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~ A Closer Joy Unknown - Chapter 21 ~
~ Chapter 21 [I've Since Lost the Heart.] ~
~ 'Common Earthia's in total f*cking chaos here!!' Sakura shouted to Sorata, who exited the Underground with the SwitchCross. The rest of the Chaos Excelsios Team had taken quite a beating against Dark General Hoki's minions, but were able to triumph over them. Sakura meanwhile had squared off against Hoki himself [who returned to Common Earthia after leaving the Team in the past to deal with minions], and the young goth of the lot would've succumbed to the demon if not for sheer will and pure temperament. He wasn't going to back down to a maniacal demon who served a hound of hell, not even for all the world. To him, Setsuna [who was stranded in the past, trying so desperately to not give in to temptation in the form of Ian] was all the world to him, as well as all the world to a good handful of StarKnights, guardians and friends alike, who were worried about her.
'Sorry I'm late, I tried to send a transmission to Princess but she had her Locket sealed. I tried sending another one just now but, f*cking hell' Sorata replied. 'You'd think it be this easy. But nooo...'
'SAKURA!!'
Sakura turned to see Megumi grasped by the throat as Hoki's hands tightened his grip. Megumi tried desperately to stab him with a pointed end of Crucina. Her efforts were in vain however as now her Cross Polearm had clunkered onto the ground beside her. Sakura aimed Aquastar, his Crossbow, at the demon and, whispering a prayer, let the arrow soar towards the intended target.
He prayed a silent thanks as the arrow struck the heart of Hiko, spelling his demise.
Meanwhile in England, a man in his early 30's had returned from a walk around his neighborhood. The weather had grown not-so-pleasant; the wind, volatile. He hurried in from the incoming storm, unaware that a darker force was behind the disturbance. His memory had grown a bit stronger, despite the haziness of his youth. Memories were starting to return to him in a swift pace, and he couldn't understand fully, at first, what was going on.
He hurried up to his bedroom, and stopped for a moment to recall one memory...
A picnic... six people were there... and a kind young lady that talked to him... a soccer ball and some grapes... and another young lady who talked of a Locket...
He shook his head, How on earth could I forget all of this until now!? was the thought that escaped his head. Finally, something had caught his eye as he looked inside his closet. Carefully he took out the object, held it in his hands. It was...
'My old soccer ball' he spoke softly to himself.
Carefully he ran his thumb through the writing in permanent ink--Phil Cunningham, 1980--and he looked back on that distant time. He let his memory drift, unaware of what was going on. His eyes closed in fond memory as the reminder of the picnic was clasped a bit tighter in his hands.
...a Princess? Common Earthia? The...
His eyes bolted open--'OH MY GOD!!' he cried out, and, letting the ball drop to the floor, he ran out the door, this time for the cemetary in Macclesfield.
Morning broke slowly as Setsuna opened her eyes, trying to remember how the Helen of Troy Ian had ended up in the guest room with her. Swiftly it came back to her--she couldn't sleep, she went up to the roof. Ian found her up on the roof, and the two talked for a moment. Eventually Ian had noted that she wanted him--bad enough he was shirtless, and the two finally ended up back in the guest room. After yet another odd dialogue [which included Ian's strong command for her to strip], she finally gave in to his whims, and the two made love--but had to be silent. At this point Setsuna's mind was a total blur, everything that she had gone through would affect her well after she returned to Common Earthia.
Dear God she repeated the immortal words of Morrissey in her mind, dear God please help me.
'...I can't f*cking believe you're awake after such an intense night' Ian mumbled a bit as he opened his eyes to look at her.
She locked her gaze with his. 'Trust me' she replied, 'there are times when I don't even know my own strength.'
'Well you sure have no idea your own way with men' he quipped back.
She rolled her eyes. 'Gee, thanks.'
He grinned slyly. 'Anytime, Princess' he retorted.
After a moment of conversation the two got dressed and went downstairs. Annik was still asleep, and Setsuna's blood ran cold. If Ian's mistress ever found out about what went on that night, there'd be certainly be hell to pay. Even worse though...
what would Bernard think?
Anthony cooked breakfast for the trio, and the entire quartet sat down for breakfast after Annik woke up. Setsuna ate quite a bit, as she was still trying to make any sense of what had happened during the night.
+ Setsuna!! Ian!! + a voice echoed in the Princess's head.
