Chasing the Dragon [Castle, Arc]

[Oathkeeper Emi]

Familiar faces...
--

They were climbing on to the tram by now, going back to the other side of town where Emi's old school was. She listened to what Castle was saying. As it turned out, they were more similar than she had though. Only she actually had been arrested on more than one occasion. She definitely felt a little more comfortable talking to him about stuff now that she knew he was kind of in the same boat. It was nice having people who could kind of understand.

"Yeah, I know,[/color]" she finally answered, quietly. The tram stopped and they got out. The school wasn't far away so they started walking that way. It felt weird making this trip without her uniform on and without her backpack weighing her down. There wasn't anybody else around. She could hear some kids playing but they were really far away.

They were poking around the front of the school when all of a sudden there was a voice behind them. "Oh my god. Emi?"

Emi froze and then turned around. A woman had walked up to them. She had dark hair and was in her late twenties, wearing a simple floral patterned dress and a shocked appearance. Emi felt sick after seeing her. "Marike. Hi,[/color]" she said nervously. Marike shook her head. "It really is you. How long has it been? You just kind of up and left. We were worried."

The younger girl couldn't help but go a little bitter. She clenched her jaw and shook her head. "Don't lie to me. You weren't worried.[/color]"

Marike shrugged and looked at her nails. "You're right, we weren't. In fact, I don't really give a damn now but I saw you and though I would came make sure I wasn't hallucinating." She was bluffing of course. She had been shocked but it was the woman's personality to act completely uncaring about everything. Emi rolled her eyes. She'd never liked this girl, but put up with her for his sake. Speaking of which... "So, how's Kei doing?[/color]"

Marike sneered at the mention of his name, which actually surprised Emi given how close Marike and Kei had been. "How did I know you were going to ask about him? Well, I might as well tell you. He's actually doing well. We broke up a long, long time ago. He got clean, got married, had a few kids. Still lives in town, not sure where. I think he's working at a music shop now giving guitar lessons or some shit like that. Good for him right?"

Now it was Emi's turn to be shocked. She couldn't imagine him like that, married with kids and a little house with a white picket fence. Somehow though... she was happy for him. She found herself really hoping that he had changed. Maybe he treated his wife and daughters a little better than he had treated Emi. She was definitely glad to hear he was sober now. What he had been doing was killing him. "Yeah, good for him,[/color]" Emi murmured. She was very quiet for a moment. There was still something bugging her. She wondered... had he felt guilty for what he did? She decided it wasn't worth it to care. She looked up at Marike. "I'm happy for him.[/color]"

And in that moment, Emi forgave him. It was the right thing to do and she didn't want to keep thinking about him all the time. She wanted the nightmares and whispers in her ear to stop, and this was the way to do it. Marike saw that, but she just shrugged and started walking off. "Take care, Ems," she said, with a wave and walked around the corner to get back to whatever business she had on this side of town.

Emi turned to Castle. "I cannot even begin to describe how weird that felt.[/color]"

[Castle]

Being near a school made Castle feel nostalgic as well. It was bigger than the one he went to and looked a lot different, but it still had that distinct aura of school-ness. He wondered how much different school would be here. Would there still be as much of a diversity in the students as there was in Traverse Town? Would some of the substitute teachers be moogles? The nostalgia actually made him a little uncomfortable, and he was about to ask Emi when they were going to leave, but at that moment a woman called out her name and came running up to them.

This time, they both knew who the other was, though Castle was totally in the dark. He stood by and listened curiously to their conversation. He decided early on that the lady, Marike, was kind of unpleasant. Nah, she was pretty much a bitch. He rested a hand on his hip and waited for them to be done talking.

They mentioned someone named Kei, and how he had a wife and kids now. Castle raised an eyebrow. Emi acted weird when the subject came up, and he wondered what her relationship with this guy was.

Finally, Marike left.

"Yeah, really, and I didn't even know what was going on. Is this another thing I shouldn't ask you about?" he guessed.

From what he heard, that Kei guy might have been a drug addict or something. That didn't seem like a topic Emi would want to bring up, if their earlier conversations were any indication. On the other hand, maybe she would surprise him again.

