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If it weren't because my friends had dared me to touch the gravestones, I would never have set even one foot in the cemetery. The place was rumored to be haunted! I had a hard enough time sleeping at night, so I really didn't need to add worrying about ghosts to my insomnia! They even dared me to go in the middle of the night. Only idiots would do that! Here was one such idiot. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why had I let them goad me into this?The cemetery at night was freaky. When a twig cracked under my foot, I nearly jumped straight into the air. My heart thudded heavily in my chest. The slightest ruffle in the trees made me snap my head up in alarm. I stared and stared into the darkness, the stormy clouds only letting through a sliver of moonlight.Almost there. Just a few more steps, and I'd be at the circle of gravestones that my friends had dared me to touch. There were a total of eleven gravestones. All nameless. I only had to touch one of the graves, and my task would be done.I surveyed the gravestones, seeking out the one closest to me. I gulped and stepped forward, willing myself not to make a single sound, but in the stillness of the night, my every step sounded like thunder to my ears. Crackle. Crackle. Oh, why must there be so many dried up leaves?There, just one more step.I reached out my hand, arm shaking because I was still just a bit too far. I hadn't wanted to step any closer.Just as I was about to touch the gravestone I'd chosen, the clouds parted, and moonlight streamed down eerily, illuminating the slab before me.Like my friends had claimed, the gravestones were all nameless. At least, they appeared so. But upon closer inspection, I saw that they weren't actually nameless. There were words carved onto the stone, just not in a language I understood. The script was fancy. Even if I knew the language, I doubted I would be able to read the fancy writing. I did, however, at least recognize the symbol at the top of this particular gravestone.It looked a bit like a tornado, a whirling storm. I reached my finger out to it—
"Stop."I jerked my hand back, head snapping up in the direction of the sudden voice."Don't touch it.""I..." My voice died in my throat. I stared up at the trees, body rigid. Someone was perched on a high branch, feet dangling down. That someone had feet, so they couldn't be a ghost, right?Just then, moonlight hit the figure in the trees. Bathed under the moonlight, I could vaguely see the outline of wings. Maybe I should have been scared. Maybe I should have been running. I'd always been fast, so maybe I could escape unscathed. Maybe I should have done any number of things. But all I did was stare, emotion coursing through me at the sight of the lonely figure perched in the trees.I didn't understand my own reaction.The wings extended, the span breathtaking. Shadows fell upon me. I couldn't see his visage. "Scram," the shadowed figure said. "No one is allowed to touch those graves.""What happens if I do?" I asked, not at all sure where my bravado was coming from. I just wanted him to keep talking."I will curse you," he said, voice flat. "Just like how I cursed all of your friends." That really wasn't threatening at all! Did he think himself to be some fierce protector or something? This was why all my friends had returned screaming? I found it hard to believe. Perhaps his appearance was so frightening that he didn't need to put in extra effort to sound intimidating, but I felt my fear melting away. He didn't sound scary at all."From all the way up there?" I quipped. Then, fearlessly, or perhaps stupidly, I reached my hand out to the gravestone again. In a split second and a flurry of wind, a hand gripped my arm, like I had expected. I looked up.Maybe I really should have been scared. But I wasn't."I see you've finally decided to come down," I said. The moonlight shimmered around him. His wings were even more impressive up close. Yet that wasn't what captured my attention. With my other hand, I reached out to touch the trail of black flames that ran down his cheeks like permanent tears never to be washed away. I thought I might get burned, but all I felt was cool moistness before he jerked away."Aren't you... afraid of me?" he whispered, wings drawing close around him. It was almost as if he was trying to protect himself. "I... no." No, I wasn't afraid.I stared up at him, but it wasn't out of fear. How could I be afraid? He must have been so alone, always hiding in the shadows of trees. "I'm sorry," I apologized. "I shouldn't have tried to touch the gravestone. These graves must be very important to you."I glanced over at the circle of graves, ashamed that I had approached the place because of a dare. What a lonely existence, always guarding these graves by himself... Were these the graves of companions who had gone on before him?He gave me a small nod to indicate that he'd accepted my apology. Then, he touched the gravestone that I had wanted to touch, running his finger across the carved symbol at the top. "They are very important to me, yes."I couldn't help asking, "Who were they?""I don't remember."He didn't remember? Did this mean... he'd been guarding them for so long that he'd forgotten who he was guarding?Under the ephemeral moonlight, he walked from one grave to the next, head bowed as if in defeat. He touched each gravestone ever so gently, running his finger across symbols he must know by heart. From a curved leaf, to a dazzling sun, to a crescent moon, to a shield with a cross... There were eleven symbols in all. I trailed behind him, watching but not touching. Once we reached where we had started, he paused, reaching his hand out to that very first grave once more. Eleven graves... the number didn't feel right, but another part of me was glad it was eleven and not... twelve.The stillness of the night had bothered me earlier, but now, it made me feel like we were in our own world. Yet I could not help feeling uneasy, especially when he was so clearly upset. "They're really lucky!" I blurted out and pulled on his sleeve. "They're really, really lucky to have you guard over their resting spots! They wouldn't blame you for forgetting at all!""How would you know?" he asked, head turning to regard me. But before receiving my answer, he abruptly leaned in closer. Words tumbled out of his mouth. "Your eyes... are very green."I nearly burst out laughing. Seriously, how could anyone be afraid of him? He wasn't scary at all! Maybe his wings had frightened the others, and those dark markings over his skin might also be a factor, but he was more like a giant butterfly than anything! He reached a hand out to my hair that I'd tied in a high ponytail. "Why isn't your hair blue?""That would require bleaching," I said, but now that he had asked, even I was wondering why my hair wasn't blue. Blue felt... right.He scrunched his face up in confusion. It was really cute. "What's your name?" I asked, still holding onto his sleeve. He looked down at my hands. Then, he glanced back up and finally answered with a single word."Roland."Roland. Roland, Roland, Roland! "Roland," I breathed out. "Roland."As if a dam had been broken, emotions surged within me. I couldn't even put a finger to them. I threw my arms around him and exclaimed, "Roland!"Slowly, he brought his arms up to hug me back. "C...Ceo?"I'd never even heard the name before, but I found myself nodding reflexively against his shoulder. Thank the gods that my stupid friends had goaded me to come to the cemetery tonight. If not, Roland would have continued to guard the graves, alone, for all eternity, solitary figure hunched underneath the moonlight.Alone, even in his memories.I hugged him tighter. "Come home with me."My gut feeling told me he normally would have protested, but for some reason, he nodded.And that was how I returned home from the cemetery with my very own creature of darkness.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

I don't know why, but I followed a stranger home. It happened on a night like any other. I was gazing at the never-ending darkness when a boy was about to touch the graves I guarded. I had wanted to scare him away like all the others, but he showed not an ounce of fear when I approached him. Instead, he stared up at me with earnest green eyes that were so very familiar. Under the moonlight with those eyes that seemed to stare into my soul, the darkness finally parted for me. In the end, it was not a night like any other. Meeting him changed everything. That night, mesmerized by familiar green eyes, I left behind the graves I had been guarding for as long as I could remember. It was not goodbye, but was I betraying their trust? Would they hate me for leaving? I had already forgotten them, and now I was even leaving them behind. However, when I stepped foot outside of the graveyard, I felt no condemnation, no blame. Nothing.
Ah, that's right. They are all dead. How can they admonish me?
Frowning, I half wanted to turn back, to apologize, but he pulled on my hand, stopping me. I could tell that he was trembling. He was scared of me after all, this monster that I am. I should not have expected anything different.But then he surprised me."Are you leaving me?" he asked.
No, I'm not leaving you. I would never leave you.
Confused at where the thought came from, I followed this strange, fearless boy home. He lived in a building that was just as strange, but he had a tall tree next to his window that he pointed out to me. Trees were familiar. He started to climb it. That was not quite familiar. After he climbed up to his window, I flew up after him and landed lightly on one of the branches. He pushed open the window and climbed inside. How strange. I never knew people entered houses through windows. Then, he reached a hand out to me.I looked down at his hand and then up at him. "I will stay here," I said.
I will guard you. Protect you.
"But it's cold outside.""I am not afraid of the cold."What was coldness in the face of years and years of solitude? I was used to it.The clouds that had been obscuring the moonlight had all but dissipated by this time, bathing this strange boy in an ephemeral sheen. I reached out once more to him, afraid he would slip out of my grasp, that when morning came, I would find this all to be an illusion. I slid my hand through a lock of his hair. How strange that it wasn't blue. It was much too pale under the moonlight. Foreign. Cold.But when he smiled at me and patted my hand, his touch was warm. Not cold. Never again did I want his touch to be cold.Never again...?"I will be here, Roland."He was indeed still there, even in the morning. The first thing he did after waking up was to rush over to his window, as if he had the pressing need to check to see if I were still around. When his eyes landed on me, he smiled and relaxed. He was full of life under the morning sun despite his yawns. "Good morning, Roland!"Voice stuck, I stared, watching as he covered his mouth and yawned. Wisps of his hair tickled at his neck. His greeting echoed in my ears. Good morning, Roland. Why did it sound so familiar? Why was I so used to seeing him greeting me sleepily?
