Maniacal Clockwork - A Roleplay [x]
Chapter One: Failures of the Past
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This is a sci-fi/fantasy/horror roleplay. If you want to join, you need to write well. If you're not experienced with roleplays, feel free to ask for help in the General Discussion forums on the website. You have to go to the website to see the full plot, and you have to post your character through the forums. Just join the site, post your profile, and get to roleplaying!
No OOC in this thread, please.
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Welcome to Oblitus, the last city on Earth.
Oblitus is a large city nearly the size of a small nation. It is ran by a dysfunctional, patched-together organization called The Church, which forbids any living in the city to leave, claiming the outside world is non-existent. They do not allow people to freely write or read, and they have strict laws set up, which are stressed by the Enforcers, who are basically, the "cops" of Oblitus. The Church has brainwashed the citizens and removed any trace of the world before Oblitus' existence many, many generations ago.

Within the center of this city is a giant clock; it is what citizens pray to at noon every morning. So mysterious and powerful, it rebuilt itself once, and now cannot be damaged at all. How is it this possible? What is it powered with? What is within it? Silly human; you'll never know until you venture inside... Of course, you'll only get to know for a few split seconds.

So, who are you? Are you a bastard of The Church? One of the scummy Enforcers? An ignrant, brain-dead citizen? Who are you. Do you have what it takes to destroy this government? To see what's on the outside? To see what's on the inside of the ticking, four-faced timebomb at the center of your world? It's about time someone realized what was going on.

Or, perhaps, are you one of the shadows behind it all? Are you a Time Demon, playing around with the way of things? Are you a cursed puppet, working for the Puppetmaster who could destroy us all? Are you one of the silhouettes that periodically appears behind the face of the clock?

Choose your role, and we'll pull the curtains out of your way...

As usual, Sally was all smiles, skipping around on the stone pavement of the Middle Line. Her brown, half pleat skirt rose and fell with each hop just slightly. Her small hands were stuffed inside the pockets of her thick, soft, and obnoxiously comfortable sweatshirt. She was laughing happily when her neighbor had come over.

"It seems that they're doing Inspections today," she said, wringing her hands. Inspections were random incidents where they checked your house to make sure that there wasn't any unapproved literature or technology. Sally blinked.

"Oh, don't worry about it. You're always so good. I think I'll go clean up for their sake, though. Good luck, and thanks for warning me!" she went back to her lonely little house, shutting the door tight, grabbing for her drawings, writings, and various little Forbidden things, hiding them in an opening in the wall. They had gotten used to hidden holes in the floors and in beds, but they had yet to check the walls. She figured she would be all good.

She blew her blonde, blue streaked bangs out of her face when a knock came at the door. "Hey, Mister En-For-Sir. How may I help you today?"

"This is an Inspection. Move aside." Rather than wait for her to move, he just grabbed her and pushed her out of the house, shutting the door behind him and his assistants.

"Whelp, they're as rude as ever." She sat down in the street, listening as they tore her house apart as they always did, drawing pictures in the dirt between the cobblestones.

Thom was wandering the Middle Line. As he passed, he noticed a few houses being inspected. For someone like him, he should have a lot to fear. There were more forbidden objects in his place than most, but he was relaxed. He had hidden then in his ceiling though. The ceiling at his place was not made to be hollow. In fact, there was no hollow area in the house when he had first moved there. He had created a secret compartment in his ceiling where he kept his forbidden objects.

As he passed his house, he noticed that they were running in to inspect it. "Hey! The stuff in there tends to break when an idiot touches it. I prefer you refrain from touching to much of my stuff!" He yelled before the last enforcer entered. The enforcer turned around, glared at Thom, and slammed the door shut as he went in. Thom couldn't help but notice that the noise in the house got louder.

"The higher the position, the less intelligence needed." He said shaking his head as he continued walking. All was normal for him. He insults someone of higher rank than him, and they cause more trouble than necessary. Thom noticed a girl sitting in the street and tilted his head to the side. He stood there watching out of boredom more than curiosity.

Sally heard something break from inside and cringed behind a cheeky smile, hoping it wasn't her grandmother's oil lamp. More houses were being inspected; everyone was out on the cobblestone road, some of the younger kids crying as certain toys were confiscated. The older members had already gotten used to it. It was generally once a month that inspections came about, sometimes more sometimes less. A younger boy passed by her, going to yell at the inspector who was walking away with a little wind up dragon - the little wind up dragons she had made. Apparently, moving toys were considered technology. She supposed the Enforcers had never seen one before, because the key on her necklace was clearly part of a wind-up mechanism of some sort. Of course, she didn't know from where. Her grandfather had said they were from a town scavenger hunt many generations ago, and it just happened to stay in the family as a remnant of past ages. She wished that she knew what toy it had gone to, unable to believe the bullshit story that she was fed.

"Give it back! GIVE IT BACK! You meanie! I WANT MY TOY BACK!" Snot was running out of the boy's nose; Sally couldn't help but feel sorry for him, but it was normal. Every child went through it. She popped up, her wavy blonde hair following her. Pushing her blue-streaked bangs out of her eyes, she walked calmly over to the boy and picked him up.

"I'll make you a new one, okay?" she whispered once she had taken him out of an Enforcer's hearing range. Unfortunately, she realized she had wandered into someone else's range. She glanced at the taller boy nearby; Sally had noticed him watching, but figured he was just bored like everyone else. With a mischievious smile and a quick, "Shhh. You didn't hear that, 'kay?" she brought the little boy back to his mother, who was worried sick that he was about to bother an Enforcer. God knows what would happen if he went pounding his little fists on one that isn't partial to children.

The Enforcers that went into her house came out. "Ma'am, I regret to inform you that traces of permanent ink on the floor. As I'm sure you are well aware, the ownership or use of permanent ink by citizens is not permitted. Do you have any sort of good explanation?"

"I'm sorry, sir... This happens every time. You can check it if you want; none of it is fresh." She looked down in seeming frustration. "This isn't my original house. The last owners were executed for breaking Forbiddens, and a few Inspections ago it was concluded that the ink remnants were from an older ink that was only around when they lived here... I'm sorry for the trouble, sir, but th-..."

Before she could even finish what she was saying, the Enforcer had left to do the next house, too flushed by his 'blunder' to bother giving her anymore of his time. She smiled big and waved to him. "Good day, Sir!" He walked faster. Oh, what a feeling of accomplishment. She beamed. "Idiots," she muttered within a stretched yawn.

Thom watched the girl as life went buy around them. When she had spoke to him, he smirked and walked off as if nothing had happened. At first glance she would seem normal, but there was much more to her than what appeared. That amused him. His curiosity of the girl had only grown in his short time of watching her, but he had way to much to do and think about to idly chat and learn more of a girl he had only just met. She seemed to be the type of character that cause big changes, but Thom doubted she'd have the skills to be a leader. Non of that mattered to Thom anyways. Unless she proved to be more interesting than he originally assumed, Thom had little interest in her. Of course, keeping an eye on her never hurt.

Thom couldn't help it. He laughed. It was partially at the people's responses to being caught with various forbidden object, but he was laughing mostly because of the cruelty of it all. There was only one word that Thom could think of that described such a place. A cult. This whole city was like one giant cult. In an attempt to control the people, the goverment never allowed more than just the basics. This was a fact of life that Thom had to get used to, but he would never except it. It was in his blood to be free, and he felt like a trapped animal.

Thom shook his head removing him from his thoughts. Of course, he was well aware of the rules and consequences. Thom was a rebel, wanting to break any rule that bound him to the ground like shackles and chains, but he wasn't stupid. If he wants to defy the cursed goverment that loomed over him, he'd have to do it in small insignificant ways until he had the opportunity to change it.

He looked at the Clocktower with a calculating gaze. That was what he really wanted. There had to be something that the church was hiding in there. It was most likely something that the church is using to control the people. At least, that's what the conspiracies say. Out of all the conspiracies he's heard, he had to admit, the more implausible ones were the ones that Thom had always considered possible. He had seen a lot happen here, but the odder occurrences were always more common than the normal ones.

With a sigh, Thom turned to look where he knew the Outside lay. Again, it was another lost dream. He wanted to leave this place, but that seemed less possible than the Clocktower. The Clocktower would at least has less difficulties. If he left Oblitus, he'd have to worry about survival with the basic technology that he's been able to hide over the years. It was a bigger dream though. Thom saw visions of what he though had to be a city outside Oblitus. Of course Thom thought thought it had to be true. Thom would rarely admit that he was wrong.

He released a sigh as he came crashing back to reality. He would never get into the Clocktower or Outside. It was all just a dream that woke Thom up in the morning. A hope that kept him moving. He felt that he had to either go Outside to see if the memories he has are real or not, or to into the Clocktower to sate his curiosity.

He began to walk towards his house to see how much damage his comment had caused. When he returned to his house, he inspected the insides and cleaned any messes that were made. It was mostly stuff thrown on the floor and one or two pieces of furniture knocked over. There were signs that things were moved to check the floors for any hiding spots. A few petty objects that were borderline were confiscated. It was mostly things that could be technically considered forbidden, but the enforcers usually left alone because it was stretching it. He simply rolled his eyes and left the house once more. He headed off back in the direction he came from. There had to be something going on that would interest him, and, if there wasn't, he'd start something.

Alex--better known as General Cross--shook his already messy blonde hair out, splashing his face with water. He stared into the reflection before him. "What a stern expression. You would think the man never had a day of fun in his life," he heard daiily. Were it not true, he would have taken such things as an insult. From birth, he was chosen to be the next Enforcer General. His whole life had been training for this; the proof was in the emblem which was burnt into his hand - an elegant E made his position in life permanent. There were times when Alex had enjoyed a jest amongst his Enforcers and the few people who trusted him, but it was rare. Nobody wanted to joke around with someone of his position.

He glanced down to the heavy, gold plated pistol on the edge of the over-styled sink. The Rails, which were said to have been provided by God, were so smooth that you wouldn't have even known you were on them were it not for the sheer luxuriousness of it. Alex made a note to himself in his head - If I ever meet God, remind me to tell him how tacky this place is.

A knock came to the door; the blonde came out, composed and dry. His long, strong, military man walk was never looked over; it was, of course, his signature. "What is it?"

"Sir, I would like to give you the report on the current Middle Line Inspections." The young, eager boy was definitely a fresh face; not many Enforcers were actually looking forward to working Inspections at that age.

"Yes, thank you." The boy went on rattling for a good half-hour, seated across from Alex in his booth. He raised an eyebrow at one point. "Fourth street is usually pretty lively during Inspections. There weren't any incidents with that Jones' girl?"

His face reddened. "Well, uh, it was just the usual, Sir. We only found the old ink."

Alex kept his composure, already used to holding back laughter and emotions in such situations. "I should check that ink residue myself, I suppose, and make an official report regarding it. You Enforcers get humiliated every year about it."

"Sir, we did confiscate a few objects from Fourth street."

"Show them to me." He layed out a few toys, a mechanical pen, and other borderline objects. A green dinosaur toy was amongst the items; a pang of nostalgia swept over him. Why does this look so familiar? The blonde confiscated that item, slipping it into the inner pockets of his cloak. "This is the only one that needs to be studied more. Please destroy the rest, as usual."

"Yessir." With a full handed salute, the boy turned on his heel and wandered off; the bag full of objects was slung awkwardly over his shoulder. Alex looked down at the pile of papers in front of him with dissinterest, slipping them into his bag as the mechanical voice of The Rails announced,

"We are about to depart for the Outer Line. Please gather all of your belongings and exit if it is not your intended destination." The Rails supposodly went into The Outside to be destroyed and remade after each trip to ensure that nobody from the lower lines could get to the higher ones. There was a special Rail that brought visitors back, but it only came once a month, and that particular Rail was not it. Alex quickly exited.

He took a strong step out onto the cobblestone road of the Middle Line. A few Enforcers who were late with Inspection came up to deliver last minute reports. His blonde hair was thrown back by the strong wind that day as he headed to Fourth Street, which was quite a ways away considering that Rail stopped at Sixtieth Street. Being on a lower numbered street didn't mean you had better conditions; it just meant that you were the last groups for Inspections. He took the long trip, his heeled shoes clinking, the gold crosses and earrings shining in the sun. The heavy cloak on him made the features under it indistinguishable.

After an hour and a half's walk, he ended up at the street he was looking for. Reports in hand, he stopped at each reported house to discuss the negatives and that which had been confiscated. He ended up passing by exactly the boy he had been looking for.

"Mr," He looked down to the paper as he neared the redhead. Why didn't this kid ever give his last name? "...Thom, is it? I would like to have a word with you," he said in his orderly voice, looking up to the taller and barely younger boy.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed yet another one he had needed to talk to, but decided to avoid her until it was absolutely necessary. He kept his attention focused on the boy he was tailing. "Several items were confiscated from you, once again. Borderline items or not, if this is continued, there will be consequences. Do you understand?"

Thom turned when he heard his name, and was not surprised to see General Cross. A smirk appeared on his lips, because he knew exactly why he was here. Indeed, Thom was looking for something interesting, but he hadn't expected the perfect chance to walk right up to him and start speaking. Of course that should have been obvious. Thom wasn't stupid, but he couldn't let the chance pass him up.

"Oh, I'm so sorry your highness," Thom's voice was literally dripping with sarcasm, "I did not mean to upset the great and almighty General Cross. You see I had no intentions of breaking any rules or offending you. I will be sure that it'll never happen again."

Thom chuckled under his breath and made a mental note to keep his things hidden better before the next inspection. He had no intentions of getting into trouble over something so petty. He headed off in the direction he was walking in. It was a perfect opportunity given to him to have General Cross walk right up to him, but that didn't mean Thom would take it.

He stopped only a few steps away, and had a better idea. Sliding his hands into his pockets, he leaned against a nearby building as if that had been what he meant to do all along. With a bored glance, he studied the cracks on the ground keeping his attention on what General Cross was doing.

One thought had crossed Thom's mind every time he passed anyone from the center line. He's always wanted to know what they were like. Having someone of such a high position around was the perfect opportunity to find out.

The look in Thom's eyes looked as if he was actually interested in what he was looking at. What was he looking at? He didn't know. It was probably something on the ground. He was paying more attention to listening to the next move of General Cross.

Alex was used to this kind of harassment; his reaction was limited. His messy blonde hair was whipping about in the strong breezes that were becoming more and more common for the Middle Line. He followed Thom, slowing down as the boy made an awkward advance and then leaned against a wall. Why did people have to be so dramatic? Was it really that difficult to just turn around and speak with him?

Alex kept his stern expression, coming closer to the boy, standing a few feet away. "You don't seem to be taking this seriously, Mr. Thom. I would like to know where and when you aquired these items." The key to ridding the Lines of this nonsense was to stop the distributors. As long as they were still around, people would still be breaking the rules. He didn't understand how they could be so stubborn - didn't they have any faith?

"If you refuse to answer these questions, you will be put on two week's prohibition with surveillance. Your house will also be frequently Inspected. So, what is it, Mr. Thom? Would you like to tell me where you got the confiscated items from?"

Thom was surprised to say the least. It made sense that he would want to know the source, but there were many different people he could get the source from. He shrugged looking at General Cross with a calculating gaze. He was silently debating how much trouble he could get into. There was always the option of giving up a name that he knew, but that didn't seem quite fair. Why would he go through all this effort just to get someone else in trouble? The fun was avoiding the questions and sending the cops on a wild goose chase. It would also be fun just to give his own name away. He'd do it just to mess with their heads.

After much contemplation, he finally spoke. "Taking you seriously? I am most certainly am taking you seriously. If I was being any more serious, I'd be the picture perfect good samaritan." He said in an overly loud voice, causing others to look at him. "I think I got one of them from my dad. I don't really remember all of the things that were confiscated. I'm rarely in my own home you see. I see myself as a lone wolf and tend to hand away from people."

He tapped his chin as if he was thinking. After a few moments, he laughed and remembered a good story he told an inspector the other day. "Yes! I remember now! One of them was from a friend I had a few years ago! He was eighteen at the time-" He stopped for a moment as if pondering the age. He began nodding as he continued. "I'm pretty sure that he most certainly was eighteen. He had black shaggy hair that covered most of his face. What was his name?"

Thom stopped again appearing deep in thought. He thought for a long time before shaking his head. "I apologize with the upmost regret. I do not think I ever got his name. We had only been friends for a day before he disappeared. Just before I had asked his name, his mom called him like he was in a rush. She had this intense look of fear in her eye. I shouted out for him asking his name, but he never responded before he went inside. I had shrugged it off thinking that I'd see him the next day, but he never showed up." Thom shrugged. The story of the kid was true in his mind, but the kid hadn't given him the object. The story comes from the world he remembers in The Outside. Since Thom only knew the kid for a day, he did not really hold any emotion to the event.

"The other object," Thom's eyes turned sad, "was from my father just before he died." He had a pitiful expression on his face as if we was actually remembering his dead father. "He never told me anything about where he got it. He just said he had one last gift for me. All I remember was sitting by his bedside for days as he was dying. One day, he said he didn't have much longer, and that he had one last gift for me. I held out my hand and he put the object in it. Only a moment later, he passed on." Thom had a tear running down his face now, "I was s-so upset. I began throwing things. I started f-f-fights. Eventually I was knocked out. The next morning I woke up on the street. I couldn't remember anything past my father's death, so I had asked this nice old lady what happened. What a nice little old lady she was. Bless her heart. She told me everything, and said she tried to wake me, but I couldn't be woken. She told be that she cleaned my wounds the best she could and waited for me to wake up. I had asked her where the guy who knocked me out had gone, and she said that after he knocked me out, he just ran off! I could've died and he didn't care! I know what I did was wrong, but I felt hurt! How could the world be so cruel to me!" Thom couldn't look the General Cross in the eye now. He had tears running down his face and an expression that looked like he had just relived the whole event.

Alex nodded, attempting to look sympathetic. Oh, sob stories. How he loved them. Truly, honestly - his whole job seemed to centered around these touching stories... Either way, he had no proof of anything, and he wasn't the type to charge without proof. If he said that's where he got it, that's where he got it in the eyes of the laws.

"Of course, Mr. Thom. If you happen to remember anything more, please notify us immediatel-... Miss Jones, what are you doing?"

Sally had heard the boy from earlier speaking up. "Oh, look. It's GX. I wonder what he's doing with that weird kid." She sat on the curb, watching the event from thirty feet away or so. Everybody hushed after the waterworks started and went back in their respective houses. She continued to watch, slightly amused, slightly baffled.

Finally, she puffed up her cheek and went over, smacking Cross on the shoulder. "Hey, GX. Long time no see! Gotta say, I didn't expect to find you makin' a boy cry."

"I'd appreciate it if you'd speak to me in a more respectful manner."

"I'm sure you'd appreciate a lot of things, Blondie." She leaned against Cross, her back to his side. "So, what's he charged with? Treason? Robbery? Littering?"

"...he's charged with nothing. Now, if you would let me finish what I was say-"

"Nothing!? You're just gonna let him get off the hook just like that!?" She gave him an appaled look before scoffing. "And ya call ya'self a General." The girl stood in front of the weeping boy, half-bent over with a teasing smile. "Chill it, kid. Everybody gives him waterworks. No need to make it look that realistic."

"Miss Jones, if you would please jus-"

"It's Sally."

"Miss Jones. This is inappropriate behavior. The boy is obviously mourning. I was speaking to him, and you have no right to butt in. Remove yourself."

She laughed in his face, but it wasn't in a mocking way - it was almost friendly. She had dealt with Cross before and knew just how to annoy him. "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, GX, who else do you have to visit?"

Alex bit back the temptation to smack her and shake his head in frustration, instead turning to the boy with a slight tick in his lip, a bit off of his normal expression. "I'm sorry about that. Contact us if you remember anything about that boy. You may or may not be under surveillance until more information is found."

"Hey, don't ignore m-"

"I have more important business with you later, Miss Jones. Now let me attend to my other business." She gave him a cheesy smile at that, taking a step back against the wall with the other boy.

"So, what'd they get you for?" she asked once Cross was out of earshot. "I don't think he likes you very much."

Thom glared at Sally when she first interrupted, thinking he was going to convince General Cross to charge him. When it seemed that General Cross believed him, he wiped off the tears, but still didn't look him in the eyes and had a sad look on his face. He nodded, agreeing he'd contact him if he 'remembered anything' not caring about the surveillance. It was the safest path.

When General Cross was out of earshot, he couldn't help it, he laughed. With a triumphant smirk, he looked at Sally, "For a second there I thought you were going to convince him to charge me with something. If you had, that little incident I saw earlier would have most certainly come up. I'm not one much for snitching, but that wouldn't pissed me off." He laughed more before shaking his head.

"What'd they get me for? Just some stuff they found in the inspection. Wanted to know where I got it from. He'd said something about putting under surveillance and frequently checking my house. I can't have that now can I?" He looked in the direction that General Cross left in before looking back at the girl.

"Surveillance though, I can live with. Nothing's more fun then screwing with their head the feeding them a couple lies and looking all sweet and innocent when they come around to ask questions. I bet he's just looking for a reason to get me."

Thom laughed harder looking at the sky. It was true. Thom liked to draw attention to himself, and it was never the good kind. The innocent facade was too easy to pull of in a time of great need though. It was a thrill. It left him with adrenalin pumping through his veins and he felt like he had a knew high. There wasn't much better, but each time seemed less and less thrilling. He needed a new way to get such a high, and he had a plan. The plan was going perfectly until this girl showed up again.

Thom snarled at the thought, but quickly calmed himself when he remembered that this girl could be an adventure as well. "I'd be surprised if any of the enforcers like me. That's not a thing to admit though is it?" He thought for a moment before looking at her with a smirk.

"You seemed pretty friendly with him though. I have to say he didn't seem to return the gesture." An idea came to his mind and he had to ask, "You said he hears sob stories all of the time. Why don't you enlighten me on a more creative way to get him off my back. I have to admit. I don't like crying in front of all these people. It makes me look weak."

Hearing him laugh was like nails on a chalkboard. Maniacal laughter, huh? She hadn't seen anyone other than her laugh at Cross and the Inspectors in a while. Sally kept one eye on the boy next to him and one eye on Cross. Not at the same time, of course. She was a bit worried that he seemed to be going to the house where they confiscated the toy she made.

"You know, you could just hide your stuff properly in the first place," she suggested. "I just can't help it. Annoyin' him is too much fun. He isn't a bad guy; if he was, he wouldn't'a let you off with just that. Sucks that we can't choose our own places in this world." She grinned, closing her eyes for a second. "Not that it will stay that way for long." Immediately after, she almost bounced off the wall, her expression very mischevious.

"You should come over one day. We are neighbors, after all. Maybe we co- Aw damn." Sally spotted Cross coming over to her, his military stride a bit longer than usual. He pulled out the toy she made and put it in front of her face.

"Did you make this?"

"Of course not, GX! How dare you accuse me of something like this!" She feigned an overdramatic fainting expression. He was obviously getting more ticked off, coming closer. "I didn't do it! Go search my house, top to bottom. I don't have anything that I would need to make that."

"Where did you learn it from?"

"Nowhere! I didn't do it, Cross. I swear, on The Church, that I created nothing like that."

He stormed off to go search the house. She gave the family who ratted her out a short death glare before smiling happily. "Things happen," she commented. "Yeah, well, that's what I got caught for, it seems," she said towards the boy. "What's your name anyway? Thom, was it? Name's Sally. It's nice to meet ya."

Thom laughed harder. It was all too good to him. He shook his head as he looked at her. "Cross? Not a bad guy? I thought he was gullible. Gullible or stupid." He looked in the direction that Cross went in. "It's my fault really. I hid all of the important stuff, but I always piss off the inspectors. You know how they can get. They'll confinscate anything. They'll use the smallest technicality at the chance to get me in trouble."

Thom got off the wall and looks towards Sally's house. "My name is Thom, and we can hang out more often, but I have to warn you. As you could already tell, Cross dislikes me. All of the enforcers dislikes me. They are looking for the slightest chance to get me in trouble." He looks at her with a smirk.

"I wouldn't wwant anyone else to get in trouble for my actions unless I frame them to save myself. It seems to me he dislikes you as well. If this is true, then both of us hanging out will certainly cause them to keep an eye on us."

He starts walking towards her house with a smirk. "I have an idea." He stops and turns towards her. "Speaking of which. I have a feeling that you're planning something big. If that's true then I wan in." He smiless giving her a calculating look. "After this, cross might be keeping an eye on both of us anyways. We might as well make it easier on him."

"I don't mind getting in trouble. Cross can't touch me, anyway. He's never been able to. My whole family got sent on a one-way Rail to Hell, but I'm still here. I'm not sure if they're stupid or if they need me. If they need me, I'd like to know what they want to use me for..." She walked beside him pouting, Cross coming out of the house shortly after with empty hands. He didn't need to say anything. She stuck her tongue out while he was looking the other way. Once again, he gave up on trying to bust her. It just wasn't worth his time. Thom started to head to her house; she hadn't expected him to come over that day, but then again, why not?

He stopped and turned to her. "Planned? I'm not quite sure what you mean," she said with a smirk, grabbing his hand and headed for the house. "I'll show you want I do mean, though.

"Come on in, but shut the door." Coming inside, the house was a mess between Cross and the other Enforcers. "Jeeze, and I work so hard to keep this place semi-organized..." She dropped down on the floor like she normally did, the unused couch still in the corner. The trashcan was tipped over; she was too lazy to clean it up right then.

Her blonde and blue hair was in her face once again as she flopped backwards, working around some areas of the walls, eventually managing to get the chunk of the wall open. There were several books and drawings; she pulled out some long pages of notes and drawings for her creations. She layed on her back, her legs kicking back and forth in the air.

"Have you ever wondered how The Clocktower was built?"

We chuckled at her complaint about the mess. It strikes him as funny that she would care so much about being organized when the enforcers will just destroy it again. Closing the door behind him, he looks at what she's doing with the wall before nodding and looking over her shoulders at the papers. He is curious about what she's planning, but isn't going to get too excited until she says something that interests him.

When she mentions the Clocktower, he sits on the ground looking at the papers. "I don't care much about how it was built. I want inside. I want to know what's inside. I can't help but wonder what the goverment knows and what they are planning."

He thinks for a moment before smirking. "I can't help but wonder how easy it would be to play God once inside The Clocktower. The way everyone praises it. That would most certainly be fun." He smiles thinking about it, but shakes his head. "Why do you ask?"

>>17 She understood his eagerness, but she wanted to lay some things down first. "Clocks are made of cogs, wheels, and belts, basically. There is a mechanical ticking mechanism that counts the time and moves the hands of the clock slowly. However, when a clock is that big with such a simple functionality, it's pretty weird. If there were cogs inside, the creator most likely didn't waste his time and resources making full cogs. The creator probably made giant but hollow cogs with holes in the middle. So what about all that space left inside?" She finally found the page she was looking for, putting it down in front of him. "Don't you think they would make use of that space? Think of all the houses you could fit within The Clocktower were it hollow. The Clocktower is the only thing that The Church won't touch. I bet that there's a neverending supply of forbidden items inside it." The paper she had put in front of him showed the proportions of The Clocktower versus the Middle Line. It was obvious that The Clocktower was too oversized to be just for telling time.

"But what if there's more than that to it? It's said that The Clocktower can defend and rebuild itself at will. Is it because of faith, or technology? If it's technology, The Clocktower is beyond even The Church's wildest dreams. But... why don't they investigate it."

She sighed... Why was he telling this guy all that, anyway? She figured she just wanted an accomplice. "I want to go in, too. Before my grandfather got dragged away, he said as the last one left in the family, it was my job to figure out the truth. I just need the help of more people."

Thom listened nodding as she spoke about The Clocktower. It had all started out as pretty boring, and he didn't care much about it, and he thought she was only telling him all this because she cared about the actual technology. The thought of going inside though, that excited him. He thought about it for a moment before nodding.

"Do you think there is anything even inside it? I would normally say that we can't be the only people to know, but everyone else seems pretty much brainwashed from the looks of it." He sighed still deep in thought, "As fun as it would be to go, that would imply that we to go the center line and find out ourselves."

An idea struck him and he looked at her. "Unless," He thought about it for a while before nodding, "That is unless you know how we could possibly get in? I have a feeling that you know more than you are letting on."

He looked at the papers thinking, "The goverment could also have these forbidden object not only to keep us from rebelling, but also to keep us from technology." He would readily except the thought that there was no god behind The Clocktower because of his memories about the other world. It was a world so much different than this one.

"..." Sally wondered if it has only just occurred to him that technology was forbidden for a reason. Ah, well. She grinned when he asked about a way in. "We don't have to go to the Center Line. The Clocktower cuts through all the lines. We would just have to take a trip East of here. It would proably be a couple day walk, so we need places to stay on the way there. I mean, unless you want to sleep on people's roofs. I don't suggest it." She thought for a few moments. "We're forbidden from going in the woods around it, right? I doubt they would forbid that if there was no way inside."

She hummed some tunes while she rummaged through her between-the-wall belongings. After a few minutes, she pulled out a box. Using the small key around her neck, she opened it, and with in it, there was a very large key. "This box and the two keys are the only things my family left. If they wanted me to break all the rules, I'm sure they've got something to do with The Clocktower," she said rather happily. "They might prove to be a way to get in, you know."

She was obviously content having someone to talk to. For some reason, she felt that he was trust worthy when it came to this.

Had it only just occurred to him? Yes. He was only focused on breaking the rules. He didn't care why they were there. He laughed nodding. "I wouldn't mind the walk. I also would mind sleeping on people's roofs, but that would probably do more to get us caught than anything." He thought for a moment deep in thought. It all seemed too simple. It was too straight forward and too easy. He couldn't help but wonder what the catch was.

He looked at the key for a moment and rolled his eyes. "Do the enforcers know? I doubt they'd let just anyone have a key into The Clocktower." He hummed to himself thinking for a moment before an idea struck him. He began laughing shaking his head. "This will all be too fun. I can't wait until we get started." He smirked thinking about his plan. He would let let the be an easy trip. What was a good joke without a little challenge and risk?

He looked at Sally before shaking his head. He couldn't help but wonder if she would try to make this as easy as possible. Once they got to The Clocktower, it didn't matter. He doubted there was any risk once inside. Once his laughter ended, he looked at Sally.

"When do we plan on going? I will have to get a couple of things together first. Other than that, I could leave any time." He smiled at the thought. He didn't care much for the technicalities of the trip. He just wanted to break the rules. He would probably run head first into this without another thought if Sally didn't seem to have given it any thought.

>>21 "I don't suggest just running in there. I remember a rumour from a trip to the Outer Line once that people enter and never leave. Once people go in there, they never come back." I wonder if it's paradise, she thought for a split second before brushing the fantasy aside.

"I know a lot of people have a copy of this smaller key. Nobody knows what these keys do. The larger key is something my grandfather aquired, but he would never tell me where from..." She smiled. "I don't know what they do... Let's just go check The 'Tower out first and figure out what we will and won't need. Do you have any strategic ideas for how to sneak past the Enforcers and get in there in the first place?"

Thom ignored her comment about just running in and shook his head. He was surprised that she had asked him for strategic ideas. He usually has one, but he felt like he didn't know enough information here. It was like the Enforcers were purposefully keeping them in the dark about everything. Thom had no doubt in his mind that was true, but it doesn't mean that it made it any easier. He thought for a moment before shaking his head.

"I honestly didn't have much of a plan. I was thinking something along the lines of mass murder, drawing as much attention to us as possible, and wrecking havoc. If you want something with a little more thought to it though-" He thought for a while tapping his chin.

There were many ideas flooding through his head, but he had to sort them out for complications. He had to make sure that this was well sorted out. Each step had to have a plan B and C in case the Enforcers caught on. He needed to think of a way to distract them. Most of all, he needed to make sure he was one step ahead. He had to calculate the most probable move they'd make so that he could act accordingly. He couldn't help it. He began laughing. He was laughing so hard, tears formed in his eyes.

"The best way to do this, would be corruption. Let's say we find a gullible person that the Enforcers would never suspect. They'd have to be the picture perfect person. A person who shows innocence and purity. Someone who's never done anything wrong in their life. With a person like that, there is no way the Enforcers will suspect the person to do anything."

He went back into his thoughts. He intertwined his fingers and pressed his thumbs together, a habit of his for when he's deep in thought, and he closed his eyes. There were so many possibilities, but only one that was close enough to perfect. In order to find it, he had to enter deep within his mind to collect all of his memories and knowledge together to form he perfect plan.

He began mumbling his idea as it formed, "We need to find this person. Since this person is so innocent, we will have to corrupt them. That is why I mentioned that they need to be gullible. That shouldn't be hard for me. We will probably have to not draw attention to ourselves still. The Enforcers will be wondering why we are together. They'll be suspicious. We will need another way to delude them. It will be hard to make them believe I'm not up to no good. I'm not sure about you. Who will we use though?"

"It will have to be a person so innocent, they wouldn't care who's company they hold. How can we find such a perfect person?" He trailed off fishing through his mind. He had kept a mental note of possible people he could use for such reasons. There had to be one that was just perfect.

His eyes snapped open and he sat up looking at Sally. "I know who we can use. She's going to be hard to get to if I remember her location correctly, but I'm sure that it'll be easy after that. She practically praises The Clocktower. He would never do anything wrong, even if it's something that you could easily get by with." A wide grin spread across his lips. "She'll be all too easy to corrupt. If I remember correctly, I had seen her a few years ago. She lives in the Outer Line. She lives as close to the Outside as we could get. I had been in that area frequently a few years ago. The Enforcers don't even look my way when I'm around her. They think that she'd go through great lengths just to be perfect, and would never do anything that would go against 'god'. Long story short, they think that the only time I'm not doing something that'd get me into trouble is when I'm around her."

He nodded thinking it through. It was far from perfect, but he'd only draw attention to himself if he wandered around. If he was with someone that'd never be around him if he was doing something he shouldn't, then it would make it that much easier to go around the enforcers.

She nodded. "That's not a bad idea at all! Do you think she would be easy to get in contact with?" Sally was sitting up now, straightening her curls before watching them pop back up. "The next Rail to the Outer Line leaves at dawn. If we're going, we might as well go then. We've got about... What, eight hours?

"Anyway, think you could get ready by then?"

Kim was wondering around the outside of the Center Line. She had managed to swipe a brown cloak from the servants quarters before heading out and used the hood to cover up her earrings and the long, voluminous sleeves to hide her lack of a brand. No one gave the girl a second glance as she slowly walked the perimeter of the wall. She was looking for a way through, obviously the rails were out of the question. Perhaps she could find a storm drain or some loose stones.

She sighed, her efforts seemed fruitless. Finding the secret passages within the Church seemed so easy, but this was so hard. Never once had Kim made it past the Center Line. Every day her hopes grew a bit dimmer as she slowly resigned herself to a fate of living in the Church forever. Stop being such a wimp, she told herself, you're bound to make it through some time, it's not like this place is impenetrable .

Kim stuck her hands in the pockets of her stolen cloak, hoping to be struck by a genius idea as she meandered along. Her visits into the Center Line had been shorter and less frequent lately, it seemed that where ever she went there was a monk there keeping an eye on her. The thought of the abundance of monks lately made her shiver; if the Head Monk knew what she knew she’d end up with a one way ticket to Hell. Every time they dragged her back to the Church she just gave them a sweet look and told them she'd been following the pretty lights. It was much easier to get out of trouble when everyone thought you were crazy.

Lost in her thoughts, Kim was too distracted to catch herself when she tripped, causing her to sprawl very un-ladylike across the ground. She lay there for a minute, blinking up at the sun, before coming to her senses. As she sat up, she looked around for what could have possibly tripped her. It was a small ditch, about a foot wide and nearly as deep. At closer inspection, it continued through a grate and into Middle Line. Kim scrambled to her feet and crouched beside the grate, seizing it with both hands, it was about two feet in diameter and was attached to the wall with large, rusty screws. She gripped one of the screws with her fingers and turned, surprisingly, it complied.

Barely containing her excitement, she quickly removed the rest of the screws from their holes, pulled the grate out of its hole, and scrambled through the opening...

Sarah skipped merrily along the wall to The Outside. Is has been almost four years since she's seen Thom, but she hasn't been able to forget about him. He was the first person to ever be nice to her. She's been a little disappointed that he hasn't come to visit, but she'd quickly shrug off the thought with the idea that her talk with him has helped him improve to be a better person in one way or another. Maybe it has helped him learn how he can help god.

She stopped at the sight where she first met Thom. It was a ritual every month to come to this point in hopes of seeing him again. She always thought that he possibly forgot where she lived. Her neighbors have been being more mean to her lately. They'd plant forbidden objects in her house just before inspection. Of course The Enforcers would believe her when she told them who it actually belonged to. She had been perfect all her life.

A few times this month people had been taking her rations. It's gotten to a point where's she's had to hide them from the others. She knows they all want her dead, but god wouldn't let her die. The Enforcers keep telling her that god loves her for all the good she does in The Outer Line. There is no way god would let her die off. She's important to him. She's special. That's the only thought that kept her living through her day. It was a thought that The Enforcers would tell her frequently when she caught a new person for them.

She heard someone coming, and her eyes lit up as she turned around hoping it was Thom. Her smile dropped when she saw it wasn't, and whoever it was ran off. The people here were even too scared to hurt her. They though she'd go lie to The Enforcers if they made her mad. It was a silly thought to her. Why would she lie? All she wanted to do was what god had wanted her to do. Lying wasn't it.

She sat by the wall for a couple of hours before getting up and heading home. No matter how many times people fled, she didn't want to risk her chances by staying outside. There were people that wanted to hurt her, and she didn't want to give them that chance. She headed home where she would stay the remainder of her day. Tomorrow she would probably go back out for a couple of minutes by the wall once more, but she couldn't stay there long if she wanted to avoid the people that wanted to hurt her. She only risked this few hour venture once a month because of the risk.

Thom smiled, glad that she liked his idea. He wasn't that enthusiastic about it, but that's only because it didn't account for many things. It all seemed like it'd be too easy for them and too straight forward. The Enforcers wouldn't allow it to be that easy, even with Sarah with them. Having her around would only make it easier, but Thom's recent actions would make The Enforcers more wary of him doing anything. Especially making a long trip in the direction of The Clocktower with another person they dislike.

Sarah would be another issue for Thom. She's pretty gullible and easy to manipulate, but she's still a goody-two-shoes. He needed to find a way to corrupt her. Thom needed her to think that what she was doing was for god. The thought made Thom laugh. A religion made to keep these people in line and not think of disobeying their rules.

"I know where she lives, and I doubt she would've left unless something bad happened. In her eyes, that's where god wanted to live and she wouldn't want to defy him." He chuckled. As hard as this would be, he couldn't deny that it'd be fun.

He thought for a few moments making a mental checklist of what he needed. He wouldn't bring much. The Enforcers would get suspicious if they saw him with a bag big enough to carry a lot of stuff, but him bringing a small bag with a few basic things to The Outer Line wouldn't be unlike him at all.

"I don't need much. I should probably be ready by morning no problem. Do you know if they've put any new rules on the lines? I don't want to take any forbidden objects if they're going to be checking through my stuff."

"Nope! Er, well, I don't think so," Sally said, thinking back to how the Rails were run. "Security is still pretty much non-existent on the Rails, especially going to the Outer Line. I like the Outer Line, but that doesn't change it. Anyway, yeah. They don't really care what you bring. They do a quick inspection, but they've never bothered to look in pockets or anything. As long as you make an effort to hide them, I'm sure it'll be fine."

She stood up and dusted herself off, walking over to the windows. Pulling the curtains open slightly, she took notice of the men across the street. "Pfft, figures! As usual, GX kept his promise. Looks like they'll be keeping an eye on us until we leave. You should probably go home and get your things together for tomorrow. Meet me here when you're ready tomorrow."

With that, she hid her items once again and opened the door for him. "Well, it sure was nice talking to you! I hope we'll get to know each other better during our fun adventures!" she said happy, back to being her usual hyper self as she thought about how amazing it was that he was willing to go along with her.

Kim was lost. She hadn't thought past getting out of the Center Line, now she was in the middle of a strange line with no one she knew and no way to get back home. Of course, she could ask an Enforcer, but she didn't want them to know she'd found a way out of the Center Line, not yet anyway.

Someone bumped into her, almost knocking her hood off. She barely managed to grab it before her earrings were revealed. "Hey, watch where you're going!" the stranger yelled.

Kim shrunk back at the words. She was tired and hungry, her formerly pristine white robes under the cloak were torn and tattered. She was wet from crawling through the ditch and as the sun set the air grew colder. She drew her cloak tighter around her and began looking for a place to sleep.

She finally found refuge between two houses, close enough together to block out the wind and secluded enough that no one was likely to bother her. The street sign proudly proclaimed the street to be Fourth street. Kim smiled, Four was her lucky number.

Every sentence she said just made Thom smile more until he bust out laughing. It was all too good to him. This would certainly keep his night from getting boring. He quieted his laughter before getting up, sliding his hands into his pockets, and leaving with a serious expression on his face. He looked to where he new people were there to keep an eye on him and waved with a friendly smile.

Of course he knew that he shouldn't taunt them, but so far they can't catch them for anything. He walked to his house at a leisurely pace. There wasn't much to pack, but he wanted to make sure that his forbidden objects were well hidden before he left. There were only a couple of things he really wanted to take, and bringing a bunch of forbidden objects around wasn't the best idea. He was sure that'd they'd stay out of his house as long as he was.

He kept to his thoughts as he walked. Would these people still keep an eye on him even if Sarah was around? They hadn't when he was under surveillance four years ago, but he's been more suspicious since then. He gave himself a small shrug. It wouldn't matter as long as he didn't do anything suspicious while on this trip until they reached their destination. It would be a boring time, but at least he'd have the fun of corrupting someone on this trip. His minds slowly wander deeper and deeper into his thoughts as he headed home.

Sally waved as he went off back to his house, laughing like the maniac he was. She grabbed her keys and locked the door on her way out, going in the opposite direction. There were more things that she needed to do, and one of them was collect the small keys. She knew many people around had them, and nobody really remembered where they came from. If there was a chance they were related to The Clocktower, collecting them would be necessary. She didn't want Thom's surveillance to affect her, so she decided against telling him.

Sally shivered a bit now that it was dark and the cool had set in, wondering if she should have changed into pants. She finally happened upon the first house. One of the kids had a key. She knocked on the door, all smiles. An older woman stood behind the door.

"Who is it?"
"It's just me, Sally."
"Oh!" The woman opened the door. "Come on in, Honey. What's wrong?"
"Actually, I'm going to be taking a trip to the Outer Line tomorrow. I was hoping that I could play one last game with Johnathan. We have a tournament to settle. We finished our last game in a tie before the Inspections yesterday."
"Oh, Sally. You're so good with the kids. He's in his room - go right ahead."

As usual, Sally wandered in. They played a fun game with cards issued by The Church. Of course, they were little rebels. They always placed bets. Sally wagered a keychain she made, and she convinced Johnathan to wager the key. In the end, she won, but she let him have the keychain anyway.

Bidding farewell, Sally wandered back off, feeling accomplished. She wasn't sure about where Serena's family lived, but she knew they were on fifth street, one street over. Right when she was about to turn, she noticed a girl wandering around. She was just... out of place. Covered in mud and dirt, she looked like she should be from the Outer Line. Looking at her made her remember how grateful she should be for their decent rations and education.

Sally decided that she couldn't just let her pass. She skipped up to the girl with a big smile. "Hay-lo! What are you doing out here? It's kind of late, isn't it?" She pretended to peak under the girl's hood, although she really wasn't looking for anything. "Do you have a place to be right now?" Sally tried not to phrase it like she thought she was homeless, because you couldn't really be homeless in the Middle Line unless you were a Center Line visitor, which she couldn't imagine the girl being. Something was off. "It can be kind of dangerous here at night, ya know? Especially with all the annoying Enforcers around. I'll escort you wherever you want; I've got all night, after all."

Kim glanced up, the girl was noisy. Noisy was annoying, but, if she was concerned she might give her a place to sleep for the night.

Kim groaned inwardly and pulled her knees up to her chest. She wanted somewhere to stay but she someone was bound to notice her earrings or her hands if they let her in. It was probably better to just stay in the alley and find her way back to the center line in the morning.

"I got stranded here from the Center Line," Kim said with an apologetic smile. "I don't know anyone and I guess I kind of got lost. I'm fine though, I can just sleep here."

Thom arrived at his house and quickly pulled sheets over the windows. He never got blinds or curtains to prove that he had nothing to hide and nothing to fear. It wasn't an uncommon occurrence for The Enforcers to keep an eye on him, and this was a way to silently laugh in their face. For now though, he didn't want them looking in. He opened hi compartment in the ceiling and pulled out his pocket knife. He couldn't risk a chance by bringing too many forbidden items, but this one he felt a personal attachment too. He dug through his messy drawers and pulled out a three pairs of tight fitting white shirts, two pairs of loose black pants, and his jacket. He got a new jacket every six months, and this was the one for this six months. He wore it almost everyday, and wasn't really sure why he had forgotten today.

Reaching under his bed, he pulled out a small backpack and shoved his stuff inside except for the jacket. Wrinkles weren't really an issue for him, and neither was clean clothes. On the trips he made to The Outer Line he would never bring that much. This wouldn't be much different. He went into his bathroom and grabbed a few other necessities for his hygiene and crammed those in his bag as well. His pocket knife went into the pocket of his pants.

He closed the bag and slid it back under his bed before removing the covers from the windows. Of course a trip like this was far from uncommon, but it's be suspicious to The Enforcers watching. They can find out tomorrow after he left. The main issue was them thinking he was running and trying to get him in trouble before he left.

He ran a hand through his hair and left his house without a word. As he went, another thought snuck into his mind. The Sally girl had wanted him out quickly. The thought made him tense, but he shook it off. He couldn't trust her, but he knew he could get her in trouble if she planned on snitching. It was not his way, but it kept him alive.

He continued walking only paying attention to where he was and the people following. Thoughts flowed through his head as he continued to sort out what he's going to do to get Sarah to side with him and not squeal. With a smirk, he waved behind himself at The Enforcers keeping an eye on him. Walking at night was a common thing he did no matter what. It was still suspicious activity and Thom had no doubt in his mind that they thought he was up to something. The joke was on them though. His walk at night were just walks. If he was up to something he'd do it at another time of day.

A glance at the tower told him that Everything that's happened caused his nightly walk to be delayed half an hour, and that upset him slightly. That was the one thing he was picky about. His walk had to be at the same tim every night. It would be forgotten soon enough. There were more important things to worry about.

"Stranded from the Center Line..?" She blinked for a second, confused, and then couldn't help but laugh. "I don't know how you managed that one, but I think I like you! Don't worry about it, hun. You can stay with me. I've got plenty of room, but you have to promise you won't squeal about a couple things. I'm not the most law abiding citizen either."

She wasn't particularly happy that she couldn't collect the keys, but perhaps that was for the better. When they came back from this trip, she'd try to set up an event or something to collect them. Sally waved off to her left. "My house is a couple blocks down. If you got 'stranded', though, the Enforcers won't like it much. I'll slip you in through the back, 'kay? I've got food, too." She hoped the girl would agree to go with her. She couldn't imagine herself leaving the girl there.

Kim weighed the pros and cons of the situation. On one hand, she would have a place to sleep, on the other, if she got caught with this girl bad things could happen. Then again, she could just sleep in the ally. Given the idea of sleeping in an ally versus sleeping on a comfy bed, or even a couch, going with the girl won out.

"Okay," She answered, "But you have to be fine with me being a bit on the illegal side too."

She smiled and stretched out her hand to the noisy girl, "I'm Kim, it's nice to meet you."

"Alrighty, then. I'm Sally. It's nice to meet you, Kim." Sally smiled back and shook the girl's hand, starting to walk back to her house through the backyards. Only a few people bothered to have fences, and those on fourth street were not those few, mainly because it was common for them to need a back route someplace. Once they reached her house, she slipped through the unlocked door and looked around. It didn't seem like anything was tampered with... She turned to the other girl, assuming she followed. "Well, make yourself at home. The living room is by the front of the house; be sure to keep the curtains drawn. The bedrooms are in the hall to your right, and the kitchen is over here. Take whatever room you want. I like to sleep on the couch."

She yawned and stretched, walking over to the cabinets. "What do you want to eat? I haven't used much of this month's rations, so I can splurge a bit."

"Thank you," Kim said carefully. "I'll go clean up in your bathroom while you get the food."

Sally was still rummaging through cabinets as Kim found the bathroom. She locked the door behind her quietly and pulled off the cloak. She groaned as she looked at herself in the mirror, she was a mess. She began scrubbing off as much dirt as she could, finding it a more difficult task than she first anticipated. After ten minutes of persistent scrubbing, she finally began to look like herself again. Kim's skin was raw and red by the time she decided she was as good as she could get.

She exited the bathroom after pulling on the cloak. Her stomach growled and she hoped Sally was a good cook.

Thom enjoyed the night air as he walked. There wasn't much he could get away with when there were people watching him, but that wasn't the purpose of this walk. His walks cleared his mind and allowed him to think more clearly, which is something of great importance at the moment. He didn't pay much attention to where he was going. His route for these walks always lead back to his house.

There were many ways he could manipulate Sarah, but it wouldn't be to easy. He wondered how Sally would act around her. That was of great importance if he wanted to avoid getting caught. He made a mental note to mention it to Sally the next day. He could also corrupt Sarah so that she won't tell. That won't be easy, but he accepted the challenge. It'll be like a game to him.

He had lost track of time and arrived at his house sooner than he expected. Without another thought, he quickly went to his cabinets and pulled out a bag of chips and a cereal bar. He ate it without much thought, he's not hungry when he has a lot on his mind, and grabbed some foods that wouldn't spoil and slid his bag out from under the bed. He shoved the foods in and closed it back up to slide back under. He didn't care if people knew he was packing up by now. It was too late for them to stop him.

Thom smirked at the thought. He was sure The Enforcers would be glad that they didn't have to keep an eye on him, but they'd be wary because they'd know he was doing things that'd get him into trouble. So far they've found no proof that his trips cause trouble though. They were mostly him wandering around the wall to The Outside.

He got in bed and let his thoughts take over. He thought about many things and never let his thought stay on one thing for too long. It was peaceful to him, and he let the idea of planning any further go. He's planned all that he could by this point, and what happens happens. There is not much else he can do. As his thoughts took over, they slowly lulled him to a peaceful sleep. He knew that he'd wake up in time to catch the train. He always did.

Sally was going to be gone anyway, so she figured that she would use up her rations. She plurged and made enchiladas. They weren't too spicy, but they had a bit of a tang to them, and they were really cheesy. Basically, it was middle class food gone wild. Screw calorie counts (not that anyone in Oblitus knew what a calorie was). She got everything together; the food was almost done when the girl came out. Even though she seemed clean underneath, she was still wearing that cloak. Sally sighed with a quiet smile after a moment without offering the girl a seat, pulling the enchiladas out of the wood burning stove and onto their proper plates. She put the plates down, but walked down to her room. Everything was still a mess. If the girl was that determined to not show her face, Sally wouldn't make her. She stumbled into her mom's old room and pulled out an old cloak her mother had as well as some stretchy pants that might be a little long for her visitor.

She came back with them, tossing them to the girl. "Here. It's a lot cleaner. You can leave your cloak on the bar above the shower - I'll clean it for you later. Then come and eat." Sally waited, not wanting to sit down and start eating after she had pretty much just said go put some clean clothes on or don't get food. There was a limit to how rude she wanted to seem.

Kim was surprised, most people would roll their eyes and let her continue as she was, some would demand she remove the cloak, few would offer her a new one. She took the clothing wordlessly, looking down at it for a moment then back to the food. It looked delicious. Her stomach grumbled again.

"Thank you, you're-you're a very kind person," Kim turned around to go back to the bathroom. She even considered letting the girl know who-or rather what-she was. But years of keeping secrets won out over this idea. She chose to change instead.

In Center Line, Crest was having trouble falling asleep. Tossing and turning seemed to do no help, and trying to count numbers in his head was just making him more awake. He'd already finished the second tome of The Church: A History before going to bed and didn't have any candles left to spare because he needed them for the trip.

The trip. Great. He just reminded himself of the reason why he couldn't fall asleep.

It was tomorrow that the annual trip for students of all years in schools in the Center Line was happening. During the course of that trip, the students all went to visit the other Lines, to learn about how everything was like down there. They would visit the shops, schools and sometimes, even the homes of the people down there all at their own pace. The students would get to experience firsthand how exactly they were the ones that were chosen to be more privileged by God, and to remind them to thank God for it. The only rule for the trip was that the students were not allowed to go back to their Line. They didn't have to stay overnight, which was a huge relief for Crest, but they had to go for the whole day, for a total of seven days, to each the Middle Line and Outer Line. Of course, since they were from Center Line they could visit the other Lines any time they wanted to, but most preferred to stay in their own Lines.

Personally, Crest dreaded these visits. It meant that he wouldn’t get the chance to go to the library, and instead he had to spend time socializing with people. He couldn’t talk to people. Could barely even interact with the ones he had known for years. In an environment which he wasn’t used to filled with even more unfamiliar faces that the ones in his Line, Crest felt more than uncomfortable. Every year he ended up just sitting in a small alley and reading his books that he got permission from his teachers to borrow. His teachers never seemed to notice that he didn’t walk around, and he was glad.

Finally, after getting tired of being tired, Crest went out of his bed, grabbed his blanket and pillow, and crawled out the window of his room onto the roof. It was only the roof above his room that was flat, and many times that became the place where you would come and find him, if he wasn’t at the library. There, he pulled his pillow underneath his head, draped the blanket over himself, and fell asleep.

Sally sat back down and waited for Kim to finish getting changed. She glanced at the wall, thinking about nothing. It was getting late... What would they do about the girl for tomorrow?

Kim switched clothes quickly, eager to get back to the food. They were a bit big, but comfortable. It felt wonderful to be clean and have clean clothes. She stumbled back into the kitchen, looking forward to a peaceful meal.

Sally had been waiting for her still, happy to see that she was finally ready. "Alright, food time!" She started eating the food, which was now a little lukewarm, but still good. God, she hadn't wasted so many rations on a mean in a long while. It was definitely worth it. She was almost happy she was left alone and forced to learn to cook.

"By the way, a friend and I are going to the Outer Line tomorrow, partly to get away from the high security here and also partly to do something not quite legal. If you want, you can use this house as much as you like. You could also come with us.

