This story is a work of fiction. Any similarities to events or persons living or dead in your world is purely coincidental.

Don't drown in that dark, dark wave

Don't leave this world we want to save

High note desperation risin'

Seek the truth beyond the horizon

8/6 Wednesday

Morning

MS: hey

AS: been a while since we did this huh

RH: seriously? I mean most of the time people do this like every day

MS: i mean, do a group talk like this with more than 2 ppl

RH: oh right

JR: yeah been some time, prolly cause we can just visit each other whenever we want to outside the school dorms

NV: of course we would always prefer to talk directly, yes?

AS: of course, howd it go?

JR: eeeehhh...

NV: ill provide my information first then

NV: shukiji is continuing to research Faraway Lands. He asked for us to place some 'relays' i order to extend the range of his vision further.

JR: dude

NV: i asked him about his future goals and he said he is trying to figure out how to harvest resources from faraway lands that would fill the shortages that various countries are currently experiencing

JR: dude

NV: he said it was to save humanity, as he believes society's current problems are being caused by the shortage of resources. I told him it was a bad idea but he said he would save humanity and

JR: stop

NV: is something wrong?

MS: its fine

AT: thats weird tho. least he actually thinks what he's doing is helping ppl

NV: but this will make it even harder for us to convince him to leave correct

MS: unfortunately yes

RH: no big, just have to beat him right?

AT: no, we cant get him to leave by just beating him up, won't work

JR: right we gotta convince him that its too dangerous to stay there for long

AT: and in this case, that means beating him another way

AT: hence the plan

RH: well done getting everything for us so fast!

MS: yes but you didnt have to overtax yourself like that

AT: eh its fine, i feel great now

RH: see? tsusurga one of those weird people who doesn't feel right if she doesn't do lots of work like every day

RH: doc is like that too

AT: cant help it if i have all this energy for summer vacation

JR: ikr

JR: gotta use it!

MS: your turn now then

JR: oh right

JR: not much to say, we went to an island to plant the relay thingy, some shadows tried to mess with us, we kicked their butts, the end

AT: everything went ok then?

RH: we got through it, might've been easier with Vitienne tho

NV: my apologies

JR: no big, we needed you to talk to shukiji

MS: yes, you're the only one who he will talk to

MS: we had to make sure of that first

JR: so its okay to keep going with the relays then?

JR: i mean we're basically helping his evil plan

NV: he's NOT evil rosea, he just thinks that he can help humanity

JR: whatevs

AT: i think you should keep going with it. Best case he finds out that world doesn't have the resources he's looking for

AT: that's what he was trying to find, right?

NV: correct

AT: try and keep up the act remember

JR: hoo boy

AT: tough eh?

MS: we're not great actors but he seems to be buying it for now

AT: one more then ill make my move

RH: head out today then?

MS: yeah no

MS: not a chance

MS: we are taking a break from that, for at least another day

AT: no complaints, im sure you all had a lot to deal with yesterday

RH: its fine, we can take it!

MS: maybe you can, but some of us cant

MS: this is your first time doing this, its important for us to pace ourselves, take a few days to recover each time we set sail

MS: right?

AT: yep, pretty much took the words from my mouth

MS: i mean seriously i had to pick julian up off the floor yesterday, he overtaxes himself so much

MS: ...you sll do

MS: all*

NV: please, dont feel like we have to hurry along. I can say with faith that shukiji will not be in danger for a while yet

NV: furthermore, i explained to him earlier that we might not return for several days due to the exhaustion from fighting shadows

NV: he said it was fine

RH: urgh whatevs

RH: guess youre the experts

AT: no worries, thats one of about a thousand things i talked about with akira-kun on our vacation

AT: its definitely important to pace yourself

AT: and i already have an idea in mind for anyone who wants to come with me today

MS: sure! anywhere you want to go

NV: sure, why not?

RH: pass, im gonna hit the gym, been too long

RH: wanna come, rosea?

JR: um yeah

JR: sure

JR: ill go with you

AT: okay, assuming everything goes okay im sure niyoga wont mind if we dont come back just yet

AT: that should work out well with the plan too

MS: right, thought so

MS: see you at the bus stop then?

AT: yeah

(Mirambela Sorano has left the chat)

AT: don't work yourself too hard now senpai

(Aiko Tsuruga has left the chat)

(Noel Vitienne has left the chat)

(Jiachi Rosea has left the chat)

RH: please

(Reiha Hayato has left the chat)

8/6 Wednesday

Lunch

Arcing around, Aiko's thin arm encompassed the wide parkland area. "See? This is a zoo. A small one. The ones in Tokyo are waaay bigger."

"That almost goes without saying", Mira giggled lightly, surveying the place as well. While the wide grove had previously been only known as another section of Ashizuri-Uwakai national park, a new developer had managed to get ownership over a large enough part of it to install the large rounded cages and walls, making it a highlight for anyone hiking the usual park trails. A difficult feat, she knew. Zoos had fallen out of fashion in the last few decades due to the concerns of animal rights groups, and Mira had to consider herself something of a watchdog in that field as well.

Still, what she had seen so far didn't raise any alarm bells. The cages all were all clean, well-kept and suitably large, giving the animals inside plenty of room to move and breathe. They seemed energetic and well-fed, particularly the felines who must have smelled something on her or Aiko to suddenly press themselves up against the walls that way. The main attraction this time though was the tall circular cage with the small collection of birds inside.

Pelagio stuck close to them, always perched close enough to talk. Thankfully, no one had yet noticed that they occasionally spoke to someone who wasn't there. "This is a zoo, captain? If I may ask... what exactly is its purpose?"

Aiko snorted, studying the scores of people around them, mostly excited children here with their parents. "They want to see the animals. Most of them live in the city, so they'd never get a chance otherwise."

He wheeled by overhead, earning several cries and pointed fingers from the patronage in his own right. "Hmph. Fascinating. Could they not simply go into the wild to see them?"

"That's a bit of trip for most of them though", Noel pointed out slightly irritably. His own fascination had been with a set of monkeys with matches black streaks running through their fur and they, in return, had developed a fascination with him. As a result they'd pelted him with some kind of tiny berry that he was still picking out of his shirt. "Glad I didn't wear the student summer uniform for this. That would be a record, I think."

