[November 29th – November 30th]

The woman arrives with what must be the worst thunderstorm of the season.

Well, that's one mark against her in his book already. Anyone with good manners doesn't just show up on their doorstep in the middle of the night during a deluge accompanied by the occasional rumble of thunder. It just isn't done.

"At ease, Furioso." Vermillion whispers to him on the aside, and he has to stomp down on his temper. The Chevalier Chief is always, always calm. There are times that this is what Furioso appreciates most about his friend; other times, he almost hates him for it. He can't tell which one he's currently feeling.

She tips her wineglass, swirls around the liquid that pools at the bottom. Even now, she's still wearing that same smirk, the one that gives him the impression that she's laughing at the whole world.

And beside her, of course... there's him.

No, Furioso doesn't have a good feeling about this woman at all.

The door opens, and the woman brightens as she says, "Doctor Tarkovsky. It's been far too long."

Furioso turns in time to see their leader nod. "Delphinium." The Doctor pauses, gives her companion a long, careful look. "... Deathroy."

And then little creature cackles as it mimics the woman, "Too long! Too long!"

The sun is rising.

Shu stretches, working all of the kinks out of his muscles. He could really go for some training, a little bit of swordplay to get his day off to a good start, but he doesn't feel comfortable doing so yet. Not until they're sure that they've lost any Rosenkreuz units that might be tailing them.

He glances around. Zola is still sitting watch, eyes fixed on the direction they came from. Bouquet and Jiro are asleep, laid out flat on their bedrolls.

And Kluke...

Kluke sits on a slab of rock a little ways off, head tilted toward the changing colors of dawn.

Swallowing, he spends a moment deciding what to do. And then he takes a deep breath before walking up and taking a seat on a stone adjacent to hers.

She doesn't even budge.

His hands clench on the tops of his knees. This might be a little harder than he thought.

Eventually, Shu clears his throat and speaks. "You okay, Kluke?"

She stays silent.

He glances at her out of the corner of his eyes. God, why is this so hard? Shu used to know her better than he knew himself. And now... He keeps trying to figure her out, searching desperately for any sign of the girl he once knew. But everything is different now - she doesn't respond the same way to things, all of the little clues he used to be able to detect in her body language have changed, and even her personality doesn't seem the same anymore. It's like he has to get to know Kluke all over again.

The thought is not a pleasant one.

"Hey," he starts lightly, and even Shu doesn't know what he's trying to say, "do you remember that time when I tried to make the cake for our birthday?"

But whatever he's trying to say is working, because Kluke is actually looking at him.

"And... And like the little idiot I was, I tripped," he chuckles at his own stupidity, "and I dropped the cake. And then I started bawling like a baby. Somehow I'd gotten it into my head that the birthday cake was something 'sacred', that the success of the ones that came next depended on the previous ones, and by destroying one I'd ruined all of them for us forever. But you," his voice warms with the memory, "all you did was just reach down to hug me and whisper in me ear that it was okay, we had each other, so we didn't need a cake or presents to make our birthday perfect."

And then she smiles, and it'spained but it's real.

"Then there was that time," he continues, eager, wanting to say just the right thing to keep her smiling, "during the rainy season; that day you wanted to go out and give your motorbike a test drive to see how well that part worked, but Ojiichan wouldn't let you because it was pouring outside. And you looked so sad, so I snuck out and picked some wildflowers, those purple ones you really like. And Ojiichan was so mad when I came back, and he was shouting about me getting water all over the floor, and I yelped because he came up behind me-"

Kluke bursts out laughing. "You- you should have seen your face-" She grabs her stomach, but she can't hold it in. "Your eyes were huge, and you were soaking wet, and you looked ridiculous!"

And then Shu starts laughing, too.

Jiro is still rubbing the sleep from his eyes when Zola sits them all down to discuss what they're going to do next.

"Can I say something first, Zola?" Kluke says, continuing when the older woman nods. "Whatever we do, at some point I'd like to return to my clinic and the village nearby. I... still haven't decided what I'm going to do yet," in what seems like an almost unconscious movement, she glances at Shu, "but I want to let them know that I got away safely."

The thought of it makes his stomach drop.

Jina.

If they go with Kluke, he and his sister will see each other for sure; he doubts that either of them have changed enough in the past two and a half years (or so) that they won't be able to recognize each other. And what will he do then? What will he say to her? Should he take over as her guardian? Will she want him to? What about Zola and Kluke, Shu and Bouquet?

He squeezes his eyes shut, wishing he could push all of these painful thoughts out of his head.

"That would be fine, Kluke," Zola's voice snaps him out of it. "However, there's something we need to do first, if you don't mind."

