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Walter is kind.
Or at least, Jonathan thinks so- because as lax and still clumsy he is with his weapon (and though his face has met the floor several times in the last few minutes), the Casualry isn’t reluctant at all to jump in and stab a Fuxi right through its human head the moment it creeps up right behind Jonathan’s blind spot.
“Oh…!” Jonathan says, out of mere surprise more than anything else. As polite as he’s tried to be, the Luxuror can’t dismiss the notion that perhaps due to less-than-formal upbringing, the two Casualry Samurai might be a bit more… uncouth than himself.
So, obviously, when Walter turns around and shakes the disintegrating demon corpse off his blade, Jonathan is even more surprised when he says “Hoy, you okay?”
Jonathan nods in reply, and Walter looks around. “Keep your demons out at all times. These things like to play dirty.”
And to think he expected Walter to play dirty as well. “Thank you… though, may I ask- why did you aid me even when we’re supposed to be competing?”
“It was aiming for your neck. I could tell, it leaned back and bore its ugly teeth,” Walter answers, and it causes Jonathan to wince a bit. “I mean, sure, you probably wouldn’t be seriously hurt and I could be getting a head start… but winning some training exercise isn’t worth chancing something like that, you get what I’m saying?”
“Yes, I do.” In a short moment, Jonathan’s opinion of his new friend changes quite a lot, and they both smile.
“Well, see you!” The Casualry suddenly hops off, rushing down the dim pathways. Jonathan watches him leave, and quickly summons his demons out of the Gauntlet before continuing the search.
~*~
Flynn is terrifying.
Not like she’s ever going to say that to his face- but Isabeau has never met someone who spoke so little, much less coupled with the fact he learnt so fast? Isabeau was always the best one- the smart one, picked things up quickly, listened well, gifted, talented, how many synonyms could you make up for that meaning?
But, well, the most terrifying part about Flynn isn’t how he’s better than her, that would be petty- it was the fact that not only was he better than everyone, he found little reason to boast about it. He’s almost a breath in the wind in his quietude, but at the same time more alive than anyone else. What did Flynn think all the time? What did he think of them?
“It seems you had hidden reserves. I underestimated you.”
Add on the fact he seems to look through people as though they were glass. His eyes are a pretty green, but she can almost never see them because it’s always as if he’s looking for something else, and they’re in the way.
He’s not a… bad person. Hopefully, at least. It was only their first day as prentices, anyway. He’d probably show himself more later.
Uh, hopefully.
~*~
Walter is carefree.
Jonathan’s still a bit worried over Navarre, and wonders whether he’ll be fine- but Walter keeps on telling him that it’s no problem as they walk down to Lake Mikado.
“Tis’ not like they won’t care about him. He’s a Luxuror! Give a few bags of coins to the head, they’ll let him go without a complaint.”
“Don’t think so lowly of the Monastery!” Jonathan bites back slightly. “They won’t be swayed so easily by a bribe. Any money exchanged are just fees. Besides… I’m just worried for him because he’s my friend.”
The blue Samurai rolls his eyes at the last few words, even more than the first statement. “Well, he’s certainly not mine.”
Jonathan would rebut, but he knows perfectly well that they weren’t. So he just keeps quiet, following Flynn as he walked on a few feet in front of them.
“I can’t believe you’re getting worried over something as trivial as this,” Walter suddenly says. “If anyone can get you fretting over them, then I have no more wonder to why there’s already grey hairs on your head.”
“I- what?”
Walter plucks one out.
“Hey!” Jonathan turns to face him, only to see him holding a curly strand of hair, twirling it around his finger.
Walter shows it to the Luxuror. “See? Hell, it’s white as snow. Today’s a break, try not to be so anxious all the time.”
The more lawful one sighs, still slightly feeling the sting of having his hair pulled out from the roots. “Well, it’s good you have no reason to worry, at least. You take to the role of a Samurai like a fish takes to water.”
For some reason, Walter’s eyes narrow. “…I would appreciate if you never used that phrase again.”
~*~
Flynn is strong.
It’s very clear that he wasn’t emotionless, now- even though he was efficient in killing Issachar and wormed his way through Kiccigiorgi without a pause, Isabeau could see the panic in his gait and hesitance in his actions. She realizes that while he’s as silent as a graveyard, what he does speaks enough for him.
