A Month of Sundays

13: 19-20-1-25/1-23-8-9-12-5/19-20-1-25/6-15-18-5-22-5-18

"The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and beravement, who can tolerate not knowing...not healing, not curing...that is a friend who cares."

-Henri Nouwen

April 28th, 2012

4:25 PM (Abare Heaven Café)

"Look at those two!"

"Are they dressing up for some sort of publicity stunt?"

"Their costumes are so accurate—all the way down to the girl's head scarf tied around the dragon's neck and the necklaces of rings around the girl's neck."

Yayoi blushed as she saw the other patrons of the café whispering and taking photos of her and WizarDragon waiting for their order. WizarDragon paid no heed to the gossip as he stared at Yayoi, looking somewhat bored.

"The way your eyes are moving make me feel like you're a lizard I'd eat, rather than these 'croquettes' you keep talking about," he muttered, drumming his clawed hands on the table. "What's going on?"

"Well," Yayoi began, placing a foot at the edge of her seat. She wrapped her hands around it as she added, "I've never really had a date with a boy that I had feelings for, and now we're also being watched by so many people."

"Do their opinions matter to you that much?"

"W...well, the fact that you're a Phantom possessing the boy I like is..." Yayoi shook her head in embarrassment. "It's complicated."

"You have feelings for my host. It's as simple as that."

"No, it's not!" Yayoi yelled, slamming her hands on the table. She stopped as she saw everyone looking at her weirdly. "I mean...you don't understand what it's like for me. I mean...I could've lost him forever. I let him die..." She felt tears fill her eyes again, but quickly wiped them before they could fall. "I don't know if something like you would understand my feelings, but how would you like it when someone so important to you was dying and that no matter how hard you try, you couldn't do anything about it?"

"Have you forgotten that the same person that you couldn't save is the one thing that's keeping me alive in the first place?!" WizarDragon roared, standing up. He stared into Yayoi's eyes and snarled, "We both need Haruto Souma in order to feel stable, so I suggest we keep ourselves in a truce or the time being. His soul still needs to recover after nearly being devoured by the Voodoo King, after all. The only reason I'm even going with you on this pathetic 'date' is because the only way that Haruto can receive mana is through food and sleep."

"Duly noted," Yayoi replied, nodding her head. She sighed as she took the melon soda in her hands and drank it, carefully watching as WizarDragon also sat down, crossing a leg over another and folding his arms over his chest. The other patrons began to clap for the two, somehow convinced that this was nothing more than some sort of performance.

"Brava! Brava, nya!"

Yayoi turned around as someone dressed in a Cat cosplay with a bright yellow wig rushed to her side, her eyes shining bright. WizarDragon tilted his head in confusion, unsure of what to make of the strange girl that rushed to them.

"That was such a magnificent performance, nya!" The girl continued. "You definitely should audition for a character in Gypsy Dragon, nya!"

"G...Gypsy Dragon?" Yayoi stuttered. "What's that? And who are you?"

"Silly me, nya!" The girl lightly tapped the side of her head. "My name is Yumeria Moegi. Here's my card." She rummaged through the white purse dangling over her shoulder and pulled out a business card. It depicted Yumeria with her name written in bright yellow kanji. "And Gypsy Dragon is a fantasy show for kids regarding the main character Kasumi and her faithful dragon, Quartz! They travel across the kingdom of Alexandrite, helping others while trying to escape the wrath of Lord Pyrite. Quartz even wears Kasumi's handkerchief around his neck as a sign of their friendship and loyalty to one another!"

"W...wow. I had no idea." Yayoi looked back at WizarDragon, who didn't seem like he was interested in what Yumeria was saying. "Is it that good?"

"'Is it that good?' Of course it is!" Yumeria pulled out a small photo album from her purse and handed it to Yayoi. "Here, have a look!"

Yayoi nodded her head as she looked through the album, seeing pictures of the young heroine and her dragon friend sleeping on a hillside, traveling in a large caravan and other scenes depicting some sort of fantasy world. She then looked down at her outfit before staring at Kasumi's own—they looked very similar to one another.

