"And when I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone,

for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my need.

So I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way."

2 Corinthians 11:9

Chapter 13

Chrono could tell something was going to be different about this morning. He felt wary and cautious as they ate their breakfast this Tuesday morning.

It wasn't the fact that they had been alive now for a whole week. No it wasn't that. It wasn't the fact that he had overheard the other young sisters mumble about a note left behind that Father Remington had departed in the night. Chrono wasn't even currently concerned with his dreams nor his mysterious changes he was undergoing right now. What was setting off every alarm in his head, making him uneasy and on edge, was the boisterous blond next to him being all too enthusiastic with the others this morning. As they had ate, he knew she was either up to something, or worse, forming some sort of drastic and unnecessary plan that would end up putting them in dire peril later. Yet, he never once let out a single notion that he was aware of the somewhat unpredictable predictability of the girl next to him. He just bided his time, knowing that it would surface soon enough and silently worked to gather extra energy for himself he was sure to need later.

Chrono wasn't wrong in the slightest. The moment their breakfast dishes were brought to the kitchen and their helper departed for the morning leaving them alone, Rosette's smile dropped as she stared off at the retreating white soul until it was too far for her to perceive.

"All right Chrono!" she suddenly turned to him. "We've been a burden to the others for long enough!"

"A burden?" he cautiously repeated.

"Yep," she stated as she tossed her bed covers off. "We can't continue living in the dining hall; making everyone picnic in the halls for every meal," she stated as a fact, as she slid off the table. "And besides, there's no way Sister Kate will let this continue either, now that we are stronger… she's sure to separate us."

Chrono looked at Rosette thoughtfully. She was worried about Sister Kate sending him away from her? Most likely. However, Chrono figured Sister Kate would probably just reinstate their old sleeping arrangements. She'd send Rosette back to her room, and he could just go back to hanging around the work shed with the old man. But, none of that mattered. Clearly Rosette was standing there looking at him waiting for some subtle signal from him letting her know that he'd support her. He smiled. She was a little unsure still with this new change of hers. Who was he to deny her anything?

"I'll stay by your side Rosette… no matter what," he reassured.

"As if I'd give you an option!" Her cheeky confident attitude returned. "Alright, get up already! Let's clean this place up then leave. We aren't going to find any answers by staying here!"

Chrono pulled his blanket back with a look of utter terror. "Wait what do you mean by, clean this place up?" he stuttered. Slowly he dropped his legs off the table in move to stand up.

"You heard me!" she smiled confidently as she rolled up her sleeves, silently happy to be back in her simple civilian attire. She didn't feel like she had a right to wear the uniform again after so much time had passed… well at least not unless she fought beside them again. "We don't need our sight to be able to fold up our blankets, wiped down all the tables and sweep up!"

"You're joking."

She ignored him. "We can work in a grid pattern. That way we won't miss a spot! Then we can leave… Come on Chrono," she nearly whined. "It's how we can thank them for taking care of us."

What Chrono wasthankful for was the fact she couldn't see him roll his eyes. "Fine," he consented. It wasn't like he would be able to talk her out of this anyways.

"Great! Now help me fold this stuff up already!"

Grudgingly, Chrono moved to comply. It wasn't easy for him, but he could manage this.

After they worked together folding and stacking their bedding on a chair, Rosette headed in the direction of the kitchen with flailing hands in search of the wall.

Chrono waited a moment to watch her with hidden mirth. She was just so cute when she was stubborn.

Rosette found the door and worked to move along the edge of the counter. "I'm going to grabs some rags first," she called back as she moved to search under the sink. She picked the wrong cupboard.

Chrono heard a crash of pots and pans clanging all over. 'Typical,' he thought warmly. "Rosette, I think they had move those to the cleaning closet," he called over as he now began to blindly move towards the kitchen himself.

"Can I make enough noise?" she mumbled to herself as she tried to put the pots back in their place.

"Chrono made it to the closet before her. The broom handle fell forward and whacked him. 'As if it could hurt me,' he silently mocked the cleaning utensil. He could hear the bristles crack as he stepped on the edge of the broom. "Here they are," he said as he passed a small bucket from the shelf into Rosette's now waiting hands.

She felt around inside and found two rags.

It took more time than she had thought, but eventually they had succeeded in their mission. With hot soapy water, they had wiped down all the tables, and with careful and calculated motions, they had swept, what they hoped to be, every inch of the large room. Chrono was using his bare hands to confirm if they even had a dust pile in the corner before attempting to sweep it up into a dust pan. Rosette had fallen quieter during their last task which let Chrono know she was getting tired.

"That's the last of it," he softly said. It had to be close to lunch time as he approached Rosette who was leaning up against their table.

"Ugh, that took too long!" she complained as she tried to pull more energy out of herself.

Chrono just silently leaned up against the table next to her and looked down at her. "What's next?" he asked politely.

She tilted her head up towards him with a faint smile. "We leave."

