Yeah, I'm still fuckin' alive! School's almost over for me so maybe I would be able to write a bit more? I don't know. It really does depend on my mood at times. How many people still actually read this story? I hope it's a lot...silent people...reading...enjoying...hopefully...please? But yeah, as usual, hope you guys enjoy.

In the Midst of Ashes

Another moment of déjà vu struck Marth as he stood just outside the house that he spent so much of his time in. It was almost as if he was repeating his initial actions concerning a mysterious bubble blower. Only this time he knew everything. The several days of Marth's absence from that house went by as an incoherent blur in the college student's mind. He could barely remember what had happened this morning, let alone the possible months that had passed. The only event marked important in his mind was that summer had already approached. Now that he was free from both his college and job (which he had quit in depression), Marth could wrestle with ideas on how to return to his former lifestyle with Pit.

For the umpteenth time of that day, Marth worried for Pit's wellbeing. He always wondered about it whenever he stood underneath the boy's bedroom window. He never made his presence known, even when he saw Pit blowing his bubbles, no matter how much his heart screamed at him to. Marth always kept in the shadows and futilely satisfied his desires with glimpses of his beloved's buubles. Yet in recent times, even that became difficult. At one point Pit just stopped. The bubble-blowing just stopped. And that set alarm bells ringing in Marth's head. He had to resist the terrible urge to break into the house, find the boy, and ask him what was wrong because indeed something had gone wrong. The college student kept returning, hoping against hope, that Pit was fine. But the lack of bubbles every evening only caused Marth's anxiety to increase. Thank goodness school was over. This would have affected his grades greatly. He could never seem to stop that dreadful question from bouncing around his head all day: what was the horrible thing that happened to Pit?

While he contemplated, Marth's mind barely registered the sound of rapid footsteps coming from the side. If he had been paying more attention to his surroundings, he may have heard the calm footsteps stop in surprise before rushing at the hurried pace they were now. It was only until the stranger got much closer to him did he notice their presence. However Marth continued to ignore them in favor of watching the second-story window. He didn't care who saw him standing outside of the house. Even if the stranger called out to him, he would have prtended to be oblivious of their presence. Unfortunately, when the low, familiar voice spoke, Marth whirled around, his usual deadpan face showing some of his astonishment and apprehension.

"What are you doing here, Marth?" The bitter venom in Link's voice was obvious. As ever, a cigarette dangled from the older man's mouth as he glared at the college student. Judging from his rumpled clothes and baggy eyes, Marth could rightly guess that the father had a long day at work despite coming home early at this hour. He had always made sure to leave before Link returned. Although he longed to relax his tired muscles and exhausted mind, the appearance of the blunette caused the blonde to steel himself. Marth allowed the silence to stretch between them while he choose his words carefully. It was vital that he did, otherwise he could kiss the nonexistent possibility of seeing Pit again good-bye.

"I want to make amends." Marth finally decided to say.

That statement had Link raising an incredulous eyebrow. Anybody else might have squirmed from that expression but not Marth. He kept his gaze steady, his expression constant. Again the long silence tensed between them, this time caused by Link's assessment. Eventually he asked evenly, "You're apologizing for telling Pit about going outside?"

"No-."

"Then we have nothing to discuss." The father immediately closed the discussion as he turned to enter his house. An unfamiliar sensation of panic suddenly assaulted Marth. He found breathing difficult with his precipitously constricted chest, but he knew how to stop it, at least for a small amount. The college student shot out and grabbed Link's arm desperately. The older man turned with a dark glare that Marth paid no attention to. He attempted to yank his arm away, but surprisingly the blunette held on with an iron grasp. Marth was definitely stronger than his skinny arms gave him credit for.

"Wait! Please let me see Pit!"

Link's expression darkened even further at Marth's stubbornness. In the back of his mind, he cursed his past self for asking the younger man a favor and giving in to his request of allowing him to see Pit again. If Link had gone with his initial gut instinct, then he wouldn't have to deal with this problem. Unfortunately now he could see the long-term consequences of his weakness: Marth's persistence, Pit's corruption, and his deterioration. The familiar pangs of regret bit him this time in contrast to the past gnawing. He jerked his arm again. Marth's grip didn't loosen one bit.

"Let go!"

"Then let me see Pit!"

"For the last time, you will not see my son! You've done enough damage already!"

"What happened to Pit?! I know something happened! What is it?!"

The older man stopped yanking. His furious eyes couldn't help but widen at the strange remark. "How did you-?" the words were spoken before Link could recall them. Marth stared right into Link's eyes.

