Matsu had curled himself into a ball and was resting on his side in the bed. Shi had once again found that the white haired man had placed up an impenetrable wall around his own mind keeping the Vessel spirit out despite how unnerved he was. Matsu breathed out seemed to lay further into the bed. I want to kill them... I want to kill them all..... he sighed outwards to himself and closed his one golden eye for a brief moment.
A nurse walked in and all but panicked thinking that Matsu had fainted or something of the like due to the way he was on the bed. However, the white haired man forced himself up and put his hands in front of himself in order to at least try and prove that he wasn't in any way shape fashion or form harmed other than what he had already sustained. Sighing outwards the nurse explained that Matsu was going to have to take a different assortment of vitamins and things in order to keep taking the different pain medication. The white haired amn stared a moment as the nurse walked about the room explaining this.
"Hey what are you doing!" the nurse's sharp voice was the only thing that brought Matsu back to his own mind set. Feeling red liquid move down his face, the white haired man sighed outwards as his nails dug into the bandages and the skin just under it. The nurse was lived and frantic at the same time as she rushed over and tried to force Matsu's hand away from his face. The white haired man complied only as an after thought, and the nurse began to page people frantically in order to get things re-bandaged.
"Sorry..." Matsu said aloud looking at the nurse now with a sideways glance. A strange smile rested on his face still which managed to unnerve the nurse beyond reason.
A doctor rushed in and assessed the all but attack on Matsu's eye area once more and began to re-bandaged everything. However, just as the man was about to take off the previous bandaged around Matsu's eye, he felt his hand seized by the white haired man. "Don't," Matsu ordered sharply now leering at the doctor who was only trying to help right then and there. "I can do that myself." With that, Matsu took hold of the roll of gauze, forced himself up off the bed despite the fact that the doctor was now all but ordering him to sit down again, and walked out of the room down the hall to the bathroom.
It was one of those single bathrooms that one could lock from the inside. Locking the door before anyone could get in, Matsu stared now into the bathroom... or rather across it... at his own reflection in the mirror. The white haired man stared harshly for a good few seconds before sighing outwards and walking forwards to stand in front of the mirror. Turning on the water, Matsu began to remove all the bandages around his eye. If I'm going crazy... at least I know why.... Matsu sighed to himself taking off the last bandage and allowing his other eye to stare into the mirror.
The other side of Matsu's face looked still in ruins, yet what caught a gaze the most... was the circular white tattoo-like markings that had arranged themselves in the pattern of what could only be described as the sun and its rays but far more intricate. Sighing to himself, Matsu let a half smile take his face. Looking in the mirror again froze Matsu. His eye blinked sharply, and he resisted the urge to recoil right then and there.
Standing in the mirror next to him was Hiawai. She was there for a split second and was gone by the time he blinked. Matsu let a strangely pained sigh out of himself. I didn't just see that..... he reassured himself and shook his head starting to unroll the gauze and fix his face up again. Finally finished, the white haired man shut off the water and looked down a minute. And as long as only Sho knows..... a calm smile worked its way on Matsu's face, and he nodded carefully to himself. It will be fine....
~*~
You're getting better.... Ookami mused a bit to himself as Aiba finished his last swing at the remaining blocks.Time to switch it up.... Almost instantly the wolf took form again in front of Aiba. Bowing his head a fraction the Wolf turned a bit. Now call Kuma. Sighing outwards a fraction tired of training, Aiba put his hands together and thought up the image of the Bear. The Bear, unsurprised that he was being summoned, came forth instantly. Ookami smirked a bit at Kuma in the way an old friend smirked at another after telling a joke he has told many times in the past.
The Bear stared at Aiba before rising on his two back legs and seeming to take a different from as Ookami had. Feeling his grip tighten around a Gwan Dao, Aiba's eyes grew as the weight of it tried to force him to drop it. We are of the Honorable Forest and for this reason, we will all take a similar form. However, I will admit, Kuma's form is much more regal than my own.... Ookami mused a bit and smirked to himself before suddenly taking form as a spear in Aiba's hand. The boy felt the pressure of the downwards pull on his arms but resisted the urge to drop both.
