---------------

Chapter 2 - Dance Apollo

Music exalts each joy, allays each grief,
Expels diseases, softens every pain;
And hence the wise of ancient days adored
One power of physic, melody, and song.

---------------

Leaving campus was the easy part. Nobody really expected delinquents at Sevens, so they weren't looked for. Not to mention that Tatsuya was becoming something of an old hand at it.

Thankfully he was a senior, so none of the teachers questioned him for walking in the halls during lunch. The front door wouldn't be open during the school day, but the exit to the courtyard was unlocked and from there he only had to skirt around the back to the parking lot.

He hurried across the lot to his motorbike. He was anxious to get home quickly and change out of his uniform. He slipped on his helmet and shot out down the road lined with soft orange leaves. As he rode, he thought about taking the night off to spend some time at the Zodiac. He smiled into the wind and accelerated, leaving a flurry of fallen leaves in the narrow wake of his bike.

His place was only a few blocks north of the river and it didn't take him long to get there. Gravel crunched under the wheels of his bike as he walked it into the small garage where he lived. The mechanics that owned the lot were friends of his, and they let him stay there in exchange for help on the weekends. It wasn't much, but it was better than home.

He ran his fingers through his hair as the steel door shut heavily behind him. He tugged at his tie and unbuttoned his jacket, tossing them both into a heap on the floor. Light streamed though two small chain link windows and heated up the small room. He fell onto his cot with a sigh, throwing a fine cloud of dust into the air.

He draped one arm over his eyes, and despite the heat he eventually dozed. It was dark when he woke up again. He sat upright and rubbed his eyes. How long was I asleep? He stood and walked to the window, reaching up to lace his fingers through the links. Pink clouds tickled the horizon and the sky was still a dim shade of blue.

Tatsuya turned and stripped out of the remainder of his uniform. He fished around in his bag and came up with a black shirt and jeans. He shook the dust out of them and pulled them on, then scrubbed his face at the industrial sink in the corner. Good enough, he thought, and walked out the door.

The evening air was surprisingly cool, and a light breeze ruffled his hair as he walked out his bike. The roads were quiet and he made good time, whistling idly under his breath while he rode. The stars were coming out by the time he arrived at the club.

Every time he came to the Zodiac he was surprised by the contrast between it and the outside world. Where outside it was cool and calm, inside it was warm and stuffy. The walls seemed soft and thick and the air was laced with smoke and perfume. He braced himself as he crossed the dark threshold into the building.

The music was the first thing to hit his senses. The bass throbbed dully through the floor and the treble line felt disjointed, surreal. He nodded his head to it and made his way through the entryway to the table area. He pulled a chair aside and sat down, leaning back against the wall, half hidden in shadows.

He watched. The crowd was still thin, but he could see that some people had already gotten caught up in it, had become absorbed by the music and the atmosphere of the club. He watched as it slowly percolated, simmering quietly as more and more people trickled onto the floor. He watched as a group of girls moved together, their bangles sparking in the fragmented light, eyes closed against the sound and the fury. He watched as the throng of people grew and pulsed, the music deepening as it wrapped itself around them. He followed them with his eyes until he felt that if he didn't cling to his seat he would be sucked in too and lose himself entirely.

This was the part that he lived for. This was his moment of rapture, his moment of living.

"It's just about reached critical, don't you think?" a voice spoke softly from the shadows next to him.

He jumped, broken from his reverie. He looked up sharply. Squinting, he could make out the silhouette of a woman wreathed in smoke. The end of her cigarette flared red in the darkness.

"You have me mistaken," he said, and got up to leave. A strong hand gripped his arm and pulled him back. Irritated, he turned to face her. "Now listen -"

He trailed off, taken aback. Two deep, dark green eyes held him transfixed as their owner smiled wryly. "All this living energy, all these people suspended in the music, in the frenzy... can you feel it?" The corners of her lips curled up slightly. "Isn't it simply delicious? Doesn't it just make you feel alive?"

Tatsuya just stared at her, his eyes tracing the line of her hair down to her jaw, then to her neck and shoulders. He couldn't tell what she was wearing – it seemed like she was clothed in darkness itself and her bare skin shone in stark contrast. She pulled on his arm and a sudden panic washed through him.

"Who are you?" he asked slowly. He wanted to move, to run, but his arms and legs felt too slow and heavy. "Who... are you?" The music seemed to grow louder as the crowd of dancers thickened.