"I'm whimsical, not stupid. Pit stopped blowing bubbles. His window's always closed now. I know something happened," Marth repeated. At those words, now Link's eyes narrowed. He should have known that the blunette's obstinacy would convince him to constantly stop by the house in possible hopes of being welcomed again. There was absolutely no way Marth could know about Pit suddenly stopping his bubble blowing unless he visited the neighborhood multiple times. Knowing the college student, Link wouldn't put it past him to come back every day. However, no matter how many times Marth returned, he would never be allowed into the house again. Link had promised himself that. "Please…tell me what happened."

The older man quickly took advantage of the storm calming to jerk his arm free. After a moment's temptation to tighten his grip again, Marth finally let Link's arm go. Link swiftly debated whether he should tell Marth the truth, and he went with his gut this time. "…If you must know, it's all your fault."

"What?" Marth couldn't believe his ears. Although he had expected Link to say something of that sort, it was still a bit disconcerting to hear it out in the open. The father nodded firmly.

"Because of you, Pit snuck out one night. Alone. I don't know what he was thinking, but he probably thought he could handle it because of the lies you told him."

"No…" Face drained of color, Marth shook his head, wishing he could deny it. "Pit wouldn't…he wouldn't do something like that…"

"Unfortunately he did. We were lucky that his brother got to him in time before they did something to him. Otherwise…" For a moment, the cold anger in Link's voice held a completely different emotion than any Marth had seen the father express. Marth searched his mind for it and realized in surprise that it was fear. With that single word, he understood that Link could imagine all the horrors he warned Pit coming true.

Yet what Marth didn't understand was why Pit went out alone. He remembered that the boy could barely stick his head out the window without shaking all over. During those moments he had to pull Pit into a hug to comfort him. How did his beloved find the courage to do something as drastic as actually venturing from his home? And alone at night at that? Whatever the inspiration, the college student then grasped the severity of Pit's situation. If what Link said was true, then something horrifying had happened to his son. Something that would scar him forever. Marth could only imagine how petrified Pit must have been. And it must have been ten times worse for the boy, only hearing stories of the fabled outside world, to experience what his father had warned him about. That single event would have cemented Link's claims and voided Marth's reassurances.

A cold hand choked Marth's heart. Although he attempted to tell himself it wasn't true, he couldn't help but feel that he really was at fault. After all, Marth did reassure Pit that he would be fine if he stepped outside. Now he had no doubt that this one event completely shattered Pit's trust in him. The college student didn't even factor in the possibility of Pit forgiving him as he couldn't forgive himself for indirectly putting his beloved in that horrid situation. Maybe…maybe Pit didn't want to see him anymore. That thought rocked Marth at his core, his trembling shoulders a testimony to the conflict in his mind. A stern voice soon brought Marth back to the present, and he struggled against his emotions to pay attention to what Link was saying next.

"So this is my last warning, Marth. I don't want to see you here ever again. If I do, I won't hesitate to call the police."

Marth's eyes widened, the slight fearful light in them growing to send his heart into another panic. Even though he already told himself that he shouldn't even see Pit right now, his aching heart told his guilty mind to shut up. He just had to see his beloved again. Wasn't that the main reason why he stood in the same spot every day, looking up to the second-story window? It was never his intention to make things up with Link. Marth only wanted to see Pit again. He wanted to talk to him again, play with him, tell him stories, kiss him, hug him, comfort him…Pit was the thing that was keeping Marth going. If he lost his reason to live now…if he couldn't see Pit ever again…"W-wait!" Marth held out his hand in pleading just as Link finished unlocking the front door. "Just let me see Pit one more time!"

Link's anger flared once again. He shoved his keys into his pocket as he glowered at Marth. "For the last time, no! You will not see my son ever again! And he will not see you either!"

"Please! Just let me-!" Marth stepped forward to grab Link's arm again. But the older man was ready this time. He swatted the hand away while swiftly opening his door. Without giving the college student a chance to recover, Link hurried into his house and slammed the door. The door lock clicking in place stopped Marth's blood cold.

The young man recovered in a millisecond to throw himself on the door in desperation, fists clenching tightly. "Link, let me see Pit! Let me see him! Please! I'm begging you! I need to see him again!" Marth continued yelling those words until they sounded like nothing to him. His stinging hands almost stained the door red with his pounding. When he finally realized through his hazy cloud that Link wouldn't budge, Marth hastily stumbled down the stairs towards the street. A good distance away had him turning to face the house again. This time though, he was in a prime location for Pit to see him from his bedroom window if the boy would just move to it. Marth cupped his hands around his mouth to project his strained voice:

"Pit! Please! I know you're there! Please talk to me!" He didn't care if he was making a ruckus.

