"It's amazing what love can make someone do," said Rouge as the ship
took off. Naomi looked out the window at Siren, who stood on the steps of
Virgil's palace-- smiling farewell.
"So where are we headed now?" asked Fuse as he watched Cotton stare at the void outside the ship.
"The Magic Kingdom," said Naomi, "I have some unfinished business to deal with."
"The Magic Kingdom." Rouge trailed off, closing his hazel eyes. Fuse put his hand on Rouge's shoulder and grinned, "Don't worry, Purple! We took care of that ol' devil once, so we can do it again!" Rouge smiled faintly while Naomi laughed. The magician turned away to look out the window, the voices of the others dulling.
'When I think about it,' thought Rouge, 'I don't really know what to say about the Magic Kingdom now.' Images flashed in Rouge's mind, and he went whirling into a daze...
***************** "At last the day has come. The day where I will fight Blue!" Rouge stood triumphant on the threshold of the Time Lord's Region. The power of Time flowed easily through his veins, and his smile radiated the excitement in his heart.
On one side of the ragged mountain stood Blue's supporters-- Nusakan, Mesarthim, Annie, and Lute. On the other side stood some of the friends that Rouge had made: Gen, T260G, Emelia, and Fuse. The two twins stood across from each other, each one baring their soul to the other.
"Let's not waste time," said Blue, his voice icy, "I want to get this over with."
"I don't want to kill such a kindred spirit," said Rouge, his voice filled with regret.
"Don't hold back!" screamed Blue as he cast a powerful Energy Chain. Rouge's eyes closed in a smile as he mouthed the incantation for Psychic Prison. A look of surprise mixed with rage formed on Blue's handsome face as the invisible prison surrounded him. In retaliation, Blue threw a handful of magic stones at Rouge. Rouge grimaced as the shards scratched at his skin, causing a wave of death to loom over him.
"Dead already?" tears started to flow from Rouge's face as his soul started to leave his body. Surprisingly, though, Rouge's spirit was suddenly jerked back into his body, causing him to spasm uncontrollably. Rouge glared at Blue, and he suddenly realized that his brother was taking this a lot more seriously than he was. Rouge outstretched his hand and hissed, "Vermilion Sand!"
The air was crackling with magic when, an hour later, Blue finally fell.
"How. could you.?" he whispered. Those were his final words. Rouge looked at his brother's dead form without any remorse, any feeling. Then, a full sensation entered his body. Rouge felt enlightened, awake, and complete.
'Blue?' whispered Rouge's mind.
'Hello,' replied another voice in his head.
************* "Why did I decide to follow that girl?" asked Rouge out loud. A breath filled with the odor of tobacco filled his nostrils.
"Maybe Purple has a weakness for exotic-haired women?" Fuse grinned, while Rouge quietly put his hand to his nose, attempting to block out the stench. Fuse's grin faltered before he stepped back, muttering in his agitation.
"Kyuuuu myuu kyukyu?" asked Cotton.
"Why did I come?" repeated Fuse, "Well, I guess it's the calling of a gentleman to help out a damsel in distress, eh?" At this reply, Rouge snorted with laughter, and Nusakan cleared his throat hastily.
"But. I guess it really had to do with the mysterious society in Magic Kingdom," said Fuse, "Not even I.R.P.O. nor Trinity knows even now what the magicians' intentions really were." Fuse sighed heavily, sitting down in one of the patched-up seats of the ship.
"Damn, I need a cigarette," he muttered, "Well, as for the Jigoku no Kimi. to put it bluntly he scared me."
"You? Scared?" asked Naomi, laughing lightly. Fuse shot a look at her that would raise the dead before continuing on with this story.
**************** Hell was filled with Fuse's only weakness: mint. Spearmint, wintergreen, chocolate covered mint, or even a leaf of mint to suckle on-- it was all the same to Fuse. Only Rouge seemed to realize that this was a disguise of the true Hell. All of Fuse and Rouge's companions were allured and tempted by the pleasures seen before them.
"Mint." mumbled Fuse, drool dripping out of the corner of his lips. The mirage that surrounded him shattered as Rouge dragged him onto a platform. As they started to rise, Fuse looked at the magician with confusion in his eyes.
"What's going on?" he asked. Rouge looked away and said, "Hell had its grip on all of us, but now we." Rouge was cut off as Fuse chuckled.
"Why are you so uptight now, Purple?" asked Fuse, "Isn't this what we've worked so hard for? For this final battle?"
