All Epilogue 01 - Aftermath

Victor ran through the trees. He was bleeding heavily, and he knew it was only the adrenaline of battle that was keeping him going. He had to get the All away from Lucca. He only needed a few more seconds; then they could flee. He had to make sure Lucca got away safely. Glancing behind him, he could see the two monstrous Conglomerates chasing him, their eyes fixed in his direction. Good. Keep following me.
Suddenly he felt something strike him in the back…
Snow whipped about the dark, mountainous landscape. It was always winter here, so it was almost always dark. Osamu looked around blankly. He recognized where he stood; it was where he was before. He had been wandering this particular area for a long time. He’d leave, but something always made him come back: he’d never cared to consider why.
For a moment, he stood at a loss, the jarring juxtaposition of events serving to stun him. He was Osamu Miro. Somehow, the concept of knowing something as simple as that seemed foreign. Having a wealth of memory seemed...strange, somehow. As he looked out over the snow, he felt his mind settle into place. As he did, he recalled what had happened, what might still be happening, and who he had left behind. He vaguely considered that he must have died, as he sought out Mako and Junko with his mind. That wasn’t really important; what was important was that he had to get back, as soon as possible.
The response was immediate, from both parties: WHERE THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN?!
Osamu cut both of them off. I will explain, but we have to go to Materia now. The others’ attempts to question him were silenced. NOW, because there is a fifth plane invading Materia, and I will not suffer their intrusion any longer. There is a lot more to explain, but I will do it when we are on Materia and no longer potentially missing months or years. He visualized where Mako stood, the information conveyed to him dutifully by his confused friend and vassal. Without delay, he teleported to his side; Junko arrived almost immediately after.
“Please, cast Plane Shift now.” At his request, Junko, partnered with her demonic bee-like eidolon Rilkirax and with no shortage of frustrated eyerolls, began to cast.
“We thought you were fucking dead or something! A bit of warning before you completely fuck off the map would be nice!!” Mako said angrily.
“I am very, very, sorry,” he said as Junko completed her spell. The four now stood in a dense jungle, the sounds of startled animals fleeing from their sudden appearance loud in their ears. Osamu looked around; the fact that the area was not under control of the All was heartening. “I was summoned to Materia and bound as a mortal amnesiac. I lived here for seven years as a man named Victor Erzebet, before the world was attacked by neutral outsiders from a fifth, unknown plane. I was helping to repel them and was part of the final assault when I apparently died. I’m not leaving my duties sworn to the gods of Materia incomplete.”
Mako and Junko blinked at him, confused. “Uhhhmmm…” Mako lifted a finger, about to ask questions.
“Give me two hours to determine when we are and what the situation is. I will give you further orders then,” Osamu said bluntly. “Do or go where you like, but remember where you are. We weren’t duly summoned; the gods are edgy enough with the threat to their plane, and Materia is primed to rid itself of extraplanars”
“Got ya,” Mako saluted with as much formality as he usually afforded him. Junko had shifted her appearance from that of a flawless humanoid demoness to that of a flawless young Yetowoman in her late teenage years. She frowned, still obviously unsatisfied with Osamu’s orders and explanation, but she nodded anyways. Without further ado, Osamu, shifting his appearance as well, teleported to outside of Kalleandar.
----
The plants and grass were green, suggestive of early summer, despite the breeze holding the biting chill of very late fall. The stars and moon glowed brightly overhead, and the night sky cast shadows over the landscape no longer oppressively still and barren of colour and sound. The All no longer held the country in their grasp. Osamu gave a slight sigh of relief: they were at least partially victorious. The fact that Shares were still stuck here and there, dotting the city walls and ground, suggested that their work was still not finished. That too was good: it meant that he hadn’t lost much time. Materia was safe, or at least safer than he had feared. Now he had to find the others. He had to find Lucca.
Walking into the city a short distance, he found it in ruin. He could see evidence of very recent rioting and looting; the streets were now mostly empty in the deep of the night, so some sort of order must have been re-established. Nothing was rebuilt; everything was broken. He must have lost very little time indeed. Shares still stared out from corners, blinking. They didn’t used to blink. Osamu frowned. He had no way of finding the others here.
----
He teleported to Victor’s houses, in Arlington and in Lockeport. The southern house was odd; things had been moved and rearranged in strange positions and orders, but nothing was missing or damaged. The Arlington house had been stripped bare, filled with thousands of stacked clay garden pots, and the physical building was in a different location than before. He didn’t stop to consider the ramifications of this; it was unimportant. In either case, Lucca wasn’t there.
----
He cloaked himself in invisibility and pictured the neat, tasteful interior of Caitlyn’s apartment in Dionysia. His teleportation was powerful; he had no issue reaching the place he remembered. The house was dark as the inhabitants slumbered. He moved quietly throughout, noting Ryuji lying next to his sleeping wife, watching her soundlessly, reunited at last. If he was here, then perhaps they had indeed won.
He found Cheko sleeping on a couch, and he was careful not to disturb her. Slowly pushing a door open, he found the children. They were set up in sleeping bags on the floor, near Shintaro’s bed. He looked at the girls, the girls he had promised to protect and raise: he still had a firm duty on this plane to them. Turning to Virgil, he approached noiselessly and sunk down to his knees, looking at the boy. It was Virgil, the child that he had raised from a baby, that he knew and loved so very completely. He had a son, and this knowledge was strange and foreign mixed with what Osamu now remembered about himself. Mired in a confusion of feelings and worry, he drew his finger lightly down Virgil’s cheek. The boy was always a light sleeper, and stirred slightly at the touch. This snapped Osamu out of his thoughts, and he fixed on the one remaining problem, the one that loomed darkly over everything else. He had apparently lost only days, maybe even only hours. The All had been dealt with, well enough that Ryuji felt he could return home. Virgil, Nuan and Xue were safe. But the question remained: where was Lucca, that he wasn’t with the children? Osamu teleported once again.
----
Frowning, Osamu returned to the stand of trees outside of Korova, where Victor had died. He walked vaguely through the foliage where he had so recently ran for his life, the life that he had lost. A deep, pervasive fear nettled through him. What if Lucca hadn’t survived? What if, after he died, they had gone back for him? The fear of loss, of having completely failed the druid, gnawed at him as he made his way through the trees. A Share peeked at him from a crook in a tree and he regarded it coldly. Taking a few steps towards it, he picked it up easily; apparently it no longer had the power to fix itself in position. Osamu noted with a tinge of personal reproach that he had no sword: he had never bothered to replace Yashin. He dispelled his transformation, giving him his claws back. Hooking his nails under the edge of the Share’s eyelids, he ripped it in half and let the mostly-empty shells fall to the ground, the eyeball itself attached by thin strands of muscle and nerve. Black ichor leaked from the dead creature that Osamu was careful to not let spill on his clothes. Whatever this was, it wasn't what it had been before. As he turned away, he noted another Share close by, blinking passively. He hadn’t noticed how many of these wretched things were here when he was running past earlier.
As he reached for it, a voice stopped him, “Wait!” He turned around to face the speaker: a man who looked very familiar and yet entirely foreign, who hadn’t been there a moment before. “Please don’t…” Pierce trailed off as he regarded Osamu, and both had the look of one who didn’t quite recognize the person they were faced with. “...Victor?”
