Michael lightly folds his arm over his chest and shakes his head. "Not since telling us Krystal had gone berserk..." He replied quietly and looked up at the dragon herself who tilted her head to the side. Sophie blinks a few times. ~She was the one who came to get Ken and I, I thought she was still with us.~ She said with a quite confused expression. "Maybe she went back to Mac's?" Michael thought aloud as he glanced at Seth with a light shrug.

[[ last post for today xox ]]

Seth reached for a pocket that wasn't where he thought it should have been when he thought of Marcia's house. Yet again he cursed himself for wearing abstract clothes aside from his normal dress- that typical wear being some sort of black T-shirt and pants as well as a multipurpose jacket (which he had many different types of) that were all a dark color. It was his signature style, how could he go a day without it? So, he moved past this dilemma and went to the next logical place of 'normal' pockets and pulled a dull shard into daylight. It changed from clear glass in concealed clothing to glowing life when Seth got a hold of it. "This belongs to you," he said as he offered the shard out to Michael. He saw it as a game of hide-and-seek; that lovely search for Crystal things.

[[ *huggles* oyasuminasai nova-chan ^^' ]]

[[ -huggles back- oyasuminasai yume-chan <3 ]]

Michael carefully took the shard into his own hands and smirked ever so lightly. "Thanks, again." He said with a soft chuckle then sighed. "You do realize that I have absolutely no idea how to use it.. right...?" Michael looked at Seth curiously. Sophie looked between the two as she sat on Krystal's head.

Seth shook his head when Michael began some excuse-sounding defense to his usage of the shard. "You don't need to think about instincts," he recited. Seth wasn't sure where he'd heard it before, but he knew he wasn't the first to learn about thought versus nature. "In truth, you won't want to." He sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck as he pondered that last statement. 'It won't make sense..' Seth shrugged and held out his hands as if to surrender. "We can try to use it sometime," he offered with a kind tone.

Michael blinked, puzzled. 'Instincts...?' He nodded lightly to Seth's offer. "Yeah, okay." He smiled. Sophie hovered above Krystal's head in a meditating manner and looked at the boys. ~In the mean time, maybe you should rest or something... Whatever attacked you will definitely be back, and you've got to be ready. ~ She spoke up in a matter-of-fact voice. Michael looked up at her. "Eh?" Sophie lowered herself to ground level. ~Don't you remember?~ Michael crossed his arms as in to pout slightly. "I remember get my butt kicked by a supernatural little girl who claimed to be a tamer..."

[[ gomene for yesterday's absence >x< ]]

Seth watched Sophie with a bit of caution. He appreciated her warning, no mistake. However, Seth began to wonder if she had anything to do with the problem. 'She- was- right on the scene..' he thought. Memories of the sparring matches floated about spontaneously for a few moments. It made him think of Ariel. "We should go tell Marcia that you're alright, too," he suggested. "If she heard or saw anything, she's probably worried sick by now."

[[ it's okay~ ^-^ ]]

Michael nodded and put his arms behind his head. "You're right." He smirked a little. "Let's go." Michael "marched" forward. Sophie stayed where she was.

Seth felt a smile trying to grab hold of him and fell into it. He couldn't hide that kind of an emotion- not when someone so important just deemed themselves living again. Seth closed his eyes for a moment and then followed after Michael. He fell into thought about the spirit girl, though. 'Both of them,' he decided. Seth was rotting on the inside with hostility, he was confused all the same. In the end, he pushed his pointless concerns aside and only cherished what was real. Those essences were people like Michael.

[[ It's almost finals week ;D I despise school. How are you? >o< ]]

[[ heehee~ oh trust me, i know the feeling -.-' -- Stressed, depressed, and ready to close myself to most of the world... You? ]]

Michael walked right through the front door after opening for himself and Seth. "Oh my word, what happened?" Marcia asked as soon as she saw the bandage and everything. Michael blinked. "Ariel didn't tell you? Krystal went berserk which turned out be caused by a little girl with white hair." Marcia shakes her head. "She came back and locked herself in the spare room you're not using-" She moved her now serious gaze to the hall after a brief thought. "Ariel bring yourself here, now!" Ariel did so but slowly as she kept her gaze to the floor. Marcia walked towards her and knelt. "What do you know about a white haired girl?" "Nothing." She replied flatly with a hint of unnoticeable uneasiness.

