The storms had ended their conquest of the sky. A long-awaited peace, the insanity's edge was pulled back into this world's darkness. And yet it was but temporary, a calm before trouble.
In this nameless grove was the manor, decorated by the surrounding lake and forest. Light was beaming thanks to the glowing mushrooms, and yet, at this instant, darkness was almost all that the eyes could see.
In that part of the forest, shadows were kings, while light was a rarity. A defect of that Memory, proof that even in this paradise, imperfection still existed. But something imperfect needs support to be handled correctly. Just like you would have something to cool down your Spelltech if it overheats from time to time.
They needed to know if there was anything in here. And so, as a solution… Someone had been chosen to venture into those dark places and be sure that nothing was hiding in here. And that person had been effective, as usual. After all, it was her role within the group.
The Matriarch was guiding them as their leader.
The Heir was doing her best to handle things herself.
The Cook… well, he was versatile enough to be with them.
The Teacher was taking care of the Heir's training.
The Bodyguard was the last resort if anything happened.
The Doc was taking care of their wound while gathering intel through her network.
The Sleeping Princess was unable to do anything by herself.
Which left only her, the Scout. Watching over every possible gap in their security.
Dana…
That dear Dana… Was now tracking Sunless like a beast. Pumping into him a pure condensate of reflex and tricks, the hard way. Since they were both in complete darkness, it would be normal to assume that none of them were at an advantage.
But nope, since Dana was able to see the "aura" of things, she was seeing without a problem. That alone was a clear disadvantage for Sunless. Not only that, but he also had his "aura" acting like a flashing light on a PTV.
It had been hours, and Sunless had been found so many times that it wasn't even fun anymore.
But he couldn't complain since it was his exercise, the one he had to train on for the last few days. He had always loved shades over sunlight, but it didn't mean that he was able to see through them. Of course, his task wasn't only to hide himself, it would have been too easy otherwise. Not only did he have to hide himself from her, but he needed to find a way to reverse their role by tracking her without being noticed.
All that because of his "aura"... Dana had said that he was able to vanish from her Aspect from time to time; she had offered him to train with her but…
Crack
The sound of a twig getting stepped on.
She had theorized that his aura was responding to his emotions, and so what better scenario to help handle them than to simply be hunted? What a nice way to handle all your messed-up emotions, truly. Sunless was trying his best to be forgotten. After all his failed attempts, that was what he had found by himself.
Emotion alone wasn't enough, he had to will it into reality.
The wish to not be seen had to be formed in his mind, to be forgotten.
The footsteps were getting closer, and all he could do was close his eyes, only to pray that she wouldn't see him this time. No. He shouldn't pray for anything. His only way out was to go even beyond that point.
Something he hadn't thought of in a long time now.
To be forgotten was only a part of his truth.
He wanted something else.
To be nowhere and everywhere. To be anything and everything. From the branch to the wind blowing to the dirt covering his clothes. He wanted to be one with the world.
Breathing was useless.
He had no need for that anymore.
Sunless couldn't hear the air passing by his nose into his lungs, he couldn't see the silhouette that walked just in front of him either.
His mind was blank
A peace of mind causing it to be absent-like.
The person was moving away from him; he had succeeded for once.
'So it is possible after all… It wasn't all for nothing.'
He wouldn't be able to describe how it felt since someone had grabbed him from behind. That unpleasant surprise had him screaming with all he could. His voice cracked as a punch was thrown by instinct.
Only to be caught in someone's hand.
[Sunless]:"Oh no, don't you da-"
[Dana]:"I've seen better ways of greeting a woman, young Sunless~."
[Sunless]"I know, I know… Now, can you put me down, please?"
Always the same things, the same words, and Dana was taking a bit too much pleasure in torturing him like that. The boy knew perfectly that asking her anything wouldn't change even a iota of what was waiting for him.
Because since he had been found, they needed to warn Vincent at this forest's edge about this area. He was waiting around the lake, and at this point they had nothing to lose by just walking to talk face to face with him.