"If you're on the run, which is seems like you are, the Rails might not sound good... We could probably sneak you on if we were creative about it, though. Think it over tonight about what you want to do." She smiled before directing her attention back to her food.

Kim thought about her options; she could stay in the nice warm house with food, find the enforcers and go home, or go with Sally to the outer line. The choice was clear.

"Sneak me in..." Kim thought about the possibilities. "You mean, in a suitcase or something? It might work, but if you take me with you, you should know something."

She reached up and removed her hood. "I might stick out a bit."

Sally blinked hard, more than surprised. It didn't take more than a second for her to realize where she was from. "Why are you out here? I mean..." She sighed, scratching her head. "Nevermind. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I'll just assume you're not in the mood to be found. But... yeah. A suitcase?"

She took one last bite of her food, swallowed hard, and skipped off to her room. Sally was the type to pack quite a bit, always prepared for both the best and the worst. Because of her small size, there wasn't much she could do with a carry on, so she finally just gave up and made a large case on wheels. She could bring as much as she needed to without much hassle. It was already pretty packed and ready, but she did manage to pull some unnecessary items out and move some awkward items into other pockets. Finally, after several minutes, she came out with it.

"If you're really okay with being smuggled in as strangely as this, I guess it's alright. It's gonna be pretty uncomfortable, though, and taking the Rail from here to the Outer Line's station is a forty-five minute trip. There's no privacy there, either, so you would have to pop in on our way out the door and stay for the walk there, which is another fifteen minutes..." She shivered. "I know I couldn't live being in there for an hour."

In Center Line, Crest was having trouble falling asleep. Tossing and turning seemed to do no help, and trying to count numbers in his head was just making him more awake. He'd already finished the second tome of The Church: A History before going to bed and didn't have any candles left to spare because he needed them for the trip.

The trip. Great. He just reminded himself of the reason why he couldn't fall asleep.

It was tomorrow that the annual trip for Seventh Years and above students in schools in the Center Line was happening. During the course of that trip, the students all went to visit the other Lines, to learn about how everything was like. They would visit the shops, schools and sometimes, even the homes of the people down there all at their own pace. The students would get to experience firsthand how exactly they were the ones that were chosen to be more privileged by God, and to remind them to thank God for it.

Crest had been dreading this visit ever since he first learned about it. It meant that he wouldn’t get the chance to go to the library, and instead he had to spend time socializing with people. He couldn’t talk to people - could barely even interact with the ones he had known for years. In an environment which he wasn’t used to filled with even more unfamiliar faces that the ones in his Line, Crest felt more than uncomfortable. Every year he ended up just sitting in a small alley and reading his books that he got permission from his teachers to borrow. His teachers never seemed to notice that he didn’t walk around anyway, and he was glad.

Finally, after getting tired of being tired, Crest went out of his bed, grabbed his blanket and pillow, and crawled out the window of his room onto the roof. It was only the roof above his room that was flat, and many times that became the place where you would come and find him, if he wasn’t at the library. There, he pulled his pillow underneath his head, draped the blanket over himself, and fell asleep.

Kim glanced at the suitcase and nodded. "I'm used to being crammed in small places for hours at a time. I've climbed around in air-ducts in the Church before, it can't be much worse. Besides, I've been dying to get to the Outer line for years. I don't really care how I get there."

She smiled at Sally, "It's all just one big adventure, right?"

Mirabelle sat on the rooftop of one of the houses in the Middle Line, looking down at the view of the city below. A cool yet pleasant breeze ruffled her dark hair. The streets were empty, and all was quiet. The quietness was refreshing for Mirabelle, who quickly tired of the noise and commotion that regularly took place during the day. For now, at least, she could simply sit here and let her mind wander, enjoying the short-lived peace.

Today, however, for some reason, Mirabelle was feeling restless. She wasn’t content with simply sitting here, not tonight. Sighing, she pulled the hood of her cloak up, brushing her hair out of her dark grey eyes. Gracefully she stood up, carefully smoothing out the creases in her clothes. She walked over to the ledge of the roof and stood there for a moment, contemplating its distance from the ground. Then, shrugging, she silently jumped off, landing on the ground as nimbly and softly as a cat.

She didn’t know where she was going to go, but it didn’t matter where she went anyway; she could go on walks wherever she wanted without getting lost. She knew the city far too well for that. For now, she just wanted to be occupied by something, and a walk was perfect for that; over the years, Mirabelle had found that her mind worked even better when she was physically occupied, too.

Giving it no further thought, Mirabelle set off in the direction of what she knew was Fourth Street.

Thom groaned rolling out of his bed and hit the floor. He gave a loud groan of pain before standing up and looking around his room. Sleep would have been nice had he been able to stay that way, but he kept thinking about his trip. It had been a while since he'd gone anywhere, and his last trip to the Outer Line had been to see if he could escape. It had been a few months since he'd given up on that, and now he's glad that he did. This new idea seemed like fun.

He grabbed his bag and put it over his shoulder, before covering himself with a cloak. He had no plans on returning before he left. With a quick look out the window, he rolled his eyes with annoyance seeing that the enforcers are still there. Couldn't they just leave him alone? This wasn't the first time it's happened though, so he was prepared to loose them. He bunched a few spare blankets up and threw them under the blanket on his bed to make it look like he was still sleeping, then went to the "study".

Upon entering this room, he moved the appropriate shelf and opened the trap door that was underneath. With one last look around the room, he entered the tunnel and came out on the other side of the wall. He was finally out of his house, and he was sure that the enforcers hadn't caught him. He's been under surveillance like this before. The enforcers only stayed by his front door or the windows. Most of them stayed by the window in his room, because that's where he slept, so they could keep an eye on him easily.

He closed the trapdoor on this side and went into the streets. The night air felt magnificent, and helped him clear his mind so that he may think properly. Now that he's lost the enforcers, he doesn't have to be as careful.

He knew that his freedom wouldn't last long, because they'd go looking for him wen they realize that they've been tricked, and they'll find him once his cloak comes off. If he had any luck, that'd be after he got on the train. It was just a hope.

Sally was enlightened by her optimism and started spinning around the kitchen, all giggles. "I know! I can't wait! It's going to be so much fun. It's been forever since I went to the Outer Line. We have people to meet, places to be, Forbiddens to break..!" She grinned, having lowered her voice at the last part. "We've got to find out what's on the other side of that ticking wonder, and we might just have the resources to do it now. We can part ways once we get to the Outer Line, but you're always welcome to join us if you're interested in some truth hunting, as well. They say you can only pierce truth with an arrow shot from the sky, but the hit would be more lethal if you keep the bow right in front of their face, right? We're gonna get under the radar, shove the key in that block of inpenetrable wood, and then fly right in head first..!"

Sally had stopped paying attention to the girl, making sound effects and hand motions to go on with her excited ranting. She never seemed to shut up, planning all the details half in her head and half in a hushed but excited voice.

"Oh gosh. This is going to be so amazing. I can't wait."

Kim stopped listening shortly after Sally's rant began. Instead trying to decide if she would part ways with her. Sally said she was "truth hunting", did that mean she meant to do something about it? Kim knew there was a good chance she would end up dead if she didn't do something about the head monk, and she wasn't ready to die yet. There were so many things she wanted to do. If this girl was serious about half the things she said, then Kim figured she could use her.

As Sally kept spitting out metaphors her wild enthusiasm infected Kim. Her shoulders began to shake as she laughed silently, her excitement building to the point she could no longer hold it in.

"Hey, Pierce. Who's Truth?" the pink haired boy asked as they watched the girls chatter happily. He was sporting a pink dress and cat ears, not that the girls could see, for they were hidden behind a visual barrier created with their illusion powers. They didn't really care if the girls heard them or not; in fact, it might be humorous, even if they didn't stick around to see the end result of their reactions.

"The truth is an urban legend around these parts, Aro," the fuller-built pink boy said. His eyes were much softer.

"Why are they saying they're going to drop me from the sky to use you to find something that doesn't exist? Isn't that kind of silly?" His voice was cheeky and slightly forced into the mocked, high-pitched tone of a girl.

The girl with the blue streaks went running around, and Aro couldn't help himself. Still hidden, he slipped his foot out right in her path.

Pierce didn't mean to laugh at Aro's immature action, but her expression was just too much. His voice faded away as they slipped to another place, another time.

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"This is going to b-" Sally stopped immediately, hearing someone talking over her in a really stupid voice. "..what? Hey!" She looked around. "Who's there?" It sounded like a short conversation, but she could barely tell. The voices started to fade away. She ran to every room and checked every window, unable to find the perpetrator. She went to go walk back to the kitchen and spontaneously tripped over nothing. "What the..." She wasn't woried about it being an Enforcer, mainly because she knew their voices, and none of them had such a shrill tone. She was rather confused that someone had gotten in without and out her noticing, though, and what the Hell did she just trip over? "Hey, am I hearing things? I mean, did you hear those voices just now?"

Pierce had finally stifled his laughing when Aro spotted another interesting sight. Back in the Center Line, a boy sat with his blanket on the roof, drifting into sleep. Aro noticed him after climbing some walls nearby, and it peaked his interest. Pointing, Aro shouted to his brother, "Hey, Pierce! I found a weirdo. Can I go play with him? Please?"

Pierce sighed, giving him a light smile. "Well, if you really want to..."

"I do, I do!"

"Alright, I'll be up there in a minute. Play nice, alright? You can't hurt him too bad."

"...aww..." Pouting, Aro climbed up to the roof of the large building, spurting out cat noises when he fell or lost his balance. Finally at the top, he laid down on his stomach by the boy, his legs kicking back and forth. "You're weird," he said in his regular voice, not trying to be quiet at all. He grinned and produced a puddle of water above the boy's head, dropping it right after he said that.

Within a minute or two, Pierce had found his way up through the actual house. He made a small orb of light so they could see properly.

Kim stopped laughing and glanced over her shoulder at Sally. There had been a few voices a moment before. "Yeah, I heard them, something about truth..." her voice trailed off.

Thinking back, it wasn't the first time she'd heard voices coming out of thin air. "Things like that happen sometimes. But if you mention it to anyone they think you're crazy. Are we crazy, Sally?"

At Kim's question, Sally thought for a moment, shrugging her shoulders. "We're the good kind of crazy. You know, the awesome kind of crazy." She cocked an eyebrow. "Considering being a mindless blob of obedience is normal around here, don't you think it's better to be considered a little off-kilter?" She was a bit calmer now, but she was still hyper enough that there was a skip in her step as she washed the plates. Sally had managed to set up her own running water; she just had to gather enough water each morning. That's why she had decently functioning sinks and showers. The water for the showers and baths was always preheated by the extra rations of firewood that she managed to get during her trading. It was ironic how a toy made out of so little wood could get you so much more wood in return.

She washed off the dishes and put them back in the cabinet, humming some nonsense. "Well, I suppose we should be getting to bed soon. There are beds in the other rooms; pick whichever one you like best, although the rooms on the left side of the house are a little dusty. I prefer the couch." She stretched out and wandered into the living room, cleaning up a bit before flopping on the couch. "Tomorrow is going to be a big day, after all," she mused.

Kim watched as Sally washed the dishes and put them away before she flopped down on the couch. Yes tomorrow would be a big day. Kim found a spare bed to flop down on and stared at the ceiling, thinking about the coming days. She had never been away from the Church for more than one night, it looked like this would be a record.

Kim grimaced at the thought of being stuffed in a suitcase, but she could get over it. After all, she was used to being stuck in small places. She had plenty of time to think about the voices as well. She was didn't think she'd heard those particular voices but she had heard voices before. Perhaps they were ghosts? Maybe they were some sort of demons? Kim grinned. The mere suggestion that there demons would send many members of the Church into rabid fits.

"Tomorrow, everything will be clearer tomorrow," Kim muttered as she drifted off to sleep.

Dante wandered the streets with no real destination as usual. "Man I love it when an assingment goes as planned don't you Cerberus?" He asked as he looked up to the sky. His tone of voice changed to a lower one. "Yeah I guess though it wasn't that fun." He kept starring at the sky and didn't watch where he was going. As he turned around a corner he bumped into someone. Someone a bit bigger than him. He stumbled onto the floor. His tone changed back to normal. "Sorry about that I wasn't watching where I was going." He said as he stood back up.

"Shit!" Thom growled in annoyance as he fell and dropped his bag. His first thought, is that one of the Enforcers had caught him, so he immediately pulled up the hood of his cloak to cover his face. before grabbing his bag. He was glad to see that nothing fell out.

Then he decided to look at who ran into him. He immediately relaxed when he noticed that it wasn't one of the Enforcers. That would have ruined his plans.

"What the fuck are you doing at this hour? I thought everyone was asleep." That was standard Thom. The stress of possibly getting caught was getting to him, causing him to start cussing. The would be the worst possible time for anything to go wrong.

"Uh.. I'm..." Dante looked around nervously. "I.. I was just taking a stroll sorry." He couldn't believe he had spaced out like that. He sighed, took his gloves off and extended his hand. "My names Dante. What's yours?" He asked with a smile.

Thom sighed shaking his head. It was rare for him to loose his cool like that, but the thought of the enforcers catching him had made him over react. The fact that he didn't see the other person coming had been enough of a sign that he wasn't even paying attention.

"A kid like you taking a stroll at this time of night? Don't you even know what kind of people are out this late?" Thom sighed and shook the 'kid's' hand, "My name's Thom."

"Good to meet you Thom. Yeah I know what kind of people are out this late, but I'm scared...." Dante stopped shaking Thoms hand and realized he felt lighter than usual that's when he saw his case thrown on the floor. "My case!" He screamed as he kneeled over it to checked it. He sighed in relief. "Thank goodness nothing happened to you." He picked it up and hooked it to his back. It was almost his size.

*not

Srenal was sitting on a roof watching a house across the street. It was unusual for her to leave the Outerline, but she came around to watch the inspections. The people crying over lost goods was always comical. After that, she had seen a young girl acting peculiar, and had to follow her. She believed that the girl's name was Sally. Seeing rules broken was a common thing for Srenal, and she quickly got bored of that. The way this girl was acting though, Srenal thought it was more than a few small rules that were being broken. Something big was happening. Srenal could sense it.

It was the perfect chance to screw up someone else's plans in Srenal's eyes, and she had to take it. It was the first chance that she's gotten to do anything in decades, and boredom was slowly tearing at her insides. She just had to do something. It was quite quiet that night, and Srenal could see that even the Enforcers were acting differently. It was most likely from the inspection earlier. They always found something when they had inspections, and were always on guard after they found something. She smiled as she kept an eye on the house. Something was certainly up.

Thom tilted his had to the side trying to figure out would be more interesting. The fact that this kid was freaking out over his case, or the fact that he didn't seem scared about the people that are out late. He stood and pulled his hood back down before circling around the kid slowly with a smirk.

"Why aren't you scared kid? There's a lot of weirdos out at this time of night." Thom chuckled as ruffled the kid's hair. "Wouldn't want anything bad to happen to you, now would we?"

Dante hated when people treated him like a little kid. He had to show this guy he wasn't just some little weakling and he just what he had to do. "Wouldn't want anything bad happening to you?" He laughed. "You don't even know who I am. Yet you assume I can't protect myself?" He unhooked the case on his back and held it by it's hook. "This is why I'm not scared." He pressed a practically invisible button on the hook and the case dropped revealing that the hook is actually attached to a sword. A katana to be exact. "This is why." Dante unsheathed it a bit revealing a blade.

Thom tilted his head as he thought for a moment. A good fight sounded nice, but he still hadn't gotten far from the enforcers surrounding his house. He had to worry about himself first. The thought of the enforcers being so near caused him to tense up and pull the hood back over his head.

"Shit! I really shouldn't have stayed as long as I have." He had to go, anywhere as long as he wasn't by his house anymore. He looked back at the kid and smirked. He was quite enjoying talking to him. It would be a shame to leave him so soon. He began walked onto the street and turned back towards the kid. "Nice toy you have there. I hope you know how to use it." He began walking away from his house slowly. He silently hoped the kid would follow. The kid had been the most interesting thing that's happened all day.

Dante clenched onto the hilt so hard it hurt his hand. He had to see why this guy was acting so nervous and where he was heading. So he followed but not too close he didn't want Thom to notice him. "Why are you following him?" Cerberus asked in Dantes head. "Because I wanna know what he's up to." Dante said gently. He kept trailing Thom.

Thom slid his hands into his pockets as he walked the streets, clenching the pocket knife he had. Just as he said earlier, there were some real weirdos out at night. He glanced at Sally's house as he walked past it. He was prepared for a fun day ahead. He looked to the other side, mostly keeping an eye out for enforcers, and noticed a girl sitting on the roof as she stared at Sally's house. He smirked as an idea came to find, and leaned against the wall beside the door to Sally's house pretending to wait for Sally to come out. If nothing happened, then he might as well wait here throughout he night. He hadn't noticed the kid from earlier following him.
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Srenal noticed the male look at her then lean against the house she was watching. She hadn't bothered to hide, and was quite obvious that she was staring at the house. She hadn't thought that someone would be out this late at night. It rarely happened when she was in the Outer Line. She rolled her eyes in annoyance. Now she had to make a choice. She could either walk up to him and find out what he had to do with the girl, or she could continue to observe and see what happened. She glanced and saw that another male had followed the first, and let out a silent chuckle.

The fact that there was someone following the first male, made the decision easy for her. She wanted to observe and see what would happen. Maybe she could play a little game before this Sally girl left the house to begin whatever she was planning.

Dante noticed Thom look at the roof of another house. he looked and noticed the girl starring at him and Thom. He cotinued trailing Thom until he stopped and leaned against the wall of a house. "Hmmmm... Maybe it's the house of someone he knows." He closed in a little more and tripped causing him to fall right in front of Thom. "Oh shit." He said lowly. "Nice one Dante" Cerberus said to him. "Shut up." He said as he stood back up."Uh... Hey Thom..." He said nervously as he made sure he still had his case on his back. It was there. He sighed in relief.

Thom jumped when the kid fell, but relaxed and started laughing when he recognized Dante. "You're a little clumsy there kid, aren't you?" His laugh finally died down and he smirked. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were following me." He chuckled at the thought. The thoughts of why he was here slowly vanished from his mind. He was more curious about the kid than the girl watching Sally's house.

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Srenal laughed when she saw the the younger male fall in front of the first. This was going to be more fun than she originally though, and she wanted in on the fun. "All in good time," She whispered to herself. She wanted to know what was up with the older male first. Why was he there? Did he have something to do with the girl she was following? That'd be important information she'd loose if she scared him off so quickly. It was better to wait.

"I'm not clumsy! I... just tripped." Dante looked down trying to hide how embarassed he was. He took a deep breath. Looked at Thom with serious face. "Why did walk away from me back there?" He asked as he slowly reached for his case. "Ah so you're taking precations huh? Good." Cerberus spoke in a whisper inside Dantes mind. "So? Why did you walk away and is this your house or did you stop because of her?" Dante said as he moved his head in the girls direction.

Thom laughed when the kid said he wasn't clumsy, and just shook his head. He was startled when the kid got serious all of the sudden. He thought of Dante as just a kid, and did think he cold be serious. It was surprising to him that he couldn't stay serious, but shook it off as he considered the options. He could Tell the kid the truth, but he wasn't sure if he could trust the kid of the girl watching the house. It was safer to just come up with another lie, but he couldn't really think of a good reason to explain why he walked of so quickly without seeming like a wimp. He rolled his eyes and sighed when the kid began reaching for the case. He did not need to attract unwanted attention, but he had to be cautious. His grip on the knife in his pocket tightened.

"That was my house that we were standing by, and I had to leave because it's surrounded by enforcers who were told to keep an eye on me. They don't know I escaped, and I didn't want to risk them finding out because of a reckless kid like you." He considered it for a moment, before deciding that there was no harm in telling the kid why he was here. "As for the last question, I am standing in front of this house because of her."

He didn't feel the need to give a full explanation as to why he was standing here, and he didn't want to risk the kid knowing too much. It was a delicate balance when he was trying not to catch the attention of the enforcers.

Sally had closed her eyes for a bit, but something just didn't feel right. It hadn't felt right for a while. She couldn't sleep. Perhaps she was too nervous? But... about what? The journey, or the girl from The Church in the room not too far away? It was strange sleeping in the same house as someone from an organization you dislike. She got up to go check on her, smiling as she was in the bed, quietly shutting the door. Hopefully the girl would get a good night's rest.

That was when she heard voices outside. Thinking it may be the same voices from earlier, she moved to the front windows and pulled the curtains back just enough to see what was going on... Wait, what was going on? She blinked, noticing two figures outside her house first. Then, she saw the figure on the roof, watching the situation.

What the Hell was going on out there? She let the curtains fall back, not sure if she should get involved or not. She slipped back by the wall, pulling the hair away from her ear closest to the window. There was a younger boy's voice and... wait, was that Thom? She wondered what he was doing out so late.

Wait, she already knew what he was doing - attracting unnecessary attention. Sally stretched and kept listening in. Unless he threw the kid through her window, she probably wouldn't get involved. She didn't need to be put under house arrest the day before their big plan.

He knew this guy was hiding something and noticed he was holding something in his pocket, but he let it go. He stop reaching for the case, started searching for his gloves but kept looking at Thom with with an emotionless and serious face. "So that's why you left. Ok at least now I know you have to be a pretty tough guy." He glanced over his shoulder and looked at the girl. "She's obviously observing whoever lives here." Still with no emotion in his face and without hesitation Dante takes a step closer to Thom. "Iknow you're not lying, but I know you're hidding something." He took a step back and kept starring at Thom.

Srenal cursed when not only Sally saw her, but it's obvious that the males standing outside the house are talking about her. They attracted the attention of the girl she was watching. Had it just been those two guys talking about her, she would've just jumped into their conversation, but now she couldn't because she'd risk Sally finding out that she was watching her.

She groaned and jumped off the roof and decided whether or not to confront the males. It was risks because she didn't know why the older one was there, or if he knew Sally. With another stream of curses, she walked off. Once she was a good distance away, and knew she couldn't be seen, she warped beside Sally's house with a smirk. They'd think she was gone now, and she might be able to learn something about Sally still.

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Thom rolled his eyes and glared at Dante, "Of course she's observing whoever lives here." He looked back to where the girl was sitting, and noticed that the girl left. That made him relax. The girl was the main threat, and now she was gone. He no longer needed to worry about her finding out why he was here. He looked back at Dante with a serious expression.

"I was standing here because she was watching this house. I know who lives here, and wanted to confuse the girl watching this place. I figured that if I stood here as if Sally could walk out any moment, then the girl would leave or else be caught watching like a creep."

Dante didn't like this scenario. Something felt out of place. "Well since you know who lives here.." He said as he knocked on the door. "We can finish our conversation inside." He looked around something was definitely wrong. "It's not a good idea to stay outside." He put on his gloves and took off his hood revealing his coal black hair, blue eye, eye patch and sharpened teeth. "Man this thing's itchy." He said while scratching his eye.

*patch.

Thom growled, when the kid knocked, but his eyes widened when the kid removed his hood. "Dude! What the fuck are you? Why'd you have to knock on the fucking door? Why do you choose now of all times to decide that it's not safe outside?"

Thom groaned in annoyance. This was not what he wanted. Now he'd look like the creep for being here at such an hour. Hopefully Sally was still asleep. He released his knife and pulled his hands out of his pockets and rubbed his temples.

"Now that you've done that, yea we should go inside. You're just going to draw unwanted attention out here."

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Srenal cursed under her breath at the thought of them going inside. She wouldn't be able to learn anything if they were in there, but maybe she'll learn a lille more if Sarah came out. With that though, she decided to wait until they went in before leaving.

Sally heard the knock on the door and blinked. ...oh man. If they see Kim, there's going to be some fireworks. She turned on a peppy voice and said, "One moment!" before scampering off to write a note, which she pinned on the inside of Kim's door. There's a situation. Please be quiet, and don't leave the room until this I come take the sign down. There was a weirdo earlier, so if you see any strange shadows in the window, knock three times on the door. I'll come check it out. She then shut and locked the door, happy that she always kept the heavy curtains shut. Hopefully that creeper girl wouldn't come around.

God. The one time she had something to hide, everyone was suddenly interested in her.

Sally skipped back to the front door, all smiles, almost as if she were expecting them. "What's up?" She motioned inside. Normally she wouldn't have let them inside in this situation, but she didn't need Thom getting caught. Her eyes slipped over to the boy who apparently knocked. His teeth were... strange. It would be rude to point it out, though, so she just welcomed them equally. "What are you guys doing around this late at night? You know it's not that safe around here at night."

Dante smiled and walked inside. "Yeah we know but we don't care right Thom?" He unhooked his case, placed it on the floor and sat on it. "Man this stupid thing itches like hell."

Thom growled before heading inside and took off his cloak and dropped it and his bag on the couch before plopping down on it. "Damnit Dante, did you have to say my name and take off your hood? I'm trying to not draw attention to myself for once." He rolled his eyes rubbing his temples with annoyance. "You didn't even answer my questions. What the fuck are you?"

Thom looked at Sally with a glare. "I can handle myself perfectly fine. You're the one that should be fucking worried! You had a fucking creeper staring at your house."

"He's right you know." He said as he looked at Sally. ".... Hmmmm..." He stood up and walked to her. "What's your full name?"

Sally was a little surprised by how brazenly the new boy marched himself into her house, sitting comfortably on the floor. A little rude, but wasn't everybody rude these days? Thom seemed to be freaking out, and he suddenly started glaring and yelling at her, telling her to be careful.

She pouted. "I can handle myself just as well as you can, you know. How was I supposed to know some creepy girl was watching me? I didn't even hear her get on the roof. You figure that would have made enough commotion, but I didn't hear it at all. It's weird." Sally shut the door behind them, turning the lock with habitual ease.

She was going to walk back to the couch when the other boy walked over to her, asking for her details. She stopped midstep to avoid walking into him. When he started asking for her full name, she got a little worried. "Last I checked, that wasn't any of your business," she said with her characteristic smile, although her words were obviously not play. She side-stepped around him and got a few cups of water for them. "Just used up all my rations of good food, and I ate every last bit. Sorry 'bout that. This is all I've got." She placed them on the floor in front of each of them.

She didn't like people asking for her family name, especially considering the circumstances of her family's removal. She found it harder and harder to trust the boy who came in, but she was trying to be as sweet as she could. In Sally's eyes, the benefit of the doubt should always be given. "Well? Are you boys going to tell me what you were doing walking around my house this fine night?"

Dante didn't know how to react. He was shocked at how she figureratively flip him off. "Did that bitch do what I think she did!?!?" Cerberus screamed in Dantes mind. "Come on down." Dante said softly in his mind. He decided to sit back down and drink the water. He wasn't sure what it was but something about that girl seemed.... Strange. He also knew that the girl on the roof was probably what he feared. Another Time Demon. Dante dissmissed the thoughts and answered the girls question. "Well I was taking a stroll and I bumped into Thom and then..." He stopped and looked down he knew he couldn't say he was following him. He was too embarassed.

Thom sighed when he realized he was taking his anger out on Sally. He really didn't mean to, but he was just mad. He didn't want any attention drawn towards him, but this annoying kid did just that. On top of that, there's someone watching Sally, and it could ruin their plans for the next day.

He smiled a genuine smile at Sally before saying, "I'm not hungry anyways. I had snuck out of my house and ran into him," He motioned towards Dente, "and we had a small chat before realizing that we still weren't far from my place. I couldn't risk them finding me, so I left. As I was walking, I saw that creepy chick watching your house, so I decided to pretend like I was waiting for you in hopes that she'll freak out and leave. Then I noticed that this kid, "He motioned towards Dente again, "had followed me." He sounded annoyed at that, "The girl left though. so not all's bad.

Once again he didn't know how to react. Thom was right he'd screwed up and could have gotten Thom into trouble. He kept looking at floor and sighed. "I'm sorry Thom I could have gotten you caught and Sally is it? I'm sorry for rudely barging into your home and asking you questions." He knew they probably wouldn't accept his apology. "What the hell are you apologizing for?!?!?! You didn't do anything wrong!!! Now man up, grow a pair and killed these idiots!!!!" Cerberus screamed at Dante. He ignored him. He took of his coat and put beside him. All he had was black sleeveless shirt. He didn't know what else to say.

Sally nodded at the two, listening to their stories. She bit back a quiet laugh at the other boy's inability to confess that he was following him, smiling quietly. In the back of her mind, she was still worried about Kim, and it made her a little more fidgety than usual. "That's alright, then. I don't feel right leave people outside at this time of night, so if you guys need a place to crash, it's fine. A couple rooms are off limits, though." She slid her heels and dropped down to the floor with a thud, flopping back on the wooden floor.

"New boy, I have a couple of questions, though. What's your name, or at least something I can call you? What's in the case?" She pointed to the case he dragged in with him. "And why were you following Thom? I don't need to know anything else if you don't want to tell me. Just that bit would be useful to know."

Thom laid down watching Sally and Dante. "I probably won't sleep, and I normally wouldn't stay, but I've already risked too much as it is.: He thought for a few moments before realizing something, "Why would the rooms be off limits now if they weren't earlier? Do ou have something to hide?" He chuckled when Sally asked what's in Dante's case. This would be interesting.

He looked up at Sally and replied. "To answer your first question my names Dante. To answer your second.." He opened the case revealing clothing and sort of journal. "To finish answering your second..." He pressed the button and took out the sword. "The answer to your final question's that he walk away from me in a hirry and I was curious." He took off his gloves. "You should also know this about me." He said as he showed his hand which had a scar where his mark is suppoused to be.

She raised an eyebrow at Thom. "I didn't intend to sleep when you were here before. Plus, it's girl stuff. There are things about women you boys have yet to learn, and my room shouldn't be the one to teach you such things..!" She was trying to sound convincing to scare them away, but once it came out, she realized how stupid she sounded. She ended up curling up on her side giggling. "That arguement wasn't very convincing. Listen, just trust me. There are personal reasons I don't want you in some rooms while I'm asleep. That is, if I can get any sleep with you around."

Sally managed to stop laughing when Dante started talking. She rolled over to listen to him, a bit interested in the journal, and then mesmerized when he pulled the sword out. "Whoah. Where'd you get such a long knife?" She was satisfied with his last answer, but that was when he showed his hand.

Sally sat up properly, opening her mouth and then closing it again. "I'm... not going to ask how that happened," she finally said, leaning against the couch behind her. "Not that I personally mind. You're just asking for a load of trouble like that."

Thom laughed at Sally's answer and shook his head. "I'm twenty-two. I'm not some child like Dante here freaking out over girl things." He chuckled, "but your answer only sounded stupid because it made me sound like a perverted teenaged boy."

He sighed not really caring that much why she was keeping secrets. There was a lot to Sally that he didn't know, and he just met her today. It's none of his business really. "You can sleep with me here. I'm not going to rape you or anything. My mind is just too busy for me to get any sleep."

He looked at Dante with a glare. He wasn't going to ask, since Dante refused to answer his questions. It didn't matter anyways, because Thom wouldn't trust him either way. Dante hasn't given Thom any reason to trust him.

He smirked. "You're not the first to tell that." He the sword with both hands. "I got this baby......." He looked at it and sighed. "It was a gift." He sighed and put it away along with his coat, took his journal out and closed the case. "So can I stay here for tonight? I'll understand if you say no." "Hmmm... I see what you're doing?" Cerberus said as he laughed. "I don't know what you're talking about you sick bastard. " He said in his head.

Srenal sighed when they went in and pouted, but decided that she didn't want to leave. As the events unfolded, she got more interested in Sally. The kid that had knocked had also seemed to catch her interest. Judging by his looks, she guessed that he was a Time Demon. There was no way that a human would want to stand out like that. She giggled before sitting down and leaning against the wall to Sally's house. She'd wait until they came back out. She just had to know what they were up to, but didn't want to warp in and risk getting caught.

Sally nodded, her eyes locked on the sword until he put it away, wondering how much she could get for it. It's not like she was going to steal it or anything, but she couldn't help but think about it. "Well, whoever managed to get the supplies to make that must have been rich. Metals don't come very cheap around here." She smiled at him at his question. He didn't seem like a bad person so far. Plus, if Thom was staying up, she trusted him to keep an eye on the kid. "It's fine for you to stay. Washroom is the second room on your right down the hall if you need it. Keep out of the rooms on the left. If you want a bed, the last room on the right has one."

She grabbed a pillow off the couch, too lazy to bring herself up to the actual couch level, and curled up on the floor, closing her eyes. "Good night." Even though she said that, she knew she probably wouldn't sleep well. She was too on guard, worried about the little runaway a few rooms over. If anything happened, it would be her fault for letting them in in the first place.

Thom sighed. He knew that he wouldn't be getting any sleep, but there were a lot of strange things happening lately, and he still didn't know what to think of the kid. He needed to sort out his thoughts and come to a conclusion soon. He got up and sat by a wall leaning against it before closing his eyes.

He intertwined his fingers and pressed his thumbs together as he went deep into his thoughts and sorted them out. He weighed the pros and cons of each situation, and organized his thoughts of everything that happened that day.

Dante didn't waste time he walked to the washroom and closed the door behind him. "Man nobodies been that nice to me in a few years." He went to the sink. "It's time Dante." Cerberus said with a short laugh. "I know Cerberus." He said as he open the case and took a metal letters. "Damn it we don't have fire." Cerberus grunted. "It's ok I'll just tell them I have take some air or even sneak out." He put the letters in his pocket. He went out to the hall and went into the room Sally had mentioned.

Crest woke up abruptly. What in the world?... Something had made him wet. Wait no, scratch that, someone had made him wet. He definitely heard a voice that had said something to him. He then remembered about the pouch around his neck and reached under his shirt to make sure it was still there and not wet from what appeared to be the water.

Deciding that it probably wasn't the best idea to stay outside, albeit at the cost of his sleep, he crawled back down into his room. He was about to go back to bed, but he sensed something was off. He glanced around the room, but nothing was out of place. He sorted the feeling into his just being woken up and ignored it. He pulled the covers of his bed up and went under them, hoping that maybe he'd get some rest that night.

Dant dropped the case next to the door and fell on the bed and starred at the ceiling thinking about the evnts that had just transpired. He knew he had to get out of the house. But how? Then it occured to him. He could just warp out and then warp right back in. That was his best bet. He jumped off the bed walked to his case, opened both the secret compartment and the case itself he took out his coat and sword. "I might need you." He said to the sword. He then stared at the door. "Be back in a sec guys." He said as he put on his coat and gloves. "Ok. Time to go." He took a step and vanished. He reappeared at the end pf the street far from Sallys house. "Now to go get some fire." He put his hand in his pocket and took out the metal letters. "What was her name Cerberus?" He asked as he headed down the next street. "Liz. Her name was Liz." Cerberus said in a low and kinda comforting whisper in Dantes head. He kept walking foward.

Ren was a shadow speeding through the night, running as fast as he could, his breath heavy. Behind him, he could hear the angry shouts of Enforcers, and only ran faster. He came to a stop as he emerged in the middle of a deserted street and hid out of sight around a wall from the Enforcers behind him, his eyes scanning the area. There was practically no-where to hide, and it was only a matter of time until they saw his painfully obvious area of refuge. Not too far from him, he saw a figure walking quickly through the darkness that wasn’t an Enforcer, which was odd for the Middle line.

He took in a deep breath, tasting the air, and a sly smile stretched out on his face. He glanced around the corner of the wall; the Enforcers were spreading out, desperately trying to find him. He laughed quietly, like a gleeful child playing a rather dangerous game of hide-and-seek. He loved the thrill of chases, and although the one he was currently engaged in was rather dull compared to some other riots he had conjured up and he could have easily ended it with a few swift murders at any time, he decided to entertain the situation for as long as possible. He waited a moment, giving the Enforcers a chance to gather their bearings, and ran out towards the person, his smile deceivingly innocent.

Why play his dangerous game alone when he could bring in a few friends?

“Hullo there, friend! Where are you headed?” he asked in a light tone, ignoring the Enforcers for the time being, although he was aware that they were getting closer and closer with every passing moment as their combined fear overwhelmed his senses.

But quite honestly, Ren didn't really give much of a shit; finding another Time Demon who could stand to stay in the same area as him was a hell of a rare occurrence.

Dante immediately knew this guy was a Time Demon. He deicded to answer his question. "Nowhere in specific. Why?" He said while looking over the guys shoulder. "Ah I see trying to outrun the enforcers. Am I right?" He asked with a grin.

Ren briefly looked behind himself as well. An Enforcer had spotted him and was alerting his comrades. Soon, a good sized group of Enforcers were rushing towards where he stood, weapons raised high.

"Stop right there, monster!"

Ren sighed and moved away from the teenager he had been talking to, facing the Enforcers, holding his hands in the air. They warily gathered in front of him, their main leader stepping forth and pointing his sharpened weapon at Ren. "Come on. Why do you people have to be so cruel? What did I even do?!" he cried melodramatically, a hand at his heart. The lead Enforcer glared daggers.

"You killed a commanding Enforcer in plain sight and tore his heart out of his chest!" he snapped.

"Are you serious? He was trying to steal something from a little kid. He was heartless to begin with! Get it?! So I ripped out his heart!" Ren was laughing. "You guys are a riot! Oh, hey!" He took a few steps back until he was standing next to the stranger boy. He put an arm around the other's shoulders and grinned happily.

"Meet my new best friend! He's a monster like me, too. Terrible kid, but we get along." Ren proceeded to give the boy a gentle shove forward towards the battle-ready Enforcers as he sauntered away backwards, still smiling. "He's going to take care of this for me, now, as agreed from the start! And I'm going to go far away, very far away, and watch! Lord bless the Church!" he shouted, barely able to speak because he was laughing so hard.

He wanted to see what this new Time Demon was capable of, as he had never met him before. An odd aura hung around the teenager at different times, and Ren was more interested than ever in exploiting it. Just in case, he moved a good distance away from the brewing battle and carelessly sat down right in the middle of the road. He hoped the kid was of at least some use; Ren didn't really feel like getting blood on his new clothes, but he had a good feeling he was in for something big that night. Just watching the scene in front of him made his heart thump.

Dante couldn't believe what just happened. That guy set him up. He thought it over and decided to shut these guys lights... Permanently.
"So you're an acomplice to that thing?!?!" Snapped the Lead Enforcer at Dante.

There was now way he could avoid killing these guys. He processed how he would do it. "First I'll shut that annoying bastards voice by slicing his head off..... As for the rest of them I'll improvise." He grinned. "So this means I can come out?" Cerberus asked with noticible joy in his voice. "Sorry Cerberus but these guys are min ok?" He said in his mind. "But.. But... Ok Brother. You can have these guys. You need the practice." Cerberus said with dissapointment in his voice.

"Hey I asked you..." He raised his sword. "Are you that abominations accoplice?!?!?" The rest of the Enforcers followed his action. All raised their swords toward Dante.
Dante sighed. "Here I was hoping I wouldn't have to kill you." He removed his coat revealing his black hair, sharpened teeth and eyepatch. He took out his sword and as quickly as he took it out he unsheathed it and did a quick and clean slice through the air.

The Lead Enforcers head fell in front of one of the Enforcers behind him. He screamed. "N..no.... Why you little!!!" He charged toward Dante.

Dante took a step vanished in front of the charging Enforcer and reappeared behind him. "May God have mercy on your soul." The Enforcer split in two upper half and lower half.

The rest of the Enforcers looked like they were already dead. With horrifying expressions on their faces. "W..what is he?!?!" One of them asked. "A demon!!! He's a demon!!!!!" Another screamed.

Dante turned to them, passed his two finger over the blade, stopped at the tip and spoke without emotion or fear. "I am the harvenger of death and my blade will be the last thing you see!!!!" He took a hard step and vanished in front of them. Then reappeared behind them.

They all fell to the ground. All but one of them lied on the floor dead. He looked at Dante and said a short sentence even though he was coughing up blood at the moment Dante made out what he said. "W..who are.... You?"

Dante raised his sword. "I am your end." He slashed the Enforcers head in half and walked toward his coat. He picked it up, put it on and sheathed his blade. Then kneeled over where the bodies laid and said. "God give you salvation." He stood back up and yelled. "You can come out!!!!"

Ren watched on in awe. Between the boy possessing features and the brutality of a demon and the Enforcer's body parts slicing off and dropping to the floor at random, he was absolutely ecstatic. The strange demon boy even vanished out of sight for a few moments, and Ren assumed that was his ability. But Ren knew that wasn't his only ability, and that there was a lot more to this kid than what Ren could assume; the fear that the Enforcers were giving off in the last seconds of their life was so intense, just like the aura the black-haired Time Demon emanated as he took them out.

The boy didn't even have to tell him he was done. Ren was already standing before the boy again. He turned around momentarily and glanced at the bloody mess the other Time Demon had made out of the Enforcers; it was like a blood bath. He then clapped his hands together and pressed his face to them, closing his pale silver eyes tightly, almost in tears from all the laughing he had done and the excitement overflowing inside of him. He had the expression of a young child about to get something they had been waiting months- no, years for.

"'I am your end'," he repeated with a small giggle. "Fuck! That was fun. But you didn't have to make such a mess out of it. Now when my poor human friends come out to play in the morning, they're all going to be flocking to the blood pool, and the Enforcers will be on a lookout more than ever, and the Outer line bastards will be notified and this may even make its way to the Church! Riots, everywhere, because people are scared they're going to be the next ones the creepy demon guy will murder!"

He took a moment to calm himself down. But to him, this was seriously big, and he could cause something even bigger with some manipulating and some murder. He let his arms fall to his side as he smiled at the blue-eyed boy standing beside him; grey eyes alight with his happiness.

“I need to know you! My name is Ren Hawker. I’m a Time Demon as well! I like mutilating small animals, fucking up humans and my favourite color is red; like the blood of my victims! Also, I can smell fear, and I’m generally known as the dog of the Clocktower. I’m very bored, so thank you very much!” he spoke in light, friendly tones and gave a little elegant bow. “Say, why don’t you pretty please spare my life and we become allies? I could use a friend like you!”

Aro pouted as the boy went back in his room, Pierce blinking, as well. "Were we cloaking outselves, Pierce?"

"...I don't think so, Aro." Pierce scratched his head, thinking.

"Didn't you have a ball of light in front of his face?"

"Yeah..."

Aro stood up and stomped his feet, his hands on his hips. "We just got blown off by a human! I will not stand for this." He warped inside the room; Pierce followed. Aro pulled the covers off, and the two made an illusion in the room.

"Aro, let's make it something fun. He's just a kid."

"He blew us off!" Aro's face was furious. Yet, it was almost in a fun way. The boy had gotten on his bad side, but he was in a better mood than usual that day.

"So? There's no reason to scare him that badly. How about a carnival theme? And don't make any flooring past the window. The last time you did, someone climbed out, walked off the edge, and hit the pavement." Pierce sighed. Aro's inability to have any pity for humans always put them in weird situations.

"Well... that was the point... But, what-evar. I won't." The two made the room into a brightly colored tent. Pierce made bright floating orbs everywhere, and Aro dumped water on the boy once again. "Boy! Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up! Don't you want to play with us!?" He jumped on the bed while he said it, his face wearing a huge smile. "I'm Aro, and this is my brother Pierce! You should get up and play with us, little boy! See? We made it fun for you!"

Pierce smiled. "Aro, you're going to wake up whoever else is around with that voice. Please quiet down a bit."

Aro snapped down onto the bed, pouting. "Awww... okay..."

Dante knew Ren was right he let himself get taken over by the rush of killing them. Then he repeated the guys name trying to figure out where he had it before and he remembered. "Ren Hawker. Wait I know you. You're considered to be one the most pschotic and methodical Time Demons there has ever been." He looked Rens gray eyes for a minute and returned Rens bow with one of hos own. He looked at the mess. He already knew what he had to do.

"Well my name's Dante.... Just Dante. Also known as the Demon Child. I like fighting, have an alternate murderous personality, I like the color grey, white and black. My powers are the ability to mimic living and non-living things. Oh and don't worry I don't kill a Time Demon unless it's required and sure I'd love to be friends. " He looked at Ren and smile. "You don't have to worry about humans finding this mess." He said as he passed right beside Ren. "Although you're right. I let myself get caught up in the moment and...." He sighed, scratched the back of his head and pull his hood on. "Well could take a few steps back for me Ren?" He asked while stretching his arms out.

Mirabelle hadn't done anything but stand by in the shadows and watch the events that passed. Using her cloaking ability to hide herself, she had no intention of getting involved unless it was beneficial to her. She watched as the red-haired guy, Thom, stopped to wait outside the young girl’s – Sally was her name, wasn’t it? – house, being quietly followed by the younger boy, Dante, whose presence gave Mirabelle the impression that something was… off. He was a Time Demon, that much she could tell for sure, but there was something about him that made her wary.

Dante wasn’t the only Time Demon around, either. All Mirabelle’s senses were screaming at her that she most certainly wasn’t the only one roaming the city late at night. She could sense another Time Demon very close to her, also observing Sally’s home; another was wandering elsewhere in the city, and she was vaguely aware of two others that were located further away. It had been a long time since Mirabelle had seen such a busy night. She didn’t approve of it, either. Not because she feared the presence of fellow Time Demons, but because she knew they’d disrupt things, and possibly cause trouble for her.

Mirabelle sighed, and considered her possible actions. It would be easiest to simply get out of the way of the chaos that would surely ensue, and it was certainly the course of action she’d usually take; but something about this situation told her that she needed to keep an eye on it. Something big was going to happen, and if it affected her, then she needed to know what it was, who exactly was causing it, and finally, what she should do about it. If she was going to do anything, that is…

Crest woke up for the second time that night. Again with the water? There was a person jumping on his bed and talking at him rapidly. The person - Aro, he'd introduced himself as - said that he wanted to play, even though Crest thought that playing with someone who's house you just entered without permission was a bit rude. Aro also said that his brother, Pierce, wanted to play too, and surely enough there was another man with pink hair in the room too.

Huh. This wasn't his room, even though he was pretty sure he was lying in his own bed. It was a... What was it? It was cheerful-looking place, and there were little spheres of light around, illuminating the place and showing of the myriad of colors. He liked it.

He hesitantly nodded at Aro, trying to say that he didn't mind playing. Crest wouldn't look him in the eye though. The men had strange hair, even though he had heard of stories about a substance that could dye any material, and they were complete strangers. He didn't think he'd be able to refuse anyway.

Aro's face lit up brightly when the boy nodded, and he grabbed the boy's hands in an attempt to pull him up. The bed seemingly disappeared, a trampoline in its place. "Yay! Pierce, Pierce! Did you hear!? He's going to play with us! It's been so long since a human said they would play with us willingly!"

Pierce smiled in response to Aro, several balls of light appearing in his hands shortly after. "Boy," he said, calm and sweet compared to his hyper brother. "What kind of tricks would you like to see?" He began to juggle the lights, each ball taking the shape of a different animal, changing color after each toss. "Or perhaps," he grinned, an old-fashioned puppet booth appearing, a strange play being reinacted. The image of many kids on the floor, clapping, appeared for a few moments. "Would you prefer a story?"

"Story time!" Aro said between happy laughs, jumping up and down again. He blinked as Pierce put together a more interesting outfit for him. Aro went from his pink dress and kitty ears to being in a colorful clown outfit, and Pierce took the form of a serious ring leader.

"Well, Boy?"

The bed disappeared when Aro pulled him up and a contraption that had a bouncy surface appeared in its stead. The strangers were excited, and he was glad that he decided to accept their offer. He liked Aro, although he was a bit frightened by the display of so much enthusiasm and his dresssing as a female with cat ears on his head. Pierce seemed gentle and calmer, which was good. They were still weird though.

Now that Crest thought about it, how did they manage to transform those orbs of light into so many different things? How did they suddenly transform the clothes? Sure, he had learnt about alchemy from one of the desk's books, but he didn't think that a normal person would be able to do such things. Maybe, just maybe, these people were the same things as what the old folk's rumors, the ones that someone had recorded in one of the desk's books said that they were? The people that were able to utilize magic. That was what the person had said it was. Magic, a thing that would allow you to do extraordinary things.

At the mention of a story, Crest's eyes widened and he nodded as quickly as he could. The strangers were nicer than he would expect.

Srenal sighed as she leaned against the house she was watching. This is why she hated humans. No matter what, she had to fucking wait for them. The whole plan would be boring if she spent it waiting for this Sally girl, but she had no other choice unless she knew where else she could look for something interesting.

With that idea in mind, she slipped her hands into her pockets and began walking. She'd make sure to be back before too long, but she was getting bored of waiting for these weak humans to get their sleep when she could be doing something more enjoyable. Maybe she'd fins someone to screw with while she was out. The thought of playing mind games with someone caused a smirk to spread across her lips. That'd most certainly be fun.

Pierce made the booth much larger now, taking up the whole other side of the room. "Well, Aro? What kind of story should we tell him?"

"Oh, tell him our story!"

"Don't you think that would be a bit too scary for him?"

"I guess so... I know, I know! Let's do the museum one!"

Pierce smiled. It wasn't one of Aro's favorites, but the disbelief people of that time had about was humorous enough to want to tell it over and over again. "Once upon a time, in a city of buildings that reached the sky in a grand world full of all different people, there were two funny boys. They ha-"

"That was us! We were soo tiny - even smaller than you!"

"Yes, that it was. The two boys were on a school trip, and they had a big adventure ahead of them. They were headed off to the city to see one of the biggest museums in the country. A museum is a place full of old documents, pictures, and even the remnants of old species." The scene showed the boys with the rest of the elementary class, happily walking around the large museum. "Well, the two boys were tired of looking at old papers and art. They wanted to see something more interesting."

"And oh boy, did we! Because we went to the dinosaur exhibit!" The puppet-boys wandered away and into the other exhibit.

"Yep. Have you ever seen a skeleton, Boy? They're made of bones - the big white things under your skin that keep you moving. Well, this was a giant skeleton. A huge skeleton."

"It went ALL the way to the ceiling!"

"Yes, and that ceiling was very high. It was many times taller than we, with huge teeth and feet the width of a man lying down. At first, we thought it was a monster, and it scared us so badly that we ran back to the hallway."

"But we're too brave for the hallway! We took the rulers out of our back packs and ran forth, ready to protect everyone!"

"Then the guards yelled at us and told us that it was just a skeleton. Neither of us believed that such a huge thing could have existed before, but we read the plaques and listened to everyone, and it turned out that they really were around! There were hundreds of these giant creatures," Pierce said, the scene switching to what the world used to be, filled with vegetation and various forms of dinosauts. "In all different sizes, too. Could you believe it?"

"If you lived during that time..." Aro grinned and put his hands in the shape of claws. "You would have been eaten!" He roared and tackled the boy. The scene in the room switched to a visual from the original Jurassic Park for a moment. Aro cuddled up to the boy, leaning into his ear to whisper. "But if we were around, we would never let you get hurt..."

Pierce was used to the change, but he was hoping Aro was just being fun rather than ticking to the next persona. He made the room very bright and peppy again, the curtains pulled on the scene, switching their costumes back to the usual.

"We got dragged back to the rest of the group, but don't you think it's interesting? Such huge creatur-"

"We could take them on easy," Aro suddenly interrupted. "Stupid dinosaurs..."

Crest was completely entranced by their story. It was fascinating, being able to see all those images and actions in front of him. He wanted to know more about the so-called city, and its museums. He couldn't believe such a thing existed.

When they got to the part where the images of "dinosaurs," he was somewhat scared, but even more interested. Those things... They existed so long ago. I wonder how come they don't exist anymore? He made sure to remember about them later.

When Aro tackled him, Crest was a bit startled but he let out a small laugh. Then suddenly Aro had whispered in his ear and Aro's mood seemed to darken a bit. After that the story had ended and the room returned to its previous state with its fun colors. He started to nod in response to Pierce's question, but when Aro spoke he turned towards the man, a quizzical look on his face. How would they have fought with those huge monsters?

Thom opened his eyes with a sigh. He's finally sorted out his thoughts, and the odds now did not seem to be in his favor. It looked like this trip would be a mess. He needed to get up and do something.

He stretched and got up with a lazy yawn. Lack of sleep never effected him that badly, but that didn't mean that it's wouldn't be nice to get a full night's rest. Now seemed like the perfect time to see what was going on around here.

As quietly as possible, he got up and walked to the bathroom. He splashed his face a few times to clear his thought. He may be a great thinker, but after going deep into his thoughts for so long so many times, they were beginning to form a crumpled mess that made no sense in his head. He needed to do something to clear his head better. With that thought, he exited the bathroom and glanced down the hall thinking about what would be best.

The four choices would be to check on Dante, he didn't trust the kid, see what Sally was hiding, go outside for some fresh air, or go outside to see if he can find that odd girl that seemed to be following Sally.

The room was silent, Aro's shoulders started shaking, almost as if he were holding something in. Then, all of a sudden...

"We would have fought with our L-O-V-E!" Aro shouted, suddenly hyper again. He spread his arms out, all laughs and giggles, to stress his point. He then rolled over and ended up rolling off of the 'trampoline'. Pierce was quick to move, breaking his fall, although Aro's legs were still caught up in the blankets. The illusions faltered and faded away, revealing the plain bedroom. "Whoops..."

Pierce let out the breath he had been holding when his brother opened his eyes. "You need to be more careful, Aro. You could have hurt yourself doing that." In turn, Aro flipped over in his brother's arms and curled up against him, grinning. A great deal of water dropped over them, forming floating hearts made of water.

"And you need to cool your head. I would have gotten hurt?" He wrapped his hands around the stronger boy's neck. "You shouldn't be talking, playboy," he whispered. Between the two, an illusion of pink hearts and sparkles was filling the room.

Pierce blushed a light shade, smiling back at his brother. Shortly after, he remembered that the boy was there and the illusion dissolved. "Oh..." Aro, now angry that his brother's attention was taken, pouted and gave the older boy a cold shoulder. In Aro's mind, the best way to deal with jealousy was to make the other person jealous. So, he went over to the young boy and did what he did best - climbed in bed and kissed him. Well, at least he attemped to.

Pierce bit back a laugh. He was used to this kind of abuse by then, and he was more interested in seeing how the boy reacted than keeping up his personal pride, not really feeling the need to stop him.

Sally had heared the boys both use the washroom, and then heard Dante wander off to the bedroom she commented on. However, Thom hadn't come back in here after using the washroom. The tell-tale creaking of her hallway floor said that he was standing in the hallway. But what for?

...

Did she really need to think about it? Chances were, he was choosing which room to enter first. Even though the one she mainly cared about was locked, she still didn't want to give him a chance to break her one rule.

