Successful Mission [Traverse Town, Open, Incomplete]

[oboroou]

He was taking great pains not to be seen. The flowing dark robes wrapped about his body, obscuring everything but his eyes, helped him blend somewhat into Traverse Town's perpetual night. He feared nothing on the streets, but for how his movements were tentative. He had learned interesting things in his first few days of observation, but he had yet

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[darchihaya]

It had started out with an idea that Chihaya thought that would work, or at least he hoped it would work. He had found it in one of his books. The general idea was to very quickly be able to contact the other Angels without really giving away their position. There was no way that he was going to start another battle with them, so this seemed like the best solution

[oboroou]

For all that he was indulging a fit of brooding, Oboro's senses were still bright. Despite the pale illumination of the lamps and starlight, he could immediately tell when there a figure in the plaza below him that had not been present before. The outline was fuzzy at first, with only the brightness of its clothes standing out against the night's shadow. As the person's appearance caught Oboro's attention, the fine spreading dark hair and another pair of fuzzy darknesses came into focus in his vision. His heart abruptly pounded in his chest as he realized the fuzzy darknesses spreading from the person's back were actually wings... black wingsOboro's mind raced back to memories of his world's winged-race, the Onkami Yomukai. Wise above all other races and masters of magic, the Onkami were truly what linked the material to the divine. There was no greater gift than the Onkami's blessing, no greater curse than their censure. Had one of them following him to Traverse Town, despite his orders?? No, that wasn't possible-- the Onkami were

[darchihaya]

Despite the fact that the words were not menancing, Chihaya still found himself jumping just a little, dancing back a little bit, as the man appeared in front of him. His face flushed with embarrassment. He had often been told that it was better to strike first, and then ask questions, but that was not something that he usually did. Chihaya always wished to believe that people were kinder than they sometimes were. If he had to

[oboroou]

Oboro's eyebrow twitched slightly as he listened to the fair-faced young man speak. This is his idea of a country town? Traverse Town was bigger than any single settlement in his entire kingdom

[darchihaya]

Chihaya looked around with his eyes even wider than before. "It's always this dark?! But that's awful! Everybody needs the sun to cheer them up

[oboroou]

Oboro could think of nothing to say to the stranger's alarm at Traverse Town's perpetual twilight. He preferred the warm sun on his back himself, and had absolutely no idea how Traverse Town existed in darkness himself.

Instead he tried to focus on comforting the clearly distraught young man, at least as much as he could manage. This was ordinarily the sort of thing he found a woman to take care of, while he went somewhere else and pretended to work.

"It's alright," Oboro said, after Chihaya had introduced himself. He paused for a moment as his wings faded away; it was beyond his understanding, so he assumed it was magic and tried to move on. He desperately wanted to sound strong and stoic, and generally like someone worth taking seriously. He allowed himself to smile only a little. "My name is Oboro. No, you're not on 'Earth', but if you found your way here, there has to be some way back." He had no idea what that would be, of course, but it seemed the sort of thing that would turn up eventually.

[darchihaya]

With a small smile, Chihaya nodded. "You're right. I'm sure there has to be a way back. I suppose I'm just very confused at the moment, being in a place that I have never even seen before..."

His thoughts drifted to Earth, and what could be happening there. The Heartless could find some sort of advantage and overrun everything. If only he had managed to do contact the Angels like he had orginally planned, then probably everything would be all right. Or the Angels would just be a pain and things would become worse. Still, there was no point in thinking of what could have been had everything worked out.

That did not stop him from worrying over those he cared for greatly. If only he was able to send a message to Kagetsuya to let him know he was all right...

"Thank you, Oboro, for being so kind."

[oboroou]

Oboro felt strange, very strange, at Chihaya's words. He was not ordinarily thought a kind person, at least few people had ever called him that. His sister before she had passed on, though she always thought the best of everyone. Dori and Gura, certainly, but their gratitude and devotion to him had always been somewhat baffling (if pleasant). It was usually the sort of thing people said about his dearly departed Brother.

Oboro could feel his tail begin to wag gently beneath his cloak. He was glad no one would be able to see it. "D-don't mention it," he said, hoping the sudden flush he was feeling wasn't visible. "No one decent would treat a lost traveler otherwise. I'm looking for something in Traverse Town, too... so if we find what you seek, it will be useful to me as well." There, that sounded good in his ears. Detached and manly. He continued to speak with a bit more confidence. "For now, you probably need a place to stay. You don't seem like the type for sleeping outside."

[darchihaya]

"Ah, well...no, I don't remember sleeping outside that often, except when I absolutely had to, and that was usually in a pleasantly warm place or for a very short time."