Now that you have two.....we will increase the intensity Kuma's voice was loud in Aiba's head, and all the dark haired boy could do was laugh nervously. In that instant, what could only be described as bone soldiers began to break up from the ground. Aiba recoiled. They are not actual bone... they simply take the most logical form in your mind... chill kid.... Kuma laughed.
Now then... let's begin a different style of training.... Ookami sighed, and with that, the bone soldiers began to attack. Aiba was forced back but began to attack as well. He found them relatively strong opponents, and taking down one in itself was a challenge let alone the sheer numbers of them that were breaking out of the ground every second.
What did I get myself into...... Aiba thought to himself worried.
A lot of things.... Ookami mused back.
Time progressed, and soon the dark haired boy found himself becoming more adapted to the ways of things. He found that with the two instruments, he could keep the soldiers away from himself and still attack. It was an interesting method of things, and he was slowly getting used to it. Finishing up a round, Aiba finally stopped and sighed. Ookami and Kuma took their regular forms again, and the great Bear sighed outwards before looking off. Something has happened over there....not sure what though... Kuma mused. Aiba blinked but started to walk over towards them. Ookami sat down obscurely like a puppy at that point and waited for Aiba to return.
Hah Wolf.... Kuma smirked. I think you're Dog now.
Shut up Bear..... Ookami answered back shaking his head. The Bear continued to chuckle to himself anyways.
Noticing Puck was hovering in the air, Aiba walked over towards him. “They’re still at it?” Aiba asked as his eyes watched Aisling.
“Yeah,” Puck answered back.
“How long has it been?” Aiba asked finally wondered about the time.
“Hm…Over an hour according to this.”
“Wow, how long can those two go on?” Aiba asked turning his head to one side.
“Well we’re in Sanctuary so almost several days time. They can’t fight more than that, well maybe Brant, but Aisling will have to wake up eventually. And so do you.” Puck finished.
Aiba blinked before nodding a bit and resisting the urge to laugh nervously. “Oh right," he finished.
Aiba watched with a careful eye yet still couldn't help but be surprised when Aisling formed wings. For one reason or another, he had not fully gotten his mind around her being an angel until right then and there. Woah.... was the only thing that came to mind. After what seemed like a few minutes, Aisling seemed to succeed in beating back Brant.
“What happened?” Aiba asked suddenly noticing that Aisling looked on the verge of tears as she came back towards both him and Puck.
“Hey hey hey why are you crying?” Puck said exactly what was on Aiba's mind.
Yet another fairy seemed to suddenly look at Puck sharply. “Did you make her cry?” she demanded.
“No! I would never make her cry! You know that idiot.” Puck sot back.
“Then it was you!” the other said pointing at Aiba. Aiba blinked suddenly.
“What?! No!” Aiba answered back. I'd never make her cry! was what came to mind.
“It isn’t anyone’s fault…” Aisling finally spoke aloud. “I’m just mad at myself for causing Brant pain.”
“It was an accident! You didn’t mean to.” Puck shot in quickly.
“…I know but I still feel bad,” Aisling answered back.
“Wait I don’t get it. What happened?” Aiba said still unsure of what had haoppened.
“Oh right you couldn’t see his face from here….well to cut to the chase Brant’s face is pretty messed up. As in it’s burnt…” Puck answered back.
“How did it happen?” Aisling asked. Aiba said nothing but waited. “They look fresh like he’d just been set on fire.”
“It’s survivor’s guilt. Before Brant became a Card Spirit he failed to protect someone dear to him. The burns on his face symbolize his guilt and failure. Our wounds heal themselves extremely quietly especially after resting in our card case however the wounds that Brant suffers linger due to his state of mind. If he gets over his guilt they should go away but as you can see Brant hasn’t forgiven him self. The reason that he hides it behind the mask is because he didn’t want to scare anyone mainly you Aisling.” the fairy answered back finally.
A guilt..... Aiba found himself methodically chewing the side of his mouth. And....
Young Master if you do that, you'll be blaming yourself for Nino leaving.... Ookami sighed to himself walking up now with an even step. The fairies seemed somewhat wary of the Wolf walking up to them, and upon seeing this, Ookami smirked a fraction. You guys look like fireflies....I used to eat fireflies for fun.... he grinned a bit.