"I need to see you again!" He cared about Pit.

"Please! Please talk to me!" He needed to see, hear his beloved again.

"Say something! Anything!" Even if Pit said that he hated him, Marth would have been satisfied because he talked to him.

"Pit!" His voice started to sound strange to him.

"Please! I'm begging you, Pit!" It must be sounding strange to Pit as well.

"Please tell me you're okay!" But Marth didn't care.

"I'm sorry, Pit!" He had to do this.

"So, so sorry!" He had to see Pit.

"Pit! Please!" Please, just let him see.

"Please…talk…" His shouts finally dropped into a whisper, his scratchy throat no longer able to support his desired volume.

"Please, Pit…" The tears finally broke free and streamed down his cheeks. His legs suddenly weak, Marth sank to his knees. He fell forward with only his hands to support him. Even then, he kept whispering those same words over and over. His shoulders trembled as his voice shook with emotion. Nobody could possibly hear him now with his head pressed against the ground.

Yet Pit heard every word despite his hands covering his ears, and his shoulders trembled from his own sobs.

…

Marth had no idea how he wounded back at his apartment. Everything from him collapsing to the ground to him waking up in bed was just a blur in his mind. Not like the events in between really matter. The broken pieces he called a heart ached when he remembered how he had failed in seeing Pit yesterday. He covered his eyes with his arm as an influx of emotions suddenly threatened him with more tears. It was a new but welcoming sensation for him, the barrage of emotions. It reminded him that he was an actual human being, not the robot so many other people thought of him as. A living human being who needed to feel the sensations of love and being loved with his soulmate. A soulmate now out of his reach because he placed that person's happiness and wellbeing over his own.

He barely reacted when Lucina knocked on his door. Receiving no answer, she carefully creaked the door open. "Marth? Are you all right?" Lucina expected some silence before her cousin answered. She started in surprise when she heard a defeated voice say:

"No. I'm not all right."

Lucina took that as the okay cue to open the door wider. She treaded quietly inside and sat at the edge of Marth's bed. Even the sagging of the bed didn't move Marth. He kept his arm over his eyes to prevent his cousin from easily reading him. While it would have been difficult to do so in the past even with his eyes visible, Marth's recent experiences had him show his emotions more and more. While he welcomed it, he felt so vulnerable displaying his thoughts so easily. Was this how Pit felt when he went outside for the first time? This vulnerability? No, it was definitely worse. Terror, distress, remorse. The poor boy must have felt those as well.

Marth still didn't react when he felt somebody place a sympathetic hand on his shoulder. Lucina gently rubbed it in a feeble effort to comfort him. She opted to keep quiet for the time being, letting the silence blanket them. Patience ran deep in the Lowell family.

"…You should talk about it with your friends," Lucina finally said after she deemed the stillness long enough. Marth didn't answer. The lump in his throat and ache in his chest stopped him from doing so. He allowed his cousin to lift his arm off his eyes, revealing their bloodshot state from his mute crying. Lucina stared at him solemnly as she recognized the turmoil of emotions in his eyes. New tears were starting to form. She continued, "It's never good to keep these kinds of things to yourself, Marth. It's only going to build up and result in huge consequences you regret. You need to get this off your chest."

Still no answer.

"Come on," Lucina gently said as she pulled him up. With her help, Marth finally sat up. However he only stared at his legs with only Pit still vivid in his mind. At more of Lucina's tender urgings, he finally stood from the bed. His cousin helped steady him when a headache caused him to see dark stars. "Come on," she repeated as she led him out the door. Marth followed quietly and obediently. They walked towards the Warpcoin at a comfortable pace, not too fast, not too slow. Despite having no word exchanges, the two cousins arrived at the university's Warpcoin relatively quickly as both were preoccupied with their own worries. Lucina looked around the outside tables anxiously before breathing a sigh of relief at the sight of their friends. As they got closer, Meta, the first person to see them, stood up with only his eyes wrinkling as a sign of his smile. The masked student's movement attracted the others' attention and they looked as well. Roy even gave them a wave in greeting.

"Hey, Marth, Lucina!"

Lucina smiled and returned the wave. However Marth continued to stare blankly ahead. Meta's cheerful light and smile quickly disappeared when he noticed Marth's state. Once they arrived at the table, he voiced his concerns, "Marth, Lucina, is everything all right?" Marth's cousin bit her lip slightly as she looked at Marth. Said person only avoided looking at his friends by staring at the tabletop.