The woman turned her head and laughed quietly, flicking her cigarette to the ground. "Call me Laurel," she said. A soft, sinister melody tinkled in her voice and Tatsuya closed his eyes, tried to shut it out. He felt her draw close and a peculiar warmth spread across his skin. She touched his arm lightly and walked her hand to his shoulder, then his cheek. "Why don't you dance with me?" she said, nudging him towards the crowd. "Won't that be fun?"

He stiffened. It was all he could do to hold his body in place as something deep inside him warned, don't go with her. Don't go with her. Don't go -

The woman - Laurel - leaned towards him. Her breath trembled in his ear and she murmured, "Dance with me, Apollo."

Tatsuya's strength flooded back in that moment and he sprang back, slapping her hand away. His vision swam and the music thundered in his ears. No... The woman's expression changed from surprise to anger, and he felt a strange fear swell in his chest. She's not human, he thought suddenly. In his mind a thousand clamoring voices diminished to one. RUN!

He felt unexpected lightness rush through his legs and he took off faster than he would have thought possible. The crowd ebbed around him as he ran and he made it to the entryway unchallenged. When he looked back, he saw no sign of the woman save for a slight shimmer in the air. By the time he opened the door and stumbled out onto the street, it was gone.

The fresh air hit him hard. He took a few deep breaths and ran his fingers through his hair. What just happened? He rubbed his eyes until blotches of light appeared behind his eyelids. Am I dreaming? He slumped against the wall, breathing in and out slowly until he felt calm enough to drive.

After a minute had passed Tatsuya got on his bike and took off. He set out for home, but when he passed the park he felt a strange pull and he turned off of the road. It seemed harmless enough; two old-fashioned lamps lit the area dimly and the place was empty save for a lone car with steamed-up windows.

He parked his bike in the low grass and walked towards a tall oak tree. He sat and leaned his back against it as he looked up to the sky, watching the stars filter through the gently waving leaves.

It wasn't long before he felt himself drifting again, although the feeling was somewhat different than sleep.

He dreamt that he was walking along a rough cliff that overlooked a dark gray sea. A single tree grew there, its roots gnarled and tangled in the rocky soil. He approached it and touched the trunk lightly with the tips of his fingers. It comforted him.

Someone spoke behind him. "That's a very special tree."

Tatsuya turned, alarmed. "Who's there?"

A young man stood there, calmly regarding him. Below them the sea rolled against the cliff, and Tatsuya found himself staring into his own face. "You're me," he said in an oddly quiet voice.

The young man smiled warmly. "You're half right. I am Apollo, but here I am also an aspect of you, a persona." He waved one arm. "This place is your doing."

Tatsuya slumped against the tree. "So I'm dreaming?"

"You might say that." Apollo's face wavered slightly, as though Tatsuya were looking through a heat-haze. "Although I am always with you, even when you're awake."

"What does that mean?"

Apollo crossed his arms and looked out to the sea. "Think of a mirror. When you look into a mirror, you see an image of yourself. That's what I am right now; just a reflection." He turned back to face Tatsuya. "But when you called on me today, I passed through the mirror to join you in my own form. I was no longer simply a reflection of you. I was my own self, and I was able to lend my strength to you."

Tatsuya was silent for a long moment. "So that was you in the nightclub."

Apollo nodded. "I gave you the strength to resist her and the speed to run away. That woman is very dangerous. To both of us."

Tatsuya looked up sharply. "So you know who she is?"

"She is..." he paused, as if deliberating on the words. "She is a living shadow, a kind of demon that reflects something dark inside your own heart."

Tatsuya shook his head. "That doesn't make sense. I didn't recognize her."

Apollo's eyes darkened. "I did." He was silent then, and Tatsuya watched as he walked in some long-lost memory. After a few minutes he shook his head and spoke. "The shadow-woman must have felt me in you, and couldn't resist the opportunity to test her own strength." He smiled wryly. "You are lucky that she did. Had she targeted you, I might not have been able to help. As it was, she underestimated both of us."

Tatsuya looked down, lost in thought. A persona... it gives me strength. Why does it all feel so familiar?

He looked up suddenly. "Apollo, have we - "

Apollo smiled then, a little sadly, and turned away. "We've met before," he said quietly, and then he melted into the mist.

"Wait!" Tatsuya jumped up to follow him, but as he ran through the mists they just grew denser and denser until he was lost.

He woke, cold and shivering, his clothes damp with dew and his head still full of questions.