But no, the Scout had another idea. And no, it wasn't something cool and stylish that would make him have stars in his eyes. If only…
[Sunless]:"Dana, I swear if yo-"
[Dana]:"Tch, don't talk; you'll bite your tongue."
[Sunless]:"..!!!"
[Dana]:"Up you go !!!"
In a single motion, Sunless was thrown into the air. Five meters, ten… fifteen… You would surely ask yourself how he could've been thrown like that without crashing into all the trees around him? Sunless had asked himself the same question, but it had to wait since he had reached the peak of his ascent. He could see from here almost everything: the lake, the manor, the training ground, but more importantly, the smoke coming from Vincent's campfire.
The wind had stopped whistling in his ear, and instead of being happy, Sunless was already screaming as dread was taking over. Once again, he started to fall.
[Sunless]:"I SWEAR, DANA, I'LL MAKE YOU PAY, YOU DAMN WITCH!"
The inertia was pulling everything in him in a weird way. He could feel the weight of his breakfast moving in his stomach. The same thing with the blood in his legs and fingers.
Even if he wasn't afraid of heights, he was now excusing himself for every instance where he had mocked those who were. Because as the wind blew in his eyes, forcing them to be half-closed, Sunless could only understand them.
He was almost about to pray for his life, just by reflex.
Because something had grabbed him around ten meters above the ground. Ivy and branches surrounded his torso and his neck, following his trajectory, only for the plants to diverge it. It felt like being a small ball that was thrown, then caught, only to be thrown in one singular movement.
A playground slide, but a lot faster and against his will.
All that only to be thrown into Dana's arms; you embraced him, then spun to remove all that residual inertia. Slowing down little by little, only to giggle.
[Dana]:"I don't think he heard you, we need to redo it… It's so sad~, well, on my signal~ One…Two…"
[Sunless]:"Dana… I can't promise you that I won't throw up if…Not if I can't promise you that I won't puke. End of sentence."
[Dana]:"Rohh, you're no fun. But you did well this time. Your only problem was that it felt uncanny."
[Sunless]:"Good, good…Put me down now."
He was not about to risk another second in her arms if it was to be thrown once again. He was rarely the type to ask to stop an exercise for the day, but he felt like one more try would be one too many. So as soon as his feet were on the ground, Sunless decided he would walk toward Vincent and then back to the manor afterwards.
That was what he had decided, and yet as soon as Dana had completed his request, all he was to do was fall on his knees.
His hands trembling, shaking a lost leaf in a violent wind.
Weird.
[Dana]:" Finally, I thought it would never happen. Vic' come here, please."
[Vincent]:"Took ya long enough."
Coming through the bushes was the cook, walking toward them just to grab the poor kid under his arm. Like some heavy sack of vegetables. He would have gladly told him that there was no need for that, but his body felt weak. Too weak.
Both adults seemed to know what was happening, and yet, they stood silent while leaving the forest. Sunless wasn't a fan of secrets for as long as he could remember. Something he got from his mother without a doubt, but over time, and especially with the clan, he grew to be even less able to accept it.
Truth goes with Trust.
No one would trust someone who kept lying, right?
Weirdly enough, that simple thought sent shivers down his spine. Something the cook had noticed without even an ounce of difficulty.
[Vincent]:"Don't go and catch a cold on me."
[Dana]:"Vinc', remember that he's in that state because we wanted to push his body to produce as much adrenaline as possible. That's just the drawback."
[Vincent]:"Fair enough."
The name was tipping something in his memory, but only that. He had never learned what it truly meant or what it did. But the shivering wasn't due to any compound in his body. No, it was far simpler than that.
He was destined to see Ashe today.
It was the sole rule he had to follow if he wanted to stay with them: he needed to learn from her. But since they weren't that heartless, Nephis had decided that she would come with him until his fear of Ashe's disappeared.
