Chapter 3: Seeking Shelter

Albert leaned against the wall outside the medical bay of their stolen ship, outwardly calm, but inwardly nervous as he watched 002 pace up and down the corridor with 006 standing beside him.

He'd nearly panicked when 009 had suddenly sagged down in his arms. But he had kept his head long enough to shout for Dr. Gilmore's attention. The doctor and 003 had been quick to set up the medical bay and had 009 brought in.

He was worried about the kid, everyone was.

But he had been the first to notice something was off with 009 when he'd reunited with them in the hanger. The kid had seemed exhausted, but there was no way he could have done enough in that small expanse of time to wear him out that badly.

His musings were interrupted by the door to the medical bay opening, quickly drawing the attention of those standing outside. The doctor walked out with 003 trailing behind him, a sigh escaping the scientist.

"How is he, doctor?" the German man asked, 006 and 007 leaning closer to hear. Dr. Gilmore smiled slightly.

"009 will be alright. He's just exhausted himself." The group let out a breath they hadn't realized they'd been holding.

"But why'd he pass out?" asked 002. "He couldn't have done enough to wear himself out that fast."

Dr. Gilmore rubbed his chin.

"I have a few theories, but they all revolve around something I don't know much about." The Doctor stated. Those present gave the man their undivided attention. "Black Ghost brought 009 into the program around the beginning of August last year-"

"Last year?!" yelped 007 in surprise. "Why on earth was he only just finished now? Surely you could have finished him sooner."

The doctor sighed.

"We couldn't, but not because we didn't have the needed equipment. At every step, we had to alter or recalibrate the cybernetics and equipment we were working with for him. It wasn't until one of the other scientists turned a scanner on him that we had an idea of why."

The scientist led them into the room, where 009 was laid out on one of the beds. A white blanket was drawn up to his chest, his eyes closed, and his expression peaceful. His scarf was folded up on a table and his boots were set down at the side of the bed.

He could have passed or any other sleeping teen if it weren't for the wires trailing out from the back of his head.

A monitor was set up by 009's head with various colored lines on it, many of which Albert recognized from the many checkups they'd received while in Black Ghost's care. They were for things like fuel levels, blood levels, weapon energy levels, and everything else that had been forcefully built into their bodies.

But, running across the bottom of the screen, was one Albert wasn't familiar with. The scientist tapped the line in question.

"This line represents a completely natural energy that 009's body produced even before Black took him. One which, as far as we know, has never been recorded before." The man stated, making Albert blink in surprise.

"A natural energy?" he asked, leaning a bit closer to the screen. The doctor nodded.

"Yes, based on what I saw while trying to work on him, this energy is constantly at work maintaining and possibly protecting 009's body even when he was unconscious. Though its flow and levels seem to drop when he's at rest as opposed to when he's awake, much like a blood flow. It wreaked quite a bit of havoc on our machinery while we were working." The doctor said, checking over the equipment by 009.

"Somehow it could destroy our equipment whenever we accidentally set it off. The only machines it didn't destroy at some point were the life support machines we had him connected to during the surgeries on some of his major organs. Like his brain and heart. If it hadn't, we probably would have finished working on him in mid to late-October last year instead of mid-March this year."

"So, what can this energy do? Besides messing up your equipment, of course." Asked 007. Dr. Gilmore glanced back at him frowning.

"To be honest, I don't really know. And it didn't just "mess up" our equipment. After the energy was done with it, the equipment was completely useless. The circuitry was either melted or it just wouldn't work anymore no matter what we did."

002 frowned.

"And Black Ghost kept going? What if it ended up killing him?" Dr. Gilmore sighed, looking older than he already was (which was saying something).

"I asked the very same question, and that was when we'd gotten the final bit of proof that made us realize we'd been deceived by Black Ghost. The person sent to speak with us had stated that it didn't matter, and they would just find someone else if our work with 009 failed." Albert gritted his teeth in anger. So, 009's life hadn't mattered to them, and that was what led to the doctor seeing the truth. "I think this energy is the reason for 009 collapsing."

"But if it's been helping 009 all this time, why did he collapse?" 006 asked in confusion. The doctor tapped the line.