The way he ran through the forest was like a delicate waltz, and she barely noticed the intricacies of his movements- the way he knew where to duck when a low-hanging branch came from nowhere, and where the pathways led, where the little burrows of people were most likely to be hiding.
The memories of childhood may or may not have hold steadfast, but what he did remember served him well- then, it proceeded to shatter to pieces, while cutting him with the sharpest edges.
“With what happened yesterday, you could’ve stayed in bed,” Isabeau says as Flynn walks up to them wordlessly, with an expression that’s just slightly different than usual.
Walter adds on something else, but she doesn’t really pay attention; Isabeau follows the white Samurai around for the rest of the day, as discreetly as possible, and concurrently sees him step into the 4th Stratum and not let emotions halt in his movements at all as he outright breaks the Samurai Code with the rest of them.
~*~
Walter is smart.
That’s as specific as Jonathan can get; because there’s a lot of another things that he wants to say about the Casualry, but ‘smart’ is a nice, simple umbrella term. Sure, hoisting up Peallaidh’s head and almost losing his lunch for a moment wasn’t exactly smart, but…
“…Those kelpies look like they’re troubled. They’re moving erratically, and throwing their snouts up, ears flattened… like angered horses,” Walter notes, though he is sure to keep his distance. “As if… they’re not comfortable where they are. They could attack us, but I think we should go talk to them.”
“Why is that, Walter?” Jonathan asks, and Walter just creeps in closer, staring at the backs of the demon.
He looks at the land across the water. “…There’s a lot of them, but I doubt they can chase them very fast on land. If we appease them, they might help us across the river.”
Flynn hears the conversation, and wordlessly hoists the demon head over to the kelpies while looking at though he was trying to find something to say.
Instead, one of the kelpies say something first- “That’s… that’s Peallaidh’s head!”
When they’re across the river, Walter just gives Jonathan a smug look.
~*~
Flynn is decisive.
Not in the way Walter or Jonathan are, though- he’s a different kind of decisive, and not exactly the better kind. Of course, Isabeau can’t say much, since decisive is the complete opposite of what she is. Rather, he’s rather firm on the side he takes. Whenever Walter and Jonathan have something akin to a conflict, he can easily choose whatever he likes.
Though… it’s still not the kind of decisive she wants to be. She doesn’t want to have to pick a side and get the leftovers; she wants a name for herself.
When they’re waiting in an abandoned store in Shinjuku for the two others to get back from Challenge Quest, because Isabeau is looking for things secretly and Flynn isn’t very keen on waiting in a crowded area right now, the question pops out of her mouth- “Why did you decide to kill Kuebiko?”
“He was a demon,” Flynn answers simply, and there’s a small gap of silence before he talks again. “And he said devouring others was a way to live. So there was no problem with devouring him so we live ourselves.”
“But I doubt we’d die if we had disagreed to kill Kuebiko,” Isabeau says, still checking the shelves for any books. “Do the stakes affect the morality, or are the means worth more than the ends?”
Flynn hums a bit- he hums when he’s thinking, sometimes, maybe as a substitute for not speaking at all- and smiles a bit.
“I don’t know.”
~*~
Walter is pragmatic.
A bit too pragmatic.
“I saw you step forward just now,” Jonathan starts out of nowhere, and Walter tenses up a bit. “While we were fighting Xi Wangmu… when it was fighting Kaga. Did you want to help her?”
Walter doesn’t really say anything, but shifts a bit. “…Yeah. Yeah, I did.”
Again, silence, but Walter is never truly quiet- not like the eternal shroud that covers Flynn, or the periods of solitude that make Isabeau. Not even the moments of contemplation that Jonathan has- Walter is never silent for any of them, but he still has those times. Just… not very quietly. Fingers tapping on the table, rolling something in his hands- a shoe scrapping against the floor, or maybe Walter just somehow creates a mood where even his blinking is loud-
“If you want to ta-”
“No,” the chaotic Samurai cuts him off, and a shoe stops scrapping against the floor- fingertips stay glued to the tabletop. “There’s nothing to talk about. Anyway, what’s been done has been done… all I can do is get stronger from here on so I don’t have to ever see that again. Dwelling in the past will simply impede that.”
