39Okay, so started I uni and that happened. I hate myself, post secondary education is pure torture. Seriously. Anyway, I did some digging around on my computer (at home cuz I live in rez now… and my old fanfics aren't on my laptop) and found this chapter all typed up and ready to go. I added a bit at the end before posting (wow these chapters are short I'm so sorry I suck at this) so fair warning if the tone or writing style suddenly make a weird jump or something. I can definitely say with full certainty that this is going to be continued but I can ALSO say with full certainty that there is no way it is going to be updated anywhere near regularly simply because my life is stupid and hard and full of papers and labs and other shit so yeah, sorry I guess? (Where did my punctuation go, that was such a run on sentence…) Anyway I hope you enjoy. Let me know if there's anything you'd like to see in this story (I kind of want to have some random fluffy stuff before I go anywhere plot heavy with it so I can get the plot resorted out in my head and on my computer) and if it works with the general direction the story I'll do my best to throw it in. And now without further ado:
Chapter 7
Dinner that night was a silent affair, which was a rather surprising development for the elder Niwas and Towa. As none of the other members of the Niwa household had been present when Satoshi had happened upon the two pseudo angels engaged in a midair game of tag, they had no idea what had possessed the two six year olds to fall completely silent.
"Oh~! I've had enough! Why is everyone so quiet! You could cut the tension with a butcher knife!" Towa exclaimed.
"I think you mean a butter knife Towa…" Daisuke said softly. He glanced at Satoshi. The blue haired boy had been completely silent since their talk about Krad.
Instead of fighting, the Hikari had silently followed Daisuke back to the redhead's room and began working on his homework. Satoshi had not even glanced at the other two beings in the room. Dark, realising that Daisuke had saved them (or at least Krad) from getting in trouble with Satoshi, decided instead to play a quiet game of cards with Krad and try not to bother the two wing hosts. Krad, for his part, had managed to reign in his emotions and pretend that his wing host's indifference didn't bother him, bar for a few apprehensive glances at Satoshi. Daisuke hadn't been able to figure out what to say to break the tension. Now the angels couldn't look either wing host in the eyes, the other Niwa house inhabitants were looking to him for answers, Satoshi was practically radiating annoyance at the mood of the room and Daisuke felt like the room was closing in on him.
"May I be excused?" He asked quietly. Nods from his parents and grandfather had him clearing up his dishes and bolting to his room. He pulled open the window and downed large gulps of the cold air. Once he felt calmer, he slid back into his room. Painting would help him focus. He needed to think. He needed to be alone with his thoughts.
Unfortunately, his room was the entire upper floor and therefore did not have a door as the stairs lead straight up to it. Deciding that he didn't want anyone interrupting him he pulled a blanket from his closet and draped it over the stairwell. Next he pulled out a covered canvas and his paints. Uncovering the canvas, he sighed. The painting featured himself, Satoshi, and the eighteen year old versions of Dark and Krad. Running a hand over the image of Dark he shook his head.
"It's still not right…" He griped. Putting his paint stuffs back on his desk, he pulled out an eraser and H2 pencil and set about sketching the outline of the phantom thief for the umpteenth time since he began the piece the night the Black Wings was sealed. The eraser stopped halfway to the image of the phantom thief's eyes. Dropping the eraser, Daisuke placed his hand flat against the image's shoulder, forehead against the image's. "Dark… What do I do? This is so messed up, I'm so out of my depth... Dark, I need you… Please…" In the dark room, lit only by the moonlight spilling in through the bay windows, Daisuke stayed there silently trying to draw strength from the memory of his old alter ego.
His shoulders shook.
Satoshi blinked in surprise at the white cloth that prevented him from entering Niwa's room. It was only a cloth, easy to remove, but something told the blunette that there was reason it was there. After all, Niwa was usually an open book, it was odd that the redhead would block anyone out. Deciding that was a can of worms that the Hikari had no intention of opening he returned downstairs to the rest of the Niwa family and the three unsealed artworks.