“Pierce?” The two looked at each other for a few more seconds before Osamu questioned, “What happened to you?”
“I...” Pierce fumbled, looking down. “I suppose...I messed something up or…” he trailed off. He looked back to Osamu as he started again, “I completed the ritual. The All were banished. But I merged with them, somehow. And when the spell finished, I guess it did what it was designed to do: turned the plane, and the creatures in it, Materian, and evicted those that resisted it. The Shares and Responses, Completes...they were made into something else, and left behind. And me. Whatever I am now, I guess.”
Osamus face became very grave, “Where’s Lucca?”
Pierce blinked, and his expression became vague as he replied, “...He’s...outside of Kalleandar...in a tree...asleep, I think…” he replied.
“He’s alright?” Osamu pressed, and Pierce nodded his head. Osamu let go of a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. “That’s good…” he said quietly. Everything was fine. He became serious again, “So, you succeeded. I’m glad everything is safe.”
Frowning slightly, Pierce asked, “For the most part. How...why are you…?”
Osamu looked at him questioningly before understanding his meaning. A slight, sardonic grin crept onto his face as he said, “You mean I died and no one told you?”
Pierce looked shocked. “What?!”
“I died,” Osamu said simply. “I died while Lucca sealed the rift. I assume he was successful.”
The news seemed to confuse the other man, who said, “...Yes, yes, that worked. The All are gone, the rifts are sealed, it’s just a matter of cleaning up the mess...You died? Why did...nobody told me, but...no, you weren’t there…” Pierce seemed to drift off into confusion, mumbling quietly.
Osamu looked at him with a measure of pity, “...Are you alright?”
Pierce nodded weakly, “I’m...trying to get used to...this,” he waved his ill-proportioned hand about vaguely. “The remnants, the...heh, Cohen is calling them the Few...they’re all afraid. They’re all confused. I’m trying to calm them down, but everything is so wrong, compared to All. Everyone was attacking us, some of us died. No All has died before, it’s terrifying and confusing and I can hear and see and feel all of them and it’s...it’s hard...to focus on just one thing. I had to protect them, get them away from everyone, so I didn’t...I’m sorry I didn’t realize that you were missing. I did, I did know that you weren’t there, but, but I was trying so hard to save them that…” The more he spoke, the more agitated he became.
“You’re connected to them, the ones who were left,” Osamu said, more as a statement of fact than a question. Pierce nodded, so Osamu continued, “Calm down. Calm down, and let it go. Don’t focus on them. Don’t let them overwhelm you. Let the voices move around you, not through you.”
“What?”
Osamu smiled, the same knowing smile that Victor gave, that had always been his. “You are talking to someone who was born human, who very suddenly became a devil with the ability to hear the thoughts of anyone nearby. I don’t know precisely how similar the two feel, but until I learned how to control it, it was...overwhelming.” He considered something, then said quietly, “...Let me see…” Osamu attempted to read Pierce’s mind, but found himself unable: where normally he could pick up the surface thoughts of those nearby clearly, almost instinctively, Pierce returned nothing but an almost static-like noise. "Hmm...I can't read your thoughts...you must be immune." Pierce winced slightly, so he added, "You are assuredly not the only one. Lots of people can resist it, it's not a terribly strong effect. I've seen mass-produced rings that block it."
Pierce looked down, “There are so many, in my head, and I'm in theirs'...and they’re all looking to me, because I’m the only one who knows...I have to protect them...I’ve gathered all of the Completes, but the Shares and Responses, there are so many, people are still attacking them. I keep telling everyone to stop, but...I’m collecting them as fast as I can, but…”
“It will be alright. You will save as many as possible, and you will guide and protect them,” Osamu said. 
Pierce seemed to consider that, before changing the subject, “I’m...sorry, you died.”
“I fell in battle, fulfilling my role to save the plane. I died so Lucca could live…” he paused, considering something before continuing, “...I don’t regret anything. But you are in a position to assist me, if you feel charitable.”
“With what?”
Osamu stood formally, “Victor died, but had three children in his care, two of which he promised to raise and care for. If you still possess your power, I would humbly request that you summon me, so that I can fulfill the duties that Victor Erzebet left unfinished. I plane shifted here of my own accord, and to stay here without permission violates the laws of Materia. I don’t want to cause issues.”
Pierce nodded thoughtfully, “Aren’t you Victor Erzebet?”
With a tinge of knowingness, and possibly sadness, he replied, “Are you Percival Webber?”
The two men looked at each other inscrutably for a minute. Eventually, Pierce replied, “We both lost a lot, didn’t we?”
“We could consider it a gain, if we were optimistic.”
“Heh....I suppose,” he said, looking off. “...Why do you want me to summon you? I’m sure Lucca could cast a scroll.”
“It would be simpler for you,” he replied. “Besides: you were Victor’s best friend, after all.”
This took Pierce aback. “Honestly?” Osamu nodded. “Heh,” he smiled sadly, “Victor had terrible taste in friends, if that’s the case. Percival was an asshole.” He sighed, looking up at the sky, “Hopefully I can be better.” He held his hand out to the devil, who took it. The pair shook once firmly.
Osamu said, “I will be more than happy to help with anything you need to reorganize yourself or your people in the next while, but I have to see Lucca first. I happened upon Ryuji while I was looking for him; he seemed to be well. Did everyone else survive?”
Pierce nodded, as he collected the broken remains of the dead Share, “Cohen left on the boat with Nisa, but he took a Share and Response with him; he’ll be in touch. Cress is in Kalleandar; he found his mother and is helping with the city. I...wasn’t sure what Lucca was doing, but it makes sense now...I can take you where he is.”
“No, you are busy and I can teleport myself. Just tell me his location.” Pierce looked blank for a second, then described the location as best as he could. When he finished his description, Osamu nodded. He looked then at the broken thing that Pierce held and said, “I...apologize, for that. I didn't know..."
Shaking his head, he replied, "No one did; I can't blame anyone, really. Not after what the All did. The Shares and Responses aren't really intelligent anyways, not like the Completes. They're...probably like fish, or insects or something. They just see and hear things; they aren't really aware."
"I suppose it is a bit late in the conversation to ask, but I will anyhow, since I will be wondering: if a Share is one of those,” he gestured at the large spined eyeball, “what is a Response?”
Pierce smiled and floated a few feet away, “Heh, they were actually all over the place with the Shares, but we never noticed them.” He reached down, and pulled up from the ground a flat, white worm-like creature, its foot-long body kinked about in odd directions. “The Shares are deaf; these are blind, but they can hear vibrations. The two go together.”
“Ahh,” Osamu said. “Well,” he bowed, “I must take my leave now. I assume I can contact you again through the Shares?” Pierce nodded. “Then I will see you again shortly.” He smiled slightly, “Thank you for saving the world.”
Pierce returned the grin, “I just cast a spell. Thank you for getting me there; that was the hard part.” The two smiled, and teleported in their separate directions.
