Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

 According to the clock, it was 3AM. The moon stared through the large windows, a cold pale light barely illuminating the hospital chamber where Sunny lay. So much had happened the past three days. Between the perpetual white noise in his mind and the beeps of the hospital environment, Sunny couldn’t concentrate on how he’d ended up here. Sunny scanned the infirmary, taking care to not strain himself in the process. He’d been stabbed last night, his right eye impaled by an arrow of some kind, and the lingering pain made even turning his head strenuous.

It was hard to identify in the dim environment, but Sunny could vaguely make out the various flower pots that surrounded him. Donations, perhaps, but Sunny wasn’t sure who they could be from. A few paintings lined that wall, still life pictures with pleasing aesthetic but seemingly no real purpose. There were a variety of medical cabinets, atop them rested neatly arranged surgical tools and rolls of bandages. Nothing seemed particularly out of the ordinary, at least given the circumstances… besides the pale boy sitting in the corner.
 Sunny recognized the boy instantly, even though the room was dim. It was impossible. OMORI was just a figment of Sunny’s imagination, an alter ego in his dreams. Yet there he was, lounging in an armchair, staring deep into Sunny’s soul. Sunny’s breathing quickened, a bead of sweat running down his face. No, no, no this wasn’t possible. OMORI had been defeated. Sunny had overpowered him, expended every drop of his willpower to banish this unfeeling, nightmarish simulacra of himself. Even when Sunny had been under OMORI’s thumb, he’d never managed to breach into the real world… How could he be here?! Sunny wanted to scream, but no noise came out. He wanted to run, but his legs wouldn’t respond. He wanted to cry, but no tears came. His one eye widened, panic enveloping him, Sunny could do nothing but stare into the glowing red gaze of the demon before him.

Years passed in the time Sunny stared down his other self, but after a second OMORI just looked away; his expression betraying nothing. As OMORI’s red eyes faded to black, Sunny’s breathing returned to normal and his heartbeat settled. All that fear, all that terror, it stung at the back of his mind. But on the conscious level, Sunny could hear a little friendly voice compelling him, telling him everything was going to be ok. With no other choice, he trusted his instincts when they issued an urgent command; Sleep.
 He fell back into his mattress, and slipped away into a dreamless darkness.

…

When Sunny woke up, the dim and oppressive moonlight had been replaced with the warm vibrance of day. OMORI was gone, and Sunny could finally make out the flowers surrounding him better. There were lilies of the valley, white egret orchids, even a flowering cactus. A few others Sunny couldn’t identify, but he knew Basil could tell him once they were reunited. Each potted plant came with a letter from someone he’d helped over the past few days.
“Thank you for tutoring Brent!” scrawled the letter attached to some vibrant roses. Vance’s dad had sent a towering water lily, attaching the letter “Finally got my leaky pipe fixed. Thanks for the support.” The ever perplexing cactus came with the note “A friend of Aubrey’s is a friend of ours,” marking it as the donation of the hooligans. Every letter he read brightened his mood a little bit, a small smile spread across his face. He had given back. He wasn’t just the boy who ruined everything, hiding away and deserving nothing. And now it was time to come clean.

Sunny shuffled over to the infirmary door, careful not to fall onto the hard tile below. He was still recovering from his eye injury, no sense in taking unnecessary risks if he didn’t have to. Ethereal flowering growths of an unknown source guided Sunny’s way, and even though Sunny knew they were merely hallucinations he somehow felt compelled to keep following; a feeling deep inside him knew that they would take him where he needed to be. Maybe his subconscious knew where his friends were. Maybe Sunny was just guessing. He hadn’t seen any medical staff around, so it wasn’t like he could ask where to go.

Eventually, the flowering vines snaked their way under one of the doors and into room 143. Sunny made his way over, pressing his ear against the door to see if he could hear his friends inside. Kel and Aubrey’s voices confirmed his suspicions, and Sunny gently opened the door and stepped in. He saw his friends, who went silent as he entered. He saw the apparatus monitoring Basil’s condition; Steady, good. Then he saw Basil.
Basil was asleep and breathing slowly, his eyes shut but tense. He wore a patient’s gown and a flower crown much like the one he wore in Headspace. The vines which ensnared the facility’s halls converged on Basil’s crown, and strangely no one else seemed to acknowledge that they were there. Kel, Hero, and Aubrey stood over Basil’s sleeping form with concerned expressions, seemingly oblivious to the spectral garden all around them.

Kel was the first to speak, “Hey Sunny, good to see you’re awake.” Kel’s voice was somber and tired, Sunny wondered if he’d slept at all last night. Aubrey gave him a slight nod, similarly solemn. 

Hero, on the other hand, spoke with a level of conviction, “Sunny, we’d like to know what happened last night.” His voice was still soft, but scolding. Like a parent. Sunny took a deep breath in…

“I have something I have to tell you all.”

The air hung in silence, an eternity passed as Sunny let the truth out.

“It was me. I killed Mari. I was… frustrated, and she was yelling at me. I’d lost all passion in playing the violin, and with the recital upcoming… We were both so angry.”

Sunny’s knees gave out, and he slumped to the floor with his gaze averted. His full confession came out between choking sobs, but still he pressed on. They deserved to know. Kel seemed confused, Aubrey distressed. Hero wondered if this was some kind of sick joke… but…

“In a moment of rage, I pushed her down the stairs. Basil… he saw what happened… and he suggested hanging the body to protect me…”

Tears flowed down Sunny’s cheeks like a waterfall, blurring his vision and stinging against his missing eye. His hands were pressed against the cold tile floor, harsh and unforgiving. No one else moved. Their collective silence was devastating.

“My dad… he figured out what happened pretty quickly… he left. Mom chose to shelter me, but would barely acknowledge my existence. I’d taken away both their children in one night… and in a desperate gambit I repressed my memories. I hid away, from all of you, for four years… hating myself and not knowing why.”

His friends, if that’s what they were still, just stood frozen as Sunny’s words sunk in. They didn’t know what to think. Hero’s face twinged with fury.

“Last night, Basil unlocked my memories. He was… trying to protect me… but I couldn’t bear to remember. We fought… and… I- I’m sorry… I’m so… so… sorry…”

Sunny couldn’t make himself look up at his friends. He’d laid his soul bare in front of them, and it was now up to them to make the judgment call. For a brief second, Sunny thought he heard Basil crying, even though Basil wasn’t awake to hear his confession.

Kel was the first to react. He slowly walked over to Sunny, crouching down next to him and putting his hand on Sunny’s shoulder. 

“I spent four years worrying about you,” Kel murmured, “I knew something deeper had happened… instinctually, I guess… but I never would have imagined…”

Kel stood up, holding his hand out for Sunny to take. Sunny looked up and limply took hold.

“You’ve tortured yourself enough,” Kel stated, “I don’t know whether I forgive you yet, but I know you’re my friend. Even if it takes you your whole life to repent, I’m willing to give you that chance.”

As Kel lifted Sunny from rock bottom, a flicker of hope soared through his chest. The spark was ruthlessly crushed by a voice from the back of the room.

“No,” Hero proclaimed, “I won’t accept this.”

Hero was shaking with anger, his expression cold as ice. Sunny could tell he was barely holding himself together. His tone was steady, but his eyes expressed a deep, deep betrayal. Sunny’s sincerity had only made the gut punch deeper.

“Kel, Aubrey, we’re leaving,” Hero proclaimed, “If you don’t want to join me you can walk home.”

Hero left without another word. Aubrey hesitated, taking a long sorrowful look at Sunny, but ultimately followed after Hero. Only Kel remained steadfast.

Sunny slowly stood, looking Kel in the eyes. Sunny’s shoulders slumped as the door clicked shut. The silence spoke so much louder than Hero had, but even so this was a better outcome than he’d expected. Kel was still here. Sunny whispered a brief thank you to his remaining friend, who simply responded “I’m going to go now too, but no matter what I have your back… Basil’s too.”

Kel walked away, briefly looking back as he left. The hospital door swung shut with a metal click, and then… Sunny was alone again. His gaze fell upon Basil and his crown. If Basil were awake, he’d probably say something about how everything was going to be ok, he’d be here to comfort Sunny. But for now, he was off in the world of dreams, and Sunny was left with the world holding its breath.

Sunny mirthlessly wondered whether Basil’s sleep was more peaceful than his own.

…

 Basil was dreaming. Every night since the arrow had chosen him two years ago, Basil had dreamt the same dream, over and over, ad infinitum. He was floating, floating in the depths of space. The stars interlocked and weaved, twisting vines enveloping all the cosmos. Thorns made of nebulas, supernova flowers. At the center of it all, Basil simply drifted, awestruck by the majesty of it all, but terrified. Basil observed the stellar cosmos in his dreams, and his dreams observed back.
Bright light was flooding the room when Basil woke up, his Stand weaving through the chamber. Twisted Garden, he called it, a manifestation of his spirit and will. The ghostly, flowering vines had spread throughout the room, feeding off of the sunlight filtering into the small chamber. Basil found his stand to be peaceful, his own personal garden. Even still, anxieties crept into his mind. What had happened to Sunny last night? The arrow had chosen Sunny too, that much Basil was certain, but everything after that seemed… foggy…

White noise engulfed his mind as he tried to recall yesterday’s events, his thoughts drifting to the arrow…

Two years ago, Basil had been sitting by Mari’s grave. Dark clouds blocked out the sun, rain pouring down from the inky blackness above. He hadn’t brought a jacket and was soaking wet, but at that moment he had been too numb to care. Lost in his thoughts, he laid down in the mud and wished something… anything at all… could take away the pain. At least the clouds obscured the heavens, blocking out Mari’s judgment. 
Footsteps approached behind him, the sound of crunching grass and the squishing mud alerting Basil to the newcomer. He didn’t react. 

“Mari Suzuki, the sun shined brighter when she was here,” a deep voice spoke softly, “Whoever she is, I’m sure she appreciates the company.”

Basil turned his head to look up at the stranger, a tall man in a long black coat. He had short, brown hair and his bright purple eyes shone out from behind large circular glasses. Most strikingly was the man’s expression, solemnly staring out into the distance. He seemed empathetic, understanding. Basil simply looked back and ignored him, he didn’t know who this newcomer was and frankly he didn’t care.
‘She appreciates the company.’ Ha. Basil miserably considered what the man might say if he knew the truth. There was no redemption for what he’d done.

The man continued, undeterred by Basil’s silence, “You know, I’m sure she wouldn’t want you suffering on her behalf.”

“I’m not suffering,” Basil bitterly retorted. A bold faced lie, and he knew it, but maybe it would make the man leave him to his solitude. The only one he wished to be there was Sunny, but Sunny had left a long time ago. This was Basil’s cross to bear now. 

“No one visits a grave site because they want to,” the man replied, “and no one visits during a storm unless they feel they owe some kind of penitence.” 

The constant downpour was the only sound while the man’s words sunk in, a harsh truth that resonated through Basil’s psyche. Basil looked back over to Mari’s tombstone, guilt behind his piercing blue eyes. 

“I won’t pry. Your reasons are your own.”

As the man left, Basil collapsed into the mud, his own tears augmenting the rain.

The next time Basil went to visit the graveyard, he saw that the man was there already. He kneeled by another tombstone, the name engraved on the tombstone was ‘Eva Tau,’ alongside a star. She’d died only a few months ago, if the grave was anything to go off of. Slowly, Basil walked over to the man.

The man wore the same somber face he had the other day, sorrow augmenting his features. In his right hand he held a bouquet of red poppies, in his left a slim golden arrow embellished with an ornate design. At the time, Basil had found it to be incredibly strange, but now he understood why the man had brought it there.

The two got to talking, coming to a mutual understanding. The man’s name, as Basil came to find out, was Chris Tau. He was 23 years old, a low level bank teller from the city who had been roped into some rough places through no fault of his own. Eva had been his sister, and when some unsavory people had come to collect a debt of his she’d taken the hit. Basil could tell that he’d omitted a lot of the story, but he couldn’t judge. Basil omitted a lot of his story too. The two would continue to have chance encounters over the next month, until eventually Chris revealed something that changed the trajectory of Basil’s life forever.

“Basil, I have a gift for you, something that used to belong to my sister,” Basil recalled Chris saying, “I know you seek a better life, and I think this will give you a chance at it.”
Chris had then handed Basil the arrow he’d been carrying at the graveyard, what Basil now knew to be a Stand Arrow. With no explanation, Chris slowly left, leaving a confused Basil behind. This act of kindness would turn out to be Chris’ last, at least to Basil’s knowledge. He’d never seen Chris since.

As Basil remembered Chris, he found himself praying for Chris and Sunny’s safety. And as he prayed, he felt as though Twisted Garden prayed with him.

…

As the fog in his mind cleared, Basil realized that Sunny was kneeling by his bed. He appeared to be in good health, besides his standard emotional distance, and Basil was relieved to see a mysterious figure standing beside him. Sunny’s Stand had been activated. The arrow had worked, at least partially. Now to see if the Stand would do what it was meant to. 

“Hey Sunny,” Basil said. The doctors had said it may take a few weeks for him to recover. With the power of his Stand, Twisted Garden, hopefully it would only be a few days. Regardless, the persisting weakness from his injuries had not yet vacated his body, leaving his voice weak and hoarse. Sunny simply nodded, silently.

“I’m sorry about stabbing you,” Basil continued, “I promise it’ll all make sense soon, but…”

Sunny’s expression was unreadable as he interrupted with a curt, “It’s fine.”

There was a silent pause, a moment of mutual awkwardness as Basil and Sunny locked eyes. Knowing he was responsible for Sunny's eyepatch made Sunny’s one eyed stare all the more discomforting.

Breaking eye contact, Basil asked, “So, how’s our friends doing?”

“I told them the truth.”

Basil bolted upright, his expression terrified and confused, “You did WHAT?” Basil could feel his heart jump out of his chest, before taking a moment to recompose himself and nervously inquiring “So, uh, h-how’d they take it?”

“I… I’m not sure. Kel was understanding, but Hero…,” Sunny somberly replied, “I don’t think Hero is going to forgive us anytime soon.”

“And Aubrey…?”

Sunny shrugged, unsure. It was relieving, knowing the truth was finally out. Basil felt he didn’t need to hide in terror from the world anymore. Sure, Hero and Aubrey would need some time to process, but Kel had given them a chance. That had to count for something, right? 
This did mean that stabbing Sunny with the arrow had been completely pointless, however. If Basil had just trusted Sunny a bit more, he wouldn’t have taken his best friend's eye out in a desperate gambit. Chris had given him a second chance when he’d bestowed Basil the arrow, and he’d screwed it up. Just like he screwed up everything else. 

Not knowing what else to do, Basil attempted to strike up a conversation.

“So, uh, what’d you name your Stand?”

Sunny gave a perplexed look, “Stand?”

“Y-Yeah, your Stand. The monochrome guy behind you,” Basil tried to sound authoritative despite his weakened state, “Mine’s the flowering vines filling the room, I named it Twisted G-”

Interrupting Basil mid-sentence, Sunny looked behind him and saw OMORI. He jumped back a bit and yelped, “You can see him?!”

“Y-Yeah..?”

Sunny made a face that was simultaneously terrified and bewildered. Oh boy. Basil took a deep breath…

“Sunny, that apparition is what’s known as a Stand…”

Basil proceeded to explain the basics of what a Stand is, how Sunny got it from the arrow, and his understanding of the rules. Sunny merely nodded thoughtfully to all this, but by Basil’s reckoning only absorbed about half of what he’d been told. Calling Stand mechanics complicated was an understatement, so Basil could hardly blame Sunny if he struggled to keep up. Regardless, the key information was out there now; if it ever came up later Basil could just remind him.
Following the long winded explanation, Basil felt a warm catharsis flow through his veins. The truth was out there. Sunny had successfully awakened his Stand, they could preserve the arrow together and use their newfound power to do some good in the world. Repentance wouldn’t be easy, but now that the first step was over the next would come more naturally. After four years of purgatory, things were finally looking up.

…

“Thank you, Polly,” Hero said, his voice warm and practiced as he stepped into the foyer of Basil’s home. He smiled, something he’d expertly relearned to do over the past four years. To Polly, it would look completely sincere. She wouldn’t notice the underlying tension in his facial muscles, the way he stood eerily still. Polly smiled back, oblivious to Hero’s true reasons for being here, “You’re always welcome around here!”
His explanation for dropping by had been fairly simple, he was here to pick up some things for Basil while he was still in the hospital. Simple, and effective. In addition to sounding like a caring gesture, it also justified Hero carrying in a medium sized duffel bag.

As Hero walked down the corridor to Basil’s room, he recalled the sounds of Basil and Sunny’s screams; the loud thud of Sunny’s unconscious body hitting the floor. He’d been the first one to hear them fighting, the first one to enter the room and see a terrified Basil clutching an ornate arrow covered in Sunny’s blood. As he saw Hero enter, so too had Basil fallen to the ground, his own chest soaked from the damages he’d sustained. The atmosphere of the room had been crushing, and after Sunny’s confession Hero now understood why. He grimaced as he approached Basil’s room, remembering his mission. 

For so long, Hero had hated himself. He’d hated that he hadn’t loved Mari enough, that he’d been unable to prevent her from taking her own life. For so long, he’d believed that he wasn’t enough to save her. Even just thinking about it was enough to make his hands shake, but now Sunny had revealed that all that pain was for nothing. For that, Hero wanted righteous vengeance. 
Basil’s ornate arrow, a Stand Arrow as Hero knew, was shorter and slimmer than in the diagrams Hero had seen. Last night he’d hidden it in Basil’s sock drawer alongside its sister artifact, an equally ornate crossbow, to keep it safe for when Basil recovered… but now he realized he wouldn’t be giving it back. Fate had given him a chance like no other. Basil wasn’t worthy of having such a relic anyways, Hero thought to himself. Hero smirked as he opened the drawer, eager to retrieve his destined weapons, but quickly slammed it shut as he heard Polly’s footsteps approaching.

“Is everything okay in there?” Polly inquired as she peaked into the room. By the time she arrived, Hero had already scrambled to appear as though he’d been nonchalantly scanning through Basil’s sprouts. Slightly rattled, Hero did his best to sincerely reply, “Everything’s fine, just the dresser’s cabinets.”

“Ah, well, good to hear. I was just wondering if you’d like any refreshments while you’re here,” Polly replied, relieved to hear Hero hadn’t become the third person injured in Basil’s room this week. Hero, internally wishing Polly would leave him to his mission, gave an outwardly warm, “No, thank you.”

Polly nodded, then retreated back to her work. Once Hero was sure she was gone, he quickly went back to the drawer and confiscated the weapons, taking care to listen closely to Polly’s movements. That had been close, too close. With that out of the way, Hero was finally able to get a good look at his tool of justice, a genuine Stand Arrow loaded into a light crossbow. He quietly packed them away into his bags and made his way outside, making sure to thank Polly for her hospitality on the way out. She would be none the wiser.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

The room was dark, the windows drawn. A single line of dusty light filtered in through a gap in the curtains, illuminating the ancient stone mask that Aubrey kept on her drawer. The darkness didn’t bother Aubrey as she sat on her bed, gently petting Bun Bun and contemplating the mess that defined her life. She felt angry, so angry, and yet she found she wasn’t sure at what. Sunny seemed an obvious choice, whether deliberate or not he was responsible for shattering the friend group, but she found she couldn’t bring herself to hate him. Basil was another obvious choice, the boy behind the cover up that defined the last four years of her life. He’d caused her so much pain, but when Aubrey reflected on what she’d done… ostracizing Basil, encouraging her friends to start calling him a creep, if anything she was the one who owed him an apology. Her dad had left her, her neglectful mother drank herself catatonic, but Aubrey still couldn’t bring herself to resent any of them. She’d done too much of that already.
Her own words echoed back to her, something she’d yelled in anger when Kel confronted her in church, ‘Who cares what Mari thinks? Mari’s dead.’ Kel had been right. Mari would be disappointed in her. Aubrey collapsed backwards into her mattress, her hands releasing Bun Bun to roam the comforter.
She recalled how silent Hero had been on the drive home, a grim seriousness shaping his posture and expression. Kel had been solemn and contemplative, there were a few times he would begin to speak. She’d wished he would cut the tension with his optimism or say something charmingly goofy, but he never seemed to find the words. Even though they were all together in the car, the emptiness kept them thousands of miles apart.
Aubrey may not have been angry at Sunny, but the boiling rage inside her still didn’t subside. Kel’s words from when Sunny had confessed returned to her, “I don’t know if I forgive you yet, but I do know we’re still friends.” Were they?
And so she sat, and dwelled on her thoughts, interrupted only when she heard her phone vibrate in her pocket. A message from Hero. No greetings, no frills, simply:

“I have an opportunity for you.”

…

After a week in recovery, Basil and Sunny were released from the hospital. Once Sunny had given his confession, he’d been adamant about contacting the police and owning up for his crimes, so Sunny would be staying in Faraway while he waited for his court date. His house had already been sold, so he’d be a guest at Basil’s for the time being. Basil didn’t mind, he enjoyed Sunny’s company. Sunny hadn’t seemed particularly keen on moving away anyways.
Sunny’s mother was busy moving in Denver, so it was Polly who was taking the boys back to the house. The drive back to Basil’s was quiet, the sounds of the road uninterrupted by conversation or activity. Despite this, it was pleasant. Sunny had a slight smile on his face as he gazed out the window, daydreaming of a future day when he’d completed his penitence. As the hospital drew away into the background, Sunny thought to himself that this was his chance to grow and spread his horizons.
The drive was fairly short, only fifteen minutes or so before Polly’s car pulled into the driveway. Sunny thanked Polly, then walked over to the door and stepped into Basil’s house… and his own home for the next few months. Bittersweet memories came back to him, watching cartoons all those years ago, Basil’s birthday party, reassembling the photo album… things would never be able to go back to how they were before. No one could go back. Resolving everything, tying all the loose ends, would no doubt take the rest of their lives. But that was all in the future. For now, Sunny had a chance to truly rest. He took a deep, content breath as he slumped down onto the couch. Closing his remaining eye, Sunny simply let himself relax.
Basil wasn’t so at ease. If Sunny was able to open the door immediately, that meant it had been left unlocked. Crime in Faraway wasn’t bad, but nevertheless caution seemed prudent. Basil crept past his resting friend on the couch, and made his way through the back of the house. Along the way, he continuously scanned for anomalies, stolen or misplaced objects, anything which could indicate an intruder. Twisted Garden coiled throughout the hallways, further testing his home’s security. Everything seemed in order until Basil stepped into his own room.

The arrow was gone.

…

Basil whipped around the corner, “SUNNY!”

Poor Sunny, who really just wanted to take a nap, slowly opened his eye just in time for Basil to pounce onto the couch and grab both his shoulders. A frantic expression plastered Basil’s face, panic inset into his movements.

“THE ARROW’S MISSING!”

“Wha- Huh?”

“The stand arrow! It’s gone!”

It took a moment for Sunny to recall what Basil was talking about, before all of the blood drained from his face. The stand arrow, an arcane artifact capable of turning people into Stand Users. From what Basil had told him, the arrow cared very little for morality, only strength. In the wrong hands, it was the perfect tool to make an army. But who could have taken it? And why? How had they even known it was here?
Basil was frantic, tearing through the house and scouring every nook and cranny for the misplaced arrow. Sunny reluctantly helped, lamenting his relaxing afternoon. The living room, the bathroom, Basil’s bedroom, the arrow didn’t turn up no matter where they looked. Polly had been in the kitchen preparing some fruits for the night’s dinner, so for a time they opted to leave her to her efforts… but now the kitchen was the only place left to check. If the arrow wasn’t in there, then it had been stolen.
As Sunny and Basil approached the kitchen, they recoiled in confusion as the refrigerator door swung open on its own and someone tumbled out gracefully. He was young, had brown hair in a pompadour, and wore a blue tank top with a double winged design on the front. Sunny quickly recognized the intruder, Angel, a hooligan and one of Aubrey’s new friends. Polly, who had been cutting an apple only a few feet away, looked down in surprise at the young boy. In a flash, Angel stood up and flared his arms out dramatically.

“Aha,” Angel proudly proclaimed, “I’m here to fight you with my incredible Stand!”

Polly had paused with her fruit cutting mid-slice to give Angel a confused stare. Basil was visibly shaking, fear and anger distilled into adrenaline coursing through his veins. Twisted Garden had already activated, creeping its way along the floor slowly. With a scream of determined fury Basil launched a barrage of Twisted Garden’s thrashing ivy, hoping to ensnare Angel before a fight could even begin, but vines never connected. One moment, Angel was standing there. The next, he was behind Basil, Twisted Garden’s vines charred black by an unseen heat.

“Too slow!” Angel taunted Basil with a sinister playfulness, “My Stand, Fiend Like Me, has boundless energy and speed! Just like me! My Master taught me well, you know.”

After the teleport, Angel’s Stand appeared in a flare of orange flames. A cloaked figure with goat horns and hair made of fire floated at Angel’s side, its eyes like beetle shells and chrome plate-like skin the color of gun metal. Sunny yelped in alarm.

“Your master?! You mean Mikhael?” Basil demanded while he spun around to punch Angel, “What’s he got to do with any of this?!”

“His name is THE MAVERICK!” Angel replied as he effortlessly back-stepped Basil’s attack, “but if you must know, nothing at all! I’ve found a much stronger, wiser mentor now!”

Sunny knew he needed to do something. He needed to conjure his Stand, trip Angel, do something, anything at all. It was all so sudden, and Sunny had to focus his energy on keeping out of their way. Basil’s fruitless assault had become relentless, a combination of vines and physical strikes rapidly, his eyes shining a brilliant crimson red. Angel simply continued warping out of the way in flashes of burning light, his smug expression only fueling Basil’s intensity. Sunny had learned a lot of new things about his friend over the past few days, but he’d never thought Basil would be capable of this level of spite.
That’s when Sunny noticed something. He had summoned his Stand. OMORI stood there, next to the couch, leaning against the wall and tracking Basil’s movements with an unbothered expression. More disconcertingly, his eyes shone with the same crimson gleam that had invaded Basil’s. Was OMORI somehow responsible for Basil’s reckless abandon? Polly was in a total panic, but Twisted Garden snatched her phone out of her hand before she could dial 911. Sunny was having a breakdown, desperately trying to get a read on his errant Stand. Basil seemed to be possessed, his wrath only driving him to attempt riskier attacks and letting openings through his guard. Angel’s smirk marked his confidence, the smile of someone who knew their victory was assured.
Then, OMORI averted his gaze from Basil. The red tinge of both their eyes faded, Basil’s usual piercing blue slowly filling with tears as he came too. Angel took advantage of the momentary confusion, Fiend Like Me landing a staggering blow to Basil’s chest. Basil gasped. His nerves felt like they were on fire. The burning sensation was almost enough to numb the pain of being knocked back square against the refrigerator, almost enough for Basil to not realize he’d slumped to the ground, his gaze blurred and sagging. Poor Polly couldn’t even see what had hit the child she’d been a caretaker to for years, but her protector’s instincts kicked in nevertheless. Quickly, she ran over to Basil and began assessing the damages.
Angel gave a curt laugh as he turned towards Sunny. Fiend Like Me’s eyes blazed bright, soulless. A bead of nervous sweat traced its way down the contours of Sunny’s face as fear froze him in place. As Angel slowly approached, Sunny came to terms with the fact that he was outmatched. His foe could control his Stand, whereas OMORI simply stood there and watched him falter. If OMORI was responsible for Basil’s earlier rage, that made him as complicit as Angel was. Just as Fiend Like Me, winded up for a punch Sunny closed his eye and took a deep breath…

The world paused. He could feel the blood in his veins, the beating of his placid heart. He could feel the air flow around him, the heat of Fiend Like Me’s approaching fire. He could sense Basil, unconscious but stable. In an instant, Sunny raised his hand to block Fiend Like Me’s oncoming assault…

As Angel yelped, Sunny opened his eye. For the first time since the intruder had broken into Basil’s home, he looked out of his depth. Sunny could see his own arm extended, hand sealed to Fiend Like Me’s wrist… and OMORI grappling with him. Calm, calculated confidence washed over Sunny as his grip strengthened like steel, and in the reflection of Angel’s eyes Sunny could see himself. That same red light Sunny had seen earlier now shone from his own eye, and even though Sunny didn’t pretend to understand what it meant he had to admit that it felt… good. Taking advantage of his position, Sunny kicked Angel in the chest before slamming Fiend Like Me to the ground and knocking both of them prone. OMORI restrained Fiend Like Me while Sunny stood over Angel defiantly.

“I’m going to let you go,” Sunny stated in a matter of fact tone, “but don't come back.”

Angel nodded emphatically, eager to comply. Using might to make right didn’t sit well with Sunny, but Angel had attacked Basil in his own home. That was unacceptable. OMORI let Fiend Like Me go, and Sunny just watched as Angel high-tailed it out of the building. Once he was gone, Sunny collapsed backwards onto the couch. A sigh escaped his lips, a wave of exhaustion overtook him. The red eyes thing OMORI did, whatever it was, evidently took a lot out of him.
Still, there was no time to rest. Polly had taken Basil to his room sometime during the scuffle, and Sunny wanted to check in on his friend immediately. They’d made the mistake of abandoning each other before, Sunny resolved to never make that mistake again.

As Sunny walked down the hall to Basil’s room, he could hear snippets of conversation up ahead. Polly’s concerned voice was hard to mistake, so too was Basil’s quiet reassurances.

“I’ll be fine, just let me rest”

Polly sounded like she was on the verge of tears, “Are you sure you don’t need an ambulance? Some tea? Anything?”

“No, but thank you. Please just… l-leave me be for now.”

Polly left the room as Sunny was entering, the two sharing worried glances with the other. Basil was laying in bed with his cardigan off, revealing the enormous red bruise where he’d been struck. Twisted Garden had already gotten to work, its vines wrapping their way around Basil’s chest and repairing the damages, but even still it was obvious the stand had its work cut out for it. Basil smiled at Sunny sheepishly.

“H-hey Sunny,” Basil stammered, “how’d it go out there?”

It was obvious that Basil was still in extreme pain. Fiend Like Me had crumpled under Sunny’s… no… OMORI’s strength, but even still Angel had hurt Basil. Sunny had let Angel hurt Basil. He was ashamed of himself.

“I managed to drive Angel off,” Sunny quietly responded, “How are you feeling?”

“I’m fine.” Basil said, clearly not fine, “It felt kind of nice just allowing myself to feel angry.” Sunny simply accepted that this was probably going to be the best answer he got.

Twisted Garden had mostly cleared up bruising by this point, and Basil sat up to look at Sunny better. Sunny could see the puffiness of his eyes, the sadness welling up inside of him.

“You know,” Basil began, “I thought that after we came clean our lives would become easier. S-silly, I know. I hadn’t really thought through the implications of what it would really mean.” He sighed, choking on his own breath halfway through, “Between your upcoming trial, our friends' silence…” Basil’s put up a faltering smile, “It’s progress. I should have known it wouldn’t be easy, but…” Despair welled up again, “now with the arrow gone too, we’ve just been thrown into another horrible situation with no recourse.”

Sunny nodded sympathetically. He wanted to speak, to comfort Basil, but no words came.

In an attempt to find the silver lining, Basil softly asked “D-did you at least get any information out of Angel?”

Sunny could only shake his head.

“Oh well. A-at least we know he’s out there, that’s a lead,” Basil reassured, “we’ll swing by his house later, offer some sweets as a bribe… everything will be ok.”

A moment's pause later, Basil made a simple request, “H-hey, could you stay here with me for a while?”

Sunny smiled slightly and nodded. They’d made the mistake of abandoning each other before, they wouldn’t be making that mistake again.

…

Polly vacuumed the living room floor, cleaning up the debris from the earlier fight. That kid Angel had made quite the mess in his wake, and Polly wasn’t even sure how it had happened. Burn marks, holes in the walls, even all the food in the fridge was spoiled. Even though Polly knew Basil rarely opened up, she really wished that just this once he’d tell her what was going on. Sunny’s confession clued her in on a general idea, but still… the fight today, the fight that hospitalized Basil a week ago, Hero’s visit… all of it seemed odd.
Sunny and Basil entered the living room together, and Polly looked over to them.

“You two have a lot of explaining to do,” Polly stated, her voice compassionate but filled with a hidden resolve. The look in her eyes made it clear she wasn’t angry, but there was definitely some tough love in the red gleam of her irises. Basil and Sunny glanced at each other, nervous but fully aware she was right.
Behind Sunny, where no one was looking, a glowing eyed OMORI gave a knowing grin.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

Hero hated his dorm. It was drab and gray, the dim radiance filtering in served little but to illuminate the dust in the air and the gleam of the Stand Arrow leaning against his desk. With little else to do Hero simply lay on his bed, boredly staring out the window. For him, life had been a lot of waiting recently. Waiting for class to start, waiting for his college friends to return to campus, and of course waiting for the proper moment to avenge Mari. He could wait for all of these things, he was very patient. But it didn’t make any of it less boring.
His smartphone buzzed, no doubt a call from that ruffian Angel. Part of Hero hoped that Angel had failed, it’d be rather anticlimactic if Basil and Sunny had been bested by the first Stand User they fought. Besides, planning was taking up enough of his time that he honestly wasn’t sure what he’d be doing with his free time otherwise. Come the semester that wouldn’t be an issue, at least. Hero did a quick vocal exercise to mask his voice, then picked up the phone.

“Master, sir!” Angel’s voice bellowed out of the speaker. Even knowing this was coming, Hero recoiled a little. Between Angel’s microphone quality and general volume, it was like listening to a cheese grater against solid granite. “I’m sorry, but I have failed you!” Even disappointed, Angel was really, really loud. Perhaps it is his emphatic nature that caused the arrow to choose him, Hero contemplated silently. Angel had no idea who Hero was, he believed his so-called ‘master’ to be a martial arts master from the city. Hero hadn’t the foggiest idea where he’d gotten that idea from, but he wasn’t planning on correcting the young boy any time soon. Angel was, as they say, a ‘useful idiot,’ and Hero was just the guy who shot him with a crossbow.

“Well, that’s alright my pupil,” Hero stated with a deepened voice, mimicking a mentor character from the cartoons he’d watched as a child, “with strength like yours, I have no doubt you’ll best them when you next fight. In the meantime, have you found any new eligible candidates?”

“I mean, I asked my friend Kim about it…”

Hero’s tone was totally flat, “Asked?”

“Yeah, I asked her and she seemed interested-”

“You don’t ask people if they wish to become Stand Users. When I told you to seek out potential new recruits I meant for you to engage in silent reconnaissance, not hold a survey.”

“Oh.” Angel’s voice betrayed a level of disappointment, “So can Kim not join?”

Hero paused for a moment. Kim, the name rang a bell. She was the headstrong girl who’d approached him at Sunny’s house, if memory served. That strength was critical in a Stand User, but at the same time bending to Angel’s desires simply because he asked set a bad precedent.

“I will consider her,” Hero affirmed, though still unsure himself, “but duty calls. I must be off now.”
*click*

As Hero hung up the phone, a thought bubbled up in his mind. A vision of his beloved Mari, her radiant smile lighting up the whole room and bringing color into the abysmally grey dormitory. She’d been so happy, they had been so happy together. For so long, Hero had beat himself up over her death, but it should have been obvious that she’d never really taken her own life. Mari, perfect flawless Mari, would never have done such a thing. A single tear rolled down Hero’s cheek before dropping to the floor. Sunny had done this to them, Sunny had ripped the love of his life away from him. And after all that, after Hero thought he’d finally moved on, Sunny had reopened that wound all over again. He was a selfish coward, to hide away for four years after what he’d done. Hero had resolved to right that wrong. He’d make sure Sunny couldn’t harm anyone else, ever.

The arrow next to his desk shimmered golden.

…

The sunshine of midday flowed through the windows as Basil gave his Stand explanation to Polly. Twisted Garden extended throughout the room from Basil’s flower crown, tending to the sprouts and flowers which Basil loved like a family as he spoke. If it weren’t for the eldritch nature of the topic at hand, the atmosphere of the room would have been quite cozy.

“Well”

Polly was stunned. Magic wasn’t exactly a foreign concept to her, but she’d never actually seen it in action. She’d certainly never heard of a Stand before. That said, Basil seemed more sure of himself than Polly had ever known him to be, and she certainly couldn’t think of any other explanation for the fight earlier.

“That’s… um, I appreciate your honesty,” Polly continued, really not sure what to say, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

Basil glanced over at Sunny, then back at Polly. “Not right now, no.”

Silence ensued. Basil internally lamented that this kind of palpable awkwardness seemed to follow him about. The only one in the room currently unbothered was Sunny.

Basil’s voice pierced the quiet, “So, Sunny and I were heading to Othermart.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea? You’re still injured,” Polly replied with a healthy dose of concern, “I don’t want you going out there if it’s not safe.”

Basil nodded understandingly, “Twisted Garden will heal us in an emergency, we’ll be fine.” Polly still seemed worried, but she understood. “We’ll call you if we need anything,” Basil reassured. Sunny and Basil gave each other a resolute look and made their way to the front door.
As the front door opened, sunshine flooded over Sunny and Basil, illuminating them like angels while they took a moment to look back at Polly. Sunny’s demeanor was calm, composed, and Basil stood firm even if perhaps still a bit nervous. As the front door shut behind them, Polly called out “Take care, you too!”
Polly sighed. Basil was right, there really wasn’t much she could do about the whole Stand situation besides what she was already doing; being a caretaker. Well, that wouldn’t stop her from trying in her own little way. She resolved to buy burn cream the next time she was out, just in case Angel stopped by again.

