Get Used To Me, Cause You're Involved [fanfic]

[Snow]

Chapter 1: I'm Only Saving You Because I Have To

    There was a large commotion in the town square, and Zel, more specifically Kitten, wanted to know what was going on. The graceful assassin watched from the rooftops. A young man was down there, getting pushed about by a guard while a mob of people watched. The guard shouted something similar to "You're in cahoots with the assassin, aren'tcha?!" Deciding that was enough after a few minutes, Zel leaped from the rooftop and landed somewhat in the circle. Rolling to dissipate the energy of the fall, he was very suddenly in front of the fallen guy. He tipped his head to one side, dark blue-grey eyes gleaming in amusement. 

    "I presume you're looking for me."

    The crowd was suddenly hushed. The guard tensed, ready to leap at him. His hand kept a firm grip on the other's shirt, and as the guard charged toward him, he leaped to the side, taking the other with him.


    "That's no way to treat a guest, ya know," he pouted. He turned halfway to the other person. "Up on your feet, young man. I'll not have an Innocent down on his knees when he's done nothing wrong." 

    The other shifted to his feet, looking down at the small assassin in confusion. Smirking, he turned back to the guard. Immediately, his smirk turned into a disdainful frown. The guard was struggling feebly to stand.


    "A Marked. Well, I guess that dislocated shoulder will make it just that much easier to kill you, huh? But not here, not now. Maybe later." He smirked again, visible through the darkness of his hood now.

    "Watch your back, soldier. Watch your back." The crowd had disappeared, and the guard was struggling down the road. He turned to look sharply at the young man. His gentle eyes made him think of Nika. As the young man introduced him as Caiden, he then proceeded to try and thank him. Zel stopped him with one sentence: "I only saved you because I couldn't watch an Innocent die for no reason." He turned away from Caiden just as a breeze blew down his hood. Panicking, he pulled it back up and turned swiftly to face Caiden.

    "You saw nothing, got it?" When Caiden nodded, startled, he relaxed, and raised a hand to his forehead in a mock salute.

    "See ya around, then. Lay low for the next days, okay?" With that, he twitched and disappeared into an alley. With Squirrel in control, he scaled a building easily and twisted behind a chimney. He needed sleep - he hadn't slept for days due to insomnia. He settled down into sleep, only to be awoken within a time span of 3 hours. Growling in anger, he looked behind the chimney to see what was going on. He could see Caiden down there, blocked from the town exit by three guards. It appeared he had to save the guy again. Sighing, he ran across the rooftops swiftly and silently, reaching the town exit easily. He pounced, smashing into one guard and sending all of the guards toppling over. 

    "Come with me, quickly!" He ran side by side with the other person, fearing that his lightning swiftness would leave him behind. Zel might have had good endurance, but he wasn't sure how much longer Caiden could keep running. He motioned for Caiden to follow, and was thankful when Caiden did as he was told. They very quickly reached the small house in the forest. It still felt faintly as though Nika was there. Gritting, his teeth silently, he motioned for Caiden to go inside. Caiden seemed confused, but he nodded and disappeared inside.


    Zel also went into the house and disappeared upstairs. He changed out of his armor and went back downstairs in his casual clothes, which was his black t-shirt(with the kunais still attatched) and loose-fitting, comfortable jeans. He no longer had his hood on, revealing the gleaming silver hair that seemed to reflect all light. There were no mirrors in the house, as Zel had an odd hatred of mirrors. Just then, he noticed a hidden mirror. With an angry twitch of his hand, he picked up the mirror and studied it, walking over to the window simultaneously. He opened the window, continuing to study it. With Caiden watching, he chucked the mirror out the window, and listened to it shatter. He then said one simple, three-word sentence. 

    "I hate mirrors."

[Snow]

Chapter 2: Crayons On The Floor

    "Alright, you hate mirrors." Caiden sounded confused. He probably was confused. Crayons littered the floor. Zel sighed, and began to pick up the crayons.

    "Kitten, why do you have leave crayons on the floor all the time... can't you pick them up and put them away? Though I assume you are a child..."

"Who's Kitten?"

Zel's head snapped up. He'd forgotten Caiden was here. He'd been by himself so long he'd kind of forgotten to be careful about what he said. He sighed again, and answered Caiden. "Kitten is one of the four other personalities I have. He's, well, a child. At least he acts like one. There's also Shrike, whom you don't want to meet, trust me, Wolf, who you probably won't meet, and Squirrel, who'll be out of here so fast you would even be able to register that he was here. Kitten's probably the only one you'll meet, sadly." 

    Zel said this in such a calming manner than he could tell Caiden understood. "Oh, yes, and please, don't try to question Kitten's logic nor his knowledge. He just... knows everything somehow. Don't ask me, cause I've got no idea."

    Caiden was obviously confused, but instead of asking about Kitten, he asked, "So, uh, where are we?" 


    Zel looked away. "We're at my house. It's not far from the town. You can leave tomorrow. It's getting late now, so you can sleep here." 