"Because that energy seems to have dropped significantly since he was in the labs. I think he may have been using it up during his escape from the lab and our escape from the island. Whether or not he was aware of it, I don't know, but that's my theory. Since his body is so used to having large amounts of that energy, the sudden loss of it caused his body to treat it in a similar way to exhaustion. Simply put, 009 has fallen into a kind of recovery sleep to regain that lost energy. For now, he just needs to be left to rest and recover. And he'll probably need some food when he finally wakes up."

006 puffed up, smiling brightly.

"Well then! I'll just have to make something extra good for him then!" 002 rolled his eyes.

"With what? It's not like we have a stocked kitchen." 002 snapped. "We don't even know what to do next!"

"I do have a place in mind where we can rest and lay low for a while. A good friend of mine, Professor Kozumi, lives right by the coast of Japan. With the ship's speed, it should be less than a day's flight from here. I'm certain he won't mind having us for a while." Dr. Gilmore said, his tone placating.

"Will he have room for us?" asked 003. The doctor nodded.

"Yes, he owns a mansion not too far from Tokyo bay, he should have plenty of room." The doctor turned back to the door. "I'd best give 008 and 005 the coordinates to get to Dr. Kozumi's."

"What about 009?" asked 006. "Shouldn't someone stay to keep an eye on him?"

"As I've already said, 009 will be fine. He just needs rest." Said Dr. Gilmore. "Though, you may have a point about having someone watch over 009. We don't know how 009's power works…"

"No worries, Doc," Albert said with a smile, casually waving to the man. "I'll stay back and keep watch. I'll call you over the transmitter if something comes up."

The doctor nodded.

"Ah, thank you, 004. I don't think anything will happen, but it's best to be on the safe side." The Doctor stepped out, Albert's fellow cyborg's following him until only himself and the sleeping 009 remained. The German man sighed, sitting down on one of the beds next to the sleeping teen. He watched the slow, peaceful rise and fall of the boy's chest.

It was a little surprising, learning that 009 had some form of special power. Though, it seemed to do a fairly good job explaining why Black Ghost had been so interested in the teen. But now he couldn't help wondering about where 009 came from.

Were there others with powers like 009's? Did Black Ghost kidnap him for his powers? Did 009 still have a family he could go back to? Friends? He'd have to wait until 009 woke up to ask.

Assuming the boy would (or could) answer them.

.

~~MAGICA~CYBORG~009~~

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Albert jolted up. He dazedly looked around, seeing the walls of their new medical bay around him as he blinked the drowsiness from his eyes. He must've fallen asleep at some point while watching over 009. Speaking of, Albert looked over at the sleeping teen. 009's face was scrunched slightly, a frown pulling at the corners of his mouth, and his eyebrows furrowed.

The adult frowned. He slipped off the bed he'd settled on and stepped over to the black-haired teen.

"009?" He murmured. The teen was mumbling in his sleep. He remembered seeing something like this before.

Ah, yes, when he'd gone looking for 009 during their initial escape in the seaplane. 009 had been having a nightmare then, too.

He frowned at the memory.

Was 009 having a nightmare during his recovery sleep? That shouldn't happen when someone was supposed to basically be unconscious.

009 probably hadn't noticed yet, but each of them possessed a translator chip that had been built into their brains by the Black Ghost scientists.

It was a kind of subconscious use, most of the time they used it without thinking, though there were times when they wouldn't understand someone when they were being particularly emotional or if the chip had been damaged in some way (he'd found that out from experience). Considering the multicultural and multilingual nature of their team, it was very useful. But, when one of them was feeling emotional, those present could push their own translators to understand them anyway.

For the most part, Albert couldn't understand him, and could only pick out a handful of words. But he could tell the teen was upset about whatever he was dreaming of.

He frowned.

The doctor said that 009 needed his sleep, but he couldn't leave the kid in a nightmare. He vaguely remembered something his mother used to do when he was little. Carefully he leaned down next to 009's head and started running the fingers of his left hand through the teen's hair.

"Calm down, 009, you're safe. Everyone's safe." He murmured softly, doing his best to sound gentle and soothing. He didn't know what was wrong, he wasn't going to disrespect 009's privacy by using his translator to find out what the teen was mumbling, but he hoped hearing the words or tone would help. 009 pushed his head into Albert's hand, mumbling something he couldn't understand. "You're fine, everything's fine."

Albert kept reciting this mantra until, slowly, 009's expression smoothed out into the same peaceful face he had seen earlier. His fingers brushed over a scar on 009's forehead. He couldn't help taking a closer look as he rubbed his thumb over it.

