To Meet Again

Part 26:
Skeptic

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Knote: Gahah. Sorry 'bout all the name dropping. ^^: That's about the last of 'em though. Only three left. Minor characters though. ^_~. Josh had a long chapter didn't he. ^^: Any complaints? *crickets chirp* Didn't think so. ^_^.

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            "Tomorrow is another day," Vivian Leigh said as she lay, sprawled dramatically on the steps of the huge mansion. As the credits started to roll, Duncan yawned. They had messed around until Miaka had fallen asleep, then decided to watch a movie. A replay of 'Gone With the Wind' had been the only decent thing on at two in the morning.

            "You know, that's not a bad movie," Taka said. He looked about half-awake, with Miaka snuggled on one side of him and Hikari on the other.

            "Yes. For a movie predominately about romance, it had a strikingly accurate portrayal of the Civil War. But the rifles they were using were obviously reproductions because-"

            "Oh hush," Nick interrupted, tapping him lightly in the arm. "You take all the fun out of it mon cher. You really need to sit back and just enjoy the magic of it without picking it apart."

            Duncan rolled his eyes but didn't comment. Magic. He hated that word. Magic was just a form of escapism. If people concentrated more on what was real instead of having their heads in the clouds, the world would be a much better place.

            "You don't believe in magic… do you?" Taka asked. Duncan blinked; surprised his thoughts had shown so easily on his face. Perhaps it was just fatigue setting in.   In answer to Taka's question, Duncan shook his head.

            "It's just superstition. Myth. Folklore. Something used in olden times to keep the people from realizing how miserable they were."

            "It's strange that something that doesn't exist lasted for a long time, no?" Nick said. Duncan looked over at him. He was lying down, arms crossed behind his head and eyes closed. The fact that he had spoken was the only sign that he was awake. As if sensing he was being scrutinized, Nick opened one eye and a smile twitched at the corner of his lip.          "Did I finally make the young Duncan speechless?"

            "Hardly. It has simply lasted a long time because it was a coping mechanism. People had to find a way to explain things they didn't understand."

            "Isn't science the same thing?" Taka asked. Duncan turned his attention back to the Japanese man.

            "No. In science you gather data and perform tests and observations in order to explain things. It's logical. Science can also help us better our futures…while magic is just a fairy tale."

"So one day we'll all be riding in floating cars?" Nick said. "That's such a ridiculous thought."
"Not at all!" Duncan said, shaking his head emphatically. "Anything is possible."
"Anything?" Nick asked. The question was a simple one but in it Duncan saw his fate.

"Even magic?" Taka's words sped through the air like an arrow and shattered Duncan's argument to pieces around his feet. The twenty-year-old closed his eyes. Oof. He'd walked into that one. His mind was definitely not at normal operating capacity.

"But…magic is so…juvenile," he tried desperately. Nick patted him on the back.

"Then call it science if you like. Someday you are going to learn mon cher that magic and science are one in the same. The only difference is the name."
            "Cupcakes," Miaka whispered. It was so random that Duncan had to laugh. He shook his head and stood, stretching his hands up to the ceiling. Oof. It had been a long night, albeit an enjoyable one. A digitalized version of "Time Warp" rang through the air.

"I think that's you mon cher," Nick said. It took a moment for Duncan to realize that Nick was talking to him, and another minute to realize what he was talking about. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and flicked it open.

"Hello?"

"I…I'm o…o…on m…my w…way D…D…D…. I'm c…coming," Calvin said. Duncan frowned. He sounded really stressed. Had something happened?
            "Something wrong Calvin?" he asked. There was a long silence.

"N…no. S…see y…ya." There was a click. Duncan shook his head as he wiped the fingerprints of the phone. Something was definitely wrong. Something had put Calvin under a lot of pressure.

"Chiriko? Daijoubu ka?" Taka asked. Duncan blinked. Then his mind translated.

"Oh…oh yeah, just a friend having some issues," Duncan said, with a little sweatdrop. Calvin didn't like other people knowing about his problems. "Anyway, I'll probably be leaving soon."

The sight of Miaka's sleeping face caught his eye. He smiled and knelt beside her almost without knowing it. It was so wonderful to be finally seeing her again. It was so wonderful to see her happy, even in sleep. He stroked her cheek gently and watched her smile. Miaka…

"Enjoying yourself?" Nick asked. Suddenly Duncan realized that he was touching a married woman in a loving way with her husband right beside her. Heat flooded his face. Duncan sweatdropped and shot to his feet, laughing nervously. Taka though, didn't seem to be concerned at all. In fact, he was smiling.

"Umm…I'm really sorry about that Taka. It's late and I…"
            "It's okay."

Duncan sat on the bed beside Nick and stared at the carpet. He didn't realize his eyes were closed until someone touched his shoulder lightly. He jerked awake, blinking rapidly.

"I think your friend is at the door," Nick said.  Duncan half walked, half stumbled to the door. The sight of Calvin woke him up.  His friend was pale and his hands shook like he was in the middle of an earthquake. Duncan turned his head a little as someone came up behind him.

