Leuko - Blind to the Sunlight

"Klara!"

Was someone calling her?

…Did it even matter?

"Klara!"

"Ah!" Klara snapped back to reality and saw Piers looking at her with concern. She wanted to address him, but she realized her eyes were strangely moist. She pushed out a grumble before wiping away the tear that had formed. "I'm fine… I'm fine. Just some bad memories, you know… nothing to worry about."

"…I'm sorry, Klara." Piers abruptly apologized, making Klara's eyes widen in surprise.

"What do you… why are you apologizing right now? Is it about you trying to force me to eat? Don't worry, I'm not holding it against you."

"I'm sorry for not stopping Rimu when I could," Piers said, his head lowered in sadness.

Klara's eyes widened, before looking away. "…You didn't know… It's fine… It wasn't your fault in the first place," Klara responded in grief.

"…And I also want to thank you for saving Marnie. Without you, I would have killed her with my own hands."

"…Don't mention it… Please, just don't mention it."

"…And this is why I'm ready to help you with your plan of vengeance," Piers said firmly.

"Eh?" Klara reacted with surprise, not expecting such an answer. He who constantly tried to stop her suddenly decided to help her.

"…But as your friend, I will also try to stop you from achieving it."

Klara pushed a sigh of relief inside her, happy that her friend hadn't really given up on her. But she didn't show it outside, as she frowned toward him. "Why? Why do you want to protect these snobs? Do you need more proof of their cruelty? Did you know that after the noble poisoned not only our refugee camps but every single one around the city, he wasn't punished for this genocide? Instead, he was promoted to a duke for finding a way to resolve the refugee problem!?" Klara's words dripped with so much anger it was as if she were spitting venom.

Piers frowned at her response. Though he looked angry, he let it go with a sigh. "Then can you remind me who punished him… no, all of them? Can you tell me who brought them to justice and took care of their mistakes? Who allowed us to live a comfortable life? The one who gave us the opportunity to be more than just orphans begging for the right to live? It was Rose, the richest man alive, do you also blame him?"

"…I…"

Piers immediately interrupted Klara before she could continue. "It doesn't matter. That wasn't my reason for wanting to stop you."

"Then why did you waste my time singing their praises?" Klara asked, clearly annoyed. "Because sincerely, I don't understand for what reason you would want to stop me if not that you developed a Drifloon syndrome for their golden hand." 

"I'm going to stop you because I know you would have tried to stop me if I had lost Marnie."

Klara grew silent at Piers's declaration. Deep inside, she knew he was right. So she relied on the only thing she knew, lying.

"I wouldn't have tried to stop you, Piers… I'm not as compassionate as you," Klara said with a teasing tone, hoping Piers would be naive enough to believe her or brave enough to accept that her friend was no more.

"…You're right… You wouldn't have tried to stop me."

Klara looked surprised at his answer but didn't have a chance to reply as Piers continued.

"You would have succeeded."

Klara stared at Piers for a moment before scoffing and discarding his speech. "The plan is to attack their pride first. I'll make a list of every snob who's imposed themselves as a leader among their group, and then you'll just have to beat them up. Am I clear?" 

Piers easily noticed the change in subject but didn't mention it, knowing that Klara still needed time to think. "…I'll see then."

"Good soldier. Sadly, I'll have to dismiss you. I'm starting to get tired." Without waiting for his response, Klara closed the screen.

The moment the screen shut, the light in Klara's eyes, which had shone throughout the conversation, dimmed, leaving behind the little compassion she could muster.

She quietly rose from her bed and moved toward the light switch, turning it off. Without any change in expression, she returned to her bed and fell into it as if she wanted to drown herself in the sheets.

"…Slow…" Klara moved her eyes to look at Slowsleeper, who watched her wordlessly. In his mouth was a Chesto berry, known for its rough texture but delicious taste. He delicately placed it beside Klara's eye, looking at her hopefully.

Klara weakly reached for the berry, looking at it with disgust before forcing herself to take a single bite.