+ Bernard!! + Setsuna thought to him. + Are you and the others alright!? +
Bernard: + Yeah, Hoki retreated back to Common Earth. Just got news from Sora that Sakura got 'im. +
Setsuna: + Thank God!! +
Bernard: + I know! +
Setsuna: + Any serious injuries? +
Bernard: + Steve took care of 'em. The daft lad. +
Setsuna: + That's good! +
The Princess then sighed in relief and relayed to Ian the latest in the conversation. Ian and Annik were glad that all was well. Anthony didn't say much at all, but paid attention to the conversation, which then trailed to Ian and Annik talking about the next tour and the appointment for the epilepsy clinic.
Bernard: + ...hey, Sets? +
Setsuna: + Yeah Bernard? +
Bernard: + ...what happened between you and Ian last night? I tried to get to you two but your minds were locked out. +
Her face went pale, and Ian glanced at her as if to ask what was wrong. But she only looked at him as if to say, I think that Bernard's found us out. Ian bit his lower lip, as if to say, Oh sh*t... busted...
Setsuna: + Kind of a long story, just hoping you can forgive me... +
Bernard: + Sets, I am sooo forgiving it's hilarious. Come on, tell me. +
Setsuna: + Um... well... Ian and I, we... well, we ran into Annik earlier... and then... well... +
Bernard: + ...well... +
But Setsuna just sat there with tears in her eyes for a moment, and looked to Ian.
'I... I gotta go' she whispered before she stood up, thanked Anthony for his hospitality, and quietly walked out of the house. Once outside, she ran back--back to where she had last seen Bernard, back to where the battle took place, back to try to find out where her normal state of emotion was. She couldn't understand why this was happening to her.
She had crushed so badly for Stephen, and yet she knew he belonged, in the end, to Gillian.
She ended up falling for Bernard, yet...
She slept also with Ian.
Nothing made sense anymore. What was she to do--break down and die because of it? It wasn't that simple.
Bernard tried to speak to her again. + Setsuna?? + He wanted to make sure she was alright, that nothing extreme had happened. What was it that could've been so bad between them that she couldn't tell Bernard? What was wrong?
+ ...Sets? +
But this time, she didn't respond. ~
~ 'Common Earthia's in total f*cking chaos here!!' Sakura shouted to Sorata, who exited the Underground with the SwitchCross. The rest of the Chaos Excelsios Team had taken quite a beating against Dark General Hoki's minions, but were able to triumph over them. Sakura meanwhile had squared off against Hoki himself [who returned to Common Earthia after leaving the Team in the past to deal with minions], and the young goth of the lot would've succumbed to the demon if not for sheer will and pure temperament. He wasn't going to back down to a maniacal demon who served a hound of hell, not even for all the world. To him, Setsuna [who was stranded in the past, trying so desperately to not give in to temptation in the form of Ian] was all the world to him, as well as all the world to a good handful of StarKnights, guardians and friends alike, who were worried about her.
'Sorry I'm late, I tried to send a transmission to Princess but she had her Locket sealed. I tried sending another one just now but, f*cking hell' Sorata replied. 'You'd think it be this easy. But nooo...'
'SAKURA!!'
Sakura turned to see Megumi grasped by the throat as Hoki's hands tightened his grip. Megumi tried desperately to stab him with a pointed end of Crucina. Her efforts were in vain however as now her Cross Polearm had clunkered onto the ground beside her. Sakura aimed Aquastar, his Crossbow, at the demon and, whispering a prayer, let the arrow soar towards the intended target.
He prayed a silent thanks as the arrow struck the heart of Hiko, spelling his demise.
Meanwhile in England, a man in his early 30's had returned from a walk around his neighborhood. The weather had grown not-so-pleasant; the wind, volatile. He hurried in from the incoming storm, unaware that a darker force was behind the disturbance. His memory had grown a bit stronger, despite the haziness of his youth. Memories were starting to return to him in a swift pace, and he couldn't understand fully, at first, what was going on.
He hurried up to his bedroom, and stopped for a moment to recall one memory...
A picnic... six people were there... and a kind young lady that talked to him... a soccer ball and some grapes... and another young lady who talked of a Locket...
He shook his head, How on earth could I forget all of this until now!? was the thought that escaped his head. Finally, something had caught his eye as he looked inside his closet. Carefully he took out the object, held it in his hands. It was...
