Some cave
Go woke first and felt a throbbing pain in his sides. He tried to move before he opened his eyes and felt his limbs struggle against something. His eyes snapped open and he looked around him and saw he was being held captive by black ice cuffs. Hajime and Shin were frozen in ice, but their heads were still free so they could breath, Hayate, Sasame, and Kei were pinned against the wall opposite Go and Mannen sat humming to himself across from Hajime and Shin idly staring at his black coated arm. "Good morning, sunshine," Mannen said. He got up and went over to Go. "Do you like it?" He was refering to himself and his new body. "It looks just like his, doesn't it? Pretty, ain't it? Really, I don't see what he had that I didn't."
"Why are you doing this?" Go asked flat out.
"Because. I wanted someone to notice I was hurt." Mannen's face became stern as he looked at Go over his shoulder. "I turned to you as a last resort because they all turned away long before you did. I tried so hard to make you smile because I loved to see your smile. When you stopped believing in me, I stopped believing I could tell the truth to anyone. I just wanted for someone to turn around and say 'It's ok to be sad and cry, Mannen', but no one even looked at me." Mannen faced Go, a tear running down his face and falling to the ice cold floor. "So, I sank deep into a depressed state each and every time I lied."
"But why are you killing us?"
"Because all of you killed me long agao, long before I could remember being me. You all judged me on his actions." The way he said "his" it was like he hated his other self for what it'd done.
Go felt his heart break into a million pieces. 'Dose Mannen feel like this? All torn up and shattered like this?' He looked down at the cold floor and felt tears fill his eyes and his heart being ripped from his chest. 'I don't like this feeling! Not even a little!' "Mannen! Stop this! This isn't about your past life! This is about us! About you!"
"Then notice! Then see! Then feel! I don't want to be alone!"
Go stared into Mannen's lost eyes and struggled to get free again. He didn't care if he burned himself, he just wanted to hold that poor, lost, lonely boy that had taken refuge where no one would harm him. He felt that twinge and felt something warm and soft take over him and he was falling back into a deep sleep, just like the other Leafe Knights and that's when he saw it...
somewhere in a castle of crystal
They were all in a throne room. Kei looked around wildly for a light of any kind and found only a small glimmer of light on a crystal white throne while the rest of the castle appeared to be made of black crystals. The ground shook and they heard a tower collapse nearby.
Go looked up at the throne and saw little Mannen scrunched up so his feet wouldn't touch the black crystal and he shook violently as his side faced the group. He shook so much that they could see it. He let out a soft sob and Go had all intention of running to Mannen and holding the poor boy, but a black figure emerged from behind the white chair and it was the new Mannen.
"You like our castle?" He held up a hand like he were trying to catch rain. "We made this place, but it's falling appart. We were trying to save ourselves, but Mannen and I finally gave out and were unable to stop the Princess of Disaster's seed from destroying us, so it unleashed my more violent side. Mannen tried to stop it, but it forced him to lie every time he tried to fight it. I tried, but it only tapped deeper into my powers. We're going to be destroyed soon, so, we just really wanted you to get away from our other self, the one who hurt all of you. It doesn't know we've taken you to our Castle of Crystal. We're restoring your Leafe so you can live on and defeat this thing. That's why the castle's falling appart."
"I'm scared."
The black man kenlt beside the little white boy's chair and touched his head. "It'll all be over soon, Mannen. I swear."
"But I want Go."
"He's here. I know you can't see him and I know your Leafe won't hold for very long, so please, try to stand up again."
"I want to know Go's here! I'm to scared to stand on my own..." He hid his face behind his hands and began to sob recklessly.
Go lurched forward and wrapped his arms around Mannen and held on. "I'm here."
"Go?" Mannen's smaller hands came up and grabbed Go's cloths and held on, like his life depended solely on keeping that man beside him. "Don't leave. Please?"
"Mannen--"
"No! I want Go to stay!"
"He can't, Mannen. It's taking up to much Leafe to allow them here."
There was a rumbling crash and Mannen's white crystal chair cracked. Both of them gasped and the black Mannen suddenly screamed, covering his left eye as Mannen covered his ears, the rumbling wasn't stopping.
Go looked up and saw that the skylight was a hole in the ceiling and that it was starting to be clouded by dust from destroyed columns of the castle. He looked down at the small boy in his arms and gave him one, soft, gentle squeeze before he released him. "Turn us loose. We can restore your castle, please, turn us loose!"
"Go?"
Go looked at the black Mannen as blood leaked from beneath his hand.
Little Mannen stood up. His eyes were wide open and they revealed to just be white and he held up his hands, holding the ceiling there with his Leafe. "I love you, Go," he said as the ceiling began to crumble and dust began to fall. "Promise me you'll save my castle? Me?"
"Yes."
Leafe Knights in the cave
Go's head hit the solid rock behind him and he managed to twist his writst free and send heat flying everywhich way to melt to ice that held the others down. Sasame sent a blast of sound to break Hajime and Shin loose when he was free enough to move. Hayate blasted Kei, Sasame, and himself out of their ice cage. The Knights stood there watching Mannen, who laughed.
"I suppose they found you! Hah! To little to late! I don't want a world without word of law! I want a world where they believe what I've said!" He spun around in a circle, his hands over his head and his face filled with laughter. "This is to much fun! Why let it end like this! I'm having way to much fun! So don't ruin it," he said, shaking a finger at them.
Go noticed a hole in the ceiling and saw it had penetrated Mannen's black ice with pure white ice, just like in the castle. 'Mannen, hold on. I'll save you if it's the last thing I can ever do... because I love you, too.' He consentrated and tried to create as much heat as he could, drowning out as much cold as he could, and felt that familiar presence right beside him.
Kei was throwing light into every corner he could and when light shone softly, he felt that small hand in his, releasing more Leafe. 'Mannen!'
Hayate and Sasame were trying to blow out the cold air and draw in hot air, Sasame pushing out the cold air with gentle sound blasts, while Hayate Grabbed and yanked at the hot air. The two of them felt a small boy's hug. 'It's Mannen!' they both thought.
Shine and Hajime were simply trying to widen that gap in the ceiling. Shin was breaking it with his bushes and plants while Hajime tried to melt it with his water. the two of them felt a hand on their heads and knew that presence. "Mannen!"
The black Mannen was shrinking away, unable to stay in such a warm place and also unable to stand so much light. He screamed and his cloths and hair flashed white and hestarted to drip with sweat, creating a river around him. "GO!" It was sudden, but it was Mannen. The boy appeared, sweat coming off him like when ice melted when in contact with hot things. He screamed in pain as the heat started to seep down into his skin and down into his Leafe, drowning him.
Go pulled the heat away from Mannen and ran over and held the boy in his arms. "Mannen?"
"Your mean."
"WHAT!"
"Well, youa re! You nearly killed me! You're so insensitive! So mean! So rude! WAAAHHH!"
Go groaned. "Stop bawling you brat!"
"Well, it's true!"
"I--"
"Don't believe me! WAAAAHHHHH!"
"I love you." He kissed Mannen's lips and gently held the boy in his arms, his lips softly kissing a startled Mannen. "Better?"
Mannen couldn't breathe. "That was... different."
Go cuddled with him. "Your so cute when you're blushing!"
Sasame and Hayate stared in amazment while Kei covered the two boys' eyes. Kei sighed and finally released Shin and Hajime to go tackle Mannen, who fell over onto the ice and laughed. Sasame and Hayate stared down at Kei, who stared back. They were glad to have Mannen back... somewhat.
