Timekeeper

10. I didn't want to know.

"I see things are getting better with Virgil." I looked over to see Chris laying next to me in bed, staring up at the stars with a big smile on his face. "I knew you had it in ya, Kiddo."

"I'm sorry, but i'm pretty sure that was not what you were telling me last we met." His smile dropped a bit and I watched as he spun onto his side giving me this serious look.

"Have you never heard of tough love? Besides... I wasn't exactly in the right mind." He played back down on his back and I saw as the tears started to fall. He hurriedly wiped them away and smiled, hiding behind it like he wasn't upset at all. "I even swore!"

"Chris..." He looked over at me and once again I felt my heart flip. I looked away and sighed. "Why are you here?"

"Oh... right." He jumped off the bed and I watched as he made his way over to my side. "We have to find the truth that lies somewhere hidden." I groaned again at the obvious pun he had made. 

"So I'm guessing you going to show me Deceit now?" He gave me this confused look and I had to stifle a laugh. "Call it a hypothesis."

"Hypnosis?"

"No a hypoth... You know it doesn't matter let's just go." Chris looked at the door and then back at me.

"Don't you need to be somewhere?" I narrowed my eyes and he cringed.

"I have come to learn that when you show up. I don't have any choice. If you don't bring me back here at the exact moment in which you took me, and in turn make me late. I will personally rost you on that open fire Roman was going to use for chestnuts. Understand?" He started nodding furiously and I smirked. I think he got the point. I watched the world melt away and suddenly everything got really cold. Like icebox cold... Ice age cold. Who can live in this kind of temperature?

All of a sudden, I heard a door slam and I saw Deceit lock his door. All of the locks... There was a lot of them. As soon as the last bolt sounded Deceit let out a loud and shaky breath. Just what is he keeping it out?

"When was this?" I ask as I rubbed my shoulders trying to get warm. "Why is it so cold?"

"This is before he ever joined us." I looked over at him with wide eyes. "Before he ever left the dark sides."

"We're in the dark realm?" Chris nodded and I cringed. No wonder it was so damn cold. Chris looked over at me smiled apologetically. He snapped and suddenly I a winter's coat on. "Thank you." 

He nodded and I looked back over at Deceit. He was just staring at himself in the mirror. Where was this going... oh... Shit. He has this huge gash under his snake eye, and it wasn't good. What happened?

"The dark realm isn't a safe place." Chris said as he walked over to the door. You could hear scratching from the other side and Deceit jumped in response. "There are dangers everywhere. And that's not including any side that lives here."

I watched as Deceit rushed over to his window and pulled down a thing of bars to block and guard it, just as a single glowing eye peered through.

"What..."

"The Dragon Witch." Chris said as if knowing my question. Deceit turned all the lights off and hid behind his bed, silently mumbling to himself. "Roman banishes all dark spirits here. It's the dark sides job to keep them in check. Thankfully Virgil got out before it got this bad."

"But what about him?" Chris looked away and I've learned that meant nothing good. I went and knelt beside Deceit and my eyes widened at what he was saying.

"Caz... 12... deception... dark realm... Virgil... 12... Anxiety... Mindspace... Caz... 12... deception... Caz... dark realm... Dark... " He pulled his legs up to his chest and buried his head in his arms. He was listing things like he was trying to remember them.

"He is." Chris pulled me up and brought me over to the window, telling me to look out it. It was nothing but black. It was the same darkness I went through everytime Chris took me on a trip. Except, this time it moved. You see the darkness move and man did it. Hundreds of creatures filled the darkness and I froze up as the fear kicked in. "When all you have is that, you tend to forget everything else."

"My name is Cassidy. I am 12. I am Deception. I live in the dark realm." Deceit's voice got louder but he never moved. He just sat there huddled into himself. Like Virgil does when he has an attack. Like Roman was in the shower. "His name is Virgil. He is 12. He is Anxiety. He lives in the Mindspace. He is safe." My heart broke as it voice cracked. I never knew he went through this. "I am not."

"What made him leave?" Chris looked over at me confused and I shook my head. "What was the final straw..."

"You don't want to know...." I gave him to worst look I could and he sighed. "Ok, then." Time started to zip past me as if the fash himself was giving it a piggyback ride. When it finally slowed down Deceit was pacing back and forth in his room mumbling to himself. It didn't look like he had much sanity left If I was being honest.

"My name is Caz. I am... I am 15. I live... in hell. His name... his name is... is Vir... His name is... GOD DAMN IT! What was his name?!" He slammed his hands down on to the desk and yelled out in pain. He had just cut himself accidentally on a knife the laid haphazardly on his desk. He pulled a cloth out of a drawer and wrapped it around his hand tightly before sighing. "His name is Virgil. His name is Virgil." He swayed back, hitting a wall, and slid down it until he was in a sitting position. "I am ok. I'm ok. Everything is fine here. It's all great. You just have to make it through the day. That's all. That's... That's all."

"He's lying." I stated and Chris frown. "Why is he lying to himself?"

"It's the only way he could go on. You'd be surprised what some people can cope with." I spun around and threw my arm out towards Deceit in frustration.

"You call this coping?!" He shook his head and I dropped my arms.

"No, I call it torture." Deceit ran a hand through his hair and stared the ceiling. His face expressionless, even when he started his mantra again.

"My name is Caz. I am 15. I am Deception. I live in the dark realm. His name is Virgil. He is 15. He is Anxiety. He lives in the Mindspace. He is safe." His mismatch eyes darkened as a deep growl shook the room. "I'll be fine. I will..." It got louder... closer and I could see the tears start to fall. "I will be... ok. I just... I just have to..." Once again that glowing eye peered through the window and the growl was so loud and deep it shattered the glass of the window. Deceit screamed out as the glass rained down on him. "Someone... help."

"Chris?" Fear started to burn through me as  I watched a long dark claw loop around the bars, slicing through them like they were fucking liquid... nonexistent. I looked over at Chris to find him turned around, shaking. I glanced over at Deceit and saw the claw getting closer to him. Looking back at Chris I saw him start to tense up as if awaiting something horrible. I ran over and pulled him into me. He latched onto the back of my shirt and practically clawed my back when the screams started. He was right.

I didn't want to know.