----
Osamu stood by a large tree. As he looked up, he could see the huddled form of the young druid, curled up tightly in a crook in the branches. The devil looked up at him for a few minutes before turning his gaze down to himself. He considered his appearance carefully before eventually deciding to stay as he was; he was never very good at disguising himself accurately, and something seemed...wrong, about lying about what he was. He teleported again, leaving himself sitting on a branch adjacent to Lucca. The young man’s face was stained with dirt and tears; he had passed out from exhaustion. Osamu folded his hands in front of him, and gently nudged Lucca’s mind with his telepathy. Wake up... A faint, pained look flitted across the druid's face as his mind sought to remain within the safety of sleep. It took another gentle prod before his green eyes reluctantly fluttered open. He glanced around hollowly, his expression distant and vaguely confused until his eyes lit on the man sharing the tree with him. He gave a start, a jolt of shock coursing through him first at the sight of someone sitting so close, then again as recognition set in. He stared at the other man for a long time, his jumbled whirlwind of emotions showing plainly on his face, uncertainty holding precedence over them all. I...am I...dreaming?...hallucinating?...is this...? His thoughts came slowly, jumbled as they were by sleep, and shock, and grief. "...Vi-Victor...?" He eventually managed weakly, the tears that had gathered in his eyes beginning to fall unnoticed.
Regarding the druid with a look of patience, tainted with a sort of muted sadness, he replied after a measured pause, "...As close as can be arranged, yes."
Lucca closed his eyes tightly against the renewed surge of emotion his words brought; relief and a sense of comfort mingling poingiantly with his sadness. His words came as a heavy sigh as he murmered, "Thank the spirits...I didn't think...how'd you...so fast...?"
"That was luck, I suppose," he replied. "I came directly, but how much time passes between the planes is anyone's guess. I spent less than minutes in Hell, and about an hour looking for you here. Unfortunately, despite my speed, I seem to have missed the resolution of Materia's fight. Are you alright?" Osamu's gaze dropped almost imperceptibly as he said quietly, "I worried..."
"I...I...guess...?....yes? Sorta?" He answered slowly, shakily, "...I didn't get hurt or anything..." He glanced at Osamu for a second, then dropped his gaze, biting hard at his lip as he struggled to put his jumbled thoughts into words. "I...I'm so sorry..." He choked out, bringing his hand to his mouth and taking a deep breath as he fought to maintain what composure he had. I should have...something...anything...it shouldn't have...and not like that...and I just... and even though I know it's not the same...he's right here...I just...what if...? It took a few moments for him to regain control. He looked to Osamu once more, apprehension plain on his face as he asked haltingly, afraid of the answer but so desperately needing to know. "...a-are you...staying...? Can...can you...?...or..." His voice dropped to a quavering whisper, "...or will you have to go...back?"
Lucca heard a voice in his mind; not the abrasive jeering of Harlequin, but Osamu's calm voice, quietly shushing him, trying to soothe his turbulent thoughts. Osamu looked considering and said evenly, "How I came, Materia does not appreciate. The natural balance doesn't enjoy extraplanars visiting on their own whims, and it is certainly trying to heal itself after the All. I don't want to cause trouble to the balance. I will have to go back." His expression became odd: soft and sad and hopeful, "But...but I can be summoned. I can be called as simply as Raito was. You can call me back and ask me to stay, to stay until the children are grown, until you're old, until whenever you want. And that will be lawful and acceptable, and I can stay as long as you'd like me to."
A crestfallen, almost desolate look had suffused the druid's features when Osamu said he would have to go back, and it took a few moments for him to register the rest of his words. "You can...you can come back...and stay...? For...for as long...as long as I want...?" He stared into the other man's eyes, barely daring to hope that his words could be true. When Osamu confirmed this once more, Lucca let out the breath he had been holding in a shuddering sigh. He threw one hand out to steady himself against the feeling of faintness as a powerful sense of relief washed over him, thanking the spirits repeatedly under his breath.
"Don't fall," Osamu said quietly. He continued to sit on his branch, his expression muted yet still showing a curious mix of emotion; happiness, worry, sadness and patience were all hinted at.
"...Yeah...we should...get down from here..." Lucca muttered, beginning to extricate himself from the spot where he'd wedged himself.
As Lucca pulled himself out, he noticed that Osamu was suddenly no longer there. "I'm down here," Osamu's voice called from below as Lucca's gaze whipped about. Indeed, he was standing on the ground, looking up at him. The ghost of a smile flitted across the druid's face at this and he hopped down from the branch he was on, his descent controlled by the magic of his firey wings. He landed next to Osamu and hesitated momentarily, looking almost like he wanted to say something, then stepped forward and hugged him tightly, burying his face in the taller man's chest. Osamu returned the embrace, at first somewhat stiffly, but as time passed, he folded himself tighter around the shorter man, wrapping his tail and wings around him as well. At this Lucca tightened his embrace, his entire body shaking as he dug his fingers into the fabric of his clothing and nuzzled against him slightly, as if trying to disappear into him. They stood there a long time in each others' arms. 
Lucca felt a curious sensation fall over him: a clarity and calmness of thought. It was the same feeling he had when he put on his magical headband that enhanced his wisdom and perception. "I took a liberty..." Osamu murmered, barely audibly, into Lucca's hair. "...I hope you don't mind..."
"Of course not..."The druid replied just as quietly, asking after a moment, "What was it?"
"It's a few things...a small enhancement, but more importantly..." Osamu took a step back, finally pulling away from the hug. Instantly, he vanished. Before Lucca had time to react, he heard Osamu's voice in his mind, I can hear you, no matter where you or I go. 
I like it, it's brilliant. He smiled faintly, the worry at the other man's sudden disappearance dispelled before it began. No matter where either of us go, though? Really?
I am currently in Lockeport. There was a short pause. Now I am in Akroum. Another pause, and he stood in front of Lucca once more. He held out a small flower, part of a plant Lucca had taken particular interest in while they had travelled the jungles in Akroum, something he hadn't seen on his native continent. "It will work across land and sea and even the planes. Anywhere we go." He held out what he had in his other hand: a small mirror that Lucca recognized from their house on the peninsula. "There is one other...side-effect. I hope it doesn't bother you." Lucca peered into it, but saw nothing different. He glanced back to Osamu and raised an eyebrow. "Dispel your shift," he instructed. When he did and looked again, the difference was striking. His pure white irises were now a flat grey: the same colour as Osamu's, the colour Victor's once were, and the colour shared by Virgil. He stared at his reflection in silence for some time, clearly fascinated.
"Heh...I've got Erzebet eyes now...like you and Virgil." He smiled slightly, looking back to Osamu, "They look a hell of lot less creepy now too. It doesnt bother me in the least...It's kinda nice."
Osamu gave a slight smile, "I would think that if they're anything, they are Miro eyes. You and Virgil aren't the only ones who have them." He looked off into the distance, "On that note, there are two people who sorely deserve an explanation. To you, I was missing for a day or less. To them, I've been gone without a trace for an infinite eight years."
Lucca blinked, both comments seeming to give him pause. "...Oh...I understand..." He nodded slightly, adding with some reluctance, "I guess you should probably go to them, eh?..."
"Do you want to meet them?"
"I..." He blanched slightly, looking up at Osamu searchingly for a very long moment before saying quietly, "...I guess...? Like...yes, I think I would...It's just....right now...?...I'm kinda..." He trailed off, gesturing hopelessly to himself, finishing the thought to himself. ...a legitimate disaster at the moment...
