Mood: Freakishly tired and a little annoyed at dland....
Music: About You --- Ayumi Hamasaki

Rae: See, told ya I’d post it. ^^;;

Yet, Sadly this entry is so damn long, dland seems to be eating it. So. I’m going to have to break this into two pages apparently. >.<;;;

So, *laughs* I guess I’ll just break it into two pages and not worry about it. Read this page first, then click the nice little button down at the bottom of the page. The next button. Er, well actually it says “out”, but you know. It’s still the next button.

SO.

Here I am posting. It’s long. It’s random. I’m insane. Enjoy. XD

Oh, and I’ve got some goodies for you as well. Some pictures and an mp3... After the story. Waaaaay down there at the bottom of the NEXT page after t3h entry concludes... Yesh...

Er. Anyway.

Ano.... Hm.

Well.

(Yes... I actually was editing it even more all night long... SHUT up. XD I hope there’s no stupid typos, etc. My brain for some reason doesn’t seem to work too well when I’m proofreading my own stuff... Yet if I’m reading someone else’s writings, I catch each and every little spelling error...go figure. XD)

Okay...

*sigh*

Here goes.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~~~PART A~~~
~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The jump?

Rae stared at the black object for a couple of moments, then turned her questioning gaze to Druuvbin. “Uh... A jump? As in the ‘Jump’ jump, that jump?”

“This is the device that allows us to make the jump between dimensions, yes,” the psychic responded, eyeing the black circular object.

“Yeah, when we woke up in this world, we had those things on, and knew how to use them. Druu had a few extras in his pocket. We couldn’t remember how the hell we got them though. Still can’t remember.” Malba added, also casting his gaze to the black device.

How could they not remember? It just didn’t make any sense. Where the hell could they have gotten the things?

“So, you have no memory of how or where you got it? So how do you know that no one else has any?” she questioned nervously, looking up to meet Druu’s lavender eyes.

“Well. We don’t for sure. However, in all of this time, I have yet to discover any clue that anyone else possesses the device. As far as I know... It doesn’t exist. Yet, here it is,” the psychic stated, rubbing his thumb over the flat surface of the object.

“Doesn’t exist?”

“Yes. In our world, your world, any world. Nothing. Our world does indeed possess an extreme amount of technology, however... Even so. Nothing of this magnitude.” Druu replied, a bit of confusion flashing momentarily through his eyes.

But how can that be? It couldn’t have just randomly appeared out of nowhere, right? Right?

“Plus, when someone makes a jump, it causes a massive surge of energy. We would notice if someone else ‘jumped’. That’s why we have to be careful where we jump. Never too close to a city, don’t want anyone to pick up the energy...” Malba commented, turning his gaze away from the object, glancing toward Kitsune instead. “So... Will it even work for a human?”

“We think so, yes. However...” Kitsune trailed off, glancing at Druu.

“However, it will be rather difficult for a human to use. That’s why you should only use it as a last resort,” the water elemental finished smoothly.

That doesn’t sound good...

“So uh.. What is it even? Is it magick?”

“Well. It uses the body’s magick, but essentially it is a mechanical device. It manipulates the energy of the user, making it possible to break through the energy barriers that separate dimensions. ...Or something like that. That’s my theory anyway. We really aren’t certain.” Druu stated with a somewhat sheepish grin.

“You.. Don’t even know... Um.. So, if it works with the body’s magick, how the hell is it going to work on a human?” she questioned, stepping a bit closer to look at the device.

Hey is that some kind of symbol? she thought, noticing a strange character on the surface.

“Well... That’s why I said it would be rather difficult for a human to use, as humans have a significantly less amount of energy, and even less magick,” the elemental replied matter-of-factly.

“In other words, you humans suck,” the darkness elemental interjected, casting a cocky smirk in Rae’s direction.

“Ah shut up Malba. So... Um... You want me to use it?”

“If the need arises. However, I doubt it will.” Kitsune answered calmly, shoving a lock of icy hair away from her eyes.

“Er... Okay... Um... So... How does it work?” Rae questioned hesitantly, eyeing the device warily.

Is this really such a good idea? I can’t even get my computer to work right, what makes them think I can use some insanely uber technology?

“Well. You have to implant it first.” Druuvbin remarked nonchalantly.

...Wha?!

“I-Implant?” she squeaked, taking a step away from the psychic and the device. “Implant?”

