Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim all rights to all characters (save for those of my own creation) in this mixture of tension and peace… especially for the one with so many personal questions.

~保護者~

"Unresolved"

~保護者~

Sometimes, Kaden mentally kicked himself for coming up with too many ideas at once, often without even meaning to. His mind wandered, tentative plans formed, ideas tried to stick, motivation came and went… It was difficult to want to do anything when his attention was stretched between multiple things at one time. Which meant that, as ever, it was time to settle down and focus so that he could make a definite decision.

This was distracting him from the mildly entertaining fight he had been engaged in after sixteen days of being trapped here. He didn't appreciate that, nor did he appreciate this cocky bastard's attempt to bite him. Again. Which was what had started this squabble. No longer able to enjoy toying with his prey, he simply kicked the demon's skull in. Shaking some gore off of his shoe, he walked over to a nearby rock and took a seat on it. He clasped his hands together and rested his chin against them, mind already working.

All of his ideas focused on one central detail. Marthal, Shei, Armaris, and Espio had all been corrupted once before. Espio simply wasn't involved in this, so he was put out of mind. As for the other three, however… they hadn't overcome their corruption as Espio had. They had been purified, but not perfectly. Armaris herself was already a half-demon, regardless. And, most importantly… he was trapped. They were not.

Whenever he wanted to, he could corrupt them all over again. Any of them. All of them. The distance separating him from them was irrelevant. It didn't matter. It would be easy. But he had been biding his time, not going through with this half-baked idea… simply because he couldn't decide what he wanted to do with them once they were corrupted. So many possibilities, so many ways things could go wrong, so many ways they could go very right for him…

Closing his eyes, he mentally called out to his second-in-command, "Zareil… you went out of your way to corrupt that yokai, Marthal. What is it you wished to do with him?" Perhaps getting some insight into this could help him what to do with that particular individual. Meanwhile… he was already rapidly concluding what to do with Armaris.

While he awaited a reply (he had sent her off to train earlier, and as such he would permit her to respond at a later time because of it), he reached corrupted energies out toward Shei. Nothing was strong enough to be detectable, but certainly strong enough to sift through a host of information within the chameleon's own energies. Soon, he found himself feeling quite pleased. Well, then… it would seem that you have been hiding much. There is more strength within you than you have cared to let on… He probed deeper, following a faint trace of profound Darkness back to its roots. The source, buried deep within and sealed away as intensely as the shinobi could manage… was something vast. Unable to suppress it fully, Kaden grinned just a bit to himself. Heh. Interesting. Now what to do with this…?

His train of thought, by no means fully formed as it was, was unceremoniously derailed when Zareil suddenly responded to him. "Marthal's potential as a yokai would certainly be no joke. Considering he was also revived… There had to have been some grand purpose behind it. That and I thought it would be entertaining."

Kaden conceded her point and replied, "I will see to it that your new plaything is returned here, then. You can look forward to it soon."

"Glad to hear it. Also, just a note. A few of the weaker generals may or may not be splattered all over the others. I was really disappointed."

It was just as well. He would have killed them himself, in all likelihood. "If you are done there, then come here. There is business to discuss."

There was no delay before Zareil teleported herself back to him, idly brushing off the remains of those she had killed during her training. "What's happening?" she questioned easily.

"Nothing… yet." There was a small pause, then Kaden informed her, "I have been experimenting, in a sense, on weaker entities outside of the realm. It would seem that corrupting and controlling demons not trapped with us is still entirely possible. Which means that re-corrupting Marthal, Shei, and Armaris is just as doable."

Zareil's eyes shone with unspoken malicious intent, rolling her shoulders casually. "Any particular plans for them?"

"That you are the one who corrupted Marthal leaves me inclined to leave him under your 'care'," Kaden replied flippantly. "Further practice corrupting and controlling your own demons will do you well."

"I do have some interesting ideas… but I'd have to experiment and see what he can do," Zareil stated simply. "What about Shei and Armaris? Didn't we already strip Armaris of a good bit of her usefulness?"

Addressing her first comment, Kaden remarked, "He has been training with his friends as of late. Monitoring him when he next fights will help you." After that, he continued, "As for Armaris… she still has use to us. Specifically, it is her growing bond with Espio that will prove beneficial."

Zareil raised an eyebrow. "Do keep in mind that… she breaks easily. Mentally and physically. She likely won't be much of a toy for long."

"I am aware of how fragile she is," Kaden answered. "However… her demonic side is not weak in the same manner. Utilizing that will prevent her from becoming undone too rapidly."

A click of her tongue served as the initial response before she frowned. "And Shei? His Darkness was pretty dormant when he was corrupted."

At this, Kaden couldn't help but gain a small yet no less wicked grin. "As it happens, I have discovered why this was so. It was not what I was anticipating."

Zareil's eyebrows furrowed. "What did you find out?"

Thoroughly pleased, Kaden asked her, "You recall the offspring of Malevolence that we once hunted… yes?"

"I do," Zareil answered, frowning somewhat. "Is… it him?"

"Not quite. However… it would seem that that offspring had its own child with a chameleon. That would be him, and it seems that he has gone to great lengths to bury all of that power away."

Zareil's eyes widened before she grinned wildly. "And that means he's got extreme potential."

"Indeed… It is now just a matter of determining how best to utilize that potential," Kaden said softly.

"And not only does it mean he has potential, but Espio would have inherited this to some degree as well."

Kaden inclined his head. "All the more reason to be interested in him. It would seem that virtually every aspect of his life has been steering him toward a dark path from the beginning. Perhaps, through Armaris, he will finally begin to accept that to some degree."

Zareil managed a faint frown. "I do not trust allowing Espio to follow his path on his own. Part of me believes we should have some sort of failsafe, since it is more than possible for him to turn on us if we put him among our ranks."

"Controlling him is impossible through conventional means," Kaden murmured. "That much has been proven. He remains a wild card in this war… but that can still have its advantages. For now, so long as he is not against us, I am satisfied."