"I guess this isn't much of a thrill for you", Aiko admitted in a slight tone of contrition to Mira. "This was mainly just for Pela-tori and me. There's zoos in Tokyo, but I never went to any of them. I just didn't feel safe going there alone, you know?"

"Not a problem", the older girl shrugged, watching the crowd gather around one of the high walls with the big cats. "It's very different from home. Honestly, I just wanted to go somewhere. It didn't matter where. Like you said, last year I was all alone. Zero friends. And because I was still learning your language, I was scared to go anywhere by myself."

"Well, we can go anywhere now", Ai beamed, momentarily basking in their freedom. "Shimanto's kind of far, but we could definitely make it by bus. There's a campground there, and the school where Yumika-san teaches."

Craning her head north as if she could spot the city from here, Mira chuckled at her friend's enthusiasm over such seemingly minor attractions. She had always thought someone from Tokyo would be much harder to entertain or excite. "If we ever wanted to go camping, there's tons of forest around here. That's the thing about this island that's so different from your home city, Dada Yangyu- lots of green outside the cities, and some of these 'cities' are like barely twice the size of my village."

"Maybe we can arrange something later", their group leader considered carefully. "We'd have to buy two tents at least. And make sure we choose a nice spot. Maybe Pela-tori can find one for us?"

"We'd have to teach him what a 'nice spot' is first", Noel observed, watching as the bright-winged saker falcon wheeled past overhead, taking in more of the zoo as expected. "Apparently, there's a scenic area with a river north of Cape Ashizuri?"

"There are lots of rivers around", Aiko sniffed, considering it. "I'll research it later, try and find a good place for a camping trip."

"Later", Mira reminded her, tugging on her slightly so they didn't lose sight of Pelagio completely. "We came here to enjoy ourselves too, remember?"

Following their feathered friend eventually led them to the tallest cage in the place, enough to contain a tree which had to be at least twice the height or age of any of the others, yet missing numerous leaves. The culprits were obviously the collection of birds living there, and even now they would occasionally dart over to take a nibble off the leaves or some bug too small for most of the people to see until it was too late.

"Let me guess", Aiko remarked once they'd caught up to him. "You want to free them now?"

Surprised by the accusation, Pelagio stared down at them, then back at the aviary. "...Hmph. If this is their home, then there is no need to release them, correct? Unless you desire it, captain?"

"That's... one way of looking at it", Mira palmed her chin. While most of the time Pelagio seemed to possess a fine mind with near-human intelligence, his overbearing focus on protecting their 'captain' sometimes made him seem just as distant as his physical form was from theirs. "I guess so long as-"

"HEY!" The cry of the man behind her cut her off. He wore a stark orange and black uniform that helped him stand out for the crowd, just like the large tiger-stripe device he was lifting to his mouth. "We have an escaped falcon in the southeast quadrant. Call Terumaru-san so he can recapture-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!", Aiko's sudden alarm made her voice crack. "That one's not part of the zoo, he's with me!"

The young man looked skeptical at first, but lowered his phone. "You say he's with you? A falcon?"

"He's her pet", Mira vowed beside her. "I'll vouch for her."

"It's simple enough to resolve", Noel called, rushing up to them as well. "Just call him to you, Tsuruga."

Momentarily amazed that she'd forgotten something so simple, Ai extended her arm out. "Pela-tori, come to me!"

Spreading his wings wide, wider than she remembered them being, he descended, enacting the 'trick' they had practiced many times just for fun. He stayed perfectly perched there on her arm, managing not to let his talons cut into it as she knew they very easily could.

And then quite suddenly she realized that everyone was staring at her in shocked silence. Silence that was followed moments later by a gentle chorus of applause. Despite the sensation of embarrassment burning her cheeks, Aiko kept her gaze on the zoo worker, making sure he lifted his phone back up to cancel whoever he'd been calling in.

"That's quite the talent you have", he remarked once he'd finished. He looked young for his supposed age, strings of auburn hair tied back around a round scalp topped by shadow from the zoo's orange-black cap laid across his thin glasses, several of the strings decorated with multicolored beads. "How long have you two been training?"

"L-long enough", Ai said nervously. Pelagio's weight on her arm was growing heavy, but she didn't want to release him just yet. "He's... very smart."

"I can see that", the employee looked impressed, staring at Pelagio's folded wings and raptor glare. "Hm. You ever thought about trying out as an animal tamer?"

"Not really", she digressed, not wanting him to get the wrong idea. "This one is special. He only listens to me. I can't get any other animal to do that."

"And yet you've tamed a saker falcon", he marveled, not taking his eyes off him. "Those are endangered, aren't they? Less than fifteen thousand, I think?"

She blinked in surprise. "Then why did you think he was one of yours?"

He pointed. The bird was slimmer, browner, and had some streaks of black running through its plumage, but its similarity to Pelagio was unmistakable. "Taita falcon", the worker explained. "She's not endangered like sakers, but she's one of our rarest."

The new bird seemed to have caught Pelagio's attention as well. His eyes followed around the cage, never losing sight.

"Sorry about the misunderstanding before", the worker said. "I just saw that falcon and assumed... they usually stay far away from places like this. Too much noise."

"My fault", she offered. "He goes where I go. He never leaves my side, actually."

"Amazing", the man looked back at her in wonder. "They're normally very wary of humans."

Then, to her own amazement, Pelagio spoke. "That falcon... what is her name?"

Of course, she already knew that the zoo worker- she could see now the writing on his name tag: Natsuto – would hear nothing but screeches and squawks from their companion. He looked puzzled by the sudden noise but little more.

"He wants to know the other falcon's name", she offered.

Natsuto's hushed surprise only grew at her words. "Oh really? You can translate for him too? Sounds like you really do have a special bond with this one. I've only seen one other person do that. Anyway", he cleared his throat, "that one is named Pirria. And yes, we do name all the animals here. Makes them easier to keep track of."

"Who names them?", Noel asked, curious.