“It’s not as bad as it sounds.” Kitsune stated with a touch of impatience, rolling her eyes.

“...Implant?”

“Yes. After it is implanted, there will be a mark permanently on the area of the implant. Think of it as a tattoo, of sorts. Normally when we make the jump, we pull on our own personal magick to activate the device, however as a human, you will have more difficulty.” Druu paused a moment, obviously contemplating his words. “Yet... You have worked some with natural elemental magick, yes?” he questioned hopefully.

“Yeah, witch here.” she replied with a small smile.

“Good. That makes things a little less complicated. You’re left handed, yes? So if we implant it into your... Hm... Left hand. You could draw in a natural element through your right hand... Draw it in through your body... That should be enough to kick-start the jump. Hopefully,” the water elemental mused, casting a glance first at the device, then Rae’s hand.

Okay... I can do that... Maybe...Natural element magick is pretty simple...

“Um. Okay. Wait you said it makes a tattoo. Where are yours then?” she questioned, raising an eyebrow.

Druu smiled, amusement playing in his lavender eyes. “Well. We generally keep them concealed, as it’s probably not a good idea to parade around in our world with them showing. The less we stand out the better. But, if you want to see...” the sprite trailed off, and he closed his eyes for a moment.

A few seconds later, the elemental reopened his eyes. “Look,” he motioned down with his empty glass. Rae let her eyes travel down, suddenly noticing a medium-sized intricate black symbol on the lean man’s bare stomach.

Hah. That wasn’t there a second ago. Or well, I guess it was, I just couldn’t see it before...

“Whoa. That is so bizarre. Hey, Kitsune, Malba? Where are your tattoos?” she questioned curiously.

Kitsune rolled her eyes, turning her lean body a bit so that Rae could see the same symbol on her upper right arm.

Malba just shrugged, holding out his left arm, revealing the symbol on the inside of his slender wrist. “Here’s mine.”

“That is like, so weird.” Rae commented, a small grin on her lips.

“Well. I suppose so, yes,” the psychic replied with an amused smile.

“Heh... Well. I always wanted a tattoo... So I guess I’m getting one now, huh?” Rae questioned nervously, yet forced her voice into a cheerful tone.

Implant huh... Man...

“That’s one way to look at it...” Kitsune responded, icy eyes glancing at the black ‘jump’ device in Druuvbin’s lean hand.

“Um.. Yeah?” she laughed uneasily, casting an anxious look to the device...

“Well then. Why don’t you step over here?” the psychic chirped cheerfully, stepping over to the alley wall, near Malba.

“Um, okay?” she responded, moving to stand by the wall, positioning herself between Malba and Druu. “Now what?”

Kitsune also stepped a bit closer, hands on her lean hips.

“Now. Give me your hand.” Druu ordered calmly, handing Kitsune his empty glass, then reaching his hand towards Rae.

Er... Maaan... The girl apprehensively laughed again, nervously casting her gaze to the device... Implant...

She raised her left hand, placing it palm down in the water elemental’s hand. “Um... This isn’t going to hurt is it?”

“Of course not,” the psychic responded airily, innocent smile on his lips.

Uh oh...

Before she could think any more of it, Druuvbin brought the black device down on the back of her hand, pressing it firmly against her skin. He then released, and Rae focused her gaze on the black coin like object.

Uh, so when does it, implant? It’s not doing...Anyth-- the girl’s thoughts trailed off as the circular device began to glow a dark grey hue. Uh...oh...

“Ah, and about that not hurting thing? I may have lied.” Druuvbin admitted, an apologetic smile on his lips.

The device suddenly sank down, embedding itself in the girl’s flesh. “Ow. Ow, OW, Druu, you bastard...” Rae groaned as the device implanted itself further into her skin. The thing is freaking merging with my hand...OW...

As the glowing black device disappeared completely into her hand, a sudden wave of energy shot up her arm, coursing throughout her whole body, as if in her very blood...

It wasn’t a painful feeling exactly... But the world was spinning, and Rae leaned distractedly back against the brick alley wall. Her vision blurred and the world lost all color, flashing shades of grey... “Wh--what’s happening?”

“It’s integrating with your blood. Just give it a minute.” Druuvbin replied calmly.

Spinning....

The world seemed to suddenly turn upside down, and she could hear... A dull roar... Voices? Music... The club... Dizzying...