Now now, Lucca heard in his head. Osamu picked a piece of bark out from the druid's hair. It's not as bad as all that. "Well, give me a few minutes then," he said aloud. He reached into a pouch that he had at his side and retrieved a book, too large for the satchel he had retrieved it from. Taking a few steps over to an open spot, he knelt down into a relaxed position. The younger man followed him, sitting next to him crosslegged he glanced at the book. The words were handwritten but highly precise and neat, in a handwriting he recognized intimately; Lucca could identify the contents as a spellbook. "I can only teleport myself freely. If we want to go back to Lockeport tonight, I believe the most expedious path is for me to prepare the spell proper. We might be able to fly to Arlington, but the house there has been made into a repository for clay garden pots. Not particularly comfortable."
"I thought you might know magic...didn't know it'd be arcane though, that's cool." Lucca smiled faintly, adding by way of explanation, "It looked like you tried to cast a couple times back when Gemini swapped us all around." His smile faded, "Clay pots, eh? Guess they messed up Arlington pretty good...that sucks..." He gave a soft sigh and fell to looking thoughful, falling silent to allow Osamu to prepare the spell. The night was quiet as he read his spellbook; eventually, he closed it softly and returned it to his wallet. Standing up once more, he held out his hand. "Shall we?"
"Of course." Lucca replied softly, taking his hand. Osamu cast the spell, and the two were suddenly in their house in Lockeport. The furniture had been arranged curiously; many things were upside-down or sideways, and were no longer in their correct rooms. However, it at least looked as though nothing had been removed. They ignored the mess for the moment, stopping only to dig out the master bed from underneath a layer of objects. As they finished the task, Osamu had a hesitant air about him.
"...What is it?" Lucca asked after a few moments, apprehension tinging his tone.
He made a quiet 'hmn' noise, looking distant. As he sat down on the edge of the bed, his appearance shifted: a human Yetoman who looked nearly identical to the devil who recently stood there, though perhaps slightly older. He continued to look distant, as he stared off into space. Eventually, he spoke, "...I'm not who you knew." His speech was halting, considering, the words chosen slowly and carefully. "I'm not Victor. Perhaps...he was a version of myself that could have existed, if my life was different. ... Since I remember now, who I am, I can't replicate how I was when you knew me, as Victor. I am a poor liar. And it wouldn't be fair to you, to pretend." He paused for a while, and when he continued, his voice dropped lower, "I...haven't had time, to consider the differences. I know, that the only reason I am saying this aloud, is because, I think I might have, if I didn't know what I know now, which is that I do not, as a rule, say things out loud. ... ...I don't... ... ...I know you. I know you very well. I remember everything, from across the years I've known you. But, you do not know me. You know...a part of me, a version of me that wasn't wrong but wasn't complete." He looked at the ground, "I don't want you to be disappointed to learn that I am not the same. I...fear..." he trailed off, leaving his sentence unfinished, absorbed in his thoughts.
Lucca regarded him silently for a long moment, a strange, soft look suffusing his features. Moving to stand before him, he seemed to consider his words just as carefully Osamu had. "I don't expect you to be anyone other than who you are. I don't want you to pretend at all. I know that you aren't Victor...Victor as he was...he died in the Northlands forest, he is gone and he wont be coming back. And I know that. I have no illusions." A faint look of sadness flitted across his face, and he paused, taking a deep breath before continuing, "But you must know, I never have. I didn't fall blindly in love with you. I didn't promise to be by your side forever, and not realize what it meant. I've always known, from the day that I met you, that who you were here was only a facet, a version of who you really were. You were a devil bound as a mortal, that was never a secret, and I never forgot or failed to understand what it meant. I've always known full well that this time would come, that one day you would be someone a bit different from the man I'd known...it just came a hell of a lot sooner than I ever expected. But I've always had full faith that I would still love you when you were returned to your true state, as you are now; that's why I made that promise. Because in many ways, you are Victor, even while you aren't. The person I knew is still a part of you. I can still see him loud and clear in so many little things...Even after just this short while," He reached out to gently move Osamu's bangs out of his face, "I see him in the way you move and turns of phrase you use, in your expression right now and the fact that you're worrying like this...in the way you came so fast to find me...you're still him where it counts. As for the differences, I'll get used to them and come to love them too in time. Damned if I didn't get plenty of practice with that sorta thing over these last few months anyway. So just be you, and don't worry about him, you know?" He gave a small smile, "Whatever it is that you're afraid of...you don't need to be."
Osamu closed his eyes, sighing slightly. He brought his arms up and pulled Lucca in towards him once more. He was stronger, more muscular than Victor ever was, by a noticeable margin, but the vehemence and way he held the druid was recognizable. "...It is nice," he said quietly, "to have clarity once more. The confusion was like a constant buzzing that I eventually stopped hearing, and now it's finally gone."
"I can imagine..." Lucca murmured, returning the embrace. After a moment he undid the tie holding back Osamu's hair, letting it fall loose about his shoulders and began stroking it absently. "I bet it's nice in a lot of ways, being free of that stupid spell, eh?"
"Mhmm," he muttered, focused on Lucca's touch. After a few seconds, he pulled Lucca back onto the bed, twisting about so that they were both lying down. Osamu shifted again; while not precisely correct, a close scrutiny revealed discrepancies, he now looked like Victor, made all the odder by his very Yetoman-styled clothes. "I can't decide if the worst part is, that I'm reasonably certain the Kamun lowlife did it for no reason other than personal amusement, or that it I, in some capacity, owe him for it."
"Oh? How's that?" Lucca prompted, moving to tangle himself more thoroughly with Osamu. 
"Well, if he hadn't sent me here, I wouldn't have met you," he said, returning the smile and pushing back Lucca's hair, "I wouldn't have three children, and I wouldn't have been here to help fight the All. I'd likely still be sitting on a mountain staring into space, which I had been doing for a very long time."
"I guess we both kinda owe the bastard, in that case." The druid murmured, smiling softly once more. He pressed his forehead to the other man's and gave a small, teasing smile, "Heh...lookit you, shifting all over the place. I thought that was supposed to be my job."
He made a wry face, "Shifting can continue to be your job; I have none of your talent for detail. But unless you want to be the one pretending to be an aging half-elf, it would probably behoove me to get the appearance right. Is it close enough?"
"Mmmh, just about...you mostly just need to tweak your eyes; they're still a touch too Yeto." He replied. After scrutinizing him a little longer, he gave a satisfied nod and added, "Otherwise you're pretty much good, appearance wise. Your voice on the other hand...your accent is all wrong: it used to be pretty strongly Arlington, and now it's really not."
"Oh, you're right...Hmm," he made a thoughtful expression. When he spoke next, he affected the dialect of the Asonian city, "This is going to be a nuisance to remember to do. Does that sound better?"
Lucca nodded, "Mhmm, considerably." Looking thoughtful, he asked, "Why in the world would you be sitting around on a mountain? Were you doing that thing you do? It sounds like you were..."
Osamu gave a vague snort, dropping the accent as quickly as he had picked it up. "That thing I do...heh. You haven't any idea." He looked thoughtful for a moment, "No. Imagine the worst you ever saw Victor, catatonic with thought and worry and detachment. That's hardly beneath my average." Sighing, he looked at the ceiling, "With no purpose, I have no reason to act, and I lose the ability to do so. That is the overwhelming emptiness that I remembered when the spell began to break. Most of it, anyways. I'd rather not dwell on it. What form do you prefer I use?" he changed the topic suddenly.
