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maikatc · 4 years

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Black Sun Tale | Her Lullaby

i said i’d post it today without a time, so here it is! you actually get to meet some of my favorite super-side-characters in this haha–

remember this is a first draft with only minor edits, but enjoy! comments are reception are always appreciated.

Oliver was off at school, leaving Ayu to his own wits at the house. Though, the assignment for finishing a section of the textbook deemed itself… ill-tasting for Ayu’s attention.

He doodled instead, most definitely, cursing his own drawings in the meantime. Thoughts of the events days prior already passed by his mind as almost nothing out of the ordinary. To be fair, however, Eilwen’s tests did pop up from time to time.

Despite the scenes he drew, those crosses and his own blood seeped an abnormality into himself while tapping his fresher skin. It ticked him. The thoughts of his relations to Akeldama poisoning him beckoned as another one of his mistakes. But I should’ve expected that, shouldn’t I?

Then there was Eilwen herself: follower in Akeldama’s society being punished by such simple items. The idea of her hands holding still from the burning cross stuck to him, leading him to wonder his own curiosities. Is everyone else the same, he asked. Certainly, they must have had pain tolerances similar to Eilwen’s words.

But, then again, he always had somebody to ask.

“Vittorino?”

“What is it, now,” he asked. His form appeared out by his and Oliver’s bed, sitting with an irked face.

“You… know Eilwen right?”

He scoffed, “Yeah, I’m taking you to see her later today.”

“I am?”

“It was a last-minute call,” he replied. “But why are you asking about her?”

Ayu adjusted himself before answering the question. “I just want to know what you know about her.”

The question brought Vittorino to a side-eye of thought, but he shrugged nonetheless. “There’s not much I know about her, or any first eras other than Alice –but everyone knows about her really–. All she really does is hate on Akeldama and stick herself inside her own room, but most of ‘em keep to themselves like us too.”

He fidgeted. “That’s it?”

“Yeah.” He then asked, “What, did she do something weird?”

“I guess she did…” He brought an explanation to the table. “I guess she was wondering about what’s happened to my body after dealing with Akeldama, which that was weird but… She tested me with a cross and her hands looked like they were burning…”

Vittorino’s calm face dropped just the slightest.

“She said it happens to everyone because of contracts, but she didn’t even bat an eye at it. I figure she’s just strong about it. She seems strong. But I just want to know how it is with other members in the society since– since it burned me immediately yet she took it like a champ.”

“Wait it burned you?” He nodded. “Huh, I didn’t expect that… I figured Oliver would but–. Anyways, you really wanna know about that stuff, don’t you?” Within a whim, Vittorino brought himself down to Ayu’s sitting level.

“It’s just been stuck in my mind for a while.”

“And that’s a bad thing to get stuck behind.” Digging through, he buried his hands into his pocket, viewing downwards whilst doing so. Soon, steam appeared out of the pocket as he paused, only to bring himself at a sigh when he brought it out.

There laid a wooden cross against his skin, burning up in a red yet he too held no response. “It’s a simple thing: it burns whatever is associated with a demon like Akeldama.”

“He’s a demon?”

“Probably,” he answered, “We figured once Alice told us some stuff.”

“So, he’s that bad…”

“Well, people take him for granted,” Vittorino commented. “Anyhow, this stuff is painful, yeah, but it’s just that some of us are used to the feeling by now.”

Ayu asked, “Why?”

“Because…” Vittorino shook his head, storing the cross back in his pocket and standing back up. “Because some of us like holding it sometimes… to think about things.”

“… Vittorino–”

The tallest chuckled to himself, turning back to Ayu with a cheeky smile. “I think I’m one of the only second eras who even do it, but it’s just because it’s funny. Like, we aren’t even allowed to hold it, how idiotic is that? It just shows how ridiculous all that stuff is.”

The lie radiated to Ayu’s discomfort, a good one for sure considering his character, but a detection in lies were somewhat of a tendency. “Vittorino, are you sure this isn’t about…”

He pushed the idea aside, “No, they were all idiotic. That’s why I left the whole place.” His foot tapped impatiently. “Do you want to go to Eilwen’s early or something?”

Ayu blinked at him, then back at the textbook. “… I mean, if it gets me out of language arts.”

Opening a door already, Vittorino rolled his eyes. “He really wants you learning all that?”

He followed him over to the forest entrance. “It’ll be important for when I’m older, and I really need to catch up anyways.”

“Yeah, like learning phonetics can help you fight stuff or whatever.”

“Ollie said that shouldn’t be my priority anymore–”

“That’s what Oliver said,” he argued, “but not what you decided.”

He ventured himself into the darker woods that steeped itself by its depths of a hillside. The conversation obligated Ayu to follow.

“I’ve been watching both of you ever since you guys had to be relevant in my life, and all you do is care about and follow others. But what about yourself?” The steps he trudged formed a beat to themselves, as if of a slow march. “Oliver’s was easy to notice since him caring causes him to start dying, and he stopped following people a while ago, but you’re less noticeable. For everyone, you’re less noticeable, since you aren’t dying from it. However, you keep caring and giving yourself away for other people. You’ll kill yourself eventually from just doing that.”

The speech brought fear to Ayu’s throat, as he gulped at those last words.

“’Everyone is manipulated by everything, but it’s in everyone’s power to take their own control.’” he glared down at Ayu. “That’s what I’ve been taught, and by now I think you should learn it for once.”

“… You were taught that by Akeldama, weren’t you?”

He answered, “Obviously. Like I said, he’s taken for granted with some things he says.”

Ayu had to argue then. “Vittorino, he’s a terrible person.”

“So, what if he’s a bad person? For me, he made me the great and living person I am today and got rid of so many lost causes from making more chaos.”

The excused seemed invalid with many counterarguments. “He caused the deaths of a bunch of lives because he felt like it.”

“And that’s where it is: he does what he feels. He has nothing holding him back and we can’t even imagine all the events he’s had in his life. He doesn’t follow anyone and that’s what makes him great!”

His excitement over the conversation peaked the slightest with his voice and giddy hands, to Ayu’s dismay.

“Oliver’s right, you’re a weird fuck.”

“If those guys are the ones that are free from all those rules,” he chuckled.

As they walked, Ayu tripped on a root again. “Why are we even walking here? Didn’t you want to drop me off at Eilwen’s?”

He shrugged. “I just like walking here, and I don’t actually have access to her room. She locked me out of it.”

“I…” Somehow, Ayu yelled in anger, “Vittorino! –”

***

Eilwen was found in the wild an hour later conversing with Alice. Though she hesitantly brought him back to the black-box.

As they sat together in their separate chairs, Ayu questioned her silence. “Why did you bring me here now?”

At the question, she bit her thin lip, her eyes piercing at him with an unknown feeling. Then sighed, “I asked Alice about your body’s behavior, and why you even have such odd relations with Akeldama… And I’m afraid I’ve now been tasked to prepare you for that answer yourself.”

Ayu blinked. “What do you mean?”

“I cannot explain any details. I’m sorry. However, you are not here for that; you’re here to learn of other matters.” Standing up, she grabbed her candle to light up others from behind her back, illuminating a distinct chart connected to her watch by a string. “That being the current members of the society today.”

Admittedly, Ayu groaned in the inside. “Can’t you take me on flashbacks again for this?”

She shook her head. “No, that’s rather unnecessary. I’ll only be explaining each briefly.” A face mirroring a sigh planted on herself. “Then you’ll meet some yourself.”

The last section peaked his interest at an instant, as his eyes beamed at attention once said. “You mean I have to meet them?”

“As annoying as it is yes. However, considering your importance, they won’t harm you now especially after the Margaret incident.” She shook her head, adjusting her hat while setting up her watch. “Now then, let’s begin with the second eras.”

After many psychopaths and silly characters in such a presentation, the watch clicked onto the final member. In his seat, Ayu sat intrigued but rather tired, with his arm barely lifting his head up. All the faces he only met on the board deemed themselves a weighing amount to handle by sight from their demeanors and smiles or frowns.

At least some members seemed human.

“Finally, we have the accursed, Bluebell.”

Ayu tilted his head. “Accursed?”

The picture brightened up with a woman in the forefront. Her body still like a portrait, she hung against a wreath of giant flowers delicately with her gown and hair flowing. Her hair welcomed itself like long roots of strawberry blonde that breezed down up until her waist. The gown glowed in a gentle white, small patterns of flowers speckled across its edges and rims, and sleeves cuffed under her wrists leaving an airy puff to her arms. But within it all, crowned with flowers colored vibrant and beautiful upon her freckled skin, she smiled, wide and calm.

The beauty and serene nature of her image calmed Ayu as that of a young, mystical mother. However, previous members already brought him to a distrust. Plus, ‘accursed’ was finally explainable with her appearance.

“Don’t trust her.” Eilwen explained, “While Bluebell is objectively the most gorgeous of the first eras, she is most definitely the least liked.”

“And why her specifically?”

“She’s just a sinister addle pate,” she grumbled. “She has not talked much of her origins but she either lied to many or she held multiple jobs as a caretaker, nursemaid, and florist whilst as a young mother. The happenings to what happened to her child are unknown, though she joined Akeldama without them.”

The image, in Ayu’s mind, continued to stare down into his soul somehow. While doing so, Eilwen explained her abilities and methods of extermination.

The concepts blended with Ayu rather poorly along with all the other new faces. “I get she hunts down kids but aren’t I safe?”

She replied, “It’s difficult to consider… and to explain. She likes to fool around with everybody in general. Although, I’m not sure if you’d even be affected by her.”

Through some thinking, Ayu shrugged. “I’ll be fine; Oliver’s singing is probably better anyways.”

Eilwen’s expression downed itself, proceeding to blow out the candles near the board and summoning a door. “I’m sure you will.” The door opened up her hands, which signaled Ayu to jumped out of his chair. “Follow me, please.”

And so, he stepped on out along her side, yet through the door was not the average forest of Fowls. Glass-ridden, a topless hallway was formed, large and wide in its endless interior. On each side of its walls placed multiple doors all of which caked against each other in their designs, along with small silver plaques beside them all.

“Woah…” Ayu breathed out into a smile. “This is cool!”

“This is where you have access to the houses and fields of every member in history.” The coat that blanketed her shuffled whilst she returned back to the door behind them. “Many will be empty, I warn you. And I won’t be accompanying you due to all their annoyances.”

As the door closed, he asked her. “Wait- Wait! How am I supposed to get back here? Or back to you?”

“Elementary, now that you’re here, just think of this hall and the door will appear. Don’t hassle over it.” Then the door finally faced him flat, its carvings of bells and old clocks mocking him.

The situation brought Ayu to a grumble, not so much any fear in his bones more so irritation of mentors. Perhaps the day was a bad mood, we will never know. Though after a huff and sigh, Ayu trudged forward to the first door in sight.

The new entrance glossed itself in comparison to all the other wood-like structures, shining along carvings of fancy men.

One of Ayu’s eyes lifted up at the design, its properness making itself more of an oddity. And already his guesses as to who it was appeared in his mind. He took a breath, motivating himself to enter in, and with his sight closed, he opened the door.

Barging in, Ayu stopped himself before his speed kicked in. Opening his blind view, he was met with velvets and greens, as well as stairs to his questioning. Stepping over, he greeted himself to what seemed to be a rich brat’s lair.

Yep, it’s him.

At the edge of the floor, a table sat furnished in cards and coins, as well two party members sitting on each side.

“… I draw three.”

“What do you mean you draw three? I had just went all in.”

“Well, you always cheat so you’ll be disqualified in two seconds once King comes back.”

“But don’t we always cheat?”

“Yeah, but the two of us can’t manipulate the card order.”

“Then that’s just too bad to be you.”

The two conversed at the singular turn. Their bickering brought Ayu to a slight familiarity. Soon, he spoke out, “You’re… Eden and Cosmina, right?”