"…no," Lucina finally answered in a dejected tone.

The jovial atmosphere that initially graced the table evaporated immediately to reflect Marth's depressed air. Meta gestured to the two free chairs. He frowned slightly when he saw how Lucina had to direct Marth to sit in the chair before she herself sat down. The masked student then sat down, sharing the same question as everybody else in his mind. Ike was the one who asked said question as he eyed Marth anxiously.

"Hey, dude. What's wrong?"

The only response he got was a shake of the head. Seeing how Marth was in no state of answering anything, Ike turned to Lucina. The young woman bit her lip again when all the attention was turned to her. Her friends patiently waited while she gathered her thoughts on the past events. Finally she exhaled in defeat:

"I don't know myself. Marth came home crying last night. When I tried to talk to him, he completely shut me out of his room. It's a miracle that I even managed to get him to come out here today. I was hoping he would feel better talking about it with all of us."

"I see…but is this place even appropriate for us to discuss whatever issues Marth might be having now?" Zelda asked. "Should we go somewhere more private?"

Lucina opened her mouth to speak but Marth beat her to it. He quickly shook his head, signaling that he didn't want to move again. It was as if he had gathered only enough energy to walk this far. Zelda frowned at that.

"Are you certain you're fine talking about it here?"

A pause. Then a nod.

"If you say so."

"So can you tell us what's going on, man?" Roy asked. "Honestly, it's scaring us that you're acting like this. We can only imagine what could have caused you to…well, lose your self." Something about that statement sparked something in Marth. He finally looked up to register all the anxious expressions on his friends' faces. Once he saw that they got the blunette's attention, Meta nodded in agreement.

"Marth, I think you've kept quiet long enough. As your oldest friends we deserve to know what is going on. We're all very worried about you."

Roy grinned as he jerked a thumb towards Zelda. "Even Zelda, and she barely knows you."

"Roy, there is a time and place for everything. Joking time is not now," Lucina hissed. The redhead held up his hands in defense, a sheepish smile on his face.

"Sorry! Sorry, I didn't mean to sound insensitive."

Despite his depression, Marth couldn't help but smile slightly at the banter between his friends. The more he thought about the little exchange, the harder it was to keep in the slight chuckle. Finally he allowed it to slip. That small action lifted the mood up just a bit around the table. Ike leaned forward and slapped Marth on the back encouragingly, earning a surprised grunt in return.

"There we go! Much better!"

"See? No harm done!" Roy said, trying to placate Lucina about the situation. Marth's cousin remained serious and scowled at the young man, earning a sigh from him. Meta raised an eyebrow, his mask thankful hiding the small smile he had. It soon disappeared to his usual serious expression. They still had an important issue to resolve. He turned his attention back to Marth.

"Indeed. But Marth, we really mean it. Could you please tell us what happened?"

At the question, Marth stared at him. He felt his other friends eying him curiously as well. His heart swelled in gratitude of having friends like these. Pit was right about his friends caring a lot about his wellbeing. He couldn't ask for better friends than the people sitting here. The blunette closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. Unconsciously everybody leaned in to ensure that they didn't miss anything. Marth exhaled, opened his eyes, and looked at the table. He couldn't help it. For some reason he couldn't hold his friends' gazes when explaining his situation. Almost like he felt ashamed about the whole ordeal. A lump in his throat almost prevented him from saying:

"I…Pit's father, Link, forbid me from visiting them ever again. I'm not allowed to see Pit again." Marth had to bit his lip to stop the rush of emotions threatening to embarrass him. A brief stunned silence befell the table. Then Ike held his hands in the air.

"Wait, wait, wait. Back up a bit there…Pit's old man isn't letting you visit again? Like…ever?"

Marth nodded.

"Why?"

"Yeah, what did you do that caused that drastic action?" Roy asked. The college student hesitated in his answer. The reason Link gave was that Marth encouraged Pit to go outside and it was his fault that Pit might have been hurt. However, Marth couldn't help but feel that there might have been more to it than that. The father was afraid of something else, some other influence that Marth had over his son. His mind raced for the answer. He attempted to remember everything he learned while in that house. Then it clicked. Marth suddenly knew the reason why. Now that he thought about it, it seemed so painfully obvious. Link's actions, Pit's gestures, put them together to form that conclusion, it all made sense. To anybody else, however, his deduction would have been one of the craziest jumps. But Marth knew that was the real, true reason why.