Lucca blinked and shook his head slightly, "It doesn't really matter to me, honestly. Whatever one you're most comfortable in." A smile quirked the corners of his mouth as he added, "But whichever you pick, you should keep the tail."
Raising his eyebrow with a slight smile of his own, he shifted once more. He looked mostly like himself once more, though there were hints of Victor's appearance: his hairstyle, his age, the lack of scar on his face. "Alas, I don't have your ability to blend species. If you want the tail, which I still believe is an absolutely ridiculous appendage by the way, it comes with a rather inconveniently large set of wings." He drew his hand across Lucca's cheek, "But you have had a wretched day, and I can indulge you in that if you want."
"Wings're cool too, I don't mind in the slightest." He murmered, closing his eyes briefly and leaning into the touch, "It's your call though, if they're not comfortable don't worry about it." Osamu gave a snort of amusement and dispelled his shift once more, revealing his demonic form. With a firmness, he pulled Lucca on top of him, bringing their noses to nearly touch. After a beat, he took Lucca by the face and kissed him, long and slow. When he pulled back, he looked at Lucca for a second before speaking. He started slowly, but as he continued, his voice came unto its own and held a firm passion and command, "My name is Osamu Miro. I was born in the Miyagi Province of Yeto in the second month of the year 4623. My mother died in childbirth; I have no siblings. I was raised by attendants and teachers, purely for a purpose: the purpose of ruling. Further, I was trained for a particular mission, the same mission my forefathers had borne for generations.
"When I was twelve, I was presented with a collection of swords. These were not average blades: they held the souls of some of the most corrupt, ambitious and cruel leaders that had ever walked Yeto. They granted the bearers they bonded with power and advice, promising wealth and success, but they were all manipulators at heart: seven people who wanted dominion over everything so strongly, and wanted the others' destruction so badly, that they drove their bearers to usurp and conquer again and again and again, casting Yeto into civil wars that could only ever end to start over a few years later.
"My family had sworn to work with a clan of wizards to destroy them. After generations of hunting, we had collected four of the seven swords, binding them and preventing them from running free, because they all had an uncanny talent at surfacing again and again. But we were never noble. We were never above using the blades themselves. The swords were particular though, and would only wake for people they chose. People they liked. People with hearts and minds as corrupt and power-driven as their own.
"When I was twelve, I was given the swords. When I was twelve, I woke one of the swords. Yashin. A mercenary general. A man of boundless desire for destruction and war, now a katana with an oil-black blade. And so my training doubled, because as a bearer of a black blade, I had a duty. A duty to find the other swords that would inevitably show themselves to contest any strength shown by one of their own. A duty to work with a sword that could hear my thoughts at all times in my possession, but could never know that I sought its destruction as much as the other six. 
"That wasn't good enough for me. Finding another sword wasn't good enough. Keeping them bound wasn't good enough. Letting Yeto languish in war wasn't good enough. Training was everything, because the reason I existed was to fix that problem, and I would. I wouldn't find one blackblade: I would find them all. I would not bind them: I would destroy them. And hoping that Yeto would prosper wasn't good enough: I would make it prosper. I would make it cease fighting. And I would not waste time with peace.
"When I was sixteen, I left my house and trained with the Hobgoblin Army, the single most dedicated, organized and powerful military force in Asanon. They already had my respect. I would have theirs, because they were key. Their assistance would be invaluable. 
"I returned to Yeto when I was 24. I had achieved what I wanted.
"When I was 28, I ordered my court wizard to initate a plan: the plan that would destroy the swords once and for all. They couldn't be destroyed by Materian means. They were made in Hell; it would take Hell to break them.
"When I was 29, it was ready. When I was 29, I ordered five people to be sacrificed to power a ritual. When I was 29, I went to Hell. I met an aspect of Yoru. I was informed that the only way he would destroy the blades was if I brought all seven before him at the same time. So, I wished for the power to do that. The power to destroy all of the bearers who would contest me, and all of the shoguns and gensuis who would defy my vision of a united Yeto. When I was 29, I ascended, and became a devil.
"I waged a war across the country, of a kind that had never been heard of before. I took the throne by force, and crushed every province one by one, with the aid of the hobgoblins, with my gensui Mako, with the mages of the Wakahisa family. I drew out the remaining three swords. I vanquished their weilders, including the man who ascended himself, for the sole purpose of opposing me. I used the ritual again; I brought all seven screaming, furious swords to Yoru's feet. They were destroyed: their souls condemned to Hell, where they should have been nearly 2000 years earlier. 
"I returned to Materia to finish what I had started. I conquered the entire country, a feat beyond any other in history. I abolished the old system, the shogunate that perpetuated war and destruction. And when I was finished, I left. I was done. I was the end of the Miro line. I was the culmination of the Miro line. I had finished the goal that my forefathers had struggled under for hundreds of years.
"I am Lord Osamu Miro. Former shogun of Miyagi. Former emperor of Yeto.  I am a warlord of the highest caliber, and I have not met an opponent who could stand against me and the forces I command. I am an archdevil, a king in Hell, ascended for my lust that will not be dissuaded or denied." He smiled, pulling Lucca in closer so their foreheads touched, as his voice dropped, "And you are mine, and will be mine forever."
The druid had listened intently as he spoke, hanging onto every word. Now, he closed his eyes briefly as Osamu finished, a soft, almost contented cast suffusing his features. Returning the smile he agreed, his words a murmer, "Yes, my lord, Osamu," He lingered over the name, tasting it's unfamiliar syllables, "I am. Forever."
Osamu leaned forward and kissed Lucca again. After holding him for a moment, he said, "If you do not mind, I told Mako and Junko that I would give them further instruction." He pulled Lucca closer, drawing one of his wings up over him, "But I do not need to go anywhere right now."
Settling more comfortably against him, the druid closed his eyes and nodded, "Of course...long as we can stay like this for a while, I don't mind in the least..." Osamu closed his eyes, his focus elsewhere, but he kept his hold on Lucca tight.
----
Alright. I owe you an explanation.
About frickin' time. 
I apologize.
Ya, you fuckin' better. But, dropping off the map isn't exactly you, so I want the explanation.
Well...I suppose I will start with the moral.
Oh fuck, this'll be good.
Don't accept summons from people you don't know.
...Oh my fuckin' god, what kind of stupid idiot are you?! Mako's laugh echoed in Osamu's mind. Oh, fuck, this story is going to be hilarious.
You don't even know. Osamu sighed. You know the Kamun degenerate? 
The guy that fucked everything over? Yeah.
For whatever reason, entertainment I guess, he, or his minions, summoned me to Materia.
He's got minions in Materia? Isn't that illegal?
He's got half-bred spawn in Materia, praying to him for power.
...What?? That *really* can't be allowed.
It will sort itself out if it has to. Regardless: I received a call to summons, and I accepted without much thought. The act of being summoned put me under an enchantment. I lost my memory entirely, and was put into the body of a middle-aged half-elven Asonian man. I was then sold to a woman for a lot of property. By this point, Mako's laughter overwhelmed Osamu's speech. When Mako calmed down somewhat, he continued, The woman was justifiably slain about 6 months later. After that, I had none of my memories, no direction, so I just lived out my life as this man named Victor.
