy. She did not say a word, only having a small grin on her face. Nitori was no better, either. So, not having support, I turned back towards Tokiko. "Umm, Tokiko, I wasn't about to say that. I just was wondering if you were going to let go."
She glanced odd at me, before turning her multicolored head down. Spotting my hand still locked in hers, she yelped and let go, headwing covering her face as she blushed. "Sorry. I forgot. That girl just…" She sighed and leaned back. "I don't like her. Nor do I trust her. There's just something wrong with her."
As sympathetic as I could be, she was right. That girl had gone out of the way to make the conversation as awkward as possible, seemingly for her own amusement. "I won't disagree. But as much as we may dislike it, we need to work with her. Perhaps we can get this done, and get on with things. And besides, the faster that we're gone, the faster we can be rid of her."
That thought alone brought a smile to the ibis' face. "True. I suppose that might be a good idea." Turning her head to me as the wing let it out from hiding, she fixed me with a stare. "Just don't trust the spirit with anything, especially anything important, alright?" She sighed. "I don't want anything bad happening to you."
I patted her head, before muttering my agreement. "I don't want anything to happen to you, either. But let's just get to sleep. This will be over and done with before you know it."
Nodding, she closed her eyes. "Night then, Gray."
"Good night, Tokiko." With that, I leaned away, turning to the others. Nitori had already claimed her own bed, while sister seemed to be planning to. First, though, she turned towards me, giving me a strict look. Without saying anything, she found her own bed, and slipped in.
Sighing, I climbed in the last remaining one, and sank in. I couldn't help but to smile as I closed my eyes. It had been so long since I had my own bed to sleep in. Even if it was just for the night, I could at least thank the monster for that. Although, she could just be using this to butter us up. That did seem like something she would do.
I could be as suspicious as I wanted to be, but it wouldn't matter. We just had to get through all of this as well as we could. I just hope that the spirit is honest enough to take at her word.
I woke up to a blinding light shining through the windows of the building. Shielding my eyes from the intense energy, I struggled to my feet. Slipping my shoes on, I trudged over to the door, barely glancing at the other empty beds. Thinking that they must have headed downstairs, I found the staircase down, and pulled it open.
Only to find empty sky waiting.
I nearly yelled as I pulled my foot back, as it automatically attempted to step through the door. Hearing a giggle, I glanced around, trying to find the source. And sitting in a chair where the others had been lying in their beds was Merlin.
Crossing her legs, she leaned back and looked at me. "Oh, you do know to watch that first step. I do have to remind myself to get it fixed some time. It's a bit of a doozy."
Snorting, I shook my head. "What are you trying to do here? Are you trying to kill me? For that matter…" I glanced about where everyone had just been. "What did you do with everyone else? Much less the amazing disappearing building."
Apparently, my words amused her as she tittered in her seat. "Oh, don't worry about them. They're sleeping nice and sound in their beds. As for the building, I did nothing to it at all. But I do like your announcement. We'll make a carnie out of you yet!"
Needles to say, I had no desire to become a carnie at all. But I don't believe that the spirit would have cared about that. "What do you mean, they're not fine? They weren't even in their beds when I woke up!"
"Oh, about that… She grinned at me, as she lifted a cup to her lips. A cup that had remarkably appeared from nowhere. "You're not awake."
"Really now? So what does that this make this?" I waved my hand about at the entire room. "A dream I'm having? Considering that you're a ghost, it might be better to say that it's a nightmare."
She snorted into her drink, sending a brown liquid flying everywhere. "It's hardly a nightmare. If it were, you'd be seeing a maid or a demon, not me." Tipping back the drink again, she tutted at me. "And besides, I'm not a ghost. I thought I explained that earlier."
I sighed and shook my head. "No, you just said that you weren't a ghost. Instead you're… a more specific type of ghost, I take it?"
Rolling her eyes, she shot me a wide smirk. "And here I thought someone that was with two youkai would know this. Pity. Good thing that Professor Merlin is here to fix the problem!" Taking a sip, she continued to speak, her belie of a relaxed demeanor only served to show how odd her speech was. "Poltergeists are a type of spirit, yes. But ghosts are spirits of the departed. If someone dies, and their spirit remains on the Earth, then they become ghosts."
