Chapter 142

Douma flew past the clouds and landed on the roof of Shinobu's house where he sat.

Tending to the fishbowl on her desk, Shinobu spun around when she heard the very same thud she had been hearing for the past few weeks. Taking a deep breath, Shinobu walked over to the window and slid it open.

"I know you're there." Shinobu said, looking up from her window.

Should I tell her? Now's probably not the best time, I don't want her worrying about something that she has no control over for the next few days when I'm away. But even then, she needs to prepare herself in case Chaos decides to track her down. Douma got up from the roof and flew down to Shinobu's window, trying his best to remain calm.

"Hey Shinobu..." The angel said, feeling a little uneasy now that things will never be the same until they put a stop to Chaos' plans.

"Who else would be knocking on my window or sitting on the roof if it's not you?" Shinobu replied with a smirk. "Hey Douma..."

That monotone voice at the end, Douma knew Shinobu had sensed something but she just didn't want to say it. The violette was waiting for him to slip his words so she could question him right there and then.

"You're going away." Shinobu suddenly spoke again.

Douma looked up and nodded. Before he could respond, Shinobu interrupted him.

"It's about the situation in Rome... Be careful Douma." The four of them which included Yushiro and Chachamaru talked about it during the trip back to Atlas from Dice and Roll Valley that day. It was disheartening to know that she won't be able to spend time with Douma again during these next few days. There always has to be an obstruction of some sort.

"Well yeah we just defeated one of Ryukushu's henchmen in Tokyo. Shinobu I just wanna say-"

The blonde was cut off when Shinobu's purple gaze met his, she wasn't done talking yet and she wanted to make sure she got the words across.

"Douma, I understand you have a lot of things coming your way. Just don't worry too much about everything else back here. Focus on what you have to do... for the greater good."

Blinking, Douma bit his lip that quivered just like his legs after he heard Shinobu's words. I didn't even get the chance to elaborate further, and I've already made Shinobu feel so miserable. How am I going to protect her when I can't even provide her with the reassurance that she needs? Why do things have to be this way?

Shinobu put up a smile which left Douma bewildered by this sudden change of expression. "I'm sure once you've dealt with the situation in Rome, you'll have a lot to share when you're back and I'm looking forward to that." The girl said cheerfully.

Yeah but it's not going to be all sunshine and rainbows, I can tell you that. Douma stood there wondering if he should tell her about Chaos right now. Leaving her clueless about the whole situation wasn't fair.

This guilt was banging at his chest, like someone at the door begging to be let in but wasn't allowed to for what he is.

Shinobu glanced away, avoiding eye contact with the blonde. I know you're not telling me everything. You've been hesitant and no matter how many times I asked you what was going on, you still didn't answer me. During the trip back to Atlas, Shinobu asked Douma and Chachamaru too about these events but they never gave her a proper explanation. The violette only knew about Ryukushu's resurgence and Douma's previous battle with the samurai but once the topic came to be about this other paradoxical entity, Douma's responses became rather vague.

The question that proved the blonde was hiding something from here was the reasoning for Chaos to latch onto a host and enter the human world when his kind normally wouldn't. Both Douma and Chachamaru talked over her but she was certain they heard it, especially Douma who just didn't say anything when she asked him about it.

Which was strange. Shinobu was certain Chachamaru had the answers to these questions but he too was reluctant to give her an explanation. The violette wondered if Yushiro knew anything, it can't be that her own friends were out casting her. Now Shinobu wasn't sure if she could trust anyone, her own friends appeared to be keeping her out of a lot of things.

Douma watched Shinobu having an internal battle with her own grief which was understandable, both he and Chachamaru had been keeping a lot of things from here. But this was for her own good, they'll let her know eventually... if they manage to control the situation that is.

Turning to look at the blonde, Shinobu could tell he was putting on the same thinking cap he had on when she asked him these questions. She decided not to ponder about it, maybe it wasn't that important nor was it a concern. But she wished they didn't leave her out of it if it was that big of a deal among the team.

The blonde knew Shinobu was starting to find this whole thing disingenuous. He had to clear this misunderstanding fast. "Don't worry Shinobu I'll stop by here once I return to Japan, I promise. This'll be my first destination, you better be here." Douma tried to think of a way to get her to stop worrying too much. Shinobu shouldn't have to put a lot of pressure on herself to find out about Chaos' plans. The blonde couldn't even decide on whether he wanted to tell her right away or sugarcoat it a little as long as she got the idea.