Sally sighed silently and got up, put on a smile, and wandered over to the hallway. She leaned her shoulder against his arm, staring at the wall in front of him as if she were mimicking him. "Well?" she asked, her eyes wandering up to his with a slightly accusing glare beyond her smile. "Mind if I ask what you're up to?"

Thom looked at Sally with a glare. It wasn't even because he couldn't snoop around with her here. It was because she was leaning on him. Thom didn't like being touched, but he wasn't going to do anything about it.

Instead, he focused on what would be more rewarding, finding out what she was hiding. He had to distract her first though. He thought for a few moments before moving away from her and saying, "I do in fact mind you asking that. Do you not trust me enough to let me wander?" Thom couldn't say that he'd blame her if she didn't trust him, but it was worth a try.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal hadn't gone far before deciding that there was nothing interesting going on. Chances were that the people in the house were asleep anyways, so she warped into the room that coincidentally was the one that Dante had left a while ago. She was about to leave the room when she heard the voices of the two talking in the hallways. She groaned and cursed her luck before sitting on the bed hoping to wait them out.

As she was sitting there, she noticed a journal in the room, and decided to read it hoping that it had belonged to Sally, and not one of the others currently residing in the house. It would be helpful if it was Sally's. She grabbed the journal and opened it to the first page.

"I trust you, but I get kind of worried when someone is silently standing in front of the door to a room I asked them not to enter," she said with an innocent frown. She stopped leaning on him and stood in front of him instead.

The more she thought about, the more she realized that she could be wrong. Maybe he was just thinking. Or maybe he wasn't feeling well. She was stuck between whether or not she should be worrying or scolding. "If that's not what you're up to, then what's wrong? Are you dizzy or something? I have some different medicines hidden behind the mirror, in case you need them."

Thom shrugged no longer caring now that Sally wasn't suspicious of him. "I feel fine. Do you trust Dante?" It was a random change of topic, but Thom hoped it'd draw attention away from himself. There was a lot that he didn't know about Dante, and he felt like Dante was hiding something.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal flipped past the front of the first page, since it was blank, and looked at the back of the first page. On that page, had a name written that she wasn't expecting. It turned out that this wasn't Sally's book at all, but the same sounded familiar to her. Maybe this Dante person was one of the males who entered the house earlier? Maybe it was that male that was talking with Sally in the hall? It was never okay to jump to conclusions, but she couldn't see who was out in the hall anyways. She only heard a masculine and feminine voice.

She put the book aside and rested on the bed. It was obvious that this wasn't Sally's stuff, so she was no longer interested in it. She froze hearing the male in the hall saying the name that she had read in the journal. It would seem that he wasn't the owner of the journal. Maybe this Dante person was in the living room? This was certainly giving her more information than she originally thought.

Sally decided against commenting on his sudden change of subject, taking a few steps towards the door to Thoms' right. "So-so. He's a little strange, but he doesn't feel untrustworthy or anything. Just a little out there." She stretched. "Did you catch that, Dante?" she asked backhand knocking the door with a quiet laugh. "He's only a room over, Thom. It's not like he can't hear you. No reason trying to talk behind his back when one perked ear can hear the entire conversation."

Thom shrugged when Sally knocked on the door, but tensed a little. What was with people knocking on doors when he didn't want the person behind it around? This was getting frustrating. He rolled his eyes and leaned against the wall seeming unfazed.

"Just because we're awake doesn't mean he is. You should probably just leave the kid alone and let him sleep." It was also annoying because Thom thought that the fact Dante might overhear them could have caused Sally to lie.

There was a bright side to this though. Thom had originally debated whether or not to check Dante's room, and Sally has just done it for him. This would be his chance to get the proof he needed in order to not trust Dante.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal tensed when she heard someone knock on the door, but relaxed when the male spoke. She wasn't sure if she liked this male or not. He had been the reason she was caught spying earlier, but he might just be the reason that she didn't get caught.

Seeing her chance after the male's response, she stayed silent hoping they'd think this 'Dante' person was asleep. This did peak her interest though. If they thought he was in here, then that meant that he wasn't in the living room. Somehow, he'd snuck passed them. Judging by what Sally and the other male said earlier, she doubted that it would be an easy task to do.

That left only one option. This person that they were speaking of, was a time demon like her. This was certainly getting interesting. Making a quick decision to not risk getting caught again, she grabbed the journal and warped out of the room, and back to where she was standing while she was waiting for Sally to leave. It was on the side of the house outside. There, she sat down and let out a sigh of relief. THat was a close one.

"See? He's just asleep." Thom walked passed Sally and opened the door quietly. He wanted to snoop around, so he was going to snoop around. It wasn't like there was much to look through anyways, so maybe they could get this over with before the kid woke up.

Thom was not prepared for what he saw. There was no one in the room. Thom now knew that Dante was hiding something. He figured that Dante just climbed out the window, so he didn't care about why the kid left. Now he wanted to know why. Thom was glad to see that Dante had left some of his stuff behind, meaning that the kid would return. He went through the stuff looking for the journal that he saw in the case earlier. Maybe the answers to his questions were in there.

Sally watched as Thom went into the room. She had expected him to just come back and close the door, but instead, he ventured deeper and said nothing. She was wondering just what was going on when she entered the room herself. He left. How did he manage to leave without her hearing the window open at all?

Ninjas. That's how.

Damn ninjas. You always have to be careful of them.

She followed Thom through the room. "I wonder where he went," she said, putting her hand on her chin, thinking. "Well, I guess he's coming back, anyway..." After she noticed him going through his things, she put a hand on the other side of the case and gently flipped it shut. Hopefully, Thom avoiding the possible small amount of pain that came with having your arms between either end of a heavy, closing case.

"Why are you going through his things?" she asked, her arms crossed. Thom was getting more and more annoying. She still wanted to go through with everything tomorrow with him, but the way he was acting in her house was starting to get unacceptable. More importantly, she hated having to put her smile away to scold him. It was frustrating not being able to be happy-go-lucky in front of a guest.

Thom sighed as he moved so that she may close the case. He crossed his arms in annoyance at the fact that she's not allowing him to look through the kid's stuff. "Aren't you the least bit curious about why the kid is gone? Do you seriously trust the kid? You don't think that he's up to something?"

He was getting more and more aggravated. The kid had started out by following him, it was obvious that the kid was hiding something, and now he disappears. It was just fan-fucking-tastick in his eyes.

He looked over the case and rolled his eyes, "Great! Just fucking Great! His weapon is gone!" He rolled his eyes. "The last thing we need is freak shows like him drawing attention to us."

"I told you my opinions on trusting him, and whether he's up to something or not, it's none of my business. We're up to things too, aren't we? We have no right to judge him or try to pry into his situation when he didn't pry into ours." She sighed, wondering where his sword went.

And that, my friends, was when Thom flipped a shit.

Sally looked away from Thom for a second, trying to hide her smile. However, she couldn't hide her laughing, and she found herself choking on her giggles. How was he flipping out about this already. They didn't know anything about him, yet here he was, assuming he would completely destroy everything.

She tried and failed to contain herself, bending her knees and basically sitting on her feet for a moment, holding her sides. What was so funny, anyway? She figured it was just too late, she hadn't had enough sleep, and now she was lost in a laughing fit that she couldn't stop.

"Th-th..." Now, her own stuttering was humorous, and she laughed harder. After a few minutes of this (by now, she was on her side completely), she had calmed down enough to talk. "I-I'm sorry... I don't even know what just..." She sighed and rolled over. "I just... We'll be gone by morning, Thom. Even if he does attract attention, we can easily get away from the area with our things and then pop on the Rails the second they arrive. It's not too huge of a deal."

“Psychotic and methodical? Oh wow, you patronize me,” Ren put in, feigning sheepishness, observing Dante closely as the teenager bowed as well.

Ren was most likely the tamest he had ever been as he stood there and just listened to Dante go on about his life. If anyone else tried to do the same, he’d probably be gone within seconds while they were distracted, and they may or may not be wondering how the hell that knife got shoved down their throat. Yet there still was something dangerous and murderous about the kid that drew Ren in like a moth to a lamp; he just knew if he could manipulate Dante the right way, he could cause a ruin so big that he wouldn't even have to take responsibility for.

The moment he heard the words ‘alternate murderous personality’, Ren knew he was right. A loud chuckle escaped his mouth and he smiled widely like a kid trying to not laugh at the funniest joke at a really bad time. He continued to listen, and the moment Dante was done, he let out a huge breath he wasn’t really aware he had been holding in.

“Demon child, you can mimic living AND non-living things and you want to be my bestest friend ever?! Bless this shitty city!” He smiled in a different way now, a way that showed he was obviously surer of himself than ever, and briefly put a hand on Dante’s shoulder, staring right into his eyes. “Honestly, don’t worry about ‘letting yourself go’. The worst you can do is massacre a few humans.”

He then shrugged carelessly and let Dante go, stepping back and away as he was instructed, interested to see what Dante would do about the pool of blood, complete with dismembered various Enforcer body parts.

Thom glared at her as she laughed at him, but relaxed when he realized that she was right. He didn't know how to take it though. This was the one time that he didn't want to attract attention, and the one time that he was attracting the most attention. He sighed and left the room. If Dante was up to something that could ruin their plans, then he'd deal with it then. For now, he was over-reacting. He didn't trust the kid, but that was no reason to freak out. If the kid meant them harm, he wold have done it by now.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal got bored of waiting, and so she began flipping through the journal. The first section seemed to be a list of names, which she skipped. It didn't interest her much. When she read about his plans, a huge grin spread across her face. If Sally wasn't up to anything fun, then Srenal can always go and fuck up his plans. She giggled before looking at the book to memorize what his plans were. She wanted to be sure she knew every detail before she returned the book.

She needed to know as much as possible to screw him up, but the book also needed to be returned before it was missed. Playing with a Time Demon would be fun, but she didn't want him mad before she's done anything wrong. She shut the book and let out a sigh. This was turning out better than she originally thought.

Sally watched as he left the room, now a bit more calm. She sighed and walked over to the door, shut it, and slipped into the bed with Dante's things. This way, she was right across from Kim, she would be here when Dante came back, and she could still be in a comfortable place. Plus, it was better to be in the hall than the living room, since she could hear the doors opening much better from there. She pulled the covers up, brough the case closer to her as a precaution, and closed her eyes for a while. Maybe, just maybe, she might even get some sleep. It didn't seem likely, unfortunately.

Thom got back to his spot where he was leaning against the wall, and sighed when he noticed that Sally didn't follow. He rolled his eyes in annoyance before leaning against the wall and closing his eyes. There was more information to process now, but at least it didn't change his existing opinions. He slowly went deep into thought to process the new information and decide how to handle the new situation.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal stood up and warped back into the room where she had gotten the journal. She had thought that Sally and the other male would have left by now if they entered at all. As soon as she appeared in the room, she realized just how wrong she was. There she was standing, in the middle of Dante's room, with Sally in him bed. She didn't know what to think. She stared with a deer-in-the-headlights look on her face.

Dante knew what kind of a person Ren was but he didn't care. As soon as Ren stepped back Dante streched his arms out in front of him. It been a while since he'd done what he was about to do. He took in a deep breath and held it for a while then he released it. "Here we go." He said while he stared up at the sky.

A grin appeared on his face and his body started to shift and turn. His coat became black fur, his hands and feet grew claws and took the shape of lion paws. He fell on the floor and landed on all fours, a tail sprouted from thin air, his hood became a lions mane and he bacme larger than Ren. He gave horrifying roar and looked at the bodies. He ran to them and one by one he devoured them.

When he was dome he shifted back to his normal self. He looked at Ren I can do anything about the blood." He took off his coat and handed it to Ren. "Here use this to clean the blood up. I have another one." Some blood dripped from his mouth. His blue eye shined unnaturally in the moonlight. He cleaned the blood with his hand and walked away. He raised his hand and waved good bye to Ren. He took another step and vanished.

Sally hadn't heard the girl enter, but when she went to get the sand out of her eyes, she ended up finding herself face to face with a strange girl. She blinked for a second, trying to comprehend the situation.

She quickly shot up in the bed, suddenly alert. "Who are you, and what are you doing here?" she asked, her voice level but sharp. More importantly, would these people ever let her sleep? She started pulling her legs out from under the blankets, prepared to move if she had to. She tried her best not to startle Thom, not wanting him to get involve if the situation turned dangerous. You never knew what would happen around there. Plus, if she was too loud, she figured she would wake Kim.

If she woke up and made a sound while a stranger like this was around, the situation probably wouldn't be too good. Sally kept her eyes on the girl, careful of any sudden movements. "And how did you get in here so quietly?"

After storming away from Sally's house quite a while ago, Cross found himself settled back down in his office at the Middle Line Enforcers Base. He had so much paperwork to do, but needless to say, it wasn't his favorite part of the job. Piles upon piles of Inspection reports had to be checked; it was going to be a long night - no, a long week.

He put a hand through his sandy blonde hair, roughing it up, which he was known to do when he started to get stressed. "What a mess," he muttered, leaning back in his chair with closed eyes. "How nice it would be to sleep right about now."

Srenal relaxed when Sally hadn't attacked her. The situation could easily be salvaged in this case. "Who am I? That's a hard question to answer, for who I am can change quite quickly."

She tossed the journal onto the bed with a smile. "I am here to return that. I kind of borrowed it earlier without asking."

She walked to the window and opened it before looking back at the girl. "How did I get in here so quietly? That's a neat trick that you'd never be able to accomplish."

She was about to go out the window, but had a better idea and turned around to look back at Sally. "It's a pleasure to meet you face to face, Sally. Maybe we can have fun some time?"

As Malorn walked out of the Middle Lane Enforcer base out into the night, he sighed. "Another day, another night on lower lane patrol duty. Might as well get some exercise in," Malorn got onto the lane that headed towards the entrance to the lower lane and ran at full speed. After a short run he made it to his post. 'Probably going to be another boring night of escorting citizens back to their home,' He thought.

Sally picked up the journal, still keeping an eye on the girl until she left. She turned around after a moment. Needless to say, the girl knowing her name did worry her a bit. Still, the blonde and blue haired girl gave the girl a smile and a slight wave. "Of course. It's nice to meet you, Miss... what was it?" she asked, implying that she was asking for a name. "And why not? I'm always up for a little fun."

Ren watched in silent awe as Dante completely transformed into a lion-reminiscent monster and proceeded to consume all of the lone Enforcer corpses within minutes. He had the weirdest expression on his face as Dante phased back and returned to him, handing him his coat. Ren took it with a small smile on his face, staring at Dante’s rather demonic-looking appearance. He wondered what lay underneath his hidden eye, as his unconcealed one gleamed so brightly after all that morbid devouring.

However, he didn’t get a chance to attempt to pull off the eyepatch, as Dante was already leaving him behind without another word.

“Well, see ya!” Ren shouted out after the teen as the other lifted his hand in a parting gesture before vanishing into the air. Ren then smiled and made his way over to the blood pool, still holding the thick black coat in his hand. He gave it a curious sniff before making a face of distaste, holding it away from his body. “Ew… Smells like murder and kittens. Well, hey, I didn’t even have to get my own clothes dirty,” he remarked, feeling rather proud of this. Ren was always ditching blood-stained clothing at every corner he turned and had to break into an innocent citizen’s house more than once to steal some so that he wouldn’t have to run streets half-naked (although it’s not like Ren would complain; it’s freedom, in a sense).

Ren reached into his pocket and fished around in it for a moment before pulling out a familiar object; a lighter. It was a magical thing he had found among the previous generations when he had decided to travel back in time just a little too far. He then struck a flame on the coat, holding it there until it eventually went alight with bright orange flame, and threw it into the mess beneath his feet, not really caring for it anymore. He put his treasured lighter away, when some loud footsteps and the smell of lovely new emotions happened behind him.

“There he is!”

“Oh my god, he massacred them all!”

With a small chuckle, Ren turned around to face the three Enforcers that had managed to spot him, most likely following the vivid light of the fire. He lifted his hands high in the air.

“Now you see me,” he began and took a step forward. “Now you don’t!”

He disappeared into nothing. The Enforcers didn’t know how to react, staring all around them with their rifles and their knives raised, anticipating their death; but nothing happened, and silence fell over them, save for the crackling of the fire. All the Enforcers knew was that there was some kind of sorcery brewing in their line, and that it was more twisted and dangerous than ever.

Srenal giggled at Sally. She was certainly a unique person in Srenal's mind. "For now, I am Srenal. I hope that's still true next time we meet. I wouldn't want to miss out on any fun!" She was about to leave, but remembered that she had forgotten something. She turned around her face serious. "By the way, we should keep this meeting a secret between us. I'd hate for Dante were to find out before I got to met him in person!"

Sally nodded understandingly. "Well, I won't lie if anyone asks, but considering the circumstances, I doubt they'll be asking about something they didn't see. Right?" She gave a light wink. "This meeting is between us. Well, hopefully I'll see you later." She gave one last smile. "And please close the window on your way out, Srenal."

Dante appeared in front of Sallys house. He couldn't believe what he'd just done. It had been uears since he needed to eat someone. He kept thinking about the taste. He couldn't get his mind off of it. Iron. Most people say blood tastes like iron to them but to him it didn't taste metallic. It tasted sweet and intoxicating. He shook his head trying to get the thoughts out of his head but then came the flesh, meat and bone.

He couldn't take it the thoughts were overwhelming. He shook his head again. "No Dante get those thoughts out of your head. You can control it. The hunger." He turned to Sallys house and walked toward it. He knew he couldn't go through the front door and he needed to be careful so he went around the side and the same girl that was watching Sallys house come out of the window to the room he was staying.

He hid and watched her exited out the window.

Srenal left out the window with a giggle and closed it, and went closer to the front of the house. She stayed by the side though, and thought silently. She didn't know what to do. There was so much brewing. She sat down and let her thoughts consume her as she glanced at the window one last time before looking towards the front of the house. She figured that Dante would just warp in as she had, so she wasn't looking for him. She was waiting for Sally to leave, so she can continue to follow her, and hopefully she'd be able to find Dante soon to. She wanted to play a game.

As Malorn walked by a nearby ally-way he saw three Enforcers standing there with dumbfounded looks, staring at a wall.
"What are you all doing, get back on patrol!" It wasn't until he got near that he saw the blood-stains and smell of smoke.
"If you don't explain yourselves right now you are going to be in so much trouble that you won't know what happened to you,"
The three Enforcers explained what happened, one of them close to tears.
"So, you're saying this, monster, was not only able to kill our brothers, but he ATE THEM!" All they could do was nod. "All right um, shit. I want you all to stay in a group if you see it again, run. Do NOT take any chances, get to the station if you can but continue the patrol, I'll inform the Vice Captain at first dawn, but right now I need to know what direction the beast ran,"
The three enforcers pointed to the direction that the beast disappeared to. It was a wall. Malorn Climbed on top and ran over the rooftops trying to find this "beast".

"Well, I asked for excitement, and I certainly got it,"

Sally watched Srenal leave, happy once the window was closed. The curtains naturally draped back in front of the window. She wondered if Thom had heard any of that. If not, well, she had a secret. The journal in her hands was entirely too tempting. Being a hypocrite at its worst, she opened the book a few pages, looking at what was written.

"..."

Well, Dante definitely wasn't what she thought he was.

Dante almost jumped when the girl headed in his direction. "What should I do?" He kept asking in his mind. "Well you can go over there and.." Dante blocked the end of Cerberus sentence. He thought it over and decide he ha 2 choices confront her or evade her. He knew evading her was his best bet. So he warp out pf his hiding spot and appeared next to his bed. His eye opened wode when he saw Sally. He was speechless.

Sally quickly shut the book when Dante suddenly appeared next to the bed.

Wait, he just suddenly appeared next to the bed.
...
People don't just suddenly appear.

She sat up even more straight, realizing that there was just way too much going on for her to absorb. "Wait, how did you... just..." Sally's mind was blown. Needless to say, after reading a small bit of his journal (she reads fast, mainly because reading, illegal materials or not, is what she does frequently), and seeing him warp in, she was pretty sure he wasn't quite human. He said something about 'Time Demons' in the book on one of the pages, and she couldn't help but wonder if he was talking about himself.

Wait.

He said in here he wanted to kill people, and then he just appeared next to Sally while she was reading the book. Was he going to kill her? She swallowed hard and gave a sigh of submission. "Dante... what's going on here? Can you at least explain something about this situation?"

At Aro's exclamation, Crest grew confused. And then the room turned back to normal, and Pierce caught his brother and then... Then weird, abnormal, what-the-heck-is-happening stuff happened.

There were hearts above the brothers, with Aro in a tight embrace by Pierce, and, and, and... And the started getting all cozy against each other, and Pierce was blushing and so was Crest because he was pretty flabbergasted because what was happening, weren't they brothers, why were they doing this, why right there right then.

Then everything stopped when Pierce caught him staring at them. Crest was blushing even more by then and still couldn't stop looking. He noticed then that Aro had come on his bed. And he was getting closer. And closer. And then he leaned in and before Crest could even process what was going to happened, the older boy planted a kiss on his lips.

His mind blanked out for a second, but by then instinct had come over himself and he shoved Aro away. Now tomato-red, he shoved aside his want of hiding under the covers, and he looked at Pierce and pointed towards Aro, hoping that the man who stood aside watching would do something about his brother.

Dante was shocked not by the fact Sally just spoke to a Time Demon and lived buy because she had read his journal. He noticed the look of submission and decided he could tell everything even wht he didn't tell most people.

"Well the thing is.." After explaining everything to Sally he sat next to her, sighed and stared the floor. "And that's about it. I know my lifestyle isn't the best but I don't really have much of a choice." He took off he eyepatch revealing his yellow eye and looked at her with a face of plead and eyes filled with fear. "Please don't tell anyone." He said as he put his hands together and held them over his head. "I beg you. Please keep this a secret."

"Vice Captain?!"

Jax turned his gaze from the streets below to the Enforcer sprinting his way towards him. He looked ragged, like some beast had ahold of him within it's razored maw. His face held the weight of fear, as if he had seen the most unholy of sights.

"Report. Tell me what's going on out there."

The beaten Enforcer dropped to his knees, trying in vain to catch his breath. "The raids, sir. None were successful. A few of our men went down... by all that is holy, we never expected resistance."

Jax let his mind race. He knew that this place was dangerous, but how in the world could these people put up a fight? Even with guerrilla tactics, Enforcers had the upper hand.

Vice Captain Jax pulled a missive from a pouch on his belt. "Takes this to my Assistant. Tell him it's for Captain Cross and no one else. We need a positive I.D. on these assailants." Jax turned to an Enforcer watching the door of the small makeshift stronghold. "You, accompany him. Anyone gets in your way, you strike down without warning, understood?"

"Sir, yes, sir!" He shouted, clicking his heels in salute, and quickly gathering the wounded Enforcer to make his way to Captain Cross.

Things in this line were sliding downhill at an alarming rate. For a while now the number of crimes and violations to the Forbiddens have increased in number, and have started to come at regular intervals. Jax could feel order slipping through his grasp. Was this the end of days? Maybe. All it took was a single insurgent to muck it all up.

One man rises, others gain confidence. Confidence is key to bravery, and bravery leads people into making foolish mistakes. There must be order; there must be peace; and all of those foolish enough to become confident, would be culled from the herd.

Jax grips his silver gladius on his side tightly, the small pendant beneath his gauntlet digging into the soft flesh in the back of his hand.

'Order... at any cost.'