The worker smiled shyly. "Well, erm... I do, actually. Whenever we bring in a new one everyone asks me to make up a new name for it and add it to the database. Terumaru-san is the animal tamer, the one who catches them if they get wild or cause trouble, but I'm the animal namer. And speaking of..."

Sure enough, another man in the garish orange-black zoo uniform was jogging up, taller, older and more stern-looking than his colleague, bearing a dusty gray mustache contrasting with a pallid brown complexion. "Trouble, Natsuko? I heard there was a loose falcon..."

"Sorry, Terumaru-san", he bowed in contrition. "That was a false alarm. The bird actually belongs to this young girl here."

Mr. Terumaru looked just as impressed at the way Pelagio clung to Aiko's arm without problems, even keeping his balance when it moved. "Well I'll be. That's a saker, isn't it? Very rare! You could get a fair amount for turning it in to a sanctuary, I'd dare say."

"Excuse me?!", Pelagio screeched in offense, Mira hiding her laughter behind him. "My captain would never turn me in for money! How dare you!"

"He says no thanks", Aiko translated. "He's my friend."

Mr. Terumaru sighed. "As you wish. But could we give him a checkup at least? I'm merely guessing, but you have no idea what kind of diseases that one might have. Sakers are very vulnerable to them- it's the main reason why they're endangered. That one could be infecting you as we speak, even if he's able to keep his claws safe."

Seeing a sudden flash of concern on Natsuko's face, Aiko frowned. "His name is Pelagio. And I'm sure he's safe. He would never hurt me."

To drive the point home, he took flight once more, perching at the top of the bird cage and staring down at them all.

"Your choice", the man shrugged helplessly, checking and tapping his handheld device as he spoke. "But don't blame us when that thing gives you some kind of nasty illness. If you change your mind, come back here. The veteranarians on this island aren't very skilled, but Ouma-san is quite talented. Come on, Natsuko. We've got a report in the northwest quad."

With one last look back, the younger worker departed with him.

"That was something", Mira spoke up behind her. "Did you see that look on Natsuko-kun's face?"

"Loud and clear", Ai agreed, suddenly feeling like they weren't quite welcome here. "He was definitely trying to warn me about something. Maybe that Terumaru guy isn't all 'above board'?"

"I hardly consider it fair to judge a man based on a single expression", Noel commented, rejoining them. "Still, perhaps it would be wise to visit a veterinarian at some point, no? I know that our friend is hardly an ordinary bird, but his body here could be capable of contracting diseases like any other falcon."

"Hmph. I feel fine. The only time I felt truly ill is when-"

"When you ate too much sugar junk food at the Tanabata Festival", Mira finished for him. "It's your choice, Ai-chan. I've seen the effects of animal-borne diseases up close in my home, and they aren't something to take a chance with. A simple checkup couldn't hurt, right?"

"No", she admitted, staring up at Pelagio to make sure he was okay with it. He'd certainly hated the last doctor he'd visited back when he'd been shot by a Shadow. He's endured a lot, she considered quietly. All for me. If he gets sick... "No it wouldn't. I'll try and make an appointment after we're done with Niyoga."

"What are you doing with Niyoga?"

The new voice cut into her thoughts, drawing her gaze back to the one in the crowd who hadn't left after the spectacle was over. With his usual stance and clothes, he could have passed for being the same age as Natsuko instead of a third year student, a flat top of crisp black hair covered an angled face that clearly had little patience for any kind of nonsense.

To her embarrassment, Aiko felt her body react to his voice before she even laid eyes on him, and it was Noel who found his voice first. "Just a little summer group project, Tatsunoko-senpai. Did you enjoy the show?"

The aloof president of the SDC smiled in a way that suggested he hadn't for some time. "It was... interesting. You're full of surprises, Tsuruga-chan."

"I..." Cursing her own reaction, stronger than any Shadow, she swallowed to try and clear whatever was blocking her oratory. He's a guy. Just a guy. A guy who was chosen for most attractive male student every year he's been here and has eyes more piercing than Pelagio's oh god oh god. "I hope you don't hold a grudge against Pela-tori."

Looking up at the raptor's foreboding gaze, Kohru shrugged. "Why would I hold a grudge against him?"

"You know why", she smiled back helplessly. That notorious incident that had introduced her to Pelagio would probably live forever in Tosashimizu academy's collective memory. "...Because of Kujou-san."

He hardly looked offended by the suggestion. "Kujou-san and I may have been together once, but not anymore. Besides, that accident was hardly your fault. As that zoo worker just said, it's very impressive that you could tame a falcon like that."

Briefly greeting the others, he drew up to her. "Having said that, I suppose it's strange for me to say that I'm here because of her."

"Kujou?", Mira wondered. "Didn't she move to Tokyo with her dad?"

"So we'd thought", he nodded. "But principal Yumika came to me a week ago. He asked me if I'd seen her. Which means..."

That fog of attraction that had first slowed her was suddenly burned away completely.

Jiachi wasn't surprised to find the school's gymnasium to be nearly abandoned, so quiet that it was almost eerie. Even the few students who were into fitness that they would need to keep it up during summer vacation, it would easy enough to find a larger, better-equipped gym in the city. One that didn't require you to store your clothes and towel in a tiny little student locker.

"Which makes it perfect for me this time of year", Reiha explained when he'd expressed as much. "I don't like having too many other people around when I work out. It's always way too noisy."

He couldn't remember the last time he'd been in here himself, and the place felt alien, doubly so when it was just the two of them.

"Not that I mind having you here", she corrected herself. "It's a free country. Go ahead and pick a spot. All the belts are pretty well-kept, same for the weight presses over there. Good for the arms and pecs."

"I didn't figure you for someone who prefers peace and quiet", he remarked, trying not to look at her too closely. The tight gray tank top she wore now inevitably drew his eyes to certain... places.

"I prefer it when I can get it", Reiha admitted with a friendly smile. "C'mon, you know how it is most of the time at this school. Never a quiet moment, aight? This is the only time you can be here and not have to overhear a hundred students and teachers yapping endlessly about stuff whenever they're not in class." Staring at the closed door and windows, she chuckled. "That stops some of the noise, but not all of it. The reason you prolly don't see me around much after class is because I'm usually either in here or out somewhere in the forest where I can actually hear myself think."