"Excuse me," said a voice. Yayoi turned around, seeing the waiter setting the order of cream crab croquette, croquette sandwiches and a croquette that topped a bowl of cold soba noodles on the table. "Your meal is ready."

"Hmph," WizarDragon huffed, snatching a sandwich and taking a deep bite out of it. "Thanks."

"Can I join you guys for your meal?" asked Yumeria, dragging a chair from an empty table and seating herself down. "Then after that I have to head off to help prepare for a HUGE masquerade party at this place called the Cous Coussier! Nya, it'll also be good to see Jun again!"

"Jun? Wait, would their last name happen to be 'Shigeno'?" asked Yayoi, breaking her chopsticks.

"Yep! We met at a convention a while back, and we keep in touch from time to time. She's inviting me to help prepare costumes for a masquerade and I might be able to get a new job at the restaurant."

"New job?" Yayoi repeated.

"I used to work at a rental company and made outfits for 'special occasions'," Yumeria did her best air quotes with her cat paws. "Unfortunately, I got the pink slip this morning and now I'm being replaced by some newcomer who goes by the name of Pollux. I needed that job to pay for room and board, and the boss wouldn't sympathize with me." She sighed before looking back at Yayoi. "Well, enough sadness from me. We should get ready for a masquerade!"

"Maybe I could invite some people," said Yayoi. "I just need to call someone..." She turned to WizarDragon. WizarDragon swallowed the last of his sandwich and raised an eyebrow at her. There was an awkward silence as Yayoi waited for the Phantom to understand what was going on. After thirty seconds of waiting, she sighed and said, "Can I borrow your cellphone?"

"Ah," WizarDragon rummaged through his pockets and pulled out a cellphone. "Here. Take it."

Yayoi nodded her head and began to go through the call list as Yumeria stared at WizarDragon in delight. She inched a gloved hand toward the spiral horns on his head, only to find WizarDragon narrow his eyes and grab her wrist, pulling her close so they stared eye to eye.

"Touch me and I will burn you at stake," he hissed. "Got it?"

"G...got it, nya," Yumeria stammered, pulling her hand back. She then picked up a fork and began to cut through a cream crab croquette.

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April 28th, 2012

4:32 PM (Narumi Detective Agency – Basement Level)

Ankh snarled, crouching on all fours and moving his head back and forth. Blood continued to drip from his eyesockets, making him look as he was crying. Shotaro took a step forward—while everyone else took a step back—wielding the giant nail in his hand.

"Come on you poor, unfortunate soul!" Shotaro giggled. "Go ahead! Make your choice! Will you continue to crawl around like some ugly, starving animal, or will I have to carve your stomach open and devour your intestines? I think I'll go with the latter! IHIHIHIHI!"

"W...what do we do?" Mari stammered, looking at the Rainbow Serpent. "Do we help Ankh and heal his eyes?"

"This is something out of my expertise," The Rainbow Serpent answered back. "I never got to understand 'irrational' humans very well."

Ankh lunged toward Shotaro, baring his teeth at his predator. Shotaro side-stepped out of the way, causing Ankh to land on top of Shingo by mistake. Shingo pulled out his gun and placed it over Ankh's heart. Pulling the trigger, a loud BANG! echoed across the Detective Agency, as blood began to gush out of Ankh's chest. Still, Ankh did not seem fazed by it—if anything, he became even more aggressive.

"More blood..." Ankh hissed, licking his bloody hands. He then smeared them all over Shingo's face. "More and more blood!"

"Ankh!" Eiji screamed, pushing Ankh out of the way. "You have to stop this! Please!"

Ankh roared and bit Eiji deep into his neck, his sharp fangs piercing deep within the skin. Eiji screamed, trying his best to pull Ankh off of him, but it was no use. Ankh's grip was too strong, like a python constricting a mouse.

"I must consume...consume until my master has been filled with your sweet blood!" Ankh murmured. "Then, he will fill you with his essence and you will become just like me...wouldn't that be so grand?!"

Hina pulled Ankh out of the way, slamming him to the wall. Her hands became covered with his blood as she punched him in the stomach, hoping to knock the wind out of him. Mari went to Eiji's side, pouring blue sparks over the bite mark on his neck.