He held his gaze down at her for a moment longer before feeling the need to move. It was strange not being able to see anything at all other than her right now. It was as if she was his whole world right then and there. However, he finally looked away knowing what he needed to grab next.

"Alright," he complied. He knew she was going about this all wrong, but he felt like their escape was sure to be short lived. "Let me just grab a few apples and a roll for us to eat later," he wisely went to retrieve said items. It wasn't as if they could see where they would be able to get their next meal.

With provisions in his pocket, and the remains of the clock in a small pouch tied to her hip, Rosette and Chrono left the dining hall with no intention of returning. They need answers. What better place to start looking than in town?

Rosette counted the pillars of the joint pathway in between buildings until she knew they were in the middle. Turning, Chrono followed his headstrong partner straight off the path and awkwardly across the grass. Rosette kept a determined look on her face with each step, however she was growing more, and more, unsure as she trudged through the black. It felt like forever until she finally found the perimeter wall.

"It's here," she said out of breath as she turned to Chrono who had been following directly behind her.

Her triumphant smile caught him off guard for a moment, but was quick to smile right along with her.

"Do you think you can get us over it? I'm not sure if the front gate will be open even if we find it," she reasoned.

"Let me check." Chrono felt for the wall and pressed his hand against it. Holding his hand higher up, he jumped up while dragging his hand along the rough surface until his fingers found the top of it. Landing he knew he could do it. "Rosette I can get us over, but are you sure you want to do this alone? I'm sure if you talk to Sister Kate she would be fine with having someone take us into town," he reasoned. She needed to hear a voice of reason before continuing. How no one had spotted them already was fluke in itself.

"You might be right," she surprised him by agreeing. "But a part of me wants to at least try and do this alone. I'm afraid to drag them through yet another set of disasters brought on by me. I already can't stand myself for having allowed myself to grow so weak that Aion was able to manipulate me."

She was pouring out her soul to him. Always only to him.

"I know this is crazy. I know town is far off and I'm not even sure what we'd do once we get there, but Chrono… Azumaria and Joshua are already affected by… by whatever this is. I don't think I have it in me if someone else gets hurt or dies because of me."

Chrono could never argue with that. He reached out and grabbed her sleeve and pulled her into a tight hug. Satella's death, along with many others, still haunted her. Rosette didn't cry. She just hated the thought of those she loved hurting.

"Ready," he softly asked her.

She nodded.

Suddenly he jumped high with one arm holding her tight and the other feeling for the top edge. The moment he grasped it he swung them both over. Not knowing what would be on the other side, Chrono was caught off guard from hitting the ground sooner than he expected causing him to stumble across the grassy knoll. They ended up sprawled out all over the grass. Chrono suddenly laughed out loud startling Rosette who laid slumped over him, but as she sat up she couldn't help but join him. His laughter was contagious, but also one of the most beautiful sounds Rosette thought she ever had heard.

Rosette eventually straightened herself up, then curled up beside Chrono's prostrated form. She was in fact worn out and an afternoon nap in the warmth of the sun sounded just about perfect.

Chrono stopped laughing; startled by her adjusted closeness, but soon shifted to give her more of his shoulder to lean on. A nap did seem like just the thing after such a busy morning.

Sister Kate hummed a happy little hymn as she merrily strode through the halls of the compound. She had just finished her morning paper work and had happened to receive several wonderful phone calls and letters. She had received good news from the head office, who were actually looking forward to the new developments she was having here in New York. The reports on her desk were showing good results within the churches on a country wide scale. Enough time had passed from the crazy cult that Aion had created that the churches numbers were no longer dropping, but rather slowing starting to increase. On top of all that, and the peacefulness of her city as of late, Sister Kate had received a letter informing her that they would be personally receiving a sizable donation on behalf of the late Miss Harvenheit's expressed wishes.

Yes, Sister Kate was completely happy and content. She was sure nothing could bring her spirits down.

She turned into the dining hall only to stop short. There were puddles of soapy water sloshed over all of the tables while some areas were dry. One girl was trying to start wiping up the mess. There were a few toppled over chairs that one younger sister was working to straighten. There was broom bristles absolutely everywhere! Another girl slowly walked in holding the clearly ruined cleaning device with confusion written all over her face as to how. Suddenly the cook barged in from the kitchen with his hands thrown up in the air.

"Lunch has been ruined!" their brother declared in furry to all those trying to clean up the disaster in the room. "I had frozen chicken wings thawing in the sink and someone dumped dingy rags and dirty water all over them!"

Another sister came running into the room from the hallway out of breath. "I couldn't find Sister Rosette or Chrono anywhere!"

The dining room quickly fell silent as all eyes turned and faced Sister Kate. Her fists were tight at her side as she tried to keep a lid on the anger boiling up within her, but to no avail.

...

...

"SISTER ROSETTE!"

Teehehe... it wouldn't be Rosette if she didn't well-meaning cause trouble ;)

Ooo good stuff to come! I did an outline and I think this story will end up being over 20 chapters. It is amazing how a story, once started, can take on new life. I'll try and keep my muse up and moving.

TBC...