"I do not wish to see him rise against us and slay us both," Zareil quietly revealed. "Something… does not bode well."

That earned a soft growl. "He will not," Kaden told her firmly. "Not now. Far too much of his anger is directed at Nariesh. We are not in danger. She is."

"What about after she's dead?" Zareil questioned. "What will his anger turn towards then? By that point, we will have thoroughly invaded his life more than once."

"That will not happen soon," was Kaden's response. "It buys time to determine more permanent solutions. However, despite the potential risks, he cannot be allowed to remain with Sonic and the others. He provides far too much strength to their side and has already hindered us more than once."

Zareil frowned deeper this time. "As long as we don't touch his children, it shouldn't be impossible to keep him from turning on us. I'm sure you know that, though."

"I do," Kaden confirmed simply. After all, that was why Espio was so pissed at Nareish. It was because of Nyokae's loyalty to her that Espio's oldest child had suffered. That clearly was no small matter to him.

"Anything else you want to discuss?"

"Determine what to do with Marthal," Kaden instructed without hesitation. "It is unwise to begin corrupting him again until you have a plan in mind." He especially refused to do it without a plan since he would have to expend the energy to corrupt the cat again, given how far away they were from their target.

Zareil nodded easily. "Is that all?" she questioned further.

There was one last thing. "The moment I begin corrupting people… be prepared for a battle," Kaden told her. "It is now possible to corrupt Shadow… and corrupt him fully. I will be bringing him here. Toru will follow."

A grin broke out onto the demoness's face. "I'd be more than happy to face Toru again."

"Do ensure not to die," Kaden remarked flippantly, almost teasing while standing up. "I would hate to have to revive you and put your soul into a body that is not your own. One that is, perhaps, more grotesque."

Zareil huffed at him and shook her head. "As if I'll die."

"See to it that you do not." With that said, Kaden turned and wandered away.

~保護者~

With a very audible growl of frustration, Armaris let out yet another magic-based attack at Espio, attempting to at least graze the man at this point. She had long since given up on actually hitting him, considering who the target was. "Is this really helping?" she shouted in his direction.

Huffing at her attitude, Espio blurred out of the way of her attack and reminded, "You are attempting to practice sending out quick, precise attacks. It does not matter that you do not hit me, so long as you hit where I was. Most opponents will not dodge as successfully."

The cat immediately launched a quick burst of air at him, a show of her annoyance as she once more did her best to come close to hitting him. Something inside of her wanted that gratification, if only because it was such a hard-to-reach goal. "Fine!"

Her outburst earned another huff. He dodged again and suggested, "Are you finally ready to be done with this for now?" If only she'd agree to do some other form of training for a while… then perhaps her mood would improve.

"Yes," she groaned. "Please."

"What do you want to work on, then?" he asked, walking over to her. He glanced up idly at the sky to check the time, but there was really no need. It was early enough in the day that they had plenty of time before sunset. Actually, it wasn't even quite noon yet.

Armaris sighed a little and put her arms behind her head. "I'd really like to be able to practice spellcasting like my father can… but he's been busy and Cere is doing something. I highly doubt you know much about it, too."

Espio thought for a moment. "Are you able to cast any attack spells without harming yourself?"

"The issue is that I don't really know any," Armaris huffed. "I've seen my dad use a few, but I'm pretty sure I'd collapse if I used them."

It was at this point that Espio revealed, "I met a mage once who, in return for help with something unrelated, attempted to teach me a few minor spells. As a child, I naively believed I could use them and paid attention, but they were never useful to me. Perhaps you can make use of them."

Armaris blinked several times at this information. Never once would she have seriously thought about him knowing anything regarding magic, but here they were now. "I… suppose it wouldn't hurt to try."

With that being said, they spent the next hour or so going over the spells themselves, what the words were to cast each one, and so on. After that was done, Espio surveyed the damage to the trees surrounding them and noted with some mild distaste, "Perhaps we should find you some other target."

"Probably, but I'm pretty sure this was mostly your recommendation," Armaris answered, her mood certainly lightened after a bout of training that she felt… successful with.

"I did not think you would make spells intended for children quite so powerful," Espio admitted with a shrug. Then he added, "Packs of Hollows that are weaker than the normal lot sometimes travel through this area. Attacking one of them might work for you."

Armaris huffed, crossing her arms at him. "So you think I'm actually performing well with this?"

"I would not suggest attacking a Hollow if you were failing spectacularly," Espio pointed out blandly.

The cat rolled her eyes. "You don't give straight answers, do you?" she questioned, teasing gently.

"Do I need to?" Espio returned idly, busy searching the area with his senses for any signs of Hollow activity.

"Well, it helps me figure out what you're thinking," she said gently before adding, "And I really like to know what you're thinking about."

That gave Espio pause and he looked at her while finding himself asking a question he was pretty sure he was already infamous for in his small family. But he often couldn't help it. Curiosity often got the better of him. "Why?"

Armaris snorted lightly at his question. "Because your thoughts matter to me, Espio. Just like mine seem to matter to you."

He decided to brush that matter aside and change the subject. "There is a lone individual nearby, if you wish to try your hand at killing it."

Deciding not to advance her teasing for the moment, Armaris stretched her senses and uttered the words of one of the spells and sent it careening in the Hollow's direction. She put a lot more effort into it than intended, as if she wanted to impress a certain someone training her. Espio's eyebrows raised at the display, not at all expecting her to be able to make an attack like this one so strong - but also being far from displeased about it. He blinked once at her, then turned his head to look at all the fresh damage. There wasn't even a body left behind. How in the hell did she…?

Armaris watched him for a moment, tilting her head before questioning, "Is something wrong?"

"...It would seem that we have found your true calling in combat," Espio murmured, half poking fun at her but otherwise being serious.