Jax moves out of the door, power coursing throughout his movements, and out into the cold night air. Keeping his hand to his weapon, Jax begins his hunt.

~~~ Scene 2 ~~~

Adrian took his final bound from the second story balcony, finishing his descent from the rooftops above. It was late, and an Enforcer-in-Training shouldn't be caught breaking curfew. God knows what the Academy would do to him, let alone his older brother.

Adrian shoulders his pack, the trinkets and tools hidden within giving a dull jingling noise.

"Seems like the days just go by way too fast these days." He spoke aloud to no one. "Not only that, but people these days are starting to keep track of their trash; I haven't salvaged a decent material in days!"

Nothing but the sounds of the night were his response. It was lonely out here in the night. Everything was so quiet and calm in these early hours, so much so that it was almost unsettling. But it gave him time to think, to dream and tempt the devil.

He would think of his parents, or his brother, or his impending initiation into the folds of the Enforcers. He didn't mind the Enforcers all too much, and yet, he disliked them all the same. While he had a love for the ideal of "Peace though Order" he just couldn't ever bring himself to agreeing with the methods used. Order should be born of mutual respect and careful negotiation, not with blades and ill will.

"Whoa..." Adrian stops suddenly, his trance-like focus on nothing in particular shattered as he notices a group of Enforcers patrolling the streets.

'Well, crap. Now what?' He spies a small grate, one that lead into the pipelines beneath the streets. 'Oh, great...'

Making haste, Adrian dashes across the street and to the grate, his modest form barely allowing him passage. He hits the sewage below with an audible splash, the stench of rot and digested food-stuffs assaulting his senses.

He fishes through his bag, opening the secret lining and producing a small box-like contraption wrapped in a long piece of linen cloth.

'Even I though I was crazy for making this.' Adrian mused as he slipped the device over his face, the box covering his mouth and nose. In moments the stench was gone, instead replaced by fresh, filtered air.

He began to move with the current of the water, keeping close to the wall as to not lose his balance in the darkness. He didn't know how long he had walked, sifting about in filth too unspeakable to mention. But when he reached the end, he could feel his heart leap into his throat.

Adrian was staring out into a land of disorder, of rebellion and waste. The tunnel had led him to the Outer Line.

He took the shove hard. Even though it was from someone younger, Aro wasn't particularly strong. He barely managed to keep himself from falling off the bed again. Still, he wasn't done. He sat up with a sadistic grin on his face, licking his lips. "Aww, aren't you cute," he said. "Your face is all red. Did I embarass you..?" He slipped up next to the boy, his hands slowly trying to wrap around the boy's wrists, his lips nearing the his ear. "I'm sorry about that..." Aro let his lips start to glide down the boy's neck, thoroughly enjoying the situation.

Pierce, on the other hand, was more interested in observing the boy's reactions. He seemed to think that Pierce would help him... Really. Did he? The older boy hoped that the boy would grow out of that mentality soon. You could never rely on someone else when you really needed them. His bright red face was interesting; how easily embarassed he was. Then again, perhaps Pierce shouldn't be talking. Back when Aro first started acting like that, he was the same way.

Oh, humans. How interesting they were.

Sally sat and listened as Dante explained, nodded slowly as he finished the long story. "Oh... I see... Well, wait. No, I don't. It's going to take a while to soak in. Don't worry; I don't understand it enough to tell anyone, not that I would try to tell anyone. Not that I would have the time to explain something like this in my own words. I just...

"Oh my God. You're not human. Since when did these things happen." She scratched her head and then fell back on the bed, her head full of confusion. Kim was the least of her worries at this point. "I sort of understand. Kind of. I understand that you chose the life style that fit best for your situation, and it's not my place to judge that."

After a few minutes of thinking, Sally suddenly came up with a brilliant idea. Her whole face brightened, and she sat up and came towards him, tugging on his sleeve like an eager child. "Hey, wait! Do you know anything about The Clocktower?"

Dante almost fell to side frome the sudden tugging. "Woah you're just as hyper as..." His thoughts trailed off. He shook his head and snapped back into reality. "Hmmmm the Clocktower? Hmmmm...." He knew he couldn't tell her the truth. "Nope don't know anything about it." He lied.

But he couldn't just lie to her like that so he decided to tell her something small. "Wait I do remember something." He jumped off the bed and turned to his case. "Now where did I put them?" He asked as he searched through his belongings. "I know I put them around here somewhere." He kept searching and then he suddenly stopped.

"Aha!" He exclaimed as took out 2 keys one bigger than the other. "These babies are special." He closed the case and sat next to Sally again. "These keys are very unique if you find one like this." He said as he raised the bigger key. "You can wined up one of the old Puppets." Then he raised the other key. "This one I can't really remember what it did." Then he took Sallys hands and placed the keys in them. "Here you keep 'em." He smiled and then put his eyepatch back on. "I'm guessing those plans your friend was hiding from me was that you, him and whoever you're hiding in that other room are going into the Clocktower. Right?"

Sally was rather bothered when he didn't know anything, but then he had aparently 'remembered' something. When he pulled out the keys, she bit her lip. "I knew these had something to do with The Clocktower," she said lightly as she took them. "I got a few from my grandfather, and a lot of them are spread out through the Lines. Nobody knew what they did."

When he assumed their plans, she blushed, knowing she had been found out. "Yeah... It's always been off limits, and we really want to know what's been going on in there. It's obviously not a normal clock - it's just too big for that. Well, at least Thom and I are going in it. My guest just needs some hushed help getting to the Outer Line. I don't know if they'll be going with us past that."

She tried and failed to bite back a yawn. Sally took the journal off her lap and gave it back to him before curling up under the covers. "By the way," she said, her voice slightly muffled by the blankets. "What kind of puppets are they? The ones that these keys work on, I mean."

Dante tried and failed to stop himself from laughing when she blushed. But was interested in the fact her grandmother had more than one. He decided to leave his own questions for later and answer hers. "There something real special." He grinned. "I've only met one and that key belonged was hers. But.." He stood up from the bed and headed for the door. "She won't need it anymore." He said as he open the door.

"Night Sally." He said as he went out the door and closed it behind him. Dante stood in the middle of the hall and sighed. He couldn't believe all the stuff that had happened. "And only in one night." He said as leaned against the wall and sat on the floor. He yawned. "Man I'm tired. I'll just take a short nap right..." He fell asleep before finishing his sentence. He was completely exhausted not only did he warp more than once, which he hadn't done in some time, but he'd transformed into an abnormally large lion. The energy and strength it took to do that and in the same day was too much strain.

Sally wondered what kind of puppets they would be. 'Special' didn't tell her much. "Good night, Dante," she said as he left. She held the keys tight in her hands, drifting off to sleep shortly after. There had been too much going on that day. Too much information. Too many people. Too many secrets. She just needed a little rest from it all...

He wanted to hit himself for not hiding under the covers when he had the chance to. Really. Pierce wasn't helping, and Aro had already held down his wrists. And then... More kisses. Not on the lips like previously, but Crest barely had any physical contact with anyone, ever, and this was just too much for him.

Aro and Pierce weren't nice after all, were they.

While Aro continued his... actions, Crest decided he had a couple of actions he could do: let Aro do what he wanted and wait for him to stop, scream, or fight back. The first one Crest decided he would have trouble with, for more than one reason. The second one, well, he hated to use his voice for anything, so it was also not a good option.

The third it was, then. He didn't like it, because they had told him a story after all, and Aro had taken the shove harder than he expected. And he didn't want them to get mad, because he was scared of what they might do in that situation.

He couldn't kick Aro, because his feet were under the covers, and Crest couldn't use his hands to defend himself either. There was only one option to use.

He lunged forward and bit Aro on his arm, really hoping that the older man would stop.

Aro felt the bite and winced, immediately stopping. He was quiet for a minute, his head against the blankets above the boy's shoulders. After a bit, he sat up, his eyes downcast and watery. "It... It hurts," he barely managed to stutter out before starting to cry, wiping his eyes with one hand and holding his arm with the other. "Why did you bite me..?" he asked desperately, sniffling.

Aro swallowed the hard lump in his throat, pointing an accusatory finger at the boy with his good arm before turning to his brother. "Pierce, he bit me..!" he tattled as if the stronger boy handn't been there the entire time. Pierce knew his brother wasn't in any real danger, otherwise he would have protected him. He was just over reacting, and he should have known by then that people did that when you started molesting them.

He walked over to his brother and patted him on the head. "What happened here, Aro?"

"We were just playing, and then... And then he bit me..!" He choked back tears again.

"And were you playing nicely, Aro? You can be a bit rough at times."

"I..." He glanced over to the younger boy before quietly turning his eyes to the floor. "Yes... I mean, kind of, but not really..."

Pierce sighed and looked back and forth between the two. "So you're both at fault, then. Say you're both sorry, boys."

"He has to say it first," Aro whined, pouting.

She’d made her decision. Clearly, something important was going to happen, and Mirabelle wouldn’t have peace of mind unless she knew what was going on. This was one of the rare occasions she was going to intervene somehow.
The first thing she wanted to do was to confront the Time Demon girl that was lurking around Sally’s house. Usually a decision like this would completely go against Mirabelle’s better judgement, but for some reason, tonight she was willing to take risks; such as facing a potentially dangerous Time Demon. The girl looked as though she’d be playing a key part in whatever was about to happen, and there was only so much Mirabelle could learn from simply hiding in the shadows and observing. She was pretty confident that if she approached the girl carefully, she’d be able to leave unscathed.
That didn’t mean she was willing to expose herself, though. Closing her eyes, Mirabelle used her cloaking power to dim her presence, just in case, before stepping out of the shadows and into the street. She scanned the area around Sally’s house, and sure enough, if she looked closely, she could just make out a dark figure lurking at the side.
Taking a deep breath and hoping her cloaking power would be enough to keep her safe, she began making her way over to the figure.
What will I find out from this, I wonder? Mirabelle thought.

Guilt crashed down on Crest. He didn't mean to hurt Aro that badly. Now he made the older boy cry, which in turn made Crest feel worse.

He knew Pierce was right, and he had to apologize. But how? He couldn't possibly speak - he hadn't done so in years, unless it was to himself just to remember how his voice sounded like - he hated it.

He then remembered about his notebook on the bedside table, and grabbed it and the pen that laid beside it. He quickly scrawled down:

I'm very, very sorry that I hurt you Aro. I didn't want to. And I can barely speak, so i'm writing this down instead. My name is Crest, and if you both want to, can all of us be friends?

He held the note in front of Aro, but not in a way that Pierce couldn't see it either, and hesitantly looked at them for their reactions.

Aro looked at the notebook, confused for a second before he gave the boy a big smile. "Of course! We'll be best buddies. Is that alright, Pierce? Please?" He tugged on his brother's sleeve while giving him an optimistic smile.

"Well..." Pierce tried to think of a good answer. He knew Aro wouldn't stay friends for long with anybody, and he didn't want the boy's heart to get too shattered. But on the other hand...

Aro gave him a worried look with big, sad eyes. "Well, what..?"

...that expression. How could he deny it? Pierce nodded comfortably, patting both boys on the head. "Why not? It's nice to meet you, Crest. You have a beautiful name, by the way."

Aro nodded vigorously in agreement. "Ah-huh! Pierce and I have funny names, but yours is pretty."

Thom got up and stretched. He was too tired to think anymore, so he decided that he'd deal with it when he found Dante. Currently, he needed to get to sleep. He got up and headed to the bathroom to clean up, but was surprised when he found Dante in the middle of the hallway. He let out an irritated growl and walked p to Dante, "Where the fuck have you been?" He demanded. He didn't care if Dante was asleep or not. In fact, he hoped Dante was asleep so that he may feel the momentary pleasure of knowing that he woke Dante up.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal's gaze didn't move, but she knew someone was there. It did her no good if she couldn't pinpoint their exact location, figuring that they'd reveal themselves in time if they were here for her. If they didn't, then Srenal would act. She didn't want to draw any necessary attention to herself though. She'd already gotten caught spying by Sally. She didn't need to be caught by Dante as well.

She shifted so that her hands were concealed in her lap, and made her ear dagger appear. It never hurt to be too cautious. She concentrated on the little bit of presence that she could sense, trying to get an exact location, but her concentration was broken between this new person and the house. There was no need to put in more effort than that, because Srenal figured that the person would have attacked by now if they meant to hurt her.

Dante could hear a muffled voice yell at him... "Wait. Is that Thoms voice" He said in his mind. He tried fighting the exhaustion and strain of pushing himself too far in one day to look up and open his eyes. He managed to it and there he was standing in front of him was the figure of Thom. He tried standing up but the pain was becoming greater. He leaned against the wall and used it as support. He could barely move. He placed one his hands against the wall trying keep himself from falling.

"Sorry." He said with dried whisper. "I needed some fresh air and I didn't want you guys to know I'd left" There was no way in Hell he was going to tell him what happened when he was out. "Could you lower your voice Sally's trying to sleep." He said as he nodged his head in to where the door was. "She was able to finally fall asleep so please try and.." He couldn't finish the sentence he fell against the wall while wrapping his arms around his chest. The pain had become to unbearable.

Crest smiled and wrote: Thank you. Your names are quite strange, but I like them.

He paused his writing for a second and then added: I don't want to be rude, but it is already late tonight, and I must leave for a trip tomorrow morning. If it wouldn't trouble you two, you can find me in the Outer Line of the city from tomorrow onward. I'll be there for a whole month. He then showed them the note.

Aro frowned at the note. "But I don't want to go..." Pierce picked his brother up with little effort and gave a light nod of recognition to the boy.

"We'll be leaving, then. We don't want to keep you from your sleep. It was nice meeting you, Crest. We'll hopefully see each other again soon," Pierce replied as calmly as always. "Have a nice trip." As he started to turn around, Aro shouted,

"Bye-bye! See you later, Crest!" with a great deal of childish waving. And after that, Pierce hopped out of the window, seemingly too their deaths; they warped away in the air right after they were out of sight. The two appeared shortly after on top of The Clocktower, looking down at the city.

"He was a good boy," Pierce said kindly.

"Yeah. I hope we get to play with him again."

"Bullshit." There was no way Thom could believe that, but Thom had lowered his voice at the thought of Sally. It wasn't like he actually cared about her, but it was obvious that she trusted Dante. That meant that this only needed to be between him and Dante, so he didn't want Sally getting involved.

Normally Thom would have liked to see someone in pain, but Dante hadn't done anything that Thom knew of to make him deserve it. The site of Dante in pain made Thom calm down and ask, "Dude, Do yo need any help?" Thom may be cruel, but he wasn't heartless. As long as Thom thought that Dante hadn't done anything wrong to deserve the pain he was in, Thom wouldn't just ignore it. There was no way Thom could ignore it. Even if Thom didn't trust Dante, it still wasn't a good enough reason for Thom to ignore him when he was in pain.

"Dude, do you need any help?" Thom may be a cruel person, but he wasn't heartless. He wasn't going to leave Dante here in pain just because Dante couldn't tell him what he wanted to know. That just meant that Thom would have to try later.

Crest was slightly startled at the sight of the two jumping out the window, but he waved back at them nonetheless. He knew they'd survive anyway, with that magic of theirs.

He ripped out the paper in his notebook on which he wrote his messages to the twins and went to the bathroom. He turned the handle of the sink to let the water gush out, and then he burnt the paper, letting the ashes flow down the drain.

Crest returned to bed, pulled up the covers and snuggled, hoping that he'd finally get the rest he needed.

Dante couldn't move it was like his whole bady was simultaneously stabbed. The pain was too brutal, even for him. He longed his arm at Thom, grabbed him by his shoulder, used what little strength he had and pulled himself up. "I need to.." The pain grew stronger. "Lay down. My body needs to be straight. C..can you help me to the couch?" He said with noticeable pain in his voice and eyes.He couldn't take the pain for much longer. He needed to rest. "Please." He eyes now filled with plead. "I..I'll explain everyhting tomorrow...." He tightened his grip Thoms shoulder. "Everything." He couldn't take it anymore. He fell on Thom. "Please help." He whispered.

Thom groaned in annoyance. He wasn't exactly the 'helping' type, but he didn't want to leave Dante here when he was practically begging for Thom to help him. It wasn't like Dante had given him much of a choice though. So Thom picked up Dante and carried him to the couch. Once there, he gently set Dante down. Then, he left Dante there and went to where he had been sitting earlier. He wasn't the caring type, and he wasn't going to attempt to be such. He'd just have to trust Dante to tell him everything tomorrow. With that thought, Thom drifted to sleep slowly.

________________________________________________________________
Congratulations on making it to 170 posts! We will now be timeskipping to the next morning. Day two: begin!

[Please check the OOC thread for more information on what to do if your character was in the middle of something.]
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Sally finally woke up the next morning. Surprisingly, she had a rather decent rest. She rubbed her eyes and slowly pulled herself out from under the heavy blanket. Opening her fists, she began to remember last night's events. And by damn, did she have the weirdest dreams thanks to it all. The keys left indents and even slight bruises in the fist that was holding them.

She intended to get up slowly so she was fully awake, but when she remembered Kim, that wasn't an option. She ran to the door and came out into the hallway, immediately trying to get into the room. Sally totally forgot she locked it and had to go get the key. Realizing both the boys were in the living room, she tip-toed to the key, which was in the drawer next to the bed, and then to the suitcase by the kitchen. Then, she quietly pulled it and tip-toed back to the hallway. She quickly opened the door and pulled the sign off of it once she got to the room, locking the door behind her.

She walked over to the girl and tried to see if she was awake, gently shaking her in case she wasn't. They had to get her ready before everyone else woke up.

Srenal woke up and stretched. After what had happened the night before with the girl, she had went right to sleep. She had been relatively sure that Sally or Dante wouldn't leave until the morning, but she got up early, just in case. With one look at her clothes, she made a face of discuss at the dirt on them. If she had known she wouldn't have returned, she would have brought clean clothes, so she warped back to where she'd been staying in the Outer Line, she got a place there because that's where she spends most of her time, and changed her clothes. Once she had on clean clothes, she warped back to where she had slept through the night.

Dante woke up feeling great. Last night reminded him of how necessary it was for him to pratice using his powers more often. He stood up and walked outside the. The sun had started to rise. "Beautiful." He whispered as he closed the door to the house behind him. He took in a deep breath and let it out. "I love it when iit when the sun's rising don't you Cerberus?" He asked as he watched the sunrise . "Yeah even I have to admit it's beauty." Cerberus whispered in Dantes mind. "Soon we'll be in the Outer Line.." Dante looked at the sun one last time and then turned to the house. "Soon we'll be home." He opened the door and went into the house.

"Soon we'll be with Sister." Cerberus whispered with a short laugh. Dante didn't bother checking if Thom was awake or if Sally was awakehe just on back on the couch and staired at the ceiling. "Soon." He whispered as he closed his eyes.

"Mmmmhhhh, what?" Kim muttered as she was shaken. "Time already?"

She sat up and rubbed her eyes, trying to remember where she was. She was laying in a strange bed in a strange room with a strange girl standing over her. Her mind was still blurry from sleep and it took her a minute to remember that she was in the Middle Line.

"Oh, good morning, Sally. Are we going then?" she asked, noticing the odd look on the other girl's face. Whatever Sally woke her up for, it seemed it was urgent.

Crest woke up, glad that he had a few hours of sleep. He got out of bed and went to his bathroom, doing his morning routine of brushing his teeth, cleaning his face and taking care of other personal hygiene needs. He changed his clothes for suitable attire for the lower Lines, made sure the pouch was well-hidden underneath his shirt, grabbed a few last items to pack in his suitcase, and left the room with his luggage.

He descended the stairs and with a "Good Morning!" to both of his parents, set his suitcase at the doorway before he went to eat his breakfast. His mother had prepared for him buttered-bread, along with eggs and slices of ham. He finished the meal and gulped down his glass of milk, then embraced his parents and headed outside.

He headed to the Rails, where all the students in Year 7 and above would be meeting at. Crest was currently in Year 8, which would mean that his Year, along with Year 10, would be heading to the Outer Line. The school had a few houses there that would provide them lodgings, though they were Outer Line houses and thus not that good. Food was also provided, and all they really needed to bring was some money for miscellaneous things that they wanted to buy and clothes to wear.

When he got there, he assembled with the other Year 7 students and, when the train arrived, embarked on it. His trip had begun.

Sally nodded when the girl woke up. "It turned out that there would be a lot more company than I thought last night. The person who was coming with me is in the other room due to some circumstances. I figured I would get you in here without him knowing ahead of time. Even if he doesn't find out where you're from, I'm worried he might not be fond of me trying to sneak someone in." She gave a smile that said both sorry and thanks before opening the large case, pulling some more things out. "I'll try to make it as comfortable as possible, alright? You can get yourself ready in here for a few minutes. I'll go wake him up if he's not up already. Be ready by the time I'm walking back, please."

She gave a light nod and slipped out of the room, locking it behind her again. Sally went to one of the other rooms and opened a drawer, pulling out a jar of keys and dumping it into her purse along with her money. Shortly after, she skipped out into the living room, only to find Dante awake.

"Good morning!" she said, back to being properly energetic. She was a little worried, though, about how everything would go with sneaking Kim in. Hopefully Thom wouldn't ask too many questions. She went over to where the older boy fell sleep and started poking him, playing with his face. "Wake up~ It's time to go, Tommy~"

Thom groaned as he felt someone poking him. He was usually an early riser, but he hadn't had a great night's sleep. Hearing the poker call him 'Tommy' tough, woke him right up. His eyes shot open and he grabbed her wrist glaring at her. When he saw it was Sally, he growled, "Don't you ever call me that. Got it?"

Sally blinked, her face frozen in his glare for a second before the shock of him actually touching her subsided. Thom wasn't the type to normally initiate that. She put on a pout, back to her usual self. "But why not..." she whined, hitting his head with her forehead. "It's cute. Plus, it woke you up, didn't you?"

Dante didn't bother saying "Good morning" instead he just waved his hand. But when Thom growled at Sally he almost jumped off the couch. He kept observing Sally and Thom. He knew Thom would start to ask questions again soon. So he stood up and headed for the room where his case laid. He opened the door and went in.

Malorn woke up and groaned. Not only did he not find the "beast" that killed the enforcers in the lower line, he also got chewed out by the Vice Captain.
'Might as well make breakfast,' Malorn thought. After making a big breakfast of Pancakes, bacon, and eggs. He set off for the Lower quarter, his current job for the day was to find more information about the murders.

"Today's going to be real fun," Malorn sarcastically said as he left his house. I sure hope that I can find something, ANYTHING to help in his search

"Bitch," he muttered before letting go of her in favor of pushing her away from him. First she called him 'Tommy' and now she think she has the right to touch him? This girl was starting to get on his nerves. He rolled his eyes and got up stretching. If he was irritated at this early in the morning, then his whole day would be sour if he didn't calm himself.

With that thought, he went to the bathroom and closed the door behind him. Once inside, he splashed his face several times with water before pouring a couple handfuls over his head. He didn't care that his hair was now soaked, or that it was getting his shirt wet. Water had always relaxed him, but he felt weird taking an actual shower in a house that wasn't his own. He shook out his head and looked in the mirror. The site made him laugh. His hair was standing up in every direction, and he looked ridiculous, so he ran his hands through his hair to make it look normal once more. Well, as normal as it can be when wet.

Now that he was fully awake and had a good laugh, Thom could honestly say that he felt better. He couldn't say that he regretted snapping at Sally though. He hated being called 'Tommy'.

Kim listened to Sally's way too energetic voice down the hall. No one should be this upbeat in the morning she thought. She directed a glare at the suitcase before standing up and slowly circling it, trying to figure out the best way to get in. Finally, with a shrug, she stepped into the bag and curled up. It was surprisingly comfortable, albeit cramped.

Kim felt herself dozing back to sleep as she waited for Sally.

Sally watched the boys go in their proper directions. "Get ready, Thom. We have to leave in a few minutes or else we'll miss the Rail." Once Dante was in his room, she slipped into the room across from him and went to the bag. Kim was curled up and almost asleep, she noticed, and was worried about waking her. She couldn't just close the bag on her like that, though, and she gave one little nudge to her shoulder.

"We're going to head out now, alright? I'll try to be as gentle as I can wheeling this around." She shut the heavy leather bag and latched all the latches before snapping the final lock shut. Reaching in a different pocket in her purse, she pulled out the key to the suitcase to make sure she had it before stuffing it back in there. It would be a mess if she forgot it.

Sally sighed and picked the big luggage bag up onto its wheels. She wheeled it out of the room, stopping for a second at Dante's door. "We're headed out of here, Dante. I assume you're not coming, so please lock the door before you leave." She headed back to the front door, angled the case on its bottom gently, and waited for Thom to be ready.

Thom turned off the water and left the bathroom. He had a small smirk on his face as he went into the living room. We went to where he left his stuff the night before, and put on his cloak before grabbing his bag. He went to meet Sally by the front door, and was shocked to see the size of her bag.

"How the fuck do you plan on bringing that thing around? Do you really have that much shit to lug around?" Thom kicked the suitcase lightly with his foot.

Sally was happy when Thom came out and started to open the door. He suddenly started ranting about the bag and kicked it. She spazzedly ran and stood in front of the bag so he couldn't kick it again. "Whoh wait a second! I have fragile things in here, alright!?" She sighed. "I'm a girl - I always take a lot of things with me, okay? Plus, I had to bring some extra stuff for our explorations. You'll see. Just... be gentle with it, alright?"

Dante was putting on his grey cloak when Sally said they were heading out. He almost tripped on the cloak. "We can't let them leave without us Dante!" Cerberus growled in Dantes head. Dante hurried up and put on his cloak, hooked on his case and ran after them. "Wait! Wait for me!" He screamed as he ran to the door.

Thom was about to say something to Sally about her bringing fragile things, but stopped when he heard Dante screaming. He looked at Dante and raised a brow at him. He decided that he'd find out about what Sally was hiding later if he waited, but he wouldn't find out about Dante unless he asked.

"Did we say that you could come along? Forget it. I'd be insulted if you thought I'd let you off the hook." Thom looked back at Sally and said, "He's coming. I have business with him. I expect to find out what you're hiding in the bag later."

Kim was jolted awake by Thom's kick to the suitcase. The sounds of Sally's freaked out voice and the a male's lower tones came from outside the case. Kim smiled at Sally's comment on needing a lot of stuff because she was a girl. Then another voice came shrieking from down the hall. That's it she thought I am never traveling in a suitcase with a bunch if crazy people ever again

Sally watched as Dante came rushing over. "Oh. I didn't think you were coming, but that's alrig-"

There was a moment of silence.

"Dante... You do know that you can't use the Rails with your hand like that, right?" She sighed and shook her head, walking out of the house. Even though Sally knew he could poof to places, she wasn't sure if that was something they should mention to Thom... "Well, at least walk with us for now. You boys can do whatever you need to do. Let's just hurry up so we can catch the Rails." Still trying to be gentle with her case, she kept herself on the smoother areas of the road as she walked.

Dante stop in front of Thom and pulled up his hood. "The lets get going." He took a step out the door. "I have business in the Outer Line." He thought about Sallys comment on his hand. "Don't worry about that." He removed his glove and showed her his hand revealing an M. "I've got that little problem covered." He said as he strangely smiled showing all of his sharpened teeth. he looked at Thom. "As for our conversation I'll tell you on the way to the Outer Line." He started walking down the sidewalk. He turned to them. "You coming?"

Sally was surprised that the mark was there, curious to know how he managed it. She was already ahead when he came strutting past her. "Well, you don't need to walk that fast." She picked up the pace to keep up with him, still trying to be careful. "What's up with you two, anyway?"

Thom gave Dante an odd look at the site of the 'M' on his hand, but decided to ask later. He pulled up his own hood and followed them. He silently hoped that the enforcers wouldn't recognize him No doubt that they had found out he had snuck out. He walked next to Dante with a smirk, "If you try to back out, I'll personally rip your head off with everyone watching." It wasn't a serious threat, but Thom felt like he needed to let Dante know that he expected some answers. Thom slid his hand into his pocket and looked at Sally. "None of your business, bitch." With that, he continued without another word.

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Srenal smiled when she saw Sally walking out of the house, and got more excited to see that Dante was going with her. She was a bit annoyed to see the other Male, but decided that she can get over it. Silently, she followed the group hoping they'd say more about what they were planning. There was still so much that she didn't know. The harder it was to figure it out though, the more fun she had stalking. It wouldn't be fun if it were easy.

He didn't care about Thoms threat.He would still tell them both everything on their way to the Outer Line. He started to think about the Outer Line. One of the few places he called home and the only place where he had someone waiting to welcome him back to his house. "Little Nelly." He whispered. "Man I haven't seen her in a while. I wonder if she has changed." He asked himself. "Doubt it." Cerberus exclaimed in Dantes head.

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Noel sat on a bench wearing her favorite white dress waiting for Big Brother to show up. "Where is he?" She asked as she awaited her his arrival. How long was he going to keep her waiting? Did he forget the fact he was going to meet her in the Outer Line? She shook her head in disagreement. "Nah. Big Brother would never forget about Nelly." She then stood up and looked at the Tram Station. "Wonder what's taking Big Brother?" Noel sat back down and sighed. "Well I'll be here until you arrive Big Brother." She said as she stared in the direction of the Middle Line. 

They continued on, reaching the Rails shortly after. Sally gave a big smile to the Enforcers who were guarding. They checked her hand and looked at her bag. "Same bag as usual, huh?"

"Yep! As big as usual, too!"

"What do you bring with you? Dead bodies?" They both laughed at this, and he patted her on the back to go ahead. She took a few steps forward but then stopped to wait for the boys. The Rail had just pulled in.

"Alright, I'll see you on the way back!"

"Have a good trip, Sally." The man turned his attention to the other boys and checked their hands. "Alright, you can go ahead." Seeing that they were let through, Sally went closer to the Rail, trying to find a sloped entrance. "Com'on, guys. I call a window seat!"

Thom nodded to the enforcers before following Sally. He chuckled at her eagerness, but was confused when the enforcers mentioned that she brought the same bag every time. That thought quickly left when Sally called window seat. He honestly didn't care, but it apparently meant a lot to the girl, so he let her have it. He had a feeling she'd go into a childish rage if he didn't, and he didn't want to deal with that. He already had enough stress with everything going through his mind.

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Srenal sighed when she saw them get on the train. There was no way she could get on without the letter on her hand, so she thought for a moment, before she got an idea. She hid bhind the nearest building and warped onto the Rails. She had heard something about Dante telling Thom something on the Rails, and she couldn't wait to figure out what it was. It was the perfect opportunity for her to get the information she needed.

Dante didn't even glance at the Enforces. Instead he followed Thom and almost laughed when Sally said she called dibs on the window seat. He never digged the decour the Rails had. It was too flashy for his taste.

Sally found the ramp entrance and dragged the large case in. She managed to find a wide booth in the far corner that could fit the great luggage, and she took the window seat immediately. This way, she wouldn't have to look at the gaudy decor around her.

Thom took an empty seat, not caring where as long as it was close enough to sit by Sally and Dante, and closed his eyes. "I expect an explanation now Dante. Don't try to avoid it." He wanted to know soon, and was getting tired of Dante always saying it'd be later. If he didn't find out soon, he really would attack Dante. He wasn't a patient person, and wanted to get this over with.


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Srenal chose a seat where she could hear everything the group was saying without being seen. She hoped the ride wouldn't last too long, or that she'd get distracted, because the decor was gross in her mind. She silently came up with plans to burn the Rails until she heard Thom speak. Yes, she'd finally find out what Dante was hiding. Maybe learn more about Sally too.

Dante took the seat directly in front of Thom. He took a deep breath, sighed and removed his hood, gloves and eyepatch revealing his yellow eye and the fact that the M was gone. He thought about how to explain it to Thom. "Meh screw it I'll tell him everything." He said in his mind. "Well lets see why don't I start at the beginning...." It took him time but he told him everything. Even about last night though he changed a few details like eating the Enforcers and saying it was in self defense that he killed them. "That's about it."

As Malorn made it to the gate to the Lower Line he was stopped by a enforcer.
"Sir, missive for you," The enforcer said as he handed Malorn the slip of paper.
"Thank you," Malorn said as he walked through the gate. As He read the missive he sighed. 'Great now I have to run back to the HQ the meet up with cross,' Malorn thought. 'Might as well take the tunnels,'

Malorn entered Cross' office and noted the huge stacks of paperwork. 'I guess I'm pretty glad I got this position, much less of that,'

Malorn saluted Cross and said, "Sir, you have an asignment for me?"

Cross was at his Middle Line office all night, working on finishing up the Inspection reports. Except... they were far from finished. He worked as long as he could. That was when everything started to spin around and get blank. "I guess I worked enough for one night," he had muttered before lying down on his desk, his arms being used as a makeshift pillow. The sun was up and everyone was moving around, but he still wasn't awake. Not that anyone noticed, of course. They figured he was still busy with work; it seemed like he was always busy, after all.

That was when someone entered. Although he was hidden behind his large pile of paper, when he picked his head up at the disturbance, it was obvious that he had just woken up. "Oh, Malorn. It's just you." He sighed and put his hand through his hair, still stressing. "I didn't have anything planned, no, but there's always work. I assume Jax sent you..? I've been waiting for reports on the raid he ran earlier."

Cross knew he shouldn't do this. Still, the temptation got the better of him. "Well... since you're here without any job in mind, would you mind helping me out with these? They're not difficult to do. Just time consuming."

Sally listened to him, but she had already heard him last night, so it wasn't really a shock. She spent most of her time looking out the window. She kept a leg protectively leaning against the front of the bag to make sure it didn't tip over, her hands in her lap and face showing that she was pretty spaced out. That's what normally happened on long rides for her. She always found herself staring outside, trying to see past the walls. Something had to be there.

Malorn sighed, "Of course Sir, you need you rest. Just let me clear off the couch and I'll BY THE CLOCK TOWER!" Malorn shouted as he saw the stack of paperwork as tall as he was.
"I can see why you're tired Sir," Malorn said as he began to go through reports to clear off a space for him on the couch.

'There goes my day, maybe I'll find something useful in these reports,' Malorn thought. 'I sure hope that Jaxon has better luck than I do,'

Thom looked at Dante with amazement. The story just seem too unbelievable to him, but there was no reason for Dante to lie about that. He rubbed his temples trying to process the information, but it was too much for him. It answered a lot of questions, but it made Thom more wary of him than he would have been had he hadn't heard of this.

"If what you say is true, then how do I know that I can trust you?" Thom wasn't a trusting person to begin with, but finding out that this kid was a Time Demon only made it harder for Thom. He didn't even know that he believed all of this kid's story.

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Srenal smirked after hearing Dante's story, of course she had already known it from reading his journal, but she it also told her that Dante didn't have much else to hide. If this was true, then she knew where Dante was going after this. That only left one thing, where were Sally and the other male going? Were they going with Dante? She doubted it. From what she saw, she would guess that they had very separate plans from the Time Demon.

Cross let out a light laugh at the man's reaction. He stretched and continued to check the reports. "I don't know who thought it was a good idea to have one man check the Inspection reports for every citizen in Oblitus, but they caused what's definitely my least favorite time of the month." He finished up one pile and worked on the next.

"So, did I miss anything exciting last night?"

"Nothing too exciting, just a few raids. We didn't actually find anything, so ether all the citizens are following the laws, or they are getting better hiding spots," Malorn said with a chuckle as he finished another report.
"Oh yeah I also went on a wild goose chase for something that killed a few enforcers. Was probably just a few anti-government rebels, unfortunately I didn't find it or any information about it,"

Dante saw Thoms face and smiled at him. When he heard Thoms question he decided to find a way of making him trust him. He knew just how. "Well I know you don't trust me right now. But even if don't trust me I'll help you and give ya some advice." He leaned in alittle closer to both Sally and Thom. "You're followed by someone like me. If I could guess it's probably that girl that was on the roof top last night." He leaned back into his seat stared at the ceiling. "Do you think it's wise to thell all this and let them live?" Cerberus questioned. "Do I detect fear?" Dante asked in his mind. "Pfft." Cerberus replied. "This is going to be one hell of an adventure." He whispered.

Thom nodded. There was no reason for Dante to lie about that. So far, he couldn't see what Dante could achieve by lying to him, except his trust. What could the kid get is Thom trusted him though? Unless he was planning on killing Thom in his sleep, Thom couldn't see any other alterior motives that the kid could have, so he believed him. That did explain a lot though. There was one thing that didn't make sense, "If we're being followed by the girl that we saw on the roof last night, and she's like you, then wouldn't she be better at hiding? Why'd we see her?"

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Srenal growled when she heard Dante talk. If her cover wasn't blown already, then it certainly was now. Hearing Thom's question, she warped so that she was standing next to Thom and grinned. "You saw me last night because I wasn't hiding. I didn't think that a couple of idiots like you would be wandering around at that time of night."

Srenal pouted at Dante, "Did you have to tell them Dante? Why couldn't you just let me have my fun? Sally didn't go blabbing about the fact that she caught me sneaking around last night."

Dante stood up. "She didn't have to tell me." He gave her a smile. "Cause I saw ya leave the room." He took a step forward. "Sorry but I couldn't just let you have your way. Who knows what you were planning to do." He said as he slowly shook his head. He'd already met Time Demons like her. They took joy in messing with humans. He sighed and put his hand on her shoulder. "Now could you please leave. Please." He asked still smiling. "We should just kill her and get it over with!" Cerberus growled in Dantes mind. "If it has to come to that I will." He whispered in his head."Yeah with what? That sword?" Cerberus asked. "Yes." Dante whispered.

Sally was barely listening to their conversation, still spaced out. However, after a few minutes, things took an interesting turn. The girl from last night popped in after Dante revealed that she was also a Time Demon. She turned her head to the group, now paying attention. Letting out a light sigh, she fixed her skirt and shirt, preparing to ignore them after this. First, though, she turned to them with a big smile. "Hey, guys. Think you could do Thom and I one little favor..? Please don't cause too much of a ruckus on here," she said, trying to keep her attention from wandering to the window. "You guys may not have reputations to worry about, but we do. If you're going to fight, do so when you're far enough away that you won't be associated with us. Mm-kay?"

Thom rolled his eyes at the girl's comment. He only knew nalherr five seconds, and he already hated her. For some reason, her calling him an idiot hadn't bothered him as much as it had when Sally called him 'Tommy'. He glared at her for a few moments before looking at Dante. Thom's knowledge of Time Demons was lacking, so he really didn't know what the appropriate approach to the situation was.

His glare was directed back at the girl. This was beginning to cause a headache. The one thing he hates the most are situations that he didn't know how to react to, and she just caused one. He closed his eyes rubbing his temples hoping for soem sort of relief from the headache.

He winced at Dante's outburst. If he hadn't had a headach yet, he certainly had one now. That was just what he needed. He then glared at Dante. If Dante hadn't said anythign, then she wouldn't be here causing this commotion right now. Then he could just deal with her later. Now was not the time for him to be dealing with anything. He had enough on his mind, also due to Dante. If it had just been him and Sally, everything would be okay right now.

"If you had known that she was following us, then why did you choose not to tell us earlier? Both of you." He glared at Sally. "You both saw her last night, and decided that I didn't need to know? Is that it?"

Thom's anger was rising, but he didn't care. These people were enough stress when he knew evrything. Now they're hiding things.

Thom glared at Sally. As if he wasn't mad enough at her, but he relaxed a little when she told them to leave if they were going to fight. That was the first thing all day that didn't seem to be of an annoyancce, in fact, he liked that idea. Maybe they'd end up killing each other while they were at it. He closed his eyes with a growl. They were all annoying, but he'd be better off only dealing with one of them, and Sally was his favorite so far.

"Listen to Sally. If you're going to kill each other, get the fuck off this train and deal with it somewhere else."

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Srenal rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in annoyance. "What could I have done, Dante? It's not like I know anything that allowed me to do any harm!" She hated that he had been weary of her. The only thing that pissed her off was if someone caused her not to ruind her plans, which he just did.

She moved away when he attempted to put a hand on her shoulder. She was already mad at him. She didn't want to be touched by him. When he asked her to leave, she was about to attack him, btu was stopped when Sally asked them to leave if they were going to start a fight.

"Why would I want to do you a favor, Sally? Why do I care about you or Thom's reputaion?" Was that the other male's name? Thom? She guessed since that's what she called him.

When Thom had snapped asking if they'd both seen her last night, she smirked. "Why yes, Tommy. Me and Sally here had a nice little chat last night. I'm honestly not quite sure that Dante saw me, but me and Sally certainly had a pleasant discussion." She giggled, "They didn't want to tell you, because they knew you'd be jealous. They both got to meet me and you didn't. Who wouldn't be jealous?"

When he had aggreed with Sally in them leavign for a fight, she almost attacked Dante just to piss them both off, and because Dante had ruined her plans, but she got a better idea. She giggled, now glad that she read Dante's journal, and looked at Dante. "Fine, I'll leave, Dante, but you'll regret opening your mouth. At least Sally was smart enough to keep it shut."

Srenal warped out of the Rail and to the Outerline. If this is where Dante had been going, then this had to be where that girl she read about in his journal lived. She needed to find her. She'd make Dante regret his decision. She was sure of it.

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Sarah was sitting by the wall that seperated the Outerline from the Outside. She was missing Thom. He was the only person that was ever nice to her, but she knew that she had to get over it. It wasn't likely that she'd ever see him again. He probably forgot about her. It was a lost cause, and she knew it. With a sigh, she leaned against the wall. All she wanted wwas for someone to like her. She only wanted to do good.

Crest was wandering in the Rails, trying to find a seat where nobody was around. When he did find an isolated spot, he looked out the window and began to think about the two people had met last night.

He ended up communicating with them by notebook, something he rarely did outside school. He had lied to them about his ability to speak. In his eyes, that was perfectly fine however; his parents had told him explicitly never to use his voice in front of anybody, themselves being the sole exception, and he`d gladly complied to their orders. He hated his own voice, and if his parents told the school and everyone else that he had a medical condition that deteriorated his voice quickly and could not use it, then so be it. Even the doctors (which his parents bribed) had confirmed it.

The school had agreed to his parents' decision to not have him participate orally in class and be able to communicate by writing in his notebook. His "condition" was made known to the Enforcers, once they questioned about the amount of notebooks that they found in Crest's room, and after a while people stopped asking and took it as a normalcy.

On the trip however, he had only brought two notebooks. He had been cautioned of the amount of crime in the lower Lines, and he knew that the Outer Line citizens couldn't read, so it would be a futile attempt to try and communicate with them via writing.

He was about to go to sleep, deciding that a quick nap would do his some good before going to the Outer Line, but he felt thirsty and decided to head to the part of the Rails where the beverages were served. He had overheard classmates talking about how good the drinks were, and wanted to taste them himself before getting off.

He headed down the cabins, and while not particularly noticing his surroundings (and the bad decor which looked like what his parents would disapprove of if it weren't made by God) he caught interest in a strange group of people.

One girl who looked around his age had blue streaks in his hair, and an enormous bag was sitting at her feet. Another older boy had red hair, which was rarely a sight in Center Line, and the shorter boy with them had an eye-patch. Crest wondered what had happened to the boy's eye. The last girl had an appearance that looked like she wanted everyone to notice her, which if she did than she was succeeding in her goal, and she had long, long hair, which no one would ever have in Central Line. The group was from Middle Line then. They were a rowdy bunch, and as Crest passed them as fast as he could he really hoped that he would never have to associate with them.

He got a fruity drink, which as he sipped on his way back he decided really was worth of the reputation that it had, and hurried past the strange group when he had to get back. He finished his drink in his seat, and checked to see if his suitcase hadn't been tampered with. Then he drifted off to sleep, hoping the ride would end soon.

Dante wasn't sure what had just happened. One minute she had the intention of fighting him and the next she was leaving with only giving him a cryptic threat. "I'll regret not keeping my mouth shut?" He asked himself as he fell back into his seat. "What the hell is that supposed to mean Dante?" Cerberus asked with some force in his voice. He was pissed... No beyond pissed he was straight up psychotic. "I don't know." He whispered. He looked at Sally and then at the floor. "Yep this is going to be one hell of a ride." He said as a grin appeared on his face. A game of cat and mouse had begun. But who was the mouse and who was the cat?

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Noel kept waiting on the same bench for the cart to show up. She wasn't the most patient girl and her patience was starting to run out even if she was waiting for "him". Big Brother was taking too long. So she decided to ask a young Enforcer who was passing in front of her how much longer the Rail was going to take.

"Hmmmm let me think..." The Enforcer said as he scratched the back of his head. "Oh I remember now it should take about maybe forty minutes to half an hour." 
She sighed heavily. She looked up at the Enforcer and gave him a false smile. "Thank you mister." She said as she stood up from the bench and started heading in a random direction. The Enforcer began to go in the direction he was heading before being stopped. 

Noel looked at him over her shoulder. "Dumb ass." She said as she giggled. She always was able to pull a curtain over those idiot Enforcers thanks to her size and face. "Now what can Nelly do to distract herself until Big Brother shows up?" She thought about it and came to one conclusion. "There's nothing to do." She whispered to herself. "This is boooorrriiiinngggg." She sighed and kept walking wondering where the path would take her.

Sally raised an eyebrow at Dante, the smile gone from her face. It wasn't often that she got serious, but when there was a possibility everyone's lives were in dange- well, more importantly, if her plans were in danger, it was hard for her to smile. "A Hell of a ride?" She looked out the window and said, "If you guys start anything, this whole Rail will go straight to Hell. Literally. If you guys do something inhuman and cause a huge ruckus, they're not going to stop at the Outer Line. Everyone in here will be plunged into the so-called abyss of the Outside. You may be able to poof out of here, but we can't. And to be frank, I have more important things to do than go exploring an endless fall."

Dante laughed at what Sally said. "Don't worry. She isn't going to fight me. No she's going after something else." He started to think what it could be. Then a question popped into his head. "Sally did that girl give you my journal?" He asked with a serious and emotionless face and voice. If she answered yes then he knew what she meant but if she said no there was nothing to worry about. "You don't think she would go after her?" Cerberus asked. "Sadly I took that into consideration." Dante whispered with a bad feeling in his gut.

Sally wasn't quite sure how to answer that. On one hand, she did promise to keep it a secret, but on the other hand, Dante would be scarier than Srenal if he got mad. Wait, she said she wouldn't tell anyone. Why was she thinking about it?

"No, but it was on the bed when I lied down. She may have taken and returned it before I went in there. I don't know why she came in there while I was resting, to be honest."

Dante wasn't sure if she was lying about the Time Demon supposedly not giving her the journal but he was now sure that she probably had read it. "Damn it!" He growled as he punched the window causing it to break. "That bitch better not do what I think she's thinking." He said as he tighten the hand that had gone through the window. It began to bleed. "I knew I should've taken it with me." He said as he looked at his hand. "Now I've put Noel in danger. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" He growled at himself. He'd screwed up in the past but not like this.

Thom let out a sigh of relief and relaxed when the girl left. He could finally relax. He listeden to their conversation for a few moments, before deciding to get up. He looked at Sally and Dante with a bored expression. "I'm going to walk around. I'll be back before the Rail stops." He slid his hands into his pockets and walked off. Now he needed a new form of entertainment. Preferably one that didn't annoy him.

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Srenal didn't know where to begin her search, so she decided to start with the station. She walked throughout the station mumbling to herself. "Noel. Noel. Noel. Where would I find her?" As she thought about it, a smirk came across her face. Dante most diffinantly pay for telling them. He was a Time Demon, he should no what they were capable of.

Sally cocked her head to the side in response to Dante's sudden outburst. He punched his hand through the window; she shieded her face as the glass came shattering everywhere. The wind coming through due to the extreme speed the Rails went at send her on her side on the seat (since Thom had moved, she was the only one in that side of the booth). With a minute, the Rail system had detected the change in pressure, and a new piece of glass started to come up once Dante pulled his hand away. The other passengers were looking back at the booth, but because it was the corner, they couldn't see who had done it. Once it was fixed, they returned to their business.

Sally pulled herself up, trying to brush the glass off her arms without cutting herself. The wind had kept her from hearing the rest of what he had to say; all she caught was cursing and the name, 'Noel.'

"Be more careful, Dante. That could have..." The blood and his pissed expression both caught her a bit off guard; she leaned forward and touched his shoulder. "Hey, are you alright?"

The sound of breaking glass and the force of the wind woke Kim from her sleep. For a moment she panicked, not remembering how she came to be in such a small place. "Wha-where am I?" she said aloud. She tried to move but found that it was too cramped to do so. 'Of course' she finally thought, 'I'm in that stupid suitcase.'

Cross put his pen down at the end of Malorn's response, leaning on his chin to listen to what would eventually be the other man's answers. "I see... surprisingly, I haven't gotten a report on that. Perhaps you would like to fill me in on the details?" he suggest. "In what way were they killed? Where, when?"

"I guess Jax hadn't gotten to it, I'll tell you the whole story," Malorn said. "I was covering for another enforcer who was sick. Just doing some patrols in the Lower lane. Simple stuff. When I saw a bright light down an alleyway. I ran down to see three enforcers standing around some ashes and questioned them about it. According to them a "beast" had attacked a group of enforcers and after besting them, it well, ate them. I searched for a few hours of any trace of the "beast" but could not find it. I think they might of done something stupid and lied to cover it up,"

"Actually now that I think about it, I just finished reading a report about some enforcers that didn't show up for duty," Malorn said as he handed the report to Cross.

Dante was used to minor injuries like the one he had right now. When Sally actually sounded concerned he looked at her with eyes filled with anger. "No I'm not ok. That Time Demon bitch is going to go after Noel." The anger went away and in its place came fear. "Who knows what she'll do to my little Nelly. God this is all my fault!" He growled trying not to do the same mistake of punching and breaking the window. "If she finds her..." He couldn't finish the sentence. The possibilities were too unbearable to say. "She's going after the one person I care about." He covered his face with both hands. Then suddenly he looked at Sally with a face of determination. "How long until we get there?"

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Noel had walk through the streets saying "Hello" to those she knew. But as she was walking he spotted a peculiar girl. She was pale and her hair reached her waist like hers. She thought about it and came to one conclusion: This girl could be like Big Brother. 

She wanted to see if her theory was correct but she was nervous. Then she took a deep breath, let it out and decided that it was a terrible idea to confront her. "According to Big Brother not all Time Demon are good some are bad very bad." She said in her head. "But...." Her curiosity was getting the best of her. 
She shook her head and started heading back to the Rails. "He'll be here soon and Nelly has to be there to welcome him back." She took once last glance over her shoulder and whispered. "Time Demon... Definitely." 

Srenal saw a blonde haired girl and dark blue eyes that was walking towards the Rails, and decided that it would be best to ask the girl. Perhaps she knew the person she was looking for? Srenal smirked and closed her eyes. After a few moments, Niser took over the body and she started giggling.

It was rare that she could intentionally change personalities, but the other two wanted in on Srenal's plan, so they helped. Niser skipped over to the girl with an innocent smile, and asked sweetly, "Excuse me, I'm looking for someone named Noel. A friend of mine asked me to tell her something, but I don't remember what he said she looks like." Niser gave the girl a cute pout, practically pleading for help.

Noel was surprised by how the girl came out of nowhere asking about her. She wasn't sure if she was a good person or a bad one so she was careful. "Huh? You say you are looking for Noel? Hmmmmm...." He pretended he was thinking and placed her finger on her lips. Then she snapped them. "Oh! Now I remember Noel said something about heading to one of the shops cause Big Brother Dante was taking too long or something like that. " She had to known why she was looking for Nelly. "Why are you looking for her? Are you a friend of Dantes or something?" She asked with an innocent smile.

Sally pulled her hand back as Dante seemed to get closer to snapping. He continued to rant and worry and blame himself for something that she didn't particularly care about. Still, she didn't like to see him in such emotional turmoil, and she tried to make some conversation to learn more about the situation.

"Who is Noel?" she asked, seemingly purely curious.

Cross was expecting some normal explanation about a general murder, but what Malorn said caught him by surprise. It wasn't the first case they had like that, nor did he think it was the last. He was surprised that the vice captain hadn't already explained it to him; even if it was classified, Malorn was trustable. Cross stood up, the youth of his body obvious from his thin, comfortable shirt. However, once he pulled his cloak on, he was all broad bulk.

"I doubt that was a lie," he said as he hooked the links of his cloak. "Malorn, I..." He sighed. "I guess we can't keep you in the dark for much longer. These incidences aren't uncommon. By all that's Holy and Just, there's something inhuman around here, and it's not the first time we've lost Enforcers to it."

He opened the door to his office and started to leave. "Write up that report for me. When you're done, contact the Line Captains and try to schedule a meeting. The contact numbers are next to the phone. We're going to order for patrol to be increased in this area for now. I'm going to the Outer Line to sober up their useless Line Captain. You know what? Don't even bother calling him," he said, his annoyance obvious. If there was anybody he really, truly, and honestly didn't like, it was him.

"After you've contacted them, go help out with the patrols. I'll do the same later; the Inspection reports can wait."

Niser smiled nodding. "Yes, Dante is a very good friend of mine. He wanted me to tell Noel something, so he asked me to help him out." She held out a hand to the girl, "My name is Niser, and Dante said that he needed me to tell Noel something very important. I was the only one he could trust to give the information to her."

Niser pouted looking upset, "It's a shame if I can't get a hold of Noel. Would you help me look for her? Dante will be very disappointed if I can't get the information to her, and I want to stay his best friend."

Niser was upset that she couldn't find Noel. She was really hoping this girl could help her find the girl. Tears came to her eyes at the thought of not being able to do what she came here for. She was really hoping to find the girl.

Dante didn't know how to exactly explain it but he tried anyways. "Shes's my..." He sighed. "She's my Little Sister and my.... " He coughed. "Lover." He coughed again. "Her full name's Noel Sanders but I call her..." A smile appeared on his face. "Nelly. She's from the Outer Line and if that other Time Demon did in fact read my journal she probably knows I planned on visiting her. That's what her warning earlier was about." He look at his still bleeding hand and sighed. He twisted his hand a bit and stretched it a moment later the skin was molding back to normal. "She knows what I am and accepts me for me... But now I put her in danger of being taken by a Time Demon and who knows what she's planing to do to her." He put his hands next to each other and stared at them. "I wish I could warp and see if she's ok." He sighed. He had to wait until around night time to be able to use all his powers. "It's my fault if anything happens to her. I'm her Big Brother....."

Noel couldn't believe her lying skills had become so good. But what she couldn't believe even more was this girls story. Dante would never send anyone to give Noel a message. He used any excuse he could to come visit her. "Maybe something happen to him." She thought and with that she began to panic in the inside she thought it over and made a decision. "Well actually..." She said while rubbed her left arm with her right hand. "What should I do? What would Big Brother do?" Then it came to her. She had a plan. "I think Noel might head for the Rails again soon. Since the train should be showing up in some time."

Niser wiped tears out of her eyes as she looked at the girl. "He said it was important. He couldn't come because something happened, and I just wanted to help him." The tears slowly overflowed as she tried to wipe them away. "He sent Niser to tell Noel. He said he was sorry, but Niser shou be friends with Noel. He said they'd get along."

She looked at the girl with hope in her eyes, "Will you help Niser find her? Niser wants to e friends with Noel. She's heard so much about Noel, and she wants to be her friend."

Noels panic increased. "Could something have really happened to Big Brother?" She wondered but that thought was cut short when Niser became increasingly fragile little by little. Noel didn't know what to do until it occured to her. "Hey we can check Nellys house to see if she's there if she isn't we'll check the Rails. Ok?"She asked as she looked at Niser with innocent, warm, caring eyes and whispered into her ear. "I'll help you find her Niser." She smiled at the girl. She still couldn't trust her but at least she could stall her until the train arrived. "Come on follow me. Her house isn't too far away from here." She said as she grabbed the girl by her wrist and started dragging her in the direction of a few stores.

Niser smiled a little, the tears were still streaming down her face. "Will you really help Niser find Noel?"She hugged the girl eagerly giggling. "That is so great! Now Dante won't be bad at Niser because she can't tell him the news." She followed the girl eagerly hoping to find Noel. "Do you think that Noel will like Niser? Do you think they can be friends?" She giggled happily. "Maybe Niser and Noel can be best friends! Just like Niser and Dante!" She jumped with joy at the thought. "Niser will be happy forever and ever if she can make a new friend!"

Noel was trying to figure out what she could do if Niser turned out to be bad. She decided she would have to bring Inferno with her for precaution but she had to hide it. "Kinda like what Big Brother did with his." She said in her mind. She kept thinking about it until she saw how happy and jumpy Niser was acting. She herself was the only person she knew who acted like that. She was happy to meet someone like her, it put a smile on your face. When she heard Niser talk about how she wanted her and Noel to be friends she turned to Niser with a gentle smile. "Would you like to be my friend Niser?" She asked wondering what Nisers reponse would be.

'Well this is a surprise,' Malorn thought to himself as he dialed the number for the Center line Captain. 'I can't help but wonder what Cross meant by "unnatural things", surely there can't be some kind of ware-cat thing running around,'

Once he got through to the Center line Captain's secretary and told her to pass the message along, he called and Middle line Captain's office did the same.

'Well now that that's done time for patrols,' Malorn thought as he exited Crosses' office. 'I guess it's to to help out the middle line then, seeing as how they're going to be short six enforcers,'

Malorn went to the secretary and got his assignment. He was to help deliver the weekly rations and keep an eye out for crime. After he thanked the secretary he went to the pick up point to get the supplies.

'Well, this beats paperwork!' Malorn happily thought.

Niser stopped giggling when she heard the question, "I dont even know your name," A huge smile slowly spread across her face," but I would love to be your friend! I'd love to ever so much!" She giggle once again with glee. "Then I can make two new friends in one day!"

Inside her mind, Srenal said, 'Why you taking so long? No. no. no. no. NO! I do not want to be friends with this girl.' Niser was getting annoyed with Srenal's complaining, 'Shut up Srenal. She's about to lead me to Noel. You're the one who wanted to see her. I could be doing many things, but I'm continuing your plans for you. Be happy that I'm helping you.' Rxnion had enough of this, 'Shut up you two. You're annoying. If you don't want to be her friend, Srenal, then we can just kill her later. If you're going to ask us to do your work for you, then you better be ready for them to do it their way, at their own pace.' That made Srenal and Niser shut up. Rxnion was the violent personality, and neither of them wanted to deal with her. She was scary, to say the least.

Sister and lover. Well, that was new. Sally listened to him for a bit before feeling herself being drawn back to the window. She wished that she could check on Kim, but even if she did open the bag in the bathroom, she wasn't sure if there was a way they could see them. It wasn't safe until she got to the Outer Line. Sally tried to think everything over, but her mind was too blown from everything to focus right then. "I'm sure she'll be alright," she said lightly. It wasn't meant to be taken literally - just some comforting words before she leaned against the fixed window and looked out past it into the dull world outside the red and gold train. She didn't feel the velvet she sat on or the shag rugs her feet rested against. She didn't hear the chatty voices of the higher class passengers.

But she did feel that something was going to happen. They were getting closer and closer to the truth... The truth that her grandfather had written about. She hadn't told Thom the whole story; she couldn't trust him with the bits and pieces that put together the story of a life time. There was still more she needed to learn.

Where they there yet?

They spent about two minutes passing the ridiculously thick walls that separated the Middle and Outer Lines. Soon, they would be there. She watched as the broken down houses passed them by. Soon.

Soon was to far away. She was starting to feel fidgety, and she couldn't keep looking out the window. Sally stretched and then checked to make sure the bag was upright and everything was well. "We're going to be there in a few. I'll go find Thom, so please keep an eye on my bag for me, Dante. Don't let it fall or open." As much as she hated to leave Kim there, the Rail's obnoxious rugs made it difficult to move the bag, and her trip would take twice as long trying to lug it around more than was necessary.

She started to walk down the isle between the seats and booths, only to see a boy asleep. It wasn't safe to sleep when you were headed to the Outer Line; if you didn't wake up, you'd end up missing the stop, and that was a dangerous consequence. She leaned into the seat with her knee and nudged the boy's shoulder with a light smile. "Hey, wake up. The Rails will be there soon; you don't want to miss the stop, right?"

Mirabelle didn’t know why she’d decided to go to the Outer Line that day. The previous night, after her encounter with Srenal, she’d gone straight back to her house in the Middle Line and decided she’d spend the next day trying to find out more about the situation with the Sally girl and the rest of her crew.