    There was two beds in the house, upstairs. One smelled faintly of Nika, which was the one that Zel used, and then there was another, a bed for in case he had a guest. He twitched slightly, his hand flicking strangely. It was so offhand that Caiden didn't think much about it. He then noticed that Zel had disappeared into a corner, staring fearfully at him. Zel had contemplated jumping through the window, but it was too much of a hassle, and besides, then he would have a lot of cuts. As moonlight shown through the window, it landed on his silver hair. It was spiked, and the moonlight danced gently off of his hair.


    "G-good n-night," he stuttered, disappearing upstairs. Caiden didn't seem dangerous, but you could never tell. Though, Caiden had refrained from attacking him. Why? To kill him in his sleep, maybe? Curling up on the bed that smelled faintly of Nika, he couldn't help but watch the staircase for a few minutes before falling asleep.

    Zel awoke with a groan that suggested he'd rather stay asleep. As his eyes landed on Caiden, who was still asleep, he grinned. If he couldn't sleep, then he might as well wake up Caiden. But not immediately. No, he was goin to wait until Caiden woke up himself, but it would be funny to scare him. He quietly slipped over to where Caiden was sleeping, and stared at his face for about an hour until Caiden woke up. His guest opened his eyes to find dark blue-grey ones staring back at him. Caiden gave a shout of fear as he sat up, and Zel fell over onto the floor laughing. 

    "Yes! I knew it was worth the wait!" Zel scrambled up to his feet, a huge grin on his face. His silver hair was a complete mess, but he didn't care too much. He ran out of the room, and promptly fell down the stairs. Looking a bit prideful for having had enough skill of falling down stairs to not get hurt, He jumped back up and began searching through a closet. 

    "Now, where did Zel put my crayons... Crayons, come out wherever you are!" He climbed up the shelves to search a higher shelf. It wasn't the first time Zel had hidden things on high shelves, but it certainly wouldn't be the last. His crayons were not up there, and he noticed that Caiden still had a sleepy look about him as he stood at the top of the stairs. Pouting slightly because his crayons weren't there, he climbed back down and opened the door that led outside. 

    "Nope, it's foggy and misty out there. Not leaving the house." He closed the door with a sigh. If Zel had hidden his crayons so well, why couldn't he find them? There was logic behind that, actually. The harder Zel tried to hide his crayons, the easier he would find them. However, it seemed that Zel had finally realized this and had hidden his crayons in an easy spot. He then noticed Caiden had gone down the stairs and was holding his pack of crayons in his hand. 

    "I don't know why you didn't see them, but, uh, here are your crayons?" It was stated like a question, and Zel jumped up and took the crayons. He thanked Caiden with a happy smile, and then set to work coloring the wall. After a bit, Caiden had gotten ready for the day.

    "There's food in the kitchen if you're hungry," Zel, very randomly, told Caiden, concentrating on the wall with a such a fierce intersity that it was hard to know if he was staring at the wall or whatever he'd drawn on the wall. 

    It had been 3 hours since Caiden left the house. Zel, now with Squirrel at the reigns, studied his book carefully. There were many books on his bed, but he'd taken a particular interest in the one he held in his hands. Why? Well, of course, because it was the book that told him about all the different races in Hyrule.

[Snow]

Chapter 3: The Shiny Things

    Zel loved to collect shiny things.

    Sometimes, if he wanted to get into Hyrule Castle Town during the day, he would go out in his casual clothes and into the town. He would collect anything that shined even remotely, as shiny things fascinated him to no end. As he walked, people gave him strange looks. True, he had three shiny black raven feathers sticking out of his hair, but they didn't need to stare at him. Dang, he'd even taken off the kunais on his shirt. The only weapon he had left was his hidden blade. Without his cloak, he felt a bit out of place, but he had to remain under control.


    Something caught his eye as he walked past three children played hide and seek. A shiny necklace chain piece lay on the ground, and Zel crouched to examine it. Something whizzed over his head not even a second later. It came back, and Zel absentmindedly put a hand up and caught it skillfully. Two children came over to him just as he pocketed the chain piece, and he was startled to find that they were both nearly as tall as he was. He couldn't be that short, could he?


    "Hey, you're pretty good. Maybe you wanna play with us?" Zel flinched at the question. He couldn't answer 'no' without guilt pricking his stomach, and he certainly didn't want to upset the children. He sighed.

    "Alright. I'll play. I promise I won't be too hard on you." He motioned for one children to step back a few paces. Once they were far enough away, he flicked it across to them at such a speed that they might as well have been 3 feet away from each other instead of the 10 feet that was between them. He smirked, and caught it when t came back to him at a much slower speed.

    "If you want, I can teach you how to make it go so fast," he called over, and the children crowded up to him, obviously eager to learn.

    "It's easy once you learn how. It's all in the flick of the wrist. If you flick your wrist slowly, it's go slow. If you flick your wrist fast and with force, it'll go fast." The children caught on quickly. And he slipped away quietly while they practiced.

