The Time of Isolation Hath Come
XIII
It's like all the others.
He sees them standing there.
It's two.
A teenager with silver hair, wings of pure light keep him afloat, glitter of pale blue filters away from them.
"Tonights finally the night, huh?"
A voice full of indifference, the face of the teenager remains bored to the world, uncaring as he gazes down.
It's the school, the one he has worked in for so long.
Romani recognises it at a mere glance.
"All while the higher ups meet up to discuss such boring issues."
Something about his tone relayed a hidden meaning.
There is more at work, but Romani does not see that.
All he sees is what stands before him, the gaze of the teenager remains fixed on the school. His eyes close and then he turns his head away. A silence follows that feels full of weight, a calm before the storm.
As if this moment shall never come again.
Romani watches it all with a gaze that does not break away.
He does not know this teenager, nor does he understand their words to an extent.
He supposes they relate to the upcoming peace conference, but he cannot be-
Something twitches, his eyes burn even in the dream.
But he does not blink, he cannot blink.
The eyes of the teenager snap open, they turned and look down. Romani follows suit, his own gaze drifting until it lands upon the distant sight not too far from them, yet utterly bewildering to him. He can barely see her at the incredible distance, and yet she feels so horrifyingly close that it is as if she is right next to him, looming right over his shoulder.
The girl that is everywhere and nowhere.
He cannot remove his eyes from her.
So he surrenders himself to the vision and stares.
The girl with dark hair stands at the impossible distance, perched atop a telephone pole.
"I have no interest in such a bland world."
The words do not feel like they belong to the girl, even as she speaks in a voice lacking emotion. He had never heard such a dull tone used before, a voice so bereft of feeling that not even a dial tone could manage to replicate it. He shudders as the words roll over his skin, they swarm over him and then depart just as quickly.
Romani cannot turn away, and he cannot blink.
So he remains.
"You always say that." She continues, her head turning and looking towards the silver haired teen.
The teen angles his head, watching the girl with a new found emotion.
There is a sudden life in his eyes, it looks like wariness, or perhaps acknowledgement of what she is.
Romani is not sure, but the girl feels wrong in every sense of the word.
His eyes twitch as he looks at her, but his gaze remains locked in place.
"I say it because it is the truth." He counters with a shake of the head after a moment, looking away and folding his arms over his chest. The next words slip out of his mouth as if they have done so a thousand times before. "I truly do have no interest in this bland world. What of you? A stroll is unlike you, Ơ̵̡̙̿p̸͇͙͊h̷͎̲̚͝ȋ̶̘͆ș̵͓͝."
Romani feels the urge to recoil, words like fire push through his skull and his brain feels like it's been set ablaze. It's an agony that he cannot open his mouth to scream out, but he remains silent as the pain swirls through him. Tears that do not form run down cheeks that are not there.
The static pulses through his mind for an eternity before it fades.
He remains frozen to it all, still staring.
Still watching.
The girl with a name like true pain turns her head and inclines it.
"Vali." She responds, a name which brushes past his ears as if she were right beside him. "I just felt like it. I gave them my snakes. I wished to see what they were going to use them for."
Slowly, her head turns and she is looking back down at the school.
"...I do not have a reason to care now."
The girl pulls off the ground as if there is no such thing as gravity, merely taking to the skies in ignorance of all that is right.
She floats away, 'Vali' watches her in silence and gives a faint snort.
"They're probably going to get wiped out."
"Then they are useless to me."
The cold words bring nothing but a twitch of the lip to the face of the silver haired teen, as if he has heard an amusing joke. With a slow shake of the head, he twists away from her and hides his expression.
Romani is not sure why, but he thinks the girl does not care.
He isn't sure if she cares about anything.
He just wants to stop looking at her.
Vali turns his head and opens his mouth.
There is no sound.
He stops moving.
Romani stares with unblinking eyes, watching the frozen image with a growing sense of unease.
There is something wrong here.
Vali remains nothing but a still image, then it cracks like a window but does not shatter.
Not just Vali.
The world itself splits right down the middle, and from there it starts to peel apart.
Romani looks on, piece by piece, it opens.
Darkness pours through the gaps and floods everything, but it does not stop, and he does not wake. He stares at the silence which encroaches upon him, he cannot turn his head and he cannot blink away the nothingness which stretches out before him.
There is everything in the nothing.
And there is nothing in everything.
It is wrong.
It is wrong.
It is just…wrong.
He stops.
The back of his neck burns and he notices something that he should have seen earlier, but the pounding of his heart is akin to drum. Even in the dream, it pounds louder than ever before. The only sound to be heard in the endless void which has opened up and consumed the dream.
It gorges itself on the vision and nothing remains.
He stands in a featureless void.
But he feels it on the back of his neck.
Something stirs in the void.
Something is watching him in the darkness.
And it's right behind him.
He turns, but it is no conscious act of his own.
When he begged for movement, he was still.
Romani pleaded with a silent scream to wake, but he did not stir from his nightmare. The hands which grasped at the edge of nothing tugged at his eyes and pulled him around. He felt his unblinking gaze twist against its will, he did nothing but surrender to the embrace which was as rough as it was clumsy.
Like a child holding a bug for the first time.
He feels it.
Like an ant in the palm of a baby, trying hard to avoid injuring him but it is a failure.
He feels it press too tight in places, but he cannot scream, he cannot voice his pain.
A silent victim is all he remains.
She's there, standing in the void.
So out of place it as though she was cropped into space from another picture entirely.
The dark haired girl angles her head and stares at him.
She steps on the nothing and then steps again, pacing towards him closer and closer, all while the invisible hand tightens its grip and lets him move not a single inch.
Not that he could.
She stands before him and looks up.
He looks down into eyes of darkness, an emptiness which matches the void around them.
For a brief moment, he believes her to have holes punched clean through her head, at least until he sees the faint trace of white surrounding the orbs of midnight.
And she stares back.
She looks right back at him.