It was small, shaped like a bolt of lightning, and it looked almost like someone had carved it into his forehead. And it looked old, very old.

He frowned at how irritated it looked. Maybe he should ask the doctor to check it out later. If it was old, then it shouldn't be so red and irritated. To his surprise, the teen's face suddenly scrunched, green eyes fluttering open. Albert glanced at the screen showing 009's energy levels.

While 009's power was much higher than when he'd first passed out, it still seemed pretty low compared to the other levels on the screen. The teen blinked drowsily up at him. Albert ignored the strange feeling that brushed over him.

It was the first time he'd noticed that 009's eyes didn't seem to focus on his face. It was probably because of how tired the kid was.

"004?" 009 asked in a quiet murmur. He smiled at him.

"Morning 009, sleep well?" The boy nodded.

"Sorta… What happened?" he tiredly asked. He propped himself up, struggling to sit up. Albert placed his hands on 009's shoulders, carefully easing him back down. Green eyes swept, unfocused, over the room. "Where are we?"

Albert leaned back, giving 009 a reassuring smile.

"The medical bay. You gave us a good scare when you passed out earlier." 009 rubbed at his eyes.

"Oh… Sorry…" He said looking up at Albert, who dismissed his apology with a wave.

"No need to apologize, I better call the doctor over the radio to check you over, make sure you're alright." The kid grimaced, but he didn't argue with him.

"002? Are you awake?" He asked over his inner radio.

"What is it, 004?" was the clipped reply he received.

"Is Dr. Gilmore with you?"

"Yeah, why?"

"009's come to. I thought the doctor would want to know." He heard the red-head grumble about being used as the messenger.

"Yeah, fine. The Doc says he'll be there in a minute."

"Thanks."

"Whatever." Albert looked over at 009, who was now squinting at the monitor by his head.

"If you have a question, you're free to ask it." Green eyes flicked over at him.

"What's that stuff on the screen?" He raised an eyebrow at 009's wording, his lips twitching in amusement.

"Basically? It's a graph of your current health." He lightly tapped the screen. "Your blood levels, the fuel levels for the cybernetic side of your body, etcetera. What's interesting is that, according to the good doctor, this low line represents a strange energy that you had even before Black Ghost got ahold of you. Apparently how low it is led to you collapsing earlier."

He noticed the way 009 tensed ever so slightly, and how the teen suddenly refused to look directly at him.

"Oh, really?" He asked, voice soft. Albert watched him.

"So, you already know about it then." He watched the teen tense even more. He sighed. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. Everyone's entitled to their privacy after all."

009 looked up at him surprised. What? Did the kid think he was going to force him to spill all his secrets?

The door opened suddenly, drawing the attention of both cyborgs. Dr. Gilmore strode in, smiling at 009.

"I'm glad to see you've come around, 009. How are you feeling?"

"I think I'm okay. A little groggy, but other than that…" the teen trailed off. The doctor nodded, seeming to understand what 009 meant, and stepped over to the controls by 009's head, examining the data on the computer. Albert watched as the doctor typed a bit on the nearby computer, reading through the information that popped up on the screen.

"Hmm… Your energy levels still seem rather low, but it should be safe to let you be up and about now. Though I'm still wondering about that power you have, I'm sure 004 has mentioned it to you by now, but I'd rather investigate when you've recovered completely." 009 nodded, mindful of the wires connected to his head. Dr. Gilmore carefully unplugged 009 from the computer. "I wouldn't recommend hurrying off. It may be safe for you to be moving around, but that doesn't mean you're in peak condition."

"Yes sir." 009 said softly, sitting up slowly. The man smiled.

"006 managed to put together something for you to eat-"

"Before you send him off, I think you should check that scar on 009's head." Said Albert. "It looks like something's irritating it."

The scientist blinked before carefully taking hold of 009's head, making the teen lean forward as he examined the scar in question. The doctor let out a soft "hmm", tilting 009's head slightly.

"Nothing showed up during the check, but you are right about it seeming irritated." The doctor commented, lightly running his thumb over it much like Albert himself had done earlier. "How did you get this scar 009? It looks quite old. And such an unusual shape…"

The green-eyed teen seemed to flounder for a moment before responding.

"I-I'm not sure… I've had it for as long as I can remember." He said, seeming uncomfortable. Albert raised an eyebrow at that.