They turned at him instantly, the girl holding a card by her two fingers without hesitation. The appearances began to clear up for Ayu, however their clothing and accessories contradicted that of past sights. The man, Eden, seemed to have lengthy brunette hair tied to the back, edges still rolling off from the knot and blocking up some of his face, though a piercing still appeared by the edge of his lip. His top comfortably laying against his torso and thighs as a well-knit turtleneck, yet the sleeves ripped themselves off. Then Cosmina’s hair changed to that of a slim cut down to her chin, with her uniform only consisting of a tank-top, shorts, and thin coat.

Eden questioned, “Are you the kid Alice mentioned earlier?”

“I thought he’d look more off-putting,” Cosmina commented. “Not that I’ll complain. Were you expecting King?”

Hesitantly, Ayu nodded.

She stared down into his soul. “Timid, I see. Well, there’s not much to be weary of here. We won’t bite, if that’s what you’re thinking. And King’ll be here soon, he’s only getting essentials.”

Ayu’s words stumbled within themselves, ultimately bring nothing of a reply.

“You’re calling booze an essential?”

“What else are we supposed to do waiting here? Might as well get a little tipsy.”

“I…”

“Jesus fucking Christ you couldn’t believe the number of parents at the liquor store today!” The door behind them all slammed closed. Ayu and the others whipped their heads to find the last member of the party. His figure lean and confidant with his boxes hung around his arms; his tailcoat flowed as he paced up the stairs. In Ayu’s eyes, the man’s eyepatch glistened in its dark cloth, his short haircut to match. “Oh, it’s the kid.”

“It’s Ayu…”

“King, perfect timing, he just got here.” Cosmina walked on over to the new figure. They greeted each other by King’s kiss on her cheek whilst he placed the boxes down for her to grab. He kissed down Eden’s cheek as well, to Ayu’s slight confusion. “He’s a little shy, so we’ll save the drinks for later in case you two do something stupid.”

“Oh, who are you kidding? We all go stupid with bourbon,” King laughed as he tidied the small mess on Eden’s shirt.

Ayu scurried in his spot. “You’re King?”

“In the flesh, hopefully.”

The answer forced Ayu to gesture at the whole room. “Aren’t you supposed to be the fancy one?”

He muttered, “Damn, I really do wanna drink. Mina, get the OJ.”

“On it.”

“Anyways,” the focus laid back on Ayu. “I suppose that’s how I’m seen in the society.”

“Yeah,” Ayu eventually brought himself to a seat. “You’re the fancy-ass ruler with the throne…” he then pointed at the other two. “And you guys were the servants?”

Eden cackled. “Oh god, that takes me back.”

The king chuckled a little with him. “Yeah, I guess that’s how it was.”

“You all had old fancy clothes and stuff… what happened?”

“That shit was hot, that’s what,” Eden answered.

The girl returned with cups of orange juice by a hand and placed it on the table for the others to grab. “There were too many layers back then, I’ll admit.”

“Thank you very much,” King snatched a cup. However, he offered to Ayu, “You want some? It isn’t spiked,” as he eyed the alcohol in the corner.

That in itself raised Ayu’s hands against it. “I prefer apple juice…”

“Huh, we haven’t had apple juice in a while. I’ll get that later.”

Ayu still grabbed the cup from him, taking a sip to a surprise of the nice taste. And no pulp. “– Still why’re you guys like this now?”

King handed himself his own cup while answering. “Well, I will admit that back then, we did act like snobs.”

“It was you who was the snob,” Cosmina retorted.

“And it was you all who went along with it,” he added. “But what am I joking, almost everyone in the first era has some kind of act going on, especially if we’re talking about back then.”

Ayu questioned with his cup, “What are you talking about?”

“Everyone here exaggerated themselves back then, whether it be by fashion or action. We were just the types who did both,” King explained. “And while we did like the roleplay and the clothes, being immortal for four hundred years made that a little boring.”

“Oh yeah,” the idea of immortality seemed so normal for Ayu by then. “How is even being immortal.”

“Oh, my god, it’s terrible!” Eden raised an arm.

Cosmina said, “Remember you’re supposed to live a life for less than one hundred years and imagine doing the same thing four times.”

“What she said,” King sipped. “We followed the trend of the society for a while which was ‘stay in your rooms to do whatever bullshit for eternity’. But we realized that, in itself, was bullshit.”

The swearing still threw Ayu off.

“Usually people would off themselves after being tired of immortality, but we knew that was a stupid idea considering our society deals. So, instead of killing ourselves or moping like the rest of the ‘woe is me’ first eras–”

“And the even more ridiculous seconds.”

“– them too,” King continued. “We just decided to go and have a life outside of killing.”

“By… drinking and living off of orange juice?”

Eden drank his own cup of orange juice when he spoke, “Nah, the bourbon’s only for when we’re stuck here.”

“… You’re gonna throw that out later, right?”

“No, why would we,” Cosmina asked.

And Ayu replied, “Because my dad always told me and my sister to throw that stuff out for Mom so…”

“Psh,” Eden chuckled, “Then that’s just a bad parent.”

“They were pretty nice,” he defended.

“I’m sure your parents managed to fix that up, or at least will do soon,” King pushed aside to Ayu’s own bitterness. “But, no we aren’t alcoholics. We go travel and find whatever’s fun in the new world.”

“What?”

“We visit all different kinds of places in the world and do whatever festival or party’s going on there. Because, why stick here for a hundred more years when you can do whatever you want?”

“Whatever’s fun or whatever sounds funny enough,” Eden added, pointing at his own piercing with brows together.

“It looks lovely on you, dear.”

The compliments gave Ayu another topic to look upon. “… And all you three are?”

“A couple.” Cosmina stayed in the background during all of the answers. “Is there anything of it?”

“No, not really,” Ayu looked down at his cup. “I just, don’t know anything about that stuff and I’ve never seen three people before so I was wondering why.”

“Fuck monogamy, that’s why,” King replied.

“I drink to that.” With the raise of a cup, Eden drank more of the juice.

“…?”

“We do as we feel, and we all like each other’s company. That’s all the necessary explaining,” yet even Cosmina casually sipped the orange juice. “You’re only a child but once you really understand, good for you.”

“Wait… do people like each other just because they like their company?”

King interjected, “Well, there’s more to it but…– hold on we aren’t here to give romance advice!”

“I wasn’t asking for any! I was just curious!”

“What, are you having a school crush or something,” Eden raised a brow at him.

“What?” Ayu scoffed at the idea, blushing in the midst, “No!”

“Alright then. That’s that.” He finally set his empty cup down after playing with it. “Are you going to ask us anything else or are you done with your orange juice?”

“I…” He set down the cup. “I think I’m done.”

***

The other doors Ayu entered were abandoned by their owners long ago, as Eilwen told. Some brought worn down activities for Ayu to venture into, though others laid barren. Those barren lands packed themselves up, from the owner ready to leave as he learned. The ghosted lands still hung around with bright colors, but the dim atmosphere brought him to leave early to every single one.

King’s trio seemed like the biggest treat of the day, alongside their flavorful beverage, but he tried to ignore that. Their modernist attitudes stuck to him, as well as their farewells to his visit.

“If you end up joining us, come over here because everyone else sucks!”

Not the kindest gesture, he admitted, but the message still stood. He questioned the message, Am I joining the society soon? Is that what Eilwen’s worried about?

The idea pleased itself easily, considering his associates and history. Besides, with everybody’s growing concerns to his own apparent growing importance, the aspect of him joining them seemed of a satisfying end to finish his mess, in some way of the matter. Perhaps he would receive more power than he could ever imagine or be granted his wish to undo everything in his life. That concept pleased himself the most.

However, the price still stood ahead of him. That price of taking another’s life for his own lingered in the concept. And to that, he availed from the chances quickly enough, his heart too strong to break by himself.

There ahead of him, was yet another door to enter. This time, the wooden décor carved itself into flowers and leaves growing into one another in intricate detail. The petals fell and the stems kissed the grass carved below. In such detail in design, Ayu gulped knowing who it may be. And yet again, he brought his arm to open up the door.

Stepping into new grounds, the soles of his old sneakers brushed up against long grass. It tickled his knees as his first views of the land were made. Despite the nature field, her land posed itself as disproportional. Flowers grew wild and of various shapes and sizes which many were larger than likely possible of a normal plant. They all swayed rhythmically to nothing, dancing to their own hearts content at the silence, but also the humming of another person in the garden.

He faced doubt in the eye, and ventured more inside, ignoring his own inner-warnings. Quickly after drowning of the leaves in front of his path, he discovered the source of the hummer. Her long, angelical hair swayed down like a river, covering her face alongside her crown of wild flowers. She mumbled a tune as she watered a bustle of flowers, but the identity was clear nonetheless.

Bluebell, his eyes darted down the nearest bush and hid in its rustling leaves. Even with his mouth of courage to Eilwen, her own words left a mark of warning once seeing her in person. He managed to not flinch, to itch a muscle, or to form a single peep of gripe. After moments in time, and some flashing of black and white, Ayu sighed. Soon, he rung his arms to start crawling away and making it out of the door–

“And who might you be?” As soon as he stepped towards the outside, the lady grabbed him by the hood. She yanked him back to his startled fear.

“Fuck–” He pulled the hood in front to resist choking, and struggled with his own feet to muster up. “Let me go!”

With his light weight, she lifted him up with ease, her copper eyes squinting at his appearance. Yet eventually, she smiled. “No, no, come with me,” she pulled him, “You look tired; you can sleep here if you need rest.”

“Let me out,” he yelled, but to no avail.

“Oh, don’t be fussy, Ayu,” she giggled, “This will make Akeldama fuming. Just listen to me.”

While the pleasure of Akeldama’s misfortune would have convinced Ayu another day, the risk of her ability still lied as a great possibility for him. “No– Stop! –” However, he was too late to make a hit.

“My dear, in sickness, sadness, and red, can sleep from a song with sigh…”

Her voice echoed and rang into his ears, slowly softening every inch of this tension and mind merely from those lines.

“Your life, your soul, your ending night will rejoice with us in light.”

The lullaby wrapped him around, stopping his struggles and whines and instead relaxing and numbing the pain.

“Despite these somber eyes, I can see, there is time to close them away…”

Such a clear, siren-like voice called to him. It chilled the bones that wanted end so recently and brought along a warmth that coddled him endlessly. Soothing him, his own eyes began to calm into a slumber.

“In hope, my love, without life in sight, your days will say–”

“BLUEBELL!” Alice screamed at her, interrupting her beautiful song. From the erupt end, Ayu snapped back awake with the lingering melody as he turned to the distressed woman ahead of them. She ran and snatched him away from the siren, to his dismay.

“Oh, Alice, you ruined his fun,” she said.

The head of the society glared at her. “You impudent–” yet she turned back to the young boy with closing lids, “Are you alright?”

Ayu remained silent, processing the event that just unfolded.

Another slowly walked into the scene, somehow shying away with her scarf.

“Eilwen, I told you to keep watch on him,” she stomped towards the mentor.

“I–” she stammered. “I thought he would be alright considering he’s of–”

“He hasn’t developed at all yet! He’s only a mere child at this stage!” Alice shrieked in her stop. “God, didn’t you think of how Akeldama could be upset by this? – Ugh, that’s beyond the point now. At least I managed to catch him before Akeldama arrived… How are you feeling Z– Ayu?”

The argument rather unsettled Ayu’s mood. The lullaby from before seemed as something to return to once more already… In all honesty, the song was not as horrifying as he imagined. “… I’m doing fine.”

“Be honest.”

More so, it lifted him up the slightest. “No, I really mean it,” he told her. “Kind of, uh, refreshed actually.” He forced a smile upon the odd feeling. That sense of wanting more began to kick in.

Alice nipped her lip and turned to Eilwen. “Do you believe it’d be alright to bring him back home? It doesn’t seem all that bad…” The head turned again to the wonderful lady. “We’ll only need to console you later,” she spat at her, who only continued to water her plants once more.

She scoffed, “You never tell us anything, Alice. How would I know of the consequences?”

“Well, your fun may have caused you your own death grave.”

Instead of anything else, Bluebell shrugged with a giggle, “Do you really think that matters anymore, Cecily?”