The cat frowned and wandered over, searching for what he was looking at before her eyes fell upon the scene. "...Oh."

Beyond pleased with her work, Espio told her openly, "You did well." The sheer conviction in his tone didn't have to be forced. He meant it wholeheartedly.

"I…" Armaris managed a gentle, genuinely happy smile. "I'm really glad to hear that." Her show of force and power, her clear happiness, her smile… all of it created a sense of spontaneity in him. Struck with an urge he didn't feel the need to resist right this minute, he leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss, just not knowing how else to express the things he was thinking and feeling. Granted, many of those thoughts and feelings had been there prior to this moment (as he had been realizing as of recently), but now felt like a decent enough time to act upon them. Armaris stood there with immense pause for a moment before a bright smile broke out on her face and she hugged him. "You sweet bastard."

"Must you insult me at every turn?" he asked her with a huff, feigning indignation even as he slightly hugged her back with one arm.

"I'll explain it like this. I'll never be as good at magic as I am insulting," she answered without hesitation. Despite this, she lingered in the hug as she relished the intimate contact.

"Cheeky and cocky," Espio murmured, rolling his eyes just a little. "What are we to do with you?"

Armaris gave a coy smile, pulling back a little. "I wouldn't mind if you were to kiss me again, since you seemed to enjoy it the first time."

"And reward this behaviour? I think not." With that said, Espio playfully nudged her shoulder and said, "We should return home soon, anyway. We have been out here all morning."

The cat huffed in mild annoyance. "Not even just once to reward the progress I've made?"

Espio gave that some thought, then made a quick decision. He went ahead and kissed her again, lingering a little longer this time now that he knew she was okay with it. After leaning back he raised an eyebrow and asked her, "Satisfied now?"

Armaris shrugged. "Never, but we'll call it even for now," she answered. Now that the kiss was over, she could feel her face growing warmer as she tried to keep herself calm. For once, things felt… normal. She was so happy that, for now, the good times could truly last.

~保護者~

"What is he doing?"

The loud whisper drew Sein's attention from the small conversation he'd been having with another shinobi and over to young Zei. She was staring at the two men in pure, open bewilderment. Aniko was on the other side of the room, providing Espio (who was holding Sako) with more in-depth knowledge of a baby chameleon's nutritional needs than he'd previously had. A new pen and journal rested on the table between them, having seen some degree of recent use after Shei and Aniko (along with a person named "Shadow", via a call on Espio's communicator) had convinced Espio to use it close to two weeks ago.

As they were busy and Armaris was elsewhere, the only person who could answer the child was the man Shei was conversing with. The pair traded a look, then the shinobi calmly replied, "Think of it like talking with your hands. Not everyone can use their voice like you and I can." Turning his attention back to Shei, he said, "I'll ensure my village finishes those preparations, and we'll send out messengers to our neighbors as well. With any luck, every village will have better defenses by the end of the week."

Satisfied with this report, Shei signed back, "Send word if you have need of anything further from us. We have a surplus of supplies right now."

"We'll keep that in mind." The man bowed respectfully and then started to leave, only to turn back around almost immediately. "I nearly forgot - If it isn't too much to ask, please send word to whatever blacksmith crafted the weapons that you and your partner passed out. They are superb. I have not heard one person complain."

Shei inclined his head. "Will do." With that, the man left. Making a mental note to fulfill the request he'd been presented with at a later time, he turned his attention back to Zei. As she clearly didn't understand sign language, he thought quickly. He moved even faster. By the time she'd blinked, he'd appeared to her left with a sheet of paper and a pen. "Are you able to read?" he wrote, turning the page for her to see.

Her eyes scanned the words, then she looked up at him. "Uh-huh."

Good. That is better than nothing. Shei wrote again, then showed her. "I am going to take a walk. I know you are a bit bored, but you must stay inside for now. I can play with you when I return."

Almost immediately, she looked disappointed. "How come you leaving?"

Though he sympathized with her small plight, Shei responded without giving in. "I am like you and your father in that I do not do well staying inside all the time. I have been inside for two days and would like to go out for a short time."

Amazingly, despite her very young age, she seemed to truly understand. "Promise we can play after?" she asked, eyes wide and pleading. "I had fun with you."

That made Shei smile. He honestly couldn't help it. "Of course," he wrote. "I promise you."

Finally, he had her special permission to leave for a bit. He gave her a hug that she readily returned and set the pen and paper on the table. Then, trading a glance and a nod with his son, he left the building. He was gone in a flash, disappearing deep into the wilderness and reappearing high in a tree. He did intend to walk, as he'd told his granddaughter, but first he wanted a chance to take in the view… something neither he nor Aniko had had much of a chance to do since their revivals.

It was then that things started to go wrong.

His eyes were leisurely scanning the sprawling forests and mountainous terrain ahead of him when a sharp pain stabbed through him from deep within. Cursing mentally, he sank down on one knee. What the hell was that? A quick once-over proved that he hadn't suffered any injury. There didn't seem to be anything nearby that could have or would have attacked him, anyway. Concerned and confused, he moved a hand to grip the branch loosely in order to maintain his balance just in case. Sure enough, what he'd worried might happen did happen. More pain made itself known, earning a breathy hiss in response.

Before he could think too much on what was happening, something new occurred to him. The branch… was beginning to melt. Glancing down sharply, he realized that his touch was very rapidly killing every part of the branch that he was touching. Even the small bit of the trunk that the end of his tail was brushing against was dying off. More internal cursing ensued. He leapt away, already reigning in his poisonous abilities as he moved. Losing control over that power wasn't like him. He simply didn't allow that to happen. So why had it?

Something was going wrong. Something was happening internally. It felt like shackles deep within his very core were being harshly rattled and clawed at… as if just to cause him pain. Half of him didn't understand the sensation or its meaning. The other half felt like it might slightly grasp the situation, but whatever knowledge he needed to comprehend everything seemed lost to him. Or maybe just… buried? He wasn't sure.