…

Kel sat on a park bench, kicking back and enjoying the sunshine. This summer certainly hadn’t turned out the way he expected it to, but in all truth Kel didn’t mind… mostly. It had been exciting, getting to see his old friends again, and even if it had left off on a questionable note Kel knew deep down that he didn’t regret a second of it. Lessons were learned, the past was the past, and overall Kel just appreciated what he had. For now, at least, he had a mug of homebrewed orange joe and a comfortable spot under the sun. Taking it all in, he closed his eyes contentedly.
There were plenty of people around, but Kel paid little heed to the many passing conversations in the park. Perhaps if he’d been paying attention, he would have noticed the swiftly approaching footsteps…

“BOO!” yelled Mikhael straight into Kel’s face. Kel sprung backwards as far as the bench would let him, a wild expression on his face before he realized who it was.

“You!” Kel exclaimed frustratedly, “What’s that all about, Mikhael?!”

“The Maverick,” Mikhael politely corrected, “and we are rivals, are we not? Popping in unannounced is what a good rival does!”

“Well I never agreed to that.” Kel was honestly completely unsure why Mikhael insisted on this ‘rivalry’ of theirs. In every ‘contest of valor’ proposed, Kel had won by a stunning margin. He wasn’t even trying that hard. Kel had known plenty of rivals he competed against for sports, fostering skills through healthy levels of opposition. Mikhael wasn’t one of those people.

Mikhael smirked, his bright yellow eyes peaking out from behind his ridiculous wig. “Do you know how many times we’ve engaged in our little battles of expertise?”

Kel did. There was the time he’d outrun Mikhael, the time he’d beat him at basketball, the time they’d played chess together. That last one had been particularly impressive, Kel had blundered his queen and still won. How Mikhael had the stamina for all this loss in one week was a mystery. His response to Mikhael’s inquiry was a simple exasperated “Many.”

“9,” Mikhael continued, his question evidently rhetorical, “and do you know how many you’ve won?”

“All of them?”

It was a beautiful day out. Kel really just wanted to chill on a park bench, enjoy the trees and the park… Oh well. Whatever it was Mikhael had approached him about, he seemed excited. No choice but to indulge him until he went away.

“Well, I was wracking my head for things I’m better at than you, and I finally realized my line of attack,” Mikhael announced proudly, “Baking.”

Kel’s jaw dropped, astonished. Baking, seriously? For someone grasping at straws, Mikhael sure seemed pompous.

“I mean, yeah probably,” Kel stated as he regained his composure, “I’ve never baked before-”

Sunny and Basil caught Kel’s eye as they crossed the street, seemingly not noticing him.

“Hey, Mikhael, we’ll continue this later I’ve gotta go,” Kel shifted gears quickly and sprinted out of there, inadvertently abandoning his orange joe in the process.

“HEY, GET BACK HERE,” Mikhael yelled as he made a halfhearted attempt to stop Kel, “MY NAME IS THE MAVERICK!!”

Kel didn’t hear him, he was too focused on running towards his friends at a speed somewhere in the ballpark of mach 10.

…

“SUNNY! BASIL!” Kel yelled as he sprinted after his friends. Spun around to look at the rapidly approaching Kel, just in time for Sunny to be instantly tackled. “Whoops, sorry,” Kel said guiltily, “couldn’t slow down in time, heh.”
Sunny groaned in pain, but smiled slightly anyway. “Hey Kel. A little help?”
“Oh, uh, yeah” Kel extended his hand to Sunny, easily helping him onto his feet.

“Man, it’s so good to see you,” Kel excitedly proclaimed, “I uh… heard about the police thing, if you need any witnesses I’m happy to help!”

Basil coughed and interjected “Normally witnesses have to witness the crime…”

“Oh,” Kel replied, “Well they’ll probably be asking about the stabbing too, right? I was there for that!” The dissonance between Kel’s grin and the sentence that just left his mouth was staggering, Sunny thought to himself. Still, he couldn’t help but be happy Kel was here.

“So, what are you two up to?”

“We were heading to othermart,” Basil responded calmly, “to buy candy.” It was painfully obvious that he was straining himself to keep his voice steady. For reasons Sunny couldn’t explain, he could sense Basil was suppressing intense levels of anxiety to maintain face for Kel. He wondered what Basil was thinking.

“Ooh! That sounds fun!” Kel’s enthusiasm was infectious, “Can I join?”

“Oh, uh, I-I dunno,” Basil started before Sunny raised his hand to interrupt.

“We’d love for you to join,” Sunny smiled. If looks could kill, Basil would have just thrown Sunny off a hospital roof. Kel, seemingly oblivious to Basil’s dissent, hopped up excitedly with a “Hell yeah!”

…

The walk to Othermart was mostly uneventful. Kel led the way, his energetic strides contrasting against Basil’s more reserved shuffling. In all honesty, Basil was glad Sunny had invited Kel… but he also felt guilty. Knowing their luck, it was a coin toss as to whether or not they would encounter a hostile Stand User, and Kel didn’t deserve to be dragged into that. Besides, Basil really didn’t want to explain Stands again.
After a short walk, the group arrived at Othermart. Fellow townsfolk scouring the aisles, the hustle and bustle of shoppers, the loud beeping of the cash registers, all of these things defined Faraway’s commercial heart. A middle aged couple, Brent’s parents, if Sunny recalled, gave a friendly wave as they purchased their groceries. Sunny waved back as he continued to the candy store.

“Man, this brings back memories,” Kel reminisced, “only a week ago we were here to bribe Kim.”

Basil gave a nervous laugh. Sunny considered how that was basically what they were here for this time too. Even still, it was moderately amusing. The bribe had worked, but only after Kim and Vance insisted on fighting over it… Come to think of it, Sunny thought to himself, why did all of the hooligans insist on solving things with their fists?
Two looming presences stood over the group’s shoulders, one of them a tall and imposing figure and the other a nimble individual with a competent stance. They’d entered the store nearly silently, their footsteps totally silent until they were right up behind them. Twisted Garden alerted Basil first, and he turned around to face the newcomers with a palpably afraid expression. Possibilities raced through his mind as he rotated, more Stand Users already? The arrow thief and a lackey? Even just some local thugs could prove immensely problematic.
His fears, as it turned out, were unjustified. As if Kel had spoken them into existence, the newcomers were Kim and Vance; though for some reason they were wearing fake glasses with noses and mustaches. Basil’s trepidation immediately shifted into confusion.
Basil’s movements must have caught Kel’s attention, as he’d also turned around to greet the new arrivals. “Oh hey Kim. Hey Vance. What’s the deal with the glasses?”
Kim and Vance glanced over at each other, contemplating what to say. It was painfully clear that they weren’t expecting to be recognized, no matter how ineffective their disguises. Vance put up his hand and deftly diffused the situation by proclaiming, “Sorry, you must be thinking of someone else. We’re not Kim and Vance, we’re… Steve… and, uh… Kance.” Kim muttered something under her breath and jabbed Vance with her elbow.
“...Okay then…,” Kel replied, “Well! Try not to steal anything this time. If you really want something, I’ll just spot you $5.”
“Wow, thanks!” Vance responded. Kim tugged on her collar before saying, “I appreciate the offer, but I just remembered we have somewhere else to be, so… bye!”
“We do?” Vance questioned before getting jabbed again, “Ah, right, we do. See you around!”
The pair bolted out the door, leaving an extremely flummoxed Sunny, Kel and Basil behind.

…

Kim and Vance opted to group up in the garden section of Fix-it. It was quiet, people rarely intruded back here making it an excellent place to plot. Sure, it didn’t really give off the nefarious lair energy they were going for, but the flowers were nice to be around.
“What the hell Vance!” Kim exclaimed, “I thought your Stand was supposed to be the perfect disguise!”
“It is, we tested it!” Vance responded, edges of shock in his voice, “Room for Improvement’s disguise kit worked on everyone else like a charm!”
“Serves us right for giving that guy the arrow back,” Kim lamented, “what a phony!”
“Actually I think that was more of a crossbow bolt.”
“Shut up! Shut, up!” Kim retorted before sighing, “…Alright, so, our plans are shot now, what do we do?”
“Look, you’re the boss,” Vance replied, “If you still want that candy, Kel offered to buy us some.”
“Like I’d be accepting charity from him,” Kim’s voice was venomous, “he’s the reason we’re banned to begin with!”
Vance shrugged, “Is he? We were the ones caught stealing.” Kim opted to ignore his reasoning.
“If we want to pull this off, we need to step back and take inventory of what we already have,” Kim analyzed, “so, what do we have? A Stand that punches really hard, a Stand that makes tools, our own wits, and no candy.”
“Also, Kel’s $5.” Vance insisted, which only further miffed Kim. No alternatives presented themselves however, and after a bit of thought Kim flatly considered “Well, I suppose if he’s offering…”
“No one will judge us for accepting a bit of generosity”
“I WILL! But, fine.”
With that matter settled, Kim and Vance casually exited Fix-it. The flowers and blossoms stayed, silent and unjudging.

…

While Kel was browsing the various taffies and sweets, Basil took Sunny aside.
“The arrow thief is on the move,” Basil’s tone was serious, “Kim, Vance, and probably Kel are all Stand Users.” Sunny had already distracted himself with lollipops, but gave a polite, “Interesting” in consolation.
“This is serious! We could be in danger!” Basil exclaimed under his breath, “If Angel was sent after us then Kim and Vance probably were too!”
Sunny looked over at Basil, “You’re overreacting.”
Basil was stunned, how could Sunny be so nonchalant about this? They’d already been attacked earlier today, and now three more Stand Users had appeared near simultaneously. It took Sunny a moment to register that Basil wasn’t comprehending.
“If Kim and Vance were planning to attack us, they would have” Sunny reasoned, “and you’re doing Kel a disservice by not trusting him.” The undertones were obvious. They’d already failed Kel for four years.
“Y-yeah… I guess you’re right,” Basil acknowledged, “Twisted Garden alerted me that Kim and Vance’s glasses were Stand related, I shouldn’t just assume the worst immediately…”
Sunny had gone back to perusing the sweets, but half-attentively inquired “It didn’t mention anything about Kel?”
“Well, no… but he could see the glasses,” Basil answered. Once again, Basil internally berated himself for jumping to conclusions.
“I’ll tell you what,” Sunny offered, “if Kel turns out to be a Stand User, I’ll give you 15 dollars.” Basil could only nervously chuckle in response.

…

Vance strolled on into the candy shop once more, his disguise still on. Kel smiled and waved as he approached, calling out “So, how was that thing you were doing?” Vance grinned, “It was alright, Kim had to dip though.” The latter half of that statement was a lie, she was waiting outside Othermart on her bike. Something about ‘not giving Kel the satisfaction.’ As Kel and Vance scanned through the selections of sweets, Sunny and Basil were on the other end of the shop debating which candies Angel would be the most enticed by. After a while, the two pairs reconvened and made their purchases, and Vance bid the group farewell.
As Vance was leaving, Basil heard Vance mutter ‘he’s nicer than we really deserve.’ Sunny heard too, but chose to ignore it. Kel offered to walk Sunny and Basil back home which, sugary treats in hand, they accepted.

At first, the walk back was as quiet as the walk there. Not awkward this time, the silence brought a feeling of peace with it. It was after the first crosswalk that Kel shattered the silence.
“Hey Basil, what’s up with your flower crown?”

Basil stopped in his tracks, his suspicions confirmed in an instant. Kel could see Twisted Garden. Kel was a Stand User.

Basil was frozen. Sunny gazed over, outwardly apathetic but still surprised. Kel was smiling obliviously, seemingly unaware of the system shock he’d just administered. For a few moments, all was still besides the wind through the trees and the light of the afternoon sun. When Basil finally processed his realization, he unleashed Twisted Garden in a flurry; binding Kel and hoisting him into the air. OMORI had activated, standing next to Sunny with his kitchen knife pointed towards their friend.

Kel yelped as he struggled against Twisted Garden’s vines, “WHAT THE HELL?!”

Sunny dismissed OMORI and signalled Basil to release Kel. Kel’s expression was that of terror and confusion, not that of an enemy. Basil nodded and slowly lowered Kel to the ground.

“What was that?!” Kel demanded, breathing heavily.

“Sorry,” Basil apologized, “That was Twisted Garden, I was worried you might be an enemy.”
“Why would you think that?!”
“Only a Stand User can see Stands,” Sunny interjected, “We had a bad experience with one of them recently.”
“A… Stand?” Kel questioned in a contemplative tone, “You mean like this guy?”
A lithe mechanical seeming Stand in an orange basketball jersey manifested besides Kel, its eyes shimmering with energy. It immediately posed itself in a baseball pitching stance, though with its legs crossed in a peculiar manner. Sunny silently handed Basil fifteen dollars in cash.
“Yeah, l-like that,” Basil replied. This was a lot to take in, but as far as people becoming Stand Users goes Kel was probably the best option. “You wouldn’t happen to know how you got it, would you?”
“Hm… no, I don’t,” Kel supposed, “It just started appearing a few days after the confession.”
Sunny asked, “What does it do?”
Kel commanded his Stand to grab a rock off the ground. It seemed slow, lethargic, but as it moved the Stand became visibly faster, continually accelerating as it began dribbling the stone at breakneck pace. In one swift motion, the Stand threw the rock. Basil and Sunny could barely trace it as it flew through the air, vanishing into the horizon.
“I accidentally threw a coconut into your window the other day,” Kel said sheepishly, “I know it’s not your house anymore Sunny but I still feel bad about it.”
Sunny was still staring off into the horizon where the rock had gone. Beyond a mildly pained expression, he didn’t acknowledge Kel’s admission.
“Hopefully you, uh, didn’t hit anything important with that,” Basil stated, “That’s quite the ability.”
Kel smiled brightly, “Those vine things of yours are pretty cool too! Sunny, I didn’t really get to see your Stand, what does it do?”
Sunny shrugged. A few possibilities came to mind, but he found he really couldn’t be certain. For now, the true meaning of OMORI’s red eyes eluded him. Kel didn’t bother probing any further, knowing Sunny would open up on his own time.

The rest of the walk home was easy and lighthearted, as if they were all kids again. Bags of candy at their sides, some light laughter shared between them. Sure, a lot had happened. Sure, they were all Stand Users. But for the first time in four years, they had a chance to truly just be themselves. The scars would never go away, but it felt as though the wounds of the past were finally closing.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

The golden radiance of sunset washed over Basil’s living room, where Sunny and Basil sat on the couch idly watching a Captain Spaceboy rerun. At the time it first aired, the episode had been a part of an experimental thriller arc, and the tension was palpable. Or, at least it would have been. They’d already seen the show, so there wasn’t much mystery to it. In the end, Spaceboy would be betrayed by his trusted mentor, and the season ended off on a cliffhanger. Of course, Spaceboy didn’t know that yet.
Eventually, Polly’s dinner call ended the pair’s reverie. As Sunny sat down at the table, he found himself greeted with a lovingly made Cacciatore. The smell of grilled chicken and herbs was entrancing. After four years of microwaved steaks, pre-packaged dinners and, more recently, hospital food, Sunny had come to appreciate home cooking in a new light. Slowing down and savoring the meal made it even better.
Basil picked at his food hesitantly, not feeling particularly hungry. Still, he knew he had to eat. Stand Users don’t get the luxury of neglecting themselves, remaining vigilant and staying prepared were key to handle… whoever was out there. How many other Stands might the arrow thief have activated? How many threats might exist independent of the thief? At bare minimum, Basil was cynically grateful they wouldn’t have to trek to Egypt to find out.
After dinner, they updated Polly on the situation from the store. While she was glad to hear Sunny and Basil got to see their friend again, Kim and Vance were more worrisome. Basil hadn’t spoken much to Polly prior to the confession, but even still she knew the Hooligans hadn’t exactly been pleasant to deal with. Angel’s break in had only reinforced her disdain. Basil and Sunny on the other hand didn’t seem too bothered, presumably because the only thing Kim seemed interested in was candy. With all that out of the way, it was time to discuss the plan going forwards.

“Short term; we bribe Angel into telling us where he got his Stand,” Sunny announced, “unfortunately we don’t have enough information to make any real long term choices yet.”
“W-well, we did learn something useful,” Basil noted, “Kel didn’t get his Stand from the arrow. Something else must have awakened it.”
Sunny looked confused. Apparently he didn’t remember this part of the Stand spiel. “There’s more than one way to get a Stand. One of them is bloodline related. Based on the timing, Kel’s Stand probably awakened because someone else in his family got one too.”
Polly raised her eyebrow and muttered, ‘Someone in his family…’
After a moment of consideration, Polly informed “Hero came by on the day of your confession. I thought the arrow was already gone by then, but it’s possible he took it.” Basil gave an offbeat laugh, but his face sank as Polly’s words registered.
“No, no no no. Surely he wouldn’t-,” Basil stuttered. Sunny breath fell short too. Hero had been very angry the day of the confession.
“Now I’m sure there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation for all this that doesn’t make Hero the arrow thief.” Polly tried to calm Basil, who was rapidly hyperventilating. Sunny felt stabs of stress across his body, Hero had been angry, but he wouldn’t do something like that. Surely they were just being hasty? Right? Basil mulled the situation over in denial, “He- He probably just wanted to make sure everything was ok at the house. He c-couldn’t have known about the arrow. The thief must just be u-using him to distress us!”
The air grew heavy, and Sunny thought he could sense Something’s omnipresent judgement all over again. He wondered if he turned around, would it take a different form? A new harrowing nightmare that would follow him forever? Hero may not be dead, but could Sunny have broken him in a completely different way?
OMORI translucently faded into being, and Sunny’s eye began to glow red. As the crimson light proliferated, Sunny’s panic was suppressed and his mind got to work putting the pieces together. “This… this doesn’t change the plan. Tomorrow, we’ll confront Angel, he’ll know if Hero stole the arrow,” Sunny reasoned with grim determination in his voice, “As you said, there’s multiple ways to get a Stand. It’s possible Kel got it some other way and this is all a coincidence.”
“R-right,” Basil mellowly nodded, “Once we see Angel, Hero will be vindicated.”
Sunny wanted to believe that. He wanted Hero to be innocent. But until they had proof, nothing was out of the question.

…

Night fell over the town of Faraway, and as the sun said goodnight Sunny prepared himself for some well needed rest. He brushed his teeth until they were minty fresh, changed into a freshly washed pair of pajamas, and prepared the couch he’d be staying on. It occurred to him he probably wouldn’t be getting a real bed until after his trial, and possibly until after his prison sentence. Oh well. As much as he’d wanted a room of his own, the only one available in Basil’s house had belonged to his grandma. It was too soon for that.
Sunny laid down, maneuvering himself into the comfiest position he could manage. It was warm, but not too warm, the quilt tucked over him in a perfectly snug manner. In his cozy state, Sunny considered that perhaps beds were overrated after all… He shut his eye, and gently drifted into a dreamless sleep.

…

It was dark when Sunny woke up, his vision adjusting to the dimness. The living room was empty, the chimes of the grandfather clock were the only sounds piercing the quiet. As Sunny scanned the environment, OMORI faded into view like a ghost manifesting. He sat crosslegged on the floor, his usual apathetic expression greeting Sunny with no warmth. Sunny’s face contorted in disgust and disbelief. So, this was his fate then, forever bound to his former tormentor.

Never a tormentor. Misguided.

Sunny bolted upright, had OMORI just spoken? His lips hadn’t moved, nor had there been any audible noise but that childish, unnatural voice was unmistakable. Sunny took a deep breath, staring down at his emotionless companion.

“You… you can talk?” Sunny asked warily, assessing OMORI’s words. OMORI simply stared, his demeanor revealing nothing. Whether OMORI was playing coy or just like this, Sunny was unable to intuit. He managed to stay calm in the face of this potential revelation, only edges of apprehension piercing his mind. Misguided… What could OMORI mean by that?

You made me to protect you.

Something in Sunny snapped. “Protect me? You let me suffer for YEARS!” Sunny retorted, apprehension replaced with rage, “If it weren’t for you I’d have been able to move on so, so long ago!”

Would you have? It was your given purpose I followed.

Tears ran down Sunny’s face as his frustration built, he wanted to scream. He wanted to shove something to the ground, he wanted to beat OMORI within an inch of his life. More than anything, he wanted Mari back. OMORI was right, he was responsible for all of this, and that only made him angrier. As his vision blurred, Sunny noticed OMORI's eyes were their usual black. This rage was Sunny’s, all Sunny’s. OMORI simply watched, silently, as Sunny jolted off the couch and attempted to curbstomp his haunting apparition.

His leg phased through OMORI and hit the floor with a loud SLAM, and a jolt of stabbing pain ran through his shin. He screamed, a combination of pain, anger, and grief. As his emotions flowed through him he fell limp back into the couch, curling into a fetal position and sobbing.

The living room lights turned on, Basil was at the door. He was cloaked in the darkness beyond the room, his pale piercing eyes and worried expression were his only distinct features before he fully stepped in.

“S-sunny, are you ok?”

Sunny didn’t respond. He slowly uncurled and looked over at his friend, who attempted to not wince at Sunny’s appearance. Sunny’s hair was tangled, streaks of damp running down his cheeks where tears roiled like a stream. A palpable misery filled his quivering eyes, and his slumped over position told Basil everything he needed to know. OMORI was nowhere to be seen. Coward.

Basil silently strode over to Sunny and plopped himself down on the couch next to his ailing friend. He placed his hand on Sunny’s shoulder, his one eye not quite meeting Sunny’s. “I know how you feel,” Basil began quietly, “it’s all so overwhelming. Always. The confession helped… but…”
Sunny looked over at Basil, his one eye seeing Basil’s averted gaze as he continued, “You know, I’m really bad at this. Usually you comfort me and n-not the other way around…”

Sunny’s waterfall of sorrow had slowed to mere intermittent sobs, his heartbeat calming to its usual pace. Basil’s oration wasn’t exactly inspiring, but something about Basil’s rambling brought back a memory from when they were younger. It was a quiet memory, Basil had been excited about a book he’d been reading at the time. The exact details didn’t really matter. Not being alone, not being left with OMORI, that was what mattered. Basil kept up his reassurances, managing despite the struggle, “I-it’s healthy to just let it all out, you know? We’ve been through a lot together… you can’t j-just keep all of that bottled up. We’re finally facing this togeth-”
Basil stopped midsentence as he felt Sunny hug him around the torso, his face blushing red as he sat there, stunned. He sighed, his eyes closed shut and his lips curled into a slight smile. “Well, I’m glad you’re feeling better,” Basil whispered quietly, tenderly embracing Sunny back.
A few minutes later Sunny was fully asleep, resting soundly on the sofa once more. Basil headed back to his room through the darkness, before laying his head on his pillow and pensively staring at the ceiling. Something in the shadows encroached on his peripheral, as it always did. But maybe, just maybe, it seemed a little less dark.

…

…

Polly arrived bright and early in the morning, before either of the boys were awake. The smell of breakfast eventually dragged a bedraggled Sunny into the kitchen, followed closely after by Basil. Bacon and eggs, standard but delicious. The two boys thanked Polly, grabbed their bag of bribe candy, and headed out the door.
Angel’s house was only a few doors down from Basil’s, barely a minute away by foot. The short trip meant less opportunities for things to go wrong, Basil hoped, but as they stepped onto the street and looked towards their objective he realized how silly he’d been for believing for a second anything could go as planned. Kim, Vance and Angel were all outside Angel’s home, and Twisted Garden could sense the presence of Stand Power. Fiend Like Me floated ominously beside Angel, Vance had some kind of toolkit, and most worryingly a buff purple man with abs like steel and a determined expression stood vigilantly to Kim’s flank. The Hooligans hadn’t noticed Sunny or Basil yet. Given Kim’s Stand, they really preferred if it stayed that way. Sunny ducked behind the nearby trees, with Basil quickly following suit.

“-worried about her,” Sunny heard Kim say as they approached. He couldn’t see her face, but could already imagine her expression. “I mean, Sunny and Kel show up like they own the place, she goes and hangs out with them for a bit and now she’s acting all weird!”
“I know! We’ll use our new abilities,” Angel replied dramatically, before emphatically continuing “and we’ll beat them up until they tell us what happened!” Sunny and Basil exchanged perturbed glances. Fiend Like Me had been threatening enough on its own, who knows what Angel was capable of with his friends?
“I mean, we tried taking on Sunny as a group and just got pepper sprayed,” Vance stated. Angel entered a heated rant, complaining that they’d ‘cheated’ and how pepper spray was ‘dishonorable.’ Mid-rant, Sunny decided to peek out from behind the tree to get a better view of the scene, only to realize that Vance was looking straight at him. As the two met each other's eyes, Vance sighed. He interjected into Angel’s ramblings, “Don’t you think just talking to them might be better?”
“They can’t be reasoned with!” Angel exclaimed, to which Vance patiently responded, “You broke into their house dude.”
Angel mumbled something inaudible, and Kim chuckled slightly. They all dismissed their Stands, and Vance subtly signalled over to Sunny that now would be the time to jump in. Sunny nodded at Basil, then stepped out into the open.

“YOU!” Angel yelled with righteous fury, “By the power of the Master I will-”
“Angel, shut up,” Kim interrupted in an irritated tone before focusing her ire onto Sunny, “What are you here for?”
Sunny presented his bag of sweets as a peace offering, observing Angel closely. Even though Angel was trying to play it cool, the greedy look in his eyes betrayed him. Perfect.
Kim crossed her arms stubbornly, “I don’t need any more candy, we still haven’t run out since yesterday!”
“It’s not for you anyway, it’s for Angel,” Sunny cooly asserted before looking over Angel, whose giddiness was spilling over. While he spoke Sunny heard Basil’s slow approaching footsteps, then his hand on Sunny’s shoulder. It was Basil who completed Sunny’s offer to Angel, “You’re only getting it if you tell us who gave you your Stand.”
Angel’s bravado surged, “I’ll never betray my mentor!”
When Kel and Sunny had been looking for the photo album, they’d been forced to put up with this too. Sunny recalled something Kel had been holding over Angel’s head, something childish enough to work. “I’ll tell everyone about summer camp,” Sunny stated flatly.
“I’ll conditionally betray my mentor!” Angel proclaimed.
Kim and Vance exchanged confused looks before asking, “Summer camp?”
“D-Don’t worry about it,” Angel assured them while his face flared red, “a-anyways Sunny what was it you wanted to know?” His usual overconfidence had faded to the background, his ego desperately trying to shield his self image from the embarrassment of his friends finding out. Sunny could almost sympathize, if it weren’t so blatantly stupid.
“So then,” Sunny reiterated, “Who’s your ‘master’?”
“Hey!” Kim interjected, “You don’t get to just barge in here and interrogate our friend! We’ve got some questions too you know!”
While Sunny wasn’t terribly surprised about her outburst, he really did wish that Kim could have waited until after they’d finished grilling Angel for information. He sighed, answering her questions would be deeply discomforting, but he supposed it was worth giving a show of good faith. Besides, Basil was here for him. Everything would be ok. He closed his eye and gave a resigned “Ask away.”

…

Silence overtook the hodgepodge group. It hadn’t hurt as much to admit the second time, Sunny considered, but between Basil’s awkward thousand yard stare and Kim’s stunned expression he really found that he’d rather be anywhere else right now. His one eye had welled up in recollection once more, but he held back the tears. Vance had kept up his calm demeanor, but Sunny knew he was devastated too. Maybe it was OMORI’s influence. Maybe he was just making it up.

“You… I can’t believe,” Kim stammered as she tried to find her footing. Sunny couldn’t blame her, even as he sensed her disbelief start to boil. Once she found her footing, she yelled accusatorily “I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU’D DO THAT TO AUBREY!”
Angel and Kim both summoned their Stands, their stances showing their intention to strike. Reflexively, Basil conjured Twisted Garden in a defensive stance. But before anyone could make the first attack, Vance stepped in, “Kim! Angel! Get a hold of yourselves!”
The enraged fire in Kim’s eyes tapered out, reduced to an ember but still ready to ignite. Angel took a step backwards, unsure what to do. Vance stood firm, holding his arms out to block both parties from going on the offensive. He hadn’t summoned his Stand, his only defenses were his authoritative tone. Once he was sure everyone had simmered down, he dropped his arms and looked over at Sunny. Vance’s voice was melancholy as he professed, “You know, I was friends with Mari back then.”
Sunny stepped back a bit, shaken. He’d never really considered that she might have had friends other than the main group, but Hero and Mari had been freshmen in high school. Great. A whole new avenue of people he’d hurt.
“She was the heart of our friend group,” Vance continued, “Hero, Mari, Eric, Liam, Curtsey and I would hang out at lunch and… complain about class mostly. When Mari died, everything went south. Hero stopped showing up, and the other guys… well their true colors became clear pretty quickly. I… I caught Eric and Liam shit talking Hero, something about how ‘if she was with me maybe she wouldn’t have killed herself’ and other bullshit like that.” He spat out the word ‘me’ with audible vitriol.
Horror washed over Sunny, he didn’t know what to think. Was this meant to be reassuring? If anything, it just made everything worse. He was vaguely aware of Kim and Angel’s lowered stances, Basil’s erratic breathing. Adrenaline and self-loathing mixed to make a new cocktail.
“Look, Sunny, you did a bad thing,” Vance stated in an assuring voice, “but you’re not a bad person. I’ve met bad people. But if you’re willing to track down a lost photo album, to tell a truth you know will hurt you to give closure to your friends, that makes you someone who's truly trying their best.”
A thought floated to the forefront of Sunny’s mind, the rows of flowers back in his hospital room. Tokens of gratitude from all the lives he’d touch, everyone whose life he’d made just a little bit better. He could hold back his tears no longer, and he collapsed to the dirt. A soft “thank you” escaped his lips, a small suppressed smile emerging. Basil crouched down next to him, hand sat on Sunny’s head. Kim and Angel exchanged glances, unsure what to do.

“So,” Basil looked over to Angel and spoke lightly, “We came here to learn your master’s identity. We’ve poured out our soul for you. Will you oblige us this?”
“I-I’m sorry,” Angel replied, moved by what he’d heard, “I don’t actually know his name. I’ve never met him in person. He’s a martial arts master from Denver, I got his phone number from a letter he attached to the arrow.”
Sunny stood up, taking Basil’s hand and bringing them up together. He asked a simple question only, “Phone number?”
“Oh, yeah. Here!” Angel proudly presented a slip of paper with a hole through it, before walking over to Sunny and clasping it in his hand, “I don’t know why he has it out for you, but… you don’t deserve it. I’ll stay out of your way from now on.” Angel had a dorky smile on his face, clearly already thinking of mischief to get himself into. Sunny nodded, grateful.
Their goal successfully achieved, Basil and Sunny forked over the bag of candy and prepared to head out. While they were giving their final thanks, Kim requested to speak with them personally before they left. Sunny and Basil gave each other apprehensive looks at first, but after a moment’s consideration they ultimately agreed.
Her message was concise; “Hurt Aubrey again, and you’ll regret it.” Kim had a steely look in her eye, her expression unreadable. With her muscular Stand at her back, Sunny fully believed her.

…

“KEL! Get the door!” yelled Kel’s mom from the other room. His dad was at work, and his mom was always busy taking care of Sally, so he was pretty used to handling visitors by this point. He sprinted to the door, taking extra care to be cautious on the stairs, before slowing himself down by slamming into the wall next to the entrance. Ow.

“Who is it?” He shouted enthusiastically, ignoring the pain in his shoulder.
Basil’s voice sounded muffled through the door, “Are you ok?”
“BASIL!” Kel replied with a huge grin, swinging the door open, “Hey, how are you!”
“What was that loud crashing noise about?” Basil inquired nervously, “You didn’t answer my question…” Sunny was standing behind Basil, and gave a little wave to Kel when he noticed him.
“Hit my shoulder, it’s fine,” Kel said sheepishly, “also, hi Sunny!”
Sunny smiled a little before asking “Can we come in?”
“Of course!” Kel exclaimed, “It’s good to see you two!”

The trio sat down on the living room floor, forming a triangle on the rug between the TV and the couch. Kel lounged around casually, Sunny and Basil crossed their legs in neutral stances. Twisted Garden snaked over to Kel’s injured arm from Basil’s crown, healing bruises and suppressing pain.

“Bad news,” Sunny proclaimed, “We’ve got an enemy Stand User after us.”
“After us? Like, personally?” Kel replied apprehensively, “Why?”
Basil made an uncomfortable expression, before violently shaking his head and putting up a facade of confidence. The unease was audible in his voice as he replied, “W-we think it’s just to prevent us from getting the arrow back. Nothing m-more.”
“Whoever they are, I’m sure we can handle it!” Kel affirmed warmly, “I’ve been training in my back yard, doing some target practice. It’s a work in progress, but my accuracy has been getting much better!” He glanced away before muttering ‘still threw a rock through the neighbor’s wall’ under his breath.
“Y-yeah, hopefully they won’t be too big of an issue,” Basil agreed hesitantly, “It’d be a lot easier if we actually knew who the arrow thief was.”
“Do we have any leads?” Kel inquired, deep in thought.
Sunny looked over at Basil, then at Kel. He had an idea, but given Basil’s previous reactions he wasn’t sure if mentioning it was the wisest choice. Basil’s blind faith in his friends had already resulted in Sunny getting stabbed once, and he would be needing his other eye. He hesitated a few moments, before stating “We have two.”
Sunny produced the crumpled piece of paper with the thief’s phone number, “This is the phone number of the thief. I tried messaging them on the way to your house, but no response. The other lead…” Sunny paused, his voice caught on words he didn’t want to say.
“I suspect the key,” Sunny continued, dancing around implications, “lies in how you got your Stand, Kel.”
Basil gave Sunny a wary look, and Kel thought for a moment. “I’m not sure where I got it,” Kel replied, “I already told you that.”
“Stands can be developed in a few ways,” Sunny noted, “there’s the arrow, which we’ve already ruled out. That leaves mastery of a skill, bloodline connections, the corpse parts of Jesus Christ…”
“What.”
“I somewhat doubt it was a corpse part,” Basil remarked, “and while there are a few other options, mastery of a skill seems the most likely.”

Before anyone could continue their thoughts, the trio heard Sally crying loudly from upstairs. Kel’s head snapped around in the direction of the staircase, a worried expression darkening his face. While it’s natural to care for a baby sibling, Sunny couldn’t help but notice that Kel appeared unusually concerned.

“I should check on her,” Kel announced before making his way out of the living room. Basil gave Sunny a perturbed glance, before questioning, “I thought Kel was the youngest in the family?”
Sunny shrugged, “He has a baby sister now.”
A cold weight crashed down on Basil, the realization that he was four years removed from the lives of his closest friends sent shivers down his spine. He was shocked that Sunny had taken this so lightly, but supposed taking the revelation in stride was probably for the best. If Kel’s family had a new addition, then Basil was happy for them.
A few minutes passed and Kel came running back down the stairs, clearly still filled with worry. “Sorry about that,” he apologized, “Sally’s been kinda sick lately.”
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that,” Basil replied dejectedly, “I know some herbal remedies that might help?” His expression lifted slightly as he made the offer.
Something tickled the back of Sunny’s mind, something from Basil’s Stand explanation. It tantalized him, but he couldn’t quite grasp what. With no idea what else to say, Sunny simply wished, “I hope she gets better soon.”
“Thanks guys,” Kel replied appreciatively, “I might take you up on that later, Basil.” Basil nodded wistfully. Quick to get back on track, Kel’s usual goofy smile partially returned as he asked “What were we talking about, again?”
Sunny succinctly filled him in, “Stand origins.”
“Ooooohhh, right,” Kel recalled, “Something about mastery of a skill?”
“Y-yeah,” Basil agreed, “Your talent for basketball has granted you a Stand… I think.”
“Cool!” Kel smiled brightly. It was a reasonable enough explanation, but even still Sunny couldn’t shake that invisible thought at the back of his mind. Basil’s explanation. Stand origins, sickness… a horrific realization dawned on him.
“Kel,” Sunny inquired urgently, “what are Sally’s symptoms?”
Kel looked confused, “Huh? She uh… has a fever. I think that’s it. The doctor wasn’t able to diagnose its origins, but said it should pass in a few days…”
Sunny could tell the moment Basil put the pieces together, his face contorting into an anxious mess. When a Stand User is born from the arrow, their bloodline can send out waves, activating the Stands of their family members. Their relatives who do not possess the will to control their Stand suffer from a terrible fever, and of all the instances Basil was aware of, no one with Stand Fever survives long. The longest surviving case had lasted a month and a half. If Sunny was right, there was only one way to save Sally… to neutralize the Stand User who used the arrow originally. And if Kel hadn’t used the arrow, then that left…
“C-can I see Sally?” Basil inquired nervously, “I just n-need to check something.”
“Oh, uh… I’ll have to ask Mom.” Kel replied.
Sunny watched as a visibly disconcerted Kel left the room once more, silence overtaking him and Basil. Twisted Garden agitatedly snaked around Basil’s head, the subtle glow of its vines illuminating his face. Sunny wondered if Twisted Garden could double as a light in the dark, or if irritated Basil as he was trying to sleep. Come to think of it, Sunny realized he’d never seen Basil without Twisted Garden since the hospital.
A few minutes passed before Kel called down to Sunny and Basil, and they made their way up the stairs to the master bedroom. Medical supplies littered the nightstand, along with a wet rag hanging out of a #1 Mom mug. Kel’s mom was kneeling by Sally’s crib, Kel himself was cradling his baby sister and staring at Basil with concern in his eyes. The smell of medicine and lemon cleaners permeated the air, a scent Sunny had come to correlate with his stay in the hospital. Reflexively, his nose crinkled slightly.
Sally's breathing was harsh, her skin abnormally red and beads of sweat ran down her forehead. Sunny grimaced, clearly Kel had undersold the severity of the situation. Twisted Garden reached out as Basil extended his hand and closed his eyes, probing for any signs of Stand activity… and once the vines got close to Sally they all recoiled in unison, Basil staggered back as if he’d been punched. In the instant that the vines were snapping back, Sunny thought he saw something dark hidden within the outstretched Twisted Garden, but the unexplained anomaly vanished as fast as it’d appeared.
“Basil? Are you ok?” Kel’s mom asked in a panic.
“I-I’m alright!” Basil reassured with just a little too much energy, “I’m fine.”
He berated himself under his breath for probing with Twisted Garden so recklessly, Kel’s mom probably thought he looked crazy now. Basil steadied himself, exhaling shakily. Twisted Garden’s vines twitched slightly from the aberrant power they’d been exposed to, the power of a developing Stand. Sunny’s hunch had been right. Someone in Kel’s family had used the arrow. Basil did his best to repress the tears that yearned to flow freely, the mounting evidence was becoming harder to deny.
Sunny could tell Basil was barely holding it together, so he quietly led him out of the room while giving Kel an uneasy look. The unease, so it seemed, was mutual. They sat down together at the top of the stairs, Sunny’s arm wrapped around Basil. Basil’s shakiness had only further degraded, silver droplets streaming down his cheeks in irregular, uncontrolled intervals.
“H-Hero, h-he’s a Stand User,” Basil stuttered, “S-Sally is g-going to die. The only way to s-save her is to-t- …”

To kill Hero.