I nodded in spite of myself, before trying to counter with a little bit of sarcasm. "So, what do they do? Go around rattling chains and moaning?"
"Nope! Those are oni in heat!" Alright, creatures that can lift up mountains can apparently go into heat. Just lovely. "But poltergeists are different. See, we were never created alive. We are just the copy of some other soul, artificially created to serve a single purpose." As she spoke, I could swear I saw a glimpse of a frown cross her face.
It was quickly erased, though. "That's the big difference, though! We were never alive. You might say we're robots in one of those old robot movies that the humans like to make all the time." She paused for a second, before posing in her chair. "But I'd like to think I'm much better looking, yes?"
Ignoring the posturing, I said, "I wouldn't know what you mean. Never seen a movie." Looking away, I asked, "So, does that mean you're not alive?"
She laughed daintily. "Of course I'm alive! After all, I'm not dead, as I've never died." She paused for a second, tilting her head. "I'm sure that I've died a little on the inside. My sisters have tried to do that to me a few times, but they weren't able to do it very efficiently. After all, everyone dies eventually. So, why should I care about dying on the inside?"
I tried to work that statement around in my head. After staying quiet for a few seconds, I realized that my head would break, so I stopped trying to. "So, why did you bring me here then? At least, instead of letting me sleep in peace."
"Oh, I don't know… I felt like it. I thought I'd just have a nice conversation. Perhaps we could share some tea?"
"…Tea?" Now, why would someone drag someone else all the way into the other person's mind for tea? "Sure, I don't mind… Unless you've done something to it."
She laughed at me once again. I couldn't help but scowl as I detected a consistent theme to her responses. "What could I do to tea in your mind that could harm you? I suppose I could poison it… And send your dream bodies into seizures until you wake up." She clapped her hands. "That sounds like it could be fun!"
As she did as much, a cup appeared in my hands. I winced at it, holding it from my body. "Err, I'll pass if you're going to do that. I'd like to avoid any seizing. Even if it's just in my dreams."
Rolling her eyes, she waved me on. "Go ahead, it's not harmful. I'd hate to ruin my conversational partner, after all." Still, she fixed me with a rather intent stare as she watch.
Something told me I might not enjoy it if I didn't drink. So, reluctantly, I lifted the drink to my mouth and took a sip. Before gagging on it. It was so sweet. How could anyone drink something like this? It wasn't as thick as honey, but it was so pure… Wait a second. "Is this… sugar?"
The expression her face brightened. "Of course! What else would one use in their tea?"
"I wouldn't know, but I don't know how anyone could drink that…" I eagerly set the cup on a nearby table, wanting it to get away from me. As I did, she pouted at me. Fixing her with a gimlet eye, I asked, "What's your problem?"
She merely shifted into her grin once more. "Oh, nothing, nothing at all! I just thought that one of my neighbors would have enjoyed something like that." Right, neighbors. I wouldn't quite call us that. After all, we were only taking advantage of her hospitality for the one night, and we would hopefully be moving on. In the midst of my thoughts, she asked an innocent question. "Oh, and by the way, what's that beside you? Can't quite see."
Not wanting to look, as I didn't trust her motives, I still did eventually turn my head, freezing in shock. I found a sparrow looking straight at me, and licking her lips. I immediately went for my weapon for the umpteenth time, but as it was, nothing was there. Before I could begin to panic, the sparrow's body fell from her, leaving a severed head floating in the air.
As I began to calm down, I glared back at Merlin. "That was your fault. What kind of game are you trying to play here?"
Shrugging, she took another drink. "No game this time. I'm just putting on a performance. And a performer always must do her best, even if the scheduling is somewhat random." Tilting her head sideways, she shot me another grin. But as this one began to grow, it kept on growing and growing until it split her face in two. "After all, you do wonder how good of use I can be. And while my power is greater here in the tower that I haunt… I still have enough to trick the human mind."
I inched my eyes back to where the sparrow had been, only to find nothing. "So… You can create illusions, or something? Making him become afraid of us? Or make him want to write anything we tell him?"
