Author's note: Here's where things get serious. However, no matter what happens, do not try to kill me. Everything will be resolved in time. Manami Nightray: Hang in there. When things go down, eventually things should start going up again, so when the shocking scene happens, please stay with me! Deko-gasu: I try to update as much as I can. OzxEcho is a pairing I think is really sweet, so I couldn't resist writing it. They do kind of have a sibling like relationship. Zwei's part is going to be interesting rest assured.

Disclaimer: Only one thing (Mirella) is mine. Everything else (Pandora Hearts and Nova) is not.

Chapter 11: When "Tomorrow" Never Comes

Gil's POV

The next morning, I was rudely awakened by a skull-splitting headache that was accompanied with sluggishness and slow brain processes. I stood up to get some aspirin to ease the pain only to notice a cat fall off my head and a sleeping Oz. Alarmed, I ran towards a wall an stared at Oz and the cat from afar as I tried to make sense out of what happened last night. Okay. There was a mini party, Oz's uncle brought in some kind of juice, and then...what happened? There's a huge gap in my memory.

Cautiously, I moved towards the bed to see if I was hallucinating or dreaming to realize that this was all real and the cat was simply a lifelike toy. So this is reality... But then, why is Oz here? I quietly tiptoed out the door to check the room number and saw that the room I was in was actually Oz's room meaning that I had somehow wandered in here unconsciously. Normally, I would've hurried back to my own room before anyone would notice my absence, but Echo was currently in the hallway, so I had no choice but to stay and wait it out.

My head still hurts... Maybe I can check if the medicine cabinet in Oz's room has aspirin in it...

Massaging my temples, I discreetly walked towards the en suite and carefully searched for the bottle of pills. Fortunately, I managed to find what I was searching for along with some complimentary water bottles sitting on the counter below, so I quickly took the medicine and then checked to see if Oz was still asleep. Much to my relief, he was which allowed me to scan the hallway again, that was now empty, and make my escape.

"...Yes...It's fine..." I heard a voice say in monotone. "...will speak to you today..."

Since it wasn't right to pry, I went in the opposite direction from where I heard the voice (the area where my room was) with plans to take a stroll. I might as well explain myself later. It was unfortunate that it was raining, but I remembered to bring an umbrella as a precaution and leave it on the rack near the front door, so it wasn't too bad. The rain was also pretty light making it an ideal setting for thinking as I walked.

Oz...

Flashback to a couple days ago...

"I asked him," Alice stated clearly.

I knew what she meant, yet I continued to walk as if I didn't hear her, so she repeated herself without a hint of anger, regret, happiness, or sadness. Understanding that she won't leave me alone until I reacted, I stopped and turned to face her.

"What did he say?" I replied while resisting the urge to waver.

"Nothing. He just called me his friend."

Should I be relieved or should I be afraid? I had no idea, so I just nodded. Her eyes began to fill with determination that left me frozen with concern. Her lips were moving and there was sound, but every word fell upon deaf ears. I was able to hear one thing though.

"The deal is off. I'll do anything other than what I agreed to do..."

Will I tell him for a slight chance of having my feelings returned or will I keep this to myself for the sake of our friendship? Despite not saying anything, Alice continued to speak.

"This means war."

End of flashback.

Rather abruptly, I broke away from my thoughts to focus on the crosswalk I had reached that was almost devoid of all people. The rain was heavier now, so I decided to eat breakfast somewhere close before returning to the hotel where everyone was staying at. If I remember correctly, there is a pretty good bistro a few floors up in the department store a block away. The rain started to pour even harder, so I had no choice but to go with that plan.

Upon arriving at my destination, I spotted Alice, Sharon, Echo, and surprisingly, Ada sitting together having a serious conversation. I didn't plan on overhearing what they were talking about, but I was, to my misfortune, at the wrong place at the wrong time.

"Ada-chan, you don't have to do this. You no longer have any direct relationships, with an exception of your brother, that needs to be dealt with within the "Edge of the Abyss", right?" Sharon insisted calmly as she stirred her tea. "We can still fulfill our plan with three people. The fourth member just adds to the essentials."

Ada fumbled nervously as she tried to figure out the right words to say.

"Even so, I'd still like to join..." she mumbled as she lightly touched the small ring on her left hand. "There is something I'd like to do."

"I understand. Then all of you must temporarily sever any ties to the "Edge of the Abyss". In your case Ada-chan, you cannot tell your brother or anyone else about this. We are a team now. We are now the Bloody B-Rabbit."