He put two fingers to his lips as he thought about the past, his eyes becoming distant. It seemed so long ago since he had been a Plus Checker, seeming to hold the fragile lives of Earth in his hands with the others who believed as he did. What were things like at home, he wondered? Had things changed? Was his Foster Father still being treated as if he were a traitor? How ironic that when he was so close to finding out, he had been thrust into an entirely new place!

Still, perhaps he would be able to find out more about the Heartless here. After all, he could not save his precious friends and loved ones if he did not discover a way to make the Heartless go away.

"Then, I suppose we should start moving? May I ask what it is you're looking for, or is that too personal?"

[oboroou]

"Yes, we should start moving. I'm not sure of the... ah, the customs here. I can't tell which building would be the minshuku, or if they'd have them..." Oboro faintly hoped it would all make more sense to Chihaya. Oboro's ability would end at making sure Chihaya got wherever he wanted to go safely.

Fortunately, Chihaya had supplied him with a question to answer, in lieu of having to confess to any more weaknesses. "As for why I'm here, I..." Oboro paused, trying to think of how to explain his mission simply. "My country is troubled by monsters. I was sent here to find help." There, that was basically true. Details could come later.

[darchihaya]

"Oh! Do you have Heartless on your world, too?" said Chihaya, looking at the other man with worry. How far had the Heartless spread anyway? After all, if he was able to travel to a different world, surely the Heartless could to.

Which was even more worrisome...

"That is part of the reason that I...um...came here, I suppose. I was trying to contact others in order to discuss the Heartless. They've made Earth far filled with darkness than before."

[oboroou]

Oboro's face went ashen for a moment, as Chihaya unexpectedly spoke that dreaded name. His attempts to restrain his emotions dissolved in a torrent of urgency. He whirled on Chihaya, the motion tossing back his dark cloak for the first time. Oboro's hands shot out to grab the shorter man by the shoulders, impetuously.

"The Heartless? The shadows that steal souls and make men into monsters?" His questions tumbled out of his mouth. His voice rose with long-suppressed passion. "They're destroying my world-- my people-- what do you know of them? Can you fight them?" Oboro's eyes begged for answers, especially to the last question.

[darchihaya]

The way that Oboro reacted certainly startled Chihaya, and his eyes grew wide. Yet it was not so much that he was afraid of the way that the man had reacted, but at the questions he had asked.

So it was not only his world that was being attacked. He could feel the emotions running through Oboro's body, and tears sprung into his eyes, though he would not let them overflow.

"I'm sorry...they're killing the planet I care about, too. I probably don't know any more than you do. I wish I had more answers, but the reason I got here was because I was trying to find out more about them."

His precious planet...he had to do something to help as well.

"Perhaps we can look for answers together!"

[oboroou]

"T-together... yes, together." Guilt speared Oboro in the heart as tears welled in Chihaya's bright eyes. To Oboro it seemed he had frightened Chihaya, in addition to dredging up foul memories of the Heartless. So Oboro released Chihaya, gently, and withdrew until he stood straight and severe. "My apologies..." he mumbled. "I forgot myself. Yes, we can investigate the Heartless together... if you truly know no more than I, it would be a great surprise, for my world knows nearly nothing about them." Oboro withdrew his hands into his cloak again and let it close about his shoulders, as if to cut his unseemly emotional outburst off completely.

[darchihaya]

"You have no reason to be sorry," replied Chihaya, looking at the ground. "It just...it makes me sad to think that so many others are being hurt by these Heartless, and we have no effective way of taking care of them yet. It's like even if you take one down, several others appear out of what seems like nowhere. And...they don't care who they attack. It doesn't matter whether a baby is hurt or an elderly person. Since they've appeared, it just seems like everyone is becoming worse. People are disappearing, and some people seem to become even more violent. Yet many still fight. I wish I could help you more, but I really don't know where to go from here."

[oboroou]

"It doesn't matter whether a baby is hurt, or an elderly person..."

Lead by Chihaya's words, Oboro's mind fled to the long journey that brought him to Traverse Town in the end, the abandoned battlefields covered by the dead and villages emptied by Heartless. It was as if everyone he had failed to save was conjured in an instant, begging for the Emperor's protection, wondering why he was not even half the man his Brother was.

"Yet many still fight..."

Oboro found the steel in his heart. In an instant he felt like he knew absolutely what to say. "There's no such thing as an invincible enemy. If they're attacking many worlds, then there is some place where they've been defeated... or some person who can beat them. The Heartless are known here, but they don't walk freely... if there is any place in existence where we could find that truth, this is it! Our meeting was no accident... it was the will of the Greatest God!"