The tree continued to melt all around him. The damage had been done. Not wanting to get any of the noxious goop on himself, he jumped clear of it all and landed on the ground far below. Beneath his feet, grass began to wither, turning black and crumbling into dust. That had… never happened before. He watched, equal parts morbidly curious and significantly bothered, as an ever-widening circle of blackness started to surround him. Before long, there was a small ring of dead and crumbling grass surrounding him. As for why… He realized he had no idea.

It was around this time that someone entered the area, this person quickly running up to him and pausing at the sight before them. "Shei, what the hell is going on?" Aniko demanded, a deep and concerned frown on her face.

His gaze snapped to his partner and he hastily moved away from her, just in case. Whatever was happening killed more grass the moment he moved, a continuous circle of blackness and death that he still couldn't make sense of. "Stay back," he warned with swift hands. "I don't know what's happening." Behind him, whatever remained of the melting tree started to sink into the ground. At least that one issue was explainable.

"Shei," Aniko said firmly. "I need you to try and explain what happened up until now. Take it slow and think very carefully, please." Despite her tone, it was obvious that she was still deeply concerned and perhaps a touch afraid for the safety of her partner.

His response was immediate. To the best of his ability, he explained the pain and other sensations he had experienced just prior to unintentionally killing the tree. Then he told her, "The tree was a mistake on my part. My control slipped. The rest of this… it has never happened before. My poisons cannot do this."

Aniko frowned softly and sat down in the grass. "What else can you tell me about what is happening? This is more than your poisons, obviously, so perhaps this is something to do with our Darkness?"

He immediately shook his head. "Our kind's Darkness does not do this, nor do I possess any other powers that could."

"Then what do you think is happening?" she questioned him. "Do you believe this is something that we do not know about?"

"I don't know," Shei insisted. "None of this makes any sense." As he signed this, a dull ache passed through him, followed by more of the same sensations and stabbing pains as earlier. He gritted his teeth and slowly lowered himself into a sitting position, not wanting to fall over.

Aniko thought deeply before simply shaking her head. "I do not know either, Shei…"

It was hardly a few more moments before Rose just appeared beside Aniko, a deeply bothered expression on her face as she knelt down to inspect Shei. "How long has this been happening?" she questioned quickly.

"A few minutes," Shei answered, hands moving more slowly than before.

Rose slowly and carefully held out a hand near Shei and began doing what she could to quell the source of this disturbance with her Light. "This… is the energy that Malevolence bears. The way it acts, the way it feels, how it interacts with all life around it… there is no mistaking this." Shei looked up at her sharply, but made no effort to communicate further just now.

At this, Aniko stood with a harsh glare. "The hell do you mean by that?"

The cat glanced to Aniko, an intense and serious expression on her face. "I mean that Malevolence's energies are within him, Aniko. That is the reason the grass around him died in such a manner."

"That's fucking ludicrous!" Aniko snapped, her fists balling up. "Why the hell would those kinds of energies be in Shei?" As she said this, Shei visibly winced. In the same instance, distinct black and crimson energy crackled around him violently before spontaneously vanishing in the face of Rose's Light. He was left tense and in lingering pain even once it all stopped.

Rose was fast to go near him (despite Aniko deeply wishing that she wouldn't) and check over Shei's body for any injuries as well as making sure that the energies within him were quelled for now. "It is there, but I do not understand why, Aniko."

Highly displeased though the female chameleon was, she simply walked over and collected Shei into her arms and held him close. "Are you alright, Shei?" she whispered softly.

Shei almost didn't seem to be paying attention. He was largely unresponsive for a long moment before slowly and very blankly signing just two words. "...My mother."

Aniko carefully pulled him closer, nudging his hands down with her cheek. "Rest, Shei. That took a great toll on you." He didn't respond this time, further losing himself to whatever he was thinking about. The woman continued to hold him carefully before looking up to Rose. "What should we do? This is… It has terrible implications, and I fear it may cause more problems than we are ready for."

The cat was quiet for a long moment before she shook her head. "I do not know. I could attempt to speak to my sister and two others that I know of for guidance, but I fear there is little we can do for this situation in particular."

"I… do not like that answer, but I will accept it. You have been a great aid to my family, so I am willing to trust your judgement for now," Aniko murmured.

Rose nodded gently and took the calculated risk of setting a hand on the other woman's shoulder in a comforting manner. "I will return as soon as I am able. Watch over him and get the attention of my sister if another situation arises. She is very capable."

Aniko didn't like the idea of trusting her partner's life in the hands of someone she hardly knew, but if Rose herself would vouch for them, then the responsibility weighed on her shoulders, not Aniko's. "Alright. Return soon." Rose nodded to her softly and teleported away quickly. The female chameleon took another look at Shei before sighing. "You had best be okay once we figure this out. I love you far too much to let you do otherwise."

~保護者~

Seventeen days into their short-lived peace, Sonic was in the middle of fiddling with his communicator while Jet idly listened in on Silver's energetic conversation with Tails. The hedgehog had just finished repairing some very minor damage that his device had sustained when he sensed a presence near the door. He got up and opened said door before the newcomer could even finish the first knock. "Hey, Sein," he greeted with a small smile. "What brings you here?"

"Not much," Sein answered, a smile on his face as he let his arm fall back to his side. "I honestly wanted to talk to you about a few things."

"Sure, nobody's really busy. Come on in." Sonic stepped out of the doorway to let Sein come in. Jet was so engrossed in whatever weird story Silver was telling that he barely took any notice of Sein's arrival.

Sein glanced around briefly, his eyes falling on his son for a few moments with warmth almost visibly emanating from them before he turned his attention back to Sonic. "It's a lot to do with my son, honestly. Not sure if you want to take the conversation somewhere else because of that."

Sonic blinked once. "I'll leave that up to you. If you want to talk in a more private setting, we can definitely go to one of the back rooms for a bit."

