Chapter 5: Doppelganger
Doppelganger.
"A doppelganger is a body double; an unrelated look-alike that looks like a living person. Based on mythology and legends, it tends to be based on paranormal or supernatural phenomena. It is sometimes seen as a harbinger of bad luck. Shrouded in Mystery, they are said to be connected to the Age of Gods and Fairy magecraft."
Waver took a sip of his tea, explaining what a doppelganger was to Gray. There was a small set of snacks on the table, with Gray and Melvin sitting to the opposite side of the couch in Waver's office. Nijima had left for the day, taking a short tour of London while on break.
"Sir, how is it different from making a copy of you, or making a copy of yourself?"
Gray bit on a biscuit as she asked.
"Because it is not just a simple physical change, and not placed upon an empty shell to use to do your bidding. In a way, you become that person. Even if it is for a short time."
"Won't it be confusing to tell between the real and the fake?"
Waver shook his head, taking a bite of a biscuit.
"I'm not sure. The fact that there was a copy of you within Clock Tower without us knowing about it is nerve wracking. Something was very off. The entity shouldn't be able to do this at all."
Melvin rested on the couch, listening in on the conversation. Suddenly, Waver's pocket watch began buzzing inside his pocket. Taking it out, Reines responded again. The group at the Botany Department lab were giving him more information on the love potion and its effects.
"How are you, elder brother? Did you miss me?"
"Reines! Are you trying to affect me on purpose?! You know I haven't recovered yet!"
Waver felt his head filled with thoughts of Reines. The love potion effects hadn't disappeared yet, but he had been lessening his contact with Reines for the time being. After the mild annoyance, Flat came through to give them the data. Maribel chose not to talk too much, letting them give the information to Waver instead.
"The love potion effect is like a love at first sight effect. So it's possible that your immediate reaction towards Reines was due to you seeing her first. It's also based on the love of the giver, which was probably why your symptoms were so mild. There might be something to it."
"Thank you, Flat. Is there anything else?"
"I'm not sure. But that's all the information we have gotten so far."
"Very well then."
Waver closed the communication through the mercury pocket watch to focus on the entity case. There were too many strange things going on. Especially with the entity pretending to be Gray.
Out of everyone, why did it choose Gray? Did she do something that caused her to be targeted? There must be a reason for it. Otherwise it would have targeted more competent mages…
"Gray, please be careful around Clock Tower. Since you aren't able to sense it easily, it could be lurking anywhere around this area."
"I-I understand, Sir. I'm sorry for not helping much."
Gray looked down on her tea and quietly sipped. Her eyes glazed over in sorrow and disappointment, due to the disaster of trying to show her love towards Waver. She didn't want to keep causing trouble for him, especially with such an important case. Add was by her side, hidden next to her cloak.
Waver continued to talk with Melvin.
"In the meantime, we should check for areas where mana is scarce around Clock Tower. It might clue us into where the entity had been lurking all this time. We might not have been able to find it while it was weak because it was sucking up mana to regain its form."
Melvin nodded and put his hand on his chin. Whatever this thing was, it was giving them a hard time in getting captured, let alone Sealed. It acted sentient and was smart enough to evade getting discovered.
"Good idea. Mana scarcity can help lead us to it, but how are you going to capture it? We do have the Sealer mage to help us, but it's smarter than that. Do you want Adashino to help us again? Looks like she isn't here right now."
Waver paused for a moment to think about it. They might have to check the unsealed room again. Despite the first few attempts at investigation, there wasn't much evidence left. But they would make do and continue regardless. After all, it was possible the entity was hiding there when they weren't looking.
"She can come whenever she wants. It just feels strange at times. Surprising us at every corner, while at times giving us helpful advice for the case. So, let her be."
Gray stayed quiet as their conversation went on before they started their plans for the day. Eventually, she sneaked out of Waver's office to distance herself from him. With feelings of constant disappointment, she wanted to be alone. She rested on a bench until someone came towards her.
A familiar grin filled with confidence.
"R-Reines?"
"Oho. So that's where you have been, Gray. I have been looking for you."
Inside a private room, Reines set up some tea and snacks for them to enjoy. Trimmau followed along, putting the treats on a table next to them. Gray sat back, not wanting to say much about her feelings. But it became too much to bare.
"Did I do anything wrong? What's wrong with me? Is it because I'm not very smart?"
Reines patted Gray on the back.
"Don't think too hard about it, Gray. There's nothing wrong with you. He is always like that. It's just elder brother being elder brother."
"Are you fine with avoiding Sir for the time being? I know it was due to the love potion effects, but I hope you're alright with it. Being separated from us for a while."
Reines sighed as she took some sips from her tea. Gray felt tense from the question, but she felt like she had to. The entity case had not been going smoothly, and Waver was not always in the right mood to answer her questions.