Yet here she was instead, wandering around. She supposed she had subconsciously suspected that those people might come here – all the dramatic stuff seemed to start in the Outer Line, after all – but if they didn’t, she’d be wasting time. Hell, maybe all of what she was doing was wasting time. Maybe nothing ‘big’ was going to happen at all, and there was no need for her to get involved, as usual—

The sound of childish giggling caught Mirabelle’s attention. Her eyes slid over to where the sound came from, and much to her surprise, she saw a figure she recognised, even though the last time she’d seen it, it had been mostly in shadows.

“Is that…?” Mirabelle frowned. There was no denying it. It was Srenal, though something seemed… different about her. She was with some other blonde-haired girl, giggling away.

Mirabelle paused for a moment. There wasn’t really any need for her to interfere at all – she had no business nosing around in Srenal’s matters, and nor did she need to, either. She had no interest in being nosey. Plus, if she did interfere, she had the feeling Srenal would be sure to return the favour.

Then again, Mirabelle thought to herself, I’m not going to ask her what she’s doing. I just want to greet her, really. I don’t care about her relationship with that girl, unless she, too, is up to something shady. I’ll say hello, then move on. I doubt I’d gain anything from spending any time with her anyway. After all, everyone becomes a nuisance eventually. That's why I don't normally mix with others...

Having made her decision, Mirabelle walked purposefully in the two girls’ direction, stopping just beside them once she’d caught up.

“Hello,” she said, giving a small wave, mostly looking at Srenal, or... whoever she was at the moment. “Do you remember me?” Then she quickly added, “I apologise if I’m interrupting you at an inconvenient time.” She glanced at the other girl. “I recognised you, and thought I’d say hello.”

Dante decided to calm down a bit. "She's right Noel's probably waiting at the station. Even better that girl that know what she looks like." He thought. When Sally asked him to keep an eye on the bag he did just that. Curiosity over what was in the bag was minimal. He was still a little worried about Noel. "So what are we going to do if something happens to her?" Cerberus asked in Dantes mind. Dante was the one who planned everything, he was also the one who placed everything in its place and the who made sure things went as planned. But this time.... "I don't know..." He whispered out loud. For the first time ever he didn't have a plan. He went to the window and like Sally he stared at the world outside. "But I'll think of something." He whispered as he lost himself starring through the window.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Noel was surprised by the girl that had come saying "Hello" to Niser. "Another odd character." She said in her mind. One was ok but two was a little scary even worse they knew each other. "Time Demons seem to be showing up everywhere. Well had to hurry and think of a way of loosing both of them. She gave a quick glance at the buildings close by. She would have to put Big Brother training to the test. But she had to wait for the right moment. "Niser do you know her?" She asked she looked back Niser. These to know eachother and Noel could feel she had to get away from them.

When Niser saw the girl, she smiled and waved eagerly, "Hey Mirabelle! Meet my new friend!" She hugged the girl smiling. When Mirabelle said she was interrupting at an inconvenient time, Niser tilted hear head as of listening fro something before nodding. "Srenal says it's a very inconvientient time, but I don't! My new friend here is going to introduce me to another new friend!"

It was then that Niser realized that she didn't know her 'new friend's' name. "Hey, new friend, what is your name?" She asked curiously. "It would be rude to call you 'knew friend' forever." Inside her mind, the other personalities were raging. Srenal was because Niser said it wasn't inconventient. Rxnion was because she didn't want so many new friends.

At the girl's question, Niser tilted her head thinking for a moment before shaking her head, "I know of Mirabelle, and I know that she exists, but know I do not personally know her. Srenal does though! She says that Mirabelle is interesting." She nudged the girl again and whined, "I thought we ewre going to find Noel! We should go meet me new friend!"

Mirabelle blinked. So she was facing a different personality after all. This must be Niser.
When Niser introduced her to her 'new friend', Mirabelle turned to the other girl, and nodded as a way of greeting.

"Sorry for intruding," she said. "This must be somewhat awkward for you. As Niser said, my name is Mirabelle. I'm an… acquaintance, I suppose." Her eyes flicked back to Niser. "Well, if Srenal wants me to leave, I can do so. I'd rather not cause any of you inconvenience."

That was only partly true. Despite herself, Mirabelle was intrigued. She was curious to see another of Srenal's personalities, and she thought there was something about Niser's 'friend' that seemed strange. Or maybe she was just being too suspicious. After all, there were a great many different people that seemed strange around here.

Noel was speechless. "This girl really is a lot like Big Brother. She even has other 'people' in her head like him." Noel said in her mind. Then the thoughts of the fact something had supposedly happened to Big Brother came back. 

She couldn't bottle her emotions much longer. She snapped. She fell on the ground on her knees and started exaggeratedly  crying. She grabbed the bottom of Nisers pants and began pleading. "Please tell me what happened to Big Brother! Please!" She screamed while the tears flowed down her cheeks like rivers. 

This was the real Noel. People passed by ignoring the scene because this wasn't the only time they'd seen Noel act like that. "I'm Noel!! I'm Noel Sanders! Now tell me what happened to Big Brother Dante!!!!" She had blown her cover. But she didn't care.

Srenal took back over the body with the confession from Noel. A smirk spread across her face and her ear dagger appeared in her hand. She growled grabbing her head as Niser screamed inside. After all that effort, Niser apparently didn't want anything to happen to Noel. With that, the link between personalities was severed. They no longer had a common goal in mind.

The link being severed gave Srenal peace at last, and she relaxed, "Please Mirabelle, don't go. I'm about to show you what happens to people that meddle in my business." She smirked and patted Noel's head, "You see Noel, Dante stuck his nose where it didn't belong, and he has to face seriouse consiquences."

Srenal smirked and grabbed the girl by the throat, not hard enough to cut off the flow of oxygene, but enough to be unconfortable. "You see dear, your dear 'big brother' has to learn that not everyone takes meddling lightly."

It all seemed to happen so fast. Before Mirabelle knew it, Srenal had taken over, and had grabbed the girl – Noel – by the throat, almost choking her. She knew Srenal would probably kill her; she held an ear dagger in one hand, and doubtless was all too ready to use it.

When Srenal spoke to her, Mirabelle couldn’t think of anything to say. Her body seemed paralyzed with shock, and she could only watch with widened eyes as the threat in Srenal’s words sank in. Slowly, she forced herself to reach into her cloak that she was wearing again, and discreetly slid her dagger out of its hiding place. She wasn’t the one in immediate danger right now, but she soon could be, and she wasn’t taking any risks.

She didn’t step forward, though, or try to help Noel. She had no real reason to do so; and if she tried, she’d probably end up being in Noel’s place. She could only stand in shock and watch.

Noel had forgotten Big Brothers most important rule. Never let your guard down. Now she was paying the price. "W..why?" She asked while she tried to ignoring the pain. "Big Brother Noel n..needs your h..help." She said in a low whisper as more tears ran down her face. She was scared and she didn't know what to do. All of the things she'd been taught by Big Brother were all gone. She was in complete shock and she knew that this might be her end. 

Something nudged his shoulder, and Crest groaned as he got up. Ah. It was that girl with the blue and blonde hair. The one who'd been with those odd people. He shook his head in response to her question. He put his hands in front of her, forming the words "thank you" with them, a letter at a time, and smiled at her.

He looked out of the window and saw that the girl was right; there were two minutes left until the end. Crest took his suitcase and then left to where his class would assemble before going to the Outer Line.

Srenal kissed Noel's cheek. "I'm very sorry, Noel, but Dant needs to learn. I can't have him thinking that he can do whatever she wants." She smiled, "Get up, you're going to see your big brother one last time before I finish my business." She smirked at Mirabelle and giggled, "I hope, for your sake, that you won't get involved. We really did have a nice chat last night, and I'd hate to hurt you."

Noel knew what Srenal was planing. But she had no other choice but to do as she was told. She got up on her feet and looked at Srenal. She couldn't stop crying. It was as if she already knew what was going to happen not only to her but to Big Brother. She took a deep breath, let it out and said to herself in her head. "Noel be brave. Even though you'll make him sad and violent you'll also make him stronger." She took a step toward Srenal. "Lets go then." She said as she looked at the floor.

Sally was confused at first when he started making hand gestures, but after a moment she realized what he was doing. "You're welcome," she said, giving him a small wave before running off to find Thom. Where could that boy have gone? She looked through all the booths and was worried she would have to go to the next cart when she saw him. She quickly stumbled over to him. "Hey, it's almost time to go. We'll be there in a couple minutes."

Thom sighed and slid his hands into his pockets. "It's about time we got off of this train." He was getting tired of the decor, and he was bored out of his mind. He rolled his eyes and began walking back to their seat. Once there, he grabbed grabbed his bag and looked at Sally, "I still expect you to explain you bag to me." He didn't leave room for decision. She was going to.

Thom looked at Dante for a moment, and decided he should ask, "What's with that threat that the girl earlier made?"

Sally gave him an innocent smile before creeping towards the bag. "I told you. It's just got some fragile things in it." She was standing in front of the bag, positioned so that he would have to hit her before he could hit the bag. "I'll tell you about what's in it once we're off the Rail, alright?"

When Thom and Sally came in Dante didn't turn to them. He was lost in his thoughts about Noel. But when Thom asked about the threat he turned to him. "She's going after the one person I care about...." He turned back to the window and the starred at the shattered remnants of the window on the floor. "And punishing her for my actions." He tightened his hand into a fist and with anger and scorn in his voice he said. "If she touches her I'll show her just how powerful I really am." He looked at the two humans and with a relaxed voice said. "If I were you two I'd take precatiouns and arm myself if you're going through with whole 'Enter the Clocktower' plan of yours." He began to stare out the window again. "Oh and that friend of yours Sally. You might wanna check on her soon." He said with zero sings of emotions.

Thom sighed, everything gets worse and worse for him doean't it? He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. He wasn't sure to speak with first. He decided to work with what'll cause the most problems first, and looked at Dante.

"Obviously she's weak if she doesn't want t fight you Dante. It's also cowardly of her to attack someone weaker than her, when they have nothing to do with this. Do you think someone weak and cowardly will honestly go through with that?" Even if Dante said she would, he planted the seed of doubt in his mind, and that's all he could hope for.

He turned to Sally and questioned, "Your friend? Check on her? Is that what you're hiding? I expect full details. Now, not later. He crossed his arms over his chest. He almost felt like a parent chastizing two children. Dante was over reacting in his mind, and Sally thought she could get away with hiding things from him.

Sally gave Dante an honest smile. "I'm sure he's fine," she said before turning to Thom.

"He's talking about a friend of mine who's on the Rails. I just woke him up when I was on my way to get to you so he didn't miss the stop, but we're not sure if he found his class yet." She laughed. "It's not like I would stuff someone in a bag - unless they were dead, of course. Anyway, I'm hiding something much more interesting than that, and I'm not telling you what it is until it's the proper time and place. Deal with it."

Dante knew he'd angered Sally and Thom. Especially when Sally put on that fake smile. When he heard Thom suggest the girl was weak he knew that wasn't true. He knew that whoever that Time Demon was she was strong or at least part of her. "Now now. Is that self-doubt I hear?" Cerberus asked  with a displeased voice. "No it is not. I'm just thinking the truth. You know that." Dante replied in his mind. "She's not weak. All Time Demons are dangerous." He said as he looked at Thom. "It's just some are more dangerous than others." He said with a grin.

Thom growled at Sally, but it was obvious that he had a bigger issue at hand. He turned to Dante with a sigh. There had to be some way to get through to him. "If she weren't a coward, then why won't she fight you? It's obvious that you're the one she has problems with, not you friend." He thought for a moment before continuing. "If she wasn't weak, then why would she be scared to fight you? The stronger someone is, the more willing they'de be to fight someone. Even if there's a chance that they're stronger."

He looked back at Sally and glared at her. "I supposse that you call everyone you just met your friend? As far as I'm concerned, Middle and Outer Line schools don't take trips on the Rails. I'd be surprised if you actually knew someone from the Center."

Sally nodded happily. "If they seem nice, then why not? I want to be friends with everyone, after all." When he commented on her not knowing anyone from the Center Line, she leaned back against the case and put on a grin that they probably hadn't seen from her yet, unable to hold her amusement. She opened her mouth to speak, but it took a second try for her to get it out. "I know a lot of people," she confessed. "Here, there, and of course where we're from. As well as, 'other places.' Then again, who and what I know is none of your business. Friends or not,we're just business partners...." She put on her peppy tune again, back to being happy and shiny. "We're just partners in the everlasting battle for love and truth..!"

Dante almost bursts into laughter and tears from hearing Sally. Then turned to Thom. "Here's the thing Thom. Wether she is weak or not doesn't matter at all. For Time Demons what matters is what type of personality each one has. In her case I'd say she takes joy in messing with peoples plans, hates it when someone screws with hers and doesn't fight someone head on all the time." He sighed and scratched the back off his head. "I've faced a lot of Time Demons... And killed them. But some of us are different. Most are mindless psychos while others, like myself, are what you call odd chracters." He grabbed his case and hooked it on his back. "The type of fighter she is prefer learning more about you before they..." He thought over the end of the sentence. "Play with you."

Thom shrugged, finally giving up on both of them. They were too stubborn to see his side, so he'd just let them believe what they wanted. He chuckled at Sally shaking his head. "Whatever you guys say. I'm still not buying it, but I'll let you both live in your own worlds."

He took off his cloak, and shoved it in his bag. "The enforcers should be leaving us alone here, right Sally?" He glanced at Dante as asked, "You staying with us, Dante, or will you leave us to chase the psycho chick?"

Dante thought about it for a minute. "Hmm... I don't know why I'm worried since she doesn't even know what Noel looks like." He scratched the back of his head and made his decision. "Sure I'll come with you guys. Considering what you're planning you might need someone with my..... Talents." He said with a grin. Then he pulled up his hood and started to put on his gloves. "Hey I have a question." He said as he put on the first one. "Do you guys need somewhere to crash while you're here?" He asked while he put on the second one. "Cause I got a place here where you could stay for as long as you need." He said as he smiled at them both. "It's a 'Safe House' I acquired a long time ago I mostly use it as storage for my stuff. But it has a couple of rooms underground you can use. If you want of course" He said as he looked outside the window again.

Mirabelle narrowed her eyes slightly as Srenal giggled at her. She took care to keep her dagger concealed – she didn’t want Srenal to think she was about to attack. Fighting her would be a bad idea right now, and it wasn’t a risk Mirabelle was going to take.

She nodded when Srenal spoke to her. “I won’t take your… revenge away from you,” she said, her eyes briefly flicking over to Noel. “I have no intention of fighting you, as I fear I wouldn’t enjoy the aftermath. However…” She tilted her head a little to the right, giving Srenal an even gaze. “Would you mind terribly if I stayed here to see the outcome of this? I’d like to see just how powerful the other Time Demons around here are. Like I said, I have no wish to intervene. I have no business in whatever matters you’re dealing with, but if I won’t interfere, then you should have no problem with me staying here. Yes?”

It was true. Mirabelle wanted to see exactly what Srenal was capable of – she needed to analyse just how much threat she was in around her. Also, if the boy who had supposedly meddled in Srenal’s business showed up, and he, too, was a Time Demon, then she’d possibly be able to find out more on this situation.

If things get too dangerous, Mirabelle thought, then I’ll take my leave and warp out of here. Regardless of the situation, I don’t need to make any enemies.

Srenal kept her hand around Noel's throat as she walked behind her. She then put her dagger to her throat and let go of the throat to wrap her arm around Noel's waiste. She rested her head against Noel's shoulder and smiled looking at Mirabelle. "That's such a shame Mirabelle, what if I didn't want you to know how powerful I am?" Srenal pouted, then nuzzled Noel's neck. "That should be perfectly find if you stay though, because I doubt you'll learn much from me." She smiled turnign her attention to Noel. "It's a shame that Dante couldn't stay out of my business. Niser has developed a certain fondness of you."

Noel was still not sure how she could get out of this situation. She was still processing the fact this girl wanted to kill her and in front of Big Brother. With Srenal now laying head on Noels shoulder and saying it was Dante's fault she was about to die. She had to formulate a plan. Something crazy and unexpected. She began to think about the different things she could do to escape. But decided to distract Srenal with a question. "What did he do?" She asked careful not to cut herself with the dagger.

Mirabelle's gaze darkened at Srenal's words. She didn't like being threatened, and she got the feeling that Srenal thought of her as weak. While it was true that Mirabelle probably wasn't even close to being as powerful as her, she wasn't completely defenceless. Still... there was no need for Srenal, or anyone, to know that.

She briefly wondered if she should have just left after all, but if she backed out now, then Srenal would think she was a coward. Mirabelle had made her decision, and now she had to stand by it.

Srenal thought for a few moments before deciding to answer the girl's question. She couldn't get distracted if not much thought was put into it. If the questions got too nosey, she could always tell her to shut up. She sighed and looked straight ahead. "Dante put his nose where it doesn't belong, then he decided to share information that wasn't his to share." She couldn't give a straightt forward answer unless she wanted to give too much information away.

She glanced at Mirabelle and smiled. "You know to stay out of my business, right?"

Noel still hadn't thought up a plan and Srenal didn't even take a few seconds to answer the question. She had to do something not only did she not have a plan but she was very uncomfortable with Srenal all over her. She kept thinking of ways she could escape. "Well Noel can always take the rooftops.." She thought it over and decided it was a bad idea. She would completely open. "Hmmm..... Noel could run home, get Inferno and burn her to a crisp..." She didn't want to hurt Niser. So she discarded that plan. Then it came to her. "The sewers." She'd used them before to evade Enforcers. "Now all Nelly has to do is something that'll leave Srenal in shock." She thought about it. But didn't know what she could. She didn't give up and kept thinking.

At Srenal's question, Mirabelle nodded. "Of course," she said. "And I trust you know to stay out of mine, too. In which case, I do hope we can coexist without causing any trouble. I'd hate to make an enemy out of you, Srenal; enemies can get ever so tiresome, and I personally don't feel like making any new ones."

She looked over at Noel, who seemed uncomfortable at least, what with Srenal getting so... cuddly with her. Somewhere inside her, Mirabelle felt vague sympathy for the girl; she was being punished for something she wasn't even responsible for. The spark of sympathy was very faint, however. Mirabelle had buried that emotion a long time ago, seeing that it served her no use.

Srenal pressed the blade slightly harder againts Noel's throat, but not hard enough to draw blood. It was a warning. She didn't want Noel to get any ideas while she was talking to Mirabelle.

She gave Mirabelle a smile and nodded. "Then we can coexist in piece. It gets annoying to have to punish my enemies every time they step out of line." Srenal giggled at Mirabelle, "We could even possibly be allies. I don't have enough of those." She seemed enthusiastic about the idea.

She looked back at Noel. "We could have been allies too. I have a feeling we'd be good allies."

Noel was even more uncomfortable when Srenal said they could have been "good allies". Srenal was getting too.... "cozy" and Noel was starting to blush a little. But she though those thoughts out her mind it was time to decide. Noel thought about how to escape Srenal. Yet nothing came to her mind. "There has to be something." She said in her mind.

She kept thinking about what she could do to escape. "Step on her foot? No she could still slice Noels throat." She kept thinking. "Elbow her and run. No she could warp appear in front of Noel." It was frustrating. All she needed was a small chance and she could run to the nearest sewer opening and make her way to the Rails. Where Dante would be arriving soon. After that all she had to do was let Big Brother protect her.

When Srenal mentioned that they could become allies, Mirabelle's eyes snapped over to focus on her. The idea certainly sparked interest.

Mirabelle nodded. "I don't have allies to speak of, either," she said slowly, a little unsure. "I imagine having an ally... would be useful. Yes." Her voice became more certain. "That sounds like a decent idea."

Inside, she was still wary. Mirabelle didn't trust Srenal, not one bit. She wasn't sure if becoming 'allies' with her would work, but it was certainly preferable to having her as an enemy. Besides, it had been a long time since Mirabelle had allied with anyone.

"Thank you," Sally said with a smile to Dante. "I could have found us a place in time, but I'm sure that would be a lot more useful." Everyone was getting out of their seats and headed off the Rail. "It's hard to stay together in this mess, and I need to use the little girls room, so I'll meet you guys outside." Sally waited until there was a large enough opening and slipped into the crowd, wanting to be far enough away that Thom couldn't kick her bag. After she came off the Rail, she made sure that they weren't out yet and slipped off down a nearby alley. The public bathrooms in the Outer Line were too disgusting for her, anyway. Luckily, nobody was over there, and she crouched down with her suitcase behind a turn in the wall.

"Well, here we are," she muttered, laying the bag down and opening it a bit. She didn't want to fling it open in case Kim's hood was off. God fobid anyone from the Outer Line see a member of The Church... She figured it was safe enough for her to walk around, though; it wasn't unusual in the area for hooded strangers to come by, so nobody made a fuss out of it. "Sorry for the rough ride, Kim. Are you alright?"

Thom nodded and looked at Dante. "Let's go then." He slid his hands in to his pockets and headed outside. It was odd to him that Sally was going to the bathroom, since he knew the public bathrooms in the Outer Line ewre discusting, but he wasn't about to comment on it. Whatever she waas doing, she'd return from.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal was delighted to see the rail arrive. She smiled and wrapped her arm a little tighter around Noel's waist. She giggled and nuzzled Noel's neck. "This is where the fun begins." She was ignoring Mirabelle now. She could deal with the new ally later. She had a job to finish now. She giggled with anticipation.

Dante knew that Sally was taking her friend out of the bag. When he heard Thom say it was time to go he followed him out. Dante was relieved to get out of the suffocating atmosphere the Rail had. He took a deep breath and let out a sigh. "Man it's been almost half a year since I've been here." He said as he walked out with Thom. This was the placed he loved most in existence. He was finally home.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Noel couldn't take anymore. Srenal had gotten too comfortable and Noel was starting to feel more and more nervous. When the train arrived she felt as if part of her was already dead. "Okay Noel you have to do something. Now!" She thought about it and an idea came to mind. Though it wasn't the most pleasing one it was the only one that came mind. She slowly turned to Srenal and kissed her. As soon as she did that she ducked, made a run for it and saw Dante. "Big Brother!" She screamed and ran to him. She tackled him and made him slam up against the train. She was safe.

Mirabelle stared as the rail arrived. Srenal looked delighted, until--

Well, Mirabelle hadn't seen that coming. She watched, surprised, as Noel ran screaming towards the Time Demon boy from the night before - Dante.

Slowly, Mirabelle turned back to look at Srenal, wondering what her reaction would be. Doubtless, she would not be pleased with this new turn of events.

Thom raised a brow at the girl hurtling toward Dante but chose not to comment. He looked in the direction the girl came from and was surprised to see the Time Demon from before and another girl.

He glanced at Dante, "I suppose that's the girl you cared about?" He already knew the answer sincee the Time Demon was there. He was debating between leaving and watching. It would be interesting, but what would he do if there was a fight? He'd figure soemthing out. This wasn't what he expected to walk out to.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal was surprised that the girl was kissing her. She didn't know what to do, but the next moment, she was gone. She pouted when she saw the girl run over to Dante, "Aww. I didn't hurt you, did I?" She cautiosly walked over to the two focusing her attention on the girl.

Srenal gripped her head and fell onto her knees. Niser had been fighting her this whole time, and Srenal's inner strength was getting weak. Her inner turmoil was causing a massive headache, but just as quickly as it started, it stopped.

Niser stood now rubbing her templed with a pout. "That hurt. Why's Srenal have to fight so hard?" She looked at Noel and smiled, "Your okay!" She smiled and ran to Noel, but stopped when she saw Dante there. When she saw him, she pouted with a look of shame on her face. "I'm sorry for the trouble Srenal has caused. I tried to stop it."

Dante hit the train hard. Really hard. He scratched his head wondering what or who hit him. "Ouuuuch... What the hell just.." He saw Noel and immediately forgot about the pain. He hugged her and raised his a bit hood. "How are you Nelly?" He asked but she didn't answer instead she was starring at the direction she came from and noticed the Time Demon was back but this wasn't the same personality and when she mentioned her name in third person Dante realized that she had more than one personality in her like him. "It's ok. I understand how it feels to have to share your body." He said as he began extending his hand toward her but wasn't able to before Noel ran to the girl, grabbed her hands and started jumping from joy. "Yay! Niser's back!" She screamed as she went back to Dante's side. She turned to him and said. "I'm great cause I made a new friend!" She exclaimed as she giggled and tugged Dante's sleeve. "This is going to be a long day." Dante said in his mind.

Crest got off the Rails, already wishing that the day would end. The teacher had droned on and on about the rules for the trip once, not for the first time that day, and had given them the directions to the houses where they were supposed to come back to before curfew. He'd missed the direction however, while thinking about other things, and decided that he'd just have to ask an Enforcer or one of his classmates about it later.

The Outer Line really was just as bad as what it was described to be. The people, the streets, everything was dirty. He sighed. He'd attract a lot of attention then, as a person from Center, even if he was wearing the same kind of clothing that the people here wore. His clothes were too clean, his hair too soft, his face too fresh. He didn't have that look in their eyes, didn't walk the same way they did, didn't have that desperate feeling behind everything that he did. He'd need to find an alley quick then. Somewhere that he would be invisible, where nobody would think of robbing him or singling him out as a Center Liner.

His eyes scanned the area, and he found an alleyway nearby that was well out of the way. When he got to the beginning of it, he saw that unlike what he wanted, he wasn't alone. He was about to turn around and walk away, when he saw that it was the same girl who'd woken him up. Curiosity paused his steps as he wondered as to what she would be doing in an alleyway like this. The blue-blonde girl was opening her big bag, and was speaking to it. Crest found it was weird that the girl would name a bag "Kim," but he thought of it as none of his business. He started to walk away again when he tripped and made his suitcase fall over himself, a loud thudding noise coming with it.

Kim blinked her eyes at the sudden intrusion of light. "Sally? Can I finally get out of this thing?"

She pulled herself partway out of the bag so she could see her surroundings, pulling her hood over her head as she sat up.

Sally watched as Kim came out. She didn't have the heart to stuff her back in when she heard the sound behind her, figuring that she had pulled her hood over fast enough. She glanced back to see what had happened, and she found the younger boy on the ground with his suitcase. "It's alright, Kim. You can come out now. As long as your hood's on, you should be fine. Now, I'm gonna go handle this..."

She stood up and dusted herself off before walking to the boy, offering him a hand. "Sorry, I guess you saw something a little weird... Don't mind us. Anyway, are you alright? It's not safe for such a young boy to walk around the Outer Line alone."

Kim glanced around Sally to see a young boy sitting on his suitcase. Sally walked up to him and offering him help. "Hey," Kim said suddenly, "you look familiar. Do I know you?"

Crest hesitated before he grabbed the girl's hand and pulled himself off the ground. He let go and dusted off his clothes, and then opened his suitcase to pull out a notebook. He grabbed a pen from his pocket and wrote down Um... Thank you for that. I'm on a class trip and was looking for somewhere to read my books in peace. I really hope you don't get offended if I say this, but two young girls also shouldn't be on these streets alone. He turned the notebook so that it could face the girls.

When the girl who had come out from the bag addressed him, he took a good look at her before he turned back the notebook and wrote I remember you. You went in the Library in Center Line a few times, hiding from who-knows-what. What were you doing in that bag?

Honestly, Mirabelle was having a little trouble keeping up with all this. Apparently there had been a personality switch, as the girl before her, who just a few moments had been ready to kill someone, was now a completely different person. Niser was back. Part of Mirabelle was relieved - at least the threat of Srenal was gone, for now. She quickly put her dagger away, deciding there was no need for it. This Dante boy didn't appear to be posing much of a threat right now.

She looked over curiously in his direction, and then back at Niser. Mirabelle wasn't really sure what to do now that things seemed to be calming down.

Should I leave now? Mirabelle wondered.

Niser giggled at Noel's enthusiasm to see her. She was acting the first time she met Noel, but she still liked the enthusiasm. She looked back at Dante with a smile, "You better keep a closer eye on Noel. Srenal has most of the control over this body, and I wouldn't want to risk Noel getting hurt." She went over to Mirabelle still smiling, "You don't have much to fear of Srenal though. It seems that she likes you."

Niser looked confused for a moment trying to think. "That's weird. Srenal rarely likes anyone. She doesn't even like me or Rxnion, and we share her body and often help her with her plans." She glanced at Dante with a giggle, "She hates Dante the most though. She hates him more than she's hated anyone in a long time!"

Dante knew what Niser meant. He himself has had problems controlling Cerberus. He gave Niser a smile. "Don't worry about Noel..." He put his arm around Noel. "I never take my eyes off of her when I'm here." He laughed when Niser said that Srenal hated him more than she's hated anyone in a long time. "I figured as much. But I'm not worried." He looked at Noel and then back at Niser. "Don't worry about Noel getting hurt. I'd die before letting anyone even lay a hand on her." He let go of Noel and extended his hand. "Now why don't we properly introduce ourselves. My name's Dante what's yours?" He said with a smile.

Noel watched as Dante talked with Niser. Then he let her go and extended his hand. "Big Brother seems different...." The thought echoed in her head. Something had changed but what? She stopped thinking about it and moved to Dante's left side. She wrapped herself around his arm and whispered into his ear. "Big Brother when are we going home?" She wanted to tell him what happened but somewhere private. Dante leaned a little and whispered. "Soon Nelly."

When Niser told her that Srenal seemed to like her, Mirabelle blinked, looking vaguely surprised.

"Oh... she does?" She paused for a moment. "Well, that's good to hear," she said finally. "Seeing as it seems we've become allies and all. Should I feel honoured?"

It was then that Mirabelle realised she'd been completely ignoring the others around her; there was the other Time Demon boy, Dante, and standing right next to him was another guy, human, who also seemed to be ignoring everyone. Mirabelle stared at him. She'd seen him last night, too, outside Sally's house. Another somewhat odd character, she thought. She wondered how long it would take for him to notice that he was being stared at, or what it would take to snap him out of it. He hadn't acted at all during the events that had just passed.

Niser smiled and shook Dante's hand, "My name is Niser. It's great meeting you! I'm glad that you're looking after Noel." She looked back and Mirabelle when she asked if she should feel honored and shrugged. "Srenal's not super special or anything. She just has a bad temper and likes messing with people's minds. You can feel honored if you want. I'm glad glad that she doesn't get on everybody's bad side." She smiled back at Dante, "You should get going soon. I can't keep control of this body for long." She pouted, "Though I would like to play with Noel some time if I can get better control."

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Thom was observing the scene that unfolded in front of him with boredom. He didn't see a need to do anything when he wasn't acknowledged. He was watching Niser when he felt someone staring at him. He turned to find the source and was surprised it was the other girl that had been with Noel and Niser when they got off the train. He gave a small wave and sighed. He was waiting for Sally to get back. At least she made sense to him.

He decided that he should voice his opinions though, "I honestly wouldn't trust you or Srenal." The statement was pointed at Niser. He looked at the other girl, "How can you trust her after what I assume you saw before we got here?" He turned to Noel and Dante, "How can you guys trust Niser knowing that Srenal could take over at any minute?" He rolled his eyes, "The worst part is that she mentioned there's another personality in that body, and we don't know what that one's like. Rxnion could also take over at any time. Does anyone know if that one's safe to be around?"

Dante smiled at Niser. "Of course. I'm sure Noel would love that. Right Noel?" Noel nodded. Dante understood what she was saying about them having to leave for the good of most of them. "Well then we better go get Sally and head to the house." When he heard what Thom had said he turned to him with a smile. "That's simple. I never let my guard down. Even now I'm ready to take out anyone who seems threatening." He took a quick glance at Niser. "The reason I trust her is because she's obviously the innocent and nice personality..." He cracked his neck trying to get rid of the pain from crashing against the train. "Besides the one we should worry about is Rxnion. If my logic is correct that's the violent one."

Noel had stopped paying attention to their conversation since Dante asked her about playing with Niser. She was still troubled by what she had to do to escape from Srenal. She began to stare at Niser. "Something wrong Nelly?" Dante whispered. "Uh... I.. Nelly'll tell you later. Ok Big Brother?" She said still staring at Niser. Dante nodded. She would never admit it but she  kinda liked it when Srenal was holding her. "Wait what?!?! What is Noel thinking!?!?" She screamed in her head. She had to stop those kinda thoughts. But the more she tried the less they got out of her head. She'd even started to blush. She slowly hid herself a little behind Dante but kept starring at Niser. 

Mirabelle nodded when Niser replied to Mirabelle's earlier question. "I see. Well, we shall see how we'll turn out as allies, I suppose."

She was slightly startled when the older guy next to Dante noticed her staring so quickly. Guess he hadn't been spacing out much after all. He even gave her a small wave. For a moment, Mirabelle was tempted to wave back, but decided against it.

At his question of how she could trust Srenal after what she'd just seen, Mirabelle stepped forward. "While trust is a delicate thing, Srenal and I reached an agreement. I put faith in that as long as the agreement is kept, the two of us will be able to coexist as allies," she said smoothly. "And if, for whatever reason, that faith is betrayed, then I will protect myself. It seems rather simple to me, really. While it's dangerous to blindly trust everyone, no progress can be made without sometimes taking risks." She tilted her head to the side, looking at the guy. "You've taken risks before, haven't you?"

Mirabelle was being mostly truthful in what she was saying. She did have a certain amount of trust in the 'agreement' she'd made with Srenal, but was very wary of Srenal herself, and most certainly didn't trust her enough. She knew she needed to watch her back around her, especially since Rxnion could take over at any time, like the boy before had said. Yes, she could protect herself if she needed to; she could even use her... other power if things got very bad. However, she'd prefer not to get into any such situation in the first place, particularly when Rxnion sounded especially dangerous.

Niser pouted at Dante, "Aww, now that I know Noel is safe, I dont have a reason to be out anymore." She looked at Noel and smiled, "Maybe we can play some time!" She sighed and rubbbed her temples, "but I've gotta go now. This is Srenal's body more than mine after all."

Niser had closed her eyes, and when thry opened back up, Srenal was once again in control. "Finally, I can't stand it when I have no control over my body." Srenal looked at Dante and sighed. "No use doing anything while you're here to protect her, but would you mind if I talked to her?" Srenal felt stupid for needing Dante's opinion, but she knew that he wouldn't allow her to just walk up to Noel. She wasn't about to fight for sometthing she's given up on.

Dante sensed no threat from Srenal and stepped out of her way revealing the blushing Noel. "Sure. You're not threatening right now so I guess it's ok." He didn't even bother looking at Noel. "Are you serious? You're letting her near Noel?" Cerberus asked with confusion in his tone. "Yes. You see Cerberus if one is to earn trust one must give trust." He said softly in his mind. He'd begun thinking about his plans. Not the ones on the journal. No this were his secret plans and the just so happened to connect to Sally's which was perfect because now he can pieces to the board.

-Change-

Noel was sad that Niser had left but was surprised when Srenal asked Dante if she could talk to her. What was the most surprising was the fact Dante said yes. "What are you doing Big Brother!?!?" She screamed in her head. It was bad enough she couldn't stop the thoughts about Srenal but now she was going to talk to her. She got a little bit more red. "Somebody please kill Noel. Please." She pleaded in her head. This was going to be awkward.

Srenal smiled and walked up to Noel. "I'm sorry for earlier Noel," Srenal patted Noel's head with a pout, "and I'm very sorry that I tried to hurt you." She kissed Noel on the cheek and whispered in her ear, "I've learned now how amazing you are, and I couldn't stand to attempt hurting you again."

Srenal smirked at Dante, "You on the other hand, don't forget that I still want revenge. I won't play nice just because little Noel here cares so much about you." She looked back at Noel, "I only care what happens to Noel." She patted Noel's head with a smile.

Noel hadn't expected the change of attitude Srenal had toward her and the way she was treating her was a lot like how Big Brother treats her. She was glad that Dante wouldn't have to worry about her. But what Srenal did and said caught off guard. "I've learned now how amazing you are, and I couldn't stand to attempt hurting you again? What does she mean by amazing and why is she treating me like Big Brother?" The questions rose up and started to accumulate. She was so distracted by the questions she didn't even realize how red she'd gotten. She was so nervous she was starring at the floor and when Srenal patted her head all she could do was smile. She noticed that Dante was trying to figure what the Hell was going on. She would have a lot of explaining to do. This was turning into one Hell of a day.

-Change-

Dante had overheard what Srenal said to Noel. He had no idea what she meant but he had the feeling Noel would tell him later. When Srenal said she was still going to get revenge Dante turned to her with a grin but when she said she wasn't going to play nice just because Noel cared about him he gave Srenal a wide smile, something he usually avoided, and said. "I look forward to it." But when he heard Srenal say "I only care what happens to Noel." he found himself questioning the intentions of the girl. "Well at least we don't have to worry about Noel anymore." Said Cerberus to Dante in a relaxed tone. "Yeah but now we to worry about her." He whispered as he gave Srenal and Noel a quick glance. He sighed and scratched his head. It seemed that this really was going to be a long day. 

Srenal smiled and walked over to Mirabelle. She had almost forgotten that she had something to discuss with her. "I hope we can become allies of sorts. It's been a long time since I've ever been on good terms with someone." She glared at Dante, "Which is mostly because some people don't know better to stay out of my business." She smiled back at Mirabelle, "You know better though. I didn't even have to warn you."

Srenal glanced at Noel, "You're cute Noel. I hope I hadn't scared you off earlier." She pouted, "I'd be sad if I did." She looked back at Dante once more, "I'm not dragging anyone else into our battles. This disagreement we have will be between you and me." She smiled at Noel, "It just won't be here and now. I don't want to frighten Noel more than I already have."

Mirabelle nodded in response to Srenal. "I'm sure we will," she replied. "I can barely remember the last time I had any allies..." She gave a wry smile. "It seems nice, though. I'm glad we could meet."

Mirabelle smoothed down the creases in her clothes. "Anyway, I suppose I've seen all there is to see here. Unless anything more is about to happen, I think I should take my leave. I take it there is nothing else you wish to discuss?" she said, looking at Srenal.

Dante was becoming bored. He sighed. Noel walked up to his side and elbowed him. She looked at him with serious eyes and spoke softly. "Be nice Big Brother or I'll cut you off." Dante's eyes widened and he immediately responded. "Ok sorry." Noel smiled at Srenal and answered the question if she'd been scared by her. "No you didn't scare me. I've seen scarier...." She quickly glanced at Dante. "Things." She immediately looked back at Srenal and smiled. "So don't worry." 


Dante agreed with Srenal about not dragging anyone into their fight and leaving it for later. "Don't worry about me dragging anyone into our fight. It's between you and me and it'll stay like that." He unhooked his case and pointed it at Srenal. "But next time we meet we'll settle this." He smiled at her, hooked the case back on his back and turned to Noel. "But don't worry Nelly I won't kill her." He smiled at her and placed his arm around her. Noel smiled back at him and asked. "Really?" He nodded.

Srenal made an over-exaggerated-mock-bow to Dante before smiling at Noel. "I hope we can see each other again, Noel. You are quite endearing." She waved to the group before walking away. Dante was becoming quite the bother, and he was temporarily an obstacle in her plans, but she deal with him soon enough. The thought brought a smirk to her lips. Just because she had a change in heart with Noel, mostly because of Niser, didn't mean that she won't get her way in the end. Srenal made sure that she always got her way in the end.

Before leaving, she looked at Mirabelle, "Remember this. If you want to be my aly, you'll have to be willing to deal with the hell that'll be caused by my actions, and my actions will be sure to cause hell." She glanced at Dante before looking back at Mirabelle, "If I would have to give you any good reason, it's because of my revenge streak. As of currently, I've always been able to get what I want, and I don't take nicely to any unwanted problems interfering with my plans."

Srenal's mood instantly cheered up and she smiled waving to Mirabelle, then waving to everyone else, before leaving. As she walked off she shouted over her shoulder, "I'm looking forward to settling this Dante. I hope you don't disappoint me. It's been a while before I've had any fun!" She giggled and continued walking and turned a corner where the roads crossed. She'd have to tag along with the group later to complete her plans, but she didn't want them thinking that. Her hope was that they thought she'd be gone for good until she was ready to confront them directly, of course that would never happen.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Thom shook his head at what had just happened. He was not following at all. This was all not going according to plan, and all of the information he's been bombarded with in the past twenty-four hours was beginning to confuse him. He did not take lightly to shocking information. The Cocktower was the second most important thing to him, and he'd not give up so easily. Not when he was so close. He growled.

He looked everyone over and shook his head deciding to get questions now. "You," He pointed to Mirabelle with a glare, "Who are you, and how do you know that girl who just left?" He looked rolled his eyes, "Who the fuck is that girl anyways?' He glared at Dante, "Who's she?" He pointed at Noel, "and why is she so important?" He rolled his eyes before looking at Noel, "Why on earth was that girl who just left acting like that? I don't even know the girl, but she didn't seem like the kind of person who'd just change her mind so easily."

He rolled his eyes looking around. The events so far had taken a while, and Sally still hadn't returned. She was beginning to be a troublesome addition, and he was beginning to wonder if he could just go without her. "Where the fuck is Sally? Does it seriously take that longer for a girl to take a piss?" He looked back at Mrabelle, "You're a girl, does it seriously take you girls a long time to take a piss? What kind of person, especially a girl, want to stay in the gross bathrooms here for that long?"

It was official. Srenal had annoyed both him and Cerberus and when Cerberus is annoyed with someone they usually end up lying dead in a ditch. Dante had noticed how Srenals attitude had changed and was starting to get an idea of what had happened between Noel and Srenal. "Oh crap not another girl crush." Cerberus said with a very displeased and angry tone. It wouldn't have been the first time. 
He decided it was best to answer Thoms questions but he waited until Srenal had left. He turned to Thom. "Ok to answer your questions. Answer to your first question: This girl's my...." He thought about how he was going to answer the question. "Uhh.... Little sister." He looked at Noel and then back at Thom. "That's why she's important. She's my only weakness." He gently shoved Noel telling her to answer the other question.
_________________________Character_Change!_________________________
Noel was scared of the red haired boy in front of her. But knew that it was best for her to answer his question. "W..well you see... I sorta kissed her so I could get away from her and run here so Big Brother could protect me. But it seems that both Srenal and Niser have taken a liking to me. So at least now you won't have to worry about me Big Brother." She looked at Dante and smiled innocently hoping he wouldn't do the whole 'We need to have a talk' shit. It was effective and noticeable on Dantes face.

Mirabelle gave a single nodded once Srenal had finished speaking. “Fine,” she said. “I’m happy to abide by those terms. I’ve dealt with many kinds of ‘hell’ in my time. By now, I daresay I’m quite used to it.” She offered a cold smile which didn’t reach her eyes. “Of course, I won’t get in the way of your revenge.”

Does she take me for a total weakling? This question whirred through Mirabelle’s mind as she watched Srenal walk away. She wasn’t even sure how she felt about Srenal. Something about her had Mirabelle somewhat irritated; she didn’t take kindly to being belittled, by anyone. The fact that Srenal had managed to get any such reaction out of her in the first place irritated Mirabelle even more. Still, what did it matter? She was just an ally. As far as Mirabelle had seen, allies could be easily discarded. Cutting ties was much easier than it seemed, if necessary.

Mirabelle turned when Thom spoke to her. She evenly returned the glare he was giving her. “Who am I, you ask?” she enquired mildly. “My name is Mirabelle. If you must know, I’m of the same race as Srenal and your friend Dante over there, though without the personality… complications.” She shrugged. “I only met Srenal recently, so I can’t say I’m very well acquainted with her. I’ve simply formed an alliance of sorts with her. Allies can be a very useful thing to have, you see. Although, I’d like to clarify that I refuse to be held responsible for anything that Srenal does that might bother you. We might be allies, but I get the feeling that our motives are quite different.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Yes, I’m a girl,” she continued. “That’s a riveting observation. As for your question, has it crossed your mind that perhaps Sally is doing something other than going to the bathroom? Needing the toilet is one of the oldest excuses ever when someone wants to do something they don’t want anyone to know about.” She shrugged again. “Then again, you never know. We girls are so very different from you men.” She gazed at Thom scornfully. “Now then, are there any other questions you wish to ask? I don’t much appreciate being interrogated.”

Thom growled rubbing his temples. It seemed that Srenal would be the source of most of his problems. He rolled his eyes and looked at Mirabelle, "No, don't let me keep you. I'm done 'interigating you' as you put it. Unfortunately, non of this makes sense to me." He understood that Sally was most likely not even going to the bathroom, but he was getting impatient nad wanted Sally to get back from whatever she wa doing.

He growled with annoyance, "I'll be expecting answers when Sally gets back." He looked at Dante then to Noel, "It seems that your new little friend's going to be an issue though, and if I hated anyone at this moment, it'd certainly be her." He shook his head with a disappointed sigh, "Why does someone have to be so unpredictable? There's no way that I can form a plan around that."

Unlike he had mentioned, a plan was already forming in his head. It most certainly involved Srenal, but it mostly depended upon the more predictable people he knew. He intertwined his fingers and pressed his thumbs together trying to think. So far, he didn't care about Mirabelle or what she did. He doubted her plans would interfere with his, but Srenal, Dante, and Noel would be a problem. The thought made him gorwl in annoyance.

Dante hated it when people assumed Noel was going to be an inconvenience, but Cerberus despised and he was sick of standing idle, metaphorically speaking. Dante removed his eyepatch and placed it over his blue eye revealing his yellow eye. He cleared his throat and looked at Thom with a crazed look in his yellow eye. Cerberus was now in control and he spoke with cold and deep voice. "Now listen here bub!  Noel isn't going to cause us problems." He took a step toward Thom. "She isn't even coming along and even if she was she wouldn't be a problem she can handle herself quite well with all the things Dante has showed her." 

He gave Noel a quick glance and realized she was gone. She had somehow slipped away and was now next to Thom. He growled in annoyance. Cerberus knew Noel didn't like him. In fact she hated him. "Well I'm not staying where I'm not welcomed." He gave Noel a creepy smile and bowed. "It was good seeing you again Nelly." He took his eyepatch and placed it over his yellow eye. Dante was back. "Sorry about Cerberus. He is a tad.... Aggressive." He gave a short laugh and scratched the back of his head. "Good thing he wasn't too mad or things might have gotten violent." 

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Noel despised Cerberus and was relieved when Dante came back. She turned to Thom and with a preppy and cheery tone. "It was a pleasure meeting you Mr. Thom." She then turned to Mirabelle. "It was nice to meet someone like Big Brother. Especially since you seem like an actually good person." She walked over to Dante. "Big Brother I'm gonna go on ahead and head home. I'll be wating so don't take to long." She gave Dante a kiss on the cheek and began to walk away from the group. She gave Dante one last glance over her shoulder and smiled before disappearing around the corner. "He better not take too long." She said in her head.

Mirabelle was surprised when Noel spoke to her, and even more surprised by what she said. After all, she'd done nothing to even attempt at saving Noel earlier. Nobody had called her a 'good person' in… she didn't even know how long. She kept a straight face, however, and nodded in response. "I'm sorry we had to meet under such circumstances," she said. "I wish you well, Noel. By the looks of it, Srenal won't bother you in future."

Then, something occurred to Mirabelle. How hadn't she realised earlier!? This was her perfect chance. She'd wanted information, and now was her perfect chance to get it. She briskly walked over to Thom, staring him directly in the eyes.

"Wait," she said. "I think it's my turn to ask you some questions. What exactly are you planning?" She tilted her head to the side, keeping her eyes locked on his. "I've been seeing you round lately, and I can see that you're doing something out of the ordinary. I'm not usually one to interfere in others' business, but…" She shrugged. "I suppose I have an odd feeling about this. All I want is to know your plans. I'm not an authority figure, so you needn't worry about me reporting you or trying to stop you or anything like that. I guess all I need is to be assured that whatever's going on, it won't have any drastic consequences." She paused for a moment. "I'd like for some level of peace to be maintained in this manic world."

Thom stared at Dante, or another personality within Dante's body from what Thom could tell. Thom vaguely remembered Dante saying he knew what Niser was going trough for he too had to share his body. Thom tensed slightly noticing the other personality, but held his gaze. If Thom were attacked, he'd be dead. Thom knew that much. He hadn't the slightest chance at protecting himself with his wimpy knife.

Thom's hands slid into his pocket to grip said knife, and glanced at Noel beside him. Thom hadn't really noticed her move, and he didn't care. His main concern was this personality that seemed to not be fond of him. When Dante took back over, Thom couldn't help but feel relief, but he held tight to the knife in his pocket.

"Cerberus, huh?" Thom smirked pretending as if he hadn't just tensed a moment ago to the other's presence. "He seem's like quite the character. I'll have to make a note to not make him too mad, or else it might just be the end of me." Thom gave Noel a small wave when she left.

Thom looked at what seemed to be the new threat, Mirabelle. He smirked a her question and shrugged. Of course he saw her as a threat, but he got the feeling that Mirabelle could hold no real intent to kill. Thom shrugged at her question and glanced at Dante before looking back at Mirabelle. This was wuite the predicament that he'd been put in.

"You see, it's not that I don't trust you to not go squealing, but I'm afraid I can't tell you here." Thom shrugged absentmindedly. It was the truth. "I'm quite well known to the enforcers around here. I'm almost as well know by them as in the Middle Line."

Thom gave an over exagerated sigh, "It's fun and all, but it's not always a good thing. They know to keep their eye on me, and they're probably watching right now." Thom walked over to Mirabelle and whispered in her ear, "You see, I don't think that the enforcer's would take lightely to my plan on commiting one of the forbidens." Thom smiled backing up once more, "I'd say we should talk elsewhere, but I'm kind of waiting for someone."

Thom looked over at Dante with a smirk, "Unless Dante's willing to stay here and wait so that he may inform Sally when she returns of my whereabouts, I can't leave, but that's not the realy problem."

Thom looked back at Mirabelle, "The real problem is that I don't trust Dante enough to know that he'd keep his word. How do I know that he won't go wandering off to finish the business that brought him here? That'd be quite a prolbem."

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Srenal had warped behind a building not far from where they stood. She could never stay away long. When she heard the conversation, a huge smile spread across her face. Perhaps she'd finally get the answer that she's been looking for. The thought made her grow impatient.

She crossed her fingers silently hoping that Thom would leave to tell Mirabelle the answer to the question. She was too far away to hear anything he whispered, or know that he had whispered at all. She had to be too far to be spotted, and it made it hard for her to even hope to watch the events unfold. She could only hope that the fates were on her side.

She closed her eyes spending all fo her effort into listening to the noises around her, but she was more focused on the noises of the three she's been tailing. She couldn't just leave without an answer. She knew something was up, and she had to know if it was interesting enough for her to bother watching, or if she should just bother Dante more. This looked like it would be too much fun to miss.

Dante was face had reddened after Noel kissed him. It banished when he gave a short laugh at hearing Thom take note about not angering Cerberus. “Don’t worry about him. He won’t harm you as long as don’t want him to.” He sighed and looked at Thom. “You’re right Thom. What the hell could take Sally this long?” Though he already knew the answer to that question. He sat on the floor and crossed his legs. It looked as if he was going to meditate.He looked up at Thom. “I’ll stay here and make sure to tell Sally. I give my word as a warrior. But before you go...”

He began to search through his coats pockets. “I know I put somewhere around here… Ah here we go.” He took out a piece of paper and slowly handed it to Thom. “Here this has the address to my house.” He looked at Mirabelle and then looked in front of him. He closed his eyes and put his hands together. It looked as if he was praying. “Also I have a question for you Mirabelle. I hope you don’t mind me asking. I don’t normally ask this but the curiosity is killing me. How long would you estimate you’ve been alive?” To Dante a Time Demons level of danger was based on how long they've lived. Depending on the number he could assume how much experience they possessed.Which to him meant how strong they were.

Mirabelle gave a nod once Thom had finished speaking. He seemed to be an... interesting character. Interesting, but somewhat chaotic. People like him had only caused trouble in the past. Mirabelle sighed a little.

"I see," she said. "You're not the first to try committing one of the Forbiddens. I've seen quite a few try it in the past." She shrugged. "With little success, might I add. Or rather, they may have succeeded, but many didn't get to enjoy it for long. At least, that's the case with one Forbidden in particular that I'm thinking of."

Mirabelle was, of course, thinking about the Clocktower. Surely these people weren't planning to try and go in there? She frowned. She didn't see any reason why they'd want to go in there - it was as good as a suicide mission.

That didn't stop me those years ago, though, did it? I had my motives then, and maybe they have theirs now. The thought came unbidden into Mirabelle's mind. She firmly pushed it away. This wasn't the time for dwelling on the past, and besides, she didn't even know if going into the Clocktower was their intention or not.

"Anyway," she continued, glancing at Thom, "Dante just gave you his word he'd stay here. I'd still like to talk with you, if that doesn't inconvenience you too greatly." Mirabelle was surprised at Dante's question. To her, it had seemed to come out of nowhere, and she wasn't sure why he'd want to know such a thing.

"You know, it's considered impolite to ask a girl how old she is," she said lightly. Still..." She didn't see what real harm telling him could do. She raised her eyes to the sky as she thought. "I'm not entirely sure. It's been a while, and the years started merging together a long time ago, making it difficult to recall." She paused. "But I suppose it would be safe to say that I've definitely been around for... around six hundred years or so." She gave a light cough. "Indeed, it's been quite a long time." She glanced at Dante, eyes narrowed slightly. "Any particular reason you wanted to know this?"

Thom smirked and took the piece of paper, looked at it, and slid it into his pocket. "I still don't trust you Dante, but I have a feeling that a conversation with Mirabelle would be interesting." Thom looked at Mirabelle as he slid his hand into his pocket to grab his knife. He hadn't seen enough of these Time Demons to know how useless his action was, but it gave him a feeling of safety. Hearing Mirabelle's age made Thom wince. It was as if he was just beginning to realize how powerless he really was around these people. Feeling powerless wasn't something that Thom was accustomed to. He was use to being manipulative and getting his way.

The idea soothed Thom slightly. They may be strong and have whatever abilities that came with being a Time Demon on their side, but Thom could still manipulate people. That was one thing that could give him the advantage if need be.

Thom glanced from Dante to Mirabelle watching the encounter. If he had any luck they'd finish soon and Thom could get his answers. He smirked thinking about what he knew so far. These Time Demons may come in handy, but that only depended on what their powers were. It also depended on how useful they could be. He sighed, if he's went this long with no knowledge of Time Demons, imagine all of the other creatures that could be out there without his knowledge. Just the thought sent his plan into turmoil. He hated not knowing important information. It left everything to chance. It meant that there was the possibility of his plans going wrong simply because he didn't know any better.

Thom glanced at Mirabelle with a smirk. Maybe she could enlighten him. Someone of her age had to know something useful that he didn't currently know. The thought eased his troubled mind. There were probably going to be more questions from Thom than from Mirabelle.

Dante gave a short laugh. "Sorry. It's just I like to know how long you've lived. It helps me decide just how strong you are..." A grin appeared on his face he opened his eyes and looked at Mirabelle. "So six hundred or so huh?" He scratched his head and gave another short laugh. "I'm around..." He began to count numbers in his head. "Somewhere past 1,000 or so." He looked at Mirabelle from top to bottom.

"I have a feeling you're not the fighting type. Which kinda explains that emotionless and pacifistic persona you have. I mean since most who don't kill usually die in less than 30 years, more or less, and those who kill too much loose their minds I'd say your probably you're in between. You probably preffer order and no bloodshed." He gave a sigh of relieve. "At least I won't have to consider killing you..." He took out his case and laid it in front of him. "Yet..." He closed his eyes once more. "Nicely said brother." Cerberus said in Dantes mind as he began to laugh maniacally. Dante still sitting on the floor turned to Thom. "Yes a conversation with one of us tends to be interesting." He closed his eyes again and put his hands together. "I hope she tells you about our... 'Ablities. Now go on and satisfy your curiousity." He began to mediate. Ignoring everything around him. Dante needed to think about his plans and how he could accomplish them with the help of Thom and Sally.

Mirabelle blinked when Dante announced his age. By now, she should have been accustomed to meeting Time Demons who had been living for very long amounts of time, but all the same, she hadn't been expecting Dante to be this old.

"That's quite a formidable age," Mirabelle observed, keeping her tone neutral. Truth be told, she was beginning to feel distinctly uncomfortable around Dante. This unease increased when he continued talking, and about her too. It felt as though he was analysing every aspect of her, and what made it worse was that so far, he was getting everything right.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "That's true," she said. "I won't deny any of that. Killing needlessly is only a hindrance in the end. Still, that's not to say... that I haven't killed before." Her voice hardened. "I really don't want to make any enemies, Dante. I don't attack unless I have reason to. If I do have a reason, though..." She shrugged. "Anyway, I sincerely hope it won't come to that."

Mirabelle turned to Thom. "Do you want to talk now? I believe my little conversation with Dante has finished, unless there is something more he'd like to say to me, which I doubt." Mirabelle was quite glad she wouldn't have to continue this conversation with Dante any further. So far, it seemed to her that getting involved with him wouldn't do her any favours. "You can answer my questions, and I can answer yours."

Thom nodded at Mirabelle then turned to Dante. "I'll catch up with you later then." Thom turned to Mirabelle and smirked, "I'd only be glad to answer your questions if you were willing to answer mine." Thom began walking knowing that Mirabelle would follow. He wasn't quite sure what he'd think of as a safe place, but if worse comes to worse he could always visit Sarah early. He thought in his head what exactly he'd tell Mirabelle. Chances were that she'd know he was lying, but he didn't know how much of the truth he should tell her. Minimal details were preferable for him though.

"I'm not sure how much this line has changed since my last visit," Thom looked back at Mirabelle, "so I'm not completely sure what place would be safe enough for us to talk." Thom had already ruled out going to Sarah's. After seeing the events between Dante and Srenal, he didn't want to risk the chance of Mirabelle attacking someone else just to get at him. Thom was fairly sure that she wouldn't need to stoop so low. Based on her conversation with Dante, any Time Demon would be able to kill him instantly if he made one wrong move.

Thom would have to play it safe. Mind games were his forte, but he wasn't sure if she'd catch on or not. Perhaps the safest way to go would be to just answer her questions, get some answers, then leave. It wasn't fun, but this was a game he doubted that he could win. He needed to think this through before he decided any plan of action. He began thinking through what he knew so far of Mirabelle and Time Demons. His memories could possibly give him some detail that could be of some use.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal smiled when she heard the conversation. She'd finally get the answer that she's been looking for. Without much thought, Srenal decided that the firs best course of action would be to not get caught. It was bad enough that they knew she was following them, but Srenal hoped that they wouldn't know who she was watching since Dante, Thom, and Sally had split up. It helped that Srenal had showed no real interest in Thom. The only way for them to know who she was watching is if they knew that she knew what Thom was about to tell Mirabelle.

Srenal heard Thom getting close and warped away. She couldn't risk getting caught now. There was too much risk involved not that other Time Demons were meddling in the affairs that she had planned to meddle in. There was too much risk. If Dante saw her again, she'd have to deal with him, which was going to get her caught by Thom and Mirabelle. If Thom saw her, he was likely not to tell Mirabelle the truth. If Mirabelle saw her, Srenal wasn't sure what would happen if Mirabelle saw her. She didn't want to think about it.

At least her face wouldn't be recognized here. The only people who've seen here were those three, Noel, and Sally. Srenal smirked at the thought of Noel. Yes, Srenal was hesitant on killing the girl, but that didn't mean that she couldn't have some fun. Seeing how much Dante cared for the girl had given Srenal an idea. Of course Srenal never had planned to stoop so low as to use a weak human to get revenge. The thought of it made her cringe. She simply wanted to scare Dante. Being with Noel just to bother Dante had two benefits though. She'd be with the girl and would still be bothering Dante. Her revenge would be much sweeter than that though. Srenal may be young, but that didn't mean that she couldn't be cunning. Her greatest strength was the ability to outsmart her enemy. There was no way she'd be able to survive with Niser and Rxnion otherwise.

Mirabelle gave the now meditating Dante one final glance before looking back at Thom. "Fine," she said. "I'm willing to answer your questions. However, when I ask you mine, I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell me lies." If Thom did decide to tell lies, there was little Mirabelle would be able to do about it. He didn't seem to be the very honest type. She'd just have to be careful.

She followed Thom as he began walking away. She already knew more or less what she wanted to ask him. She wanted to know what he and those friends of his were planning, and what they hoped to achieve. Then, she'd probably want to ask about Dante. She hadn't enjoyed the encounter she'd just had with him, and if Thom knew anything about him, extra knowledge could only benefit her.

"By a 'safe' place, you just mean someplace where we wouldn't be overheard, right?" Mirabelle asked, looking at Thom. The fact that he was possibly being tailed by enforcers was certainly an inconvenience. Enforcers probably wouldn't bother Mirabelle, though, given she'd always kept a low profile. They didn't even know who she was. "I haven't visited this line in a while myself, so I'm not sure I know of such a place either. The further we go, though, the less people there are." She shrugged. "I suppose it depends on how determined the encorcers are to keep an eye on you."

Srenal warped on top of a rooftop in a back alley, she thought that no one would come back here. The last thoguht she had in mind was Thom coming back here. What could possibly be so top secret that Thom had to wander so far away from his group in order for him to tell Mirabelle? Srenal knew Thom was secretive, but she didn't think he could possibly be doing something that would be that big of a deal. He never seemed like that type of person to her. That was one of the main reasons that she was only watching Sally and Dante.

Srenal froze when she saw what she had previously thought would never happen. Thom was walking down that alley with Mirabelle following behind. That made Srenal more curious, and she had to see what was going on. She hid in the shadows as she waited for them to pass, then silently followed. She had to know what was up. If Thom's plans were connected to Sally's then she'd finally get the answer that she was looking for. Thom was being cautious of enforcers though, and that may make it harder on Srenal.