“Your senses will temporarily surge, it’ll pass in a moment,” she vaguely made out Druu say, however the music was too loud...

Why the heck is everything grey? This is beyond bizarre...

The pounding music then faded, and once again she could hear her friends, in conversation...

“Are you sure it was a good idea to put that on a human?” Malba questioned skeptically.

“Shut up, fairy.” Kitsune ordered flatly.

“I’m just saying. How do you know it won’t make her head explode or something?” the sprite asked with an indifferent shrug.

“Well. We don’t for sure.” Druuvbin replied cheerfully.

WHAT?!

“Will you two shut up,” the ice demon snapped, giving a death glare to the two elementals. “Idiots.”

Now the energy flowing through the girl’s body was pulsating, her legs numbing... How much longer is this going to last...?

Whoa. Dizzynesss she thought, as another blast of energy pulsed through her, causing the disorientated girl to lose balance. Oops. Well, shit.

Before she could fall however, a strong hand gripped her shoulder, pushing her back against the wall. “It’ll be over in a second. Stupid.” Malba commented, giving the girl a somewhat reassuring smirk.

Hah, Malba being nice to me? My head really must be getting ready to explode...

She focused her blurred vision on the sprite holding her firmly against the wall with one hand. Yet, she noted that Malba’s injured hand was held out behind him, a safe distance away from her... Even through her dizzy, befuddled state, she found that to be.... Why does he want to keep it away from me so much....It’s weird...

With one last flash of bright grey, her vision returned to normal and just as fast as the dizziness had set in, it disappeared. She blinked, the odd energy completely dissipating.

“Whoa. That was really weird.” Rae commented with another blink.

“Well. I guess your head’s not gonna explode. Too bad.” Malba stated with another smirk, letting go of the girl’s shoulder.

“Congratulations. You have successfully been implanted.” Druu chirped happily, giving the girl an amused smile.

Rae narrowed her eyes at the psychic. “You... You are a real jerk, ya know?”

“Am I? Why ever would you say that?” the water sprite responded innocently, amusement shining in his lavender eyes.

Rae rolled her eyes in response. She then turned her attention to her hand. Now, next to her busted knuckle... Actually covering the majority of the back of her hand was that same black design...

Whoa. That’s kind of cool looking.

“So uh. If I have to use it, which hopefully never happens, I just... Pull in natural elemental energy with my right hand, and direct it through my body? That should be enough to activate it? Any particular element I should use?” she questioned, running a finger over the design.

“Any element should work.” Kitsune responded, shoving Druu’s empty glass back at the sprite, obviously tired of holding it.

“Um, okay. So uh, once it activates, then what?”

“Your body will start... It’s kind of hard to explain. It’s a cold sensation, like you are suddenly covered in icy water... At that time, you direct your thoughts on where you want to jump to. Then, well. You jump.” Druuvbin explained, amused smile still playing on the sprite’s lips.

“Er.. But I’ve only been to Laineka and that forest. Oh and that cliff. So how would I know where to jump to?” Rae questioned.

“Ah, well. That’s a bit of a problem, isn’t it? Later, I suppose we should jump you outside a few cities around our world. So you can remember the locations, in case you ever would need to find us,” the psychic responded thoughtfully.

“Um, okay...”

Well this has just been a really weird day... But hey uh, I got a new tattoo out of it... And a new uh, roommate?

“Oh hey, I don’t have to hide this do I?” she questioned, holding up her hand, glancing at the black design.

“No, it should be okay. No one would recognize it in this world.” Kitsune responded calmly, pushing a stray lock of black hair away from her eyes.

“Wait, what do you mean? Recognize?”

“That mark... Is a combination of two archaic demon symbols. When combined, the symbols roughly translate to ‘Shadow’ and ‘Judgment’. It would draw attention in our world to be seen wearing such ancient symbols. Which is why we usually conceal it, neh?” Druuvbin explained, looking down at his own symbol.

Shadow Judgment?

“Shadow Judgment? What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“Honestly? We haven’t a clue,” the water elemental replied breezily with a shrug of his shoulders. “Rather odd, isn’t it?”

Rae raised an eyebrow, glancing back down at her own black design. Shadow Judgment? That’s really weird... She still didn’t understand. Where the hell had the devices even come from?