"Surely your parents must have reminded you of how you got it." The teen glanced at him.

"My parents died when I was very little. In-in a car accident. My Aunt used to say that was when I got it, but…" The room fell into an awkward silence. Albert wanted to kick himself for not considering such a thing.

Of course, the kid would be an orphan. Black Ghost wouldn't risk being exposed by a kid's parents if they went looking for him! He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Sorry," he muttered. 009 gave him a small smile.

"It's alright. You couldn't have known." The kid said, sounding like the topic didn't bother him. The doctor cleared his throat, looking a touch uncomfortable.

"Well, nothing seems to be wrong with it. But if it stays like this, we may need to apply medicine to it. Let me know if it starts bothering you, alright 009?" The green-eyed teenager nodded.

"Alright. Where did you say 006 was?"

How can he just brush that off? He just admitted to not having parents, yet he's acting like there's nothing wrong with it! Albert watched the teen as the doctor gave him instructions to the ship's kitchen (Why would a warship have a kitchen? Then again, soldiers needed to eat at some point), trying to puzzle out how calm 009 was about it. Well, he did say they died when he was little, perhaps he was young enough that doesn't remember them anymore?

But if that were true, then 009 probably never had a parental figure while growing up. That bothered him for some reason.

He followed 009 out, still in thought, but wanting to keep an eye on the teen. The green-eyed boy didn't seem bothered by this, peering around curiously at the corridor of the ship. Albert paused as that strange almost-brush washed over him again. He glanced around, trying to find the source, but only saw himself and 009.

"004?" Albert looked up at 009. "Something wrong?"

He shook his head.

"No, I just thought I felt something." Unfocused, green eyes watched him for a moment before nodding.

"Alright. I wonder what 006 managed to make? I hope it's not more barbeque bat or snake stew." Albert's lips twitched, trying to hold back a smile as 009 descended into pondering mutters. The fact that 009's eyes never focused was starting to bother him. If the kid's eyes were like his, he could understand it, but they weren't. A new thought popped into his mind.

Maybe 009 needed glasses? It was an idea, but he'd need Dr. Gilmore to check. For now, he'd just keep an eye on 009.

.

~~MAGICA~CYBORG~009~~

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When they'd finally arrived at Mr. Kozumi's, it was roughly ten or eleven at night and everyone was ready to get some sleep. Even the recently awoken 009, but that had more to do with the fact that his energy levels were still low.

Professor Kozumi, a short, grey-haired, glasses-wearing man dressed in one of those green robes the Japanese always wore (they were called kimonos if Albert remembered correctly) greeted them at the door, quickly ushering them inside as he pointed out many rooms they could use. There were enough in the house for each of them to have their own room. 009 picked a room far from the rest of the group, which led to 007 asking him why he didn't want to be near them.

009 finally admitted to being nightmare prone (and to having bouts of insomnia) and suggested that if no one wanted to be woken by him moving around at night accidentally, they'd best choose a room away from him. Albert stowed that information away for later, it explained why he kept finding the kid in a nightmare.

Everyone picked a room (Albert ending up near 009, even with the teen's warning ringing in his head), and collapsed into their respective beds, passing out as soon as they hit the pillows.

It felt like barely an hour when Albert woke to the sound of quiet movement outside his room. He peered blearily out the window.

Huh, it looked like the sun had just started to rise, so it was roughly five or six in the morning. So, he'd gotten roughly eight hours of sleep. That was good, the longest he'd been able to sleep in a while.

Now though he was wondering who would be up this early.

Was it 009? He didn't mention anything about being an early riser.

He listened as a pair of surprisingly quiet footsteps padded past his door and down the hallway beyond, silently debating on whether he should get up to see who was moving around or if he should just go back to sleep. His empty stomach won the argument, forcing Albert out of the wonderfully comfortable bed. He'd almost forgotten how comfortable a real bed was compared to the Black Ghost soldier barracks.

Doing his best to keep his footsteps light, he dressed in his uniform (he'd need to get some new clothes. A lot of them would) and slipped out into the hall.

It took him a few minutes to find the kitchen, but when he did, he found a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed 009 bustling about. It seemed the teen had decided to make breakfast for everyone. He raised an eyebrow at the amount of bacon 009 was prepping. Along with a large bowl of what looked to be batter, sitting innocently to one side.