"Or", he suggested mildly, "because you were already on the first bus headed into the city so you could dress up and go around beating up street punks at night?"

That earned him a glare he couldn't quite confirm was teasing or just spurned. "Never letting that one go, are you? That's done with. I told you, me and the doc destroyed the costume ourselves. Nothing left of it now but scraps."

"Good", he nodded back approvingly. His own chosen fitness outfit felt a bit drafty too, and he shivered in the cold air. "Gotta say, that was a pretty sweet outfit though."

"It was", she giggled. "Too many bad memories associated with it now though. I couldn't ever wear that helmet again."

As if spurred on by the mention of those memories, she quickly started into a series of reps, not seeming to care what equipment he chose to use. Of course, he knew that was just Reiha distracting herself from the real reason they'd come here, and didn't really feel like preparing for it with tiring exercises.

If he was guessing right, this would be exhausting enough already.

"Something wrong, Rosea? Need some help?"

"Not with this stuff", he replied. Sure enough, the instant he spoke up, she stopped mid-lift to pay attention to him. "But maybe you can help by just getting it over with. You invited me here for a reason. So talk. I'll listen."

Replacing the barbel on its stand, Reiha rose, looking oddly satisfied that he'd already guessed her true purpose. "And people say that you don't get social cues. Yeah, yeah, I give. Care to keep on guessing? No penalty if you're wrong. We're not dealing with Niyoga here, after all."

The 'hint' wasn't needed, but he appreciated it. "This is about my 'mutiny'."

She made a harsh buzzing noise. "Close. Try again?"

Shrugging helplessly, he stared back. "How 'bout you just tell me, 'kay? I hate suspense when its about me."

"Could've fooled me, Reiha chuckled, running a hand through her dark hair. "You went all dramatic for that 'mutiny', didn't you?"

"Just enough to make it believable."

"Yeah. I sure believed it. So that wasn't Sorano-chan's idea then?"

"Nope. Mine."

Without waiting to see if he was ready, she threw a pen at him which he effortlessly caught, spinning it around in his hand by reflex.

"I thought so", she remarked. "That's like a comfort thing for you, isn't it? You can't help yourself. Go ahead. I know this won't be easy, but I need to hear it. From your mouth."

Now that she'd called attention to it, he wasn't spinning it quite as fast as he knew he could. "...Go on."

Hers was the matchmaker's confident smile now, the one she wore when discussing a friend's relationship with someone else. "You and Tsuruga. There's something there. Don't lie to me and say that there isn't. I'm pretty good at picking up this kind of stuff. Only someone who really cared for Tsuruga would be able to pull what you did. But every time you two both keep pulling back from each other. Why?"

Julian felt himself involuntarily taking a deep breath, felt his hands trembling even as the pen spun faster in his left, a product of his anxiety as Reiha had guessed. "...You're still doing that, huh? I thought your little trip to your Land might've changed your mind."

She hardly looked offended by his suggestion. "...I realized that it's okay for me to pursue happiness too, not just help others. But... yeah, old habits die hard, aight?"

"Well", he nodded back in acknowledgment, his cheeks burning a little less now, "it's kinda like that, really."

"Something that happened in your Land?", she guessed.

"You could say that", he gasped. Even now, the memory of it made him feel weak in the knees, made his hands shake so he could no longer spin the pen. The fact that Reiha and Mira would understand better than anyone what he'd experienced back there helped a little. Only a little. "How much did the others tell you about my...?"

How to even describe it? Who else besides those two had gone through what he had?

"A couple things", Reiha shrugged. "That it was called 'Freedom City'. That it was wild west-themed and there were horses and poker games and trains that turned into snakes. I honestly wanted to check it out for myself, actually."

"That... makes it sound about a hundred times cooler than it actually was."

"I can totes guess why you don't like it so much", she admitted empathetically. "Same reason I never want to go back to Shirubashiti. All the cognitions were there to serve you, right? Flatter your ego?"

"Y-yeah", he whispered bleakly. "Pretty much. But the key thing was one cognition in particular. A piano player at the saloon. It was... it was her."

He immediately expected Reiha's shadowed eyes to narrow in disgust, but instead they seemed to widen in understanding. "Ah. Awkward."

"Understatement of the millennium." It was, in retrospect, a blessing that they were alone in the dusty gymnasium. No one else would see him like this. "But it gets worse."

"Really. I can't wait to hear this", she remarked with about half as much sarcasm as he would've liked. She certainly wasn't going to let up though, not when she'd gotten this far on the hunt.

"Later on, I had a chance to talk to Takamaki-san during our trip to Tokyo", he went on. "I really admired her, even before I learned that she actually was a Phantom Thief. 'Cause we're both part-foreign, right?"

"I liked Takamaki-san too", Reiha agreed with a polite smile. "I prolly wouldn't so much if we'd gone to school together, since she seemed like she would be one of those annoying airhead cheerleader types when she was our age."

"Dunno about that", Julian scratched his head. "But eventually I started talking with her about that whole Kamoshida thing she had to deal with back then. You know, the pedo teacher. The very first target of the Phantom Thieves. So... guess what kind of cognition he had in his Palace?"

Now he saw the reaction he'd expected, the Goth girl's foreboding face twisting into a rage-filled glower not far removed from her anger during the 'mutiny'. "That... that son of a bitch."

"Yeah", he stopped the pen, catching and pocketing it. "Sakamoto-san felt exactly the same way, both then and now. So... what does that make me?"

Reiha seemed to be considering the question as well as his misery, but didn't take long to pull herself back together and scoff at both. "Not Kamoshida, that's for damn sure. So you had sexual fantasies about a girl you liked. Big freakin' whoop. That lops you in with, oh, about 95 percent of the male population of our school? Sorry if you were hoping that made you special or something."

Julian's reaction suggested just the opposite. His relief felt like candy in gaseous form, heady. Intoxicating.

And it earned another mocking scoff. "Seriously? That's what's been holding you back all this time? Come on now."