"Marth?" Lucina prompted when the silence stretched for too long. The young man took a deep breath. Now that he was about to reveal his secret to his friends, he couldn't help but fear how they would take it. They were his friends, sure, but what he was about to say could very well change their view of him. Possibly to a more negative point of view. Still, he had to commit. Marth had to believe that his friends would be there for him.

"…I fell in love." He looked up slightly to see their reactions. Just as he expected, his friends recoiled back in surprise and shock. It was almost comical, in way. Marth noted with interest that while Ike, Roy, and Lucina held the most shock, Zelda was only a little less surprised than them and Meta didn't seem to react at all. It was almost as if those two had already predicted that this would happen at the beginning. Marth wouldn't have put it past them in all honesty.

"Wait, you what?!" Ike shouted, the surprise crystal clear in his voice.

"Did I just hear that right?" Zelda asked mildly despite guessing the answer already.

"With who?!" Roy demanded, his eyes narrowed at his best friend.

"Marth, why didn't you tell me this?! I'm your cousin!" Lucina actually sounded a bit hurt that she wasn't informed of this beforehand.

Meta simply nodded. "You fell in love with Pit, didn't you?"

"Yes. I fell in love with him. I couldn't help it." The whole table seemed to sit back as one as they attempted to process this new information. Lucina ran a hand through her long hair, her shaking head and shocked expression still clearly showing how overwhelmed she felt about the truth.

"Of all things…I…I wasn't expecting tha-."

"That's disgusting."

That statement stopped everybody cold. Marth's heart dropped when he saw his best friend look at him with such hatred and anger so uncommon on the normally cheerful redhead's face. It would be a lie for Marth to say that he never saw Roy angry. He fit in that stereotypical trait of most redheads. However the blunette instinctively knew that this was no mere fury on his friend's part. If they had been a cartoon, Roy's face would have matched his hair's shade and steam would have blown from his ears. Funny in fiction, not funny in reality.

"Roy-," he started before getting interrupted by said friend.

"That's disgusting! That's so damn disgusting!" Roy stood up in a frenzy. His violent movement startled both his friends and chair. The black seat teetered backwards for the briefest moment before fortunately landing back on its legs. Even if it had fell with a resounding crash, everybody would have paid it as much as attention they were now. "I can't believe my best friend likes a guy! And a kid at that!" He could care less about making a scene. He was too busy glaring at his former best friend to notice the people around him whispering about what could possibly be happening at that particular table that merited this shouting.

Meta also stood up. He placed a placating glove on the redhead's shoulder. "Roy, calm down! I'm sure there's an ex-." He didn't get any further than that as Roy angrily slapped his hand away. Topaz eyes widened in brief surprise before they narrowed in momentary irritation with a confused light.

"There is nothing to explain! I can't believe I'm friends with a homosexual! You're disgusting," Roy bitterly spat at Marth. The college student yanked his backpack from the ground and prepared to leave. Again, panic filled Marth. Already he lost Pit. He couldn't stand at the moment to lose Roy as well. His brain not working, the student rose and attempted to grab his friend's arm.

"Roy, w-wait!" He succeeded in grabbing but Roy quickly yanked his arm away before Marth's unbelievable iron grip took hold. Marth flinched, actually flinched, at the repulsed glare Roy gave him.

"Don't touch me! Damn homosexual…" Roy stormed off without a second glance behind him. Strangers looked from the college student to his friend to gauge their reactions. However they quickly turned away to mind their own business when they caught the ominous glares coming from almost the entire group, save for one. It was scary enough to have a heavily-muscled young man glaring at you, but the masked student was even worse in that it was difficult to read his expression. It didn't help when the two young women also discouraged onlookers with their own scowls.

Marth moved to follow after his best friend. However a firm hand on his arm stopped him. He looked back in confusion to see Meta's calm eyes. The masked student gestured back towards his seat. "I'll go talk to him. You're the last person he would want to see right now." Marth opened his mouth to protest. However the steely look in Meta's eyes stopped him from doing so. Besides, his logic said to him, his friend had an excellent point. Roy couldn't even stand the sight of Marth at the moment. Meta had a better chance of talking with their hot-tempered friend. Him chasing after Roy would only make things worse. Despite his desire to quickly make amends with Roy, Marth nodded numbly. Meta patted the blunette's arm reassuringly. "Don't worry," he said. "I'll bring Roy back."