The pit in Sunny’s stomach grew as OMORI’s voice finished Basil’s sentence, and he witnessed his Stand manifest in a kneeling pose a few steps down from Basil and him. OMORI’s expression and tone were hard to read, but Sunny thought he could see a hint of sadness plastered on the Stand’s features. Basil stared at OMORI with horror, shocked by his blunt words.

Who do you want to save? Sally, or Hero? Either way, there will be blood on your hands… again.

“Sunny! Make him shut up!” Basil yelled desperately. He clung to Sunny’s shirt as Twisted Garden lashed out to grapple OMORI and OMORI simply let the vines grab him, his stance unmoving. Sunny felt crushed. He wanted to dismiss his Stand, but OMORI resisted.

“Why are you saying this?” Sunny yelled, “What’s the point?”

Because you won’t. Because you can’t. And the longer you shy away from it, the less prepared you’ll be to do what has to be done.

OMORI stood up and shook Twisted Garden off, his void black eyes looking into Basil’s very soul. What had looked like sadness on OMORI’s face had shifted into something else, perhaps defiance, perhaps determination. Even as Basil pulled Sunny closer, neither of them felt any warmer.

If you wish to prove me wrong, make it so.

With that, OMORI vanished once more.

…

Kel looked down at his baby sister in his arms, cradling her softly. Creeping anxieties ate at the back of his mind, Basil’s reaction to Sally’s condition playing in his mind over and over. He could hear Sunny and Basil yelling about… something… outside the door, but couldn’t make out what.

Kel took a deep breath, stating “Mama?”
His mom looked back at him, her eyes lingering on Sally. “Sally’s not going to be okay, is she Kel?” she asked in a subdued, desperate tone, “I don’t know what Basil was doing, but clearly he saw something we couldn’t.”
She slumped over and put her hands on her head, Kel could hear her choking back sobs as the shouting outside continued.

The heated discussion faded, and Sunny quietly re-entered the room while Kel stared in anticipation. Basil was nowhere to be seen, though the faint sound of crying could be heard outside the door. Sunny’s expression was calm, composed, but Kel could see lingering puffiness in his eye.

“S-Sunny,” Kel asked, “Can we save her?”

Sunny walked up to Kel and looked down at Sally.

“She’ll be fine for now, but we need to speak to Hero. Soon.” The urgency in Sunny’s voice told Kel everything he needed to know. Hot pins prickled up and down his spine, the heat of Sally’s fever burning his skin. “Basil and I need to go,” Sunny continued regretfully, “we’ll stay in close contact. Tell us if it starts getting worse.”

Sunny turned to leave before hesitating. He turned back around, and embraced Kel in an awkward but sincere manner.

“We’re here for you,” Sunny reassured, before retreating out the door slowly. Conflicting misery and warmth overtook Kel as he watched his friend leave the room, inner turmoil eroding his perspective.

“What do we do?” Kel’s mom whispered.

Kel found he didn’t have a good answer.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

The cool winds of night flowed through Aubrey’s hair as she waited by the fountain. Mikhael waited with her, repeatedly scanning the plaza with a bored expression on his face. Only the streetlights illuminated the square, the absence of the day’s hustle and bustle leaving a hole in the local atmosphere. It was quiet. Weirdly quiet. Her whole life had been lately, as if everyone had just briefly forgotten about her.
Well, it wasn’t completely silent, Aubrey thought to herself. The night’s song of whispering winds and the fountain’s water weaved its way through the dark. Now if only it was punk rock and not something Aubrey would hear in an elevator.

“This is insulting,” Mikhael eventually complained, “Doesn’t Hero know it’s rude to keep people waiting like this?”
“This is ridiculous,” Aubrey affirmed, a fleck of irritation in her voice, “but in case his so-called ‘opportunity’ is what I think it is, we’re staying.”
Mikhael rolled his eyes, “Well, if he doesn’t show up in the next 10 minutes I’m going home. My shift was exhausting, and I don’t have your freakish recovery abilities.”
“I’ve still got the mask, we could change that,” Aubrey replied with a fanged grin. Mikhael gave a disgusted look and retorted, “Ugh. Absolutely not. You should’ve given that thing to the Speedwagon Foundation ages ago.”
Aubrey laughed, “Yeah, right! Maybe if they stop wanting to experiment on me, I’ll consider it.”
She sat silently in contemplation before eventually asking, “How’s your job going anyways?”
“Eh. It’s a job. I’m, of course, the best at it, and I suppose I’m better off than if I didn’t have it.” Mikhael replied boredly, “Still, there’s only so much excitement I can get out of kneading dough.”
“Sometimes I wonder what it’s like to eat normal food,” Aubrey lamented. Mikhael snorted before continuing, “At least baking finally gives me a way to kick Kel’s ass.”
God. Kel. What a nuisance. She hadn’t spoken to him since Sunny’s confession, and she was somewhat hoping it’d stay that way. Aubrey scowled. Kel and his simplistic naivety, his mindless optimism, his bright goofy smile…
“Why are you so obsessed with beating him in a competition anyways?” Aubrey inquired judgingly.
“Because I’m clearly more talented than he is, I just need to prove it.”
“Prove it to who? Even if you did win, you’d still be 1 to 9.”
“It’s a step in the right direction!” Mikhael retorted incredulously.

At that moment, a black BMW with its headlights off sped into the nearby parking lot. Aubrey could tell it was a newer model, possibly fresh off the lot too given how shiny it was. She wondered how anyone could see out of those tinted windows. The car came to a halt in the closest parking space to the fountain, the driver side door opening dramatically…
As Hero stepped out of the vehicle, Aubrey couldn’t help but giggle at his over the top outfit. A black suit with a blue tie, mirrored aviators, he’d even combed his hair… slightly. It was all so unbelievably extra, particularly given the time.
“Is this what people mean by fashionably late?” Mikhael called out. Hero raised his eyebrow at him, but otherwise didn’t say anything as he walked over to Aubrey.
“I thought this would just be the two of us,” Hero stated in a monotone voice, his expression ever so slightly disapproving. Aubrey felt pretty disappointed by his introduction herself, her voice terse as she replied “What, no ‘Hey Aubrey, how’s it going?’ Straight to business then?”
Hero paused for a moment, thinking for a little before his stance softened. He sighed, bowed his head a little and responded, “Sorry, you’re right. I’ve had a lot on my mind recently.”
“You’re alright, I really can’t blame you,” Aubrey said solemnly, “I’ve had a lot on my mind too.” Being honest with herself, Aubrey hadn’t really been taking care of herself since Sunny’s confession. Her pink hair dye had faded, and she hadn’t gone outside except to go to church. Ironic, she thought to herself, she was just doing what Sunny had done all over again. Hero nodded, a visible sadness in his eyes as he folded his glasses and stowed them away.

Mikhael awkwardly sat there, his gaze locked on Hero. What Hero couldn’t have possibly known was that Mikhael could see his Stand, courtesy of a pact he’d made with the eldritch force ‘Outlander.’ The power of Outlander’s pact let Mikhael see the shape of people’s souls, and Hero’s soul was a massive dark blue aura where his Stand took shape.
Hero’s Stand was a full sized fighter jet, streamlined and sleek. It sported a full black paintjob with golden highlights along the wings, a machine of war. The cockpit was impossible to see through, even with Mikhael’s enhanced vision. He considered how fortunate it was that he was wearing his yellow wig, obscuring the concern on his face and hiding his liquid gold eyes from view. Who knows what Hero would do if he was aware of Mikhael’s spiritual intrusion?
“Hey Aubrey, could we have a quick one-on-one?” Mikhael interrupted. Hero gave him a questioning look, scrutinizing his motives. Aubrey had gotten close to tears seeing Hero again, pleading “I need to speak with Hero. We’ve had plenty of time to talk, whatever it is can wait.”
“This is serious.” Mikhael responded urgently, “I know how important your conversation is, but I need to tell you this now.”
“You heard her,” Hero interjected, “I’m sure she’ll be able to listen momentarily.”
“Maybe you were right, you should go home,” Aubrey told Mikhael, grief in her voice, “I shouldn’t have dragged you here.”
“You didn’t drag me here! You asked, and I agreed to accompany you!”
“And now I’m asking you to leave.”
“You- I…”
Mikhael began to protest, but cut himself short. Aubrey wouldn’t listen to him, so instead he conceded, “T-that’s alright. I’ll see you around Aubrey.” He whispered something in latin, a prayer of some sort, and then walked off into the night. Hero’s gaze prickled at him as he vanished.
“Is he a new friend of yours?” Hero inquired, “He seems awfully pushy.”
“He’s a good friend,” Aubrey retorted, “maybe if you’d been here the last four years you’d know that!”
“I know, I’m sorry, as the responsible one it fell to me to be there for you all, and I failed,” Hero replied dejectedly, “but… I’m here now. And if you want me to stay, I’ll stay. And besides…”
Hero paused and pulled the Stand arrow out of his pocket. Aubrey stared at it with dread, as the horrible realization hit her that this was indeed his ‘opportunity.’ She’d suspected going into this might be the case, Mikhael had tried to warn her, and yet in a moment of weakness she’d lowered her guard and let the situation spiral before her. Yet, despite her apprehension, she didn’t react quite yet. This was Hero, her childhood friend. Time had changed him, his expensive car and attire proved it, but she could see the sympathy in his eyes, the responsible group dad he’d once been. If this was his way of reclaiming it… well, it’d have to be corrected, but Aubrey needed to find a way to separate him from the artifact diplomatically.
“Uh… what’s this about?” Aubrey inquired, faking cluelessness, “Why’d you bring an arrow here?”
“It’s a crossbow bolt actually,” Hero coolly replied, “and you already know what’s special about it.”
Shit. Her ruse had failed. Aubrey’s mind raced, analyzing what had slipped. Had she hesitated? Was it her expression? Hero had gone back to the same cold expression he’d worn when he first showed up, entirely unreadable.
“You know, it’s the funniest thing. I’ve barely had this arrow for two weeks, and I’ve already made seven loyal Stand Users… and a host of experiments,” Hero said flatly. He held the arrow up to his face, taking a moment to examine its intricate details. “Sunny hurt you too,” he continued, “So that begs the question, will you let him continue to drive the knife in?”
Grief and confusion consumed Aubrey, she wasn’t even sure who she was looking at anymore. She wasn’t exactly on the best terms with Sunny, but what Hero was suggesting now… it was madness. Had his grief infected him that deeply?
She knew she couldn’t make a move yet, she couldn’t do anything that might make him activate his Stand. Even with her vampiric powers granted by the stone mask, her inability to see Stands put her severely on the back foot… especially if she didn’t know what capabilities it might have. Aubrey’s gaze sank to the floor.
“You’re right. About Sunny, I mean,” Aubrey murmured, “What he did… It wasn't a good thing. And we shouldn’t be naively forgiving him. Mari was like family to all of us…”
Her stance shifted, pink eyes locking dead on with Hero’s gaze. She found there was little remorse in his eyes, only the reflection of the Stand Arrow.
“...her memory will live on with us, that I promise. But I won’t be accepting a Stand, and I won’t let you destroy yourself for her either!” Burning purple power coalesced in Aubrey’s eyes as she focused on her target, the arrow. With her Space Ripper Stinging Eyes, she’d be able to destroy the artifact at range before Hero could possibly react, or so she thought. Twin jets of concentrated force projected from Aubrey, streaking through the air directly towards the arrow’s head… but before the beams could connect they bounced away, reflected off of some invisible thing in the way.

Hero chuckled ruthlessly, his friendly facade fully dropping. “Oh Aubrey,” he stated condescendingly, “So the rumors were true after all. You aren’t natural. Ah well, no matter what your abilities are, it’s still not enough for you to compare to the power of my Stand.”
Aubrey continued to stand defiantly, but the ferocious purple light in her eyes had dimmed. She didn’t have the energy to attempt another Space Ripper Stinging Eyes, and even if she could she doubted it would help. Based on her testing, the beams could cleanly punch through anything short of solid lead, but against magical forces or Stands? No clue. Her face twisted into a frustrated grimace, why did he have to be a Stand User?
Hero stowed the arrow back into his suit jacket, maintaining eye contact as he re-equipped his sunglasses.
“Aubrey, I’ll give you one more chance. I want you, by my side, while we bring Mari the justice she deserves. But if you can’t see sense…” Hero frowned, his declaration hanging heavy in the air. In the reflection of Hero’s aviators, Aubrey saw her own resolve faltering. Her confrontational posture was ever so slightly offkilter, the confidence she thought she was portraying clearly in flux.
Hero continued without smirking, without gloating, no sense of superiority or satisfaction in his voice. He spoke clearly as he finished, “Unfortunately, I can’t afford you warning Basil or Sunny.”
“What are you going to do then?! Kill me?! Do you think Mari would really want that… want any of this?” Aubrey shouted angrily, a surge of rage fueled by her uncertainty.
“Who cares what Mari wants? Mari's dead.”
Aubrey went pale as all the blood drained from her face, shocked by her own callous words being thrown back at her. How did Hero even know she’d said that? What else did he know about? Her heart pounded, adrenaline creeping into her veins. She’d thought back to those words each night, the regret gnawing at her. To hear Hero so indifferently mock her like that, that was a step too far.
“If you really wanted me to join you,” Aubrey retorted between clenched teeth, “that was the wrong thing to say!”
Aubrey lunged with inhuman speed, vampiric essence coursing through her veins. She knew this attack probably wouldn’t work, Hero’s Stand would no doubt intercept her just as it had deflected Space Ripper Stinging Eyes, but this assault was mostly for show anyhow. She didn’t know if the old Hero could be saved, brought back from whoever this monster standing before her was, but she had to try. And any pathway to bring him back meant taking away that arrow.
As expected, before she could reach Hero she slammed full force into something invisible… like a wall of composite metal. Aubrey could feel her shoulder being crushed upon impact, a burning fire racing along her arm and into her chest. The pain didn’t bother her, her shoulder would heal itself within a minute. More importantly, she now knew what it was she’d rammed into. There was no sensation of being kicked or punched, she hadn’t been pierced by a Stand’s blade, and it certainly wasn’t humanoid. What she’d crashed into had the same shape as the fuselage of a F-35 Lightning IIB multirole strike fighter aircraft. As she crumpled to the floor and processed what she’d learned, she briefly reflected on how weirdly familiar the sensation of ramming into a fighter jet was. Being a vampire had taken her some strange places.

“My Stand, 8.02, is perfection itself. Unmatched speed, range, durability. It embodies efficiency, I couldn’t have asked for a better gift from the arrow.” Hero proclaimed, “If only you could see it! It’s the only thing perfect enough for Mari!”
Aubrey grunted, gritting her teeth. “That thing is a machine of war,” she replied as she righted herself. Her shoulder snapped back into place with a sickening wet click.
“It’s a tactical option,” Hero refuted coolly. The end of his sentence was drowned out by the sound of 8.02’s thruster roaring to life, the shockwave staggering Aubrey back as the unseen aircraft ascended into the night sky. Aubrey caught herself on her feet, paranoidly scanning the sky for any sign of 8.02’s approach. She could hear the sound of its flight, sense the distortions of 8.02 hypersonic motions through the air. If she could react to its movements, perhaps she’d be able to…
The jet suddenly dived towards her at impossibly fast speeds, unleashing a hailstorm of bullets screeching towards the ground. The strafing run’s staccato split Aubrey’s ears as she desperately sprinted out of the line of fire, followed by the sound of concrete exploding from the impact. Her inhuman agility was almost enough for her to escape, almost. But a single 25mm shell pierced through her right leg, severing her achilles tendon and shattering the bones up her entire leg. She screamed out in visceral agony and disbelief, falling to the ground but still looking up at Hero. She could only crawl along the ground and pray her regeneration could act fast enough to bring her back up.

“HENRY!” Aubrey screamed with deep betrayal in her heart, “Is this what will make you happy!?!” She pulled herself onto one knee, staring at her former friend Hero with disgust, “How can you look yourself in the mirror!”
“The same way I have for the last four years,” Henry replied with an unnerving calm. Aubrey couldn’t believe how unfazed he seemed, watching her bleeding right in front of him. Rising dust from the debris obscured his figure, the shining streetlights casting his imposing silhouette against the ground. He seemed to tower over Aubrey, the lens of his eyes gleaming in the dark. Solemnly, he stated, “Goodbye, Aubrey”
Aubrey could sense something fire from the internal weapons bay of Henry’s Stand, streaking through the night sky like lightning. A missile of some kind, she couldn’t tell what kind. Rage boiled through her, if her body was fully destroyed she may not be able to regenerate before sunrise. She’d be gone, vaporized by the morning daylight. With a final defiant scream, she affirmed she would not be going to her grave quietly.

The missile stopped midair, held by some unseen force. Henry looked back to the missile, confused why it stopped moving.

In a swirl of shadow, Mikhael emerged from the darkness and the dust. His left hand was clenched, a golden enchantment circle burning bright in the air around his fist. He tightened his grip further, whispering an unknown incantation and causing the ensnared missile to explode midair. The blast rocked the night, the shockwave blowing away the concrete dust in the atmosphere.

“INTERLOPER!” Henry screamed at Mikhael, his whole body vibrating with sheer anger. The downwards tilt of his head hid his face in shadow, the glowing blue aura of his soul illuminating the entire plaza. Mikhael gave a cocky grin in response, left hand on his torso, a single yellow eye peaking through his wig.
“Surprise! Aubrey, you really should have listened to me earlier,” Mikhael announced pompously, “No matter! I’ll best you just like I’ve bested your brother!”
In a fluid, dance-like motion Mikhael took on a goading stance, pentacles of golden energy flaring in the air around him. Aubrey almost grinned through the pain, Mikhael was brimming with so much confidence she’d almost forgotten that he’d never actually won a competition against Kel.
Thunderous roars echoed through the air as 8.02 dove in for a second strafing run, a blur in the air as it barrelled towards Mikhael. Mikhael crossed his arms and recited a prayer to Outlander, and a shield of energy formed in front of him. As the wave of bullets flowed towards him, Mikhael remained steadfast, his shield cracking under the onslaught but surviving long enough for 8.02 to pull back up and vanish into the night sky once more. Mikhael’s smirk grew, he’d never tested his shielding against something of that caliber before.
His feeling of victory was short-lived. In the chaos, Aubrey’s scream had been drowned out by shell and thruster. She’d taken the full brunt of the attack, her body riddled with dozens of perforations from the aircraft’s 25mm shells. As a vampire this kind of damage could be easily recovered from, but her agony was beyond what any mortal could experience. A puncture clean through her lungs prevented her from crying out, she could barely even whisper. Henry was nowhere to be seen, though his BMW was still in the parking lot.
Mikhael rushed over to Aubrey’s limp form, all his usual confident swagger dropped.
“AUBREY!”
“M-mikh-ael”
Aubrey gritted her teeth, her voice raspy and deflated, “p-prot-ect y-yourself!”

A single shot rang out through the plaza, the echoing blast from a handgun. The bullet shattered Mikhael’s weakened shield, grazing through his shoulder and sending him tumbling to the ground. As he fell, golden shards of energy fell to the ground around him, a chorus of tinkling glass against the broken concrete.
Henry peeked out from behind his cover of a nearby sedan, wisps of smoke wafting from the glock in his hand. Gun held forward, he approached the two bodies in the plaza. Witnessing Aubrey’s ally shrug off an attack from 8.02 had left him rattled, he was still in disbelief that such a thing was possible at all. He crouched down over Mikhael’s body, examining the bullet wound his shot had left. Fortune, so it would seem, favored Henry. The shot appeared to have gone straight through Mikhael’s ribs, piercing his heart.
He looked up to the moonlight, and thanked Mari for guiding his shot. Given the amount of destruction he’d left behind, Henry was certain he wouldn’t be able to cover up the night’s encounter, but he supposed it didn’t matter that much. The damages he’d done wouldn’t be traceable back to him anyway, besides that he’d need to dispose of the glock. Satisfied with his handiwork, Henry got into his BMW and drove off into the night.

He’d given Aubrey a choice. It hadn’t needed to go like this, but oh well.

…

…

Mikhael sputtered awake, sitting upright in a puddle of his own blood. He breathed a heavy sigh of relief, the illusion had worked. Knowing he’d been in no condition to fight, Mikhael had cast a spell to make the bullet wound appear as though it’d been fatal in the hopes to dissuade his attacker. Blood flowed like a river, his left arm was totally unresponsive, but even still he’d survived. Luckily, Henry hadn’t checked his pulse.

“Aubrey, you alright?” Mikhael inquired, out of breath.
Despite looking like human swiss cheese, Aubrey replied with a miffed, “Just help me up, already.”

…

Aubrey staggered into her home, propped up by Mikhael as she limped onwards. Her mother sat on the couch, completely knocked out next to a pile of empty beer bottles. Aubrey’s mom had never really liked Mikhael, or any of Aubrey’s friends for that matter, so her complete obliviousness to their entry was for the better. Aubrey briefly considered siphoning her blood, but quickly silenced the thought. No one deserved to be harvested, not even that old witch.
They made their way into the back hallway, taking a moment to stare at the ladder to Aubrey’s room. There wasn’t a chance they could climb in their current condition, so instead Mikhael dragged them both over to her mother’s bedroom. The room was dark and grungy, a twister of unwashed clothing and dead cigarette butts, but for now it’d have to do. Aubrey collapsed into her mother’s bed, the bullet holes riddling her body uncomfortably rubbing against the dirty green blanket.

“Is there anything you’ll need?” Mikhael inquired.
Aubrey grunted, “Blood. There’s some in my room…” She’d regenerate with or without blood, but it certainly made the process faster to have some coursing through her veins.
“Unless you want me to break my neck too,” Mikhael quipped mirthlessly, “I can’t make it up there. Would you want me to at least stick around?”
He was trying to keep his voice controlled, but Aubrey could still hear that he was in immense physical pain.
Aubrey rolled over to look at her friend, giving a meaningful glance at his arm. “I want you to go to the hospital.”

Mikhael nodded, an uncertain smile crossing his lips. As he made his way out, Aubrey thought back to how they’d met. After Mari had died, she’d been directionless. Her old friends had all moved on, and to everyone at school she’d been a misfit. An other. Someone had noticed her fangs, and rumors had spread throughout her class like wildfire. Monster. Demon.
Distorted mocking laughter echoed through her head;
‘I heard her friend’s body was strangely devoid of blood when they finally cut her down from that tree’
‘Look at the way her bruises fade! It’s unnatural!’
‘No wonder she walks to school alone, nobody would love something like her’
Mikhael had been in her science class during middle school, a similar target of harassment… though a much more self-assured one. Sometimes she’d seen him in the halls, surrounded by the jeering laughter of older boys. They’d rip his wig off, shove him into lockers, mock his outfits, usually sometime after he’d given a speech about how he could beat them all up or proclaimed his name was ‘The Maverick.’ At the time, Aubrey had thought his bravado was stupid.
One day, Mikhael had approached her during lunch.
“So, you’re the vampire everyone’s been going on about,” he’d proclaimed boldly.
Aubrey had glared at him and his mischievous smile. She was far too exhausted to deal with this but, even so, she had to admire how confident he was. Everyone was against him, and yet here he was; smiling as if he were the king of the world.
“Well, I’ll have you know they don’t believe a word of it,” Mikhael had stated, “they’re just looking for someone to pick on. Everyone knows vampires aren’t real.”
Aubrey’s reply was terse, “Go away.”
He’d left with a shrug, a smirk plastered across his face. Aubrey had thought she’d been pretty clear that she had no interest in talking to him, but the next day he returned anyway. And the next. And the next. To her, Mikhael was irritating in a way that Kel had never been, but as the days went by she slowly found that she appreciated his company. Opening up was a long, slow process, but at some point Aubrey’s open disdain shifted from true irritation to playful banter. For the first time since Mari’s death, Aubrey was finally seen again.
The day before summer break began, Aubrey had been walking down the halls from English to Algebra when she overheard Mikhael yelling outside. The uncharacteristic panic in his voice sent a shiver down her spine. Aubrey rushed to investigate, adrenaline pumping through her veins. Images of Sunny and Basil crying by Mari’s hanging corpse flooded her mind, thoughts of the worst case scenarios overwhelming her sense as she ran. She had burst through the school’s door, frantically searching for her friend while tears ran down her cheeks.
Once she found him, he was unconscious on the ground near the dumpsters. The ground around him was fractured, spiderwebs of abyssal black ink strained through the fabric of reality itself. Hanging out of the dumpster was another limp body, his left hand completely missing. Aubrey had recognized the second boy, one of the bullies that heckled Mikhael with religious fervor. Focusing on her friend, Aubrey shook Mikhael violently in the hopes of waking him up.
Mikhael had opened his eyes with a pained groan, before rubbing his temples and muttering something about a splitting headache. He’d been incredibly dodgy when Aubrey questioned him, admitting he was a warlock but refusing to explain what the hell had happened to him and the other kid. His pact, as he explained it, forbade him from elaborating.

Aubrey snapped back to the present, opening her eyes wide. She didn’t recall falling asleep, but shining daylight outside the window told her that hours must have passed. Checking the alarm clock confirmed this; 7am. She considered how fortunate she was that her mother’s window faced north, if the room had an eastward window she could have been vaporized in her sleep. Aubrey flexed all of her joints, testing to see how far her regeneration had progressed. While she could still fit a finger into the bullet holes, she’d regained full control of her limbs; sufficient enough to climb into her room.
As Aubrey made her way down the hallway she took a moment to peek into the living room, where her catatonic mother continued to snore. A look of disgust crossed Aubrey's face before she moved on, scaling the ladder up to her attic bedroom.
The first thing she did upon re-entering her room was drink one of her cans of sheep blood, courtesy of a local farmer with a kind heart. The metallic essence of life rejuvenated her, she could feel the warmth of healing as her sinews knitted themselves back together and her flesh reformed. Within a few minutes, she’d be back to her usual whole self.
The second thing she did was grab Bun Bun out of her cage and patted her affectionately. There was no functional purpose to this, it just helped Aubrey process everything that happened. Even now, it was hard to believe. The Hero she thought she knew was gone, or had never existed to begin with. Stand Users had come to Faraway. And somehow, the worst part was still that she’d have to confront Sunny to warn him what was coming his way. She could hardly bear the thought.
The third thing she did was apply enough sunscreen to last her for the day. For most people, a sunburn was a moderate inconvenience. For her, high concentrations of solar UV radiation could prove fatal. She’d once quipped to Mikhael that the reason she was so pale had nothing to do with her vampirism while in the middle of reapplying her sunblock. He’d placed an enchantment on her to help mitigate sunlight, but still, being cautious paid.

Aubrey gazed out her window into the usually placid city of Faraway, revealing dark clouds gathering on the horizon. A storm was brewing, and Aubrey worried this little town wasn’t ready for its impending arrival.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

Kel sat at his desk and wistfully stared at the wall, listening to the soft pitter patter of the rain against his roof. He’d wanted to play some basketball today, to see his sports buddies and to take his mind off of Sally’s condition, but evidently life didn’t always play ball. Glumly, he looked down at his phone. Still no messages from Hero. Kel had tried to call him numerous times, each time just going to voicemail.
Hero’s voice message looped through Kel’s head like a broken record, “Hey, you’ve reached the phone of Henry Vasquez. Please leave a message after the tone! Thank you!” His voice in the recording was warm, welcoming. To think Hero was the one responsible for Sally’s illness… did he even know the part he’d played? Basil and Sunny had been acting so dodgy about the cure… like they knew the answer and feared it.
The scraping sound of a window opening, followed by the intensifying sound of rain and a wet thud behind him redirected his attention. Standing in the middle of his room was a soaking wet Aubrey, her freshly dyed hair leaving trails of pink droplets across the floorboards. There was steel in her brilliant pink eyes, even if the rain had made her look like a soggy cat.

Aubrey’s voice was tense as she inquired, “Hey Kel, where’s Henry at?”
Kel sighed, exasperated. It felt like everyone wanted to know that lately, himself included. Still… Henry? Aubrey never called him that, Kel’s brother had always been Hero to her. Kel opted to play it cool as he replied, “College, probably. How’d you uh… get in my room?”
“The window.”
The two awkwardly stared at each other for a bit, memories of Sunny’s confession flooding back to them. Kel hadn’t seen Aubrey at all since that day, and seeing her again now felt… conflicting. Especially since she’d broken into his house. He blinked once, repeated her words, “...the window.”
He glanced down at the puddles forming around Aubrey’s shoes then back up at her, “You know I have a door, right?”
“I didn’t want to wake your mother up,” Aubrey stated uncomfortably, averting her gaze. Kel accepted this logic, opting to not push her too hard. She continued, “Hey, Kel… is, uh, everything going ok with you?”
Kel took a moment to think. It was hard saying he was okay, learning the truth about Mari, learning his sister was dying, and his brother was a Stand User… It was a lot. But, he didn’t want to weigh Aubrey down with all that. She was undoubtedly going through a lot too, and Kel wasn’t sure he was even at liberty to share everything Sunny and Basil had told him. So he just responded, “I’m doing alright,” though he couldn’t muster any enthusiasm to go along with it.
Aubrey’s lips curled into what might have been a smile, before quickly getting snuffed out as she stated, “Hero’s a Stand User.”
Kel sighed, “So, Sunny and Basil told you then?”
This provoked a genuine little laugh from Aubrey, laced with a slight encroaching frustration.
“Hah. No, I haven’t spoken to either of them,” Aubrey responded, “But now I know you have.”
A few moments passed as Aubrey’s words settled in, Kel grimaced. Not even Aubrey was free from this increasingly tangled web.
“It’s not ideal,” Kel pointed out.
Aubrey affirmed this thought, “It most certainly isn’t.”
Mutual silence overtook them, the discordant song of rain accentuating the weight of their situation.
“Forget all that,” Aubrey interrupted the quiet with a smug grin, “That’s not what I’m here for.”
“It’s… not?”
“I’m here to see you,” Aubrey’s grin softened into a smile as she spoke, “After four years, we got the gang back together. Even if everything else fell apart immediately… I don’t want to lose you again. Maybe you can be an honorary hooligan or something.”
“Oh, thank you,” Kel replied apprehensively, “Though, could you get a towel or something? My floor is going to be permanently rose tinted at this point.”
Aubrey looked down at the puddle forming around her feet, blinking a bit, and acknowledged “Yeah, that’d be a good idea.”

Aubrey ducked into the bathroom, superheating her body to dry herself off via evaporation. Her vampiric essence granted her near-total control over her own body, and that included thermal control. She could’ve done this at any time earlier, but it felt… weird. Too personal. If Kel was dabbling with Stands nowadays, she knew he’d certainly seen stranger things. He’d probably be accepting of her powers, but… thinking back to middle school, her mother, the rush of power she felt when she nearly drowned Basil…
Once the last of the moisture had boiled away, Aubrey opened the bathroom window to let the steam out. She wrapped a performative towel around her head and returned to Kel’s room, where he was setting up his old game console for a game of Mario Kart. He smiled as she walked into the room, welcoming her back.
Aubrey chose Rosalina, and Kel selected Donkey Kong.

“What do you like about Donkey Kong so much anyways?” Aubrey teased, “He’s just a big ol’ gorilla.”
“Hey! You don’t see me judging your choice,” Kel retorted playfully, “He may just be a big ol’ gorilla, but that’s all he needs to be. Not everyone needs to be some kind of cosmic star goddess princess thing you know.”
“Pft, just like you to criticize a strong, independent woman,” Aubrey countered, a competitive grin dominating her face as she leaned towards the screen. Their banter continued on throughout the grand prix, and by the time the races came to a close Kel finished in 9th and Aubrey in 7th.
“Someday, they’ll call me the drift queen!” Aubrey smugly proclaimed, “Good game Kel.”
“Good game, Aubrey,” Kel agreed, “Be sure to lord this over Mikhael.”
Mikhael… he was still in the hospital from last night. Aubrey’s vision blurred, the ringing sounds of static briefly causing her to tune out the world. A gunshot and scream echoed through her mind, overlaid on her heart beat…
“Aubrey? Aubrey are you alright?” Kel waved his hand in front of her face, causing her to snap out of her dazed state.
“Hah, yeah. Mikhael’s never gonna live this down,” a still half distracted Aubrey agreed, “We still got crushed by the NPCs though.” Aubrey was honestly shocked her enhanced reaction speed hadn’t been as much of a boon as she’d expected.
Kel nodded, “They won’t be calling you the drift queen anytime soon, that’s for sure.”
Aubrey lightly punched Kel in the arm, “Dumbass.”
“Ow! Rude!” Kel objected, before countering with a restrained smack of his own.
“Tell you what, beat me in a rematch and I’ll call you the drift king.”
“You’re on!”
They played a few more grand prixes, laughing and bantering with gusto. Not even the sound of thunder could intrude on their respite, two friends hanging out. By the third cup, Kel noticed Aubrey’s posture had softened. She seemed more relaxed than when she’d first arrived, less stiff and awkward.
Then Aubrey knocked his cart off the track, reminding him of the stakes at play. He’d never get his title of Drift King if he faltered here!

“Cheap shot!” Kel cried, feigning disbelief.
“Skill issue.” Aubrey shot back without missing a beat.

Kel laughed, and so did Aubrey. But as Kel looked over to Aubrey to congratulate her on yet another victory, he noticed that she was crying. Ever so subtly, tears caressed her face. Was it catharsis, Kel wondered? Her determined grin sure implied so.
As the 4th and final round came to a close, they took tally of the score. 2-2. Perfectly even split.
“A tie!” Aubrey exclaimed “Who will be crowned drift monarch then?”
“Did either of us ever get higher than 5th?” Kel replied, “If anyone won here I think it’s the Wii.”
“Ha! I’ll be sure to get it a crown and scepter then,” Aubrey quipped, “but seriously, it’s been fun hanging out.”
“Yeah.”
Kel watched as Aubrey looked down at her phone, and her expression immediately darkened.
“I-I’ve gotta go.”
Aubrey leapt up from her seat, throwing the window open to the pouring rain. Gracefully, she stepped out, but as she passed through the windowframe she caught herself for a moment. Pausing outside the window, she faced outward and away from Kel. Though no cold could touch her, still she shivered in the rain. Somberly, she spoke, “Kel, I need you to promise me something.”
“Anything for my friend,” Kel grinned, “What do you need?”
“I should have seen Sunny myself, but… I…” Aubrey paused midsentence, her voice caught. The downpour obscured her figure, but the purple glow of her eyes revealed she was looking at Kel. Her silhouette morphed as she spoke, “Henry can’t be trusted. You have to warn Sunny…” Her voice trembled and faded, but Kel could make out the word ‘please’ through the rainfall.
The howl of wind accompanied Kel as he begged, “What? What do you mean he can’t be trusted?”
“I- I don’t want to talk about it. If you want to see what happened for yourself… go to the fountain.”
Then Aubrey vanished, followed by the wet splash of her hitting the muddy ground below. Kel was left in his room, his stomach in knots. Hero… wasn’t to be trusted? He’d been involved in some shady things recently, but what could have possibly happened to get Aubrey to act like this?
Kel closed the window, watching as water droplets streamed down the glass.
“Go to the fountain,” Kel repeated to himself, musing over what that could mean. His train of thought was interrupted by Sally’s crying, a more pressing matter by far. Whatever had gone down with Hero, Kel knew he needed to find out. But between his sister and the rain, now wasn’t the time to investigate.
For a brief moment, Kel lingered at the window. Nobody was out there to look back, save his own miserable reflection.

…

Basil stared at his phone, his messages open to Hero’s contact. He refreshed, then refreshed again, then again. Once they’d gotten home the prior day, he’d tried to ask Hero to meet up with him and Sunny, but so far… no response. No response from the number Angel had given them either. Compared to the dull grey of the clouds outside, the screen was blinding. Sunny was snoring in the living room. Polly had taken the day off for a family emergency. That left Basil, all alone in his room. Anticipation weighed heavy in the atmosphere, and he could sense eyes watching him from places he couldn’t see.
The quiet weight of the silence was cut through by the faint sound of a knife’s slice through plant matter, and Basil spun around to see Sunny’s Stand facing one of his plants.
“You! Get away from my sprouts!” Basil yelped, Twisted Garden thrashing towards the pale boy. Effortlessly, Sunny’s Stand severed each vine before they could reach him without even turning to look at Basil. Once the hacking away concluded, the Stand held its blade out perpendicular to its chest, then slowly lowered the knife down to its side.

Relax. I’m only tending to this one.

The voice echoed through Basil’s mind, chillingly impartial. Fearful for his sprouts, Basil snapped at the ethereal figure, shouting “What could you possibly know about gardening!”

Quite a lot. You loved talking about your plants, and Sunny is a very good listener.

Basil's cheeks burned red, embarrassed for his presumption. Of course an extension of Sunny would have his knowledge. Knowing Sunny had remembered Basil’s yapping from when they were twelve made him feel a bit better, in its own silly way.

I suppose I haven’t introduced myself. My name is OMORI.

OMORI turned around to Basil in the eyes, a sprig of lavender in one hand and a kitchen knife in the other. He seemed slightly less uncanny than he had yesterday, Basil decided, but there was something about his cold, dead gaze that sent a shiver through Basil’s nerves.