"Hey! That's not right..." Puck said crossing his arms in front of him as if challengingly. However, he had floated up a few degrees as though in order to avoid any sort of recourse from Ookami. The Wolf shook his head and looked back where Kuma was still waiting. The Bear, taking on a very human appearance by standing on his hind legs and crossing his arms waited and all but tapped his foot as though impatiently. Aiba resisted the urge to laugh upon seeing this.
The Terra Bear would not be that impatient.... Ookami smirked off in the direction of Kuma as though using this as a ploy to calm down the Bear. Kuma just looked offended and looked away sharply. The Wolf smirked a bit to himself. Do you want to be a Knight for a day at least, Aiba? Ookami smirked a bit winking at the dark haired boy now.
"A Knight? Like Brant?" Puck asked turning upside down. The other fairy seemed to simply wait for an explanation.
Or we could call Kurohyou the Puma that was chasing you fairy boy.... Ookami smirked up at Puck. Puck seemed suddenly wary of Ookami as though unsure whether or not to consider him a friend or foe. The Wolf simply smirked more to himself. Anyways.... call Uma and you'll see what I mean.... the Wolf smirked.
"The Horse?" Aiba asked turning his head to one side. "Um... ok...." he finished and began to summon the Horse. The mare that took form in front now reared up as she was summoned and then stamped her feet on the ground sharply as though wondering why she had been called.
Dog, you better have a reason for having the young master summon me..... Uma said looking sharply at Ookami.
Not a Dog.... Ookami sighed as his ears flopped back on his head irritated by Uma.
Kuma snickered but looked away sharply when Ookami had turned and was ready to slash the Bear open. Uma stamped her feet as though trying to bring back the situation. Sighing, Ookami turned back. Aiba blinked wondering when all of his summons had become such good friends with each other.... at least enough to tease one another without really meaning it. Upon seeing Aiba, Uma nodded a bit to herself and promptly walked over to him and knocked him straight over with a push. The dark haired boy fell back and blinked in an upstart of confusion.
After a moment, she neighed at him and started to take a different form as the other two had done. In that instant, Aiba found the weight of something even heavier than before in his hand. Trying to force himself to stand up again, the dark haired boy shoved the thing in the ground but found it too tall for him. "What is this thing...." he finally said aloud.
Westerners call it a lance... Ookami smirked. Now then... let's see what we can do.
~*~
“Aíne? Aíne?” Mei Rin asked aloud unsure of what had caused angel to stop. Suddenly the older angel looked back at the younger, and Mei was suddenly afraid she was about to be left.
“I’m very sorry but I have to see someone right now. I’ll be just down the hallway. You can come with me if you want to.” Aine finished.
Mei Rin's eyes grew, and she was about to ask why, but the angel had suddenly and very swiftly disappeared. The quiet angel was suddenly finding herself very alone. She turned and looked towards the interior of the cafeteria a moment, breathed in, and took a step inwards. I can do this.... I'm just talking to Ohno right? We used to talk a lot.. so... why am I nervous? I mean.... She found herself walking straight up to the table where Ohno appeared to be talking to some girl.
Mei blinked. Girlfriend? He... he.... PERV! Almost instantly the young girl picked up a plate and chucked it straight at Ohno's head. "OHNO HOW DARE YOU DATE SOMEONE ONE SO MUCH YOUNGER THAN YOU!" she shouted.
Ohno was smacked straight in the head with the plate, and his entire body fell backwards rather dramatically. Mei let a huff run out of her as she walked up faster now and suddenly slammed her hand on the table. Ohno carefully took the plate off his face and blinked a moment staring at the girl in front of him. They had the exact same features... red hair....brown eyes.... Ohno's eyes widened. "Mei?" he asked after a minute.
Sephira who had been talking more or less about a subject concerning spirits looked rather confused as to what exactly was going on. "Hu?" she finally asked. Mei Rin turned to the girl and tried to force a light smile. "Sorry about my brother.. he may look eighteen but he's twenty one and too old for you," she said aloud.