Even if it had to overlap with her training with Theseus, Sunless wanted to tell her that she didn't have to go this far for him… But a part of him didn't want to.
Mixed ideas coagulated in his mind to push an unreasonable reality.
She was doing it because she wanted to. And why was that?
Now that he was thinking about it, her presence wasn't linked to any possible bad word anymore. She had an aloof expression from time to time, but it slowly became something hard to complain about. She was a lot more expressive compared to before.
She was fun. Trustworthy. Loyal.
Sincerely, only one word was coming to his mind.
One he had never used before, and he wasn't even sure if it would be logical to use in this instance. It was something far too personal to be talked about with anyone, and yet, an urge was coming from deep within him: To talk with Jeanne about it.
Even more now since she was smiling again!
He would talk about everything, and she would just look at him with those eyes. Oh, those beautiful and sincere eyes that he had missed. She was watching him, listening to him, hugging him as if her time with him was the most precious treasure she could cherish.
Even when he was mad, angry, or just afraid… She would do that thing where she would just sit beside him and wait. She would stop everything she was doing just to be beside him in silence. To have her fingers playing with his hair while waiting for him to get everything out of his chest.
She was even congratulating him for not giving up when things were hard. Those training with Dana
were the perfect example.
Being tracked down in a zone where there's almost no light at all, for hours without succeeding at the first step asked of him. Before, he would have just walked toward his room, and Nephis would have tried…and succeeded at making him think about something else.
But it would have been like numbing a wound. Yes, it's more bearable, but the problem was still here, and the numbing wasn't everlasting.
Two days ago, he had been on edge after his training and it was Jeanne who helped him out.
… He really liked Jeanne.
But today he wouldn't be able to see her, since she had something else to do outside the Memory. That's why he was carried to his room at that very moment. Skipping the check-up part to go directly to the "Take a shower and follow Nephis" part.
He felt exhausted but still tried to ask.
[Sunless]:" What is adrenaline?"
They had already changed the topic a while ago, but since the kid wanted to know more…Who would dare to go against a mind craving for knowledge.
[Vincent]:"I do the carryin', ya do the talkin'."
[Dana]:"Fine, fine, I'm used to doing all the dirty work with you anyway. How can I exp… Right, so your brain talks with your body with what's called "hormones". One of them is Adrenaline. It's your brain's way of asking your body to prepare itself for great effort, and generally, it's mentioned in dangerous situations… Fight or flight…or die."
From what he was seeing, they were about to reach the training ground. They passed just beside Master Theseus and Nephis during their training. But weirdly enough, not even a glance was shared. Everyone was minding their own business, and not even the children were excluded from that.
It was due to mixed feelings between respect and fear of what would happen if they were to disturb the Master's teaching mid-session. And just by the vibe he was emanating, they had every right to think like that.
The man was focused as if his life was depending on it while getting jumped by Nephis. Or at least, she was trying to, but by the sound of it, she was the one getting punched around.
It was only when they were far enough from them that Dana dared to clear her throat.
[Dana]:"Well… hum. Adrenaline, yes. So we were asked by Jeanne to put you in some stressful situations to…how can I express it…"
[Vincent]:"Regulate?"
[Dana]:"Thanks, Vinc', we were asked to do so to help your body regulate itself. Jeanne was afraid that after…well, you know what, your sensitivity to stress from danger had been compromised. Which could be a problem in the future if not treated early on. So we had to help your body remember how to produce it. Don't ask me why… I don't know the science behind it. For me, it sounds just stupid. Your body had a high tolerance to something, and the solution is to put you under that same thing? But Jeanne knows a lot more than me, so there's surely something I'm missing. I'm trusting her judgment."
A door had been crossed, and now a corridor was presenting itself.
Sunless had heard the explanation, but since he couldn't really grasp the extent of this monologue, he had decided to be something he wished he had stayed: A child.
It wasn't serious or dangerous for him if he allowed himself to just… take his time. That explanation would still be in his mind tomorrow and the day after. And even if he came to forget about it, he would still be able to ask again or simply search by himself.