“Doesn’t it bother you? That you can’t remember? It’s... Kind of scary.” Rae questioned softly, tracing the design with a finger.

“Of course. It’s very frustrating... However. We use the power, regardless.” Druu sighed, running a lean hand through his long blue hair. “One day, hopefully, we will discover its origins and how we got to your world, but... Until then. We do what we can.”

“It’s all we can do.” Kitsune stated calmly, with a slight nod in agreement.

“I don’t really care where it came from.” Malba shrugged with disinterest. “Who cares?”

Rae rolled her eyes at the darkness sprite before once again turning her attention back to the mark on her hand. “Yeah, you’re right. I guess it’s the only thing you can really do.”

“Yes.”

“So... Uh, if worst comes to worst, I can always jump Kouji and myself to your world, and uh find you all or whatever... So... I guess that means I can keep him safe...” she trailed off, still eyeing the odd symbol on her hand. Rae couldn’t quite shake the nervous feeling that she would somehow fail to protect the boy... Wait. Should I even be calling him a boy? Geh. So confusing...

“Yes. Though, you must remember that his necklace will interfere with the jump a bit. That stone is a power suppressor, so you’ll need to pull in as much natural elemental energy as possible, to counteract the stone’s attempt to negate the jump.” Druu explained calmly, lean finger tracing the empty glass in his hand.

Rae nodded, biting her lower lip a bit. So, the stone would mess around with the jump, huh? Great, like she wouldn’t have enough trouble doing it to start with...

Hopefully I’ll never have to use it...

“So uh, does the jump give me any cool new super powers?” the girl asked jokingly, a smirk on her lips. Hah. That would be cool. Super powered Rae. Heh... “Like uh, super strength, and x-ray vision?”

“Afraid not,” the water elemental replied with a smile.

“Damn,” she stated with a mock pout. “No super powers.”

“Idiot.” Malba muttered, rolling his dark eyes.

Rae’s only response was to teasingly flip her middle finger at the sprite.

“It’s getting rather late.” Kitsune commented quietly, casting her icy eyes up to the cloudy night sky.

What, she can tell the time just by looking at the sky?

Rae let her own eyes travel up to look at the sky as well. No stars could be seen of course, as really... Big cities with stars? Yeah, not so much... A cool breeze momentarily blew, brushing against the four.

This has been... A weird day...

“Yeah, you’re right. I bet the club will be closing soon. ‘Cause like, everything closes pretty early in Japan...” Rae finally responded, taking her gaze away from the dark sky, instead glancing back at the rave building.

“Well, I suppose we should wrap this up for now, hm?” the blue haired psychic questioned pleasantly, smile on his lips.

“Yeah, I need to get over to Laineka anyway... I’m meeting someone who might have some info on a certain missing idiot...” Malba stated, running his left hand through his long black hair.

“Oh? Who are you meeting?” Druu questioned, turning to give the darkness elemental a curious frown.

“...Don’t worry about it.” Malba shrugged. “Hey Rae, you got any cigarettes on you? Kopaka stole mine,” the sprite then went on to say, not giving Druu a chance to question him further on the matter.

“Yeah, here,” she nodded, pulling out a pack of Marlboros from a jean pocket. She tossed the pack to the sprite, who caught it deftly with his uninjured hand.

“Thanks.”

Hm... Wonder who Malba’s going to meet... Rae glanced at Kitsune, who didn’t seem surprised by the sprite’s statement. I bet she knows... Druu however still had a small frown on his lips, and the girl could tell that the psychic wasn’t entirely happy with Malba... Hm...

“Okay, so before we uh, call it a night or whatever, I have two more questions,” she announced, holding up two fingers.

“What?” Kitsune questioned, slightly raising an eyebrow.

“Question one. The ‘color’ thing? What was Kouji talking about?” Rae questioned, pushing a long lock of pink hair behind an ear.

“Well. We aren’t sure to exactly what degree, but it seems that the boy possesses some psychic abilities.” Druu mused, finally turning his attention away from Malba.

“Yes... He will sometimes say things about colors, and will just... Know things. Like what my real name means... I didn’t tell him about that. We aren’t really sure how much ability he has and it’s fairly pointless to question him on it, as his memory is so fragmented. He forgets...” Kitsune went on to explain, turning to frown at Druu.