"We need to subdue him," said Ryu, pulling out the Accel Driver. "Come on, Akiko,"

"Right," said Akiko, pulling out the Lost Driver. "Now we have to-"

Ankh raised his arms into the air, as a storm of feathers clouded Akiko and Ryu's vision. He kicked Hina to the side and licked his lips, tasting his own blood that kept pouring down his face. Shingo wiped the blood off of his shirt in vain, pointing his gun at Ankh once more.

"We want to help you, Ankh," he said. "Listen to us!"

"The time to talk is over," Shotaro interrupted, tackling Ankh. He began to stab Ankh's forehead with the nail in hand as blood spurted everywhere like a geyser. "It's time to stab him until he goes down!"

"But that won't be possible, right Damballa?" asked Mari. "Ankh's a Serpent-bearer, so that means he can't die...or at least, I think that's the case."

"My grandson has never taken a soul before," Damballa answered, shaking his head. "Plus, I am unfamiliar with the type of magic that he used to bond with Ankh. If anything, we need to bring my grandson to fix this mess before it gets out of hand. Keep Ankh busy until my teleportation spell is finished."

"Easier said than done," said Akiko. She and Ryu looked at one another as they placed their Drivers over their waists, being locked into place by a large belt. They then pulled out the Skull and Accel Gaia Memories, pressing a button underneath the stylized letters.

Accel!

Skull!

"Henshin," Husband and wife announced.

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April 28th, 2012

4:35 PM (Cous Coussier)

"Look at all these decorations!" Jun exclaimed, pulling out some streamers made of tinsel out of a cardboard box. "We're going to have an exciting party!"

"That's if we can get all of the prep work done," Abe noted, twirling the knife in his hands. In the kitchen, he was already slicing carrots at a rapid pace, while Taira and Ibuki were reaching for the jar of pepper in the spice rack. "I just hope that friend of yours can understand just what the heck is going on. Most people who'd hear our story would probably declare us insane."

"If they weren't insane to begin with," Taira commented. He laced his hands together to form a step as Ibuki stepped on it. He lifted Ibuki into the air as he added, "Then again, we're all a bit mad in the end."

Rumi lifted the white tablecloth into the air to get rid of wrinkles, watching it flutter over the round table. As the cloth settled down, she noticed Quetzie watching her with curiosity, a hand on his chin. Rumi placed her hands on the tablecloth and leaned forward.

"Are you all right?" she asked, staring at the little Serpent. "Do you want to help me out? Here, you can help me smooth out the tablecloth. Like this." Rumi ran her palm through the cloth. "There, try it out."

"Be careful, Rumi," Miura noted, handing Chiyoko some ribbon. "He might think that we're preparing sacrifices so that the world doesn't burn into a crisp."

"I don't like sacrifices," Quetzie murmured. "I didn't like how they were doing it to please us."

"'Us'?" Teruhiko repeated, carrying a box from the basement along with his father. "Are you talking about the other Aztec Gods?"

"The Aztecs kept sacrificing themselves to us and for a time, I was eating organs every single day." Quetzie answered, sticking his tongue out. "But then I found out about the cacao beans and chocolate..." He licked his lips. "It tasted good..."

"Don't worry, little one," Chiyoko giggled, tying a ribbon around a lantern that hung on the wall. "We won't be serving up offal or anything like that."

"Um, thank...OH!" Quetzie dropped to his knees and placed a hand on his stomach. "G...grandpa...he's calling for me..."

"Quetzie!" Jun exclaimed, rushing to the young Serpent. "What's wrong?"

"Help me Jun nee-san...grandpa's taking me somewhere..." Quetzie's eyes brimmed with tears as his eyes began to glow yellow. "Help me..."

Jun hugged Quetzie tight as the two of them vanished in a circle of light. Miura was about to jump into it, but Chiyoko placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Let them be," she said. "We have our own troubles to worry about here."

Miura slowly nodded his head as he looked a the mark on his wrist. He closed his eyes and silently prayed for his girlfriend's safety.