"Blerk!" Instinctively, she spat out the piece, regretfully staring at the berry.

That Chesto berry was probably the best one she had ever eaten, and it had been her favourite when her life could still be considered… functional. Yet now, just a single bite filled her mouth with discomfort, as if she had eaten poison.

She slowly placed the berry back on her bed, beside Slowsleeper, so he could finish it for her. Then she moved to her pillow, blankly staring at the ceiling.

She reached for her crown and removed it, staring at it blankly. She could still recognize the expert design her brother had made, likely inspired by the wing pattern of a Dustox—a Pokémon he had always found beautiful despite its reputation as a poisonous beast. He had always dreamed of catching one and making it his friend.

The delusion of a child, huh?

'…Well, he must have been extremely delusional to love me,' Klara thought before tightly hugging her crown. 'You probably don't hate me, do you?'

She thought to herself, hoping that even in heaven, he could hear her.

'I know you too well. Even after learning your sister was a dirty liar, you'd still love me.'

'But don't worry. It's my responsibility as your sister to protect you, so I'll hate myself just for you… I hope you won't mind…'

A low chuckle, more like a cry of desperation, escaped Klara's lips. 'I know you'd scold me for that if you… if you were still here… You always hated when I hurt myself.'

Klara slowly closed her eyes, but her tears still flowed.

'Eh, if I'm lucky enough, I'll drown in them, and then you can scold me all you want… and then both of us can finally be happy.'

…And with a bitter lie, the liar fell asleep.

________________________________________

"So, do you realize how idiotic you were?" Clair said in an accusatory tone, looking down at Cynthia, who lay on the floor as if she'd rather die.

"Yes… I'm stupid," Cynthia said with difficulty, but Clair's eyebrow twitched slightly at her confessio, not expecting her to actually agree.

"Well, you might not be as much of a lost cause as I thought," Clair casually remarked, glancing at Allister, who hugged a plushie of Pandora tightly while looking at Cynthia with worry.

Mina had already retreated to her room the moment she was allowed to return. Apparently, the time zone shift from Danu to Alola was harsh enough to let her sleep despite the day's events.

"You can leave, profaner. I want to discuss matters with the Unwanted Proof alone," Clair said sternly in Galarian.

Allister trembled at her intensity but managed to mutter a response. "But… I'm scared…"

Clair raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Listen, I know seeing an Archon get killed so easily can be frightening, but tell yourself this: no Archon will ever consider you more than a speck of dust. They won't bother harming you as they did the Gloom Archon."

But to her confusion, Allister shook his head. "He isn't dead."

"The Gloom Archon?"

"Luciel isn't dead?!" Cynthia sat up, hope flashing in her eyes.

"Ridiculous. You saw, just as I did, how his chest was pulverized by the War Archon. Divine as they may seem, they aren't immortal."

Cynthia's mood plummeted, but Allister responded confidently. "He isn't dead. His soul didn't leave his body."

Clair's eyes widened before she calmed down. "Well, then, I suppose the survivability of an Archon is even higher than I expected." But then she looked at Allister in confusion. "Then what are you scared of?"

Allister looked down in embarrassment. "I've never slept alone before…"

Clair waited for him to continue, but when he didn't, she spoke. "Is that it?"

Allister shyly nodded. "…Yes."

"Tch, don't waste my time!" Clair coldly responded, looking away.

Allister looked devastated but still held some hope as he turned to Cynthia.

Cynthia winced at his hopeful gaze but responded firmly. "I'm sorry, Allister, but I don't trust you enough to let you sleep with me."

Cynthia could barely withstand the look of betrayal Allister gave her, but Clair saved her from her guilt.

"You must learn to sleep alone. You're in the most prestigious academy in the world. Act like it. You can't afford to act like a wimpy kid anymore, profaner."

Realizing no one would heed his plea, Allister looked down and weakly walked to his room. Before entering the corridor, he cast one last glance at the two girls before disappearing.

Cynthia looked at Clair with slight animosity. "Did you really have to say it like that?"