Oops, looks like Kits is still pissed at Druu about the whole ‘funny color’ thing... Rae thought, noting the pointed look the ice demon cast to the water sprite. Druuvbin simply shrugged in response, innocent smile appearing on his lips.

Typical. Try to look all innocent...

“What’s the second question?” Malba broke in curiously.

“My second question. The most pressing of all questions...” she trailed off dramatically, placing her hands on her hips.

“...What?” Kitsune questioned impatiently.

Heh...

“What in the FREAKING hell is an AVMC-disk?” Rae responded, smirk appearing on her lips.

Kitsune merely twitched, looking away from the girl.

“AVMC. Think of DVD’s and CD’s. Only about twenty times better.” Malba answered instead, a grin on his lips. “You humans just really suck.”

Twenty times better? Whoa, how cool... Rae ignored the ‘humans suck’ comment, turning her attention back to the ice demon. “So, how did you learn to convert and stuff? Since when are you a big tech-nerd, anyway?”

“...Within the last year or so... Kopaka has taught me a few tricks...” the demon muttered, eyebrow twitching. “And. I am not a nerd...” she grumbled, though if Rae wasn’t entirely mistaken, she thought she caught a quick flash of color spread over those pale cheeks.

Hah, Kitsune is embarrassed...Wait... Kopaka?

“So ...Kopaka is the real tech-nerd? Wow... He never ceases to surprise me...”

“You just never know what to expect, yes?” Druuvbin commented with an amused smile.

Only a year ago, huh... Kouji’s concept of time must be a little off as well. He said when he was ‘younger’ Kitsune converted cartoons for him...

Rae frowned a bit, absentmindedly pulling on a stray thread from her shirt. “I lied, I have one more question.”

“What now?” Kitsune sighed with annoyance.

“How long has Kouji been awake?”

“...Around three years.”

Only three? Rae blinked, a bit surprised.

Wait... Three years ago... Whoa!

“That first time you brought him here! Was that...”

“Yes. Shortly after we broke him out of the base. I had no other option; it was a close call... That’s why I brought him to you that time.” Kitsune admitted with a slight nod of her head.

Wow, okay. That makes sense... So that’s why.

“So, are we done now? Can I go?” Malba broke in impatiently, casting an irritated glance at the group.

“Yes, I believe that about covers it, for now anyway.” Druuvbin responded, once again gazing at Malba with a questioning frown.

Hm, he really doesn’t seem very happy about something...
The water elemental’s frown quickly faded however, once again returning to his usual pleasant smile.

“Alright. I’m out of here,” the darkness sprite stated, turning away from the group.

“...Don’t forget Druuvbin. We still have things to discuss as well.” Kitsune remarked flatly, giving the water sprite another pointed look.

He’s in trouble...Why, I don’t know, but Kits is pissed with him...

“Why bother, it’s not like he’ll tell you anyway...” Malba muttered lowly, so much so that Rae barely made it out.

With that statement the sprite simply vanished.

Wha? Rae looked down at her hand as a quick cool sensation passed over the area of the design. “Uh, my tattoo thing just did something weird.”

“That was Malba jumping. Even if you are a human, you will be able to feel the energy a bit, if you are nearby when one makes the jump.” Druu explained calmly, completely ignoring Kitsune’s pointed stare.

“Oh. Cool.”

The ice demon cleared her throat, obviously growing tired of the conversation. “...I’m going to go get Kouji. I need to take him back to get a few things in order. I’ll try to get him back by tomorrow...” Kitsune commented quietly.

“Okay. That’s fine.”

The icy demon said nothing, only nodding before turning and re-entering the back entrance to the large club.

Now...

“Well, I suppose it’s just you and me now, hm?” Druuvbin commented lightly, winking at the girl.

“Yeah...”

“Looks like you passed the test, hm?” the sprite questioned, an amused look once again playing in his eyes...

“Yeah... You so set me up, didn’t you.”

“Who, me? Whatever makes you think that?” Druuvbin questioned dramatically, blinking his eyes with feigned innocence.

“Oh, I wonder,” the girl commented flatly, giving the sprite a suspicious look.

“Well. I think it worked out rather well. You proved your loyalty to Kitsune quite nicely I thought,” the psychic replied smoothly, once again winking a lavender eye at the girl.

“Yeah well... I still almost got stabbed...” Rae sulked, crossing her arms. “That wasn’t cool.”