0-0-0-0-0-

April 28th, 2012

4:37 PM

Ryu Terui/Kamen Rider Accel punched Ankh in the stomach, ignoring the blood that splattered over his helm. Akiko/Kamen Rider Skull kept her Skull Magnum at Ankh's forehead, ready to fire if anything went wrong. Hina wrapped bandages around Eiji's neck while Mari stayed back, trying to determine the next source of action. Shingo grew impatient, watching Ankh lunge toward Accel as if to bite him.

"We have to put him down, now," Shingo growled. Shotaro laughed as he twirled the large nail in his hand.

"I couldn't agree with you more," he said. He spat out a nail as he pushed Accel out of the way. "Now come on...this won't hurt a bit."

A shimmering portal materialized in the room with Jun and Quetzie in it. Jun looked around and flinched at the amount of blood covering Ankh.

"W...what's going on?" she asked. "Is Ankh..."

"Quetzie needs to reverse the spell he placed on Ankh," said Mari. "If he can do that, I can heal him." She turned to the young Serpent and smiled. "You have to do it now though—I don't know how much more damage he can take."

Quetzie looked at Ankh and then stared at his grandfather. Damballa nodded his head and lightly pushed his grandson toward the Greeed. Ankh momentarily paused his struggles and sniffed the air. He licked his lips and smiled, exposing his fangs.

"Master Quetzalcoatl..." he hissed. "I hope you love the blood offerings I have given you today."

"I...I..." Quetzie gulped. "I don't want this...you're hurting people. Please Ankh," he took two steps forward. "I'm here to reverse the spell."

"But why would you get rid of our plan to gather friends?" Ankh dropped to all fours and began to circle the Serpent, growling like a lion about to sink his teeth into a juicy antelope. "Wasn't that why you brought me here?"

"I wanted to do that, but now I don't want that any more. I want to turn you back to normal."

"Who put you up to this trickery?" Ankh snarled. "Master, are you sure this is wise?"

"I'm not your Master!" Quetzie exclaimed. "I'm Quetzie! And-"

"LIES!" Ankh screamed, lunging at Quetzie. He pinned the small Serpent onto the ground. "We must drink these foolish mortals' blood and rise in power...that is what you want...that is what we want."

"I only wanted friends; I don't want to hurt anyone anymore! Grandpa, help me!"

"You were the one who created the spell; you're the only one who can undo it," said Damballa. "Please Quetzalcoatl, reach deep into his soul. You remember how I did the ritual, right?"

"I...I...I don't know!" Quetzie cried. "I don't remember anything! I'm scared!"

"His memories must still be jumbled up after the mess with the Aztecs," Jun surmised. She then leapt toward Ankh and pinned him to a wall. "Everyone, pin him down! I won't be able to keep him down like this forever!"

Shingo and Kamen Rider Skull pushed their weight against Ankh's stretched arms, each of them placing the muzzle of their guns on Ankh's temple. Hina wrapped her arms around Ankh's legs to the point of crushing them. Accel was at the side, his Engine Blade at Ankh's neck. Ankh struggled to movie, but with the bodies pressed against him, it was no use. Shotaro laughed.

"This is so boring yet hilarious at the same time!" he said. "Ah well, it was fun while it lasted. Hahahaha..."

"Mari," said Jun, turning to her fellow Amanogawa High student. "Can you use your healing spells to give Ankh a new pair of eyes?"

"I'll do my best," Mari answered, raising the rain stick into the air. "But...I really don't know how to do that..."

"Focus on what you want the eyes to look like." The Rainbow Serpent answered. "Keep that image your mind and let it become real. Do not let anything break your concentration, Serpent-bearer."

Mari nodded her head as she waved the rainstick in the air. Ankh's struggles began to lessen at this point, and Shotaro lifted Ankh's face so that Mari could be eye-to-eye with the Greeed in a sense. She waved the rainstick over the blood covering Ankh's body, seeing it slowly vanish with each passing second. When it came to his face, Mari closed her eyes as wisps of blue energy entered his empty eyesockets. Ankh gasped, his mouth opened wide as black snakes crawled out of his throat.

"What are those?" asked Eiji, seeing the black snakes slither everywhere. Damballa narrowed his eyes.