"Good morning," I finally replied.But then, he told me that he had to go to "school." He would be back in the afternoon. I watched him leave the house with a person with flaming red hair, this time through the door, his figure growing smaller and smaller the farther he walked. I watched him until I could no longer see him, and even then, I continued watching.I should have gone with him.But he promised me he would be back.I stayed in the tree the entire time.In the afternoon, he indeed returned, but he did not return alone. A blond teenager and a brunette walked along with him. They were all dressed in similar colors, white with gold trim, plus a black dress shirt underneath, possibly some type of uniform. The redhead was not among them.They did not enter through the window like what he had done during the night. Instead, they entered through the door on the ground floor. Soon after, I heard footsteps climbing up the stairs, followed by a few thumps -- something being put down on the floor? -- and then voices sounded in the room."So, did you actually go to the cemetery?" someone asked. His voice was quite high and crisp, but I could tell that it was the voice of a male. I remembered his voice. He had come to the graveyard too and had even spoken to the gravestones. Or maybe he had been speaking to himself? It had made me wonder if he always mumbled to himself like that. However, the moment I had let myself be seen, he had gasped and shaken his head. For a moment, he had stood rooted to the spot, but when he regained his wits, he immediately ran. I wished he had not run."In the m-middle of the night? That's too d-dangerous, isn't it? I'm s-sure you didn't go, r-right?" came a soft, female voice. This voice, I had never heard before, but the way she stuttered was somehow... familiar. "Oh, drop the act already," the first voice said. "You know it doesn't work on us!""You never know if his parents might be home!!" Despite saying so, the soft, female voice immediately turned much haughtier. "Well?"Finally came his voice. I leaned forward, closer to the window. He spoke quickly and loudly. "Of course I went! I so accomplished your stupid dare!"The first voice asked in disbelief, "Did you touch the gravestones? The headmaster is always going on and on about how they're haunted. I don't believe you have it in you to approach them!" "Well no, but-""I knew it!" "I did something even better!" In the very next moment, the curtains were pulled aside and the window opened. There he was, right in front of me.He smiled. "You're still here.""Of course," I answered and rubbed the ring on my finger. "Of course."Then, he turned to his friends, gestured at me, and spoke brightly, "I took him home!"From my perch, I gazed solemnly at the two people he'd come home with, finally matching the voices I'd heard with their appearances. The blond was the one who had come to the graveyard. He had crystal blue eyes, a very light shade like the sky at its palest. The brunette was the one with the voice that could be soft one moment and haughty the next. Her short hair curled at the ends, and she wore a black bow in her hair. Her soft brown eyes made her appear very kind and approachable, but right now, she and the blond were both staring at me in disbelief."...Where in the world did you find him?" she asked slowly and carefully."By the graves," he answered with a shrug."And so you took him home like a stray cat?" the blond accused. "Isn't he the graveyard's devil protector?""Y-you kidnapped the graveyard's devil protector?!" A stutter had wormed its way back into the brunette's speech. This time, she probably meant it. "Are you crazy?" the blond asked."Well, I couldn't have just left him there!" he protested."You totally could have!" the other two immediately yelled.As they argued, he'd pulled on my hand, as if afraid I would leave because of their arguments. The position definitely could not be very comfortable for him, so I decided to climb through the window. He glanced at me and flashed me another smile, finally relaxing enough to let go of his death grip. I sat down in the corner, watching them bicker. It was as if the other two had forgotten about me.His room was very organized. He had some sort of map on his wall along with other posters, a bag hanging on a hook, a bookshelf with several books, a single bed, plushies on the bed, a small drawer next to the bed, and a clean desk that had a stack of papers on top of it. By the side of his drawer were two other bags, possibly belonging to the other two people.I pulled my legs up to myself. I did not feel like I belonged in this room. The tree suited me much better--I twitched. Then, I twitched some more and moved my wings.When I turned my head, crystal blue eyes were staring curiously at me."Grisel! You shouldn't poke him! Have you gone crazy like Theo?" came a shout from the brunette."What?" I asked this Grisel person. He was in the middle of poking me again, so I drew my wings farther way. Strange. I thought he had been afraid of me. He had run, hadn't he? "Huh," the blond said. "You're right, Theo. He really isn't scary at all. But there's no way you can hide him in your room forever."Ceo... Theo?... frowned and said, "You shouldn't speak as if he's not here." Then, he turned to me. "Roland, uh, maybe we can... stick you in a different outfit?""That's not going to solve anything!"Was I causing him trouble? That wouldn't do... Frowns didn't suit him.As they bickered some more, I pulled my magic around me. My wings vanished and my hair grew shorter. The three of them didn't immediately stop bickering, but when they finally noticed my new appearance -- a glance was all it took -- their jaws dropped.Then came silence. I gazed at them seriously. It had been a long time since my neck had been so bare."Well, that solves things," Grisel finally said.The brunette sucked in her breath. "Okay, I take it back. He is hot. You should keep him, Theo.""Georgia!" protested Theo, his cheeks pink.I liked this look of his much better.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

I never thought there would come a day that I would raid through my parents' closet looking for clothes that I could give a creature of darkness that had donned a human appearance. He wasn't just any creature of darkness either. He was, like Georgia had so bluntly put it, a very "hot" creature of darkness. In the daytime, it was all the more surreal to be greeted by him in this appearance, all the easier to forget why anyone had been afraid of him. But I didn't want to forget, to bury all his pain and never acknowledge it. Without the trails of black tears on his face, I could see how fine his cheeks were, and I was half tempted to run my fingers across where the tears used to be. Would his skin be smooth to the touch, or would there be any hint of those markings he had had earlier?His clothes, however, made him look like some sort of stage actor or cosplayer, like he'd walked straight out of a fantasy show where there were dragons and magic and knights. The look was so him, but unless he were at a convention, people would be staring. While I was sure he'd make heads turn no matter what, at least I could help him blend in more with his clothes. I tried having him wear something of mine, but the sleeves were too short on him, and the shoulders too tight. The pants too looked beyond uncomfortable. I'd stared for a beat too long before I hurriedly blurted, "I'll see if my parents have anything!"So I quickly sneaked into my parents room while they were both at work, my heart pounding way too fast for some odd reason, and rummaged through their closet. I grabbed some clothes from the back of the closet that I rarely saw my parents wear. I'm sure they won't miss them!When Roland once again began changing right in front of me, I wondered if I should turn and not watch so openly, oh, there went his shirt, but before I could do so, he actually asked me for help! Couldn't he see how red my face was? I'd always hated this reaction of mine!"Ceo, how do you wear this..."I found myself unconsciously reaching for my hair, absent-minded as I played with a strand. It was that name again. Ceo... He had called me that back in the cemetery, and my first reaction had been to nod. But now that we weren't surrounded by graves beneath the fleeting moonlight, I couldn't help but stop to wonder where he'd gotten that name from. This wasn't a dream or some sort of fairy tale that I'd walked into. In this plain bedroom of mine, there was no Ceo. There was only me. What if I wasn't enough?"My name is Theo," I finally said. Even if I wanted to pretend to be this Ceo person, I couldn't.He stilled. I held my breath. Then, he looked up from the shirt he held and very seriously said, "Theo."He didn't even say it like a question, but I thought it sounded like he wanted confirmation. So, despite the lump in my throat, despite that things might end before they had even started, I made myself answer him. "Yes, Theo.""Theo..." He frowned. He glanced down at the shirt in his hands and then back up at me, serious blue eyes fixed on my face. From within those blue eyes reflected me, Theo, not whoever he had been thinking of. What if he hadn't meant to follow me home?I dropped my hands from my hair and gripped my wrist. "Theo..." Roland suddenly said with the same serious tone. "How do you wear this?"When I didn't respond, Roland hesitantly repeated my name again. "Theo?"I... what in the world had I been worrying over? He had the emotional capacity of a brick! As a means of revenge, I dug through the clothes I'd stolen from my parents and tossed him a different outfit. "If you don't know how to wear that one, wear this instead!"It was an old outfit of my mom's back from her gangster days, a long black trench coat and dark, baggy pants to go along with it. Roland changed into it. I immediately regretted having him wear it because it fit him too well, and now I wanted to blush again!"Not good?" Roland asked once he saw my expression. "No, I mean, yes, I mean, I don't know!" I shouted. When he started to take off the trench coat, however, I immediately shouted, "Wait!"He stopped mid-motion and regarded me curiously.As the son of a reporter, we were not at all short on cameras. I grabbed the one my dad had given me as a gift, a fancy old camera he used to use for work but no longer needed after he bought a new one, and hurriedly began snapping pics from every angle.Roland blinked. Then, he abruptly leaned closer to stare right into the camera."Roland!" I protested. "Your face is way too close!"Now, I had a possibly blurry closeup of Roland's blue eyes and lashes. If only this were a digital camera, I would be able to check! Now, I wouldn't know until I got the photos developed.Wait, would I have to get my dad to develop these... I'll cross that bridge later!In any case, we hadn't found something suitable for Roland to wear yet. I handed Roland another outfit, this time one of my dad's. I dearly hoped Dad didn't wear these kinds of pants to work! He already received enough complaints about being too much of a flirt. But I had to thank my dad for even owning something like this because, oh my god did Roland look amazing in leather pants and a silky dress shirt. I was very glad Georgia wasn't around to see this! However, after putting the clothes on, he held the tie I'd given him and stood there without moving, as if he didn't know what to do with it. Maybe he really didn't. I moved forward and circled the tie around his neck to tie it for him. After I tightened it, I smoothed the tie down and stepped backwards, putting a much more comfortable distance between us. Maybe then my heart would stop beating so crazily fast, like it was about to jump out of my ribcage! "T-There!" I said. Then, to stop my mind from wandering any farther, I immediately began snapping more pics.As I had him try out more clothes, I completely lost track of time. I even got him into one of my mom's old dresses, his only reaction being a strange, "Shouldn't this have more frills?"I didn't know what kind of dress he had in mind, but my mom didn't own anything like it!It wasn't until we came upon a normal t-shirt, however, that Roland once again paused and asked me, "Theo, how do I wear this?" He had been fine with all the fancier clothes I'd tossed at him. Earlier, I had been too embarrassed to notice the shirt he'd had trouble with putting on, but don't tell me that had been a t-shirt too?Was it too simple that he didn't know how to put it on or something?He unbuckled his current jacket and dropped it to the bed. "Here, lift your hands and..." I started to say and held the shirt up for him.He knelt down, leaving me quite a view of his broad shoulders. I hurriedly stuck the t-shirt on his head. He pulled his head through it, wisps of his dark blond hair appearing first, followed by the rest of his fine face. Then, he shook his hair out, like what a dog might do to shake the water out of its fur. For a moment, I could not help staring even though we still had to finish getting the shirt on him.Of course, it just had to be that very moment that the door burst open with a bang. The door hit my wall resoundingly. Although I'd glued a small, soft cushion to the wall to make sure the doorknob wouldn't leave a hole in it, I didn't know how long that would keep my wall intact with my sister around."Theo!" she exclaimed and walked into the room. I glanced over like a deer caught in headlights. Clothes were strewn all around us, and I was halfway through helping Roland put on a t-shirt, the very image of "incriminating."