"Yes," said Nusakan, "If we all die here, we won't mind."
"Because this has been fun, and will make a great ballad!" grinned Lute, still slinging his omnipresent guitar over his shoulder. Rouge opened his mouth to reply, but was stopped as he looked up at a large set of stairs. Candles were lit beside an object that disguised demons flocked around.
"Is that an egg?" Fuse wrinkled his nose while Lute's teeth started to uncontrollably chatter. Nusakan stood apart from them, pushing his glasses up onto his eyes before speaking, "Well, what are we waiting for?"
"What indeed." muttered Rouge as he started to walk forward. The egg shuddered, before it melted away into a robed figure. Black ooze splattered everywhere as he flung his arms forward, the black covering melting away from the tapestries that clothed him.
"This is gonna be a long day," said Fuse.
******************* Fuse sighed heavily, his attitude fading for once. Cotton patted him on the shoulder and Fuse smiled slightly at his odd friend.
"Don't you have a story, Cotton?" Cotton murred and snuggled against his friend's shoulder.
"It doesn't matter," continued the I.R.P.O. officer, "I don't want to translate anyway."
"What about you, Doctor?" asked Rouge as he sat down beside Nusakan, " You don't usually go on crazy adventures like this." The magician smiled brightly, causing the iciness in Nusakan's eyes to waver.
"My patient will pay me back," replied Nusakan as he crossed his arms.
"Patient?!" exclaimed Naomi, blood rushing to her cheeks from the stress already heavy on her mind, "I never asked to be a patient!"
"If you don't want my help then I could always go back to my clinic," stated Nusakan, still calm as ever. A wave of hurt feelings swept over Naomi, and her stubbornness caused her to stammer, "I don't need it. I can handle this on my own. . ." Rouge looked at Naomi with a look of appall on his face. Nusakan smiled at Naomi like a father would to a child throwing a temper-tantrum.
"I mean," humility was apparent in Naomi's face, and she stammered to find something to say, "You HAVE already chosen to keep my memories a secret from me! You refuse to tell me how you know about me, and since . . . since that's what you plan to do, then I will do better without you leading me in circles!" Fuse let out a low whistle and Cotton hissed with irritation.
"Jumping to conclusions," muttered Nusakan, the fatherly smile still on his face, "How childish." Naomi resembled a tomato as she stood up with fists clenched.
"Return to Koorong then," hissed Naomi, "I don't care." Nusakan nodded before picking up a magazine and reading it quietly. Naomi was stunned at her own words, watching Nusakan read his magazine without any feelings of remorse or regret.
*************** Nusakan was still reading the magazine when the ship left Magic Kingdom. Naomi watched it sail into the distance, the shock of everything going on around finally getting to her. Looking at the partially repaired Magic Kingdom didn't help her at all.
"Before we go on," stammered Naomi, "Let's rest. I can't . . . I can't . . . I need sleep." Fuse grumbled, eager to get some action while Rouge nodded.
"Alright, we can stay at one of the temporary inns," said Rouge as he gestured to a former bookstore. Cotton had to drag Fuse along as Rouge led an upset Naomi to the inn. The innkeeper nodded at them before gesturing to the backroom of the store. Five wire bed frames sat a few feet apart from each other in the dimly lit room. Naomi sat down on one of the beds, her body rigid. She stared at the bed in the corner that would've accommodated Nusakan with hurt eyes.
"I need a smoke," sighed Fuse as he strolled outside. Cotton murred before following his friend, leaving the magician and Naomi alone. A moment after she heard the door close, Naomi buried her head into the white pillow on the bed, trying to muffle her sobs.
"I'm such an idiot!" she cried, the pillow dulling her words. Rouge sat down beside her on the bed and let his hands stroke her back gently, in an attempt to soothe her.
"Why do you say that, Naomi?" asked Rouge. Naomi looked up at the magician with her tear-stained face and sniffled, "Not only did I scare off at the one man who could possibly help me, but I found out that I was the one who made all this." Naomi waved her hand at the surrounding area, "All this. this disaster happen! Don't you hate me for that?!" Rouge closed his eyes and smiled as he pat Naomi's head, saying, "No, I don't hate you. I do not curse at you. I only curse at the heavens, for it was fate that Hell was unsealed. Neither you nor I could stop it. So no, I don't hate you." Rouge was surprised when Naomi smiled at him.
