[heehee~ i have a few things i'm working on copy righting when they're finished <3 - 3MLE? O.o]

Michael went to throw on a shirt before coming back out. "I took a nap. We went swimming in the river for a little, well I did. Ariel sat on the grass and watched. Then we came back, I took a shower and Ariel has probably gone home." He says, giving a content nod then realized Seth probably wasn't looking for a paragraph as an answer.

[[ Oooh! I wanna read them <3 And yes, 3MLE is a type of computer code where you use a series of letters (a-g) for the notes, +/- for sharps/flats respectively, and numbers for the note length (quarter notes = 4, eighth notes = 8, whole notes = 1). e.g.; Twinkle Twinkle Little Star would roughly be ccggffg2ffeeddc- etcetra <3 Any one of the beta links would show you if you liked composing. ^^ ]]

Seth's nerves wound up when he heard that Michael had gone swimming in the river. 'At least he didn't notice the blood..' he thought with relief afterwards. "Gone home?" he asked. Seth didn't understand how Ariel had managed to live among the other spirits despite the fact that she was previously human. He shrugged and swung his feet over the edge of the bed. Seth literally hadn't moved an inch over eight hours. 'Skill.' he thought sarcastically, understanding that it was most likely because he was out like a rock. He stretched and deliberately tried to ignore the pain in his side. It wasn't long, though, before it was a little much to ignore and Seth's vision was clouded with an opaque scene of those damned angels. He sighed and shook his head, looking off to the side in thought. 'I need to tell Michael.. I wonder if he even knows about..'

[[ I started to watch Togainu no Chi~ I rofl'd when I realized that when my friend Momo pointed Jack out as looking like Shiki, you had already used Shiki's picture as Nathan's looks. <3 It's a small, small, world~♫ ]]

[alrighty~ i'll have to remember that <3-- ohhh, like for music?]

Michael nodded lightly and went to sit beside him. "Other spirits don't exactly know she's technically human." He explained.

[i love Shiki! he's totally cool, well i think so ^3^ -giggles-]

[[ ^^ -- Mhm, for music. It's close to limitless- I really like it because it's free and I can do whatever I want (Usually I just mimic songs >w<) ]]

Seth was slightly agitated by how close Michael came to him. While he didn't move away or flinch, Seth's eyes gave away that he was a scattered wreck on the inside. He thought about what Michael had told him, wondering even more about Ariel's situation. She was strange in Seth's mind. 'Torn from one world, most likely to be ostracized for no apparent reason in the next..' he thought. Then, it occurred to him that if Ariel somehow got infected with Onyx... 'She'd show signs of it.' Seth was convinced that there was no way to hide such a curse.

"Michael," Seth started to say. He wasn't exactly sure how to put his thoughts into words. Michael probably wouldn't even believe ninety percent of what Seth would end up saying. Somehow, he couldn't finish his thought. His gaze was slowly directed to the upper corner of the room he and Michael were in. There was an eerie feeling that Seth couldn't name.

[ooo sounds fun~ i'll look at it when my computer's not being a turd <3]

Michael got the feeling something was bothering Seth and glanced at him with concerned eyes then away and slowly stood. "What's on your mind?" He asked when he heard his name and the uneasiness in his voice.

[[ >w< Ik how ya feel~ My dad killed me because I trashed my computer .w. He reset it to factory settings and told me to take better care of the instruments he lets me use. ^^;; ]]

Seth's gaze turned to Michael, somewhat dazed, then back to the wall. 'I swear I thought I saw..' he thought. Seth shook his head and looked Michael straight in the eye. "Would you believe me if I told you something completely insane?" he asked. He was afraid of losing trust with Michael, and planned on covering it up if Michael reacted strangely. Seth was used to lying, though he wished he didn't have to all the time. Life got really lonely and complicated that way- Seth previously only had that kind of a relationship with a single person..