"If you want to sleep with him, be my guest. It wouldn't be the most embarrassing thing you've done today," Clair said indifferently.

"…What do you want to talk about? I've already ruined two of my new friendships, so I hope you'll understand I'm not in the best mood right now," Cynthia said angrily, sitting on the sofa opposite Clair.

"If your friendships can be so easily destroyed, they were never friendships to begin with."

"…So you just want to mock me… Go on. I deserve it," Cynthia said sadly.

Ignoring her remark, Clair changed her demeanour and looked seriously at Cynthia. "Why did you become so aggressive toward Lance?"

Cynthia's eyes widened before she feigned ignorance. "I don't know what you mean. I saw a bully harassing other students and decided to intervene. I don't think it needs an explanation."

"You may have been adopted by Volo, but you certainly don't share his talent for lying."

Cynthia silently stared at Clair. "Can you pay the price for this information?"

Clair frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Even if, as you say, I was lying, why should I answer your question of all people?"

"…Then what if, in exchange for the answer, I share my own personal experience?"

"What worth does that even have?" Cynthia asked sincerely.

Instead of being offended, Clair nodded. "Indeed, my life holds little value for most people. My circumstances are so unique that almost no one can relate." She locked eyes with Cynthia. "Yet you happen to be one of the few who can. Especially after today's fiasco."

Cynthia looked conflicted but eventually shook her head. "No… It's fine. I'll just tell you."

"Eh?"

Understanding Clair's surprise, Cynthia explained. "There's no need to threaten me with boredom by recounting your backstory. I'll tell you why."

Clair's face fell, but she took a deep breath and waited.

"I decided to antagonize him because he represents everything I hate: arrogance, self-serving behavior, self-righteousness, and most importantly, he's a member of the Ancestral Tree clan."

"…I noticed you had the strongest reaction when you learned he was our Archon. Why is that?"

"Because that's also what I like to bully the most, the strong who've never known weakness," Cynthia said with a smile.

Clair rolled her eyes. "And you didn't think there might be a reason they've never known weakness?"

But Cynthia smirked. "Tell me, Clair, have you ever seen the pride of a one-in-a-billion talent crumble under your hand? The hand everyone insisted would only be good for sweeping floors? The same hand they spat on?"

Clair recoiled slightly, intimidated by her intensity.

Cynthia continued, unfazed. "It's the best feeling in the world."

But Clair regained her composure. "Then tell me, is that feeling worth your friend getting hurt because of your hubris?"

Cynthia's eyes widened, and she looked away in shame.

"You challenged—no, insulted—an Archon. Did you really think you wouldn't face his wrath? No, you expected his fury but didn't expect to be so weak against it, did you?"

"…I…"

"Well, someone paid for your lack of judgment. So I'll ask again, was it worth it?"

"…No… It was not."

"Good. And what did you learn from this mistake?"

"…Why are you asking this? Why do you even care?"

"Because I want to make sure you're not causing more problems for our Archon."

Cynthia smirked, annoying Clair. "Of course, I'm going to cause more problems."

"So you've learned nothing," Clair said in disappointment, but Cynthia wagged her finger with a serious expression.

"On the contrary, I've learned that I'm not strong enough yet. So I just need to get stronger so I can defy him without my friend getting hurt."

Clair was shocked. "So it's not that you've learned nothing, it's that you're too stupid to form a coherent thought."

"No, if I were stupid, I'd deny it was my fault Luciel was gravely injured. I'd say things like, 'I could handle the situation myself,' or, 'If he didn't want to get hurt, he shouldn't have involved himself.' But I didn't, because I know how to handle my own responsibility."

Clair was surprised by her reflection before nodding slowly. "I suppose."

"No, what would be really stupid is antagonizing everyone on the first day, including another Archon, when the loyalty of the other Archon wasn't even assured." Cynthia added with a smirk, leaving Clair silent.

"Wait, no. I can get even stupider. Imagine trying to marry the same person who committed such idiocy. But no one could be that ridiculous, could they?" Cynthia asked, her smirk betraying her judgment of Clair.