This peaks his curiosity. He's been around Zola long enough to know that she's about to say something else, and she almost never states what their next objective is.

"The reason I went to Heliwood was to find Shu." It's a morning of firsts, it seems, because she never says what her reasons are for anything either. "I did this in order to see if he was one of the Warriors of Light, which was confirmed when he summoned Blue Dragon." She looks at each of them once before saying, "But now, we need to search for the next of the Seven."

Dinnertime. Such a quite, mundane thing. These people have it all the time, everyday. Like it's nothing.

It's astonishing. It's extraordinary.

And for him, it's tragic.

But they're brimming with happiness. They don't need to hear about the dark things that stalk his steps and haunt his dreams.

"Noi, can you pass me the potatoes, maro?"

He does so, receiving a word of thanks and the accompanying "maro" that ends each of the Devee boy's sentences.

By the Ancestors. All of them are so carefree!

Noi doesn't think he's ever had that liberty.

Marumaro talks with him about his usual repertoire for conversation - girls, breasts, panties, fishing, girls, swimming, breasts, the injustice of chores, panties, how good the food is, and girls - neatly dodging Ma's ladle when something is brought up that offends.

(He shouldn't be calling her Ma, it doesn't matter if he never says it out loud, what is wrong with him, Rudolf is going to kill him, he's going to kill him and everyone else for this.)

Ma - Marumaro's mother, lays a hand on his arm. "Come now, Noi, you should eat something, ma. You're too thin, you need more food in you, ma!"

"Yes, ma'am." Noi ducks his head bashfully, feeling like something is lost when she lets go, no matter how much he tells himself not to.

He looks around at the Devee surrounding him.

Is this what having a family is like?

Is this what having a mother feels like?

It is the last thought, though, that causes a twinge in his chest, a mixture of guilt and longing, and he can't stop his involuntary glance at Marumaro.

... Is this what having a big brother (actually around) feels like?

His appetite is lost. He waits for the opportune moment that he's sure will come - Ma (Marumaro's mother, by the Ancestors, you idiot) scolds Marumaro for talking about underwear again, and Noi slips away from the dinner table.

The night is chilly in Lago Village, but he doesn't mind. He's become used to it.

He shouldn't have.

Four months. It's been four months since he wound up here, fleeing from Michael. He knows it's only a matter of time before his former ally comes after him. It's a miracle that he's made it this long, really.

Noi is living on borrowed time.

He should get out of Lago, away from Marumaro and his family, before it's too late. The longer he stays, the longer they will be in danger.

The Middle Moon is waxing tonight. He shuts his eyes against their stinging.

Noi just never expected this to hurt so much.

(Is this what being loved feels like?)

"Noi? What are you doing out here, maro?" Marumaro didn't add a "maro" after his name. He must be either distracted or concerned.

"Nothing," he says quickly. Hopefully not too quickly. "Just thinking, is all. Don't worry about it."

"You've been acting funny lately, maro." The Devee boy tilts his head to the side, questioning. "What's going on with you, maro?"

He intends to deflect, to brush it off as nothing again, but he ends up saying something else instead. "...I'll have to leave one day, Marumaro." He didn't want to do it like this. If he's being honest with himself, though, he doesn't want to do it at all. "I can't stay here forever." If it was his choice, he'd stay here until the day he dies.

...Which wouldn't be long, really. He's probably got two months left at the most, and that's if he's really careful.

"Wh-what are you talking about, maro?" Marumaro staggers backwards. Noi holds back a small; he's so dramatic all the time, always gesturing wildly in way or another, like every little thing is such a big deal. He probably has reasonable cause right now, though. "Noi, why are you saying things like that, maro?"

He thinks about sharing some of it with Marumaro, telling him what's really going on, but all Noi does is sigh and say, "Don't worry about it, Marumaro. Let's just go back inside."

His wrists are chafing under the metal cuffs. He wishes he could rub them, try to soothe the burn.

They let him live. Andropov hadn't been expecting that.

The worse part of it had been looking Rogi-sama in the face afterwards. He'd expected anger, undiluted fury, but what he had received had been far, far worse.

Disappointment.

And maybe even a little sadness.

Andropov tries not to think about that too much.

But what's really infuriating is the fact that they're going to toss him in with the Resistance prisoners. Who do they think they are, tossing him in with these lowlifes?

Well... He did sort of betray Rosenkreuz, so he supposes that now he belongs with the likes of them.

It still goes against all of his training, though.