The sprite laughed, shaking his head a bit. “Let me assure you Rae, you were never in any real danger.”

“GAH. I knew it! You did that! Were those muggers even real people? Or did you like possess two innocent guys or what?” she exclaimed, raising an eyebrow at the sprite.

“Does it matter?” Druu replied vaguely, smile still firmly in place.

“You know, never mind. Somehow I don’t think I even want to know...” Rae shook her head, deciding that it was really best not to know... It’s hard to tell with Druu.. Man... He’s really sneaky... Hopefully the guys weren’t some poor innocent dudes, ‘cause uh... one will like be missing a hand and...yeah...

“So... Kitsune really bought it?”

“Of course not.” Druu chirped happily.

“Wha? How do you know?”

“Well. At the bar she said and I quote, ‘did you really expect me to fall for that, you moron?’” the sprite stated, impersonating the demon’s voice quite well, actually.

“...What did you say to that?” Rae questioned, a small grin on her lips.
That was a pretty good impersonation... He could do voice acting...

“Well. I said of course not. But that wasn’t the point, now was it?” he responded, an amused smile on his lips.

“You know... Now that I think about it. She really didn’t seem that upset over the whole mugging thing... Though I bet she’s pissed at you for scaring Kouji,” she commented thoughtfully.

“Ah, well Kitsune stays rather angry with me on a fairly constant basis, so I’m not too concerned,” the sprite laughed, running a hand through his silky dark-blue hair.

“I’ve noticed.” Rae remarked dryly.

“Yes well, regardless. The point was still made, and Kitsune opened up a bit. So. I would call that a success, neh?” Druuvbin stated calmly, looking down to inspect his nails nonchalantly.

“Heh. I guess...”

There was something else...Oh...

“Hey, Druu? Exactly who all is after Kouji? And... Who is Kaine?” she questioned quietly, looking down at the alley’s paved ground.

“Well. Of course Xzutai, and... Quite a few other countries as well. Everyone is quite eager to get a hold of the ‘rogue experiment’... Kaine... Kaine is a very powerful demon that has been given the specific duty to track Kouji down.” Druuvbin responded, eyes narrowing a bit and voice growing cooler...

That’s a lot of people...And this Kaine...

“So is Kaine more powerful than even you, Druu?”

“Well... That depends,” the sprite answered, his voice once again returning to his usual cheerful tone.

Rae raised an eyebrow. What the hell was that supposed to mean?
“What do you mean, it depends?”

“Ah. Nothing. To answer your question, yes. I would consider Kaine’s powers to be far superior. That’s not a pleasant thing to acknowledge but still. It is the truth,” the psychic admitted, shrugging his shoulders.

Stronger than Druu? That’s scary...

“Uh... Was it just me or...? When Kaine was brought up, Malba seemed kinda...” she trailed off, remembering that angry look that had flashed through the darkness sprite’s eyes.

“He and Kaine have a... History. Not a pleasant one, to say the very least,” he explained, shaking his head a bit.

Hm...Vague much?

“Well then. If that’s all, I believe we should head back in, yes?” Druu broke the short silence that had fallen between the two, once again smiling amiably. “Besides. I could really use another drink,” he went on to say, holding up his empty liquor glass, winking at Rae.

“...You big drunk.”

“Who, me?”

Rae rolled her eyes, though smiled at the sprite. “Yeah, you.”
She then turned, moving towards the back entrance of the club. “Though, I really need to check on Sano and make sure he isn’t freaking out or something. The future tends to traumatize him...” Rae commented with a smirk.

“Ah.”

As Rae prepared to open the door, she heard the sound of breaking glass from behind her. Huh? She quickly turned around to locate the noises’ origin.

“Druu?!”

The sprite had dropped the glass, its shattered remains scattered across the dark ground. His lean hand was held to his head, his eyes closed.

“Druu? Druu-chan? Are you okay?” she exclaimed, moving hurriedly to the man’s side. “Druu?”

“Ah...Just...A moment, Rae...” the sprite mumbled slowly, lowering his head, massaging his temple with thin fingers...

“Um, you want me to go see if Kitsune is still here or--” she began but was cut off as the psychic opened his eyes, grabbing the girl’s wrist.

“No!”

“B-but--”

“...I mean... No, Rae-chan, that’s not necessary... Just give me a second...” the sprite muttered haltingly. His eyes then suddenly flashed a bright blue, the color quickly spreading, completely flooding his eyes.