"It would probably be best to do that," Sein answered.

Nodding, Sonic led the way into the guest bedroom of Tails's house and shut the door. Then he asked, "So, what's this about?"

Sein leaned against a wall and sighed. "I wish I could find out on my own for him, but that's just not an option. I don't want to sit around and wait to find out about the things Jet suffers from with his autism when it happens, so I came to you because you've known him for a really long time."

Understanding dawned and Sonic nodded. "I can explain whatever you need me to," he offered. "I know we haven't had a chance to discuss any of this at length, and I've only been able to inform you of some of the serious stuff so far."

The hawk nodded as well. "I'd really appreciate it. I want to be able to help him whenever something comes up."

Sonic hummed a little in thought. "One thing we've gone over already that's pretty concerning is the headbanging. I told you about the other ways he sometimes hurts himself, but that's the most frequent one and, obviously, the most dangerous. Especially since it doesn't just happen in response to stress."

Sein sighed. "That makes a lot of sense. I've kept it in mind just in case, but we luckily haven't had to worry about that yet."

"Well, just in case it does come up… and it will - you should understand the other triggers." Sonic thought carefully for a long moment. "From what I've heard, Kath often doesn't feel stimulated enough, right? It's why he likes to physically do things so much."

"Yeah, that's a good summary of it," Sein admitted.

"Well Jet gets like that, too," Sonic explained. "Only, in his case, sometimes that understimulation can get so bad that his first reflex is to cause pain. When I asked him once why, the best he was able to explain it was that, 'pain demands to be felt'. So that's definitely one trigger to keep an eye out for."

Sein frowned faintly. "That… makes sense. Pain is a really strong sensation, so enough of it could really help with a problem like that." His eyes shifted away briefly. "Not that it's a good thing. Just makes plenty of sense."

"Yeah." Sonic sighed. "Honestly, sometimes I think it might also be an act of boredom. There doesn't always seem to be another cause for it. So making sure he has plenty to do during downtime is usually a good idea." He paused, then added, "Not that he can't or won't entertain himself just fine on his own, but keeping it in mind is still a good idea like I said."

"Absolutely," Sein agreed. "Not that I'd let him stay stagnant all the time. I've got eons of dad time to catch up on," he joked lightly, chuckling.

That earned a small laugh. "Yeah, I guess you do." Sonic got back to thinking after that, his smile fading. "The last big reason aside from stress and the like is, believe it or not, him already being in pain."

"Really?" Sein questioned. "Any reason why?"

"I don't fully understand it," Sonic admitted, "but apparently it's a pretty common reason behind SIB's. Sort of… 'I'm in pain already, but at least this pain is one I can control', or something like that. It's the best I know how to describe it." He paused briefly again before further explaining, "As an example you might recognize, I heard that Kath used to sometimes bite at his inner cheeks pretty harshly, like Jet does, as a way of dealing with it when wounded in a fight. That right?"

Sein nodded. "Yeah, that's something he's done."

"It's sort of like that," Sonic shrugged. "Only, it doesn't just happen in response to wounds. It could be something as simple as having a headache or feeling nauseous or something like those things that causes Jet to start hurting himself. Especially when he's having a hard time communicating where he hurts and why - which happens more often than you might expect given how easily he normally talks with people he's close to."

"I see," Sein said, frowning. "That's… wow."

"As for how to deal with it… That's where it gets kind of tricky." Sonic sighed and sat down. "I've honestly come to believe that this behavior is more automatic than intentional. Sort of a knee-jerk reflex, if you will. It's like he can't help it. So the preventative measures we can take are fairly limited. Redirecting him to doing something else doesn't usually work with him, and past attempts to teach him to do other things that aren't so risky also didn't work. The best we're usually able to do is try to help him avoid situations that might trigger him. When that isn't possible, the best course of action is - of course - to do everything possible to keep him from hurting himself. Putting a pillow behind his head or even a cushion of aura energy, things like that… those help a lot."

"Anything that helps to avoid him getting to that point or hurting himself, as long as we're not restraining him in any way?" Sein questioned lightly. "For various reasons."

"Yeah, no, restraining is a bad idea," Sonic confirmed. "But plenty of other things short of that are pretty helpful, we've found."

"Like music," Sein said. "Specifically stuff that he likes and all, as well as things that might be tied to good memories."

Sonic nodded with a smile. "Definitely. Music is great for him, as you saw for yourself a while back."

Sein nodded as well, smiling brightly. "It made me happy that I could help him."

"I noticed," Sonic admitted, still wearing his own smile. "You were really eager to help him out, and it registered in your aura. That further helped him, I think, since he's sensitive to auras. He'd have known without a doubt what your intentions were. It might have played a role in why he's taken to you so quickly. Because he can sense how genuine you are."

"I… just wanna be the best dad I can be for my son," Sein said, shrugging. "I think that's what all dads should do, even if they fuck up sometimes."

"I agree," Sonic replied. "And on that note… wanna go hang out with him? He's in a pretty lighthearted mood today, honestly." At this point, he chuckled a little and smirked. "You might even get a few snarky-ass comments out of him here and there. That's one of his versions of humor."

At this, Sein's eyes practically shone with excitement. "Absolutely."

Sonic watched the older man go with a small smile. He was glad that Sein managed to still be happy despite discussing something a bit less than pleasant. He was also glad that Sein had so readily left the conversation. It wasn't that Sonic didn't want to fill Sein in properly - far from it. Rather, he just didn't want to overwhelm the hawk. At least if they broke this all up into a few smaller conversations rather than one giant one it would be easier to process it all. So, feeling rather lighthearted overall at how well this had gone and how nice the day was, he wandered out of the room and back to the others.

