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I found what's precious.; LWP, part 1 epilogue.
Topic Started: Sep 9 2014, 08:27 PM (502 Views)
Hayate
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It was a battlefield.

Two sides clashed- one was equally divided between black and white, while the other was an incoherent rhapsody of colours. These footsoldiers clashed with all their strength and heart, but the border did not move.

This fight wasn't one that could be settled by armies. The armies were equal in power, morale and number. They were doomed to an endless stalemate.

This was a fight between their generals.

Around them, combat had stopped. Soldiers from both sides formed a circle, spectating their ruthless brawl with awe. These soldiers, who had all been so ready to shed the blood of their opponents, just couldn't fight with the spectacle in front of them.

...Or rather, there was no reason to fight because of the spectacle in front of them.

They lost all of their will. Even though all of these warriors were so certain they could make a difference, their delusions were broken when they saw these demons fight.

While their fight didn't seem too impressive. While it looked like it was nothing but a man and a woman clashing blades-

A spectator could just feel it.

The man was garbed in a white shirt and black jeans. In his hand was a black longsword. His blade carved beautiful arcs as it moved through the sky, one slash black and the next white. Whenever it struck the blade of the demon in front of him, the blackness went pale and a loud whirring broke the air.

The woman was dressed just as casually, her attire the same as her opponent. But… the colour was harder to identify. While her side was a brilliant rainbow, her own uniform seemed to be something… different. While a casual glance made it seem like she was garbed in pure black, a clean look would show strange colours.

It wasn't the absence of colour, nor was it an amalgamation of all.

It was simply… different.

But to the person in front of her, it was pitch black. After all, that was the only thing it could be.

Her own weapon was barely capable of deflecting his. A cylindrical sword that had no edge, one that was barely capable of deflecting the force in front of it. Every time they clashed, the blade revved, and her movements became stronger.

But it still wasn't enough.

The blade that had long lost it’s name was easily getting deflected. No matter how much power she put in her movements, he wouldn't budge. And his blade would simply come down once more.

‘Why can’t I win?’

Every time his blade touched her own, a part of her army vanished. Replaced by his.

‘Was I wrong?’

But even though she was losing, even though she felt her heart sink, she couldn't stop. She couldn't ever stop. Even if this was a battle she couldn't win, it would have meaning if she could match his strikes, if even only once…

”Enuma!”

The whirring reached an apex, and the wielder of the tri-sected blade jumped back.

”Eli-”

But that didn't do anything.

Their fight was beyond movement, their fight was beyond distance. As she raised her sword for one, final attack. The one thing she had that could definitely match him with…

...She was cut down, and she fell where she stood.

That was the first time I saw her face.
Why was it mine…?

---

Hayate’s eyes slowly opened.

She was in the hospital. She had been for the past three days. While she returned to the living, she was so close to fading away once more. But that danger only lasted for a day. Her body didn't want to die. Her body couldn't die.

So she became stable.

...But even then, she could barely move.

Her arms were heavy. Her throat was sore. She couldn't feel her legs. Everything was so painful.

But even so, she gently tried to lift her own body up. Even though she was so small, even though she was so light, moving was so, so hard…

After lifting her back a few inches from the cushion of her bed, she let her body collapse once again. It was so heavy… even though all she tried to do was sit up.

She still couldn't move her body freely. But that’s fine. She could move at all again. She wasn't trapped in that dirty cage any more...

”Haahn~”

So instead of feeling depressed about it, she let out a happy yawn, attempting to stretch her arms before surrendering the battle with the weight of her own body and simply letting her arms rest on her stomach-

Or, at least, so she thought. While her senses were still off, she was sure she could feel a bump that shouldn't be the-

”...Ah~”

Hayate smiled.

It was her. She must've fallen asleep… while she wasn't allowed visitors for the past few days, it was impossible to separate her from Hayate. And while she had been earnestly awake the past few days, while she had been doing her best to talk to Hayate whenever she felt even the slightest bit lonely… she finally fell asleep.