Oh my God, that's hilarious. So, what did you do?
I...lived an unassuming life in Asanon? I got a job and bought a house? The job was basically 'mercenarial diplomat'. It was nice; I spent my summers hunting game with a tribe of gnolls.
Well. That's something. So, you got back; why were you freaking out about extraplanars?
In Materian time, 6 months ago, a large force of extraplanars calling themselves the All attacked Mirilarin. Me and a small group of others were conscripted by a fey to leave the continent and muster the strength to destroy them and reclaim the plane. As much as I'm shamed to admit it, we spent 6 months preparing, pushing them back, and I died in what was apparently the final battle. I was sent back to Hell I died, since I was still a summon, after all. I panicked, because I didn't know the outcome, I couldn't leave a battle unfinished, and you know how time flows oddly outside of Materia. It is finished now; all that's left is rebuilding.
Seriously? You went down? Was it a good death?
...I suppose. I was drawing fire away from the person who was casting the ritual needed to seal the planar hole the All were using to invade. I was already nearly dead before I was hit with a spell of some sort that killed me instantly. I don't know as if it was a *good* death, but the caster finished the ritual because of it.
Were you outnumbered?
Drastically.
...Well, you lose points for getting shot by magic, and for dying at the last fuckin' second, but yeah, sacrificing for the team is legit. Respect. ...So, if we missed the party, why are we still here? People are gonna get pissed.
We will leave shortly. But we will be coming back.
Huh?
Well, I suppose that is up to you. I am coming back. I have arranged with a friend to be resummoned, though this time without the complete amnesia and humiliation. My...persona, died with unfinished business that I will not abandon.
You have friends?
...I can have friends.
No no, you can. You just don't. The thought of you having friends is like...you're blowing my mind.
...
...Wait. What 'business' do you have leftover from your game of House that's so important? ...Did you fuckin' adopt more kids?
...
Aww, you fuckin' did, didn't you?
I promised their mother I would raise them. 
Awww, dude, you gotta stop *doing* that! And aren't they gonna be pretty freaked out that you're suddenly a fuckin' devil?
Considering I only adopted them about a week ago, they've only spent a few hours with me at best, and the fact that they were left by their mother because she was going back to her life as a seal serving a fey named Whale Mage, who I assure you is even more ludicrous than you are already imagining, I think they will manage. ...The larger issue is my son.
How many kids did you adopt?! People have to stop putting their kids near you. 
I did not adopt him.
...Woah, did you actually have a kid with someone?
No.
...Ok, ok, explain. This will be good.
I saved a fey raccoon's life. It gave me a random boon, which summoned a bird that stole some of my hair, which a fey stork used to make an infant copy of me.
.............You have a tiny copy of you.
Well, I suppose he's a copy of Victor Erzebet. And he is less a duplicate and more a son with a strikingly similar appearance.
...So what you're saying is, you have such a *fuckin desperate need* to adopt kids, that the fuckin' fey just gave you one as a freebie. That's actually yours this time, because by the fifth one, they thought you should maybe be involved in actually making it.
...
Cool. So you're going back to finish your game of House.
...We will go back to Hell in a few hours. I will be resummoned, I assume. If you want, I can summon you afterwards.
Heh heh. Sure. Beats fuckin' sitting around. Been so fuckin' sick of sitting around. 
I'm sorry.
What for?
For not giving you a reason for following me.
Eh. You had some time saved up. I knew you'd come around again eventually. But yeah, fuck, you owe me for lost time.
I'm sure I can deliver.
You gonna top conquering Yeto?
...There is a particular warmonger who I, for one, am quite sick of being hounded by.
Wait, Yashin? You *seen* that guy's army?
I think it's broken remnants will look lovely added to mine.
You don't have an army.
Well, then I guess my gensui has his work cut out for him, doesn't he?
...Aww haw haw yeah.
Let me finish this lifetime in Materia. Then, we'll go to work.
Fuck. Yes.
...
You sound a lot better, Mako added after a pause.
I feel a lot better. I think...not being me for a while was good. It gave me...some perspective.
If that's what it took, I'm not complaining. Glad you're not dead.
----
Junko?
Did you figure out what’s going on?
Yes. The All have been evicted. The remaining alien creatures have been made into natives through magic, and are neither a threat or concern.
So, the world is safe and everything?
Yes.
Then we should go back, because you know how people get. It’s bad enough Mako runs around Etheria like an idiot.
We will, shortly. ...I am sorry.
For what, abandoning us? You should be.
I did not mean to, not for a moment. I shouldn’t have accepted the summons, that was my own idiocy, but I lost my memory and power immediately, so there was nothing I could do or even knew to do. I apologize all the same.
Hmph
...Junko...who am I to you?
Huh?
Who am I to you?
What sort of question is that?
Could you answer it anyways?
You’re...my lord? The shogun I serve?
Is that everything?
What are you even talking about?
...I was terrible to you. I was terrible, and I only now realize it in hindsight.
You aren’t making any sense.
You’re a daughter to me. You always have been. But I was a terrible father, because for every time I showed you affection, there would be a time that I would take it away and treat you like a servant. You never were. You were always my daughter, even though we weren’t related, but I was too self-absorbed to see how I was treating you.
What…? What brought this on? You’re not my father!
No...no, not by blood...but I acted like it. I think we both know I played the part. And I apologize for not playing it well. Junko made some flustered noises, but Osamu continued, I will do better in the future. Because you mean so very much to me. Your mother left you in my care, and I should have done better at letting you know, exactly, how much you mean to me. I should have told you how much it hurt when you and your sister left, incredibly happy I was that you decided to come back. I tried to stop you from coming with me to Hell, but in the end I let you, not because you convinced me, but because you’re my family and I wanted you there with me, as selfish as that was. Osamu shifted to one side, pulling away from the sleeping Lucca. Once assured that he was quite asleep, Osamu teleported to Junko. “You are my family, you are my daughter, and I love you. I am sorry for not telling you this, and I promise I’ll do better in the future.”
Junko looked up at him, expression somewhere between tears and rage. She folded her arms tightly and looked away, not saying anything. Eventually though, she muttered, “...Hikosa said I always was a Miro…”
“If you want the name, you can gladly have it.”
She gazed at him in confusion, “I...I can’t, that’s...I’m…”
He smiled slightly, “You haven’t used your old family name since long before who you are now. You’ve long since earned mine, and you can use it if you’d like. Heh. No one else is.”
With a distant look, she said quietly, “Junko Miro.”
“My lovely daughter,” he added, leaning down to kiss her forehead.
----
Osamu spoke to both Mako and Junko more, before teleporting to Engiadina in the pre-dawn while Lucca still slept. He spoke to Ryuji, who accepted that the devil before him was in fact previously Victor, and learned that he and Caitlyn hadn't yet told the children about Victor's death. Ryuji accepted, if not fully approved, of Osamu's plan to be resummoned, and agreed to meet with him and Lucca later in the day, after it had been taken care of. 
With that completed, Oamu teleported again and acquired three scrolls, returning before Lucca woke up.
----
Lucca awoke later in the morning; Osamu was next to him in the bed, propped upright and with his eyes closed. When he felt Lucca stir, he opened one of his eyes a slit. "Good morning," he said. "How does it feel, not needing to save the world today?"