Then her head tilts slowly to the side, in a move that is too fluid to be human.
She speaks in a voice that pulses through his brain.
I̷͚̔͗͆ ̸̝͍͆͝t̴̊ͅh̶̠̳͚͎́ŏ̶̙̄ű̴͇̫̬g̷̱̳͉͐h̶̭̦̏̍́t̴̯͍͈͓͛ ̶͉̤͕̇̋̑̀y̸̭̮̭͒o̵̲͉͒ú̶̙̎̍̕ ̷͓̜͒͒w̵͚͇͚̿̆ẽ̶̳̳͔͖̆r̷͈̗̙̠̊͊͠ȩ̵̗̜͛ ̴̩̄ͅá̵̧̲͇̩̆̕ ̷̲͈̂̀G̶̛͙̒̇o̷̲͆d̶̩̾͊̋̆.̴̙͓̓͛̽
̴͖͗̾
̵͚̰̖͊͂̏͑B̷̛̛͉̪͖̜̾͂ŭ̸̢͙̥͔̏́́t̸̻̼̺̐̓̎͛ ̵͚̫͎͔̈y̴̧̤͆ő̴̟͖̮̿̀̚ủ̷̫̬͈̑͌ ̴̢̝͇̭̓̓͝â̵̭r̷̞̠͓̒̍̿e̶̡͂̊ ̶̨͕̗̉̎̾ͅn̵͓̥̬̍̓̓o̵̳͚̎̒̄t̵̞̦͓͖͗̈́͋.̶̢̙̔̏
Ỳ̵͖̟̝̉̾͆ǫ̵̧͛̈́̐͐ù̴̥̞̱̭ ̸͍̠̆̃̍a̵̧͐̅̉̀r̷̦̯̙̈́̊͌̆e̴̱͋̕ ̶̲̭͕̜̏̌͠h̶̯̣͛̅̋͒u̴͕̍̉͂m̵̬̰̉͜a̶̝̘̅n̵̛̩̭̺̪̿̈͗.̴̗̺̌̽̎͊
̶̗͍͇̑̓̑
̴̪͊͠I̷̡̝̳͛͝n̴̨̫͈̊̈́̐͛ṫ̴̝e̶̲̣̎̿͝͠r̶̦͚̱̟̐̌͝e̸̱̪͉͝s̴̙͔̖͠t̸̢̡͐̿ȋ̷̻ň̵̡̯̖̚g̸̰̺̤͊̈́̈́́.̸̙̂
Romani feels the hand loosen.
The girl stares at him longer.
Then her eyes part from him and swivel around.
The voice returns and if he could bleed, he would be.
He has never felt a pain like it.
Ţ̷̳̦̬̃̉̃h̴̨̄̏̾̀i̴̫̾͜s̸̳̗͍̗̃̂̑͝ ̶̙̯̏ͅi̴̖̰͛s̴̛̰̳͛̊̕…̴̺̑̚ͅỏ̷̺̹͍̤͌͆h̷̹̀̋͘.̸͉̰̞͂
̷͍̝͐͛̚
I̷̳̫̻͝s̶̰̰̈́̾̃̀ ̵̞͎̣͌̒͘t̶̰͙̔ẖ̵͆͆̔į̸̫̦̎͋͐̉s̷̭̔ ̴̝̰̈̔͌͜ẁ̷̛͖̪̲̲́h̷̡̿a̴͍̓̈ṫ̷̗͠ ̴̯͙́t̷̢͊̀͠h̴̹̤͆̌e̴̛͎̜̾̾ỳ̴̰̰͔͇ ̷̲̠̪̍͘̕c̸͍̮̐͛̓à̶͍͈̓̊l̸̮̍̄͂̕l̶̺̤̈́͛ ̵̰̖̟͖̓̌̉t̸̛͖̫͎̰̄͋h̷̬͎͛̅è̶̺̦͈͔͗͝ ̶̳͛f̶͓̪̘̦́̑̈̕u̷͎̺̤̬͋̅ț̸͒̔͒͠u̴̬͇̦̟̇̒̉̆r̶̞̤̉͋͝e̸̲͌?̴̧͉̍ͅ
̷̨̛͍͌̌̕
Õ̸̪͙͗̾̆ŗ̵͍̲̆̂̈́̊ ̸̛̹̟̌̄̀i̵͔̭͎͖͆̀s̸̛̬͇̥͂̆̏ ̶̣̤͚͗͒̽̀i̴͓̿ṱ̸͍̄̋̒ͅ ̷̰̉̇̓͝t̵̬̀̅̊ḥ̷̭͉̀̑̔e̵͖͐͊ ̴̟͎͓̔̈́͝p̴̥̝͎̈́́̽ǎ̸̡̟͈̘̑͆̀s̷̮̱͇̏t̵̰̫̍͆?̶̣̭̓
̶̤̉̓̅
̵̪̼̃̕Í̵̫͕̬͗͊ͅ ̴̝͔̥̳̒̓͘s̶̯̣͓̘͊́͋è̵̖͕̠͑̕ę̷̛̝̜̏.̶͈̰͇̱̔͆̈
̶̹͆̀͊̾͜Į̶̹̼̅̿͂͊ṅ̸̩̞͂t̶̫̏̕͘ẽ̵̖̯̞͘͘r̷̩͕̘͐͐̐͝e̴͇͉̦͋̕s̸͎̟̓͑ͅt̵̹̙̾̔͒̿i̸͇̰̔̊̈́̒n̷̢̻͍̣͆̒̄͂g̶̛̉͠͝ͅ.̷̤͔̤͙̃̊̕͘
Her hand raises and presses against his forehead.
He feels her cold fingers against his skin.
The way they press so hard he believes they are going to crush his skull purely by accident.
She pulls her hand back a moment later.
S̷̭͑ȏ̵͈̲͐ ̸̨̢̜̔̀͑̂f̶̢̘́̿r̴̻̤̭͎͑̇̍̾a̷̠̎ġ̸̨̪̅́͠į̵̦͕͛̈́̎̍ḷ̶͎̉͜e̸̡̺̓.̸̟͓̇̉̂̍
The silence returns.