"Oh, Satoshi-kun, I see Daisuke must have put up the blanket again." Emiko said when she noticed him standing awkwardly by the door.
"Again?" He echoed in confusion as he watched her distribute the cards amongst the elder Niwas as Niwa's father set up the video game console for the two young angels. Both of whom sent nervous glances toward the blunette.
"Mm. He puts it up every now and then for privacy. Not sure what he does when it is up, but I'm inclined to give him the privacy when he wants it considering how much we impose on him most of the time. Do you want to play? Egyptian Wars." Satoshi was torn between being surprised that Emiko knew how much she imposed on her son or worrying about his only friend. Instead he shook his head.
"I think I will retire for the night as well. Tomorrow is Saturday, the homework can wait." He said before slipping off to the guest room he had been using. He needed to figure out how to try to go about building a functioning relationship with Krad. If only to relieve Niwa of the burden of playing mediator.
Dark Mousy was a lot of things: He was currently six and easily excitable. He was part of the Niwa family (despite his last name). He was Krad's best friend and other half.
And he was not stupid.
Dark knew full well that Satoshi hated it when Krad had his wings out (except he had no idea why).
In his defense, he hadn't known Satoshi would come home so quickly or he wouldn't have suggested the flying tag game. He hadn't wanted to get his friend in trouble with the blue haired teen. But when Daisuke had taken the other downstairs to talk the air had turned ominous. Satoshi didn't yell at Krad when he came back but the smile on Daisuke's face had been slipping slowly. At dinner it had completely vanished for the first time that Dark could currently remember, which made Dark mad, because if Satoshi wasn't so mean to Krad this never would have happened!
The reason that Dark had chosen to start a card game with Krad last night was because he didn't want to get Krad, or Daisuke, in anymore trouble with Satoshi.
So, like the good friend he was, Dark had snuck down into the stairwell after Daisuke had stopped Satoshi from exploding at Krad for having his wings out. But his wings are part of him! It's not fair, Daisuke doesn't care if I have mine out or not! Dark had thought angrily. So while Krad had landed, hid his wings and sat quietly waiting for Satoshi to come back and scold him, Dark went and eavesdropped on the wing hosts.
The result hadn't been pretty. He left almost immediately after Satoshi had started speaking. Dark had no interest in listening to Daisuke try to work around the hateful blunnet. Not when Krad felt so bad about it. All Daisuke had been doing was trying to cheer Krad up, neither of them deserved Satoshi's anger and it just wasn't fair! What was his problem?
So when Krad suggested playing quietly so neither wing host would have any reason to be mad at them anymore than they already were, Dark grabbed a deck of cards and started a game of War with his other half.
When Daisuke and Satoshi came back, Daisuke appeared to have at least talked Satoshi out of punishing Krad for having his wings out, but both angels saw clear as day the toll it took on the redhead. Daisuke hadn't even lasted to the end of dinner, instead excusing himself to his room halfway through, but before Dark could follow after dinner finished, Satoshi had already got up and headed to the stairs. Since Dark was not interested in being around Satoshi he decided not to follow (though he kind of wanted to fly circles around Satoshi's head just to annoy the blunnet) instead playing video games with Krad.
Finally, it had gotten late and everyone tapered slowly off to bed, though Krad had gone with Towa since he was fairly sure the Hikari wing host was still mad at him.
"Dark sweetheart," Emiko said to him, "Daisuke still has the door blocked, so would you like to join us tonight instead?" Dark shook his head.
"It's okay!" He said brightly. "I'll wait, Daisuki can't be mad all night."
"I'm not sure that he's mad at all…" Emiko sighed sadly, and Dark wondered just what she meant by that. "Just don't stay awake for too long okay? If it starts getting too late come down to our room." Dark nodded dutifully and Emiko and Kousuke bid him goodnight.
So here he was sitting on the stairs under the blanket, hoping that his wing host wasn't as mad at them for forcing him to play mediator to Satoshi's anger.
He fell asleep waiting on the stairs.