    Within a few hours, he had managed to find three gold rings, two other chain pieces, four silver crosses, and a lot of feathers of many different kinds. He was alerted to a child crying. It was the three children he'd seen earlier. The little girl was crying' apparently she had gotten her ball stuck on top of the roof of a house. Sighing, he glanced at the child, and then at the ball. The building actually wasn't too tall; he'd be able to get the ball fairly quickly. He called out to them to watch him. Preparing himself, he ran straight at the building, running halfway up the wall and pouncing onto another building. From there, he simply jumped from rooftop to rooftop, grabbed the ball, and jumped down. The children gasped with shock and fear when he jumped off the building; he landed and rolled immediately to keep himself from getting hurt. 

    "There. Now stop crying, would you? You're making me sad as well." The girl looked at his face. His dark grey-blue eyes held sternness and something else. Something that she was too young to be able to place. In all reality, it was sorrow. He gave them a small smile before disappearing, and they could only watch his retreating form as he walked off down the road. 

    It was night now, and time to do his job. He was less than halfway done when he thought of something. Why go out and kill some people when he could stay here studying? He really didn't want to encounter Caiden; if Caiden was exploring the town at night and caught him, then he couldn't trust Zel anymore. Zel caught himself: Why do I care if he trusts me or not? I'm not supposed to get close to anyone. I'm an assassin now, and I can't let anything hurt me like Nika's death did. With that, he changed back into his casual clothes and flopped onto his bed. 

    He began to study a book about why people needed sleep when there was a scratching at his door. COnfused, he went downstairs and opened the door to find two dogs, both about half his height. Letting them in, he quietly sneaked back upstairs and continued to read.

[Snow]

Chapter 4: A Song To Ease You

    Zel peeked out from behind a chimney. He could see Caiden talking to a girl that looked oddly similar to him, so he dismissed the thought that they were 'together'. They must have been siblings. He saw Caiden turn to look at him, and whisper something to the girl. She followed his gaze and saw him. He gave a grin and waved slightly before running off across the rooftops.

--------------------

    Caiden saw a flash of white behind a chimney, and knew it was Zel. He leaned over to Caila, and whispered to her, "See that white up there? That's Zel, the kid I was telling you about." She followed his gaze and saw him. Zel waved slightly before disappearing, and Caiden knew why. He was apparently an assassin, and if people saw him, well, he'd be dead meat.

--------------------

    Zel, now back at home, began to sing a song that he knew Nika had always liked. True, she wasn't here to comment on it now, but he could still sing it for her, couldn't he? He changed some of the lyrics to fit the new circumstances.

"Near a small, dark town at night,
A young teen sits by himself.
As he sits in the calm, soothing forest,
He is reminded of the things he had done."


"Let's write a wish on paper...
...And send it away to sea.
If it doesn't get ruined,
Then surely there...
...Will be a wish granted."

"Floating away is a wish on paper...
That holds the regrets of a child.
It fades away into the horizon...
...Without a sound to be heard."


"I was the one to always help you,
And do the things you told me to do...
Even if those things hurt me badly.
But I've been blind this whole time...
...And I didn't realize that you hurt, too."

"You're the only one who would hear me...
But you're no longer here.
The wind will express my sorrow...
And I hope it reaches you soon..."

"Floating away is a wish on paper...
With the single wish of an assassin.
He finally saw how hurt you were...
And wished he could take
It all back."

"Floating away is a wish on paper...

That holds the regrets of a child.

It fades away into the horizon...

...Without a sound to be heard."


"Floating away is a wish on paper...

With the single wish of an assassin.
If only we could be
Reborn..."

    The song ended there, but he finished it with one last thought: "Yeah... I'd like that."

    Little did he know, Caiden and Caila had heard every word. He stood up from where he was sitting and headed inside. The two siblings shared a look that obviously said, Let's not bother him right now. 


((Short, I know, but I wanted to post something~))

[Snow]

Chapter 5: Zel's Madness 

    "Both of you, just shut up! Wolf, admit that you were wrong! Kitten, apologize to Wolf!"    

    Both personalities, frightened by Squirrel's loss of patience, quickly did as they were told and fell silent. Zel sighed in relief and began to quietly pick up the crayons that were on the floor. Squirrel, being in control, was finished quickly, and sat down on the floor, legs crisscrossed, to read. The book was rather interesting, and very soon he was wrapped up in the book completely. In that little house, beyond people's notice, he read his book. Yeah, that was why none ever visited, not like he wanted them to. He leaned out his window and the breeze hit him in the face. Birds chirped, and he smiled. 

    The world around him was overly simply, and it was he who was bizarre. With pain that no one understood... he really just couldn't win, could he? A memory hit him. He was around 6 or 7, a few months before Nika died. She was a lot older than he was, her being around 15 and a mother figure to him. She had placed her hand so lovingly on his head, and he'd turned to look at her. The memory snapped as he looked out the window. Another memory popped up. She had always told him not to make eye contact with anyone, because the eyes always betrayed your weaknesses. With a heavy heart, he had resigned to loneliness without her after she passed away. He had never cried in his entire life after he left home, but when she died, he had cried silently in that house. He had soon grown up a bit and took over reading as a past time when he wasn't doing his job.

    "If I wish for the world... will you forgive me for that?"

