Kaneki! That boy! Aloysia frowned uncertainly. He did not seem like the boy she had been observing for the past month. White hair, black fingernails and a cold, unrelenting eye staring back at her. What happened?
"Elizabeth Castlemaine," Aloysia replied, refusing to give her first name until she knew him well enough. "What is your business here?" she asked, a little too coolly that she regretted it. That emotionless eye suddenly widened into an amicable smile.
"Recruiting," he answered cheerfully.
"What makes you think I'll follow you?" Aloysia muttered under her breath but something about him makes her feel inclined to know him better.
"Oh, I don't know…" he shrugged a little before looking up at her mysteriously, "Maybe because we have similar objectives."
"Having similar objectives does not mean that I would follow," Aloysia pointed out, folding her arms across her chest. She wanted to avoid making the same mistakes again. Losing her trust once caused enough damage. Chloe would most definitely use the information she had earlier to help with what sort of business she was doing.
"Non! Non!" the purple haired guy began to cry out. "No one goes against Kaneki's wishes!" Aloysia raised an eyebrow. Why did Kaneki even recruit this sort of people…? Feeling that she should end the conversation, Aloysia nodded to all three of them before taking a few steps back.
"I don't wish to follow you. Good day," she turned to leave, leaping up onto the rooftop and swiftly leaving the area of meeting whilst concealing her kagume. However, Kaneki was persistent. Aloysia, upon sensing he was still behind her, went faster and kept an eye on him. She began to run out of stamina. Being on the run for days and not eating for the past month had not helped. Aloysia then decided to face him instead. She halted and looked him in the eye.
"If I continue running, you'll just follow me, won't you?" Aloysia huffed.
"I don't give up that easily you know," Kaneki smiled happily, sending a spark of amused annoyance though Aloysia. Aloysia glanced around cautiously, taking note that he had left his subordinates behind.
"Looks like you have something to tell me," she perceived, leaning heavily against the concrete ledge.
"Or why would I leave myself with a dangerous ghoul like you?" he chuckled. Aloysia frowned. The only people that relaxed around her was him and Chloe. How peculiar. He was treating her like an equal.
"Okay, I'll listen to what you have to say," Aloysia sighed dejectedly.
"I'll only take a few seconds of your time," he grinned, making Aloysia glare back at him in irritation. What Aloysia failed to realised that what he was going to say would change everything. That it would continue to replay in her mind like the scene at the detention centre.
"You're selfish too, aren't you?"
There was a long pause. It was as though the entire earth stopped moving for a whole one minute. Aloysia never thought that way. She thought she was doing everyone a favour by disappearing, defeating the people at the detention centre and quietly sitting in a corner to let the rest of the world pass. She thought at disappearing would only cause pain to her maddening self and people would slowly forget her and replace her. All she would do was watch her existence gradually being erased from the face of this earth. 'Scorpion' would become a mere story that people laugh over.
"I…" Aloysia was at a loss of words. That never struck her. Because she was fearful of her past that she removed herself from the world. Because she was afraid of how Anteiku would confront her that she avoided them. Because she disliked the way she was treated back in the attic did she leave her little brother behind. Everyone suffered because of her.
"You never thought that, did you?" Kaneki laughed. "I never did as well. But," he rapped his head. "This opened my eyes. Of course, it would only consume me one day. Nevertheless," he moved a few paces closer to Aloysia's hunched figure. "Its only selfishness, isn't it?" he smiled. Aloysia did not reply. "This is why I told you we have the same objectives."
Aloysia looked up from the floor into his dark grey eyes with a deep frown. Objectives?
"Protecting those dear," he said cheerfully. Ah. She realised. If she were to protect Anteiku, she needed help. Humbling herself, Aloysia pushed herself off the support of the wall.
Taking a deep breath, she whispered,"I'll join you."