GRRRYAAHH… Writing this story's hard. I want to keep writing, because this one's sure bringing in the reviews. But the first chapter was all there was supposed to be. Sigh. You can tell because it's twice as long as any one of the other chapters. Though I managed to make this one longer. o-o
ooo
'It was your turn to watch him, Suppi. I guess it's kind of pointless to try, huh? He always escapes on us, never tells us what he's doing-'
'How motherly of you. He can take care of himself well enough.'
Nakuru made a face. 'Manic depression is all well and good, but not when he tries to jump into the harbor. I draw the line at harbor-jumping. If he dies, we're as good as gone, too. I know he's upset, I'm kind of upset too. All the sleeping people will start dying in a couple days because they're sleeping too much to take care of themselves, and there's no one but us to clean it all up. Us, Suppi, us!'
Spinner Sun shook his head. 'You're upset for all the wrong reasons.'
'Well why are you upset then?' She said, sounding affronted.
'It's beyond you, I think. If those are your reasons for being distraught, then you go ahead and worry about that. I'll worry my worries.' Nakuru sniffed his way, going off to do whatever it was she did with her spare time, Spinner didn't always know.
He wondered if Eriol meant them to be the way they were; Nakuru seemed to be the guardian that would appeal to a certain side of Eriol, while Spinner himself more suited the thoughts separate from the reincarnation-cursed ones.
He mused on this as he left in search of Eriol yet again.
This parody of hide and seek was one Spinner found himself playing more than he would have liked, and more frequently as time went by. He wasn't sure exactly what it meant, but it was significant how Eriol vanished without reason, and cause for alarm under certain circumstances. Especially if the circumstances were 'only one other person on the planet'.
Sensing something in the vicinity of Tsukimine, he headed that way. People lay in the street, sleeping soundly, looking peaceful… but it was anything but peace that Spinner felt. This was terribly unnatural, and unnecessary. The girl had needed a second chance at the Final Judgment, so it was plain and clear that she'd need one for this test as well. Perhaps Clow had been wrong to give her a second chance in the first place. If she failed the first time around, she should have been seen as unfit, or poorly taught, and should have either been re-schooled in her arts before getting another chance, or have the privilege removed altogether.
That would have been more sensible, and would have saved her and the world from the powers of a whimsical sorcerer.
There.
Spinner came quietly up to Eriol, who was sitting on his knees on the ground, in front of a young woman and her two infant children.
'I can't un-do it…' He said without turning to face him. 'Why did I have to be so flawless in casting this spell…? Ruthlessness is a terrible force… In moments like these, I can understand that, but at other times it's as though it's beyond me to comprehend that it can do this. They're so young…'
Spinner was at a loss. Eriol's bi-polar persona let him realize his own terrible actions, but didn't allow him the ability to prevent them. It was impossible for him to chide Eriol when he was like this, because he already felt remorse; it was useless to chide him otherwise, because he simply ignored him.
'It's only been a few hours, but I imagine they're hungry. It will be peaceful… they won't feel it.'
During the transition between the two, however, it was possible to have some small bit of influence. It was usually too subtle to detect, but Spinner knew his master better than even Nakuru. It would be tricky to combine the needs of both sides of Eriol, to appeal to both at once. He would have to empower the part of him that doubted, and tempt the part that calculated. 'You do have the power to reverse it. You cast it, after all. It's simply a challenge.'
Eriol looked up, away from the mother and her children. A challenge…? Challenges could be overcome, of course. But did he really have the power to do so…? Of course he did. 'Yes, I cast it, so of course I could reverse it. If I so desired. Although, since I know it's possible, why try?'
Spinner sagged slightly, defeated. The wrong words… always the wrong words.
Eriol stood and brushed off his clothing. 'The world's no fun unless there's someone in it to play. Fortunately for me, there is. She's not quite as willing as maybe she should be-'
He paused. 'No, she doesn't have to be willing. This is a difficult situation, but maybe she can get used to this… games are too much right now.'
He was swinging between his opposites so frequently and fluently, they seemed almost the same persona, as though it were rational, normal. It was far from normal, it was worsening, Spinner knew. The unusual environment aggravated both sides of him in no positive way, and the worst was probably yet to come. Minds were fragile, soon one side would win, or he'd loose himself completely, and both sides would be overtaken by something else entirely. Reincarnations were simply a bad idea, and though Spinner wondered why Clow's guardians didn't try to stop him, at the same time he realized they didn't even know, not that they would have been able to do anything if they had.
'Would you come home, Master? Maybe get a little…' Spinner stopped himself before he said something that would be obviously inappropriate.
'Sleep?' Eriol said, completely undaunted. 'Too restless for sleep. All other minds are at rest, my mind cannot be at rest. There's too much energy going unused in the air, I can't let it go to waste. Dreams might be unpleasant, as well. Especially with everyone else submerged in that realm. I can't sleep with everyone like this.'
Spinner nodded. 'Then at least let me accompany you.'
'Yes… some quality time is in order, now that there's nothing to detract me. What should we do? I'm sure the ice cream's free.'
'I'm sure…' Spinner trailed after Eriol as he started off down the street towards the nearest parlor. He questioned how long it would take for the less concerned thoughts of Eriol's to turn to the fact that, without people to tend to things, he's made things much harder on himself, no matter what he thought.
'It's all melted… what happened to the power? Ah, all those people asleep at their stations… things could easily go wrong. A little magic makes things better, ei, Spinner?'
'I suppose…'
Eriol leaned more into the freezer containing the ice cream, and Spinner could feel him setting charms for cold inside them. 'It's all we have to depend on, now.'
Of course… in spite of all the problems he's caused, he can magic away his smaller, personal ones.
'There's someone else awake, I think. Other than you two, Sakura and myself.' Eriol said in a conversational tone.
Spinner's mind was almost shocked into reeling. 'What makes you say that? You said your spell was flawless.'
'Even flawless spells can be defended with enough abjuration.'
'The school of protective magic? Yes, but they'd have to have known that you were going to cast this spell…'
Eriol nodded, pulling out of the freezer after finishing his charms. 'And well in advance, at that. They read my mind… or dreamwatched, or somesuch. Either way… I've just felt someone else wandering outside the bounds of my spell.'
One thought went through Spinner's mind at that moment:
There might still be some hope, then.
'I wonder what they'll do…' Eriol mused. 'One person won't be able to do much…'
'Yet look what you, one person, have done.'
There was a pause that stretched into a silence, being broken by Eriol after several long moments. 'Yes… see what I've done. That one person may change the fate of the world. Sakura's certainly not up to it right now.' He turned and walked slowly out into the quiet world. 'I think it is about time for bed though…'
Spinner sighed softly to himself. Sleep freed everyone of contradiction, dreams were only for show. Though the world was doomed to sleep to death, there was a flicker of hope, and Eriol himself would leave matters to be tended to at another time.
Spinner had time to contact this other person. He'd need to speak to Nakuru…