[[ Hm, should we have the Onyx leech into Michael's home and consume it? >o< It's his only house, so I thought I should ask.. It could just be another one of Seth's hallucinations, I have a lot of tricks up my sleeve for any direction we go~ ]]

[you're a girl with ideas, i love it! um.. we shall see, okay? ^^ -- ehehe ^^'']

He pretends to think a moment but his smile gave it away. "Something completely insane? Totally. I'm all ears." Michael replies easily. If Seth had something bothering him, he would listen and believe because he didn't see Seth as a liar. Nor would he unless he was given a reason to. That's just how he was.

[[ Taking it as a yes, <3 (Lmao, honestly if it gets ugly we can backtrack and edit our posts as if we deleted the fail scenes ^^) ]]

Seth opened his mouth to start saying something about the Onyx in general, but he was cut off. He looked up at the ceiling again and finally saw what he thought he sensed the presence of. There was a bit of black at the very corner that was starting to grow inwards and through all three of the connecting walls. Seth wasn't sure if he was relieved or not to see it. He stood immediately and took Michael's arm with him, giving him a stern look. "Ah, well, you see," he started to say. Something told him that the Onyx was told to do something other than consume the house. He just got that vibe. "When I woke up this morning, it wasn't even daylight yet, and I thought I saw something outside my window.."

Seth's eyes contradicted what he was saying. He intentionally pulled Michael and stayed silent on his feet, keeping his other hand free. If the time got tough, Seth vowed that he would do anything to keep Michael and him from being turned to that sick substance. He put his finger to his lips to signal that he wanted to stay quiet other than their casual conversation, since the Onyx was spreading into the room at an extremely slow speed. '..I probably look like some freak.' he thought. 'At least he said he was all ears.'

[ <3 ]

Michael blinked a few times when Seth pulled his arm as he stood, hearing what the boy was saying kind of led him to a dead end- at least until he followed the boy's gaze to the black stuff from earlier that seemed to be growing inwards sluggishly slow. He looked back at Seth when he pressed a finger to his lips and simply nodded even though his mind was swimming in circles.

[[ Ne, I ranted about the RPs and Togainu no Chi for like half an hour to my family so that my sister decided she wanted to watch it with me. ._." I kicked her out of my room for it >o<... What would you have done? ]]

Seth's heart was now racing in his ears. All he could hear was that sound underneath his own voice. Still, he continued to lead Michael away from where they were seated. Seth spoke louder as they left the area, trying to create the illusion that they hadn't gone anywhere. 'I don't think it can see..' he thought. It just felt presences, which probably meant that it could feel sound-waves. Seth prayed that it wasn't smart enough to sense motion while he lightened his steps even more. "It was glowing in front of where the sun should have glowed," he continued on. "Really- I couldn't tell what it was, it changed colors.. Hahah, then my friend Alex called and I had to stop looking at it, but.."

They were so close to the door that Seth considered stopping right then and bolting. However, he knew better. "I never got the chance to tell him what I thought it was-" That's when Seth took his chance to get through the door. He was only a foot away and didn't feel comfortable stalling any longer. Seth's eyes widened as he saw the Onyx leap forwards out of the corner of his eye. Within half a second, the entire house was covered in black and Seth felt the sickness he'd experienced earlier that morning try to creep up into his shoes. Completely panicked, Seth used the last bit of his strength to pull Michael forwards through the door and past himself. He landed on the ground safely as he heard the sound of glass crash into itself. 'The entire house is consumed-' he started to say as he felt the same sickness he did that morning. The blackness around him was quickly trickling from the house like water and lightning as one. "Run!" he screamed to Michael, hoping that they were both already on their feet.

[[the same thing probably haha~ i kick my mom out of my room when she starts cleaning/ going through my stuff >3<]]

As he was listening to/ moving long with Seth, his heart definitely picked up speed and by time his mind was almost completely blackening out from panic, he and Seth were on the grass and his house- his only home had been consumed by the same blackness that consumed Seth's house. His little wings were back from the tattoo.