I was just about to explain to Chika that I hadn't developed a dress-up fetish like Dad who always liked sticking us in random clothes when Chika exclaimed, "Bro, I can't believe you brought home a guy!"Then, she ran out of the room, shouting, "Mom! Dad! Theo brought a guy home!""What was that, dear?" I heard our mom ask. "Theo brought a guy home! And they're doing things that Mom and Dad like to do in the bedroom!""What?!" shrieked Dad. That couldn't be anyone but Dad.Chika and her big mouth! She always blurted things without thinking! And just what was with the way she had phrased that?! Dad was totally going to misunderstand!I scrambled to get the shirt on Roland before Dad could burst into my room next. How had I lost track of time so badly? I hadn't even known they'd all returned! Chika was supposed to have a soccer match today!Just as I had expected, Dad flew into my room, thankfully after I'd gotten Roland fully dressed and after I'd tossed all of the other clothes into the closet. Dad demanded, "What in the world is going on here?""Uh, Dad, this is Roland," I introduced, trying not to sound too out of breath."Hello," Roland said and bowed, hand over his chest. "I am indebted to your son for allowing a creature such as I to join your humble family."I planted my face in my hands. Roland! You don't have to be so formal! How was I to explain myself out of this now?!

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The shirt, a "t" shirt?, was very soft. There were no buttons, zippers, or buckles to speak of whatsoever, just one long expanse of the same soft material falling against my skin. It was a fine piece of undergarment but nevertheless not suitable to wear for greeting the father of the boy currently housing me.
I made do with bowing to express my gratitude of his son's acceptance. However, after I straightened back up, the look on both the father's and the son's faces was not what I expected. The father seemed nearly about to faint while Theo had his face hidden in his hands. Their reactions were worrying.
Soon after, a tall woman with blazing red hair came into the room, pulling along the brash girl who had kicked the door open earlier. All of a sudden, I found myself in the middle of a "family talk." At least, that was what Theo had called it when he lowered his voice to clue me in between all the arguments. We sat on our knees across from the parents, like criminals about to be judged.
"Don't worry," he whispered. He glanced at me apologetically. "This happens all the time."
Did this mean he often brought home creatures of darkness from the cemetery? That was worrying as well. Although I was glad he was not afraid of me, my gut feeling told me it was not very smart to trust a creature of darkness.
The father's reaction was a lot more normal. He kept sneaking suspicious glances at me. I could not fault him for being wary. Then, he turned to the girl and said, "Witness, please state your name and profession!"
The girl jumped up and shouted, "Okay! I'm Chika! Eighteen! I'm the soccer team captain!"
The father nodded. "Please tell us what you witnessed when you returned home!"
She scratched her head. "Well, I'd just won my match, and gosh was it a thrilling one, so I wanted to tell Theo right away. I kicked open his door, and what do you know, there was a shirtless guy on his bed and Theo had his hands all over him!"
The father immediately blurted, "What?!"
"Oh, hadn't I told you yet, Dad? I won my match!" the girl exclaimed.
"No, no, the part about the bed and the, the..."
"The shirtless guy?" The girl blinked and looked over at me. "Or well, he's not shirtless anymore."
"Yes, that part!" the father pointed at the girl. "You must have seen wrong! My lovely daughter wouldn't do something as lewd as putting her hands over a shirtless guy!"
I was confused. The girl hadn't been anywhere near me, and hadn't she said that it was Theo who had his hands on me?
They continued arguing back and forth. I grew more and more confused. Who was this daughter they were speaking of? It didn't sound like they were talking about the redheaded girl, but it couldn't be Theo, right?
I turned and looked Theo over. His hands, which were currently twisting his hair, were a typical guy's hands with prominent knuckles. While his hands weren't completely smooth, they weren't calloused either, not in the way I thought they should be. When he'd pulled on my hand to get me to come in, the touch had been both familiar and foreign. These were hands that had never held a sword before, yet I knew their touch. My gaze trailed upwards, from the ends of Theo's hair to his neck.
While I studied him, Theo sighed. He glanced at me. When he realized I was looking at him, he blinked, his cheeks turning just a bit pinker. He looked away, but then he looked back at me and mumbled, "There they go again..."
Huh?
"Last time this happened was when I tried to convince Dad to let me keep a pet dog. It didn't quite work out," Theo explained. "They make such a huge deal out of everything."
Suddenly, the mom cleared her throat and said, "Landis, you should give Theo a chance to talk." The mother smiled at Theo, making her look a lot less fierce despite the scar over her right eye. She whispered, "Don't say Mom isn't supporting you!"
All at once, the arguments between father and daughter stopped, and both turned to stare at the mother. Finally, the father, Landis?, said, "You're right, Farah. I got too caught up in the moment again. I should... listen first."
He sat down, breathed in deeply, and then, with clear, green eyes, regarded Theo seriously. Theo must have inherited his looks from his father. They looked strikingly similar. "Theo, just what is going on?"
Theo darted his eyes at me. He fiddled with his hair again, fingers that he had used to trace my tears twirling a strand of hair. "Um, do you remember the rumors about the circle of graves?" He glanced at his parents, who nodded. It seemed that these rumors had been far spread. "Well, my friends dared me to touch the graves, so..."
Landis muttered under his breath, "Don't tell me it was the blond brat again!"
If by "blond brat" he meant the blond named Grisel, then Landis was thinking of the right person. Did Grisel often lead Theo astray? I might need to keep an eye out for these questionable friends of Theo's.
"Anyway, I went! And I met Roland there! He's like this loyal protector of the graves. He's been protecting the graves for so long that he can't even remember the people he's protecting anymore. Isn't that sad, Dad?" Theo stared at his father imploringly.
"Let me get this straight." Landis pointed at his son. "You..." Then he pointed at me and said, "met him at the graveyard."
"Uh, yeah," Theo admitted.
Landis sucked in his breath and then began mumbling to himself. "I can't believe it. Of all places for my lovely daughter to meet a guy, she meets him at a graveyard. If that's not shady, then my name isn't Landis! And my lovely daughter even claims that he's the loyal protector of the graves? What in the world? Is he an undertaker? On top of that, he has memory problems? And he's a creature... Wait..."
He paused in his rambling, eyes narrowing as he asked, "Why did he call himself a 'creature'?"
"He's a creature of darkness," admitted Theo. He paused and turned to me curiously. "Uh, I'm not sure what kind though. What are you, Roland?"
Suddenly, all four pairs of eyes were on me. I replied without any fanfare, "A death monarch."
Upon hearing my answer, the girl immediately shrieked, "Bro, so you didn't just bring home a guy, but a guy that's a death monarch?!" She paused. "Wait... what's a death monarch?" She scratched her head and glanced towards her parents for an answer, as if her parents had the answers to everything.
The mother, Farah?, shook her head. "Actually, Chika, I don't know either."
Landis frowned. "So, 'Roland,' can you tell us, what exactly is a death monarch?"
Showing was much quicker than telling. I let my disguise dissolve, my three pairs of wings materializing, but I quickly flattened them against me so as not to accidentally knock over Theo's lamp. I stayed huddled, trying not to take up too much room. I wasn't very successful.
"Oh," was all Landis and Farah could say. They stared at me with wide eyes. Farah's smoke pipe nearly fell out of her mouth.
"Wicked!" Chika yelled. She immediately moved closer to inspect my wings. If she had only inspected with her eyes, I would not have minded, but she began touching them.
I twitched and scooted closer to Theo to move out of her reach, but she only took it to be a challenge, because in the very next moment, she leaped at me!
I quickly spun around. Unfortunately, that meant the lamp received an untimely death despite my desire to avoid such a thing from happening. The lamp shattered into pieces on the floor, breaking the parents out of their stupor. We all stared at the broken pieces, not quite sure what to do.
Theo hurriedly said, "That wasn't his fault! H-He's not suspicious at all, Dad! If you really don't want him in the house, he can live in the tree outside my window, but wouldn't that be kinda sad..."
Landis shook his head. "That's not the problem here, Theo! He's... He's..."
I know. I'm a creature of darkness. I shouldn't exist. I have been alive for much too long, my time long past. Do I even have a reason for still existing? I could not even remember my companions. All I had were names carved on eleven graves, an eternity of solitude, and yet, I'd dared to turn my back on that, to hope that I could have more.
I thought I could no longer dream, but it had been a pleasant dream, the thought that I might be able to accompany this boy who reminded me so much of... so much of...
...of...?
I tilted my head.
Then, I looked at Theo.
It was not to be, was it? I would not want to inconvenience him.
After being stuck on whatever he had been trying to say, Landis turned and buried his face in Farah's shoulder. He sobbed. "He's... He's a guy! Our children's mother! Can you believe it! Theo brought home a guy!"
...huh?
Farah patted Landis on the back. "There, there, Landis, you know it was bound to happen. More importantly, did you miss what Theo said about how Roland is a creature of darkness?"
Yes, what about that part?!
Farah turned to Theo but not without regarding me curiously, and asked, "Child, why must we let him stay? Convince us."
Theo gulped. Then, he began rambling at a quick speed, holding up one finger after the next. "Well, Mom, Dad, see. He doesn't need to be fed." One finger. "He doesn't need to be walked." Two fingers. "He can even help me with my homework!" Three fingers. "And all the student council stuff that Grisel always pushes on me!" Four fingers. "He's much easier to keep than any other pet, since he's much more self sufficient!" Five fingers.
Holding up five fingers, Theo beamed. "Isn't that perfect?"
...So... I'm... a pet?