"You're the only friend I have right now, Rouge!" exclaimed Naomi.
"You're wrong, blue-haired girl," said Rouge. Naomi looked into his hazel eyes, trying to understand what Rouge was saying.
"There's Fuse, and Cotton too," continued Rouge, "And as for Nusakan, he didn't seem to be upset. He just. doesn't understand people very well."
"Fuse?" asked Naomi, forgetting who the crazy patrolman was for a moment. Her eyes widened with realization before she dashed outside to where Fuse was without saying a word. Rouge just smiled again before falling dead asleep on the bed.
****************** "Fuse!" exclaimed Naomi as she ran outside. Crazy Fuse sat on the edge of the partially repaired fountain smoking a cigarette.
"Naomi, how're you doing?" asked Fuse as he straightened up and slung his leather jacket over his shoulder.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," smiled Naomi as she plucked the cigarette from his lips. She dropped it to the ground and stepped on it, smearing the unburned tobacco onto the cobblestone ground.
"That was my last one," grumbled Fuse, "You had better pay me back, lady."
"For one cigarette?" Naomi laughed, obviously weary from her sadness. Fuse lazily flipped a coin at Naomi, and her eyes widened as it went down her shirt and rested in her bra.
"I'd like Green Lummox Brand Cigarettes," smirked Fuse, "And don't cheat me out by getting the light-tobacco kinds. Doll always used to do that to me, it was very annoying." Naomi's eyes softened as she realized the deeper meaning in that.
"I'm sorry," she said. Fuse laughed, causing Naomi to tilt her head with curiosity.
"She's happy with Silence," Fuse shook his head, "Besides, I was the one who let her go. Don't wanna make any huge commitment, especially when you're an IRPO officer."
"Oh, so you're a player?"
"Never said that," Fuse's smirk widened. Naomi bent over and chuckled, "Well, I'll just find someone to break that habit of yours, okay?"
"I dunno," Fuse leaned back, "It would take a special lady to do that." Naomi grinned and pushed Fuse back, making him land in the fountain, his legs flailing. Cotton poked his head out from behind the fountain, floated up, and kissed Naomi on the cheek, murring the whole time. Naomi ruffled the hair on Cotton's head before turning towards the port.
'Thank you my friends,' she thought as she boarded the ship headed to Koorong.
"So where are we headed now?" asked Fuse as he watched Cotton stare at the void outside the ship.
"The Magic Kingdom," said Naomi, "I have some unfinished business to deal with."
"The Magic Kingdom." Rouge trailed off, closing his hazel eyes. Fuse put his hand on Rouge's shoulder and grinned, "Don't worry, Purple! We took care of that ol' devil once, so we can do it again!" Rouge smiled faintly while Naomi laughed. The magician turned away to look out the window, the voices of the others dulling.
'When I think about it,' thought Rouge, 'I don't really know what to say about the Magic Kingdom now.' Images flashed in Rouge's mind, and he went whirling into a daze...
***************** "At last the day has come. The day where I will fight Blue!" Rouge stood triumphant on the threshold of the Time Lord's Region. The power of Time flowed easily through his veins, and his smile radiated the excitement in his heart.
On one side of the ragged mountain stood Blue's supporters-- Nusakan, Mesarthim, Annie, and Lute. On the other side stood some of the friends that Rouge had made: Gen, T260G, Emelia, and Fuse. The two twins stood across from each other, each one baring their soul to the other.
"Let's not waste time," said Blue, his voice icy, "I want to get this over with."
"I don't want to kill such a kindred spirit," said Rouge, his voice filled with regret.
"Don't hold back!" screamed Blue as he cast a powerful Energy Chain. Rouge's eyes closed in a smile as he mouthed the incantation for Psychic Prison. A look of surprise mixed with rage formed on Blue's handsome face as the invisible prison surrounded him. In retaliation, Blue threw a handful of magic stones at Rouge. Rouge grimaced as the shards scratched at his skin, causing a wave of death to loom over him.
"Dead already?" tears started to flow from Rouge's face as his soul started to leave his body. Surprisingly, though, Rouge's spirit was suddenly jerked back into his body, causing him to spasm uncontrollably. Rouge glared at Blue, and he suddenly realized that his brother was taking this a lot more seriously than he was. Rouge outstretched his hand and hissed, "Vermilion Sand!"
The air was crackling with magic when, an hour later, Blue finally fell.