"That's what I like about you, senpai", he replied bitterly. "You never lie or sugar coat stuff, right?"

"Nope. Not my style", she agreed heartily. "After what I've been through, life's too precious to waste on lies. Even comforting ones. And this time, you don't look like you need them."

Silence fell across them again as he considered what exactly that meant, his friend waiting for the admission she'd wanted to hear. Waiting for him to find his voice again, and speak his heart.

"I... do love her", he managed one breathless eternity later. "At first I thought it was something to do with the fact that she was from Tokyo while I was living out here on the coast. I thought that maybe all the girls from the big city were like that. But no. It's nothing like that at all. It's just her. Just Tsuruga-chan. There's no one else like her. I love her eyes. I love her hair. I love her smell."

"'Her smell'? Seriously, dude?"

Grunting, he looked up at her innocently. "Yeah. You notice? How she kinda smells like the sea breeze?"

"Prolly because she spends so much time out there", Reiha snorted. "And in there. And somebody has to point out how weird it is for you to like that smell when you can't go for more than a few minutes on a boat without getting sick." She paused, blinking, checking the ceiling for something. "Except when we're in Faraway Lands. What's up with that?"

"No idea." He snorted back. "But I'm hoping that doing this more often will eventually help me get my 'sea legs', yeah?"

"Possibly", she considered. "So... you're being completely serious about this then?"

Deep breath. "As serious as I've... ever been about anything."

"Then why...?"

He gazed back at her, waiting for her to figure it out, snapping her fingers when she did. "Your Land. The piano player. The cognition of Tsuruga. She saw it?"

"Saw it. Heard it." He didn't resist the strong black-gloved hand reaching across his shoulder. "Killed it. So yeah. Kind of awkward. For her too. She can't even look at me for too long without thinking about it. About how much of an asshole my Shadow was. And I... I can look at her, sure. But whenever I think of trying to open up to her, let her know how I feel..." His head lay cradled in his hands, covering veiled eyes. "I...I just don't know, alright? We agreed to keep our distance because of it, but... for how long? How long before those memories fade, and we can stop feeling awkward around each other?"

For once, their 'matchmaker' was at a loss for words. She released him, seeming to study her own gloves for a moment before happening on an idea. "Do you think you could be with her if that hadn't happened? If you'd never fallen into that place?"

Jiachi blinked. It felt like a trick question, but he had his answer soon enough. "Prolly not... no. Not a chance. She might've pretended for a while, to humor me. But there's no way she'd be really interested in spending much time around someone with his head stuck that far up his ass." Chuckling softly to himself, he regarded her tall form. "She prolly did it for the same that reason I did at first. 'Cause it's a status symbol. Guys with girlfriends get respect. Girls with boyfriends get popular. At least, that's what I've heard."

Reiha grinned. "Hm. You're not wrong. At least, as far as I've been able to tell. That was part of why everybody knew Kujou's name. Because she was linked to the hottest, coolest guy in the entire school. Tatsunoko."

"Mr. SDC himself", Jiachi joked. "Glad he turned out to be on our side." Pausing, he corrected himself. "Well, not on our side. Not in on our secret."

"He's a good guy", she assured him confidently. "A bit slow not to notice all the crap Kujou was doing behind his back, sure, but he's like Tsuruga that way. He likes to trust people until they prove that they don't deserve it."

"Tatsunoko could have any girl on campus he wanted", Jiachi murmured a bit jealously. "They'd just throw themselves at his feet. Hell, I heard they actually did do that once for some extracurricular thing. But he just had to end up in a relationship with Kujou instead. Talk about bad luck, yeah?"

"I don't think he cared about that very much", Reiha pondered, eyeing the press machine. "But Kujou sure did. It made her the object of envy in every girl's eyes." Catching herself, she sighed. "Well, almost every girl. Point is..."

"Point is?", he repeated when she failed to continue.

"Hey, this isn't easy for me either, aight?" Her teasing tone suggested otherwise, but Jiachi leaned back to listen. "Look... You can prolly guess that I had a lot of bad memories from when my... when the doc saved me from getting captured and sold. Had nightmares for a while too. But y'know, even if some bad memories stick with you, doesn't mean you can't make new memories too."

"Like I can ever forget what happened", he mocked. "She won't either, I'm sure."

"Prolly not", Reiha agreed before staring into him with a newfound resolve. "But that's okay! You don't have to forget. You just have to make some better memories with her. So that when you think about Tsuruga, you start to associate her with those memories. Not the bad ones."

It was strange, he knew, hearing a pep talk from such a... unique personality as Reiha's. Particularly considering that just a few days ago she'd been threatening to punch his lights out for his 'mutiny'. But it felt good. That, he couldn't deny. It felt good that someone else- someone who had every reason to dislike him- wanted him to succeed in the goal that his own gnawing fear and regret had pulled him back from again and again.

"I'll try", he whispered, earning an exasperated laugh from her.

"Don't try. Freakin' do it. Or don't. I respect Tsuruga a lot too, y'know. And I want her to find someone who can make her happy just as much as you do. Only question left is... do you believe you're that someone, Rosea?"

He couldn't answer. Not yet. After a few minutes, Reiha recognized that too, bending down and offering him a long gloved arm to lift him back up. "Only one way to find out, right?"

Accepting her hand, he sniffed and nodded. "Yeah."

8/6 Wednesday

Evening

Tatsunoko was gone, back to his search. In some ways, that was a blessing. The pressure on her chest and body had miraculously vanished, and they were free to talk about things she wasn't sure it was safe to let their handsome student council president know about.

Without needing instruction, they all waited until they were out of the zoo and back on the bus that had brought them there that they started to talk about it.

"It's my fault", Mira lamented. "I joked about it before, I didn't mean it!"

He hadn't been there for that particular conversation, but Noel caught on to her words quickly. "Then you truly believe that Kujou-senpai has gone into Faraway Lands as well? Formed a new Land there?"