~保護者~

It was a long shot, that much he knew. He'd been talking to this woman every day since meeting her and now he was sure. So, here he was with the dumbest possible idea and the cheesiest outfit he could think of. Dress to impress, eh, dad? Cyril's eyes shone briefly with unspoken confidence before he stepped into the renovated shack of sorts that Eila now called her home. "Well, hello my lovely dear! How fine it is to see you once again."

Eila turned to him and raised an eyebrow curiously at his attire. A suit and bowtie to match? That was… unusual. "Er, same to you? What's up?"

Cyril let out a soft, nervous chuckle. Don't choke now. You got it all on the line right here. "Well, I thought that after the many, many hours of solitude that you've experienced-"

"That you insist on interrupting so you can drag me around," Eila cut in, a faintly amused smile on her face.

"Ahem, yes," he admitted, gulping. "Anyway… I thought that maybe you'd like to get out again and go relax, maybe eat some lunch?"

The cat raised an eyebrow once more, obviously amused. "It's almost dark, numbskull. The hell kinda lunch are you planning?"

"The perfect kind," Cyril answered with not an ounce of hesitation. "One where you and I can sit below the infin-"

Once more, Eila cut him off. This time with a laugh. "Cut the theatrics, Cyril. I'll join you."

Cyril grinned with an extreme enthusiasm and quickly took her hand in his, tugging her along in a careful manner to take her outside before he dropped one of his metal cards and opened a portal beneath them. The two dropped through, much to Eila's surprise, and landed on the other side within a magnificently dark area. "Before you get mad, I want you to light up the area with your magic or Light."

Suspicious though she was, Eila sighed and obliged, holding out a hand and creating a small ball of light in front of them. The resulting light show was stunning, various crystals of all sorts of colors and size reflecting and refracting the light. She turned to Cyril, watching as his face lit up and he motioned to a blanket sprawled across the ground with a basket sitting on it. "Did you actually… find this place?"

Cyril shrugged softly, almost as if he was hiding something before he grew far too excited to hold it in. "I spoke to your sister and she helped me out with setting this up. When I discovered this cave, it was a bit more… dreary."

Eila's smile was growing, more than Cyril had seen in this short time they knew each other. "You're such an idiot," she huffed, dragging him to the blanket and sitting down. "So does my sister know what you're trying to do here?"

"Maybe," Cyril answered.

"You realize I can read your mind, right? If you're trying to hide information from me, I could find out," Eila pointed out easily, raising an eyebrow.

Cyril nodded. "I've got nothing to hide from you, Eila." This answer seemed to satisfy the woman's curiosity enough that she shook her head in mock dismay before using her magic to help pull their food out. They didn't know how long they spent in the gorgeously lit cave, nor did they care. For the first time in many, many eons, Eila was happy and Cyril could say that he finally felt like he'd found the right person.

Even after the food was finished, the two continued talking and simply relaxing together. After some amount of time had passed, however, the ball of light faded out. As Eila went to make a new one, she felt Cyril's hand on her shoulder. "Hold on, before you make a new one."

"Why? It's dark," Eila answered, an unseen frown on her face.

"Just trust me," Cyril replied, setting his free hand on her other shoulder. "There's one thing I wanna do."

"Alright, hurry up," Eila said impatiently. The next sensation was something different, lips meeting beak in an awkward but wholly welcome embrace. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled Cyril close, accepting this and returning the gesture.

It wasn't long before Cyril pulled back, watching as Eila created another ball of light and gazing into her eyes. "I'm glad I met you."

The cat averted her eyes, a not so obvious embarrassment coming over her before she huffed. "You're such a fool."

"H-huh?" Cyril asked, eyes widening. "What do you mean?"

She grinned mischievously. "You didn't let me finish. You're such a fool, but a fool for me. Idiot."

Cyril laughed sheepishly, unsure of where she was going with this. "Hah, I guess so…"

Eila pulled him into a hug and kept him close, catching Cyril somewhat off guard. "Such an idiot."

"...Love you too, Eila."

~保護者~

Eighteen days in, Tails was working quietly on part of Steam's device, but for once he wasn't down in his workshop. Instead, he was seated in his living room with his tools and such strewn across his lap and the couch cushion beside him. Silver was seated nearby in a chair, happily chatting with him while Wery tinkered away on the communicator she'd already started modifying. Sonic and Blaze were outside sparring a bit off in the woods a short distance away. Things were quiet. Peaceful. Happy.

...Until someone knocked on the door. Then immediately knocked again just as soon as Tails lifted his head to look at the door. "Were we expecting anyone?" he found himself asking.

"Uh… no?" Silver replied. He was quick to follow that up with, "Also, I completely decline to answer that door."

He gave no explanation. Tails shot him a confused look. "O-o-okay. Guess I'll do it." He started to set aside his work so that he could stand. Suddenly curious, Wery was quick to move toward Tails, flipping a cover back onto her device as she did so.

The male fox had no sooner opened his door than an incredibly pissed-off woman's voice shouted at him, "There you are! God, why is it so hard to track down you people?! I swear to everything, if he did this on purpose-!"

Tails had initially recoiled in a mixture of shock and nearly instinctual horror, but he just as quickly switched to placate-her-before-she-kills-me mode. "Whoa, Amy! Take it easy!" he called over her shouts of righteous fury. "I have no idea what you're talking about!"

"Sonic!" the pink hedgehog snapped. "His dumb butt revived me I-don't-even-know-how-long-ago, and I've been stuck wandering around in cities I don't recognize and embarrassing myself trying to ask for directions to places that apparently don't exist anymore, and- ugh! Where is he?!"

Tails immediately side-stepped her angry stomping as she made her way inside. Oh, man, Sonic… you are so dead. He was about to reach for Wery to save her as well, but Amy beat him to it. "Excuse me, sweetie," she said, suddenly sweet as pie while she fully picked the other woman up by the shoulders and set her aside. "Sorry to catch you in the middle of this. I'll make it up to you later."

She disappeared down the hall. Tails stared after her, eyes wide. Silver apparently decided to be bold and called out, "Nice to see you, too, Mom!"