    Just then, another breeze hit him in the face, and leaves a few flower heads blew in. Some landed in his book, and he smiled, remembering that there was life even inside of him. The tea he had made before he had begun reading was picked up, and he drank some of it before putting it back down and leaning out the window again. As he daydreamed, he felt himself becoming much less lonely. Snapped out of his trance by a voice, he was, to say the least, a bit frightened, as Squirrel always was of other people. He stood up very suddenly, and knocked his tea all over the desk he was reading at. What am I to do? he thought, staring past the bookshelves to the door. A memory flashed in his mind.

    Nika crouched in front of him. "Look anyone in the eyes, and they'll turn to stone," she told him. That's what she had heard, and apparently the same was true with his eyes. And the way it always went in stories... well, people like that were to be feared. He knew that, and that's why he hated mirrors. He didn't want to be reminded about his eyes. 

    A thumping sound echoed from the door, and he, terrified, stared at the door. He began to hurry for the door, but he tripped over a book and crashed to the floor. He picked himself up, wondering if he'd just imagined the knock. However, the person outside opened the door. He stared wildly at them before another memory popped up. A memory he wanted to forget. 

    Zel played outside, and he happily made a wreath of flowers to put on his head. As he did so, he saw movement in the forest. Two people were walking by, with ropes in their hands. He thought nothing of it, and when a yellow butterfly flew past, he was more than happy to play with it. Nika, inside, heard a scream coming from Zel. The two older kids, both male, had him by the hair and were contemplating what to do with him. He bled from a blow on his cheek and screamed. The two older males were laughing and smiling. Zel struggled in their grip and tried to loosen it. Nika was concerned for her young 'child', and rushed outside to help him. She took him by the hand and led him away from them, but before they got very far, one of them lunged at her and made her fall, twisting her ankle. The other male held a large branch in his hand, and was bleeding from a cut over his eye. He swung at Zel, and Nika pressed his face into her chest, hiding him from what she was about to do. She was a witch, and in one motion, froze the boy holding the branch to stone. Zel, having turned his head to see what was happening, was terrified of that power. Only a month after that, Shrike killed her.

    Zel turned away from the other, cowering, covering his eyes.

    "If I look you in the eyes, you'll turn to stone," he whispered, afraid. However, the other just smiled and came inside.
    
    "I've been afraid too, afraid that you would kill me... but wouldn't life be better... without those fears?"

    The other person was Caiden, and behind him, Caila.

    

[Snow]

Chapter 6: Kitten... Not Being Kitten?!

    He'd heard it was someone's birthday. He knew literally everyone in town, and it was a little girl whose name was Alicia Pond* who was turning 8 that day. So, of course, Kitten had spoken to the father and the father had agreed to let Kitten throw a party for her and her friends. He'd been introduced to the friendly, overly cheerful Alicia, who had immediately taken a liking to him.

    She showed this by asking her father, "Can we keep him?" with a serious expression on her smiling little face.

    So, Kitten was at home right now. Cooking. Yes, Kitten could cook. Well, more like he could bake. He could not cook, as he burned everything that he tried to cook, but he could bake. Baking was easy with Kitten's memory of random, seemingly useless things. So here he was, making a cake for the girl. He had asked her what her favorite flavors or cake and pie were, and she had so endearingly told him without even a moment's hesitation.

    He'd gotten the pie done first, not one but three black cherry pies(which happened to be his favorite too, oh joy!) and was currently baking a third chocolate cake to make a triple chocolate layer cake. After a few minutes, the oven made a semi-loud beeping noise, and Kitten happily pulled the pan out. Without oven mitts. Of course, he was happy that he didn't even realize that'd just burnt his fingers until after he put the cake down.

    "Oops," he giggled, "I must have spaced out while carrying the cake." 

    "Or you've just got no nerve endings in your fingertips," another voice offered, and Kitten half turned to see Caiden standing there with messy hair, having just woken up, mostly likely from the beeping of the oven.

    "No, I'm pretty sure I have nerve endings in my fingers. Or do I? I wonder about that... Oh well, back to baking!"

    Kitten just couldn't be distracted for very long when he was throwing a party, could he? Nope.

-----------------------------------

    Kitten balanced the chocolate cupcakes on his arm, while he carried the pie in one hand and the cake in the other(palm up, of course - he didn't want to accidentally drop it). Mr. Pond let Zel into the house, taking the cupcakes from their well-balanced position. As soon as he had set down the pie and cake in the party room, he was mobbed by five little girls, including Alicia. There were all shorter than him, thankfully, and he dropped to his knees and group-hugged them.

    "So, who's ready to party?!" Kitten called out, and almost immediately the girls screamed with joy and got him to dance with them. Before long, he was laughing and having fun right along with them. It must not have occurred to the girls that Zel was much older than they were, because they were trying to knock him down. His good balance did not fail him until all five girls mobbed him at one time. Down he went, laughing like a maniac, and trying to get them off of him. They giggled and let him up, but one girl, whose name was Clara**, found his ticklish spot. As it turned out, Kitten was immensely ticklish, and pretty soon he was gasping for breath as he laughed hysterically trying to get them to stop tickling him. It was only after 10 minutes when Mr. Pond came upstairs did they let him go, and he tried to regain his breath while he also tried to stop laughing. 