"I confirmed it with Pelagio", Aiko noted sadly. "There's no rule that says only one new Land ruler can be in there at a time. And it makes sense." Turning around in her seat, she gave him an apologetic expression. "Can't catch a break, can we? I didn't see it myself, but I'd heard that Kujou was very upset about leaving. About being kicked off the SDC, losing all her power at the school. Losing Tatsunoko-kun."

"That happened weeks before she disappeared though", Mira pondered. "Maybe something else happened?"

"Maybe", she allowed. "But either way, we need to at least try to find her."

"Niyoga-san", Noel nodded. "I will ask him on our next visit. His vision covers a great deal of that world now. If she has a Land, then he may likely know where it is."

"That might help." Seeing the bright lights of the city beginning to flash by in the growing dusk, she folded her arms over the seat. "But there's also the last person who saw her."

Mira let out a high groan, rising from her seat to apply both hands to her face as if in pain. "No. Kamwe. Bad idea. Don't you dare."

Surprised by such an emotional reaction, Noel raised an eyebrow. "Don't do what?"

Lowering her hands, Mira sighed in exasperation. "Don't you see? She's planning on going to ask Kujou's father, Daisuke. Who, if you'll remember, is a major ranking member of JCAP. Have you ever seen him talking on television? He's very loud. Very persuasive."

"I... don't watch those programs."

"Good." Satisfied, she turned her grievances back to their leader. "He won't help us, Ai-chan. He hates us."

"He hates you", Aiko corrected, indicating both of them. "I'm not 'gaijin'. He's never even met me."

"And as soon as he does learn who you are, I wouldn't be surprised if he attacks you, blames you for whatever happened with his daughter."

"Not if I have Tatsunoko-kun along with me", she pointed out. "He's got more self-control than that. If he didn't have that, he wouldn't be so successful at what he does."

"So you get to listen to him yell at you. That's not going to help us find Kujou at all." Throwing up her hands in surrender, Mira shook her head. "If she's not in Faraway Lands, then we shouldn't even bother. Let the police handle it. She hates you, remember? She hates all of us. They both do. Leave them alone."

For the first time in many weeks, Aiko felt some real shock at the sheer venom in her adopted sister's normally gentle voice. While no one could deny that her own trip to the other world had changed Mirambela for the better, the bitterness from over a year of torment at school was still there inside of her, still influencing her actions whether she realized it or not. It goes both ways.

Rising, she took her friend's arms in her own and her angry gaze into hers, helping to sit back down, calming again. "Dada Yangyu... I know exactly how you feel about Kujou. I hate her too. That hasn't changed. And if you don't want to help, I totally understand. But... I also can't help but feel a little bit guilty that things have turned out this way for her."

"What? You didn't even do anything wrong, Ai-chan!", Mira protested stubbornly. "Tatsunoko-kun is the one who gathered the evidence and kicked her out."

"Because she was distracted", Aiko reminded her patiently. "Distracted by me not giving in and bowing to her lordship like everyone else had until then. Distracted by Hayato secretly turning on her and helping us." Falling back so only their fingertips still touched, she gave up a light, self-mocking smile. "Distracted by a saker falcon flying in out of nowhere and scratching her arm up so badly that it never completely healed. Or do you think it's just a coincidence that she always wore the long sleeve uniform after that day, even when it was getting a lot warmer during the exams? She was hiding it. From everyone else... and herself."

Breaking the connection, the tall exchange student let her arms drop to her sides as if in defeat. "But none of that was your fault. She did it to herself. She deserved every bit of it. More."

"Maybe", their captain allowed. "But can you really say that she deserves to die? If Kujou isn't in Faraway Lands, then there must be another reason she never returned home to her dad. There are lots of things that could have happened to her, but we'll never know unless we ask around."

Quite suddenly, Mira realized that there were tears in her eyes. She hastily wiped them away and chuckled. "...And people say that I'm the gentle one."

"You are", Aiko echoed. "Most of the time anyway. Like I said, I totally understand why you hate her. You have more reason than I do. But you said it yourself, months ago. Even if we don't like a person, that's no reason not to save them if we can." Pausing, she eyed Noel's own curious expression. "Niyoga-kun is not exactly the most likable person in the world either."

"Of course. I will never dispute that", the blond boy nodded. "There's a reason he has only ever had two real friends. I sometimes find myself quite aggravated with him as well, particularly now that he has gained the power of his Land."

"And Kujou had lots of friends at the SDC", Aiko continued her argument. "But were they really? Friends? As soon as she lost her power, they all ditched her. Sonoka-san. Futushimi-san. And of course, she believed that Hayato-senpai was her best friend as well, until she learned the truth. Imagine that. Imagine learning that the person who you thought was your best friend for years actually couldn't stand you. That they'd been secretly undermining you all along."

Against her will, Mira seemed to briefly imagine that scenario and legitimately shuddered. "I... see what you mean."

"Never", her friend promised. "Never. But you see what I'm getting at? I won't deny that Kujou is a horrible person. But... maybe it's not entirely her fault. She's the daughter of big-time JCAP guy after all, how could she not be like that?"

Knowing by then that she wasn't going to win the argument, Mira looked content. "'Let's think positive', right? You're way more forgiving of her than me. Just... be careful, alright? We'll search the other world on our end, while you do it in this world. Don't forget that we still need to save Niyoga-kun. Given the choice between the two of them, you know which one I'd go with."

"Hopefully we won't have to make that choice", Aiko remarked slyly. "Only one way to find out."

The bell rang out, announcing their stop.

8/7 Thursday

Morning

He slept light. Another army habit his brother had tried to drill into him early; never quite losing all awareness of the sharpest noises and passing into dream. This, he had explained, also helped you get into the habit of easily sliding into a napping state where you could easily detect danger yet it still registered as 'rest'.

All it took was a knock on the door to rouse Kohru, though he was surprised to see daylight already gliding in through his windows. Wasn't expecting anyone, did bro or dad come back or...?

Aiko Tsuruga stood in the entryway, looking as anxious as she ever seemed to be around him but rooted by something deeper than the casual affection he'd long since gotten used to.

"Sorry for showing up so early. I wasn't sure when you'd leave to start your search. Y-you seem like a morning kind of guy." The words spilled out quickly, nervously.

