Dance of the Damned

More Plans

"I must admit, he has guts," Thunder said, looking at Nameless sitting in the corner quietly. "Even if it was us threatening him, he did chose for his daughter's death."

"Humans are fun, don't you think so?" Micah asked, smiling at the three in front of him as Madam Lottie began wrapping his side up in a bandage. "Ouch."

"Why would you exert yourself like this?" Carvill sighed, watching him get patched up.

Two seconds after Nameless confirmed that everything would go as originally planned, Micah smiled brightly before almost losing consciousness.

If Madam Lottie had not noticed, he would have hit his head on the ground and, perhaps, create even more of an injury.

"I am not exerting myself," Micah said, holding his hands out. "The dreams are back."

"Doesn't that always happen when an incident is about to happen?" Carvill said, scratching his mask. "It must be hard."

"Yes. Before the death of my parents, the dreams came back every night." Micah sighed. "Sleep is my enemy right now. So, you could say, I am glad to be out."

"What about that overprotective friend of yours?" Madam Lottie mused.

"That kid." Thunder laughed. "I burst into the house and asked if I could borrow Roshi, alone, and they could not say no. Not to me, anyway."

"So that is how you got him out," Carvill said, looking at him intently. "I thought you knocked him out or something."

"I can be pretty persuasive if I try." Thunder shrugged.

"You used your authority as the king to get what you wanted." Madam Lottie said, standing back IP. "There we go. But I would recommend, you either heal yourself or not move at all for a while."

"I will see," Micah said, smiling at the three as they sighed.

He is not going to listen to a word she said and they know they are not going to stop him either.

Carvill looked at Thunder and Madam Lottie with a look that says, "We spoil him too much.'"

The other two, seeming to understand what he was saying nodded at the same time.

"Roshi!" Angel ran to the boy with Worth beside her. "How are you?"

"Fine, and you?" he asked, mirroring her enthusiasm.

"I am fine too. I just came to wish you a good night. I will have to leave after all." She turned to the other three. "Today was fun! Let's do this more often!"

Micah nodded at her as the two walked away.

"She is very ... enthusiastic," Carvill said, watching as the others came to them, wishing Micah good night as well and then leaving.

_________________________

"Come. We should leave too." Teri said to the two. "Let us go to Roshi first."

"Damn it!" Heris shouted, annoyance all over his voice.

"What is wrong?" Clover asked, looking at the boy.

"If I knew I was going to meet Roshi I would have brought something." Heris sighed deeply. "I will not meet him."

"You have to," Teri said, firmly. "Come. We just have to wish him properly and then leave. We are the last ones in the building. Except Nameless."

"Fineee," Heris said as he allowed Clover to pull him to Micah. Clover looked at the boy, dread filling her as he seemed to take notice of her immediately.

Instead of just smiling again, he seemed excited as they reached him.

"Teri," he said before she could say anything else.

"Roshi." She said, nodding at him. "We will be taking your leave now."

"No." He said still smiling.

"Pardon?"

"Don't leave yet." He turned from Teri to Heris and then Clover. "I have to talk something with you. But, can you wait until I finish talking with Nameless?"

"O-of course we can."

"Great." he got to his feet so fast it made Madam Lottie gasp and begin to scold the boy once again, something about ripping his stitches if he isn't careful.

Teri chuckled watching him smile sheepishly at Madam Lottie while she continued to scold him.

"Something funny?" Thunder asked, looking at her from the corner of his eyes.

"No," Teri said as Heris, Clover and Carvill turned to her. "Sometimes I forget that Roshi is still a child. Seeing him like this ... it does calm my heart."

"I understand what you mean," Carvill said softly as they all turned to Micah laughing with Madam Lottie before going to give her a hug.

Instantly the atmosphere changed as everyone's expressions darkened.

"Roshi!" Thunder shouted. "Don't I get a hug too?"

"Na!" Micah shouted, laughing as he ran to where Nameless sat.

“It’s ok,” Carvill said, patting Thunder’s shoulders as an act of comforting him but he felt anything but comforted. “I didn’t get one too.”

“I will not be lumped with you.” Thunder pushed his hand away, pouting.

“You are the king, aren’t you a little bit childish?” Teri asked as Heris and Clover looked at him sceptically, Juliet walking to them.

“I can have my moments.” He said, sighing. “I guess we can wait a little until he is done talking to Nameless. Or, should we start the meeting, Carvill?”

“Let’s wait.” He said as they watched closely. “I do not want anything that can happen to happen.”

“Alright.”

_______________________

Micah followed the string of lavender amongst hundreds of other colours in front of him to a figure crouched in the corner.

The lavender lines were faint but they were there. He is just about ready to give up.

We can’t have that. Micah thought, looking at the colour in front of him. It is so pretty all the time.

“Britton.” He called to the man in front of him as the colour slowly brightened. It is very subtle, but it is there. “How are you doing?”

“What do you think, Roshi?” The man chuckled as Micah could see the lines outlining the man as he buried his face in his hands. “I … I just sentenced my daughter to death.”

Really?

“But you chose the hundreds of people over her.” Micah tried to reassure him.

“No, I knew that they would not allow me to live, so, it didn’t matter.” He said, looking at the ground. “If only I had listened to you before. If only … if only …”

Micah pursed his lips, crouching down until he was sitting on the floor. “Saying ‘if only’ isn’t going to change anything. Unless saying it is something that comforts you.”

“It offers me no comfort.” The man groaned. “They were right. I have been relying on you a little too much.” I … I should have listened to you that time and … well, it is too late to say anything anymore.”

“It is,” Micah said, resting his head in his knees as he pulled them closer. “But don’t tell me you have given up.”

“Give- but you said that there was no way to save her.”

“I have never said that.” Micah sighed. “You all do like to twist my words to the nearest thing, don’t you? But then again, it might be my fault for not being clear. Oops.”

“W-what do you mean?”

“I mean that you should not give up so easily.” Micah pointed to the lavender threads around the man. “Let me ask you this, do you still trust me?”

“I-I … No matter my shortcomings. I have always trusted you, Roshi.” The man said softly. “It is me that should not be trusted.”

Micah stood to his feet, looking down at the man and extended his hand to him, just like the first day they met. This time, the soft lights around the warehouse served as their light. “Do you still want to save your daughter?”

“Of course I do.” He said, Micah feeling his hands land on his.

“But, I will have you know, this is not going to be something that will be easy,” Micah warned. “And you will not have the luxury of time you had before.”

“I know.” The man said as the lavender threads shone a little brighter. “But … I believe, right now, I would go to the depths of hell if you told me to.”

“You better keep that in mind then,” Micah said as the two shook hands. “Meet me in front of the Guild on the thirteenth. At 10:30 p.m. DO. NOT. BE. LATE.”

“I won’t!” Micah could detect no lies from the man and nod at him. “I promise!”

“Then that will be all.”

_____________________

The ones left in the warehouse are Carvill, Madam Lottie, Juliet, Teri, Heris and Clover. Besides Micah. As they watched the man walk away.

"What did you tell him?" Carvill asked Micah, handing him his stick. "He looks ... brighter."

"Nothing too important," Micah said turning to Teri. "Shall we get going?"

"Going?" Teri asked, tilting her head to the side. "What do you mean-"

"To my house." He smiled.