For the Power of Love

by RainyTazmily

A strange hit-and-run. Mysterious disappearances left and right. A sinister, overarching ploy is at hand, and supernatural powers can only do so much to save four boys from internal turmoil. Love can be selfish, love can be selfless... but at what point does it truly cross the line? AU. *[NOTE 8/2/19]: Still revamping chapters in spare time, 15/39 COMPLETE orz*

38. Tragic Reconstruction

[EDIT: 11/3/18]

Chapter 39 is complete! I know it's been a while, so reading the summary on Chapter 37 should be a good way to catch up if you've forgotten the plot. Cheers! :)

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The months following their mother's death had been the hardest.

When harsh voices echoed against the walls and hit his ears yet again, Lucas knew that his brother was having another shouting match with his dad. His worst suspicions were only confirmed when Claus stormed out of the hall, jaw clenched and eyes blazing with tears - though Claus would never admit it. Claus never did like to cry.

Lucas kept his eyes fixed on the table, pretending that he hadn't noticed the way his twin brother was crying or the way Claus's shoulders were shaking. Taking in an audible gulp of breath, Claus brushed past him to the woods outside - no doubt to take Boney for another walk - leaving Lucas to linger alone in the kitchen. His brother's pride refused to allow the younger twin to comfort him.

It was only when his feet had started to turn sore that Lucas shuffled over to the empty dining table. He watched the steam spiral off the untouched plates. The food was ready to eat, still piping hot from the stove, but Lucas wasn't hungry. Everything tasted like cardboard these days.

Claus could cook better. Their mom could cook better.

But where one had stormed out of the house, the other was long dead, never to return to life.

Lucas buried his head into his hands and cried, though the tears wouldn't come because he'd run out.

Soon Lucas found solace in other ways. Throwing up. It didn't feel too bad now, Lucas decided, not when he welcomed the sudden sense of control in his life, however small it seemed. So he sought refuge in the bathroom after every meal, after another one of Claus's spats with his dad. It sounded too good to be true, indulging in such a forbidden happiness; Lucas didn't have to see his father passed out on the couch or Claus's angry, tear-stained face marching out of the living room yet again. Lucas could keep his worries in and his heart out. He threw up what he couldn't keep in inside, and took a strange pride in knowing that he no longer fell as a burden on someone else's shoulders.

Claus should be proud. Lucas was no longer a crybaby.

It's pathetic, really, the lengths at which Lucas would go to keep his brother from running away again.

Somewhere along the line, Claus had realized that something about his brother was off. Lucas's frequent trips to the bathroom had no longer gone unnoticed, and occasionally, Claus would jump him and demand on checking his wrists. With nothing to hide, Lucas would oblige, tugging his own sleeves up to reveal his unmarked skin. Claus's puzzled frown was almost satisfying in its own right, and Lucas started to feel proud of himself for tricking his own twin brother.

Claus had enough problems to deal with on his own. His older brother didn't need a crybaby on top of that.

Lucas began to have a harder time focusing in school. He felt tired and lethargic all the time - in class, in school, in home. The dull buzz in his ears just wouldn't go, the dizzy lightheadedness simply refused to leave. Even Duster, as short of a span Lucas had gotten to know him, had begun to ask him questions. Tentative questions. Did Lucas eat, did Lucas sleep? But each time, the response was forever the same; Lucas would wave his worries away with a small smile and an I'm okay, thanks for asking.

Lucas didn't need to bother Duster. The full-time college student already had enough on his hands without adding Lucas to the mix.

No, Lucas didn't need help. Lucas could take care of himself. He was still alive, wasn't he? He was still alive and well and kicking. Lucas decided that he liked the empty pain in his flat stomach, the smooth feel of his ribs against his skin each time he ran his fingers across his chest, because it was oddly comforting, oddly mesmerizing.

Because Lucas was fine. Lucas was okay.

After a while, even Claus had stopped questioning him a long while back, attributing Lucas's frequent trips to the bathroom to another one of his many oddities, and for a brief shining moment, Lucas wondered if he might just get away with it.

Then a month later, Lucas passed out in the cafeteria.

When Lucas woke up, sprawled on the dirty tiles and surrounded by a crowd of frightened students, all he'd caught sight of was his brother's terrified face swimming in his vision. At the end of his wits, Claus had been comically hysterical, slapping Lucas's face hard with his hands, and before Lucas's eyes had fluttered open all the way, Claus had pulled him into a rib-cracking hug, squeezing Lucas half to death. Blearily, Lucas touched his own face. It felt oddly numb and wet from Claus's tears, even though Claus would never admit that he cried. Never-cry Claus was too strong to admit something as sappy as that.

But when Claus fisted Lucas's shirt closer, his voice low and shaky against Lucas's own ears, "please don't scare me like that please don't don't don't," Lucas awkwardly patted him back, unsure of what to say. Shame-faced, he lowered his eyes onto the floor and tried his best to block out his brother's tears dotting his shirt.

Lucas was no longer a crybaby. Lucas refused to cry.

But Lucas had clearly underestimated his brother's persistence. Now Claus insisted on following him everywhere, insisted on Lucas eating everything on his plate, insisted on cooking dinner this time and the next in order to obligate Lucas into eating. It had to be a tiring task, checking on his younger brother again and again, but the fight in Claus's eyes never lost its edge, and Lucas quickly grew frustrated whenever Claus never let him out of his sight.

Still, old habits died hard, and Lucas continued what he wasn't supposed to do. Except this time, Lucas had gotten smarter at the game. He chose his detours wisely. Whenever Claus was distracted. Whenever Claus was sleeping. Sneaking away from his brother gave no small jolt of guilt on Lucas's conscience, but the coward in him wasn't able to admit the truth to his brother.

Because Lucas was all right. Lucas was okay.

His self-loathing grew.

But things went his way again, and with each success, Lucas grew increasingly happy. He'd grown careless, far too careless for his own good, and where there had once been a quiet tip-toe, Lucas's footsteps had turned bolder each time Claus had fallen asleep.

Today happened to be one of those nights. The minute Claus's breathing eased, Lucas had bolted off to the washroom. He was careful. He was quiet. Except that in his recklessness, Lucas had forgotten one crucial oversight.

He'd forgotten to lock the bathroom door.

The feel of a surprisingly gentle hand on his back startled him out of his skin. Jerking away from the toilet bowl, Lucas turned around, wide-eyed at the silhouette of his brother lit against the bathroom mirror. Muttering under his breath, Claus continued rubbing him in the back between the shoulder blades, encouraging Lucas to throw up whatever was stuck in his throat, and when Lucas had thrown up as much as his little eight-year-old self could stand, Claus tugged him over by the hand and led him to the sink.

And mechanically, Lucas let his brother brush his teeth. He let Claus wash his face. He let Claus dry his hands. Above all, Lucas waited for the angry rant, the furious scowl, the "you crybaby" he was accustomed to hearing from his older brother.

But Claus stayed silent. The lack of any rebuke was uncomfortably eerie.

Terrified, Lucas dropped his eyes to the floor, his knees uncontrollably knocking together. Now Lucas had gone and done it. Claus was going to leave him. Claus was going to run away and never come back for good.

Then Claus cleared his throat, awkwardly fumbling for Lucas's shoulder. "We can... We can get through this. Together."

Suddenly the emptiness disappeared, leaving Lucas to struggle with something all too tight in his chest. It threatened to tear through his clogged throat, and Lucas vaguely realized that his own eyes were wet and stinging, blurring his sight. For the first time since Claus's runaway attempt, Lucas let the broken sobs spill.

And when Claus reached for his hand, Lucas squeezed him back tighter.

Because they could get through this.

Together.

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~Chapter 38~

Tragic Reconstruction

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Lucas. It's me, Claus.

...

Feel my heart. See how it beats in and out?

...

No? You don't see it? Where is it? Why is it missing?

...

It was you. What did you do with my heart? Give it back.

...

You don't have it? Then give me yours. Give me your heart, Lucas. It's only fair. You don't need a heart. You never had a heart to begin with anyway.

...

What? You need it to summon the Dark Dragon? You'd give your heart up for the world, but not for your own brother? Silly Lucas. Silly, selfish Lucas.

...

I love you too, Lucas. Let me stab you. I want to rip that beating heart out of your bloody chest.

...

Scream.

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~oO0Oo~

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The nightmares were becoming increasingly vivid.

Lucas tried to hide them, but Ness had always been a light sleeper who woke easily at the touch of a dime. Ness didn't need to be a light sleeper to wake from the scream anyway. Even if it wasn't the loud, shrill kind of scream, but an eerily silent one instead, heavy and breathy as if Lucas wasn't getting enough air into his lungs. Then from the corner of his eye, Ness would see Lucas shaking, doing his best to stifle his sobs, but Lucas didn't have to try hard to hide them. Everything about Lucas was painfully quiet.

Wanting to spare his best friend some peace of mind, Ness would then roll over, pretending not to notice, but it was the second night since the river escapade, and Lucas still wasn't able to control his PSI. His last encounter with his own brother must still be fresh in his mind.

And Ninten...

By the gods, Ness had never more wanted to punch Fassad's face in.

Listening to Lucas cry silently in the corner, Ness felt his heart sink. He might have been Lucas's friend, but the truth was the truth: Ness wasn't Claus. He had never been Claus to begin with, and he certainly was never going to be Claus now.

But then it happened again - the second time that same night. Lucas instantly bolted up out of place, clapping a hand over his mouth as if about to throw up before hastily diving outside. This time, Ness followed.

Both of them knew that the screams have woken Ness up again.

At his approach, Lucas cracked a small smile, but it looked too tired to give Ness any encouragement. "Sorry."

"It's okay."

