"Let me see him."

Neku turned his red rimmed gaze towards the speaker, barely registering her soft presence as he was on his way to return from his shopping trip. He sighed, putting his hand over his face and slowly shaking his head.

"No."

The blonde grabbed his wrist "I love him, Neku! No matter how bad he is, I need to see him! Maybe I can reach him...maybe I can help!"

"No one can help him, not even Mister H." The voice was broken and hoarse, tears threatening to fall but eyes refusing to shed.

The girl locked her eyes on the stubborn boy and pleaded once more, eyes wide and head turned slightly as she pointed out,

"Misery loves company. Even if I can't get through to him...let him at least hear my Song...see my face."

Neku sighed, all fight gone as he shrugged "Fine. But I warned you."

TWEWYTWEWYTWEWY

The Composer was in a crumpled heap on the floor when Neku entered the cabin that day, Rhyme in tow. Apollo was nowhere in sight, and that fact infuriated Neku to no end. Whenever Joshua was left alone after a session with his tormentor, he often refused to eat anything for a half hour to not at all afterwards. Not a single clue as to why he did that, but Neku had a strong suspicion that the ash-blond suffered a twisted form of separation anxiety if he was left to fend for himself for any length of time, as if being alone in and of itself was torture greater than any psych thrust on him. The orangette had scolded Apollo numerous times about it, but the Higher being seemed to shrug it off.

"Joshua!"

Rhyme was at the Composer's side in seconds, her small frame wrapping his gangly one the best she could to examine the damage. Her eyes met dead violet orbs, and she drew his barely rising chest closer, her hair tickling his face. He gave no indication that he felt the feathery touch, however, and simply stared emptily, lolling his head to one side.

"No...Look at me! Please look at me again...please…" She forced his face to look at her, but the eyes still stared into an abyss she couldn't see. He was looking, but not seeing, and it frightened her.

"Careful Rhyme" Neku cautioned, setting the groceries on the table "He spasms sometimes. It's violent, so try not to get smacked by his twigs."

"Spasms!?" she tucked the blond lightning bolt behind Joshua's ear, a gesture he also didn't respond to, and began to fume, "What has Apollo DONE to him that causes him to involuntarily thrash around?!"

"It might be his body rejecting and recovering from the psychs." the caretaker remarked as he began to cook. "They paralyze him, rob him of movement. So when he struggles, he can't actually struggle. So when they wear off, his body violently compensates."

"I don't care!" Rhyme was crying, tears streaming down her face "Shibuya's screaming! That means Joshua's screaming. Soundlessly, you think...but Shibuya...is his voice! It's his soul...and the state Shibuya's in...tells me everything about his own state."

The girl turned her full attention once again to the figure she cradled in her arms. Joshua stared blankly at nothing, or perhaps he was looking into an abyss, she didn't dare question, the concept frightening. As frightening as the stillness of her Composer. Joshua hated sitting still. He was always moving, always twitching. Even if no one noticed, the blond was constantly on the move or fidgeting. Now he lay there without one finger tapping, nas if the mere act of lifting a single digit were too much for his strength. This broke the girl's heart.

"He's so...pale."

"He's always been pale, Rhyme" Neku said, his voice dull and emotionless. "Pasty is his middle name. Comes from living in the dark for how many years. Or it has to do with his RG self. He said he's been sickly since birth. Pale is part of that."

"He's...more pale."

"Impossible. If he were any more pale than usual, he'd be translucent."

The girl's reply was cut short as Joshua suddenly squealed. It was a high-pitched sound of something Neku thought was psyched out of him…

Delight.

Neku was at the two's side in seconds. "He hasn't made a noise like that in too long. What the hell brought this on, Josh?"

The Proxy was astonished when the blond actually focused on Rhyme...really truly focused on her, his purple orbs lighting up slightly before closing in a relaxed manner. It then dawned on the orange teen what the heck was happening.

"I think...he hears your Music. Something about it moves him for some reason. I'm not a composer, so I don't get it. But you're definitely his focus right now."

Rhyme giggled, playing with the ash locks as she sighed in releif "At least we know he's still in there, and not completely dead inside."

"Yeah. For now." Neku said darkly.

"Neku!"

"I know asshole's plans for him. This is only the beginning. Trust me, this won't be lasting much longer."

"I'll take this for all it's worth then. I won't let him fade. I won't! Not as long as he can hear my song...and it soothes his hurt. Apollo can strip him of the ability to move, speak...even hope. But he will never extinguish his Voice. His true Voice. Joshua is, after all...the Composer. I love him too much...to let him be shattered completely."

Neku once again fingered the weight in his pocket.

"Let's hope he never gets to that point, Rhyme."