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

One look at the towering papers on my desk in the student council room made me want to skip out on student council duties for the day, but I couldn't bring myself to ignore the papers. If I didn't do something about them, experience told me that I would return only to find even more papers on my desk the next day.Resigned, I placed my bag down and got right to work. As the secretary of the student council, handling the paperwork was indeed my job, but I wasn't the one who was supposed to be approving all these requests from the different clubs! That was Grisel's job!But, like always, Grisel wasn't even here. I had no doubt that he was off over at the tennis club again, ditching the work to me.Thankfully, Grisel's cousin was much more responsible than he was. If the student council vice-president was anything like our president, I truly would have resigned long, long ago and walked out on both blonds. It didn't matter that Grisel and I have been friends since forever, somehow always ending up in the same classes, and funnily enough, our parents knew each other too; there was only so much of Grisel's work attitude with the student council I could take! He wasn't a bad president, preferring to see to all the problems in person, but couldn't he at least do some of the paperwork that went with everything too? Thank goodness for the vice-president, who would always take half of the work Grisel ditched to me. Otherwise, I'd never get around to overseeing the track-and-field club, and they would end up needing to choose a different captain.I moved half of the stack on my desk to the vice-president's desk, since eventually, Grisel's cousin would have come and taken it anyway. Then, I got back to work with the now much smaller and much more manageable stack in front of me.I held up a form from the home economics club, a request for more funds, and immediately wanted to thud my head against the table. On the form detailed exactly how much sugar, blueberries, and flour the home economics club had used for the month (a startling amount), and I knew exactly why they had to use so much of those ingredients. Grisel's sweet tooth was no joke, and I'd never met anyone as fond of blueberries as he was. Logically, one person really shouldn't be able to do much damage to an entire club's reserve of ingredients, but Grisel really wasn't just anyone. Our treasurer had stuck a note on the form, detailing some possible solutions, but there weren't a lot of available options. Like always, he was leaving the actual decision to me. Ever since he had blundered with a calculation and ended up approving an order for 2,000 apples instead of 200 apples, I felt like I'd become half a treasurer. None of us wanted a repeat of the apple incident. Each of us in the student council had eaten apples every single day for the entire month because of it, and desserts from the home economics club had all been apple-flavored too, from apple pie to apple turnovers to apple cobblers. Blueberries were, of course, nowhere to be seen. It only took less than a week for Grisel to very firmly declare his absolute hatred for apples. Then, I had very amiably helped Grisel gather information on our treasurer, who was not only careless with his calculations, but also had a big mouth. I found out many things he wouldn't want us to reveal, one of them being the reason he'd joined the student council in the first place -- he'd wanted to impress the vice-president!Well, I'd say that he sure did leave a lasting impression with those 2,000 apples. The vice-president won't ever be able to forget that.Tapping my pen against my cheek, I tried to think of a way to settle the home economics club's latest request. Our headmaster had always been stingy with funds, and he'd become even stingier after the apple incident, so we didn't have a lot of funds that could be allocated to each club. Just because the student council president had single-handedly eaten up the funds of the home economics club didn't mean we could play favorites, but it also meant we couldn't let them go completely without funds. Grisel without his sweets was a natural disaster waiting to happen, and without all the snacks the home economics club provided, all of our athletic clubs would surely fall into a slump. I quickly scribbled down a compromise -- a one time extra allowance of funds, along with the possibility of borrowing a field patch from the gardening club to grow some of their own ingredients. I remembered the gardening club didn't have enough members. This should help both clubs.I explicitly wrote: Ashlan, I suggest growing blueberries. Then, I made a note to contact the gardening club, took Grisel's seal, and stamped the form.Also in the stack were a few papers with club requests about what they wanted to do for the school festival. These clubs were way too early! The student council hadn't even settled on a theme for the school festival yet. This wasn't something I could decide without Grisel around.Sighing, I scooped up all the papers related to the school festival and headed toward the tennis courts with them.I heard the sound of tennis balls being hit much earlier than I saw the courts. As I made my way around the trees, I found Grisel standing by the courts, just where I expected him to be. Although he was watching the entire team, most of his attention was on the imposing player with dark, black hair on the first court -- his childhood friend. Where one was, the other would never be far, was the impression I had of them ever since I'd first met them. When I walked closer, I could hear Grisel muttering to himself about each of the players."Knees need to be bent just a bit more, racket angled higher. Got to follow through with that swing and put more spin on the ball, or else that ball isn't going to land inside. We don't want a home run here. Oh that's not a bad hit.""You never stop analyzing, huh?" I asked, coming to stand next to him.Grisel glanced over. "Of course not."I handed him the papers I had brought with me. "You should use some of that skill on student council work too. Stay here too long, and people will start thinking you're some kind of pervert, always staring at their short skirts! Also, aren't you even the least bit worried about letting me stamp the papers with your seal?"Grisel waved his hand in dismissal. "I look too noble to be mistaken for a pervert! I'll have you know, I'm a very upstanding guy, and I know you won't do anything to sabotage your upstanding friend, right Theo?"Grisel truly did have a noble air to him, just like his mom. It figured. His mom was a model, after all. Looking stunning was part of the job. It played a large part in him getting elected to the student council. "Oh just you wait, Grisel," I promised, but Grisel didn't seem to believe me. Still, he finally glanced at the papers I had given him. "School festival requests? They're totally getting ahead of themselves. Turn them down.""I thought the same, but you have to agree that we should start thinking about this." I was sure that Grisel was about to suggest that I come up with some random theme, so I cut in before he could do so. "Remember what the headmaster said. The school festival, like always, is open to the public, a prime time for us to attract new students hoping to attend our school. Our attendance has been dropping over the past few years. At this rate, we'll lose out to our neighboring schools! It's your job as student council president to attract new students into joining our school!"Grisel frowned."What?" I asked.He didn't answer right away. Finally, he shook his head. "Nothing... I just felt that what you just said sounded very familiar. Don't worry, Theo, our school festival will be so amazing, everyone will want to come."Then, he turned a mischievous smile on me, all traces of his previous disorientation gone. "More than that, how's it going with your devil protector?" "He's not mine," I protested. I may have referred to him that way in my head, but hearing it spoken aloud was very, very embarrassing. "And... things aren't going so well.""Oh? Is the honeymoon period already over? Did you already have a fight?" "Grisel! You're becoming just as bad as Georgia!" I complained. "There's no problem between us. It's more... my parents... or well, actually... just my dad... Mom seems to be okay with it. I'm not sure about Chika."Grisel's eyes widened. "Whoa, wait a minute Theo, you already told your family about him? I thought you'd hide him away in the corner for longer than that. I know I told you that you couldn't hide him forever, but I didn't think you'd be so forthright.""It's not that I wanted to tell them right away. You know my sister. She kicked open my door. Couldn't hide anything after that.""Ah," Grisel murmured in understanding. "Right, Chika. So, what happened after that?"I sighed. No amount of burying myself in paperwork could erase the fact that I had a very large problem going on at home. "I tried to get Dad to let Roland stay, but even though Dad finally relented, he only agreed to...""Agreed to?" Grisel asked."Agreed to letting Roland stay outside in the tree," I finished.Grisel muffled his laughter. "It's not funny," I defended.He shook his head. "No, no, imagine that. What would your neighbors think? Oh, is that a bird? That's an awfully large bird."I thought of Roland outside my window, among the leaves. It was true that people walking by could easily see him if they happened to look up. Was he still there at this very moment, waiting for me to return home? I sighed again. "When I brought Roland back home with me from the graveyard, it wasn't so he could move from one tree to another!" "It's so he can move into your bed, right?" Grisel quipped."Grisel!" I sputtered. "I take that back. You're getting even worse than Georgia!"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Outside his window, I stood watching the slumbering city, fingers resting lightly against rough bark. His house sat at the top of a hill, overlooking the residences and streets below. Soft, yellow lights dotted the scenery, producing a hazy glow obscuring the night. Far, far away at the end of the rows of lights was a section of land where the lights didn't reach.The graveyard.The night breeze blew through my hair, my vision momentarily blocked by long hair. As the breeze relented and I brushed my hair out of the way, the graveyard was once again visible, but even without my vision obstructed, it was too distant for me to make out any details.
However, even without the graves in front of me, I knew every little detail of those eleven tombstones. I had run my fingers along the faded engravings so many times that even if my mind no longer remembered... Even if my memories failed me once more, my body would remember and find the graves, just like I had done time and time again. Over and over, I would reach out... Was leaving the right choice? Why hadn't I returned after his father made it clear I was not welcome? I touched the ring on my finger and brought both hands to rest above my chest. Follow your heart, someone had once told me, someone I could no longer remember. I could not match the voice with a face, nor could I match it with a name. Even the voice itself had faded, distorted by the years and my failing memory. Follow your heart. But how was I to do so when I didn't have one? No heart, no memories, no identity. What exactly was I? I held up my hand to the sky, cold moonlight shining through the leaves, enough to illuminate the ring. I didn't exactly need the light. I had studied the ring so many times that there wasn't a single thing I didn't know about it. But I wanted to see the bright emerald that lay in the center of the band. It was a beautiful, lively green amidst a whirling storm. Just like his eyes.His...?I turned toward the window.Theo's eyes? Theo's eyes were a beautiful green.But...Brows furrowed, I lowered my hands. Slowly and carefully, I drew out a quill, a blue quill. It was one of the few things I had on me that connected me to my forgotten past. Miniscule cracks ran through the ink-stained tip. When I had opened my eyes without any memory of who I was, I had only three things on me that I could go by -- a necklace with a large gem, the ring, and this blue quill.There was something about the quill that enchanted me, that made me unable to regard it as a mere writing utensil despite it not being as fancy as the necklace and the ring. The necklace calmed me, the ring gave me comfort, while the quill...I cradled the feather and closed my eyes, leaning against the tree trunk.