Gritting his teeth and balling a fist, Michael got to his and pulled Seth to his feet just in time for the boy the scream "Run!" He put the boy on his back before using the small wings to allow him to hover a few centimeters off the ground and towards whatever safe place there was left. Much quicker than running since it had come a lot closer than last time.

[[ Amg- ikr? ;~: It's impossible to keep a diary around when they raid your room so much >o< ]]

Seth stared in shock as the Onyx kept after them- He saw it moving against the ground but it wasn't getting any closer.. 'The hell!? He can fly, too!?' he thought as he was suddenly with Michael, flying. Seth clung tightly to this boy, keeping a close watch to see how quickly they'd need to get away from the disaster. The Onyx slowly started to fade out of sight. A wicked grin zigzagged across Seth's face. It completely hit him that this boy had supernatural powers like he did, but in his own way. 'It's faster..' Seth thought, slightly worried. He knew he had the capabilities to outrun it by himself, but.. 'If this stuff comes back, I might not anymore.'

"Ugh," he murmured. Seth held tightly to Michael and leaned in a little. "I'm sorry you had to see that happen so suddenly."

[[ Sooo glad I kicked her out of my room ._." I pressed play about a minute before Arbitro went at it with his 'inu' >///< ]]

Michael kept going, which meant it wasn't safe to stop, not yet. He shakes his head at Seth's voice but doesn't say anything, his mind was preoccupied with trying to figure out what the hell was happening to this place. He guess the black stuff Seth had told him about was Onyx.

"We have to stick together." Michael found himself saying finally after several minutes of silence passed. He didn't care who or what this Onyx was after, but he wasn't leaving Seth to deal with it alone. He had already made up his mind on that.

Seth frowned a little after the silence started to fall into play. He remembered that Ariel, most likely, still had no idea that Michael was even gone from his home. Seth gritted his teeth. He knew that he was closer to the unity of humanity and spirit than Alexander was- he just hoped that the Onyx never, ever, got a hold of a spirit. 'If it did..' The wind kept Seth calm and quiet for a little while. 'Then any consumed spirit's invisible silhouette could sneak up on a Crystallian without the poor being ever noticing what happened..' Seth closed his eyes tightly- that was the sad end to his family. They were dead before they even had a clue all because of something they could never understand. He felt guilty for everything that was going on.

Seth winced when Michael said that they should stick together. The deep wound spewed images into Seth's head. This time, it combined reality with fate. The white-winged angel flew quickly away into nothingness while the black one chased after it, slowly gaining on it's trail. "I'm probably dangerous to you, though," he said to Michael over the gruesome, warped scene that only he could see. "It's after everything, but I'm an easy target."

"I'm probably dangerous to you, though, - It's after everything, but I'm an easy target." Michael wasn't sure which part of the response he resented most, but either way his mind was sinking again and Ariel wasn't here to 'pull him out of the quicksand'- not that it mattered to him anymore. He probably would've stayed in the Tree House while it was being consumed if it weren't for Seth. "I don't care about those things, I care about you- even though I just met you." Michael couldn't explain it, but he was drawn to Seth for a certain reason, and now it's a little clearer on why.

When they were both safe, the little wings went back to the tattoo without any warning and Michael fell to his front side like when Ariel had sent him through the window. 'I gotta work on my landings...'

Seth was stricken hard by what Michael told him. While he still couldn't see, the boy's words echoed through Seth's mind and put an end to his eye-trickery, he could see again. Seth stared blankly into the distance, almost as if there was a point in oblivion- past the trees that flew by with the wind- that his eyes could always fix at if he needed to. His face had definitely flushed a pink-ish color and he was at a loss of words for quite some time.