So, while still carried under Vincent's arm, Sunless simply decided to stay silent. Only after thanking the scout with a silent head nod, of course.
The side effect had already left his body, but why would he share that information if he could force Vincent to do something he wouldn't normally. Now that he was thinking about it, Vincent was the type of guy who seemed and acted like an douchbag but was kind of caring at his core.
There was a world where Sunless would have asked him to carry him without reason, and Vincent would have agreed.
Perfect, now Sunless was feeling bad about all that "forcing Vincent" bits.
[Sunless]:"Thank you, Vincent…"
A quiet voice, a murmur, and yet the cook had smiled right after.
[Vincent]:"Ya better be, you little rat."
The words were crude, but the tone wasn't. It sounded like he was almost amused by the situation. There was no malice in his voice, no judgement.
He liked Vincent too, despite his overall bad temper.
And without him noticing it, here was the door… His door. They had arrived at their destination. The grumpy man was slowly but tenderly putting the boy down. Patting his head, tousling his hair just to mess with him. It was hard to describe, but it felt the same way that it did with Nephis before.
Being a type of mean to show how much they care for the other.
Sunless was chuckling while being attacked by that relentless hand. Dana reacted the same way, without needing her hair disheveled.
It was light-hearted.
He felt serene.
[Dana]:"Now go take that shower, you're still covered in mud. Meanwhile, Vincent will prepare something warm for you to eat after your lesson… Right, Vinc'~?"
[Vincent]:"You didn't have to look at me that way, ya know? I was already plannin' to do so."
[Dana]:"Oh, but I know that. I just wanted you to admit it~."
His hand had left the boy's hair, clearly ready to attack the scout for playing with fire too much. So everyone really loved to bully him, it wasn't only Sunless and the Matriarch.
Seeing that he was only wasting his time trying to take revenge on that harmless prank, the cook had decided to just sigh loudly, only to just…leave. He was already reaching the stairs, his little ponytail moving around while both Sunless and Dana were still amused by the situation.
Looking at Dana, Sunless couldn't resist trying to launch a surprise attack, aiming to tickle her at her side. Only for it to fail; she had dodged it quite easily.
And despite that failure, Sunless felt…at ease.
[Dana]:"Train again for like… twenty years and maybe you'll be able to catch me~."
[Sunless]:"Why would I need to wait that long? Leave me a few months, and you'll see if I won't catch you."
Her face had relaxed, enhancing her already beautiful traits. Her smooth skin shone like a polished gemstone, reflecting light as her ruby-like eyes sparkled with so much glee that, just by looking at them, you could almost forget how hard life could be.
Careless as any perfect world should be.
And her flamboyant hair, acting like waves on a rageless sea. Where wind was both a guide and a pupil. Strands falling to her waist now that she had released them from her bun.
If Jeanne represented Love, Plume represented Tenderness, and Nephis represented Trust…then Dana was, without a doubt, an avatar of Joy.
Now that Sunless had realized it, he was surrounded by beautiful people. Even Vincent, with his neglected appearance, could be defined as charming. And it wasn't only the grown-ups; Nephis was also beautiful if judged by Outskirt's standard.
And even without that, he would doubt that anyone would dare to say that she was anything other than cute. Like a doll. Yes, that was a nice way to describe it. After all, she had shown him before how emotionless she could be.
She had also shown him how radiant she could be when she smiled.
Two extreme opposites wearing the face of a sweet angel. One that trained itself for war.
[Sunless]:"You'll see… Well, for now, I have something else to do, and if I take too much time, I'll have to deal with Nephis for the bathroom. See you later, Dana."
The woman simply rolled her eyes nonchalantly, pushing away all the formality with a single move of her hand.
[Dana]:"No need for all that, I'm not that old. Chuckle Well, see you later, Lightbulb."