    He turned to Alicia, who didn't seem to be having too much fun. "So, are you having fun?" he asked, with a silly smile plastered to his face.

    "No, I don't like your party," came the devastating reply.

    "Y-You... don't like my party?" his voice squeaked with disbelief, sadness, and pain all at once. His hair deflated, hanging limply. 
    
    "H-How could you not have fun at my party? Did I - Did I do something wrong?" Muttering to himself, Kitten curled up in the corner with his back to Alicia as he shook and tried to figure out what he did wrong. 

    "W-Was I not good enough? She.. didn't like my party..." He would have cried, but he had already promised Zel and the others that he wouldn't cry.

    "I didn't m-mean it..." Alicia whimpered. Kitten half turned, looking at her.

    "You... like my party?" 

    "Of course. This is the best party I've ever had!" Kitten's hair popped back into its mess of spikes, and he was extremely happy. 

    "Yay! Then let's keep going!" Kitten was immediately happy, and the party continued for another hour before it was the girls' bedtime. Everyone had only have one slice of cake, 2 cupcakes, and a slice of pie each(excluding Kitten, because he was too busy trying to persuade one of the shier girls to dance with him), but Mr. Pond promised to keep the  extra cake, pie, and cupcakes for later. As He was led towards the door, the father spoke to him.

    "Thanks for throwing this party for Alicia. You're the best party-thrower I've ever seen. All five of the girls were tuckered out by the time it was time for bed." He chuckled. "No one's ever been able to do that before. Again, thanks. Is there anything I can do to repay you?"

    Zel looked at him with a huge grin on his face. "Have me throw the next party."


((* Doctor Who reference.))
((** Also a Doctor Who reference.))

[Snow]

Chapter 7: Lost And Found, Stolen And Returned

A white-clocked someone ran through the forest of flowers, looking for safety. The blue plants were odd, but not highly thought of. The cloaked person carried two bundles, two three year olds. It was night, and he held the two children close as he ran. He also avoided the plants.

--------------------

    He'd been at home when the Raid had happened. Terrified, he had run to the place but stayed on the ground to watch. Memories flickered. He didn't remember his mother nor his father anymore. It was with assassins, a darkened leader, that he became one himself. His soul was dirtied, so to say, he was charmed by evil, an "evil assassin" who bore ill will. He turned his head to look at the guards who were advancing on him, his eyes flashing golden in the dying sun's light. Startled, he ran, leading them through a path with blue flowers growing. He skillfully avoided the plants, but the guards crashed right through. He stopped and turned so suddenly that the guards also stopped. 

    "Beware the blue flower, beware the poison joke!" Mist blocked their view, and he escaped. Bathed in fresh blood from three wounds on him, he ran to escape the guards, whom had given up and disappeared. The assassin running from them was donned in a white cloak. He sneaked back to town just in time to hear, "My dearest children are gone!" The white-cloaked assassin looked down at the bloodstained, distraught person and smiled. As he did so, chains were bound to him and he was led to the dungeon. 


    "I will be judged in this dark dungeon..." The dark-eyed assassin noticed his leader coming towards him softly, and realized what was happened. He recited the ancient words of the Law of Favors.

    "I want to get out of here. Impending danger's looming near. I would like to run a lap, our interests overlap." He extended his hand, and allowed his leader's hidden blade to plunge through his palm without a second thought. He did not even flinch. the black-cloaked leader lock-picked the cell's lock and disappeared. The younger assassin ran along a cold stone path, running to escape, smirking as the guards, shocked, did not try to stop him and his lightning swiftness. Not after 5 guards had fallen ill following him into the woods. 

    Taking his feelings of wrath with him, he ran for his destination. A dart shot into his neck, but he only stumbles, pulls out the dart, and keeps running. It's not until he's safe in his garden that he collapses. The beating of his own heart awoke him. He got up, and ran to the Assassin's Creed hideout, intent on one thing. He saw the two boys that were stolen. Both were blonde and looked exactly alike. Twins.

    He remembered.... he remembered... He was like that too. His life had begun with assassin training. Those two would have to be returned. He knew it was selfish; however, he would not let these two children be misused! It was a life of running. All he had was his cunning to get those two out of there. 

    "At least these two children... these precious children..." The silver-haired assassin carried both of them, running back to the town to return them. In a forest of blue flowers, he searched for that one place of safety; the town; Hyrule Castle Town. 

    "These two beloved children..." Neither child knew what he meant, and they would never know. They were too young to remember what was happening within a few days. He held them close, running in the night, an escapee. In a field, he had to stay alive. He must not take the consequence of these two being stolen. It was the middle of the night, the twins and him... He carried them into town while everyone grieved in their own homes. He whispered something to the twins, who whispered something back to him in return. The assassin carried on to the house of these twins parents.

---------------------------

    Cloud didn't know what to expect when someone knocked on the door. He had expected someone coming by the try and console them. What he had not expected was this white-cloaked child holding both of his sons.