A realization popped into Basil’s mind, an old memory compelling him to ask, “L-Like Mari’s piano?”

Indeed.

That wasn’t good news. Basil was sure when he’d stabbed Sunny with the arrow that it could help him heal, and move on. Yet here his Stand was, named after the very thing he needed to move past. OMORI’s expression shifted into what Basil thought could be… curiosity? It was hard to tell.

What’s wrong with my name?

“Oh, uh, it’s just…,” Basil stammered, “N-nothing.”

OMORI looked on silently, his face neutral once more.

He’s dreaming about you, you know.

Basil involuntarily blushed, the whole room felt like it was a hundred degrees. OMORI placed the sprig of lavender in Basil’s hands before continuing, its herbal aroma nagging at Basil in a way he didn’t fully understand.

Not like that. He still reminisces about a time when everyone was still together.

“O-oh,” Basil replied quietly, “I can’t blame him.”

OMORI turned back to the sprouts, continuing to tend to them with expert precision and care. He lowered his head slightly, tilting it imperceptibly to the side.

I used to not like you very much.

“Wh- huh?” Basil exclaimed, shocked by OMORI’s sudden proclamation.

You made my job much harder. Those rituals of yours, with the egret orchids, impressive work. I can see why you were entrusted with a Stand Arrow.

“O-oh, uh, thanks? I didn’t know they’d actually worked…”

They did. Those little thoughts you implanted in Sunny’s mind… I had to work day and night to lock them out. Keep them contained.

“Why… Why would you do that? How? You’re a Stand, you shouldn’t have existed before the Arrow awakened you…”

Before I was a Stand, I was a dream guardian. I protected Sunny from the truth, from the nagging little thoughts that ate away at him. Now that function is unnecessary.

“S-so we’re good now?”

OMORI didn’t immediately respond. Basil couldn’t help but notice that his knife seemed incredibly sharp… It almost hummed as it moved through the air.

Sunny thinks he needs you. You seem to think you need him too.

In one quick, fluid motion OMORI dashed up to Basil. Let out a haunting metal resonance, Basil could feel as OMORI’s blade tapped twice against the lavender sprig in his hand. Basil shrank back, eyes widened, beads of sweat forming at his brow. The point of OMORI’s shining blade was aimed directly into his carotid artery, and Basil could feel his heartbeat in his throat.

Gardener to gardener though, I would hope you understand that sometimes healthy growth requires pruning. I don’t think your proximity to him is healthy for either of you.

OMORI smiled slightly, its seeming sincerity only amplifying the menacing behind it. The blade retracted, and Basil took a deep breath in. His terror subsided.

For Sunny’s sake, I hope you stay well. But do both of us a favor, stay in line.

And then OMORI vanished. Basil got up and looked at the sprout OMORI tended to, and was relieved to find it was in perfect condition. Basil walked over to his bed and collapsed onto the mattress, taking a moment to just stare at the ceiling. What had his life come to?
Basil’s phone buzzed in his pocket, and the dread set back in instantly. As he pulled his phone into his vision, he saw that it was a message from Hero. Tentative excitement fluttered in Basil’s chest, soon they would have all their questions finally answered! They could vindicate Hero! They could all go back to being friends, to heal and move on together.

“Hey Basil! Sorry I didn’t respond, I was busy with college stuff last night. I’d love to meet up with you and Sunny soon. Maybe for lunch? I’ll be free tomorrow, and have been really wanting to go to the Japanese steak house at the mall. My treat. Love, Hero.”

Basil smiled softly. Despite everything, Hero was still the same Hero he’d always been. Tomorrow would be a good day.

…

Henry sat at the head of a glass table, a room he’d reserved from the university for his meetings. The large, west-facing window kept the white walls well illuminated, and the room-tone of the overhead AC unit kept the room grounded. It wasn’t as fancy as he would have liked, but with his limited resources this was by far the most economic choice. He’d already splurged enough with what he called his ‘business fit,’ the snazzy suit, mirrored aviator sunglasses, and BMW which he now used whenever there was Stand business to be done. More practically, it was good for making professional connections within his major.
Surrounding him at the table were six similarly dressed individuals, all of whom were Stand Users which he’d recruited to assist in his retribution. They were all college age individuals, like him, and came from all walks of life, each one meticulously evaluated by Henry for their righteousness, willpower, and general usefulness for career development. All of them watched Henry’s phone closely as it sat at the center of the table, anticipation filled the room.

The woman to Henry’s left asked, “You think they bought it?”
“They will,” Henry affirmed coolly.
Three bubbles appeared in the text chain, proof that Basil was responding to the message. Henry held his breath for the moment of truth, his allies intently leaning forwards. The tension was palpable as the triple dots vanished, and then…
“YES!” Henry jumped back in his chair, a vindicated smile crossing his face. The other Stand Users at the table high fived each other in celebration, before settling back down and looking to Henry.
Basil’s message read: ‘Sure! We’d love to. We’ll be there at 12:30 :)’
Following the jubilation, the man to Henry’s right inquired “So, what’s the plan, boss?”
“I’m solving this one alone,” Henry replied jubilantly, “You all are the greatest team I could ask for, but this case is… personal.”
“Didn’t you recruit us all… specifically for this?” asked the right hand man, confused.
“Nah, I brought you here for what comes after,” Henry proclaimed, “No doubt more supernatural threats will appear in the future. Best I can tell, we’re the only ones who can stop them.”
The rest of the table nodded. The scrawniest of the guys firmly announced, “Wow, this is just like my favorite game Persona 4 Golden.”
Everyone went silent.
“Hunter?” the gal across from him stated.
“Yeah?”
“Never say that again, please.”
“Oh. Fine.”
Sensing the group was getting distracted, Henry cleared his throat. In a calm, clear voice he announced, “If my mission turns out to be a failure, I’d like one of you to join me at the mall, just in case. Scott, if you would?”
Scott stood up into a bow, “I’d be honored.”
“Wonderful,” Henry stated coolly, “In that case, meeting adjourned. We’ll meet back up tomorrow once I’ve settled my score.”
In unison, everyone in the room stood up and shouted “TRUTH! JUSTICE! SECURITY!” with their hands clasped over their hearts. One by one, Henry’s allies made their way out of the room until he was the only one left. And so he sat there, brooding at the head of the table. His only company was the whispers of the AC.
He sighed, what was he doing? Leading a paranormal investigation squad, he was supposed to be a doctor, for heaven’s sake! Henry laughed at the ridiculousness of it all. The hippocratic oath said to do no harm, and yet his stand had manifested as a machine of war. Was this how engineers at Lockheed Martin felt?
Outside the window, hordes of students milled about the university. Their echoing voices made their way up and into the meeting hall, a tide of conversations. Henry steeled himself. Engineers, soldiers, doctors… They all did necessary jobs. And so did he.

…

Sunny poured himself a bowl of honey nut cheerios while scrolling on his phone, adding a carefully measured amount of skim milk on top. He preferred 2%, but Basil didn’t have any and Polly wasn’t around to bring him some. The simplicity of the cereal didn’t bother Sunny much, even if he’d rather have something more decadent, he’d become well acclimated to simple cereals during his isolation. It was unreasonable to expect bacon and eggs every day.
A message popped up on his phone mid-bite, from Kel.
‘Aubrey visited me earlier. She said to warn you that Hero can’t be trusted.’
Hero can’t be trusted? Confirmation hurt, but Sunny wasn’t exactly surprised at this point. The mounting shadiness around their friend had hit critical mass, and Sunny really wished Hero would be more open about… whatever it was that’s going on. The radio silence was deafening.
He closed his eye, reaching through his senses to feel the world around him. The clinking of his spoon against the bowl, the soft rhythm of raindrops against the roof, the warmth of Basil’s home… It helped him ground himself. Taking a deep breath in, a sense of peace washed over him.
Giddy footsteps approached him from the hall, and when Sunny opened his eye Basil was sitting down across from him at the table. He had a wide smile on his face, his blue eyes shimmering with an excitement Sunny hadn’t seen in Basil since they were kids.

“Good news!” Basil announced, “Hero wants to get lunch tomorrow!”
Sunny dropped his spoon into his bowl, his mouth forming an O. Finally, a breakthrough. But even so, had Basil forgotten that Hero was almost certainly working with the arrow thief? Or that the only known method to save Sally was to kill him? Conflicting emotions swirled in Sunny’s mind.
“That’s… a step in the right direction,” Sunny replied, measuring his words carefully as he spoke, “So, what’s our plan if he has the Stand Arrow?”
“We hear him out,” Basil replied without hesitation, “If he took it, I’m sure he had a good reason to do so.”
Sunny agreed, but one more point of contention gnawed at him, “And for Sally?”
This gave Basil pause, OMORI’s words from yesterday hanging in the air. Hero or Sally. One cannot live if the other does. His eyes narrowed, his smile lessening. After taking a moment to think, Basil clasped his hands together and proclaimed, “Just because we don’t yet know a way to save them both doesn’t mean one doesn’t exist.”
Sunny folded his hand under his chin, averting his gaze from Basil. Basil’s smile had returned, but his desperation remained. Sunny wanted a happy ending as badly as Basil did, but based on the facts he was seeing it didn’t feel like one was really possible. Sunny sighed. Pessimism would only close avenues. There was always a chance that Basil was right. They’d have to at least try, for Kel’s family.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

‘Go to the fountain’

That’s what Aubrey had told him the day before, moments before she’d vanished into the rain. Kel had been busy all day yesterday, taking care of his sister and the house, but Aubrey’s cryptic words had haunted him. He rounded the corner into the plaza and…

Kel’s jaw dropped as he stepped back. The scene before him was something out of a warzone, the ripped up concrete and burst pipes were all that remained of the fountain. Shards of metal and shimmering golden glass had embedded themselves deep into the muddy ground, sticking out like hundreds of blades. Was… was this the power of Hero’s Stand? What ability could he possess which could rend the very earth like this? Kel could only stare in horror, finally comprehending the power at play.
Police tape encircled the scene, and a few investigators were scouring the perimeter for evidence. A few bystanders also stood around the taped off area, murmuring between themselves with confusion and concern. Faraway was usually a quiet town, this kind of destruction was unheard of. One bystander stood out from the others, standing silently and observing the wreckage. He had brown hair and a cast over his left arm, and he looked weirdly familiar…
The bystander looked over at Kel, and the moment he spoke Kel immediately realized who he was.
“Kel! Rival! How’s it going?” asked Mikhael.
It was strange, seeing Mikhael with his wig off. Usually he wore it everywhere, even to his job. This was the first time Kel had gotten a good look at Mikhael’s bright, liquid gold eyes.
“I’ve been better,” Kel replied apprehensively, “Are you alright?”
Mikhael looked down at his cast, then back at Kel, before responding, “Oh? This? Workplace accident, it’s healing well. I should be ready for our baking competition within the week!”
Kel’s eyes narrowed, exasperated, “You’re seriously still on about that?”
“Absolutely!”
Kel silently stared at Mikhael, then glanced at the ruins only a few meters away.
“Did you have anything to do with this?” Kel accused bluntly.
Mikhael shrugged smugly, “I have no idea why you’d think that.”
“Because you-!” Kel began before taking a deep breath, “Why are you like this?”
“It’s so much easier to laugh than admit my own existential worthlessness,” Mikhael stated, his tone snapping into complete seriousness. His posture had gone from his usual relaxed to at total attention, his wide eyes staring deep into Kel’s soul. Kel stepped back, now sufficiently perturbed. The whispers of the wind were deafening.
“Only kidding,” laughed Mikhael, cutting the tension like a hot knife through butter, “Nah, I’ve got no idea why I do the things I do.”
Kel returned an offbeat smile and nodded slowly, replying “Uh huh…”
“Well, I’ve got to get to work,” Mikhael stated as he turned away. He waved back at Kel as he walked, “Ciao!”
Well that was strange, Kel thought to himself. He returned his gaze to the destroyed landscape, the torn up remains of the fountain he’d watched Sunny throw so many coins into. They’d spent three days together before the confession, at the time Kel had wondered what Sunny had been wishing for so desperately. He supposed he’d never really know for sure, but as Kel began to leave a glint of light caught his eye. Looking down, he saw it…

A single silver coin in the mud, with a hole shot straight through it.

…

With the squealing of rubber against asphalt, Vance’s SUV turned off the highway and towards the mall. In the front passenger seat, Kim sat enraptured by her brother’s aggressive driving tactics. Basil, on the other hand, had white knuckles from how desperately he clung to the car’s frame and Sunny’s arm.

“Fifteen over is reckless driving!” Basil yelped.
Kim flicked her hair dismissively, “Live a little! You’re lucky we’re driving you at all.”
“You can let go of my arm, Basil,” Sunny assured from the seat next to Basil, “We’ll arrive soon enough.”

The light at the end of the on ramp turned red, and Vance came to a halt much to Kim’s disappointment.

“Maaaannn,” Kim complained, “you totally could have made that!”
Vance laughed, “I have to show some restraint for our passengers.”
“You call that restraint?!” Basil squealed, prompting Kim and Vance to double down on their hysterics. Even Sunny let out a single, ‘heh,’ a warm smile spreading across his face. There was something about seeing Kim and Vance’s sibling dynamic that just felt… nice. Sunny missed that feeling.

…

Mere minutes of driving later, Vance parked his car at the far outskirts of the parking lot. The mall sprawled out before them, a massive complex of chattering wanderers and commercial storefronts. Kim stretched as she stepped down from the vehicle, flicking her hair in the process.
“Hell yeah, mall time,” Kim exclaimed before looking over to Vance, “Hot Topic first?”
“Sure,” Vance agreed, “and hey, Sunny, tell us about the Steakhouse after this. I might have to add it to my bucket list.”
Kim’s face twisted into a mock-perplexed expression, before she asked “You put restaurants on your bucket list?”
Vance set his arm on Kim’s shoulder.
“Sis,” he replied, “don’t act like you’re at all surprised.”
The two gave a hearty laugh, and Vance looked over at Sunny.
“But seriously, do let me know.”
With that, the siblings took their leave. Basil and Sunny exchanged glances as they came to a realization.
“Sunny,” Basil inquired, “Do you know where the steakhouse… is?”
Sunny pressed his lips together, unsure. Basil’s expression shifted awkwardly as he ruminated.
“We uh… should have checked that,” noted Basil.
Sunny replied, “It’s probably by the food court.”
A voice behind them interjected, “So, you two are heading to Shirasoni too?”
Sunny spun around to see a man in his mid-twenties. His pale red hair looked freshly dyed, and he wore a mahogany vest over a frilly white shirt and black pants. His immaculate wardrobe marked him as someone respectable, but even still Sunny could see a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
“Uh… yeah,” Basil replied awkwardly, “Do you know where it is?”
“Nope.”
Sunny facepalmed, of course this overdressed weirdo didn’t know anything. Still, fate’s gravity had a certain purpose to it all. If they were meeting him here so randomly… that probably meant he was a Stand User.
“I was just planning to ask around until someone could show me the way,” the stranger shrugged, “and since you’re clearly Stand Users…”
Sunny bit his tongue. Well, at least the stranger was up front about it.
“C-clearly Stand Users?!” Basil nervously interjected.
“Unless your glowing, shifting flower crown is some other supernatural phenomena,” the stranger confirmed, “yeah.”
“O-oh,” Basil replied, cheeks flared red. Sunny wasn’t sure he’d ever seen his friend more embarrassed.
“I suppose I should introduce myself, my name is Scott,” the man offered, “since we’re apparently heading to the same place, why not help each other out?”
“Uh, sure! Hah…” Basil replied with an offbeat smile, “My name’s Basil. This is Sunny.”
Sunny waved politely.
Scott bowed, stating, “A pleasure to meet you two. Shall we hasten? I’d hate to be late.”
The eclectic group then headed out, proceeding towards the mall’s main entryway.

...

Immediately upon stepping into the mall’s interior, Sunny froze in place. Hundreds of voices echoed throughout the chamber, the sounds of roving hordes traversing the mall. A child crying in the distance, the raucous laughter of friends, indistinct yelling… The crowds were overwhelming, Sunny hadn’t seen this many people in one place for years. He felt his heartbeat racing, his breath shallow and quickening. He could vaguely hear Scott’s muffled voice, asking if he was alright, but he couldn’t respond.
A warm hand reached out, and Sunny took hold. He looked over to see Basil’s deep blue eyes gazing back, a warm smile on his face. Sunny’s panic subsided, his heartbeat returning to pace.

“I’m here,” Basil assured.
Sunny gave a slight smile, unclasping his hand. Basil continued to hold on for a moment, before he withdrew as well.

“I suppose we should find a kiosk then?” stated Sunny.
Basil nodded in agreement. “If you’d like, I can brave the crowds myself,” Scott offered, “I’ll update you once I’ve found a map or something.”
“No, that won’t be necessary,” Sunny affirmed. He was still shaky, but he wouldn’t let that stop him. Why burden this kindhearted stranger with his problems? He continued, “I think I see one, over on the left.”
Scott gave a respectful nod, stating “As you wish.” The look in Scott’s eyes was hard to read, Sunny couldn’t tell if he was impressed or if that unwavering gaze held judgment behind it. Sunny blinked and whatever expression he thought Scott had was gone, replaced by him staring into the crowd with a thin smile.

…

Sunny stuck close to Basil as they traversed the mall, but fortunately their expedition through the hordes of weekend shoppers was short lived. It only took a few minutes of searching for them to find the steakhouse, once they rounded the mall’s first corner their intended destination’s extravagant decor made it obvious. As they approached, Sunny noticed Hero standing outside the restaurant’s front door, staring down at his watch. He was nearly motionless, save for when he scanned the crowds at regular intervals. Like clockwork.

“Hey! Hero!” Basil shouted excitedly, waving emphatically. Sunny saw Scott follow Basil’s line of sight, his gaze landing on Hero. Scott blinked his eyes twice, quietly mumbling under his breath, “Hero…?”
Hero waved back. It was too far to see his expression clearly, but Sunny could tell that he recognized Scott… likely from the over the top outfit. Hero was looking quite snazzy himself, Sunny knew the restaurant was fancy but he hadn’t seen anything about a dress code. Was a two piece suit strictly necessary? Between him and Scott, Sunny felt under-dressed. All he had was his sweater vest.
“Henry! Sorry I’m a bit late, I ran into these two in the parking lot,” Scott greeted. He gave Henry a firm handshake, smiling in the meanwhile. He continued, “Seems you’re already acquainted?”
“Childhood friends,” mentioned Sunny.
“Ah”
“Quite the coincidence, Scott,” Henry replied, “They’re just the people I came to see.”
“Ah, so they’re the ones…” Scott began before Henry’s eyes narrowed at him, “You know? I think I’ll see myself out. Call me if you need me.”
Basil and Sunny watched silently as Scott walked off into the crowd, perplexed. Once he was well out of earshot, Basil asked, “Who is he?”
“A college friend of mine,” Hero informed him, “I’m planning to catch up with him after lunch.”
Interesting, Sunny thought to himself, if he’s planning on meeting up afterwards… then why was Scott looking for the restaurant now? Scott mentioned being late. Surely, Hero would have planned around a long lunch for his schedule? Just more shady activity to add to the pile.
“Anyway,” Hero smiled widely, “I have our seats reserved. We have a lot to catch up on, I’m sure.”
Basil nodded. So did Sunny, but more slowly. A stray thought pierced his mind, an intrusion from somewhere subconscious that he didn’t understand. A voice, possibly OMORI’s, calling out; ‘It’s scary how good Hero is at smiling.’
The group made their way to their table, past the dining families and sizzling grills. Sunny sat down across from Hero and immediately began scanning the menu. The last steak he’d eaten had been quite disappointing. With any luck, this one would be much better. He barely registered Basil sitting down next to him.

“So, Hero, how’s it been?” Basil asked with a smile.
“Oh, it’s been… something,” Hero stated dodgily, “Preparing for the semester is a hassle, and Sunny’s confession has given me a lot to think about. A lot to process, a lot to decide… I’m sure you understand.”
“Yeaaah…” Basil agreed, “So, what did you decide?”
“Well, I’m here aren’t I?” Hero replied, “What do you think?”
Sunny looked up from the menu and into Hero’s eyes. That wasn’t an answer, and it was disturbing how uncritically Basil had accepted it. Basil’s smile was still a mile wide.
“No need to dwell on such things,” Hero stated, “it’s in the past now. For now, let’s just enjoy lunch.”
The hiss of cooking oil and the lively ambience of the restaurant continued unabated as the group put in their orders. Basil got a platter of vegetarian sushi rolls, Hero got a bowl of spicy bone broth ramen, and Sunny got, of course, steak. It was excellently seasoned, and Sunny reminded himself to give Vance a sparkling review when he saw him next. The conversation was shockingly mundane, primarily a back and forth between Basil and Hero about their hobbies, interests, and education. Apparently Hero had recently got a grant to study some kind of new medical breakthrough.
As the meal went on, Sunny began to relax a little. Besides that strangeness with Scott, Hero was acting just like his old self. No strange quirks, no tells as to ulterior motives, as Sunny continued to discretely watch, he began to wonder if he was just being paranoid. Maybe Hero wasn’t the arrow thief after all. Maybe it was just one big coincidence.
But no. Sunny may not have had definitive proof that Hero was guilty, but he was lacking evidence to prove him innocent either. What he needed was a surefire bullet, one key point that would solve the case one way or another. Sunny pulled out the crumpled paper with the phone number on it discretely. It didn’t match Hero’s phone number, they’d already cross referenced that, but it was always possible that Hero had some way of getting two numbers.
His opportunity came when Hero grabbed his smartphone and began messaging some unknown individual. Under the table, Sunny pulled out his phone and tried to conjure OMORI under the table. At first, he felt some resistance, OMORI didn’t seem keen on helping, but after a few more attempts he decided to just go with it.
Sunny thought ‘I need you to text this number. Doesn’t matter what you send.’

OMORI’s psychic voice responded, 'Understood.'

OMORI grabbed Sunny’s phone from his pocket, and Sunny listened in keenly to any buzzing he could hear. Lo and behold, a few moments later Sunny heard the ping of a notification… not from Hero’s hand, but from the inside of his suit jacket.
Sunny froze, Hero froze. Sunny could hear his own heartbeat, and he continued to stare at Hero. There was no way he could have known that Sunny sent that message, right? The phone of the Arrow Thief was in Hero’s pocket, and OMORI had just exposed it. That was the silver bullet Sunny had needed, that was the definitive proof. Hero was the Arrow Thief.
Trying to play cool, Sunny returned to his half-eaten steak. It had cooled off a bit, losing its warm, comforting flavor in the process. Sunny worked to keep his breathing stable, but his heart raced like an F1 driver on cocaine. Hero had also gone back to his meal, no doubt trying to pass off the noise from his jacket as an auditory hallucination or hope they hadn’t noticed. Basil seemingly hadn’t, still happily scarfing down sushi rolls as if there was no tomorrow.

It’s so perplexing. He’s usually so cautious, but as soon as it comes to one of his friends he loses all sense.

Sunny began to think of some kind of response to that, but OMORI’s psychic presence faded before he could formulate a proper retort. Of all the stands he could have gotten…

As promised, Hero paid for the meal. It totalled up to nearly a hundred and twenty dollars, accounting for appetizers and drinks, and Sunny couldn’t help but wonder where he was getting all this money from. Basil offered to cover his own expenses, but Hero was insistent that he should be the one to pay.

“Oh, hey, I have something to show you guys” Hero proclaimed as they walked out of the restaurant. Sunny gave Basil a cautioning look, then directed his attention to Hero as he replied, “Isn’t Scott waiting for you?”
“He can wait a few more minutes,” Hero affirmed effortlessly, “Besides, I see him all the time at college. This is one of the few chances I’ll get to see you.”
Dammit. Foiled immediately. Sunny reflected on how out of his depth he was here, his social skills had never been amazing and four years without seeing anyone had only exacerbated that. Basil’s smile was that of someone about to walk both of them into a trap.
‘OMORI are you going to do something?’ Sunny thought in an invisible panic.

You’re on your own for this one. We risk overplaying our hand if I intervene.

“What is it?” Basil asked with poorly veiled excitement. Hero smiled, offering, “I realized I overreacted a bit at the hospital, so to make up for it I got you two some gifts. They’re out by my car.”
For the first time today, some doubt crossed Basil’s face, “Gifts?”
“They’re a surprise,” Hero stated, “But as a little hint, I remember how much you two loved Mari’s baking.”
Alarm bells were ringing in Sunny’s mind, every instinct was telling him to grab Basil and run. They could hide in the crowds, escape, find Kim and Vance, do anything at all. But with no idea what Hero’s stand ability was, no matter what they did they’d be on the backfoot… and worse still risked collateral damage. Better to just play along for now, Sunny reasoned, and he had to admit that he did miss Mari’s chocolate chip cookies. Before he’d gotten his memories back, he’d disliked the taste of chocolate entirely. Once he’d faced the truth, he realized it was because nothing really compared to his sister’s expertise. Yet another thing he could never truly have back. So they continued walking out the mall and towards Hero’s BMW.

Hero popped the trunk of his car and pulled out a tray of cookies, which Sunny tentatively accepted. Basil grabbed one with no hesitation, but before taking a bite he had Twisted Garden entangle it. Was he checking for poison? Sunny realized he had no idea the full extent of Twisted Garden’s capabilities. Whatever Basil was doing with his Stand, he seemed content with the results as he bit into his cookie. Sunny followed suit. It was good, almost as good as Mari’s had been.
OMORI’s voice interrupted Sunny’s snacking, delivering a cryptic warning.

Incoming.

Sunny frantically scanned the environment, searching for the oncoming thing OMORI spoke of. The nearby parking lot was empty, no one else was nearby, but he noticed Hero giving him a confused look… almost like he wasn’t expecting Sunny to be alerted. Then Sunny heard it, the growing boom of an approaching jet.

“BASIL! DUCK!” Sunny dove behind Hero’s BMW, grabbing Basil’s arm as he flung himself to safety. As he fell, he thought he saw Hero smirking, but only for an instant. The next moment they heard the repeating blasts of a cluster munition, tearing apart the asphalt and ripping through the terrain. When the dust cleared, everything in a 30 ft. radius had been eviscerated. Only Hero and his car remained. Pain shot through Sunny’s nerves from shrapnel fragments cutting deep wounds into his forearm, and he realized that if he’d waited even a second longer both he and Basil would have been shredded. Hero’s unwillingness to sacrifice his car had saved them both.
Basil was looking worse for wear, pain and betrayal on his face and hundreds of cuts covered his left side. Twisted Garden had already activated, sealing the wounds, but the larger lacerations would take hours to heal even with his Stand’s power.

“Damn, you both survived that?” Hero stated callously, “Ah well. I guess I owe you some explanation.”
Basil screamed out in pain, trying to crawl away. Sunny stood with his back against the BMW in shock, his breathing heavy as he tried to comprehend what had just happened. Everything felt fuzzy, he could barely see Hero as he walked right up to Sunny. Hero’s hand slammed against the window of the car, directly above Sunny’s shoulder.
“See, your confession made me realize someth-” Hero began to monologue, getting cut off mid-sentence when Sunny uppercut him in the jaw. It was a desperate strike, and Sunny’s delirious state meant he wasn’t hitting with all his power, but it was enough. Hero staggered back, clasping his hand to his face. Rage overtook him, and he attempted to rush at Sunny, but OMORI manifested behind him. With two swift strikes, he slammed Hero with the pommel of his knife, then shoved him against the car with his blade aimed directly into Hero’s neck.
Hero yelled out in disbelief, “N-no! There’s no way you can control your Stand in your condition!”

Sunny was in no state to reply, he bolted over to Basil and helped him to his feet. Together, while Hero was cornered, they made their escape.

…

As Sunny and Basil staggered away as fast as they could, Henry faced down the pale boy with the knife to his throat. Vitrol filled Henry’s voice as he spoke, “This hail mary is pointless. As soon as Sunny’s out of your range, you’ll fade away and I’ll be free to gun them down. There will be nothing you can do to stop me.” A victorious sneer plastered Henry’s face.

Whose to say I won’t just kill you, right here?

“You wouldn’t. Sunny would never forgive you.”

Sunny already hates me, what’s a little bit more?

OMORI’s smile was uncanny, his blade biting into Henry’s flesh. A thin sliver of red leaked out, staining his white collar. But behind that evil grin, Henry saw a flicker of doubt.

“If you hurt me, Sunny will have you destroyed. He probably already will.” Henry bluffed, “I’ve found a ritual that lets a user free themselves of their Stand, and told one of my allies to mail the instructions to Basil. It’s a simple enough endeavor, he could probably set it up within minutes.”

All of that was a true statement, save one exception. Henry promised himself that if he survived this, he’d follow through on sending Basil the ritual. OMORI’s form flickered, no doubt at the edge of Sunny’s range. “By all means,” Henry continued with an eerily confident smile, “Go for it. Prove to him you’re everything he thinks you are.”

OMORI drew back his knife, his expression that of unbridled rage. But in the moment before he struck, he hesitated, just long enough for him to fade away entirely. With the enemy Stand gone, the excess rage drained from Henry’s body as he let out a deep sigh. That had been close, far too close. But that little charade was over now. Sunny and Basil had vanished, but once he had them in his sight…
Henry put on his mirrored aviators and started up his BMW. Mari would have justice.

…

Going as fast as they could, Sunny and Basil ran away from the smoke and the fire of Hero’s attack. In the distance, they could see crowds forming, pedestrians shouting in shock and horror at the scene unfurled before them. A few of them were pointing at Sunny, concerned but not approaching. A few dozen of them were on their phones, calling the police or snapping photos. He grimaced, no time to be worrying about that now. As they staggered towards the parking lot, Sunny looked back to ensure OMORI was still holding the line. Without his intervention, they would both be dead.
“I c-c-can m-morph T-twisted Garden’s v-vines to b-brute for-rce a lock,” Basil suggested, wincing as he staggered, “I-if w-w-we can get to a…” Basil screamed as he stepped incorrectly, his ankle bending in an unnatural way, “CAARRRR- c-car, I c-can st-start the ignition… we can get out o-of h-here…”
Sunny nodded, no better plans coming to his mind. His ears rang… had the sun always been this bright? It felt like everything was so… so… blurry… His eyes fluttered, years of malnourishment catching up to him in his time of desperation. His energy was dwindling, but he kept fighting on. With a final stumble, Sunny and Basil collapsed against a white pickup truck.
“H-here goes nothing,” Basil breathed heavily, “You’re g-gonna have to drive…”
Sunny took a deep, agonized breath, blood coagulating around his various flesh wounds.
“I… I don’t know how to…” replied Sunny, “I can’t drive. We need to g-get Vance…”
“And get him killed too?” Basil countered, “N-no, this is our mess. W-we… we get out of it o-ourselves.”
Sunny shuddered, suddenly feeling a wave of cold in spite of the beating sun above. He peeked out from behind the vehicle, and saw Hero standing in front of the roaring flames. It seemed he hadn’t spotted them yet. Sunny could feel the time slipping through his fingers.
“I- I…” Sunny panicked, “I can’t drive! We’re trapped here!”

Let me.

OMORI appeared in front of Sunny, holding out his hand to lift him up. Sunny looked up, but didn’t take hold.

Take my hand. Let me do this for you.

Basil gave OMORI an apprehensive look, but as Sunny observed the flow from the gashes across Basil’s body he realized he didn’t have much of a choice. Resigned, he reached out to OMORI and…

…

OMORI flexed his fingers, taking in the sensation of inhabiting a corporeal body. It was strange, breathing, having a beating heart, feeling the inner workings of his possessed form chugging on like clockwork. Most of all, it was strange feeling the pain. Sunny’s body had been through a lot, now it was OMORI’s turn to take it to the finish line.
OMORI stood up and helped Basil to his feet, demanding, “Open the car’s door. We need to leave, now.”
A red light shone from OMORI’s one eye, burning with a dark intensity. Basil complied, his Stand finessing the door lock and the car’s ignition. OMORI used the extent of his strength to drag Basil into the vehicle, leaping directly into the driver’s seat. He took a few moments to analyze the controls, doing his best to gauge what each pedal, button, and lever accomplished.
“Y-you do know how to drive r-right?” Basil asked with great concern.
OMORI cracked his knuckles and set his hands on the steering wheel, remaining utterly silent.
Basil’s concern grew, “Right?”
Pedal to the metal, OMORI pulled the car out of its parking space with incredible precision. As they accelerated out of the parking lot, OMORI looked through the rearview mirror to check on Hero, who was staring directly at them. He definitely knew where they were now.
“I think I’ve figured it out,” OMORI finally answered.
Basil closed his eyes and clung to his seat as OMORI veered left onto the highway ramp.

…

Henry followed close behind the white pickup, 8.02 hovering over his BMW while they sped down the highway. 90 mph, well outside the legal limit. He’d seen Sunny and Basil disappear behind this car, then saw its expeditious retreat from the mall, so it felt safe to conclude they were the ones piloting the vehicle. As they swerved between traffic, the temptation to initiate a strike built. How much collateral was an acceptable amount of collateral? An isolated section of a parking lot? Maybe. An arterial highway and dozens of lives? Maybe. Regardless, he held off for the time being, continuing to pursue his target from a safe distance.
Gas Gas Gas blared on the radio, honing Henry's focus on the task at hand. The highway would be going into the rocky mountains soon, if he could somehow redirect them onto an isolated side road all of this could come to an end.

…

OMORI was sweating profusely, monitoring the black BMW tailing them from a dozen meters back. He wasn’t sure why Hero hadn’t blown them to kingdom come yet, but he wasn’t about to question their luck. Sunny’s body wasn’t holding up well, even with OMORI’s power boost, and he wasn’t sure how much longer he could handle the stress. The rocky mountains were coming up, if he could just find a tunnel to hide in they’d be sheltered from enemy attacks.
He felt deep within himself, searching for where Sunny’s soul resided. A claw of fear reached back to him, existential terror and sorrow flooding into the back of OMORI’s mind. Sunny couldn’t hear OMORI’s thoughts, but even still OMORI tried to project a prayer to sooth Sunny’s soul.

I will protect you.

…

The truck’s tires screamed against the asphalt as OMORI swerved around another vehicle, the truck’s engine howling as it pressed against its limit. They were nearly to the mountains. There, they’d be able to find shelter from the overhead shrieking of 8.02’s engines. Basil clung to the passenger door with a white knuckled grip, holding on for dear life.
There! An opportunity! OMORI cut across two lanes of traffic, slamming against the brakes as they barrelled down the off ramp. Hero didn’t react fast enough, forcing him to continue along the main road and away from his targets. 8.02 accelerated skywards, a blur of heat haze streaking off into the clouds above. Basil took a deep breath, glad they’d finally come to a halt. He felt like he was going to throw up.

“H-how long do you think it’ll take for him to loop back?” Basil inquired. Twisted Garden had mostly finished healing by this point, though the hundreds of scars rendered into his flesh would stay with him for the rest of his life.
OMORI considered, “No idea.”
“Better get a move on then,” Basil stated reluctantly. He held his own stomach, and his demeanor was visibly queasy.
“I can drive a bit slower if you need,” OMORI offered. Basil shook his head, “Just… just get us out of here.”
OMORI nodded, flooring the accelerator and taking the car down a long, winding mountain road. He never would admit it aloud, but OMORI was very glad they were against the mountainside and not the cliffside. The idea of driving this fast while looking down over such great heights terrified him.
The next few minutes of driving were relatively peaceful, and OMORI ended up slowing down drastically as the road continued to snake across the slopes. The threat of 8.02 had subsided, in OMORI’s mind the threat of crashing was now more prescient by far.

“I think we’ve lost him,” OMORI stated while checking the rearview mirror. A few moments of silence passed, prompting OMORI to ask, “Are you alright?”
Basil looked over to OMORI, hundreds of emotions exposed as artifice on Basil’s features. He could only stare at the thing possessing his friend, unable to think of anything that could possibly encapsulate what he needed to say. OMORI’s eye was still focused on the road, unable to see Basil’s all consuming crisis. But OMORI could feel it, feel the chaos emanating from his friend. It felt… terrible.
The silence persisted until Basil thought of a question of his own, “So… what happens to him while you’re… like this?”
OMORI thought for a moment before replying, “I… don’t know.”
Panic dominated Basil as he followed up, “Is it reversible?”
“Yes.”
OMORI was glad to see Basil physically ease up after that, though he still looked deeply miserable.

Basil turned around, staring out the back window. In the distance, he saw it. A black speck rocketing through the sky, leaving behind trails of gold. It banked past the summit of a nearby mountain, a display of aerobatics like Basil had never before seen. It was majestic. It was terrifying. Back when he had first gotten his Stand, Basil had obsessively researched every supernatural phenomena he could get information about… it gave him something to do while he was alone. Vampires, ritual magic, warlocks, more Stands than anyone should ever learn about… and yet nothing compared to the flying monstrosity that Hero had ended up with. Stands were supposedly a reflection of the soul. If Hero had ever been broken, he'd been repaired in the worst way possible.
Whatever the case, it seemed the Stand hadn’t taken notice of them. Basil supposed it was probably restrained by Hero’s line of sight, a fairly garden variety weakness among Stand abilities. But if it’s all the way out here…

“Sunny, we need to hide, now!” Basil stated urgently.
OMORI’s eye shone with a dark determination, “There’s nowhere to hide.”
That’s when Hero’s BMW came into view down the road, blitzing through the turns with reckless abandon. He was too far back for Basil to see his face, the tinted panels of his windshield blocking out his form.

Basil felt bile in his throat as panic clogged his nerves. The BMW was approaching rapidly, and Hero’s fighter jet Stand had curved its trajectory to intercept the road. If they continued, they would inevitably be caught. How high up were they? At nearly a thousand meters over sea level, any tumble off the edge was almost certainly fatal.