The guards that had been under not even three days ago now nudge him forward with their guns, into the dark metal room that serves as a holding cell until they make the proper transfer in either an outpost or a ship with the right accommodations. They slips off the cuffs, a merciful relief, and then the door is sliding shut quickly, so that he can't get out.

He can feel the anti-Shadow field. And he may not be a natural Shadow User, but the separation from Alfheim is like being ripped apart. Andropov knows it will get better with time, but it's very hard to remember that right now while it feels like he's being torn limb from limb.

Looking around the room, he tries to distract himself from the agony within. The Resistance members regard him with suspicion, instantly knowing that he is not one of theirs, but unable to quite place who he is. He heads for the corner at the back of the room, hoping that if he keeps to himself they won't bother him at all.

But a face among the crowd stops him dead in his tracks, and even as he says the name, Andropov can scarcely believe it. "Lieutenant Dragnov?"

"Sergey," the older man looks tired, but not necessarily unhappy to see him. "It's been a while."

Jiro is packing up the camp supplies when he hears Shu clear his throat and say, "Hey, Jiro... Have you ever... you know, liked somebody?"

He drops the supplies, the majority - or, at least, all of the heavy parts - landing directly on his foot. He stumbles backwards with a muffled curse.

Shu, however, seems oblivious to this. Jiro is annoyed by this, even though he'd been trying to not draw any attention to this little slipup. "And not just as... as a friend. More than that, I mean."

And since Jiro doesn't think the response, Why, yes, I have fallen head over heels for you childhood friend. So who do you like?, will go over particularly well, he instead chooses to say, "Yes. I have." He tries to put as much emphasis as possible on the word "have". It's not a complete lie; though they're all dead by now (unless Jina wasn't the only one to escape), Kluke is hardly the first girl he's ever had a crush on.

(Well, at least he's admitting it to himself now. That's something, isn't it?)

"How..." Shu swallows so loudly he can hear it. It's kind of interesting to see him so awkward like this, since the other boy always seems so sure. "How do you know if you have a crush on someone?"

"I think it's a little different for everyone," Jiro shrugs, trying to seem nonchalant. Trying not to let onto the fact that he's in the middle of one right now, and the object of his affections is only spare feet away from them. (She and Bouquet are talking with Zola, yes, but it's the principle of the thing!) "For me, though... My heart would pound when they said my name. I'd feel a shiver, all the way down to my toes, if their hand brush mine. And... And I was always happy whenever they were around, happy in a way that no one else could make me." He shuts his eyes, but there is no darkness or the color of his eyelids - there is only Kluke.

"...I see." Shu nods, and it seems like he understands. "Thank you, Jiro."

"No problem." Jiro bends down to pick up what he dropped, wondering about the exchange.

Well. It seems like things are finally starting to get interesting around here.

"Noi, come on, wake up, maro!"

Noi moans into his pillow.

"You can't sleep all day, maro! C'mon, it's time to get up, maro!"

"Too early." He turns, burrowing further into the blankets.

"Not too early, maro! Ma is almost done with breakfast and we're supposed to play hide and seek afterwards, maro!"

Oh, Ancestors, that's right. Ugh. Why'd he make that promise? With a groan, he untangles himself from the bed sheets. He doesn't even get the chance to say anything before Marumaro has him by the wrist and he's being dragged downstairs.

The smell of pancakes hits his nose before they've even entered the room. Ma (Marumaro's mother) sure does know the way to his heart.

They're light and fluffy and sweet. It's perfect, wonderfully perfect.

More than he could ever ask for.

He follows Marumaro, Maruponi, and Marutora as they scramble outside, albeit at a much more subdued pace. He'll play this "hide and seek", if only to fulfill his promise to the little ones, but he just doesn't have the enthusiasm that had been present when he said that he'd play with them.

Noi is depressed, he realizes.

Fagino would laugh at him. Superior Lifeforms don't get depressed. They don't feel anything.

Emotions get in the way of everything.

But it's so hard to remember this, when he's never been capable of doing that, especially now that he's surrounded by a family - the whole tribe, even - that wears their heart on their sleeve.

The children giggle and squeal as they enter the caves; little flashes of their colorful clothing dart under the torches dotted throughout the area. Marumaro waves him forward as he joins them.

Noi has to leave soon. And he will.

But not today.

With a slight smirk, he follows the sound of Marumaro's whooping laughter.

It's a bit surreal being with the Lieutenant again. Andropov never looked up to him the way he had with Rogi-sama, but Dragnov had been a close mentor to him nonetheless.

"I'm glad you're alive, Lieutenant," he sighs, leaning back against the wall. It's cold, even through the material of his shirt, but his body is too tired to be denied something to lean against. "I was told you were dead."