But he was hardly annoyed. It wasn't hard to guess why she had come. "Come to discuss the projects for the new school term?"

"So you do joke", she smiled in the morning light. "I'm not joining the SDC and that's final. But I am up for helping you find Kujou."

The surprise on his face somehow made him look even taller. Or maybe it was a trick of the light. "You? I was to understand you two despised each other."

"I do." Her hair, long in the shade, overshadowed her eyes for a moment. "But she's still a student of Koashimizu academy. Or was."

"And that", he pointed out, "is why I think you'd do well with us full-time. You understand that the purpose of the position is to look after the welfare of your fellow students. Even during the summer months, if it comes to it."

"I appreciate the offer, but no." Tsuruga shook her head in apology. "I have to focus on my own grades and stuff before I focus on helping anyone else. Since it's summer vacation though..."

"Of course. What about your friends?"

"They won't be coming. They're...", she focused on the grass. "...Busy with other things."

"Of course", he acquiesced. "It's the vacation. Not everyone is willing to sacrifice their days this way. That's why I never asked any of you to help yesterday."

"Well, I'm helping now", she shrugged, pulling into an awkward parody of a salute. "'Private Tsuruga, reporting for duty' and all that stuff."

Kohru smirked. The young Tsuruga girl was many things, but a soldier wasn't one of them. Strange how different she seemed now from the seemingly clueless neophyte who had apparently traveled from Tokyo to Tosashimizu on a mere whim. He would have to ask her about that some time, and learn her reason for it.

"Accepted. Just give me half an hour to get ready. Have you had breakfast?"

"Uh-huh. A big one. I figured this was going to be a long day."

"You figured correctly. I thought we would check out the harbor district first, see if anyone's seen her hiding. I thought if I had to find a place to hide and sleep after running away from home, that would be the best spot."

"Um." Stammering, she forced her neck back up. "I had another idea. Do you know Daisuke Kujou? Or where he lives?"

"Her father?" He frowned. "Of course. I've met him several times. But he refused to see me when I asked. He's extremely upset about this. He's refusing to return to Tokyo until Kujou-san is found."

"He was the last one to see her. I think we should try again."

"He won't talk to us", he assured her. "Even the police have given up trying to communicate with him."

"Well", she cradled her hairpin, the one Jiachi Rosea had bought her as a good luck charm after the previous one had broken back in April. "I think he'll want to talk now."

Shukiji Niyoga winced, blinking from the pain. His head hurt. A lot.

It wasn't hard to guess why, and he immediately decided, structuring his thoughts into commands as he'd learned to do long ago, even before this. Detatch.

The dome-shaped crown covering his head retracted instantly from his head, leaving him in darkness, the caged room slow to return to standard light. If anything, it only seemed to worsen the ache, and shook it to try to clear it.

Getting out of the inner sanctum and onto the roof of his tower, his 'lighthouse', made it a little better, giving him some fresh air to work with. Fresh air? Even that was another conundrum he sought answers to. This world existed separately from the human world, and had yet to be tainted by the various pollutants that humanity regularly ejected into the air of their own world. Therefore, it stood to reason that the oxygen he breathed now would be far cleaner and more pure than the human world.

But no. It wasn't that simple. He'd accumulated hundreds of textbooks worth of information in just the last few weeks here in this strange place, and one key fact among it all was that this was indeed a world forged by humanity's own cognition, their subconscious minds, a veritable 'sea of souls'. Therefore, the oxygen would likely be exactly as clean as the majority of humans believed it to be. Even if that wasn't the case, he'd long suspected that a human whose lungs had grown accustomed to their current tainted air would suffer adverse reactions to 'clean' air.

It was always like that. Every time he thought he found an accomplished fact and developed a theory that would lead him in the right direction, there was more evidence destroying that hypothesis. Millions of square kilometers of dark ocean, thousands of islands huge and small in his vision... still no trace of a source to it all.

It was always like that. And it was beginning to infuriate him to no end.

For the first time in many hours, he beheld the horizon of Faraway Lands with his own eyes, instead of relying on his vision-enhancing apparatus. The bright patterns remained laced across the dark sky, seemingly composed of the same familiar orange light that was a hallmark of the afternoon's end in the world of humans. Though it was much nicer decoration than a sheer blanket of black would have been, it was also frustrating that he was unable to decipher the patterns. He believed they bore some resemblance to ancient Mesopotamian glyphs, yet their shapes failed to match anything he had ever studied. One more thing to tease him with incomprehensibility.

"My lord?"

And one more incomprehensible thing rushed to his side now. Elfin ears, shining golden eyes, pale skin and long spidery fingers failing to disguise a near-perfect copy of his own face. The others had said that this was his 'Shadow', his 'other self'. Like they actually know anything about Jungian psychology. Imbeciles.

Even had he known of everything else this world held beforehand, he would never have guessed that such a being would take on the form and cadence of the trickster Puck from 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. He didn't even like Shakespeare all that much, though of course he comprehended those plays far better than any other student in his year.

"What has troubled your observations, my lord? Shall I jest to Oberon, and make him smile?"

"No", he muttered angrily, not looking back at him. "Just keep the tower secure. I expect that Tsuruga's crew will be returning soon enough, but I haven't seen any sign of it yet."

"Fear not, my lord. Your servant shall do so."

He decided to test that notion then. "This is so very... tiring. I fear that there's too much new information here even for me to process."

"But my lord is so wise", the strange imp flattered him. "Wise, wise, wise enough to rise, rise, rise. To rise, rise, rise above the common man, and find the solution to the troubles at hand."

"I only wish that were true", Shukiji sighed in exhaustion, dipping his legs over the edge of the tower and studying the horizon ahead. "Yet... am I truly capable of achieving that? I still can't even determine if this place even holds a way to save humanity, never mind where we would find it. I should return there and rest. Get a fresh start."

The alarm on the imp's face said all he needed to know. "But my lord Oberon... is there not so much more to be known, to be learned by you? You said you would be the one to save mankind."