“PLEASE TELL ME YOU HAVE A PLAN!” yelped Basil.
OMORI gritted his teeth, eye tracking the approaching jet. He claimed, “I do, but it hinges on Twisted Garden. Is it strong enough to carry both of our weights?”
Basil was freaking out, “I don’t know! I’ve never tested its limits!”
A fwoosh called out from one of 8.02’s pylons, the sound of a missile being launched from its hardpoint. The sound of impending death got louder by the second, and Basil watched as OMORI closed his eyes and whispered ‘have faith in me, Sunny. Just this once.’
“Basil, we have to jump,” OMORI declared.
“JUMP?!” Basil yelped, “WHERE?”
The missile was drawing near, and Basil’s heart was beating hard and fast.
“We don’t have time, Basil!” OMORI yelled, grabbing hold of Basil’s arm, “We don’t have any other choices!”
Basil closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath. When he opened them once more, his expression took on the determination of someone backed in a corner. OMORI threw open the driver’s side door and swerved hard towards the cliff, grabbing hold of Basil fully and using all his might to throw both of them outwards of the slope.
Time slowed down, and Basil felt like he was flying. He watched as the stolen car fell further away, then in a tide of twisting metal and shining heat was eviscerated by 8.02’s precision strike. He watched as the forest below grew closer and closer, imagining the verdant greens mixed with brilliant red. He watched crimson and blue droplets, falling with them through the air. And he watched as OMORI prayed, knowing his fate was fully in Basil’s hands.
Sunny’s body wasn’t as warm when it was under OMORI’s control, Basil noted to himself.
He outstretched his hand, calling for the power of Twisted Garden within him. Ethereal vines shot out towards the treeline, grabbing hold and swinging them away from the approaching ground. The g-forces caused Basil to nearly black out, but adrenaline kept him just awake enough to control their descent, repeated grapples from Twisted Garden and curved movements slowing their velocity to non-lethal levels. Sunny had fallen unconscious in his arms, and with each swing they were dragged further and further into the wilderness.

After what felt like an eternity, Basil landed on the forest floor, holding Sunny in his arms. The red light in Sunny’s eyes was gone, OMORI had vacated his body. He blinked twice, looking into Basil’s eyes. They had escaped. They had survived. That was a miracle enough.

…

Henry looked down at the burning wreckage of the car Sunny and Basil had stolen, contempt on his face. 8.02 levitated behind him, casting a dark shadow over Henry as he stood. A grim expression crossed his face, Sunny and Basil had escaped. Somewhere out in the wild, at the bottom of this very cliff, Mari’s killer continued to run free.
Henry heard footsteps approaching him quickly, the clacking of dress shoes against asphalt.
“So… care to explain what the hell that was?” Scott’s voice spoke from behind Henry.
Henry sighed, “A failure.”
“Was that now?” Scott scoffed, “Because it seems to me all that destruction was intentional.”
“Necessary collateral,” Henry replied coldly.
“Hm. Right.”
“We’re dealing with supernatural dangers here, Scott,” Henry reaffirmed, “Sometimes risky courses of action need to be taken.”
“Supernatural dangers, Henry? They’re just kids!” Scott exploded, “How can you-”
“YOU DON’T KNOW THEM LIKE I DO!” Henry yelled through gritted teeth, “They’ve done nothing but lie all their lives, and now they’ve taken on the power of a Stand for their own unknown gain! They’re dangerous, Scott!”
Scott glared at Henry, and Henry glared back.
Scott scowled, “I took your offer because I thought you were a decent man.”
“You want to protect those monsters so badly?! Then why don’t you go down there with them!” Henry retorted, “Go on then. Show your ‘decency.’”
They stood their ground, staring at each other. 8.02 accelerated off into the sky with a loud boom, the shockwave blasting both of their messy hairdos out of shape. A tuft of hair covered one of Henry’s eyes, leaving only his right eye to stare with a burning intensity.
“That’s what I thought,” Henry proclaimed, “All talk, no action. I’m done with you Scott.”
Henry turned away from Scott, returning to his watch over the woods. Behind him, he could hear the thumping of Scott’s footsteps stalking away. The explosive staccato of a strafing run and the splattering of blood later, and Henry was left with only the quiet lull of the wind.
There was no rain, yet droplets fell to the pavement anyways.

…

Dirty, bloodied and badly injured, Sunny and Basil made their way through the depths of the woods. Twisted Garden worked overtime sealing the cuts, mending tissue and resetting bone. It was only once Basil collapsed that they came to a stop to make a camp for the night.
Once Basil came to, he was able to painstakingly set up a makeshift shelter using Twisted Garden to bind together scattered forest debris. The floor was hard dirt, they had no camping supplies or rations on them. Taking inventory, the only things they had on them were their phones, their clothes, and their wits. The phones were basically worthless though, Sunny’s had been snapped in half during the fall and Basil’s didn’t have service. Basil sat down on a rock and grimaced, staring out towards the setting sun. Sunny sat on the ground beside him.

“So, I guess that’s it then,” Basil whispered, “Hero’s never going to forgive us. Aubrey won’t even speak to us. And when Sally dies, it’ll be our fault and Kel will hate us too.”
Sunny looked up at him silently, his one eye shimmering with worry.
“You’ll go on trial, get sentenced,” Basil continued, “And then I’ll… I’ll be all alone again.”
He paused, choking back tears.
“...and that’s assuming w-we make it out of this mess at all,” sobbed Basil. His ugly tears rushed out, turning the soil below to mud. Sunny lightly brushed against Basil’s hand, and Basil grabbed back, holding on tight.
“What are we g-going to do? There’s no way out of this, is there? Stranded up in the mountains… isolated…” The sun was up against the horizon, slowly dipping. Basil continued, “...why did I think it was possible? Why did I agree to see H-Hero? You were right, h-he… h-he was the arrow thief. It was in f-front of me the whole t-time. I was just t-too blind to see it…”
Basil stood up and screamed, his enraged voice echoing off the mountainsides and filling the valley they were trapped in. Sunny felt as though physical heat was emanating from Basil’s body, burning bright.
“WELL I GUESS THAT’S JUST HOW IT IS! NO MATTER WHAT WE DO, WE REACH OUT… AND THE WORLD WILL JUST KEEP LETTING US FALL! AGAIN AND AGAIN! NO WAY OUT!” Basil screeched, arms raised to the sky, “TEAR US DOWN! TEAR US APART! EVERY TIME I THINK I SEE THE LIGHT AGAIN, SOMETHING ELSE HAPPENS AND THE BULB SHATTERS!”
Basil sank to the dirt, manic laughter and exhausted sobs intermixing into a new mess of thoughts and feelings. Twisted Garden coiled around him, vibrating with unrestrained energy. Sunny tried to reach out, to speak, but before any words came Basil threw himself onto Sunny, head pressed against Sunny’s chest. Basil’s embrace was tight, desperate. Sunny reciprocated, one arm gently wrapped around Basil and Sunny’s other hand atop Basil’s head.
The two of them sat there, watching the sun sink behind the mountains, their long broken shadows reaching out behind them.

…

OMORI manifested in the dark of night, watching over Sunny as he dreamt. Basil lay on the ground a few feet away… far enough. Both boys emanated feelings of cold. That was how OMORI sensed apathy, and most unconscious beings seemed to project this icy chill. The freezing feeling of apathy felt uncomfortable to OMORI, but the lack of other sensations meant no other living beings were present.
Anger felt hot. Sadness felt like static. Happiness felt warm. OMORI could sense all these things in beings around him, and could reach to these sensations to draw them out or push them down. A red light shone in OMORI’s eyes as he tried to reach deep into Sunny’s emotions, in the hopes of drawing out some warm feelings and ease Sunny’s dreams, but as the red light vanished OMORI came back disappointed. There wasn’t enough to call upon.
The fog of morning slowly formed, and OMORI faded back away. Even if he wished to have provided just that little bit of comfort, it was enough for him that Sunny was safe. Sunny didn’t want to see him anyways.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

Aubrey walked into the police station, cursing under her breath. Ever since she’d become a vampire, she’d had to check in with the local authorities regularly… and it truly pissed her off. But, given everything going down lately, they no doubt had questions. Questions she was one of few who could answer.
The pungent aroma of coffee was strong in the station lobby, almost as strong as the crushing weight of authority that Aubrey so hated. At least the lightbulbs had been changed out for LEDs, the UV from incandescent bulbs wasn’t enough to do serious damage but it irritated her skin. The receptionist smiled at her warmly, greeting Aubrey, “Welcome back, Ms. Brando.”
“Hey Kirsten,” Aubrey replied, “Is Caligo in?”
“He’s busy out in the field, but Deputy Maris is currently in his office,” Kirsten noted, “You should be able to just knock on his door.”
“Thanks.”

Aubrey strode down the hallway towards the Deputy Chief’s office, passing by several groups of officers along the way. They stood around the water cooler and chatted, held conversations over the radio, or walked past her without acknowledging her presence. Aubrey recognized a few of them, her friend Charlene’s father worked here as a detective, but besides giving him a friendly wave Aubrey was fine ignoring everyone else.
She turned the corner, and there it was. The Deputy Chief’s office. The nameplate on the frosted glass window read ‘Deputy Jack Maris,’ a name she’d become all too familiar with. She took in a deep breath, and firmly knocked on the door.

Some sounds of paper rustling later, the voice from inside spoke “Come in.”
Aubrey slammed the door open callously and stepped into the room, a grim expression on her face.
“Ah, Ms. Brando,” the Deputy Chief stated, “A pleasure as always.”
“Likewise,” Aubrey replied through gritted teeth.
Maris laughed, “I can tell.” A grim expression crossed his face, and continued, “I presume this is about the incident with the fountain?”
Aubrey gave an insincere smile, “Observant as always.”
“Hardly. It doesn’t take a genius to put two and two together,” Maris claimed in earnest, “Especially given we have samples of your blood from the scene. Do you mind telling me what happened out there?”
“We’ve got a new supernatural threat, an exceptionally powerful stand user,” Aubrey informed Maris, “His name is Henry Vasquez. I recommend avoiding him if at all possible.”
Maris stroked his chin thoughtfully, countering “Well, we can’t just let him run free if he’s a threat.”
“He’ll be more of a threat in custody.”
“You’re sure this Henry fellow will resist arrest?”
Her expression steadfast, Aubrey nodded, “I’m certain. He plans to hunt down two individuals, Sunny Suzuki and Basil Anderson, and has shown a willingness to destroy anything that could threaten those plans. Thus the incident.”
Maris tapped a pen against his desk thrice, as if trying to recall.
“Hmm,” he considered, “Sunny Suzuki… that name rings a bell. When you say hunt down, is Henry planning to kill them?”
“I- I don’t know for certain,” Aubrey replied, “But… probably, yes.”
A heavy silence fell over the room, both parties ensnared in thought about the situation at hand.
“So, who are we to consider your Wards in this situation?” Maris inquired.
Wards, the local department’s term for people under Aubrey’s surveillance. The Faraway PD simply weren’t well funded enough to handle the supernatural, nor did they possess the knowledge to effectively keep themselves safe while doing so. As such, Aubrey was in charge of dealing with the select few individuals beyond the reach of police hands. Whether she protected or subdued a Ward was up to her, though Maris had always been sure to weigh in whenever he could.
“Just Henry, and his brother Kel,” Aubrey decided. A moment’s hesitation, and her expression softened, “I don’t know how I’m going to solve this one, Jack. But I don’t want any of your men to get hurt senselessly.”
Maris nodded, “Understood. Just remember, we’ve got your back if you need us.”
“Thank you,” Aubrey gave a slight smile, before asking, “Say… uh… you said Sunny’s name rang a bell?”
“Yeah, give me a second,” Maris stated while pulling up his laptop, “His court date is set for mid-September."
“COURT DATE?! WHAT?!” Aubrey slammed both her fists into Maris’ desk, leaving imprints into the wood, a wild light entering her eyes.
“Calm down! Calm down!” Maris shouted, genuine fear in his eyes, “He called our front desk a week ago, said he had to confess something! The kid killed his own sister, Aubrey, of course he’s going to court!”
“HE CALLED YOU?!” Aubrey screeched, “How did I not know this?!”
Maris shrank back, “Look, Aubrey, I don’t know what your relationship is to Sunny, but unless he’s your Ward we’ve gotta follow procedure! He turned himself in willingly.”
“Where is he now?” Aubrey glared.
“I-”
“WHERE! IS HE!”
“I don’t know! He was deemed not a flight risk, so he wasn’t incarcerated!”
Aubrey took a deep breath in, leaning back from the desk, “Alright, so he’s not in jail then…”
Another deep breath, and she continued, “I’m sorry… that was unacceptable of me. It’s just… this whole thing is very personal.”
Maris righted himself, recomposed. He grimaced as he spoke, “Look, I get it. In this line of work, you see a lot of understandably angry people.”
Aubrey blinked.
“Regardless, never do that again,” Maris affirmed.
Aubrey nodded, “Yeah…”
“So, do you want Sunny to be your Ward too?”
Aubrey paused for a moment, collapsing into the chair on her side of the desk. She put her hand to her scalp as she lost herself to consideration… Sunny had willingly turned himself in. If what Maris said was true, then he wanted this. Was it her place to take that from him?
She raised her head, tilting it over to Deputy Chief Maris.
“Yes,” she stated, “Conditionally. His trial… that’s up to him. But I won’t have you interfering in any supernatural bullshit surrounding him. That's my jurisdiction.”
Maris pondered for a moment, then agreed, “I’ll inform the department.”
“Thank you,” Aubrey stated, “I’ll be taking my leave now.”
“Of course, Ms. Brando,” Maris replied, “and remember-”
“Yeah, yeah, this arrangement is predicated on trust,” Aubrey interrupted, “You say this every time.”
The officer just smiled as she let the door slam shut behind her.

…

When Sunny opened his eyes, the sun was already high in the sky. The morning fog had not yet faded away, blanketing the forest floor and hiding away from the light above while in the shadows of the canopy. Sunny’s stomach hurt. Miserably, he tried to repress the thoughts of the steak from yesterday. The way it had been cooked to perfect temperature, the tangy sauce complimenting the hearty meat… no, lingering on it would only make him hungrier.

“Basil?” Sunny whispered, “Are you awake?”

Basil was on the ground beside him, eyes shut tight. Last night he’d been shifting restlessly, constantly rolling over in the dust, straightening his posture or curling into a ball. Best Sunny could tell, none of it had made him any more comfortable. He’d spent the whole night mumbling indecipherably and waking Sunny up. At least Basil seemed more at peace now, his vacant expression free of whatever horrors had haunted him in the night. Sunny stood up and walked out of the shelter, prepared to grit his teeth and face the day.

A thick fog flowed through the mountains, concealing the ground below and reducing everything to a vague silhouette. The sunlight of day filtered in through the canopy above, making little headway to burning away the haze. The world looked grey.
Ahead of Sunny, an orange light flickered through the mist, accompanied by the crackling of a small flame. Sitting by a makeshift firepit was OMORI, who had some kind of meat impaled on his knife that he was roasting like a marshmallow. As he stared into the firelight, the flames reflected off his empty eyes. OMORI hadn’t acknowledged Sunny yet, and continued to ignore his presence even as Sunny sat down next to him.
The two sat in silence, watching shapes in the fog as OMORI continued to prepare his little slab of meat. As Sunny inspected it closer, it appeared to be the desiccated husk of a small rodent, skinned and boned with expert efficiency. Sunny wondered if OMORI felt any remorse for the rat he’d butchered, or what went through his Stand’s head at all for that matter. He seemed cooperative enough, but, even so, OMORI’s jeering words burned against his mind.

If they know the truth, you'll never be able to regain their trust. No matter what you do, it will be hopeless. All you'll do is make things worse.

Back then, OMORI was something else. A demon in his mind, wielding the full power of Sunny’s guilt and repressed consciousness. Images of red hands and hanging bodies flickering, a glowing red power taking shape in Sunny’s heart and mind. The same red light which now shone through OMORI’s eyes whenever he used his Stand abilities. Sunny gave a mirthless laugh, OMORI had been right… at least partially. Hero would never forgive them. They were trapped.
Sunny’s stomach growled, interrupting his train of thought. That chunk of meat was starting to look really appealing. OMORI turned his blade one last time, inspecting the morsel to ensure it was fully sterilized, then offered it to Sunny quietly. Sunny greedily snatched it, scarfing it down rapidly.
The meat was tough and chewy, and without any sauce or garnish it tasted incredibly bland. Even still, it was leagues better than living on an empty stomach. OMORI had gone back to staring into the dying fire, watching as the mist curled around it and slowly faded away.

…

Basil’s eyes fluttered open, he could feel the accumulated gunk of last night’s rest clogging his tear ducts. With a yawn, he sat up and stretched, rubbing his eyes as he tried to remember where he was. He looked down to see Sunny peacefully sleeping… and Sunny wasn’t there. Only an imprint on the floor remained.
Basil's heartbeat spiked, where could he have gone? Had Sunny left him? Basil pulled out the sprig of lavender and gripped it tightly, his breathing quickening as he looked around the little shelter frantically. He threw the shelter’s rickety wooden door open and…
Oh.
Sunny was just sitting outside. Basil sighed in relief.
Eager to see what Sunny was up to, Basil made his way over to his friend while bearing a nervous smile. Once he heard Basil’s footsteps, Sunny looked back at him and returned a slight smile of his own, causing a warm energy to flow through Basil. Ever so briefly, Basil forgot how hungry he was.

“Morning, Sunny!”
Sunny replied, “Good morning. You seem… lively.”
“Yeah,” Basil’s smile mellowed slightly, “I guess I just needed to get all that out of my system last night.”
Sunny seemed unconvinced, but chose not to press.
“Well, you’re going to need that energy,” stated Sunny, “Today is going to be a lot of walking. But first, have this.”
Sunny produced a piece of cooked meat from his pocket, offering it to Basil. Some of it had clearly been torn off, leaving very little left. Sunny’s stomach growled, and even though Basil was hungry too, he hesitated for a moment.
“Are you sure you don’t need it? If you’re still hungry,” Basil replied, “I-I’ll be fine without it.”
“You need your strength as much as I do,” Sunny stated curtly, “Take it.”
Basil accepted the ration, nibbling on it cautiously.
“OMORI went hunting,” Sunny informed, “It’s uh…”
Basil completed his sentence, “It’s not very good.”
“It’s not very good,” Sunny agreed.
As Basil choked down the chunk of flesh, he reminisced about Polly’s cooking. It was made with love, and real ingredients, and was generally consumed in an actual house. Nothing could feel right here at the edge of nowhere.
Sunny stood up, the fog around him disturbed by the sudden motion.
“We’d better get going,” Sunny stated, his one eye trained on the horizon at the end of the valley.
Basil got up next to him, reaching his hand out to take Sunny’s. Sunny let Basil clasp his hand onto his own, but didn’t squeeze back. Together, they walked off into the mist, letting it envelope them as they headed onward.

…

“A shame about Scott,” the figure at the end of Henry’s desk affirmed indifferently, his hair flowing down across his right eye. Between Rory’s black chrome armor, long red cape, and equally edgy curved blade, Henry found his penchant for melodrama to be vexing. But he had to begrudgingly admit, Rory’s confidence was admirable.
Henry cleared his throat, stating, “I’m going to miss him. Our enemies have proven slippery… and dangerous. Scott saved my life, he’s the only reason we’re at all prepared to face them.”
“Is that so?” Rory smirked, “I thought your Stand was the only fighter jet. His body had a few too many aircraft bullets through it to be the work of anything else.”
Henry was in disbelief, an electric shock running through his system. Rory knew! And he’d had the gall to call him out, right to his face!
“YOU WERE-” Henry outburst before steeling himself, “And what exactly were you doing, following me like that?”
“Oh… I just had a feeling there was more to you,” Rory replied, leaning forwards, “Seems I was right.”
8.02 manifested behind Henry, guns locked onto Rory’s smug grin.
“Now, no need to be hasty, I have no interest in telling the others,” Rory stated while flicking his hand dismissively, “If anything, I admire you more now than before! Truth, justice, security… what bullshit.”
“It’s not bullshit! Those tenets are everything I stand for!” Henry objected, muscles twitching. Rory raised one eyebrow, his disparaging frown completely shutting down the fact he was at gunpoint.
“Is that so?” Rory mocked, thumbing the pommel of his blade, “Well, you certainly have interesting methods of living by them. Regardless, I think you’ll find we’re after the same thing here.”
Henry was feeling incredibly impatient, “...and that is?”
Rory’s eerie grin returned in full as he claimed, “Peace.”
That wasn’t the answer Henry had been expecting.
“You know where it’s the most peaceful, Henry? At the top. Above everyone who wants to be stronger than you, above anyone who can hold you down, and together we could be at the top,” Rory proclaimed with absolute self-assurance, “Those two kids are standing in the way of your peace? Then get them out of the way. That’s what life’s all about.”
He kicked back in his chair, spinning lazily before returning his gaze to meet Henry’s eyes.
“That reminds me,” Rory continued, “how did you get that Stand Arrow anyways?”
“I don’t owe you any explanations,” Henry retorted while crossing his arms.
Rory shrugged, “Hah. Worth a shot.”
With an exaggerated spin and swish of his cape, Rory kicked up from his chair and stared down at Henry. A dramatic fog began pouring through the doorway, spilling into the room as Rory threw the exit open.
“I’ll be paying those two friends of yours a visit tomorrow,” Rory boldly claimed, “This’ll be the most fun I’ve had in years.”

Henry watched Rory’s exit with contempt, why had he invited this pompous jackass to the team? The Arrow had seen potential in him, but now Henry realized that not all potential was meant to be harnessed. Singlehandedly, Rory had convinced him to tighten up his vetting process for new Stand Users.
A single mirthless laugh later, and Henry considered why he didn’t tell Rory about the Arrow’s origins. It wasn’t a complicated story, nor a terribly interesting one. He’d been reading a medical report, written by someone named Eva Tau, which contained a brief explanation of what a Stand Arrow was. Now that he knew what to look for, tracking down further information had been reasonably straightforward. Once he’d seen the Arrow in Basil’s possession, it had been child’s play to claim it for his own.
A strange thought bubbled up inside of him, a betrayal of everything he sought. Past his desire to create a Stand who could resurrect Mari, past his wish to silence those who had wronged her, past the pain and the anger, a peculiar thought percolated in his psyche.
He honestly hoped Sunny and Basil kicked Rory’s ass.

…

Sunny sat down, breathing heavily. The day’s trekking had left him exhausted, and his stomach was grumbling from neglect once more. To think they’d only been out here for about 24 hours… and already they were faltering. But all hope wasn’t lost. Peeking out from behind the mountain, salvation awaited in the form of rows and rows of warehouses at the city’s edge. They were nearly back to civilization, but Sunny knew they’d need to rest before they could complete their journey.
Basil collapsed onto the trunk of a fall tree, beads of sweat dripping down his forehead. He lamented his lack of exercise over the last four years, his only experience staying physically fit came from PE class he’d hated. His classmates had made sure of that. Memories of jeering laughter and sneering faces flickered through his head before vanishing, silent. Twisted Garden’s glow had faded to a dull shimmer, reflecting his exhausted state. He didn’t have the strength to set up another shelter for the night.
In vain, he pulled up his phone to see if he finally had service. No such luck. No way to contact Polly, no way to contact emergency services… If Basil ever saw his parents again he was asking them for a satellite phone.
His parents…
Basil’s family had never really been there for him. His mother was a software engineer, his father a businessman of some kind. The vast majority of the time they were out on business trips across the globe. Basil hadn’t seen either of them in months, and got the feeling they hadn’t seen each other in even longer. While they paid Polly to take care of the house and check in on him, it was hard to believe either of them really cared. Only his grandma had ever really given him the time of day, and she…
Basil didn’t want to think about that.
Poor Polly. The last Basil had heard from her three days ago, she was dealing with some kind of family emergency. Either she was still handling that, or she’d come back to Basil’s house just to find that he and Sunny had vanished without a trace. Polly didn’t deserve that kind of stress.
One more night in the wilderness, Basil reassured himself. His gaze shifted over to Sunny, who had already closed his eyes to rest. No campfire, no tent, no bedrolls. Tonight, they would sleep under the stars.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

Welcome to whitespace.

Sunny hadn’t been here since the night of the confession, since his fight with OMORI and his final duet. The white door was locked, the red hands were nowhere to be seen. Even OMORI’s artbook had faded away, leaving only blank pages. It was… empty. Emptier than usual.

‘A place to survive but not live’

Out of curiosity, Sunny tried looking through the keyhole on the door. There was nothing on the other side. He wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting. Sunny frowned. He’d had enough  waiting for something to happen, that kind of complacency had only brought him pain.

A lingering regret filled Sunny, a mote of agony and self imposed betrayal. By submitting to OMORI, he regressed. OMORI had gotten them out of Hero’s ambush. OMORI had been the one piloting both the truck and his own body. OMORI, OMORI, OMORI. What was the point of revealing the truth and trying to move forward if Sunny just gave up his own agency at the slightest resistance?

But even still, something was odd with OMORI. Sunny could see it, even if OMORI was trying to hide his emotions around him, whenever his Stand was interacting with others it showed a life of its own. He’d spared Hero, he’d been genuinely afraid of failure, he’d…

Something was shifting.

The more Sunny thought about it the more his brain hurt. 

Oh well. That was a mystery for once they got out of the wilderness. Sunny closed his eyes, bidding whitespace a final farewell as he prepared to wake up. 

…

Basil found himself surrounded by nebulas. Stars in the night sky, blossoming, sealing away the dark. The floor of this place was a vast plane of water, the rolling waves reflecting the light of Twisted Garden above. Basil had been to this place many times, seen its beauty and terror, but it never seemed to mean anything to him. It was just a dream, a dream that his Stand had formed for him, its cosmic thorns stretching across the sky.

Behind him, splashes of water approached, the sound of footsteps wading through the ethereal sea of dreams. Turning around, Basil found himself face to face with something that was almost Sunny but not quite. His eyepatch was missing. In its place blood flowed freely down his face. Even despite that, this simulacra was still smiling at Basil warmly, his remaining eye glowing.

“Hey Basil,” Not-Sunny greeted, “How are you?”

“I-I’m fine,” Basil responded, “And you?”

Sincerely, Not-Sunny assured, “Never better.”

Crimson red tears dripped from Not-Sunny’s missing eye, and as the droplets hit the water, red plumes billowed out into the deep. The sea below flowed pink as it washed back and forth… a lullaby written in saltwater. The two stood only a foot apart from one another, their gazes even against one another.

Basil and Not-Sunny reached out to hug the other simultaneously, interlocking seamlessly with their heads over the other's shoulder. Basil wept in relief, and he could feel the soft patter of liquid droplets against his sweater vest. Tears, probably. Hopefully.

“Sunny, I’m so sorry for everything… Your eye, Something, Hero’s stand… It’s all my fault,” Basil sobbed, “Will you forgive me?”

“Of course he will,” Not-Sunny affirmed. Basil felt Not-Sunny’s hand caressing his hair, comforting him despite his condition. The two crouched down to the floor, partially submerging themselves into the sea below. Their embrace remained tight, Basil could feel Not-Sunny’s warmth through the cold of the water. This felt right. This felt…

Where was he?

Basil looked around, the warm afterglow of Not-Sunny faded away. As the cold of the water rushed in once more, Basil frantically surveyed the waterscape. As far as the horizon, in every direction, Sunny was gone. Twisted Garden’s luminance had faded… no, no, no, no no no! Basil panicked, he stood up and his head snapped around wildly in the hopes of finding Sunny again. He chose a direction and ran, making no progress against the vast infinity, all the while screaming Sunny’s name. Where could he be? Where could he be? 

As Twisted Garden’s light went to black, the thing their light concealed began to peer through, watching. Titanic beings with white stars on their face, thousands of eyes in the distance, staring, watching, judging. As Basil continued sprinting, black threads strung from the depths of the ocean and thrashed high into the heavens, a spiderweb of darkness slowly encasing the world. Adrenaline pumping, all Basil could do was run. All he could do was hope to find Sunny.

There! In the distance! A pale figure stood at world’s edge, his expression indistinguishable from this far away. Basil could see he had his hand outstretched, but as he drew closer it became clear that the boy wasn’t Sunny at all. It was OMORI. Just OMORI. Basil came to a halt, catching his breath as he sobbed.

“Why?!” Basil yelled, “Why must you stand between us?!”

A shining light appeared behind OMORI, framing him against the sunrise in the dream. Only as the darkness was driven back did Basil see OMORI’s face, his determined expression and glowing blue right eye standing stark against the rising dark tendrils. He didn’t respond to Basil’s inquiry, only standing there with his hand extended in offering.

“Answer me!” Basil screamed, “I know I’ve done terrible things, but you were made for Sunny’s forgiveness! Why won't you forgive me!”

I have.

Basil was taken aback.  

It’s not about what you have done. It’s about who you are, it’s about what you are doing, and what you will continue to do if you keep on this path. 

“Wh- What? I don’t understand…”

I know you don’t.

“Then explain it to me! Tell me what I need to do to get your approval!”

That’s exactly the problem.

Basil staggered back as the sun continued to rise behind OMORI, and the ocean began to shine like diamonds. 

We can discuss this later. For now, you just need to wake up.

“I-I don’t understand!”

Take my hand, and WAKE. UP.

Basil nodded slowly as he reached out. As his hand clasped OMORI’s, a wave of lethargy overtook Basil, and the dream world went dark.

…

Sunny woke up to see a world still cloaked in mist, the moisture of the mountains cascading down the pass in a waterfall of ghostly essence. The sun was rising in the east, highlighting the city and marking the path onwards. Once they’d made it to the warehouses, they could call someone… anyone… to come help them.

At some point during the night, Basil’s head had ended up on Sunny’s chest. Sunny couldn’t say he minded it being there, but he gently moved his sleeping friend aside so he could get up. OMORI was nowhere to be seen, he hadn’t brought any rations for the day. The longer they stayed in the woods, the more damage they risked from malnutrition. Once Basil was awake, it would be time to get a move on.

Sunny looked eastward, watching as the radiance of dawn cloaked the world in an ephemeral golden light. It was beautiful, up here in the mountains. Far away from the chaos of his home life, far away from the dangers of Hero and his allies, far away from the consequences of his own actions. He was hungry, thirsty, dirty and bruised, but even still he wished this moment could last just a little longer. Not forever, but perhaps a minute or so.

Behind him, Basil stirred himself awake, his eyes puffy and dark around the edges. He blinked in the sunlight, his eyes shimmering in the ascendant glow as he got to his feet and walked up to Sunny. He slouched slightly as he walked, an awkward expression plastering his visage. Together, Sunny and Basil watched their upcoming destination, dread and anticipation flowing through them.

Wordlessly, they descended through the underbrush, hiking onwards. There was no other choice, they couldn’t falter. Not now that they were so close to the finish line. Down the hills, stepping over twigs and rocks and fallen logs, they drew ever closer.

…

Sunny stepped out onto the empty road. The fog hadn’t abated, and despite the sun shining high in the sky, even still the industrial edge of the city was dim and obscured by a grey wispy veil. His footsteps echoed off the solid asphalt, Basil’s close behind him.

As soon they crossed the rubicon, where urban and untamed wilderness met, Sunny got a strange feeling he couldn’t shake. The streets were empty, no activity or signs of life could be seen in the rows of stockrooms and hangars comprising the district. And yet…

“Basil,” Sunny asked, “is someone watching us?”

Basil took a moment to focus, adjusting Twisted Garden on his head. Its light was dim and flickering weakly, its state mirroring Basil’s sunken, weary features.

“N-no,” Basil replied, “I haven’t seen anyone.”

Eye squinted in concentration, Sunny nodded slowly. Even so, he continued to scan the environment… searching for that prescient feeling. Slowly, they walked through the area in search of someplace to stop and make a phone call. The feeling of unease had only grown stronger, and Sunny could’ve sworn he saw figures moving through the fog, distortions of movement where there should be none. Eventually, they found an alcove to stop in. 

It was dingy inside, rusty old equipment scattered the edges of their temporary shelter. Dull saws, discarded hammers, machinery Sunny couldn’t make sense of their purpose… all left in this place to rot. 

Basil pulled out his phone, his gaze lingering on the damaged screen as he asked, “Who s-should we call?”

“My mother,” Sunny replied, “Our new apartment is in the city. She should be able to get here quickly.”

Basil looked dejected as he responded, “O-oh, right. I… I forgot you were moving.”

Silence, the pale glow of the phone’s dialpad reflected in Basil’s eyes.

“I-I don’t know her phone number,” stated Basil.

“983-341-2…”

A deafening clang emanated from outside, the sound of something slamming against the building with immense force. Basil stowed his phone, his breathing accelerating. Sunny stepped away from the wall, shaken.

“It’s not safe here!” Basil exclaimed in a hushed tone, and Sunny agreed strongly.

Sunny yelped under his breath, “What do we do?!”

The metallic ringing of a second strike echoed throughout the chamber, a dent appearing in the nearby steel wall. Sunny and Basil scrambled to the other end of the room, hiding themselves behind a workbench and table saw. Mere moments later, the third strike hit, alongside the groans and screeches of metal being punched through and the breath of fog flowing in through the new hole in the wall. 

Sunny peaked out from behind the bench, but quickly withdrew, holding his breath as his eye widened. Standing out in the mist, beyond the hole viciously torn into the room, stood a lithe figure wearing a broken white mask. Its grey cloak flowed like the fog itself, blending into the environment. Most strikingly, it held a long staff, pointed at one end and hooked at the other. It was as elegant as it was terrifying. Sunny could only listen, and pray that whatever it was would leave.

One heartbeat passed. Sunny felt Basil hold him, felt Basil’s anxiety and heard his unstable breath. Two heartbeats passed. The thing in the fog made no noise, seemingly unmoving. Three heartbeats passed. Sunny could sense an approaching feeling of giddy static.

Suddenly, a tempest. A loud slash, the whoosh of grey winds, and the screech of aluminum and rusted iron being violently ripped asunder. Basil and Sunny dived to the sides as a blade made of pure fog slashed their hiding spot in half, exposing them to the elements… and to the onlooking spectre. Sunny scrambled to his feet, watching as a second blade of fog coalesced in front of the ethereal being. The ghost didn’t move, only held its frayed mask to its face as threads of mist weaved together.

The cutting blade became material, slashing forward with immense force. Sunny wouldn’t be fast enough to dodge, the cutting edge would decapitate him in an instant. After everything, he was going to die here, out at the edge of society, where only Basil would hear him.

In the instant before the cut landed, OMORI appeared between Sunny and certain death. His knife clashed against the mist with a resonant ping, reflecting the vaporous attack directly through the enemy. The phantom in the fog simply vanished, the parried attack phasing through and sundering the wall behind it.

“What… What was that thing?” Sunny panicked.

Basil was hyperventilating, managing to reply, “I-I don’t know, but we n-need to go n-now!”

Sunny nodded frantically.

The approaching feeling was gone. With no idea where the enemy was, they picked a direction and ran, the haze blanketing the world playing tricks on their mind. Were they going the right way? Was there a right way to go? Sunny took Basil’s hand as they sprinted, ducking between cover in the hopes of evading… whoever it was that was out there.

They stopped to breathe behind a pile of wooden boxes, the damages of spending two days unaided in the forest taking their toll. Taking a deep breath, Sunny took a moment to block out the little things, focusing on the dangers at hand. 

“We can’t fight that thing head on,” Sunny whispered solemnly, “Can you call anyone?”

Basil shook his head, quietly responding, “We’d risk getting its attention. Until we know what that thing is capable of, we have to assume it can hear us.”

“So hiding here is pointless?” Sunny hissed.

“We don’t know. But it hasn’t struck yet.”

It’s not nearby.

OMORI interjected, manifesting into being. He leaned against the boxes, eyes half closed. Sunny couldn’t tell if he was calculating or worried. Maybe a bit of both.

I can feel people’s emotions. Currently, I only feel you two.

Sunny recalled that approaching eagerness, right before the phantom struck. Was that what it had felt, right before it went in for the kill? That thing was presumably a Stand, but its user must be a monster.

Let me guide you out of this

“No,” Sunny stated, determined, “We can solve this ourselves. Protect us, but I’m navigating.”

Inwardly, Sunny thought to himself ‘I’ll be the one in control.’

OMORI looked over, his concern still apparent.

It’s risky…

“I don’t care,” Sunny replied, “I’m not letting you take over again.”

OMORI closed his eyes, his expression melancholy. Basil and Sunny stood up, while OMORI continued to sit in silence. Once Sunny walked out from behind the boxes, OMORI opened his eyes, his voice echoing through Sunny’s mind once more.

Fine. But I’m not letting you run into danger untrained. Can you sense Basil beside you?

Basil confusedly asked, “What do you mean ‘sense’? I’m right here.”

But Sunny understood what OMORI meant. He reached out, trying to detect Basil's emotions. He found them with ease, a mass of anxiety, loneliness, and fear. In spite of this, veins of exhilaration ran through it all. It was a strange feeling, and Sunny felt like he was intruding somewhere he shouldn’t belong, but even so those sensations were clear as day.

Sunny nodded, “I do.”

Good. Do you understand what excitement feels like through this empathic sense?

Sunny nodded once more.

Focus on that. The enemy’s thrill of the hunt will be their downfall.

Good luck.

With a half-hearted salute, OMORI vanished. Sunny’s gaze lingered where OMORI had been sitting, until Basil grabbed his shoulder.

“We should go,” Basil affirmed.

Sunny nodded.

…

They trawled through the mist for what seemed like hours, running into dead end after dead end. Sometimes Sunny would feel it, a distance hungry elation. There’d been a few close calls, but the phantom and its User hadn’t caught them yet. 

It was getting closer again, the craving hunter. Sunny led Basil down a nearby alleyway, but this time their escape path turned out to be a lie. Cornered between three brick walls, the alleyway left them stranded with a monster approaching from the dark. A faint scraping could be heard, metal against concrete, and as death drew ever closer its metallic footsteps rang ever louder. The phantom made no footsteps, Sunny couldn’t tell what was approaching. The User? A second Stand? It didn’t matter, there was no way out.