The druid considered the question for a few moments before shrugging slightly. "Not really any different, to be honest. I don't think it's sunk in quite yet." He lay looking thoughtful for a bit longer before rolling over to face the other man, "Still a lot to do...gotta go talk to the kids, bring them home...put this place back into some semblance of a functional state so we can do that, too; the All really made a mess of everything..." He gave a small crooked smile, "But we're here, we're together, it is over...the rest is small potatoes, really."
Osamu closed his eye again, smiling slightly. "Let me know when you are awake and ready. I will return to Hell, and Pierce will come here and summon me. I'd rather not do anything else until I'm properly invited to Materia."
Lucca gave a soft sigh and sat up. "Guess I'd better get on it, then." He said as he stretched, stifling a small yawn. "Definitely wanna get that done sooner rather than later." He sat for a few moments longer before reluctantly getting out of bed; Osamu ran his tail along him as he moved away, earning a smile. Beginning to pick his way across the floor, he scooped up his bag as he made for the door. "Not much I have to do, just gonna get cleaned up a bit, I'll be quick."
"There is no great hurry. Don't rush yourself," Osamu said, continuing to sit placidly. When Lucca went downstairs, he found about twenty Shares stacked up neatly in a pile in the living room corner, staring and blinking in a little pyramid. He stopped to eye them for a moment, asking Where'd these dudes come from? You collect 'em up for Pierce or something?
Yes, they were lying about the town, and he's extremely worried for them. He's been collecting them non-stop since yesterday, but there are probably millions of them, and the ones that are being found are being destroyed. I thought I would pick up the ones that I saw before other people did. The Shares continued to blink passively, their pupils moving about as their gazes roved about the room.
He's still at it, eh? Sheesh...Is he legit trying to get all of them? As they conversed Lucca poked about the room, hunting for and digging out belongings here and there. Inspecting a shirt retreived from an empty flowerpot, he added teasingly, I like how you arranged them in a nice little pyramid. Dork.
They stacked wonderfully. And yes, I believe he is intending on collecting all of the ones he feels are in danger, at least.
He's got his work cut out for him, then, I'd imagine. He fell to thoughtful silence for a moment, standing on tiptoe to retrieve a bar of soap from atop an upside-down bookshelf. We should see about helping him out, once we've got some of our shit sorted out. Least we could do, right? After a quick once over, he added the soap to the growing collection of items in his arms, commenting, You know what I wanna know? What the hell the All figured they were trying to accomplish in here. Like, why? Why is this upside down? But the books are right side up? What the heck is that all about?
I assure you, I have no idea. I would think that if anyone had the slightest inkling, it would be Pierce.
Oh I figured. Still...He shook his head, Maybe I'll ask him when he gets here. The druid continued his hunt through the house, occasionally righting and rearranging things as he went. Eventually managing to locate the rest of what he had been looking for, he headed for the bathroom, silently wondering what the chances where that the shower would actually be useable. He found that, while the water did run, the showerhead was no longer attached; it was discovered inside the reservoir of the toilet. Throwing his hands up with a resigned sigh, he set about remedying the problem, muttering under his breath about 'crackhead All' all the while. 
Showered and with the bathroom in a mostly-functional state, Lucca returned to the bedroom where Osamu was still sitting, meditating peacefully. When the entered, he opened his eyes and asked, "Are you ready? I should be going."
Crossing the room to take a seat on the bed next to him, Lucca sighed, "I know. And I guess so, much as I can be."
Osamu slid forwards to sit beside him. He drew his hand along Lucca's cheek, "It will take only as long as it is to cast the spell, which I believe is ten minutes. Then, we should perhaps turn our attentions to the children."
The druid leaned into his touch. "Of course. They've been left far longer than I like already..." He said quietly. He chewed at his lip briefly, looking remorseful, then dismissed his thoughts with a shake of his head; now was not the time, they would be addressed.
"They are all fine," Osamu said without prompt. Lucca blinked in confusion, looking up at him searchingly as he went on. "They were asleep when I checked on them, and the Komatsus refrained from breaking them the news yesterday. I will admit, I am also not sure how best to tell them, especially the girls, but, something will be worked out." He brushed back Lucca's hair, "Do not blame yourself for not going to them immediately. You needed time to support yourself first."
"I didn't realize you could hear me like that...heh..." He said with a small, crooked smile. "Thank you....I'm glad everything is alright over there...I know we'll get it figured out, but we'll talk about it when you get back."
He leaned in and kissed Lucca quickly before saying, "Time to go." He pulled three scrolls out of his wallet and handed them to Lucca, "One is to summon me. The other two are the cost of the spell. Just wave to Pierce through the Shares, and he will arrive. I will see you again presently."
Accepting the scrolls, Lucca regarded them solemnly for a long moment, then nodded, "Alright, got it." He gave a slightly bemused smile, "I feel like I should be bidding you a safe trip or something, but that's kinda silly...but anyway, yes. See you soon." He kissed Osamu once more, almost shyly. Osamu smiled, stood up, and disappeared.
You're so serious. You act as though I won't be able to literally keep talking to you the entire time, Osamu's voice said in his mind.
I'll have to ask you to forgive me that, I can't help it. Lucca responded, getting up and heading back downstairs. It was barely yesterday that I suddenly lost you and spent the better part of the day in my own sort of hell, with not even the slightest idea how long it'd be before you got back or what on earth I'd do without you...That sorta thing makes an impression on a person. I'm sorry.
...I apologize. I don't mean to make light of your grief, Osamu replied. 
I know, it's alright.
Making his way across the living room, he stood before the pyramid of shares for a moment before giving a broad, somewhat awkward wave. The Shares blinked at him unresponsively. Pierce suddenly appeared directly in front of him, somewhat too close for comfort. He backed away quickly, apologizing, "I'm sorry! Sorry. I was teleporting based on what they can see, and they can't see very far."
"It's okay, it's cool. I understand. No worries." Lucca replied somewhat tersely, not quite having shaken off the shock of suddenly having someone so close to him. "How're you doing? How're your dudes?" He asked, gesturing to the pile of Shares to clarify.
"Oh...I'm..." he paused for a moment. "...That is a hard question to answer...I'm...ok, I guess? Not dead, so better than I would have guessed I would be twenty-four hours ago?" He shrugged slightly, "I don't even know. I don't know what I am, let alone how I am." He sighed, and with a flick of his wrist, another Share joined the pile. "They're doing...better. The average has shifted from 'terrified panic' to 'catatonic horror'. The Completes are all safe now. I'm still trying to collect Shares, but," he summoned another one, "there are a lot of them."
Lucca considered this, then nodded, "Well, as long as you're alive and safe, and most of them are too, you've got somewhere to start from at least, right? Where did you end up putting them anyway?"
"Somewhere in the Northlands," Pierce shrugged, continuing to summon a Share every few seconds. "I'm not...entirely certain where. It's...near the treeline, I think. It's away from everyone, at least."
"I'll see about having a look, once things are sorted out...make sure it's not on a migration route or something like that. As long as it's not, nobody will give a damn and you'll be home free to stay as long as you want." He held out the scrolls to the other man, "But anyway...ready to do this? I don't wanna keep you too long."
"No trouble. I'm in no rush or anything," he said, taking the papers. "Where do you want the circle?"
"Uhm...the attic? That work?"