What remained of Lucas's smile fell. "...It's not."

Ness did his best to swallow down the lump of rising trepidation in his throat, then crawled over to Lucas's side. Not a week ago, Ninten and Claus had been here with them. Now Ninten was gone. Claus was gone. And it was scary to think about how easily Fassad could've snatched Lucas and gotten away with it too, but Ness didn't want to think about it. Instead, he tried to think about the boy who was here, the boy who was shattered but breathing and alive and okay.

For the first time in his life, Ness didn't know how to put those feelings into words. "I'm glad you're okay," he tried instead.

Lucas's shoulders began to shake harder.

"I-" Ness said again, then closed his mouth, because that lost feeling was back. What do you say to someone who'd just lost a brother? Lost and unsure, they sat, aimlessly watching a sliver of moonlight escape and trickle down from the hole in the ceiling. Then Ness slowly slung an arm around Lucas's shoulders, hoping that the unspoken words were enough.

They weren't.

Two days. The two busied themselves with small, but necessary tasks during that time. Collecting rainwater to drink. Sharing the last Peanut cheese bar. Or rather, Ness swallowed down his hunger and kept it in his pocket - he was no Claus, he didn't have the heart to force Lucas to eat, but Lucas had to eat soon. Lucas couldn't use magic, but magic was energy, and while using magic spent energy, storing it curbed hunger. Ness knew all too well that they'd need to find a new food source. He'd try to tempt Lucas with food later.

They scrounge for new plans: where to go, what to prioritize, how to reach the Ruins of New Pork City...? But their discussions trailed off quickly, vague and uncertain at best. Saying Ninten's name was like ringing a death knell, and Claus's name had gone all but taboo. Refusing to take in Ness's offers of help, Lucas stubbornly pushed himself to will the magic out of his mind, wearing his ugly, mottled bruises like they were a prized gift from his brainwashed brother.

The third night in, a cruel reminder had cut their musings short: Ness had spotted a bloody geyser erupt in the distance - the first of many. The world was crumbling. Time was running short, and the nightmares steadily grew worse. This time, Ness woke up in cold sweat from a vivid screech of metal and Jeff's horrified yell echoing in his ears. Almost in sync, Lucas had started squirming around, muttering odd things under his breath. "No... won't let you."

Pity twisting his chest, Ness crawled over, trying to shake his best friend awake. "Lucas. Hey, snap out of it."

Stirring awake, Lucas only scrunched his eyes tighter with a groan. "Leave me alone, Claus. I want to sleep..."

Uncertainly biting down on his lip, Ness lowered his hands back to his sides. "Lucas... Claus isn't here."

Groggily, Lucas opened his eyes, and Ness watched him, growing worry weighing his features. Then came the icy realization, sinking horribly like the Titanic, and all too suddenly, Lucas's throat seemed to have gone too dry for words.

"...Oh."

An awkward silence. Despite the warmth of the ruby-crusted cave, the magic of Lumine Hall had not stopped the terrible shivering that kept racking through Lucas's frame. Even worse, Ness knew that his worried thoughts had started to prickle against Lucas's mind, and ashamed by his own weakness, Lucas dropped his eyes to the floor, a deep flush crawling up the back of his neck.

Seconds passed.

Unable to stand the scrutiny, Lucas abruptly bolted up, striding away to stand watch by a patch of moonlight.

Trying not to openly stare after him in concern, Ness quietly picked at his own dirty nails. Even during the glory days of Pokey's bullying reign, Lucas had stayed strong. Lucas was a pushover, too goodnatured to raise a fist, easily meek and timid and frightened, but if Lucas had been frightened, it was more so for the ethereal fear of the imminent - a passing fear for Claus's injury, a passing fear for causing them trouble. But now, there was a new look in Lucas's eyes - a vulnerable one - that Ness hated to see. Ness had already confronted Lucas once; he wasn't sure that egging Lucas on to fight a second time would improve matters. And (wincing at the phantom bruise flaring up at his side) Ness silently agreed that Lucas was probably a fit match for his own brother. Unless necessary, Ness would rather not take another devastating hit to the side.

Then Ness was reminded of Claus, and the depression hit him yet again. The twins were polar opposites. Claus exploded outward; Lucas kept everything in. For one wild second, Ness wished that Claus had been here in Ness's own stead, because Claus was so much easier to read than Lucas, because Claus could read Lucas better than anybody.

"Ness... when I'm gone... take care of Lucas for me."

Watching a tired Lucas flick his hands for the hundredth time, straining himself to conjure up even the tiniest blue spark, Ness couldn't help but wish that Claus had never voiced those words. It reminded Ness of home, of Tracy, of how he used to tease his little sister too many times in the name of harmless fun.

Ness was barely passing at being a best friend. He couldn't make Lucas eat. He couldn't heal what was hurting Lucas inside. Overall, he was being a pretty crummy brother.

Claus's unkept promise burned a hole in his heart.

Still, Ness refused to give up.

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~oO0Oo~

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Ness was taking watch when nightmare number seven struck.

Lucas's soft steps traced themselves to the entrance of Lumine Cave.

His back against the rocky wall, Ness remained half-sprawled on his side, staring at the midnight sky. As if of their own accord, his fingers moved, conjuring up idle notes on his makeshift guitar. PK Rockin'. The psionic guitar shivered. With each note it released reassuring hum of vibrating power. And at end of each short melody, the magical music raked up sparks from the crackling "fireplace," which glowed several shades of ruby-red at different frequencies.

Without a word, Lucas sat across the fireplace from him.

Ness paused, glancing at him. "Can't sleep?"

A shrug.

"It's okay, I can't sleep either." Ness's eyes fell on the unhealed bruises on Lucas's face. He swallowed hard. "Do you want me to heal those for you?"

Lucas shook his head. He flicked his wrist, a tired, sluggish motion. The fingers remained devoid of PSI.

Ness continued to survey him with worried eyes. "You wanna talk?"

A shrug.

Ness returned to strumming a quiet tune. "It took me a while to learn PK Rockin'," he explained, holding out his guitar and offering it out for Lucas to hold. Its body flickered several shades of fluorescent reds, yellows, and blues, and despite himself, Lucas found himself reaching out for it. Under Lucas's cautious touch, the strings vibrated, humming with happiness. Lucas returned the guitar to its rightful owner, and Ness propped it back up against his own lap. "I played a lot of Guitar Hero with my dad, but never really learned how to play the actual thing. Searched up tutorials and stuff, but it never helped, you know? I was just lousy at it."

Lucas stirred. "What changed?"

Ness closed his open palm, and the guitar vanished in a wisp of color. "I pulled through. Your PSI depends a lot on your mental state. I mean, I know BuzzBuzz said that yours relied a whole ton on your emotions...but that isn't to say that my powers aren't affected by my feelings too. My powers just aren't as sensitive to my emotions as yours are." Ness slowly lifted his head to face him. "That day at school when I was upset at my dad... Talking to you really helped me let go of my aggression. You helped me learn PK Rockin'. I owe you a lot more than you think."

"I didn't do anything. In the end, it was all you."

Stealing another glance, Ness shifted over. "So... do you want to talk now?"

Lucas fell silent. The flames reflected the molten bruises on his face.

Ness looked at him. "I can't help you if you won't tell me what's wrong, Lucas," he said quietly. "I'm not Claus."

Lucas closed his eyes.

"Okay, well... if you're sure..." Ness awkwardly averted his own eyes to the floor. "You were screaming a lot and saying stuff in your sleep. I mean, I didn't know if I should've woken you up this time-"

"I dreamed about Claus."

Ness held his breath. He hadn't expected Lucas to speak at all. "...Oh."

Lucas opened his eyes. He didn't move his listless stare from the fireplace. "I figured out what happened to him."

Ness grimaced. "Let me guess. Fassad tricked him by bargaining for your life."

Lucas clenched his fists. "I hate him," he said shakily. "It scares me how much I hate him. Fassad. I've never hated anyone else like this before, and it's starting scare me because I don't know how to stop."

"Fassad's a world-class jerk," Ness agreed. "I punched him in the face."

Lucas didn't even spare a smile.

"I hate him," Lucas repeated. "He had no right to...to-" Suddenly, the energy extinguished itself from Lucas's voice, leaving it empty and lifeless. Lucas's shoulders sagged. "He was right. I shouldn't have taken Claus for granted-"

"Don't even start," Ness said sharply. "Fassad's guilt-tripping you. It's his way of manipulation. Anything he says shouldn't be taken seriously."

"He gave me a chance, Ness. He gave me a chance to save Claus-"

"You never had a fair chance in the first place. Fassad wouldn't have risked it unless the odds had already been stacked in his favor." Ness gripped him by the shoulders. "Lucas, listen to me. Claus wouldn't have ever hurt you on purpose."

Lucas didn't seem to have heard him. He was retreating back into his shell.

Fuck, this wasn't good.

Ness reached out for him. "I-In case anything happened, Claus wanted me to keep an eye out for you," he confessed in a desperate attempt to keep the conversation alive. At this, Lucas tensed up, but Ness remained oblivious to the motion, instead hurriedly tripping over his own words. "I know, I can't replace Claus, but I can try-"

"You can't."

Ness was taken back by the sudden venom in Lucas's voice. "What?"

"You can't replace Claus," Lucas repeated. A hard edge had entered his tone.

Realizing his mistake too late, Ness quickly opened his mouth to speak, but Lucas was already on a roll. "I don't need another brother. I have a brother. His name is Claus. He likes to stay up late and play League of Legends until four in the morning. He's an avid DCMC fan even though he'd always deny it. He can't cook a single meal to save his life, but stays in the kitchen anyway because he wants to help. He acts before he thinks. He's rash and reckless and hot-tempered and bold, but it's all because he cares. You can't say that you'll try to be like him, because you're not him, Ness."