The blue quill always reminded me that I had forgotten something extremely important. I had tried to convince myself that my memories did not matter, that all I had to do was guard the graves, but whenever I held the quill, I would find longing welling up inside of me. Time and time again, I would gaze at the feather, wishing to brush my fingers against it, but I would always be afraid of damaging the quill.It was fragile. Fleeting. Precious. Why couldn't I remember? Theo's eyes were a brilliant green. I could stare into them all day, wishing to see an accompanying smile.But, something wasn't.... something wasn't quite right. His eyes were a brilliant green, but...But... why...Why wasn't his hair blue? He was not asleep. I listened to him turn, his sheets rustling. He had not been asleep this entire time. The other nights during this past week had been much the same. He had only slept well that very first night.Slowly, I knelt down to move closer to the window. This was worrying. Unlike me, he needed his sleep. I did not know how to help him.I looked down at the feather, not knowing what to do. The city may be slumbering, but the one I guarded was not. This was a time for rest, a time for peace, a time for dreams. What did each of them mean, I did not know, but I had hoped that he would.Stillness ruled the night, and I too was bound by its command, released only when a voice, soft as a caress, sounded. His soft voice, a tentative question. He was indeed not asleep. "...Roland?" he asked.I found my voice and answered just as softly. "Yes?""You're not asleep?" he asked."No," I answered."You can't sleep either?" "I can't."His sheets rustled. His voice became muffled. Was he speaking into his pillow? "Do you dream a lot?""I don't."What did it mean to dream?"I do."He must still be speaking into his pillow because his words became even more muffled. "I dream. A lot. Of tall, sparkling pillars. Of tiny black words like ants sprawling across parchment. Of wind rushing through my hair, just like how it does when I jump over hurdles in track and field."As he spoke in his muffled voice, I imagined what he spoke of, images similar to what he described coming to mind, but they weren't exactly the same. There were tall, white pillars. Overflowing stacks of parchment. Ink-stained hands forming those black words Theo had mentioned.Was I making all of this up, or had I actually seen what Theo was describing? But to Theo, it was all... a dream...? Was this what it meant to dream?But... I don't... dream....He paused, his voice growing even softer, barely audible. "I dream. Of obscuring masks. Of hidden smiles. Of doors I can't open." His next sentence was so soft that I nearly missed it. But I thought he said something along the lines of, "I wish I could remember more than that from my dreams."So Theo too had things he couldn't remember?When he stopped talking, I thought he might have finally fallen asleep. I took a peek to make sure, glancing in from the window. He was hugging a long pillow to himself, his face buried in the pillow, his hair sprawling across his bed. No wonder his voice had sounded muffled.I watched him breathe in and out. In and out.I held the side of the window, planning on returning to my perch now that I'd seen him safe and sound, but the moment I'd blocked the moonlight, Theo became alerted to my presence. He shifted in my shadow, the moonlight hitting only the top of his pillow. The pillow lowered, and from above the pillow, sleepy green eyes cracked open and caught me.I stilled.Those beautiful green eyes softened, and he murmured, "Won't you come in, Roland?"
I held his gaze but ultimately answered, "I promised your father I would not."The moment I finished speaking, I immediately wished that I had not answered in such a fashion, because those beautiful green eyes turned sad. A slow blink, and then they completely disappeared behind his pillow, leaving me only the sight of the top of his head. I opened my mouth, thinking to speak, but then I closed it, not knowing what to say. I couldn't go inside. It wouldn't be right."Dad's not being fair," he said into the pillow. "You shouldn't have to stay outside.""I'm fine," I said. As long as I can keep watch over you. As long as you're safe. As long as you're happy... I'm fine.He shook his head and hugged the pillow closer to himself. "You're..." he started to say but didn't finish. Instead, he said, pillow quivering, "It's still not fair!""Your father cares a lot about you," I said. "He is very honorable in wanting to protect his..." I paused, recalling what Theo's father had called him. "...daughter.""I'm not a 'daughter'!" Theo abruptly sat up and lowered his pillow completely. Finally, those beautiful green eyes were looking at me again, but this time in resentment. I had not wanted to anger him. Long hair dropped against his back, his sleepwear rumpled. He gestured at himself. "Do I look like a girl to you?"I had observed him whenever he was in sight. The more I had done so, the more confused I had become about Theo's father referring to him as a daughter. Theo did have long hair, but so did I. He had fine features, but he also had a clear bump in his neck. As I studied him once more, I found that he had, at some point in time, approached the window.He grabbed my hand indignantly and placed it on his chest above his thin clothes. "Flat as a board," he said. His hands were not rough, nor were they completely smooth, but even those sensations did not hold my attention. Beneath my hand, a strong heartbeat thumped.Thump. Thump thump.I stared at his hands. At my hand. At where my hand rested. Felt the beatings of his heart. The warmth that spread through my fingers from his touch.Over and over, I had reached out, only to be met by cold, hard stone.But this time...Thump thump. Was it really... okay? Was it really okay to reach out? He was here, right? Alive. Safe. Not fragile. Not fleeting. All at once, emotion surged through me. I could not even hope to put a name to what I was feeling. I didn't even know I could feel so strongly. I blinked my eyes. Hard. They were burning. It would not do... It would not do to let tears leak out. The tears of an undead creature were unsightly.They were unsightly... weren't they? But why do I feel as if someone had once...When I finally managed to get myself under control and looked up, I saw that Theo's cheeks had turned pink, and he wasn't looking at me. He let go of my hand and muttered, "You didn't have to stare so intensely. Is it that shocking that I'm not a girl? Are you disappointed?""No," I answered. "Just... why does your father call you his daughter?" I closed my hand, curling my fingers, wishing to capture the warmth just a bit longer.Theo sighed. "He's just daughter obsessed.""But you have a sister?" It wasn't like there wasn't a daughter in the family?"Chika is..." Theo made some motion with his hand. "She's Chika.""Oh," I answered, still not understanding."Come inside," Theo said again. "I'm not a 'daughter,' so it's okay, right?"What did that have to do with anything? I shook my head and finished what I had been attempting to say earlier. "Your father is very honorable in wanting to protect you. It's proper to set boundaries."Theo threw his hands up. "There's being protective, and there's being overprotective!""It's only right that pets stay outside," I said.Theo froze. "...What?"I went on to explain, "Horses stay in stables. I will stay in the tree."Theo slowly planted his face in his hands."Theo? Is something wrong?"He shook his head. His shoulders trembled. Even more alarmed, I drew in closer only to discover that he was... laughing?I relaxed. He was fine. "I will be outside. Sleep well, Theo."I thought he might be ignoring me, displeased that I had turned his invitation down. But eventually, his quiet answer reached my ears."I'll try."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Before I knew it, Roland had stayed in my tree for two weeks, yet Dad showed no sign of changing his mind and letting Roland stay inside. Roland himself was beyond frustrating, not even willing to sneak inside at all! He would greet me each morning, see me off to school, and welcome me back. While it was nice to have someone see me off and welcome me home, I had to wonder if Roland felt restricted by his current lifestyle. It was probably a whole lot less interesting than his time at the cemetery. What if he decided he'd rather go back?At night, I always had the hardest time sleeping. Even hugging my pillow to myself didn't help. Despite my body knowing I should sleep, I just couldn't. I would be wide awake night after night, tossing and turning.Eventually, I would give up on sleep altogether and stare up at the ceiling with my blurry eyesight. I really should glue something interesting there, but without my contacts, it would probably be meaningless. I could imagine it without even trying. Glow-in-the-dark stars? More like glow-in-the-dark blobs.It was always in the dark of night that I would speak up and ask Roland to come in. There was something about the night that made me bolder, that made ask again and again. Maybe it was because the world was a blur as I walked the boundary between dreams and reality, led by reveries, unrestricted by my usual reserves. Maybe it was because he was so close yet so far, just beyond the window yet out of sight.Maybe it was because I just wanted to hear his voice, to close the distance between us.He was frustratingly stubborn and turned me down each and every time. While I wished he would cave and come into the house already, there was a part of me that wanted to smile at his answer. I'd bury my face in my pillow to fight off the smile, and when I didn't succeed, I'd smother my face even more to try to hide the smile instead.These days, I really didn't understand myself. It just didn't make sense.I'd only met Roland for the first time that night in the cemetery.But why... why do I feel like I'd known him my entire life?Why am I so fond of his stubborn ways?Of how he would look confusedly at me, thwarted by t-shirts when fancier clothes don't faze him at all?Of how he still thought I'd actually meant it when I said he was a pet? His every action, his entire being, ached of familiarity. I know him. I don't know how, but... I... I do.His answer never changed -- I will be right outside, he would say -- and each night I would bury my face in my pillow, heart pounding furiously.There must be something wrong with me for my heart to burst in such fondness at receiving rejection after rejection. But I couldn't help it. Roland. He was just so, so Roland.It meant that unless I could convince my dad or think of some other special reason for Roland to come into the house, Roland wouldn't do it. He was stubborn to a fault, and I...I...I have to do something to change the situation!An opportunity dropped in my laps when Chika mentioned wanting to invite some friends over on All Hallows' Eve. Dad had always loved this particular holiday because he got to dress both Chika and me up in all sorts of costumes. With Chika's friends over, there was no reason why Roland couldn't come in and join us! It wasn't like we'd be alone! Even Dad couldn't be heartless enough to force Roland to stay outside when we were all having fun.Dad, as I had expected, was so into dressing us up that he even relented on the matter of Roland coming inside, as long as Roland dressed up too, wearing something of Dad's choosing. I was super elated at the temporary victory until I actually saw what Dad had chosen.I wasn't surprised that Dad had given me a dress. What was a bit more surprising was that it only came down to the thighs and didn't cover the collarbones either. Moreover, it came with a collar and a bell, as well as fuzzy cat ears and paws. Usually, Dad would never permit me to wear something so revealing! For Chika, he had laid out a charming vampire's outfit complete with a dashing cape, cravat, dress shirt, and dress pants. As always, he had things completely backwards.Lucky Chika. She could even get away with wearing sweatpants under her school uniform skirt. Dad had long given up on getting her to wear her school uniform the proper way. He'd also given up on getting her into dresses. With how much she liked to kick down doors, dresses really weren't practical. She had never been overly fond of them either. If it weren't because a skirt was part of the girls' school uniform, Chika would likely never be seen wearing anything of the like. So, imagine our surprise when, instead of taking the vampire outfit, Chika actually snatched the dress Dad had prepared for me before I could even respond."What?" Chika had said and put the paws on. "I want to be a cat!"Dad had been so moved that Chika had taken the dress that he didn't even pester me when I'd taken the vampire outfit, escaping the fate of having to wear a dress.But even Chika's acquiescence to wearing a dress wasn't as surprising as seeing the outfits Dad had chosen for Roland!Roland looked handsome in a lot of clothes. I'd gotten first hand experience of that when I'd raided