Jonathan decides to let the silence sink in again, before Walter begins to fill the room with small sounds. He doesn’t- he doesn’t understand why Walter could so easily dismiss the memory of someone whose death saved them, but…
Tap. Tap. At least Jonathan finds comfort in the fact that there is someone else still alive in this room. When Flynn and Isabeau get back from Challenge Quests- he'll just remind himself that at least they’re all alive, and they don’t need to be dead soon.
The lawful Samurai finds it better to hold onto the memories instead, but all in the pursuit of a similar goal- to become stronger.
(But Jonathan wants to become stronger to help the Eastern Kingdom of Mikado, and carry out his duties to the fullest extent so that no one shall have to die in a battle like Kaga did; as for Walter… why did he want to be strong as well? Are their goals really the same?)
~*~
Flynn is afraid.
Afraid when the Lilim Horde appears. Afraid when the Black Samurai seems to take shape out of nowhere. Afraid when she’s tied to the stake, axe still stuck in her throat because of a clumsy, nervous job. Afraid when Sister Gabby confirms their fears.
He hides it well, but Isabeau can see that he is. Perhaps not of death, or not even of the carnage the Black Samurai could bring; maybe he’s just afraid of…
…Remembering?
“You don’t have to keep everything to yourself, you know,” Isabeau says as they walk away towards the Hills, with a fuming Jonathan and ticked off Walter. “It’s not a healthy thing to do.”
Flynn pauses for a moment, and mutters out “I already know” before continuing.
“Then why don’t you tell us anything?”
“I do tell you things,” Flynn deadpans.
“What? Name me one.”
“My name.”
Isabeau rolls her eyes. “Flynn, you know what I mean.”
He doesn’t respond this time, only looking up to see whether his eyes can reach the top of the building.
For some reason, she’s scared that he’ll fall over from the dizzying height of the building combined with his already out-of-it state. In a split second of impulsive judgment, she worms her hands into his and makes sure he doesn’t fall.
When she realizes what she’s done, Flynn lets her hold it, and squeezes her palm back.
~*~
Walter is unreliable unpredictable.
Jonathan isn’t going to lie, he felt a boiling hate for Walter the moment the chaotic Samurai blocked his sword, all to the moment they found him outside Café Florida. It was… out of the blue, at least, but the more he think about it the more it makes sense.
“Walter.”
He’s… reliable, still- well, Walter was still his friend, right…? And… it was probably a one-time thing. Everything was building up to that moment, Walter’s fervently unanswered questions about Tokyo, the strange selfishness of its inhabitants and how they could ever live with themselves-
“Yes?”
Jonathan should’ve seen this coming. That was his job, isn’t it? To prepare for calamity? He was the sensible one, the person that kept his friends from getting into trouble! Then why didn’t the thought of Walter being taken in by that… filthy night witch never cross his mind? Walter was born a Casualry, he’s tasted the cold hard earth and he wants something better than that for everyone he knows, so of course the promises of a false paradise would persuade him!
“We’re… all still friends, correct?”
A scenario like this is all because no one ever talks to Walter about what’s happened- because Jonathan let Walter trap himself alone in a surround-sound room of memories he wanted to discard, without any help of getting out, which could all have been avoided if Jonathan just said something about it! Obviously there could’ve been ways to prevent this, Walter probably hates them all right now, that’s why he did that, it’s too late-
“I see no reason why not.”
Jonathan blinks, and the entire Midtown is seems to go quiet because of his surprise- but no, it’s not the Midtown, because Isabeau and Flynn are already quiet and walking farther ahead.
What goes quiet is his…
Walter plucks a hair from his head.
“Hey!”
“Still snow-white, and I’ve only been seeing more,” Walter says, and he just leaves Jonathan staring aimlessly at the strand falling to the ground.
Walter just grabs his arm, forcing Jonathan to move instead of just standing around. The yellow Samurai almost trips when Walter does that, and Jonathan notices that the moment he regains balance Walter is tugging on his arm a lot less forcefully.
(Jonathan looks at the back of Walter’s head, and notices a fair plenty of his own white hair.)
~*~
Flynn is quiet.
Of course, he always is, but… this is the first time Isabeau truly appreciates it. When Walter lets the damning words out of his mouth and Jonathan seems to explode, Flynn’s the only one who keeps quiet and calm. Isabeau sticks to him, as always, but even more so now.
“…What do you think about this whole thing?”
Isabeau’s question seems to fall on death ears for a moment, but Flynn suddenly shrugs and stiffens.
“I’d like it if we had killed Lilith right then and there.”