"Lucas, wait, I-"

"You can't replace my brother!" Lucas burst out. "You're not Claus, so don't pretend that you're him!"

Deeply hurt, Ness felt his eyes sting. "That wasn't what I meant! I only meant to say-"

"Because you're my best friend."

At this, Ness snapped his head up, stunned.

"You're not Claus, but you're just as important. So don't try to be like him. Don't be someone you're not, because I don't think I can handle that..." Shaking, Lucas curled up into a ball. "I can't handle that..."

The cave petered off into silence.

Then Ness gently spoke up. "I know, I can't replace Claus. Claus is..." Uncertain, Ness shuffled his feet, but Lucas didn't respond. This lack of response worried Ness more than anything, so he poked Lucas once, making sure to avoid any bruises on his shoulder, and Lucas gave a jerk of reaction. "You're, uh, drifting off again," Ness said meekly.

Lucas rubbed his arms. "Thanks," he said quietly. "If it hadn't been for you... I don't want to think about what Fassad would've done to me."

The night air dropped by several degrees. Ness forced a laugh. "I guess we're even then."

"Not really. There's something I need to tell you." When Lucas met his eyes, Ness couldn't tell what he was thinking. "To save the world, I need to pass my heart on to the Dark Dragon. Claus lost his, which means that I have to make sure that mine goes through. No matter what, we'll head over to the ruins of New Pork City and save Claus and Ninten. And as soon as I regain my powers, I have to pull the Seventh Needle and set things straight."

"But if you pull the Needle-"

"I want your word, Ness." A strange fortitude burned in Lucas's eyes. "Once we find the Final Needle, I want you to turn back. You will let me go on alone." Instantly, Ness bolted upright in protest, but Lucas calmly raised his voice to cut him off. "You won't follow. You will teleport everyone including yourself to safety." Lucas's voice had started to waver, but the look in his eyes stayed firm. "In the chance I do end up losing my life... I don't want you to see me pass on. It might not be a pretty sight."

"No." Ness clenched his fists. "We stick together until the very end."

Lucas cautiously searched his face. "It might not be quick. I might be in pain. I might scream. I might cry. Do you really want that to be your last memory of me?"

Something lodged itself in Ness's throat. Lucas's voice sounded horribly conversational, as if they were merely discussing the weather. "B-But you'll be alone!"

"It'll be easier when I'm alone. If you're there-" Lucas swallowed. "I... I might not have the strength to pull the Final Needle."

Ness felt his vision blur.

"Don't take it the wrong way-"

"No, it's okay. I get it." Ness wiped his eyes on his arm. "I mean, I can't exactly stop you, can I?"

Lucas's eyes turned sad. "No," he whispered. "You can't."

Ness seized Lucas over by the shoulders. "But you gotta try," he said, voice cracking. "At least try to live, okay? Because if you don't, I-"

Lucas nodded. Despite everything they had just discussed, a strange fortitude kindled his eyes. It had always been there, lurking beneath the surface, but what Ness was surprised at was its intensity. It was almost as if that strength had doubled to compromise for the absence of his brother.

Ness, if something goes wrong in this stupid quest...keep an eye out for Lucas for me.

Claus had wanted him to keep his brother safe.

And Ness couldn't even keep that promise.

Oh god. Claus. What was Ness going to say to Claus?!

Gritting his teeth against his own stinging eyes, Ness gripped Lucas tighter. Ness never knew why Lucas called himself a crybaby. Lucas seldom cried. Or if he had, Lucas had rarely cried in front of him.

So why was he crying?

Ness's shoulders sagged against the ground. Where was his own confidence? Ness didn't know. All he knew was that whoever he used to be, Ness wasn't that boy. Not anymore. "I can't."

At those words, Lucas paused, eyeing him in concern. "Ness..."

"I can't let you go alone."

Lucas's voice was infuriatingly calm. "Yes, you can. You're strong enough to pull through."

"Fuck. Lucas, don't... don't do this to me-" Ness took a gulp of breath. "I'm not r-ready to say goodbye yet-"

Lucas lowered his head.

Ness gripped his arm. "Swear on it. Whatever happens, you're not going down without a fight. You have to stay alive. We need you back."

Lucas tilted his head, then cracked a grin reminiscent of his brother's. "I'll do my best."

And the aching words flooded out of Ness's mouth. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Ness said, lips suddenly numb, because it had been his fault they had screwed up yet again, this time at the cost of two people he had held dear to him, and now, he was just about to lose the only friend he had left. His vision blurred even more. "I'm so sorry, Lucas-"

A hand rested on Ness's back. "Don't be."

"I should've saved Claus when I had the chance-"

"What happened to Claus wasn't your fault. It would've happened either way." Lucas's eyes flickered to the sky. "But we'll get him back. Him and Ninten."

Ness wished that Lucas hadn't been so forgiving, because it hurt. Had Ness been speaking to Claus, and Lucas had gone missing, he knew that Claus would've lashed out. Maybe punched him once in the cheek to knock the sense back into his head. And that, Ness respected. That, he could understand.

But he couldn't understand this.

How could Lucas forgive him so easily over such a staggering a loss?

As if catching his unease, Lucas lowered his head, and spoke into his hands. "The score was six to nil, and the game was down to the 7th inning. We were sure that we were going to lose. Everyone was ready to call it quits. Everyone except you. You marched over to us in the ten minute break. Do you remember what you said?"

Ness remembered that game. It had been the first game of the season. In hindsight, they'd caught up to the score by the skin of their teeth, but in the beginning, their good morals had been at stake. It had been an intense game too; the team spirit would've been devastated by such a terrible loss, and while Ness knew now that the victory had eventually worked to their favor, even the faintest memory of that day burned his aching lungs. Suddenly, Ness felt as if he was back on second, tagged out before a run to home. A disappointing play indeed.

But Ness didn't understand why Lucas had brought this day up, especially now of all times.

"I don't remember. Well, it doesn't matter, because we won, right?"

"We won because of you. You pushed us through. You looked at us square in the eye, then said, Losing isn't when we don't win; it's when we give up." Lucas's eyes seemed to burn with an unusual intensity. "Where is he, Ness? Where is the friend I used to know?"

Ness was floored. Lucas had found his words worth memorizing. Hell, for someone who socialized like no tomorrow, Ness could barely keep track of what he said five seconds ago.

When he realized that he was blinking back tears again,Ness wiped his wet cheeks on his jacket sleeve. "I'm scared to screw up," he said in a muffled voice, scrunching his stinging eyes shut. "I can't screw up anymore. I can't afford to. You're all that I have left, and now..."

Unable to finish, Ness left the sentence hanging.

I don't want to lose you too.

Ness cracked a watery smile. "You have no idea how - how glad I am," he said through his palms. "I'm so glad that you're alive."

Lucas's eyes fell wide open like stars. Moisture shivered, threatening to fall, but when Lucas spoke, his voice was level and even. "You won't lose me," Lucas mumbled, cheeks sporting a bright crimson. "Claus isn't gone, and Ninten isn't either. We'll get them back."

Then Lucas cracked a pitifully weak excuse of a smile. It wasn't as wide or happy as it could be, but it was genuine.

That smile was worth more than all the gold in the world.

Instantly, Ness yanked the other boy over, wrapping his arms around his soaked shirt. At first, Lucas stiffened up in his grip, looking rather surprised, then jerked his wrist down in an awkward pat.

Ness laughed weakly, then wiped his eyes again with an arm. "Damn it, Lucas. You're making me cry again."

"Oh." A twinge of guilt entered Lucas's features. "I-"

"Don't say that you're sorry."

Beaten to the punch, Lucas closed his mouth, his face burning a deep crimson, and Ness cracked a grin.

Some things never changed.

"Come here," Ness smirked, giving him his best bro hug before quickly pulling away and socking Lucas in the shoulder. When Lucas recoiled, Ness's smirk widened. "Two for flinching!"

"Hey-Ow! Cut it out!" Lucas complained, rubbing his sore shoulder. "Not cool, Ness."

"You don't complain when Claus does it."

Lucas groaned, hiding his face into his hands and wondering how his best friend could be as tactless as his brother. "You two are impossible."

"In what way?"

"You egged me to fight you," Lucas deadpanned. "How on earth did you two get along when I got high?"

"Heart to heart talks," Ness said seriously. "We also had a little cry...after we beat each other to pulp."

The corner of Lucas's lips twitched upwards. "That sounds about right."

"I was scared shitless, okay?" Ness whined. "You could probably beat me up if you tried-"

"You're the baseball captain."

Ness threw him a pointed look. "Yeah, and you work out on a farm."

"Sometimes. Not always."

Ness buried his head into his hands. "My mom thinks I'm getting fat."

Lucas flicked a glowing ruby back into the fireplace. "You're not fat."

"I'm fat-"

"Ness, stop. If you lost any more weight, you'd be anorexic." Lucas said firmly. "You're not fat."

And cracking another silly smile like they were simply struggling through another day of school, Ness lightly slugged him in the shoulder.

Outside, the storm brewed on.

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~oO0Oo~

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"...What's that?"

"It's a Sound Stone. BuzzBuzz gave it to me, right before he... you know. You put it against your ear, and you hear what you need to hear. Go on."

"I can't take this from you, Ness."

"Take it."

"What if you start feeling homesick?"

"It's okay, I don't think I need it anymore. Here. You listen to it."

Lucas pressed the Sound Stone against his ear.

It echoed with a thousand of his brother's laughs...

.

.

.

~oO0Oo~

.

.

.

Lucas still couldn't sleep.