Alice huffed, patting Ayu towards the exit. “Let’s go; you need the rest.”

***

The apartment entrance shut as Alice led the way. Ayu scurried behind her, unsure of her silent aggression.

Oliver sat by the couch, legs crisscrossed and Ayu’s textbook on his lap. He poked a pencil by his hand, jotting down on whatever pages Ayu bothered to commit to the day prior. Corrections most likely covered the pages considering previous marks on his answers.

He turned around at them, his pale eyes peering at Alice. “Oh, hi… Alice, why are you here?”

Originally, Ayu would have pondered as to why Oliver never asked why he was gone; however, that failed to bring him down that day. Alice instead pushed him gently more towards the inside as she explained. “Ayu simply ran into a… mishap, while in Eilwen’s care. But don’t worry, she and I will take care of it.”

He dropped the book down onto the couch, standing up. “Alice, what happened?”

“It’s nothing for you to worry about. The most Ayu will experience is some improper thinking and a state of intemperance.”

“But I can’t ask why?”

“No,” she stated, her voice reaching a new low. “You aren’t to be involved with anymore things that can harm you.”

“So, he’s been hurt.” Oliver’s brows furrowed together at Alice, as he walked down to Ayu’s side. “Are you okay?”

He told him, “Yeah… I’m great, Ollie.” A smiled crept up the slightest in his dazed fate.

His face raised into that of confusion. Only for him to sigh, “Just go, Alice. You aren’t going to help me with this.”

She nodded in silence, and exited through the doorway and magic.

In the unknown, Oliver hummed and stared up until he faced Ayu again. “Okay, Ayu, what happened?”

Unsure of how to reply, the serious tone gawking him, he only answered back, “Nothing really… But, something really nice happened if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“… What?”

He figured Oliver would like his story. “I met this lady, who sang a nice song and I got to hear it… Too bad Alice stopped it though. Oliver, you should have heard it, she sounded amazing.” His mind bubbled at the thoughts of it. “I think I’ll go try and visit her again. You should come with me.”

“Oh.” His face softened the slightest. “Okay…?”

In the comforts of his thoughts, Ayu held up Oliver’s hand and gripped it in his smile. “Trust me, the song makes you forget about everything.”

At those very words, Oliver’s mouth sided downwards. “Sure,” his words slurred as he reached back in a smile.

Ayu let go of the hand, bringing himself to an arm stretch. “Well anyways, I’m gonna take a nap.” Drifting off, he told his final words to Oliver, “I’ll talk more about it later.”

In the room, instead of sleeping, Ayu actually giggled at himself and his own formulating thoughts. Not even sure himself as of why, he laid there, smiling and basking himself in the growing euphoria inside of him. However, his sense remained ever so prevalent, and his ways of listening peered from outside the room.

“You have a clue, don’t you, Vittorino?”

“Yeah,” he replied. “I’ve only heard of Bluebell, but I know kids are her main targets… He must’ve been affected by her ability.”

“… What does she do?”

He quickly jabbered, “It’s a more subdued but strong version of my ability. She sings people to sleep to kill them. But if she doesn’t finish her song…”

“Ah,” Oliver said once connecting the dots. “And it’s going to get worse, I assume?”

“Most likely.”

He sighed from the outside. “Goddamn it…”

But Ayu listened to it all, and all he could reply from it was to shrug. Oh well.

#writing #my writing #writeblr #writblr #writers on tumblr #swearing warning #religion warning?? christianity warning???#burning warning #murder mention #genocide mention #kinda #alcohol warning #child murder mention

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maikatc · 4 years

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we don’t talk about how i forgot to upload twice

#i have decent but bad reasons #1 for last week:#i was on a family trip #2 this week:#today was my brother's birthday #and i forgot #i tried being quiet about it and seeing if it would slide but uh #yeah this is me being dumb at this point #the chapter will be up tomorrow sorry

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maikatc · 4 years

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Black Sun Tale | Dearest

i feel like this chapter has a lot. huh. i’m the the lot is some great content though.

remember that this is a first draft with only minor edits, but enjoy! comments and reception is always appreciated.

A snore crept out of one of the two, gentle albeit messy… What a distracting noise, yet that of comfortable nostalgia from being bothered by such a thing, even if both were asleep.

Though regardless, the spring sunrise shined from the window. Its rays focusing on the room and gleaming on the third-grade textbooks, barely finished, or the piles of papers and utensils on the floor. The conundrum of a mess bustling itself with scribbles of drawings and poetry and leftover clothing picked out after shopping with assumedly-stolen money. Sheet music notes and lesson-charts sat comfortably on the side, piling itself and waiting for when it can scatter around the room with the rest. A ukulele shined from next to the bed and the bookshelf left ignored from the wavering sun whilst a switchblade was left hidden and ignored in the closet for the first time in ages. And with such a sight from the young boys’ room, the loving chaos still hid from outsiders that never knew of one of the two.

Those two however, shined beyond the rest. From one taking up majority of the bed, and the other almost fighting back with the blankets, they tangled up together in comfort of one another. Their breathing calmed with both of their touch from an earlier embrace and the mere knowledge of the other’s presence lifted one’s fears.

In the light, one awoke, bothered by it. His mixed eyes pinched with the rising sun, and in the matter of seconds, he realized their tangled position. Despite the oddity, he chuckled silently at the normality. With careful arms, he unraveled Oliver’s arms over his and attempted his best at rolling off again.

“You aren’t leaving him, are you,” she asked.

“Of course, not,” he whispered back. Away from the bed, his mind wandered to what item in the room to pick up first. For one, the instrument was off limits for the time being after almost breaking a string. Secondly, a sad burnout began erupting for him towards his sketchbook, as Oliver explained prior. Silence was always a rule for the night by Ayu’s standards, from when he snuck across rooms to be rid of his mother’s bottles, to even then to not possibly wake another mother.

He would have winced at the last choice of the textbook, however in his luck, Oliver stirred. Stirring always meant his soft waking in Ayu’s head. In the anticipation of the new day, Ayu lofted his head at the bed again, waiting for Oliver’s stirring to end, and his eyes to flutter up.

Oliver met his innocent eyes when he first awoke, shining brightly with those colors of blue and grey, no red in sight. His hands clasped empty, with the person he hugged in the night sitting on the floor next to him. Groggy, he sat up, pulling the blankets that fell over back into the bed. “Can you fix the blankets today?”

“Yeah.” Oliver rolled out of bed himself with the reply from Ayu. “If you let me skip the math questions today,” he smiled.

“Ayu, you can’t avoid long division for a week.” Oliver picked up some leftover papers from last night on the floor, forming yet another pile. “It isn’t even that hard to figure out.”

“Says the one who never struggled in school.” He grabbed a paper off of Oliver’s hands. “Besides, aren’t I getting a lesson from Eilwen today?”

“Yeah, but you haven’t seen her in a few months,” he took away the drawing. In it held a simple portrait of outside the window frame. Oliver smiled at the simplicity but continued, “And you haven’t been in school for almost five years. There’s a difference.”

Ayu pouted, to Oliver’s pity.

“To make up for it, I’ll make whatever you’d like in the fridge,” Oliver said.

He however retorted, “Isn’t that just the usual deal?”

That was actually a fair point surprisingly. “Well, yeah– but it’s better than nothing, isn’t it? Can’t do much when I’m eleven.”

“… I’ll take it.”

Ayu still sat on the floor with a paper and book on his lap; Oliver lied around in the freshened bed relaxing himself from finished work. Though, Ayu reached out the paper, pointing at a section of the notes, and asked, “Ollie, what’s the fraction remainder of this one?”

“Two-thirds.”

Eilwen sat by the edge of her candlelit room, darkened from the lack of light. Her head balanced crookedly to the rest of her body with her hands placed justly underneath. The pocket-watch seemed nowhere in sight but in front of her bestowed multiple items.

Ayu stood by the door, thoughts curating on what sort of lesson he would experience today. His nose tickled and ran from the odd scent of the room. And his eyes burned for no apparent reason. However; remained quiet without much of a complaint.

“Ayu, you do know your eyes are bright red at the moment, correct?”

In the question and the realization, he blinked and shook his head. “No, not really… But it doesn’t happen that much. Why does it smell funny in here?”

She answered the second question as a brush off. “I burnt some sage here before you arrived to see effects on you. But, you’re saying your eyes are something of occasion,” she asked.

“… I guess?”

The tension grew from Eilwen’s end. She breathed out. “I didn’t call you here for a lesson,” she said, “You’re here so I can test you.”

“What?” The word test frightened Ayu from Oliver’s past mentions of it. “Why do you want to–”

“Your associations with Akeldama are rather peculiar, are they not?” She stood up, holding the first item up against her gloves. Despite the covered cloth, the item steamed in her hands.

Ayu nodded, backing away in the process.

“I want to understand why Akeldama has such affiliations with you from what Alice had told me… What your connection with him is, in a sense.” Her eyes tilted towards the other items behind them then. “I assume you heal quickly like Oliver?”

The question rang worry. “Why are you asking?”

“I won’t if you don’t abide to it, but I hoped to see at least some blood samples from you to be frank.” The item still steamed in her hand, but her face showed no reaction.

The sight brought Ayu to ignore her answer. “Isn’t that thing painful?”

She finally held it in the sight of Ayu; it was a cross. “Why, yes it’s supposed to from our contracts with Akeldama. But I’ve held one enough times for my hands to be null void.” Her eyes blinked into a pause. “It’s safe to assume that this may hurt, and you may run off if you like.”

But the door already left them.

“Are you willing to help me run these tests?”

With hesitance, but curiosity, Ayu nodded.

“Thank you.”

Soon enough, Ayu was seated in a chair placed near the table, oddly ready for any testing.

Kneeling closer to him, she asked, “Where would you want this placed if it stings?”

He gestured at his legs, not as boney as their prior meeting, but enough for Eilwen to comment, “You seem to have harmed this place already…”

“Just get it over with,” he said.

With an eye at him, she replied, “Alright. Please don’t kick if it does hurt. I’ve heard of your strength before.”

And with the comment, she placed the cross down on his shin in the slowest of pace. From the tip of the metal to the mass of the shape, a burning sensation kicked instantly.

His urge to jolt attacked him with the pain, but instead of doing as such, he hissed instead for her favor, “Stop, stop, stop–”

She herself jolted from the command, and pulled back with a stern expression. Her eyes studied the shin it was placed in, “Oh dear.”

The recovery from the pain still lasted, up to his stomach’s own urge to somehow vomit. “What?”

“It seemed to have left a mark.”

“It what?!”

“Do you have a pain tolerance?” She asked. “Because it seems to be very harmful.”

The surprise made Ayu fluster, “How bad is it?”

“Close to blistering it appears,” she turned to him, “but it looks bad enough that you should have screamed…”

The scent of the room did not help with the minor pain that left regardless. “I can’t compare how bad it was… I don’t think I’ve been hit by someone before. I’ve only hit… others, and myself.”

Her staring froze. “Is that where these bruises are from?”

“Yeah,” he answered, “I’m dumb aren’t I?”

“Idiotic.” A hand grabbed bandages from the side and wrapped both injuries. “Let’s see what’s next.”

She pricked deep enough into his finger for a decent amount in her sample vile. The color of his blood strained darker than most other shades he had seen.

“What are you gonna do with that anyways?”

She answered, “Test it with everything else. The plant will be the more interesting subject considering how an iblis’ blood can be poisonous if found.”

“How poisonous is the monster blood?” It was a strange idea to Ayu, considering he had never seen the blood of the monsters before.

She scoffed, “You can turn into one of them yourself if you indulge in it, though it takes a couple of pints.” She grabbed the cursed cross again, “Let’s try it here first.”

On top of a wooden plate, the experimenter tipped the vile ever so slightly. With time, the dark blood crept down on into the cross, and at the first touch, the blood burnt off.

A click nipped from her lips. “Uncommon attributes in your blood I see.”