The ‘Profound Darkness’...

...Really, what earned you that name?

...And…

Those were your memories, weren't they..?
Edited by Hayate, Sep 9 2014, 08:29 PM.
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One does not simply eat one packet of mee goreng
There was a knock at the window. If Hayate were to notice it and looked, she would find the face of a familiar young man, one (in)famous for being the grumpy and unapproachable Seth Ryouga of Hyakuji High, pressed against the glass as he peered around the room.

He noticed she was awake. He gave a wave with a grin, before pointing down at the lock on the window just out of his reach because... well, he's outside.

...Wait a minute, what floor is this and why is he out there trying to get in through the window instead of just using the door like a normal person...?
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Hayate
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For just a little while, Hayate continued to pat at her 'other half'. Her focus was completely on her, returning the affection that had been completely onesided not only the past few days, but their entire lives. Listening to her speak about her powers yesterday, ah... Hating her for it felt so bad.

But the patting would instantly stop when she heard that knock, quickly turning her head towards the window. Instead of seeing the cloudless blue sky she expected to see-

W-WHY WAS HE STANDING THERE!? So casually, so-

HOW LONG HAD HE BEEN STANDING THERE!

Hayate's paleness quickly faded, replaced with a bright red blush. W-was he watching her sleep!? N-no, it was Seth, so he probably just thought he could make a flashy entrance, and he just happened to be there the moment she woke up, right!? Yeah, that made sense...

"S-second...!" Hayate called out, quickly moving her hands to the sleeping girl on her lap. Gently, she would shift her away, pulling her head from her body towards the pillow she was resting on earlier. Luckily, she was as light as air itself, otherwise Hayate might have a problem...

...Well, she still had one.

How was she going to reach the window!?

With a bit of fumbling, she managed to force herself onto her knees. She turned around onto her stomach, using whatever strength she could muster to force herself in a sitting position. Owwie, that hurt. Her arms weren't up to pushing her own weight just yet, and her entire body wasn't really receptive to sitting up!

But Hayate didn't flinch. She didn't want to flinch when someone was watching, especially one of the people that worked so hard on getting her back!

Leaning on her left hand, Hayate pushed her own body forward as far as she could without sacrificing balance. At this point, it would definitely be obvious that she wasn't in a condition to move around, at all!

...But she tried anyway.

"Almost... almost!"

...She was an inch off the lock. But if she pushed any further, she'd fall. Ah, this is troublesome, this is troubleso-

Oh, there was a pen laying right besides her bed, on a little desk. Hayate pulled herself backwards, grabbing it and leaning forward again. Ah, she could reach! With a bit of fumbling, the lock would sloowly be undo-

...

It sure was offering a lot of resistance.

Stupid... window!

She couldn't gather the strength to push it open. She wiggled for a few seconds, but nothing happened, until-

A bright flash came from the pen. And the lock wasn't just flipped over the edge, it was completely shoved as far into the unlocked state as it possibly could!

...What was that?

Ah, who cares, it's open!

Hayate leaned back on her bed, flopping down happily next to her other half. She wasn't wearing anything but a blue hospital gown. Luckily, the gown was big enough for her to practically live in...

Being tiny did have SOME advantages!
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Matt cheerfully whistled to himself as he walked through the halls of Hyakuji Hospital, making his way to Hayate's room like a normal person. The Homunculus seemed to be back to normal physically speaking, though anyone who had seen him during the past three days would have been hard-pressed to not notice that he had grown back into "normal" height as his powers had returned. There were certain individuals who had decided that he was a fair target for some teasing in the interim, but they had all decided to stop mentioning it after he hit the six foot mark again. Well, almost all. That vaguely terrifying orange-haired girl still bothered him on occasion, but she was pretty much the only one.