"Morning 009, did you sleep well?" asked Albert, stifling a laugh when 009 jumped in surprise. The green-eyed teen spun around to face the German. The strange almost-brush feeling from the previous day washed over him again and 009 relaxed.

The kid's eyes still weren't focusing right. Albert was sure he'd need to talk to Dr. Gilmore about it.

"004! You startled me! I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Not really," he lied. "Just reached the point where I couldn't sleep anymore. Are you fixing breakfast?" The teen nodded.

"Yeah, I do it a lot at my aunt and uncle's house. And knowing how to cook is a good skill to have. I'm just trying to figure out how much to make for everyone…" Albert nodded, filing the tidbit of information away. Something bugged him about 009 saying he used to cook at his relative's house, but at least 006 wouldn't be the only one who could cook for the group.

"Want some help?" the older male offered. 009 hesitated for a moment.

"I wasn't gonna make anything fancy. Just some bacon, eggs, and pancakes. But… Do you know what the others like to drink?" Albert hummed thoughtfully.

"We never really had a chance to talk about likes and dislikes while we planned our rebellion from Black Ghost, but I think it'd be good to fix some basic drinks for everyone. You know- Tea, coffee, maybe some juice or milk." 009 nodded, slowly.

"Then, could you fix those? I think I saw some coffee mix in the cabinet over there, and some of Mr. Kozumi's tea." The teen said, pointing out the cabinet to the silver-haired man. "I think there's a coffee pot up there too…"

Albert nodded, strolling over to the cabinet and pulling out the mentioned items. It seemed that the teapot was there too.

He paused once he had everything out. Examining the bottom of the two pots, he realized that neither could be used on a stovetop. 009 glanced up at him from the newly started pancakes he'd laid out on a large, electric cooking pan.

"Something wrong, 004?"

"Ah, these pots aren't meant to be used on a stove."

"They should be microwave safe, so just use that to heat the water." Albert fidgeted slightly. 009 raised an eyebrow at him. "You do know how to use a microwave, right?"

"Well, no. Not really. I'm not familiar with modern kitchens." He admitted, already preparing to have to explain what he meant to 009.

"Don't worry, it's really easy! See that thing with the see-through door hanging below the cabinet over there?" Albert blinked, surprised that 009 hadn't inquired further, but began following the teen's instructions as he told him how to work the machine in question.

Albert took a small step back after he finished.

That had been easier than he'd thought it would be. Of course, there wasn't quite enough room to fit both pots in, but it was still easy enough to do. He glanced over at 009, watching as the teen started cooking bacon in an ungreased pan.

"So, what did you mean by a "modern" kitchen?" The German sighed. Well, 009 had warned him that he was like a dog on a bone when it came to things he didn't know.

"The Cyborg soldier project, the one that made us, actually started around the end of the Second World War. About fifty or fifty-five years ago. The first four of us, we had been made then." 009 jolted, nearly losing the pancake he was trying to flip.

"What?!" He gave him a sad smile.

"But we weren't doing well, technology couldn't pull off what Black Ghost wanted at the time, and it was having some pretty bad effects on us. So they put us in special devices to freeze us until everything was finally up to the standard they wanted. Then they pulled us out to refine their work. After that, they started finding new people to add to the program. Be glad we pulled you out before they could start "testing" you, 009."

The teen was quiet, continuing to work even as Albert explained everything to him.

"And a lot has changed in fifty years, from what little I've been told by the others… For the first four of us, if we went home, there probably wouldn't be anything familiar to us." Albert let out a soft sigh, struggling to keep his thoughts from his home. And everything he'd lost just before he'd been taken.

"I'm sorry for your loss." He looked over at the teen, who gave him a small smile. "I could tell by the look on your face. I hope things get better from here. For all of us."

Albert smiled slightly.

"Yeah." I do too.

The kitchen descended into a peaceful silence, with Albert occasionally helping 009 by setting up the next thing the teen intended to make for everyone. Eventually, Albert was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee while 009 finished up the eggs and pancakes.

"What is that delightful aroma?" asked a new voice. Albert looked up to see 007 standing at the door, a blissful smile on his face as he sniffed the air.

"Breakfast, courtesy of 009's cooking. It isn't done, so I'd suggest sitting down."