Throughout the entire procedures, her hands never wrote notes onto anything, to Ayu’s notice. Her calculations all occurred in her head with little analysis, and the methods all formally played out in her assumptions. In curiosity of these readings, he asked her, “How do you know all this stuff?”

Already, her focus faced the plant in the very corner. Its stems stuck up in thickness and lines whilst the leaves made no focus for themselves, leaving the stems to wander up and about around the vase. “I know most of these through experience. However, Alice did teach me of basic human study after her days in home remedy.”

Another drop formed from the vile into the plant, and after a mere second effects arose.

Eilwen stepped back from the reaction, as the stems that stretched so lively began to wilt and grow black. All the parts of the plant dove down from its previous ways and lied dead on its vase with the dark colors quickly proceeding.

“This…” Eilwen held her breath, only to Ayu’s wonder for the plant.

Despite its obvious death, once the black corroded through the being, it dissolved back into the vase. Then abruptly sprouted again into snapping little creatures. The creatures almost hissed in wails, seeping out the tiniest bits of liquid, but soon enough a flame was put through it.

The flame, brought upon by Eilwen and her candle, also died down relatively quickly with the monster.

Without Ayu even realizing, Eilwen huffed from assumedly her held breath. “That…” She placed her candle down. “I wouldn’t have guessed.”

The door appeared once again.

“You may leave,” she said, “I believe I have enough of what I need… Be wary of what’s to come soon.”

Oliver left himself in his ‘I give up’ stance again, lying down in the grass field after ages of exhausting himself over shapeshifting.

Into the sky, he groaned, “You think it’s supposed to be easier after making a fucking cup disappear but now you’re warping your physical form.” And the frustration leading his hands to pull his face.

With the sky, he stared at it for far too long. Enough for his focus to trance into the abyss of his blank thoughts. But after another blink, a pair of eyes stared down at him.

“What’re you doing,” Ayu asked.

The suddenness of his appearance bolted Oliver up, knocking their foreheads together evenly. “Holy shit,” Oliver hissed while getting up, “where did you come from?”

“I just walked up here!”

“But I didn’t even–” He paused. “Is this how it feels to get invisible-pranked?”

In reaction and quick recovery form the hit, Ayu only blinked. “I don’t know.”

“Great response.” Oliver brought himself up again from Ayu’s arrival. “How come you’re here so early.”

A shrug rolled from his shoulders, “Eilwen let me off just now so I came to watch you practice.”

The new pressure of the hour claimed itself to Oliver. Now with his widened eyes and his lazy state, he waited for Ayu to add.

“I’ll be quiet support,” he cheered with jazz hands, to the other’s adoration. “But… what are you doing?”

The topic, in which Oliver never wanted to try again, needed to be explained yet again by his sigh, “I got introduced to shapeshifting today.”

“Oh, my God,” Ayu jumped in his seat, “You’re doing it for once?”

“Yeah,” the excitement rolled Oliver’s eyes over. “But, I have to figure out how to deteriorate my body first!”

And with just those words, Ayu’s expression changed and his head tipped over.

“… I’ll turn into a black abyss then I can turn into things.”

“Oh!” The idea finally clicked. “That… Okay I get why that’s hard now.”

Oliver nodded along with him, and sat back down with him. “Today I’m just trying to get my hand to warp.” He placed his hand into front attention, and both him and Ayu stared into it.

“… Is anything gonna happen?”

“Nope.”

The issue brought some struggles into the table for Ayu’s day, as thought was required. Though luckily, ideas already crept through his mind during the conversation. “Did you try… turn your hand invisible.”

The command baffled Oliver at first. “What? Okay.” But the command was simple by this point. Within a few seconds, his hand vanished between the two of them. “Now what?”

He needed to think up of the words. “Pretend like that hand that should be there, belongs to someone else?”

“Like whose?”

“I don’t know.” Some digging dove in his mind. “Let’s say Faustus to make fun of him.”

Oliver chuckled.

“Faustus wants his hand back,” he said. “But you’re hiding that hand from him.”

“Through invisibility?”

“No,” he replied. “From making it not exist for him.”

With his foreign words, Oliver followed what Ayu said with hesitance. “Now what?”

“Turn off the invisible stuff.”

And from those silly words, Oliver did just that. His hand slowly revealed itself, to both of their dismay to see the typical brown. However, soon enough the tips of his fingers appeared, and one was missing.”

For a few seconds, they both stared. Then Oliver spoke out, “What the fuck?”

A bend of the hand later, the piece is still gone. He pulled it over and inside the missing piece of limb was a void of nothingness inside the hand. Eyes widened, Oliver shook it back and forth, and then poked himself with the finger. The piece literally was not present.

Disheveled, Oliver confirmed, “Okay, so I think it worked, but how do I undo it?”

“Uh,” Ayu panicked after realizing even he never knew what he was saying. His own limbs shook in thinking. “Just think it exists again?”

“I don’t think that’s enough description, Ayu!”

“Do you think I know what description is,” he barked. “I don’t know, bite your finger?”

“Ayu,” Oliver stated, “My pain tolerance is nonexistent; I’ll bite my finger off if I do that.”

“Fuck you’re right,” he agreed. “And I don’t want to punch you again…”

“Why are all your backup options involving me getting beat up?”

Ayu answered back, “Because those are the ones I was always taught!”

“Well, that’s another thing that’s concerning but we’ll talk about that later,” he exclaimed. But it turned out that after their small argument, they looked back at the issue and it already returned.

They both took a minute, but sighed in relief once they hit the ground.

“… You really resort to punching?”

Ayu reminded himself of the comment. After a few shuffles, he said, “I guess so.” He went on, “I ask what to do and it’s pretty much always fighting back… and hit yourself to make you stop. All that stuff.”

A tense grew in Oliver. “Ayu, that’s really not a good thing?” He rolled over towards Ayu, leaning himself on one arm. “That’s just bad for your wellbeing, and makes you a dick. Besides, it’s cooler to use your wits nowadays.”

Ayu replied, “But I’m not smart, I’m just dumb.”

And at that moment all the insults Oliver threw months before clicked back to him. Oh shit. “You can be smart, like just now. You were able to figure out deterioration before I could.”

“I guessed though. I didn’t even know what I was saying.”

“But it worked.”

“Even though I couldn’t help you get rid of it…” His body turned around, away from Oliver.

A small frown packed Oliver’s face, obvious of Ayu’s growing discomfort. A new strategy had to be formed, quickly at that. He stood up from their lazy states. “You know what? I think I know what we could do while we’re here.”

“What?”

And Oliver turned invisible.

“Really,” Ayu complained.

However, it was all in Oliver’s plans of new fun. Backing up, he set himself to charge at Ayu and run away of impact. Luckily, he gained some speed through his dieting, and the abilities helped. After a decent distance, enough to only view Ayu as a well-sized blob, he ran towards him. Swiftly, the breeze grazed his hair and face at the charge, and with nifty hands, he patted Ayu’s head.

“Tag,” he yelped while appearing again, only to hide himself once more.

“Oh,” Ayu got up as well. “Oh, you little fuck,” he smiled. A jump and a kick off later, and he busted running in his speeds.

The speed itself flinched Oliver for its arrival, but he laughed and continued running nonetheless.

For Ayu, however, was a different story. Despite Oliver’s own advantage of his invisibility, the crunches he formed onto the grass still paved his path everywhere he ran. Then lurking in his ears, Ayu heard those footsteps and all the twists Oliver made in his own escape, an experience he already faced prior. But regardless, he played along with Oliver’s sense of superiority in the game.

“Come on, Ayu! I’m pretty sure out of anyone, you can catch me,” Oliver cheered.

Oh, is that what he’s going for? Ayu sighed in his head, but figured Oliver was already putting all his efforts in anyways. Suppose he just wanted to lift his spirits, in fact, he was, but the comment already seemed forced. Regardless, he determined himself to take advantage of the moment. “Alright, guess I will.”

Tracking Oliver’s running patterns seemed easy enough. His turns, after a good bit of fake-running and waiting, finally made to where Ayu could catch him. And at that time and curve, Ayu ran for the win.

With Oliver’s breeze of a run, he turned his head to check Ayu’s whereabouts, ready for the next tease. However, he did not expect Ayu to run directly at him in the side, then tackling him with the yell of a, “Tag!”

The momentum of the tackle left both of them falling and rolling together on the grass in recoil. Through the rolling and tumbling with grass sticking to their clothes, it ultimately ended up with Ayu pinning Oliver underneath him in winning fashion. They stared into each other, but the rolling pains hit them both as Oliver laughed, “Okay, I think I lost.”

Ayu, blinking for a second, laughed back and let go of the position, returning to lie down next to him.

They giggled off a little more for the childish game, disregarding them still being children.

“The tackle didn’t do anything, did it?”

“No,” Oliver reassured, “The rolls just cracked my bones a bit much.”

“No breaking?”

“Pretty sure not.”

The new silent peace brought upon Oliver to add on to it. “… How long has it been since we’ve met?”

Ayu said, “We met in October, so that’d make it seven months, right?”

“Good math.”

“Thanks.”

Oliver continued after his compliment. “A lot happened after that, didn’t it?”

“Mainly because of coincidences but fair point.” The grass itched Ayu’s skin but in a comforting manner. “Honestly, the monsters have been gone long enough that I can relax a little more.”

“Yeah, now I’m the only one you have to deal with.”

“Don’t say that!”

Oliver giggled at his retort, “Okay I’m exaggerating; we haven’t seen the wolf in forever, I know. But you have to admit, I still have monstrous tendencies even if we doubt it.”

“Don’t we all?”

“… Yeah everyone here’s a little fucked up apparently.”

A calming ambiance chilled them over while they gazed at the sky together. However, for Oliver, the topics that he hid from himself and Ayu rushed back in his mind through the silence. The time was perfect for him to ruin it, but everything always ruined everything, so he pushed ahead.

“Ayu… How are you feeling right now?”

Ayu tilted his head towards him. “Good? This is kinda nice, you can say.”

“No, I don’t mean that,” Oliver said. “I mean, it’s good that you’re feeling good right now but–. How are you feeling about life? With how you got here, and the wishes, or your dreams?”

Ayu gripped his hair. “Isn’t that a little much to ask?”

“I just want you to let out whatever’s in your mind for once,” Oliver said. “Since I don’t think you’ve ever gotten much of that.”

“Yes, I have,” he argued.

But it was all invalid with, “Ayu, you told me you were taught to cope by beating stuff up six minutes ago.”

The counter jabbed Ayu a bit with his own prior words. He blinked a few times, then breathed out. “Okay, but there’s not much to say.”

“That’s fine, just let it out.”

Thinking forced Ayu to sit up. “… Where do I start?”

“Anywhere, I assume. And I’ll ask as you go on probably.”

That help reached Ayu as if nothing touched him. “Okay… I guess let’s start with my dreams?”

No reply.

“There’s nothing that bad with my dreams; actually, I think I like them,” he began. “Uhm, I like them because they’re good for my stories. But, they usually add more to it than needed from what people told me, and it makes everything too confusing for them to like. My stories are trashy, compared to how I wanted them to be since… I never told anyone this before, but…”

“But what,” Oliver asked.

For some reason, Ayu could never control his grin at the motive. “I’m making my comics for somebody; I want them to be proud of me after I worked so hard.”

A smile crept from Oliver. “That’s pretty sweet.”

However, the tone died after breaking innocence. “They don’t like how I made it, though. It’s disappointing… They said nobody would ever bother to read it… That’s one of the ways I’m kinda incompetent, really incompetent.”

“Ayu, you’re not–”

“Shut up,” he exclaimed, “you already told me that a million times.”

His tone brought Oliver to fear in his tangent. Had he ever heard the boy tell him something like that?

“I’m an incompetent, dumbass kid,” he said. “I’m that dumbass who killed so many people because I asked without thinking. I was eight sure but can I do anything about it now? No; because I’m too fucking weak to do anything about it despite every step I take and I’m hurting people somehow.”

His words picked up in volume, and his speeds brought his monologue into rambling. The more he spoke, the more he pulled his hair as well.