He peered into the hospital room containing Hayate, knocking quietly on the door. His arrival was just as the girl unlocked the window for her other visitor. He took a quick step into the room upon seeing what she was doing, a look of concern on his face.

"Christ above, first day I'm allowed to visit ye, and yer already gettin' yerself worked up!" He would shake his head before casually motioning towards Seth. "Next time, ye should make the bum walk in like a normal person, save everyone some trouble."
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One does not simply eat one packet of mee goreng
You know what, maybe he really should have just went in like a normal person...

...W-well, it's okay because she managed it anyway, didn't she?

Oh... well never mind that... He should probably get in before someone sees him illegally hanging around. Heh. Get it, hanging around, and he's hanging outside the windo- actually which way does the window open?

Ah... it opens outward.

Right, let's try to open it slowly-

At that moment someone else came into the room. The young man was surprised, and ended up slipping before falling and disappearing from view.

...

WAIT SOMEONE JUST FELL WHAT FLOOR IS THIS?!

...Oh wait never mind he's still there, somehow managing to hang around (get it?!) before clambering back up to the now fully open window. He was going to be pretty disgruntled at whoever came in, but upon seeing who it was... decided to be disgruntled anyway before hissing at the big Scots with a finger on his lips to signify silence. He then pointed at the sleeping 'Hayate'... or more like the Profound Darkness.

Can't they call her something else...? Profound Darkness is a heck of a mouthful.

He got in.
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"S-Seeth!"

Hayate's voice was shrill, she was still having a bit of trouble talking. While she could actually vocalize words now, it felt like her throat was being ground whenever she tried to talk. While it was a bit painful, there was a strange rush in hearing her own voice again. Especially knowing that there were other people that could hear her!

...The shrillness wasn't helped by the fact that she was genuinely worried. Did he just fall from a few floors up!? T-that idiot, he might get hurt, and-

Oh, false alarm.

Seth was pretty professional at doing stupid things, it seems. Maybe it was a strange form of luck, but even a quick look at Seth made it obvious that he wasn't someone blessed like that.

...It seemed more like he just does stupid things so hard he can get away with them...

Hayate smiled at Seth, at least, until the fact hit her that someone else had entered the room.

It wasn't that she didn't hear Matt enter her room. It wasn't like she was deaf, or anything. But Seth had momentarily managed to grasp her full perception. The meek redness on Hayate's face turned a bit brighter.

...Her other self had told her what happened. Or, at least, what happened when her life finally returned to her. She knew nothing about her hauntings, but perhaps it was better that way. Hayate was never the type to want to inconvenience people...

"A-ah! You.. .you're... Matthew, right?"

Hayate's talking was pretty slow, involving the occasional 'ahem', a scrape of her throat along with an occasional gulp. Repeatedly swallowing the drool in her mouth seemed to temporarily numb the rash feeling in her throat. For once, she wasn't showing weird physical quirks because of just shyness!

"I... um... This little girl told me about what happened..."

Hayate sat herself back up, giving her partner a quick look and a smile before focusing her attention back at Matthew and Seth. God, this felt weird! What was she even supposed to say? 'Thanks for bringing me back from the dead?'

Words, words, why must you be so difficult!

"Thanks. I don't know how I can repay you... It was all so scary."

Another gulp. Hayate closed her eyes, letting out a soft hum and sinking into a deep thought.

It was hard to think back to how she was before this little incident.

While it wasn't like her memories had been damaged by this temporary death, it all felt so long ago. Hayate felt strangely disconnected from the her in the past, as if it was watching herself as a child do all these dumb things.

You can look at an image of yourself in an album and say 'Hey, that was me!'

But at the same time, you feel so different. You know it is you, but it's so far away from your current self.

...It was a really uncomfortable feeling. How long had it been since she entered her 'coma'? Since she entered this near-death state, unable to transist? This is something that should happen when you're an old woman, fondly looking back at your foolishness as a child!

...Not something that should happen... when it's practically a day ago, to you.