Stifling a sigh, Tails decided to make use of what few seconds of silence they probably had left and turned to Wery. "So, uh… that was Amy. She's… She's really nice, normally. I promise."

Wery stood stock still, eyes wide as she tried to process everything that just happened. Hands idly felt at her shoulders as if to make sure that what just happened had really happened, and then she decided it was not worth investigating or attempting to discover what was going on. "I… alright then."

Tails rubbed sheepishly at the back of his head. "Pretty sure I mentioned once before how dang strong she is… but if not, sorry."

The female fox simply nodded lightly to this. "I'll just… assume you did because thinking is not working currently."

Her words earned a small laugh from Tails and snort from Silver who had tried to hide his own laughter. The hedgehog then said, "By the way, you're about to see a really big hammer in about two seconds. Don't worry, though, she won't break the house or anything. Or, you know, my dad. But he doesn't have to know that." He was grinning with absolute amusement and winked at her.

Wery seemed… confused to say the least. "I'll… take your word on that and hope that I don't somehow die as a result."

Her words barely had time to leave her mouth before all hell broke loose. Sonic came tearing through the house and shot out the door, loudly protesting that he had no idea what Amy was talking about and that he hadn't had any idea before that she'd been revived. Amy was hot on her heels, hammer raised and eyes ablaze with fury. Several hard swings and some choice words had him picking up the pace as the pair disappeared into the trees. Tails and Silver stared after them, traded a look, then busted up laughing. Only after their fit was over did Tails return his attention to Wery. For her sake, he simply guided her back to her work and distracted her with it. Silver, meanwhile, took off after the other two hedgehogs. It was clear that one of them needed saving... and it was so not Amy.

~保護者~

It had been some time since Cere had made the effort to come to this place. Normally she didn't need to visit any of the realms of death, but this time was an exception. Her hand shot through a portal and she snatched Ylden off his feet and drug him through to drop him on the ground in front of her. "We're going to Mobius."

"Huh? Why?" Ylden questioned quickly, pulling himself to his feet with the pole end of his scythe. "What's going on?"

"You'll see," Cere answered, grabbing him once more and teleporting to the aforementioned planet. They landed within what Ylden recognized as the forest around Tails's home (he knew this solely because he'd been watching over the group of people his daughter was around) and frowned. He didn't get much of a chance to say anything as the woman continued pulling him along until she dropped him and vanished elsewhere. He noted idly that she was still on the planet, likely for some other thing she was handling at the same time.

Ylden sighed and walked on, trying to see if he could find out why the hell Cere had decided to bring him here. "That damn woman can be so vague if she wants to be."

At the sound of his voice, Marthal stirred from his doze in a nearby tree. It took him a second - just one - to notice and subsequently recognize the scent his nose was hit with at the same time. He immediately sat up, nose twitching, and then dropped out of the tree. What the actual-

The black cat was quick to react to this, pausing and hopping back in the opposite direction before he realized who was here with him. Oh… fuck me. Blue eyes stared at him with an expression that conveyed very much the same thought, and for the moment Marthal didn't otherwise react. Ylden decided to speak first and coughed lightly. "So… er… hey…"

Tails lashing from one side to the other in a show of nervous agitation, Marthal shifted back about a half-step. "...Hey...?" he eventually responded, glancing away. Lovely. Just lovely. Wish there was a faster way to get out of here than just running, for all the good that'd do.

Feeling compelled, especially after having had a confrontation similar to this with his own daughter, Ylden spoke once more. "I'm sorry for what I did, leaving so suddenly. I know it hurt you and I won't make excuses, because it was wrong to do that."

Without entirely meaning to, Marthal practically blurted out, "So why did you do it?"

Though he didn't want to admit this, Ylden answered him. "Because I was slipping back into neutrality. Copulating with a demon, making some of the worst mistakes of my life. I didn't want to subject you to that. You didn't deserve to be stuck with someone who couldn't care properly."

A few moments of silence passed before Armaris suddenly appeared in the area with them, seeming highly confused. "Uh… what the hell is happening?"

His nose working, Marthal quickly deduced two things he hadn't paid any attention to before. First was family relation. Father and daughter? He suspected so. The second was the distinct scent of demonic energy within Armaris. Which… made some of what Ylden had just said to him make some more sense. That doesn't explain the 'slipping back into neutrality' shit, though. In response to the question Armaris had asked, he shrugged and waved almost dismissively in Ylden's direction. "Ask him." With that, he turned to leave, determined not to get further involved if he didn't have to.

Armaris was quick to turn to Marthal and ask, "Who are you? Do you know my dad?"

Marthal stopped and sighed. "Don't know if you missed it, but I was revived by Sonic. I'm one of his allies. And, yeah, I sort of knew him," he gestured to Ylden," when I was little."

Once more, Armaris was quick to turn on her father, frowning. "Did you abandon him, too?"

"...Yes," Ylden murmured, eyes downcast. "I did."

The female cat growled in annoyance and sighed, turning back to Marthal. "What's your name?"

Reluctantly, he turned back around to face her and her father. "Marthal," he said. "I've heard you're Armaris. Sonic and the others have mentioned you."

"What did they say?" she dared to ask, eyebrows raised.

"Not much overall," Marthal shrugged. "I just heard snippets of conversation here and there. I didn't really listen in."

Content that nobody had talked behind her back, Armaris managed to relax further. "I've still got some questions, but they're more about when you were a kid."

That earned another sigh. Martha resigned himself to his fate. "Yeah… alright. Shoot."

"What was he like when he raised you?" Armaris asked, her tone softening somewhat.

After a pause, Marthal admitted, "Not a lot of my memories from back then are… clear. Yokai normally don't forget, but I suffered some… well, serious injuries a ways back and lost a lot. I mostly remember small things, like him training me, him helping me adapt a little bit to being out of the wildlands… things like that."

