Vanish

The domain of his heart was a place Raishun hadn't visited in quite some time. Yet the ever-present purple glow from the walls and the crude recreation of his old living room never failed to put him at ease. Currently, he sat stiff as a board on his coach, with his Dyad, Serah, a little too close for comfort.

"I'm sorry, but I haven't uncovered anything about your past so far." he said in a matter of factly tone, "The Elder refuses to see me, I even spent a whole day waiting outside that big chamber we met her in, but the guards just escorted me away. Even searching for birth records like you recommended turned up nothing."

"It's a shame, but it's the intent that counts." Serah replied, smiling softly at her partner, "We knew this was a longshot from the beginning, but it makes me happy to know I've got a Dyad willing to go out of their way for me."

"I made you a promise, didn't I? If anything, I make sure to at least keep my promises." He looked at his partner and felt his cheeks heat up. "God, this is embarrassing. Why do I have to do this again?"

Serah had her head laying on his lap. With a lazy flick of her wrist, she poked her partner's nose playfully.

"But I thought you'd want to comfort me after we were no closer to discovering my past." She whined and batted her eyelashes, "I do the same to you all the time, and you seem to enjoy it quite a bit."

"T-That's different!" He frowned when she began to wiggle her eyebrows at him, "Whatever, the point is we're at a dead end. If we want to progress, then we have to get the elder to talk."

"But getting her to squeal is gonna be rough." Taking Raishun's hand in hers, Serah placed it on her head. She began to hum a soft tune contentedly as he ran his hands through her hair. "Maybe you could use a bit of force, you know, break a bone or two."

"And get kicked out of the village? Fat chance." He scoffed, then smiled as an idea came to mind. "What if we tried that resonance thing Castor was talking about. If we combine as one, maybe I can take a peek at some of your hidden memories."

Serah frowned in thought, then shook her head no. "It wouldn't work since I'm still rather famished." She pointed a slender finger at her partner, "A certain someone hasn't been providing enough emotions to give me a decent meal. I thought that with Carmila in the picture, you'd be a hotbed of the stuff."

"And before you open your mouth to say anything, I'm talking about strong emotions. Love, relief, stress, fear, rage, suffering. Those are the emotions that get me fired up."

"I was going to say this is the most relaxed I've been since I arrived in Remnant." Raishun sighed, "I never thought being relaxed would ever be a bad thing."

"I never said you couldn't be relaxed. So long as you don't forget your reason for becoming my Dyad, I'll let my lack of proper food slide for now."

Her words soured his mood, but he did his best not to let it show. "Like I could forget about that person who changed my life. Because of them, I lost my friends, my peaceful life... I won't ever forget as long as I live."

"Oooh, spoken like a true villain!" She sat up from his lap and stared at him with flushed cheeks. "That was kinda hot. Can you say that one more time, but in a deeper voice?"

Raishun groaned and turned away, teasing was one thing, but this was bordering on perversion. "Cut it out, will you?" He curled his finger back and flicked his partner's forehead with a satisfying thump.

Serah yelped cutely and clutched the spot he'd hit. "Meanie! If a lovely maiden such as myself isn't enough to please you, then maybe that homewrecker waiting for you will."

"What are you on about now?" He said in disbelief, right as the tip of her finger touched his forehead. The world around him began to distort and fold in on itself. The familiar sickening feeling in his stomach set in, and he closed his eyes as he prepared to wake up in the real world.

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A soft prod to his cheek stirred Raishun awake. With a grumble, he propped himself up with his arms and looked from side to side. From his waist downward, he felt nothing but cold. But oddly enough, he was somewhat warm from the waist up. He was surprised he managed to fall asleep, considering the uncomfortable lump jutting into his stomach.

"...Carmila..." He sighed.

"Yes, Raishun?" Her voice cracked as she struggled to hold in laughter.

"I'm in the doorway again, aren't I."

"What gave it away?" She crouched down by his head and prodded him once more with her finger. "You promised me that you would make it inside. We don't want you catching a cold."

"Sorry..." He murmured and lifted his aching neck to look at her. "I didn't plan on staying out so late. it just sort of happened."

Carmila placed her hands on her hips and frowned at him.

"Er... Where's Morgan? Did she sleep okay?"

"She's inside reading that book you brought home, but don't you try to change the subject. You broke a promise. How are you going to make it up to me?"

Raishun mulled over his options in his head.

"I'll cook dinner for--"

"I have the cooking handled, thank you very much." She turned her nose up childishly.

[She doesn't look mad. Is she expecting something?] Raishun thought, somewhat puzzled by her behavior. "I could take you shopping? I have a day off from Castor in a few weeks."

Carmila's pout quickly turned into a smile, "I like that idea." She rose to her feet and pulled her scroll from her pocket. She expanded the screen and showed him the time. "Best get moving. You don't want to keep Castor waiting now, do you?"

"Crap! Are you kidding me?" Scrambling to his feet, he hurriedly gathered his and started to run.

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With Raishun out of the house, Carmila set about doing the day's chores. It was a monumental amount by normal means. A group of two people would struggle to finish by the end of the day, but for Carmila, it was a way for her to relax. Working as a Huntress meant that a single mistake could mean death. A Huntress's prowess was measured by how quickly they adapted to the ever-changing situation of the hunt. But the chores rarely changed, and no one was in danger.

Additionally, it was the least she could do. She had started almost living at Raishun's place, no thanks to Castor and his fiancee. Making sure the house was clean was the least she could do for inviting her into his home.