“Everybody is suffering because of me and my stupid, selfish wishes. I wanted to be a hero; I wanted to have friends, but I didn’t know what that meant. And I can’t stop it! I have to rely on everybody and sit around with only comics at my side and even that is terrible! I do nothing and I practically am nothing; pretty much nobody knows I exist anymore anyways. And none of this would have happened if I was a bitch and–”

With all of his huffs and drive, he stopped. Gasps for air came his way for his held breath. But soon, his breathing crumbled, along with his voice.

“Why did I run…?”

All of his venting shook Oliver in his core. The pieces of this conclusion seemed as something that laid right in front of him for ages. Yet, only now did he see them pieced together. And that, processed poorly. “Ayu, what–”

Ayu propped himself up and his feet moved with his mouth. “Fuck this.”

Oliver’s processing unit somehow slowed from its increasing malfunction. But once Ayu continued walking farther, he himself propped up into a quick run. “Ayu, wait.” He grabbed his hand, grasping it and holding it steady. Denying words could never work again, he figured. So, basic assurance seemed as the only thing of help. “It’s going to be okay.”

“How?!”

He gulped, “I’m here… and we’ll fix it all together. One step at a time.” Lacing their fingers together, Ayu’s shaking, Oliver brought to him a smile. The same peaceful smile he raised up to his mom for so many years, all to preserve life behind the dread.

Despite his efforts, Ayu did not turn and eye into it. Instead, he froze with the shaking hand, and clenched his grip.

“Ayu,” he cried, “that–” but he stopped the rest of the sentence. Another trigger would ruin the moment, so he endured the pressure.

And afterwards, Ayu chuckled with the smallest sound. “You’re a lot nicer than before. You know that?”

Ignoring the pain, he replied, “I’ve always been nice; it’s just that I think I forgot how to care for a while until you came along.”

“I’m just that much, aren’t I?” He yanked out of the hand-holding, much to Oliver’s lost balance. “We should go back to Alice. It’s been a while hanging out here.”

Regaining balance, Oliver stared at the now calm Ayu in disbelief, as it seemed he copied his own style of emotion recovery and avoidance. Well, not entirely, but similarly in nature. “Uh… Yeah I guess we should.”

As they arrived, Alice stood by the porch table, setting the final touches to what appeared as Oliver’s proper meal of the week. The faint scent already hit his nose as he waited for the satisfying dish.

With a quick glance, Alice jeered out, “Oliver! How is your progress now?”

“It’s okay,” he yelled back. “What’s the food today?”

“An average roast. I didn’t have many ideas in mind today.”

“Well, it still smells good,” he added. Once he reached to Alice’s spot, he took over the seat.

“Wait a moment, Oliver, I still need to fetch a utensil.” However, right as she began entering back into the cottage, her eyes glanced at an Ayu standing by the side. “Oh, you can sit along with him. I prepared a meal for you too.”

“You did?”

“Yes,” she nodded. “I knew of Eilwen calling you over for something so I figured you should have something else for the occasion.”

“Huh,” he said. Hopping from the steps to the porch floor, he replied, “Thank you,” as he sat by Oliver, ready for their first time dining together.

***

“Alice, why are you taking us inside?”

“Because,” she led them inside her cottage and the surprisingly various rooms inside. “It’s been some time since you asked me for that gift you mentioned, and I’ve finally gotten what I needed to give it to you.”

One final turn interrupted Oliver. “Wait, do you mean– oh, my God!” He ran towards the present in astonishment around his face.

Ayu watched in confusion. What Oliver gushed over in awe appeared to be a piano, but one of old browns and rust. He figured the boy would never be impressed by the quality. Though, the rustic nature had an appeal.

“Alice, how did you find this?” He squeaked at the press of an out-of-tune key. “This is an antique!”

He studied the features of the metals and the wood cuts around it all as Alice spoke. “Well, I went and talked to Akeldama about you wanting the instrument, and he happened to have a lot lying around according to him.”

The name rang a bell for both of them, and they both questioned, “Akeldama had this?”

“Why, yes. He has many items in his pocket dimension.”

Ayu asked, “And what’s that?”

“His storage space.”

Oliver cracked up at the fact, but Ayu stood baffled at the idea of Akeldama giving such a gift to Oliver.

In playfulness, Oliver played a few chords to test. “I wonder how old this is from the lack of tuning… Did Akeldama not care?”

“He may have not been interested in this one specifically, but it may have been the best he had. And if it needs adjustments, he may still know a thing or two.”

The offer seemed promising, but Oliver shrugged it off. “Nah, I think this is fine. It fits the old-ness in a way.”

The chords built themselves off more and more, but they all played choppily. And after a few more notes he knew from his own signature instrument, his mind paused. … I don’t know how to play this thing. Through a simple yet rushed transition, he set aside his playing. “I’ll need some practice but honestly, this is great,” he laughed. “Hey Ayu, why don’t you try a little?”

Ayu, staring by the side, whipped his mind awake and asked, “What?”

“Come on a play,” he repeated.

“Why would I play it? It’s yours…”

He beamed at him. “Because, it sounds funny. Plus, it’d be nice for you to just try it out since I don’t know much either.”

That smile intimidated Ayu somehow, enough to give in. And he sat beside him on the piano seat. Once some moments of silence set in, he knew Oliver would not guide him yet. Thus, he prodded his fingers onto the keys, one by one, pressing at random. No melody formed, nor did a tempo, or a key, or anything of substance. This went on for multiple seconds to a few minutes.

The stiffness bothered Oliver to no end, in reality, as his patience stabbed him in the gut for letting Ayu play in such a way. However, an alternative was found to save himself from such experimentation. “Here, let’s teach you a chord.”

He guided one of Ayu’s hands to the beginning of an octave, and slowly adjusted his fingers to the right keys. Once they aligned correctly, he gently pressed for him to play.

“That’s what should be a C major chord.” He patted Ayu in the achievement. “And I think you can make up your own now, can you?”

For a moment, Ayu glared at the keys, carefully placing his fingers over new ones and pressing.

“Interesting… That’s a suspended chord.”

“You know I won’t remember anything you’re telling me, right,” he asked deadpanned.

Oh no, the attitude is back. “Probably.”

“Oh,” Alice said while in the background. “Oliver?”

“Yeah?”

“I assume you’re about to leave, correct?”

Oliver nodded while playing with Ayu.

“There’s something else I’ve been saving for when you do leave,” she said.

Curious, Oliver turned and stood from his seat towards her. “What is it?”

Opening her book, she summoned a flat-looking bag in front of them. “When I asked for the piano, Akeldama said to also give you this along with it.”

She handed it off to him, and both him and Ayu looked at the small bag in confusion whilst the inside felt hollow. “Why’d he give me this?”

She shook her head, “I do not know, but you may open it.”

From the bag, Ayu gathered next to Oliver as well. The strangeness of the gift increased most definitely for both of them, but what was inside still mystified the air.

Reluctantly, Oliver opened the bag to find the hollow item, and even then, was there more confusion.

***

Huh, Oliver stared at the gift after his research in his room. From its sheen wood surface that plated itself with small metal keys, it was a confirmed kalimba, or thumb piano as the internet sometimes called it.

Such a strange item, he studied. Its keys played gently of that of a music box for a lullaby, which it technically could be accounted for both literally and purposefully. Sure, it was mix-matched, and the pretty keys were jagged from age, but the sound made up for it all. Melodies formed easily and gracefully even if played choppy from his infers. Honestly, it seemed of some use for his style of music and covers.

While studying he joked, “Ayu, you can probably master this thing, its super simple.”

But Ayu’s reply was nothing.

Despite the silence, Oliver continued. So, Akeldama first gives me a switchblade and now a nice, aesthetic instrument? We need to look more into him nowadays. –

“Hey, Ollie,” Ayu called out from the bedside.

“What is it?”

“Come over here.”

A lopsided look was given to him, but light only illuminated in Oliver’s corner of the room, so Ayu’s expression hid in the darkness. Regardless, Oliver stepped onto the bed by Ayu’s side and asked, “What’s up?”

And only in the matter of seconds did Ayu tackle him again, only onto the bed and in a shaking hug. He grasped and clung to Oliver as tight as ever, yet the grip was weak and shivering.

Soon whilst lying down, a sniffle covered the room’s sound, then another, until cries rang onto Oliver’s ears.

“I,” Ayu trembled in his words, “I’m sorry… I can’t do anything.”

He continued crying into Oliver’s chest, rubbing his tears all over his sweater. Oliver looked down upon what was occurring, but instead of any surprise or panic, he knew something would arise from that conversation. More than he initially expected.

He hugged back, cradling the boy’s head in his arms and brushing the tuffs of his hair.

“It’s okay, it’s okay,” he whispered, “I’m here for you, remember?”

With every comb, his hands faintly touched Ayu’s shaking body. He gasped for the air out of his cries and wailed in choking up.

“Here, let’s…” Oliver glanced over from their position, in which they were stuck in the middle of the bed, and all of Ayu’s weight hefted onto him. “Let’s get a little bit more comfortable…”

He moved them into the pillows and under the blankets, where Ayu still hung on Oliver under his head.

“Ayu,” Oliver began, “you’re a good person. I know that for sure.”

He remained silent, much to Oliver’s incline.

“You’re probably the best person I’ve ever met. A best friend if you will. We’re best friends, right?”

He felt a nod underneath him.

Oliver smiled. “I’m glad… Out of anyone, I think I was the selfish brat at first, but then I met you, as dumb as the introductions were,” He chuckled at his speech. “You changed my life, and helped me realize that I wasn’t going to be alone forever and…” Even he began to choke up at his words.

“And what,” Ayu croaked.

“You aren’t going to leave me.” Despite the emotions, Oliver set it aside from Ayu’s turn. “That was my fear, I guess. But you disproved that and you haven’t left me alone since; and, you’re wonderful to be around.”

Only those sniffles were left to handle.

“You’re more…” Damn, compliments are trickier like this. “You have this stubborn bravery to you that I like. And your simple thinking’s actually calming for me since I overthink half the time… Simple’s the best way to put it; you answer everything as you see it and I think it works for a duo like you and me. Despite everything you’ve been through, you still want to stand with your goals since you know that’s right… That’s what I love about you; you have hope. You had enough hope to give me a chance, to tell me that everything will be better just like I’m telling you right now. I would’ve given up, Ayu, so long ago, and right now I’m stopping you from going down the path I could’ve gone to.”

He hugged Ayu back as tight as he did.

“I’m sorry if I ever said or did anything to hurt you. I didn’t know what I was saying. You’ve gone through just as much as I have… That’s something else I realized.”

With his words, Ayu kept silent. But finally, he said, “Thank you.” Then asked, “… Can you keep on talking? Just about anything. I want to listen to you.”

He nodded back. “Alright. Anything?”

“Yeah…”

Memories of his own request flurried back in Oliver’s mind in his understanding of that need of comfort. “I can talk about how my day was with you, then,” and the words fluttered in Ayu’s ears as he calmed from his stuttered breathing.

“Oh yeah, there was this thought I had for a while.”

Ayu nuzzled in from the cuddling, still listening to Oliver’s words as it started to dry out from speaking. He listened to his day, his thoughts, his imaginations, ideas, epiphanies, everything that whisked him away somehow. They all expressed mindfulness in each word, and he could not have enough. “What is it?”

“I started thinking about this scenario,” Oliver rasped, “about if the world ended.”

His own voice drowned in a drowsy state, eyes burning from all the crying and exhaustion. “That doesn’t sound like a nice thought.”

“Obviously not,” he huffed. “But, I was wondering what people would do… and what would I do in that scenario. If the world was dying, and it was only a matter of time for me, or you, or anybody to be next.”

“…And?”

“There wasn’t much I could think of, since it really does depend on how the world ends, but out of all the routes, there’s only one thing I want to do for all of them.”

The nature of the conversation rang dangerous bells for Ayu, yet he continued it with, “What would that be?”