Then her hand presses against his chest.
L̴̤̖͉̝̏̑ē̶͍̈́̃ȧ̸̡̧͘v̶̹̘̹̉̐̿͘ͅe̶̲͌̔̂̎.̸͈̝̌
He woke up screaming.
There had never been another morning like it for her.
Asia just stared across towards Romani.
He stared back, but there was a look in his eyes that sent cold shivers across her skin, she pulled Rassei tighter to her and kept herself seated on the chair. Despite the urge to walk the small distance and render some sort of aid to the nurse.
But she had already tried her best.
It was gone now, but she could still see it in her mind's eyes, still pressed into his skin.
The handprint in the centre of his chest, no larger than her own.
The mere sight of it had sent her into a dazed panic, the questions did not stop surfacing but she had let not a single one distract her. At least, they had not stopped her for long. Yet bursting into the room at the crying instance of Leona - and it was a shout of horror she would hear in her mind again and again, whenever she closed her eyes - was an experience she would never wish to repeat.
Yet it was the sight which greeted her which had almost knocked her out of action.
A faint wheeze brought her mind back into the here and now, she tensed and looked at the nurse as he twitched. Slowly, his eyes brought themselves upwards and turned in her direction. Asia tried to manage a weak smile, or perhaps any sort of smile.
Just something to give him some measure of comfort.
She felt the attempt fizzle and die on her face, fading away as she was met with the blank face of the nurse, where his glazed over eyes and slack face did not so much as twitch as he met her gaze. She swallowed thickly, burying the words she had wished to get out and instead pulling Rassei tighter to her chest, not that the small dragon seemed to mind in the least.
But it had not stopped staring at Romani since they saw him.
And Asia had felt the way it tried to scurry into her hands and away from the nurse.
…There was a terror about Rassei which put her on edge.
A clutter of noise behind her had her jolt, at least briefly, before Leona came from around the corner behind her, stumbling out of the kitchen with a tension in her body that was hard to ignore. Asia watched in silence as she approached the nurse and set the bowl down on the table in front of the sofa.
It steamed, she leaned forwards and spied the contents, it looked to be soup.
Leona let out a small exhale as she looked to the nurse and then rested a hand on his shoulder, gently pushing him backwards until he lay upon the backrest of the seat. He did not move much beyond that and Asia had a horrible image of the nurse just going limp, his head falling back and just laying there.
Thankfully, that did not come to pass.
But it was far from an improvement.
He just sat there, oblivious to the world around him.
It was a horrible thing to see, lacking any sort of life about him.
As if he was some sort of puppet or doll, complete with the hollow glass eyes.
There was a faint swallowing sound, Leona released a small breath with shuddering shoulders, the only evidence beyond her stone features, as she moved for the bowl and plunged a spoon into it, raising the contents up and giving it a gentle blow before looking towards the nurse.
Her hand moved from the shoulder and towards his lip, pulling it down and sliding the spoon into his mouth before removing it. Leaning his head back, she started to massage his neck muscles up and down.
Asia saw the barest hints of movement from the nurse and that alone let her feel some measure of joy.
The mouth closed and Romani swallowed the soup.
Leona noticed it too by the way she froze and then her shoulders dropped a little.
It might not have been much.
But it was a lot compared to what he had been like before.
The brunette went for another spoonful of soup, blowing upon it and repeating the earlier process. Bit by bit, she was getting the nurse to eat some small measure of food. Asia supposed that was good enough, but she would have much preferred him to have been as his regular self.
Seeing him like this just hurt her.
Because she could not think of anything she could do to help him.
"Leona…is he…?"
Silence greeted her for a few moments, Leona letting Romani have another mouthful of soup as she pulled the spoon from between his lips. The woman stared at her husband for a good few seconds, watching as his throat bobbed up and down, then she turned towards Asia and showed an expression of exhaustion.
"...He'll be fine."
Asia wasn't sure who she was trying to convince.
But she was not prepared to let her doubts show on her face.
A smile pulled itself onto her lips, easier than before, now that it was for the benefit of someone else.
"I'm sure he will." Confidence flooded her words, but her eyes flickered back towards the stone faced man.
His glazed over eyes twitched ever so slightly, a hint of redness within them, then they twitched once more.
The movement stopped just as quickly as it had come.
Leona pushed herself to her feet and then let out a breath. "...I'll make you some breakfast, alright? It's a bit earlier than normal so you'll be a bit bright when it comes to school time but hopefully no one is put off by your bright attitude."
Asia watched the brunette as she rambled on, striding past her and back into the kitchen, even without anyone to speak with, her hearing let her pick up all the mutterings of the adult. All it did was make her frown deepen, turning her eyes away from the door to the kitchen and back towards Romani.
Slowly, she lowered Rassei down towards the floor and pulled her hands back, clasping them together and closing her eyes.
It did not matter how painful it might be.
Or if no one heard it.
She would do so all the same.
"O'Lord-" She twitched as pain lanced through her skull immediately, fighting back a gasp that should have spilled out of her. Her brows clenched and her grip tightened, she pushed through the pain and continued in a voice no louder than a whisper. "Please grant your mercy upon this soul. Guide him from this pain and towards peace. Amen."
Another flash of pain.
But it was fine.
Her eyes opened as she stared at the nurse once more.
She jolted and leaned back.
Golden eyes looked back at her.
Those weren't Romani's eyes.
Those were…
Rust faded and the green flooded back into his gaze, the nurse slumped backwards and blinked several times.
"...Huh?"
Then he jerked and looked around, launching himself to his feet and staring down at her with a wide and frantic gaze. It was impossible to tell which of the two of them was more surprised by what was happening.
"Uhm…" Wetting his lips, Romani stared down at her for a good few seconds, then looked up and swallowed loudly. "...Why am I…?"