The impact of Michael's landing threw Seth back into the real world. He tumbled naturally and barely missed colliding with a tree. Disoriented, Seth found himself all sprawled out on his back and looking up at the sky. "I don't care about those things, I care about you- even though I just met you." He blinked once and slowly rose to his feet. Seth tossed his jacket aside and slipped off his undershirt, revealing wrap-around gauze and a deep red blotch mark at Seth's left side. He unwrapped the bandage and looked down- the gash hadn't gotten any worse, but there were black markings, all a few inches long already, that tried to reach out like the sun's rays from the injury. Seth then turned to face Michael with a stern expression. "Are you sure that's what you want to say?" he questioned as his own, dulled eyes searched for an answer in Michael's.

Michael slowly pushed off of the ground so that he was at least sitting up, his mind had stopped sinking for the most part and Seth was already back on his feet. Seeing the gash he had made him flinch a little, but she slowly stood and brushed the dirt off himself. His mind was made up from the start. "It's exactly what I want to say." He answered, his deep midnight blue eyes meeting Seth's dulled ones meaningfully.

[last post for the night, nighty night yume-chan <3]

[[ Oyasumi Nova-chan <3 ]]

Seth stood extremely still for a few moments. He could clearly see that Michael was serious about his decision, but Seth always had fun looking for hidden secrets. A smile tugged a single corner of his mouth when he saw nothing of the sort. Finally, he set himself back on his heels and re-wrapped his injury with his bandage the same way it was sealed up before. He didn't bother getting a new roll of gauze out- he wasn't drenched and the dark color hinted that whatever bled through was from hours and hours ago. Seth slipped his shirt back on and knelt quickly to retrieve his jacket. He put it on as he walked right up to Michael, eye-to-eye with the boy. That same, single-sided smirk re-appeared across Seth's face. Still, he saw nothing other than determination and pride in Michael's eyes.

Seth tilted his head a bit and took a step back. He crossed his arms as his grin straightened out like the usual self he knew. "Then we'll surely see, Michael, won't we?" he said. Seth had never gotten close with anybody like him. Of course, it was practically a given that Seth grew close to the people around him; strangers included. Seth's entire life revolved around being a literal keeper of peace between the two worlds that existed together. However, aside from Alexander- who's views differed on the biggest subject of them all- Seth couldn't even imagine being able to talk something out with another person. He felt a connection between Michael and himself that could no longer be broken- not even by the insanity of life itself.

Michael blinked a few times with Seth's response. This boy boy confused him and continued to surprise him. 'See what...? What the future might bring?' Shaking his head lightly and glanced around for any more of the Onyx, seeing none relieved him a little. But not much. "Come on, let's see if we can find an abandoned hut or something." Michael said quietly, if not they would take to the ground or trees for shelter.

Seth looked up at the sparkling trees and then back down to the similar-colored grass all around the two of them. He cleared his throat briefly. He wasn't exactly sure what would prove worse protection; a hut that suspiciously showed up in the forest, or an already-existing hut that showed signs of usage. "The Onyx doesn't travel well through dense places." he remarked, remembering how after the Onyx consumed his own home, it was like molasses in the dirt. Seth also recalled that, assuming the Onyx had a choice as to which style it preferred to travel by, it made it's appearance through the upper corner of Michael's home and chose to spread through the trees. 'The ground included..'

"I guess right now we're in a danger-zone, though," he added. "We're closer to Alex--" Seth cut off short and coughed, re-structuring his sentence soon after. "We're in the middle of the easiest place we can be targeted in- let's get out of here."

[ohayo~ ^-^]

Michael glanced at him and nodded lightly. "Where do you suppose we go?" He asked curiously since Seth knew what he talking about.