At first, it was because of the upset. Then it was because of the hurt. Then Lucas thought of the way Fassad had treated his brother, no more human than animal, and from the depths of his mind, something dark consumed his heart, twisting it this way and that. All at once Lucas was confused, angry, scared beyond belief by the hot spike of emotion roaring through his veins, but it took him little time to identify the feeling.

Hate.

For the first time in his young life, Lucas knew hate. It was nothing like annoyance or exasperation, but something deadlier, something putrid and ugly and shameful. So Lucas tried to think. He tried to remain rational, tried to keep it together, but the mere thought of Fassad's face was more than enough to crumble his caution. Lucas hated Fassad, hated Fassad for kidnapping Claus, hated Fassad for all the injustice and pain and suffering he'd inflicted on his brother.

But most of all, Lucas hated himself.

He could've saved Claus. He had a chance to save Claus, and thinking back to the memory of Ninten's distraught expression, thinking back to the struggling boy trapped in Eve's arms, Lucas could feel nothing but guilt. They had relied on him, set all their hopes on him for a rescue, and Lucas had failed. Lucas had failed both his friend and brother.

So when Lucas awoke again, bewildered and terrified and coughing river water out of his lungs, a flash of the desperate face in front of him had resurfaced panic like never before. Ness couldn't swim. What on earth had Ness been thinking, playing a gamble and risking his own hide to save him? Ness should've let him go. Any punishment Fassad had had in store couldn't have been worse than this-

Claus.

Lucas just wanted Claus back.

Rolling the Sound Stone over in his lonely hands, Lucas pressed it against his ear, replaying his brother's happy laughter. When had Claus last laughed like that? When had Claus sounded so happy like that? Before Mom's passing? After Dad recovering his will to live? Lucas didn't know. All he knew was that Claus was gone. His brother was no longer by his side.

But Ness was here. And Ness was still alive.

Lucas stirred. Grimacing at the cramps in his legs, he shifted into a more comfortable position. A heavy warmth pressed against his right shoulder.

Ness.

Carefully, Lucas tried to extricate his dead arm from under the weight, but Ness emitted an unhappy noise and involuntarily wrapped his arms around him like a vice. His breathing hit Lucas's ear in a ragged cacophony, heavy and deep.

Lucas closed his eyes and tried to pretend.

But it was so hard to pretend when the body didn't fit right. Ness was soft, yet stocky, corded with unseen muscles lurking underneath his skin. He didn't have the same delicate build, the same sharp ridges in his shoulderblades, the same flighty, bird-like figure Claus had.

It had always been Claus and Lucas. Never just Lucas. They were one, yet two; same, but different.

Who was Lucas without his brother?

Without Claus...

Staring without seeing, Lucas blinked at the ceiling.

It should've been Claus sitting here. Claus should've been in his place, Claus should have been the one at Ness's side, comforting him with the gentle words that came so easily out of his mouth. Lucas hadn't been blind; in the short stay at Saturn Valley, Lucas had noticed the look, the subtle shift of warmth in his brother's eyes whenever Claus would talk to Ness. As Lucas had always known, Claus hadn't needed his younger brother to mend the patches with his best friend.

If your brother had a fatal flaw...it was that he loved you too much.

Lucas wanted to cry, but exhaustion had wrung his body out of tears.

Beside him, Ness grimaced, unconsciously clenching his fists. Concerned, Lucas snapped his gaze towards his face, but Ness didn't wake. Ness gritted his teeth then shifted again, fidgeting against some unknown enemy, and Lucas wondered if he was dreaming of home.

Lucas had forgotten what a light sleeper Ness was. It scared him, sometimes, how uncannily his best friend reminded him of his brother.

They were both loyal. Selfless. Reckless to a fault.

The thought made him terribly guilty, and Lucas averted his eyes. Ness wasn't Claus. Ness had his own family back home, a family who was no doubt anxiously awaiting news of their lost son.

A father. A mother. A sister.

At the slightest hint of danger, Lucas knew that Ness would throw himself in the first line of defense.

And Lucas knew that he couldn't let that happen.

"You'll return home safe," Lucas said, firmly voicing his promise out loud. "Even if I don't... I'll make sure that you do."

Because if Lucas spoke loud enough, he could hear the Claus in his voice.

So Lucas believed. He had to believe that Claus wasn't lost, that it hadn't been Goodbye, but See you soon. Because had their places been reversed... Claus would never have given up on him.

With a sigh, Lucas closed his eyes, trying to imagine the feel of his brother's hand stroking his hair.

It wasn't as good as the real thing...

But it was good enough.

.

.

.

~oO0Oo~

.

.

.

Contrary to Lucas's belief, Ness had stayed wide awake.

When he'd first felt Lucas stir, an inkling of icy fear crept into his bones. Lucas was going to run away. Lucas was going to do something stupid, Lucas was going to turn himself in, and brotherly instincts kicking in, Ness latched on tighter, digging his nails into Lucas's shirt. He'd lost Claus, he'd lost Ninten, he'd lost BuzzBuzz.

He wasn't going to lose Lucas too.

Through closed eyes, he heard Lucas sigh, then relaxed again when Lucas settled back against the wall. Ness knew that he was probably squeezing Lucas a little too tight for comfort, but he was scared. Ness was scared, so, so scared for what the future would bring. He wasn't naive enough to delude himself.

Someone was going to die.

Someone wasn't going to return alive.

When the bright early rays of dawn stirred into the sky, reflecting off the rubies in a purple sheen, Lucas quietly rose from slumber. Making a huge show of waking up, Ness yawned, stretching up his arms in an exaggerated motion before doing the same, and began packing his bag. When Ness padded up to Lucas's side, bag slung over his shoulder and ready to go, Lucas seemed unusually testy, looking less-than-thrilled over Ness's apparent vigilance. After a couple of failed attempts to persuade Ness to stay here, something Ness quickly translated to I'm leaving forever GOODBYE FRIEND, Ness quickly complained, whining along the lines of, I'm not tired and I don't know where Saturn Valley is so you're gonna make me starve to death, you jerk. To this, Lucas had only given a disgruntled noise in response, then whirled around on his heel as if to shake Ness off.

I know what you're planning, Ness grimly thought to himself, watching Lucas sulk off. And it's not going to work.

Despite the hurry, both of them had paused to take a forlorn glance back at the mystical cave. As temporary as it had been, Lumine Hall had housed them under times of distress. It had been their one and only Sanctuary.

Then Lucas trudged through the greenery, and Ness quickly followed suit, secretly smiling at his own victory.

Of course, Ness had been lying. They'd noticed Mr. Saturn bobbing along their hand-made trails over the past few days. Either of them could've made it to the village on foot.

Prolonging the final word. Delaying the inevitable. It was the only thing Ness could do.

But trepidation had only sped up their arrival, and when Lucas finally stopped, it was only with great reluctance that Ness pretended to be distracted, instead shifting his attention to the scene ahead. The Mr. Saturn were already bumbling about, hastily boinging this way and that to repair lost homes at a good pace, but even more surprising was the peppered crowd of motionless Starmen overseeing the recovery effort. To their relief, the Starmen didn't seem interested in attacking the peaceful residents, only opting to stand watch... and continue watching.

Ness had a pretty good idea of whom they were searching for.

"Are you sure the limo's here?"

"Yes."

"Positive?"

"Fassad told me."

"I don't trust him," Ness said stubbornly.

From behind a nearby bush, Lucas raked his eyes over the slowly-waking village. "We don't have much of a choice."

"I've got a really bad vibe about this," Ness insisted under his breath, but to his frustration, Lucas seemed hard of hearing. Giving in with a noise of exasperation, Ness pinched his nose and breathed in. "Okay fine. Now what?"

Slowly, Lucas stepped out with his hands up in surrender.

"Seriously?!" Scowling now, Ness grabbed him back, dragging him back into the foliage. "This has got to be the stupidest thing you've pulled all day-"

"At this point, turning myself in is the only thing we can do."

Ness hesitated, looking conflicted. He dropped his hands. "Lucas, I really have a bad feeling about this. Like, for real. As in a I-might-have-dreamed-of-something-bad kind of bad."

"We have no idea where the Final Needle is, and we don't know where New Pork City is either. Fassad knows both. Playing along with his demands is the only way in." Lucas gave Ness a feeble side-glance. "Uh... Last chance to stay-"

"Don't even think about leaving me behind," Ness said sharply.

"If we split up-"

"It's two against an army. It's too risky of a move to pull."

"Fassad won't be happy to see you again-"

"Lucas, I'm going whether you like it or not. Now shut up and move."

As if expecting the answer, Lucas gave a frustrated sigh. "I thought you'd say that."

"So we're going ahead with this stupid idea?"

"As long as you swear to leave once Fassad shows up."

"I guess that's a yes."

With these words exchanged, the two strolled out into the open. Almost instantaneously, the sea of silver Starmen swiveled their masked faces over in their direction. Mechanical beeps and clicks intensified with their approach. Nervous under their attention, Ness clung tighter onto Lucas's hand.

The ground shook with a clank of footsteps. A Starman clad in gold, odd amongst its brethen, tilted its hidden visor in their direction. The word Super was inscribed across its chest. "HALT."

Lucas stopped.

"SCANNING IN PROGRESS..." A beep. "IDENTITY CONFIRMED. TARGET WILL BE APPREHENDED." The Starman Super took a step forward, but Ness had blocked its path.

"You can't take him," Ness said suddenly.

Lucas didn't keep his eyes off the Starman Super. "Ness, move out of the way."

"No," Ness said, outstretching his arms to shield him. The tips of Ness's fingers crackled and popped with PSI before lighting up in a warning flare. "I won't let you take him. You're going to have to get through me first."