"I should've known," he said. "My grandson was too rough when he calmed Ankh's soul." Damballa picked up one of the black snakes and crushed it in his hands. "These serpents are supposed to soothe the soul as it is being prepared to be sent to Eridanus, but if you are not emotionally stable, the serpents react to those emotions and bind them to the soul."

"So, what does he have to do?" asked Hina, seeing Quetzie slowly stand up. Quetzie looked at the strange black snakes hiss at him before Damballa stomped it to death by crushing it with his heel.

"He needs to calm Ankh's soul and tell it to wake up," Damballa answered. "Then, all will be just like it was before."

"No it won't," Eiji shook his head. "Things aren't going to be the same again..."

Quetzie looked at Jun, who just smiled back. He felt Jun slip a hand into his.

"You can do it," she whispered. "I believe in you."

Quetzie looked back at how Jun squeezed onto his hand before nodding his head. He concentrated as a pair of red and yellow feathery wings grew from his back, then jumped into the air. His wings began to flap as he flew toward Ankh's chest, tracing symbols where Ankh's heart would be. His eyes began to glow as he began to chant a spell in an old dialect.

At the same time, Ankh closed his eyes as the blue light over his eyes transformed into a band of light that acted like some sort of vizor. Mari kept her concentration as she remembered the lecture in Biology just a few weeks ago. Images of the anatomy of a human eye—the pupil, iris, cones, rods, optic nerves—raced through her head in a blur. As she thought, another image fused with that of the chart in her textbook. She took a deep breath and concentrated on that new image as the blue light seemed to temporarily blind everyone else.

"What are you doing?" asked Eiji. "What's going..."

Eiji gasped as the blue light transformed into a pair of brand new eyes for Ankh. They were gold, and the pupils were two black slits to resemble a snake. At the same time, Ankh let out a mighty roar as his red and green wings emerged, knocking everyone that was shielding him onto their butts. Shotaro laughed at the development.

"Oh, isn't this cute?" he chuckled. "It looks like Quetzie has a big brother all to himself now."

Ankh dropped to his knees, trying to shake off the last remnants of Quetzie's brainwashing spell on him. He coughed up one final black serpent which was subsequently squished by Jun's foot. Quetzie smiled and wrapped his arms around Ankh's own.

"You're back to normal, thank goodness!" he replied. "Now we don't have to worry about..."

SLAP!

Ankh stood up, his right hand trembling, and his new eyes glowing in absolute fury. Quetzie stepped back, tears in his eyes as he watched Ankh approach him.

"You..." he growled. "You caused all of this madness! What did you do to me?!"

"I...I..." Quetzie's lip began to quiver. "I'm so sorry..."

"You think that a simple sorry will fix this?!" Ankh screamed. "What have you done to me?"

Quetzie couldn't answer as he immediately began to wail. Damballa snarled and threw Ankh back into a wall with a single wave of his hand. The Voodoo King sauntered toward Ankh, delving a swift kick into the Greeed's ribs before grabbing his neck and lifting him into the air.

"I could boil you alive and eat you up if I want," Damballa hissed. "No one makes my grandson cry. No one."

"That's enough, you two!" said Jun, standing in=between the two of them. "We are not here to fight. Damballa, Ankh has a right to be angry, but at the same time Ankh should not be picking on a little boy. Now, we are going to have a long talk about what happened and what we can do in the future...and then we'll go to the Cous Coussier for the party!"

"Party?" asked Mari. "What party?"

"We're hosting a huge masquerade ball in the Cous Coussier in celebration of all that we've accomplished!" Jun exclaimed. "There will be music, costumes, food and, best of all, cake! I bet Kougami-san will be making such wonderful cakes for all of us!"

"Eh? Are you sure that this is the right thing to do?" Mari bit her lip. "I mean...what with Gamou-san and whatever happened with Foundation X..."

"We need some time to relax. Doesn't everyone deserve to celebrate something?" Jun looked down at her feet as she said that. "I mean, just something to get our minds away from the stress and sadness..."

"Jun nee-san," Quetzie sniffled. "Are you...are you sad?"

"Of course I am," Jun replied. She quickly wiped away a tear as she added, "But I can be happy at the same time. There's nothing wrong with that..."