Asia could only stare in blank amazement.
He was…up?
"Ooof!"
She ignored the sound, despite the guilt, as she flung herself off the chair and ploughed right into his midsection, burying her head into him and throwing her arms around him, pulling him tight towards her and latching herself there. She wasn't prepared to let him go and immediately activated her Sacred Gear,
It was all she could think to do at that moment.
"Asia-? What are you-? Wh-"
"Romani?!"
Leona's voice cracked, Asia heard the stumble of footsteps and did not need to turn around or detach from the nurse to know what was happening. She felt Romani shift and his body tense up.
"Leo? What are-what's wrong? Why are you-?"
Another weight slammed into Romani and they fell backwards, it ended with the three of them sprawled on the sofa.
All of them latched onto the nurse.
Asia allowed herself this moment.
He was fine.
He was fine.
A smile slowly stretched over her lips, tears threatened to spill down her cheeks.
Someone heard her prayer…
…And they answered it.
"If you keep fidgeting, I am going to tie you down and then keep you there."
She only partially meant it, but she was running high on her emotions at the time.
Leona felt she was entitled to being a bit overboard when it came to something like this.
Raising her eyes, she levelled a sharp look at Romani when he twitched again, common sense seemed to triumph in the moment as he fell still. Or it might have been something else, he ducked his head down and offered a shallow nod. She took that as a victory and then went back to examining him.
Admittedly, it was the first time she had really brought him into her workshop, he had been nice enough to let her have her little personal space for so long.
Really, he was always very accommodating.
She wouldn't have minded if he ever stepped foot inside of it, but he accepted that she had her little workshop and then left her alone. Which was very nice and she was very thankful.
But she decided it was better to drag him into it.
The examination of his brainwaves revealed nothing out of the ordinary, but she couldn't be sure there was anything fine. She knew that there had to be something wrong, there was very little chance there wasn't something wrong.
But he showed no sign of anything.
She probably wasn't looking hard enough.
Her eyes fell upon his chest and narrowed, no longer was there any sign of the mark, but it had been there clear as day when he woke and it was only until Asia healed it away that it vanished. But there was a residual pattern that hadn't gone away.
…Like a brand.
Because that was what it was.
And that thought horrified her.
Because none of her bounded fields had triggered or showed any evidence of tampering, even when she accounted for the energy surrounding the mark, there was still nothing that showed itself to her.
But there were plenty of clues.
Asia's familiar had avoided Romani in much the same way a small cat would have avoided a lion. An instinctive reaction to steer clear of a larger predator. Which meant it recognised the scent as belonging to something far greater than itself. More so than she was aware of, but there was nothing on file that even came close to comparing.
This was something new.
And that terrified her more than she would ever admit.
"Leo-"
She raised her eyes and looked at him, Romani fell silent for a moment and then glanced away.
The sharpness in her gaze vanished, she pulled back on her feelings and leaned away from him. Softening her face and then reaching out, she placed a hand upon his thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze. The action brought Romani's attention back towards her, she watched him for a few moments before he spoke again.
"Leo…I need to go to work."
She blinked.
Then she blinked again.
Her head tilted to one side and she stared at him.
"Romani Archaman."
"Y-yes?"
Ah, he was nervous.
Good.
That meant she managed to get her feelings across to him at the moment.
"Do you want me to explain to you why that is a bad idea?"
"I mean…" Romani wet his lips, fidgeting even more before shrugging his shoulders. "I…I'm fine now."
She raised a hand, stopping him and then pointing towards him. "Now. See, that word is rather definitive. See…when I woke up this morning. It wasn't because of an alarm or because I was an early bird. That would have been fine."
Leaning forwards, she was very nearly nose to nose with him.
"No. I woke up to the sound of you screaming."
He flinched and she was sure her voice cracked a little, another twitch kept it steady as she continued on.
"And that was bad enough…except for the fact you were also bleeding from the eyes."
She leaned back, then waved a hand, pulling out a smile that most assuredly did not come close to reaching her eyes.
"And to top it all off, right in the centre of your chest was a hand mark as if someone had reached down and decided to brand you!"
Full of false cheer, she raised herself up to her feet and spread her arms wide.
"All of which happened in the one place where you are really supposed to be safe. Something that I've never heard of before decided that it would come down and slap you for seemingly no reason and left you in agony! Then when you finally stopped screaming, you just lay there!"
She dropped her arms and stared at him.
"...Romani…I thought you were…"
She didn't finish the sentence.
She couldn't.
Because when he stopped screaming…that was worse than when he had started.
And she never wanted to be in the position where she wanted him to scream in pain, just so she could be sure he was still breathing.
It was only the rising of his chest that let her know…
Her breathing shuddered once again, taking in air and forcing back the threat of tears. She wasn't going to cry in front of Romani. It was bad enough letting all of this spill out, but she couldn't quite help it.
She stepped towards him and raised her hands, dropping them onto his shoulders and keeping them there.
"So pleased just…" Another breath, she dropped her head forwards and pressed it onto the top of his. "Just stay here for a little bit…just…"
Romani was silent for a while.
"...A little while…alright?"
His voice was quiet, but there was something within it that stirred her up.
She hummed and nodded her head, the tension left her body.
"Just until I know what it was. Then you can…Then I'll drop you off at school, okay?"
"Okay…" Another pause. "Sorry for scaring-"
"Don't you dare apologise for that."
"...I think we should tell Asia about my eyes."
She opened her mouth to tell him no, then stopped.
Pulling herself back, she waited for a moment, then slowly nodded her head. "Alright, she probably needs to know something, at least."
"...Did you…see…something?"
Romani was silent for a bit, then he frowned and looked down at his hands, picking at his fingers and moving to rub his wedding ring in the way he always did when he was nervous. She waited for him to say something. Letting him build up his words, raising his head and looking at her.
She couldn't place the expression, but it looked a mixed of terrified and confused.
"I think…I think something…saw me…"
Leona froze.