[Sunless]:"What's that nickname?! Dana? Hey, don't ignore me, y-... aaaaand she's gone."
Alone in the corridor, Sunless knew that he had not much time left before Nephis' arrival. So without wasting his time, he opened the door to their room. His change was already prepared in advance, all he needed to do was clean himself.
Most of the dirt had been trapped in his hair. Creating little dry blocks that he had to destroy and while doing it… He surprised himself by looking at his own body.
He wasn't frail anymore…
Sure, he wasn't jacked off like Nephis, but traces of muscle started to appear where before he could only see his bones. He wasn't that little kid who was left in the sewer; he had changed.
His heart wasn't hurting him either. He was able to sprint, to climb, and dodge without being out of breath in a second. And on his hand was something he had never thought of as a sign of progress. The softness of his hands had started to disappear.
A hard layer of skin had started to form itself below most of his fingers. Proof of his effort.
Time had passed too quickly… Nephis was already done with her training and was waiting for her turn to use the shower. So, without wasting any more time, Sunless had to dry himself.
It was with a smirk that he left the bathroom.
The girl was looking at him with a slightly mocking gaze.
[Nephis]:"Now…What are you thinking about?"
[Sunless]:"Nothing. I'm done with the shower, by the way, you can go in if you want."
Looking at him, she had that half-desperate, half-amused look in her gray eyes. Holding her clean clothes in a large towel, she was about to close the door when she stopped herself. Turning her head toward him, she was about to warn him about something but…
[Sunless]:"Yeah yeah, I won't touch my hair while you're inside. I know the routine now, Neph, you don't need to-"
…
...
...…
What did he just call her?
It was something he never had thought about before, but that nickname had just slipped out of his lips. Looking at the girl, he hoped that she wouldn't notice it or…He didn't know really, but just that she hadn't registered that.
But to his utmost displeasure, she had completely turned herself to face him. She had that aloof expression, as if she was trying to understand how to handle that situation.
He would have almost thought that she had bugged out if not for the fact that he had noticed. That smallest of smiles, the one she surely thought wouldn't stand out too much.
[Nephis]:" I don't mind if you keep using that nickname."
And without much more to say, her hand was already pulling the door, closing it slowly, as if she had hoped to see a reaction.
But it was only when Sunless was left alone in that room that he allowed himself to smile.
Since she was okay with that nickname, it would mean that… Nephis was his friend.
His first real friend.
And de facto, his best friend.
But now he had a problem: she had a nickname, but what about him?
She was his best friend, but does that mean that he was also her best friend?
He had all the time in the world to think about it… Okay, I lied- maybe not that much, since Nephis had left the bathroom after a while. And she was walking directly toward him, forcing him to sit beside her while she was braiding his hair.
And on his side, he had started to do the same with her.
[Sunless]:"Can I ask you something?"
[Nephis]:"I may allow it."
[Sunless]:" Ha ha, really funny. But seriously, can I?"
She was looking at him, too focused on her task, and yet her answer was as gentle as it could get.
[Nephis]:"You sure do."
[Sunless]:"I want to be the only one to braid your hair when I'm around."
Her movement had stopped; her gaze was now focused on his.
Silver and Onyx.
His words were far heavier than what he might have thought. After all, it was something almost everyone in this manor was able to do if Nephis was in a good mood. Usually, it was her grandmother, but even Vincent had styled her hair before. The only exception was Master Theseus, but his Flaw made him too unsociable to do that kind of thing.
And now, he was asking to be a priority for that privilege.
It was something that would have deserved mockery, and yet…
[Nephis]:"You already are, you dummy. When I told you that I wouldn't unmake your braids, it meant that no one had the authorisation to touch them. I may ask for help to style my hair around them, but your braids are the only ones I've carried."
And to sublimate that moment, she had blessed him with a chuckle. One she didn't even try to cover or contain. How could someone even try to hurt her? Sunless was unable to answer that question.
So instead, he tried to surpass himself…after all, he had some responsibilities now. He had to do something befitting the girl who gave him such privilege.