He said, “I would never want to go to sleep.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because,” he explained, “you can die at any point when it’s all over. So, if I’m asleep, I can die in my sleep, and I would never have the chance to goodbye… to anybody.”

His answer spoke to Ayu, and remained as words for him to remember always. However, with his tired mind and recovering state, he replied, “Makes sense… Ollie, can you sing for me?”

He looked down upon him. “Is there a particular reason why?”

“The world’s not ending, so I think I’m ready to sleep right now.”

He chuckled a little, combing his hair once more. “Okay. I’m guessing you want an original.”

“I never heard one so,” Ayu snuggled in with his own smile, “obviously.”

Oliver’s face warmed, but without any embarrassment. “Okay, Ayu.”

And with lyrics for the occasion, he quietly sang a piece from those nights of new beginnings.

“My dearest,

all the shadows that have followed us have come

and gone.

My dearest,

all the darkest that had weighed me down

is far and long evermore.

My dearest,

you have come to greet me in a light

that shines across us every night…

My dearest,

We will roll along again.”

Oliver’s eyes drifted, with his last view being Ayu sleeping by him, his tears gone and his breathing cooled. He smiled as he closed that view, uttering the last words.

“My dearest,

We will roll along again.”

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maikatc · 4 years

Text

Black Sun Tale | First Meal

i kNOW IT’S MIDNIGHT AND IT’S VERY LATE BUT I SAID I’D POST IT ‘TOMORROW’ AND RIGHT NOW ITS TONIGHT I’M GETTING THIS–

that being said, remember that this is a first draft with only minor edits, but regardless enjoy! comments and reception is always appreciated.

A gathering placed itself in the living room on a midwinter’s day. Cups stacked up around each other at the table whilst the group of three conversed together.

“Now then,” Ayu sat beside Oliver, a cup of apple juice in his hand after becoming a fanatic over it. They both eyed Vittorino in their seats for the new conversation topic. “What are people in your society like,” Ayu asked.

Oliver never bothered with the question, considering already meeting two of the second eras and never wanting to meet another again. “I think you should know what they’re like, Ayu.”

“I still wanna know,” Ayu retorted.

The question still had Oliver rolling his eyes. But he allowed Vittorino to speak for once.

The teen rolled back on his chair, facing upwards and reaching for what to say. “That isn’t that great of a question,” he said, “they all kinda suck.”

Keep reading

#technically day after reblogg

6 notes · View notes

maikatc · 4 years

Text

Black Sun Tale | First Meal

i kNOW IT’S MIDNIGHT AND IT’S VERY LATE BUT I SAID I’D POST IT ‘TOMORROW’ AND RIGHT NOW ITS TONIGHT I’M GETTING THIS–

that being said, remember that this is a first draft with only minor edits, but regardless enjoy! comments and reception is always appreciated.

A gathering placed itself in the living room on a midwinter’s day. Cups stacked up around each other at the table whilst the group of three conversed together.

Oliver never bothered with the question, considering already meeting two of the second eras and never wanting to meet another again. “I think you should know what they’re like, Ayu.”

“I still wanna know,” Ayu retorted.

The question still had Oliver rolling his eyes. But he allowed Vittorino to speak for once.

The teen rolled back on his chair, facing upwards and reaching for what to say. “That isn’t that great of a question,” he said, “they all kinda suck.”

“Of course, they would,” Oliver commented.

Ayu sipped on his cup, but continued asking questions. “But, weren’t you basically raised with them?”

He shrugged in his seat. “Sure, yeah. We talk like a normal family almost, but I think we can all agree that we’re all dysfunctional for one another.”

The interest finally peaked for Oliver, his ears raising, and he asked another question. “How come?”

“It’s just how we were raised,” he answered. “We didn’t have to like people and get along with our situation. Mei-ling never bothered with us; Adeen’s a baby; Orelia’s too mental to deal with; and Hans and Margaret, well, they’re nice to each other, but they’ll nitpick and gossip every little thing about you.”

“… And that isn’t even half of it?”

“No,” he sighed. “There were too many kids that were ditched in forests or being ignored by parents or something back then. There’s still some getting picked up today, but most refuse getting contracts for murder nowadays so that’s good. No more that I have to deal with.”

Ayu tilted his head, changing to an expression of confusion, but reverted back to drinking.

“And how do people complain about you?”

“Easy, I’m apparently a personality-switching kinda guy, and rude both ways. So, people get irritable around me most of the time.”

Ayu then told him, “You aren’t that annoying.”

“I wouldn’t deny what they say,” he said, “I’m supposed to be the voices in people’s heads. I’m sure that’d make me a bit of a pest when they want to die.”

“… You know, you’re all mental,” Oliver said.

And Vittorino only replied, “It’s our specialty.” Then after another one of Ayu’s sips, he reminded him, “It’s about time we get to Alice, Oliver.”

“Oh right.” He sat up, brushing off whatever imaginary guts he left on his cardigan. Ayu in particular checked for any earlier, but precaution always arrived first for everything. “Guess I’ve been procrastinating for once.”

“My, what a feat,” Vittorino sarcastically claimed. He jumped up himself from a seat to summon a door.

Though, before the rush to attend training, Oliver noted to ask Ayu, “Do you need anything for when I get back?”

He set down the cup and answered, “I think I’m fine. I’ll try and make food myself before you get back.”

“That’s good to hear,” he opened the door, “’means you’re listening to my lessons?”

“Obviously. I don’t want you to cook for me all the time.”

Oliver joked, “What? Makes you feel like a baby?”

His shoulders drooped while he eyed away in a reply, “No… well, maybe– but I just feel bad about you having to be responsible for me.”

A smile crept while Oliver sided his own eyes. “You’re definitely more selfless than most kids our age.”

“I wouldn’t say that…”

“I would.” Oliver let Vittorino pass before he closed the door himself. “See ya later, Ayu.”

The transition from a homey living room to the vast, dead-inside forests of Fowls never flinched Oliver anymore. He stepped out of the entrance, following the routine of his early stretches and a heavy breather for what he could only dream as fresh air.

Vittorino already wandered off as per usual, and Oliver left himself to his own devices of finding the nearest human in a nature walk.

The barks on the trees had begun to peek interest to him after the many times of walking past them. Questions spurred his curiosity in tendrils around the wood as he eyed them in a pace for someone else. For, what would those trees be made out of, that had no substance of plastic yet no life of true bark. The feeling of reality, melded with the missing authenticity, brought Oliver to a puzzle and kept his mind off of his lonesome.

“Oliver!” Alice appeared from behind a tree to even Oliver’s surprised.

He swore, and stumbled back from the flinch of his senses. Retaining his balance once again, Oliver asked with a confusing exhale, “Why meet here of all places?”

She answered, “I knew you’d be here. Vittorino left you to yourself in this forest, hasn’t he?”

The question forced him to nod.

“Can’t leave you alone like that, now can we?”

The comment wavered in Oliver’s ears as Alice began walking onwards. He followed, but begged to ask, “Did he tell you?”

“Of what?”

“Of–” Oliver stopped. The admittance of past desperation from months ago fluttered out of the system, had it not? “Never mind, it was a while ago, I guess.”

A judging glare from Alice turned to a worriless smile in an instant. “I suppose I should be of concern for it, but it’s likely I already have my sources for it.”

“And… what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh, simply my usual way of learning.”

The grass crinkled whilst Oliver theorized the many ways the statement alluded itself to. “… Alright.”

“How has your latest batch been doing for you,” she asked.

The question Oliver expected still led him rummaging his hands behind him. His gluttony managed to indulge itself in eating the entire bag of meat in one day. However, the heart of a liar never quit. “It’s a pretty good one this week,” he smiled, “Margaret’s got nice catches this week.” And oh, did he hate those words from his mouth.

While the fib seemed average on his account, Alice still leered at him with her own grin and continued on. “I see… why, I still have a surprise for you after today’s training.”

“A surprise?”

Nodding her head, her hands guided to the exit and entrance to the field. “I hope you’ll like it, but you have to finish your work first, remember.”

A groan almost hefted from Oliver’s voice. “What are we even doing today?”

She pointed towards a stool in the distance with giddy reach and answered, “This.”

The stool barred a cup, from what Oliver’s perspective held, an average metallic cup without even a shine. Bemused, he asked, “What am I doing with it?”

“It’s a small subject, but you’ll be making the item invisible today.”

“Oh,” the difficulty of the subject before irked him at the new idea, “doesn’t seem that hard, but how do I do it?”

They surrounded the stool together as Alice answered, “In all honesty, this is the subject I know least about. Christopher never used it all that much, but it might be of convenience to you some day. All you need to do, from what I can assume, is practice what you have done, just on another object that isn’t yourself.”

Oliver glared at the cup. “It took me three months to figure out invisibility and now I’m off to calculus.”

“Excuse me?”

“It’s fine. You don’t know useless classes,” he threw off.

God-fucking-damn it. Oliver groaned at his grass-bed seat. The cup tucked itself within the grasps of his hands; however, his hands were the ones to disappear instead of the cup. Alice already went off to whatever affairs he imagined, perhaps a killing or who knows, abandoning another child into their own devices. How tiring.

Another tiring factor appeared the more his magic efforts put into his energy, as it all dwindled in his noticeable and reminding stomach.

The cup still mocked him, rustic and dull in its place, much to Oliver’s annoyance. “Why couldn’t we have done this on Tuesday?” An hour or so had already passed, he assumed. His patience in being left isolated had improved and the forest brought him more comfort in space, but that never fixed anything. “Can you just work with me here?”

He glared at the cup, hoping its disappearance would be apparent this time, unlike the multiple other times he used to same strategy. But to no avail, he fell over to the ground.

The sky irritated him that day, as he stared at it in his frustrations. No beauty was present just like his skills. Though, eventually he sighed, “Hey Vittorino, I think I’m bored this time.”

The sound of a door opening appeared in front of him, only to answer, “Not right now, Alice told me to talk to Ayu.”

“Again?”

“Yeah, and Ayu’s being a peeve.”

“Alright then,” he sighed.

In which Vittorino then asked, “Are you dying right now?”

“Just a little bit mentally.”

“Nothing serious?”

“Not really.”

“’Kay, I’ll check in later.” And the door silently closed.

Back in silence, Oliver wiggled himself in the grass for some time, bringing himself back to his senses. Although a figure interrupted his personal forest ritual.

“Tired, are you,” Alice asked.

In seconds, Oliver brought himself up again. “Yeah.”

“Figured. You seemed paler today if you didn’t think I’d notice.”

He rolled his eyes, “Course, I didn’t.”

With a giggle, she forwarded herself to the cottage. “Here, follow me.”

Drifting off with her, a familiar friend exited from inside and into the porch. She huffed in her plain dress with her coat hanged by the side, and placed her arms tucked together by the door. “You ask me to help you cook when we haven’t done culinary since the 17th century.”

“Is it a bother?”

“Of course, it is,” Eilwen exclaimed. “You’ve seen the amount of times we almost cut a finger.”

In a retort, Alice continued talking. “Well, we aren’t ones to use blades normally, but is it ready?”

With a nod, Eilwen gestured towards a plate on the outdoor table.

Alice brought Oliver to said plate and telling the other, “Thank you, it looks lovely.”

Oliver begged the question, with the attractive scent of the dish in front of him. “Uh, Alice? What is this?”

The small meal contained a slab of meat, with black speckles of char and a shine on the opposite end, and alongside it contained a collage of vegetables and rice.

They both sat down while Alice explained. “Well, I’ve heard from Margaret that human meat has a similar taste to pork or veal. So, I imagined it would be nice if you were to have a home-cooked meal of deviled pork, with the flesh as a substitute.”

The words brought oddity within Oliver. “Huh…,” he breathed. Poking the food with a fork beside him, he stared at the strange thought of a filling, cooked meal.

“Don’t forget to eat your vegetables,” Alice added.

Oh yes, the vegetables. “Alice, that’ll just pass through my system.”

She shrugged, a spoon by her hand and balancing on the table. “Just eat it, it’s average motherly words to tell their child, is it not?”