She wasn't even sure if she was still breathing.
"...Saw you?"
That wasn't…
If he was having visions of the future then that would mean something…
…But the only things - the only beings who were aware of something like that - would be…
Her eyes lowered down to his bare chest, at the point where he had been touched.
She swallowed.
"...What…what happened…?"
"I can't…" He wet his lips and looked away. "I can't really…I just think I…"
His silence was awful.
She wanted to shake him and get more out of him, but she stopped herself and fought back her panic. Despite the fact that was something she very much wanted to do. If what he said was right, if there was even an ounce of truth in his words, then what had happened was so far beyond bad news that it was downright abominable.
There wasn't a word that existed to describe this.
She stepped away from him and turned around, raising her hands and covering her face.
Then moving her left down and placing it flat over her heart.
Yes, it was still beating, even if it hadn't felt like it.
Romani saw something.
And it was aware of him.
It marked him.
…It knew where he was.
It knew who he was and what he could do.
…Only Gods could do something like that…the strongest of Gods would know of something like that.
Those related to time.
If they knew Romani could spy into the future then…
Pulling her hands down, she closed her eyes and nearly screamed. Instead she clenched her jaw so tightly that she nearly shattered her teeth. Or it felt like she was going to, or break her jaw. Whichever came first, but it was something she could not react to in any way that wasn't a terrible yell.
If there had been anything close to her, she would have thrown it.
She didn't want to admit it.
She didn't want to even address it.
But she didn't know what to do.
Pacing towards the door, she came to a halt and raised her hands, placing them flat against one another and resting them in front of her mouth. Breathing down the tips of her fingers, her mind whirled for any sort of solution or plan.
She didn't have anything…unless…
Leona stopped and twitched, glancing to the side and furrowing her brows.
Romani was still alive.
If whatever God or Goddess he spied on was truly offended, then they would have killed him by now. If they wanted him, then they definitely would have been here by now as well. Her bounded fields weren't designed to keep out anything with the locating abilities of a Chief Divine or any other sort of God.
Perhaps…perhaps they had gotten lucky.
This could have been nothing more than a 'friendly' warning for Romani to keep his eyes to himself in the future.
It was a desperate thought, but it was one she was clinging onto like a lifeline.
Her hands came down and she turned around, pacing back towards Romani and moving towards her equipment. She barely noticed the raised brows and the concerned look her husband was sending her, his ignorance was as relieving as it was…she would not call it annoying, but it was frustrating.
He didn't understand the magnitude of the situation.
She could tell he didn't because he wasn't a sputtering and nervous wreck at the moment.
But he could probably tell something was wrong, especially after her rant earlier.
The memory made her grimace at the way she had exploded at him. He didn't deserve that, she hadn't truly explained the severity of it before she just unloaded everything she had pent up.
"...I'm going to make a log of the signature against you, alright?" The words slipped out of her mouth slow and hesitant, she glanced at him to see if he acknowledged her at all.
A shallow nod of the head brought a smile to her lips, a tiny thing but she truly felt it this time.
"I'm going to tune it into your watch. If it detects the same signature again then we will know whatever being…saw you, is in the current vicinity, alright? And at that point…"
She rolled her jaw.
…Ironically, the safest place for him would be with the Devils of the school.
Certainly far away from her if the Divine came looking for him, they would come to the house first.
…Yes.
That was fine.
She could…she could think of something.
There was something up with Asia.
Issei could tell rather quickly from the way she was carrying herself, and he was certain that it also had something to do with the fact that Romani Sensei had been suspiciously absent since the day began.
He had avoided asking about it directly, mainly from the way Asia looked.
Something had happened and he very much doubted it was something pleasant.
Arms folded, he watched her from across the room, narrowing his eyes in thought before he glanced across to where Lainur-sensei was in the midst of teaching something. As he recalled, Romani and Lainur-sensei were friends with one another, so he could probably ask him as a means of avoiding dredging up something unpleasant with Asia.
He could tell she was barely even focusing on the lesson.
Whether Xenovia had noticed it was something he couldn't really tell, but he knew she lacked delicacy.
He'd need to tell her to not just blurt out some insensitive question.
With that in mind, he returned his focus to the lesson - as much as he really could manage - and then waited for the minutes to tick past until the bell signalled.
It was a long time from his perspective, but when it went he was quick to rise to his feet and stroll past Asia, shooting her a friendly smile as he passed her by. She did not quite match it, but she gave an attempt.
Issei debated whether that was worse or not.
The way she was trying to smile despite clearly not being able to feel it was definitely troubling for him.
He turned away from her and continued his walk to Lainur-sensei, the green coated man - Issei wasn't sure he had ever seen the man wear anything else except for that coat and hat - didn't seem to realise he was approaching. Having seated himself behind the desk and sorting through the papers that had been handed to him.
"Does something bother you, Hyoudou-kun?"
Issei jolted a little at the way the teacher addressed him, nevermind the fact the man hadn't even raised his head.
It was eerie, but he set it aside.
"Yeah, I was just wondering where Roman-sensei was."
Lainur stopped for a moment, then brought his head up and briefly looked at Issei, then glanced past him towards the direction of Asia for a couple seconds. It was a short twist of the head, his eyes didn't even open, but Issei could tell where he was looking. When Lainur returned his closed gaze to him, there was something different about it.
The gaze felt…lighter?
Weird.
Lainur sat up and set the papers to one side.
"Leona was kind enough to pass along a message. It would seem as though Romani was involved in some manner of accident this morning."
Accident?
But…that didn't make sense.
"She did not say when he would be in, but that he was recovering rather well enough. If that should put your heart at ease, Hyoudou-kun, our resident nurse will be back before you have even registered his disappearance…Though, in his absence, I am sure there will still be someone assigned to the nurses office…"
He trailed off, then glanced down at something and rolled his jaw.
"Mmmmmh. I would wager it would either be Yokota-sensei or Masaki-sensei. Perhaps a mixture of the two of them."