through my parents' closet and had Roland try on all sorts of clothes. He even looked passable in the simple dress of my mom's that I had jokingly had him try on.But this...This was completely overdoing it!Dad had given me several outfits for Roland to choose from, but it was basically like giving him no choice at all. I took another look at the outfits laid out on my bed and fell in deep despair.There was no way Roland would agree to wear any of these, would he?I was still worrying over whether Roland would agree or not when night time rolled around. I waited for Chika to arrive with her friends. She had gone out to meet them since they weren't very familiar with the area. Grisel had said he would come too. Georgia had declined my invitation, stating that she had already been invited elsewhere. "Sorry, Theo!" she had said, not sounding the least bit sorry. "I have no interest in men who are already taken."What in the world did that mean?! As I pondered over Georgia's words from earlier in the day, the doorbell rang. Was it already time for trick-or-treaters to be ringing our doorbell? I hurriedly placed the last dab of spirit gum on my skin to glue the pointy latex ears in place. "Mom? Dad?" I called out while holding my ears and peering at myself in the mirror. Legend claimed that vampires couldn't see their own reflection. Thankfully, I wasn't an actual vampire, or else I wouldn't be able to check my teeth right now. I wiggled the fangs with my tongue."Still changing!" They answered.When I heard their answer, I peeked out of the bathroom. My bedroom door was closed, so he wasn't ready either.Without any other choice, I hastily threw on my cape and rushed down the stairs to answer the door. "Trick-or-treat!" came multiple shouts the moment I opened the door. A kid who had been about to turn away quickly trotted back, joining her friends. Then, two boys and two girls each held up a bag or a basket, and they all had beaming smiles on their faces. They were possibly only around seven or eight years old. I knelt down to give them each a handful of candy."Thank you, Mr. Vampire!" one of the girls said. She had blond hair, wore a white uniform embroidered with gold, and carried a fake sword by her waist.It was too bad her eyes weren't blue.My hand froze in the middle of passing out the candy. Why did it matter if her eyes were blue or not? "What are you dressed as?" I asked curiously, trying to shake myself out of my sudden confusion. "The Sun Knight!" she answered with a wide smile. The Sun Knight? The Sun Knight...Something about my expression must have made her feel she needed to elaborate, so she said, "You know, from the Legend of Light!"The Legend of Light?Oh, no wonder she looked so familiar! The Legend of Light was one of the most popular franchises at the moment, a spiraling series that spanned from books to animation to video games and the like. I didn't know the series very well, but I'd heard my classmates talk about it before. Who knew that even young kids liked the series?I glanced at her friends. Her brown-haired friend wore armor, but what stood out about his costume was the large shield he held that was nearly the same height as him. Another friend wore a red wig and had a large, fake sword strapped to his back. The last friend, the other girl, had on a long, blue wig. Unlike the others, she didn't seem to have any props with her. She looked shyly up at me, holding up her bag. The bag nearly dwarfed her. For some reason, I had the urge to give her a lot of candy, so I deposited two large handfuls into her bag, including many of my favorite candies."No fair!" the blond girl immediately exclaimed, reminding me of a certain blond I knew. The girl and the two boys turned large, hopeful eyes up at me. Helpless, I gave them each another handful of candy.When they left, I touched my own hair. Blue hair... huh...As I wandered back upstairs, I was just in time to see Dad and Mom, who had finished changing into their matching outfits of wizard and witch, enter my room. "What-" I was about to say. Mom poked her back head out. "Don't worry, Theo, I'll keep an eye on your dad. He's just going to help Roland with the costume. Why don't you pass out candy while we do that?"Although that didn't reassure me much at all, the doorbell rang again, so I had no choice but to head back downstairs."Trick-or-treat!" a blue-eyed, golden haired teenager shouted cheekily. He was chained to a black-haired, female officer."Oh, it's you," I said and placed the bowl of candy back on the counter. "What, no treats for me?" he said and walked in."Please don't fight with the kids over their candy. We still need the candy to pass out. So, what trouble have you gotten into to get yourself captured, Grisel?"It was funny, actually, to see the outfits they had chosen. Whenever Grisel went overboard with skipping out on student council work, his childhood friend, who was not only the captain of the tennis club but also the president of the disciplinary club, would always be the one to drag him back. Dressing up as a prisoner and a cop really suited them!I was just surprised that our disciplinary club president Lesia had actually agreed to wearing a mini skirt. Seeing her wear a skirt outside of her school and tennis uniforms was nearly as rare as seeing Chika wear one."The deal was, she wears a mini skirt. I get captured and have to do her a favor." Grisel shrugged and grinned. "Totally worth it."Maybe this was what Georgia meant when she said she had no interest in men who were already taken. We all knew that Grisel and Lesia had eyes for no one but each other. All that was left was the confession. We even had a bet going on about when the confession would happen and who would confess first!Lesia tilted her officer's cap at me. It bore a crescent moon, much like the designs on all of our police uniforms. She then raised her other hand to show me how their hands were chained together. "Father even provided us handcuffs.""Real handcuffs?" I asked, eyes widening. "Of course!" Grisel said. "It makes the costumes look much more authentic."I gave them an judgmental look. Not soon after, Chika returned. None of us heard the doorbell. It wasn't because she had used her key, but because she had kicked the door open yet again.I raised my head and saw two... cats? hurriedly come to stand in front of her to block us from seeing her panties. Of all the friends Chika would be bringing, I didn't think they'd be the two quietest students among our grade. One of them was Ashlan, president of the home economics club and captain of the ice hockey club. He wore a cat onesie. Just like Chika, he had whiskers drawn on his face.The other was Demyan, president of the library club and captain of the baseball club. He was dressed as a ghost but somehow also had cat ears and whiskers. Did that make him a... ghost cat?Lately, I'd heard Chika talking about them from time-to-time, like how they were in the same class this year, but I didn't know they were close enough to wear matching outfits on All Hallows' Eve.Chika lowered her foot and pushed both boys aside. Then, she grabbed their hands to drag them in. The moment Grisel saw Ashlan, he exclaimed, "Blueberry pie!" He moved forward but Lesia tugged on the chains to stop him."Behave," Lesia said sternly. "You've caused enough trouble for the home economics club."Grisel pouted but stayed put. Ashlan, however, had come prepared. He gave each of us a bag of sweets, which made Grisel's eyes light up. I was fairly sure Ashlan had made the sweets himself.As we chatted and waited, I grabbed my camera to snap pics. Chika swung her arms around Demyan and Ashlan. Her smile was wide and infectious. Even the reserved Demyan and Ashlan had small smiles on their faces. My twin sister was truly one of a kind, always making friends so easily.
Then, I took a photo of Grisel and Lesia, who stood back to back and held up their chained hands, looking pleased that they had caught the other. Grisel's hair was particularly wavy tonight. He must have decided not to straighten it, since which prisoner would have the leisure to straighten their hair? It made him look a lot more like his mom, which wasn't a bad thing, but he'd never liked looking like his mom.
After I took the photos, I heard footsteps coming from the top of the stairs. We all turned toward the stairs. Dad had a smug look on his face while Mom was smiling exasperatedly.Wizard and witch stepped to the side.It was then that I saw why Dad was looking so happy with himself. Roland walked forward. Like I'd told him, his death monarch form was perfect for this particular holiday. No one would bat an eye at seeing him in that form tonight. In fact, people would probably even praise him for having such awesome make-up!So, like I had suggested, Roland was in his death monarch form.I just never thought...... that he would wear the maid dress Dad had picked out and let Dad tie his hair up in pigtails while staying in that form!This was definitely going on camera!"Look over there, Roland!"He looked in the direction I pointed, confused. Dad very happily helped us take the photo.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

When dawn broke, I could already feel something different about today. The elements were not very stable, and I only felt it more and more as the day grew later.
By the time the sun began to set, dyeing the sky orange and gold, I knew the boundary between this world and the next was approaching its weakest. It was that time of the year again.
Theo had said that today was All Hallows' Eve. I had not known its name before this, nor did I know why people seemed to especially like trespassing the graveyard on this specific night while dressed in strange outfits.
When Theo returned to his room carrying a handful of different outfits and even told me that he would be dressing up as a vampire and his sister a cat, I did not even have to ask before Theo eagerly began explaining the customs he had grown up with. I thought back to the strangely clad trespassers from over the years, finally understanding that this was a human custom passed through the ages.
According to what Theo knew, it was said that people of the past had dressed up as creatures of darkness -- zombies, skeletons, ghosts, vampires, and the like -- in order to escape notice from the malicious demon king that ruled the continent. The demon king paid little heed to creatures of darkness. He only liked to toy around with humans, especially heroes and princesses, so dressing up as a creature of darkness was the best way to escape his interest.
Although all talk of the demon king was now merely a legend of the past, the custom of dressing up on All Hallows' Eve had survived to the present.
Right now, Theo's father was helping me with an outfit. However, it did not seem to be an outfit that would escape notice from the malicious demon king.
I frowned.
All of the outfits Theo had laid out on his bed were dresses. None of them had any holes for my wings. Like Theo had suggested, I had thought to stay in my death monarch form, especially since the custom of dressing up had been to dress up as a creature of darkness. Theo had claimed that it would be perfectly fine for me not to disguise myself as a human, and that people might even compliment me.
If only he knew how many people had screamed upon seeing me in previous years this very night. Still, I humored him, wishing to be able to join in with his customs, glad his father had allowed me to do so. This was a night where I particularly did not want to part from Theo's side.
"I didn't think you would pick this outfit," Theo's father, Landis, said. His eyes had widened upon seeing what I was holding, but when Theo's mother, Farah, elbowed him, he stopped staring... as openly. Instead, his lips quirked up in a way that reminded me of his son's manner except sharper.
Out of all the outfits provided, I had picked one that was black with puffy sleeves. It came with a frilly, pink apron.
I did not quite know how to explain why I had picked this outfit over all the others, only that it was somehow... familiar. The apron had caught my eye first. So, I did not explain myself. I only asked, "What should I do about my wings?"
"Do you plan on staying in that form?" Farah asked.
I nodded and said, "It's All Hallows' Eve."
In order to accommodate my wings, Landis cut out the back of the dress. Otherwise, I would not even be able to put the outfit on. After I finally managed to get into the dress and fix the apron in place, I flexed my wings, pleased that I could move them without feeling restricted. It would have been a waste if Landis had damaged the outfit for nothing.
With a frown, Landis took a step back to study my appearance, looking me up and down. I turned my head, curiously watching him walk around me. Then, he stopped and said, "You should tie your hair."
Soon after he made the declaration, Landis and Farah began helping me tidy my hair. I tried to move my wings out of their way.
"Your hair is much, much longer than Aldric's," Farah commented while combing my bangs.