"How. could you.?" he whispered. Those were his final words. Rouge looked at his brother's dead form without any remorse, any feeling. Then, a full sensation entered his body. Rouge felt enlightened, awake, and complete.
'Blue?' whispered Rouge's mind.
'Hello,' replied another voice in his head.
************* "Why did I decide to follow that girl?" asked Rouge out loud. A breath filled with the odor of tobacco filled his nostrils.
"Maybe Purple has a weakness for exotic-haired women?" Fuse grinned, while Rouge quietly put his hand to his nose, attempting to block out the stench. Fuse's grin faltered before he stepped back, muttering in his agitation.
"Kyuuuu myuu kyukyu?" asked Cotton.
"Why did I come?" repeated Fuse, "Well, I guess it's the calling of a gentleman to help out a damsel in distress, eh?" At this reply, Rouge snorted with laughter, and Nusakan cleared his throat hastily.
"But. I guess it really had to do with the mysterious society in Magic Kingdom," said Fuse, "Not even I.R.P.O. nor Trinity knows even now what the magicians' intentions really were." Fuse sighed heavily, sitting down in one of the patched-up seats of the ship.
"Damn, I need a cigarette," he muttered, "Well, as for the Jigoku no Kimi. to put it bluntly he scared me."
"You? Scared?" asked Naomi, laughing lightly. Fuse shot a look at her that would raise the dead before continuing on with this story.
**************** Hell was filled with Fuse's only weakness: mint. Spearmint, wintergreen, chocolate covered mint, or even a leaf of mint to suckle on-- it was all the same to Fuse. Only Rouge seemed to realize that this was a disguise of the true Hell. All of Fuse and Rouge's companions were allured and tempted by the pleasures seen before them.
"Mint." mumbled Fuse, drool dripping out of the corner of his lips. The mirage that surrounded him shattered as Rouge dragged him onto a platform. As they started to rise, Fuse looked at the magician with confusion in his eyes.
"What's going on?" he asked. Rouge looked away and said, "Hell had its grip on all of us, but now we." Rouge was cut off as Fuse chuckled.
"Why are you so uptight now, Purple?" asked Fuse, "Isn't this what we've worked so hard for? For this final battle?"
"Yes," said Nusakan, "If we all die here, we won't mind."
"Because this has been fun, and will make a great ballad!" grinned Lute, still slinging his omnipresent guitar over his shoulder. Rouge opened his mouth to reply, but was stopped as he looked up at a large set of stairs. Candles were lit beside an object that disguised demons flocked around.
"Is that an egg?" Fuse wrinkled his nose while Lute's teeth started to uncontrollably chatter. Nusakan stood apart from them, pushing his glasses up onto his eyes before speaking, "Well, what are we waiting for?"
"What indeed." muttered Rouge as he started to walk forward. The egg shuddered, before it melted away into a robed figure. Black ooze splattered everywhere as he flung his arms forward, the black covering melting away from the tapestries that clothed him.
"This is gonna be a long day," said Fuse.
******************* Fuse sighed heavily, his attitude fading for once. Cotton patted him on the shoulder and Fuse smiled slightly at his odd friend.
"Don't you have a story, Cotton?" Cotton murred and snuggled against his friend's shoulder.
"It doesn't matter," continued the I.R.P.O. officer, "I don't want to translate anyway."
"What about you, Doctor?" asked Rouge as he sat down beside Nusakan, " You don't usually go on crazy adventures like this." The magician smiled brightly, causing the iciness in Nusakan's eyes to waver.
"My patient will pay me back," replied Nusakan as he crossed his arms.
"Patient?!" exclaimed Naomi, blood rushing to her cheeks from the stress already heavy on her mind, "I never asked to be a patient!"
"If you don't want my help then I could always go back to my clinic," stated Nusakan, still calm as ever. A wave of hurt feelings swept over Naomi, and her stubbornness caused her to stammer, "I don't need it. I can handle this on my own. . ." Rouge looked at Naomi with a look of appall on his face. Nusakan smiled at Naomi like a father would to a child throwing a temper-tantrum.
"I mean," humility was apparent in Naomi's face, and she stammered to find something to say, "You HAVE already chosen to keep my memories a secret from me! You refuse to tell me how you know about me, and since . . . since that's what you plan to do, then I will do better without you leading me in circles!" Fuse let out a low whistle and Cotton hissed with irritation.