Blue. Oh shit. He’s having a vision...

“Ugh...” he moaned, falling forward.

She caught the tall man, awkwardly supporting his lean frame. Dammit! Why now when everyone’s gone?

“It’ll stop--in a second...” he whispered, pressing his head against the girl’s shoulder. “S...Sorry...”

“Don’t be sorry!” she replied forcefully, eyes widening. Shit! The girl bit her lip nervously, rubbing the psychic’s shoulder in what she hoped to be a comforting gesture.

“Nngh...”

The sprite’s body began to tremble, almost like... It’s like he’s having a mini seizure or something... And, his visions don’t usually last this long, do they? Grah... Fuck!

“Just, um hold on,” the girl stated shakily, trying to keep her balance and not drop the taller man. It didn’t exactly help matters that the sprite was shuddering with growing force. What the fuck is going on? Since when do they last this long? She had witnessed the psychic have a vision more than once, but none had ever been like this...

With one last almost violent shake, the sprite’s body went limp, and for a second Rae thought that he had lost consciousness. “Druu!?”

“Ah. Sorry... Sorry about that.” Druu apologized slowly, his voice still a bit shaky. He pulled away from the girl, steadying himself, his eyes returning to their normal lavender hue.

“Are you okay?! That. You, uh, that um, holy shit did you scare me,” the girl rambled, eyes wide. “Well?! Are you okay?”

“Not to worry. I’m fine. I’m sorry I frightened you,” he replied, his voice growing steadier, once again taking on his usual pleasant tone.

Rae rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. “Stop apologizing, baka! Are you sure you’re okay?” she questioned again, concern in her blue-green eyes.

The sprite rubbed a bit at his eyes. He then pulled his hand away, casting a reassuring smile to the girl. “Again, I’m fine. Just a pesky little vision, that’s all,” he replied, waving a hand dismissively.

“But that one seemed worse... I mean, It was longer and.. Um...” she trailed off, taking a deep breath. “It just seemed bad.”

“Ah, well. Some are worse than others, that’s all.” Druu responded lightly, shrugging his shoulders.

Rae took in another deep breath, trying to slow her racing heart. Okay. Again I say, waaay too much freaking stress for one day... “Uh, so the vision. What was it?”

“Hm... Sadly, nothing of any real importance. I do however now know pretty much everything that has happened in this little alley within the last twenty years or so.” Druu stated with a sheepish smile.

Rae cocked her head, trying to decide if she believed the sprite or not. With Druu, it’s so freaking hard to tell...

“Um...So...” she trailed off, distractedly gnawing a fingernail. She couldn’t help it. He had seriously scared her, and she couldn’t quite shake it...

“Rae. It’s quite annoying, but it happens from time to time. And that’s all it is, an annoyance. Nothing to worry over.” Druuvbin stated reassuringly, a warm smile on his lips.

“If you say so...”

“I say so.”

“Um... Okay...” she trailed off, not really convinced. He had been so... The girl shivered. That was not cool... At all...

“Well then. I say we go in and get that drink now, hm? Ah, and make sure Sanosuke isn’t in a state of catatonia,” the sprite chirped happily, playfully throwing an arm around the girl’s shoulders.

“Yeah. Okay...”

“You know. I did learn one interesting thing...”

“Hm?”

“Well. I now know why Kitsune and Malba took such a long time to return... And why they both knew of this alley...” the psychic trailed off, eyes sparkling with amusement.

“...Are you serious?”

“Quite serious, yes.”

“So they...”

“Yes. They did.”

“...In an alley.”

“Afraid so.”

“Heh... Somehow that really doesn’t surprise me...”

The two re-entered the building, Druu’s arm still casually around Rae’s shoulder.

She had to wonder...

Now. Does he have his arm on me just to be friendly or... Because he doesn’t have the strength to keep his balance? she bit her lip, saying nothing. After all, as Malba had stated before...

“Why bother, it’s not like he’ll tell you anyway...”

There was... Actually a lot of truth to those words.

~*~*~*~*~*~
~END PART A~
~*~*~*~*~*~

Rae: NOT FINISHED!! XD Click next (OUT) for the next part now. ^^;;

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Continue yo!!!

((NOTE: I'm posting part B now... May take a few seconds here... XD Will be up in a minute.))