Srenal had never had anything against the enforcers, unless they caused her to go out of her way just to go through with her plan. They rarely ever were a problem unless she had to follow people like Thom around. Srenal just remembered why she never enjoyed following the trouble-makers. They always had the most fun and most interesting plans, but they always caused her to go out of her way to do anything because the enforcers were always on the look out for them. Just the thought of it gave Srenal a headache.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Thom smirked at his own cursed luck. The only place where he could ensure that he'd be safe from the enforcers was probably going to be a long walk, but he'd have to get over it. He turned off of the main street and into a back alley that he remembered was usually isolated. It would still lead to where he was going, and there'd be little chance of being seen unless something has changed over the years. Thom could only hope.

"I hope that Dante hadn't planned on seeing us anytime soon then, because it looks like I'll have to give my friend an early visit if I have any hopes of privacy." Thom looked at Mirabelle with a smirk, "The enforcers will be sure to leave us alone there, but I'm bringing you here out of trust." Thom faced forward once more and scanned the rooftops for any enforcers. He saw something that made him smirk, but he continued on his way. There was nothing bad that could come from a shadow. He just had to be more careful with it.

"I'm trusting you to not bother my friend if you have a problem with me. I'm perfectly capable of fighting my own battles." The comment was meant for both Srenal and Mirabelle, but he was just going to let Mirabelee think it was only for her. He'd deal with Srenal later. It wasn't that Thom liked Sarah, but he hated the idea of anyone fighting his battles for him. The thought of anyone, especially Sarah, fighting for him made him cringe. It was a loosing battle for sure. Thom knew he could hardly stand a chance against a Time Demon, anyone else would be dead in a instant.

Mirabelle wondered vaguely where Thom was taking them. It wasn't really a problem either way, since she would always be able to warp back to a familiar zone.

"Your friend?" Mirabelle asked, blinking. "Is that why you came here today, to visit them?" She stifled a sigh. She really hoped that this didn't turn out to be a waste of time. Even though Mirabelle had plenty of time to spare, she really disliked wasting large amounts of it.

Mirabelle noticed that for a moment Thom seemed to briefly scan the rooftops, but she quickly dismissed it. He was probably just making sure no one was following them. Mirabelle doubted anyone would bother following them this far; and Thom seemed to know just where he was going. If anything, any eavesdroppers were unlikely to affect Mirabelle anyway, since Thom was the one being followed around.

"Speaking of Dante, how did you wind up going around with him?" Mirabelle asked. "He seemed... well..." She wasn't sure how to explain herself properly, so she just shook her head. "I guess I'm just not sure why you'd want to mix with him, or vice versa. He must have some ulterior motive." Her tone darkened. "People often do. Also, I have no intention of bothering your 'friend'. If I have any kind of 'problem' with you, you'll be the one I confront about it."

Thom nodded with a brief sigh. He could gather that Mirabelle wouldn't do anything, but he's seen how Srenal acted when she was upset. She was the real threat, and not Mirabelle. Hearing her ask about Dante, Thom thought for a moment on whether or not answering that question fully was the best idea, considering who was following them. It didn't take much thought, because they arrived at Sarah's house at that moment.

Thom stopped and looked at Mirabelle. I'll answer all of your questions inside. He knocked on the door loudly and waited for a moment. While he waited, he looked at Mirabelle with a serious expression on his face. "There are people that I've met that I'd be less willing to work with that Dante. You can't even be an accurate judge of whether or not I'd want to be around him until you've known more about me." He smirked, "I may not be a Time Demon like you are, but it doesn't make me any less of a threat. As for ulterior motives-"

"Tommy!" Sarah had opened the door and tackled Thom. Thom growled at the nickname for him and glared at the girl.

"Damnit, get the fuck off Sarah." He detached her from himself before looking where he guessed Srenal would be hiding and headed inside. "I'll finish explaining everything inside." Sarah followed Thom inside with a huge smile across her face at seeing Thom again.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal growled when Thom considered himself a threat. She wanted him to know just how wrong he was. A smirk spread across her face and she warped into the house. She was one room over from the min room, and would be able to hear anything that was said. For once, she was thankful for the thin walls of the outer line. It was rare she ever visited the outer line, but that was because she didn't want to here everything people were doing, or worse, have everyone here what she was doing.

She pressed her ear against the wall hoping she'd hear what she had come to hear. She didn't want to come all of this way just to have her time wasted and find nothing out. She certainly hoped that this was worth the risk of getting caught, again. If it wasn't worth the waisted time, then Srenal could always take her anger out on that Sarah girl. That would be amusing enough until she could go back to ruining Dante's plans or bothering Noel.

"Oh yeah, you're that kid who worked there. Are you ever going to actually talk to me instead of writing in that notebook? I must have gone there a dozen times and I've never heard your voice," Kim grinned at him. What was his name again? Crest, yes that was it. He had delicious pastries and made some pretty good tea.

"Anyway, to answer your question, Sally here was helping me get out of the Middle Line. Nobody thinks to look for people in suitcases, now do they?"

Kim stretched her arms over her head, trying to work out a kink in her back from being curled up for so long. It was good to be out of that bag.

Sally glanced back and forth between the two, rather surprised that they knew one another. Kim had asked if he was going to speak, but Sally had an idea as to why he didn't. "Are you mute?" she asked Crest inbetween their conversation. "Or do you just choose not to talk?" She couldn't help but be curious as to his situation. People from the Center Line could have rather surprising defenses for the stupidest things.

Thinking back on it, she had met quite a few people from the Center Line whose laces were too tight and mouths were too loose. People like that didn't last long in the Outer Line. Hopefully that kid was different; the last thing she wanted to see was a kid get hurt, after all.

The only person like that who could hold their own out here was Cross. As annoying and straight laced as he usually was, he knew what he was doing. Sally liked him for his determination and the soft side he hid, but he frustrated her to no end because he was always so taken with The Church. What did they do to brain wash someone who could have had so much potential?

Realizing that she was scowling a bit, she snapped out of it, smiled lightly, and listened back into their conversation.

Crest let a small smile form on his lips. So she actually remembered him. How nice.

As he was about to respond to Kim's question, he heard Sally's (So that was her name...) and decided to answer her instead. Yes, I am mute and have been my entire life. I'd rather talk instead, seeing as how I wouldn't have to carry this every single day. He motioned to the notebook when he let her read it. Facing Kim, he continued Sorry, but each time you came over, you acted so nonchalant about it that I had assumed that I'd already told you and had forgotten about it. I'm glad however that Sally had found a way for you to get out. Maybe this way you'll learn more than what the library has to offer in regards to the Lines.

He glanced at Sally, who seemed occupied with her thoughts, and then facing Kim quickly scribbled down and flashed to her: Does she know who you are? And, um, why exactly did she bring you here?

Kim nodded at Crest. "Yeah, she knows. I kinda had to tell her. I'm not sure why she agreed to it, though. Maybe she just thought it would be fun or something. I just came out here to get away from those idiots I live with. I'm tired of always pretending I actually believe in all their bullshit. If only they knew..." she became lost in her thoughts for a moment as she trailed off.

Snapping out of her thoughts as being in the Outer Line sunk in, Kim walked to the end of the alley and peaked out. The Outer Line looked much like it was described as in books, dirty and run down. And not an Enforcer in sight, perfect. "Hey, Sally, where are you going? Are you meeting up with thise twoguys for the train or what? Can I tag along?" She stopped her rapid fire interrogation, realizing she wasn't giving any time for her companions to answer.

She turned back around to face them. "Sorry if I'm rambling or annoying you, I guess I'm just excited."

Sally listened to them for a while, not bothering to bud in when they had mentioned her. The conversation was going on longer than it seemed, she realized, and wondered how far the others had gotten since they apparently hadn't waited for her.

When Kim turned to her, she looked up to the sky for a moment, her lips curled to one side. "I guess you can come, but it might be a bit dangerous. And I'm not talking about Outer Line dangerous. We actually just had to come here to get to an access point to somethi-"

"And what would that be?" a deeper voice that was a bit far off interrupted. Sally pulled her eyes back to Earth and looked around before she felt her hair being tugged up and back in a painful manner. She gritted her teeth.

"Dau-" He tugged harder.

"You should know by now to not do such interesting sounding things without me. You weren't trying to hide it, were you?"

"O-Of course not... We just arrived. I hadn't gotten a chance to see you yet, but I wasn't going to leave you out of the loop, Sir-"

"Don't you 'Sir' me." He put her down and grinned as she pouted, fixing her hair. "Who are your friends here? A cute little boy and a spoiled bitch? I hardly think they're you're crowd." He gave them a quick glance before whispering to her, "Why the fuck is there a Church member here, kid?"

She smiled lightly. "It's a long story."

"I have time."

"I don't, and I know you're not going to agree with my reasoning."

"So you're aimin' to piss me off now?"

The two bickered for a bit, and although Daube was pretty rough, it was obvious that he wasn't trying to seriously injure her. Sally hoped that he wasn't bothering the two, but he wasn't the type that she could cut the conversation off with. She didn't really want to have her face add another pothole to the streets.

She finally managed to get to turn to them. "Kim, if you want to go with us, that's fine; just promise me you'll be careful. And Crest, don't you think you should be getting to your class?"

"...you've got nerve, Jones."

"Of course I do. I've been here how many times and haven't died off yet?"

"You piss me off."

She giggled. "I know. But I need to go now 'cuz I have to find my travelling companions and get settled in. I'll tell you what we're up to at the next meeting, alright?"

"You're a cheap whore, you know that? Why do I have to wait until the next meeting for this shit?"

"Ah, actually... Well, you'll find out. You should probably be headed to your office soon, Daube."

He got the picture immediately, and he was ready to smack her for it. "Fuck you," he said under his breath before he shoved his hands in his pockets and walked back to his office. It was never a good sign when he actually needed to go there.

Sally glanced around as he left. "I wonder where Thom and them went..."

Crest's eyebrows rose at Sally. Something more dangerous than the Outer Line? Unless she was referring to doing something that involved the Church, the Clocktower or the people that had magic, the Aro and Pierce, nothing could be worse. Unless what she mentioned did involve those...? He was a bit scared now, but more intrigued.

And then the Enforcer came.

He didn't panic, since Crest was used to them treating him decently as a Center Line citizen, but when he started to banter with Sally he was now even more interested. It seemed that she knew the man well and was maybe even friends with him. Judging by the man's earrings, he was a Line Captain. He leaned a bit forward on his suitcase to hear more of their conversation.

The bit about how Kim and him weren't her crowd was odd, but now things seemed to make sense. Sally was nice, but putting together her willingness to stuff Kim in a bag and her casual talk to a high-position Enforcer, she probably was used to breaking a whole lot of different forbiddens, and getting away with them to.

When Sally asked about it, he remembered about it and with a nod and a hastily scribbled I hope I'll meet up with you two again. Goodbye, he rushed off to get to get to the houses.

It was only a few moments later Crest realized that he had absolutely no idea as to where he was going. When he looked around to seek help he saw a young Enforcer coming from out of... the sewers? He headed towards the blond and pulled his sleeve to catch his attention. He wrote and showed to him Excuse me, sir, but do you know where the houses for the Center Line students' trip is for?

Kim frowned as she observed the scene. The large enforcer seemed to appear from nowhere, or perhaps she was just being unobservant. He immediately started up a conversation with Sally and Kim heard him to refer to her as a "spoiled brat"-a term that made her roll her eyes-and a "Church member"-so much for being stealthy about it. Whatever was going on with him Kim didn't like it, she never liked being kept out of the loop.

Then Crest ran off with hardly a goodbye and Kim was left alone in the alley with Sally. As Sally looked around for "Thom"-Kim assumed he was one of the boys from the train-Kim walked over to stand next to her. "So," she began dryly, "are you going to explain what that was about or are you going to leave me in the dark?"

Sally was sort of hoping she wouldn't ask, but she supposed there wasn't really a way to avoid it. She shrugged a bit nonchalantly despite her aching head, hoping that she would think the encounter wasn't too big of a deal. "He can be pretty rude, but he runs everything around here. There's no way to get around that.

"Even though he's not too booksmart, he's sharp. I'm pretty sure most people won't notice who you are until you take your cloak off, but he has his own ways of figuring people out. I'll never get it. I know he doesn't like you, and I don't doubt that you dislike him, but we've kind of got to deal with him. There's no real way to get around that."

She gave a sad little smile and looked down to her feet. "I've been coming here for a long time now, but we're not friends. He's just very casual with people who are comfortable around him. But, yeah. Even though he's an Enforcer, he's a lot different. He runs this place the way he likes rather than the way The Church tells him to.

"If you want to know your way around here, then at least stay with us until the meeting tomorrow night. Once a week, there's a sort of 'Line Meeting' where plans and ideas are discussed. We're going to give a light description of our plans and see if we can get people to help us out."

She stretched her arms out, entwined her fingers, and put them on her head for a moment to try to ease the pain from Daube's obnoxious move earlier. "Anyway! Enough talk for now. I'll explain more about the Outer Line to you later. We need to find our companions," she said at last before grabbing her bag and stepping out into the street.

"But... where did they go?"

Cross finally arrived in the Outer Line on the Rail after Sally's. He fixed his cloak, took hold of his sword beneath it, and ventured out into the Hell known as the Outer Line. Many homeless people were huddling around the Rail, trying to grub off the higher level passengers. He wasn't sure what was more disgusting - the fact that Rights let them live like that or the fact that they had the nerve to grub and steal from other innocent people.

As he took his military stride to the streets, he could feel many eyes on him. The scowls were countless, but he couldn't focus on it at that point. His mood even more foul than usual, he bit his tongue, picked up the pace, and tried not to look at the people there until he reached the office.

But what do you know? He didn't have to walk that far.

Rights was walking ahead of him. His unsightly, long black hair went below his waist, and he towered over Cross. Still, the boy approached him confidently (perhaps suicidally) and pulled his shoulder back. "Captain Rights. I'd like to have a word wi-" Before he could finish his sentence, a large fist made contact with his face, sending him stumbling several feet back. Luckily, he had just managed to catch himself. He wiped his bleeding lip with his gloved hand.

"Captai-" Rights had grabbed the cross around his neck and pulled him towards him.

"Listen, kid. I don't have time for your puppy play bullshit."

"Rights, I'll have you know that I am in fact your superior."

He laughed. "And you really think I give a fuck? You're just a little boy from head to toe, Cross."

Cross wasn't smiling. Quickly, he raised his foot to the man's face, forcing him to let go of the cross to defend himself. The boy bent his elbow and slammed it into Rights' abdomen before he swung his feet beneat him, making him fall. "Unless you want me to make a fool out of you before all your lovely people, I suggest you back off."

Rights gave him a look that said he entirely intended to kill him if he came a step closer. "Hah..." He pulled himself up with ease. "Said by the one with a fat lip. If you want to humiliate me, you better be ready to spill blood for it. Either take a step back or pull out that pretty sword of yours."

Cross looked slightly fearful. Even if he could take the man if he used his sword, he knew that fighting amongst the Enforcers was against the rules, and the consequences for doing so armed was even worse. But if he didn't use his sword, he knew Rights would have no trouble beating the life out of him.

It doesn't matter how strong or calculated you are when you're facing someone as ruthless like him.

The blonde took a step back. "I don't want to fight you. But there's something important that needs to be discussed. As much as I wish it had something to do with the horrible way you run this Line, that's not why I'm here. It's important to all the Lines, Captain Rights."

His judicial voice was pissing Rights off, but he got the message. "I'm not cooperating with you."

"Then have fun dying."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh. So you do want to fight me?"

"Not me, Captain Rights. You should know what I'm talking about. It's gotten worse." Cross noticed the crowd around them and motioned towards the direction of his office. "Can we get some privacy?"

"Nothing you tell me is gonna to stay private, Cross."

"Could you at least play along with me for a bit?" he said quietly.

Rights gave him another loud laugh and grabbed the boy by the neck, walking in the direction of his office with a large grin. "Just this once, kid. I'm a little curious now."

Cross scowled beneath his bangs. He didn't want the man to change his mind, so he decided to keep his mouth shut regarding his attitude as they walked.

Dante was still meditating even after Thom left he was arranging his thoughts not only about the events that had occurred but how he was going to have to modify his plans. His thoughts were interrupted by a soothing calm voice. “So what’s the plan Brother?” It was Cerberus. Dante and Cerberus already knew the answer to that question. “Well I was thinking we could add them to our plans. What do you think?” It was silent for a minute then Cerberus spoke softly. “Not a bad idea. You think they’ll do it?” Dante gave a short laugh. “They’ll do it even if it’s not intentional.” Everything just needed to go according to plan.

Dante caught a whiff of a familiar scent that snapped him out of his meditative state. It was definitely someone he knew. It was a female to be exact. He opened his free eye and looked in the direction from where it was emanating. He was glad to see it was Sally. He stood up, dusted of his clothe, grabbed his case and hooked it onto his back. “YO SALLY! OVER HERE1” He screamed as he waved trying to get her attention. He was glad to see she was ok. Then he noticed another girl with her. “That must be the girl who was inside the bag.” He sighed in relief that he was finally going to be able to go home.

'Why is the middle line always so boring' Malorn thought to himself.

After getting an apple from his favorite shop, he started walking down a street. After getting about half-way down the lane, he spied a enforcer running towards him.

Upon reaching Malorn the very out of breath Enforcer said, "Mr. *puff* Malorn sir! *deep breath* Missive for you from the Vice Captain,"

"Thank you Higgens, feel free to take a breather,"

Opening the missive and he quickly read over it.

'I've got a feeling something big is about to go down in the Outer Line I need you to get down here.'
-Jax

Malorn started to jog toward the enforcer rail to the Outer Line as he thought to himself, 'Well this is going to be exciting!'

Sally was getting worried when she couldn't find Thom, but thankfully for her, Dante's big mouth had caught her attention. She reached for Kim's hand before she started quickly moving towards the boy, waving. "Dante! Where are the others?" she asked once she had gotten to him. Had they really taken so long that everyone else went on their way? Perhaps Daube had taken up more time than she thought...

"So, did we ever decide on where we're staying?" she asked, not really sure. She could get a place to stay if they didn't have on already. But if she remembered right, Dante had said he had a place they could crash. Or someone did. Her head was a little fuzzy after she almost had her hair pulled out of it.

The boy that called Sally over looked...strange. He was like no one else Kim had ever seen before, slightly feral with his pointed teeth. She recognized his voice from her time in the bag. Apparently he was in charge of finding a place for them to stay.

Sally reached to grab Kim's hand and by instinct she jerked away. She hardly noticed that she did it. She didn't really like touching people, especially those she didn't know well. Hoping Sally wouldn't make anything of it Kim smiled at the boy, wanting to seem friendly. She hung back, slightly behind Sally, and glanced around, taking in as much of he surroundings as she could.

Mirabelle couldn't help but wonder when Thom said that he wasn't any less of a threat. Just what could he possibly do? She mentally shook her herself. She should have learned long ago not to underestimate people, regardless of what race they were. She would remain wary of Thom; the way she did with everyone she met. Tread carefully.

Mirabelle opened her mouth to say something, but that's when the door to the house Thom had stopped at opened, and a girl tackled him. Mirabelle couldn't help but smirk when she called him 'Tommy'; the expression on Thom's face was quite amusing. Quickly, she wiped the smirk off her face before anyone could notice it.

"Whose home am I entering, exactly?" she asked, as she followed Thom into the house. It felt weird to intrude into someone's home when she hadn't been invited, but this girl--Sarah, Thom had called her--was all too happy to let Thom in. Mirabelle got the feeling she wouldn't overly object to her entering, too. It seemed like she trusted him.

Thom looked at Mirabelle when she asked who's house this was. It was a good enough question, but not one he had expected. He thought it over for a few moments before realizing that he'd probably feel more comfortable answering the small questions than the ones that would ultimately lead to her finding out what he was up to, but he'd have to answer both anyways. It was always best to start by answering the ones he was more willing to answer.

Thom smirked at Mirabelle, "Mirabelle, this is Sarah." Thom patted Sarah on the head indicating to her. "This," Thom indicated to the house that they were currently in, "is Sarah's house." Thom looked at Sarah with a smile, "Sarah, this is Mirabelle." Thom pointed at Mirabelle.

Sarah just noticed the other girl, Mirabelle, had come with Thom. She hid behind Thom wondering if Mirabelle was here to hurt her. Many people pretended to be nice to Sarah recently only to hurt her in the end. "Hi, Mirabelle," Sarah said in a shy voice and clung to the back of Thom's shirt hoping he'd protect her if Mirabelle did try to hurt her. She knew that Thom wasn't a good person, although he's never broken a forbidden around her, and that would mean that his friends may not be good people either.

Thom rolled his eyes at Sarah's action and pulled her off of him with a sigh. There was too much on his mine for him to be worrying over Sarah. Judging by what he's seen so far, he doubted that Mirabelle would even have good reason to hurt Sarah. The race of the person he was dealing with did not ever determine if they were good or evil, and, just because most Time Demons were evil, didn't mean Mirabelle was.

"Now, I believe you wanted to know what I was planning. Right, Mirabelle?" Thom knew that he could just go on explaining, but he also needed to talk to Sarah about the plan as well.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal rolled her eyes still listening to the conversation. Would Thom ever get to the point and tell her what she needs to hear? This really was beginning to be a waste of time. She had hoped that everything that's happened until now would be worth it in the end, but it'd only be worth it if she'd ever find out what she wants to know. Srenal briefly contemplated just warping in there and holding Sarah hostage for the information, but quickly decided against it. She remembered what happened when she tries getting her revenge through other people quite well after the Noel incident. While the outcome didn't bother her, it changed everything at that moment.

When Thom finally got to the point, Srenal smiled and pushed her ear closer to the wall. Maybe she'd finally figure out what she wanted to know. Hopefully, that train ride and the near fight with Dante would finally be worth it. Maybe she'd finally find out if it was interesting enough to get herself involved. By now, Srenal has decided that she'd probably get involved anyways if Dante was. Any chance for her revenge would be well worth it.

She closed her eyes and focused more on her hearing hoping that her answers would come soon. Hopefully, after all of this time Srenal took on following them, Mirabelle wouldn't just forget why she was even here. Maybe there was a reason for Thom being here too. Did Sarah play any roll in this? That would be interesting to know. She paid close attention to anything that was being said. She couldn't forget any detail that might be crucial to her ability to mess with them.

Dante gave a short laugh at seeing Kim jerk away from Sally. When she smiled at him he smiled awkwardly back at her showing his teeth. He looked at Sally and tapped his lips with his finger pretending to think. He snapped his fingers as if he had remembered. “Well Thom had some business to take care of.” He turned to Kim and elegantly bowed.

“It is a pleasure to see a Church member willing to cause a little trouble.” He turned back to Sally and scratched the back of his head. “Well I offered you guys to crash over at my place. So if you accept my offer we better hurry.” He looked at the sky. “Best get there before sundown. It isn’t safe around here at night.” He gave a smile to both the girls that would even fill death with fear. “People disappear a lot around these parts.”

He turned and took a step before turning his head to Sally. “Oh and don’t worry about Thom I gave him my houses address. So he should be fine.” He began to walk without even waiting for a reply. “Brother why did tell them that?” Cerberus asked intrigued by the odd comment. “Meh I was bored. I thought ‘Hey why not say something creepy, funny and true?’ so I did.” He responded as a smile slowly appeared on his face. Cerberus laughter bounced in Dante’s head like a rubber ball. Dante knew he had to get the girls to the house fast for their own good or else...

Sally winced before glancing around for anyone within earshot. Why would he comment aloud about her being part of The Church? And how did he know in the first place when Kim had her cloak on? Daube made sense, but now Dante knew, too? She hoped there weren't any other sharp people nearby.

"Be quiet about that, Dante," she said, quiet but sharper than usual. She listened to the rest of what he said and smiled lightly, glancing around the area as they walked. "You forget that I come here often. The Outer Line isn't that scary when you've spent plenty of time here. There can be some pretty scary moments, but the Line itself isn't that bad.

"And to be honest, people disappearing isn't that big of a deal. Plenty of people die here all the time, and suicide is an easy feat." She tried to hide her slight melancholy. "If life gets hard, all they've got to do is hop on the Rails. The only stop for them is supposed to be the end of the world, after all, and there's no way to change your mind once you're aboard."

Kim gave a small grin at the thought of causing trouble. She did love it when the Church was squirming. She was, however, leery of Dante's offer. Someone like him wasn't likely to have a normal place, she couldn't help imagining everything being...pointy, like those teeth of his.

His immediate recognition of her as a Church member threw her off, how did people keep doing that? She had managed to fool most of the Center Line and they were used to the occasional Church member popping up. Then there was the comment about people disappearing. Something was up. In all her time climbing around the crevices of the Church she had never heard mention of people just disappearing. Someone had to care.

Mirabelle nodded when Thom answered her question. She was a little surprised by Sarah's reaction to her; she wasn't used to being looked at that way, probably since her interaction with other people had been somewhat limited lately. She seems scared of me, Mirabelle thought.

She gave Sarah a half-wave. "Hello," she said mildly. "I hope you don't mind me entering your home. I'm just here to talk with Thom. There's no need to be afraid of me, I honestly don't mean you any harm." She hoped her tone sounded at least a little reassuring. She really didn't intend to harm Sarah. She seemed too innocent to ever do anything offensive.

When Thom asked her his question, Mirabelle looked at him and nodded. "Yes," she replied. "It's just an explanation I'm after. I assume that by now you've noticed that I'm quite less... volatile than the other people of my race that you've met so far." At least, Mirabelle thought so. "The chances of me doing something drastic are pretty low." Mirabelle decided not to mention that that could change depending on what this 'plan' of Thom's was.

Her gaze wandered over to Sarah. Did she know anything about Time Demons? Most likely not. She wondered if she'd have to explain herself to her, or if Thom would, or if Sarah would be left in the dark about the whole matter.

Dante waved dismissively at Sally’s comment as he kept walking in what seemed to be a random direction. “Don’t worry about that Sally.” He looked to the sides casually. “People around here know me and know that they shouldn’t meddle in my business. Besides it isn’t too hard to tell the girl’s from the Church.” He turned his head as he kept walking. “Not that it’s a bad thing being from the Church or anything.” He gave Kim a kind and gentle smile while trying to keep his teeth hidden. “You should work harder to disguise yourself next time.”

He looked forward again Dante smirked at Sally’s comment about coming to the Outer Line often and almost began to laugh aloud when she thought he was talking about the ones who jumped over the wall or killed themselves or jumped into the Rails. Her assumptions about what he meant were mistaken. Gravely mistaken. He slowly removed his hood letting his hair feel a gentle breeze. “I never said that they killed themselves.” He removed his eye patch and placed it in his pocket. “All I said was that people went missing. I never specified why they went missing.”

He felt Kim’s suspicion about him and that she had no knowledge of the fact people went missing. “I guess the Church never told you about the fact people disappear out here huh? Well I’ll tell ya this. The Church doesn’t tell you everything and when they do a part of it is always a lie. Always.” He turned his head to her once more and pointed at himself with his thumb. “I myself am part of their lies. Well me and all of those who are like me.” He looked forward once more and stopped in front of an alley with a dead end that looked pitch black because of a shadow casted by one of buildings that formed it. He turned to it and smiled. “Perfect. Follow me.” He stepped into the alley and vanished into the shadows. “Come on. We don’t have all day.” He said as his voice seemed to come from no specific direction.

Dante waved dismissively at Sally’s comment as he kept walking in what seemed to be a random direction. “Don’t worry about that Sally.” He looked to the sides casually. “People around here know me and know that they shouldn’t meddle in my business. Besides it isn’t too hard for me to tell the girl’s from the Church.” He turned his head to Kim as he kept walking. “Not that it’s a bad thing being from the Church or anything.” He gave Kim a kind and gentle smile while trying to keep his teeth hidden. “People who are sharp enough, like myself, will definitely be able to figure out you're from the Church. So be cautious to whom you talk to out here.”

He looked forward again and smirked at Sally’s comment about coming to the Outer Line often and almost laughed out loud when she thought he was talking about the ones who jumped over the wall or killed themselves or jumped into the Rails. Her assumptions about what he meant were mistaken. Gravely mistaken. He slowly removed his hood letting his hair feel a gentle breeze. “I never said that they killed themselves.” He removed his eye patch and placed it in his pocket. “All I said was that people went missing. I never specified why they went missing.... Or how.”

He felt Kim’s suspicion about him and that she had no knowledge of the fact people went missing. “I guess the Church never told you about the fact people disappear out here huh? Well I’ll tell ya this. The Church doesn’t tell you everything and when they do a part of it is always a lie. Always.” He turned his head to her once more and pointed at himself with his thumb. “I myself am part of their lies. Well me and all of those who are like me.” He looked forward once more and stopped in front of an alley with a dead end that looked pitch black from a shadow casted by one of buildings that formed it. He turned to it and smiled. “Perfect. Follow me.” He stepped into the alley and vanished into the shadows. “Come on. We don’t have all day.” He said as his voice seemed to come from no specific direction within the alley.

Sarah looked confused when Mirabelle mentioned her race and wanted to know more, "You're race? Aren't you a human like me and Thom?" Sarah looked at Thom for an answer. She was disappointed when Thom ignored her question in favor of answering Mirabelle's.

Thom knew that it was risky enough for him to be letting Sarah in on the plans, even though involving her in them seemed like the best way to go, and he knew involving Sarah in the knowledge of Time Demons would only make this more stressful. He looked at Mirabelle with a smirk, "I apologize having to bring you here to get your questions answered. If the enforcers caught wind of this then the ending wouldn't turn out too well for anyone involved." Thom looked at Sarah as he said this. He knew very well what Sarah thought about breaking forbiddens.

"What do you mean by that Tommy?" Sarah looked confused. She had never thought that Thom would come to her and admit that he's doing something that he shouldn't. He seemed smart enough to know that she'd tell the Enforcers if there were any forbiddens being broken. Sarah slowly began to inch away from Thom when she remembered how others had reacted when she went to tell the Enforcers on them.

Thom grabbed Sarah's shoulder causing her to wince. He didn't have time to avoid the topic anymore by making sure that Sarah wasn't going to say anything. He figured it'd be better to use force for now. His grip on Sarah's shoulder tightened as he smirked at Mirabelle, "Sally and I plan on seeing what the Church is hiding within the Clocktower," Thom looked down at Sarah with a serious gaze, "and you're coming with us Sarah."

Sarah shook her head trying to back out of Thom's grasp, "No. No. You know that I won't disobey the Church Tommy. You know that I'll have to tell the Enfor..."

"Shut up, Sarah!" Thom's grasp on Sarah's shoulder tightened. This was beginning to give him a headache. He looked at Mirabelle deciding to deal with Sarah later.


_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal smirked at finally hearing the plan. It was about time that all of her work paid off. She kept listening, needing to hear more. How would Mirabelle react to this? How would Thom deal with Sarah? Why did Thom even need Sarah to tag along if bringing her would be more stressful? So many questions were running around in Srenal's head right now. She absolutely had to get them answered.

As she was thinking this, she had remembered Dante's plan. She couldn't decide if it would be more fun messing with him or Sally at this point. The thought made Srenal pout. If only she could do both. She sighed and continued listening. Maybe she'd hear something that would make the decision easier. Hopefully there would be one plan that was more interesting than the other.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Luke slid his hands into his pockets walking towards the Rails. He usually spent his time there because that's where the least amount of incidents happened. The less incidents he came across meant the less work he'd have to do. He didn't want t have to deal with the trouble he'd get into if he actually saw something and didn't report it or do something about it. Just the thought of that made him cringe.

Luke stopped when he heard a piece of the most interesting conversation and inwardly groaned. He looked towards the speaker only to sigh in annoyance. Black hair, sharpened teeth, pale skin, he had heard stories of this one, and didn't want to be the one to deal with it. Especially with who the speaker was. He had a silent debate whether it was worth the trouble to actually do something about it or not. Judging by the people in the party and what he heard, he had no other choice but to confront them. He could only hope that they'd feed him a good enough lie for him to tell Daube if Daube found out that he had seen any of this.

With that thought, he followed the male slowly. He had thought of just going too slowly and saying that he couldn't catch up, but that would be an obvious lie seeing that they weren't running. Even if they did run, he wasn't in bad shape. Chances are that if it did lead to a chase, he could still catch up to them. It was times like this that he hated his job. If he had it his way, he'd being sitting at home doing nothing. It's a shame he couldn't have it his way though.

Nephele had been enjoying a good cigar until she overheard what sounded like a male voice talking about people going missing. This sparked her curiosity and she looked over to the direction from which the comment had come from and saw a small group of three people. Two of them were young females, most likely in their teens Nephele assumed, and one was wearing a hood. The third member of the small party was a young man with black hair much like her own and two odd features that made her take a few steps toward them. The first were his bi color eyes, a genetic disease she'd only read of but never actually seen, and the second were his abnormally sharp almost knife like teeth, which she'd never seen on any of her books or anyone for that matter. When the young man mentioned that people go missing in the Outer Line she couldn't resist the urge to find out just who this boy was.

Though she knew she had to be cautious not to alert them about the fact she was following them she began to walk in their direction until something caught her eye. It was an Enforcer and he was heading the groups direction. "Great if he's going in their direction he must've heard the kid. I'll have to think whether or not to intervene and help the kid." She stood there for a second, smoked her cigarette quickly, threw it on the floor and headed toward the small group. "I have a feeling this'll be worth it in the end. Besides even if it isn't it'll probably be fun." Nephele began to ponder as she headed for the group how she could help them. "It has to be something good." Then she noticed the boy go into the an alley and telling the girls to hurry and follow him. "At least he's smart enough to stay out of the streets. But it's a bit late. I guess I can always distract the Enforcer while he goes who knows where and find him later." Having good connections made it easy for her to find people and with his 'unique' features it'll be even easier.

Sally hadn't thought that Dante meant mysterious disappearances. Once he mentioned it, she felt she had a better idea of what he was talking about. When he was telling Kim about how The Church wasn't as innocent as people thought, she couldn't help but space out a bit, thinking back to her family. She thought about the day that they were dragged out of her house, wearing prideful smiles on their faces as if they knew they had done nothing wrong and everything would be worked out. Everyone knew better, though. They knew what they did wrong, and so did Sally. Soon, she would know what he had done wrong, as well - she would know what set their final sentence in stone.

Soon, it was. If it was soon, then she couldn't sit around reminiscing, right? The blonde pushed back her hair, refocused her eyes, and looked for Dante, who had already gone farther into the alley. With a slight grin, she prepared to pick up her pace a bit, taking her first step into the shadow of the alley. The wheels of her large suitcase created the repetitive sound of metal-on-concrete, which echoed further in the alley.

Sally hadn't thought that Dante meant mysterious disappearances. Once he mentioned it, she felt she had a better idea of what he was talking about. When he was telling Kim about how The Church wasn't as innocent as people thought, she couldn't help but space out a bit, thinking back to her family. She thought about the day that they were dragged out of her house, wearing prideful smiles on their faces as if they knew they had done nothing wrong and everything would be worked out. Everyone knew better, though. They knew what they did wrong, and so did Sally. Soon, she would know what he had done wrong, as well - she would know what set their final sentence in stone.

Soon, it was. If it was soon, then she couldn't sit around reminiscing, right? The blonde pushed back her hair, refocused her eyes, and looked for Dante, who had already gone farther into the alley. With a slight grin, she prepared to pick up her pace a bit, taking her first step into the shadow of the alley. However, she became aware of footsteps that weren't theirs getting closer.

She peaked out of the alley towards the figure that was coming towards them. She figured that there wasn't much up this alley; the most likely thing was that he was following them. Should she confront him? What if he wasn't following them?

...yeah. It was pretty clear he was headed towards them. She turned completely in the other direction then, her hands behind her back as she slipped in front of the suitcase, standing half in the shadows. "Hello, sir," she said with a light smile after recognizing him as an Enforcer. "Is there something you need?"

When Sarah asked her what she meant about 'her race', Mirabelle paused for a moment. Should she tell her? She had no reason to lie. While it wouldn't do her any direct harm to tell the truth, somehow she was hesitant.

Instead, she gave Sarah a slight smile. "Well," she said quietly, "you could say that there are some people who are... different." She waved a hand dismissively. "It isn't anything you need to concern yourself with. At least, not unless not knowing would bring you into direct risk." Which it could, Mirabelle added to herself. She decided to leave the decision to Thom - he could choose to inform Sarah. Mirabelle wasn't particularly concerned.

She turned her attention to Thom. "It's fine," she said, in response to what he'd said. "It doesn't bother me." She nodded her head in Sarah's direction. "If anything, I think I'd be the least inconvenienced by this."

When Mirabelle finally heard what the plan was, she remained silent for a minute, her eyes widening slightly as she averted them to look at the floor. So they were those kind of people. Then, she raised her head to look Thom in the eyes.

"I see," she said, keeping her voice cool and calm. "I shouldn't be surprised. You're not the first to plan such a thing, but I'm sure you know that. What I'm not sure of, however, is whether or not you know of the dangers within the Clocktower. Do you have any idea what awaits you there? Do you think finding out the Church's secrets will be worth it? What if I told you that going into the Clocktower could lead to your death?" She thought of the people who'd been turned into Time Demons upon entering the Clocktower. People like herself. Quietly she added, "Or maybe, something that could be even worse..."

Kim let out a sigh of relief, at least it wasn't a terrible disguise that seemed to be tipping off everyone. It seemed like all these sharp people lived out in the Outer Line. Perhaps she could pick up a better disguise somewhere along the line.

The whole thing about people disappearing was really freaking her out, though. How could people disappear like that and have no one talk about them? Kim tended to pick up quite a bit of information while eavesdropping around the Church but these unexplained disappearances had never been a topic.

"What do you mean then?" she asked Dante. "If they aren't leaving with the rails then how are they disappearing? And where are you taking us anyway? Do you have some secret door or something back here or are you planning on killing us?" she added the last part sarcastically.

What she heard next made her stop dead in her tracks. Sally had stopped and was talking to someone that had been following them. As Kim turned around slowly she saw he was an Enforcer. "Just my luck," she muttered before putting on her most innocent smile.

Dante listened as the girl from the Church interrogated him on what he was talking about when he mentioned the disappearances and where they were heading. He let out a short chuckle hearing her ask him if he was going to kill them. "All questions will be answered once we get there." He said as he walked deeper into the alley until he stopped half way through because of the sound of two different sets of unfamiliar steps that seemed to be heading in their direction. "Well that's interesting. Guess keeping the wolf hearing and snout did come in handy." Cerberus whispered in Dante's head.

"Indeed..." Dante said to himself as he cupped his ear trying to figure out how close or far they were. "Hmm one's already in front of the alley. Sally's talking to one of them." He kept listening. "It's a male. An Enforcer damn he must've heard me earlier." He listened in on the other person heading in their direction. "Hmm I think it's a female from the voice." He let out a displeased sigh as he leaned on the wall and look at the sky. "I wonder if it'll work now." He stretched his right arm high into the air and closed his eyes.

His arm began to twist and turn gradually becoming smaller. Dante opened his eyes and smiled. "Good at least I can do humans." He cracked his neck and stretched his left arm in front of him. His arm twisted and turned as did the rest of his body. Now in the spot where a young feral like boy stood a young long black haired, normal teethed, blue eyed girl. Dante coughed clearing his throat until it sound high enough.

Though he felt awkward turning into a girl he thought it be better to confront the Enforcer. He walked to the alleys entrance and stood next to Sally. He knew that the Enforcer would hopefully and probably be completely baffled by his new appearance which would hopefully make it easier for Sally to make a more believable lie. "God I hate and love it when we do this." Cerberus said with a short cackle as Dante sighed and looked at Sally trying to hint her to make up whatever lie she could sell him fast. He then gazed over the direction from which the other pursuer was coming from. It was a young woman who oddly resembled a doctor she stood there observing them. "Interesting..." Dante thought as he casually smiled at her.

-Character Change-

Nephele stopped walking and looked at both the group and the Enforcer. "They can probably handle this so I'll just..." She leaned against the wall next to her and let out a pleased sigh. She took out a cigarette pack and picked one. "I really should quit this crap before it kills me." She placed the cigar in her mouth and took out a box of matches. "But I probably never will." Nephele took out one of the matches and lit the cigar as she observed one the young girls talk to the Enforcer.

She inhaled and let out a cloud of smoke. "Well let's see what they can come up..." She lost her train of thought as a third young girl came out of the alley. Her mouth opened and the cigar fell out onto the floor. "Where did she come from?" She observed the young girl her hair was black like the boys but her teeth were normal and she had blue eyes. Above all that she was a she.

"Where the Hell did she come from and where's the kid?" Nephele was surprised when the girl not only acknowledged her but smiled and then looked away. Something seriously weird was happening and Nephele wanted to know what. She straitened and began to walk to the group again. When she reached them she first waved at the young black haired girl. "Oh there you are I've looking everywhere for you." She put her hand on both Dante's and Sally's shoulders and looked at the Enforcer. "Please don't tell these three have gotten into trouble." She looked at Dante and Kim with a frown. "Mother will not be pleased if you've gone and gotten yourself into trouble with an Enforcer guys. She'll have a fit." She looked at the Enforcer and smiled. "Could you let this one slide? Please." She looked at Sally. "This must be that new friend you made. I see well she hasn't done anything either has she sir?"

Sarah tilted her head to the side hearing Mirabelle's response, she looked at Thom hoping for a better explanation than Mirabelle had provided. She didn't understand why everyone refused to tell her the truth, but she had an idea. It probably had something to do with the reason why everyone hated her. They probably thought she'd go tell someone if she heard the truth. It wasn't true though, Sarah only told people if she thought they were doing something against the Forbiddens.

Sarah's mood improved when she heard Mirabelle warn Thom against going in the Clocktower. Maybe if she can convince him it was too dangerous, then maybe Sarah would have no reason to tell the Enforcers what Thom was planning. She could only hope. The thought of what Mirabelle said about the dangers of the Clocktower scared Thom though. He was always too stubborn to worry about the dangers of what he was doing. If he wanted something, then he'd get it. That's just how Thom was. Sarah remembered that from when he was trying to go to the Outside.

Thom shook his head at Mirabelle's warning, "If one always runs from danger, then they'll never have any excitement in their life." Thom looked at Sarah with a smirk, "Sarah, for instance, never had any fun in her life. Look at the hell-hole that it turned into."

Thom turned Sarah so that she was facing him, "Sarah, we need you around because I don't want to do any of the forbiddens. With you around, there's no chance of that happening. I just want to go up, look around, and leave. I don't want to go inside the Clocktower, but Sally does. Maybe you can convince her otherwise." Thom looked up at Mirabelle daring her to say anything.

After hearing what Thom said, Sarah smiled and hugged him tight. "I'd love to help you Tommy! I'm so glad that you've decided to change!"

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal rolled her eyes at Thom's obvious lie.She couldn't believe Sarah actually believed him. Srenal couldn't understand how someone as smart as Thom could even be friends with someone so stupid, but who was she to judge. Her life wasn't even that interesting compared to all of the fun that she could have. You would think that someone with powers such as hers wouldn't have such a boring life, but it seems like she defies logic.

She warped out of Sarah's house and back towards where she had been earlier beside the rails. She already knew what would happen next. It was obvious that Sarah would buy it, Mirabelle wouldn't say anything, and Thom would pull Sarah along in his messed up plans. She needed to be where the real action was. Now that she was here, Srenal wandered hoping that the rest of the group hadn't wandered too far in her absence. Maybe they were having more fun than Thom and Mirabelle were.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Luke sighed at being confronted by everyone, but the male he was following. What perplexed him more was the new girl. She hadn't been in the group earlier, if his memory served him correctly. This certainly was more than he had been hoping for. He skimmed over the girls confronting him nada decided that he should start with the one who confronted him first.

Luke looked at the girl who had confronted him first and smiled, "Just as one may overhear words that were not meant for their ears, people say things that weren't to be said. Would it be such an annoyance if I were to talk to him?"

Luke looked at the girl who seemed to be their, who was she? He rubbed his temples as a headache began to form. This really was begriming to be too much work for him. "Punishment is only given out to those who deserve to be punished, but if a person deserves punishment, it cannot be avoided." He glared at the girl. It was obvious that she was going to make his process longer than it needs to be. It was supposed to be a simple process. He'd ask what was going on, they'd give him a lie, he'd let them go. There was nothing about annoying people begging him to not punish the people in his plan. "Don't be irksome. Let me do my job, Aden you can be on your way."

He observed the girls well trying to commit their description to memory. If this group was going to try to outsmart him, then he'd let them. He just had to make sure he can give an accurate description in case Daube decided to come to him later. He really hoped these people weren't intentionally trying to cause trouble. He didn't want to deal with that.

Sally had been waiting for the Enforcer's response when, suddenly, a completely different person came out of the alley. She tried to hide how perplexed she was at first, for it wasn't until the new girl smiled that she had an idea what was going on. Whether it was Dante or another Demon, it was making her lying more difficult. How was she supposed to give a false description of what was going on if she didn't know what really was going on?

Shortly after, another woman came by claiming that Kim and the new girl were her siblings. Didn't she know that such a stupid lie wouldn't work unless they were dealing with another really stupid person or someone who just didn't care? She tried to keep herself focused on the man as he finally spoke; his voice seemed vaguely familiar, but she couldn't remember his position. Was he close to Daube, or was he one of the few Enforcers who actually follows The Church? Based on his voice, she had a feeling he wasn't particularly uptight.

Perhaps being honest would work best? There was plenty of reason for him to not be there; there was no reason for her to follow along with this group's horrible lying tactics. Instead of putting on a fake smile and giving him a good story, she decided to be blunt with him.

She glanced back to the new girl and woman before sighing and facing the Enforcer with a slightly more serious look than before. She probably wouldn't need to say as much as she intended to, but oh well. "I don't think Daube cares if a couple of people are talking about common knowledge. If he suddenly decides to undergo a character change, then feel free to tell him that Sally and her friends were discussing taboo topics. Fair warning - he'll probably just punch you for telling him useless things.

"To be honest, though, I don't think he's in any position to be worrying about what a few bystandards say. I saw General Cross earlier." If he was a true Outer Line Enforcer, he would know what was going on. It was common knowledge that Cross and Daube didn't get along. Even though Cross was younger, Daube had no sympathy and wouldn't hold back his strength in a fight. "Instead of holding us up here, I suggest you go to the office and make sure Daube's not burrying any bodies, 'cuz if he is, this whole Line is screwed."

At this point, she did give him a light smile, but it was one of her few honest ones. "The last thing we need is a change in management, right?" With a half-hidden grin, Sally turned on her heels, grabbed her oversized wheelie bag, and began to walk away. Her pace suggested he could ask more questions if he wanted to, but showing him the back of her head was suggesting that he should take what she said into some serious consideration.

Mirabelle narrowed her eyes slightly. She didn't like how lightly her warning was being taken, especially since she didn't deign to give out warnings often at all.

"Well," she said, her voice gaining a cold tinge to it now, "running from danger is one thing. Running directly into danger is something else. I'd have thought that humans would hold a greater value to their lives. Although, of course, I don't know your or Sally's motives."

Her eyes flicked over to Sarah. "I'll admit, Sarah's life doesn't seem to be the greatest. Whilst having a disregard for your own safety isn't healthy, neither is it healthy to blindly follow those who lead you, like a sheep." The words sounded a little harsher than Mirabelle had intended. "Caution should be taken when it comes to deciding whom you trust." Silently Mirabelle added to herself, because Thom doesn't strike me as a trustworthy person. Yet Sarah seems too gullible to see that. This thought was confirmed when Sarah seemed to do easily believe what Thom said, when Mirabelle was certain it was a complete lie.

She turned back to Thom. "You don't have to heed my warning," she said coolly, "but I reproach the fact that you don't pay any regard to it at all. Do you even acknowledge the level of threat you'd meet in the Clocktower?" What Mirabelle said next surprised even her, but the words slipped out of her mouth before she even realised what they were. "I've been in the Clocktower myself. If anyone knows what they're talking about, it's me."

Thom smirked at Mirabelle. At least she had chosen to take a less straight forward approach when commenting on Sarah's actions, but, even if she did tell Sarah the truth, he had the trump card. Sarah would believe him because she wanted to believe him. That was the good part about being the only person to treat her nicely. She wanted believe that he was good, and she'd be heart broken if she were to find out that her precious 'Tommy' never will change. It wasn't like he actually cared about the girl, but she was a useful asset. He ruffled Sarah's hair with a smile, "Good, we can get headed where we're supposed to be going once you pack."

Sarah cheered and rushed off to pack up stuff. She wasn't sure what was really going on, so she just started throwing stuff that could be useful into a bag.

Thom chuckled at Sarah's enthusiasm before looking back at Mirabelle. "You're right. You don't know our motives. You don't know anything about us actually. For all you know, we might be able to hold our own in this big and creepy Clocktower." Thom laughed at the thought of any dangers possibly being in the Clocktower that he couldn't handle. He had always been the best at anything in his eyes.

"You're warning will be considered, and I appreciate it. Just remember that I expect every possible move before I take my next step. I'm a careful person by nature, and that is one thing that keeps me from turning back on my decisions." Thom smirked. He was also a stubborn person by nature, but he figured Mirabelle could already guess that much.

"As for trust, the human mind is easily manipulated. A person will always believe what they want to believe. All I have done is reinforce Sarah's beliefs." Thom chuckled shaking his head. Not all people were as gullible as Sarah, but they were still pretty easy. "As long as she wants to believe that I'm a good caring person, she will blindly follow me every time I tell her I am."

Thom couldn't help thinking about how that last comment made him sound like a manipulative bastard, but who was he to care? As far as Thom was concerned, Mirabelle having a high opinion of him wasn't on the top of his priorities list. There wasn't anything he could gain from her liking him, and there was nothing he could loose from her disliking him. As long as her questions were answered, she would leave him alone. Therefor, what she thought of him would change nothing.

(bump)

Mirabelle stifled a sigh at the sight of Sarah's enthusiasm. It amazed her how blindly some people would believe others, but then again, how would she understand? It had been way too long since she'd decided to put her faith into anyone. It must be nice to be able to every once in a while, though, she thought.

She looked back at Thom. "It's true. I don't know anything about you, other than what I've gathered from watching you, and what you've told me." Mirabelle shook her head. Clearly, Thom was too confident and too arrogant to consider the possibility that there might actually be something in the Clocktower that would pose a danger to him. Maybe he had good reason to be confident; Mirabelle didn't know. Still, she'd never been fond of such people, and Thom was starting to irritate and frustrate her. In fact, much to her surprise, Mirabelle was almost angry.

"Clearly, you have everything under control," said Mirabelle to Thom. "Manipulating the people around you to suit your needs, totally prepared for whatever awaits you in the Clocktower." She raised her arms slowly. "You must feel perfectly invincible. Although, just a friendly reminder: no one is. I can't help but wonder... what would you do if you lost your power to manipulate people?" She chuckled softly. "I've seen quite a few people like you. They all met their downfall eventually. I don't see why you'd be any different. Still, perhaps you'll surprise me. It'll be the first surprise in a while."

Mirabelle pulled her hood up over her head. "Now then," she said promptly, "I suppose I've intruded enough. Forgive the intrusion. Unless there is anything else that needs to be said, I'll take my leave." She turned, beginning to leave.

Thom couldn't help but smirk at Mirabelle's comment. He couldn't tell if she was over estimating him or under estimating him, but it held no matter to him. Just the fact that she told him that he had the power to manipulate people gave him a boost to his ego, even if she did mention that he would fall eventually. There was no doubt in his mind that he could fall eventually. All it took was one person that could outsmart him, and he'd finally fall. Thom wasn't an idiot, and he knew that much. He slid his hands into his pockets looking at Mirabelle.

"I'm flattered that you think that I can manipulate everyone around me to to suit my every whim, but I can't help but think. If I was so good at manipulating, why haven't I manipulated you yet?"

He chuckled sliding his hands into his pockets. He knew the dangers of continuing a conversation with someone who was obviously pissed off. To make it worse, Mirabelle was a Time Demon. He had little information, and that gave her an advantage. He didn't know what kind of powers Time Demons had. He didn't even know what kind of powers she had. He'd have to tread lightly from now on.

At this point, it was him asking a question out of curiosity more than actually trying to be cocky. It was obvious that Sarah was weak minded. He wanted to know how she could say he's so good at manipulating if she hasn't even seen him manipulate someone who wasn't as weak minded. There was always the chance that he was under estimating her, but he figured that she was smarter than the average human. She was also possibly smarter than she let on.

Mirabelle froze at Thom's question. It was one she hadn't been expecting at all; she hated to admit it to herself, but she was surprised. She slowly turned back around to face him, her head slightly tilted to one side.

"That's an interesting question," she said mildly. "I think the answer may be that perhaps you see no use for me. I'm the one who bothered you, aren't I? It wasn't the other way round. You've probably been waiting for me to leave you alone already. After all, would there be any point in manipulating someone you wouldn't benefit from?" She shrugged lightly. "Also, there hasn't been sufficient time for manipulation to be done, has there? Or at least, I don't there has..." She shrugged. "I'm not the type to allow myself to be manipulated easily, Thom, although you've probably figured that much out for yourself. I won't insult your intelligence. Still, don't take the fact that I acknowledge said intelligence as a compliment. I can see just by your attitude that you consider yourself intelligent, too."

She stepped forward. I really do dislike him, she decided. No good will come of hanging around him for too long. No matter how much I say that I'm strong-minded enough to stand my ground and resist manipulation, I should still be wary. I could still get caught in a spider's web.

Mirabelle thought of the power she had that could wipe or look into others' memories, and wondered vaguely what she would see if she attempted to use this power on Thom. Of course, actually trying it was out of the question; she never used this power unless she urgently needed to, but sometimes curiousity crept into her mind.

Thom shrugged at hearing Mirabelle's answer. It was one that he expected, but didn't hope he'd hear. It didn't matter to him anyways. She was simply a person who he's met on the journey, and there wasn't much of a chance that she'd tag along. Unless... Thom smirked as he got an idea. He never even considered manipulating her before, but that was because he didn't know enough about her to consider her useful. After this new bit of information, it looked like he might need a change of plans.

"Now, why would I not consider you useful? You've already told me that you've been in the Clocktower before. Why would I not consider that an asset to my plans?" He shrugged as if deep in thought, "The truth is, you're just too smart to be controled by my ability to manipulate people."

He acted as if he was stating a fact, but he seemed upset about it. He didn't know what her reaction would be, but he hoped that this could repair sme of the damage that was caused by his earlier cockyness. He wanted her to think that he wasn't as full of himself as he sounded earlier. He hoped showing weakness would do that.

Kim did a double take as Dante shrank down into a girl. "What the-" she muttered as she watched him or her or...it? move to join Sally. She shook her head vigorously to calm herself down. Finally, she took a deep breath and walked up to her two companions. She was prepared to face the enforcer with a smile, but she wasn't prepared for a random stranger to walk up and claim to be her older sister.

"This must be that new friend you made. I see well she hasn't done anything either has she sir?" Kim had to keep herself from rolling her eyes at the newcomer's last remark. So she would claim the obviously non-related fem-Dante and her, but not Sally? What was wrong with this woman?

"Who the hell are you?" Kim said quietly, trusting the woman to hear her. "You're no sister of mine. I don't need one either, I'm fine on my own, thanks."

While waiting for the answer Kim watched Sally lecture the enforcer and walk away. Without waiting for the enforcer to respond Kim followed the blonde down the street with a smile and wave at the enforcer. "See you around!" she called back.

Dante was satisfied that the Enforcer seemed a little annoyed thanks to not only his presence but the young woman who was claiming to be her and the Church girl’s sister, though she felt a little guilty about complicating things for Sally. It seemed obvious to Dante that whoever the woman was she hadn’t had enough time to come up with a better lie, which wasn’t a problem thanks to the fact that Sally went on ahead and was completely blunt with the Enforcer. She found it entertaining to see the young girl lecture the Enforcer

She was amused by how Sally mentioned that General Cross, whom she considered a good man, was in the Outer Line and that Daube, whom she despised a lot, could possibly attempt to kill him and that he should go ‘make sure Daube's not burying any bodies’. Dante turned her head and almost laughed when she heard the Church girl ask the young woman who she was and that she wasn’t her sister and didn’t need one. By that time Sally had turned, grabbed her bag and began to walk away she was soon followed by the Church girl. She began to walk in their direction and gave the Enforcer a quick smile before running ahead of the group.

“Well that was interesting.” Dante whispered into Sally’s ear as she passed her and began walking backwards. She looked at the young woman who was now behind Sally and the Church girl. She smiled at her and with a British accent she’d picked up from visiting White Chapel spoke. “So what’s your name Love?” She enjoyed using that accent. ”I hate that accent. It’s annoying.” Cerberus grunted, he truly despised that accent.

-Character Change-

Nephele was cursing herself for coming up with such a crappy lie. ”Siblings? Is that really the best I could come up with.” Though her self-insulting didn’t last long. Her attention returned to the blonde girl who went on to what seemed like lecturing the Enforcer. ”Well that’s interesting.” She kept listening to the girl as she went on about something regarding General Cross and Daube. She didn’t pay attention to her lecturing though no she was too busy looking at the alley that the boy had entered. Then she turned to the girl who had come out of the alley. She began to process the possibilities.

Her eyes widened. ”Wait a minute is it possible that…” But her thought was interrupted by the hooded girl who was now asking her who the Hell she was and telling her that she wasn’t her sister and that she didn’t need one. Her face became emotionless and expressionless, like that of a mannequin, and it seemed as if all life had been drained from her. She lowered herself and whispered into the girl with a inhuman almost robotic voice. “Sorry about the pitiful lie and I can imagine you can handle yourself.” She stood straight and watched the blonde girl walk away.

The hooded girl followed her and a few seconds later so did the mysterious new girl. She gave the Enforcer a smile and ran ahead of the group and began to walk backwards. Nephele looked at the Enforcer, gave him a small bow and walked behind the group. She was silent and processing her thoughts until she was interrupted by the girl who she had deduced was really the boy from earlier. She or rather he was smiling at her when he asked her what her name was with an accent Nephele didn’t recognize. “You ask what my name is. Well it’s Nephele. What might yours be?” Dante kept smiling and still using the accent. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Nephele. My name’s…” Dante lowered her voice making sure only the three females heard him. “Dante.”

By this point, Mirabelle had a growing sensation that she should leave. She no longer felt comfortable here. Not threatened, as such; just not very at ease. She didn't like that smirk on Thom's face, either; it set off alarm bells in her head.

Mirabelle arched an eyebrow at what Thom said. "Your plans?" she said, her voice containing a hint of curiousity. "Even if I may prove to be an asset to these plans of yours, who says I'll help you in any way? I've got no reason to, after all." She brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. "Also, it's been a long time since I last went inside the Clocktower. I don't know what might have changed." Mirabelle wasn't entirely sure if anything would have changed at all, but you never knew with the Clocktower. She wasn't just thinking about the physical layout, either; she was mostly thinking about the puppets there, and any other threats. They could have become a bigger threat, or on the contrary, the threat could have died down - although she doubted the latter was true.

"Flattery will get you nowhere," she responded dryly to Thom's remark. She thought she heard a hint of something in his voice, almost like weakness. She wasn't sure if Thom was just faking it or if he was being sincere, but she had no doubt that he was probably a good enough actor to easily fake a thing like this. She wasn't anywhere near convinced that this sudden act wasn't fake.

"You know," she said suddenly, "if there's something you intend to ask of me, you may as well just say it. Playing games can get tiring."

Luke chuckled at the girl's decision that honesty was best. She was a smart one, but that wasn't his problem. His current problem was she had stated. "Irksome." Luke decided to leave not paying attention to what the others said. He wanted a reason to leave, and he got it. Cross arriving was not a good thing. He headed off towards the office with a silent debate.

He didn't know if he should get involved or not. Getting involved would be more work than he wanted, and he secretly wished to be with the annoying kids again. Their lies may have been obvious, but handling them wouldn't take much work. Luke never wanted to stand between Daube and Cross when they fought, but the girl had been right. A change in management would probably leave the whole city in a post-apocalyptic state.