Those memories, those emotions, they were all real. They were all her. But they just felt so... so off.

"I... when I overloaded my powers, I entered a coma. For a while, this girl helped me project my ideal body."

Again, a quick look towards the girl at her side.

"...But it wasn't too healthy for my actual body... I could've gone back whenever I wanted, become 'one' with my body again, and live out the rest of my life... but, after tasting a regular life, it's hard to go back."

Hayate sighed, shaking her head. She didn't want to talk more about it, but something made her go on. Matthew didn't know about her powers, and he deserved to know for whom he inconvenienced himself so.

"My original powers, her powers, that is... Whenever I touched someone, they were drawn into their worst nightmares. They were forced to experience the things they truly feared. And all I could do was watch. If someone even randomly bumped into me on the street, if someone wanted to reach out and hug me... No matter what the reason, it was all the same."

The power of the 'Unknown'. Oftentimes, seeing their greatest fear was enough to break a person down. If not temporarily, permanently.

"I thought, really... If I could live as a normal girl, for even a single day, I'd be fine dying."

Ah, she needed a bit of a pause. Her throat was getting sore. Her voice was getting a bit shaky. While thinking back could make her feel so disconnected, talking about it like this made the emotions gush back in.

"...Dying is a lot more scary than I thought it would be... I was stuck at the edge of death for so long... but even then, even though it hurt to be trapped in my own thoughts, I really didn't want to die..."

She wanted to live. She really wanted to live. And now she got her second chance.

"S-so... so, thank you. I'm... sorry for any... um, inconvenience this might've... given you."

Hayate grabbed at her oversized gown, pulling it up over her face to hide her tears. She wanted to look strong, and like she was all okay now that she lived again. That memories were only memories...

...But she really wasn't fooling anyone.
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Matt would smirk towards Seth as the other boy "fell". He seemed competent enough, more so than most other humans he'd run into in this day and age, so it was unlikely that a little fall like that would phase him. Besides, even if he did fall, they were already at the hospital, so it wouldn't be like he was in any serious danger. At least, probably not in any serious danger. Possibly. It wasn't like he was exactly sure of how far modern medicine had advanced.

But regardless, Seth proved his lack of concern to be valid, and then immediately signaled for him to be quiet. Matt would blink once in surprise before the realization set in that there was actually someone sleeping in here settled in.

"Oh right," Matt would whisper, sounding a little embarrassed. "Well, ye know what they say. No such thing as a quiet Scotsman." He'd remain quiet after that, simply smiling at Hayate as she spoke to him, nodding to confirm that he was indeed the person she thought he was.

And then she continued to talk, despite the obvious effort it was taking her. He opened his mouth, as if he were about to say something to try and stop her, but he stopped himself. After what she had been through, talking to people was probably something she needed. Even he had been overjoyed at his first conversation after coming out from the castle ruins, after being trapped for so long. So he just waited for her to finish, to say what she needed to say. Only when she finished would he respond.

"Ach, don't worry about thankin' me lass," he would say, still quiet as to hopefully not disturb the girl's sleeping companion. "Besides, both normality and death are highly overrated in me humble opinion. If I have to trade off my custom-tailored body for a few days to help someone overcome both and not be trapped anymore? 'Ell, that's a fair bargain if I've heard one." He would pause for a moment, sighing before he continued speaking.

"Besides, I've been in a situation like yers before. 'Bout a hundred years ago, I got buried underneath a collapsed castle. Left to waste away by me former mentor under a few hundred tons of rubble. So being trapped like that in a confined space, always near death but not actually crossin' into it? There's people I hate that I wouldn't wish that upon. So don't worry about thankin' me. Just worry about gettin' better, alright?"
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One does not simply eat one packet of mee goreng
Hm...

Well she explained everything quite concisely he thought. Not much that he hasn't already heard or figured out, but it was mostly for the big guy's sake anyway, so he kept quiet the whole time she explained everything to him.

