Here you go! *throws out chapter*
“Wait, what do you mean?” Rika was the sensible one for once, with Yossui freaking out in the background.
“I told you there would be danger and that the Dark Ones might get loose, it happens every time there’s a resurrection. Fourteen Dark Ones escaped and fourteen must be returned. Your powers will manifest when needed and so will those of your companions. Like I said, expect six.” Madonna held out a hand to the girls on the altar and helped them slip off of it, steadying Nono when she stumbled.
“Um, well, what now?” Rika rested her arm around Nono’s shoulders, pulling her close.
“Go home, get some rest. I assume you don’t have work today?” three nodded, one just blinked. “Well, you’ve been up all night and once you sleep the spells will take affect. Tomorrow is a new day after all.”
Yawning, the girls all realized that they really were tired, even at nine in the morning. By unspoken agreement, they headed to Yossui’s apartment, saying a heartfelt thanks to the mystical proprietor on the way out the door.
The car ride seemed to take forever with no one speaking, Aibon and Nono conked out together in the backseat, but eventually they all filed into the bedroom and collapsed on the bed together, not even bothering to change clothes.
Quite a few hours later, Nono stirred from her place between Rika and Aibon. Just opening her eyes, she took stock of her body parts, relishing life again. Something occurred to her and she removed Aibon’s hand from its compromising position on her chest, lifting her shirt up and looking down at her own torso.
Two pink, round scars stared back up at her, confirming her adventures in The Middle. Something tickled at the back of her mind and Nono slipped quietly out of bed, tiptoeing into the living room.
“I’ll be here when you need me.” Dori’s parting words to her echoed in her mind, but they sounded different. Almost as if, instead of being a memory, they were being repeated. Standing in front of the window, for a second, someone else’s reflection looked back at her. Then she blinked and it was gone.
“Wow, that was weird.” Nono mumbled to herself, touching the scar on her forehead.
“What was weird?” Aibon spoke up from behind her.
Surprisingly, Nono wasn’t the least bit startled. She wondered if that was an after-effect of being dead. “My scar is really pronounced.” she lied, not fooling her friend for an instant.
Staring at Nono intensely for a minute, Aibon just nodded, then reached up and cupped her chin, “Let me see.” The older girl obliged, tilting her head down so that Aibon would get a better view.
A sudden instinct came over the girl and she gently pressed her lips to Nono’s scar, sighing against her forehead. Something passed between the two and when Aibon pulled back, the bright pink mark had faded to a barely-noticeable-unless-you-know-what-to-look-for scar. It was quiet for a minute.
“Think you could do that to the other two?” Nono lifted her shirt up, revealing everything up to the valley between her breasts, but still not indecently exposing herself. Aibon blushed.
“Um, yeah, I guess.” Resting her hands on Nono’s waist, Aibon bent forward, first gently blowing her breath across the exposed mark, then lightly kissing the area on the older girl’s chest, feeling Nono’s heart racing in her ribcage.
Emboldened by that last response, Aibon dropped to her knees in front of her friend, blowing across the scar on her belly. Just the breath itself made the scar disappear but, her eyes never leaving Nono’s, Aibon kissed the place just below the older girl’s naval, well below where the scar used to be.
“Aibon.” Nono whispered, placing her hands on the kneeling girl’s shoulders. Aibon leaned forward to bite the waistband of her jeans.
“What are you guys doing?” Rika whispered from the doorway, sounding a little freaked.
Scrambling for an excuse, Aibon said the first thing that came to mind, “I’ve got healing powers!” Nono pulled her to her feet.
“What, really?” her vague horror forgotten, Rika came fully into the room. The two proceeded to poke and prod Nono, ignoring any protests she might have made. Her giggles woke Yossui in the other room.
“We don’t have to be up for another hour! Keep it down.” Looking like an angry bear, Yossui stumbled into the room.
“Look what Aibon did!” Rika, heedless of any danger, waved Yossui closer.
“What did Aibon do?” Yossui squinted at Nono’s torso, not seeing anything.
“Watch!” Aibon dropped to her knees again and leaned forward, sinking her teeth into Nono’s hip until she drew blood.
“Ow!” the older girl’s hand smacked the top of Aibon’s head, forcing an apology out of her.
Unimpressed, Yossui just stared, “Congratulations, you have functioning teeth. So what?”
Not bothering to answer verbally, Aibon gently blew a stream of air across the wound and they all watched it disappear. Yossui kept staring, the act not seeming to register. Finally, she straightened up and met all their eyes.
“Okay, that was cool. Guess that’s what Madonna meant by powers. Wonder what mine is?” the last was said mostly to herself.
“You didn’t have to bite me.” Nono sulked near the window, Aibon hanging onto her shoulders.
“Aw, I’m sorry. It was the first thing that came to mind.” Nono jutted her chin out with a ‘hmph!’ “If it’s any consolation, you don’t taste half bad.”
“It’s not!”
“Sorry we woke you.” Rika followed Yossui into the kitchen, watching her dig through a cupboard.
“You want breakfast?” Yossui started pulling out pans and setting them on the stovetop.
“Breakfast?!” Their fight immediately forgotten, Nono and Aibon nearly trampled Rika trying to get into the kitchen. The older girl didn’t really move, but her eyes slowly got huge.
Yossui tried unsuccessfully to fend them off, but was overwhelmed and forced to stand next to Rika, still in shock. Yossui watched in horror as her kitchen was turned into something from a disaster movie, “Hey, you two better not set yourselves on fire; I’m not putting you out!”
Aibon laughed but Nono turned around and threw a piece of cardboard at Yossui’s head. It fluttered right past and landed gently on the ground.
Surprisingly, the cooking went without incident and they all sat down to pancakes and omelets, discussing what they were going to do about Nono today.
“Well, assuming the potion worked, we won’t have to worry. And it will help us to find and keep the ones that do remember close.” Rika motioned with the fork in her hand.
“I think we should be more worried about what to do with Aibon.” Nono drowned her pancakes in syrup, only Aibon wasn’t disgusted.
Yossui raised and eyebrow, “Hmm, you know, I think I have a fishing pole in my closet if you need it, Non.” the girl in question looked up at her confused. “Anyway, all Aibon has to do is keep a low profile and she’ll be fine. She wasn’t dead yesterday.”
“Oh rub it in, why don’t you?” Nono stuck her tongue out, before snagging a piece of omelet off of Aibon’s plate.
“Hey!” Nono offered a bite of pancake on the end of her fork, watching Aibon happily take it into her mouth. Even though they weren’t physically touching, something still passed between them, making them look away from each other.
Choosing to ignore the younger girls, Rika and Yossui continued discussing their plans. Eventually, breakfast was finished, they all took turns freshening up and then headed off to work.
“Ow!” Nono rubbed her shoulder where it had slammed into the wall, it was gonna be a long day.
----And the romance rears it's ugly head. I might make it a perv later...
Topic: Justice, Death and the Fool (Read 18063 times)