Luke decided that he'c head over in that direction, but take a detour on his way. Maybe if he took long enough, Daube and Cross can just work out their differences and he wouldn't need to get involved? The thought made Luke laugh. If he knew either of them as well as he thought he did, Sally's idea of what would happen seemed more realistic. The idea made Luke shudder and speed up. Hopefully Cross and Daube haven't seen each other yet.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Thom smiled deep in thought. She was too smart for him to go his usual route, so plan B will have to do. "You may go in the Clocktower out of curiosity." Thom thought for a bit at why exactly she'd go inside a place that she tried so hard to warn him against. "Maybe you'll want to know if it's still the same? It could have changed after all." Thom knew that he needed a better excuse, but he couldn't think of one.

"With such a large place out of view, it could be changing as we speak. It could be the total opposite of what you remember it as." Thom pouted at Mirabelle's accusation. "Why would I try to use flattery against someone like you? You underestimate my abilities." Thom wished he knew more about Mirabelle at this point. Maybe he should have talked to her more or paid attention when she was talking to Srenal. He had little information now.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal pouted when she saw that the group was no longer where she left them. Maybe she should have stayed by Sarah's house so that she can follow Thom where they are going. She assumed that they were going to meet back up since Thom and Sally had planned to go in thee clocktower together. On that thought, she warped back over the Sarah's house and waited between Sarah's house and her neighbor.

She planned to wait here out of site until she saw Thom leaving, but something more interesting could always come up. Sarah wouldn't object to some fun before she she followed Thom around, but she had to make sure she stayed where she could see Thom when he leaves.

Daube and Cross reached the Outer Line's Main Office in a half-hour's walk. Although neither said a word as they crossed the enormous yet empty building, there was an obvious tension. They passed countless rooms for various purposes until, finally, they reached a tacky name plate stating, "Office of Captain Daube Rights." Daube scowled slightly at it before he kicked the door off its hinges.

"Piece of shit," he muttered. Meanwhile, Cross seemed to be getting more and more irritated by his attitude. "Take a seat, pretty boy." Daube sat on his desk, pulled out a smoker (what would be Oblitus' equivalent of a cigarette), lit it, and blew the smoke right in his superior's face.

Cross started to open his mouth, but realizing he would let out more than he needed to, he shut it rather quickly. The younger boy ran his hand through his dirty blonde locks - as was his habit when he was frustrated - and sighed. Of course, his sigh was cut short by a coughing fit brought on by the smoke that was quickly surrounding him.

"Well?" Daube asked impatiently. "What do you have to say? You're the one who dragged me out here."

The blonde took a seat properly and began to recap the previous night's events.

"A demon dog? The hell kind of shit are you tryin' to feed me, Boy?"

"I trust what my Enforcers tell me, and looking at the scene, it wasn't something a human could have done!" he shouted, defensive. Gosh could Daube ruffle his feathers.

"You underestimate humans," he said levely, though he was starting to chew on the end of his smoker.

"I know what humans can do, and that wasn't it!" Cross slammed his palm down on the table, looking his subordinate in the eyes. "Why are you always so stubborn when it comes to this!? You've seen the reports! You know about all of this..! You know about the disappearances, the murders, the... You know it, yet you're always den-"

"STOP FEEDING ME THIS SHIT!" he screamed, spitting his lit smoker on the ground and grabbing the back of Cross's chair and pushing it to the ground. Stuck between the slipping chair legs and Daube's thicker body, the boy couldn't help but stumble back on his rear. Meanwhile, the smoker next to him seemed to have ignited the curtains. "I don't want to hear about your ridiculous little theories. It was fine before when you thought it was a person, but a demon? You little shit... you were planning this all along. If it's released that some 'demon dog' is going around killing people in the lower Lines, all of our business will stop, and Oblitus' economy will shatter."

"You don't care about the economy," Cross muttered in a low, slow voice as he began to rise. "All you care about is collecting your own money and dues, you self-centered wretch..! Try thinking about the people who are getting ripped apart!" Cross was furious. How could he act like this? The Citizens he was supposed to be protecting were in danger. "Can't you think about something other than your wallet for once!?"

The fire had engulfed the curtains and was beginning to spread, the smoke filling the room. Before Cross could get up fully, Daube had put his foot on him and used all his weight to keep his back against the ground. "This could all be a lot easier if you would just keep your mouth shut for a bit..."

"I refuse! This is an important matter-"

"...then I'll just have to make it so you can't use your mouth anymore. How about that?"

Again, Cross was afraid. All he had to do was take out his sword to get out of this mess, but was it worth it? He started thinking of the good and bad that would come out of it, but in the end, it wasn't up to logic. He unsheathed his sword, giving Daube's leg a deep cut while doing so. Daube winced and shifted his weight to his other leg. "You little..."

Quickly, the boy fumbled back up with the help of another chair that was half in flames, burning his hand. Daube looked like a demon from Cross's point of view - large, dark, surrounded by flames, yet forever unewavering - and he pulled his sword in front of him as if to protect himself from an invisible force as he slowly stepped backwards, towards the door.

Daube's expression shifted from anger to interest at the sight of his adversary's blade. "Huh. I guess it's finally getting interesting..!" He pulled off his cloak to reveal two fine guns on his sides, which he quickly pulled out of their holsters. Of course, these weren't Church-issued guns; these were works of art, compliments of his own people. "Let's see what you've got, Boy."

Mirabelle thought for a moment at Thom's suggestion. Would she ever really go back into the Clocktower simply out of curiosity? She was extremely wary of the place. It reminded her of her past, and what she'd lost - it was her past curiosity that had landed her living this life. If she hadn't given in to that curiosity, she might have lived a normal human life. She wouldn't have had to live this long, and witness so much.

Then again, would I really have been happy living a life of blindly following the Church?

She couldn't deny that somewhere deep inside of her, there was the tiniest spark of curiosity left over. She'd kept her distance from the Clocktower for many years, but what if she didn't know all its secrets at all? There was so much to find there. Maybe there was even something that could prove useful to her. She had no idea what such a thing could be, but being a Time Demon, she'd be more capable of protecting herself... wouldn't she? And after all, when she had first ventured into the Clocktower, she'd been just as determined as Thom. She had some understanding of why he and his allies would want to look inside.

"No," Mirabelle said aloud. "I'm not convinced that curiosity would be a good enough reason for me to go there again. Although..." She couldn't hide the uncertainty in her voice; it was perfectly clear. She shook her head. "Curiosity was what led me there the first time. The consequences of that didn't end up too pretty. I may be more powerful than I ever was as a human, but that doesn't mean I'm not vulnerable there. I don't want to land myself in a situation that could prove dangerous to me, you know?"

Luke arrived at the Outer Line's Main Office, and was not surprised by what he saw. Cross and Daube were trying to kill each other, and Luke didn't know if he should get involved or not. It wasn't like his life would get much worse if one of them succeeded, so he just shrugged and decided that a half-assed attempt at trying to get hem to stop would be good enough. Knowing those two, he doubted that he could change their minds unless he tried, but trying was too much work.

"You two are irksome, do you know that? Luke thought for a while at what would be a good enough attempt for him to use the excuse that he tried, but then me realized something. He wondered why he hadn't seen this before, but knew that it was probably the fact that he didn't care.

"I understand Cross being a half-wit, but not you Daube. How about you settle this childish fight later and avoid being burned down in the fire you started?" Luke knew Daube was the one who smoked, so figuring out who did it was relatively easy.

Luke may have been the youngest of the three, but he still saw himself as smarter than them, if he tried. Laziness was probably his downfall seeing that it held him back from reaching his full potential. At this point, he just hoped that they would see the danger before thinking to attack him for calling their fight 'childish'. These fights were the main reason why he saw himself more intelligent than them. Each fight was a waist of time, and brought the possibility of either of them getting killed.

He refused to admit himself that the only reason why he didn't get involved was because he was too lazy to get mad like these two. He saw anger as a waist of time that led to actions that were also a waist of time, because he saw these two fighting when they came in contact with each other.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Sarah tackled Thom in a tight hug and gave him a goofy grin. "Tommy! I finished packing! Can we go now?"

Thom rolled his eyes and, once again, pried her from him. She was annoying as ever, but he wouldn't risk insulting her when she could be an asset to his journey. He knew that he'd have to just deal with her until he got where he wanted to be. "Sarah, we can go in a bit. Just wait for by the door, okay?"

"No!" Sarah pouted at Thom. She finally got to see Thom after so long, and she refused to leave his side. "I'll wait here for you to finish."

"Insolent brat." Thom mumbled under his breath and gave Sarah a fake smile. "Fine, but don't interrupt my important conversation, okay?" Sarah nodded eagerly at this and hugged Thom again.

Thom turned his attention to Mirabelle and sighed, "I guess you would slow us down anyways. The strength of the mind has been known to weaken the body."

Sarah gave Thom a confused expression when he heard him speak. He spoke to Mirabelle differently than he spoke to her, and she didn't understand why. She thought this over in her head before she decided that it was because She was Thom's friend and Mirabelle wasn't. Maybe Thom hated Mirabelle, and that's why he's acting weird to her. She hugged Thom tighter, which he ignored, and giggled at the thought. She was happy to finally have someone that cared about her, and she was the only one that Thom cared about too.

Sally leaned away a bit when Dante whispered in her ear and listened to what he was saying to the new woman. After that, she was positive that the younger girl with then was Dante. How he did it, she wasn't really interested in knowing. All she knew was that he- Bright side, Sally! Look on the bright side! Stop looking so serious! Danger is over, right? She snapped herself back to her usual smiling self, slowing down and walking besides everyone else.

She glanced towards the new woman who had accompanied them. "You wouldn't mind if I asked who you are or what your motives are, would you?" The woman gave her name, but that wasn't enough right then. No matter how true it may be that allies are always useful, they needed to finish planning everything and getting everyone up to date, and that wasn't something they should be doing around an outsider. Still, she kept her curious smile. "I was kind of surprised when you jumped in there. I thank you for attempting to help, but why are you following us now?"

__________________________________________________________-

Cross didn't want a drawn out fight, but it seemed like that was the only resort. As much as he needed to get out of that room, he had a feeling that Daube would get trigger happy at any sudden movement and didn't want to take the risk. It was like the cat and the mouse. For a short while, they would stand still and stare, and whichever one moved first always seemed to have the disadvantage by showing their intentions.

Luckily, he seemed to have been saved as the younger Enforcer stepped in. Luke, was it? Of course, his relief dissipated when the younger boy began to insult him. Was everyone in the Outer Line like this? None of them had any manners. All Cross wanted ot do was sit down and talk, but no - Daube had to go ahead and start this kind of ruckus, and now Cross is getting the short end of the stick.

The blonde shifted his sword so it was guarding most of his vital areas and looked as hard as his baby face could at his adversary before him. "Well? You seem to have a nice boy there. It would be a shame if he died from that thing because you're trying to hide all of this from him and not do anything about it."

That would do it.

Goddamn, that better do it.

"Shut it!" Daube shouted, firing a few bullets. He was a good shot, but Cross could anticipate where he would aim and blocked them as best as he could. "Luke, get out of here! This is none of your business. If I burn, I burn; so what!?"

"Oh? This is none of his business? Weren't you the one who wanted to talk to me in public initially since you didn't want to keep anything from them?" Yes! Cross was winning! Even if he didn't stand a long chance physically, he had a feeling he was beating him emotionally. Daube would get worked up over anything, but Cross usually had a much milder temper and stricter manner. He could take control of a situation without needing force.

Daube suddenly smiled. "Isn't your ass getting a little toasty?"

Cross blinked and shifted his sight to his cloak, which was on fire. "What the-" And then, shots were fired. He narrowly managed to avoid them, one grazing his neck, ripping past the high neckline of his cloak. Cross pulled off his cloak, revealing his lean, youthful body beneath his straight pants and black, sleeveless shirt. He felt exposed, but he had no intention of running around with a tail of fire.

"You may be a smooth talker, but I'm a lot more cunning, Boy. Come back in ten years and try to fight m-" And Cross was off running. The Outer Line was Hell enough for him; he had no intention of roasting there. "You-!" Daube started after him but ended up stopping just outside of the door by Luke.

Cross also stopped and turned around, slightly out of breath thanks to his bright idea of running while his lungs were still filled with smoke. "Luke," he began, not in the mood to remember or try and properly pronounce his last name. "If you could at least attempt to calm that thing down, I'd appreciate it. I wasn't joking when I said lives are in danger. Daube is more worried about his own business than any of you!"

Well, that statement was off, but what could Cross do? He didn't know any better. Daube was worried about, yes, his business, but also about the economy in general. He knew that Oblitus had a very gentle balance that had to be kept, and he was furious that Cross--the Captain General--was too stubborn and narrow-minded to accept that those who break the rules are just as necessary as those who don't.

Even so, was that balance worth more than the weight of their lives? These things were getting out of hand.

As much as Daube wanted to yell at Cross, he knew that trust was important. He controlled that whole Line with trust, understanding, and an iron fist. He wasn't the nicest, but he didn't lie, and he didn't keep things from his people. So why should he keep doing it then?

For once, he kept his mouth shut and watched Cross catch his breath. Finally, he muttered, "Fuck..." under his breath and put his guns away. He lost this one. Considering there was a witness, he couldn't press further. Still, he was pissed. "Goddamnit, Cross. Why did you have to bring that kind of shit up in front of one of my officers?"

Cross put his sword away just as the flames began to burst out of the other room. It was too dangerous to close the windows and shut the door; this base was going to be swallowed whole--all thanks to one smoker--, and there was nothing they could do about it. "Let's get out of here and discuss this properly."

Daube started to walk out, frustrated. "Unless you're interested in dyin', I don't suggest we discuss this anymore today."

"Bu-"

"Tomorrow night, we'll be having a Line Meeting."

"A what?" Cross was dumbfounded, for it was something limited to the Outer Line, and he had always been kept in the shadows about it. His confusion was obvious as they exited the building; the two ignored the Enforcers gathered around, though many seemed to be shocked that Daube had invited Cross for once.

"Everyone in the Line comes together to discuss important shit, yadidadida; that's all. If you want to go public, we're going all the way. Get it? Got it? Good. I'll meet you here at 7 tomorrow night. Now get out of my sight."

"But we have to put the fire out!"

"Oh, fuck. Just let it burn. It's not like anyone uses that place anyway." It's true that there weren't any other buildings close enough for it to burn, but Cross wasn't sure it was proper to just let a building burn itself to the ground.

Cross was stuck between following regulations to put it out or keeping his ghost in his shell by doing what Daube said. Not wanting to cause anymore trouble, he didn't ask anything more, but still walked besides him.

"...why are you following me?"

"You burned my cloak."

And so, the bickering continued.

Luke just rolled his eyes ignoring their suggestions. They all seemed like too much work for him. Luke knew better than trying to control Daube's temper. Daube had a mean temper and Luke preferred to stay out, hence why Luke would actually try to do a job correctly when Daube gave him one. With a yawn, Luke considered just leaving them to bicker, but the memory of what he walked in on caused him to follow. He did not need to leave these two alone only to allow them to be at each others throats again.

Luke didn't have anything better to do. This probably required the least amount of work as long as he didn't get physically involved when they fought. The thought of getting involved in their fights at all made him cringe. Even if he weren't too lazy to try to stop them, he didn't want to be in the middle of their fights, especially after what just happened.

When they reached the gates of the Outer Line HQ, Cross started to head off in another direction. "Tomorrow, then."

Even though Cross was gone, Daube was still on edge. He moved his arm with the intention of putting it around Luke's shoulders. "Listen, kid," he started, his normal self starting to peak out. "Let's leave the questions for tomorrow and go get something to drink. How 'bout that?" He figured a drink and some pretty ladies would do them both some good.

Daube knew he had more important things to do, but he was too frustrated for it at the moment, and he hoped he could move Luke's mind from what Cross had said to something a little fuzzier.

Luke slid his hands into his pockets not caring that Daube put his arm around Luke's shoulders. He had no objections to getting a drink. It was better than work. "Sounds good enough to me." Luke was just glad that he didn't have to discuss what Daube and Cross were talking about with Daube. He preferred to just chill and do nothing.

Luke knew Daube was avoiding the conversation, but Luke really didn't care what Daube and Cross were talking about. He was more than willing to allow Daube to distract him, and maybe never get around talking to him about it. Luke figured that the less he knew, the less he'd have to do about it. That was a plan that Luke was more than willing to stick with if Daube was giving him the chance to do it.

Daube gave a quick laugh at his reaction. This is Luke they were talking about, wasn't it? He had been overreacting, he realized; he just needed to calm down. He walked with the other boy to what seemed like an ordinary house - as all of these places seemed at first glance - and walked inside as he pleased. By now, he had removed his arm and was walking confidently down the long steps. Both the house and 'bar' were very cozy, and the smell of liquor got more and more prominent as you reached the loud, lowest floor.

He stepped into the room and was greated by plenty of cheers. These men hadn't heard him invite Cross to their meeting, he knew, but it was still a bit odd to go from silence to shouts. Daube grinned and took his seat on one of the man stools next to the wall. He didn't bother jesturing for Luke to join him; after all, it was safe for him to assume that the kid would do what was best for his health.

Dante let out a short laugh at hearing Sally ask Nephele what her intentions were. Nephele looked at the young blonde and slowly nodded. “Of course I don’t mind. After all it seems to me that you’re not here sightseeing and from what I overheard.” She gave Dante a quick gaze and immediately turned back to the blonde. “You should be wary of those who approach you.” Nephele put her left hand in her coats pocket and her right hand inside her coat. Her right hand began to search for something inside the coat until it stopped. She took out a small silver encrusted box and opened it revealing a pack of smokers. She picked one up and placed the box back inside her coat.

“I hope you don’t mind.” She said as she took a small box of matches from her coats pocket. She placed the smoker in her mouth and opened the box of matches. She took one of the matches out and began to attempt to light the match. “Well my full name’s Nephele Shelly. I’m from the Center Line”, she stopped trying to light the match and lowered herself down to Sally’s ear. “and I’m not very fond of it or the Church.” She stood straight up and lit the match. She placed the flaming match under the smoker lighting it and threw the match on the floor. She inhaled and let out a cloud of smoke. “As for my motive that’s easy.” She lowered her voice so only the group could hear her. “It’s to go against the Church until they catch me.”

Dante smiled at Nephele as she tried to adjust her coats upper part. “Damn stupid coat. You weren’t meant to be used zipped up by a girl.” Dante continued to fight with the coat trying to unzip it as she looked at Nephele. “I like your motive Miss Shelley.” Nephele turned to Dante and tilted her head as she saw her battling with the coat. “Here let me help you.” Nephele opened her duffle bag as she walked and searched through it. She took out what seemed to be a small scalpel and closed the duffle bag. She took a few quick steps toward Dante and agilely sliced the coat in two causing the lower half to slide down onto Dante’s hips. “How did you do that?” Dante asked mesmerized as Nephele put the scalpel into her pocket. “Just a trick I know thanks to my job.”

Nephele turned again to Sally as she inhaled again and let out another cloud of smoke. “As for why I’m following you it’s because I wish to speak with your friend.” She motioned toward Dante. “I sure hope the form he had before, the one with the bi-color eyes and sharp teeth is the real one.” Dante turned around and laughed. “Yep that’s my real self. If you’d like to talk then tag along we should be close to my house soon and there’s enough rooms for all of you.” Nephele coughed up smoke and clenched onto the smoker trying not to let it fall. “You’re inviting me to stay at your home?” Dante nodded as she kept walking. “Well thank you. I guess I won’t have to search for somewhere to stay after all…” Nephele cut her sentence and looked at all of them. “There’s something I should tell you about me first.” She took out the smoker from her mouth. “What is it Nephel?” Nephele sighed. “Ever heard of ‘Doc’?” Dante nodded. “Doc… Oh yeah more or less. Why do you ask?” Nephele smiled. “That’s me.” Dante tensed up but kept walking. “That’s… Very interesting.” Dante thought things couldn’t get more interesting and they just did.

Luke could hardly be surprised at the reaction Daube got as he entered. There was little that would surprise Luke about Daube from what Luke knew about him. He silently followed Daube and took the seat next to him. It was nice to not have to worry about work. Even if he did the least amount of work possible, Luke still hated every moment of it. It was nice that Daube wasn't as uptight as Cross, or some of the other enforcers are when doing there jobs.

Luke smiled glad that he had decided to check on Daube and Cross as the girl had advised. He would still be attempting to work and not relaxing if he had actually ignored the girl's advice. The thought pleased Luke as he took in his surroundings. It wasn't as if there was much to be impressed by in a bar, but he still felt the need to look around.

The Enforcer just shook his head and told him to go ask somebody else. Crest nodded and wrote to him a thank you and quickly departed. The young boy thought it was strange that the Enforcer hadn't even told him to burn the note or anything, but he didn't mind since it meant that it was less of a hassle for him to explain. With a glance at the Clocktower, he realized that he really had been separated from his school group for quite some time and quickened his steps, his suitcase rattling behind him as its wheels rolled on the rough ground below.

After going down a few almost empty streets, he managed to get to a busier part of the town. He got the directions to the houses and headed there. When he reached his destination, he was glad to see that it was indeed the right place, spotting his classmates strolling around or having fun.

He checked in with his teacher, who assigned him to a room and gave him its key in House 7 and quickly went there in order to unpack. Upon his arrival at his room, he frowned a bit because the accommodations weren't the ones he'd been used to, but shrugged and started unzipping his suitcase. He set his necessities and tools in one of the small old drawers, his books, notebooks, pencils and candles in another, and left his clothing in his valise. he took out the current notebook, and the pencil attached to it, that was being used and shoved it in his pocket. He then went to the communal bathroom of the house and washed his face and hands, before going to the dining hall in the central building that was surrounded by all the houses for the students. Once he was there, he got his share of not very appetizing but still passable food and ate it at a table alone.

When he finished, he left and returned to his room to grab a book. He didn't stay in his room to finish it however; the boys in the house were making too much noise for him to be able to focus on reading.

After making sure that he knew where his house was to make sure he didn't get lost again, he decided to venture in the Line to find a comfortable spot for reading. A few streets down the road, he could hear loud cheering noises from a bunch of men coming from what seemed like a normal house. He made note to avoid that neighbourhood and continued onward.

He found a good spot in an alley and sat down to read. By the time he was completely immersed in the book however he heard loud shouts and saw that two men were fighting on the streets. Crest accidentally made eye contact at one of them, and the man's glare darkened. The man's face was pink and he didn't seem to be completely lucid, so Crest assumed he was drunk. The man threatened Crest then, and ran at the boy. Crest, frightened out of his mind, ran away with his book clutched tightly in his hands. It didn't occur to him to remember that he'd get lost again if he wasn't paying attention before it was too late.

He was now in a more remote area of the Line, with a few indecent-looking people here and there, and wanted very badly to go back to the house, even if it was loud. He was tired from running and really didn't like the feel of the Line.

After a bit of time, he was walking down a road, feeling a bit more reassured when he saw more people but still too wary of them to ask for help, when he spotted a young man with an expensive-looking burnt cloak in his hands. He recognized him as General Cross, the Captain of the Enforcers and felt a smile forming on his face. He was a bit confused as to why the General of the Enforcers would be here but more than glad that he was. Finally, a reliable and somewhat nice figure, based on what he had seen whenever inspections happened, that might be able to help him.

Crest wrote Um, excuse me, but could you perhaps lead me to the houses where the Center Line students are staying? I need to get there before evening. I'd really appreciate your assistance, please., approached the General quietly and pulled on the man's sleeve before showing his the note.

Mirabelle's mind was racing. She'd never felt quite so indecisive about something before. She didn't know what had gotten into her - usually, she'd have no trouble at all with walking away from this situation. Her better instincts told her she should do just that. This time, though...

She looked over at Sarah, whose blind enthusiasm was beginning to irritate her. How could someone possibly be so naive? She didn't understand. Couldn't she see that Thom was simply using her? There wasn't any point in telling her this, either; she wouldn't believe anything unless it came from Thom's mouth, that seemed pretty clear.

Mirabelle's eyebrows raised slightly at what Thom said. "I'm not sure whether I should be flattered or insulted by that," she said dryly. "I admit, though, you've got me intrigued." She paused for a moment before adding suddenly, "Although, I wonder if I'll be the one slowing you down or vice versa." She shrugged. "Nevermind. Let's just say, for one moment, that I did go with you to the Clocktower. Why would you want me there in the first place? Especially since you just said I would possibly slow you down."

Daube called over a few ladies to the table; the tall brunette of the group stood behind him, wrapping her arms around his neck in a familiar manner. He continued drinking and enjoying his time. "This is the way life should be, eh, Luke?" Fun, simple, surrounded by people who like you... There was nothing wrong with that sort of life.

That was his life, after all, and he wasn't one to put himself down. He had enough confidence for the entire Line to distribute heartily amongst all men and women. He took another sip and started to relax in a way he hadn't all day. Damn Cross. Why did he have to screw with an already annoying day? He tried to keep it out of his mind and sent over a lady for Luke. "Just enjoy your time here, kid. I'm startin' to doubt that it'll be this peaceful for long."

___________________________________________________________

Cross had been silently fuming over the previous events when a young boy tugged on his sleeve and showed him a written message. He was suddenly happy he had been the one to be approached. Most people in the Outer Line wouldn't have been able to read it since The Church said they weren't allowed to learn to read or write. The only citizens who could were those taught by Daube's useless Enforcers.

Cross softened up and knelt down to the boy after slipping his cloak on. The bottom was burnt, but he supposed it was wearable for the moment. "Of course," he said before patting the boy's head. God, he was such a sucker for little kids. Aside from his inability to handle girls, that was the main reason he was so soft on Sally. She was young, whether she acted grown or not.

He cocked his head to the side, his messy blonde bangs partially covering his eyes. "Do you know the address?" Cross rarely came to the Outer Line; he didn't know where the housing was himself, but he could navigate if he had a street address. Either way, he would find a method to escort the boy. This was no place for a Center Line child to be walking alone in.

The man had knelt down just to make him more comfy and patted his head. Usually Crest would've shied away from contact, but he was already starting to like Cross. Crest nodded, wrote the address down and showed it to Cross, beaming all the while. So the grand leader of the Enforcers was a good guy - not that all Enforcers shouldn't. He was glad. He took hold of the older man's hand, pulled it up a bit to ask if he could stand up and smiled at him.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Linda and Gray were in a good mood. Their son Crest had departed for his trip, and while he never caused trouble and they dearly loved him it was nice having a little alone time. After finishing breakfast they left the house and walked to their winery.

They opened up shop, checked the mailbox for any requests for wine, and started working. One of the restaurants had requested their usual hundred bottles for the week and the Rochesters had made an order for five hundred for a celebration of some sort. They also had to check through their collection of aged wine to see if any of them were worth bottling out right now.

A couple of hours later, when they had finished all their work and their hands and forearms were purple, they took a small break and went to deliver the wine to the restaurant, Lucinus. There they met up with one of their favorite customers, a young waitress names Rena, who gladly put the wine in the storage.

She also told them something interesting in exchange: "There are some... unnatural things happening in the other Lines. Something that the Enforcers won't talk about. But don't prod too much, hmm? Even if your names are already quite famous, there's nothing bad about lying low for now. I know that you know that, Gray, but Linda isn't quite as subtle sometimes."

They thanked her and went off on their way. Unnatural, huh? Linda and Gray wore smiles on their faces. This would get interesting.

Thom smirked at Mirabelle's statement. It seems like she's bit the hook. The fight wasn't over yet. It was a gentle matter when manipulating people as observant as Mirabelle. He'd have to choose his next words carefully if he wanted this to work at all. Thom linked his finger and pressed his thumbs together, a habit he had when thinking, and watched Mirabelle closely. He looked for any sign that she might change her mind as he chose his next words. Normally he's close his eyes too when he was this deep in thought, but he had to keep an eye on her in case of any change of expression.

"I believe you already answered that one my dear. How can I be so sure that you'll be the one slowing us down?" Thom knew enough by now to know that there was the chance that she could prove useful. He was also not so stupid to waste the chance of having someone who seemed to know Srenal in his party. He knew nothing about Srenal other than the fact that she had a problem with Dante and that she was up to something. The thought made Thom grimace. If there was thing Thom loathed, it was being in the dark about something that could change his plans. The fact that she hated Dante couldn't be a good thing since it seemed like Dante would be part of the group for a while.

Sarah looked at Thom with a confused expression. She wanted to know what Thom was talking about, but remembered him telling her not to interrupt and kept quiet. She looked at Mirabelle to see what Thom was staring so intently at, or why Thom would even be talking to her. She recognized his way of speech as the way he'd talk to some of the enforcers when they questioned him, but she couldn't decipher much more than that.

Thom was silently irritated by Sarah's decision to remain by his side. He could tell from the moment that Sarah walked off earlier that his influence over Sarah irritated her, but there wasn't much that he could do about that. That was one factor that he couldn't control, and it silently irked him. He could only hope that it had no influence over Mirabelle's decision. He's be pissed if it did.

"I also figure that it'll be beneficial to have someone with personal experience on the Clocktower to tag along. Even if you were to hold us back, the pros outweigh the cons." Thom could only silently hope that didn't give too much away. This was a touchy subject, and he didn't want his earlier comment to be the reason why she said no. He wanted her to feel as if it would benefit him for her to tag along, but it would also be a hindrance. His tone sounded as if he could still continue this journey without her with little trouble, but the offer was still open for her to join.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Luke relaxed as he drank. Damn, it was nice to be able to relax without fear of his superiors caring. He chuckled at Daube's comment of this being the way it should be. He couldn't agree more to that statement. It felt nice to not have to worry about work or pretending to give a fuck. Luke barely paid attention to Daube's last comment, but he paid enough attention to roll his eyes.

"As long as that moron is around, I doubt it'll be this peaceful for the rest of the day." If Luke had a favorite pass time other than doing nothing, it was insulting Cross. He hated the fact that Cross actually expected him to do work, and the fact that Cross had expected him to control Daube just made it worse. Daube was his superior. Luke should have to control him.

Luke figured that he could control Daube if he had to, but he enjoyed Daube's care-free attitude. Luke just wanted to relax, and Daube was the one who allowed that. Why would Luke want to get on his bad side? After the many confrontations that Luke had witnessed between Daube and Cross, Luke knew that he never wanted to be on Daube's bad side.

Mirabelle observed Thom as he spoke to her. It was difficult to tell just what he was thinking. Although she'd always considered herself able to analyse situations, figuring out people was another matter entirely, especially since interacting with others had never been a particularly strong point of hers.

She was probably going to be taken advantage of, that much Mirabelle could guess at. It had become clear by now that Thom would use people for his own needs. The idea of simply being another tool made her bristle, but when she swallowed that pride, she could see that if she agreed to go with Thom, she might even get something out of this. Who knows, maybe there really was something in the Clocktower worth finding? Mirabelle weighed the pros and cons. Pro: she could find something interesting or beneficial in there. Con: if she wasn't careful, she could die.

Guess I'll just have to be careful, then. With that, she made up her mind. She'd never get herself involved in something like this normally, but it seemed that, after hundreds of years, it was finally time to do something a little different.

She paused for a moment before speaking. "Alright," she said slowly, carefully. "You've piqued my interest. I think... I might indulge myself... and tag along. However!" she said firmly, "I'd like to make it clear right now that I'm not making any firm promises. This was my decision, and mine only; you merely tickled my curiosity, so to speak. I'll go to the Clocktower, and I agree to help you if I can. The help I can offer may be very limited, however, since I don't know how the Clocktower might have changed. Also, if things get very bad, I won't have any problem with backing out."

Thom couldn't help but laugh when Mirabelle decided to join them. Getting her to join may half only been half of the battle, but it was certainly the harder half. Now that he had her, there was little chance of her changing her mind unless she loss interent,which wasn't likely as far as he could tell, or it getting too dangerous.

Sarah looked up at Thom with a confused expression. She had no idea what Thom was doing, but Thom knew it was because of her ignorance. All she knew was that Thom was up to something, and it was something that she should just keep quiet about and let Thom handle. Thom patted Sarah on the head, nodding at what Mirabelle said.

"I'm perfectly aware that it was your own decision and you may not stay with the group. Why would I feel foolish enough to think that you'd stick with me? I am, after all, a mnipulative bastard."

Thom smirked at the thought. He was a manipulative bastard, but he held a lot of pride in that. He also held a lot of pride in how easy manipultion came to him. The fact that Mirabelle had agreed to it didn't help matters much. He had actually been afraid for a moment there that Mirabelle would be one of the few to see through his words and know better than to listen to him.

The thought irked Thom that it could still be true. She really could just be tagging along out of curiosity and it could have nothing to do with what he said, but his words were what brought about that bit of curiosity, and he did get what he wanted in the end.

The information had finally gotten through Sarah's head adn she squeeled with delight, "You're coing with us?!? That'll be so much fun!"

Thom simply rolled his eyes at this subconsciously wrapped his arm around Sarah's waiste to prevent her from hugging Mirabelle. Thom didn't know Mirabelle to know well enough what her response to that would be, but he did know that it wouldn't be pretty.

As Thom predicted, Sarah did try to hug Mirabelle, but ended up pouting when she was stopped by his arm. She didn't understand why Thom would prevent such an action, but there was no comparison in their strengths. There was no way Sarah would be able to do such as long as Thom prevented it. Sarah huffed and decided to hug Thom again instead. She could barely keep in her excitement at the thought of Mirabelle going along.

Thom couldn't understand why Sarah was so excited about this, but he figured it had something to do with the fact that Mirabelle was one of the few people to not try to hurt Sarah in a long time. While he held sympathy towards Sarah, that didnot change his views towards her. Sarah was weak minded and easily manipulated, but she was also one that'd report to the enforcers if a forbidden was broken. If he didn't look down on her because of how easy it was to manipulate her, then he certainly hated her for who she is. He only stuck with her because she was an asset in a place when the Enforcers were always suspicious of his actions. They wouldn't care about what Sarah did simnply because she would refuse to break the Forbiddens.

Did I... make a mistake? Mirabelle bit the inside of her cheek, a little worried. She'd actually agreed to get involved in something; to do something different. Now that she'd done that, she was somewhat out of her comfort zone. All of a sudden, it felt like she was treading on unfamiliar territory. She'd have to be very careful.

She gave a tiny little smirk when Thom called himself a 'manipulative bastard', but she chose not to comment on it, even though inside she agreed with the statement. Instead, she just nodded. "It's good that you understand, then," she said. "That'll prevent any future misunderstandings, I hope." Then, something occurred to her. "Although," she added slowly, "I forgot... the rest of your group had no say in this. Don't you think they might object to suddenly having me there, too? You don't know me, and although I can truthfully say I don't mean you any harm, you have no reason to trust me. And, by the way, please don't think that I trust you, either." She shrugged. "That's something I trust you'll be able to handle, I suppose."

Mirabelle blinked with surprise at Sarah's squealing. Sarah had seemed so scared of her earlier, so her sudden enthusiasm was unexpected. Mirabelle was quite relieved that Thom prevented Sarah from hugging her; she wasn't the type to enjoy physical contact with anyone at all, and honestly didn't know how she'd react to being hugged. She sighed inwardly. If things went in the direction they seemed to be going, she'd have to get used to Sarah's enthusiasm and naivety. Not to mention that ego of Thom's. God, what was she getting herself into?

"Well, we'll see about how 'fun' it'll be," Mirabelle said dryly. "Honestly, I just hope that a bit of fun is all it'll turn out to be." She scratched her head thoughtfully. "It seems there's still things that need to be discussed here." She turned back to Thom. "Other than your companions, that is. When exactly were you planning to go into the Clocktower? Tonight? I'm sure it won't be as easy as simply barging in there, even if we're in the Outer Line." There were a lot of things that Mirabelle wanted to be clear on - for example, what would they even do upon entering the Clocktower? Had they planned it any further than simply 'get inside'? Were they prepared to defend themselves against anything dangerous in there? Furthermore, she wasn't sure what to do with herself until she even ventured into the Clocktower. She usually didn't have anything to do all day; now that she was supposed to be doing something, she needed a clear structure to her day leading up to it. Such a hassle.

Thom smirked when she asked about the rest of the group. In truth, Thom didn't care what the rest of the group said. All Thom cared about were his plans, which now involved Mirabelle. That wouldn't be too hard to figure out though. "As far as the rest of the group goes, they are hiding plenty from me. I'm sure I can easily return the favor by inviting you along." He really hated the fact that Sally wouldn't tell him what she was hiding. It made planning anything hard when he didn't know what to expect and knew that there would be a surprise soon.

Sarah whined at Mirabelle's comment, "Why would you only want it to be a bit of fun!?! It should be a fun adventure." Thom was used to Sarah's mood swings. He wasn't sure why Sarah had accepted Mirabelle all the sudden, but he suspected it had to do with the fact that he accepted her. As long as he was okay with it, Sarah was probably going to be too.

Thom rolled his eyes at Sarah's whining. If she knew the truth, she'd be saying differently. It wasn't like she would know that though. He simply ignored Sarah's comment and decided to answer Mirabelle's question. It was annoying, but he should have expected that Mirabelle would want details. She was probably almost as thoughtful as he was, and he didn't know if that was a good thing or bad thing.

Before Thom could respond, Sarah asked, "Wait! Go in the Clocktower?" Sarah looked at Thom questioningly, "I thought we weren't going to break any of the Forbiddens?"

Thom growled under his breath at this. Things could not be as easy as he wanted them to be could they? He rolled his eyes and tightened his hold around Sarah's waist. He had to deal with Mirabelle, an Sarah wanted to stay by his side. That only left one option. He needed to get rid of Sarah.

Thom looked at Sarah with a small frown. "Sarah, I already told you that we weren't going to break any Forbiddens." Thom glared at Mirabelle after saying this. He was annoyed that she had to make this harder on him. He figured that he had to give her one good lie to cover it all up and stop her complaining, but he couldn't think of one on the spot. That left one choice.

Thom's expression changed and he looked as if he had just remembered something. "Sarah, I believe that I left my chain the last time I was here, do you remember what I'm talking about?" Sarah shook her head in defiant way, refusing to allow Thom to change the subject. This caused Thom to give her a fake pout. "Sarah, you know how special it is to me, I promise I'll explain everything when you get back. We will not be breaking any forbiddens."

That was good enough for Sarah. She figured that Thom had a good reason why him and Mirabelle were talking about going inside the Clocktower when they weren't going to do that. Sarah nodded and went off to her room to find the chain Thom was speaking of. She remembered seeing it, but she didn't really remember where she had put it. Thom would probably kill her if he heard that. The chain meant a lot to him.

When Sarah was gone, Thom looked at Mirabelle with a serious expression, "I swear, I think you do that on purpose." Thom rubbed his temples and let out a groan. "There are so many factors that people aren't telling me and so many changes made since the original plan, that I'm quite sure what we will do." Thom thought for a moment and sighed, "I believe the plan was that I'd collect Sarah and we'd head over to Dante's place where we can discuss are new plan. Sally had something that she needed to tell us, so I figure we'll find out when we get there. I assume that it's big, so we'll have to make plans after we all are caught up and know exactly what's going on."

Thom looked in the direction Sarah went. There were too many variables left to chance, and he had to make sure that he solved them before they just continued on there way to the Clocktower. He had to make sure he knew what Sally was hiding before he could continue to plan anything. Besides, Sally had a lot more information than him on the Clocktower.

Daube scowled slightly, leaning his head back against the cleavage of the woman still behind him. "Cross'll realize why he's not welcome here tomorrow. We don't need him. He's annoying. He's just a stupid brat. He may be older than you, but goddamn are you more mature than that kid." The woman lit a smoker and was sharing it with him. Between puffs, he continued to talk, "Some people are just too obsessed with law and order. Screw that shit. All we need is women, money, and blood running through our veins. As long as I know I'm alive, I'm not concerned with their political bullshit. I run this place the way I have to. He can go shove it, walking in here, thinking he knows how to manage himself out here..."

It wasn't the first time he said it; Daube was known for going off on that particular little tangent. He knew it, though, and stopped himself from going on too long by changing the subject. "By the way, Luke. You got any long term ladyfriends yet?"

___________________________________________________________

Cross took the paper from the boy and read the address. He was rather surprised when he compared it to the address they were at. Because the Outer Line was especially large, they had made the streets easy to navigate using numbers for one direction and letters for the other direction. The Middle Line just used numbers (odd in one direction and even in the other), and the Center Line just used letters. The number street that they were on was quite a while away from the address the boy gave him.

Still, Cross figured he had plenty of time. There wasn't much he could do until tomorrow, and the prospect of disciplining people for minor offenses wasn't quite sweet enough for him to want to treck all the way to the Middle Line and back.

He felt the boy tug on him and helped him up. In a completely non pedophilific sense, Cross was charmed by how utterly adorable the boy was. "I'll definitely get you back to your class safe. It's quite a walk away, though. If you get tired along the way, just ask and I'll carry you. I'm stronger than I look." With that, he started to take slow steps in the direction they needed to head, his hand out a bit in case the boy wanted to keep holding it.

_______________________________________________________________

Sally shivered again as the woman, Nephele, whispered in her ear. What was up with these people and whispering in her ear? She had fine hearing. She could hear and comprehend whatever they whispered perfectly fine whether it was said ten feet away or directly into her sensitive ears.

As she listened to the rest of the conversation, she was getting more and more interested in this woman. What exactly could she do? She had to be sharp if she noticed that Dante was, well, Dante. Then again... That was a pretty stupid move that Dante made. You don't go in an alley as one person and come out as another without any suspicion being raised.

...what?
The next thing she knew, Dante was inviting this unknown woman into his home to stay with them. Although she kept her face straight (albeit a little spaced out), she had a thousand thoughts of frustration running through her head.

Maybe she can help us. Maybe she'll be that one key to figuring all of this out. Maybe she's not some dangerous person carrying around scapels. Maybe I'm just seeing things. Maybe I'm just hearing things. Maybe Dante isn't actually inviting her to stay.

...nope, I'm pretty sure he is. Dante, why do you have to do this to me? You're just making everything that much more annoying! People are so annoying. Why can't anything go as planned? Why does someone always have to screw up whatever I'm doing? I've been waiting forever to actually find someone who wants to do this with me. Now I've found a group of people. We might already have a good plan. But no, nothing can ever go Sally's way.

I can't yell at them, can I? If I get angry, they won't understand. I'll have to explain, and then they'll think that I'm untrustworthy; they'll think that I can't trust Dante's judgement. Which I can't. But if I let Dante know that, I don't think I'd be in a good position. He's not human. We might need his powers, and I can't risk messing this up. Plus... who knows what he'll do if we piss him off? I don't know what the full extent of his powers are. God, I wish I had gotten more time with that journal.

Sally snapped out of it and glanced back to them. Had she heard something about Doc? Is that who that woman was? That made her trust the woman even less. Doctor or not, that Nephele woman had a bad reputation. Still...

Just what should I do..? She sighed internally. I guess I've just got to go with it.

"Well, that will all depend on how willing you are to help us, Miss Nephele." Sally gave her a happy laugh. "The more the merrier, of course! We don't know what's ahead. Hopefully you don't mind a bit of trouble, though. We can't gurantee your safety if you hang around with us too much. If that's alright with you, then I'm happy to have you aboard..!"

She started walking backwards before putting her hand out, suggesting she wanted to shake hands with the other woman. "I don't think I ever properly introduced myself. I'm Sally Jones, Middle Line resident. I enjoy tinkering with things and feeding controversy. It's a pleasure to meet you, Doc." Sally had whispered her identity. It was partially a way of being respectful; if Nephele was quiet and didn't want it out, it wasn't her place to be loud about it. However, it was also Sally's silent way of saying, 'I know who you are; you know who I am. If we go down, we go down together.' Of course, few people noticed it; if they did, they didn't comment. Those kinds of challenges were never spoken of aloud.

Luke allowed Daube to rant about Cross for a bit. Luke despised Cross, but who didn't? Even though Luke had different reasons than everyone else, Luke was aware that hatred of Cross was a usual thing, and Daube was the one who hated Cross the most. Luke had been shocked by Daube's random change of subject, but he went along with it just as easily. At least this conversation was better than the annoying thoughts of Cross.

"Hardly, I find that any female who expects a long term relation out of me irksome." Luke closed his eyes groaned at the thought. "Any woman only wants one thing, and that's attention. The worst ones are the ones that expect me to keep all of my attention on them, and I'll be damned if I do it. Women are only good for one thing, and that's a nice fuck. They can go whore themselves out to some other guy if they expect anything more than that, because I prefer to be a lone wolf. I go where I please and do what I please. I don't want anything like a clingy woman holding me back."

Luke chuckled as he remembered something, "The only thing that can hold be back is this stupid Enforcer bullshit, but it's not like I got much of a choice on that matter."

Daube found himself laughing rather hard at that comment. "If you keep talking like that, they won't want to fuck you either," he said between laughs. "But I don't blame you." Daube had no intention of settling down anytime soon despite his age. Still, he had a feeling Luke would change his mind as he got older if the world was any better by then.

"Sorry, ladies, but my views are similar to his."

"We know that already, Daube," the woman behind him whispered. The others agreed. "We just like the rewards we get for this."

He grinned in his dangerous but playful manner. "Of course. See, Luke? You're following down my path. Too bad you don't have the rank or cash to back it up. I'd say you've got the skills, but considering I don't think either of us swing that way, there's no real way for me to tell, huh?"

He gave a lazy wave to those behind the counter at the bar. The woman who brought the alcohol was going to ask if he was alright, but then she remembered that he was pretty good with his alcohol. There was no need for her to worry about him intoxicating himself on their weak liquors.

However, her expression gave him what he felt was a great idea. "Luke, want to have a drinking contest? No money on the table. Just a game between buds. I'll pay, win or lose." He leaned forward against the table, the ice clinking against the glass."How about it?"

It was Luke's turn to laugh at Daube's comment. "As long as I have enough skill, I shouldn't need the rank or cash to back it up." Luke smirked, "Besides, it wouldn't be hard to find a quick lay around here. Thankfully, there are some girls out there that aren't looking for the long term shit." Luke just laughed harder at Daube's following comment, "Those mental images were horrid. It's a blessing neither of us swing that way."

Luke couldn't help but be glad he can finally be himself instead of being an Enforcer. As an Enforcer, he rarely got moments to relax like this. Luke couldn't help but be thankful that Daube was laid back. Luke would die if he worked under someone like Cross instead of Daube. The thoughts agitated him to no end.

At the thought of a drinking contest, Luke smirked at Daube, "You're on." Luke knew that Daube would probably win, but that didn't matter right now. All that mattered was that Luke had been challenged, and he was more than willing to accept it. Luke had a competitive side that would probably get him in trouble had he been anything but an enforcer, but he didn't pay much attention to it.

Daube was glad to hear that Luke was willing to go against him. He asked the women to back off and called the woman from behind the bar. "Hey! We got a challenge over here. We need a couple bottles of something strong..!"

"But Sir, that wou-" The woman was interrupted by a hand on her shoulder. The man was her father, and he shook his head with comfort.

"He's got plenty of money for it, hun. Go get that out of the lower cellar." She nodded in reply and skittered down more stairs. A minute or two later, she came back with two bottles of what would be equivalent to vodka. The father came to the table with four shot glasses.

"Alright, you boys should know the rules. Two bottles. One shot every thirty seconds. Whoever can go the longest without tapping out wins. I assume Daube's paying for this event?"

Daube grinned as he listened to the bets already going on in the background. "I may not need to. But you know I will if I have to."

"Alright, then." The old man placed one shot glass in front of either man. "When you finish the shot, pass it back to Nina here; she'll already have your next shots ready. Well, are you two all good?"

Daube glanced over at Luke. "I'm ready if you are." The woman placed the first shots in front of the two and also looked towards Luke for an answer so she could call the start of the challenge.

Luke gave a feral grin at Daube before nodding. "You bet I'm ready. You better hope that you can hold your alcohol better than I can pretty boy." Luke chuckled watching Daube closely. There was no way that he'd let himself loose this. Luke had troubles resisting a challenge when when it presented itself so easily, especially when everything else seemed so annoying.

Luke looked at the woman and her father repeating, "I'm ready."

Luke turned back towards Daube. "This is the last chance tou change your mind." Since Luke would often visit the bar when trying to score or just to skip his duties, he could hold his alcohol well enough, and seeing how confident Daube seemed to be acting, he guessed that Daube was too. It didn't matter much since this was just a friendly match, but Luke was competitive by nature and loved having a competition that required little work from him. All he had to do was drink the alcohol and not tap out. That didn't seem too hard.

Mirabelle nodded in response to Thom's comment about the rest of his group. "Fine then," she said. "Hopefully there won't be any complications when it comes to getting along with each other." Her mind went back to Dante. She hadn't liked the look of him at all. He was clearly dangerous. She frowned at the thought and said, "That person Dante is part of the group as well, isn't he? He's the only one I'm really concerned about. He really didn't look like good news." She sighed. "I guess I can't say anything like that unless he actually does something harmful, though."

Mirabelle just barely stopped herself from grinding her teeth in annoyance at Sarah's whining. She whines, too? Just how old is she anyway? She's acting like a nine-year-old. If anyone ends up being a liability, won't it be her? Why is Thom even bringing her along in the first place? Even he seems to be irritated by her behaviour. What's she useful for?

She bit her lip slightly and mouthed 'ah' when Thom glared at her, realising she'd said something that caused an inconvenience. She'd forgotten that Sarah wasn't being told the truth. That was going to be bothersome if she was expected to cover up the truth, too. Once Sarah was gone, distracted by Thom's request (which Mirabelle suspected was probably a lie, but what did it matter?), she looked at him and said, "Ah, my apologies for that. I forgot you're lying to Sarah. Sorry." She wasn't that sorry, really.

She laughed a little when Thom said he thought she did that on purpose. "I don't mean to," she said matter-of-factly. "Besides, I'm not sure how much longer you can keep Sarah in the dark. If she is going into the Clocktower with us, she'll find out the truth eventually. Still, it's up to you. I guess she's your responsibility." She listened as Thom explained the plan was supposed to be, then nodded. "I see. Dante's place..." she frowned. "I don't... I'm not sure how good of an idea that is. I can't disrupt your plans, being the one who's only just become involved, but..." she looked away, then shrugged. "I guess there isn't an alternative, is there? Planning is important for this, and if Sally has something to say too..."

It looks like there are secrets being kept everywhere. Thom is making decisions on his own, what with inviting me to come along, and apparently this Sally girl needs to tell everyone something, too. Not to mention Dante. There's no way that he isn't hiding something. There is something very strange about him, and I would never trust him.

Thom shrugged sliding his hands into his pockets. "To tell you the truth, I don't even think we've been officially informed if Dante's coming or not, but it's safe to assume that he will at this point." Thom thought for a moment looking at Mirabelle's facial expressions before chuckling, "I'll find out how to deal with Sarah soon enough. I just need to figure out how to get her to agree to come along first."

Even though Sarah was naive, Thom hated the fact that she was so innocent sometimes. He wanted nothing more than to just tell her what was going on and have her come along. It was times like this that he'd rather deal with people like Mirabelle than people like Sarah. At least people like Mirabelle were easy to change. Thom understood that you couldn't get someone to do something that they wouldn't do normally through manipulation, but he had to try.

"As for Dante, I wouldn't be surprised, but I've learned not to trust anyone in my life. I don't think that there will be much of an issue with him as long as I keep an eye out and be careful."

Thom was still thinking what he could say to get Sarah to willingly come along. He had a plan originally, but that kind of changed when he invited Mirabelle over to discuss the plans with her. All that he knew was that Sarah was a necessity to the group. He didn't have much of a choice but to bring her along. If only the Enforcers wouldn't be as wary as they were of him.

Nephele inhaled but instead of letting the smoke come out of her mouth it exited through her nose. “I see. Well I’m always interested in a little adventure and as for my safety I have no concerns. I have one rule…” She threw the smoker on the ground and stepped on it as she followed Dante, “and that’s to go against the Church in any way I can. Besides you might need someone with medical expertise such as mine.” Nephele looked at Dante. “Dante how much further until we get to your home?” Dante turned her head. “Not much it’s the one 2 doors after that animal shop.”
Dante pointed toward a small building with what seemed to be homemade wooden bird cages in front. Nephele was going to ask another question but was surprised by Sally when she suddenly turned, extended her hand and whispered her name. She got Sally’s message loud and clear. “A pleasure to meet you Miss Jones.” Nepehle said as she shook Sally’s hand telling her she understood. Nephele remained quiet as she followed Dante.

Dante slightly turned her head when she overheard Sally mention her last name. “Jones? Why does that name sound familiar? Any ideas Cerberus?” Dante and Cerberus began to think of the possibilities. “Maybe it’s from our past life or maybe we heard it from one of our informants?” Dante slowly nodded making sure the others didn’t notice. “It’s possible… Oh well screw it.” Dante waved the idea away as they began to approach the bird cages. There was a woman cleaning one of them as Dante approached it. “Hello Ms. Sanders. It’s good to see you.”

The woman looked at Dante and smiled. “Oh Dante it’s so good to see you too. Did you manage to talk with Nelly or did her lack of patience get the better of her again?” She approached Dante and put her hand on her cheek. “Why are you disguised as a girl? Did you get into trouble?”

Dante laughed. “I did talk to Noel didn’t she come back?” She woman shook her head. “Guess something must’ve come up… Anyway yeah we did have a little trouble with an Enforcer but don’t worry.” Nephele walked to Dante’s side and whispered into her ear. “We best hurry and go inside. Don’t want to attract any attention.” Dante nodded and bowed at the woman. “Well once Nelly gets back tell her I’m home.” Dante waved goodbye to the woman as she walked to the door of one of the houses close to the shop accompanied by Nephele. Dante leaned against the door waiting for Sally and the Church girl to catch up. “Who was that?” Nephele asked intrigued. “My girls mom.” Nephele remained silent and waited alongside Dante satisfied with her answer.

Crest nodded and let go of the man's hand for a second to write something down. "Thank you very much, um, General Cross? Is there any proper way I should address you? I'm very grateful for everything, and hope that it's not a bother to you, to have you accompany me all this way. Ah, and my name is Crest. Crest Walker." By now, Crest had gotten so used to writing everything instead of speaking that when he wanted to say something the words would already start writing themselves down on the paper. It was so fast that even the ums and uhs that appeared in his thoughts were written down too.

He gave General Cross the note and then, putting the notebook and pencil in his pocket and smiling, took hold of the man's hand and started walking beside him.

_______________________________________________________________

When they'd returned to the shop, Linda had continued making wine while Gray went home. He had to go to the shoemaker's to order a new pair of winter boots, else he'd have to wait for another two weeks before getting the chance to order again. At the front of the store, when she wasn't busy, she chatted with the customers, many whom she knew personally, and flitted about.

After a small bit, an Enforcer dropped by to have his usual cup of wine. The winery was an odd place, where you could buy cups of wine instead of bottles, but since it had no competitors it made plenty of profit based on that. Even the bars didn't sell it cheaper than their winery, and the people of this Line sometimes felt like indulging themselves, but not too much.

The woman was on he sixth or so cup of apple wine when she was already lightly flushed. Linda knew she was a lightweight from years of that specific Enforcer coming down and having a cup, and probably on duty on top of that, but made no moves to stop her.

"Sweetheart," Linda said fondly at the young lady, "How have you been? You're drinking more than usual today. Are you stressed?"

"Yes, dear me, yes. Ah, Ms. Walker, if only we didn't have to run all the time all over the place. I know I shouldn't be drinking like so, but I'd like what little break I have in the company of some good alcohol and you, miss. Do you know what they're having us do? They're saying that things have been getting worse down in those other Lines. That there's trouble brewing down there. You know, the higher-ups want to keep it hush-hush, and though I know you will I beg you to keep this information to your own ears only, miss, but there've even been some slayings of Enforcers happening! Imagine that! We keep the Lines safe and they go and kill us! I suppose that we should be honored if we die doing our job, but really!"

Now the little woman was on her eighth cup and it was definitely the alcohol that was making her blurt all of this out. Linda remembered the first time she had met this Enforcer, a couple of years ago, and the woman was a meek thing before. Still was, sometimes.

Linda patted the younger woman on the head, who was finishing her "last drink, miss, before I have to resume my duty", and took the Enforcer's cup and placed it in the back of the store, with all the other dirty cups and bottles. The young lady paid her for the drinks and exited the winery. Linda looked out the window, watching her go, then looked at the Clocktower. Well. It was nearly time for her to go and meet up with Gray at their house. She packed up shop, locked its doors and went to go see him.

Cross took and read the paper, unable to not smile. "General Cross is fine. It's nice to meet you, Crest." He continued to walk through the Line towards the boy's home. He passed by many arguments and groups of people who weren't particularly pleasant looking. It didn't take him long to be very grateful to have picked the boy up when he did. He wondered how the boy got that far without supervision.

As he passed by a group of arguing men, another man had slammed into Cross's shoulder. The man turned around to start yelling at him to watch where he was walking. Of course, he was limited to 'starting.' When he realized who it was, he at first stepped back, but then stepped forward. He looked to the Enforcer with fire in his eyes.

"What the hell're you doin' in our Line, you shitty general? You're just a brat, still suckin' on The Church's tits. Get outta here."

Cross gently nudged Crest as if to ask him to get behind him. "I'm terribly sorry. I wasn't watching where I was walking." He didn't bother to respond to the last part, figuring that any response would just incite the man's anger. Cross was powerless in this Line. Even if he told them to do something, the only way he could enforce it would be to threaten them with punishment.

However, Cross was too nice. Cross was always trying to find a way to get out of punishing people. Even though he believed The Church, he was still against the way every little thing deserved severe punishment. He acted strict but really wasn't. Here, in the Outer Line, you can't make an empty threat; that much, he knew. The second a threat goes unserved is the second they see through you. Instead, he has always tried to stay on their good side, hoping he would get the same mutual respect as Daube.

Still, everything that was wrong with that Line was Daube's fault. The Outer Line was never good, but Cross assumed that it had better leaders at some point. Of course, Cross had no way of knowing that. Daube was over a decade Cross' senior; Cross had never met any of the previous Outer Line Captains and had no clue what really went on before.

He knew he had to face what was going on now, instead. Hoping to avoid conflict, he kept his more stern face on, "I do hope you'll let me walk away from this."

"Ha! As if. You know you're not welcome here. Now you've gotta face the consequences!" The man swung at him, but Cross easily dodged it, still trying to keep Crest behind him.

Well, he supposed there was only one card left.

"I'll be at the meeting tomorrow night as per Daube's request. I wonder what he would think if I couldn't come because a particular man got a bit out-of-hand?"

The man was a little miffed at first, but once he noticed the kid with him, he was already in a better state. "Fine, then. I'll leave you be." Cross wasn't sure why the man was so willing to walk away. Little did he know that the target had just changed.

"I guess we should pick up the pace, then," he suggested after the man left, looking back to the child. "Are you alright, Crest? I'm sorry about that."

Daube took a hard look at Luke before grinning again. "You sure do have some confidence there. You're just a baby, though. You can't beat me."

The woman poured them each their first two shots, gave them each one, and then slammed her hand down between them on the table. "Set, Go!" Her foot was tapping to each second so she could keep track of time since they couldn't see The Clocktower from down there. Each thirty seconds, she would slide the new shot across and fill the next ones.

Daube had done this more than once, and he was a damn good drinker. He wondered if Luke had anything to back up his confidence. In the end, with their wills, he figured it would end with whoever got sick first rather than who gave up.

After three minutes, between shots, Daube asked, "Ready to give up, kid?" His voice didn't sound intoxicated at all. He figured this would be a long one considering they hadn't even gotten through a sixth of their bottles and neither seemed like they were giving up.