"I can't say I'm surprised to hear that," Dragnov's smirk is grim. "And there probably isn't much point in calling me 'lieutenant' now. In the Resistance, I'm a captain now, actually."

Resistance? Dragnov, the Dragnov of Good Luck, is a part of the Resistance?

He wants to ask about it. But he holds himself back.

"I'm not sure I can think of you as anything other than Lieutenant." His returning grin is somewhat sheepish. "Not to be disrespectful, but... I've just known you that way for so long that it seems weird to call you anything else."

But Dragnov just laughs, not taking offense at all, rubbing his head. Andropov knows his hair must be in disarray now, but he can't really bring himself to care.

He'd missed this about Dragnov. So few others in the army had ever been able to laugh so easily. And the Lieutenant has been through worst than most.

Dragnov's eyes shift, becomes less jovial and more serious. The change makes Andropov swallow. "So, Sergey..." He's the only one beside Rogi-sama that ever calls him "Sergey", too. Maybe the others don't even know his first name. The thought bothers him, though he can't quite say why. "How exactly did you end up in this place?"

He'd known the question was coming, but the answer is still like a hard blow to the stomach. He's a traitor. A deserter. "I went against orders." Andropov doesn't really want to talk about it, but it's not like it matters anymore. After all, they can't incriminate him anymore than they already have. "There was this girl, and I liked her. A lot. And then we were supposed to capture her, Schneider and I, and we did... But... I helped her escape." He clutches at his arms. "There was no telling what would happen to her, and I... I refused to leave her to that fate, whatever it might have been."

Bracing himself, he waits for Dragnov to scold him, reprimand him, criticize him. Just like he deserves. The Lieutenant knows better than anyone that you don't go against orders.

But all that he says is, "You did the right thing, Sergey."

"I- I what?"

"I had to make a choice, once, between right and wrong. There was a little boy that Grand Kingdom wanted brought in. I knew what they were doing to the children that they caught, experiments of various kinds, some to the point that the children would hope for death. And I refused to subject that little boy to such a destiny. So I fought. I saved him and I ran. I left Grand Kingdom and joined the Resistance."

"Lieutenant..." Andropov doesn't even know what to say.

Dragnov rests a hand on his shoulder, and both the touch and his words are a reassurance that Andropov has desperately needed. "Sometimes being a good solider is not the same as being a good person. And it is unfortunate, Sergey, but sometimes we have no other option but to choose between them."

They're heading to Lago Village. At least... That's what she thinks Zola called it.

She tries to focus on their destination, and less on what she's seeing.

Shu leans towards her (why is he getting so close?), his hand on her arm (why does he always touch her so much?), speaking too low for Kluke to hear, eyes shining (why does he have to keep looking at her like that?), and Bouquet laughs, high and tinkling like bells.

Why does it bother her so much?

She rubs her arms, feeling chilled even though the sun is warm.

Bouquet really is very pretty.

The thought stings.

She feels like she's just gotten Shu back. And for someone else to hold his attention...

Kluke shuts her eyes. She doesn't want to be jealous. She doesn't! And especially not of Bouquet, so sweet and innocent that she acts like she's half her age sometimes.

It feels wrong to have these sorts of feelings.

She's startled by a hand on her shoulder. "You alright?" Jiro's tone is warm and strong.

Kluke doesn't feel so bad now.

She nods a little in answer. He responds with, "Kluke... If you ever want to talk about something, I'll be there to listen. You know that, right?"

"I know." She touches his hand with her own, smiling. "Thank you."

Jiro chuckles a little. "I haven't done anything yet."

"You have." She looks up at him fully. "You always see to be there for me when I need it."

And it's odd, but he stops in his tracks and blushes, of all things. Now, why would he do that? "Kluke, I..."

"Hm?" Kluke pauses her steps as well, turning to face him. "What is it, Jiro?"

"I... I just..." He shakes his head. "Never mind. Don't worry about it." Jiro dashes forward, and she gasps as he takes her hand. "Come on; let's catch up with each other."

She's breathless as he runs her past Shu and Bouquet, past Zola, and it's so exhilarating, fills her with so much joy, that Kluke can't help but throw back her head and laugh.

The wind pulls and tugs at her hair like an insistent child. Her hand is warm inside of Jiro's grasp.

They're off to a promising start.

It will be a good journey, she thinks.

It took a whole month to get here. It was worth every step of the way.

I've been waiting to write these scenes with Noi ever since I was sure he was going to be in this. It was great to finally work on them.

And if I can get the time, I am so doing NaNoWriMo again next year – at the rate I've been going, it'll be the only way I can get anything done anymore.