Basil frantically looked around, checking for anything that could help them. Through the grey veil, he was able to see a trashcan, some old propane tanks, random metal scraps… the cogs in Basil’s head began turning. 

“You’ve given me quite the run around,” a deep voice emanated from beyond their sight, “Impressive. I can see how you were able to give Henry trouble.”

“Show yourself!” Basil yelled, holding up a metal fragment from the ground as an improvised knife, “Quit hiding and face us, coward!”

“Do you think my pride can be manipulated so easily?” the voice inquired. Sunny could feel the revelry dripping off of their tormentor, an air of smugness seething in their voice. The phantom appeared in the fog, proceeding the dark figure of a man in full platemail. Now Sunny and Basil could see the source of the scraping noise, their pursuers' abyssal katana scraping against the floor as he approached them.

“Well, you’re absolutely right,” the voice continued, “I could have killed you a thousand times over by now, but where's the fun in that?”

In a swift strike, the man’s blade parted the mist that obscured him. His armor was the same dark color as his sword, his pale face and black hair blending into the greys of the environment. The only feature that stood out was his scarlet cape, its saturation contrasting with the muted foggy tones.

Basil’s grip on his metal shard was shaking, Sunny backed himself against the wall at the end of the alley.

“You know, it was your shoes that gave you away,” the man continued with a grin, “the dust of this abandoned place made your footsteps incredibly obvious. A child could have found you.”

Basil threw his knife, only for the phantom to deflect it with its hooked spear. Sunny grabbed a stone and threw it as well, with the hopes it would distract the phantom, that too was deflected without a single thought. 

“Oh, don’t even try,” the man stated, “my stand is the fog given shape and will. Once I’ve given it a task, it will do it with perfect precision and speed. As long as its task is to deflect your pathetic attacks, I’m invulnerable.”

The man posed dramatically, arching his back and stabbing his blade into the ground. The phantom stood beside him, prepared to react. Basil looked down at the propane tanks, then over at Sunny. Sunny could see the glint in his eyes, the look of someone about to do something very desperate.

“In a moment, I’ll instruct it to cut you down with its pin,” the enemy gloated, “but for now I’m just enjoying the fear in your… what are you doing?”

The man’s tone completely shifted as Basil used Twisted Garden to grab a propane tank off the ground, and Sunny could smell the rotten egg odor of flammable gas in the air. Understanding the plan, he conjured OMORI and grabbed a rock from the ground. The distinct hissing of the tank continued as Basil threw the tank with all his strength straight towards the phantom, who instinctively stabbed it midair.

A loud whoosh emitted from the tank as compressed air spurted from the puncture, blowing back the fog and disrupting the phantom’s form. The man stared down at the canister, a shocked look on his face.

The enemy sounded almost relieved as he said, “You know, I thought that was going to…”

OMORI’s knife grinded against the stone in Sunny’s hand, sending white hot sparks flying through the air. With what little remained of his power, Basil threw out Twisted Garden’s vines in a defensive pattern, attempting to protect him and Sunny. Not a second to spare, one spark hit the expanding flammable gas… and the whole world went up in flames. Sunny and Basil were thrown back against the wall, Sunny’s vision blurred and stuttered. The shockwave from the blast vaporized the fog in an instant, leaving the alleyway clear and unobscured. Sunlight began shining in from above once more.

The knight picked himself up from the ground, leveraging his blade to hoist himself up. The blade was impaled deep into the ground, and he struggled futilely to extract it before giving up. Shrapnel shredded his armor, shallow cuts patterned his exposed flesh. Without the fog to retreat to, his phantom staggered into a kneeling position, staring high into the sky. 

Basil could feel that he’d broken a rib, the impact against the brick wall left him battered and bruised. Twisted Garden didn’t have enough energy left to shield him anymore, much less heal something as extreme as a bone. Coughing up blood, Basil was able to whisper, “Sunny, finish this…” before he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

The enemy stand user was fully on his feet now, leaving Sunny no time to linger on his friend’s condition. He pushed himself up from the wall, delirious but determined. The man’s armor would be a problem, even without his blade he’d be far stronger and more resilient than Sunny ever could be. Worse still, the phantom had gotten back up. Without the fog it would be far weaker, but that pin weapon it wielded was still very, very pointy.

Sunny grimaced. He’d have to do this quickly. Fog would come flowing back in soon enough, blocking out the sunlight and taking away his only advantage. OMORI was by his side, ready to assist.

For an instant, everything was still. 

In an act of desperate necessity, Sunny charged the knight. He yelled as he ran, his anger channeled into his battle cry. OMORI followed quickly behind, knife drawn. The knight sidestepped them both with a razor thin smile, OMORI’s knife scraping against his platemail harmlessly. The man’s smirk only grew as he watched the golden sparks flying from where metal met metal. But the knife had never been meant to work. As they passed the knight, OMORI yanked the katana out of the ground with his offhand, quickly spinning around and slashing upwards. The blade passed directly through a gap in the man’s armor, severing his arm and giving him an impromptu haircut in the process.

The man screamed out in agony, blood rushing out his wound and painting the ground red. His phantom screamed out with him, an otherworldly choir echoing throughout the alleyway. For the first time, Sunny could sense something other than smug glee within the man… Fear. Fear which OMORI quickly latched onto, his eyes shining red as he drew upon the man’s terror.

“You! YOU!” The man shouted, the glow of OMORI’s eyes infiltrating his own, “W-what are you!”

Sunny walked over to the man casually, grabbing the katana from OMORI as he approached. Without a word, he slammed the sword’s pommel into the knight’s forehead. A sharp crack, and the man was out cold. Sunny’s determination faded, it was done.

He stood there for a moment, hunched forwards. The phantom had vanished, leaving only trace moisture in its wake. Residual flames burned throughout, shining bright against the slowly encroaching haze. Sunny took a deep breath, then walked over to Basil. Extracting Basil’s phone from his pocket, Sunny typed in three numbers into the dialpad.

9-1-1

…

…

Muffled voices, the rhythmic sounds of beeping machinery and the smell of sterilizers. Basil’s vision was blurry as he came to, the white light of the room hurt his eyes. As his senses were slowly regained, he realized who the voices were. Sunny, Sunny’s mom, and… Aubrey?

Besides himself, four figures were in the room. Sunny sat in a nearby armchair, barely speaking. Standing next to him was Ms. Suzuki, who was in a heated debate with a police officer over something Basil couldn’t quite make out. Aubrey was beside Basil, her attention caught by Basil’s awakening.

“Well this is a familiar scene,” Aubrey commented curtly.

Basil didn’t say anything in response. He could only lay there anxiously.

Aubrey continued regardless, a bitter look in her pink eyes, “Got any dark secrets for us this time?”

“Is now really the time for jokes?” Basil murmured softly.

“I wasn’t joking,” she replied.

“Oh,” Basil choked, “W-well, no. N-not this time.”

Aubrey considered this for a moment, falling silent once more.

“W-what are you doing here?” Basil asked, an edge of surprise in his voice.

Aubrey gave an inquisitive look, “What, should I not be?”

“No! N-no, I’m just surprised, is all,” Basil said with an awkward laugh, “It’s nice s-seeing you again.”

Aubrey was solemn, hesitating a moment before replying, “...It’s good to see you too.”

“So, y-you’re not mad at us?” Basil asked.

“Oh I definitely am,” Aubrey barked, “but Kel was right. You’re still my friends. And if I hadn’t been a coward, if I’d just warned you myself, maybe you two wouldn’t be hospitalized… again.”

“W-warned us?” Basil asked, “W-what happened?”

“A few days before you and Sunny disappeared, Henry attacked me at the plaza,” Aubrey responded, “I told Kel to message you… I guess it didn’t go through.”

“He uh… he did say something,” Basil replied, “Sunny was able to use the warning. I just kept trodding down the rose laden path.”

A moment of silence passed between them, interrupted only by the adult’s debate. Sunny’s mom was livid that her son was in the condition he was. The officer was trying his best to calm her down.

“You didn’t answer my question,” Basil pointed out.

“Right, Officer Maris brought me here,” Aubrey replied, looking over at the policeman.

Basil blinked twice, “Officer Maris… Be honest with me, Aubrey, are we in trouble?”

Aubrey shook her head, “I’ve got you covered. The other guy though…”

Dread set in, Basil’s heart sank as he asked, “Did Sunny kill him?”

“No,” Aubrey replied, “I did.”

“WHAT?!”

“It had to be done. He was too dangerous to contain, and I didn’t see any way he’d be redeeming himself,” Aubrey replied, “I’m not happy about it either, but given the choice between hurting him or letting him hurt someone else, I chose accordingly.”

“A-and the police officer was just… Okay with this?!” Basil yelped in disbelief.

“I mean…” Aubrey forced a smile, pointedly revealing her fangs, “Yeah.”

Basil put the pieces together immediately. Stand Users and vampires often come into contact with one another, almost like destiny. Even still Basil was taken aback. He never thought he’d meet one himself, much less for it to be his childhood friend.

“H-how long have you been like this?” Basil asked, panic seeping into his voice, “Why?”

“Since I was six,” Aubrey replied casually, “And because I wanted to be. Or because I was raised to be one. Honestly, I’m pretty surprised you hadn’t noticed.”

In hindsight, this did make some amount of sense. Weird details from their childhood resurfaced, memories Basil wouldn’t have deemed significant otherwise. The way she kept her back to the sun or kept to the shadows, the amount of sunblock she wore, the way she never really seemed to enjoy the food she was offered, Basil had always figured that had just been Aubrey being Aubrey. He supposed it still was Aubrey being Aubrey, just now with more context.

“Huh,” Basil enunciated. 

“Why else would the police have brought me to the scene?” Aubrey continued, “The moment Sunny told dispatch his name, I was notified immediately.”

So, Aubrey was a vampire working alongside the police. Basil took a moment to consider this, unsure what to make of it all. 

“What now?” he asked.

Aubrey stared at Basil in a concerned/contemptuous manner, stating simply, “You eat something, and recover. I don’t know how you two ended up battered, malnourished and bruised at the edge of the city, but I won’t let you run around and endanger yourselves further.”

Basil fell back into the hospital bed’s mattress with a sigh. Aubrey was right. Recovering sounded good right about now.

…

Sunny sat in abject silence, listening to his mother’s shouting match with the police officer. He was slouched over and staring at the floor, and even though he could hear the words they were saying, he couldn’t register anything beyond a general gist of things. The officer wanted him to go back to Faraway. His mom wanted him to stay with her, in the city. Sunny himself wanted nothing more than a decent meal, and for everyone to stop yelling. Hearing his mother’s heated screams was more painful than any of his wounds.

OMORI’s hand waving in Sunny’s face snapped him out of his funk.

Hey, are you doing alright?

Sunny didn’t respond, just gave OMORI a look that said ‘what do you think?’ OMORI frowned slightly. Unsure what to say or do, he faded away once more. Sunny sighed, letting his vision blur and unfocus as he waited for everything to quiet down. Aubrey and Basil were talking. A thought crossed his mind that he should join them, but with everything happening… no, it was better just to sit here. 

What was he thinking? Sunny steeled himself, reminding himself to make an effort to reclaim his agency. This was his life, he wasn’t going to sit by and just watch it happen. Sunny stood up, and walked over to Basil’s bedside.

Basil glanced over at Sunny as he approached, and Aubrey gave a simple hand wave as greetings. It’d only been a few weeks since Sunny had seen Aubrey last, but at this point the confession felt like years ago. So much had happened. Sunny put his hand on the rim of Basil’s hospital bed, and Basil reached out and clasped his own hand over it. Aubrey gave the two of them a knowing look.

“Hey Aubrey,” Sunny greeted somberly.

Aubrey gave a thin smile, replying, “Hey, Sunny.”

After a moment’s pause, Sunny inquired “How are you doing?”

“Not great,” Aubrey answered, “Aircraft guns hurt.”

Sunny grimaced as Aubrey explained her vampirism, her begrudging relationship with the police, and recapped him on everything going down. At this point, Sunny didn’t even have it in him to be surprised. 

The loud stomp of Ms. Suzuki’s shoes against the hospital floor interrupted any further catching up Sunny could do. Her frustration was deep and inset within her tone as she stated through gritted teeth, “Sunny, we’re leaving.”

All eyes were trained on Sunny’s mother as she offered her outstretched hand to her only remaining child. Sunny looked around, his gaze ultimately meeting his mother’s. The fire in her eyes burned like coal briquettes, and looking past her Sunny could see the officer had resigned himself. He’d had this argument. He knew it wouldn’t be going anywhere. 

Sunny took his mother’s hand, and followed her out of the room without a word.

The drive back to the apartment was tense and awkward, the city’s evening traffic only dragging out an already miserable experience. Sunny wanted to speak up, wanted to object over being taken from his friends without any input from himself, but he didn’t have any right to speak up. Not to her. 

Sunny thought back to his confession. He’d barely given his parents a whole sentence during the whole thing. His sister, their daughter, was dead because of him. Sunny could beg forgiveness all he wanted with his friends, who had just now learned the truth. His family, on the other hand… He’d seen their ‘forgiveness’ for years. Silence, apathy, toleration. Nothing more. And he’d only given back in kind.

You'll never be able to regain their trust. No matter what you do, it will be hopeless. All you'll do is make things worse. 

OMORI’s words echoed through his mind again. Would the OMORI that stood by his side now still say something like that? Either way, it was disturbing how on point he’d been.

The car came to a halt outside the apartment complex, and Sunny stepped into his new home for the first time. The sounds of the city were muffled inside, the walls painted a dull orange. Even though his mom had lovingly decorated every inch of the apartment, the furniture was just the same as his old home in Faraway. Different place, same memories.

Sunny sighed. This would be his place for a long time. No point fighting it, for now.

…

Basil picked up his home’s landline and dialed the Suzuki residence number, questions filling his mind. He thought back to his dream the previous night, and he just wasn’t able to shake it. It haunted him. It watched him. And there was only one person who could tell him what it meant. With a click, the line picked up.

“Hey Basil,” Sunny stated quietly, “I can’t call long, Mom will get mad if she finds out.”

“That’s ok,” Basil responded, “Could… could you get OMORI on the line?”

Basil could hear Sunny’s surprise through the phone as he replied, “Why?”

“I just… just need to talk to him,” Basil said, unsure how to justify himself.

Static came through the phone, a voiceless nothing. Then OMORI’s voice rang out, muffled by the speaker.

I’m here.

Basil hesitated. Now was his chance to speak to OMORI directly, but his nerves were getting to him.

“So, OMORI, in my dream earlier…” Basil asked quietly, “What did you mean?”

No idea. 

“No idea?!” Basil exclaimed in disbelief, “So all that philosophical stuff about my behaviour… it was all just nonsense!?”

Whoever it was you spoke to in your dreams, that wasn’t me. You heard what your own mind needed you to… Or, so I assume. I wasn’t there.

“You- You’re a dream guardian!” Basil replied, “Y-You were there in my dreams! Why are you denying this?”

I’m not a dream guardian anymore. I’m a Stand.

Basil leaned against the wall, head tilted towards the ceiling. He took a deep breath in, stating solemnly, “You- The other you, said that I was on the wrong path. What do you think it meant?”

A pause, nothing but static from the other end of the phone. Once OMORI finally spoke, Basil could hear a melancholy energy to his words. 

I’ve had enough of imposing myself onto others. Whatever your mind was trying to tell you, that’s up for you to decide.

“Oh. Uh… t-thanks?”

Do you really want my honest opinion?

“Yes.”

Every time you’re around Sunny, I can feel your giddy energy blossoming. It feels… nice. Like spring. But… whenever you’re alone, everything fades. It seems like you can barely function without him. And that, that’s not healthy.

“I see…” Basil despondently. He heard OMORI’s words. He didn’t want to think about them.

Is there anything else you wanted to talk about?

“N-no, that’ll be all.”

Understood. I’ll be handing the phone back to Sunny now.

The quiet after OMORI left was uncomfortable, Basil could only wait until Sunny was back on the line. His dreams were his to make, Basil thought to himself. The wait felt like years, but it only lasted a minute before he heard Sunny’s voice.

“I’m back,” Sunny stated, even more tired than before.

“Hey,” Basil affirmed, “I won’t keep you long. I just… I have something to say…”

Another pause, another rush of silence. Basil thought he could hear Sunny holding his breath in anticipation, but maybe he was just imagining things. In this little moment, Basil worked up the courage to speak what he’d wanted to say the whole time.

“S-Sunny, I love you.”

There it was. That silence again. This time it felt crushing, oppressive, while Basil waited for a response. The silence abated when Sunny’s voice came back;

“I love you too.”

To be continued…

Chapter Text

Basil lay in his bed, all alone. It was 10am, and even so Basil continued to just rot away. There, slowly being subsumed by his blankets and sheets, Basil remained… waiting for something to happen. He’d finally professed his love to Sunny. Sunny reciprocated. So why did he feel like nothing had changed at all? Why did he still feel so empty? With a sigh, Basil finally mustered the energy to pull himself from the comfort of his warm sheets. His plants needed him.
As Basil made his way around the room, a few of his sprouts and flowers stood out to him more than usual. The lavender sprig OMORI had tended to earlier was still in perfect condition, flowering with gusto. It had done well despite its three days of neglect. The sunflowers in the corner, on the other hand, had slightly wilted without Basil’s attention.

“It’s ok,” Basil reassured his flowers, “We’ll have you back to health soon enough.”
His reassurance was halfhearted at best.

Basil looked around, half expecting OMORI to appear and chastise him for talking to plants or say some absurd philosophical seeming soundbite. He didn’t. Sunny was too far away, his stand’s range only 80 meters or so. OMORI wasn’t here. Sunny… Sunny wasn’t here. Basil’s smile faded away, the memories of his dear friend… now partner… felt like they were slipping from his grasp. Basil sighed. Finally, after all this time, Sunny had come back to him. And now… he’d just been ripped away again.
A click from the front door caught Basil’s attention, followed by Polly’s voice echoing through the house, “Basil, I’m back.”
Drawn by the promise of human interaction, Basil exited his room. As he rounded the corner from the hallway into the living room, he found himself face to face with his caretaker. Polly was upset, Basil could tell from her demeanor. She wore a slight frown, and the usual warm energy in her eyes had gone cold.
“H-hey Polly,” Basil greeted, his voice wavering.
“Hey Basil,” Polly responded in kind, “Sorry I couldn’t be here.”
“It’s alright,” Basil reassured, “I haven’t been home much anyways.”
Polly looked Basil up and down, disturbed the hundreds of small scars pockmarking Basil’s exposed skin. The marred white tissue would pattern Basil’s flesh forever, a permanent reminder of Hero’s betrayal and of stinging shrapnel.
“Basil! What happened to you!” Polly exclaimed, deep worry in her voice.
Basil sighed, covering his face with his arms, “You were right. Hero is the Arrow Thief. I blindly walked Sunny into the most obvious trap ever laid.”
“Oh my god, is Sunny ok!?” Polly grabbed both of Basil’s shoulders and lowered his hands. Her eyes had a frantic look to them, meeting Basil’s pale blue gaze. His shame was laid bare to all.
Basil grabbed Polly’s left arm and pushed it off of him, quickly averting his eyes as he spoke, “Sunny’s fine, he’s just… he’s not here. H-he had to go home.”
Polly took a step back, clearly still freaking out. “I could have prevented this, I could have stopped Hero,” Polly stated, clasping her hands together, “I should have known not to let him poke around the house without asking you about it.”
“Polly. Polly!” Basil exclaimed, “This isn’t your fault.”
“I’m supposed to be your caretaker, Basil,” Polly lamented, “I left you for four days, and in that time you got attacked! Was it by the fountain?”
“The fountain…?” Basil muttered, “What happened to the fountain?”
“I saw it on the way here, it’s completely destroyed,” Polly replied, “I’m glad to hear that wasn’t you.”
“That must be where Aubrey was attacked,” Basil murmured.
Polly’s eyes snapped to Basil, her hands shaking as she yelped, “AUBREY WAS ATTACKED TOO?”
She pressed her right hand to her chest, taking in a deep breath.
“Basil, what else has happened in the past few days I should know about?” Polly asked, managing a semblance of calm. Basil proceeded to fill her in on everything that’d happened, getting stranded in the woods, fighting the phantom, meeting Aubrey in the hospital, professing to Sunny… everything. As Basil explained, Polly’s visible unease only grew.
“Once your parents come back,” Polly said, “I’m asking for a bigger budget. Clearly you and Sunny are going to need all the support you can get.”
“If my parents come back,” Basil whispered.
“Don’t say that!” Polly scolded, “You’re their only son, I know they want more than anything in the world to come back and see you!”
“Really? They’ve never reached out, and they never return my calls,” Basil snapped, “When’s the last time you spoke to either of them?”
Polly was silent, an almost guilty look on her face.
“Do you even know which of my ‘loving parents’ is sending the checks in the mail?” Basil continued, his frustration growing, “Do you know what either of them look like? They hired you over the internet, didn’t that register a single red flag for you?!”
“Well… they…” Polly stuttered before steadying herself, “Fine. I see your point.”
Basil had never felt more seen. He blinked a few times, then whispered, “T-thank you,” in a solemn tone.
His mind wandered, and Basil found himself looking back at the hallway door. His grandmother’s old room was through there, just over on the left. An aching pang flitted through his stomach, memories of everyone he’d lost to get here burning their way through his mind. Grandma, Mari, Sunny, Hero, Chris Tau, Mom, Dad… all absent from his life for one reason or another. And if they couldn’t subdue Hero… Kel’s baby sister was next. A heavy weight pressed down on Basil, and he could once more feel that too familiar darkness all around him.
Like calls to like. Basil could feel a similar weight bearing down on Polly.
“H-hey, Polly,” Basil began, “Are… are you doing alright?”
Polly sighed, pulling up a chair and sitting glumly, “My father in law is in the hospital, he had a heart attack last week. We’ve been sorting out medical paperwork since. You’d think being a nurse would make this kind of thing faster.”
Shame continued to fester. Basil had never met Polly’s family. She’d talk about them on occasion, back when he’d mostly kept to himself. Perhaps it had been Polly’s way of trying to connect with him. For one reason or another, Basil had never opened up himself, but he had listened. That had to count for something… right?
“Will he recover?” Basil inquired.
Polly nodded, “Seems likely, at least this time around.”
“Well,” Basil stated, “that’s good at least…”
“It is,” Polly agreed, before looking around the room, “I suppose since you and Sunny haven’t been around, there’s not much for me to do around here?”
“N-not really,” Basil replied, despondent.
At the mere mention of Sunny, Basil’s thoughts drifted. Was Sunny happier in the city? Basil's eyes shifted behind Polly, towards the door behind her.
“I- I think I need to get out of the house,” Basil stuttered, smiling insincerely.
“Where will you go?” Polly asked.
“J-just the park.”
Polly nodded, understanding, “Stay safe out there.”
“I will.”

Without another word, Basil made his way out of his house and into the crisp morning air. The park sounded nice right about now.

…

The loud ring of a doorbell echoed through Kel’s house, followed by another… and another. Each ring came a little sooner than the last, the chimes disturbing poor Sally. Between the cries of his baby sister and the clockwork chimes of the doorbell, Kel was about ready to kill whoever was at the door. With his Stand active behind him, Kel pulled the door open aggressively and…
Oh. Of course.
Mikhael posed glamorously on Kel’s doorstep, one finger against the doorbell outside. His stupid grin dominated his face, and he was once again wearing his absurd yellow wig.
“What?!” Kel snapped, “What are you doing here?!”
Mikhael took a step back, a mock concerned look crossing his face, “What’s got your knickers in a twist?”
“You! You woke up my sister!” Kel shouted, “Do you have any consideration for others?!”
There were layers to Kel’s anger. In all honesty, Kel had been hoping it had been Basil at the door.
“Uh, yeah, I do actually,” Mikhael replied cooly, “I’m here for your sake, actually.”
Kel gave him an exasperated look, not fooled for a moment.
“How so?” Kel asked pointedly.
Mikhael grinned widely, “Well, you see, we have a baking competition to do! You were so excited, I wouldn’t dream of ghosting you on such an occasion.”
Unbelievable. Kel facepalmed, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes.
“Let me get this straight…,” Kel began.
“Yeah?”
“You came here…”
“Yup.”
“At 8:30 in the morning…”
“Yeah.”
“...and woke up my sister…”
“Sounds correct so far.”
“...so we could BAKE… BREAD!”
“Brownies, actually. But otherwise you’re right on the money.”
Kel was about ready to punch Mikhael’s smug expression into next week.
“Your arm is in a cast, dude,” Kel stated completely flatly, “You seriously want to do this now?”
“Uh… yeah,” Mikhael agreed, “I’ve already prepared my kitchen and everything.”
Kel turned around, ready to walk away, and asked, “What if I just don’t?”
“I can’t stop you, but that’d be rather impolite,” Mikhael shrugged impartially.
Every time Kel thought Mikhael couldn’t possibly make this worse, he somehow managed to pull through and exceed even Kel’s wildest expectations. Mashing the doorbell, bothering Sally, his gaudy outfit and personality… all of that would easily be categorized as ‘impolite.’ Kel couldn’t believe this man’s audacity.
“You know what,” Kel couldn’t believe what he was about to say, “Fine, but only if you agree to quit bothering me incessantly.”
“Appeasement is a horrible strategy-”
“Do you want your baking contest or not?” Kel retorted.
Mikhael fanned out his hands in concession, stating, “Alrighty then. Meet me outside my house in ten minutes!”
Kel shut the door with a slam as Mikhael ran back down the street. Why had he just agreed to that? Oh well, it’s not like he had any other plans for the day. Summer vacation was steadily dwindling, he couldn’t spend the whole time worrying over his sister. It’s not like he could do anything about that particular debacle anyways.
Kel sighed, resigning himself. May as well get ready for his competition then.

…

Aubrey waited impatiently outside Mikhael’s house, still unsure why exactly he’d invited her over. It was good to see him again, and better still that his gunshot was healing, but for someone so intent on punctuality Mikhael sure seemed fine leaving her out in the sun. She kept her back to the shining light of mid-morning, her specialty hair dye and clothes intercepting the majority of the UV rays. Her sunblock would easily protect her from the rest. But even with those assurances, she’d still rather have a roof over her head.
A nearby door opened, followed by approaching footsteps belonging to someone who was currently very annoyed. Turning towards the incoming individual, she saw none other than Kel coming her way.
“Hey Kel,” Aubrey greeted.
“Hi,” Kel replied curtly, “Mikhael roped you into his shenanigans too?”
“Well I’m hardly going to stiff a fellow hooligan,” Aubrey stated before looking back over to Mikhael’s door, “but I’m starting to wonder if-”
A blast of arcane power blew Mikhael’s front door right off its hinges. Stranger still, the debris of the wooden door suspended itself as though it were floating through liquid. A strange energy inundated the air.
“WOAH NELLY” Kel exclaimed, “What the hell!?”
Mikhael walked through the newly opened hole in his wall, greeting Kel and Aubrey with “Come on in!”
“Nah, nah nah nah nah,” Kel stated, “You don’t just get to blow up your door and not explain what that was all about.”
“I’m a warlock,” Mikhael informed, as if that told Kel anything at all.
Aubrey had already walked through the hole and into the comfortably sunlight-free home interior, not a modicum of surprise on her face.
“Aubrey, how are you so calm about this?” asked Kel.
Aubrey shrugged, “I’m used to Mikhael’s antics.”
“That’s The Maverick to the both of you,” Mikhael stated while flicking his hair to the side, “By the way, Kel, nice Stand.”
Kel walked in through the door, and watched as it reformed and sealed behind him. What had he just agreed to?

…

A menacing presence lurked just out of sight.
From the street corner, a man watched the trio duck into the house. He looked down at his phone, the photos matched. The girl who had survived Henry’s full power… now this was someone he had to meet. Hunter Avid was his name, a college student from the city. A swarm of dark grey bunnies swarmed at his feet, their stylized circular eyes watching the home that the girl had entered. In imperfect unison, each rabbit began whistling with their heads raised to the sky.
Hunter turned around, pulling his tricorn hat down over his eyes. Embedding his Stand onto his target would be tough, but the reward was more than worth it. Henry had promised him $1000 USD for this job… but that was just the frosting on the cake. As Hunter listened to his Stand’s unceasing song, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that sweet silence was his true prize.
Hunter sat down on a nearby bench, pulling out his old Nintendo 3DS and doing his best to ignore his Stand’s echoing screeches. His task would be done soon enough. All he needed to do was be just a little bit patient…

…

It had been two hours since the baking competition started, and the smell of freshly baked goods wafted through the air. Unfortunately, that pleasant aroma was masked by the far more pungent smell of burnt brownies.

“KEL!” Mikhael yelped as he sprayed the fire extinguisher into the oven, “How do you mess up something as simple as brownies!”
“You boiled two cups of water by putting a glass of water on the stove!” Kel retorted, “And how was I supposed to know that doubling the temperature didn’t halve the cook time!”
“BASIC THERMODYNAMICS!” countered Mikhael, “Aubrey! Are you going to do something?”
Aubrey was far too busy laughing in the corner to intervene.
“Fine! I’ll do it myself!” Mikhael continued, before breaking into a latin chant. A burst of golden energy, and the fire dissipated in an instant.
“So,” Kel awkwardly inquired while staring at the burnt husk of his attempt to bake, “You think it can be recovered?”
Mikhael and Aubrey both gave him a skeptical look in unison. At least Mikhael had the courtesy to share a half-hearted laugh, Kel thought to himself.
“Well, if you didn’t put any eggs in it, it might still be edible,” Mikhael shrugged, “Just… really crispy on the outside. And basically raw in the middle.”
With a snap of Mikhael’s fingers, the smell of Kel’s failed experiment faded away. Kel looked over to the toaster oven, where Mikhael’s own baking remained in progress. Without the smell of ash and regret inundating the atmosphere, the aroma emanating from the toaster oven was actually quite good. Kel supposed he shouldn’t be too surprised, Mikhael’s came from a long lineage of bakers. It was even in his last name. But even so, it was strange losing to him for once.
“Hey Mikhael,” Kel began.
“Yeah?”
“If you don’t mind,” Kel asked politely, “How long have you had your… whatever your magic is?”
“I’m a warlock,” Mikhael replied, “my power is a gift from the Outlander. I officially drafted my pact back in middle school.”
“I- I see,” Kel replied, “You share a lot with your family, then?”
“Huh? What makes you ask that?” Mikhael asked, genuine confusion in his voice.
“Well,” Kel observed, “You work in your family’s bakery, you have the same pact as them, your siblings are just as weird as you are…”
“Ah, that. Eh… they’re more of a means to an end than anything else.”
Kel furrowed his brow, “Means to an end? That’s an incredibly demeaning thing to say about your own family.”
“I can’t say I totally disagree with him,” Aubrey interjected, her thoughts drifting back to her own family. Her father had been a kind, if unconventional, paternal figure when he’d been around… her mother on the other hand? Not so much.
Mikhael narrowed his eyes behind his wig, the golden light of his pupils barely passing through. He looked tired more than anything else.
“Maybe,” Mikhael stated.
The toaster oven dinged, and it was almost like a switch flipped in Mikhael’s mind. He perked up, announcing, “Well that was far too real for me. How’d you like to taste some defeat, Kel?”
“Hey! We haven’t had the brownies yet,” Kel objected, “Mine could still be better!”
All three of them laughed.
“Shall we start with yours then?” Mikhael offered, “You know, start on a high note?”

The trio headed to the dining room, past the golden crosses and religious relics which filled Mikhael’s home. The dinner table was quickly set up, three plates distributed and three slices of each brownie cut and assigned. Kel looked to the side and whistled while his own brownie was being cut, pretending not to hear the abnormal crunching sound from the rock hard crust.
“Aubrey, you really don’t need to eat if you don’t want to…” Mikhael stated.
Aubrey shook her head dismissively, replying “Kel’s cooking couldn’t possibly be that bad.”
Kel picked at his slice of brownie with his fork. He appreciated her support, but felt pretty skeptical about it himself. He speared a chunk of the crumbling pastry, raising it to his face to take a bite. But before he could ‘enjoy’ the fruits of his efforts, the loud ring of a doorbell echoed through the house.

Mikhael glanced around, paranoid, before concluding “Huh. Probably just a door to door salesman or something.”
“I’ll get it for you,” Kel stated, standing up and dropping his fork onto his plate.
Mikhael started, “No, it’s my house, I’ll-”
Aubrey shot him a look and nodded her head slightly to the side, prompting Mikhael to change gears, “Actually yeah, thanks for offering, Kel!”
Strange, Kel thought to himself. Swiftly, he made his way out of the room.

…

“Does he still not know?” Mikhael asked through a hushed whisper.
Aubrey shook her head, “No, he doesn’t.”
“Look, we can just toss your brownies,” Mikhael stated, “We can just say you couldn’t wait. Kel will believe it!”
“No, it’s fine,” Aubrey replied, “It’s not going to kill me.”
Mikhael’s eyes narrowed, “I know that, but you shouldn’t have to eat something that tastes like ash just to keep up appearances.”
Many stories have been told about vampires, and Aubrey was intimately familiar with pretty much all of them. She wasn’t vulnerable to silver or wooden stakes, and the idea that garlic could somehow damage her was downright ridiculous. But even so, there was some truth in those old stories. Ever since she’d activated the Stone Mask, most food simply crumbled to dust in her mouth, leaving her with only the taste for blood.
Smirking slightly, Mikhael waved his hand, “Besides, it’d be disrespectful to my talents.”
“Dork,” Aubrey grinned.
They took a moment to listen in on Kel’s conversation by the front door. From here, it was difficult to make out anything useful. Something about a survey?
“Shouldn’t you just tell him you’re a vampire?” Mikhael inquired.
Aubrey sighed, “He’s one of my last ‘normal’ friends remaining. I don’t want to give that up just yet.”
“He’s a Stand User,” Mikhael countered, “and his brother tried to kill us.”
“Yeah, but he’s still just Kel!” Aubrey whispered loudly, “Stupid, naive, wonderful Kel!”
Mikhael blinked a few times behind his wig, before ultimately conceding, “Fine. If that’s what you want, I will respect your wishes.”
Aubrey nodded, grateful.
“If it’s any consolation,” Mikhael quipped, “I’m pretty sure Kel’s brownies taste better to you than do either of us.”
Aubrey feigned disbelief, mouthing “Woowwwwww…”

…

The front door swung open, greeting Kel to a strange man wearing a collared shirt, black khakis, and a tricorn hat upon his head. He was holding a clipboard to his side, and had a pen tucked over his right ear. His posture was far too professional for someone wearing such a ridiculous hat.

“Hi,” Kel started, “Can I help you?”
“Is this the Padeiro residence?” the man responded.
Kel nodded, “It is.”
“Perfect. My name is Hunter Avid, and I’m here to conduct a survey,” the man stated, “You see, the University of Colorado is undergoing a research project into the correlation between suburban living and stress levels, and your household was selected as a part of our sample.”
“Oh, I don’t actually live here,” Kel confirmed, “I live a few floors down, in the Vasquez household.”
Hunter raised his eyebrow, “Vasquez, you say? Let me see here…”
He pulled up his clipboard, flipping through a few pages before tapping his finger against the paper.
“Aha! Vasquez, right here,” Hunter proclaimed, “What a stroke of luck! I was just about to pay your family a visit, just after I speak with the Padeiros.”
An image of Sally swam through Kel’s mind, and of his distressed mom back at his house.
“I’ll just fill it out here,” Kel offered, “Now’s uh… really not a good time for my house.”
“Of course, sir,” Hunter agreed, “This’ll only take a minute.”
He handed Kel the clipboard, pointing to the four questions that Kel would be answering.
“Just fill out these papers,” Hunter directed, “And once you’ve finished that, sign down there at the bottom.”
Kel couldn’t help but notice that Hunter was shaking slightly, his voice almost imperceptibly wavering as he spoke. It was natural to be nervous, Kel supposed. He’d done some fundraisers for his basketball team, and had some experience going door to door. Unless you happened to be a girl scout, most people weren’t too keen on strangers appearing on their front porch. Kel answered the questions without a second thought, but as he got to the signature he briefly paused.
Why did he need to sign a survey? Why did Hunter’s nervousness seem more like… anticipation?

Oh well. It was probably nothing. Kel wrote out his legal name in his own terrible cursive, and as he lifted the pen off the paper he heard Hunter sigh in relief.
“I’m very sorry to do this to you, sir, but you must understand I really wanted to get rid of them.”
What? Get rid of who? Kel was so confused, until he flipped the page on the clipboard. On the back, written in red ink, a hidden contract was revealed.

By signing this document, you acknowledge full ownership and responsibility of the Stand ‘Outlaws’ until you pass it on to the next person.

Grey bunny rabbits manifested around Hunter’s feet, hopping their way towards Kel one by one. Kel stumbled back, his eyes locked with the strange concentric circles that made up the Outlaws eyes. They were forming a ring around him, dozens and dozens of small units forming an ankle high wall on all sides.
“What are these things?” Kel demanded to know.
Hunter smiled slightly, “Not my problem anymore!”
“Take them back!” Kel shouted, “I don’t want your Stand!”
“I’m not doing that,” Hunter replied coldly, “I’m not going back to them.”
Kel summoned his Stand, Space Jam, and commanded it to punch at Hunter. But without any time to accelerate, the strike came out slow and Hunter just stepped to the side. Kel’s follow up with his own fist was knocked aside by Hunter’s forearm. And with that, Hunter ran.
Kel gave chase, sprinting at full speed after the enemy Stand User, but one of the bunnies manifested in front of his foot. He tumbled to the ground, hitting the concrete hard and scraping up his arms. By the time he got back up, Hunter had disappeared.
Kel cursed under his breath. Already, his new swarm of rabbit Stands had hampered him… if Hunter had been so willing to give up his Stand power he must have had a reason to do so. Already, they had formed a ring around Kel again. Sure, he could easily step over it. He was used to being able to control his movements, motion control was a valuable asset in sports. But at the same time, stepping around like that constantly would be a huge inconvenience.
Nothing to do about it but go back to Mikhael’s, Kel resigned with a sigh. This was going to be fun to explain.