That was all I was able to witness before I ran back into the rain to clear my mind. I don't understand... Is this what Alice meant by war? It is a bad habit, but I really needed to smoke to calm down. I already had a pack of cigarettes in the drawer back at the hotel, so I found no reason to buy another pack since I was outside. They are pretty expensive as is.

Once I reached the hotel, I attempted to hide my frazzled nerves by grabbing a quick bite to eat from the café in the lobby instead of heading straight to my room. The only people who have not left the building yet, Oz, Vincent, and Oz's uncle, were all awake and eating breakfast while chatting idly. Well actually, Oz and his uncle were at one table doing just that while Vincent was sitting alone at another table stabbing away at his food. I pitied Vince and did not want to leave him alone, so I decided to sit with him which caused him to light up at the sight of me.

"Nii-san!" Vincent exclaimed with wide eyes. "Where were you this morning?"

"Sorry for worrying you, Vince. I was taking a walk outside. The rain wasn't as heavy when I left."

Vincent stared me down to check if I was hiding something only to find nothing. Sighing, he pulled out an envelope, my lighter, and my pack of cigarettes and handed them to me.

"The receptionist in the lobby asked me to give this to you. They insisted that they have no idea who the sender is. I also figured that you'd want your cigarettes, so I brought them for you."

I accepted the box, the lighter, and the envelope gratefully before finally starting to eat. Though I could've been focused on my food or on the person sitting beside me, I couldn't stop thinking about the conversation at the bistro. It didn't seem like anything hostile, yet I could not shake this uneasy feeling I have.

"Adversity is headed your way both physically and mentally."

"This means war."

"We are now the Bloody B-Rabbit."

Unsure of what to make of all this information, I stopped eating, covering it up with "I ate a little while I was out" to assure Vincent that I was okay, and then took the items he brought me up to the roof so I can smoke without bothering anyone else. Slowly but surely, the nicotine put me at ease as I blew out some smoke and watched it fade. Since it was still raining, I kept as close to the door as possible so that the cigarette wouldn't be put out. The hotel had a "No Smoking Indoors" rule, so I couldn't complain about this set up.

Now that I was comfortable, I took out the envelope and carefully opened it to check the contents. As if it were an omen, the rain became a storm accompanied by wind the moment I realized what I was looking at. Echo and Oz at the Saint Bridget's Day Festival...and they were... My cigarette had already gone out due to the weather and light mist was starting to spray towards me, so I went back inside while stuffing the envelope and the photos back into my pocket. The lights had gone out due to the storm outside, but fortunately, I had a lighter to help me navigate.

Within the partially lit area, I could somewhat see the figure of a girl a few floors down. There are only eight floors in the building and many of the guests were situated on the second or third floor, so it was safe to assume that the shadow was on one of those floors (most likely the second floor). It's probably Echo or Alice trying to return to their room... With my free hand, I clenched the spot where my heart was beating. I didn't even know that he knew Echo. If it were possible, I think my heart would've been stained black. Who was I to get in the way of Oz's happiness? I do not have that right, and in that, I do not know my place.

I was close enough to see the figure now that belonged to a soaking wet Alice who had a sour expression on her face. It may be because of the inconvenience of having to take the stairs instead of an out of order elevator and the fact that it started to storm. She noticed me almost immediately and looked up to face me causing her to become briefly distracted and fall when she tried to take another step. What happened next was near instantaneous.

I reached out to catch her and pull her in, but the slipperiness of my own shoes decided that now was a good time to lose friction on me. Despite the fact that we were rivals and Alice tended to arm herself with barbs around me, I still didn't want her to get hurt. I put out my lighter and dropped it in the puddle indicating where I once stood, so that I can use both hands to shield her as I flipped our positions in midair and let myself take on the full impact. It was impossible to see where we would end up in the darkness, but I could tell that we were hitting the walls with enough force to keep rolling until we reached the bottom floor.

Pain. My back and my head were in so much pain that I started to lose consciousness. My eyed were filled with tears not because of my injuries, but due to how I felt earlier. We were both trying to force out feelings onto him, yet I believed that I was the worst out of the two of us. In the past, I swore that I would stand by him no matter what choice he made. I guess I won't be upholding my promise. I'm sorry, Oz... After that one thought crossed my mind, I blacked out to the sound of people calling my name.