A smile returned to the face as Lainur turned back to him.
"Are there any other worries you have for me, Hyoudou-kun?"
"...No, that's just it." He nodded his head and waved his hand, still with his mind whirling in confusion.
An accident.
But Asia lived with them, if there was anything even remotely physical then she would have him healed up within the span of a few seconds. Even beyond that, if it came to something magical then there was Mrs Archaman there as well.
…Unless…
He turned around and walked back the way he had come.
…Could it have something to do with his eyes?
That was the only thing he could think of, but it had never happened before. Then again, there was nothing to say that it couldn't happen at all.
Raising his head, his steps faltered a little as he saw Xenovia standing over Asia's desk and speaking with her. He strained his ears and quickened his feet, the blonde wasn't showing much in the way of an expression, but he moved a bit faster and was right next to them.
Both of them turned on him.
"...Hey."
It was a rather awkward greeting, he would admit.
Xenovia tilted her head, then made a noise. Dropping her fist into the palm of her hand. "You are also eager to continue the training of Gasper then, are you?"
He blinked. "...Huh?"
He got a tilt of the head. "Was that not why you rushed over? I was inviting Asia with me so that we could further the progression of Gasper's control…though I could aid you as well, I believe. It has come to my attention that you have obtained a sword? I was not made aware of the specifics from Lady Rias."
Turning to him, she stepped forwards and then folded her arms behind her back.
Issei leaned back as she leaned forwards, there was a sudden glint in her eyes that felt decidedly ominous. Already he was having visions of her light 'training' with Gasper, all of which involved trying to beat the kid like he had been caught peeping on the kendo club. He managed to suppress the phantom pain at that memory.
Then it occurred to him exactly what Xenovia was offering.
Issei slowly took a step backwards.
Her hand lashed out like a snake, catching him just below the elbow before he could retreat.
He winced at the tightness in her hold, as with the way the glint in her eyes got a bit sharper than a few seconds ago. Her otherwise stoic face shifted, there was a mounting pressure in her gaze as she pulled him back towards her. Resisting was rather impossible.
Mainly because she was freakishly strong.
"It would be in your best interest in the future." Xenovia continued onwards, her voice having dropped a little. "And I believe it would be for the benefit of Gasper if he was to see that it was not just him who was required for training."
Issei blinked.
That was…actually rather considerate of Xenovia.
The blue haired girl blinked and tilted her head, furrowing her brows. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Huh? Sorry." Issei glanced down at her hand still wrapped around his elbow, then glanced back at Xenovia and shifted his arm a little, raising his other hand and waving towards the anchored limb. She watched him for a few seconds, then seemingly came to the conclusion that he wasn't about to escape anymore and released him.
He would need to check for handprints on his skin.
"That aside, I was asking if Asia wished to accompany us." Xenovia turned her head from him and down to the blonde. "Given the intensity of the training, it is likely that her services will be needed."
Issei just stared at her and raised his brows.
"...Should I be worried?"
"Why would you be worried?" The fact she looked concerned when she asked that, as if something was amiss, had drops of sweat form on the back of his neck. "I assure you, I will do my utmost to ensure that you are trained to the best of my abilities. I swear that I shall not hold back against you."
"I'd appreciate it if you did." He spoke through a smile that was all teeth.
"Nonsense." Xenovia waved her hand and spoke in a tone full of dismissal. "It would be shameful to treat you as lesser. As the…" she stopped and glanced around the classroom for a couple seconds, then continued on. "...As an individual such as yourself, it would be best if you were to be trained with my full abilities."
A sound broke the two of them from their conversation.
Issei turned first, seeing Asia with a ghost of a smile on her face and giggling lightly to herself, raising her head up and looking between the two of them, her eyes settled on Xenovia and softened. "I think it would be best if you went easy on Issei-san. He's not as good as you are, Xenovia-san."
He did not flinch.
Even if his confidence took a small blow.
Yeah, Asia was right though.
And hearing her laugh managed to put off whatever self-esteem blow he would have otherwise suffered as a result.
Xenovia looked thoughtful. "Truly? I would have thought with Kiba…"
Her mutter trailed off, she shook her head and looked towards him. "How much are you aware of?"
"None."
"...Oh."
Xenovia seemed surprised by the answer.
He wasn't sure if he should have been offended by that or not.
"...I see." With a thoughtful frown, the girl cupped her chin and glanced down, supporting her raised elbow with her other hand. Her brows pinched tight, then she gave a slow nod of the head before looking back to him. "I would have wished to know this earlier, but it is no worry. The basics then…unless you would rather train with Kiba than-"
"You."
He did not even hesitate in answering.
"I'll definitely take you."
Asia was sending him a rather sad look. "But Kiba-san would definitely say yes…"
…Didn't he know it.
But the way Kiba was acting around him was getting a bit weird.
The other day Kiba just walked up to him and asked what the best boob size was.
Issei still answered the question, because who wouldn't give the answer for it? But all the same, it was a bit strange that Kiba had just walked up and asked him that right out of the blue.
The way the guy spoke like a robot as well.
Weird.
He'd expected to be left alone for the majority of the day.
Really, that was how it was every other day.
Though when he watched Romani come into his small room, he had initially flinched, but it was only when he actually realised who it was that he calmed down, if only a little.
The peace quickly faded away when he actually looked at the nurse properly.
Gasper pulled a frown as the man walked in without much preamble, it was as if he was walking while asleep. An eerie silence about him as he strode in without knocking and then moved to the corner of the room, placing his hands on his lips and letting out a long sigh.
He went to open his mouth to say something, then paused when Romani turned back around and faced him.
"Oh…hey, Gasper." Romani raised a hand rather slowly and waved to him, walking back across the room towards him and then sitting down on the ground about a metre or so away from the cardboard box. He went still for a couple seconds and winced, looking at him with troubled eyes. "I'm not bothering you, am I?"