…

Hunter couldn’t believe his luck. The constant singing of his Stand was gone. He’d successfully shunted his Stand onto… well, not his intended target, but someone close enough to her.

Finally! He could hear his own thoughts again! He’d be able to sleep at night! A whole healthy 8 hours! No longer would he be constantly annoyed and distracted by a small army of bunny rabbits, hellbent on unmaking his sanity! Ah, the liberation of it all was like ecstasy to Hunter. Now, the Outlaws could torment him no longer.

But something else still nagged at him…

The person he’d passed Outlaws onto… Kel Vasquez…

Vasquez…

Hm. That was Henry’s last name, wasn’t it?

Oh well, Hunter thought to himself with a shrug. It was probably just a coincidence. Even if he had, strictly speaking, failed, no admonishment could ever match the high of freedom.

…

The rustling of the leaves was Basil’s only company as he lay in the secret hangout spot behind the park. Somehow, despite all odds, Mari’s picnic blanket had survived all this time out in the elements. It was still comforting, if perhaps a bit frayed at the edges. Basil closed his eyes, clearing his mind.
Twisted Garden spiderwebbed out from his crown. His Stand would alert him to any danger that approached.
As he listened to the ripples of the nearby lake, Basil imagined himself floating. He recalled the sea in his dreams, the salt spray and eyes of stars. What did it mean? OMORI had given his two cents on the matter, but Basil wasn’t about to put any faith in his interpretation. Though he shared a mutual respect with OMORI, the Stand wasn’t all knowing. He’d even said so himself that Basil's dream was up to Basil’s own understanding.
With a sigh, Basil sat up. If Sunny were here, maybe he’d be able to help. Basil had waited four years for him. He could afford to wait just a little longer.
Just… a little… longer…
Surely…

…

Kel’s ears rang as he burst into the dining room. Before he’d gotten back to the house, the Outlaws had begun singing… an awful discordant tune which split his eardrums and eroded his willpower at the edges. He stumbled over to his chair, and sat down… exhausted.

“Kel! What the hell happened out there? What’s that infernal racket coming from?” Mikhael demanded.
“The guy at the door tricked me into taking a survey…” Kel began, “It turned out to be a contract in disguise and now…”
Kel grabbed one of the Stand bunnies off the floor, setting it on the table. Its little head was thrown back, its little voice belting out the lyrics to Rick Astley’s Never Gonna Give You Up. Mikhael’s expression scrunched back in disgust. Not only did that thing have poor music taste, it wasn’t particularly good at singing either.
“...I’m stuck with these goddamn things!” Kel exclaimed angrily, “It’s horrid! It’s like having a radio trapped in my head but all its playing is bad pop covers!”
Mikhael nodded in revolted agreement, “That creature is the worst thing I have ever encountered, and I have made a pact with an outer god.”
Aubrey blinked twice, she couldn’t hear any of the commotion. She couldn’t see whatever it was her friends were talking about either, leaving her totally in the dark to whatever the annoying thing was they were referring to.
Confused, Aubrey inquired “What’s going on here?”
“I have a second Stand now,” Kel shouted, his hands clamped over his ears, “And now I understand how you felt when we were kids!”
Aubrey chuckled. She didn’t like seeing her friend like this, but if he was still in good enough spirits to be joking like that, she didn’t see the harm in poking a bit of fun at the situation. Mikhael had joined her.
“Of all the things my rival could be bested by,” Mikhael laughed, “Well, let’s see what I can do about it…”
A circle of shimmering golden energy appeared around the bunny as Mikhael spoke his incantation. A burst of power later and the bunny was vaporized, the spell intended to destroy it instantly. The Outlaws’ song paused, as if the other bunnies had felt their kin being destroyed.
Kel sighed, welcoming the silence. Mikhael stared down where the circle had been, and announced, “Well that seems to have worked-”
Then the bunny reappeared.
“God dammit.”
Not only had the spell not worked, a second rabbit had appeared on the table. In a majestic choir of chaos, the bunnies redoubled in their song, their voices going even higher. This time, they were mangling the melody of ‘Let It Go’ from the Frozen soundtrack.
Kel screamed at the top of his lungs, Mikhael stared at the rabbits in abject silence.
“I WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO SEE BUNNIES AGAIN AFTER THIS!” Kel shouted in anguish.
Aubrey shook her head, this new Stand was a bunny? She liked bunnies. Her pet Bun Bun had been her only companion after Mari died, and now Kel was disrespecting the fluffy little balls of delight? If only she could see this Stand, or hear it.
“Hey Kel,” Aubrey interjected, “That Stand can be transferred willingly, right?”
Kel was still shouting, trying to drown out the Outlaws’ disharmonious voices. Aubrey snapped her fingers, using her vampiric control to amplify the snap to catch Kel’s attention.
“WHAT?” Kel shouted. To him, his voice was barely louder than the grating screeches of his unwanted Stand. To Aubrey, he just seemed like he was yelling.
“You said you can-”
“I CAN’T HEAR YOU!”
“YOU SAID THE STAND WAS TRANSFERRED TO YOU, WHAT IF YOU JUST…” Aubrey pointed to herself, “GAVE IT TO ME?”
Mikhael interrupted, “Are… are you sure you want to do that Aubrey?”
“It’s a bunny! How bad could it be?” Aubrey replied snarkily, “They’re probably just upset that Kel is mistreating them!”
As prey animals, Bunnies are naturally distrusting creatures. It takes a lot of time and effort to acclimate a rabbit to a human companion, Aubrey knew that better than most. It’d taken Bun Bun years to trust Aubrey fully… though the fact that she was strictly carnivorous probably didn’t help there. Regardless, she wasn’t too keen on having even Stand bunnies getting blown up by warding glyphs.
Kel nodded his head aggressively, ready to be free of Outlaws’ constant sonic assault. He could feel the blood vessels in his ears pulsating.
“So, how do we do this?” Aubrey asked.
“I THINK!” Kel shouted, “I JUST NEED TO WRITE UP A CONTRACT! MIKHAEL DO YOU HAVE ANY-?”
Mikhael immediately pulled a sheet of paper and a pen out of his pocket, which Kel snatched desperately. He quickly scrawled up a little agreement and thrust the page into Aubrey’s hand, who accepted it tentatively. She looked down at the page, reading Kel’s crappy, desperate handwriting.

By signing this, you agree to get this Stand the hell away from me.

Not exactly professional, but it would hopefully suffice. She wrote her name at the top of the page, agreeing to the terms and conditions. Moments later, Kel collapsed backwards, his head draped over the chair’s headrest. He looked like a weight had been taken off of his shoulders.

“Now… now I understand why that guy had been so ready to get rid of those freaks,” Kel stated, exhausted.
Mikhael looked over to Aubrey, “Well, they aren’t gone yet.”
To Aubrey's surprise, she could see the Stands now. About a dozen Outlaws had appeared around her, sitting in her lap, or on the table, or on the floor by her shoes… but they weren’t singing yet.
“Huh. They’re kinda cute,” Aubrey stated, picking up one of the fluffy Stands and holding it up to her eye level. Kel stared at her blankly, clearly overstimulated. He shook his head violently, then finally said, “I’m gonna go home now, before those things start singing again. See you two.”
“Bye, Kel.”
“Seeya, rival!”

Kel scrambled his way out of the room, leaving only Aubrey and Mikhael with the brownies.
“Man, he didn’t even get to taste my craft!” lamented Mikhael.
With a sigh, Aubrey hoisted one of the Outlaw bunnies up onto the table.
“Are these little guys really that bad?” Aubrey asked Mikhael, to which he responded, “Like nails on a chalkboard.”
She pursed her lips, leaning forward against the table.
“Well, we’ve got some time to plan before their psychological onslaught begins,” Aubrey noted, “So what’s the plan?”
Mikhael shrugged, “No idea. So we’d better get working on one.”

Aubrey got to work piling all of the Outlaws onto the table, one by one. They had begun emitting a low humming sound, but if this was as bad as it got Aubrey really wasn’t sure what the other two had been on about…
Until she picked up the second to last bunny, and they all burst out into the chorus of Holy Diver. Aubrey was so startled she nearly tossed the Outlaw into the ceiling, but managed to grit her teeth and control herself. Safely, the last two Outlaws were reunited with their grating, emotionally jarring kin.
“See what we were complaining about now?” Mikhael asked.
She just shot him a glare, fangs bared as she enunciated, “Yeah. Yeah I can.”
The Outlaws had begun belting out a song Aubrey had never heard before, their horrid voices like a fork getting scraped across a plate.
“Mikhael! Try… I dunno, talking to them or something!” Aubrey yelled as she clapped her hands over her ears.
“Me?! Why me!?” Mikhael objected.
The song of the Outlaws respected no boundaries, their piercing voices still violating Aubrey’s eardrums in spite of her best efforts. In a fit of frustration, she outburst, “Because I need to think!”
“Ugh,” Mikhael complained, “Fine.”
“Greetings,” Mikhael leaned down to have the Outlaws at eye level, “You are immensely frustrating, and I pointedly hate you. However, I believe we could come to an arrangement if-”
The bunnies’ voice rose even higher, drowning out the sounds of Mikhael’s ill conceived negotiation attempt. Frustratedly, he slammed his fist against the table, a roiling wave of shimmering light blasting from the impact. A nearby Outlaw was launched by the burst, landing feet up against the table. It wriggled pathetically, trying to right itself… poor little thing. Without a thought, Aubrey reached out and flipped the creature rightside up. The righted creature purred softly, its voice shifting from twisting metal to a melodic symphony.
Huh…
Seems the Outlaws respond positively to caring actions, Aubrey thought to herself. As an experiment, she grabbed one of the Outlaws and separated it from its kindred, setting it down directly in front of her. Placing her fingers between its ears, she petted the small creature. A slight smile crossed her face. Even if listening to these things made getting shot up by Henry again seem like an appealing alternative, there was still some pleasure to be had from the simple act of brushing her hair through the Stand’s soft fur.
Her hunch had been correct. The Outlaw quieted down a bit, its shrill screeches lowering to a soft melody. The creature’s unnerving eyes had closed, its ears folding downwards in a content manner. Aubrey shut her eyes, blocking out the sounds of the outside, focusing in on the rabbit’s soft fur. She imagined Bun Bun were here. With all the superficial noise stripped away, Aubrey could spend this time just feeling pleasant.
She took a deep breath in. Then a deep breath out.
As Aubrey opened her eyes, she saw that the bunny she’d been petting had vanished. The others had quieted down too, and they looked at Aubrey with a warm light in their eyes. Mikhael was staring in disbelief.
“Unbelievable,” he muttered, “That’s seriously all it took.”
Aubrey snorted, leaning back in her chair, “I told you they weren’t so bad.”
One by one, she took the other Outlaws into her arms, holding them close as though they were her cherished Bun Bun. As the Outlaws melted away, their voices became more harmonic and unified… and within a few minutes there was only one Outlaw left.
The final rabbit sang a small soliloquy in a language Aubrey didn’t understand, but Mikhael’s expression told her that he understood. At last, its voice ran out, and the final Outlaw vanished.

“Was that Spanish?” Aubrey asked.
“Portuguese, actually,” Mikhael answered, “It was singing a cover of Bo Burnham’s Goodbye.”
Aubrey blinked. The Stand had been a little troll to the end.
“So, how’d it feel being a Stand User?” Mikhael inquired.
Aubrey shrugged, “Loud. Honestly, I feel bad for its old user. If Stands really are a reflection of one’s will-”
“Then that guy must be supremely annoying,” Mikhael interrupted.
“Hah, definitely,” Aubrey agreed with a chuckle. No sense continuing her thought.
Aubrey looked around the room, at the golden crosses sat on the dining room walls, the holy book resting on a nearby end table. Uneaten brownies remained on three plates sitting around the table, and Aubrey thought about the fact that only one set would actually be consumed. What an unfortunate waste.
She closed her eyes. The Outlaws were freed. She was free. Its old user, whoever they had been, was free too. There was solace in that fact.

…

...

Hunter knocked on Henry’s dorm, standing stiffly slightly beyond the threshold. He waited, and waited, and continued waiting. After a few minutes he sat down on the floor and began scrolling on his phone. Henry would come out here eventually. Hunter just needed to keep waiting.
Eventually, Henry approached Hunter from the hallway.

“Hunter, what exactly are you doing here?” Henry inquired, perplexed.
Hunter pulled his gaze away from his phone and up to Henry, “I got the job done.”
“Good,” Henry nodded, “But didn’t I tell you to call me?”
“Did you?”
Henry's exasperated expression told Hunter everything he needed to know.
“In my defense,” Hunter countered, “I was a little distracted by the horde of singing rabbits.”
Henry gave a single slight nod, his lips pressed together from consideration.
“I believe I promised you a reward,” Henry noted.
Hunter agreed, “1000$”
“So you remember that part then,” Henry replied with a mirthless laugh.
Hunter shrugged.

Henry walked over to his door and unlocked it, inviting Hunter inside. The dull greys of the room hadn’t gotten any less depressing since last time he’d been there. The sun had long since hidden itself behind the horizon, and the only light in the dorm was a single incandescent bulb. It was old and flickering softly, Hunter wondered how much longer the light had left before it broke.
Producing a check from his pocket, Henry offered it to Hunter with a quiet resolve. Not one for small talk, Hunter snatched it from his grasp and prepared to leave. Before he could reach the door, though, Henry interrupted his exit with a simple inquiry.

“The girl. Aubrey. Did you learn how she survived my attack?"
Hunter shook his head, “No. She didn’t look like she’d even been scratched.”
“Hmm,” Henry contemplated, “Did she have any friends with her?”
“Yes, two boys,” Hunter informed him, “One with yellow eyes and matching wig, the other wore an orange jersey and wielded an abnormally slow Stand.”
Silence from behind him. Hunter didn’t turn around to look at Henry. He’d got what he’d come for.
“A Stand User in an orange jersey?” Henry asked, his voice taking on a serious undertone, “Did you happen to catch his name?”
“Uh… Kel Vasquez…” Hunter replied, realizing how bad his situation was midsentence. Oh god. The shared last name definitely wasn’t a coincidence. Henry always had gone on about how his mission was ‘deeply personal.’ But Hunter, in his arrogance and jubilation from freeing himself from Outlaws, hadn’t taken the possible connection too seriously.
Apparently Henry had made the connection though, “And… What is the girl’s last name?”
Panic flooded Hunter’s mind, he had no idea. He’d never actually spoken to her directly, and now Henry was going to know that Hunter had left his Stand on his own… brother? Cousin? Relative. Backed in a corner, Hunter blurted out the first last name that came to mind, “Smith!”
Hunter felt a hand on his shoulder, burning hot against him. That was the heat of someone very, very angry.
“Did you think you could cheat me?” Henry asked from behind him, his voice eerily soft.
“N-no, sir,” Hunter stuttered, “I-I’ll g-give you the check back, I j-just thought as long as I gave my Stand to someone near her it’d be fine, I w-would never try to…”
“Get out.”
Hunter turned his head to look at Henry, whose cold blue eyes were bore into him like a drill. They were both shaking slightly, but for very different reasons.
“S-sir, I-”
“Keep the money,” Henry stated absolutely, “Without a Stand, you are useless to me. So, get… out.”
“S-sir…”
In an instant, Henry spun Hunter around and slapped him in the face.
“You failed me! And not only did you fail me, you left your abhorrent parasite of a Stand on my only brother!” Henry shouted, shoving Hunter against a nearby wall, “You disgust me! I never should have blessed you with the power of a Stand… because look what it turned into! A reflection of yourself! A parasite!”
Henry dropped Hunter to the floor, walking away and sitting down at his desk. As Hunter pulled himself up, he tried to muster an apology, but was cut off by Henry pointing his finger to the doorway in total silence. With nothing more to say between them, Hunter scrambled out the door.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

Sunny lay in his bed, moonlight streaming in through the window. The mattress and sheets may have been the same, but this bed was so much harder to sleep in. Everything in the city was just that little bit more chaotic, the dark too bright and the quiet too loud. Adjusting to the new city routine was a chore. By day, he’d made an effort to hang out at the park and keep himself active. He’d even made a friend of sorts, a high schooler who’d sat next to him at a bench a few days ago. Sunny didn’t know his name, only that he was nice and OMORI trusted him. The company was nice. By night, Sunny came back here to the apartment. His apartment, allegedly. No matter what his mother told him, it still didn’t feel like home. A nervous energy had taken him. Everything was wrong here.

Sunny sighed, pulling himself up from his resting position. He shuffled out from his room and into the hallway, his one eye blurring and refocusing from exhaustion. No pale moonlight hit the rings under his eye, a dark void standing out on his face as he looked into a mirror in the hallway. His gaze locked with his reflection momentarily, a mutual tiredness trapped on the other side of the silver panel. So this is what they called Sunny. He didn’t seem so impressive.
Continuing along the hall, Sunny made his way over the apartment’s landline. He typed in Basil’s number, letting the phone ring a few times before returning it to its apparatus. Of course Basil was asleep. It was nearly 2am. Disappointed, Sunny headed over to the fridge, grabbing a glass out of the nearby cabinet and filling it to the brim with water. Taking a long sip, the cool water ran down his throat and settled his nerves. Refreshing. Sunny hoped that would be what he needed to finally get some needed rest.
…why did it feel like his body constantly fought him?

Slowly, Sunny made his way back to his room. He threw the curtains closed, letting only a sliver of the city’s light shine through from the outside. Tomorrow was another day, and the day after would be another. As Sunny sat down on his bed, his thoughts drifted back to Basil.

‘I love you.’

No one had ever said that to Sunny before. Not like that, anyways. In hindsight, Basil hadn’t been particularly subtle even before the phone call… but Sunny had just assumed it was Basil being Basil. Did… did he even deserve this love?
It didn’t matter, he supposed. Sunny promised he would do his best to be the partner Basil needed. For Basil, he would set his doubts aside.
His eyes felt heavy, sleep finally came to claim him. As Sunny collapsed backwards onto the bed, he thought he saw OMORI in the darkness. Sunny’s eyes had shut before he could clearly interpret his Stand’s face, but he looked almost… disappointed. But Sunny didn’t get enough time to wonder what this meant before he lost consciousness entirely.

…

Good morning, Sunny.

OMORI’s voice was the first thing Sunny heard as he awoke. Someone had opened the curtains again, the light of day streaming through the window and illuminating the room. Weirdly, OMORI was smiling. And not one of his weird, uncanny smiles that he often faked. A real smile. Perhaps it was just a trick of the light and the blurriness of lingering exhaustion, but it seemed like OMORI had a yellow aura around him.

Do you remember what today is?

Sunny sat up, blinking to clear his eyes. He had no idea what today was, besides Sunday, but he couldn’t put together why OMORI would be so excited about that. Neither Sunny nor the rest of his family were particularly religious.

It’s our birthday!

Huh? OMORI was right, but Sunny didn’t see why this would be cause for celebration. He hadn’t had a proper birthday party in years, and with all his friends being back in Faraway it seemed this year would be no different. He was out here. Alone.

“So?” Sunny asked, his voice somber.

I got us a birthday present.

OMORI’s grin had become mischievous. He stepped forward and produced a small square of paper from his pocket, pressing it into Sunny’s hand. Sunny looked down at it, recoiling in surprise as he realized what it was.

“A train ticket to Faraway!?” Sunny exclaimed, “How did you get this?”

Borrowed your mom’s credit card.

“OMORI!” Sunny objected, “You can’t just do that!”

Do you not want it then? I can still get a refund.

“I… You…” Sunny stuttered, “N-no. You’re right. I do want it, more than anything, but…”

Sunny froze. Abandoning his mom, going back to his friends in Faraway? He felt conflicted… The idea of escaping felt like a dream, but at the same time he couldn’t just run away from his problems like that, he’d already resolved to face the…

You hesitate. Why?

“I can’t just run away.”

Who said anything about running away?

Sunny thought about it some more. He wouldn’t run away… but what was he doing now if not hiding? His problems were back in Faraway. His court session would be back in Faraway. His growth… would be in Faraway. By letting his mom take him away, had he run? Had he failed his promise to retain his agency on the same day he made it? He let out a deep, pained sigh.

OMORI frowned, his eyes shifting intermixed with light sadness.

You don’t have to if you don’t want to. I didn’t buy that ticket so I could force you to use it, I did it to open new options. Do you still believe I wish to control you?

The look in OMORI’s eyes… no red glow of his power, no apathetic sheen it usually maintained. For a brief moment, Sunny thought that maybe… maybe OMORI was being genuine.
Sunny looked down at the ticket, his gaze settling on the timestamp. 3pm, Denver Union Station. He didn’t feel the need to answer OMORI’s question. The answer was obvious. Everything OMORI had done, since his creation in Sunny’s mind to his transformation into a Stand, had been towards one goal. Even if OMORI had saved him so many times, Sunny found it hard to have any faith in his Stand’s motivations.
OMORI’s expression faded, returning to his usual neutral state. He sat there, empty, and his head nodded over to look out the window at the city. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking, behind those empty eyes. After a few seconds, OMORI vanished once more.
Sunny wondered where his Stand went whenever he wasn’t active.

Oh well. It didn’t really matter.

The ticket. If Sunny started walking now, he’d be able to reach the station without needing to skip lunch along the way. What other choices did he have?

Stay here and rot away?
Stay here and make a new life for himself?

Maybe OMORI did have Sunny’s best interests at heart, just this once. Sunny leapt down from his bed and prepared to leave this place behind.

…

At 2:15, Sunny stepped onto the platform at the Denver Union Station. This wasn’t the first time Sunny had been here, when Sunny was only twelve his parents had organized an ambitious trip with all of his friends. From this station, they’d transferred lines to the airport and flown all the way to California to see the beach. All that time spent organizing, all the money spent transporting 7 kids and 10 adults all the way to the coast… At the time, a younger Sunny had taken all those logistics for granted. Apparently, Aubrey’s father was the one who footed most of the bill. Sunny had never actually met him in person. Now he’d never have the chance to thank him.
…though if he’d left Aubrey like the pastor claimed, maybe he didn’t deserve that gratitude at all.
Sunny looked around the station, wondering what to do for the next 45 minutes while waiting for the train to board. In all truth, he was slightly anxious. If his mom checked her transaction history, she’d certainly know exactly what he was up to. Those 45 minutes couldn’t pass fast enough.

While wandering the terminals, Sunny sensed something. Someone nearby had hostile intent, he could feel their grim determination and their malice. Yet again, OMORI’s power was protecting him. Another debt to the pile. Sunny scanned the crowds, searching for any clear Stand Users nearby, but the hordes of meandering people were too dense for him to find anyone. He could feel his nerves building, a dampening energy coursing throughout him.
The last time he’d been around this many people, Basil had been by his side. This time he was all alone. Sunny steeled himself. If he couldn’t find the hostile, he’d just have to make sure the hostile couldn’t find him. Sunny ducked into a nearby bathroom and hid in one of the stalls, but quickly realized the disadvantages of his positioning. The bathroom didn’t have any clocks, and Sunny hadn’t gotten the chance to replace his phone since the mountains. With no watch on his wrist, he was at risk of losing track of time… and if the train left without him all of this would have been for naught.
The hostile presence was fading away. Sunny took a deep breath in. With luck, whoever that was had no interest in him at all. But after getting attacked by three separate Stand Users in the past two weeks, Sunny wasn’t interested in taking chances. Fate’s gravity may bring Stand Users together, Sunny recalled, but no rule Sunny was aware of prevented him from gaining the upper hand before then.
Sunny walked out of the bathroom, weighing his options. A nearby clock told him it was 2:34. He could head to the platform now, and the train would likely be boarding. However, he’d be putting himself in danger by entering such an exposed space. Worse still, depending on the enemy stand’s power, he could be endangering others too.
A few alternatives came to mind, but all of them had as many cons if not more. No, he had to be bold. Sunny slipped into the crowds, trying his best to keep his breathing stable despite the proximity of so many strangers. His emotion senses were overwhelmed by the feelings of 9-to-5 workers, loving couples, and the other milling masses. Each one had their own sense of direction, their own energy emanating. It was like being in a psychic microwave, Sunny could only be glad he wasn’t able to read thoughts.
Regardless, he pressed onward, towards his end goal. If the hostile presence was around, they’d been well masked by the tempest of feelings around him. Sunny would have to just hope the unknown individual wouldn’t find him.
At 2:48, Sunny made it to the platform. The crowds thinned out, and Sunny’s emotion blindness was lifted ever so slightly. Unfortunately, as his senses opened up more and more he noticed that the enemy was already on the train. This was the rubicon. If he proceeded, he’d be committing to fighting whoever that was… but if he backed down he was stranded here. No more running, Sunny affirmed to himself. Taking a moment to focus, he stepped onto the train.
The enemy was a car behind him. Sunny would just have to remain on his guard, and there would be no way they could sneak up on him. He had the upper hand here, he reassured himself. Taking his seat, Sunny felt a wave of relief. He was going home. His real home.

…

A light rain fell against the train windows.
Sunny watched the landscape rushing by, the mountains on the horizon. It hadn’t been so long ago that he’d been trapped in those very mountains, spending every minute measuring his energy and stepping carefully so he might survive. Maybe, he thought to himself, he never actually left.
…well, hm. He was definitely leaving them behind now.

It’d been 30 minutes since the train left the station, and the unknown hostile still hadn’t made a move. Tension strung through the atmosphere like a web, but part of Sunny wondered if he was just psyching himself out. OMORI’s empathic abilities didn’t allow Sunny to read minds, so there would always be some level of ambiguity into people's intentions and why. Regardless, the potential stalker remained a quiet threat at the back of Sunny’s mind, always present but never engaging.
It was a bit like SOMETHING in that regard.
Sunny shuddered at the idea. As little as he trusted OMORI, there were worse things the arrow could have awakened within him.

There was a sort of liminality to being on a train. At this moment, Sunny wasn’t exactly nowhere… but he wasn’t exactly somewhere either. A space between, as it were. He took a look around the train, observing the few other passengers scattered about the car. All of these people, where were they going? So many lives, so many places to be… Having spent the last four years in his own home, it was only just now hitting Sunny how large the world actually was.
Where was his place in all this? Where would he be once all this Stand business was said and done? His trial was set for mid-September, he’d answer for Mari’s death, and then…
Just go to prison?
What about after that?
So many paths laid out ahead of Sunny, each one their own type of dismal and obscured. He had missed four years of education, his job experience was limited to delivering pizzas and beating the life out of flies, and he wasn’t particularly fit physically. No real job would take him, he’d be a liability to the military, and he’d just left his mother… and his only realistic option for funding his education.
Well, he could be a house husband to Basil, but…
…no. He couldn’t burden Basil like that.

Four years. A quarter of Sunny’s current life, gone. And now here he was, left to put the pieces of a nearly impossible puzzle back together.

Not much to be done about it. He’d figure out something. Maybe if he got lucky, he’d be sentenced for life and wouldn’t have to deal with all this. Sunny almost laughed at the idea. Almost.

His brooding was interrupted by a disturbance, his empathic sense tingling. The enemy was on the move. They were heading his way. Frantically, Sunny scanned the environment for options, any options at all. The train ride had over an hour left, and Sunny was effectively stuck in a metal box with no cover. He could try hiding under a table or bench or something, but that risked being even more suspicious than he already appeared. Sunny took a deep breath in. It was fine. It was ok. He was just a normal passenger. As he exhaled, he scooted over towards the window, angling his eyepatch away from the train’s central corridor.
The presence had stepped into the same train car as him now. Sunny strained to see their reflection in the window, but for now came back with nothing. One step closer. Two steps. This was fine. Sunny would be fine.
And then the presence sat down next to him.

Sunny was still looking away, but he could hear the rustling of paper behind him. His pupil shrank as he kept his gaze focused on the horizon, doing his best to remain as inconspicuous as possible. At this point, he had no better options. All he could do was focus on the rain outside.

“Are you Sunny Suzuki?” a feminine voice inquired softly. Slowly, Sunny turned to face its source. Greeting him was a woman of about age 25, wearing a white admiral’s uniform like he’d seen in some old cartoons. Three golden stars were pinned over her shirt pocket, and held in a scabbard on her right leg was a holstered combat dagger which Sunny had no idea how she got past security. Her expression gave away nothing.
Sunny lied, “No.”
“Ah. I must have mistaken you for someone else. Sorry for the inconvenience,” the woman apologized, standing up to leave. She went about three paces before unsheathing her dagger and spinning it so the blade pointed straight toward Sunny’s good remaining eye. The shining weapon now fully on display, Sunny could see the blade’s silvery glow, its serrated edge sparkling with unnatural light. Now he understood. The dagger was the Stand.
OMORI manifested down the corridor, facing down the woman with his own knife drawn. She glanced over at the pale Stand, a single eyebrow raised. A few hushed whispers came from random passengers, and Sunny wondered what this must look like to them. Neither OMORI nor the dagger would be visible to non-Stand Users.
With a confident grin, the lady rushed towards OMORI, her dagger swinging as quickly and cleanly as she could manage. Dodge. Parry. Sidestep. OMORI effortlessly countered her flurry of attacks, his inhuman speed easily beating out a regular human. Tiring of the charade, OMORI grabbed her arm as she failed yet another strike, yanking the woman forwards before kneeing her in the chest. With the wind knocked out of her, she collapsed to the ground with her hand still firmly clasped to her Stand dagger.

“You’re skilled,” the woman declared, “but I, Becky Seafarer, have never lost!”
Did… did she think she was the protagonist? OMORI rolled his eyes. But Sunny noticed something… her dagger was charging up, its silvery glow amplifying into a corona reminiscent of a solar eclipse. She raised her blade over her head, and OMORI prepared to block the oncoming attack. But as she stabbed, she didn’t go for OMORI. Her dagger pierced the floor, a wave of black energy burst outwards from the point of impact. Immediately, the whole world felt… off. As if Sunny had become slightly lighter.
Someone in the train car screamed, their phone floating out of their hand. In fact, the whole train was being ever so slightly lifted off the tracks. Outside, the rain had stopped falling, the droplets suspended in midair as the light rail rushed by.
Sunny felt sick, the nauseating feeling of weightlessness building up bile in his throat. This Becky person, she was willing to sacrifice everyone on this train… and for what? What did any of these Stand Users get from any of this? OMORI lunged at Becky, but the lowered gravity caused him to misjudge his attack and Becky was able to trip him. Exploiting her Stand’s acting force on the environment, she leaped backwards out of her prone state with impeccable agility.
The train shook, decelerating as the wheels lost contact with the rails below. Sunny could hear the other cars starting to float as well. The point Becky had stabbed was still flowing with waves of her dark power, growing in strength. Panicked passengers screamed and fled further down the train, some calling the authorities, others their loved ones.
Becky snarled, “My Stand, Black Hole Sun, will continue to consume this train as long as I stay standing. Unless you surrender, you’ll be guaranteeing the doom of every passenger onboard.”
Sunny stood up from his seat, facing down Becky with OMORI by his side.

We won't be surrendering, not to a coward who hides behind innocent lives. You're disgusting.

Sunny looked over at OMORI, pleading, “Maybe don’t goad her into making things worse…”
“SILENCE!” Becky yelled, “Enough talk, fiend! En garde!”

Becky leapt directly upwards, spiraling midair to kick off from the ceiling. At blinding speed, she corkscrewed towards Sunny, her aerodynamic form optimized for an environment with air resistance but no gravity. The attack caught Sunny and OMORI off guard, forcing them to duck to the sides, but the floatiness of their environment slowed the dodge ever so slightly. Sunny could feel the cold metallic scrape of Becky’s dagger against his lower rib cage, saw flecks of his own blood suspended midair before gradually accelerating skywards.
Outside, the rain was flowing upwards, streaking across the windows in an unnatural way. OMORI hit the opposing window hard, stabbing his knife into it to gain traction. A determined glare was plastered on his visage, his ire directed at Becky in full force. Becky had reached the other end of the car, her goading smirk inviting Sunny to try to hit her.
OMORI’s eyes shined red as he attempted to find some emotion to draw out. In Becky, there was nothing he could use. No doubt Hero had been carefully recruiting people who were well emotionally hardened, both because they had the least morals and because they were easier for him to relate to. Or, so OMORI assumed. Sunny on the other hand… Sunny had resolve. Sunny’s eye flared crimson as OMORI’s power drew out Sunny’s inner strength of will, an invaluable asset in an unorthodox fight like this.
As OMORI’s power flowed through him, Sunny could finally think clearly. Gravity, the enemy Stand was manipulating gravity… and entirely without finesse too. Sunny looked around. The train car was being affected, but not too much. Its wheels threatened to leave the tracks behind, but crucially hadn’t yet. The raindrops outside and his own blood however, gravity for them was fully reversed. Sunny recalled a fact he’d learned on a whim during his research, that a ping pong ball and a bowling ball would accelerate downwards at the same rate if dropped.
Except here, that wasn’t the case. Lower mass things like the rain outside were already falling upwards. Higher mass things, like Sunny himself, were experiencing a weird level of buoyancy through the air, but weren’t floating away quite yet. So, Black Holes Sun’s ability didn’t work uniformly, it had a much stronger effect on things the less mass they had.
Sunny pulled the train ticket out of his pocket. Like he suspected it would, the paper floated away to the ceiling, held back only by wind resistance.
Huh. Maybe those four years in isolation hadn’t damaged his critical thinking skills as much as he’d thought. A spark of hope ignited within him. Sunny could only pray that spark became a flame, if only he would find a way to use this information.
Becky gave Sunny a confused look, but quickly shrugged off her apprehension to launch a second assault against Sunny. This time though, Sunny didn’t sidestep, instead grabbing a railing and pulling himself out of her path. As she darted past, Sunny kicked backwards and caught Becky in the back, knocking her off to the side with ease. He could see her enraged shock as she hit the wall, but her surprise was short lived.
Gravity was really starting to act strangely now, and the train car’s wheels had fully detached from the tracks below. Nothing remained to prevent Sunny from falling skywards forever, up into the clouds above.
Becky lunged, this time the arc of her jump going low and ascending high. OMORI vanished from the ceiling, in the nick of time resummoning himself by Sunny’s side before Becky’s onslaught could reach him. Her wild flurry of attacks battered at OMORI’s defenses, the furious shouts of metal on metal echoing through the light rail. Black Hole Sun's gravity inversion finally caught up. Sunny’s world inverted, he went from being on the floor to upside down and on the ceiling in an instant. The momentary confusion gave Becky the opening she needed, her blade cutting into the flesh of Sunny’s arm and sending more blood across the walls and ceiling.
In her eagerness though, she overstepped. She’d failed to account for her Stand’s mass priority… and she was only slightly larger than Sunny. The inverting gravity imposed on Becky too, flooring her against the roof and sending her dagger clattering away from her. Seeing everything floating upwards, OMORI let go of his knife, letting inverse gravity do the work for him.
Becky’s eyes widened as OMORI’s knife accelerated towards her. She tried to dodge, tried to move, but her own Stand’s power kept her pinned against the ceiling as a silver streak rushed straight towards her abdomen. A sickening squelch of steel impaling flesh was heard, the sputtering of blood throbbing from the incised flesh in regular pulses.
“H-Henry… I- I’ve…” Becky managed before her eyes flickered shut, her Stand disengaging as her mind faded. The train car crashed to the ground with a loud slam, terrified screams of passengers could be heard from the other cars. The light rail had screeched to a total halt. Someone had pulled the emergency brakes.
Sunny and OMORI dropped to the floor gracefully, landing on their feet. Sunny’s arm and chest still bled from where Black Hole Sun had slashed him, but assessing the damages assured Sunny that he would be fine. He sat down to catch his breath, OMORI sitting next to him.
Becky had hit the ground hard, unable to control her fall. The impact had driven OMORI’s knife further into her body, the pool of blood from the ceiling raining down on her unconscious form. Sunny pulled himself to his feet, looking down at the gruesome scene.

“W-will she survive?” Sunny muttered.

Not our problem.

“We have to do something! We have to take the knife out or-”

Taking the knife out will only make her bleed out faster. Her best chance is if we just leave her there. Unfortunately, if you’re really dedicated to keeping her alive you’ll have to wait here. If the knife leaves your Stand Range, it’ll disappear and seal her doom.

Sunny nodded in disgusted understanding.

She attacked us, Sunny. You saw how Aubrey finished off the phantom’s user without a second thought.

“I can’t take another life, OMORI,” Sunny replied, tears welling up, “Not intentionally, not accidentally.”

OMORI’s gaze shifted over to the distant mountains, his silence absolute. It looked to Sunny as though he were considering something.

I-I understand.

Sunny blinked in surprise. OMORI had just stuttered. He’d never done that before, never shown any sort of hesitation in Sunny’s presence like that. He really wasn’t sure what to make of this unprecedented circumstance.

You know… I’m not sure I want the knife back, anyways.

Sunny didn’t have time to dwell on this revelation, not with a life on the line. He rushed over to the next car over, yelling at the crowd, “Can someone call an ambulance?!”
The passengers were still recovering from the shock, an elderly lady lay on the floor desperately clawing at anything nearby that could give her leverage enough to stand. Sunny quickly helped her to her feet, retrieving her walker for her.
“T-thank you, young man,” the elderly woman thanked him. Sunny wished he could spend more time helping, but time was of the essence. Almost everyone on their feet had gotten their phones out already, contacting emergency services. Sunny could hear snippets of their conversations,
“...I don’t know what the hell that was…”
“...like the world was upside down…”
“...injured my arm…”
One guy seemed weirdly flippant about the whole ordeal, snapping photos. Sunny could see from his screen that he was posting them to some social media site, and conducted OMORI to snatch the device out of the man’s hands. Clearly, he didn’t need it anyways. Dialing 911, Sunny brought the borrowed device up to his ear.
“HEY! Give that back!” the previous owner objected. OMORI kept blocking his approach, which to the man must have seemed like an invisible barrier between him and Sunny.
“This is dispatch,” a voice on the other end of the phone inquired, “What’s your emergency?”
“A lady got stabbed on the train,” Sunny replied, “And I need Aubrey Brando on the scene.”
A pause from the other side…
“I see,” the dispatcher answered, “Where are you right now?”
“Along the light rail outside Faraway, where all the other calls are coming from.”
“Understood. We’re on our way.”
The phone hung up with a click, no time for cordiality in an emergency. Sunny tossed the phone back to the complaining man, who seemed totally unphased by learning someone was dying. Sunny could feel irritation emitting from the man, but he was otherwise devoid of feeling. Sunny gritted his teeth in disgust.
“I could have you arrested for that!” the man yelled.
Sunny walked back to the car where Becky lay, not giving the man the time of day.
Arrested. Hah. This was the least of Sunny’s crimes.