[[ Ohayo >w< How are you? ]]

Out of nowhere, Seth was taken back into his childhood to the memories of reading a long series of books in his spare time. They were about an obnoxious blonde-haired boy who ran around trying to be the best. He'd chased after some dark-haired boy who was his friend, but ended up getting some sort of tattoo-like curse that spread and eventually took over. Seth closed his eyes and pressed his hand in on the back of his neck. 'I hope Michael never has to see that..' he thought as he opened his eyes. "Well," he started to say. "Since you and I met less than twenty-four hours ago, why don't we just leave this place and talk?" Seth took Michael by his wrist and began to head in a direction away from the destroyed homes of the forest.

[[ Naruto.. I read like 300 some chapters of the manga before quitting. All of Akatsuki got revived >:c I was freaking angry. ]]

[i'm okay i guess, having a bit of a rough day but hey, i haven't hit anything XD you? - dude, i think michael and seth are the same on different levels ._.']

Michael listened to him and nodded, he didn't quite understand what was going on- and he had a feeling he probably never would- plus it didn't help that his mind was all foggy and whatnot. When Seth took his wrist and started to walk, Michael followed suite. "Your wound- what happened?" He asked quietly, not trying to pry but Seth did show it to him.

[nani~? butbutbut- they can't revive the entire Akatsuki, it's not right ><]

[[ Aw >x< Saturdays should be enjoyed, not burdened by. I'm alright- preparing to do my giant load of homework due on Monday; Ah, the joys of spring break. --What do you mean? ;o ]]

Seth glanced back to Michael and then down at his side. "Hm?" he asked, puzzled. The injury hadn't gotten any better or worse since he'd showed it off like a scar. "It's still here-" Then it hit him. "Oh." he said, feeling stupid. Seth sighed and kept walking in silence. He wasn't exactly sure how to explain what happened, since half of it was a blur. "It's what I had tried to tell you earlier before we were, Mm, interrupted." After about a minute or so of walking wordlessly, Seth turned around so that he walked backwards as Michael walked forwards. He had that kind of trust with his bearings, even when he still had a hold of Michael's arm. He remained quiet, still, for the next few moments before he began.

"So, I have this friend," he started to say, referring to Alexander Thorn. He continued on to describe the scenario in which he was woken up out of nowhere to go see his sleepless comrade, just as he remembered it. Seth didn't forget to mention that Alex was just like the two of them, being in the middle of humanity and spirits and possessing the ability to speak with both. He explained why Alex's ideas were so different and "selfishly corrupted," as Seth called them, and how it lead them to argue over Alex's biggest creation- Onyx. Seth took a small break after that. He released Michael's wrist and began to explain the story in a more animated manner, re-creating the scene as if he were Alex and Michael was himself. His story ended when he drew his own, closed pocket-knife and pretended to slash at Michael, ultimately connecting the dots of how right-handed Alex practically maimed Seth's left side. Then, feeling that he'd run out of words, Seth sheathed his knife in his pocket and looked over his shoulder to make sure that he wasn't doomed to crash into anything in the nearby future.

[[ Ikr Dx I got to the point where a bunch of people suddenly came back to life, so I talked to my one friend about why they completely wasted Jiraiya-Sama's death ;~: Then she mentioned something about reviving Akatsuki and I just stopped reading. .w. ]]

[well i mean, i've been kind of contrasting Michael and Seth and thinking about the rough times they've had in their lives, along with some other things- i don't know, maybe i'm just over thinking things o.o']

Michael took a deep breath after listening to Seth's story with complete and total focus so he could catch every detail and get a mental picture, even when Seth did a reenactment on how the story ended. He paused and glanced around when he got the feeling they were being followed.

'Michael you idiot! I thought something happened to you when I went back to Tree House!' Ariel yelled as she came up behind him. She seemed completely fine expect for the being angry part, then blinked. 'How did you boys get out here so fast?' Michael rose an eyebrow. "We flew. The Onyx had gotten closer than last time so I used my tattoo for some help." Ariel's face turned red. 'You... What?' 'Awe shit...' He thought before turning back around whistled. "Nothing~" 'Touchy subject- touchy subject.'