"Something to that effect." Raising her hands to her head, she pulled the grin back to a more normal level. "Oh, but I use not illusions. That is the specialty of my sister. I just make… suggestions. The human mind is so vulnerable to them." She crossed her legs, and stared at me once more. "Just a few nice words and the right emotional mindset, and I can make you believe anything you want."
"What do you mean by-"
Suddenly, she shot to her feet, glass of tea-stuff flying everywhere. "Oho! Nope, we shan't be going there. But, little human, our time here is done. I'll be seeing you in the outside world soon enough."
From behind me, she reached around, pulling me tight against her. I did my best to struggle, but for whatever reason I wasn't strong enough. "Oh, but don't worry, I will be seeing you soon enough. After all, I'm not alive… I don't need to eat, drink, sleep…" Trailing her finger along my chest, she whispered into my ear."
"I'll be watching you when you sleep."
With that, she laughed a high-pitched cackle, acting like someone who was certifiably insane. And with a flick of her wrists, I was propelled out of the chair and into a black void as I fell from consciousness.
Shooting up in bed, I clutched the covers to me, glancing around from side to side. This time, the others still remained sleeping happily in their beds. I seemed to have woken first, the sun not even peeking inside of any of the windows. Still, I felt… unclean. After such expire with the poltergeist… I needed to wash myself. Just what was she planning?
So, as quickly as I could, I snuck downstairs and onto the train. Knowing that poltergeist, she probably would have provided a shower, but only if she could watch us while we used it. Not that there was much to prevent her from doing the same with those on the train, but I felt a bit better about doing it there.
Fortunately, I had no more apparitions that came to bother me, which was very fortunate. I almost expected her to come down and turn the water into blood, but such a thing would be ridiculous. After thinking over what happened last night, what with the room… Perhaps it wasn't that ridiculous.
Making sure that I grabbed my gun once I had finished and dressed myself, I made my way back up to the top. Even if there was no real purpose to having a gun against something like that, its presence made me feel a little bit safer.
Reaching the top floor, I noticed that my bed had changed into a chair, which made me narrow my eyes in concern. I did my best to glance around and find the spirit, but I had no such luck, other than a faint giggle that echoed across the room every time I turned my head. Grumbling under my breath, I decided to just settle into the chair and wait for everyone to get ready.
It took quite a while for the rest of them to wake up, but they seemed to have had a much more enjoyable night than myself. I don't know whether to be flattered or concerned that a poltergeist found me interesting enough to visit in my sleep. Still, annoyed as I was, I managed to give a smile to each of them as they woke up, and shook off all of their concerns.
They each took their time in preparing, taking advantage of the luxury that is bathing. Even from this many stories up, I could still hear Tokiko yelling at Nitori to stop making the water hot while she was trying to take her own. I didn't know exactly what happened, until the ibis came up to me, feathers frazzled.
Looking about the room as she muttered under her breath, she eventually found me and walked over. Setting herself on the chair of the arm, she began to complain. "Stupid kappa. Always trying to fix something…"
Unable to help it, I chuckled. This was the first amusing thing I had seen all morning, even if it was to Tokiko's detriment. It goes without saying that the moment I did laugh, she turned around and fixed me with a harsh glare. She seemed to want to thwack me with a wing, but was simply unable to. "Oh, do shut up."
Still grinning, I asked, "What did she do?"
Tokiko shook her head, spreading her wings out. "Oh, she had the brilliant idea to turn the hot water on today. Said that the only reason they didn't have it was because the steam lines hadn't been hooked up. So, she fired up the engine to take her a hot bath." As she spoke, her expression grew flat. "Just as I was having a nice, cold one."
Now, where had I heard a phrase like that before? It niggled on the back of my mind, but I could not for the life of me think of it. "So, you were splashing around and having you a nice bath, when she turned the hot water on and…"
She grumbled, looking down. "It came out of the showered. It wasn't that hot, but it screwed up all of my feathers." Looking at the wings, it did seem to be the case that many were askew. In a few places, I could even see straight through the wing. "Have to spend forever getting them back in place."
"Welcoming any distraction from earlier, I raised a hand and moved on of the feathers back in line with the others. "I'll help. It's no big deal… And we're just waiting on everyone else, anyways."