"You really think I want to marry him because of who he is?!" Clair shouted indignantly, clenching her fists until they nearly drew blood. But her anger faded as quickly as it had flared, replaced by resignation. "…I just need to marry him for what he is… My preferences… my desires… they don't matter."

"…I'm sorry," Cynthia apologized awkwardly, though her tone lacked sincerity.

A point Clair noticed. "…You don't mean that."

Cynthia was surprised, not because Clair was wrong, but because she had seen through her lie. "You're right… I don't mean it… I don't pity you. In fact, I find you extremely pathetic." Cynthia's words held no malice, drawing a pitiful chuckle from Clair.

"I'm not pathetic… I'm just weak. Someone pathetic is weak but refuses to admit it." She met Cynthia's gaze. "Someone like you."

Cynthia raised an eyebrow. "I could easily defeat you, you know?"

"Of course you could. But that just makes you stronger than a weakling. Congratulations—you're the tallest Joltik. You're still a snack for the bird above you." Clair clapped slowly, mocking Cynthia. "So don't you dare judge me for my decisions. You had to sell your soul to preserve your temporary freedom. How are you better than me when all I want to sell is my dignity?"

"Please, you weren't the one who made that choice, and you know it!"

"…What do you mean?" Though she acted confused, Clair's gaze turned menacing.

But Cynthia wasn't fazed. "You offered to share your personal experience earlier. Even without hearing a word, I'm pretty sure I know everything about it."

"…Did the heretic tell you?"

"Of course not. I don't need his help to guess something as obvious as your life." Before Clair could respond, Cynthia raised her hand to stop her, making herself comfortable on the sofa. "So, Blackthorn. Given your family name, you were born into a high-ranking family in your clan. But because you were born a weak esper, they considered you a failure."

"Oh, they weren't disappointed, you were born a girl, so they never had expectations for you. As long as you were beautiful enough to marry off to someone stronger, everything would be fine." Cynthia paused to analyze Clair's body. "Hmm, yes, I can see it. If you weren't grinding your teeth like you are now, you'd look beautiful."

Clair's anger flared, but Cynthia continued. "But then, you were mad that everyone in your family saw you as a future trophy. So you decided to train yourself, to become strong enough to force them to see you differently. But when you faced your Archon, you thought there was nothing you could do,that you were too weak. So you agreed to the vision your elders forced upon you, justifying your cowardice."

Clair's eyes widened at Cynthia's accusation.

"That's why I find you pathetic. You started higher than me, yet you've fallen deeper than I've risen. I was born into the Goldwin Clan, or, as I prefer to call it, the future possession of the Ancestral Tree. Maybe you're unaware of your clan's scheming because of how worthless you felt, but they've been slowly replacing our members with their own blood through marriage and other tactics. With only one uncooperative flying esper among our ranks, your dragon espers can easily take over our clan. And anyone who resists is pushed to the bottom of the ladder. And that's justently where the best the clan could offer was born: me." Cynthia smugly pointed at herself.

"But despite being born into such a miserable life, they still had expectations for me, like becoming their maid or even selling me as a concubine to some idiot to improve my parents' working conditions."

"Pretty bad start, don't you think?" Cynthia asked innocently, but her smirk was enough for Clair to deduce she already had bad intentions with this question. "Well? Why don't you answer?"

"Yes… It was a pretty bad start…"

Cynthia feigned surprise. "Oh, really?!" Then her gaze turned icy. "Then how is it that I'm free from those expectations while you grovel at their feet? At least you have a standing to be proud of. I had nothing, not even my parents' love."

"…This conversation is pointless," Clair said through gritted teeth. "We're getting nowhere."

Cynthia fell silent, realizing she didn't care enough to continue. "So, what do you want to waste my time with?"

"My future plans."

Cynthia grimaced. "You really want to waste it that much? Why are you so petty?"

Clair deadpanned but continued. "I want to marry Lord Redron, and you want to defeat him…"

"Wrong," Cynthia interrupted. "I don't want to defeat him. He means nothing to me. My only goal is to become the strongest, and defeating him would just prove my success."