Sophie could almost feel the distrust between herself and Seth. 'I know what I the last time we met was wrong and everything but.. I didn't have anything to do with this... She thought to herself as she crossed her arms. 'I wouldn't have SAVED his friend if I did! Hmph.' Krystal blew air out of her nose causing Sophie to jump and look at her. ~What?~ Krystal did the thing with the tongue that snakes do. Sophie giggled. ~Alright, alright.~ She sighed a little.

[[ >o< I've only got about 2 studyweeks left until final, final, final, DONE <3 -- D; What do you mean? >x< I can get the stressed/depressed.. But why close yourself out like that? .-.;;... I guess I'm alright, still climbing up a big hill. ]]

Seth was happy to be back at Marcia's. He blinked once when he heard that she was completely oblivious to the scene, and only once. Then, he really started to feel upset. He wanted to break something- maybe a tree later in the day. Seth sighed, knowing that he would never get around to such an event- he was terrified of violence, yet he used it like second-nature. In truth, Seth was just broken up. He felt useless in times of dire situations when Michael probably needed him most, but what use would he be of? Splitting the dimension in half with a blade he'd never get to use afterwards? Seth bashed himself for a split second longer before he crossed his arms and leaned against the doorway to listen to Ariel's explanation.

[[ heehee, well i wish lots a luck Yume-chan~ <3 -- because.. it's just sometimes closing myself is best. well no, not really but I mean life at home is worse than just crazy or physio and I can't.. I don't how much more I can take. My dad's flipping out because of reasons I can't say because it might get me in trouble and my mom's all RAWRMFRAWR about the situation but I can't blame her and I just happen to right smack-dab in the middle and.. and... sometime's I'm glad I'm an only child >.< -- you'll get to the top, don't worry ^-^ ]]

"Ariel..." Marcia said softly. "I don't know anything!" She bellowed. "Okay.. then what don't you know?" Marcia tried. Ariel blinked and looked at Marcia then Michael and his wound with a guilt expression. "I don't know why she's wants Krystal so bad. I don't know why she nearly killed Michael. I don't know how she found me or how she even got here." "You don't know who she is, do you?" Marcia spoke up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Ariel didn't tell you? Krystal went berserk which turned out be caused by a little girl with white hair."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ariel looked at Marcia. "Her name's Susie." Michael blinked a few times. "Wait, wait, wait. Hold the phone people. You mean to tell me that Ariel knew about this and now she's covering it up?" He had a dumbfounded expression. Ariel looked at the floor with her eyes tightly closed. "I'm sorry alright? She tricked me. She said she wanted to talk to him, she didn't say anything about fighting him!" Marcia looked at her in shock. "Sweetie, no one's trying to upset you. We just know wanna know what you knew about.. Susie." She brought her into her arms and hugged her. Ariel, like any scared little girl would, cried. Michael had a sweat drop but said absolutely nothing.

[[ awhh, .-. don't close yourself to everyone~ it's really dangerous and unhealthy, since bad things can happen when you untie certain connections. those breaks can lead to years of consequences x___x ]]

Seth's expression became a victim to freezing bitterness. It was his only cure aside from lashing out against his friends, regardless of whether or not they were to blame for the situation. He was reminded of that very moment where the tides turned between Alexander and himself, the moment where suddenly best friends were no longer inseparable, the moment where hatred was created and trust was destroyed-- or had it always been that way? Seth's heart rate rang in his ears. He would not let history repeat itself if he could change it. He felt the tension in the room and the distress that shocked the air with each word from each person.

So, Seth reached forwards and gently took Michael's hand. He knew that there were numerous ways to avoid conflict, one of which was simply walking away from it for some time. Of course, one had to go back and solve it, but the time spent away from emotion acted as the grace period where a person would be able to think. "Come with me," he said without thinking. Seth crossed his other fingers behind his back, desperately hoping that nothing would hit the fan too violently.