And just like that, Flynn starts walking towards the entrance of Naraku.
When Isabeau tells the both of them she can’t make a decision right now, unlike Jonathan, Flynn doesn’t say anything; instead, he just nods knowingly, as though silence has become a kind of secret language only the two of them know.
He doesn’t say anything outright, that could broadcast whatever he thought to the rest of the world; it was like anything he said without speaking was only meant for the one person watching- and most of the time, it was her.
That was a nice feeling.
~*~
Walter is angry.
That’s all Jonathan can say right now, and as much as people tell him that his own, true anger is frightening, the emotions that seem to surround Walter marks him as much more intimidating.
Sure, if anything actually drives him off the edge, his wrath isn’t exactly something that anyone would like to see- but most of his anger is aimed at the injustices towards people in a small period of time, such as when Tayama used the life of a fellow as blackmail.
Walter’s anger right now is aimed at the injustices made towards himself for the entirety of his life.
As much as Jonathan is also- angry, right now, and he’s also angry because he can’t find a better word- his own feelings cannot even hope to triumph over Walter’s determination.
Jonathan wants to ask if they’re still friends. But the steeling cold gaze Walter shoots him when the lawful Samurai chastises him for not wanting to fight Lilith- it surfaces every time the question dances around his tongue, and he decides to shut up.
The answer was obvious, anyway, right? To anyone with half a brain?
Jonathan was never very smart. And Walter is quick to tell him that, when they are out of earshot from the other two- and it’s the last thing he says before walking to the Barracks to pack his things, and Jonathan just clenches his fist and stares wordlessly at the door.
An anger strong enough to disobey the will of the archangels is still not strong enough to make Jonathan hate him again, though.
~*~
Flynn is missing.
They have all been missing for far, far too long, and while they were missing things just happened and events spiraled out of anyone’s control. Demons pouring out of Tokyo like a flood of massacre; angels stationing themselves at the Eastern Kingdom of Mikado, as if they’ve always been there.
She wonders if they have been caught in the crossfire, and checks Tsukiji Hongwanji- all she sees are dead Gaeans and Ashura-Kai, and she begs to God she will not see a blue coat amongst the corpses.
She doesn’t, but it’s not much comfort.
Isabeau checks every nook and cranny- Ueno? No? What about Shinjuku? Shibuya? None of the underground districts? Then what about the Counter-Demon Force Base-
Angels and demons are everywhere every step she takes and she’s so sick of them, but it just worries her more- where is Flynn? Knowing him, shouldn’t he be fighting? Then where is he? She should- be looking for all of them, not just Flynn-
The terminal teleportation takes an excruciatingly long time.
~*~
Walter is alive.
Jonathan walks through both of the wastelands, and finds none of them anywhere near appealing. He’d rather live in a lifeless desert than a fiery warzone, when it came down to it, but neither of them breathed with the same life Tokyo and Mikado in their own universe did.
The people were different, too; the ones in Blasted Tokyo had hoarse voices and dying lungs, with sluggish steps and eyes that never meet with theirs under thick gas masks.
Demonoids and neurishers were both equally dead; while their roughhousing antics might seem lively, their half-gone humanity and blind pursuit for strength guises them as less than human to Jonathan. Neurishers were the weak, the ones punished by a society they did not choose; they live feebly off memories from days long gone and survive in a state he would not wish on anyone.
Even Kiyoharu seemed to have all his living days behind him, as innocent and cheerful as he sounded. Akira- both of them, actually- are the most alive natives of the universes, but at the same time both look like they’ve gone through hell and back. (They probably did.) They had a falter in their steps, and the three Samurai possess some quality that just made them stand out.
Flynn is somewhat of the de facto leader, and when he’s taken up by something else the two just sit in a corner of the bar, where the least amount of Demonoids would bother them.
They’ve yelled at each other enough in Blasted Tokyo, till the sand they stepped on made its way to their lungs and Walter was reduced to a coughing fit when too much of the poison entered him at once (which, in turn, completely distracted Jonathan from screaming at him further and just making sure he was okay). They just sat near each other, trying to find something to talk about but finding none.
Walter- Walter has stopped with his habit of scrapping shoes against the floor, or tapping his fingers during silence, as if he’s always caught up by something in his head. He’s never too bored or has too much energy, causing him to fidget- he’s still, yet on the verge of making something happen or just waiting for it.