Carmila had just finished washing the last of the breakfast dishes when she saw something move from the corner of her vision. Twirling a freshly cleaned fork in her fingers, she flicked her wrist, sending the metal flying towards the sound. There was a dull thunk when it stabbed into the wall, and her eyes narrowed as she inspected her quarry.

"Roaches... Fantastic."

While a pest for sure, dealing with them wouldn't be too difficult for her. Arms outstretched, she closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. In the darkness of her vision, bright blips of light like stars in the night sky began to appear. She counted them once, then twice, and let her hands fall down to her sides.

"A hundred of them." She let out a sigh of relief. Considering how the house had been used as a storehouse for several years, she was surprised it wasn't worse. "I can exterminate them all today, but Raishun will have to help with dinner. I can't have Morgan here either."

She put her apron away in one of the kitchen drawers and took the stairs to Morgan's room two at a time.

"Morgan, I'm coming in okay."

She opened the door to the girl's room and saw her laying on her bed. Her bright red eyes scanned the pages of her with the diligence of a student studying for exams.

After a moment, Morgan noticed her presence and reluctantly looked up from the page.

"Yes?" She asked quietly, a small hand going up to her head to ensure the ever-present black cloak she wore was still in place.

"We have roaches in the house. I'm going to take care of it before it gets too serious, but you'll have to step out for a bit so I can be thorough. Maybe you could go play with Kira or Felicia while you wait."

"Mmkay."

She gathered the book in her arms and began to move for the door when the largest roach Carmila had ever seen scuttled out from beneath the bed. With a surprised gasp, Morgan stumbled backward and slammed the back of her head against the bed frame.

"OW!" She yelped, tears beginning to fall down her cheeks.

"There there Morgan, are you okay? Let me see where it hurts." Carmila rushed to her side and threw down her hood. Her fingers gently brushed the spot she'd bumped, "It doesn't feel like you're bleeding. Looks like you just bumped your head a little is all..."

She trailed off when she realized that she had just removed Morgan's hood. A pair of black fox ears poked up from the top of Morgan's head. Small red lines crisscrossed the back of the ears, almost resembling veins. Her hair seemed to be covered with the same lines, only the left side was white in color, while the right was the same shade of black as her ears.

All color drained from Morgan's face when she realized what had happened. She quickly threw her hood back down over her head and clutched it so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

"Don't look." Morgan said, her high pitched voice cracking from nervousness, "They don't look good. It makes me look like a-"

She stopped when Carmila placed a hand on her shoulder. Ever so gently, Carmila pulled the hood back down and smiled.

"It's a shame to hide such pretty ears." She started stroking her hair comfortingly, "Being a Faunus doesn't make you any less human. You can keep on your hood in public if it makes you feel safe. But when you're at home, you don't have to hide them if you don't want to."

"B-but what about Raishun?" She refused to meet Carmila's gaze, "What if he won't be nice anymore when he sees them."

"Something like that wouldn't bother Raishun. He'd think the same thing as me, that they make you look cute." Carmila pulled the hood back over Morgan's head and placed the book back in her hands. "You'll see when you come back, he won't be bothered one bit."

Morgan nodded with a toothy smile. "Okay!" She rushed out the door, leaving Carmila alone to deal with the infestation.

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Raishun barely ducked under Castor's wooden sword as it cut through the air. Before he had a chance to catch his breath, he spun around a thrust and parried a strike aimed at his heart that would've shattered bone. With his own practice sword held tightly in both hands, swung upwards, planning to crush his teacher's chin.

Castor just grinned and calmly stepped back to avoid the strike.

"C'mon Raishun! You can do better than that! You've used that move three times already!"

The cold autumn air burned Raishun's lungs with every breath he sucked in. He knew that his limit was fast approaching, but if he stopped now Castor would just be twice as hard on him tomorrow.

Roaring loudly, Raishun activated his semblance, summoning the golden wing from his back with a burst of energy. He focused the bonus power on his legs and jumped high into the air. He stayed afloat for a moment, before plunging downwards with his sword aimed at Castor's head.

"Too flashy! This isn't a play."

Castor sidestepped just before Raishun landed, and slammed his sword into the back of Raishun's head with such force that the woods shattered upon impact.

"GAAGH!!" Raishun cried as he fell to the floor in pain. His aura had protected him from any serious damage, but it did little to mitigate the throbbing pain. He rolled around in the dirt, hand grasping his head.

"Castor what the hell!?"

"I know I said that you were suited to a fluid fighting style, but that was taking it to the extreme. I didn't know if you were trying to dance or fight." Castor huffed and threw away what remained of his sword. "You've improved at everything else, but you've still gotta get the style down. Otherwise, the only thing you'll be able to fight is Grimm."

He stared at his student harshly, then relented with a sigh and a relaxed grin.

"But there's a bright side, you're not puking your guts out like you usually do when we fight."

"My heads killing me..."

"Yeah? Well, that's what you get for not tightening your skull." Castor retorted, and childishly stuck out his tongue.

Before Raishun had a chance to retort, the air became heavy. He looked up and saw the expression on Castor's face change from his usual expression to one that was serious.

"What happened." He said in a deep voice.

Raishun sat up and saw Yona looking at them with a concerned expression. Her hair was a mess, and a light sweat coated her brow.

"Morgan's gone. Some of the villagers chased her out!"