The Starman Super cocked its head.

Ness jolted at the sound of disembodied clapping, this time warily swiveling around to ward off the crowd of watching Starmen, but none of them had reacted. With a metallic clunk, the Starman Super stepped forward, and a panel rose from its chest to reveal a video screen.

"Bravo, bravo! Took you two long enough to come here. I was almost dying for a good show~❤" Fassad swooned.

Ness instantly aimed his hands. "You. Stay away from Lucas."

Fassad snorted. "Oh, a little boy. I'm so scared. For your information, I have over three hundred years on you, dear boy, but don't I look a day over twenty? Immortality does wonders to your skin, love." Turning his attention to the other member of the party, Fassad broke into a wide smile, then beckoned with a ring studded finger. "Lucas. Come along, sweet."

Lucas ambled forward, but Ness held him back, forcing Lucas to stop in his tracks. For some reason, Lucas seemed unable to meet him in the eye. "Ness, I told you to stay behind."

"Over my dead body," Ness gritted out.

Fassad clucked his tongue. "You don't get it, do you, sweetheart? If you don't let him leave, then I'll hurt his brother. Isn't that right, dearest~❤?"

Lucas slumped over. A bleak expression flickered across his face. "I'm sorry, Ness."

Frozen, Ness searched Lucas's face for a plan, a secret back-up, anything- but realized that there was nothing. It had all been a lie.

And Claus...

Ness didn't dare put Claus's life on the line.

Shaking from the unfairness of it all, Ness reluctantly let go, lowering his arms to his sides, and without a second glance back, Lucas brushed past him.

Teleport on board.

Ness almost jolted at the unexpected telepathic voice, but when he looked up, Lucas's blank expression gave nothing away. Right, teleporting into the limo. That's what Ness had done before, hadn't he? Gripping his fists, Ness clung onto that small shard of hope-

"Oh, and cuff the other one. Bring him on board too."

Stunned, Ness had no time to react before a Starman grabbed his arms from behind.

Lucas turned around sharply. "You said-"

"Please, do you two take me for a fool? Pesky thing can teleport! Besides, I love the additional insurance~❤" Fassad clucked his tongue and waggled a finger in cheek. "Oh, what a shame! I told you to come alone, but you just so insisted on going ahead and looping your friend into this mess, m'dear~❤"

A sharp metallic clink sealed his fate. Horrified, Ness tried pulling his hands out of the heavy weights around his wrists, but the lock held firm. When Lucas ran over, grappling with Ness's cuffs to the same disappointing result, Ness snarled, kicking out and sending Lucas sprawling with the flat of his shoe. "What are you still doing here? Get away!"

Shaking his head, Lucas stubbornly raked over Ness's cuffs with unsteady fingers. "'M not running. Not anymore," he mumbled, pointing a suddenly-glowing finger at the cuffs. With a loud bang like a gunshot, his fingertip fired off a stream of hexagons that weakly dissolved before impact.

The cuffs remained unscathed.

Clutching his belly, Fassad threw his head back in a loud laugh. "You two are so stupid!" he gasped. "It almost makes me feel bad for you. Almost!" Then his smile hardened, twisting into a cruel line. "So I'll be nice. Stop wasting my time, or I'll make sure that your friend goes down the same way your brother did."

Lucas's pupils dilated. This time, Ness knew that it was a look of genuine fear.

They were cornered. Hook, line, and sinker.

Ness squeezed his eyes shut. "Shit."

A limousine pulled up. A holographic chauffeur eagerly sprung into existence, pulling on his gloves and opening up the passenger door.

"Well now, was that so hard?" Fassad said sweetly. "Goodness, I do hope that you both show up for the reception party in time. I even invited your brother to join in the festivities! It'll be just like one cozy family reunion. The more, the merrier, I say! Balloons. Cake. Torture. How exciting! Nwehehehehe~❤" With a quick clap, Fassad delightfully shooed them away with a ring-studded hand. "Now hustle! Hop aboard! Your brother is positively dying to see you~❤"

.

.

.

~oO0Oo~

.

.

.

As they were practically shoved into the limo, Ness didn't know what he was expecting. Car seats? A medieval cage? Another round with the Masked Man?

None of the above.

Ness felt his mouth fall agape at the flashy interior. And when even Lucas came to a halt at his side, Ness didn't blame him for taking in the sight with stunned eyes.

Luxury defined the limousine. Polished champagne glasses glittered over the in-flight bar. Steam spiraled off the onsen in pearly white clouds. The carpet underneath their feet was soft, sinking under their feet like memory foam. Four ornate massage chairs, beige with quality leather, happily buzzed away in the corner by the poker table, where cards were invitingly stacked for a good game. For some reason, a tiny well-groomed frog sat in a glossy-pink love seat behind the driver, blinking at them once before letting out a loud croak.

For heaven's sake, there was even a disco floor.

But when the doors slammed shut behind them, all Ness could feel was a sense of rising dread, and before he'd even gotten the chance to press his face against the nearest window, they were already launched miles into the sky. Nearby, the Starman Super stood, grimly fixing its attention on them like a prison warden. Swallowing down his nerves, Ness shakily sank down into the nearest armchair to keep a silent Lucas company.

The drive was smooth. Air turbulence was surely one word the limo defied, a quality that would've offered relief to any satisfied customer.

Unfortunately, its two current occupants did not share the same sentiment.

"Well... that could've gone down better."

"No shit."

"Sorry, Ness."

"It's okay. I mean, who the hell could've ever seen that coming. A three-hundred year old hermaphrodite wanting to take over the world? Sure puts the cliche in cliche."

Lucas winced. "I was hoping that he'd overlook you, but I guess you put yourself on his shitlist."

"You guess," Ness deadpanned, raising his cuffed wrists.

"Fassad probably didn't want to risk you pulling another saving grace again. Not that there would've been anywhere to go, but..."

Taking pity on him, Ness patted him on the back and reached for his tattered school bag. "No worries, I can still do stuff without my powers! Like my yo-yo, uh, wait hold on, where did that go? Oh fuck it, I can always cream robots with my bat - ah, ... oops. Guess I dropped that into the river too..." As if sensing Lucas's worry, Ness raised his head to crack what seemed like a reassuring grin, "Uh, hey, it's okay. We'll figure something out."

"Fassad's trapping us," Lucas said quietly.

"What?"

"He knows that you can teleport. He's making sure that we're stuck in his own playing field."

Ness's smile vanished. "Just as I expected," he muttered. "That crafty two-faced git."

But it was so much more than blackmail, Ness knew. Like some sort of demented puppet-master, Fassad knew which strings to pull, which strings would make each of them unravel. With both Claus and Ninten in his hands, and Ness out of the game, Fassad was slowly putting the pressure on Lucas. Narrowing their options. Cornering their choices. In a twisted way, Fassad was manipulating their every move behind the scenes, taking advantage of Lucas's guilt to cripple them.

Ness gripped his hands. If there was one thing he couldn't stand more than being out-for-the-count, it was being a liability.

And in one fell swoop, Fassad had turned him into both.

Hovering over a small wardrobe, Lucas had peeled off a pink sticky note from between his fingers, and with a sense of rising trepidation, Ness peered over Lucas's shoulder to read over its contents:

Open the drawer, love~❤

"Don't," Ness instantly said.

Of course, Lucas cracked the drawer open. Ness held his breath, but inside was only a shoebox. Plain and unassuming, the box lay innocently inside the wooden drawer as if it had always been there for centuries. Lifting up the box, Lucas slowly tilted its contents over.

And Ness had involuntarily taken a step back in horror, because the mementos inside the shoebox could only be described as sickening.

A tattered bloody shirt. Claus's shoe. An ornate hand mirror.

Bending down, Lucas spread out Claus's striped shirt by the sleeves. There was a gaping bloody hole in its center, as if someone had brutally stabbed its owner through the chest. Folding up the shirt into a neat crease, Lucas picked up the lost shoe and silently tucked both back into the shoebox.

Then Lucas picked up the handmirror. A pink sticky note was stuck on its back.

A consolation prize just for you, sweetheart~❤

Lucas flipped the handle over. For several seconds, he stared at his own reflection on the hand mirror.

A muscle twitched in his jaw.

Incomprehension quickly dawning into fury, Ness blurted out, reaching for his arm, "Lucas, don't pay attention to him, he's just trying to unsettle you-"

With a sharp crack, a veiny spiderweb formation shattered across the jagged glass. With an eerie composure, Lucas lowered the now-broken handmirror back into shoebox and pushed the drawer shut. "I know," he said quietly. "And it's working."

Dashing around all potential exits, Ness tried the nearest handle. It refused to budge, "Great," Ness said glumly. "Locked doors, locked windows... did you try the fire escape?"

"I tried. Locked too."

"Well..." Ness hopefully looked over their amenities. Admittedly, they were in a nice limo, a luxurious one particularly for their demise. "Maybe we could throw the pool table out the window?"

"Everything here's glued solid to the floor. Besides you can't teleport. We'd fall like bricks."

"Damn."

Lucas curled his fingers into fists. "Come on," he gritted, whispering a spell between his teeth. A feeble blue spark jumped across his palm. Then a second. The air grew noticeably colder, and Ness shivered, but then as if hit over the head by a jackhammer, Lucas recoiled, losing all concentration.

Ness winced at the flash of pain. "That can't be healthy for you," he pointed out feebly.

"Neither is staying here." When Lucas continued to ignore his indignant protests, returning back to a meditative state, Ness quickly shook him by the shoulder.

"Stop that," Ness said sharply. "You're only going to hurt yourself-"

"I'm not going to let him hurt you too!" Lucas snapped, his eyes flaring up.