As for being thanked... well.

The only response he would have is to give the crying girl a soft and reassuring pat on the head.

...Yeah, this is more his style anyway. No need for words, just a simple gesture of reassurance that... everything is fine now. There is no more need to cry. So just... I dunno, smile?

Yeah, just keep on living, all the while smiling and being happy. That alone would be enough of a repayment.



...

Now, remember when he said she already explained everything?

The young man couldn't help but glance at the snoozing 'Hayate'.

Look, he knows she's supposed to be the entire embodiment of Hayate's power, as far as he could understand it anyway. But, well... He actually wasn't expecting her to still be around even after a few days have passed. Just a little curious, is all.

...Plus wouldn't it be a bit... confusing, to have two Hayate running around...?
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Hayate
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Wait, it was fine?

...Huh?

Well, it's true that it was only a short inconvenience, but it had to have still been an annoyance! How could it be okay for someone to have an unpleasant few days just to-

...Oh...

...Well, she really couldn't push it if that was the case. As self-deprecating as Hayate could be at times, she didn't want to argue if he said it like that. Wouldn't that be mocking the experience he had? Hayate was good at thinking up excuses to blame herself for things that weren't her own fault, but she was absolutely silent this time.

...But it did make her more curious to this person's life. While this was an experience she'd rather not talk about again, maybe he understood how weird it felt to think back. While the amount of time they were stuck sounded incomparable, judging off his hundreds of years ago comment... this is something he should understand, right?

"Well, I, err-"

But just as she was about to ask that question, having just recovered from her sniffles and tears...

...Seth put his hand on her head...

...And patted her.

This feeling. This sensation. Her old, illusionary body could only replicate touch. This was real. She was being pat. It wasn't much, but it was affection, wasn't it? It was something she so greatly desired for all of her life.

...Just like what happened when she spoke about her past, being touched made all those old emotions flow back to her.

It felt so nice. So strangely nice.

"I... I..."

...And she started crying. Her eyes shut closed, and her hands moved in front of her face. She couldn't even keep her shirt up like that anymore. All she could do was cry into her hands.

But this wasn't sadness... she was happy. So happy.




...But her crying was enough to wake a certain someone up. As if awoken from a nightmare, she practically jolted out of her bed. The Profound Darkness looked from Seth, to Matt, to Hayate, before looking at the clock.

"I, err... I need to leave before her parents show up! The last time they saw me along side Hayate's... well, broken body, they couldn't handle it!"

And with those words, without as much as a goodbye, she jumped out of the window, fading into the winds like Seth had come in.

..."No... Cla... cla... Co-come back!"

But Hayate's late objection couldn't stop her. She could barely even get those words out over her tears. It hurt to talk. And the tears only made it worse. Why did she have to leave, while she was crying like this? That... that stupid idiot... always worrying for no reason!

...Being ditched by her made her bawl even louder.
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One does not simply eat one packet of mee goreng
Ah...

...Wait crap dammit, not what he's... gah! Look, he would have been alright if she had just cried because she was happy, and crying is good because then she can just let everything out without having to hold anything in any longer. ...But not in this manner, this time she was clearly crying in a not happy way because someone... well, someone who's practically the closest to her had just walked out on her so... so...

Ah jeez... "Youma!"

"Hai hai~"

At his call, a short girl in white and green with shoulder length silvery hair tied back with a large green bow leaped out of the window after the Profound Darkness.

...Wait, where did the girl came from?

Small details. For now he should... well er, he should...

...Uhm.

What should he do?!

...Give her a shoulder to cry on, that should... be good, probably...! I dunno, hug her or... or something! "N-now now, don't cry...! She's just... well she's just being considerate about your family, that's all! She'll be back, Youma will make sure of it,"



~

From what floor did she just jump down from...?

Well, the half-phantom landed quite neatly on the ground floor without much of a hitch, even though it probably meant there's going to be a bunch of people who would be staring at her in surprise.