Desperate, he recognized. So desperate that he's stopped the Puck impression. Normally the Shadow was much more subtle than this, pretending to be a mere humble servant like the rest. "And I will continue my mission. I just... require some time away from it for a while. After all-", he chose his words deliberately, "-It's not like my knowledge will be going anywhere."

The imp paled further, gesturing to the intricate clockwork scenery all around them. "But... but my lord, the tower! Without you to control its systems, it is vulnerable to attack. Who knows what mischief those Dream Voyagers might get up to in your absence-"

He stopped then, and Shukiji waited, savoring the sensation of triumph before replying. "Because you won't be able to protect it either, correct? Because when I go, you go. Because you are me."

And there it was, flashing across his face. The undiluted rage that he'd shown to Noel when he'd been here. The one who pretended to be an amusing fey trickster changed into something bitter and black. He recovered quickly though, pallid features sliding into something more like an appeal.

"You are correct, of course. My lord is so wise. If my lord should depart this place, then I would disappear from this world." Not for the first time, the Shadow went to his knees in prostration. "My existence, as ever, remains entirely in your hands, my lord. Have I not been a good and loyal servant to you?"

Shu snarled. Now this creature was bringing to mind another Shakespearean character entirely. Namely, Iago.

"You are nothing", he sneered down at the pathetic Shadow with his face, a distorted mirror of opposites. "You have done nothing. Nothing that I couldn't have had another Shadow do in your place. The fact that you're a bit smarter than the other ones doesn't change that."

Desperation growing, his groveling shifted into a full-bodied bow, fists clenched on the floor. "Please, my lord Oberon... I only ask for the gift of my continued existence! I will be happy to serve you in any way that you ask of me. Anything that you ask. Anything!"

Shukiji's disgust creeped out onto his face. "Then you can do one thing. Order the sentries protect the tower while I'm gone."

The Shadow's face fell into despair, realizing what was about to happen. "No... my lord, no, no, no, no! It's wrong, it's wrong, it's wrong..."

He could take no more of that cowardly, quavering voice. The fact that it was his only made it worse. "I'll return home soon enough. Maybe you will as well? That's another experiment worth conducting."

Shukiji was nearly at the lift to take him down to the ground floor when the reply interrupted: "That will not be necessary."

He stopped. It was the sudden change, the shift in both the creature's tone and the texture of his voice, that caught the curiosity that was natural to Koashimizu's legendary 'rumor king' as breathing. They were both completely different from the capering jester he'd become accustomed to. The fear that had weakened him from the moment his 'lord' had pitched the idea of departing his Land was seemingly gone. And that voice...

He'd never heard anything like it. The previous one had been a reverb-ridden copy of his own, but this had no prior template. It seemed to reverberate across the entire tower and beyond. While starkly masculine and confident enough to be easily understood, it seemed to be projecting through loose-hanging curtains of interference, like the sound of a television fighting through curtains of crackling static.

"If you leave now", the Shadow warned. His limbs now hung loose at his sides, a broken marionette. "You will never return. They won't let you."

"'They'?"

"The others", the Shadow's newfound voice rasped hauntingly. "The Dream Voyagers. If you return, they will stop you. They will bar you from ever returning to this place, and you will not be able to save humanity from the coming doom."

Some brief, long-dormant instinct in him flared up, warning him of danger, but he paid it no mind. It was true. That fact was something he hadn't yet considered. In the so-called 'real' world, he lacked the power that he held here. He would return to being a helpless short genius teenager, instead of a God of knowledge. In that world, a powerful mind was far less useful. Instead, brute force reigned.

"They can't stop me", he argued faintly. "I'm free to go where I want."

"They will", the Shadow affirmed, the voice growing thicker, angrier. "They fear you. They fear your power. They fear your genius. It's wrong, it's wrong, it's wrong... They are all imbeciles, jealous of you."

He stared back, aghast. Something was seriously wrong with the Shadow's face. Something was dripping down onto the metal floor, black fluid leaving large trails behind.

"They despise you for being superior to them. Even the one you once believed to be your friend. He is no longer. Now he is their friend. United in their hatred of you. They secretly plan your destruction."

Shukiji stepped off the lift like it was filled with scorpions. What had he been thinking? The imp was completely right for once. If he returned there, then Tsuruga's idiot friends would do anything they could to keep him from going back home. Even if they had to lock him up.

Because the Shadow was right. Every word he'd spoken was the unquestionable truth. He'd just been too distracted to see it until now.

Noel Vitienne. Of course Vitienne secretly hated him. He hated him for the grief he had brought to their shared father Shigetsu. Even back when Ayano Furusato had been alive, he had deliberately chosen to parade their love for each other in front of his face, mocking him for the thing he knew he could never have. The affection of a girl.

Of course the others did as well. Even before he'd discovered this place. They hated him for being so smart and well-educated that he exposed their idiocy for what it was. They would do anything to tear him down, to stop him, to deny him his goal of saving humanity.

Only I can do this. Only I can find the truth that will save everyone.

And those imbeciles would try to stop me. Plot against me in secret. As if I don't know what they're up to. As if they could outwit ME!

Drip, drip, drip. The black tears kept coming, staining the floor beneath the Shadow's limp form. So did the strange static voice. "Such tragedy. They would deny the one hope humanity has left to survive. All because of their own bovine cowardice."

Ironically enough, it felt like stepping out of a dream. One where his eyes had been clouded by pretensions. "They won't stop me", Shukiji growled, angrier than he could ever recall. "I will learn everything there is to know about this world. And then, with that knowledge, I will save humanity!"

"Yes." The Shadow did not smile. The voice continued to pour out of it like liquid honey. "A God of knowledge. The savior. I will protect you from them, my lord. Always."

His headache was gone. His fatigue forgotten. He practically leaped back up onto the lift to take him back up, back into the cage room with his vision apparatus. Lights flashed all around him and he felt the comforting sensation of the crown covering his head, extending his awareness out where he could see it all.

Here, he was safe. Here, he was home. Here, he could see everything.

Yes. Safe. Protected. Home. Able to cast his vision outwards for hundreds of miles across the sea of souls to learn the truth...

Here, he could become as Gods...

A/N: Happy Halloween Everybody!