"Well, I certainly hope it tastes as good as it smells! 006's cooking is wonderful, but nothing beats a good English breakfast!" the man cheered. Ah, right, since he and 009 had similar accents, they were probably from the same country. "What? No hash browns?"

"Mr. Kozumi doesn't have the ingredients for Hash Browns. So we'll have to make do without them." 009 said, glancing back at 007. Albert watched as the bald man slumped slightly, only to light up as 009 continued. "I was able to make pancakes though."

Slowly the rest of the team trickled in, drawn by the smell of 009's cooking, right down to Dr. Gilmore and Professor Kozumi. Even 006 seemed to find the smell enticing enough to not be upset that he wasn't the one to cook breakfast.

009 put the final plate down on the table, giving a small smile to everyone.

"Well, eat up. We don't want it to get cold." Murmurs of agreement echoed throughout the room, everyone digging in as 009 settled in the only open seat, which happened to be right next to Professor Kozumi. Albert took a test bite of the pancake, slathered in a generous amount of butter, and hummed in appreciation.

"This is well done, 009." He complimented, nodding in thanks to the teen.

"Yes! Just splendid!" cheered 007, a wide smile stretching his features. "Thank you for doing this for us!"

009 dipped his head, a faint flush visible on his cheeks, as the sentiment echoed down the table.

"N-not a problem…" The rest of the meal was eaten in silence, mostly because no one was sure what to say. At least they weren't talking about Black Ghost.

"Uh… Doctor?" said 009, drawing attention to himself. "Do you know if-if our stuff is on the ship? The ones that were taken from us?"

Dr. Gilmore nodded, frowning slightly.

"Yes, they should be. We'll check after breakfast to ensure everyone has their belongings. Though I fear only the more recent members will find their possessions beyond what they'd been wearing when they were taken by Black Ghost." 009 nodded quietly.

Albert couldn't help hoping that his engagement ring would be among the things on the ship.

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~~MAGICA~CYBORG~009~~

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To everyone's relief, it seemed that the scientists had been successful in loading their belongings onto the stolen ship. Their clothes and personal items had been put into small cases, with their cyborg numbers printed onto the side. No one spoke of the extra cases that may have once belonged to the now-deceased men who'd orchestrated their escape, though Albert had spotted the sad look 009 had shot at them.

Albert bit back a sigh as he dug through the small case of his original belongings that the rebelling scientists had hidden in the ship.

While he may have regained all the possessions he'd had from when he'd first been abducted, they were far from good condition. They were slightly torn and sported old singe marks, but at least someone had cleaned the bloodstains off them.

He glanced up at the small sigh of relief he'd heard from 009. The green-eyed teen was holding a thin, lacquered stick. It was long (maybe eleven inches), and looked almost like it was made from Holly. 005 walked by, temporarily blocking his line of sight, and when he passed the strange stick 009 had been holding was gone. The older man frowned, shaking his head. It was a stick. There was no need for him to focus on it.

So why did he feel there was something important about it?

"Something wrong, 004?" asked Dr. Gilmore. Grey eyes glanced at the man. Well, now was as good a time as any to inform the Doctor of his thoughts.

"Have you noticed that something seems off about 009's eyes? They don't seem to focus when he's looking at anyone. It's almost like he needs glasses." Dr. Gilmore hummed thoughtfully, quietly eyeing 009 as the teen rummaged through his belongings. (Had the boy really been wearing those ratty-looking clothes when he was taken?)

"I think I can see what you mean 004. Though I'm not sure how we could take him to an Optometrist and have his eyes checked. I don't have a copy of his medical records, not to mention that he isn't a Japanese citizen."

"Perhaps I can help." The two looked back, where Professor Kozumi stood behind them with a small smile on his face. "I'm sure my eye doctor won't mind having a look at 009's eyes. We can say they went missing while you were here and that he needs new ones. While we're at it, we can get some new, clean clothes for everyone."

"What about money? We can't expect you to pay for everything." Kozumi chuckled.

"We'll just call it an IOU for now. You can pay me back for it later."

.

~~MAGICA~CYBORG~009~~

.

They hadn't mentioned to 009 why they were headed to the town now instead of later. Considering that he hadn't said anything about it previously, all three of them assumed that he would either deny that he needed glasses or say it wasn't important. Albert had no idea what 002 thought was going on.