Haah. What a bother, the half-phantom thought with a huff, looking around for the girl who just ran off. Or rather, sniffing her out.

Let's see if she can't pick up the scent of her essence~
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There were many types of situations that Matt was perfectly capable of dealing with. Abducting someone without much notice, torture, combat, dealing with idiots... All things he had experienced multiple times before, and handled with ease. However, comforting a crying girl wasn't something he truly had ever had to deal with. And to be perfectly honest, it was extremely uncomfortable for him to watch, especially since he could do all of nothing.

So the Homunculus would just awkwardly shift in place, apprehension obvious on his face. He looked towards the window that the other two girls had just jumped out of before pointing towards it with his thumb.

"Errr.... Should I go after them to talk as well, or... Uhhhh... Do something else?"
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Hayate
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"She'll... she'll be back... but... but..."

That's right. She'll be back. It would only be until her parents left....

...How... had that gone? She couldn't remember. She knew she was there, she knew she was awake. But everything was a blur. Whenever she tried to recall what had happened, she just ended up getting a headache...

Her mind needed recovery just as badly as her body did.

"Don't goo..."

When she heard Matt's voice, that was all she could cry out.

...She didn't even know what she wanted on that point. She couldn't really order him around, could she? She wanted more people to go after her. She wanted Youma and Matt to drag her back, by her hair, and toss her back.

...But she also just... wanted people to be here now...

"I-I...-"

...She wanted to make another complaint, but she stopped mid sentence. Rather involuntarily.

"...H-Ha... Hayateee!!!"

...A much taller girl was suddenly wrapped around Hayate's neck. Hayate's sister, Shikoro, had entered the scene quite... loudly. While she was usually calm and composed, no one could keep a straight face here, right? Hayate was pulled into her lap, out of the hospital bed.

...Out of sheer astonishment... the tears stopped.

"Hayate."

Two voices said in unison. Hayate's parents entered, too. They simply smiled, relieved.

'...I... er... you two... are the people that helped my little sister, right?"

...Hayate was kind of overwhelmed at this point. She couldn't cry anymore simply because of being completely overstimulated.

Ah, being pat felt really, really warm. Even if it wasn't Seth, it was a lovely feeling!

"Thank you! Thank you a thousand times!"

...The Profound Darkness had definitely told them what happened.
Edited by Hayate, Sep 18 2014, 09:35 PM.
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One does not simply eat one packet of mee goreng
Um...

...Ah dammit, this is exactly the kind of situation that he's trying so hard to avoid... Especially when it starts to involve this many people being grateful to him for...

Well they should be he suppose... I mean it's not like... it's not like they can't, but...

...He's really not used to being outright thanked so straightforwardly like this. Just one person, Hayate herself being grateful is one thing, but actually being shown how much the little action of his affected so many people...

The young man scratched his head as he avoided their looks, shuffling his feet awkwardly. "...W-well... That's- that's right, you should be thankful...! I mean- well I'm not going to ask for anything in return so... Well you get what I mean! Kuh..."

The guy really is sheltered. He really should talk more to other people.
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Now things were just getting awkward. Matt hadn't really wanted to get involved with a lot of different people when he came to visit the girl. But now, here he was with the girl's family after she had been crying and begging him not to leave. And then there was all the gratitude as well.

The Homunculus wasn't exactly comfortable with the idea of gratitude. Acknowledgement that he had done the job, sure. That was something that had happened all the time back when he was still a Familiar. But gratitude... Not so much. Hell, the whole concept was still somewhat foreign to him overall. After all, why thank someone for doing what was perfectly normal to do in the situation? It'd be like thanking someone for breathing or walking. In other words, totally pointless.

Of course, there was no way he could just tell them that. He may be immoral by a great many people's standards, but he certainly wasn't rude. So he would just stand where he was, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head as he looked at the others feet and indistinctly mumbled something.
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