The moment I touched her wing, she seemed to clam up, her headwing hiding her eyes from sight. But eventually, she peeked out as her face turned red. "I- If you want to…"
I just shrugged, before starting to help her clean up her feathers. Or, I suppose this would be preening, wouldn't it? Just doesn't sound like the right word, at least for this. She wasn't attempting to primp herself or anything similar, but just to fix her wings back to where they were normal.
As I worked, I did feel a small, soft grin come over my face. Compared to what we'd been trying to do here, not to mention the inclusion of the poltergeist, this was simply relaxing. And, from the look on Tokiko's face as she tended to her other wing, she seemed to agree after losing her blush.
Being a bird herself, though, she was able to finish much faster than I. But after attending to the few loose ones on her head, she didn't pull away from me, instead letting me finish the job. Supposing that she simply wanted me to continue as long as I was offering to do it, so to speak, I finished the rest of the feathers. Now that they were back in their positions, she fluttered her wings again before folding them back into place.
Turning to face me, she gave me an odd smile. Blush growing, she whispered thanks while patting my hand, while turning away and pointedly not looking at me. Whatever had embarrassed her I'm not quite sure, but she never let anyone touch her wings, ever. I blushed as I realized that by letting me, she really must trust me as a friend.
We spent the rest of the time waiting in silence, but before too long, the other two, returned. Nitori glanced at Tokiko before giving a sheepish grin and shrugging, taking her own seat. Meanwhile, Joy did the same, but not before giving the two of us another look. The four of us just sat there in quiet, not really having anything to say until the poltergeist showed up. Which, eventually, she did.
In the fourth, unoccupied chair, two eyes and a wide grin shone out in the dim morning light. "Well well, I didn't expect to be waited on so readily. Most people who decide to spend the night usually run out screaming, if they run out at all…" Tokiko growled quietly as she spoke, but stopped when I tapped her on the back. We didn't need that now.
None of us were willing to play her game though, so the poltergeist was left pouting. "Oh, poo, ya'll are no fun. Perhaps I shouldn't bother trying to help you…"
I snorted at the suggestion. "No. We endured the night, so I want to go ahead and hear you out. If you're able to help us, that is."
Those words probably weren't so wise, as that caused the spirit to focus onto me. "Oh, you endured the night, yes. But it was only a trial to you. The others had a nice, peaceful sleep." The others just glanced at me confusedly, wondering what we were talking about. "Oh, you didn't tell them? Pity. Perhaps I'll need to visit them in their dreams too, show them what I can do."
Apparently satisfied with antagonizing us, she turned to me once more. "But that's a story that you need to tell them. I shan't ruin the surprise. Oh, how I do love surprises…" After another giggle, she suddenly turned towards sister. "So, tell me, how many have you not sent entreaties to?"
She shrugged, quickly dismissing all of her earlier innuendos. "Not many. We've a few left we prepared to see today, but we saved the biggest ones for last. I felt that if the local printers didn't believe us, neither would the larger ones."
Merlin clapped her hands. "That sounds wonderful. After all, bigger is always better, in many ways. It's also more filling!" That was enough to make Nitori wince, but the poltergeist ignored her. "So, did you plan to waltz up there, tell them your story, and then leave?"
Before we could answer in the affirmative, she leapt to her feet. "That is simply unacceptable! Everyone knows that the tango is far superior to the waltz. After all, if you tango, you are bound to get noticed! And you do not simply recite your story to them!" Posing in a position that was quite impossible for a human body to imitate, she elaborated. "Instead, you have to use interpretive dance while someone recites over you in a drone!"
Groaning, I covered my face with a hand. "What has that got to do with anything? We are not going to be doing something like that."
"Oh, I was just suggesting." Shooting everyone a grin, she continued. "But I can make them listen to you, and they'll type whatever you tell them."
Sister crossed her arms, still not quite on board with the program. "You tell us that, but just how are you going to do such a thing? Unless you can literally force him, or have some power to make them open to suggestion."
With the flair for drama that was quickly becoming her shtick, Merlin pulled her head off of her body, turning it about so that she could stare it down with the stump of her neck. "Did I not just say that?" Pausing for a moment, her headless body did its best approximation of nodding. "I thought so!" Placing the head back on, she grinned at all of us. "You'll see what exactly I can do soon enough. But in order to do it, I need something from one of you.