[Oathkeeper Emi]

So many questions, midget...
--

Well, she'd told Zexion the story, hadn't she? Emi would spare them both the details because she wanted to spare herself the details. She shrugged, trying to keep upbeat about things. She told herself it's in the past, it can't hurt you anymore. "That was Marike, my apparently-not-so-evil-anymore-ex-boyfriend's evil ex-girlfriend. We were all friends a really long time ago, we lived together and...other stuff,[/color]" she explained. Maybe later Emi would tell him more but she just wasn't in the mood. This wasn't the time or the place.

"I'll tell you more later. It's not a good time,[/color]" she said. There were other more important things to worry about anyway. For one, Arc didn't seem to be around. Emi frowned. She knew she had told herself that this would be the last world, but she was making such good progress with closure and stuff like that. It just seemed like a waste to stop now.

She leaned against a brick wall to think for a moment. If Arc didn't show up soon, then there really wasn't much more of a reason to stick around. All of the things she needed to do had been done, though not face to face like she had been thinking. She was glad she didn't have to see the Abernathys and Kei. It made things easier.

[Administrator]

Fortuitous circumstances reunite us.

It would just so happen that, at that exact moment, as Emi was thinking those exact thoughts, a corner was turned and Arc looked upon a familiar face. It was a face he had not seen since slightly after he had punched Zexion in the face... It wasn't so surprising seeing her now, because it had been a while.

In fact, he may as well use that as an introduction. Or, rather, a re-introduction. "Good to see you again, Emi. It has been some time since our last encounter." Turning to the other, Arc gave a short bow. "I do not believe we have been introduced as of yet. I am Arc Draco, and it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." The drakon held his hand out for a handshake, a pleasant smile on his face.

Or, at least, that is what it could be assumed to be. Most wouldn't be able to tell is from a wolfish grin or a ferocious sneer. Although, sneers were more nose and less maw. Regardless, this was a meeting that Arc had not planned on.

[Castle]

"Sure," Castle said to Emi, "And you know, you didn't have to say anything at all if you didn't want t..."

At that moment, someone rounded the corner and came into his line of sight. Castle's sentence dropped dead before it was finished. It didn't take a genius to guess who this was, even before he addressed Emi by name.

Well, this was most definitely not a disappointment by any stretch of the imagination, and his imagination had stretched pretty far back when he was still trying to picture what this guy looked like. Now he knew, and it was hard to tell how he felt about it, especially when he was suddenly faced with that... was that a smile? Yeah, definitely a smile.

Normally, he refused to shake hands with a guy unless it was absolutely necessary, but he had no problem doing it now.

"Uh, yeah," he said after shaking Arc's hand, "Emi's told me about you. I'm Castle. Castle Carmindy."

He smiled in return as his usual composure settled in. He wasn't sure what had him momentarily startled in the first place; the fact that he just met the dragon man, or the fact that they had finally found Arc. Actually, it was probably the latter. They'd searched quite a few worlds to find him, and now, he had just found them.

[Oathkeeper Emi]

Uh...?
--

Emi was shocked. There wasn't much of a better way to describe that. She saw Arc come around the corner and was speechless. It wasn't his appearance; she was warmed up to that having met him before. It was the fact that after all these worlds, it had to be this one. She had just been standing there thinking about it and here he came.

She was still standing there with her mouth hanging open while Castle and Arc got to know each other. Handshakes and all those other things people do when they meet for the first time were exchanged and Emi finally found her words.

"We finally found you?[/color]" she said, laughing. "Wow, okay. Now I don't know what to say. Uh... how's it going?[/color]"

She took a moment to collect her thoughts, and she nodded. "We've been looking for you. I wanted to thank you for standing up for me in Beast's Castle when Zexion was being a jerk. I really appreciate it... is there anything I can do to repay you?[/color]"

No point in beating around the bush when you've been searching for this long, she thought.

[Administrator]

A touching ceremony.

Arc, having expected the boy to be startled, was pleasantly surprised when he relaxed so easily. Castle, as he introduced himself, seemed to be a good fellow. The drakon was glad that Emi was traveling with someone like him; it made her less likely to be chosen as a target of random violence.

Of course, it appeared that Emi had been searching for him. Unexpected, but a pleasant surprise. "I have been doing well, all things considered." Arc was glad that she was well...and she seemed to have been looking for him just so that she could tell him that she appreciated his having stuck up for her. And that she wanted to repay him. "Recompense is not necessary, Emi. I did what was right."