[[ ha-ha.. i'll try not to. arigatou yume-chan -huggles- ]]

Michael nodded when he heard Seth and followed his friend/love (have they made the breakthrough in becoming lovers, or are they still all- shy about it? .///.) when he gently took his hand. He really wanted to hit something. Like a tree or a wall, not a person. He wasn't exactly the violent type, but he was confused and a little angered.'So much for focusing on saving the world from being over-taken by Onyx.. or maybe it can still happen...' He sighed softly and looked down at his bandages. 'I wonder how much she knows about little Susie. Dangerous little girl she is...' Michael thought to himself.

[[ doitashimasu ^__^ -also huggles- --- You pick the relationship~ Seth atm thinks he's indifferent, so if nothing happens he'll be shy to show any signs of anything, but he really isn't. If Michael turned against him, Seth would probably break like a tree in a hurricane. The exact opposite could happen depending on the situation, <3 Sway it as you wish. x3 ]]

Seth took a few steps backwards before turning and leaving Marcia's house completely. He pulled Michael lightly along with him, afraid to break into a run for the blood loss issue. He was headed for the tree house, though he wasn't exactly sure why. Seth thought about these things as he steadied his pace upon leaving the village and getting to the woods. 'If that ever happened..' he thought. Suddenly, it hit him. Seth turned around when he recognized that it would only be another few yards before they came across the tree house. "This was a surprise Sophie and I came across," he began with a light smile. Then, his expression lost its life. "I'm afraid to keep it from you." Seth showed concern that was easily readable on his face. He didn't want any sort of distrust to build between Michael and himself. He'd make surprises elsewhere in situations that weren't so hostile.

[[ xox forgive me if you already typed this somewhere; do Sophie and Susie know each other? ]]

[[ oh! -giggles- lolz, i wasn't really sure ^-^ -- -shakes head- susie and sophie do not know each other. susie just stuck when i thought about her being a little girl, "little susie" xD ]]

Michael followed him until Seth turned around, then he looked at him curiously. "Sophie?" He thought back to the only girl in the area when with himself and Seth, if you didn't count Krystal. 'Her name's Sophie?' Michael shakes his head lightly and his expression softens when the concern on Seth's face was readable. He sighs inward and let's out a light chuckle. Hopeful that it would lighten the atmosphere, even it if was just a little bit. "Then don't." Michael says with a quietly then looks up at the sky. "But if you're not ready to tell me or something, I can understand that... I don't want you being afraid to keep anything from me. Unless it was vital." He looked at him with a light smile.

[[ heehee, to be honest i probably wasn't either if i hadn't thought of it xwx -- lawls, little susie- catchy~ x3 ]]

Seth nodded once when Michael asked about the spirit's name. It hadn't occurred to him that maybe there was no introduction between them- such an irrelevant thought. Then, a smile tugged the corner of his face when his companion began to almost set terms about secrets. Seth felt a little better knowing that Michael would be understanding in certain situations. "I'd say the same for you," he confessed. So, he turned on his heels and took a few more steps forwards. He cast his arm out wide when he saw the tree house come into view. "Ta-da~" There were little bits and pieces of Crystal etched in the bark that sparkled when the light hit it at certain angles. A lightning-strike pattern made out of tightly-packed Crystal pieces still stood as a scar on part of the trunk, but other than the minor differences of glimmer, the place was exactly the same as Seth first saw it.

[[ ~<3 -- arigatou ^~^ ]]

Michael nodded in agreement. "Of course." He walked beside Seth and blinked when he saw the Tree house. Michael's eyes got really big and he stared in awe. The once Onyx-consumed Tree House now looked completely normal again, minus the Crystal pieces standing as scars that weren't very noticeable at first glance. He was speechless at first. After a moment or two he smirks. "This is awesome. How-" He glanced down at the crystal shard that Seth had given him and practically answered his own question before ever actually asking it. And becoming confused. Shaking his head lightly he simply glanced at Seth and smiled. "Thanks."

Seth truly smiled with selfless happiness when he saw Michael's excitement. It had been some time since that had happened- there were many different 'types' of smiles that Seth showed, but there were a handful that only occurred once in a blue moon. Selfless happiness was something Seth had a hard time coming across, since he didn't exactly have a connection with very many people outside his own family. "No problem," he answered. "It's the least I could do-" With that, Seth took off for the base of the tree. "Let's go see if everything's in tact~" A part of him also wanted to see how the Crystal slightly changed the interior of the home, or if any of the furnishings had been destroyed. Seth hoped not, but anything was possible.