The group of four watched their fifth member leave to chase after the sixth. Marth continued to stand with his eyes trained on Meta's back until the crowd swallowed the short student up. It was only then did he ease himself back into his seat. However Roy's words and glare took hold of all his thoughts, reminding him of what he was. Marth wasn't sure he would classify himself as a homosexual, but he did know that he loved Pit and only Pit. Age wasn't a problem either as at most four years separated them. Still, Roy's hurtful reaction made him wonder what his other friends truly thought of him. If it had been any other day, it mightn't have bothered the college student so much. However the past few days have been a roller coaster of emotions for him.

"Hey…" His friends and cousin looked at him immediately yet he didn't meet their gazes. "Do…do you think I'm disgusting? For falling in love with a younger man?"

"Of course not!" Lucina quickly reassured her cousin with pats on the back. "There's nothing wrong with that! Isn't that right, guys?" Zelda nodded.

"I completely agree. It's natural to fall in love with somebody you spend a lot of time with. It might be a bit unconventional, I admit, considering you're both males, but that shouldn't stop you at all, Marth."

Marth couldn't help but smile at them. For some reason, he knew that the girls would be supportive of his love for Pit. Judging from Meta's reaction earlier, it seemed as though the masked student also tolerated it, if not approved of it. Yet the smile faded when he realized that Ike hadn't added his input yet. The young man scratched the back of his head sheepishly while he thought about his answer. That small action made Marth's heart skip a beat in fear. His voice trembled slightly when he asked after a pause:

"…Ike?"

Said friend jumped a bit when he heard his name. "Well…"

"Ike, don't tell me…" Zelda looked at her boyfriend with worried eyes. Ike scratched his head one last time before sighing. He looked right at Marth.

"In all honesty…I am a bit weirded out by it. I never thought one of my friends could be gay nor did I expect them to like a little kid," Ike said. Marth drew breath to correct Ike that Pit was, in fact, around seventeen to eighteen years old. But the bigger student quickly continued, "But I think I understand where you're coming from, Marth. If I wasn't in a relationship with Zelda, I probably wouldn't have understood. If you love somebody…well…that's all there is to it. It can make you do crazy things. And if they love you back, then that's even better." Here, Ike couldn't help but grin at his girlfriend. Zelda happily responded with a quick peck on his cheek. Ike's grin only widened from that. He turned his attention back to Marth with a "see?" expression. The muscular blunette then shrugged and leaned back in his chair. "So, no. I don't think you're disgusting. It's fine if you like the little tyke, so long as he likes you back, I suppose."

Marth felt his heart swell again at the support of his friends, so much so that he had to wipe his eyes clear of a couple of tears. He knew how fortunate he was to have friends like this. Well…most of his friends. Marth wondered whether Roy would be able to look past his relationship and continue to be friends with him. He certainly hoped so as Roy was his oldest friend. Sure, he moved away for a couple of years, but when he came back and found out that they went to the same high school, he quickly sought Marth out to rebuild their old friendship. That was loyalty for you.

As if she sensed his thoughts concerning Roy, Lucina put her hand over his. The college student looked at her to see a reassuring smile. "I'm sure Meta would be able to talk Roy."

"…yeah, me too…" The blunette nodded.

"Marth." The tone in Zelda's voice prompted the blunette to look at her. Seeing as she got his attention, Zelda continued, "If Pit's father forbid you from seeing him again, how are you going to get past that?"

"I…I don't know."

"I'm guessing you can't make amends with Pit's father, can you?" Lucina asked. Her cousin nodded in confirmation. A slightly bitter taste tainted his mouth when he remembered how his meeting with Link went yesterday.

"Have you tried calling Pit?" Marth shook his head in answer to Zelda's question.

"That's not possible either." When his friends gave him an inquiring look, the young man waved the unspoken question away. It didn't look like Marth was going to offer an explanation for that anytime soon, so they could only surmise that either Marth didn't have Pit's phone number, Pit didn't have a cell phone, or Link was monitoring the calls they were getting. Ike crossed his arms in thought.

"Could you break in?"

"Ike! This is serious!"

"I am being serious!"

"Oh my goddesses…" Zelda muttered to herself as she rubbed her temples jokingly at Ike's stupid suggestion.

"Pit's room is on the second floor. It would be a bit difficult for me to break in. Besides…I want to see him, not scare him." For a moment, Marth contemplated whether he should tell his friends about Pit's fear of going outside. He quickly decided to tell them some other time. They already had enough to deal with today with the addition of his own problems.