"Jumping to conclusions," muttered Nusakan, the fatherly smile still on his face, "How childish." Naomi resembled a tomato as she stood up with fists clenched.
"Return to Koorong then," hissed Naomi, "I don't care." Nusakan nodded before picking up a magazine and reading it quietly. Naomi was stunned at her own words, watching Nusakan read his magazine without any feelings of remorse or regret.
*************** Nusakan was still reading the magazine when the ship left Magic Kingdom. Naomi watched it sail into the distance, the shock of everything going on around finally getting to her. Looking at the partially repaired Magic Kingdom didn't help her at all.
"Before we go on," stammered Naomi, "Let's rest. I can't . . . I can't . . . I need sleep." Fuse grumbled, eager to get some action while Rouge nodded.
"Alright, we can stay at one of the temporary inns," said Rouge as he gestured to a former bookstore. Cotton had to drag Fuse along as Rouge led an upset Naomi to the inn. The innkeeper nodded at them before gesturing to the backroom of the store. Five wire bed frames sat a few feet apart from each other in the dimly lit room. Naomi sat down on one of the beds, her body rigid. She stared at the bed in the corner that would've accommodated Nusakan with hurt eyes.
"I need a smoke," sighed Fuse as he strolled outside. Cotton murred before following his friend, leaving the magician and Naomi alone. A moment after she heard the door close, Naomi buried her head into the white pillow on the bed, trying to muffle her sobs.
"I'm such an idiot!" she cried, the pillow dulling her words. Rouge sat down beside her on the bed and let his hands stroke her back gently, in an attempt to soothe her.
"Why do you say that, Naomi?" asked Rouge. Naomi looked up at the magician with her tear-stained face and sniffled, "Not only did I scare off at the one man who could possibly help me, but I found out that I was the one who made all this." Naomi waved her hand at the surrounding area, "All this. this disaster happen! Don't you hate me for that?!" Rouge closed his eyes and smiled as he pat Naomi's head, saying, "No, I don't hate you. I do not curse at you. I only curse at the heavens, for it was fate that Hell was unsealed. Neither you nor I could stop it. So no, I don't hate you." Rouge was surprised when Naomi smiled at him.
"You're the only friend I have right now, Rouge!" exclaimed Naomi.
"You're wrong, blue-haired girl," said Rouge. Naomi looked into his hazel eyes, trying to understand what Rouge was saying.
"There's Fuse, and Cotton too," continued Rouge, "And as for Nusakan, he didn't seem to be upset. He just. doesn't understand people very well."
"Fuse?" asked Naomi, forgetting who the crazy patrolman was for a moment. Her eyes widened with realization before she dashed outside to where Fuse was without saying a word. Rouge just smiled again before falling dead asleep on the bed.
****************** "Fuse!" exclaimed Naomi as she ran outside. Crazy Fuse sat on the edge of the partially repaired fountain smoking a cigarette.
"Naomi, how're you doing?" asked Fuse as he straightened up and slung his leather jacket over his shoulder.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," smiled Naomi as she plucked the cigarette from his lips. She dropped it to the ground and stepped on it, smearing the unburned tobacco onto the cobblestone ground.
"That was my last one," grumbled Fuse, "You had better pay me back, lady."
"For one cigarette?" Naomi laughed, obviously weary from her sadness. Fuse lazily flipped a coin at Naomi, and her eyes widened as it went down her shirt and rested in her bra.
"I'd like Green Lummox Brand Cigarettes," smirked Fuse, "And don't cheat me out by getting the light-tobacco kinds. Doll always used to do that to me, it was very annoying." Naomi's eyes softened as she realized the deeper meaning in that.
"I'm sorry," she said. Fuse laughed, causing Naomi to tilt her head with curiosity.
"She's happy with Silence," Fuse shook his head, "Besides, I was the one who let her go. Don't wanna make any huge commitment, especially when you're an IRPO officer."
"Oh, so you're a player?"
"Never said that," Fuse's smirk widened. Naomi bent over and chuckled, "Well, I'll just find someone to break that habit of yours, okay?"
"I dunno," Fuse leaned back, "It would take a special lady to do that." Naomi grinned and pushed Fuse back, making him land in the fountain, his legs flailing. Cotton poked his head out from behind the fountain, floated up, and kissed Naomi on the cheek, murring the whole time. Naomi ruffled the hair on Cotton's head before turning towards the port.
'Thank you my friends,' she thought as she boarded the ship headed to Koorong.