Oz's POV

When the lights went out in the hotel, I got the feeling that it was an attempt to hide something from me. It was strange to say the least. The sky was clear and there was nothing but good weather for the past few days, so why today? Why is it that the day I decide to take action is the same day that an indication of misfortune reveals itself out of the blue? Either way, I wasn't going to let this stop me.

Using my cellphone as a flashlight, I separated from Uncle Oscar to search for Gil while he left to look for an employee to ask if there is a backup generator or some flashlights somewhere. If Gil truly is the same "Gil" from my memories, then he must be searching frantically for me. Of course, ten years has passed, so he's probably a little different than what I remember.

After checking all of the areas on the first floor, I noticed that most of the employees were gone along with many of the guests. The chefs and busboys were still present as they waited for the lights to turn back on, but the receptionist, the porters, the janitors, and the maids were all out of sight. Though it was faint, I could hear complaining and panicking from the guests on the upper floors, so I started heading back to the opposite side of the hotel to see what was going on. Suddenly, the sound of something falling down the stairs echoed throughout the floor causing me to break into a sprint.

"Oi...Seaweed head, stop pretending..." I heard a voice say.

Gil?

"Hey...wake up!"

I picked up the pace in fear that something might have happened to my best friend. Honestly, I never would've expected this.

Shortly after I arrived at the base of the stairs, the lights came back on and kept me from seeing the tragic event for a short moment. I welcomed the distraction. There was no way to turn back time. On the floor below me, Gil laid unconscious with rivulets of blood trickling down his neck from his head. Nearby, Alice was shaking and calling out to him desperately. There were no tears shed by either of us. There was only me calming Alice down enough to be able to check Gil's pulse without any interruptions.

"Alice, I need you to call for an ambulance," I instructed her carefully as I wrapped Gil's head with my tie as a bandage. "He still has a pulse, but he may have a concussion."

I didn't know anything about dealing with this kind of thing which gave me no choice but to do whatever I could manage to do in the spur of the moment. Naturally, it didn't take long for Vincent, who came with some employees in tow, to find out about what happened to his brother, so everyone in the area kept their distance from the infuriated sibling (with an exception of Alice and I). He shot piercing glares at us, thinking that we did this to Gil, until he noticed something familiar within Gil's pocket. Scowling, he pulled out an envelope with the words "To Gilbert Nightray-sama" written in neat blue script before taking out his cellphone to make a private call. By then, the paramedics had arrived causing everyone to focus on Gil, but I was still able to hear Vincent hiss out a single sentence before snapping his phone closed.

"Zwei, meet me at Bicêtre Hospital now."

As much as I wanted to know more, I was too worried about Gil to look into how this all happened. With some convincing, Vincent and I were given permission to ride in the ambulance with Gil and the paramedics while Alice, now only partially shaken, and Echo, who had finally arrived at the scene, rode with Uncle Oscar. Since there were other people, including Gil, in the vehicle with Vincent and I, there was no way that Vincent could unleash his wrath upon me. He did, however, express discomfort upon opening the envelope and seeing the photos inside. With a clipped tone, he told me to take a look at the pictures before shoving them into my hands.

This is...!

In my hands, pictures of Echo and I at the festival and at the beach stared back at me coldly as if what I did last night was wrong. Were these the last things Gil saw before he ended up like this? I sighed inwardly. Gil, you idiot...

To hide my guilt, I didn't show any reactions, but I did feel regret for not giving enough thought towards Echo's concern. Maybe if I did that, then Gil wouldn't have been in this situation.

Once we arrived at the hospital, everyone was urged to sit in the waiting room outside of the emergency room while Gil was pushed on ahead. At this point, Zwei had arrived causing Echo to shrink in her seat and look away as a reflex. Recalling the phone call, Vincent stood up and followed her to a different area of the hospital to speak in private. With the two of them gone, there was only an uneasy group of people left waiting for the results.

Sorry if Oz's part sounded like I wrote it half-asleep. I ended up drawing a blank when I got that far which was strange since so much came to me when I was writing Gil's scenes. Bicêtre is a real hospital in Paris by the way. Also, if anything is left unexplained, then don't mind it. It'll be explained in another chapter. Nothing else to say but Gil is not dead! He is fine, but his troubles (and Oz's) are not over yet. Oh, and Zwei is not obedient to Vincent in this chapter because she's blinded by her love for him. And with that, hope you guys will continue to stay with me!