    "Tifa! Tifa come here!" he called, and the black-haired Tifa came, her crying ceasing when she saw what lay before her. The white-cloaked figure silently put them on the ground, gently pushing them towards their parents. Cloud had not even a second to thank the figure before they turned away, giving a mock salute and disappearing.

"He looked like those people who raided the town... White-cloaked." Tifa looked at Cloud. Had their sons really been saved by one of the people who had stolen them? They didn't know, nor would they ever know.

----------------------------

Finally home, Zel curled up in his bed. It had been hard, saving those two twins. But somehow, he felt it was worth it. He bled from his wounds but did not notice the stinging pain as he fell asleep.

[Snow]

Chapter 8: Crazy NighT

    A girl from the village, lost deep, deep in the Faron Woods, arrives at a manor of the night, faded letter in hand. She knocked on the ominous manors' damaged door, and called out, "Is anyone there?"

    She was greeted by a older man with white hair and ocean blue eyes. He was in butler clothing, and spoke old-fashionedly. "My, do you need some help?" 

    Pulled inside, she was greeted by a silver-haired teen with dark grey-blue eyes. It was obvious he had multiple personalities. A name blazed in her mind. Zel. "Welcome, to our wondrous mansion!"

    A curly-haired woman came in. Her hair was pink, and she was covered in cake. She carried a cake, too, and set it down as she squealed in excitement, "Let me serve you some tea!"

    Everyone gathered, and the guest was appraised.

    The master, whose name was Twisted Tale, spoke next. His hair was cyan and his eyes were magenta. "A meeting such as this, you know, must be fate." 

    "Then we will party! Party!" Zel cried out, smiling brightly.

    Then they spoke at the same time, in union, saying the same thing, "Let us welcome you!"

    "Hurry, hurry!"

    "Pour the wine!" Elusive, the butler, exclaimed, grabbing a bottle of expensive wine.

    Surprise, the maid, told her, "Be merry, be festive!"

    A lady with blonde-yellow hair and teal eyes, who went by the name of Butterscotch, said, "Let us give a toast!"

   "Are you ready?"

    The mistress, whose name was Flame Song, had flaming orange hair, freckles, and green eyes. "Are we, indeed?"

    "Then let us begin!" the guest cried out. The guest's name was Fallow, and she had light brown hair, amber eyes, and almost ghostly pale skin. 

    "You are the lead actress in this Crazy NighT, all dressed up with a glass of wine. Once you're drunk just enough, won't you enjoy yourself so? Sing, dance, make merry, forget what's sweet and bitter! Til the point of madness, enjoy a happy night!"

    A giggle escaped one of the residents of the manor in the night. It sounded like Zel. The night after the banquet, something seemed amiss. She went to sleep and awoke, but morning never even came. She went downstairs to find Zel standing in front of a grandfather clock. He grinned widely when he saw her, which was almost immediately.

    "Shall we... tell you a secret? Take a look at the clock!" The clock's hands were dagger points. The girl became frightened and fled into a secret rom. And once inside she found...

    "Din! Din! A pile of coffins!" Fallow cried out, and the residents appeared one by one in front of her.

    "Oh, dear."

    "So you saw it."

    "Danger! Danger!"

    "Where are you going?"

    "Where indeed?"

    "Please, wait! You are the lead actress in this Crazy NighT, it's all according to script! What, then, of tonight? What  ending? It's all up to you, you know. Search, look hard for a happy ending, but if you mess up the order, it's all over. Does the true end lie in coffins? Ah, it's just another Bad-End-Night." 

    Fallow was led down a long, spiraling staircase. "What can I do to get back home?"

    "Once the play is over," Flame Song and Twisted Tale spoke at the same time.

    "You shall return," said Elusive and Surprise.

    "The key to the happy ending... where has it ended up? That coldly glinting key.... I found it. I am the lead actress in this Crazy NighT, plunging a knife through your skulls. And once I'd swung it just enough, I'll begin to enjoy myself so."

    The residents began running in panic, and words tumbled from their minds in the open, aloud. Run! Run! Run for your life! Forget the play and the lines! Til the point of madness! Break apart this Bad-End-Night! You are the lead actress in this Crazy NighT, the cast and stage are all gone! And with the story over... Now, shall we leave together? Sing, dance, make merry! Forget what's sweet and bitter. Til the point of madness, enjoy a Bad-End-Night!

    Everything was forgiven and forgotten the next night.

    "Let us begin!"

    "We welcome all," Elusive proudly said.

    "To our wondrous mansion," Surprise finished with a polite bow.

    "You must be lost." The master was rather blunt.

    "Well, it's now..." Flame Song trailed off.
    
    "Rather dark outside." They finished together.

    "So, until it's lights out..." Zel said mischievously, 

    "Let us make you feel at home!"

    "With the highlight of the night..."

    "We shall begin!"

    "Now she-"

    "And she-"

    "And he?"

    "Everyone's making clamor! Let the Crazy nighT go on! The curtains rise! Let the excitement swell higher! You may simply perform according to script! Don't think about it, just act like a fool! The world's spinning, getting drunk on one, two, three! And moreso shall we make merry! It's no fun if things are simple, yes? So let them become crazier still!"