He’s still alive, but obviously he’s changed from the person Jonathan thought was oddly kind.
His shoulder is pressing against Walter’s slightly, but neither party seem to mind. It was nice, to have someone else still alive- but Jonathan was also naïve enough, to think that perhaps their friendship could still go back to normal.
Still, though, they surround themselves in something of an awkward silence while the noise erupts around them.
“…I am sorry for all of this,” Walter says out of nowhere.
Jonathan turns around, wanting to lick up the apology like a thirsty cat, thank the lord you finally apologized for causing so much trou- but instead, he just ate up his words and followed his instinct on what to say, instead. That’s what Walter would do- Walter, who is now apologizing for doing what he wants, which is something Jonathan would do.
“It’s fine,” he replies- genuinely. “Though, I would appreciate if we do make it out of this alive.”
Walter laughs a bit, and leans back against Jonathan. “Well, I’ll make sure neither you or Flynn die here.”
“Same to you.”
~*~
Flynn is amazing.
Well-! She’ll never say it to his face, but… he’s alive, and apparently he’s the reincarnation of someone? Details are important and all, but it’s the elation right now that takes the cake.
“Finally, the choice that I have been longing for…!”
Unfortunately, there’s still something they need to do. But as dismayed as may sound, she believes Flynn can do it- because he’s strong enough to carve out his own path from the wills of others. That’s great, and… she’s been meaning to do that, she realizes now. If Flynn hadn’t come in, she’d still be lost, most likely.
“Wait, Flynn!” She yells, and stops the white Samurai in his tracks. “I want to tell you something, before you go on another Challenge Quest.”
The weight of the last manga volume tugs on her bag, and she smiles.
“Thank you.”
At first, there’s a ghost of a smile on Flynn’s lips, and then there’s a real one.
He says ‘thank you’ in return, which is a lot, because whenever Flynn says something he most likely means it.
~*~
…
…
…
Walter is terrifying.
“He is the child of carnage, as the Black Samurai- or, rather, Lilith audaciously claims,” Gabriel explains, her face contorted to something of a snarl. “The Demon Lord shall most likely make use of him as a way towards his own means.”
“What do you mean, use…?” Jonathan is almost scared to ask, and the Archangels look just as reluctant to answer.
Michael speaks. “We are not sure of the Demon Lord’s schemes. All we know is that the son of man you know as Walter can no longer reach salvation.”
It’s cutting, to have the person you were hoping to be friends with again deemed unsalvageable. (Jonathan was glad Walter was alive; now, does he wish that Walter was dead so he didn’t have to face this?)
“However, we must focus on the matter at hand…”
Focus on the matter at hand… Jonathan realizes why Walter likes to look away from the past. It so easily distracts you from what is important right now.
(But what is important right now?)
“…to form Lord’s Chariot, Merkabah,” Uriel finishes, and Jonathan nods. “However, fusion for a son of man such yourself is akin to death.”
Well, I’ll make sure neither you or Flynn die here.
It’s true. Walter kept his word- none of them died in Infernal Tokyo.
It doesn’t do much to ease the fear of death, but Jonathan reassures himself in his head that- it was all for the better, for the good of mankind, and it would bring forth eternal peace and end suffering-
Jonathan questions- right before he dies, still thinking of whatever happened to Walter and the chaotic Samurai’s own goals- is this what mankind really wants?
(By finally learning how to question, Merkabah is noticeably weaker than what he should have been, if he was fused with one full of faith. Walter would have been proud.)
~*~
Flynn is kind.
Isabeau can’t really find a specific word for him, so she’ll just leave it at that; Flynn is kind. Also one-of-a-kind, truly, since his last reincarnation set up the ceiling and now he’s taking it away.
They’re both a bit taken aback when the light first spills into Tokyo, but the temporary burst of brightness and accompanying half-blindness causes her to instinctively reach out to grab something, and it happens to be Flynn.
He doesn’t do anything to stop her- because he’s kind, Isabeau really doesn’t have any better word- and their eyes get used to the light, with Flynn shaking his head as though he’s seen a ghost.
“Flynn? What’s the matter?”
The white Samurai only looks down to his Gauntlet, and tentatively asks- “Burroughs?”
The AI (?) giggles, something Isabeau hasn’t heard before. “Well, you two waited, but at least you have your happy ending.”