"Defeating an Archon is a side goal?" Clair asked, bewildered, before shaking her head. "Then this complicates things. I wanted to exchange information about Lord Redron for yours."

"Why would you want my information? I'm sorry to say, but a little Goldwin like me wasn't privy to any information about him."

"Of course you weren't," Clair said matter-of-factly, which somehow angered Cynthia.

"Hey! If I really wanted to, I could've found the information. I just didn't want to waste my time on such a useless topic!" Cynthia tried to justify herself, but Clair shut her down.

"Then you should've evaluated your priorities. Archons are human deities, and now that we've entered a new era, it's important to stay close to them if we want to stand at the top of the new world." Clair paused, realizing Cynthia was already affiliated with an Archon. "Oh, my apologies. I forgot you're already connected to the Sky Archon. Treat my words as if I were just wasting your time."

Cynthia gave her a stern look. "If you really want to waste my time this much, I'll leave."

Clair looked worried but, seeing Cynthia hadn't stood up, calmed herself. "I simply want information about Redron, his preferences, goals, attractions, everything that could help me get closer to him."

"I already said I don't know anything about him!" Cynthia responded, annoyed.

"But the heretic does."

Cynthia paused, lost in thought, before leaning toward Clair. "He certainly has information about him, and I can get it from him, but it'll cost me. So the real question is, why should I help you? And don't use the argument that it's my duty as a lowly maid to serve a superior like you, or you can forget about any future deal."

Clair wanted to answer but paused in confusion. "Wait… Are you saying that would actually work this time?"

Cynthia stayed silent, which was enough as an answer for Clair.

"Eh… Well, I didn't expect that… But no, I have something more valuable as compensation. In exchange for you getting information from Volo about Lord Redron, I'll help you make friends."

Cynthia raised an eyebrow. "Sorry to tell you, but I don't really want you among my friends."

Clair sighed in frustration. "Neither do I, but that's not what I meant."

"Then what is it?"

"How do you plan to apologize to Lord Solarium for putting him in danger because of your pride?" Clair asked a simple question that stumped Cynthia.

"Well… Maybe I'll make him some Poképuffs… He loves them…"

"That's a good start, but it's only effective if you follow it up correctly. So how would you follow through?"

"…I don't know…"

"Exactly. While Luciel might not mind it now, his psychiatrist certainly will and try to suggest he distance himself from you. The Gloom Archon is in a fragile mental state, and to ensure he heals properly, the psychiatrist will remove anything that could cause him emotional harm, especially when it's an important client like an Archon."

"…Oh." Cynthia looked horrified, realizing Clair was right. "Then… Oh no…"

"Don't worry. It's not too late. They probably won't force him to cut ties with you immediately, but you need to show you can have a positive impact on him first."

"How?!" Cynthia asked desperately, almost making Clair smug. But Clair kept a neutral expression.

"First, apologize to him verbally. Then promise not to cause any more problems that involve him. No more provoking Archons, no more attracting everyone's fury with your pride, and most importantly, compensate for every bad experience with a good time."

Cynthia's cheeks turned red. "I'm not as vain as you! I won't sell my body to make him forgive me."

Clair looked at her teasingly. "Oh, but I wasn't talking about that, you pervert."

Cynthia grew even more embarrassed. "I'm not a pervert! You're the one parading around in tight suits!"

Instead of being offended, Clair agreed. "Indeed. I thought I'd spend more time with Lord Redron, so I wanted to wear clothes that would attract him. But the stingy director refused to put me in the same dorm as him, so now I'm forced to change my plans."

"So that's why you arrived late?" Cynthia asked, remembering Clair's angry arrival at the dorm.

"Yes, but that's not what we're here to discuss, is it?" Clair waved off the subject, her face slightly flushed. "When I said 'give him a good time,' I meant creating positive memories with him."

Cynthia thought for a moment before looking at Clair strangely. "Why didn't you just say I should do friendly activities with him?"