"Cases happen. We do get separated from time to time, but in the end it all works out. There's nothing wrong with that. Deep down, he cares just like a good old elder brother."
"Reines…"
"Just talk to him like you always do, Gray. No need to be afraid. I'm sure things will work out for you in the end."
The two of them continued talking with each other, just like any ordinary teenage girls. It helped Gray's mood a lot, as it made her feel less lonely about her failures. Meanwhile, Waver and Melvin were walking along a corridor towards the unsealed room. They had thought about what to do, especially since they still had to gain more information on the entity. Their methods may have worked in the past, but not in the present.
"The Curse and Botany Departments ended up not giving us anything important or critical to the investigation. Maybe it was a distraction in the end. It's strange."
"It really is strange, Waver. It's like someone planted it there on purpose. Given the entity case and the love potion incident, there's probably something going on in the background of which we don't know of. Did you find any rumors?"
"…"
Waver sighed. With the added possibility of doppelgangers around Clock Tower, it would make the search even more confusing. They tended to copy people's auras, so a simple aura detector wouldn't work very well in their case. They needed more information, so checking back on its unsealed location had merits.
"I hope nobody is following us. Melvin, do you sense something?"
"Nothing. All clear."
"Fine. Then let's continue walking."
The two of them continued talking as they went to check up on the room. Some mages were walking back and forth around the building, so Waver and Melvin were able to ask them questions. Clock Tower tended to have some strange rumors.
"Lord El Melloi II, what you were doing in other classrooms? Weren't you sick these past few days? Maybe you were pretending to be sick…"
"Well, it could be just your imagination. What did I do?"
What? Another me? I wasn't in Clock Tower these past few days until now. It's possible that the entity can turn into other people, not just staying as one person. There must be a reason for this…
Apart from rumors of people seeing his apprentice in another location, there were also sightings of him as well. As they continued onwards towards the unsealed room, the atmosphere around the area grew darker and darker. A faint foul smell was leaking around the place.
"Adashino did say that 'it isn't impossible for the culprit to return to the scene of the crime.' We didn't think to check where it got released another time. Melvin, can you sense the energy around here?"
"Waver, something's off."
Melvin pointed towards the entity nearby. Its shape was dark and formless, as if it was trying to turn into something else. Fortunately, it didn't seem to notice them. It remained silent inside the room, but its minor vibrations looked like it was communicating with something.
The white feathers of a dove.
A dove? It must be a familiar. I keep seeing doves these days. It must have been gathering information and other resources around here…
"Melvin, be quiet. We need to see what it's doing."
The entity began to transform into a humanoid shape. A faint appearance of a hood and gray fur came out from the back. Long leggings and a skirt. An appearance of a birdcage, but with nothing inside it.
A doppelganger of Gray.
Then it suddenly turned to face them.
"Waver, watch out!"
In a flash, the dim lights around the area shut down. Waver and Melvin felt the air turn cold from the lack of mana around it. Unable to cast spells, Waver took out the mercury pocket watch out of his pocket. A piece of Trimmau glimmered, full of faint magical energy.
It didn't seem to target us at all. But it sucked the mana out of the lights nearby so we couldn't see where it went. Trimmau, please make us see and investigate the unsealed room!
"Trimmau, give us light and a path in this unsealed room."
The pocket watch immediately turned into a mercury liquid and slithered into the room. Droplets of mana created a faint light source for Waver and Melvin to see what it was doing. It examined the atmosphere around the room, and the mess around it.
Unknown. Presence. Detected.
A faint foul stench still lingered, but it wasn't easy to notice. The dove vanished within their sight in an instant. All that was left was the unraveled mess of the room that was still currently under investigation. But certain things had changed inside the room.
"It's trying to suck mana out of everything…"
The kiss trademark left behind was gone, and the entity escape path had disappeared. In its place, Trimmau had detected an anomaly. The air was a mess, filled with many different auras surrounding the room. It was all different, yet the same.
Where did the entity go? Why didn't it attack us? Was it trying to do something?
Waver pondered on, trying to connect the clues together. But Melvin had something else in mind. He touched Waver's shoulder, noticing the atmosphere change.
"Waver, I think someone's watching u—"
A dark figure slowly appeared in front of them.
"Do you mean me?"
"Ah! What were you doing there, Adashino?!"
Adashino smiled back from the shadows, seeing Waver's and Melvin's shocked faces. She was like a snake, sneaking up on them like prey. He didn't notice her presence, until Melvin pointed it out. She chuckled at their surprised expressions, covering her kimono sleeve to hide her laughter.
"No need to be afraid. I meant no harm. I finished resolving some issues with Nijima not too long ago, so I'm available now. Did you manage to find the entity?"
Waver shook his head.
"We did, but it disappeared as it tried to attack us. Why didn't you try to help us if you were watching the whole time?"