Arc saw something then. It was a light, seemingly emanating from Emi's heart. There were shadows there, but deep down was a strong light, unlike any he had seen before. As he watched, his keyblade appeared in his hands. He felt what he needed to do. "Emi...you have a strong heart. Strong hearts attract darkness." Walking over to her, the drakon lightly lifted her wrist and set his keyblade into her hand, his larger hand somehow not overwhelming hers, though it rest on the other side of the key.

"This key is a powerful weapon, a bane to darkness in all of its forms. Will you use its power to keep your heart and the heart of those you care about," he glanced at Castle, "safe from those who lurk in the shadows? If so, then the power will be yours to call upon, when you need it most."

[Oathkeeper Emi]

I think I need to do this.
--

It was strange, actually having to look up to make eye contact with someone. That's what Emi found herself doing, looking up at him and listening carefully. He was refusing her repayment? Then why the hell had they traveled all this way!? She took a deep, frustrated breath and was about to respond but then Arc started going on about hearts and walked her way.

Hearts. That stuff again, really? What was the strangest thing was that where before she had been focusing on the darkness, Arc was telling her there was light in her heart. She didn't know how to respond to that. Was it possible there was both?

Strong hearts attract darkness. "Ha, that explains a lot,[/color]" Emi muttered, but then she was quiet because she didn't want to interrupt Arc's speech. His keyblade was heavy. She remembered when he received the weapon in Beast's Castle but outside of that she knew nothing about keyblades. And now he was giving her one?

She had to think carefully. She knew this wasn't something she just needed to run headlong into like she did everything else. She looked over at Castle, unsure what to do. Then, it hit her. This was the right thing to do. With this keyblade, instead of hurting her friends she could protect them. And furthermore, she wouldn't be defenseless herself anymore. If what Arc was saying was true, she would take the blade now and learn more about it when she could. Maybe Zexion could help her.

So, she nodded. "I accept,[/color]" she said.

The keyblade glowed for a moment in her hands, and then went back to normal. Emi was still, trying to figure out if she felt different. She took a step back, letting Arc take his keyblade back, and held out her hand. Nothing happened. She sighed.

"Did it work?[/color]" she asked, hand still outstretched.

[Castle]

Castle's curiosity was piqued when Arc started talking about hearts, darkness and light. It seemed he was one of those truly wise types, not the kind with an attitude problem, but the kind who actually knew what they were talking about. In spite of that, Castle thought the comment sort of came out of nowhere, and he wasn't entirely impressed, true wisdom or otherwise.

He didn't have much time to ponder, however, because Arc suddenly summoned a weapon that resembled large, fiery key. In fact, he called it a "key." The word "keyblade" rang somewhere in the back of his memory, but he wasn't sure where he heard it before. Arc presented the weapon to Emi, as if he were giving it to her.

However, instead of leaving the weapon in her hand, they did something to make it flash once before she gave it back to him. Castle blinked a few times. The weird turn this encounter had taken was making him wonder if he was actually dreaming.

"Yeah, good question," he agreed, glancing at Arc after Emi asked if the process was a success. There was no change that he could see, either.

[Administrator]

A successor is chosen; perhaps more meeting are in the stars for the future?

...but there was a change that Arc could see. The light sat more strongly with her; its power base was assured. The darkness was not as deeply rooted. He had helped to uproot some of the most set in darkness, some of her fears of impotency. The knowledge that, when she needed it most, the keyblade would come to her and keep her and hers safe from harm was one that would allay most of her worst fears.

But with Arc, it only made him wish the keyblade had come sooner. If it had, then...but no, there was no use in that line of thinking. With the keyblade in his hand, the drakon looked at Emi with an amused look. "Did you not listen to my words, Emi? 'The power will be yours to call upon when you need it most.' You have to wait until you need it for the key to appear."

Laughing lightly, the sound a rumbling reminiscent of lightning on the horizon, Arc let his keyblade vanish. "When trouble finds you, the key will find you as well." Looking from Emi to Castle and back, he said, "There is one thing that you might do that I would consider repayment... If you were to find any others of my kin, would you inform me? And if you were to find Zexion, inform him that I would like to speak with him. He will find me then."[/color][/size]

[Oathkeeper Emi]

Well, about that...
--

Emi blushed. She was slightly embarrassed. Of course, of course. She felt silly for having tried to summon it right away. When she needed it most. She had to admit that notion scared her a little bit. What would be the thing to spark that need in her? What else was there left to battle when she'd already been through so much?

I guess we'll find out, she said, putting her hands on her hips. Trouble finds me pretty easily, so I guess we'll find out soon.