    Crazed giggles escaped Fallow. The residents seemed awfully happy about that.

    "Oh, what are we to do?"

    "Just what's happened here?"

    "It's an emergency!" At Elusive and Surprise's call of panic, each resident came scrambling to the script room. 
    
    "It's as though time itself..." Twisted Tale gasped in fright and shock.

    "Has come to halt." Flame Song finished for him. 

    "What of her? What of heeer?!" Zel burst out.
    
    "Where did she go?"

    "When did she...?" Zel trailed off, his mouth open slightly.

    "But still-"

    "The show-"

    "Must go on!"

    "Say, doesn't it look like there is a 'next pagE?'"

    "Oh, not there?"

    "Not here!"

    "Not this way!"

    "Indeed, nowhere!"

    "Nowhere to be found..."

    "Search for the 'cause' that has set the Crazy NighT awry! There's no way to progress!"

    "Was it hidden? Or destroyed?" Zel wondered.

    "Is it a bug?"

    "Or a strike?!"

    "Who in Hyrule and for what? On three, two, one, we remain empty-handed. And we can worry more and more... We simply can't figure it out... Is tonight just another 'To Be Continued'?"

    "The PagE that was stolen..."

    "Was it an undecided scene?"

    "On that next PagE... would the culprit be revealed?"

    "A future 'PagE'..."

    "How did they know it?"

    "If they're all able to do that..."

    "Then aren't you the culprit?" 

    "I found it." Fallow had a crazed grin on her face, stained with paper shreds.

    "On this Crazy NighT, use the key and let the excitement swell even higher! Can't you simply perform according to the title not thinking about it, just being a fool? Then... one, two, three, write in the pages! More and more.. destroy it all! If you want to see the true EnD... m-m-make things crazier still! Crazy NighT!"

    "Bring back the true Crazy NighT, please! Surely... surely 'this' can't be it!"

    "Even if you performed according to the script, is it not necessarily the truth? The end? The Crazy NighT's curtains slower lower." 
    
    The maid's curly hair had fallen flat, the master was aggressive and cold, the mistress was untruthful, the lady unkind, Zel in a fit of personality changes. 

    "Wait, wait, don't stop yet!"

    "Unfortunately... time is up!"

    "Again, let us meet another night!"

    "Again?! Shall we make another night mad?"

    "May you search for it another night!"

    "Until the end credits-"

    "-have lost their color!" came a voice, belonging to no other but Caiden.

((MUAHAHA NOT THIS TIME COMPUTER, I HAVE POSTED MY 1273 WORD POST! By the way, when the speech is normal colored, all the residents of the manor are speaking at once. So, Crazy NighT, right? When did Caiden find the manor? And who is the culprit? Who stole that "next PagE?"))

[Snow]

Chapter 9: Shrike Isn't Always Violent

    Zel awoke in Shrike's personality. Caila dabbed at his wounds with a cotton ball, appearing worried. So, that crazy night had just been a dream. Well, thank the Goddesses for that. He'd gone to sleep without any pain, but right now they burned like fire. However, he did not move until Caila was finished.

    "What were you doing last night that caused wounds this bad?" Caila scolded him, putting away her medical supplies. None of his wounds needed any real attention except for the stab wound on his hand, which was wrapped up in bandages. Not sure how she would take Shrike's scratchy voice, he hesitated before answering.

    "Nothing you need to be concerned about. Just a mission that wasn't given to me by my leader." Caila seemed confused that his voice had changed, but seemed to understand in a heartbeat.

    "You're lucky you weren't hurt worse," Caiden said, coming into the room. Shrike sat up, and gave Caiden an almost playful glare.

    "Don't lecture me, Squirrel already yelled at everyone even though it really only Zel and Wolf who did the mission. I'm gonna go catch, uh, birds. Yeah, birds." Hating that he'd talked so much, Zel stood up and stalked out of the room. He disappeared into the forest to find one of his forest friends. Which weren't birds.

    Caiden and Caila had left to go see if they could figure out what his 'mission' had been. So, that left Shrike with his friend in the clearing. He really hoped neither of them would come home anytime soon. The violent personality did not want anyone finding out that he hadn't really gone to catch birds, but instead had gone to find his butterfly friend. Which he was currently playing with.

    Shrike wanted the two of them to continue thinking he was simply a killing machine with no mercy or train of thought. The butterfly landed on his nose, and he fell over trying to bat at it. It gently flew away, as though hurt. Shrike, afraid of losing his friend so quickly when no one was around, called out to it. "No, don't go!"

    The butterfly stopped, as though considering his words. Shrike used this time to carefully and gently catch it between his hands. He gave a playful grin, and let the butterfly out of his hands. It flew off into the woods, and for a second Shrike was confused. Then, it returned with a few more butterflies. Really, Shrike felt like Kitten right now, but he didn't really care. Kitten could never be as gentle as he could, not with his clumsy enthusiasm.

    It began to drizzle, and then it became a full out rain. The butterflies did not try to leave, and neither did he. He didn't care that he was getting completely soaked. He played with the butterflies, catching them and releasing them, rolling the grass when one landed on his face. He was so preoccupied that he completely forgot to listen for Caiden and Caila coming back.