"Why should I help if I was only observing your movements? Plus, it might notice me as well. It seems like you don't look surprised with it being disguised as Gray. Perhaps you already received new information about the entity."
"…"
Waver felt like she was baiting him. Her demeanor was sly and mysterious, so he couldn't pinpoint his suspicions very well. Adashino stood there, giving them some more clues towards the situation. He didn't expect her sudden appearance but chose to not elaborate any further on the issue.
"Adashino, what did you know?"
She grinned back at them.
Trimmau began reacting erratically inside the room. Its tiny silver mercury form moved around the room like jellied slime, checking for more strange occurrences within the room. Waver noticed a strange faint smell that was left since the entity's disappearance from seeing them.
A strange nasty perfume smell.
What is this smell? Why did it suddenly appear? Was it hidden from us in the first place?
Waver covered his nose, and so did Melvin. Their senses were overwhelmed by the scent, which had lingered around the room for some time. Adashino didn't look to be affected much by the unsealed room's hidden secrets as she stood across from them.
"It looks like the entity left behind a scented trail. Lord El Melloi II, do you know what this means?"
Waver thought for a moment.
Scented trail. Scent. Smell. Trail. A path. Prey. Target. Target?
Is it trying to target someone?!
"Smells can be used to determine prey for certain predators. It can also be used as a defense mechanism against predators as well as used as a trap. Kind of like a trail or path that someone can follow through towards the bait. But what was its purpose for becoming Gray?"
Melvin touched Waver's shoulder to give his thoughts on the matter.
"Waver, didn't it also turn into you? Maybe there's a chance that it could have transformed into someone else while we were focusing on one person. There's probably more to it that we don't know about."
Waver turned to him, putting his hand towards his chin.
"You're right. Then that means—"
Gray. So it can turn into her. But what does that have to do with me? Is there a connection between the two? Especially since the love potion incident, it doesn't feel strange at all that it could be targeting her. Then this scent…
He shook his head at the thought. It sounded too preposterous inside his mind. Especially with a doppelganger of him wandering around Clock Tower at times.
"Gray is in danger. I'll have to check up on her."
I feel so stupid. I can't believe I didn't notice it sooner!
Waver clenched his hands in frustration. Everything was connected. And he sensed something strange around Clock Tower immediately. It was like how Gray described her sensing a copy of her a few nights ago. The same feelings. The same energy.
A feeling of déjà vu when a look-alike is wandering around.
"Melvin, keep watch over the unsealed room. Take care of Trimmau for me. I'll be right back."
"Waver! But—"
But Waver had already left the room in a hurry. Adashino chuckled as she watched Waver leave Melvin behind with her. The small Trimmau was resting on the floor from using its own mana to investigate the room.
"Let's hope he makes it in time. This is getting interesting."
"Waver…"
Meanwhile, Gray finished enjoying some alone time with Reines. But as time passed, she began to worry about Waver and his investigation. Reines gave her the confidence to face him this time. Add was inside the birdcage, sleeping while being covered with cloth to shield from others seeing him.
"I should probably leave now. Sir is probably worried about me. Thanks for everything, Reines. You really helped me and made me feel better."
Gray smiled as she rested on a couch next to Reines. She heaved herself up and prepared to leave. Reines smiled back and touched her shoulder. She grinned, hoping that her company made her feel better from the love potion incident.
"Very well, Gray. Hopefully my elder brother will be able to understand you this time. No need to be afraid, got it?"
"Yes, Reines. I understand."
She departed from the private room and wandered around Clock Tower. Mages were walking in and out of the place, going to different locations all around the campus. Sometimes the noise was too much for her, but she was adjusting herself to get used to it. It would take some time to find Waver, but he could still busy working on the current case.
"Sir said that they were going to the unsealed room before I left. Maybe I should go there first to see if he is still there."
Holding onto Add inside the birdcage, she walked around looking for the room. But Waver never told her where it was. She quickly felt stupid, for not asking beforehand. Her own feelings of failure from the love potion incident made her avoid him and ask for help on certain things.
"Maybe I should go somewhere where Sir can see me. There are too many people here."
She went outside Clock Tower to enjoy the sunshine and the fresh air. Many buildings were connected to each other, and there were a few open areas for people to congregate and relax. There was a lone tree with a bench underneath, so she decided to sit there and wait.
"I'll take a rest before I go back to Sir's office. Maybe I'll find him there."
A few people walked past, and Gray noticed a figure walking toward her. It looked like Waver, with his long flowing hair and black suit. It was strange for him to be walking without Melvin, but she couldn't sense anything strange coming from him.
"Sir? Is that you?"
He didn't say anything.
"Sir?"
Meanwhile, the real Waver was running frantically looking for Gray.
GRAY! Where are you?
GRAY! Please be safe! Don't be fooled by the entity!