Albert watched 009 out of the corner of his eye as he drove one of the cars owned by Professor Kozumi, with Dr. Gilmore riding in the back between 002 and Professor Kozumi himself. The teen was gazing out the window quietly, just watching the scenery as it passed. He looked strangely fascinated when they'd entered the town proper.

Professor Kozumi spoke up, giving Albert instructions for where to turn to get to their destination. Albert made a few small frustrated noises over the lack of parking spaces (were all Japanese towns like this?).

Finally finding a space, Albert parked. They carefully ignored the stares of the locals as Kozumi led them into the office.

The entrance area was small and humble, with glass doors leading further inside and the clean peach-colored interior design gave the place a warm, calm atmosphere. Pale peach seats were pushed up against one wall, with a coffee table covered in magazines in front of it. A young lady was sitting behind what Albert presumed was the check-in counter, she looked up at them as the bell by the door rang. She greeted the Professor with a bright smile.

"Hello, Kozumi-san! What brings you here today?" Kozumi smiled.

"Good day, Nana-chan, I would like to speak with Kimura-sensei about an eye test for one of my companions." Albert saw 002 and 009 blink in surprise. Obviously, 002 hadn't been informed of why they'd left.

"Of course, sir. Could I have the name of our patient?" They paused.

Crap, we don't actually know 009's name. He was only ever introduced to us as 009. How do we cover this? A soft sigh came from 009.

"Potter." Albert looked back to 009, who looked both tired and amused. Ah, seems he figured it out on his own. "Harry Potter."

Kozumi nodded. Albert couldn't help thinking that 009's name was surprisingly normal, though he wasn't one to judge.

"Put it in as Potter, Harry." The young woman nodded and started typing on the computer.

"British?" she asked, her tone pleasant. 009 nodded. "Neat! Kimura-sensei has a cousin working on a medical degree over there. He says most of the time the weather's awful, but the people are nice." 009 nodded again, a small, polite smile on his face.

Miss Nana then went on to chat about what she'd heard Britten was like, but most of them were yes or no questions, meaning 009 didn't reveal that, technically, he couldn't speak Japanese.

The door behind the desk opened and a dark-haired man in a white coat stepped out. His hair was a dark blue-black and his eyes a warm, friendly shade of brown. His demeanor was warm and pleasant as he approached the group.

"Ah, Kozumi-san. Good to see you again, I trust that nothing's happened for you to need new glasses so soon?"

"Same to you, Kimura-sensei. And no, not for myself at least. You see, my friend, Gilmore-hakase brought some acquaintances of his to visit, but it seems some of their luggage was lost during the trip. And this young man's glasses," here the professor gestured to 009, "were among the item's lost. I was hoping you'd check his prescription so we could get a new pair for him."

"009 needs glasses?" 002 muttered in confusion, but he was quickly hushed by Dr. Gilmore.

"Alright, and what is my patient's name?"

"Potter, Harry." The Doctor paused, his eyes focusing on 009. For just a moment, his eye flicked up to 009's forehead, recognition briefly flashing through them. But it was gone almost as quickly as it came, making Albert frown in confusion.

Had the man recognized 009? Had they met before? But 009 didn't seem to know him.

"I see, well then Potter-san, please follow me for a moment." Albert sat down as 009 was led into the back room, Dr. Gilmore settling next to him. Kozumi struck up a conversation with Nana, leaving her sufficiently distracted.

"Doctor, did you notice that Mr. Kimura seemed to recognize 009?" Albert asked, keeping his voice low just in case. The elderly man hummed quietly.

"Yes, yes I did. But he only took notice of him after he'd heard 009's name. And, unless I'm mistaken, he also looked for that odd scar on 009's head. Yet 009 doesn't seem to know him." He said softly, stroking his beard. "But he isn't connected to Black Ghost, otherwise he would have recognized us the moment he saw us." Albert nodded at that.

"Then how the heck does that cat know 009?" asked 002. The doctor sighed.

"I don't know."

It wasn't much later that the doctor came out and asked to speak with Professor Kozumi and Dr. Gilmore. With Gilmore's okay, Albert and 002 were allowed to follow along. Kimura sighed, after the door to the back room was closed.

"I have to admit, I'm a little surprised by the state of Potter-san's eyes. You were right that he needs glasses." 002 frowned, raising an eyebrow at them.

"Aw c'mon, his eyes can't be that bad."

