Chapter 329 - Despair and the absence of hope

*UNEDITED*

Setsura nodded in understanding, "I do believe there is a cafeteria here. Will you be okay alone here?" she asked.

Chauncey nodded. He didn't want to go inside right now. His emotions still felt conflicted, while he was calmer now.

"Stay right here, you know how to use the phone I gave you right?"

"Yes."

"Then, call if something happens," Setsura seemed very uneasy but he shook it of. The girl quickly disappeared down the path.

He understood her unease, he is still unfamiliar with this time and their customs. Since he arrived here Chauncey has been careful with his words and actions. To the best of his ability he remained silent, and gave the occasional nod.

........

"Despair. The absence of hope. It can be a very useful teaching tool."

Chauncey reached out, and tried to grab hold of the man before him before he disappeared, but the darkness embraced him. It threw him under a never-ending black whirlpool. He landed on a tiled floor with a loud thud, and in the dark he could see a tiny strip of light. The door across from her wasn't quite shut, and he could hear voices on the other side. As he moved closer, the voices became distorted, the cacophony growing louder and louder.

She heard that persons voice rise out of the din, yelling his name just as he had when he was in pursuit of that man. Chauncey reached for the handle of the door but it vanished into smoke before his very eyes. He looked around for another exit, but he couldn't find anything at all.

This is only a nightmare, yes one of many nightmares he has had the last few days. It didn't take long before the scene changed before him. He was no longer in a dark and cramped place. Soon he was a in a forest, it was winter indicating how cold it was.

On the other side of the forest, Chauncey saw a guy. A guy kneeled on the ground, and his back faced him. So Chauncey didn't see the man at first. A soft scrapping noise caught his attention metal, and that's when he saw sight of the glint of a silver knife in the guy's hand. It was lined with blood. He raised it above his head and back down. The man repeated this motion several times.

"Hey…" Chauncey approached the guy slowly. What is this man doing?

The man did not respond, instead he continued this strange action for awhile longer. Chauncey felt the unease in his heart grow, and eventually walked over the man. He couldn't his shock when he saw the man resembled him except the eye colour. No, what was shocking was the body on the ground.

It belonged to him.

"Stop! What are you doing?!" Chauncey grabbed the double's arm. But that double vanished the moment his hands made contact.

When the darkness vanished, Chauncey saw himself again.

This time around though his body looked terrible. His limbs were trapped under his stomach and the left side of his cheek pressed into the dirt. The person who did this was his double, a man who looked exactly like UK.

Birds swooped down and began picked him off, they pecked at his skin with vicious claws and beaks. They clawed at his legs, his neck, and his face. His body was already in a bad enough state but the birds continued to attack him.

The room went pitch black once again and several masks covered the place, with expressions filled with mockery.

A single white mask went up to him, with a huge twisted grin.

"You're so transparent. That persons real nature, that persons real nature…"

All the masks slowly drew closer and closer to him.

"It's your fault that…"

"It's your fault."

"Your fault.."

..

Chauncey awoke in a cold sweat, breathing heavily. He pressed his hand to his damp forehead, eyes wide. Tears were dried against his cheek- tears he knew he hadn't cried on his own. He shivered; suddenly the room was much too cold for him, despite it being the middle of summer.

He quickly sat up and glancing at his surroundings, that's right. He is not at home, 'he isn't even in his own time frame.'

He sighed deeply, and stood up and got himself changed in to a pale indigo coloured kimono and made his way outside. When he saw the bucket next to the outside faucet, he slowly turned the tap until it was filled with cold water.

He threw the ice cold water on his head once he finished, Chauncet refilled it. He repeated this process over and over again.

'It's your responsibility to face me.'

His gaze darkened. "Be gone!" Chauncey exclaimed. Why does he have to go through this even when he is wide awake? It's unfair on him.

When he hears a rattling sound from behind him, he freezes, "What's wrong?" Chauncey turned to the source of the voice to find a sleepy looking Setsura, " Which do you want for breakfast. ? Mackerel? Or sardine? I heard water…are you taking a bath?"

He didn't reply to that and instead commented on the girls expression. "You sure have a weird looking face on," Chauncey mumbled.

"I'm still sleepy," Setsura responded in a complete daze, as she stepped outside. He automatically spotted the bright yellow towel in her hands. Did she perhaps notice him from her bedroom window and went down? His gaze softened, 'she's acting kinder than before.'

Chauncey didn't know what to think of it. This new and approved kind her.

Just as she was handing the towel over to him, he pours the remaining bucket of ice water over her. "Gyahh ! W--w--wha--what do you think your doing !!" Setsura exclaimed, clearly shivering.

"That woke you up though didn't it?"

"It was so cold! I thought my heart would stop too! That was mean!"

Come to think of it, she isn't fully recovered yet is she? " I see I'm sorry."he apologised, as he wrapped the yellow towel around her hair and began to scrub it.

"Ugh..that's mean! Your not sorry at all are you!"she shouted. Ever since he came here, Chauncey learned many different sides of her that he didn't know before.

Chauncey could not help but laugh, although she is older than him. She certainly does act quite child like and it is far too simple to tease her. When he saw her just then, it seemed to clear ul the darkness in his heart. Yes, just a single glimpse and seeing her concern for him made everything disappear. "I am."

"Your laughing ! You're not sorry at all," Setsura grabbed the hose in her hands and aims the the water at him. Chauncey casually dodges it and she grits her teeth in frustration. "Aah hold still, this frustrating you know."

"No can do."

"Gee.."

It was then the other two appeared behind them, with the dog - clearly the two had just come back from a morning walk only to walk in on them. " What's this? It looks like fun."

It didn't take long for the two to join in, everything he was worrying about. The voices too had all disappeared and he finds himself having a great deal of fun. What is this feeling? He's never felt like this before.