"He left me to a chameleon family in Hyale at some point after I was born," Armaris murmured, a frown appearing on her face. "Though, he's been doing good at making up somewhat for the time lost and all." Marthal only offered a small nod, not really having anything to say to that. She thought for a moment, then decided to say, "If you do remember anything, I wouldn't mind talking. I'd like to know what he was like before his life turned upside down."

"I remember some things," Marthal replied after a short pause. "But, like I said, not much is clear anymore."

"Did he ever cook for you?"

"I… have no idea. Probably not, though. I already knew how to use my fire to heat up shit."

Armaris nodded briefly. "You said he trained you? Do you know what kind of training, or is that some of the details that are unclear?"

"Most of it's unclear," Marthal answered, "but I know that, back then, I was often described as fighting more like a 'wild animal' than a person. For, you know, obvious reasons. I know he helped my fighting style become more refined and controlled, less feral and whatnot. I just don't remember the details for the most part." There was a slight pause, then he added, "Oh, and he taught me to use a few weapons."

"He's gifted me almost every weapon I own," Armaris explained in return. "Though, I had to learn how to use them myself or be trained in Hyale, sadly."

Marthal gave things some more thought, then said, "I know he definitely got me started on training with the weapons I use, but I finished my training alone for the most part. And the weapons themselves were always from various craftsmen near where I lived, so they weren't his. He did get them for me, though."

Armaris nodded slowly before glancing to her father. "Explain to him exactly what happened and why you left him. He deserves that."

"He… doesn't have to," Marthal argued, tail beginning to lash again. He didn't want to get in the middle of… whatever was going on with these two.

"No, she has a point," Ylden answered gently. "You do deserve to know the full truth." He took a moment to gain his composure (something he almost never had to put effort into doing) before speaking once more. "The role I live with and my heritage are inherently neutral. It took me an extremely long time to work towards being… closer to the good side of things. When I was younger, however, I had periods of time where I would regress back to total neutrality if my life became too stressful. While I was taking care of you, I met a woman by the name of Osaina. She entered my life and we were actively with one another."

"Before I knew what was happening, she revealed she was a demon. I felt trapped and couldn't find a way to separate myself or care about it due to the regression, and I left you with the last shred of myself I had so that you wouldn't get caught up in my mistake. Time passed and I ended up having Armaris, which is close to the time that Cere, the Goddess of Judgement, intervened and helped me separate myself from Osaina and escape the total neutrality I was in. I felt awful and couldn't recover mentally… so I left Armaris to Shei and Aniko in Hyale since I knew I could trust them to raise her. From there I watched over you both in fear of… ever approaching you again."

There was a long silence while Marthal gazed off into the trees, but eventually he let out a breath. "I always… wished you had stayed," he confessed quietly. "Things were… they were difficult. For a very long time. And when I had my daughters… a part of me always wished they could have met you."

Armaris could have sworn she'd seen a tear fall from Ylden's eyes, but before she could properly register it, it was apparently gone. "For what it's worth, Marthal," Ylden murmured. "I wish I had stayed in your lives, both of you. I was just… terrified at what might happen if Osaina got hold of either of you. If you were taken by her, I wouldn't have been able to forgive myself." He swallowed hard. "Never thought about the fact that I'd feel the same way in the end regardless."

"It would have ended in a terrible way," Marthal agreed carefully, "even in my case. I understand that, given the shit that's going on these days." He didn't mention it, but his mind immediately strayed toward his conversation with Zareil and the corruption that had followed. What might have become of him if someone had done that when he'd still been small and weak, unable to resist?

Ylden quietly nodded before properly turning his attention to Marthal. "If you want to sit down and talk someday soon, or now, just let me or Armaris know. I'll be more than happy to answer any other questions you might have or try and make up for my mistakes as best I can."

At this, Marthal unexpectedly gained a very small smile. "Just one question, at least for now," he said. Then he paused for dramatic effect before asking with all seriousness, "Why did you ever try to make me wear shoes?"

A faint smirk appeared on Ylden's face. "You got weird looks and I didn't want that being cast on me. Had to do something about it," he answered with an amused huff.

"Eh… screw those people, anyway. Most of them were stuck up assholes. I do remember that much." With that said, Marthal moved to sit down in the grass.

Ylden huffed again. "Why do you think I avoided associating with them?"

There was a very brief moment of quiet, then Marthal turned his attention to Armaris. "Mind if I ask you a question? It's nothing too invasive."

"Just nothing weird," Armaris answered with a wink.

His nose twitching faintly, Marthal asked, "The way you fight… I'm assuming it's vastly different from the way I do. I smell a lot of magic in and around you. Is that about right?"

"I'm just now figuring it all out, but yeah. Energy and magic," she answered. "Why?"

"There was a war," Marthal explained, "back in ancient times. Virtually all Mobian bloodlines with the capacity for such magic were wiped out. As a result, magic is incredibly rare these days. Many people don't even believe it exists anymore. So, when I smelled that much magic… I was curious. I only know of two other people with so much raw magic, and they aren't really… around right now."

Armaris nodded slowly. "Well… who are they? Maybe I know them."

"I'd wager you know one," Marthal hedged, "but I'm pretty sure you haven't met the other. It doesn't really matter right now, though."

She nodded slowly before frowning. "Wait, so you're saying that I've got like… a comparable amount of magic in me?"

"Pretty close," he answered casually.

"Gotcha," she answered before looking to Ylden. "Since you're around, you should probably train me with magic."

"I'll make sure to do so," Ylden said with a gentle smile.

While they spoke, Marthal allowed himself to slowly relax like he had been earlier. He hadn't expected this turn of events. That an old upset from his childhood suddenly was on the road to being resolved… Who would have thought, huh?

~保護者~

10,409 words this time. Apologies for the delay, things have been a little crazy for Blazing Winds but we're doing what we can! As always, thanks to him for all of his help and support. Posted (at about 09-24-20)