Stunned by the outburst, Ness involuntarily let his grip slacken. Roughly shaking his hand off, Lucas stalked over to the end of the limo, feverishly muttering incantations under his breath.

"You're being reckless," Ness said quietly.

Furious, Lucas whirled around. "I'm just trying to get us out-"

"Acting like Claus won't help you find him sooner."

Lucas looked as if he'd been hit. Swallowing down his words, Lucas suddenly gained an interest for his own shoes. "Sorry Ness, I-"

"It's okay, you've still got me to save the day," Ness said, proudly puffing up his chest. "I can think of loads of ways to escape from this hellhole. How about... making a break for it once the limo lands?"

Lucas snorted. "I'm sure Fassad's got that taken care of."

"Okay, then Plan B: I make a distraction, and you pull a fast one on him."

At this, Lucas couldn't help but crack a smile. "What kind of distraction?"

"I could punch him in the face," Ness suggested.

Lucas let out a quiet chuckle. "Go for it."

"I'll punch him twice for luck."

"Even better."

Ness turned over to the silent Starman Super. "You heard that, buddy? We're gonna one-punch your boss in the face." The Starman Super declined a response. Shaking his head, Ness wistfully glanced outside. "Man, what I'd call for a good distraction right now-"

Ness?

He perked his head up.

Catching his frozen expression, Lucas gave him a worried look. "Ness, you-"

Ness gripped his hand. "Play calm," he muttered under his voice.

Thankfully getting the gist, Lucas returned to straining out magical fire-crackers from his hands.

Ness, can you hear me?

There was no mistaking that voice. Emitting a groan as not to attract suspicion, Ness feigned a headache, burying his head in his hands. There, glazed eyes hidden from view. Paula.

Her relief touched his mind. Kumatora thought she'd sensed something. Good thing we decided to check.

Trust me, you couldn't have asked for a better timing. Fassad's got Lucas trapped in here, and I can't use PSI. Ness risked a peek between his fingers. Where are you?

In the sky.

Ness resisted the urge to glance outside. What?

No time to explain. Let me see the room from your eyes.

Uh, okay. What do I- Ness instantly felt another mind prod his, tentatively at first, before comfortably settling in and making itself at home. As if from far away, Ness felt his own body move of his own accord. He slowly lifted his head by a small fraction, blinked, and swiveled his head around before Paula directed his eyes straight at the window by the pool table.

Nothing but clouds and blue sky.

What was Paula looking for?

Then Ness caught the flash of a wing before a golden eagle soared into sight. Judging from her pleased satisfaction, Paula seemed to have found exactly what she was searching for, and much to Ness's relief, quickly withdrew from his head. If Paula could do that, then she had to be close by... but where?

As soon as you can, make a break for it and jump out of that window.

Paula, what are you-

Her voice receded.

Lucas's relieved face finally came into view. "For a second there, I thought you were possessed," he muttered.

"I was. By the Holy Spirit. Ugh." His ears ringing, Ness lightly massaged his own temples. "Man, that was weird."

Then the entire limo rocked over to the side.

Lucas reappeared over the side of the couch. "What was that," he said, suddenly alert.

Ness opened his mouth to answer, but almost regretted it when he was flung to the carpet from another jolt. A shrill metallic screech filled his ears, the only warning Ness received before the entire limo was rocked with an ear-splitting explosion.

Latching onto a stumbling Lucas by the hand, Ness dragged themselves over to the window. "This way," he gasped.

A glint of gold emerged from the clearing smoke. Before Ness could register the movement, the Starman Super had already materialized by his side, its visor glowing with red-hot magic. Recognizing imminent danger, Lucas wasted no time to throw himself to the side, dive-tackling Ness under the pool table. When the hot beam split the wood into two, Lucas kicked the heavy halves in its direction, momentarily blinding the Starman from view.

"We need to make it over to the broken window," Ness yelled.

"I'll distract it, you make it over first."

"I'm not leaving you behind," Ness said angrily.

Lucas let out a frustrated noise. "You're not, I'll be right behind you-"

The Starman Super blasted the pieces of pool table out of its way. Looking unimpressed, it tilted its visor in Ness's direction.

"Oh, give me a break," Ness groaned, pulling Lucas out of the way of another laser, but staggered when the Starman wrapped an arm around his ankle. Swearing loudly, Ness collapsed face-first into the carpet, unable to stop his fall with his cuffed wrists. The impact sent Ness's head spinning. Vaguely he registered sounds of Lucas trying to cast a spell, but whatever it was, it wasn't working.

Thick metal feet planted themselves by his head. The helmeted visor appraised Ness with deadly intent. "ELIMINATE TARGET."

Dazed, Ness raised his head up. He thought he might have heard someone screaming out his name, but it was too late, far too late...

If he could just crawl out of the way...

If he could just...

"PK FIRE."

Then the roaring wall of hot flames bore down on him.

.

.

.

~oO0Oo~

.

.

.

Any second now.

Any second.

...

Wait, nothing?

The smell of charred flesh stung his nose. Okay... what. Just how bad was the damage if he couldn't even feel it?

Ness slowly opened his eyes.

His pupils dilated at the sight. "Y-You..."

"Make your way to the window."

Ness could only manage a croak. "Lucas. Your burns."

Unsteadily sinking into his knees, Lucas squeezed his eyes in pain. "I know. Just go," he choked, his voice barely audible.

Ness could only stare dumbly at the row of inflamed blisters across Lucas's arms before realization hit him like a truck. His back. Lucas had shielded him with his own back.

"No. No!" Horrified, Ness grabbed him by the shoulders, but like a cruel reminder, the heavy cuffs jangled, weighing down on his wrists. "LifeUp! PK Healing!"

Coughing uncontrollably, Lucas tried to push him off, but his hand, slick with sweat, ended up weakly sliding off Ness's shirt. "Go. It's after you. Won't... kill me."

Cursing under his breath, Ness hoisted Lucas up by the underarms, but stopped when Lucas let out a muffled cry of pain. Alarmed, Ness dropped him, and Lucas toppled back into the carpet. "Stings. Can't move," he whispered hoarsely.

"We'll figure something out," Ness said frantically, glancing at the window. Too far. They were never going to make it.

Not unless...

The Starman Super whirred and clicked.

"What are you lookin at," Ness said angrily, balling up his fists. "Never seen human suffering before?"

Uncertain over its mistake, Starman Super turned its unforgiving head back over to appraise him. "ERROR. WRONG TARGET."

With a hoarse scream, Ness launched himself at the Starman. With barely a blink, it knocked him aside like a rag doll, bruising his side, but with a ferocity born from desperation, Ness threw himself onto the Starman, clawing at its foolproof back. With a metallic creak, the Starman spun around, sending him slamming into the ground. As his ears rang from impact, Ness vaguely heard sounds of a struggle and a shout of someone who had thrown himself back into the fray. There was another blast of magic, and heat seared his face a second time before a prone body finally toppled onto the ground, his form steaming, his eyes glassy. Nestled tightly in its hands was a broken bulb of a Starman's eye.

Lucas had tried to save him again...

Tasting a sharp tang of copper on his bitten tongue, Ness snarled, wiping the blood off his mouth. Diving over to grab the Starman by the head, he wrestled it away as the visor wildly began firing beams with its lone eye in random, but Ness's grip slipped, his hands were too sweaty, and the Starman Super... the Starman Super was too strong... Ness staggered at a devastating blow to the side, but before he had the chance to right his balance, the next hit sent him hurtling into the wine cabinet.

Something gave a nasty crunch under the pressure. Weakly, Ness tried to scrape off the broken glass raining over his hair, but another laser beam exploded at his feet. Tumbling across the bar counter and sliding off with a painful thump, Ness struggled to push himself back up, coughing up blood.

If he got rid of the Starman Super, if he moved it out of the way... then they stood a good chance for escape.

Not if. When.

Because he had to protect... Had to protect...

Then a blur of pink darted into Ness's path.

"KUMA PAAAWNCH!"

The resulting shockwave blasted the hair from Ness's face. Flying back from impact, the Starman Super crashed into the nearest armchair with an inhuman groan.

Ness blinked in surprise. "You're-"

"Geez, you two are hopeless without me," Kumatora grumbled, gingerly hoisting a shaking Lucas up into the air. "Okay, buddy boy, I got him. Now let's roll before Metal Brain decides to barbecue us to bits."

Ness nodded rapidly. "Right."

Looking down to assess Lucas's injuries, Kumatora gave a noise of disbelief. "Third degree burns?! What the hell happened to him?"

Swallowing hard, Ness turned away. "He took a hit for me."

With difficulty, Kumatora gruffly patted Ness on the shoulder. "Don't feel like shit. It wasn't your fault."

Ness nodded, looking down at the floor.

When they swerved around a refreshments bar, nearing the broken window, Kumatora set Lucas down. Then leaning out of the window, she bellowed from the bottom of her lungs, "OI, BIRDBRAIN! WHERE YOU AT?!"

With a loud indignant screech, the giant golden eagle soared back into sight.

"Good." Kumatora nudged Ness over. "Now jump."

Ness anxiously glanced back at the prone figure on the floor. "But he-"

"Don't worry, I'll bring him over," Kumatora reassured him. "But Poo can only take two people at a time-"

"POO?" Ness glanced at the golden eagle in disbelief. "That eagle is POO?!"

The giant eagle screeched again.

"Yeah, he can transform into living things at will. One hour a day. It's a part of his all-mighty meditation as the MIRROR PRINCE or whatever. Go figure." Another inhuman groan echoed across the walls, and Kumatora impatiently shoved Ness over to the window. "Now hurry, we don't have a lot of time."