"No." Gasper answered and he was surprised to realise that he actually meant those words. "Just a little surprised…Rias said that you weren't in school this morning, I thought you were hurt…?"
He trailed off at the brief look that flashed across the face of Romani.
Gasper knew that look all too well, the sort of face someone made when a topic they didn't want to discuss was brought up.
It lasted for only a couple of seconds before it faded away, Romani gave a faint shrug and turned his head. "I had a rough morning."
That sounded like an understatement.
"...I just popped in briefly to let you guys know I was actually alright and…well…" A wry smile fluttered over his face, he raised a hand and jerked it over his shoulder. "I also had to make sure that Toujou-san hadn't raided all of my sweet supplies and made off with them."
Gasper felt a smile form on his lips.
That did sound a little like Konkeo.
"Are you…alright now?"
He did not get an answer immediately.
Just a short but tense silence, then Romani grunted and mumbled under his breath. "As alright as I'm probably going to ever get."
He frowned and opened his mouth.
Romani looked back at him, folding his arms and humming. "So how have you been getting along with everyone? I figure they would still be trying to get you outside and everything but…you've been alright, yeah? They're not pushing you too far, are they?"
It was a strange thing for him to be spoken to like this.
But he did not find it wholly unwelcome.
"They…" Gasper wet his lips and looked down, curling his arms around his knees and shifting his shoulders, making himself smaller. "It's definitely a change…"
The words came out fairly muffled, on account of burying his face into his knees.
"But I'm…I'm trying my best."
"Good." Romani nodded his head, his lips pulled up into an expression that almost looked proud, but not quite in the same way that one would have seen on an upper class noble. It reminded him more of the type of smiles that Valerie used to give him.
"That's all anyone can ask of you."
He wanted to ask what if his best wasn't good enough.
But he held himself back.
Instead, his eyes flickered towards Romani and took in him for a couple of seconds, then he wet his lips.
"...Are you…alright?"
He wasn't sure why he asked, but he just felt the need to do so.
"...Something happened this morning, it's why I wasn't in." Romani spoke after a brief silence. "Leona's trying to hide it to not have me worry but I can tell she's really…it got to her. Asia as well and…it's not like I could help it. I try but I just don't even know where to begin."
He raised his hands, looking down at them.
"...It comes and goes and I haven't gotten any control over it. So…I see them worrying and I just-"
"Blame yourself."
Romani stopped and glanced upwards to meet his eyes, it took Gasper a second or two to realise he had spoken the words out loud rather than in his head.
The nurse gave a slow nod of the head.
"Yeah…I see them worry over it and I just…" His arms dropped and he let out a breath. "You probably don't want to hear me talk about all of this-"
"N-no!" Gasper blurted out, shifting a little and crossing his legs as best he could, though the width of his box made it a bit difficult, only managing to make it a half position. But he caught himself and drummed his fingers against his thighs. "I mean…I…We talked about it the other day, didn't we? So…"
He wasn't sure what else he was supposed to say.
But he felt like he could understand.
No, he did understand, even if he didn't know the complete context.
"I suppose we did." Romani hummed quietly, then nodded his head up and down, offering a sad smile by the end of it. "...So how has your day been?"
Gasper blinked. "Eh?"
Romani shrugged. "If we were to start talking about all of this stuff…sorry, I'm just looking for a lighter topic."
"...I can understand." He shuffled, then leaned forwards. "Well…I-"
He stopped when a shadow came across the pair of them, he looked past Romani and towards the doorway, blinking and widening his eyes as he stared at the figure who darkened the doorway. Romani blinked and turned his head, looking over his shoulder and then twitching in what Gasper would have called guilt.
He knew who this was.
"...Nurse Archaman." Sona Sitri stepped forwards, light glinting off her glasses and giving the impression of headlights rather than anything else. "I heard you had arrived and went to the nurses office to examine your current condition…and then I heard you had come here."
Romani shifted. "...Sorry? I was…uhm…"
Quickly the man shuffled to his feet, or as he could really manage.
"...Sorry."
Sona watched him for a moment, then her eyes fell upon him and her features softened. "And it is a pleasure to see you, Gasper-san. I suppose we have had few opportunities to speak with one another in the past."
They did not.
And he was fine with that.
She was a rather scary person.
"I apologise for disturbing you, I merely came to collect Archaman-sensei."
"Right…yeah…" Romani slumped and nodded his head, glancing at him and then raising his thumb. "Speak to you later then, yeah? Good luck with the rest of your day."
"Y-you too!"
The pair of them shuffled out of the room, leaving him alone to his silence.
Gasper fidgeted.
…He supposed he should get ready for Issei-san and the others to arrive.
Quickly, he found himself blinking as he realised that the thought wasn't as daunting as it used to be. Perhaps he was slowly getting used to them?
…Then he remembered what the training would involve.
He winced.
Ah, yes.
There was the terror.
Sona found the silence comforting to her at least.
Though from the way she could feel Romani shifting behind her, not to mention the growing scent of sweat, it was clear he did not feel quite the same way.
She stopped walking.
Closing her eyes, she took in a deep breath and turned around, opening them once again and staring at the man for a few moments, her eyes dancing up and down as she took in his current shape. He did not seem to be all that unwell on a physical level, but she could not be entirely sure.
"Archa-"
She cut herself short, her words trailing off.
A moment later, she softened her features and shifted her tone.
"Romani-sensei." She began again, immediately noticing the tension start to drain out of the nurse at her change in tone. She did not want him to think that she was criticising him for his actions. Romani was many things, but she did not consider him quite such a slacker.
Recent events had shown just how committed he was.
"...Are you truly fit to come into work today?" The inquiry was met with silence, his eyes slid away from her and to the side. "Yokota-sensei and Masaki-sensei are capable of handling your role for a single day."
Further silence, she opened her mouth to continue.
Romani shook his head. "I'm not…it was just a rough morning for me."
Sona slowly raised an eyebrow and stared at him.