To Arc's request, she nodded but had a question. "That's the least I can do, and I'll definitely let Zexion know you want to talk to him but... how am I supposed to find you again? I can't tell you the crap we've had to deal with finding you this time. Do you have like a phone or something we can call? That was a joke...[/color]"

She laughed nervously, but then got serious. "No, really, I'd be more than happy to let you know if I see any others like you but man, you are a hard dragon to get in touch with.[/color]"

[Administrator]

Explanations, and methods to arrive at a common destination.

Arc smiled and nodded. He understood how difficult it could be to find someone when it was needed. The drakon lifted a hand to his neck, prying loose a small patch of scales. There was little difference in his complexion, but, in his hand, lay a small round patch of scales that, as they watched, became a single large scale. "I had almost forgotten. This is a part of me, and if you hold it close to your heart and focus on me, you can find me."

With not much else to say, Arc turned to Castle to inform him of what had occurred. "I assume that you have no idea what has just happened, and I shall therefore explain it to you. As you may have guessed, the prior event was a ceremony, one that grants her the ability to wield the sword of keys, or the 'keyblade' as it is called." He assumed that was enough for explanation, then.

[Castle]

Everything was starting to make sense again until Arc tore some of his scales off, and then had them morph into one big scale. The instructions that went with the scale were no less strange. However, once he got over that and reminded himself, again, that he was not dreaming, it actually seemed like a beneficial gift for Emi to have. He would hate to have to run all over the worlds just to find this guy again.

To his surprise, Arc spoke to him directly, explaining what had just occurred.

"I kind of figured that," he said, resting a hand on his hip. "I think I've heard of keyblades before, but I'm not sure where."

[Oathkeeper Emi]

Ewww, yeah okay thanks.
--

While Arc and Castle were discussing keyblades, Emi was staring at the scales in her hands with a disgusted look on her face. She was trying very hard to be respectful, but the thought of what had just happened... he'd just peeled off some of his skin, for god's sake, and put it in her hand. That was slightly gross. More than slightly gross. It made her skin crawl. She shuddered.

But, in an attempt to be respectful she pocketed the scale and said "Ah, thanks for that, there, man.[/color]"

Still, now she had a link to him. That made her feel a lot better. She was beginning to make friends, make connections. Lasting one. She had Castle, and now Arc. Things were definitely beginning to look up. She smiled and crossed her arms, watching her two new friends talk. Sure, she was about to be separated from Arc and Castle, later on in the future but she found that she wasn't entirely upset about that. If she could keep in contact with Zexion even after 10 years and being worlds apart, she could keep in touch with her new friends too.

[Administrator]

This is serious business.

There was not much more to be said at this point. Castle mentioned having heard of keyblades somewhere before, but not knowing where; meanwhile, Emi tried not to be sickened by his gift of scales that became one larger scale for her to call upon him with, simultaneously thanking him for it. The drakon nodded pleasantly at her, but there was not much he could do to prolong their meeting.

"Though it was indeed a fortuitous circumstance that we met this day, there are not many more words that can be said from one to another." Turning to face Castle, Arc said, "Keep Emi safe, friend. Perhaps one day you will remember where you have once heard of keyblades." Turning to Emi, the dragon-man locked eyes with her, a serious look in his own.

"The darkness will come for you ever stronger now, Emi. You must resolve yourself against it, and you must not allow for it to seep into the cracks that are your fears like it has in the past." Holding up a claw against denials, the drakon pressed on. "If you strengthen your resolve, refuse to give in to the darkness, and do not allow it any power over you, then you will remain worthy of the key. If not...then I cannot promise the key will deem you worthy."

Arc placed a clawed hand on Emi's shoulder, and his other on Castle's. "And though the darkness may seem infinitely deep and dark, remember that you have a light within yourselves. Together, your light is stronger than it is apart." Squeezing Emi's shoulder lightly, the closest thing to a sign of affection he had given any for a long time, the drakon smiled at her. "The light within you, and," turning to Castle, he said, "within you, can conquer the darkness if you but let it."

His arms dropped to his sides at this time, and Arc turned around. "We will meet again, Emi, Castle. Until then, I bid you both farewell." With that, the drakon walked into the perpetual sunset, his feet falling on a path now much more sure and steady beneath them. For now, he knew he was not seeking his destiny alone. He had others. Now, he was off to find Zexion...