There is a lot about me you don't know -Tales of Arcadia ENG

28- Strange Things

TRACK 28

Talk to me as I am sleeping

Hold me while I'm dreaming

Honestly I could just breathe you in

Met you when my heart was bleeding

I'm constantly feeling

Drifting through an endless reverie

(Dark Beach- Pastel Ghost)

********

Naoya Sano's face peeked out from the empty space between the wall and the door of Hikari Akiyama's room on a late evening in Japan. He did, and he did it with the strangest expression she had ever seen on his face.

He just stood there and did not knock, did absolutely nothing but stare at her where he was for several moments, his dark eyes -no longer hidden by the colored lenses, which were resting on his forehead, where short dark strands of hair were in an absolute mess, like usual, perfectly comparable to a bird's Nest- gleamed.

And that expression of total attention -the nervous stalking type, Hikari couldn't help but think- lacking any kind of explanation... It wasn't the only disquieting quality about him.

As if that were not enough, his small, knotty hands were hanging on the door, not even trying to imitate Spider-Man himself or something like that. Half of his body seemed to be almost swaying, from there, though not in such a way as to loudly crash against the wooden floor surface.

Hikari, just from looking at him, already knew that there was going to be a massive, utterly chaotic, storm coming. A vengeful tempest of the rather explosive kind, perhaps. Maybe not dedicated to her specifically. But for other people? For sure.

"Get off the door and just tell me what you want," she asserted in a flat tone and with an arched eyebrow, peering back at him, one hand ticking against the computer's cursor while with her left leg, she pushed and pulled the chair next to her a bit repeatedly.

Naoya did exactly as he was instructed, even though while descending, reaching down, and touching the ground with his feet, well, he honestly seemed to be almost disappointed.

"Do you... uhm... Do you recall the favor I did to you, Hikari-chan?" he asked in a half-voice, a smile on his face. And he began to move through tiny little footsteps, as if afraid of making the floorboards creak, shoving one of his hands into his pocket, pulling out his cell phone.

Hikari merely nodded her head. Of course, she remembered, it was almost a stupid question to ask. It was genuinely hard for her to not remember.

Hikari's situation in October had been hard to forget. It had been when she had been selling pills to the Main Underground Gang, all to gain their trust -their patronage- and at the same time to scrape together a few yen. A mixture of the two things had allowed her to have eyes and ears everywhere in the city and to therefore keep on hiding, keep her freedom. But it had still brought her into trouble all the way, as the whole thing had ended in a downfall that was connected to what might have been called some sort of magical Yakuza.

But Naoya -who she had met only twice, and one of those had been a call for help- in his second shape, armed with a katana, numerous kunai, and his unleashed Magic, had kicked everyone's ass. A sight to watch, for someone like her who had been caught somewhere between the option of being beheaded and being pretty much kidnapped and tortured.

So, yes, she remembered very well, but whatever.

"Well," his voice was soft, extremely quiet, as if he still didn't want to be heard by anyone. As if even the faintest of noises could attract too much attention. "I would like for you to do one for me as well. A small one. Nothing to worry about."