"...Romani-sensei." Her words came out firmer this time. "I do allow you some measure of leeway on account of your circumstances, but I do not approve of any in this school, be they staff or student, pushing themselves past their comfort levels. It does not make for a healthy working day. Either for yourself or for any who you will treat."
Narrowing her eyes, she looked at him once more, this time he met her gaze. "Now I will ask again. Do you truly believe that you are fit to work?"
"...Yes."
"...Then I will accept that answer." Even if she did not wholly believe it, was left unsaid. "And I will remind you that it will not simply be you use suffers…But that aside, I am relieved to see that you are…fine. I heard of an accident and when Asia arrived I assumed the worst."
Suffice to say there had been quite a bit of theory crafting as to the nature of the injury.
Especially because the presence of Twilight Healing being unable to render immediate aid left quite a weighty implication.
"It's…" Romani bit his lower lip, raising his hand and pressing it against his forehead. "I had a bit of an…episode."
Episode?
Ah.
Yes.
Sona hummed and nodded her head in understanding. Suddenly it made a great deal of sense why Twilight Healing had not been able to do anything.
"Would it be inappropriate of me to ask if you managed to glean anything from this episode? Perhaps as to the type of Gear or Soul you are in possession of?"
It might have been rather sudden, but she was curious.
Romani's situation was one that certainly warranted that level of curiosity, especially after the last time he had an episode involving a very large beam and a dragon falling out of the sky. It was the sort of thing that merited interest.
She mentally reprimanded herself at how she sounded.
He was, for all intents and purposes, a regular person even now despite all that happened to him.
Romani looked across to her with an unreadable expression.
"...No, forgive me for trying to pry." She looked away. "That was…"
Sighing, she shook her head and turned.
Honestly, with everything that was happening, perhaps this was not quite where her mind should have been at this moment.
Another step and she pushed the door open and back to the front of the club house.
"Not going to answer then, huh?"
She froze on the spot and stared across at the figure darkening the now open doorway.
"I'm interested in the answer."
Stepping forwards, the silver haired teen slipped his hands into his pockets and leaned against the doorframe. Sona took a half step backwards as the hazel eyes slid over her. The boy wore a rather confident smirk on his face, but perhaps it was a confidence that was earned.
Especially from the way he carried himself.
And the aura he was letting out.
His eyes moved away from her and over her shoulder.
"Come on. I'm curious." He continued on, dismissing her entirely. "What type of episode was it? I can assume by the lack of beams in the early morning that it was a rather boring one. Still…anything that can unlock more of your powers is definitely a bit interesting, isn't it?"
Sona moved completely in front of the nurse and tensed herself.
"You…how did you…?" Trailing off, she narrowed her eyes and looked him up and down for a split second. Even with her movement, he was not even paying her the slightest bit of attention. "I demand to know who you are and what business you have here."
That earned his attention.
Hazel eyes dropped down and looked at her, glimmering with some form of mirth as he stepped away from the door and leaned down. She grit her teeth as he pushed against her with his own aura, a force that pressed on her shoulders like an avalanche.
Her legs trembled but she remained on her feet.
If anything, that seemed to amuse him even more.
Suddenly she was yanked backwards, one moment she was staring at the silver haired boy, the next she found herself looking up at the back of Romani. It took her a few seconds to realise what had happened, yet when she did, she felt her skin turn pale as the blood rushed out of her.
"Oh?" A chuckle came from the teenager as he leaned backwards, Sona glanced around from behind Romani towards him, the boy had his full attention on the nurse. "Well. You might have a bit of spirit about you…but don't go thinking that just because you can hang around the Red Dragon Emperor suddenly means you can-"
The boy stopped, then frowned.
His eyes narrowed to slits and he slowly turned his head over his shoulder.
Sona frowned and followed his gaze, briefly allowing herself to feel a bit of relief at the sudden change in aura.
It probably meant that her sister was-
She stopped when her eyes landed on a figure striding towards them.
…That was most definitely not her sister.
"What's all this then?" The man called out, voice on the edge of laughter. "Don't tell me that Albion has fallen on such hard times that he now goes to schools to shake kids down for lunch money?"
Long blonde hair, sunglasses reflecting pale light and loose fitting black jacket, a halfway buttoned up white shirt and navy coloured jeans with tears across the knees.
The man came to a stop not far from them, leaning his head back and wearing a wide smile.
"I'd say you can't fall further, but that would be a lie."
The silver haired boy straightened immediately.
Sona, meanwhile. Found herself fixed in place.
Albion.
The man called the boy Albion.
Which meant he was…
Her eyes darted to the back of the teen, now ignoring them, as everything clicked into place.
She heard that the White Dragon Emperor was a part of the Grigori delegation, but he had not been present for the initial preliminary meetings. Yet he was here now.
Sona swallowed rather thickly, her eyes moved away and to the other man, the taller blonde one.
…She did not know who that was.
But being in his presence…it was as if someone had put her in a vice and trapped her there.
This man…he wasn't anyone ordinary.
"...What are one of you lot doing all the way out here?" The White Dragon Emperor asked, his voice somewhere between surprise and interest. He paused, then twitched his head for a moment before huffing loudly, his hands coming out of his pockets and folding over his chest. "...Really? So you're one of the sort from across the other side of the world? I heard that you all kept to yourselves."
"What can I say?" The blonde offered an easy going smile. "I like to get around and do some sightseeing. Hardly a crime, is it?"
He stalked closer, moving until he was nearly face to face with the teenager.
"And as of late…I'm seeing some pretty amusing things."
"And would you look at that?" With a shudder and a roll of the shoulder, the White Dragon Emperor grinned.
It was a sharp grin and promised nothing good.
"I was just starting to think that all the tourists around here would be boring. Tezcatlipoca, right?"
Sona felt her brain crash.
…Tezcatlipoca…
T-the God?
T-T-the white Dragon Emperor…and a Chief God were here…right in front of her…
She looked between the two of them, the world suddenly feeling very heavy…
And they looked about two seconds from throwing punches…?