    So when the two did come back, they found Shrike, the violent killing machine, playing in the rain with butterflies. They were very obviously surprised. The butterflies, upon sensing their return, flew off into the forest, causing Shrike to stand up and reach a hand out to them. "No, come back..."

    He turned to them, and the two flinched as though they expected him to leap at them. However, he gave them a sorrowful look, his hair still a mess of spikes despite the fact that it was soaked. "You just chased away my friends..." he told them with a sorrowfully scratchy voice, and turned away. He returned indoors, and changed out of his soaking wet casual clothes. Returning downstairs in his assassin's gear, he brushed past the two of them. 

    Now outside again, he headed for town. His blade glinting in the rainwater, Shrike grinned maliciously. If he couldn't kill Caila and Caiden(which he wasn't allowed to, Zel had lectured him on this the moment he'd saved Caiden and then again when Caila had appeared), he would go kill some Marked. He moved silently through the forest, and scaled the closest building once he got to the town. Luckily, a Marked was easily found in the alleyways. A guard, sheltering from the rain. Grinning, he dropped down into the alleyway. 

    The Marked guard, alerted by the soft noise, turned. In one swift motion, Shrike had pulled the guard farther into the alley. 

    "You have betrayed the Assassin's Creed. I sentence you to death." Shrike swiftly killed the guard, sparing the guard the pain of being killed, and turned. Caiden stood at the entrance to the alleyway, looking shocked.

    Shrike quickly explained why he'd killed the guard before Caiden could run. "I killed him because he once trained in the group I trained in. He, however, betrayed us, making him a threat. He was 'Marked' with the Assassin's Blood, so he was sentenced to death to prevent him from hurting anyone." 

    Not waiting for a response of any kind, Shrike scaled the building behind him and ran across the rooftops, back to the forest where he could hide. Hide? Yes, hide. He'd rather hide than answer questions. His throat already hurt from speaking so much and so fast. As soon as he knew that Caiden wouldn't be able to see him if he'd followed Shrike, he swung himself into a tree to settle for the rest of the day. Wait... why did I just explain why I killed that guard when I could have ignored the fact that he was even there? Because Shrike, none of us want to lose his trust. Not even you. Well, maybe he shouldn't have followed me, Wolf. That may be the case, but it would still hurt to lose his trust. Shut up, Squirrel. That wasn't very kind. You shut up too, Kitten. Just... leave me alone for now.

    And they did leave him alone. Hidden from view by the evergreen tree's leaves, he saw Caiden walking around below him. He seemed agitated; Shrike wondered why. Was it because he had run off, or because he had killed the guard? But then Caiden was gone, walking back towards the house. Using his still hurting voice, he sang a soft, quiet song.

"Boy Z opened the door
and found cold, rotting scrap garbage.
'Even I'm the same'
he mutters,
and again closes the door."
 
He did not notice Caiden come back and sit under the tree, having heard the small snippet of song, and continued.

"The bread that girl was holding
seemed delicious,
So I threatened to hit her
and made it my own."

"This country is kind
and protects futures,
so they'll forgive killing,
because I'm just a child, right?"

"When loitering around town at night,
I grasp onto a sweet butterfly.
After being touched harshly,
it can bite back and run away."

"The words coming out of these dry voices
know nothing of the future.
Our hearts and bodies are both frozen.
With vacant eyes,
we're Chilledren."

"Left alone and neglected in a refrigerator,
we're Chilldren."

"We play, making shoplifting a game.
The number of children cutting their wrists increase.
When blackmail and violence
are immature,
they can be settled by crying, 'bully'."

"That good-looking guy who seems
unrelated to depravity,
is really full of bad additives."

"If you're going to make a problem
of lowering the age for crime,
then isn't it natural
for adults to commit crimes?"

"Without even the words
coming out of our mouths,
we simply hurt each other.
Is it really fine for us to live,
depending on something?
I hide a knife in my chest."

"The coldly laughing boys' and girls',
bitter shouts heard by nobody.
We can't find any place to belong,
Within a refrigerator,
we're Chilledren."

"When the door's closed
and it grows cold,
we'll finally go bad,
we're Chilledren."

"If we become adults as we are right now,
we'll lack maturity as Mr. Chilledren.
We can't find any place to belong,
in this frozen world like a refrigerator."

"The words coming out of these dry voices
know nothing of the future.
Our hearts and bodies are both frozen,
Someone warm us up,
we're Chilledren."

"Neglected by adults, 
we're Chilldren.
Simply starved for love
single-handedly,
we're Chilledren."

    Finished, he looked down below the tree. It was only then that he noticed Caiden, quietly listening to Shrike's voice. As soon as he'd noticed Caiden, he tried to call out to him, but his voice wasn't working. Shrugging, he carefully jumped off of the tree and landed beside Caiden. Caiden wasn't surprised, but instead stood up and silently made his way back towards the house. Shrike followed.

((Well, there we have it. Shrike likes to play with butterflies, can sing, and totally can't handle the fact that if he lost Caiden's trust he'd sulk for months. BTW, this post is 1496 words.))