Netto crossed his arms and looked very calm for someone who just met someone who looked exactly like him. "Well?" he asked.
Rockman for one was in some kind of shock and didn't say anything. He just looked from Netto to Saito and back again wondering what was going on.
"I-I'm…" Saito tried to think of a good excuse. "I'm… a hallucination!" he said desperately.
Netto almost laughed, "You're a really bad liar," he said.
Saito made a face, "Yeah, Adrian told me that too."
"Who are you?" Netto asked again.
Saito sighed, it's not like his day could get any worse. "I'm…" He paused, "My name is Saito Hikari."
Netto continued to glare at him. "Saito Hikari died almost 11 years ago," he said coldly.
Saito winced at the tone in Netto's voice, "Yeah, I know that Netto-kun… but I'm not lying this time. You said it yourself, I'm a horrible liar."
Netto stood back and let Saito stand up. "Okay, let's pretend for one second that I believe you. How and why are you here? You're dead."
Saito gave Netto a wounded puppy look and Netto felt instant regret for saying what he did. "I know I'm dead…" Saito said softly.
"Then how?" Netto asked.
Saito sighed, "Well… you see, Lady Eleanor takes souls from heaven that she thinks are worthy and gives them the power of a Guardian."
Rockman finally piped up, "Guardian, as in Guardian Angel?"
"Yeah," Saito said.
"Lady Eleanor?" Netto
"She's kinda like my boss," Saito said. "Anyways, she chooses souls and she gives them one of these," he said pulling a clear crystal on a thin gold chain out from under his shirt, "It's a Guardian Crystal, it's what gives me my form in the real world," Saito said.
"So, it's why I can touch you," Netto said.
Saito nodded, "Yeah, and as long as I'm wearing it I can grow and be pretty much just like any human only… I'm still not alive."
"What do you mean?" Netto asked.
"Well, for one, I don't have a heart beat," Saito smiled sadly. "And if my Crystal was taken away or destroyed I would just become a spirit."
"So you're a Guardian Angel," Netto recapped.
Saito nodded, "I'm your Guardian Angel, Netto-kun."
"So the stop light…" Rockman said quickly.
Saito looked at Netto's waist where the PET was, "You're quick," he said with a small smile.
Netto still looked a tad skeptical, "Okay, let's pretend I'm completely willing to believe all of this, how come you let me see you? I mean… aren't you supposed to be a secret or something?"
Saito smiled sheepishly, "I… well," he sighed, "I broke some rules," he said finally.
Netto giggled in spite of himself, "Somehow I always pictured me being the one who would get into trouble."
"You do get into trouble," Saito said pointedly.
Netto shrugged, "So you're a guardian angel and you're my dead twin brother, now what?"
"That was quite blunt," Saito said peevishly.
Netto blushed, "I didn't mean it like that," he muttered.
Saito smiled, "I know. Well actually, I'm waiting for a summon to the Higher World. I know I got into some kind of trouble."
Netto raised an eyebrow, "You're just gonna wait to get into trouble?"
Saito shrugged, "Well yeah… it's not like I can run away."
Netto ran his fingers through his hair, "You're weird," he said.
Saito giggled, "Yeah, Adrian tells me that a lot too."
"Who's Adrian?" Netto asked.
"I'm Adrian," a voice said behind them.
Netto and Saito both spun around to see a tall, blond man standing behind them. "Saito, she wants to see you and she made it quite clear you are to come now."
Saito sighed, "All right." He turned to Netto, "It was nice meeting you Netto-kun, I've wanted to meet you for a long time," he said softly.
"Wait… you're not leaving already?" Netto said quickly.
Saito shook his head, "I have to, Netto-kun, orders. You of all people should understand."
Netto nodded slowly. "Are you going to come back?" he asked. Suddenly he had a million questions he wanted to ask Saito.
Saito shrugged carelessly to try and make the situation seem a little less dire to Netto, "Maybe, maybe not."
"Wait," Netto said, but when he blinked they were both gone. "The hell?" he asked.
"I have no idea," Rockman answered, just as perplexed as it operator.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
"You let yourself get seen by a human," Adrian hissed. "What, are you trying to get your crystal taken away?"
"You make it sound like we're not human," Saito hissed back.
"Newsflash kid! We aren't, we are Guardians and we are what we are because of Lady Eleanor, and if you don't shape up you won't be even that," Adrian said giving Saito a cold glare to emphasize his point.
Saito looked away, "I was protecting Netto-kun, and you should know by now that's all that I really care about."
Adrian sighed, "You sure can be heartless."
Saito looked at the floor, "I don't mean too…"
Adrian patted Saito on the shoulder in an effort to possible cheer him up, "I know, kid, I know."
They both looked at the great oaken doors that led into the upper world. There were recent scars over the ancient engravings that covered the doors. Saito guessed they were there from the attack only days before. "You should prepare for the worst," Adrian warned him.
Saito pulled his crystal out and let it rest against his shirt. "I know."
Adrian opened the door and Saito walked in. Lady Eleanor was sitting pristinely on a simply designed yet somehow elegant gold chair. She was wearing a long wine red dress and her hair was pulled into a tight bun. She looked at Saito with her lips pressed together so tight that they were just a line. Saito gulped and walked down the long stone hallway until he reached her. "Saito…" she said softly.
She didn't yell, nor did she say anything otherwise but Saito could practically feel the disappointment hovering in the air above them like an ominous cloud. "I'm sorry Lady Eleanor," he said softly.
"Sorry?" she asked in the same quiet voice. "You disobeyed my direct orders, stayed down on the middle realms when I asked you not to for any longer then the allotted time I gave you and you showed yourself your brother." She wasn't yelling, she was merely stating facts, and in that sense it was almost worse then listening to her yell. "I expected more from you," she said in an even quieter tone.
Saito winced, and nodded. He felt the disappointment cloud increase tenfold until it was practically raining and lightning disappointment down on his very being. "I'm sorry," he said again. He really couldn't think of anything else to say.
She looked at him, "I'm sorry too, Saito. But rules are rules, and you know what happens next."
Saito nodded and handed her his crystal, trying not to cry. Lady Eleanor held out her hand and took the small crystal sphere. She looked at it and sighed, "You were an excellent Guardian, Saito. I'd hate to think all of those years went un-wasted and the fact that you gave up all this for your brother is most touching."
"Ma'am?" Saito asked, desperately trying to keep his voice from cracking.
"Saito, you have shown admirable work while with the Guardians and even if this is how you chose to end it, you chose the right way. For that, I'll grant you to a body to live down on the middle realms if you so please."
Saito's eyes widened, "Yes," he breathed.
"You won't be alive," she said sharply. "You will just be a spirit inhabiting a shell, you will no longer grow, nor have any power. Are you sure?"
"Yes," Saito said again.
"Your twin must be an amazing person for you to be willing to give up so much for him," Lady Eleanor said with a small smile.
Saito grinned sheepishly, "Netto-kun is… interesting," he said evasively.
"Saito, I wish you all the luck in the world. I hope that one day our paths do cross again, and I also hope you do not regret the decision you have made."
Saito bowed politely, "No ma'am," he said.
She nodded, "You may go now."
Saito bowed again and left the large room, the door closing behind him with a final thud.
OOOOOOOOOOOOO
New Chappie It seems this won't be a very reviewful piece but hey, it's fun to write /o/