Michael smiled when he saw Seth smile. He didn't take his eyes off of him, until he took off for the base of the tree. He held in a light laugh and followed behind him. Michael walked, he did not run because of the wound. It still didn't take much time for him to catch up to Seth and climbed up the ladder carefully before easing himself into the tree house. He glanced around then looked at Seth. "Come on up." Michael smiled.

Seth waited patiently for Michael to get into the tree house before following quickly after. He was reminded of that day when he'd first stumbled in, only he was the one in critical condition. 'We match~' he thought for a moment. Then, he climbed off the ladder as well and stood. Again, there were tiny Crystal shards barely noticeable in the objects, but Seth didn't care about them. He knew that none of it would be a problem- the tree house was safe. "It worked!"

Michael held in a light laugh once again and went exploring in his own house, from the living room to the kitchen and from the kitchen to the other side of the small house to his room and bathroom. Marcia's place never actually felt like home, even if he was born in the town. A few days from his tree house felt more like forever he was really glad to be back home. A few minutes later he came back to what was defined as the living room since it was the room seen when you first walked in and thought a moment. "You know, I might look into adding an extra room." He glanced at Seth and smiled.

[[ ..life just got real blech, so don't count on me being online x=x (school's out in 2 weeks though, so yay <3) my air-tight schedule is gonna be something like study, study some more, some finals, cram like hell, some more finals, and then I'm out of town for like three days (cousin's graduation, mohahah) if i don't log on anytime between then and now, i'll be back in exactly 336 hours ^^' ]]

Seth strayed a few feet, but not nearly as much as Michael did, peering into rooms that seemed to be just ever-so slightly more alive than they had been. That was just how shocked he was from actually having a successful plan on his own. Seth ended up spinning in a few circles for that one. He blinked once when Michael hinted towards 'adding an extra room,' and a shy grin appeared on Seth's face. He thought about using the excuse that he could re-build his own home, but it had already turned into dust and blown away with the wind. This was aside from the fact that he was somewhat speechless as is. "Maybe," he agreed in the same manner.

Michael smiled, then it hit him that this was also Ariel's home. He sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "We should probably tell Ariel, since this is her home as well." Michael said quietly and kind of doubtingly, though he got the feeling she'd prefer staying with her new 'mommy' since Marcia did act a lot like a mother towards the young girl and Ariel seemed to acting like she was her step-mom or something of the sort.

[[ Ah! Home and free at LAST! <3 I'm so happy to be back and online in summer joy. How've you been? ;o ]]

Seth smirked at Michael's expression. He blinked once and motioned towards the door, not minding the subject much longer. "The sooner the better, right?" he asked playfully before stepping down and out of the tree house. Seth knew that he wasn't mad at anyone anymore, or if he ever was. 'Except for Susie..' he thought bitterly. He was simply broken on the inside. He was used to his own mini-fits and learned to just keep his composure somewhat passive until his storm-cloud passed. As Seth looked back for Michael to make sure he wasn't going to stay alone any place, a cold and questioning fear nestled itself around him like a blanket. He was afraid of seeing such a catastrophe so similar to the one he'd witnessed again in his lifetime. 'What if no one was there to help..?' A sick feeling caused Seth to shiver. He glanced off to hide his concern, but he wouldn't get over it any time soon.

[[ Omg! -glomp- Welcome baacck~ <3 I've missed you so much >w< -- Eh, I've been okay. I have summer school Mon. - Thurs.; 8:30AM - 12:30PM Pacific Time >.< ]]

Michael nodded lightly and smiled a little at Seth's playful question. Something inside him wilted like a dying flower when he thought about their strange little friend. He wasn't mad... He was hurt. Maybe he did scare her after all, and that's why she didn't actually come to them when the devil's daughter went back on her word. Perhaps he owed her an apology for yelling? He didn't know at this point. Shaking the thought clear from his head he steadily made his down from the tree house to join his love.