________________________________________________________

Sally was confident that the woman understood from her handshake. After all, communication was Sally's natural specialty. She continued alongside Dante, about to ask how long it would be when Nephele took the words right out of her mouth. She decided to stay happy but quiet as they walked along until they finally reached Dante's place. They passed by the house of someone that Dante knew, and she was surprised to find that the person knew about his shifting. She was even more surprised when he said it was, "his girl's mom." She didn't even know he had a girl. Where demons supposed to have girls? It almost didn't seem appropriate. She assumed he meant girlfriend, but considering how long he seemed to have been around, she wondered if it meant daughter. But that wouldn't make sense since the mom was older.

Sally figured she'd worry about the more important topic instead.

When they reached his house, she stepped close to him where he was standing. Quietly, she asked, "Who else knows about your situation?" She took a step back, a light atmosphere re-wrapping itself around her, as usual. "Just in case, it would be nice to know how many others are aware of this."

She also remembered that she hadn't paid any attention to Kim in a bit and glanced back to make sure she was still with them. It would be really bad if something had happened to her because Sally was too preoccupied with her own thoughts.

Aro was sitting on Pierce's shoulders, looking around the Line like a child. "Hey, look! Isn't that person ugly!" he would shout, full of giggles and laughs. He would put his hands in front of Pierce's eyes so he couldn't see and make bad jokes continually. Pierce loved this side of Aro; he was a bit mean anyway, but he wasn't being cruel or unusual. He was just being his childish self.

Aro wanted to see Crest again. Even though Pierce told him that the boy was going to be in the Outer Line for the next month, Aro wouldn't listen to him. He demanded to go back to his house and play with him. Pierce knew he wouldn't be there, but he figured it wouldn't hurt.

Aro climbed up to the boy's window, but he wasn't there. He tried to quietly look around the house, but he couldn't find the boy anyway. He came back down to Pierce and declared, "He must be at school! Let's wait out front for him." With that, the two pink-haired boys ended up standing around by the front of the Walker's home for quite a while.

Mirabelle listened to what Thom. Then she said, "Oh. So you don't know for sure if he's coming, but it looks like he will?" She gave a little sigh. "I suppose I'll just assume he is coming, then..." She silently hoped that this was not the case. Dante had made her far too uncomfortable. Maybe her sense of intuition was wrong this time. Maybe she was mistaken. In the past, though, her intuition had rarely, if ever, let her down; when something seemed dangerous to her, a lot of the time, it was.

She shrugged at Thom's statement about Sarah. "I'm afraid I'm of no use there," she said simply. "Dealing with people isn't my forte, unlike you."

She wondered if she should be admitting what her strengths and weaknesses were. Admittedly, the latter would probably become clear over time, or some of them at least; but still, she didn't want to have Thom know too much about her. If she was to have any advantage at all, she wanted to maintain some kind of mystery about her. Letting others know too much about you wouldn't end well, she knew that. Still, it's not like she'd uncovered too much about herself. The things that she would really rather keep hidden were still unknown to others.

"How did you first encounter Dante, if you don't mind me asking?" asked Mirabelle, looking at Thom curiously.

Thom shrugged when Mirabelle admitted that peopel wasn't her forte. With how well she held up to his manipulation earlier, he would have guessed that she was better than that, but it was no use to him. There honestly wasn't much he could gain from that knowledge, but he'd make a mental note of it in case he needed it later.

Thom wasn't that surprised when she asked how he encountered Dante. Dante was a suspicious character to have around or even know, but he didn't care much.

"That's an interesting question. You see, I met Dante while avoiding some enforc-"

"Tommy!" Sarah came running up to Thom and latched on to him looking upset. "I can't find it Tommy! I'm so sorry! I lost it!" Sarah looked like she was about to cry, and Thom was debating whether to ignore her in favor of finishing his story, or actually do something about it.

Thom slid one of his hands out of his pockets to reveal a simple copper chain, and looked at Sarah with a smile. "Look Sarah. I had it on me the whole time." Thom patted Sarah on the head affectionately with a smile. "I'm sorry to make you go through that. I guess I had forgotten that I had it on me."

Sarah looked shocked at seeing the chain. It was certainly the one she remembered. It was a chopper chain with nothing on it clasped together at the ends to form a hoop. It was a bit too long to be used as anything, but it was special to Thom. "But... but... but I could have sworn that I saw it here!"

Thom pried Sarah off of him and patted her on the shoulder still smiling, "I guess we were both being silly then." Thom's expression went serious as he looked at Sarah. "There's something I need to tell you about what we're planning Sarah."

Sarah looked scared remembering what the plan was. She hoped there was some reason that he had for what he was going to do.

"Sarah, an enforcer came up to me a couple of days ago and told me and a friend of mine that we had to go into the Clocktower to get something very important for the church. He said that it was a direct order from Cross, and he asked us to do it because he knew we could handle it."

Sarah's eyes lit up with excitement, "Really?" Thom nodded and Sarah hugged him eagerly, "You really have joined the good side Thom!"

Thom rolled his eyes and patted her on the head. "Yes. Yes, I have." Thom then turned to Mirabelle with a smile. "As I was saying, I was actually out taking a walk when I ran into Dante." Thom silently hope Mirabelle wouldn't noticed the change in story from what he was saying earlier, and that she wouldn't try to pry for more information.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Luke pressed his hands on the bar to keep himself stable. He was surprised to see Daube unaffected by the alcohol, but figured Daube probably drunk more than him. Luke had been in drinking contests before, and won a majority of the time. Luke could tell by how Daube acted in the bar that Daube had done this more. It still didn't change his mind. Luke would win.

"Don't think that I'll give up that easily pretty boy. I can handle more than that."

Crest was happy. General Cross was now helping him go back, so that meant that nothing would go wrong now.

Walking down the streets, the Line's inhabitants looking worse and worse as time went on, he clenched Cross's hand a little tighter. He was more and more grateful towards the man for helping him. The people on the streets scared him a little, with their dirty looks and shouting and just their general aggressiveness.

Down one of the roads, when a man bumped into Cross's shoulder and started yelling and insulting him, and Cross nudged him to get behind, Crest did so while shooting a small panicked glance at the Outer Liner. The angry man, after exchanging some words with Cross, then swung at the Enforcer, and while Crest wasn't his target he still flinched and stumbled behind a bit. Crest was relieved when the general was able to dodge. Cross also got the man to calm down, which was good.

Then the Outer Liner looked at Crest and all he could think of was to run away right there and then. He really, really didn't like that look. He felt relieved however when the man went away and left Cross and him behind.

Cross spoke to him, and he nodded in reply, drawing out the notebook. His fingers were shaky as he wrote : It's fine. I'm glad that you're fine, too. Did they really have to do that to you? I hope nothing worse will happen... Giving the paper to Cross, he grabbed the man's hand again and squeezed it tightly before quietly walking.

________________________________________________________

Linda was humming to herself, a tune that her grandfather had told her was as old as Oblitus itself, and was walking cheerfully to her home when she spotted two teenagers in front of her house. This in itself was an oddity, because generally if people were there waiting for her or Gray, they'd come by the shop instead since it was easier to find and they were always there for work during certain hours. If it was an acquaintance who did not want to frequent the busier part of the Line and wanted to go to their more isolated neighbourhood instead, Linda would've recognized them right away. There were few people Linda didn't recognize, and to see people that fit that trait in front of her house was odd. What was even more odd was the fact that they had bright pink hair. Nevertheless, she approached them with a smile.

"Well, hello there, young sirs. If it's not too rude of me, may I ask why you two are standing in front of my house? Are you looking for someone by any chance? I may be able to help you in that department, if that's what you need."

Mirabelle's annoyance was quickly snuffed out by vague surprise when Sarah burst into the room, interrupting Thom; she looked like she was almost in tears. Did she really care about Thom and his chain that much? Mirabelle herself could never imagine being on the verge of tears for something at trivial as this, but she supposed she was just very, very different from Sarah in that respect. In all respects, really.

She wasn't surprised when Thom drew out a copper chain from his pocket. Just a diversion after all, she thought flatly. "I guess I had forgotten that I had it on me", is it? Ha.

Mirabelle's eyes snapped over to focus on Thom when she heard what he said next. Was he going to tell her the plan? No, she thought, quickly correcting herself. Of course he wouldn't tell the truth; it had been made pretty clear earlier that Sarah would never risk breaking any of the Forbiddens. Mirabelle watched and listened curiously, wondering what Thom had to come up with to tell Sarah.

It didn't surprise her when Sarah instantly believed Thom. Still, that was probably a good thing. Or was it..? She wasn't sure if she should be glad of Thom's success or not, but still, she had no reason not to be, or no reason that she could see at least.

When he finally answered her question, Mirabelle nodded. "I see," she said. It didn't sound like the truth to her; he'd sounded like he'd been about to say something entirely different before Sarah's interruption. Had he been about to say something about enforcers? It had sounded like it. Clearly, Thom wasn't on good terms with the enforcers. Well, whatever. His answer probably doesn't change things anyway. "It seems like you just met him by chance, then. It was the same with me and Srenal." She shrugged. "Not that she has anything to do with this." She wondered if she'd encounter Srenal again. She hadn't seemed like the type to just poof off, especially not after what had happened earlier. Damn. I hope she doesn't do anything drastic.

Noel walked, Inferno in hand, into an alley near her and Dante’s home. She walked to the end of the alley and kneeled in front of small hole in the wall. She placed Inferno next to her and slowly took out a pair of rolled black leather clothing and placed them next to her. “Now for the boots.” She began to trace her fingers over the wall until she suddenly stopped and grinned. She pulled out a square shaped block from the wall and placed it on the floor. She looked into the square shaped hole in the wall and took out a pair of boots. She sighed in relief as she slowly took off her shoes and placed them in the square hole. Noel took off her dress and watched the alley’s entrance making sure no one came walking into the alley and saw her.

Noel slipped into the leather outfit she’d taken out. “It’s good to wear you again.” She zipped up the outfit and began to put on the boots. Once she was done she grabbed her dress and placed it the hole where her shoes laid. She turned to the block, picked it up and placed it back into the hole. Noel grabbed her sword as she stood up and put it on her back. She looked up at the sky and climbed the side of what seemed to be a house. “I wonder what Noel’s going to find today.” She reached the roof and brought herself to her feet. She looked as far as she could see trying to plan what rooftops she would use.

Once she had finished planning out her course Noel closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She ran through the roofs and jumped to the next one and the next and the next. After a while Noel felt a little guilty about not going home and waiting for Dante to get back. “I wonder if he’ll be mad at Noel…” She began ponder the thought until she saw someone as she jumped over an alley created by two houses. Noel stopped and looked down at the figure trying to see if she recognized the person. She figured out it was a girl but she couldn’t see her face. Noel slowly climbed down and got a little closer to the girl. Her eyes opened wide when she realized who it was. “Srenal is that you?”

Thom shrugged at the mention of Srenal. Srenal was a suspicious, but Thom didn't pay it much mind. As far as Thom knew, Srenal wouldn't be much of a hassle unless Dante joined them, which Thom still wasn't sure about. Thom wasn't completely sure about what was going on, but he had a feeling that he's know that soon enough. That was all that mattered to him.

A thought came to his mind and he looked at Mirabelle, "You're one to talk about suspicious characters. What is your current relationship with Srenal?"

After all of this talk about Dante being suspicious, it seemed wrong of Mirabelle to say any of that when it had appeared that she was on good terms with Srenal. From the little he knew on the subject, Srenal was a dangerous person that he wouldn't on his bad side. The memory of what Srenal had attempted to do to to get revenge on Dante flashed in his mind.

Thom had a feeling of who Srenal would attack to get revenge on him. Thom looked at Sarah who was now looking at him with a confused expression. Of course Sarah would want to know who he was talking about. He wasn't about to answer her questions though. It wasn't that he particularly liked Sarah, but he did appear to be close to her to anyone who wasn't paying attention.

Despite the fact that he hated the girl, Thom found her useful when doing anything he shouldn't, like now. He simply hoped that Srenal didn't attempt to attack Sarah if he got on her bad side. That would be annoying to put it simply. He didn't know if he would protect her because she was useful or ignore the situation because he didn't really care about Sarah.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Srenal wasn't paying too much attention to her surroundings. All of her focus was where Thom would come out if he left the house. The thought of actually leaving and finding somewhere to wreck havoc sounded fun, but this chance was too interesting to pass up. She silenty wondered what could take Thom so long in there. If she heard correctly, Thom was only there to tell Mirabelle the truth and get Sarah.

Srenal was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard a familiar voice. She instantly remembered it as Noel's, and looked in the direction it came from. The outfit change shocked Srenal for a moment, but she got over it quickly and smiled at Noel. Of all the people who could have seen her, Noel was the last person she thought she'd run into. Srenal had been sure that Noel left for home after their encounter earlier.

The thoughts left Srenal's mind when she remembered that what she thought would happen wasn't relevant. All that mattered is what actually was going on.

A smile spread across Srenal's face as she walked towards Noel, "It's a pleasure to see you. I didn't think we'd get to see each other again after what happened last time." Srenal glanced over Noel's outfit with a questioning glance. "I'm even more surprised by your outfit. Why are you dressed like that?" Srenal was shocked, but she didn't let the shock show in any manner other than her words.

Kim followed the others silently. She was still trying to wrap her mind around how Dante had changed into a girl and she felt a bit bad about how Nephele reacted when she snapped at her. With plenty to think about Kim had no reason to talk. Plus, she knew if she lost them, or if they tired of her, she had no chance of survival in the Outer Line. Unless she went to an Enforcer, that is. But after running into Daube earlier she was even more reluctant to go to them. So Kim just did what she did best, listen and watch.

Sally was uncomfortable with the new addition to the team. Kim could tell she was trying to hide it, and she was quite good at hiding it, but there was a nervousness right under her cheery exterior.

Then Dante and Nephele started talking about Doc. Kim's head snapped towards them and she strained her ears to listen. This woman, she was Doc? Kim grinned, if there was one person who hated the Church more than her it had to be Doc. Stories circulated about her in the Church but Kim could never find any solid information on her. This woman was going to be useful.

The woman Dante called "his girl's mom" seemed nice enough. The way she seemed unfazed by a female Dante gave Kim pause, however. "Does your girl know that you turn into a girl?" Kim asked. "Because if you ask me it's kind of a turn off."

Dante still leaning against the door chuckled when Sally asked if anyone else knew of her abilities. “No need to worry Sally. Only she and Noel know of my abilities.” Nephele began to wonder just what else Dante was capable of, but her thoughts turned to the girl Dante had just mentioned. “Noel? Who’s this Noel you speak of?” Dante smiled and looked up at Nephele. “She’s my sister, my girl and that woman’s daughter.” Nephele remained silent caught off guard by the answer. “His sister and girl… Probably not blood relatives.”

As Nephele remained in her thoughts Dante turned his attention to the Church girl. Dante let out a short laugh when she asked if Noel knew of his ability. “Yeah she does know about my ability to turn into objects, humans and animals.” Dante wasn’t expecting the comment that followed her question. “Well uh now that you mention it Noel’s never really been turned off by the fact I can turn into a girl.” Dante let out a short and very obvious nervous laugh as she turned to face the door.

Dante put one hand into the now slashed coats pocket and began to search through it. “Now where are those damn keys?” Her hand stopped and she pulled it out revealing a key. She quickly unlocked the door and went inside followed by Nephele. The house was small with only two doors inside. Nephele thought the house would have been bigger considering that quite a number of people were going to be sleeping here but she maintained the commentary to herself.

Dante walked into what seemed to be a small living room with a small couch, a chair next to the couch and a table big enough for six people. Dante stretched her arms out and as she did her arms and body began to shift and slowly return back to their original state. Nephele’s eyes opened in amazement. “Incredible.” Now Dante was once again Dante. He turned to the girls. “Come on in. My home is your home.” Nephele slowly walked into the small house, sat on the chair next to the couch and remained silent. Dante took one of the chairs from the table turned it so the back of it was facing forward and sat on it.

-Character Change-

Noel smiled back at Srenal as she began to walk to her. “It’s good to see you too Srenal.” Even though Srenal had used her as a hostage to get back at Dante Noel felt no danger from her. In actuality she felt safe and even happy to have bumped into Srenal. Noel’s face turned a little red when Srenal asked her about her outfit. Noel detected some shock in Srenal’s words and smiled even more

“Well you see this is Noel’s working outfit or what I call the Thieve Outfit.” She did a few twirls as she moved toward Srenal. She stopped and looked at Srenal with a wide smile. “The reason Noel’s wearing this is because she was working. But now that Noel found Srenal Noel can help Srenal with anything she needs… Or if Srenal isn’t doing anything she can always play with Noel.”

Noel giggled at the thought of being able to help or even play with Srenal. She removed Inferno from her back and placed it against the wall. Since she knew Srenal wasn’t a threat putting down her weapon seemed like the most logical thing. Noel smiled at Srenal again, took a few steps closer to her and grabbed her hands. She put Srenal’s hand together and kept smiling. “Also do you like Noel’s outfit?”

Srenal looked over Noel's outfit with a smile. "I think your outfit is incredible." Srenal had many questions to ask Noel about what Noel meant by Thieve Outfit and what Noel did when she was working, but Srenal decided to take it slowly. Srenal remembered what she had done that day in taking Noel hostage in order to get revenge on Dante, and the thought made her cringe.

Those had not been good moments for Srenal, and Srenal regretted that anyone had to see her like that. No one else may be able to understand, but Srenal saw her inability to control the personalities within her own body as a weakness. It was a weakness that Srenal must contain and hide, but it was nearly impossible to do so with two personalities almost as strong willed as her.

Srenal remembered where she was and smiled at Noel, "I'm busy right now, but you can stay here and give me company. There's nothing that I'd want more than to spend time with you, Noel."

Srenal honestly didn't understand her own change in heart, but Niser was practically squealing on the inside at it. It was rare for Srenal to have interest in anyone, but there was something about Noel that stuck out to Srenal. Srenal wanted to know what it was, but she wanted to be with Noel even more. That meant that Srenal couldn't spend much time guessing it and just went with the flow of things.

Internally, Rxnion was seething at Srenal's change of heart. Rxnion was always fonder of Srenal's personality because it was most like hers, but Srenal's new personality reminded Rxnion of Niser, and Rxnion hated anything that had to do with actually being nice to people. It was a simple search and destroy for Rxnion, none of this friendly crap.

Mirabelle blinked in slight surprise at Thom's question. She should have expected it, really. He'd been present too during that scene earlier, hadn't he? It shouldn't be too unexpected for him to ask about her relationship with Srenal, especially considering the latter's behaviour earlier. If Srenal seemed suspicious to Mirabelle, she'd probably seem even worse to Thom.

She cringed internally. She hadn't realised that she might sound a little hyproctritical; going on about Dante seeming suspicious when she herself was now associated with Srenal, however loosely.

"Actually, I only met her very recently," Mirabelle said to Thom calmly. "I don't know her well. I suppose you could say that we're... allies, of sorts. At least, we're not enemies. We came to the agreement that we'd be able to coexist so long as we stay out of each other's way." She scratched her head. "Please don't make the mistake of assuming we're working together, though. My actions are completely unrelated to hers, and vice versa. I go about my business, and she'll go about hers."

Looking back, Mirabelle wondered if associating with Srenal in any way had been a mistake. Would things be easier if she hadn't done that? Being a so-called 'ally' certainly seemed preferable to being Srenal's enemy, but maybe the best thing to do would have been to not have any connections to her at all...

"Allies with Srenal?" Now Thom was curious. He never thought that Srenal could be allies with anyone, but now he realized that Mirabelle could be more useful than he originally anticipated. That was if Srenal and Mirabelle weren't as wishy-washy as he was. Thom decided to take a mental note of this information and decide how it could be used for later.

Thom remembered something and tilted his head to the side, "Due to Srenal's new vendetta with Dante, don't you think it'd be hurtful to your current standing with Srenal to join us?" Thom was curious what Mirabelle would say to that, but he hoped he hadn't just caused her to change her mind. It wouldn't be hard to get her to want to come along again though, at least he thought.

Thom figured that the outcome of this would be more fun than the idea of entering the Clocktower. He mentally made a mental note of his change of plans and started to devise a new plan to go along with the idea. He personally couldn't wait to see what happened, but he'd still need to know all of the factors before he can start anything. With what he currently knew, the opportunities were endless.

Noel began to blush a little and giggled at hearing Srenal compliment her outfit. “Well thank you miss.” She let go of Srenal’s hands and bowed. As she stood back up Noel noticed a sudden change in Srenal and began to worry, but the thoughts vanished when Srenal told her she could stay and keep her company. She leaped toward Srenal and hugged her. “Yay! Noel’s going to able to spend time with Srenal.”

Noel let go of Srenal and took a step back. “Um.. Srenal could you tell Niser ‘Hi’ for Noel?” Noel was so happy about seeing Srenal she had forgotten about Niser. She looked down and crossed her legs as a child would when they’re about to ask for something. “If it isn’t too much trouble for Srenal of course.” She looked back up at Srenal. “Can Noel also ask Srenal why she’s here?” Noel was curious as to why Srenal seemed to be hiding in a place like this.

Noel looked at the wall belonging to Sarah’s house and pouted. “I wanna know because that’s where that little snitch that Noel doesn’t like lives.” Noel grabbed her sword and placed it on her back where it used to be. “She tells on Noel and anyone she sees breaking a forbidden…” She pouted again and looked at Srenal. “She’s no fun and a meanie.” Noel stopped pouting and grabbed Srenal’s hands. “But I bet you’re really fun Srenal.” She tightened her grip on Srenal’s hands, looked at them and smiled. “Right Srenal?”

Srenal smiled and hugged Noel back. When Noel let go, Srenal kept her arms around her. "I can tell Niser that. I'm sure she'll be happy to hear it." In truth, Srenal didn't want to talk to Niser. In her mind, Niser was just annoying. That didn't mean that Srenal wouldn't do it for Noel though. Recently, Srenal had found that she loves nothing more than making Noel happy, except for what she currently plotting.

When Noel asked why Sreanl was there, Srenal got confused for a moment. It wasn't until that Noel told her why she was asking that Srenal understood. Now her curiosity was peaked, and Srenal felt that she had o know more. Looking at the house, Srenal smirked and asked, "A little snitch lives in that house?" That would be a perfect opportunity for what Srenal was planning after what she just heard.

Patting Noel on the head, Srenal thought for a moment if her current idea was worth the risk. It would be fun, but it could also be disastrous depending on how Thom took it. There was also the chance of something happening to Noel, but Srenal figured that she could protect Noel enough if the situation came up. The only possible threat would be Mirabelle, but she figured that Mirabelle would be smart enough to stay out of her way.

Noel smiled and hugged Srenal again as she listened to Srenal talk. When Srenal confirmed she’d tell Niser ‘Hi’ for her she tightened her grip around Srenal. As soon as Noel was satisfied she let go of Srenal. Still smiling Noel followed Srenal’s head and looked at Sarah’s house. When Srenal asked about a little snitch living there Noel’s nose wrinkled as she grunted. She really didn’t like Sarah and not because of whom she was. No it’s because of what she does.

She looked back at Srenal and nodded in disgust. Noel then crossed her arms and pouted. “Yeah she’s nothing but a little snitch.” Noel kept pouting until Srenal patted her head. She blinked as her arms undid surprised by the sudden act and began to turn red. She noticed her face was now turning red and was frustrated. “Damn it Noel stop blushing.” She slowly looked at Srenal and noticed she was deeply thinking about something. It seemed like she was planning something.

Noel began to discreetly look at Srenal from top to bottom. Now that she thought of it she never really paid much attention to Srenal’s physical aspects when they had first met. She began to scan Srenal when she noticed something that caught her attention, Srenal’s eyes. “They’re so beautiful. Like emeralds or something.” Noel began to stare at them deeply and turned red again, until she looked at the Sarah’s house trying to hide her face behind her long blonde hair. “So what’s Srenal’s planning?” She took a deep breath trying to make her face go back to normal, which failed, and kept starring at the house. “Whatever it is can Noel help.”

Srenal smiled back at Noel and brushed her hand against Noel's cheek. "You see, anyone that Noel doesn't like, I don't like. I was thinking about going to talk to the little snitch and make sure that she wouldn't get Noel into any trouble." Srenal didn't know anything about Sarah, but she knew that she was strong enough to hurt Sarah if she needed to. She also didn't want Noel to get into trouble because of Sarah.

It was the perfect chance to deal with two things at once, and Srenal didn't want to miss it. Srenal grabbed Noel's hand still smiling, "Besides, I'm waiting for a friend in there and they're taking too long to come out." It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't exactly the truth either. The thought of flat out lying to Noel or manipulating her in the way that Thom manipulated Sarah hurt Srenal.

There was no true way to do either thing that she was planning, but Srenal figured that she could just improvise. Srenal had faith in her ability to twist odds into her favor, and she would have no issues with using that ability as long as she got what she wanted in the end. The outcome could turn out bad, but the opportunities where too good to miss.

Srenal lightly tugged Noel's hand heading toward's Sarah's house and hoping Noel would follow. There wouldn't be much reason for her being in the area if she didn't have Noel there, but Srenal ultimately wanted whatever made Noel happy. If doing this would upset Noel, then Srenal wouldn't do it even if it got in the way of her plans.

"Tch."

Mirabelle frowned in annoyance at what Thom said. He had a good point. What was even more annoying was that Mirabelle hadn't thought of that herself. How had she missed that? She should have taken that into consideration.

Still, it was hardly her fault that Srenal went and made an enemy out of Dante. Mirabelle hadn't expected to get involved with any of this when she'd first met Srenal; she didn't think she'd have to interact with any of these people to such an extent. Now that she'd done something she wouldn't normally do, all kinds of things were popping up, and she had no idea how to deal with them. She didn't like it when things were unpredicatable.

I can't count on anything anymore, can I? She thought wistfully.

In response to Thom's question, Mirabelle shrugged and said, "That's a good point, but like I said earlier, Srenal's actions and my own are totally unrelated. I have nothing to do with Srenal's actions; her vendetta is her own, and not mine. I haven't done anything to Dante." In her head, Mirabelle wasn't sure if that really mattered to Dante anyway. He probably didn't need a reason to hold a grudge against her.

God damn it. Why did Srenal have to go and cause this problem? Mirabelle wasn't even involved in what Srenal did, and now it was causing trouble for her, too. So far, this alliance was being a pain.

"I can't ignore this, though," Mirabelle added after a moment. "It could cause problems. I wonder if I should perhaps rethink things..."

Thom shrugged as he didn't care whether or not Mirabelle rethought things. In his mind, he was slightly panicked of the possible moves he could make to get Mirabelle to stop second guessing herself. There were so many options that he was hardly worried over the fact that Mirabelle might change her mind. It wouldn't be that hard to get Mirabelle to forget about Srenal.

"I hardly know much about Srenal from the couple of brief encounters I've had with her, but she doesn't seem like the type to honor any kind of alliance, especially with her problem." Thom tapped his head to indicate Srenal's other identities. To him, it made Srenal unpredictable when there was a chance she could change personalities at any moment. "From what I know about Dante, I'm pretty sure she has her hands full at the moment. I doubt that she'd bother to to go after both of you at once. I don't know much about your kind, but I already know that you can be troublesome. I can hardly imagine someone trying to fight two of you, human or not."

Sarah looked at Thom hearing the fact that Mirabelle isn't human again. She pouted and tugged on Thom's arm hoping to get an explanation. Thom ignored her still looking at Mirabelle. He needed to deal with one problem at a time, and Mirabelle second guessing herself was a bigger problem than Sarah's silly questions.

"I'm not worried about the possible threats it could have to me to be with Dante. I figure Srenal is powerful, but I also know Dante. I also get the feeling that there's something the kid is hiding, and I know the kid well enough to know that any surprises can't be a good thing to whoever is on his bad side."

Thom smirked at the memory of how Srenal got the vendetta against Dante. Those two were more than he could handle, that was for sure. He almost saw it as a childish game, that could end with death. There was no doubt in his mind that Srenal would be too busy to worry about where Mirabelle was.

"I'm not sure about Srenal, but I know I wouldn't care who someone was with as long as they weren't in my way. I'd say Srenal was pretty stupid to go out of her way to hurt you when you aren't in her way, regardless of who you are traveling with." Thom thought for a moment and shrugged, "With that thoguht in mind, you're in as much danger as any of us are, and I feel pretty safe. I doubt Srenal's going to worry too much unless you help Dante in some way."

Mirabelle nodded slowly in response to Thom’s statement about Srenal. She didn’t like to admit it, but Thom clearly wasn’t an idiot, and she thought the same thing about Srenal herself.

“Her alternate identities could prove to be problematic,” Mirabelle admitted. “You’re right there. From what I’ve seen, those personalities of hers could be quite volatile.” She shook her head at what Thom said about Srenal having her hands full. “That isn’t my concern,” she said quietly. “I’m more concerned about Dante’s reaction to my presence. Earlier, it seemed all too much like he wouldn’t want me there. I’m not entirely sure if it’s in my best interests to be around him, either. You see where I’m coming from?”

Once again, she noticed Sarah’s curiosity at the mention of Mirabelle not being human. Sighing, she looked at her, then looked back at Thom and said, “Is it really worth it hiding this from Sarah? It doesn’t look like she’s going to give up hope of getting an explanation any time soon. I’m surprised you’re not fed up already.” She shrugged. “Still, I guess it’s your choice.” Her eyes drifted over to Sarah. “Either way, I imagine you’ll find out sooner or later. My only concern…” Concern wasn’t really the right word for it, as Mirabelle wasn’t really that fussed about Sarah’s wellbeing. Still, she would rather not have some human’s death, if it came to that, hanging over her conscience. “…Is that you might not find out in time. Ignorance isn’t always bliss, unfortunately for you.” She tried not to sound too unkind. Sarah was irritating, and the way she would blindly follow someone without question wasn’t something that Mirabelle appreciated; but she supposed Sarah couldn’t be blamed for being the way she was, especially when she knew nothing about her circumstances.

“Anyway,” she said, “I don’t intend to allow myself to be pushed around by anyone else. For now, I’ll stick to my plan of tagging along with you, unless I see some kind of immediate threat. Perhaps my concerns about Dante are invalid.” She doubted it, but hope never died, right?

Thom just shrugged at the thought of how Dante would react to her presence. "It's none of my concern on what he thinks of you joining us. He never officially said he'd come, and this isn't his adventure." It didn't matter that Thom sounded uncaring. Him and Sally had put this together, therefor they we in charge. If anyone else had a problem, then they could leave. That was how he saw it at least. Thom wasn't even sure if Dante joining was beneficial. With his new enemies with Srenal, Thom highly doubted it. If Srenal had an evil personality, then Thom didn't want her to be anywhere near him when it came out. "If he left, that'd be a good thing in my opinion. With Srenal's new vendetta against him, I no longer believe him joining would be beneficial."

When Mirabelle mentioned hiding this from Sarah, Thom simply shrugged and patted Sarah on the head. "With her history, I think it would be safer to keep her in the dark about a couple of things. All she needs to know is that you guys are dangerous, and I'm sure she's caught on to that much already. Knowing Sarah, she'll run if anything happened." Thom knew that Sarah couldn't outrun them. It was a simple fact that Sarah didn't have the stamina, but it wasn't likely that she'd do anything to cause them to target her. IF she left the scene at the sign of danger, she was safe. That was, unless Srenal showed her evil side. If Srenal had a blood thirsty personality hidden beneath her, Thom figured that would be the only thing that would get Sarah killed, as far as he knew so far. Although, Thom had to admit that he knew little of Dante. What kind of secrets was he hiding?

Thom nodded finally and smirked. "I'm glad you're coming along, but tell me. What do you know so far about Srenal? If she's going to be causing problems, then I prefer to be informed."

Noel smiled and hugged Srenal again as she listened to Srenal talk. When Srenal confirmed she’d tell Niser ‘Hi’ for her she tightened her grip around Srenal. As soon as Noel was satisfied she let go of Srenal. Still smiling Noel followed Srenal’s head and looked at Sarah’s house. When Srenal asked about a little snitch living there Noel’s nose wrinkled as she grunted. She really didn’t like Sarah and not because of whom she was. No it’s because of what she does.

She looked back at Srenal and nodded in disgust. Noel then crossed her arms and pouted. “Yeah she’s nothing but a little snitch.” Noel kept pouting until Srenal patted her head. She blinked as her arms undid surprised by the sudden act and began to turn red. She noticed her face was now turning red and was frustrated. “Damn it Noel stop blushing.” She slowly looked at Srenal and noticed she was deeply thinking about something. It seemed like she was planning something.

Noel began to discreetly look at Srenal from top to bottom. Now that she thought of it she never really paid much attention to Srenal’s physical aspects when they had first met. She began to scan Srenal when she noticed something that caught her attention, Srenal’s eyes. “They’re so beautiful. Like emeralds or something.” Noel began to stare at them deeply and turned red again, until she looked at the Sarah’s house trying to hide her face behind her long blonde hair. “So what’s Srenal’s planning?” She took a deep breath trying to make her face go back to normal, which failed, and kept starring at the house. “Whatever it is can Noel help?”

Mirabelle felt a little relieved at hearing that Thom didn't seem too enthusiastic about Dante, either. It wasn't like his opinion would really change anything, but still, she couldn't help but feel somewhat reassured that she wasn't the only one who wasn't so happy about the idea of Dante being there.

When Thom replied to her question about Sarah, Mirabelle shrugged in response. "Whatever you say," she said simply. "It isn't something I need to concern myself with." Her eyes had an apologetic edge to them, though, when she glanced over at Sarah. She felt bad for so blatantly discussing Sarah as though she wasn't right there in the room with them. Regardless of how much she acted like she didn't care, many years ago, Mirabelle had been brought up to be very conscious of her manners. That part of her hadn't completely died over the years; it appeared to be ingrained into her, even if she didn't acknowledge it.

She gave a little sigh when Thom asked his question. "Actually, I don't know so much about Srenal," she said. "Like I said, I met her very recently. I know that she seems to have three seperate personalities living in her. She warned me against one of them. The name was..." Mirabelle paused, her eyebrows creasing slightly as she searched her memory. "I think it was Rxnion. Yes, I'm sure that was it." She nodded decisively. "She must be violent, if I was warned of her. The other one is Niser. I think she appeared earlier." She paused a moment, thinking some more. "I can't really recall anything else."

Noel couldn’t do anything but look at Srenal as she brushed her hand against her cheek. “T-They’re so soft…” A smile slowly appeared appeared on her face followed by redness when Srenal spoke about not liking anyone Noel didn’t like. She practically giggled hearing Srenal say she would make sure Sara wouldn’t get her in trouble anymore. “Thank you Srenal.” Noel said as she smiled at Srenal showing her cherry colored face.

Though she knew that if Dante found out about what she was doing and who she was talking to he’d probably be furious. “Well what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.” So she blocked the thought and continued smiling. “Wonder what Srenal’s planning?” The question troubled her but was blown away when she heard Srenal speak. Noel concentrated on what Srenal was saying trying not to drift off again.

Noel slowly nodded as she heard Srenal speak. She figured that Srenal probably wanted to go into the house and was happy to comply if Srenal wished for Noel to accompany her. When Noel felt Srenal tugged her hand she quickly responded. “Srenal Noel will do anything to help you.” She gave Srenal and innocent smile as she took a step forward demonstrating Srenal her standing on the subject. She continued smiling at Seranl and spoke softly. “Lets go.”

Srenal smiled when Noel followed. It seemed that everything would be working out for her then. The thought please Srenal, but she refused to jinx this chance, so she didn't say anything as she walked up to Sarah's house and knocked on the door. Srenal wrapped her arms around Noel and giggled. This all seemed too perfect for her. The blush that she got every time she touched Noel was adorable. It was the perfect chance to mess with Dante. Srenal actually liked Noel. Niser liked Noel. Being with Noel could actually prove beneficial when dealing with Sally's group.

Something troubling came to Srenal's mind at that moment. Exactly what would Srenal do when Sarah answered the door? Would Sarah let her in? Would she even answer it? Would Thom answer it? How would be react? Could she really beat Thom in a battle of wits? Could she manipulate Sarah with Noel around? There were too many factors to consider, and Srenal wasn't liking it. Improvising may not have been such a good idea, but it was too late for her to turn back.

A thought came to her mind as she thought of Noel. Even if nothing else worked, she had to talk to Sarah. Her main goal in doing this was to make Noel happy. A thought struck her causing her to smirk. If Sarah really was as easy as Srenal thought she was, then this could be a piece of cake. The only question was, what would Thom do about this? Would he be willing to roll with her plan? It was worth a shot.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Sarah jumped at the sound of a knock on the door. No one ever knocked on her door unless they were trying to hurt her. Would they try it again? Of course she would answer it anyways. What if an enforcer wanted to talk with her? She didn't have to do that now though. No, Thom was here. He would protect her. Clinging to Thom's shirt, she hid behind him tugging on his shirt softly.

"Tommy, someone's at my door." Sarah said under her breath. It could barely be heard, but it was just loud enough to reach Thom's ears.

It wasn't like he cared, but he looked at the pitiful expression on Sarah's face and sighed. It was obvious what Sarah wanted, and he needed her. A smile came to his face as he nodded,"I guess I'll get it." Thom said more for Mirabelle's benefit than anything as he went towards the door. Sarah followed close behind clinging to his shirt.

Both of their eyes grew wide as they saw who was on the other side. Seeing Noel, Sarah hid completely behind Thom and started shaking. The girl that Noel was with looked scary too. Sarah couldn't help but think that Noel had brought that girl here to hurt her. It was obvious that Noel had hard feelings towards Sarah after what had happened last time.

Of all the things Thom expected, he didn't expect Srenal to just walk up to the door and knock. It seems that she had found an excuse to. Many more questions ran through Thom's mind,but he mainly wanted to know what Srenal wanted. Obviously, part of it had to do with Noel. That seems to be her excuse for coming here anyways.

Srenal walking quickly with Noel close behind her. The two friends walk around aimlessly for longer then they had expected. It wasn't long before they started to notice that someone was following them. Noel turns around quickly to see... " Sarah!" Srenal turns around to see Sarah standing right behind them, but she doesn't seem right. Just by having a look at her she seemed, colder to Srenal, meaner, and an ominous smile." Sarah? I...is that you? We were just on our way to see you!"

The knock on the door surprised Mirabelle. She watched silently as Thom went to go get it, Sarah still clinging to him. She looked scared, Mirabelle thought; was she really given such a hard time by everyone else in the Outer Line? It must be hard to live in fear like that all the time, especially for someone as vulnerable and naive as Sarah.

Mirabelle heard the door opening. The sound pulled her out of her thoughts, and she swiftly made her way to the front door to stand behind Thom and Sarah, peering around them both. She wasn't really so concerned with who would be at the door, but if something troublesome started--

Her eyes widened at the sight before her, and she could have sworn her heart missed a beat due to the surprise of it. She hadn't been expecting to see these two, and especially not her.

"Srenal?" She whispered, her voice tinged with mild surprise and confusion. What is she doing here? And she's with that girl Noel, too. What's happening? What does she want?

Daube continued his drinking, slowly becoming affected as the bottle got more and more empty. Still, drinking was one of the things he was best at, and he still doubted Luke would be able to beat him. He went to pick up his next shot glass when an actual shot came whizzing through the bar and broke his glass.

Pissed, he abruptly stood up, his chair falling on the ground behind him. The guilty one--one of his most loyal Enforcers--stood at the other end of the bar, shaking in their trousers, almost crying. "What the fuck was that for..?" He got no answer before more and more shots came flying through the air in his direction. "What the fuck is going on here!?" One bullet hit his right shoulder while the other hit his arm; the rest missed, although he didn't pay much attention to whether or not they hit anyone else.

Daube pulled out his own gun. "What are you doing?"

The man seemed to slightly shake his head, an expression of sheer terror on his face, yet didn't back down.

_______________________________________________________

Cross gave the boy a light smile and patted his head. "I'm sure everything will be alright. Some people are like that, and that's why you have to be careful about walking around this Line. I'll protect you, though." He tried to be as calm and reassuring as possible while he walked the boy back to his class's dorms. After a while, they had reached the building.

The blonde started to walk ahead along the walkway before turning to the boy again. "Do you want me to walk you inside?" he asked, trying to avoid being rude by assuming he wanted him to go to that extent.

____________________________________________________________

Aro smiled gleefully when the woman approached the. "Yep yep! We're here looking for Crest! Crest is so cute and adorable and we're friends of his so we want to play with him some more but we can't find him..!"

Pierce put his hand out--offering to shake hands--in a respectful manner as Aro chattered away. "Yes, we're friends of Crest. Would you happen to know when he will be back?" He was still playing along with Aro's ignorance, but he was well aware of the fact that it would be a while before he would be back from the other Line.

Aro grabbed onto his brother's hand and pulled it away. "Ew, why would you want to touch such an ugly woman? Old lady, who are you anyway!? We don't want to see you - we just want to play with Crest." He was pouty and bothered when he realized that she wasn't as young as he thought at first, which triggered this. Aro didn't like adults.

"Ah, I'm sorry for my brother's rudeness..."

"But it's true! It's true! She's ugly and old an-"

"Shh, Aro," he said sharply. He looked at the woman with a light smile as he held his hand over his younger brother's mouth. "He's not very good with people, I'm sorry. Are you Crest's mother?"

_______________________________________________________

Sally was rather surprised by Dante's house. Even though she was in the Middle Line, her family was large before they were banished, so there were many extra rooms and such. Dante's house... had very little. She was used to seeing these kinds of homes in the Outer Line, but it was still strange every time she came back after a while. She watched as Dante turned back into a boy and tried her best to hold back her shock at the transformation.

"That must be very useful," she said with a light smile before taking a seat on the couch; she gestured for Kim to sit next to her. "Well, are we going to be bringing Nephele into our plans? And when do you think Thom and the rest will be back?" Such things were important for what they were doing. "And, who would -" Her growling stomach interrupted her serious notion. Blushing, she went blank and looked away a bit. "Er, how about we eat first?"

Luke looked at the Enforcer who had seemed to be going nuts. It was by some miracle that he himself hadn't gotten hit, but his reaction would have been the same. Taking a seat and getting comfortable, Luke watched Daube's reaction. It was all confusing to him, especially with the alcohol running through his veins and the dizziness, but Luke didn't seem to care. If anything, he could blame it on the alcohol saying that it made him even more lazy than he normally was.

Looking around, several others had gotten shot. Helping probably should be the first thing on his mind, and normally would, but Luke didn't think that walking around trying to help people would be the best thing to do.

"Be careful with that thing Daube. You may be able to hold your alcohol, but having you miss and hit someone else would be irksome for both of us."

Crest smiled back appreciatively at the older man. The rest of the walk back was spent in comfortable silence, and when they reached the dorms and Cross asked him if he'd like accompaniment inside, Crest gratefully nodded.

He walked down the way to House 7. He pulled his key out of his pocket and opened the door, noticing that there wasn't as much noise as there had been earlier that day. He assumed that they had drifted elsewhere to play. He turned back to face Cross and wrote down and showed the Enforcer: This is where I'll be leaving you, then. Thank you so very much for helping me get back all the way here. I don't know what I would have done without your help. I hope to see you again.

Crest paused a bit, then wrapped his arms around Cross tightly before letting go of the man. He flashed another smile and waved goodbye to him before closing the door to the house.

________________________________________________________________

Linda felt a smile growing on her face. She never saw her son interact with anyone that wasn't extremely close to him, and seeing as how they two young men called themselves Crest's friends, she was glad that he had some.

She reached out to shake the calmer of the two's hand before the other took it away. Dropping her hand at that response, she willfully ignored the comments and answered, "It's fine, it's fine. I've been used to many kinds of behaviors shown by my drunk patrons, and I have to admit I am getting a bit old, aren't I? And yes, I am his mother. It's great that I got to finally see some of Crest's friends. Unfortunately, you've come a little late. Crest and the rest of his class have gone to the Outer Line today. I'm afraid they won't be returning until a month from now, when the Rails let everybody get back up again. If you two have some time, may I invite you both for some pastries and juice? It's really such a rare occasion for me to have any guest's from Crest's part over. Come along, now. I really would like to hear about how you two have met my son, since I've not seen you both around here before."

She opened the door to the house with her key and stepped inside, waiting for the brothers.

Kim thought Sally's house had been small, she was rethinking that. Dante's house was tiny. She gave a small laugh at Dante's comment about Noel not minding about his ability to switch genders as she glanced around the tiny place. She shuddered as Dante turned back into a girl, even after seeing it once, it was still extremely creepy.

Sally started talking and gestured for Kim to take a seat next to her. Kim took the seat and was just about to speak up when Sally's stomach let out a rumble. "Er, how about we eat first?"

"Food sounds wonderful," Kim agreed, realizing she hadn't eaten since being shoved in a suitcase earlier that day. "Any chance that you have something edible around here?

Noel looked at Srenal and smiled. She leaned in close to Srenal’s ear and whispered. “Srenal don’t hurt Sara. I don’t hate her I just hate what she does.” She gave Srenal a pleading look as if she knew that if it came to it Srenal would definitely attack her. She then wrapped herself and hung onto Srenal as the door was opened. She was surprised to see who had opened the door; it was the boy that had been with Dante earlier. “Why’s Big Brothers friend here?” But what surprised her even more was who came after him. “Mirabelle? You’re here too?” Noel was confused as to why they were in Sara’s house. “Why are they here? Do Thom or Mirabelle know Sara? Oh no what if Big Brother finds out I’m with Srenal?” Noel’s mind was now in chaos. She took a small breath trying to calm down and remained silent.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Dante looked at the three females and yawned. “I know this isn’t big. But you haven’t seen all of it yet.” He stood from the chair as Sally began to question him and laughed at hearing her stomach. “My powers come in handy a lot, yes.” He looked at her and then at Nephele. “I’ll bring her in if she wishes to come along. Do you Nephele?” Nephele nodded in response. “Ok then it’s settled. I’ll let Sally give you the details later.” He walked over to an empty wall and looked back at the others. “I have no clue how long he’ll take but that doesn’t matter right now. Let’s get you settled I your rooms and eat.” Dante said walking toward one of the walls in the room.

He placed his case on the floor and removed his slashed coat and shirt. Nephele’s eyes opened wide as she noticed all of the burned names on Dante’s back. Dante didn’t take notice of this as he was too busy examining the wall. “Ah found it.” He leaned down and took out his sword from the case unsheathing it. Nephele watched in silence as Dante jabbed the sword onto the wall and twisted it. There was a clicking noise and a square of the floor next to Dante suddenly gave leaving an opening.“What in the world?” Nephele thought as she stood up observing the exposed entrance. Dante looked at the girls and smiled. “Come on. I’ll show you your rooms. Once you put everything in place I’ll make something to eat.” He jumped down into the hole. “Hurry up!” He yelled waiting for them. Nephele walked to the hole and jumped down without hesitation.

It was dark and but you could make out some sort of a hallway ahead and behind were small holes that resembled a stair case. Dante grabbed a small plastic tube from the floor and bent causing it to light up. He handed it to Nephele. “Here hold it so the other can see.” She too without question and stood there with the boy waiting for the others.

Daube continued to watch as the man was throwing his gun around. He couldn't tell if he was drunk, stupid, or just plain retarded. God knows The Church didn't do anything about the retarded, and they often grew into people like him. Oblitus was accepting in a way, but that also meant that it didn't deal with varying cases properly.

He noticed everything getting a bit blurry and wondered if the alcohol was setting in as Luke made the same point. The women in the bar (and the men, for that matter) were scampering out of the way while awkwardly cheering for their captain.

"Take 'im out!"
"Make sure he can never hold a gun again!"

The more, well, intoxicated patrons were also shouting out unintelligible cheers which Daube had no interest in interpreting; the only clear words were profane, in any case. These cheers immediately subsided at the captain's scream,

"Shut the fuck up!"

And the next thing you knew, the only sound in the silence was the other man's own screaming and Daube's footsteps. He came closer and closer. The man--he was usually called Garret, he finally remembered--was clearly not right in the head. His hands were shaking so much that he missed the captain's head even when he was only a few feet away, leaving small holes in the wall opposite to him.

Daube, now at point-blank range, let his gun do what it had to without asking any questions. The last thing he wanted was to understand whatever the Hell kind of logic was behind that guy's actions. He figured that was the end of it; he wouldn't have to deal with the guy on any other occasion.

You would have expected for there to be some kind of brooding silence, but in reality, they were used to it. You couldn't get by if you were afraid of death or were afraid of seeing it in that Line. You didn't tell The Church about it, either, unless you wanted to join them. The body was chucked down into the sewers--if you could call it that, for it was simply an underground waterway where the innermost Lines' waste came flowing down--and left to bob off into The Outside.

____________________________________________________________

Aro pouted at the thought of Crest not being home and glared at his brother. "Why didn't you tell me!?"

"But I did tell you, Aro," he said indignantly. He had played along with it, yeah; that didn't mean he was taking the blame. "And he told us just before he left." At the woman's request, he glanced at Aro quickly. Pierce was pretty sure that it wasn't a good idea to bring Aro into a confined space with an adult, but before he could reject the offer, Aro was already hopping towards the house.

"You mean we get to see the rest of Crest's house!? I think that would be fun! Com'on, Pierce!" He tugged on his older brother's hand.

"I'm not sure that-"

Aro's glare wasn't quite as fun anymore.

"Alright, fine." He let out the breath he was holding when his brother started skipping about in excitement once again. "Thank you, Miss..?" he left off, indicating that he wasn't sure of how to address her.

______________________________________________________________

Cross smiled at the little embrace; he was such a cute boy despite being dumb. The older boy waved as he walked back into his temporary dormitory and hoped that he would be alright out in that sinkhole of a Line. Who in their right mind thought that bringing Center Line kids to the Outer Line was a good idea, anyway?

Once he was in the building, he turned around and left, his military strut looking rather funny with his burnt cloak. He had cooled down quite a bit and could finally think clearly. He would just have to find a way to get the Line's support without Daube.

Well, it may have been a clear thought, but I can't say it was a smart thought.

He went back to the main Outer Line Enforcer's office, which was still burning, and tried to plot a way to make his vague idea work.

_____________________________________________________________

Sally was with Kim in that she wasn't sure there was anything edible in that house. She didn't see any cabinets or counter tops or tables that had anything resembling food on them.

During these thoughts, she saw Dante taking his shirt off in the other corner of the room. If that wasn't enough to make her nervous, when she saw the names burnt into his back, she found herself completely speechless. Next thing she knew, he shoved his sword in the floor and an entire new area opened up.

What?

She sat there trying to keep her mouth from gaping, wondering exactly what the hell they had just walked into. And Sally thought she was crafty! She muttered something to herself before lightly tapping over to the area. As apprehensive as she was about jumping into a dark hole in the floor of some guy's house, her curiosity got the better of her; the girl threw down her things and hopped right in. However, she underestimated the jump and found herself falling painfully into her own suitcase.

"Ow..." she whined despite perking herself up a few seconds later.

Sally wanted to ask Dante about the scars, but she instead found herself standing at the bottom of the hole, pushing her things out of the way. She doubted that Kim was going to have a nice fall coming down there. "Do you want me to catch you, Kim? It's a bit of a drop," she said in a raised voice, hoping the girl could hear her from up there.

Srenal saw Thom pretended to act shocked. After all, she wasn't supposed to even know that Thom was here. "Thom! I didn't know you were here. It's a pleasure to see you again," Srenal heard a growl in response from Thom, "but I actually came over to see Sarah."

Srenal nodded at Noel's whispered words. It wasn't like she even wanted to hurt Sarah anyways. She was more worried about getting information from Thom, though that doesn't mean that she wouldn't hurt Sarah if Noel asked her to. Despite the fact that she's using Noel as an excuse to further her own plans, she cared deeply about Noel.

Srenal wrapped her arms protectively around Noel and smiled where she saw Sarah hiding behind Thom. "I don't know why you're scared of me. I only want to talk." Srenal figured that Sarah was hurt often for what she did. It was a well known fact that any tattle-tale was hated. Srenal couldn't do anything but treat Sarah like a scared animal, unless she could get Thom to let her in.

Thom seemed to be the one Sarah trusted, so if Srenal could appeal to Thom, then he could let her in. With a sweet smile, Srenal met Thom's gaze. It was certainly a gaze that she'd fear if she were human. "I believe that what I have to say could be better for all of us, Thom. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't know anything about what you're planning, and I honestly believe that I could be of some help."

This could either go very well or terribly wrong. Admitting that she was spying on Thom wasn't the best thing to do, but she knew he wasn't an idiot. If he didn't know exactly when she was spying on him, he'd at least know that she was at some point without her telling him so. Srenal could only wait and hope for the best. "I understand that you're having problems with a certain part of your plan." Srenal's gaze went to Sarah for a moment, then back to Thom.

_________________________Character_Change!_________________________

Thom knew Srenal was lying. Of course she knew that he was here. Why would she even be around this area if he wasn't here? It was obvious that she had meant to follow the group around in order to exact her revenge on Dante. There was also her original plan that caused her to follow Sally in the first place.

Thom glanced at Noel. It could be possible that she really just came here for the girl. Srenal had made it quite obvious that she had a thing for Noel after their last encounter. It didn't add up though. Srenal followed Thom and Mirabelle here. Noel had left before Srenal, so she didn't follow her. That only left one option. Noel and Srenal had run into each other by chance while Srenal was scheming.

Looking at Noel's choice in clothes, another question popped into his head. What was she wearing and why was she wearing it? Now Thom was interested in what Noel had been up to while he was paying attention to Mirabelle and Srenal. It seemed that Noel was not the sweet and innocent girl that he first saw her as. By the way that Srenal treated the girl, it seemed that Srenal still saw Noel as a sweet and innocent girl. The thought that Srenal could be hanging around Noel without once wondering what she was up to astounded Thom. After the incident on the train, he thought Srenal was rather intelligent. That left two options. Either Srenal cared more for Noel than she was letting on, or Srenal was too engrossed in her own plans to think that Noel might be planning something herself.

Both intrigued Thom, causing him to smirk. When Srenal looked straight at him, his smirked dropped and he sneered at her. Being straight forward was not something that Srenal usually did. The thought that she'd just admit that she was watching him meant that she was planning something. He was considering how Srenal could be helpful, when a chuckle escaped his throat. Srenal was trying to manipulate him.

It had been a good one as well, since she seemed to point out the one thing that he cared about most. It was even better since he considered it. Maybe he could have some fun with this. Thom backed up holding the door open to let Srenal and Noel in. He heard a squeak from Sarah and felt a tug on his shirt. It was a silent plea for him to not let these people in.

Thom grabbed Sarah's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. His curiosity was peaked by Noel, and he was looking forward to playing with Srenal. He had to reassure Sarah that he'd protect her if he was to continue this. "Then please come in. I'm looking forward to see how you could accomplish what I've been struggling with."

That had been true too. Thom knew Sarah, and she trusted him. How could someone that Sarah seemed to fear, particularly someone who had a sweet spot for someone Sarah did fear, manipulate the girl into helping him break the rules? If she could, then he might just get something good out of this. He would just have to make sure that he had the upper hand over Srenal.

Luke rolled his eyes when he saw Dante deal with the loon. Everything was more trouble than it was worth, and Luke was starting to get bored of it all, "Great. Now we've got a dead body, a frightened crowd, and a bunch of drunks that seem to think that you've done the most exciting thing since The Colcktower."

Rolling his eyes, Luke looked around the room to make sure no one got hurt. If anyone had, they seemed to have either left or gotten moved, because everyone in here seemed to be safe, excluding those that seemed to have pissed themselves. It was all more trouble than it was worth, in his mind, and Luke was just glad that Daube was there to deal with it. In truth, if Daube wasn't there Luke would have probably just left. Anything troublesome wasn't worth his time or effort, and Luke wanted to keep it as far away as possible.

"I say we finish this game. I was about to win after all." Luke chuckled.

So, they were going to have to deal with someone else being in on their plotting. Kim almost asked where Dante was going to magically pull food from before he stripped of his shirt. She had never seen so many scars on one person and the fact that each scar was a name was even weirder. Kim was stunned speechless and could only watch in shock as Dante stabbed the floor. Of course, there was a secret section to the house. There was no reason the Church would have a monopoly on those.

Nephele jumped down the hole without a word and Sally only hesitated for a moment before chucking her giant suitcase down and following. "Ow" came Sally's voice a moment later. Apparently she hadn't landed very softly.

Kim padded over to the edge of the hole and saw that it was deeper than it looked from a distance. Still, it wasn't that bad. She took a deep breath and mentally prepared herself for jumping. "Do you want me to catch you, Kim? It's a bit of a drop," Sally's voice came wafting up.

Kim stepped off the edge and allowed her knees to bend to absorb the shock. She staggered a step, trying to regain her balance, but caught herself before she fell. "Thanks for the offer, but I got it," she grinned at Sally. "At least I can do something by myself."

Dante smiled at Sally and Kim as they jumped down. He turned to the wall where a chain with a ring at its end hanged. He grabbed the ring and pulled the chain down making a clank noise followed by the hole sealing up. Nephele still held the glow stick and looked back at Sally and Kim. She turned back to Dante and raised the light up to his face so they could see each other. “What is this place?” She asked curiously looking down the hallway. Dante smiled and walked down the hallway into the dark. “This is my real home. Come on I’ll turn on the lights so you don’t get scared.” He shouted as continued to walk deeper and deeper. Nehphele remained quiet for a moment and thought her options over. “Well this is certainly interesting and he doesn’t seem threatening, at least not for now.” She nodded to herself and began to walk. She looked at Kim and Sally over her shoulder. “Come on girls we better get going. Best if we stick together.” She said giving them a gentle smile.

Her smile quickly faded at the sound of a roar that emitted from down the hallway and went through the air leaving Nephele speechless. Then the lights suddenly flickered on blinding Nephele temporarily. She heard someone laugh. It sounded like Dante. “Sorry about that. It seems I might need to bring some new parts for the generator. Now come on let’s get you settled in so you can eat.” He said smiling as he stood at the end of the hall in front of a white double door that blended right into the whit hallway. Nephele was surprised to find that the hall wasn’t actually that long. Within a few steps she was in front of Dante, who was looking at Sally and Kim.

-Character Change-

Castiel sat quietly in her chair doing paperwork. To her it seemed like another uneventful afternoon of paperwork until an Enforcer knocked on the door and walked into her office. She looked up at her and gave the young girl a stare that could kill a man. “Captain I have some news you might want to hear.” The Enforcer said her voice cracking half way through. Castiel sighed and stood up walking to a window behind her seat. “What is it?” She asked impatiently causing the girl to immediately walk to her side and hand her some papers. “According to information we just recently received it appears that some Enforcers have been murdered.” Castiel immediately turned to the girl and grabbed the papers. “And from where were these Enforcers?” She asked reading the papers that turned out to be a report about the event. The Enforcer hesitated and swallowed. “Middle Line Captain.” Castiel walked back to her desk and placed down the papers. She looked at the girl and with a growl ordered her. “I see… Damn what the Hell is going on?” She dismissed the Enforcer and grabbed her sword. She picked up the report and finished reading it.

“So General Cross went south eh? Wonder what for.” She sighed grabbing her umbrella and walked out of her office with an angry expression. She walked out of the Enforcer office and out into the sun opening her umbrella. “Maybe I’m just paranoid but this feeling I’m getting…” She looked up at the Clocktower, more specifically the cross on it, and nodded. “I have to follow my gut like I always do.” She looked back at an Enforcer going into the office and whistled at him. He immediately stood straight and remained quiet. “When you go in there let the rest know I’m going out.” She said walking away as the Enforcer turned to look at her. “Going where Captain?” He asked. She looked back at him and smiled. “To follow my gut. Oh and get the Certae finish my paperwork please.” She continued walking in the direction of the Rails, leaving the Enforcer to do as he was instructed. Castiel walked quietly toward the Rails with her red umbrella in hand and her great sword on her back. It was a strange sight indeed.

She stopped in front of the Rails and nodded at the Enforcers standing guard. They stepped out of her way as she walked into the Rails. The décor was too much like always. Castiel placed her weapon next to her and sat down looking out the window. “Now let’s see if my gut’s right.” She whispered to herself as the Rail began to move. “I hope it is...” She smiled at her thought and laid back on the comfortable seats closing her eyes as the Rail picked up speed.

Mirabelle watched the scene unfold with narrowed eyes. She was
surprised - almost a little dismayed, even - that Srenal hadn't
acknowledged her in any way, but what did it matter? Mirabelle didn't seek anyone's acknowledgement. Standing on the sidelines and observing had often been most beneficial to her anyway.

Just what is she playing at? she wondered silently. That girl from earlier, Noel, was with her. How were they suddenly being so... comfortable... with each other after the scene from earlier? A frown settled on Mirabelle's face as she tried to understand. In the end, she dismissed it and decided that perhaps Noel was simply a chess piece, something necessary to Srenal for her plans, whatever they may be. They weren't of Mirabelle's concern, or not yet, anyway. She'd consider those later.

And yet... is that what I am, too? Could it be that I, too, will be used by Srenal like a chess piece? Although... what use could I possibly serve to her? If anything, I would be a hindrance. We may have agreed to be 'allies', but our motives will never be the same. And Srenal seems far too unpredictable for my comfort.

Finally, Mirabelle cleared her throat and spoke, a little louder this time, though not so loudly that it seemed obnoxious or rude. "Well," she said, giving Srenal and Noel a curious look, "it seems this little group here is getting ever larger." She turned to Thom. "Sally will be in for quite the surprise, won't she?"

Sally... Mirabelle wondered how the girl would react. Most people probably wouldn't approve of decisions like this being made without being consulted first - Mirabelle knew she sure wouldn't have been particularly pleased, had she been in Sally's place.