"I'd like to meet your frie-" Taka started. Suddenly Duncan found himself being jerked back into the room. Taka stepped in front of him and clenched both hands into fists.

"I don't know what you want but you had better get the hell out of here Miboshi!" Taka shouted.

"Wh…wh…what th…the h…hell?!" Calvin squeaked. Duncan grabbed Taka's shoulder and turned him around.

            "What are you doing?!" Duncan snapped, without meaning to. He softened his tone a little. "That's Calvin. My friend."

            "No. He's not your friend. He may look like it, but his eyes are different. He's really Miboshi…one of the Seiryuu seishi. In the past…he…killed you."

            Duncan was suddenly mad. Unreasonably so, a deep corner of his mind knew. But at the moment, he didn't care.

            "Look, I am sick and tired of this reincarnation nonsense! It's bad enough when you keep spouting it around me, but when you start in on my friends, that's entirely different!"

            "Chiriko…" Taka looked hurt. Duncan pushed past him and helped Calvin to his feet.

            "Sorry about that," he told his friend.

            "W…what t…the he…hell is h…his p…problem?" Calvin said as they got into the car.  Duncan shook his head.

            "I don't know. I honestly don't… It's been a long night," Duncan said, turning the key in the ignition. As he backed out of the parking space he realized his hands were trembling as well. He was still pretty angry. It was just…he hated when people talked about magic. It was like they couldn't deal with reality. Everything had to be 'magic' or 'fate' or a 'miracles.'  Why couldn't people just accept that life was a bunch of random incidents thrown together? Why couldn't people understand that when life was over, it was over. There was no heaven where angels played harps all day. No returning into another body. Dead people staid dead. It was a fact of life.

            Duncan took a side long glance at his friend and saw Calvin trying to light a cigarette. His hand was shaking so badly that the only thing that would end up burning was himself. Duncan gently took the lighter away. Calvin shot him a glare but didn't protest.

            "What's wrong Calvin?" he asked. For a long moment, his room mate said nothing, then he ran a hand through his all ready tousled hair.

            "I…it's just b…been a hell of a n…night.  F…first my brother, then that t…telepath or whatever the h…hell he was…. Th…then… that g…girl."
            "What girl?"

            "H…her name was Y…Yui s…something."
            "Well if you think she's pretty you should ask her out," Duncan said, smiling a little. It would be nice to see his friend socializing with the outside world. Calvin's answer was completely unexpected.

            "No!" he shouted.

            "Oh comon'. You're a nice guy. Besides, there's no harm in asking."
            "That's n…not what I'm s…saying!  T…there was s…something a…about her. When s…she looked at m…me…" he trailed off and shook his head. "I…it was like every n…nightmare I've e…ever had was real. I c…can't explain it," he said softly. Duncan frowned. This didn't sound normal at all.

            "Have you been taking your medication?"

            "D…dammit Duncan! I h…have diabetes! I'm n…not schizophrenic!"

            "Well, perhaps low blood sugar combined with the fatigue of staying up all night is causing a chemical imbalance in your brain which is producing these…illusions," Duncan said. It started to snow lightly. He flicked on the windshield wipers. He hoped the roads wouldn't get too bad. He wanted to get back to the dorm and go to bed.

            "Y…you t…talk like a d…damned b…book," Calvin said after a while. "I…it wasn't fatigue. I know w…what I f…felt."           

            "Well, feelings are pretty unstable things. Maybe you just thought you were feeling something. I keep telling you that reading all those fantasy novels isn't healthy. You should try reading something serious once in a while."
            "Just s…shut the h…hell up, Duncan. Y…you are such a d…damned snob."

            Duncan slammed on the breaks so hard that the car started to skid on the slick road. He quickly got the car back under control. Once it had come to a complete stop, he put into park and faced his friend. Calvin was leaning back, eyes wide, hands clutching at the seat.

            "S…shit! W…what the h…hell did you d…do t…that f…for?!"  Calvin squeaked.

            "I am not a snob okay? I grew up so poor we could barely afford school supplies. I know what snobs are. I would never treat people the way they do," he said. Calvin chuckled without humor and shook his head.

            "L…like hell you don't. 'You s…should read s…serious books, C…Calvin.' 'You d…don't know what y…you're talking about, C…Calvin.'  'I…I'm a (&)%ing g…genius and y…you're a m…moron, s…so obviously I know b…best.'"

            "I never said that!"

            "You d…didn't have too. Your n…nose is so h…high up in the a…air you c…can't even see your f…feet."

            "You don't know what you're talking about," Duncan said, jerking the car out of park and starting down the road. He was not a snob! He just pointed things out to people they couldn't see for themselves! Calvin was just mad because Duncan was right and they both knew it. There was a sigh of disgust beside him. Duncan chose to ignore it.

            "Y…you know…at f…first I felt s…sorry for me. But n…now I s…see you're m…more pathetic."
            "And what makes you say that?" Duncan said, surprising himself at the patronizing sarcasm that had crept into his voice. Well… It was late. He normally wouldn't act like this. But it was late.

            "Y…you don't believe in anything, d…do you?"

            "That's because there's nothing to believe in. I've grown out of make-believe…and you should too."

            "I only w…wish I c…could."