Clumsily groping for the rim, Ness clambered onto the window, then dubiously glanced down at the giant eagle soaring beneath him. "You know, I still don't think this is very saAAAFE!" Ness screamed when Kumatora unceremoniously shoved him out of the limo.

His worries were unfounded. Ness's stomach gave a sick jolt when something halted his freefall. Sharp claws digging into his shoulders, the sky blurred around him, and before Ness knew it, he was falling yet again.

Unfortunately, his plight was cut short by landing with his face to the floor.

"Ness!"

Multiple voices were heard on all sides, multiple hands tugging on his arms and snatching at his clothes, but peeling his face off the floor, Ness dazedly batted them aside and staggered upright.

"Lucas, he needs... he needs help," he slurred stupidly before another thud rocked the Skyrunner. Two bodies had fallen from the hole in the ceiling, quickly followed suit by the golden eagle itself. With a last screech, the the mighty bird of prey disappeared in a puff of smoke; coughing and gasping on all fours, Poo returned to his human form.

"YEAH, WE SHOWED THEM!" Kumatora screamed in delight. "BOOK IT, JEFF!"

"Lloyd, close all exits!" Jeff yelled, scrambling for the controls. "Everyone, hold on tight!"

The floor vibrated with a low hum. The windows began to glow with a blinding light, forcing Ness to shield his eyes. With a high-pitched sweeeeeee followed by a final ping, the Skyrunner blinked out of sight.

.

.

.

~oO0Oo~

.

.

.

A loud howl of fury hit his ears.

No doubt his master was in a foul mood.

Lingering from afar, the Masked Man watched as Master Fassad's expression plummeted from gloating to horrified in a matter of mere seconds. Frozen in place, the pack of popcorn tumbled out of his Master's hands.

Nonchalantly, the Masked Man picked it up.

Then his Master began screeching for him, and the Masked Man dutifully stepped to his side. "Do you require assistance."

In response, a tissue box clonked him in the head. "YOUR. TWIN. BROTHER." Fassad screamed furiously, pointing wildly at the broken screen. "-is a nasty pain in the neck!"

A pain in the neck? Cramps. The Masked Man offered the appropriate solution. "Heating pad."

Master Fassad slapped it out of his hands. "No, you bolt for brains!" With an anguished howl, Fassad tore at his perfect hair. "I don't understand! I thought I erased every single stupid plot hole from this story, but he still managed to escape! Just how many times is he going to be saved by a deus ex machina?!"

To console? Yes. The Masked Man stepped forward, mechanically patting Fassad in the back. "There, there," he deadpanned.

"Why is life so unfair?!" Fassad wailed, throwing a fit and stamping his foot like a toddler deprived of chocolate. "I'm not even asking for much! I ONLY WANT TO ENSLAVE HUMANITY!"

A fluctuating tone. A cracking voice.

Distress.

Tears were trickling down the boy's face.

The Masked Man looked around. The vision disappeared.

The Masked Man felt an odd shiver crawl down his spine. If this boy could worm into his mind... if this boy could defy Master Fassad's wishes so easily ... then he must be a very fearsome opponent indeed.

This boy... this very special boy...

Distress.

The Masked Man doubled over, his chest suddenly twinging with pain.

Trapping that face between his hands. Palming those tears away.

Distress.

DISTRESSDISTRESSDISTRESS-

The horrible ringing in his head only intensified when Master Fassad flew over and boxed his ears in a wild fury. "Answer me!" he screamed. "Don't tell me that you're defective already, you useless waste of space!"

"I...I-" The Masked Man gasped, staggering back from the blow and clutching his temples. "I-Incomprehensible..."

Hurts.

The Masked covered his eyes.

Hurts.

The Masked covered his ears.

Where does it hurt?

Warm laughter. Ghostly hands reaching out for his.

Need to... keep him safe...

I love you, Claus.

Pain like nothing before seared his chest, and the Masked Man couldn't breathe.

Then sharp manicured nails pinched his nose shut, and the Masked Man cried out, struggling against the sudden weight pinning him against the ground. He couldn't breathe. The Masked Man weakly batted at the hand roughly handling his shoulder. Stale air stuck in his lungs, the Masked Man desperately clawed for breath, but when he opened his mouth, the air tasted so heavy, clogging up his throat and sloshing over his lips-

His mind cleared. The distress disappeared.

I serve Master Fassad.

.

.

.

~oO0Oo~

.

.

.

"He'll be okay."

The sharp scent of peppermint clogged up Ness's nose. Watching Kumatora perform her healing magic from afar, Ness swallowed down the lump in his throat. "Third degree burns," he said hoarsely.

"You didn't escape completely unscathed either," Paula pointed out with a frown, finishing her treatment and setting down the half-agape PSI cuffs. "Lucas might've saved you from the worst of the burns, but you still seared your arms and broke two of your right ribs. You're lucky that they didn't pierce your lungs. When Duster still saw you moving around, he said that you were inhuman. You should've been rolling on the ground screaming in pain."

Well, to be fair, Ness did roll over flailing about in pain seconds after their escapade. All that relief must have finally worn off his adrenaline.

"Paula, he had third degree burns. Even with her magic, Kumatora said that the injuries were so bad that they might scar. Permanently." Letting out a strangled noise, Ness pressed his face against his hands. "I was supposed to have his back. Not the other way around."

"And you did. You gave us time to break through the window." Paula's expression softened. "Ness, if you hadn't fended off the Starman Super and bought us time, Kumatora might have had to carry both of you."

Ness swallowed down his nerves. Maybe another time, another day, Paula's praise would've had him skyrocketing to the roof, but all he felt now was numb. "I want to go home," he whispered, and understanding the sentiment all too well, Paula squeezed his hand.

A weary-looking Poo and Ana ambled over, the latter supporting the former around the shoulders. "That was a close call," Ana said, sounding breathless. Her eyes flickered over to Ness, looking worried as she opened her mouth to ask, but Poo squeezed her hand.

"Not now," Poo muttered.

Slowly, as if swallowing down her question, Ana nodded.

"No, it's okay," Ness muttered, raising his head to face them square in the eye. "Ninten's safe with Giygas... and Claus, he's-"

"He's under Fassad's control." Ana's shoulders slumped over. "We all thought so. From our dreams..." She glanced over at Lucas, who seemed to have recovered enough from his injuries to sit up, and was currently exchanging conversation with a concerned Duster. "You two are heading over to New Pork City, right? Is Lucas really going to pull the Seventh Needle?"

"That's the plan," Ness mumbled, reluctant to talk. He didn't need another reminder about the hardest trial yet to come.

A gleeful yell erupted from the control pad. "Yes," Jeff cackled, throwing his hands up into the air. "The CRUISE function works!"

"We synced the autopilot up with my tracker," Lloyd explained earnestly, plodding up to their side. "Wished we'd figured that out before the avalanche though. That was a close scrape. I thought we were really going to be goners."

Ness blinked. "That reminds me... how did you find us?" he said slowly. "And how the heck do you know where New Pork City is?"

Everyone shared a significant glance.

Paula cleared her throat. "Well, funny story..."

.

.

.

"...So you're after Lloyd's mini toolkit," Ness finished, sounding more and more disbelieved. "And you think that Claus has it."

Lloyd shifted uncertainly to the side, but it was an unnecessary precaution. As silent as a statue, Lucas hadn't uttered a single word throughout the entire dialogue. Reluctantly, Lloyd gave a response. "No guarantees, but that's the plan."

"Fassad changed his clothes. He might not even have it. It could be back in Saturn Valley for all we know-"

"It's very likely in Moonside. I cross-referenced the climate and elevation from pulling up old maps on my dad's database," Jeff added grimly. We don't know who has Lloyd's toolkit, but it's definitely in the area."

The Skyrunner sailed past the peak of another snowy mountain cap. Outside the windows, stars glittered in the night sky. Already? Ness could have sworn that it had only barely been noon. Blinking around, Ness realized the stark absence of people in their conversation; most of his friends had retreated to rest. This awareness threw Ness in for another loop. Some places must be speeding up time, while others were lagging behind.

Well, I just screwed up time-space. Your world's even more unstable now. Sorry, kid.

So this was what BuzzBuzz had meant.

The radar gave a lonely blip. A silent tension had settled onto their shoulders.

"I think we're almost there. Better take us off autopilot before we hit another time zone," Jeff muttered, quickly rising to his feet.

Ness gave an uncertain glance at the sleeping figures behind them. "Should we wake them?"

Lloyd shook his head. "Poo needs to recharge. And if what we've expected holds out, they'll all need their rest. That means you too," he added sternly when Ness looked ready to stand up.

Cracking a small smile, Ness settled back down. "I still can't believe you managed to find us."

"We might've caught the limo on radar, but thank Kumatora and Paula for the rescue. We wouldn't have known you two were in there if it weren't for them."

Jeff's voice rang out from the console. "Lloyd, I need your help navigating."

Glancing at the two friends behind him, Lloyd spared them an apologetic look, then hurried after his cousin poste-haste.

The silence they'd left behind was almost unbearable.

Unsurprisingly, Ness broke it first. "What are you going to do?"

"Pull the Seventh Needle."

"You know that's not what I'm talking about. There's a good chance that Fassad is going to use Claus against you again."

Lucas shifted his eyes over. "Then I'll give him a fight worth remembering."

Ness clenched his fists. "So... this is it. You're just going throw away your life for some stupid quest that might not even save humanity."

"You would've done the same in my shoes."

Ness couldn't find an answer to argue against that. "And I wish I could," Ness said quietly, lowering his eyes to the floor. "But I can't. So you'd better stay alive."

Lucas cracked a small smile. "Only if you do."

Fueled by a firm resolve, Ness gripped his hand. "You bet I will."

