Chapter Text
Well damn, there go your plans for the day, but at least you found a job! That's something to be proud of.
Baby steps…
You shake your head as you step outside of the Sugar Spoon cafe. Baby steps are better than nothing.
As for what to do with the rest of your day…you could stop by the Nest once again to look for Ezekiel and then after that you could head to Rafayel's art exhibit – maybe get that painting of your mom from him.
Hopefully you wouldn't have to use your Evol again. You were still feeling a little lethargic from the last usage. Your gaze drifts down to your hand and you flex it into a fist, watching the red and black energy crackle and swirl across your knuckles.
This had to be Sylus's Evol. But you're not exactly sure if you stole it from him or if it's just being borrowed for a short time. You hope for the latter, considering if you actually stole Sylus's Evol…he might kill you.
Let's say you borrowed it.
Yeah. That would ease your mind, even just a little bit.
Think of it like…Rogue from X-Men. You borrow powers with a single touch.
You could probably try it out on Rafayel later.
Shaking yourself from your thoughts, you begin to look around at all the people walking around Azure Square, the hoard of them waiting outside Philo for bouquets…
You fix your mask over your nose and start your short walk over to The Nest. Thankfully Azure Square was akin to an outlet mall, everything was close by and basically modeled around the picturesque water fountain in the center.
The bell above the door chimes as you step inside and you make your way over to the bar, getting comfortable on one of the plush barstools.
As you drum your fingertips against the marbled counter, a bartender makes his way over to you, “Would you – “
“Two red wines.” You hear a voice from behind you, your shoulders tensing up at how familiar the deep voice sounds, but you refuse to turn around.
…Maybe if you just ignore him, he'll go away…
“Are you trying to ignore me, sweetie?” You felt a light tapping on your shoulder and clear your throat, “Of course not, Carrion. I'd never ignore you. But I did hope you'd leave me alone…” You turn your head to look at the man behind you, giving him a once over before you sigh.
“Are you upset because I – “
“Because you ignored me? Only an insecure man would be upset over that.” Sylus crosses his arms over his chest and – while he may be hot, if he cuts you off one more time…
“I was going to say for borrowing your Evol.” You hum, lazily lifting your finger up in the air. A dark energy swirls around your finger before it wraps around his tie, yanking his body toward you until his chest is pressed against your back. “But…only an insecure man would be upset over that.” You throw his words back at him as the two wine glasses are set down in front of you.
You feel his breath against your ear as he scoffs, “Oh? So this is what you can do?” He muses, brushing the energy away from him as he takes a seat next to you at the bar. “Well isn't that intriguing…” His fingers rap against the marbled counter before he lifts his glass up, swirling the crimson liquid in a circular motion. Then, he tilts his head back, emptying the glass all at once.
As much as you'd love to have your drink…The mask stays on.
“Drink mine too.” You jerk your head in the direction of your glass. “I'm looking for someone, can't afford to drink and miss them, ya know?” When you lock eyes with Sylus, you swear you saw his right eye glow, but you quickly look away before anything can happen.
“Hmm…” Sylus tsks. “Who caught your eye? They can't be any better than me, that's for sure.” He leans forward, resting his elbow on the table and his chin in his palm.
“I'm not looking for anyone like that.” You shake your head, however you almost fall out of your seat as another person enters the bar.
Silver hair…blue eyes…
Nope.
No.
You quickly turn back to face the bar, clearing your throat and deciding to use Sylus if he's offering. “I'm looking for Ezekiel. I was told he spends most of his time here, drinking.”
“The washed up hunter?” Sylus nods his head, his gaze drifts from Xavier and then back to you. “He caused quite the stir a few months ago, so he might be a bit harder to find.”
“Huh?” You tilt your head to the side, brows knitting together. “What happened?”
“He ran up to a famous hunter in tears, claiming she was his daughter.” The white haired man shrugs. “But then after she spoke, he left. So everyone just assumes he's going a bit crazy. You still sure you want to find him?”
Gemini.
He must've seen her…You felt your chest tightening as your gaze drifts to the floor. You could only imagine the pain of seeing someone who looks like your daughter, only for it not to be her. Especially a man who has been grieving for both his wife and daughter for over twenty years.
You clear your throat and firmly nod your head, “Of course I'm sure. That's my dad, I can't just…”
“Back corner of the room.” Sylus jerks his chin in the direction he barked out. “All alone, drinking. It's sad, really.”
But before you can walk away, you feel his fingertips brush against your shoulder. “I'd be careful saying you're his daughter, though. Y/n is trouble and, if you look like her, that's also trouble for you.”
Hmm…since Sylus is offering up information like that… “I may look like her, but we’re two entirely different people, trust me. The trouble that’s after her would be disappointed to find me instead.” It’s definitely not a lie. Anyone from Ever or the other love interests would be disappointed to find you instead. You don’t have an Aether Core nor do you have a Resonance Evol. “But before I go…” You spin back around to grab Sylus’s hand, smiling with your eyes as you speak, “If you don’t mind, I’ll be borrowing your Evol for a little bit longer.”