"Wait, just to be clear…Pit's old man is angry that you fell in love with the kid?" Ike asked. Marth nodded before completely registering Ike's question. Despite that, he continued to nod. There was a hazy idea just floating beyond his reach. Every time he attempted to grasp it, it always fluttered a few centimeters away. It was starting to be infuriating as he instinctively knew that that idea was the answer. "And he's not letting you come near Pit." Again, Marth nodded.

"Hmm…I suppose you could do it the old-fashion way of asking somebody-." Before Lucina even finished her sentence, Marth leapt from his seat, surprising his friends with his sudden movement. He finally grasped the idea that had been eluding him all this time. One of Lucina's words triggered it. Marth wasn't certain which one, but that didn't matter now that he had his plan.

"That's it!" he cried loudly as he stood up. The abrupt action surprised his friends.

"What's it?" Lucina asked after she quickly got over her shock.

"I'm going to ask Nadir to deliver a message to Pit." The unfamiliar word had everybody frowning in an attempt to remember where they heard that name before. Zelda's eyes widened in surprise when she recognized the identity of the name first.

"Wait, wait, wait. Back it up a little, Marth. Wasn't he the one who told you to stop seeing his little brother?"

"Yes." Once the blunette confirmed it, Ike and Lucina both expressed the same look of surprise. Marth's friends cringed inwardly when they remembered the first time they "met" Nadir. To say it was uncomfortable was an understatement. It was downright painful and excruciating to recall and mentally experience again. They actually stopped using a certain curse word for a few days after because of that "meeting".

Zelda shook her head at Marth's response. "Then what makes you so sure he's going to grant your request?"

"I'm not. But I still have to try."

"Dude, do you even know the guy personally?" Ike asked with a strange, slight hope that his friend didn't. Nadir was already suspicious in his book to begin with when Robin first approached them about the stranger wanting to give Marth the message.

"No, but I know who does." As Marth said that, he pointed over to a specific table. His friends followed his direction to see the lone albino sitting at his usual spot. Robin's mouth said inaudible words considering the distance between the tables. When his friends looked back, they were surprised to see Marth already walking towards Robin. They quickly hurried after him to arrive at the gamer's spot. Unlike the first time when the college student went to ask about Pit's identity, this time Marth made sure that his presence was known immediately. He leaned forward, the movement catching Robin's attention. Marth wasted no time making his objective clear once his eyes met Robin's. He didn't even care that the gamer might not hear due to his headphones. "Take me to see Nadir."

It took a second for Robin register what just happened as people rarely went up to him out of the blue. He saw Marth's lips move, but he obviously heard nothing. The student took off his headphones. The moment he did, Marth said once again:

"Take me to see Nadir."

"Wait, what?"

"Take me to see Nadir."

"…Hang on, Shulk. I've got to deal with something here," Robin said into his mic before flicking it down and clicking something on his laptop. Once he got that out of the way, he looked back at the strange student. "Why the hell do you want to see Nadir?"

"I need to talk to him." There was a pause. It didn't look like Marth was going to say anything else, so Robin ventured a guess.

"…Does it have something to do with Pit?"

"Yes."

Upon hearing that answer, Robin sighed and shook his head. He knew it. That was the only thing connecting Marth to Nadir because he was quite certain that the blunette didn't do drugs. At least, it looked like that on the surface. "Trust me. You do not want to see Nadir. You're practically on his blacklist and it takes a lot to get you off of it," the albino warned.

"See, Marth? The guy already hates you. This isn't going to work," Ike protested. However both statements fell on deaf ears. Marth unwaveringly looked right into Robin's eyes. The college student repeated:

"Take me to see Nadir."

"…You're not going to let up until I do, aren't you?"

"Yes."

Robin exhaled an irritated breath. He scratched his head in frustration, muttering something about being the messenger for the stupidest things. While he wished that he didn't have to do this, he knew that Marth would simply stand there and wait and stare at him with his deadpan eyes. He wouldn't be able to concentrate on his things at all nor would he be comfortable with somebody tuning in on his conversations. There was only one way to get Marth off his back. "Fine, I'll take you to see Nadir. But I can't guarantee that he'll talk to you," he cautioned.

Marth only nodded. That was absolutely fine with him. He didn't expect Robin to help him convince Nadir. It would have to be by his own hand. He and his friends watched as the albino packed up his things. Occasionally, Robin's train of thought caused him to shake his head and mutter darkly. When he finally hoisted his bag over his shoulders, he gestured to Marth to follow. However he quickly held out a hand to stop when he saw the whole group moving as one. "Only Marth."

"Do you think we're crazy enough to leave Marth alone with a guy who hates his guts?" Ike asked, the anger clear in his voice. Zelda placed a hand on his shoulder. When he looked at her, her stern eyes helped calm him down. Robin waited until Ike looked at him again.