Clair averted her eyes in shame. "That's how my teacher taught me to make friends… I'm just repeating their words."

"…Well, do they have any more helpful ideas?"

Clair shook her head. "No…"

Cynthia put her hand to her chin, thinking. "Well then… There are shops around here, right?"

"Hmm? Yes, they mentioned that."

Cynthia smiled and stood up. "Then that's what I'll do! Luciel clearly needs better clothes, as do Allister and Mina. And you just said you wanted something more comfortable. How about we go clothes shopping tomorrow?"

Clair raised an eyebrow. "Even me?"

"Of course. You might be cowardly and rude, but that doesn't mean you can resist being my friend," Cynthia teased.

"Didn't you say you didn't want to be friends with me?"

"I do what I want, and no one can control me, not even past me!" Cynthia gloated, earning an exasperated look from Clair.

"Fine, fail as much as you want. But maybe you should pick another day for the shopping spree."

"Why?"

"I doubt Luciel will recover from such injuries that quickly."

"…Oh."

***

Darkness…it means I'm awake.

Pain…it means I should be dead.

…alright, let's revive my body…hope this one wouldn't be as painful.

"He's starting to bleed!"

…that's a lot of pain…

"Quick, drain the blood, I cannot be distracted during the operation!"

"On it!"

Mmmh? The blood on my rib is disappearing? Should I send more?

"Kyu. (Hi Luciel)"

Oh, Pandora. 

I tried to open my mouth to greet him, but I wasn't even able to push air into my throat to speak.

Does my lung have a problem? No…I'm not even able to open my mouth…Pandora, can I share your vision please?"

"Mimi (I don't think it a good idea.)"

Really?

Why is he saying that? Is there something disgusting? 

Mmh, I should connect my sense of touch then, so I can remove whatever disgusting there is on my bo…AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!

"Wait…LUCIEL IS AWAKE!!!?"

"WHAT?!!! But I put him into anesthesia?!"

"Where?!"

"I injected it into his arm vein of course!"

"Oh no, Luciel doesn't circulate his blood when he's asleep!"

"WHAT?!! HOW!? Wouldn't that mean he is…"

"It is not the time to explain quickly inject the anesthesia in his spine before he fully wakes up!"

AAAAAAAAAAAAH!!! SHUT IT UP!!! SHUT IT UP!!!

I immediately terminated my connection to my touch, and the pain diminished greatly.

Ah…why am I like this…urgh…I need to connect to my memory.

'HOW DARE YOU BE BORN UNDER MY LINEAGE!'

…not that memory, more recent.

'LUCIEL!!!'

Oh…right…I got my torso blown off by the blond girl…and both of my arms were broken…this is going to be hard to sew back…

Pandora, could you please sew back my ribs, just share your vision and I will guide you through the procedure.

"Kyu. (Not necessary.)"

Not necessary? What do you mean? I don't think I can stand up with this injury.

"Ryku (You're not alone anymore.)

…mmh? Of course I'm not alone, you're always with me Pandora.

"…mi. (…Less alone.)

I don't understand…I should open my sense of hearing, maybe I would understand better.

The moment I opened this sense, I heard a familiar gentle voice. "Pandora, could you please help us raise Luciel's head? He will probably react more positively if you're the one doing it." 

Oh, it's Nurse Joy…what is she doing here?

Doesn't she know I'm looking disgusting right now? Even Pandora thinks I shouldn't look at myself.

"If you can hear me Luciel, we will put you back to sleep immediately and when you wake up, your ribs will be healed." Joy said with a delicate voice when I suddenly sensed my elevation point rising.

Before I could even accustom myself to the change, I noticed a strange substance entering my blood flow through my neck.

I think I remember a similar substance entering directly into my brain when I lost Pandora during the test, but at that point I couldn't completely focus on my body, so I let it enter my brain.

But if I remember right, this substance makes me go to sleep…but I just woke up! I already made all of my muscles and organs work, I don't want to do it again!

I can't go back to…

Zzzzzzzz