Then, you turn your head back to the corner of the room. Eyes set on the man seated on a bar stool, throwing back glasses of rum and coke. You throw your hand up as you walk away from Sylus and make your way over to Ezekiel - your father. You take a seat next to him at the bar, gently tapping the marbled counter with your fingers.
You brush aside the thought that Xavier, or even Sylus, could see you and you tug down your mask under your chin. Then, you clear your throat, suddenly feeling a bit nervous. You take a deep breath and lightly tap his shoulder. “Excuse me…” When he finally looks toward you, you give him a tiny wave, “Hey…”
“Look, I don’t - “ Ezekiel pauses, squinting his eyes at you as he wonders if maybe he did drink too much tonight. A groan slips from his lips and he rubs his eyes. “I think I drank too much…”
“Does this look familiar to you?” You take the polaroid out of your wallet and slide it over to him. “I’m honestly just as confused as you are.” You nervously chew on your bottom lip and decide to order yourself something sweet to drink since this is the longest you’ve left your mask down all day. “Are you really…?” He has a hopeful look on his face and the smallest of smiles tugs at his lips, “How’s M/n (Mom’s name) doing?”
His question really tugs at your heartstrings, because it’s the very first thing he asks. The first thing he worries about is your mother. A small smile tugs at your lips and you lightly shake your head, “She doesn’t really talk about it with me. She never remarried, she always seemed a bit sad, but I assumed it was because you were dead…Not separated like this. How did this even happen?”
No, seriously. That was an important question. You were so confused how this game world was somehow real and even how your mother got here. You assume it has something to do with your necklace, the reality stone or whatever it was called, but you’re still not sure of the logistics of it all.
“Your mother didn’t know much about it either. Though, she knew more than you since she told me it could only transport two people between realities. I did some more research after she was gone and I found that it’s supposed to help people find their soulmates no matter where they are.” Ezekiel says, but his voice is filled with confusion. Even he doesn’t fully understand it.
“Then, why didn’t she go back with you?” You ask, your hand subconsciously reaching up to grab the necklace that was under your shirt. “She was pregnant with you.” He sighs, running his index finger around the rim of his cup, “We were going to stay here and raise you in Linkon, but when a Deepspace Tunnel opened up in our home…All I could think about was keeping you both safe, so I told her to leave without me.”
“And…do you know why there’s another me running around because that’s really freaking me out.” It was a lot to take in, honestly. The fact that Linkon, that this universe, was the one you were supposed to be born in and that your mother had to be separated from her love to keep you both safe.
“Well…The only idea I have is, since your mother was pregnant with you when she left, the universe created another you to make up for the fact that you left, but the universe couldn’t make you both identical since they had no idea what you would look like and that’s how she came to be.” Ezekiel rubs his temples as if he felt a headache coming on. “I’m not entirely sure, and it’s dizzying to think about.”
That made the most sense to you as well. If you were supposed to be born here, you were already written in this universe, so it makes sense to create another you since you’re not here. But were you really that important to this world to where they needed to make a second you? But also if this stone sent you to a universe where your soulmate would be…That means your grandma really was engaged to a crown prince in another universe, and that you would find your own soulmate here. You’d bet your right arm that you were also the first in your family to be sent to the same universe as your parent, because that’s also a weird coincidence. What was so important in Linkon that two generations of your family were sent here?
“Well, good thing I still have the stone.” You’re thankful you haven’t taken it off and lost it, but you shouldn’t count your chickens before they hatch. “Oh, actually! Do you want to head to Azure Square with me and pick up a painting of Mom?” You unlock your phone to shoot a text to Rafayel about meeting up to collect the canvas.
You; “Hey! This is Comet from the Nest. Could I pick up that painting today in Azure Square?”
Rafayel; “?!”
“duh! U can pick it up today”
“my showcase is today but i can always sneak out for U”
Oh shoot, you forgot Auntie Taryn mentioned he had a showcase today. You pondered the idea of going in to pick it up, but there was always a risk of running into Gemini…
You; “It’s fine! I can always pick it up tomorrow, I don’t want to bother you”
Rafayel; “dun worry about it”
“U could never bother me”
“ill b out in a sec, gotta sneak away from thomas”
You put your phone back into your pocket and pull your mask up over your nose. “We’re good! He should be able to meet us in Azure Square in a few.” Ezekiel pauses for a moment, finally taking in what you said. “Wait, you mean the painting of your mother I had commissioned a few years ago from Rafayel? You have that artist’s number? How long have you been here again?” He raises a brow, suddenly feeling really worried about his daughter. You’ve only been here for a day or two and you’re already close enough with a famous artist that he’s willing to run out of his exhibit to run an errand for you?
“It’s not like that, Dad.” You lightly shove his shoulder with a small laugh. “I sold some of grandma’s antique coins to him in exchange for her painting.” You decide to leave out the fact that you also met the leader of Onychinus, because he’d probably have a heart attack on the spot. The two of you stand up and get ready to walk out of the Nest, but you feel someone catch you by the wrist.
You immediately tense up, feeling the now familiar energy swirling around your palm as you get ready to fight whoever grabbed you, but when you turn your head, you freeze.
Why the hell was Xavier stopping you? And why did he have that look on his face? That one sickeningly adorable expression that reminded you of a kicked puppy.