Persona - Mask of Origins

Yuki returned home the next day with a smile on her face.

 

Zain sat moodily at the table. He'd spent all of yesterday talking to Ari and today was unsucessfully an act of blocking out those thoughts about Ari.

 

"What's got you so down, little bro?"

 

"You can stop calling me little now. I remembered everything. It's all so...depressing. I may be only one year old, look about 13 and mentally be 17 but...I..." he cut off as Ari walked through the kitchen. She wore shorts and a loose fitting t-shirt. As hard as he tried, he couldn't stop himself from thinking that way.

 

"I see the other reason why you're so down too." Yuki said as she sat at the table.

 

Zain's fist tightened and he dropped his gaze to the table, "Then you see my problem. It's not like I can do anything about either and yet...one is so close I could reach out and take it if I wanted." Without really adressing it, he spoke freely about Ari in front of her.

 

"Then why don't you?"

 

Zain's head sprang up with surprise and shock, "But, Yuki...I'm sure there are some sort of rules or something that prevent things like that from happening." Ari left with a bowl of cereal in her hands and Zain relaxed considerably, "I can't...Ari's my friend. How...I don't even know how I'd even start that conversation."

 

"Even if it's forbidden, if your heart tells you to be with her, then you'd best follow it."

 

Zain opened his mouth to argue when the phone rang. He sat perfectly still until the third ring and snatched it up. "Hello? What? That's insane! Alright, fine. We're on our way. Hmm? No...but she-- Alright then. Meet you there." Zain picked up his jacket and pulled it on, "C'mon sis, we have to get to the hospital. Callen, Zero and Nicholi were attacked. Apparently police got there before they could get out so they brought them to the hospital. If they find out they're shadow's, humans will flip out."

 

Yuki jumped up and ran out the door. She knew that Toji worked at the hospital, so he could at least stall for time until they got there.

 

Zain followed, he pushed through the doors to the hospital and searched through the rooms. It was easy to find them as Zero was flipping out and you could hear his yells from the front door. He burst into Zero's room; Callen stood beside him, trying to pull a few doctors off of Zero who were restraining him to the bed. Callen looked like he'd been burned pretty badly, while most of Zero's skin was covered in lacerations. Nicholi was missing. "Zero, Callen! Where's Nicholi?" Zero's pale eyes flicked from doctor to doctor and finally to Zain, "Gone! He ran! I gotta go find him. He's in worse shape and us! That's my brother out there!" Callen was holding back on his unusual strength as he pulled on a doctor, "Let him go. Zero's fine." "Sir, I suggest you stand back. Your son is completely shreaded. Whoever attacked you really did a number on the both of you."

 

Toji walked up.

"Let me handle this, you go back to your station, doctor." He said.

 

"But..." he shrugged, "Alright then. They're all yours Toji. Careful, I'm sure this one's high or something." Zero growled and Callen touched a hand to his shoulder, "Enough Zero. Let's go. We need to find Nicholi before he bleeds out." Zero jumped up, limping slightly and his eyes glazed over with pain.

 

"Where do you think he might have gone?" Toji asked.

 

Callen and Zero fell silent. "Home...Nicholi would flee to home." Zain didn't understand why they looked like it was all over until Zero dropped to his knees, "He's dead! The idiot's dead! Oh, God, we'll never find him now. He's got to be halfway to home by now!" "Where's your home?" "Halfway across the country. Though he was born here, Nicholi always considered the next continent his home."

 

"Lets hurry and get you two out of here then."

 

Zain helped Callen lift Zero off the ground and out the door. "Where are we going?" Callen's facial burns were healing slowly. New skin forming where nothing else was.

 

"To get Nicholi, of course."

 

Callen shook his head, "First we need to tend to Zero. He's not going to heal very well if he bleeds to death first. Let's get him to someplace secure so I can tend to his wounds myself." Callen would've prefered to have Nicholi tend to him, but how hard could stitches be?