"You're right, they aren't bad," said Dr. Kimura, "They're terrible. Potter-san is far-sighted, meaning he can only see things that are a fair distance from himself. At the range he can see, things like reading and writing are beyond him. The closer it is to him, the harder it is for him to see it."

"I left him in the frame room, but I think you ought to have someone else pick them for him." The man shook his head with a sigh.

Albert hid a cringe. He'd thought there was something wrong with 009's eyes, but he hadn't thought it would be something that bad.

"I'll check on Ze- ah, Harry then, why don't you talk about pricing the glasses, Professor." He said. The doctor pointed down the hall, telling him which room to head for. He trotted down, 002 behind him, and stepped into the room. 009 was quietly browsing through the various frames, occasionally picking one up and running his fingers over them.

"Damn it 009, you should have said something if you couldn't see!" 002 snapped, making 009 jolt in surprise and whip around to face them. The strange almost-brush feeling returned and 009 calmed down. The teen ducked his head and muttered,

"I never really had time…" 009 had a point there. Between being attacked by Black Ghost, escaping from island X, and passing out during their trip to Professor Kozumi's, 009 hadn't had any time to tell them that he was having trouble seeing. And even if he tried, they were too distracted to listen.

Albert looked over to the handful of frames set on the table near a mirror. 009 must have picked them out.

All of them were thick, black (or dark brown) frames with the only real differences being their shapes. One circle, two ovals, and three rectangular rims.

"Why did you only pick the ones with thick frames?" he found himself asking.

"They're less likely to break. With all the fighting we seem to do, it seemed practical." Albert nodded, picking up one of the rectangular frames. He was keeping in mind that their fight with Black Ghost wasn't over yet, and trying to plan for it. Smart Kid.

"Have you tried any of them on yet?"

"Yeah. I don't know how I look, but I know which ones feel comfortable when I put them on." He watched 009 pick up a set of thick-framed, half-moon-style glasses. The teen ran his fingers over the frames (Albert could only assume he was using his sense of touch to examine them), then carefully slipped them on his face. Green eyes blinked and 009 tilted his head a few different ways, probably testing how they felt, before nodding. Albert hummed thoughtfully. The half-moons looked good on 009, and he said as much.

"Do they?" 009 asked, fiddling with them slightly. "I can't tell, but they do feel comfortable."

"At least he doesn't look like a Dipstick." Muttered 002 from his position against one of the walls. They heard a chuckle from the door, looking up they saw Kozumi, Dr. Gilmore, and Dr. Kimura standing there.

"I guess those are the winning pair." Said professor Kozumi, smiling. "Kimura-sensei, we'll take the style of frame Potter-kun has on now. And maybe a second pair, just in case."

Kozumi pointedly ignored 009's interjection of "You don't need to do that sir!" as Doctor Kimura nodded.

"A sensible plan," said Dr. Kimura. He calmly approached 009 and plucked the frames off of his face. "I'll get started now, they should be ready in ten or fifteen minutes."

Albert watched the Doctor leave with 009's soon-to-be new glasses.

Honestly, 009 was a walking mystery. And something told him that he needed to keep a close eye on him to find out what it was he was hiding. Albert just hoped it wouldn't be something that would come back to bite them when they least expected it.


AN: God this feels rushed at the end…

SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG!

I had to practically re-write this chapter three different times cause EVERYBODY was fighting me on this. I'll try to get the next chapter out sooner, but right now I'm tired, frustrated, AND my feet hurt from standing on cement all freakin' day.

12/26/15 EDIT: Now that I'm feeling better, I've gone back and edited this chapter. Fixed a few goofs (Like the timeline), and some little punctuation and spelling errors.

What's wrong with the timeline you ask?

I realized that there was no way for the Cyborgs to go all the way to Antarctica (which they do when they leave Japan) in the fall/winter yet make it to France in time for Christmas. As well as factor in just how long it would take to turn a human/wizard into a cyborg. So I lengthened the timeframe in which Harry was a prisoner/subject of Black Ghost. This means Harry's pretty much missed his entire fifth year of school, but this will allow the timeline to flow better for the story. Oh, and I'm going to cut out the Christmas episode completely. That was a relationship-building episode for Joe/009 and Francoise/003 and since that isn't part of this fic… Well, there really isn't any point to it, now is there?

2021 Edit: Chapter 3 is done, now on to chapter 4.