"No, but the less people, the better. Besides I'm going to be there."

Ike had the good sense to not voice his doubts about Robin's ability to stop Nadir should the brother attack his friend. Robin could still read the thought on the taller student's face though, and he felt a twinge of annoyance. Once he was sure he calmed down enough to be a bit rational, Ike said, "I'm still not happy about leaving Marth alone."

"Is it fine if only I come with then?" Lucina asked. "Another person wouldn't be too much." Robin pondered about that for a moment before nodding.

"Yeah, I think that should be fine as long as both of you are careful."

Lucina couldn't help but frown at that curious statement. Although she wasn't too worried considering how she took kendo with Marth since she was young, both she and Marth were still treading into unknown area. That was more than enough to keep her guard up and be suspicious. After all, so far she hadn't heard about anybody dying from being too careful. "What do you mean by that?"

"You'll see. Just let me do all the talking," Robin said as a slight explanation. Marth shrugged, and the albino could only take that as an agreement.

"Still not happy."

"Ike, if this is the only way, then we have to let be," Zelda said. Her boyfriend looked at her again, his stubborn eyes meeting her stern ones. After a silent moment of telepathic exchange that only couples seemed to possess, he finally sighed in defeat as he scratched the back of his head.

"Fine. But if anything bad happens-."

"Nothing will," Marth said firmly. "We'll be careful." He looked at Lucina to nod in confirmation. Then he turned his attention back towards Ike and Zelda and inclined his head slightly. "We'll be seeing you then. Thank you…for everything."

Ike quickly waved Marth's gratitude away. "Hey, don't worry about it. That's what friends are for."

"Indeed. Remember, Marth, you can always turn to us whenever you're in need. You two be careful now." Zelda smiled.

"We will," Lucina said. Both she and Marth waved good-bye to their friends as they finally took their leave. The group of three watched until they couldn't see the couple anymore. Then Lucina sighed. "You're lucky to have such good friends, huh, Marth?" she said with a smile. Marth looked at her sharply, noting a strange undertone. He also noticed a strange light in her eyes. It seemed to be nostalgia along with something else. Was it…sorrow? He wondered what could have possibly caused that relatively common mixture of emotions. The blunette opened his mouth to ask what was wrong when Robin's voice quickly cut in.

"Well come on then. We don't have all day," he said impatiently. The gamer began walking, prompting the two cousins to follow after him. Marth made a mental note to ask Lucina later why she seemed a bit sad when mentioning his friends. He could only guess what happened to cause her to act like that.

But for now, the college student turned his worries towards the upcoming meeting. He already knew that it would be close to impossible to ask Nadir a favor concerning his younger brother, especially when it seemed as though he was against Marth's visits in the first place. Still, he knew he had to try. Not only for his sake, but for Pit's as well. Hopefully he would be able to appeal to Nadir's better nature as he knew instinctively that the brother cared very much about Pit. Perhaps the older brother might prove to listen to reason a bit better than his father. It was possible, the blunette told himself. Judging from his dialogue from the awkward phone call though, Marth knew even that hope was far-fetched. Despite Pit's claims of his brother being nice, the phone conversation reaffirmed Marth of Nadir's delinquent status. No wonder why Robin warned them to be careful. If Nadir was a loose cannon on the phone, just imagine him in person.

Still, Marth had to try. He couldn't, wouldn't live with himself if he left things as they were with Pit. If he couldn't talk to his beloved in person, the least he could do was apologize to him one way or another. Even if he wouldn't forgive himself for indirectly putting Pit through whatever hell he experienced, perhaps hearing a possible forgiveness from the boy would ease the guilt just a bit. Just a bit. Or not get a reply in return. So long as Pit got Marth's message, he would be fine with that.

Or so he attempted to tell himself. But Marth knew better. The college student couldn't stand not being able to see Pit. Marth had to see him. He had to be with him. He had to hug him. He had to hold him. He had to comfort him. He had to kiss him. He had to…everything.

Marth unconsciously vowed to himself that he would meet his loved one again. One way or another.

Muahahahahahahahaaha! I enjoy torturing everybody. I enjoy playing with Marth's emotions, given how emotionless he was at the beginning. It always does my savage heart good to bring my characters to their peak...trip them so they fall off the cliff...and pick them up again in apology so I can do it all over again. But anyways, hope you guys enjoyed. Seems like Marth is going to meet Nadir for the first time much sooner than anticipated! Or will he? :)