The Skyrunner slowed down.

"Keep your eyes peeled," Jeff called out over the sea of groggy faces stirring from their slumber. "From this height, we should spot the broken spire of Empire Porky Building at any second-"

Jeff's voice died.

There was no need for words when the sight alone could steal all the breath from his lungs.

The windows lit up their stunned faces with eerie fluorescent light. At Jeff's wordless exclamation, they slowly fixed their attention to the windows as one.

Sure enough, where there had once been the wreckage of a toppled city, now thrived a crazy fun house. Shadows swept over the streets like tongues of darkness, and up ahead, rollercoasters screamed in mad delight, defying gravity in their tracks. Bright city lights flashed and buzzed at odd intervals. A slow music, deteriorating in rhythm, wormed its way through their ears. Demonic and sinister, the unsteady babble crawled into their bones, slowing down their heartbeat in a cold dread.

Fear, not magic, raised the hairs on their arms.

And looking as grand as ever before, the horrifying tall spire of Empire Porky Building proudly stood in the ashes of the old. Above its apex, a hovering sign-post swung and creaked with the bolded words:

"WeLCoME tO MOoNSiDE."

---

[NOTE 11/4/18]: Clos was wrong; dun brush your teeth right after throwing up. The acid from your bile along with the erosion of your teeth from the toothbrush will whittle down your enamel. Instead, rinse with water, wait for 30 minutes, THEN brush yo teef :)

Author's Note:

...And in the distance came a wail of fury, for Ninten did not star in this chapter.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! And what better than to celebrate with an update? :D

It's that time of the year again. THE SEASON OF GIVING. AND OF EDITING. *Stares pointedly at anything before CHAPTER 30* Now, I shall retreat back to the times from whence I called Claus a ginger and Ness a black-haired violet-eyed boy. Also Giygas as a stereotypical evil tsundere teacher ow my eyes AWAY FILTH I WILL PURGE THEE

But I do hope that this chapter is passable! ;-; Bleh ended up cutting out an awfully large chunk of my rough draft (i.e. Lucas's dream with Fassad, etc.) because it didn't seem as pertinent to this chapter. We'll be seeing an awful lot of Fassad ahaha

But lesson learned. This is why I shouldn't start another longfic before finishing the first. Because I end up neglecting the other. The switch to 3rd person POV and past tense was so jarring that I had to re-read my notes for this fic and listen to Frank Sinatra to get kicked back into high gear. It's so much easier to write my shitpost!fic than this monster here... rip. BUT WE ARE FINALLY IN MOONSIDE! AND IT ONLY TOOK THIRTY-EIGHT CHAPTERS! AND THREE YEARS! *Flails around in happiness*

Unfortunately, I didn't post a preview to Chapter 39, because I'm still debating over the POV selection. But plotwise, we're rapidly approaching the angsty climax THAT IS THREE YEARS OVERDUE. yEAAH GET HYPED!

Again, something I always say, but its meaning is no less diminished: Thank you very much for your reviews. :D Really. The time you put into these things is very much appreciated, and I can only hope to repay it with keeping up the quality of my work. Admittedly, they are quite the excellent motivator ;)

Seriously, I can't wait to show you what I've been working on. In the upcoming chapters are some of the first scenes that I'd written three years ago. My body is ready. I hope yours is too. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

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Fueled by Nightmares: Thanks for the pointer! Fixed my chapters from MITCH to MICK. Phew, let's hope it stays that way. And yep, you've pretty much hit the nail on the head! ;)

Decco6226: Oh goodness, you're making me flustered. Thank you so much for the kind review! I'm flattered that you hold me in such high regard, but really, I'm just here to practice my crappy eenglish. If you reviewers have taught me one thing from this site, it's that there's always room for improvement. :)

Bramblesong's Vulpix: First of all, I hope your APUSH exam went well! APUSH was such a pain hahaha oh god would it surprise you if I told you that I got a 3 on both my English Language and English Literature exams? I barely passed both. Writing under a time limit is not my strength ;-; But trust me, those scores won't matter as much later on in life. ;) I hope you enjoy the ride, fellow reader. Tis a sea of words you swam through to reach this point ❤

JgcFan: You have no idea how relieved I am over your review. I notice that a lot of fics had a shortcoming of introducing large supporting casts, and as all of my secondary characters were relevant to the plot, I wanted each of them to be relatable in some way. Then I bump into the problem of maybe-accidentally-possibly creating a filler chapter that nobody wants to read eek! But I'm really glad that I managed to get that message across, and I'm glad that you loved it :)

Anon: AHH IT'S NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN :D Good to hear that the chem final went well! It's almost finals season again (oh no), but I'm sure you can hit your exams out of the ballpark. ;) And yes, I love Ness's dad. He's the literal definition of a gentle giant. CAST YOUR VOTE FOR NESS'S DAD AS BEST DAD! And as always, you flatter me. :) I was especially worried about the last chapter, because while the B-listers showed some much-needed development, I was afraid about the plot lagging again. Especially since I've left Lucas and Ness hanging for over a year... rip pacing. DX But aHH I'm glad you think so highly of my writing skills, but I'm seriously just practicing how to better elucidate my thoughts onto paper. Good quality writing is so hard to achieve... ;-; But I can only hope that as you raise the bar for my writing, I can keep up! Short kid, here ;) AND WHAT WHO GETS KIDNAPPED AND WHAT No, I do not know what you are talking about. No sirree ;D Also if Ness's dad is BEST DAD in this fic, Fassad is BEST CREEPER. God can you imagine him watching you as you sleep? The horror is real. And no need to thank me for the thanks; I appreciate your reviews at any time ;)

Liquidus Izayoi: BUT IS CLAUS REALLY DED? DUN DUN DUNNN! Stay tuned for the next episode way over yonder. :D

Guest: Yep, writing about the parents is such an underrated silver lining. :) For some reason, I love writing about the parents' POV, because I think it lends a nice perspective to usual RPGs (where parents are kinda doin nuthin) and provides additional characterization for the child protagonists.

C.S. Alvarez: *Bows* Thank you, dear friend!

I'mSolidSnaek: Agreed. Ninten's father is a jerk XD I think the point I want to drive home with the parents is that Adults are grown-up children. They might have more life experience under their belt, but they're just as prone to making mistakes as their children. Unfortunately, their mistakes just tend to be more serious. :( While I think I kinda sorta failed with the characterization of Ninten's dad (seriously Ninten's family is made up of tsunderes I swear to god), I hope Ness's parents and Flint made up for it :) And thanks for giving my secondary characters love! I know it can get frustrating, especially since they slow down the main plot, but their character development is also very important to the maturation of this story. *Clinks glass THAT IS NOT ALCOHOL* Here's to a continuation of THIS CONVOLUTED PLOT YEAH

Plushiepaw: HELLO FRIEND! I'm glad to hear that you seem to be doing okay! No worries, review at your own pace. You're busy, I'm busy, heck, everyone has so much stuff on their plate. :D While reviews make me feel all warm and GWAH inside (and I do especially love yours!), I don't expect reviews from readers because the reviews are best when the reader actually writes one from the goodness of their heart. Also, I haven't been updating as frequently, so the apology runs both ways. *Bows* So. Very. Sorry. And I know what you mean about Ninten's father. He's meant to be a gray-area character :) AND I FEEL YOU AHHH MORE LUCAS-CLAUS-NESS ANGST POVs are the best haha!

Connor: Heh lovin' dat word count tracker. But I think it's gonna explode by the time I finish! And hey, I understand about your stance on Ana. :) Her character was actually one I had to go back, rework, and edit over the chapters. I have (or had? dunno where my notes at) a separate characterization arc planned for her very soon... but to reveal anything more tis a spoiler alert ;) And YES since this is a canon-ish fic with canon references, I stuck to as many canon names as I could! It was a struggle sometimes (especially over the parents - twas a mouthful to keep saying "Ness's parents" or "Ninten's parents" then randomly have a 'Flint' or 'Carol' thrown in), but I also wanted to leave a part of the naming/characterization to the reader's imagination. Tis a part of the magic of this story, Connor ;) Oh, and I don't mind your two cents about the Mani-Mani statue and Giygas! Speaking of Giygas, we'll see more of his characterization quite soon - a very important part of the upcoming chapters, and a significant plot point in my opinion. Though I am biased. Maybe a little ;) Heh and you're right - I DO tend to write a lot about characters idolizing each other; mostly because I was not-so-creative in the earlier years of the fic, which is why everyone was very similar to each other in some way. XD But I do think that Ninten's early adoration of Claus is different from Tony's for Jeff: a difference I hope to mark by the end of this fic.

Lykos: IS THIS RELEVANT?! :O Who knows. I, for certain as my word as author, do not. Nope, do not know in the slightest!

PKBlueberry618: OH GEEZ YOU READ THIS FIC FROM THE MOMENT IT WAS PUBLISHED?! *Buries face in hands in eternal embarrassment* My chapters were awful eeEEP the cringe is real hahaha. XD But I'm super duper happy that you hold this fanfiction in high regard! I SHALL NOT DISAPPOINT YOU... OR AT THE VERY LEAST I SHALL TRY NOT TO! :D And hey, no worries about the review! I loved it. :) Quite honestly, in the thoughts of any fanfic writer on this site, any review about our work really makes our day. So really, I only have you to thank for your kind words. *Bows* And... DID YOU JUST SAY CLAUS ANGST?! AND FEELS? *Rubs hands like an evil villain* ooOOH I am ready hehehe

Earthbound Warrior: Haha oh man writing a book sounds so daunting. My words come and go. I'm gonna leave writing to the professional kids... Maybe go off and surf this website instead. ;)