Without a word, he waited for her to be done with his braid before moving. Getting behind her without asking anything, the boy was on a mission. Closing his eyes, visualizing how he would do his things, letting his hands get lost in her hair. To feel them correctly instead of just acting with only his view as a baseline.
Keeping his eyes closed, the boy had to take a deep breath.
[Sunless]:"Neph, do you trust me?"
A simple question, with a simple answer.
[Nephis]:"I trust you, Sunless."
It was that simple, her voice giving the feeling that it was just that obvious. A matter of fact that couldn't be denied nor dismissed. So without wasting any more time, his work had begun. He had a lot of choices, but he had decided to do something he had never dared to try.
To turn her own hair into an ornament.
Kings had crowns.
Angels had halos.
And Nephis didn't need either of those.
She was trying her best to show that what she wanted, she would get. What she wished to be was just a future that had yet to come. She was an immovable fact of the world, or at least his.
She was the shield, she was the weapon. She was both the monster and the slayer. A being like her doesn't need anything except herself. Adding anything would be like putting sauce on already perfect dishes.
That was the type of person Nephis was to him. So, still with his eyes closed, the boy let his hands move, he had an idea in his head, and overthinking it would surely ruin it. Nephis had done a lot of things for him, and today was his chance to express his gratitude.
He had seen it once, with his mother.
She was holding Rain in her arms while showing her a bedtime story with that unnamed tool that his dad had created. The story of a princess, forced in a tower to wait for her shining knight in armor. She wasn't alone, as a ghost was there to serve her and to make sure that she didn't lack anything at all.
After all, she was a princess.
So the ghost kept living in her shadow, preparing her meals, dressing her, and styling her hair. To be sure that she would be perfect when her knight finally came to her.
Nephis had such long hair that he would be able to try it.
To take strands from the left to the right to form a braid, and to do the same from the right to the left. Blocking them with a strand that was already there.
He needed something to hold them.
He snatched two single hairs from his own head to use as hairbands.
Both braids were joined and held in place.
All he needed to do now was to loosen the braids a little bit to make them look lighter.
Sunless was afraid to open his eyes, knowing perfectly well that he would be satisfied with his own work. And Nephis had noticed his lack of movement, taking it as a sign that he had finished his job. So it was logical for her to move toward her closest mirror.
The boy was stuck in place, both ashamed of a possible error and excited to know if he had pleased her.
[Nephis]:"Keep your eyes closed."
He was done for… He had messed up. Or did he? Because she was now moving toward her wardrobe, if he had heard it right. Sounds of fabric moving, and he was still seated, waiting for his execution for having messed up her hair.
[Nephis]:"Sunless, open your eyes and tell me… Does it suit me?"
What a devil.
Forcing him to judge by himself.
And yet, he obliged. His eyelids moved slowly, letting the light reveal the fruit of his effort. The girl was posing in front of him, and no words came out.
Her gray eyes reflected the light the same way as the moon would. She usually doesn't wear anything that she deems impractical or simply not her style, but today, she had tried something else. A black shirt, covered with a white suit coat. But the most surprising part was that she was wearing suit pants too.
He could swear that she had told him once that she disliked them because they were too limiting if she ever needed to move brusquely. The same goes for dresses.
And yet, here she was, acting like it was natural for her to wear them.
But despite that surprise, he still had his eyes stuck on her hair. Styled with the most beautiful semi-crown braids he had ever seen. As he wanted to be humble, Sunless finally saw that damn smug face of hers.
'Oh, you want to play like that?'
[Sunless]:"I've seen better…But it's mostly your fault, there's a limit to what my work can do. You should be happy that I was able to make you that pretty to begin with."
[Nephis]:"You little- if I catch you, I swear-!"
Sunless was already starting to run away from the girl, as this unending chasing game had started once more. He had found his place in this world, and it was by their side.
[End of Part 1: The Frog in the Well]