Phantom Recall

15 || away from home

If a way for spirits to sleep exists, it has to be more complicated than lying down and closing your eyes, as I've tried that for several nights now with no success. The roof of Eret's house has been my only bed — not the most comfortable of spaces, needless to say, but with how exhausted I've felt lately I would think anything would suffice.

I wonder about it, though. Perhaps it's for the best I can't sleep. The nightmares of the undead could be supremely more terrifying for all I know. Just another thing to add to the list of questions for Noir, I suppose, seeing as he seems to know so much.

Yet there would appear to be an equal number of things he would never touch on. Starting with why he disappears every night. I asked him once. To which all he responded with was 'There's really no need to worry. I'll be back in the morning, always.' It couldn't have answered my question any less, to be honest. But I can't bring myself to follow him. Each time he's slipped away when my back was turned, anyway. I have to wonder if it's intentional.

Nevertheless, the boy continues to keep his word. The next morning he returns in a green wizard's robe and matching oversized hat. He has to be robbing a costume shop or something; there's no other excuse I can think of as to where Noir could be finding all this stuff, lest the reason for his nightly disappearances involved back-alley deals to barter for these needless changes of clothes.

Again, a ridiculous thought, but I wouldn't entirely put it past him, either.

The next few days following our second phantom beast encounter are a bit slow. At first, with no updates from Javier or Sonia, Noir and I are left to decide for ourselves our next plan of action — should we have any plan at all. Eret steps out of the picture. Only for a short while, he tells us that first morning, and not for his own sake. Apparently those classmates of his, all his friends who turned up sick shortly after "Jae" made his appearance at the school, still have not yet recovered, but rather some have grown worse. Inexplicably fatigued, bed-ridden, and probably bored out of their minds, too. Eret makes the decision to visit a few of them. On top of that, seeing as final exams have been put on hold indefinitely, his father has asked him to come back and start helping at his work again at least a few days a week — waiting tables at a ramen shop Mr. Young has owned for twenty-five years. It isn't that he minds the work, Eret explains, but for some reason, he feels the need to apologize to us.

It bothers me. Even with the window of vulnerability he opened to me recently I can still tell there's much Eret is holding in. The flash of a smile he gives us before heading out to go see 'his best buddy Ruben'...it's laced with a sadness that deepens the pit of anxiety in my chest.

And I can't help but dwell on Leon's words.

As sick to my stomach as that man made me feel on several occasions, I find myself unable to disbelieve what he said to me. Namely the explanation of someone being responsible for the irregular appearance of these phantom beasts. If anything, what Noir had said to all of us when we first gathered at Javier's shop backed up that theory. Noir himself expressed his own concern as to the peculiarity of the situation. And he's made it quite clear by now that he wants to do something about it, too.

And so do I. However, I can't say my intentions are quite as noble. If nothing else it stems from fear. Fear, and perhaps an equal amount of disgust for Leon's frame of mind towards the issue.

In spite of all this his parting words still echo in my head.

"Do take care of yourself, Will."