"AHAHAHA!" Shotaro laughed. "It's so funny and ironic, isn't it? To be happy yet sad simultaneously...doesn't it make you want to SCREAM?!" He broke into his strange laughter, dropping to his knees as he lifted his head to the sky to continue his laugh.

Then, it turned into heart-wrenching sobs. Shotaro dropped the nail in hand as tears fell down his wooden face. There was no denying it—the real Shotaro was there somewhere, crying out for this unfair twist of fate that he would have to burden for all eternity. Akiko removed the Skull Gaia Memory from the Lost Driver and shook her head.

"Jun is right," she said. "This should not be the time for sadness...we should be happy right now. We have done good things."

"Is he going to be all right, though?" Hina whispered, watching how Shotaro continue to cry.

"It will depend on him," Damballa answered. He turned back to Ankh, who he still had lifted in the air. "Now, Ankh...if that is what you are called."

"Tch," Ankh scoffed.

"Your friends would like to fill you in on a few details in regards to the current situation," Damballa continued, lowering Ankh until his feet touched the ground. "Then, once we have everything squared away, we shall all go to this 'Cous Coussier' for a party. Apprentice."

"Y...yes?" asked Mari, startled when Damballa turned to face her. Even if Damballa was in his human form, she felt shivers fall down her spine when she gazed into his serpent-like eyes.

"You are relieved of your duties for the moment. Go have fun in the masquerade party with your friends."

"Um...okay then."

"I wanna join them, grandpa," said Quetzie, tugging on his grandfather's pants. "Please?"

"Of course, my little one," Damballa replied, picking his grandson up and hugging him. "Be on your best behavior."

"Yes, grandpa." Quetzie placed a kiss on Damballa's forehead.

"I'll take good care of him," said Jun, lifting Quetzie into her arms. "Now, let's go have some fun."

"Wait," said Mari. "How are we going to get to the Cous Coussier? Ohsugi-sensei took the DenLiner back to Kyoto, and the other train went back to...wherever it was supposed to go."

"Not to worry," said Damballa. "All Serpents know how to do a simple teleportation spell; it is the very first thing we learn. My grandson should be able to concoct one."

"Right then." Mari laced her hand into Jun's. "Let's get going."

Quetzie closed his eyes, his little wings flapping as he tried to concentrate on the spell. After a few seconds of quiet (minus Shotaro's sobs), there was a small 'pop', and he, Mari and Jun vanished. Akiko then took the time to wrap her arms around the sobbing mannequin.

"Idiot half-boiled detective," she muttered, running her hands down Shotaro's wooden back. "You'll never be able to do anything if you keep being emotional..."

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April 28th, 2012

4:45 PM (Foundation X Headquarters)

Neon Ulsland frowned as she watched Gamou pace around her office. If there was one thing that irritated her more than foolish kids ruining her plans was when people couldn't come up with a decision and just be idle. She slammed her hands on the desk.

"Can you do something either than just wander around in circles?" she insisted. Gamou stopped his pacing, his eyes glowing red.

"You did not see the humiliation I had to endure," he replied. "I was beaten by a pathetic geography teacher, a loud-mouth CEO, a strange man with a cane and my own students! They already know the truth about me! Do you know what will happen now?"

"Your secret is safe," Neon noted. "Even if that group confessed, who would believe them? Adults would never believe that the chairman of the esteemed Amanogawa High was somehow part-alien and conducted his strange experiments on their own children, would they?"

"The adults tried to investigate, but Principal Hayami deterred them. I don't know if I can trust him anymore, though. We need to attack them at their most vulnerable and then..."

"Then what?"

"We use them," Gamou smiled. "We can't let good resources go to waste, can we?"

Neon chuckled as she looked at her monitor, seeing six teenagers strapped on an operating table with multiple doctors holding syringes in their hands. The day wasn't over yet, and there was still so much to do.

Next time: As the masquerade slowly becomes prepared, Ankh learns of the consequences of his new state as a Serpent-bearer and is soon given a special power unlike anything he has ever felt before.

To be continued in, Sundas-13.5 "Forever Young"