"Just remember to lock your doors," Douma glanced at the window and turned back to face Shinobu. "And windows in case any bad guy decides to stir up some trouble around here. You can always give me a call anyway. I won't bite, you know me."

Shinobu's face brightened. A wide smile formed when she realized the blonde genuinely wanted to make sure she's safe while he's away. Which meant he cared about her, if only he'd tell her why he seemed distant when she asked him about Chaos' motives. Perhaps she should be patient with him, maybe it was more complicated than she thought. Dealing with these kinds of things isn't easy.

The angel smiled at her, relieved that she was feeling better. At least he warned her about the threat. Once he gets back, the blonde will make sure he tells her everything that's going on.

Sparkles reflected off of Shinobu's purple orbs as she held her necklace tightly for comfort.

After a few minutes, Douma slowly began to flap his wings backwards from Shinobu's window. The silence was deafening and he felt guilty for parting ways like this, especially since the violette knew her position as an outcast in this matter. Something he had no control over given the circumstances.

"I'll see you around..." Douma said, taking one last glance at Shinobu before flying into the night sky.

Shinobu stood there, watching the silhouette of Douma slowly disappear from view. She wrapped her fingers around the butterfly in the center of her necklace, wondering if she'll ever see him again.

~~~

"This is your new friend?" Yushiro stood outside, sharing his adventurous with Chachamaru to his parents. Apparently the feline came to pay his friend a visit that night, Yushiro excited about the plan to introduce him to his parents.

But it turned out rather puzzling. First of all, his parents never expected this new friend of Yushiro's to be some giant talking furball, it was unsettling and second of all, when did Yushiro meet this new friend of his? It took a while for him to tell them the truth. The boy had some serious explaining to do.

"A giant talking cat? This has to be a guy in a costume." Yushiro's father said, inspecting Chachamaru's arms and legs, even his tail that reminded the man of a stuffed toy animal with a large bushy tail comfortable to lay on.

Standing at the doorstep, Yushiro's mother crossed her arms, skeptical about Chachamaru. He looked like an actual cat but at the same time this was too good to be true. Was Yushiro trying to pull a prank on them? What an odd timing.

"Where... did you meet him, Yushiro?" She asked, trying not to sound too insinuative though she needed to give him a warning because this was a very strange friend to have.

"Oh in Kyoto with Douma and Shinobu-" Yushiro was interrupted by his father's sudden shriek.

"You must be a guy in a costume! Chachamaru there is no need to panic! Just take off the suit and show yourself! We need to know who you are!"

"Don't get too excited over that! How do we know if it's a real cat or some stranger who's trying to lure our child into some sort of trap?" Yushiro's mother pressed. Her husband didn't seem to pay attention to her words, he just continued inspecting the feline's arms and fur.

"He's the feline from Atlas. The one I told you about some time ago." Yushiro told his mother who raised a brow. It rang a bell but she wasn't sure if the descriptions of this feline matched the same cat he was talking about.

Yushiro waited for his mother's response. She only replied with a pout which wasn't that reassuring for the green-haired boy.

"Oh right, Atlas does have a talking cat with them." Yushiro's father added, his wife gave him a shocked expression. Surprised that he was up to date with that organization's news. The last time he talked about it with her was months back before Yushiro even mentioned anything about it.

While Yushiro's father was explaining everything to the teen's mother about Chachamaru's role in Atlas and what he does, Yushiro gave Chachamaru a thumbs up. A sign that their plan worked. The feline swayed his tail around proudly.

"Come on in Chachamaru. You seem like the humble friend that you appear to be." Both of Yushiro's parents welcomed the feline in. It was awkward at first but after a while they began talking to the feline as though he was an ordinary human being. Yushiro glad that he didn't have to hide anything from his parents anymore, about time he introduced Chachamaru to them.

"Sure maybe for about fifteen minutes I'm in a rush actually." Chachamaru said, Yushiro was aware that he had to leave for Rome tomorrow. Which was upsetting so he was willing to make the most of this at home with his parents who would soon begin to appreciate this new friend of his once they hear more about what he has done for the innocent lives out there.