Recovering from the cringe-inducing sight moments before, I glanced from Tokiko to Nitori, and finally to Joy. Not seeing anything that made me yell out no, I said, "Just what is it that you need from us?"
Buffing her nails on her chest, she shot me another creepy grin. "Simple. I need a body for the more personal work."
It took a moment for it to sink into my gut. By then, sister had already shot out her own reply. "What? You need us to loan one of our bodies so that you can inhabit them, and…" She trailed off, as we both knew what the spirit was implying.
The poltergeist floated in the air towards us. "But of course! After all, I'm just a ghost. I can't interact with anything, now can I?"
Alright, I was calling her out on this one. "Yes, you can. You've done it well enough. And these things you've created are solid enough, so what's there to prevent you from doing it yourself?"
Giggling, she raised a hand to her mouth, as if she had been caught dipping it in the cookie jar. "Oh well. You've got me there! But still, that is my price for helping you. I'd like to take someone out for a joyride…" The wink she threw at me after that statement certainly didn't help her case. But if she was trying to tick off the little birdie again, she was doing a wonderful job.
As she floated about in the air, she also added to what she was in the air. "And if you don't pay the price, it's no skin off me. And then, the rest of your story won't be able to continue…" Annoying one, isn't she?
Still, as long as she didn't do anything too crazy. And it wasn't as if we wouldn't be there to watch over her actions. So, I slowly nodded. "Very well. I suppose that would be fine with me."
Ever-present grin on her face, she spun towards me. "As you wish! Let's get this show on the road!" And with that, she dove in my direction, phasing through Tokiko.
She stopped when a flash of silver appeared by my face, and in front of Merlin's as well. The poltergeist looked up, and back into the face of my sister, standing there impassively. "You will not be taking his. I guarantee you that."
The spirit tilted her head to the side, studying sister. "And you decide to hold up a poltergeist with a knife to guarantee it?" Instead of looking bemused, her face split into a grin. "Wonderful! I hadn't met a human like you since sister had a run in with the dog of the devil. Poor girl had her strings cut from her violin."
Still, her grin didn't fade. "I have to take a human though. So if it isn't going to be the ibis'… I'll simply use the other!" With that, she leapt through my body, and into sister.
Joy gave no resistance as the spirit entered her body, nothing happening for the first few seconds. However, she eventually doubled over, shivering as something seemed to crawl underneath her skin. My first instinct was to leap towards her and help, but she held up her hand the moment I stood up. Eventually, it stopped, and she looked up at me.
The grinning face of a madwoman met me, though.
"Oh, that wasn't so bad. I haven't had the chance to take a meatbag for a spin in ages." With that statement, sounding so odd in my sister's voice, she seemed to examine herself. Shielding my eyes as she poked around her chest, she muttered, "'Bit small… It'll do." Eventually, she noticed we were all standing there, mouths nearly agape.
"Don't be such a bunch of spoilsports! Let's go and do this! I can't wait to have some fun…"
Sharing a glance with Tokiko, I just had to wonder what could possibly happen next.
A/N Well, back again, this time with a shorter one. And a bit of surprise for those of you that were expecting Mystia. While that would have been appropriate, it didn't fit with the theme for these next few chapters. Don't you worry, we'll see that night sparrow sooner or later.
As for Merlin, she's been planned from the start. The only one I wasn't sure about was the last one, and I decided that by chapter three. Technically, the way I decided it was by elemental types from the games, too. So, even if I hadn't, there would have been one here. And if it weren't Merlin, it would probably have been Parsee. But that would have been too easy… Plus, think about Nitori's reaction, considering their history.
Frankly, Merlin is supposed to fulfill that role of the crazy person that we didn't have yet. What with everyone being serious, I wanted to have someone a bit lighter. But there's a method to her madness. Not to mention that it gives someone that can be a dedicated antagonist within the team, who can screw around with everyone just because she can.
They've had eleven chapters of relative peace in the actual team. It's about time I played around with that.
But I digress. I'll not cover anything else, as that will be (probably) be addressed next chapter. If there are any questions, though, please feel free to ask! Anywho, please read and review as always, and until next time!