Eilwen handed off a bowl to her: a trifle stacked with custard and sweet fruits. She cheered a little at the sight, and made dove into it as it hit the table.

Oliver lifted his brow at her sugary meal. “Shouldn’t you be a good example by eating some veggies too?”

“I’m an adult, you have no say on this matter,” she retorted while chewing. “My! Eilwen, thank you so much for the help today!”

The woman tossed her apron into the other chair as she gathered her own hair back in place. “Never mind it, this break leads to nothing for ourselves, doesn’t it?”

Alice scoffed. “You’re always such a pessimist, nowadays. You should lighten up again like how we met.”

Oliver caught Eilwen rolling her eyes back at her as she stepped out of the cottage porch. “I’m off now. I hope you two have a fine day,” she sighed.

“You, as well!” A dismissing wave appeared from Alice who continued eating her trifle. Once Eilwen disappeared, Alice turned back to the child. “Now then, go on and eat! You haven’t bitten a thing yet!”

“On it, I’m on it,” Oliver repeated to her. The cut of the meat left it harder for Oliver to cut in its density. Although, after some time of gathering every bite of the meal together with a fork, he bit into it. With a chew, there laid a burnt char on his tongue; with another chew, an array of flavor from the juices melted into his mouth. But the taste brought him not of a crazed or desperate ecstasy and greed, but instead the serene texture of real food. The strange reality of the sense left Oliver blank into space, but he ate quickly out of habit.

“So,” Alice asked, “How was it?”

In a blink, Oliver glanced back down at his empty plate, with leftover browns and goldens. To imagine that Alice was the one to make the meal for him after all the times she had not, in which it never passed through his mind of depravity. He answered to it all with what he always told: “It was pretty good.”

“Oh, thank goodness!” She laughed. “I was hoping you didn’t hear Eilwen talk more but we had no clue what to do with the meat!”

“Well, uh,” Oliver awkwardly laughed. “It’s always good I guess.”

“I’m only glad you liked it. Now I can say I can still feed other people,” she giggled back with him.

“Wait, what do you mean from that last part–”

“Here, do you want to try my trifle?” She offered the spoon to him. In which, Oliver obliged.

And soon enough, he entered a coughing fit of spiting it out. “Holy shit that was sweet enough that I thought it was too much.”

Alice laughed at him, all while taking another bite. “Just remember, Margaret’s sweets and tea has even more than mine!”

***

“Thanks, Vittorino for just the door.” Oliver slammed the exit from Fowls in his living room. And in the slam, Vittorino jumped up from his seat and straightened his coat.

He excused himself. “Come on, I was finishing up my conversation. I’m about to head out anyways.” The door opened again by him and he jumped through. “See you later.”

“Yeah, bye,” Oliver nodded as he stole the new free seat. The entrance disappeared once Oliver tossed his new bag of food aside on the counter.

Turning the other direction from the food, and slouching into the couch, he found Ayu staring at him keenly with his journal.

His legs curled up into his seat with joggers that covered up his healing bone of legs. And his eyes peered with the bright mixture of blue and grey. His hair still flew around as the mess it was, albeit floated like a dark cloud in its disaster. Oliver smiled at him, but Ayu only said, “You can’t surprise me by turning invisible again.”

“Oh really?” An acceptance to the challenge was immediate by just the flick of his magic. Turning invisible eased in mere seconds despite previous difficulties, though the motivations made the magic strong enough.

Ayu soon blinked around and realized. “Goddamn it,” as he sighed up into the air and sketchbook falling out of the symmetry of his legs.

In his unseen state, Oliver pranced down to behind Ayu, slowly gaining to behind his shoulder. He allowed himself to be known after saying, “You know it isn’t that hard–”

And that was the moment Ayu literally jumped in his seat, jabbing Oliver chin from the shoulder in the process.

Oliver stumbled and fell back, the same Ayu-pains stinging in his jaw.

“Oh fuck.” Ayu crawled and fell out of his chair onto the ground with Oliver. “I’m so sorry again.”

“No, no, it’s fine,” he hissed. “That was a dumbass move from me; I know you’re jumpy sometimes… Plus, it isn’t that bad.” In hesitance, Oliver let go of the pain. “See? No bleeding, and I’ll ice it right now if it bruises.”

“Are you sure,” he stuttered.

“Definitely not your worst accidental hits.” Oliver whisked himself back up, gesturing to his stomach in reference. “I wonder how you would do with a punching bag, to be honest.”

“Really?”

“I’m mainly joking,” Oliver affirmed whilst opening the freezer. “Actually, there was this one time…”

And yet again, did Oliver tell of another lovely, mundane story of his younger ages. In which Faustus made a fuss with a six-year-old for both not knowing what to do in a sports store. All of it spoken by Oliver in the most vivid details despite the sameness and the bag of frozen veggies on his chin.

Ayu seemed to have listened, to Oliver’s pleasure. Faustus’ character still laid as an oddity to them both after two months of Oliver telling his stories. However, it was time for Ayu’s sharing.

“I don’t think I have much about… punching bags?” Oliver nodded to him. “Yeah, I think the closest thing was this kid breaking a chain of one of em in one of my foster homes.”

Oliver’s eyes widened. “They what?”

“Yeah it was weird. I think we were trying to see who could punch it the furthest and none of us were winning, but some of us thought we were.”

“Reasonable.”

“And there was this one kid which others were saying didn’t do anything to it, and we left it for the day. And overnight the kid apparently got one of the kitchen knives, climbed up to the top of the stand-thingy, with only a single small cut and no falling, and chainsaw-ed the heck out of it.”

“How old were they?” Oliver asked flabbergasted.

“I dunno, maybe six? I was five. But they cut up the chain to where it could snap in a single move, and they did just that the next morning to prove himself.”

Oliver laughed. “And how did the forest-parent react?”

“Oh, she got mad. Like, made a gate to keep us away from the kitchen mad. And eventually give up foster-parenting.”

“Holy shit,” Oliver gasped in delight. “How come all of your foster-homes were so chaotic?”

“I don’t know. Maybe I bring chaos with me.”

Oliver giggled at the comment. But then the chin and stomach began to sting the slightest. The distraction caused sighing. “My god, even after Alice gave me food I’m still hungry… I think the chin is making me more drained.”

“Sorry–”

“Holy shit, that’s a lot!” Oliver grabbed the food-bag, opening it to reveal a plethora of more than the regular. He beamed at the amount and the scent and turned to Ayu, then died down at the realization. He was unreadable, to Oliver’s discomfort. He forced a laugh, and got up, telling Ayu, “I’ll just go to my room and eat some–”

“No,” Ayu stopped him. “No, uh… You can eat here.”

Oliver raised a brow.

“It’s fine.”

“… I think you’ll think I’m weird if you see.”

With a smile back, and attempted rolled eyes, Ayu said, “You attacked me as a werewolf and I already know you’re a cannibal from multiple other stuff. What else could be weirder?”

In a moment of thinking, Oliver sighed. “Ayu, I don’t eat it cooked. I eat it raw.”

And with the statement, Ayu’s eyes widened, and blinked multiple times nonstop. “Oh.” He flustered his words for the next few seconds. “Why raw?”

He shrugged. “Well, for me it never mattered whether it was cooked or not. I wouldn’t need to prep anything either since when it’s raw, it kinda tastes juicier.”

Ayu gulped, staring into the abyss, then shook his head. “Yeah, that’s beyond the point. Just eat. I’ll be… not directly watching.”

Oliver continuously stared back to back from his bag to Ayu. “… I still need a plate.”

Ayu rushed his words. “Yeah, go get that.”

And after the awkward venture, they sat together in silence, bag and plate in Oliver’s hands, and Ayu squirming left and right to Oliver’s own notice. He gulped at the event, “You know, I can really just go to my room if you’re uncomfortable–”

“No,” Ayu said. “I think I have to get used to it by now… we’re practically living together and you have to be by yourself when you eat.” With hesitance, he patted Oliver’s hand holding the plate.

The slightest tint of red floated on his cheek from the touch, no matter how many times they had clasped in the night. “It’s embarrassing.”

“It both shouldn’t and should be, so there’s not much to get away from it,” Ayu affirmed.

“That’s just everything in my life.” Oliver grinned at the comment. Yet, the topic still stood up top of him. Glancing back down to the bag, opening it once again for the stronger aroma. Grabbing the first section, he placed it down onto the plate, with some leftover blood dripping by the side and his wanting to lick it all down. He turned his head back to Ayu, who drew his own eyes away, then returned to the meal. His hands already drenched themselves, and he continued the routine. Out of the plate, Oliver picked up the meat, facing it directly in front of him, the taste already itching in the back of his throat, and he made his first bite against his sore jaw.

The texture and taste melded into his mouth in the usual satisfaction, nothing much else to say. But, he continued taking bites, staring at the blank television screen in front of him, avoiding Ayu’s eyes at all cost.

“… Are you feeling better?”

“Relatively,” Oliver chewed.

The next reply sat there delayed. “That’s good at least.”

Another minute passed by while Oliver ate, with him seemingly forgetting of the one next to him or the anxieties with the subject.

“So… Oliver.”

“Yeah?”

“I think I’ve been knowing you enough to tell you something… Something I’ve been hiding, really.”

He continued chewing. “Like what?”

“How the entire black sun thing happened, and how I got here… and the monsters.”

“Oh.” Finally, the questions he had wondered of ages ago. It seemed to have past his mind for the last few months. “Figured you knew something.”

“Yeah. I did,” he agreed. “I don’t really know where to start but uhm… so, you know how the entire society thing is led by Akeldama, right?”

“You were tricked by him, weren’t you?”

After a few blinks, Ayu whined, “Is it really that easy to figure out?”

“You’re easy to read,” Oliver explained, “That and that’s what happened to the rest of the society, but what exactly happened between you two?”

He sighed. “Okay… Basically, when I was eight, he gave me three wishes, with the deal that I couldn’t wish to undo wishes, wish for more wishes, or bring back the dead.”

In comprehension and analysis mode, Oliver nodded. “Sounds fair.”

Ayu looked down at his seat. “I already made two wishes. I made the first one when I met him: where I wouldn’t die by natural stuff and have powers to fight monsters instead.” He looked at Oliver. “It ended up with the monsters coming to me since I asked for a fight. And even then, my powers are too shitty to fight them back.”

The outcome seemed rough, Oliver could tell. The chewing stopped as he searched for a reasoning. “Well, at least you were just eight…?” An eight-year-old wouldn’t think about mass-murder unless it was me so.

“Yeah, but I was still being dumb.” The legs curled up again. “I made the second wish a year after… I got lonely pretty quick while being in the alleyway. So, once I was sick of it, I just wished there were people like me so I wouldn’t be alone anymore.”

An instinct kicked in. Despite his bloody hands, Oliver placed his hand onto Ayu’s in return from earlier.

“Annette came into my life, on June 6th as a birthday present I guess, and an anniversary for when I met Akeldama, but I didn’t really care. I was happy, really happy. I explained everything to her immediately, and I was excited to fight with her when the monsters finally came.”

He replied to the hand, squeezing it back and staining his own. “They came a while after, and one of her dads was the first to go…” A head tilt down and he told, “It’s my fault she’s in this mess. And it still might just be my fault that you’re a part of this too.”

For a time, Oliver waited for any tears to be shed; however, he was silent, only shaking and squeezing harder the more time went on. A sigh escaped from the last comment. “Ayu, you know that I’m still impossible to exist because of you. Alice was just an idiot and I’m guessing she committed voodoo or some shit.”

He chuckled.

“And it wasn’t your fault–”

“That’s what everyone says.”

“Because it’s true.” Oliver finally set his food aside, and clasped both of his hands to Ayu. “You were a kid who was just a naïve little mess. We all were. Look at me, I was done with this bullshit since I was nine.” Perhaps that was a lie, who knows.

“But that’s the problem. –”

“No, it isn’t. We’re all dumbasses that fuck up. Everything in our lives have been through mistakes.”

Ayu gazed at him, lids lowered and position unmoving. He only replied with a silent, “I guess,” and nothing else.