…

Sunny sat in the rain, watching the paramedics take Becky away. They’d assured him that she’d probably survive, though recovery would be a several month long process. He couldn’t say he felt too bad about that, nor the medical fees she’d no doubt be incurring. The cost of inciting violence was steep. He was just glad it hadn’t been fatal.
Aubrey sat down next to him, staring off into the distance.

“It took you less than a week to get yourself in trouble again,” Aubrey complained.
Sunny looked over at Aubrey, frustrated by her seemingly non-chalant attitude towards the whole ordeal. Aubrey caught on quickly, getting defensive suddenly.
“I don’t mean anything by that!” Aubrey exclaimed, “I’m just worried for your safety! You could have died…”
Sunny nodded slowly. He understood where she was coming from.
“I’ll clear all this up with the station,” Aubrey assured him, “But first we should get you back to your mom’s apartment-”
“No.”
Sunny’s voice was deadly serious. He wasn’t going back there. Not after all this trouble. Despite being contradicted, Aubrey grinned wider than the Cheshire Cat.
“Look at you, growing a spine!” Aubrey exclaimed proudly, “God am I glad you’re returning to Faraway.”
“I’ll need to be legally emancipated,” Sunny murmured sadly.
Aubrey put her hand on his shoulder, “Hey, one thing at a time. You’ve still got your trial upcoming, and a horde of aggressive Stand Users encroaching. We’ll figure this out, but you’ve gotta pace yourself.”
Sunny looked away, upwards at the raindrops falling down on him.
“Aubrey,” Sunny said somberly, “I-I’m sorry for stabbing you. Back in the park. I just-”
“It’s fine,” Aubrey interrupted, “No harm, no foul. I’ve been through a lot worse than being stabbed.”
A quiet moment of reflection passed. Rain splattered against the mud. Sunny had never been more glad that the rain was coming down and not flowing up.
“It’s a good thing I was facing away from the sun though,” Aubrey continued, “The hole you put through my sunblock could’ve gotten me vaporized from the inside out! Ha!”
Sunny sighed before asking, “How can you be laughing at something that serious?”
“I guess I’m learning from Kel,” Aubrey responded, her expression contemplative, “or Mikhael. Or Kim. Sarcasm runs strong through my friends.”
She paused thoughtfully before directing Sunny’s gaze back to her, “Who knows, maybe someday you’ll learn how to laugh too.”
“W-would that even be a good thing?” Sunny inquired, uncertain.
“Contextually.”
Aubrey produced a black katana from her backpack, offering up to Sunny.
“My calendar informed me that today’s your birthday,” Aubrey stated softly, “I kept the reminder around in the vain hope you’d someday return, so I’m glad to see that paid off.”
Sunny hesitated to claim the blade for himself. He could tell based on its ornate pommel this had been the same sword the phantom’s Stand User had wielded… the katana OMORI had used to sever the enemy’s arm. It was fully cleaned now, no signs of wear or usage.
Sensing Sunny’s hesitation, Aubrey continued, “Usually the precinct would be keeping this for evidence, but I took the liberty of taking it off their hands. Apparently, the Stand User’s name was Rory. Looking through his records, it seems he had quite the history of violence.”
Another thoughtful pause.
“A-anyway,” Aubrey concluded, “I figured if anyone was going to redeem this weapon, it was you. So, it’s yours now.”
She placed the blade in Sunny’s hand, and he curled his fingers around the hilt slowly and deliberately. No reason to not take it, he supposed. OMORI would be in need of a new weapon anyways.
“Thank you,” Sunny stated, “I really appreciate it, Aubrey.”
Aubrey smiled slightly, “Anytime.”
She jumped up, shoes splashing against the muddy earth, “Now c’mon, let’s get you to your real home!”
Sunny smiled. He was ready.

To be continued…

Chapter Text

OMORI sat in the back of the police cruiser, Sunny’s new katana sitting horizontal in his lap. He turned it over in his hands, slowly, deliberately, examining the workings of the blade with intent. The blade’s edge hummed with a metallic resonance, vibrating slightly as the car shook through the journey. Rain continued to patter against the car, distorting the light through the window in wet streaks.
The blade was immaculate. Its weight, measurement, balance… everything about it felt right. Clearly Rory had put a lot of love into this tool of violence. OMORI shuddered as he recalled the malicious glee radiating from that man, to think such a monster could care for anything was unbelievable. Even if that care was for an inanimate object.
Sunny observed OMORI through the rear view mirror, conflicted. Even with the empathic sense that OMORI had taught him, Sunny felt like OMORI remained totally opaque. Sometimes, Sunny could see a glimmer of compassion on his Stand’s face. Sometimes, he couldn’t distinguish OMORI from the demon from his dreams. So Sunny just watched as OMORI ran his fingers down the length of the sword, wondering what the pale boy could possibly be thinking.
Engraved in gold, three words in Japanese were etched into the dark steel of the katana.

真実
正義
安全

Despite Sunny’s family being of Japanese descent, neither Sunny nor OMORI knew a lick of their ancestral tongue. Just one of many ways Sunny had failed his family, in his own mind. OMORI, on the other hand, wasn’t bothered by this. Whatever meaning that kanji held was now long tainted by Rory’s brazen irreverence.
Regardless, it was a very nice sword. OMORI passed the blade back up to Sunny, who sheathed it silently. As the blade was returned to its leather holster, so too did its metallic hum fade.

Very high quality. It’s hard to see, but the blade shows the same patterning as damascus steel.

“Not all of us are metallurgists,” Aubrey commented from the driver's seat, “You’re going to have to explain what that means.”

In ancient times, damascus steel was revered for its toughness and resilience. Nowadays it's about average quality for steel, but it does look pretty.

Given the other choice was that accursed knife, Sunny was more than happy with OMORI’s new favored weapon. He had no idea where OMORI had learned that smithing factoid though.

“So, Aubrey,” Sunny inquired, his train of thought diverted, “I didn’t know you had a license?”
Aubrey’s tone was a complete deadpan as she replied, “I don’t.”
His reaction to that must have been priceless, because as Aubrey looked over to him she burst out laughing.
“Only kidding!” Aubrey clarified while turning back to the road, “My god Sunny, of course I have a drivers license!”
“O-oh,” Sunny mumbled.
“I mean, the car isn’t mine, obviously,” Aubrey continued, “I can’t afford a car of my own, so I borrow this one whenever I need to go somewhere.”
“C-cool,” Sunny acquiesced.
“It’s pretty sweet too,” Aubrey grinned, “Vance helped me mod the sucker. I tinted the windows to totally block out UV. Y’know…”
Aubrey continued to waffle on about various vehicle specs, to which Sunny occasionally nodded his head or said ‘yeah.’ He had no idea what she was talking about, but it seemed like Aubrey was enjoying the opportunity to just speak.

You always were a good listener.

Sunny wasn’t sure if he agreed with that. Maybe in the past, OMORI would have been right, but now Sunny wasn’t listening so much as just being present.
Maybe that’s all Aubrey wanted anyways.

…

Basil loafed on the couch. There was no other word for it. He just lay there, like a loaf of bread, and slowly felt himself go stale. If only Sunny were here. If only Sunny could tell him everything would be ok.
A used box of tissues sat there next to him, his phone playing somber tunes through its dubious speakers. Basil had named his playlist ‘Elsewhere.’ An apt name, given that’s where he wanted to be right now. Or perhaps he already was elsewhere, and his body simply hadn’t gotten the memo.
Yesterday’s trip to the park had done little for him. His nerves still sparked as though frayed, and maybe they would for the rest of his life. Looking down at his scarred flesh, Basil wondered if emotional scars were just as permanent. Contrary to the popular saying, time does not heal all wounds. But maybe it can dull them… just enough.
A sudden knock on the front door snapped Basil out of his stupor. Dragging himself off the couch, Basil shuffled over to the entryway. He called out to check who was outside, but there was no response.
Strange. Basil’s awareness kicked in. Even with simple interactions like this, he couldn’t afford to let his guard down. Not with enemy Stand Users out in the world. Not with this many unknowns. Twisted Garden probed up against the door, sensing for human life beyond the threshold. To Basil’s surprise, there was none to be found.
Cautiously, Basil slid the door open, letting in the bright daylight and fresh air. No one awaited him outside, so Basil stepped out to scan the street for oncomers.

No one was there.

Finally, Basil looked to his feet. A letter had been deposited by the front door, labeled ‘To Basil.’ No further markings, no return address. Basil confiscated the letter, bringing it inside to the kitchen table.

As he slide his chair into place, Basil wondered who the letter could possibly be from. Hero? Aubrey? Chris?

…Sunny?

Twisted Garden punched its way into the envelope, treading for anthrax or other traps hidden within. Once again, the letter held no nefarious secrets. It contained no Stand energy or unexpected materials. For all intents and purposes, this was a completely regular letter.
Basil peeled the envelope open fully, extracting its contents and reading them through thoroughly.

‘Spirit Ripple is a blessing and a curse. One who wishes to bear the double edged blade no longer will perform the following ritual, as Outlander intended;

First, concoct an elixir of the following ingredients:
A sprig of Tulsi ground to a fine powder
A stick of Cinnamon bark
A flower of Chamomile
Blood of the One to be Purified, given freely
The remainder shall be cow’s milk

Second, light three red candles and have a Pactbearer speak the divine words;
Silere fac animam meam, dormire sinas virtutem meam.

Should your plea be answered, reprieve will be given.’

Definitely not from Sunny.
Basil squinted his eyes, pondering what this could mean. Spirit Ripple was an antiquated term for Stands, he recalled, so it seemed this was a ritual intended to destroy a Stand in the case it was unwanted. The ingredients were fairly basic, Basil was growing half of them. The other half could be found in his cupboard and veins respectively. Despite that, Basil hadn’t the foggiest idea who Outlander was or what a Pactbearer could be.
A faint flicker of hope welled up within Basil, even in spite of the missing knowledge. Another way had been found forward. They didn’t need to kill Hero. If they could just somehow convince him…
…but what if he was too far gone?

Basil’s smile was too far gone, the reality of his farfetched dream crashing down on him. Hero had attacked them, openly and maliciously. There had been no remorse in his eyes as he fired a fragmentation strike upon both Sunny and Basil, and the following pursuit had left both of them closer to death than they’d ever been. As much as Basil wanted to believe the Hero he’d known was still there, doubt always clawed its way back in.
He’d already walked Sunny into one death trap. Already, his naive hope poised him to walk straight into another.

Basil’s gaze strayed back to the front door, a revelation striking him. Chris had given him the Stand Arrow so Basil could fix his horrible life. It hadn’t worked particularly well at the time, but Basil had been too… hasty… in its use. Had he simply waited for the lock to present itself, no doubt the key would have slid in with relative ease. This ritual was another solution, a key to a lock he didn’t yet have access to. It seemed to Basil that after all this time, Chris Tau was still looking out for him.

Though his optimism was already tempered, Basil willed himself to hold on anyways.
He had a chance to save everyone.
That would have to be enough.

…

As the cruiser approached its final destination, Sunny stared out the window at the familiar locales. He’d seen these streets hundreds of times. They were familiar, like the back of his own hand. Golden light shone through the forest canopy around Faraway Town, a pleasant and welcome glow that almost seemed to say ‘Welcome home.’
With only two turns left until Basil’s house, they passed by Sunny’s old home. A new family was in the process of moving in, an old man with a leopard patterned hat and another man, presumably his grandson, in a long white coat and dolphin hat. Aubrey seemed to recognize them as they drove past, but she didn’t stop. If anything, she sped up a bit and muttered something under her breath that Sunny couldn’t make out.
For a moment, Sunny’s eye caught a glimpse of someone in his old home’s window. A woman in white, looking out from the home. But as quickly as he saw her, so too did she vanish without a trace. Sunny breath caught, a single interruption. Had that been…?
No. It couldn’t be. Sunny was just seeing things, as he often had in the past.

Aubrey slowed the cruiser to a halt, greeting Sunny with the familiar sight of the flowers and sprouts surrounding Basil’s house. As Sunny stepped down from the car and onto the asphalt below, an electric anticipation flowed through him. It was a welcome feeling. It felt like home. Even the grey of the falling rain had mellowed, the pleasant sensation of a light drizzle fueling Sunny’s smile as he walked towards the front door.
Three sharp raps rang out from the doorframe as Sunny knocked to request entry. He took a deep breath, anxiously awaiting the second the door opened. Mere moments later, Sunny held his breath as the doorway slowly swung inwards.
Basil froze on the other side of the door, his pale blue eyes locked onto Sunny. A smile spread across his face as he threw out his arms and embraced Sunny tenderly, nesting his chin on Sunny’s shoulder as he felt the warmth of his other half. Sunny returned the hug, wrapping his arms around Basil’s waist and pulling him close.

“Sunny,” Basil whispered, “You came back!”
Sunny nodded, his hair entangling with Basil’s.
“I missed you too,” Sunny assured him.
Basil gave a soft laugh, before turning his head and pecking Sunny on the cheek. Sunny’s face immediately flared red, he stepped back slightly. The warmth he felt was suddenly too much, too uncomfortable. His arms dropped, he hadn’t been expecting Basil’s forwardness.
Sensing Sunny’s hesitation, Basil pulled back too, flustered and embarrassed.
“I’m so sorry I should have a-asked, I was just so excited I… I…” Basil stammered as he staggered backwards, putting his hands up to his face, “I-It was just a kiss I thought it’d be fine I’m s-sorry…”
Sunny’s heart raced, his breathing erratic. He closed his eye and steadied his breathing, blocking out the fire he could feel through his empathic sense. He focused elsewhere, on the cool raindrops running down his hair and flowing through the sky around him.
“Y-you’re fine,” Sunny mumbled, the redness in his cheeks fading.
Basil looked over at Sunny dejectedly, his features softened by his shame. There his gaze lingered, until Basil’s pupils suddenly shrunk to a point and his gaze shot over to Aubrey, who had been standing there silently this whole time.

“Aubrey! Hi!” Basil yelped, “I didn’t see you there!”
“Hey, don’t let me get in the way,” Aubrey assured with a subtle smile, “I’m just here to drop off Sunny.”
“D-don’t be a stranger!” Basil replied, still covering for his underlying feeling soup, “There’s something I’d like to discuss, a-actually.”
Aubrey and Sunny raised their eyebrows. Something to discuss? A dangerous sentiment with a dangerous history, in this friend group at least.
“Alright, lay it on me,” Aubrey stated, proceeding into the house.
Sunny made his way inside as well. The home’s interior was darker than he remembered, the plants ever so slightly more wilted. He supposed that made sense, they’d spent three days stranded together in the wilderness. But… observing Basil closer, he appeared bedraggled, as if he wasn’t taking care of himself. Sunny hoped that was just his overactive imagination at work.
They sat down together on the couch, Basil’s arm wrapping behind Sunny and onto his shoulder. Aubrey opted to sit on the TV instead, effortless climbing on top with the grace of an acrobat.
“Maybe we should have sat at the dining table,” Sunny suggested. But Aubrey dismissed the notion, stating that she was comfy up there. In all truth, Sunny was somewhat jealous of her. Aubrey always had a way of getting past her emotional barriers. Far as he was aware, her discomfort about showing off her vampiric talents was the last one she had. And now, she didn’t seem terribly worried about that one either.
Now that everyone was seated and comfortable, Basil pulled up the letter he’d obtained only hours ago.
“This letter here,” Basil announced dramatically, “Is the key to saving everyone.”
“Everyone?” Aubrey asked.
Sunny looked over at Basil, skeptical but hopeful.
“Yes,” Basil affirmed, “Everyone. Sally, Hero, ourselves. This letter contains a ritual that can purify Stands, a non-lethal way of neutralizing Hero’s fighter jet.”
Sunny observed the page closely. It seemed like mystic mumbo jumbo to him, but Basil seemed positive that he held the answers in his hand. Aubrey leaned forwards with an inquisitive stare, her head tilted slightly in disbelief.
“How do you know this works?” Aubrey questioned.
Sunny nodded, “It seems too good to be true. We can’t be running in blindly if we aren’t certain.”
OMORI flickered into being on Basil’s opposite side, but said nothing. His hollow eyes tracked the paper, his frown ever so slightly more pronounced than usual.
“True,” Basil conceded, “And we still don’t have everything necessary to perform the ritual. I’m not sure what a pactbearer is supposed to be, but it’s clearly important.”
“A pactbearer, huh?” Aubrey stroked her chin, “That sounds like a warlock to me. I happen to know one of those.”
“W-wait,” Basil reacted, stunned, “Really? Who?”
“Mikhael,” Aubrey shrugged.
Sunny’s eye darted around incredulously. If memory served, Mikhael was the guy that Kel and him had beat up with a basketball for information only a few days before Sunny revealed the truth. That guy was a warlock? It seemed absurd, but then Sunny thought about all the other unbelievable nonsense that had gone down. No, this certainly wasn’t the strangest revelation he’d had as of late.
Basil on the other hand, remembered Mikhael as one of the Hooligans. Years of merciless jeering came back to him in an instant. That guy was a warlock? That man was as pompous a jackass as people came, and he was supposed to help them? The most unbelievable part of it all was that Mikhael had somehow kept something like that hidden despite his motormouth…
“If that’s resolved,” Sunny interjected, “What’s your plan for testing if the ritual works?”
Basil paused, an uncertain half-grimace dominating his face, “W-well, if we can find a willing test subject…”
“Who would ever willingly give up their Stand?” Aubrey asked pointedly, clearly unconvinced. But Sunny was frozen by the possibility, pondering the idea. Freedom from his Stand? OMORI stared over to Sunny, seeing his contemplative expression. Then he vanished. To Sunny’s surprise, Aubrey’s attention was drawn by OMORI’s disappearance. What reason did she have to care about him?
Freedom from OMORI. Freedom from his last shackle from his four years of isolation. Another thing that felt too good to be true…
But… would it really help? OMORI had changed. OMORI was growing. Sunny could tell his Stand was hiding his gradual shift from him, for reasons beyond his comprehension, but even if OMORI kept up that thin veil of stagnation…
Sunny looked over to Basil, hoping for any form of consultation. Basil stared back, a bright smile on his face.

…

OMORI appeared out in Basil’s backyard, holding his chest as he hyperventilated. He felt sick. He felt like he was dying. Sunny… Sunny was going to get rid of him. Sunny was going to kill him.
A little voice in OMORI’s mind whispered to him coldly, “You should be happy for him. You served your purpose. Now you’re useless. Sunny would be far happier if you were gone. Isn’t that why you protect him? His happiness? With this one final act, he could be free.”
A sharp crack rang out as OMORI’s katana cut deep into the wood of a nearby tree. This sudden burst of violence did nothing to silence the voice within, which continued to mock and jeer, tearing OMORI apart.
“He’ll never forgive you for attacking him that night,” the whispers clawed their way through OMORI’s psyche, “You don’t deserve it. He’s right. He could have healed so long ago without your interference. Your presence will always hold him back. It's your nature.”
“SHUT UP!” OMORI yelled, screaming using his mouth instead of his psionic voice. Rage, fear, sadness, he could feel them all trying to consume him. He clamped his hands to his ears, but there was no noise to shut out. OMORI couldn’t even feel the falling rain, it phased through his incorporeal form and splashed against the terrain. It was like he wasn’t there at all.
“Why do you fear this? Surely you realized this was the natural endpoint of your growth.”
OMORI’s arm flashed out instantly, taking hold of the katana’s hilt even though it remained embedded in the tree. His eyes glowed a brilliant red, power flowing through him. His breathing had only gotten faster and more erratic.
“You aren’t someone. You’re a fragment. A fragment that cuts the thing it's slowly being torn off of. Better to remove it entirely instead of letting it flail around and cause further wounds.”
OMORI thought back to the apartment, when he’d smiled to Sunny’s face. Or when he’d stuttered. Or the feeling when he’d controlled Sunny’s body, and the pain of betrayal intermingled with the pain of a thousand cutting wounds. Each of these things had been so natural, but so quickly shut down. Every time OMORI saw Sunny’s face, he knew exactly what his Stand User was thinking.
“He’ll always believe you have some agenda, that you’re just manipulating him. Sunny looks upon your face. He sees nothing but hollow lies. You’ll never gain his trust. No matter what you do, it will be hopeless.”
Red light flickered all around his body, his form glitching as though he were on a computer screen. He yanked the katana out of the tree with all his might and screamed out in anguish, the shrill howl of psychic energy roiling outwards and battering the environment. Blade in hand, OMORI continued to cry out. All that pent up emotion inside of him, and the bottle was opened. OMORI slashed and slashed and slashed, releasing a devastating flurry of cuts that cleft branch, leave, and trunk clean in two. His speed and strength were far beyond what he’d ever managed, rending the remnants of the tree as though it had gone through a woodchipper.
The stump of the tree was sliced straight in half down the middle, the tree itself was nothing more than wooden dust proliferating across the ground. OMORI’s voice had run out, and he collapsed to the ground and cried.

He cried, and cried, and cried, his Stand tears evaporating into nothing as soon as they lost contact with his skin. He listened to his empathic senses, neither Basil nor Sunny were approaching. They hadn’t even noticed.
Maybe that was for the better, OMORI thought to himself miserably as curled into a fetal position and languished in the mud.
“I-I g-guess I r-really am just m-modeled after a twelve y-year old,” OMORI’s voice sputtered with a single mirthless laugh. His own physical voice… and he’d only just started using it now, when he was about to die.
What was death like, anyway?

A woman’s voice behind him called out, “Are you alright?”
Tearfully, OMORI looked over to the speaker. He couldn’t see her very well from his position, but the voice clearly marked her as Aubrey. The real Aubrey. Not the idealized dream version of her, created as a distraction to protect Sunny from himself.
“N-no…” OMORI whimpered.
Aubrey gazed upward from him, towards the shredded bark slowly being blown away and sinking into the wet earth.
“I suppose that was a dumb question, considering you’d just singlehandedly mulched a tree,” she deadpanned, her expression shifted to empathetic, “I saw the way you looked when you disappeared earlier.”
“W-was it that o-obvious?” OMORI grimaced, sitting up to face her.
Aubrey shrugged. “Only to me. Sunny and Basil were too busy looking into each other's eyes.”
Hearing this just made OMORI flop pathetically onto the ground once more.
“Why… are you out here?” OMORI asked, “Are you just going to mock me too?”
Aubrey frowned, sitting down on the floor beside him. “No. I barely know you.”
She took a deep breath in before continuing, “But I do know that, in some way, you’re an aspect of Sunny. That makes you my friend. I’m not going to leave a friend suffering on their own. Not again.”
“Sunny sure doesn’t think so,” OMORI replied, his tone downtrodden.
“Well,” Aubrey inquired, trying to get a read on the situation, “why not?”
“He thinks I’m a monster,” OMORI whispered, “a-and he has every right to t-think so. I’ve done horrible, horrible things.”
“People called me a monster too,” Aubrey countered without hesitation. She barred her fangs plainly, the white enamel shining under a clouded sky. She paused, considering her next words before landing on, “Have you ever pushed anyone down a staircase?”
“N-no?” OMORI replied, confused, “I-I didn’t exist until after that whole debacle.”
“Then Sunny’s got no room to judge,” Aubrey stated with absolute pragmatism, “Whatever you’ve done, you can absolutely be redeemed. That’s what everything Sunny’s done lately has been about, right? Redemption? If you’re a part of him, I don’t see why you can’t share in that.”
OMORI laughed between sobs. “No, n-not really. Too much effort is put into basic survival, not enough left for seeking absolution.”
“Seems to me those aren’t that different,” Aubrey offered.
OMORI nodded slowly, his tears drying up. He watched as Aubrey stood up, offering her hand to the depressed Stand lying on the ground. Their hands clasped together, vampire and Stand, and OMORI drew himself onto his feet.
It was strange. OMORI was so used to Aubrey being about his height. Here in the real world, he was about a foot shorter than her. His head was tilted back so he could meet her eyes.

“How are you able to s-see me anyway?” OMORI asked in an attempt to redirect his mind.
“Hell if I know,” Aubrey stated, “It’s probably those bunny’s fault.”
Bunnies? OMORI didn’t follow that train of thought. It wasn’t too important, he supposed.

Suddenly, Aubrey realized something. She was still technically Outlaws’ Stand User, even if the Stand itself had been fully neutralized. That meant…

“I’ll be back,” Aubrey stated, “I have an idea.”

She ran away, back to the house. And as she ran, OMORI could feel a spark of hope within her. It felt comfortable, like a hearth in winter. Maybe OMORI even shared that spark.

…

Sunny gently ran his hands through Basil’s soft hair as Basil lay in his lap, warm energy radiating from Basil’s core. Even though Sunny felt like he was being crushed, he wasn’t sure he minded. It was nice having even these few moments together like this. He just wished they weren’t spending it discussing OMORI.
“Are you sure?” Basil whispered.
Sunny looked away, towards the window where the loud sounds from outside had echoed through. With a deep breath, he replied, “I’m not. But we need someone to test it on.”
A loud slam was heard as Aubrey shot through the front door, causing Basil to reactively snap upright.

“We can test on me!” Aubrey triumphantly declared, before proceeding to explain the events of Chapter 10 in excruciating detail. At some point mid-explanation, OMORI had appeared in the nearby hall’s doorway, out of sight to everyone but Aubrey. After about 3 straight minutes, her explanation concluded,“...long story short, I’m technically a Stand User with a nullified Stand. If the ritual works, we’ll know because I won’t be able to see Stands anymore.”
“That feels like a reach…” Basil began, but Sunny grabbed his hand and silenced him midsentence.
“Perfect,” Sunny interjected, his mind fully made up.
Aubrey gave a determined smile, “How quickly can you set it up, Basil?”
“O-oh, uh, maybe 15 minutes,” Basil estimated.
“Great, I’ll call Mikhael over,” Aubrey proclaimed, winking over to OMORI. Sunny tried to look over to who she was signalling to, but his line of sight was blocked. Even still, he was pretty sure he knew who Aubrey was reassuring. She strode out of the room, pulling out her phone on the way out.
“W-well,” stammered Basil, pressing his head against Sunny’s cheek, “Glad that’s sorted.”

…

As Mikhael hung up the phone, a wide grin spread across his face. People needed his expertise! After the Outlaws incident had tapered the high of his victory over Kel, he’d been feeling down the whole day, but now! Oh, this was so much sweeter than his brownies ever could be. He blazed out of his room, hastily putting on his wig as he rushed on by. He’d accidentally grabbed the blue one instead of the yellow one, but he didn’t care. Now was his moment!
As he sped past the altar in his living room, he was briefly stopped by his mother on the way out.
“Nossa senhora! What’s gotten you acting like a bat out of hell?” she exclaimed, maternal worry in her voice.
Mikhael’s response blurred together as he spoke, “Meetingupwithsomefriendsgottagoloveyoubye!”
Before he could reach the exit though, a bolt of green energy shot from his mother’s fingers, sealing the door shut and locking it with arcane runes. “Do you think I can’t tell when you’re up to something young man?”
With a sigh, Mikhael rolled his head back and stated, “I’m not doing anything, mãe. As I said, I’m just seeing friends.”
His mother’s pursed lips and narrowed eyes made her disbelief more than clear. Those green runes on the door clearly wouldn’t be going anywhere.
“Fine,” Mikhael relented, rolling his eyes, “I’m offering up some services.”
“Baking, services?” his mom replied judgmentally.
“You know that’s not what I…,” Mikhael enunciated in frustration, “No, ritual services. Did you really need to hear me say it?”
She tapped her fingers impatiently against the altar’s wooden surface, her stern eyes boring into Mikhael. With a disapproving grimace, she replied, “Situational evidence isn’t admissible in court.”
“Court?!?” Mikhael said in total disbelief, “There’s nothing wrong with me…”
“Flaunting your gift to the world? Exposing your power to those who would want to exploit it?” his mother interjected, “What if a rival warlock finds out! Or the government! Or any number of supernatural assholes! It’s bad enough you’re always hanging around that vampire…”
“She has a name you know,” Mikhael interrupted, “And I’m more than capable of taking on anything that comes my way.”
His mother's eyes drifted over to his cast, a remnant of his gunshot wound from weeks prior. She folded her arms across her chest, the slight tilt of her head firmly driving in her point.
“I’m not letting my little boy run stupidly into danger out of his own sense of pride,” his mom intoned.
“Well I’m not running into danger out of my own sense of pride!” Mikhael retorted, “I’m running into danger to help my friend! And that’s final.”
“Oh my child, my flesh and blood, how did I ever raise you to be so stubborn?” his mom lamented, “Fine. But if you get hurt, I’m doubling your shifts at the bakery!”
With that, she flicked her wrist and disengaged the rune locks on the door.
“Don’t worry mãe!” Mikhael affirmed with a grin, “I’ll be back before you know it!”
Like a flash of lightning, Mikhael sprinted out the door at full tilt.
Mikhael’s mother shook her head. When Mikhael had offered to come work at the family business, she thought he’d finally put his delusions aside. Oh well. He’d come around eventually.

…

The curtains were drawn, the atmosphere heavy. There was a certain gravitas permeating throughout the chamber, Basil’s living room was totally unrecognizable in the darkness. No light shone in from the outside, only the flickering ambience of the glowing red candles, arranged in a circle like sentinels at a city’s walls.
It was all a bit over the top, if Basil was completely honest with himself. Acknowledging the absurd extravagance of it all didn’t relieve the tension, however. His hands shook ever so slightly as he stirred together the tulsi elixir, the concoction that held the key to everything.

“Relax!” Mikhael assured, placing his hand on Basil’s left arm, “I’ve done a million rituals just like this, it comes as naturally as breathing.”
Basil wanted to share in Mikhael’s confidence, he really did. But there was far too much on the line if this went wrong. With the power this ritual promised, maybe he could bring an end to Sunny and his perpetual nightmare. If it was nothing more than a fool’s hope… Basil squeezed his eyes shut. This had to work. If it didn’t, Hero would have to die.
In the corner, Sunny and Aubrey sat and watched the preparations. OMORI lurked in the hallway, occasionally peeking into the living room to check on progress. Occasionally, Aubrey would try to make small talk while they waited. When she did, Sunny would give a one to two word response before falling silent again.
The weight of the world presses on him too, Basil thought to himself. He vowed to do everything in his power to keep that burden off of Sunny.

“You know, I just realized the instructions don’t actually say you need to drink the concoction,” Mikhael observed, derailing Basil’s train of thought entirely, “It just says to make the thing. Do you think it was just so obvious they forgot to write it in?”
“That or it’s a hoax,” Basil murmured.
Mikhael shrugged, still certain of his craft. “If it’s a fake, it’s so authentically forged it might still work anyways.”
For a second, the only sound in the room was the clinking of Basil’s pestle against the mortar, crushing the ingredients up into dust. The idea that some of Aubrey’s blood needed to be added to this made Basil nauseous. And in all truth, Basil felt really weird about working with Mikhael of all people.
“So,” Basil inquired quietly, “Why are you helping us anyways?”
“What do you mean?”
The clinking stopped, Basil’s head whipping towards Mikhael. “Do you not remember anything from the past four years?!” he snapped, “All the paper wads and the insults and your constant holier-than-thou attitude?!”
“Ooooh, that,” Mikhael intoned, “Well in my defense I am literally holier than thou.”
He brushed the blue hair of his wig away, revealing his shimmering golden eyes that glowed in the dark. Basil couldn’t believe him.
“That’s all you have to say for yourself?!” he exclaimed, crushing the pestle against the mortar with invigorated fury.
“There’s nothing else to say,” Mikhael replied cooly, leaning back slightly, “If you want an apology, the best I can give you is helping with this.”
The ingredients had been successfully powderized, but Basil continued mashing away as though he had a personal vendetta against tulsi and chamomile. Gritting his teeth, Basil muttered, “God you’re infuriating.”
“It’s one of my finest qualities,” Mikhael replied, almost on impulse. Across the room, Sunny could sense that Mikhael wanted to say something else, but he just… didn’t. Faint threads of regret hung from Mikhael, reaching sky high toward the ceiling. Sunny stood up and jogged over to Basil, gently removing the pestle from Basil’s hands before hugging him from behind. Sunny’s glare towards Mikhael could have frozen gasoline, and Mikhael stepped away from the partners. A slight red light faintly shimmered at the edges of his brilliant yellow irises.
Having followed Sunny, Aubrey stepped through the dark and appeared behind Mikhael.
“Are we almost done over here?” she inquired.
“Nearly finished,” grunted Basil. Clearly, he was still upset but, as Sunny continued to hold him close, the tension in his muscles faded.
Mikhael gave a deep bow, “You’re welcome.”
Basil side-eyed the warlock with deep contempt. The perpetual audacity of this man…
“Alright then,” Aubrey deadpanned, “So how do we want to do this?”
Her finger tapped against the ingredient’s list sitting on the counter, pointing to the passage about blood of the one to be purified.
“W-well,” Basil stuttered, “It has to be freely given, so I think you’ve gotta… do it yourself.”
“Oh,” Aubrey sighed, more inconvenienced than anything else, “How much?”
“J-just a drop,” Basil stated, “No more.”
Manipulating her form, Aubrey created a temporary opening in her palm. A single speck of crimson ran down her index finger, coalescing at a point and dropping into the mixture. As it fell, Basil was reminded of his dream, back up in the mountains. The blood, Sunny’s embrace…
Aubrey’s hand healed instantly. She hadn’t needed any sort of implement to create the incision either, it had simply appeared. Seemingly, a painless process for her. Basil shuddered to think how this ritual would go for someone who wasn’t a vampire.

With the elixir concocted, the circle drawn and the candles lit, the time was ripe to complete their test. Sunny, Basil, Aubrey, and Mikhael went in formation, encircling the makeshift altar erected by the TV. Deepening his voice as far as he was able, Mikhael’s voice rang out with an otherworldly echo.

“Silere fac animam meam, dormire sinas virtutem meam.”

At first, seemingly nothing happened. Silence fell upon the chamber, enrapturing in its emptiness. Then, the fire of the red candles began to change. Slowly, it shifted from its luminous yellow to a ghostly pale. An otherworldly wind spiralled throughout the room, chilling everyone. Steadfast, Mikhael stood unphased with his arms spread out wide. So too did Aubrey, no fear taking hold in her heart. Basil clenched Sunny’s hand fiercely, gritting his teeth and trying his best to be brave. For a brief moment, Twisted Garden’s vines turned black, eyes shining out from its darkness.
The flames swirled up, enveloping the whole room in twisting strands of ethereal white light. Faster and faster they went, the howls of the other side cutting through. Competing against the pale was a red light shining from Sunny’s eyes, his amplified determination standing against the cold.
The winds slowed and collapsed inwards, leaving a column of pulsating ectoplasm centered on Aubrey. It sunk into her, Aubrey’s form fading to monochrome as ritual did its work. Even if it was only for a few seconds, it felt like an eternity before the white radiance burst outwards like a supernova… then vanished entirely.
One by one, the candles extinguished themselves. In the darkness of the room, it was like nothing had happened at all.

“D-did it work?” Basil asked, shaken by what he’d witnessed. Twisted Garden had returned to its usual state, its flower crown glowing softly against his forehead.
Aubrey looked at Basil, then over to the doorway from which OMORI had been watching. Seeing nothing, she asked, “You two kept your Stands summoned, right?”
“Yeah,” Sunny affirmed.
“I can’t see them anymore,” she answered slowly, “It worked.”

“Oh thank god,” Basil intoned, exhaling a deep breath he hadn’t even been aware he was holding. Mikhael jumped in celebration, golden runes shimmering in the air around him. Seeing her friends revelry, Aubrey gave a faint smile before returning her gaze to the empty hallway.

…

OMORI huddled in the far corner of the hall, shaking. It’d hurt. It’d hurt so much, even being near that damned ritual. The ghost flames had tried so hard to rip away at his very being, and he was saved only by the fact he wasn’t their intended target. While the living, non-stand people glowed warm with their jubilation, their collective warmth did nothing to comfort OMORI. Here, on the other side of the wall, it was cold. So very, very cold.
After a few minutes, OMORI mustered the will to stand back up. Agonizingly, he lurched to his feet and dragged himself to the stump of the tree he’d mutilated. There he stood, looking down at the shattered wood, using his katana as a crutch. His mind drifted, landing on a memory of a similar stump. When Mari died, Sunny had strung up his sister in a tree much like this one. The last thing his father had done before he left forever was cut that tree down and use it for firewood.
My sister, OMORI thought to himself, my father.

Was it really his right to claim these people as ‘his’? OMORI had never met either of them personally, only seen memories of them through Sunny’s eyes… and yet, it felt wrong to act like he wasn’t related to them.
The sky had parted, the golden light of evening shone on the tree stump. With the falling sun, the beginning of today’s end was heralded by the earth’s turn. The hollowness in OMORI’s eyes was fully gone, glimmers of ambient light reflected off of the Stand’s eyes. Every day, he could feel himself changing… no, growing… with the rise of dawn. Looking down at the ground, OMORI realized he was also ever so slightly taller now.
The lingering pain inflicted by the ritual had mostly subsided. He had weathered the agony, save for a stabbing pain in his right eye.

To be continued…