'My old soccer ball' he spoke softly to himself.
Carefully he ran his thumb through the writing in permanent ink--Phil Cunningham, 1980--and he looked back on that distant time. He let his memory drift, unaware of what was going on. His eyes closed in fond memory as the reminder of the picnic was clasped a bit tighter in his hands.
...a Princess? Common Earthia? The...
His eyes bolted open--'OH MY GOD!!' he cried out, and, letting the ball drop to the floor, he ran out the door, this time for the cemetary in Macclesfield.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Morning broke slowly as Setsuna opened her eyes, trying to remember how the Helen of Troy Ian had ended up in the guest room with her. Swiftly it came back to her--she couldn't sleep, she went up to the roof. Ian found her up on the roof, and the two talked for a moment. Eventually Ian had noted that she wanted him--bad enough he was shirtless, and the two finally ended up back in the guest room. After yet another odd dialogue [which included Ian's strong command for her to strip], she finally gave in to his whims, and the two made love--but had to be silent. At this point Setsuna's mind was a total blur, everything that she had gone through would affect her well after she returned to Common Earthia.
Dear God she repeated the immortal words of Morrissey in her mind, dear God please help me.
'...I can't f*cking believe you're awake after such an intense night' Ian mumbled a bit as he opened his eyes to look at her.
She locked her gaze with his. 'Trust me' she replied, 'there are times when I don't even know my own strength.'
'Well you sure have no idea your own way with men' he quipped back.
She rolled her eyes. 'Gee, thanks.'
He grinned slyly. 'Anytime, Princess' he retorted.
After a moment of conversation the two got dressed and went downstairs. Annik was still asleep, and Setsuna's blood ran cold. If Ian's mistress ever found out about what went on that night, there'd be certainly be hell to pay. Even worse though...
what would Bernard think?
Anthony cooked breakfast for the trio, and the entire quartet sat down for breakfast after Annik woke up. Setsuna ate quite a bit, as she was still trying to make any sense of what had happened during the night.
+ Setsuna!! Ian!! + a voice echoed in the Princess's head.
+ Bernard!! + Setsuna thought to him. + Are you and the others alright!? +
Bernard: + Yeah, Hoki retreated back to Common Earth. Just got news from Sora that Sakura got 'im. +
Setsuna: + Thank God!! +
Bernard: + I know! +
Setsuna: + Any serious injuries? +
Bernard: + Steve took care of 'em. The daft lad. +
Setsuna: + That's good! +
The Princess then sighed in relief and relayed to Ian the latest in the conversation. Ian and Annik were glad that all was well. Anthony didn't say much at all, but paid attention to the conversation, which then trailed to Ian and Annik talking about the next tour and the appointment for the epilepsy clinic.
Bernard: + ...hey, Sets? +
Setsuna: + Yeah Bernard? +
Bernard: + ...what happened between you and Ian last night? I tried to get to you two but your minds were locked out. +
Her face went pale, and Ian glanced at her as if to ask what was wrong. But she only looked at him as if to say, I think that Bernard's found us out. Ian bit his lower lip, as if to say, Oh sh*t... busted...
Setsuna: + Kind of a long story, just hoping you can forgive me... +
Bernard: + Sets, I am sooo forgiving it's hilarious. Come on, tell me. +
Setsuna: + Um... well... Ian and I, we... well, we ran into Annik earlier... and then... well... +
Bernard: + ...well... +
But Setsuna just sat there with tears in her eyes for a moment, and looked to Ian.
'I... I gotta go' she whispered before she stood up, thanked Anthony for his hospitality, and quietly walked out of the house. Once outside, she ran back--back to where she had last seen Bernard, back to where the battle took place, back to try to find out where her normal state of emotion was. She couldn't understand why this was happening to her.
She had crushed so badly for Stephen, and yet she knew he belonged, in the end, to Gillian.
She ended up falling for Bernard, yet...
She slept also with Ian.
Nothing made sense anymore. What was she to do--break down and die because of it? It wasn't that simple.
Bernard tried to speak to her again. + Setsuna?? + He wanted to make sure she was alright, that nothing extreme had happened. What was it that could've been so bad between them that she couldn't tell Bernard? What was wrong?
+ ...Sets? +
But this time, she didn't respond. ~