Ayu remained silent, to Oliver’s dismay. But in dedication of patience, Oliver let it go, returning to his snack.

“… What was it like to talk to a dictator like that?”

Ayu shuffled his position into laying down on the couch, letting his cold and bloody hand out of Oliver’s. “Weird. He annoys me sometimes in my head and messes with stuff. But who could tell he’d be an asshat when he looks like an albino angel?”

“Albino?”

“Yeah, he has like, really pale skin and white hair.”

“Uh,” Oliver’s own breath heightened in confusion. “Can you describe him a little more?”

Ayu shuffled. “Sure? He looks around our age all the time. The hair’s messy but neater than mines, and he has a crown thing that has a piece of coal on it for some reason.”

“Oh god,” he stated.

“What?”

“… Remember Faustus…?”

“Yeah?”

“Well,” he ticked, “guess who matches the same albino description, and constantly appears and disappears just to mess with people?”

It took a matter of time for Ayu to stare into the abyss and process. “… You’re trying to say that your ghost friend from when you were six turns out to be the bitch that fucked up the entire city?”

“Indeed,” Oliver nodded.

“What the fuck?” A jump forced the couch to jumble all over, as Oliver shook his plate from the momentum. “Faustus is actually Akeldama?”

“Yeah, I feel dumb that I didn’t connect the dots…” Oliver sat dumbfounded with his recovering food that had almost fallen. “But yeah no, what the fuck.”

“You have been talking to an actually demon-child since you were six!”

“I know!”

The hysteria dragged the plate to the counter. They both got up and jumped in the couch. “Akeldama’s a faucet!”

“I know!”

Their peak discovery led them hopping around and yelling at each other.

“Why would he do that,” Ayu begged to question.

“The hell if I know about that!” He gasped for air. “Wait! I think he talked to me while he was in the dungeon but… fuck, I forgot what he said!”

“That’s not helping!”

“That’s obvious! But weirdly enough Faustus was actually nice when he wasn’t annoying?”

“Impossible,” Ayu huffed, “Akeldama is never nice.”

“Well we have proof of a counter-claim!”

“Then what the fuck does Akeldama want if he isn’t just an ass?”

“Do you think any of us would have a clue?”

“NO!”

They screamed together, and fell over at the revelation, both thumping on different side of the couch. A moment of silence let the hype die down. Only for them to realize the amount of screaming that had occurred in a minute.

They laughed at it.

“Goddamn, we’re a mess,” Oliver said.

“I think that’s all what we’re supposed to be.”

Ollie sat up. “See? That’s what I’m saying, we’re all fuck ups!” He laughed again. But after the entire fit, Oliver picked himself back up again, and picked up the food and bag by the counter with a relieved sigh. “I really shouldn’t eat the rest of this.”

“Then don’t.”

“That’s the plan,” he said, “I’m just gonna take one last bit and we’re good for–”

“Oh, the door’s unlocked cool.” And then entered a young voice. In the fastest second, Oliver whipped his head to the door in front of him, facing Annette straight to the eye with guts and blood all over his hand.

They both stared, eyes widened at each other, but it was Oliver to say, “… fuck.”

***

“I knew you had some kind of problem but holy cow.”

After the obligated explanation, Oliver finally packed up his meals, to Annette’s staring.

Ayu told her, with pinching eyes, “To really be honest, I forgot you were coming after I punched Ollie–”

“You punched him?” Annette forwarded her seat.

“It was an accident!”

“And it was me scaring him and him jumping up at me,” Oliver corrected. Off in his room, he placed the bag down and brought of notice his stains across his hands and on his face from the mirror ahead of him. His face strewed in the situation. He asked, “Annette, you want me to wash up, don’t you?”

The frantic nod and smile seemed as something Oliver could visualize. “I’d appreciate it, and Ayu too.”

The question held in Oliver but not for longer after remembering the handheld support. “Shit,” he muttered.

They both washed off the blood to Annette’s comfort, clowning and bumping each other in the meanwhile for the humor of it all. And while they entered back, Oliver found a distinct melody to Annette’s patient humming.

“The Emerald Maiden,” he questioned the song.

She peered back at them, scanning yet hiding it with a kind gesture. “Yeah, my parents were big 80s junkies.”

Ayu and Oliver sat down together, Ayu’s composition growing drowsy to the other’s notice. “They seem to have interesting taste,” Oliver added. “Birke was kinda surreal back then.”

She smiled in argument, “I think that was the point of the trend.”

“Well, it wasn’t that good of a trend in the first place.”

“Oh, so you’re declaring war today, I see.” A sleeve was pulled from her dress with a fake fist. Her laugh forced its way while she joked.

But Oliver shrugged. “Not much of an argument, just a sad counter.”

“What are you guys even talking about,” Ayu asked.

He answered, “Just some obnoxious music.”

“Excuse me!” Annette objected, “They had some good slappers.”

“Yes, slaps to the ears,” Oliver muttered, to Annette’s dismay.

“… You know what? I’m not gonna be a part of this.” Ayu rolled out of the couch, crawling back up and into Oliver’s room. “I’m gonna sleep.”

Again? Oliver asked. “Alright, we’ll try and be quiet.”

“You don’t have to, Ollie,” he yawned. “It’ll just be a quick nap.” And with the comment, the door closed gently from the distance.

The two, one discovering that their friend is a cannibal and the other being that friend, were then stuck together in the forgotten topic of prior. Oliver quaked at the situation, however Annette created the simplest icebreaker.

“… He calls you Ollie?”

He shifted, “Yeah, but I think he just does it when he’s lazy.”

“Do you think I can call you that?” As weird as it sounded, she questioned.

“Uh… no, I don’t think that would sound right,” he answered, “coming from you.”

She nipped, “That’s a shame. I thought I would get ‘I just found out you’re a murderer’ rights.”

“… No. No, you don’t.” He set aside the already annoying topic, and moved on. “Anyways, how’s high school for you? You seem pretty busy.”

“Oh, you have no idea.” A groan fell out of her mouth. “Imagine you being an all-A student in middle school and say, ‘Hey, I’ll be fine doing all advanced classes. I always do that!’ And then proceeding to have a nine-paragraph essay due in two days and three other different projects and reports that take up four hours of your time each and you thought you’d be smart about it but you end up–”

“Hold on, aren’t you a freshman?”

Her head tilted back at him, a mad expression peering from her face. “Yes. A freshman who has made mistakes,” she said. “Don’t make my mistakes,” she said.

“… Duly noted.” Curiosity poked itself at him, despite his own wondering of his future in school considering new lifestyles. “Is middle school easy then?”

She ticked at the question. “You don’t even have to turn in half the work and you hit a decent B if anything.” But then her body slouched into the coach. “Honestly now with both church and school hitting me under the bus, I don’t have time for anything. It blows.”

“Seems like it,” he imagined.

A little sigh wavered the room in Annette’s rare leisure. Soon, she added in her time, “But, aside from that, you and Ayu seem to be getting along well, so I don’t think I have to worry about him as much anymore.”

“As much?”

“Well yeah.” Oliver noted her fidgets all over the place with her words. “Before you, he was a kid without any kind of home or anyone to talk to except me… and a few others that just hurt him.”

The last comment churned Oliver’s guts somehow with only a little clue as to who she referred.

“I couldn’t manage to take care of him well enough since I had to help my baba after Dad died. Not to mention myself for a bit,” she huffed a laugh.

The conversation handed little leeway for Oliver in the conversation. “I guess that makes sense… My mom had to counsel a patient’s parents after the kid died from an attack, and she was stressed too since the girl was getting better.”

Pulling back her hair, she nodded. “Guess you didn’t have to deal with losing someone.” And a blink later, he met her with skeptical eyes on the topic. “Right… That wasn’t what I meant to say. It’s just– Ayu just seems better overall now.”

“… You knew about Akeldama, right?”

“I did,” she answered.

“He talked about it with you a lot, didn’t he?”

Another nod. “It’s rare but he gets more into it the more you hang out with him. It’s weird with how much he insists on how Akeldama is the worst, but he’s one to put himself at fault. If you know what I mean.”

A previous conversation floated in his mind. “Yeah, I think I do.”

An arm rested by the chair as she said, “He’s a good kid. Screwed up along the way but he didn’t mean for everything to turn out this way.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying, though. It’s obvious.”

“Not to him,” she replies. “It’s definitely some kind of… emotional trauma.” Without much else to add, she shifted. “I remember when I met him, he was jumping around like a five-year-old kid. I thought it was creepy at first but it was easy to tell what the issue was… I stuck with him because I knew he needed somebody, and once he told me about the wishes, I knew I was right.”

Oliver listened to her monologue keenly.

“I used my birthday money for his birthdays, and almost everything else for him. It doesn’t seem like much from how you met him but I tried to help him however I could think of.”

“So, what you’re saying is you were a good person to Ayu,” he summarized.

“I guess you can say that, but I feel like I babied him too much.”

Oliver tilted his head. “And what do you mean by that?”

Her eyes glanced down. “I tried to act like nothing was really wrong for him. Like, everything was perfect the way it was for the most part.” Smiles peered through her face no matter the tone she made. “I was acting like some manic pixie girl, I guess. But, I think it ended up with Ayu thinking I didn’t care…”

No continuation began, nor did Oliver allow himself to reply. He let the words contemplate in Annette’s mind while the time passed.

“… Well, I didn’t really get the job done, but you came at a good time.”

Unsure of the compliment, he replied, “Thanks?”

A soft punch met Oliver’s shoulders to his surprise. Its gentleness seeming foreign. Annette giggled at his face, “Yeah, you’ve probably done a lot better than me.” A whistle blew up quickly, off pitch of whatever went on, but all right he supposed. “How’re his comics doing, actually? I haven’t listened to those in a while.”

“Oh,” he completely forgot about them. “Well, he’s still drawing, but he doesn’t really bring up his stories.”

“Really? He would tell me about it all the time!”

Ah yes, show off what I forget to ask about. “Actually, I’ve been getting him into writing some more, since he seems to have a knack for it.”

“With his handwriting,” she laughed.

Oliver shrugged at the question. “He wasn’t that good at drawing either, but his handwriting doesn’t look as bad as some kids in my class to be honest.”

Her bubbly nature peaked at the seams throughout the new conversation. “It’s a good thing you’re getting him into something new though, he sometimes focused way too much on that comic.”

“Didn’t he not have anything else to do?”

With eyes rolled back, she agreed, “Yeah, you’re right, but that’s why I made game days!”

“Oh, don’t remind me of that Ono game.”

Their conversation continued of that of miscellaneous topics that flowed together with only some effort. However, after some time a mumble caught Oliver’s ears. He turned around to the source and led to his room.

Standing up, he already figured the occurrence, but Annette, unbeknownst of why, followed.

Entering into his room, there lied a lump on the bed, a homey one at that. Rummaging around the blanket endlessly and uttering scared words indecipherable to even such sensitive ears, Ayu slept his usual naps, and Oliver went over.

Oliver whispered to Annette, “Did Ayu talk about this before?”

She nodded, “He mentioned them a couple of times, it’s where he gets half of his story ideas, aside from Lillie dreams–. You know about her, right?”

Shaking his head, he answered, “He’s barely mentioned it; I’ve been curious for a while. He says her name sometimes when he sleeps, and when he thinks he’s alone… I wanted to ask but I could tell he didn’t want to talk about it.”

She sighed, “You’ll have to wait for him, then. It’s not my place to tell.”

After a moment, Oliver went ahead and poked around at Ayu carefully. “Ayu, wake up…”

The pattern continued with some shivering from the sleeper. Though, once he woke, he jolted with his arm into Oliver’s.

He winced at the immediate pain, followed by Annette saying, “Yeah this is why you prepare yourself.”

Ayu blinked at the both of them, and told Oliver, “Sorry.”

“It’s okay, it wasn’t the bad arm.”

He still shrank down, to Oliver’s own worries. But instead of anything else, Oliver followed with a smile to him as they were together.

“Hey Ayu,” he said. “How’re you doing?”

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