Landis tried to comb my hair, but he couldn't do it in a single motion. He had to bend his body in order to reach the end of my hair. He said, "You know what, Farah, I think Roland's hair is even longer than Chayse's!"
These acquaintances of theirs must have very long hair if they were comparing my hair to theirs instead of Theo's, whose hair was not all that short. Was my hair really that long? I had not purposefully kept it long. I just saw no reason to do anything about it. As far back as my memories went, my hair had been long. What would it be like to have short hair?
Short hair... like what the human form I took had? Why had I chosen short hair...
I reached up with my left hand to touch my hair right above my neck. When I did so, Landis stopped combing. Even without turning, I knew he was staring. I could feel his gaze.
"Now, Roland," Landis began to say after a moment of silence, "you have a right to privacy, but since you're staying with us at the moment, I would like to be told certain matters."
I blinked. What did he want me to tell him?
When I didn't say anything, Landis huffed and asked, "So, are you married or not?"
"...Married?" I asked in return, confused.
Farah had not stopped combing my hair. It was soothing. She explained, "We thought you might be married, like Landis and me."
"Why?" I asked. I was not sure how this conversation had come about.
"Why else?" Landis said. "You have an eye-catching ring there, you know, right on your ring finger."
...Oh.
So he had been staring at the ring? I lowered my hand, bringing it before me. I touched the emerald.
"This means I'm married?" I whispered, unable to look away from the brilliant green.
I had not... been alone?
Like Landis and Farah, I had pledged myself to someone, and that person to me?
This was what the ring signified?
Landis huffed. "That's what I'm asking you!"
"I don't... I don't remember," I said. "I'm sorry."
I'm sorry.
Who was I... who was I apologizing to?
I covered the ring, gripping my hand tightly.
I wish I could remember.
I wish I could remember you.
I closed my eyes.
All that came to mind were graves.
Landis did not ask me anything else for a long, long time, but he did begin to comb my hair again. He pulled it up, deftly tying it. When he finished tying his side, he moved over and took the hair Farah had been holding up. He combed it a bit more and tied it as well.
Farah smoothed my hair, sighing as she said, "If only Chika would sit as still as you when we do her hair."
I thought of Theo's brash sister, and of Farah combing her hair while she bounced up and down. As I was wondering how Theo fared with his parents possibly doing his hair, Landis suddenly asked, "What's to prevent you from forgetting Theo?"
I stilled.
Forgetting Theo?
Theo and his lively family?
All at once, all I could think of was Theo, Theo who had looked up at me with earnest green eyes, who had uttered my name in such happiness that it had felt like I had found a part of myself.
How could I forget Theo?
His lack of any fear of my appearance? His acceptance of my faults? His muffled attempts to ask me to come inside?
His trust. His warmth. His vivacity. His everything.
How could I forget?
I never wanted to forget. But would I... would I one day forget?
What's to prevent me from forgetting? I did not know why I did not remember anything past the time I'd opened my eyes and found myself alone.
"Nothing," I answered, clutching the ring. "Nothing. I'm sorry."
I could only apologize.
Over, and over, and over again.
I'm sorry.
I'm so, so sorry I don't remember.
I was only ever met by silence.
Landis sighed. He finished tying what seemed to be ribbons on my hair and then gave me a hand mirror. "Take a look."
I looked in the mirror. A strange sight greeted me. He had indeed tied ribbons. "You are very good at this."
"Why of course. I always did Chika's and Theo's hair when they were younger," he proudly declared. Right after his boast, he deflated and muttered that he wished they'd still let him do it.
Then, he gripped me on the shoulder. "If you dare hurt Theo, like daring to forget him, I will hunt you down."
"Dear, he's a death monarch," Farah reminded him. "Besides, Theo can take care of himself."
"Death monarch or not, rest assured that I have my ways! You won't know what hit the newspapers!"
Landis's grip, although strong, did not hurt me in the slightest. What pained me was the knowledge that I could not promise that I would never forget Theo.
Farah came over and gave me a pat on my other shoulder. Then, she pushed both of us out of the room. I let her push me along, folding my wings in so that I would not accidentally smack her. "Come on, it's All Hallows' Eve. Time to show you off."
We walked to the stairs. Landis and Farah parted to the sides, letting me walk before them. From below the stairs, Theo looked up. When he saw me, his eyes widened. A grin soon spread over his face.
I took in the sight of him, trying to engrave the image in my mind.
Please. Please let me not forget.
Around us, Theo's friends were happily chatting. Farah seemed to love the outfits everyone had chosen while Landis was bemoaning that Chika had brought home boys instead of girls. Why was there only one girl? Just who were these boys following Chika around? He'd never permitted it!
I stood among them, these people full of life.
And smiled.
Gently, I touched the ring in reassurance.
As I was lost in thought, Theo tugged on my hand. "Look over there, Roland!"
Confused, I looked in the direction he had indicated. Landis was holding a small, black contraption, the same one Theo had used before. After a flash of brightness, I tilted my head. The small box hadn't done that last time.
Theo took the little box from his father. When he saw my curiosity, he held the box up and asked, "Uh, do you know what this is?"
I shook my head.
"Oh, right, I never explained." Theo twirled a strand of hair around his gloved finger. He smiled and moved closer, showing me how to operate it. "This is a camera! You can take photographs on it. What you see through the lens will be captured on film when you press the shutter. Which is, uh, this button!"
I furrowed my brows, not understanding his explanation.
"Uh... here!" Theo took out his wallet, and with a blush, showed me a piece of paper... no, a card. It was a bit smaller than my hand, a bit thicker than parchment. It was white and glossy. I flipped it over, surprised to see the face of a dark blond man on the other side.
"That's you," Theo hastily explained. "And that's what I mean by 'photograph.'"
I blinked and looked more closely at the card, the "photograph."
This was me?
The picture was a bit blurry, but it showed fair, tanned skin, completely unlike the ashen skin I currently had. Blue eyes stared straight ahead. Dark, wispy blond hair fell in front of those eyes.
I touched the back of my neck, now bare because of the way my hair was tied.

"Why don't you try it out?" Theo handed me a different little box -- was this a camera too? -- and quickly snatched the photograph back. His face was still a bit pink. He quickly explained that this was also a camera, just a different model, one where I could see instantaneous results.
Although I was still unsure how cameras worked even after Theo explained it to me, what I did understand was that they were capable of recording down moments in time. The photograph Theo had shown me was from the day he had had me try on his parents' clothes.
Even if my mind failed me...
As Theo introduced me to his friends, I tried to help them record these moments in time. Through the tiny window Theo called the "viewfinder," I tried to frame Theo's friends as a painter might frame a painting. Theo's friend Grisel was at the counter, delightfully eating chocolates from a small bag. Next to him was a dark-haired girl whom Theo introduced to me as Lesia. Unlike Grisel, she wasn't eating any of the sweets. For some reason, Grisel and Lesia were chained together.
Upon my approach, Lesia glanced up through dark lashes and smiled a small smile at me. I stopped in my tracks but was unsure why I had involuntarily stopped.
Maybe it was because the crescent moon symbol on her cap was familiar? I'd traced a similar symbol too many times to count.
They commented on my outfit. Lesia seemed impressed, while Grisel mumbled that for some strange reason, he really wanted to flip a table right now. Did he not like the apron I was wearing?
Just in case, I put a hand on the counter, though I did not think he was strong enough to flip it.
"Are you two going to stay chained together all night long?" Theo asked.
Grisel waved his free hand in the air. "No, I have the key right here."
He rummaged through his pockets. Then, he rummaged some more, his expression darkening. "Lesia, do you have the key?"
She raised an eyebrow. "Don't you have it?"
"No..."
Left out of their conversation, I fiddled around with the camera. I pressed the button on the camera just as they realized that neither one of them had the key.
"Mom must have taken it! Why else would she suddenly hug me for no reason?"
"So that's why Father looked so amused..."
Unfortunately for Grisel and Lesia, Grisel's mother and Lesia's father had gone off on an extended date together. They wouldn't be back until after the weekend.
The camera spit out a black card. I looked at it in confusion. Theo took hold of it and waved it, explaining that what I was currently using was an instant camera. I watched in fascination as the photograph developed in front of my eyes, black slowly turning into color, until finally, the likeness of Grisel and Lesia, who were in the middle of their frantic search for the key, showed up.
After that, I turned my attention to Theo's sister and her friends. Chika was talking loudly and trying out all the different sweets in front of her. The two boys next to her didn't speak much. Instead, they were listening to her talk. When she saw me looking at her, Chika tossed me a bag of sweets much like the one Grisel had and introduced her friends, Ashlan and Demyan.
"Can you believe it? Ashlan didn't even have a costume!" She jerked her hand at Ashlan, who was watching her fondly. When she saw that, she jumped on him, performing a headlock and ruffling his hair. "Good thing I thought of something we could all be!"
From the side, Demyan touched the cat ears he had. I was not quite sure what he was dressed up as. A hybrid creature of darkness? Chika pounced on Demyan next, nearly toppling him over. Since she was dressed up as a cat, I figured they were all trying to be cats. But cats weren't creatures of darkness? Only Demyan might pass as one.
Now free of Chika's hold, Ashlan gestured at the bag Chika had thrown at me. "For you. I made it."
Had Chika told them about me?
I nudged open the bag. Inside, there were small chocolates. Even though I would not be able to taste them, I smiled at Ashlan to show my thanks. Then, I turned the little bag over, wondering why there was no embroidery on it. Somehow, I thought there should be embroidery on it.
After taking several more photographs, I was satisfied that I had captured many good memories. However, there was one more I wanted no matter what. It didn't have to be a miraculous moment. I just wanted one of Theo. Just Theo.
I turned, and in one quick motion, quickly pressed the button.
Theo didn't even have time to blink.
"That photo is going to turn out blurry," he said.
"That's okay," I answered.
Like he said, the photograph was blurry. I tucked the blurry photograph away. Now we both had blurry photographs of each other.
Even if my mind failed me, I would remember you.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Roland had never gone trick-or-treating before. Like Chika had exclaimed upon finding out, that was definitely something we needed to change. I wanted to show him all sorts of things -- things that he'd missed out on, things that everyone should experience, things that I thought he might enjoy. I never wanted him to be alone in the cemetery ever again, high up in the tree, watching the world pass him by.