"Uh.... we're not together...." Sephira blinked a moment as though unsure of what else to say on the matter. Mei blinked as though in surprise.
"Then why are you eating with him?" she asked suddenly.
"Mei Rin...." Ohno managed again before suddenly standing up and hugging the girl before him. She was much shorter than him... frozen by time in the state of age that she had died in... yet she was there... right there....The dark red haired girl was nearly reduced to tears right then and there. "I... missed you... sister...." Ohno said after a minute. Mei turned around and hugged Ohno.
"I missed you too!" she said before releasing the hug and then smacking him u[side the head. "So why are you being a perv and taking people out to lunch! I saw you don't lie! You were buying lunch too!"
Ohno rubbed the back of his head. "Mei... Sephira was in the hospital... and Ame asked me to look in on her and things since she's taken on everyone as a responsibility...." Ohno forced a laugh from himself as though unsure whether or not he was about to get smacked again.
Mei Rin sighed outwards as though not fully happy with said answer but willing to compromise for the moment. Crossing her arms, she looked at Sephira. "Sorry about that..." she laughed nervously. "I tend to jump to the wrong conclusions..."
Sephira seemed to just blink for a minute before laughing nervously herself. "It's fine... no worries..." she said after another moment.
~*~
Aeirin walked out from her room wearing something that could only be described as Lolita. She liked the style despite that it was somewhat odd on her full formed body now. She liked it none the less. She was headed off towards where Ryoen's room had once been, but suddenly something caught her eye. Someone else was walking through as well. Noticing that it was Ryuu, Aeirin stared a moment and said nothing. A part of her blamed Ryuu for what had happened to Ryoen. If Ryo had acted as a traitor, she believed Ryuu would be the reason why. However, the orange haired woman would not speak this just yet. Unlike her more childish mind, her older one was ready to accept the idea of staying quiet for a bit. Walking still towards Ryuu now, Aeirin stopped about five feet from the slate haired boy.
“Hello Ryuu," Aeirin said calmly greeting the boy who appeared to blink back at her confused.
“Umm…..h-hello.” Ryuu answered back staring. Hah... he doesn't recognize me anymore.... the orange haired woman mused to herself a bit.
“What don’t you recognize me Ryuu?” Aeirin asked standing fully upwards again.
"Um...." Ryuu answered back as though still unsure as to who the orange haired woman was.
"Try 'Aeirin'," Aeirin coaxed a bit. "A-E-I-R-I-N," she spelled it out.
"Aeirin?" Ryuu finally asked as though mildly dumbfounded.
"Indeed..." Aeirin answered back crossing her arms in front of herself.
"What happened?" Ryuu asked as though accepting the fact that the woman he was seeing before him was Aeirin but still wondering worse no what had occurred to change her.
Aeirin said nothing for a moment but rather turned her head to one side and smirked at Ryuu. "What do you mean?" she asked with a light smile.
"You... got older..." Ryuu finally finished.
"Yes... I was in the need for a change..." Aeirin answered back mildly pushing back her hair now. "Ryo was the only one who liked my other form anyways....." she said mildly hurt by her own words. "So I decided to look into a few things...." she finished.
"A-ah...." Ryuu finally seemed to force the words from himself. Aeirin nodded a bit.
"I don't think I'll want to play as much as before, sorry in advance for no more games, Ryuu," Aeirin said after another moment. Ryuu nodded a bit before looking away as though realizing that it was Ryoen's death that had caused the sudden and drastic change in Aeirin. "Anyways... I'm off to Ryo's room," she sighed brushing past Ryuu now and continuing down the hallway. "Bye, Ryuu."
"Wait..." Ryuu finally said. "You're going to Ryoen's room?" he asked.
"What is left of it," Aeirin mused back. "I want to see if there is anything left."
"I'll come with you," Ryuu finally answered. Aeirin stopped walking and looked over her shoulder not saying anything for a minute. Her brown eyes stared challengingly at Ryuu. Ryuu seemed to take a step back as though unsure of what to do.
"Fine," Aeirin answered back turning around and walking down the hallway again. "Come." With that, Aeirin found Ryuu walking steadily behind her.