Always a bystander. Always an outsider.
Never invited. Never involved.
That was too lonely a thought.
The seven of us walked outside underneath the moonlight, a mismatched group of "undead creatures." There was only one true undead creature among us. The rest of us were far from it, and our costumes were anything but scary. The cats led the way with Chika at the front, while Demyan and Ashlan tried their best to keep up with her quick pace and easy laughter. They watched her the entire time, unable to tear their gazes away.
Roland and I were in the middle, with Grisel and Lesia bringing up the rear. A few more steps away, and we would reach our stop, a set of double doors belonging to a lavishly decorated house.
We couldn't go wrong with this house. Cobwebs dangled from the roof. Fake gravestones littered the yard. This had to be a house that greatly enjoyed the holiday and would welcome a ragtag group of trick-or-treaters like us.
"Aren't we too old for this?" Grisel asked. Whether or not he had wanted to come with us, he had no choice when he was still chained to Lesia. He was the exact reason why he and Lesia were trailing at the end. He had voted against trick-or-treating, wanting to hole up at my house instead, but we had outvoted him.
"I never thought I'd hear you complain about free candy," was Lesia's reply. She tugged him along. Grisel pouted.
"Of course I like free candy! But I'll have you know, I am still the student council president."
"So?" she asked.
"I have a reputation to uphold!"
While they continued to argue back and forth, we'd already reached the front door. Chika looked like she had every intention to kick the door open, but thankfully, Demyan and Ashlan were quick enough to pull her back, so her foot merely grazed the door, disturbing a few cobwebs.
I nudged Roland forward.
"Why don't you ring the doorbell this time?" I suggested.
Roland nodded and moved forward to press the doorbell, like he had watched us do several times already. We crowded by his side, nearly plastering against his wings, eager to see the reaction of whoever might open the door. It wasn't everyday that you could see a creature of darkness as impressive as Roland wearing a maid's outfit, ringing your doorbell. I so wanted to show him off and see people's reactions.
For a scary moment, a really scary moment, I had the thought that this was exactly what my dad must feel whenever he dressed me up. I never wanted to be as embarrassing as he was!
The door creaked open then, revealing a dark hallway lit only by candles, and we shouted, "Trick-or-treat!"
Sock-clad feet shuffled forward.
My eyes were immediately drawn to the dried blood that speckled the socks and white pants, but as my eyes trailed upward, I found that I actually knew the person under all the blood.
"Elwyn?" Chika shouted exactly what I was thinking. Grisel groaned and tried to hide behind Lesia, but it was too late.
The archery club captain, Elwyn, was holding a tub of candy in front of us. I didn't think that this house that had gone all out on decorations would belong to someone we knew. It was even more decorated than my house, and my parents always outdid themselves with decorations each year. But with Elwyn, it made sense. He wasn't just the captain of the archery club. He was also the president of the occult club, even though not a lot people knew that. He must like All Hallows' Eve a lot.
Elwyn blinked in surprise, but an easy smile soon came over his face. "Going trick-or-treating together?"
"Yup!" Chika pulled Demyan and Ashlan forward. "So, hand over the candy!"
Elwyn obediently dropped a handful of candy in each of their pillowcases that they were using as their bags. Chika grinned and immediately started digging through her bag to see what she had gotten while Demyan and Ashlan traded their candy with each other.
After they moved to the side, I held my basket forward. It was a pumpkin shaped basket I'd used when I was a kid. I'd given Roland my much cooler black, cauldron shaped basket.
Roland looked down at his basket and then at me, watching what I was doing. I gave him a smile and shook my hand that held the basket, trying to indicate to him that he should hold out his basket too like what I was doing.
Slowly, he extended his basket out to Elwyn.
"Trick-or-treat!" I said. I glanced at Roland.
Very seriously, Roland gazed at Elwyn and said, "Trick-or-treat."
"Um, your treat." Elwyn hastily grabbed a handful of candy and deposited it in our baskets. When he straightened back up, he let his eyes wander over Roland's outfit. They soon came to rest on Roland's wings. His eyes practically shone, and he gushed, "That's a really, really impressive costume!"
While I agreed with his assessment, I had been expecting more shock.
Then again, Elwyn's outfit was also impressive in a way. Just what exactly was he... a murder victim? Or was this his idea of what a zombie looked like? He had dried blood on the side of his face too, and all over his neck and chest. It didn't match at all with his smile. It was kind of disturbing, actually.

Just then, an arm holding a bloody knife abruptly appeared, encircling Elwyn's shoulders from behind.
Several of us jolted, and Roland even got into a battle ready stance upon seeing the knife. However, Elwyn's expression was merely surprised and not frightened. He tilted his head back, his smile softening. I too looked behind him. The person who was hugging him from behind was a familiar face, a handsome one, no less.
I relaxed and quietly filled Roland in. "That's Andrew from our neighboring school. Elwyn isn't in any danger."
Roland gave me a small nod but moved closer to me.
Was he trying to protect me? I couldn't help but smile. I half wanted to take his hand.
Although Elwyn wasn't in any actual danger, Andrew really did look dangerous with that knife dangling from his hand. Their costumes seemed to run along the same theme. He also had blood all over him. They seemed to be a pair of zombies...? The only thing that mitigated his maniacal image was the adoration in his eyes as he gazed at Elwyn.
However, the adoration disappeared when he glanced over at us. He eyed Grisel and me especially. Then, a smirk came over his face. "I can't believe the student council is going around trick-or-treating."
Chika grinned, her response immediate. "We're all just teenagers, duh. I can't believe you're stuck passing out candy like some old person!"
Bless my sister.
Elwyn chuckled. "An, why don't we go trick-or-treating too?"
Andrew made a face. "No thanks."
"You're missing out," Grisel said with a smile, his demeanor entirely different now that Andrew was present. He walked forward, his posture straight, and held out his treat bag like a prince waiting to be served.
His elegance truly didn't lose out to his mother's. That public image of his was exactly what made him so popular among the student body, so much that he'd won the presidential vote by a landslide.
Andrew scowled but let go of Elwyn so that Elwyn could pass out the candy. After Lesia also received candy, we bid Elwyn and Andrew farewell. As we left, Elwyn waved enthusiastically at us. Andrew was more reluctant, eventually waving at us with his knife. I really could have done without that.
"They've really hit it off, haven't they?" I asked after we were a distance away from the house.
Grisel nodded. "Never saw it coming."
Near the beginning of the school year, Grisel had recruited several captains from the athletic clubs to help with diplomatic exchanges with Moon Orchid Academy, stating something about how we needed to present ourselves with our most attractive students in order not to lose to our rival school. It might even help us attract more students to our school. Elwyn was one of the recruits, recruited for his approachability and "cute" factor. When Leafbud High and Moon Orchid Academy got together to discuss the logistics of the cultural festival, that was when Elwyn and Andrew met for the first time.
Soon after that, they began texting each other.
Maybe Grisel's idea of presenting ourselves with our most attractive students had worked a bit too well.
Just as I was thinking this, a hand grasped mine. I glanced up, startled, heart fluttering upon seeing that it was Roland who had taken my hand.
"Roland...?" I asked. He strode along, seemingly nonchalant about having taken my hand. I, however, wasn't having nearly as easy a time as he was having.
Come on Theo. Don't get your hopes up!
Knowing Roland, he definitely wasn't holding my hand because of any romantic reasons.
But he did indeed have his hand around mine. Just that was enough to make my heart pound hard.
His hand was rough with callouses, yet his grip was tender and reassuring. Gentle, even. I held his hand back, weaving my fingers with his.
"Stay close," he said. "The elements aren't very stable today."
As I had expected, Roland was Roland.
I nodded, unable to keep my eyes off of him. Perhaps my expression was just as captivated as how Demyan and Ashlan looked as they gazed at Chika, or I might even resemble Andrew, whose eyes overflowed with adoration whenever he looked at Elwyn.
I couldn't help it. Under the moonlight, Roland was so ethereal that I was almost forgetting to breathe. I was half afraid I would wake up and find this a dream, but his touch reassured me otherwise. Even though he was someone from a whole different world, a world long gone, he was here right now, with me. His rough skin against mine was proof of his existence. I wanted to remember this scene forever, this quiet moment of Roland protectively guiding me through the dark streets on All Hallows' Eve.
As Grisel and Lesia passed us, Grisel gave me a knowing look. Seriously, he wasn't qualified to give me that kind of look, not when he still hadn't even taken the first step with Lesia.
I looked down at their chained wrists. If not for those chains, would Grisel have come with us tonight? He was so in denial.
I raised one eyebrow at him.
What about holding her hand, huh? Nothing stopping you. You don't need chains as an excuse.
Grisel made a face and turned away, ignoring me.
I pulled on Roland's hand.
"Let's race them to the next house!"
With that said, I turned and dashed forward, tugging him with me. Roland only hesitated for a moment to digest my words. Then, he followed right along, jogging by my side.
From behind, Grisel huffed. "How is that fair? You want me to win against the track and field captain?"
I grinned, not expecting him to be able to win against me.
Although he was full of complaints, Grisel began running too. Lesia shook her head in exasperation at us, but she humored us and picked up her pace as well. When we ran past Chika, there was of course no way she wouldn't join in.
"A race? Count me in!" Chika broke into a run, leaving Demyan and Ashlan to chase after her once again.
The night air filled my lungs, cold and sharp. I'd always felt the most alive while running, adrenaline rushing through me, wind weaving through my hair. Tonight, there was an added sensation of thrill, of restraint unlocked, giving way to freedom. There may be a distance between us I didn't know how to close, but right now, at this very moment, he and I were side-by-side, fingers interwoven.
In the midst of what I enjoyed the most, Roland was with me every step of the way. All I had to do was turn, and he would be there, right by my side.
His eyes met mine. I had been watching him too closely. But he made no comment on that and only said, "You're fast."
My heart pounded. So, so fast. I couldn't blame it on the running. Giddy, I breathed out, "Can you keep up with me?"
Maybe I was being too overconfident. Roland was a death monarch! But my speed was top notch, and I was caught in the moment.
Roland nodded seriously. I grinned.
If these moments could become treasured memories for Roland, that was more than I could ever wish for.
They were certainly treasures to me.