"It should, if there's enough room," he said, gesturing for Lucca to lead on. Lucca went upstairs, followed by Pierce who floated up the stairs without bending his knees, leaving a trail of summoned Shares behind him. They went to the attic, where they found the majority of the house's flatware and every pair of pants; after straightening out an open space, Pierce prepared the ritual. Some time later, it was complete.
As Pierce finished the spell, Lucca heard Osamu ask, Is that Pierce? I'd rather not a repeat of last time.
Yes.
With that, Osamu stood before them once again. He smiled placidly. Pierce smiled in turn, "Wait long?"
"Who ever really knows in the Outer Planes?" he replied. 
"So," Pierce said, turning to Lucca, "What are the terms I'm outlining?"
"...What?"
"The terms. These summons, they need a purpose and a price. You give the summon a task, and you offer payment."
"I...I don't know? I don't have any..." He looked to Osamu for assistance, "I have no idea what they should be...I guess...that you are to stay on Materia for so long as I see fit? Can that be it?"
"Hmm," Pierce considered, "That's a little open-ended, but..." he turned back, "I require you to stay on this plane in service to this man, until he dismisses you. You're free to go about your own devices otherwise."
"That is acceptable," Osamu replied.
Pierce continued, "Do you have payment in mind?"
"Of course," he replied, grinning knowingly. He leaned over slightly, managing to look overbearingly over Lucca, despite being trapped within the summoning circle. "When my term is over and he is ready to send me back to Hell, he will go as well, and it will be his turn to serve me." Pierce looked at Lucca for his response.
The druid's eyes were fixed Osamu's, a strange expression on his face: surprise mingling with an almost pleased look and perhaps a touch of apprehension. After a moment, he gave a single firm nod, an odd little smile touching the corners of his lips. "Yes, I can agree to that."
Pierce looked back and forth, then gave a small nod. "Alright. In exchange for your service to this Materian man on his plane, you will be paid in kind with his service in your plane following." He held out his hand to Osamu, "Agreed?"
"Agreed." The pair shook, and Osamu stepped out of the circle. "Thank you for your assistance," he said to Pierce.
"No trouble," he replied. "But I have to ask...why did you want two more scrolls of Summon Planar Ally as offering?" 
Holding them up, Osamu replied, "Because if I'm here for the purposes if family, it only seems right to have the entire family here." He offered them to Pierce, "If you aren't too busy, I would appreciate you casting these as well. I have the components and the targets' names; I could cast them myself, but it's probably better to avoid causing problems. Devils summoning devils could lead to problems."
"Sure," Pierce complied, "as long as you vouch for them." He winced, "I've already gotten into trouble summoning devils; what's a few more?" Pierce copied out the spell and began to cast. "What's the focus offering?"
"Here," Osamu passed over a brown paper-wrapped package that Pierce took and added to the array.
Osamu turned to Lucca, "If you would rather meet them later, that is fine, but I would like to summon them now so they are in the same time progression as myself."
Lucca shrugged and shook his head, "I'd rather meet them now, unless you think I ought not to for some reason. If they're family, it seems silly to wait." Osamu smiled and turned his attentions back towards Pierce.
The spell was completed; standing in the circle was a devil that somehow managed to look very human and very inhuman at the same time. He wore a pair of ill-kept hakama, but nothing else; his fingers and toes were cruel and elongate claws, his hair had been replaced with broad, blonde spikes, and he possessed a similarly spiked tail. He saw Osamu and grinned, revealing not only his shark-like teeth, but also that his mouth was apparently much wider than a human's. Osamu smiled back. "I would like to introduce Mako Murakami. Technically, he's my gensui rikugun taisho. In practice, he's closer to a no-account brother that lives in my house and eats my food."
"Ooh, harsh," Mako replied good-naturedly. He looked at the floor, "How's this thing work?"
Osamu gestured towards Pierce. "My friend Percival Webber summoned you, with that offering," he pointed to the package. "Now, he will present a task and a payment, and if you both come to an agreement, you will be permitted to stay on Materia until the task is complete."
"Presents for me?" Mako asked with a self-mocking excitement. He stopped, made a 'slow down' gesture, and pointed at Pierce, "Ok, what are you exactly?"
"I...don't...know..." Pierce said slowly, becoming visibly more uncomfortable with each word.
Mako looked at him blankly before offering, "Huh. I don't know either. You know?" he pointed at Osamu.
Osamu made a thoughtful expression, "Something new, I suppose. He was a human two days ago. Now, we are reasonably certain he is of a race that didn't exist until yesterday."
"Magic bullshit?" Mako asked dryly.
"Yes. But he saved the entire plane from destruction by doing it, and managed to live in the process, so I think it was positive overall," Osamu replied placidly.
"So he did better than you then," Mako asked with a sidelong grin. Osamu rolled his eyes, as Mako returned his attentions to the package. He tore the paper apart like tissue with his scythe-like hands, pulling out what appeared to be a Yeto-styled shirt that was simultaniously exceedingly expensive and offensively obtrusive. 
"Aww, did you pick this out just for me?" Mako asked Osamu, disregarding Pierce altogether.
Osamu smiled, "It had the additional benefit of carrying the subtle inference that you should wear a shirt."
"Ah, fuck 'em," Mako blew him off, but pulled the shirt on regardless, managing to avoid slicing it apart on his many spikes. "So! I heard there were deals or things."
"The deal will be: serve me on Materia until I am dismissed, and you will be paid for your services," Osamu explained.
"Define 'serve'."
"I assume you'll just do what you're best at."
"Leading armies?"
"Sitting in my house and eating my food."
Mako grinned, "Fucker. What am I getting paid?"
"I'm paying for the house and food."
"Eh," Mako shrugged, still grinning. "Good enough."
Osamu gestured to Pierce, who made a conceeding expression, "As per your outlined contract, you will remain in Materia and follow Osamu Miro's direction for the length of time that he is also employed in Materia. In exchange, you will be provided for during your stay. Do you accept?" he asked, extending his hand.
"Heh. I like your hands," Mako said as he shook; indeed, the similarities were striking. Mako stepped out of the circle. "I'm going to need a disguise or some shit, aren't I? If I'm hanging around for a while, my hat isn't gonna cut it."
"Hmm," Osamu considered. "Do we have anything that would affect a long-term physical disguise?"
"Cohen has that necklace that turns him into an elf," Pierce offered. "Cress' bracelet would work, but he needs that. ...I could probably make a hat with Alter Self enchanted into it, that wouldn't be difficult."
"The hat is a good idea, I'd think, unless Cohen wants to lend us his necklace."
As Osamu and Pierce continued this discussion, Mako stepped out of the circle and approached Lucca, who had been hovering quietly behind Osamu. "So, who're you?" He made a scrutinizing face, "...I'd maybe guess that you were the son he mentioned, but...he said he was a copy of a half-elf, and you certainly don't look elfy. You another friend?" He grinned, "God, it's weird, Osamu having friends."
Lucca faltered, "I...I guess? Something like that...I..."
He glanced up and smiled slightly as he felt Osamu's tail wrap up around his back and shoulder while he explained, "I'm terribly sorry. Mako, this is Lucca Wakiya. He's..." he paused, "You're right, there really isn't a good term for it, is there? He's my partner." He made a thoughtful face, as though making a mental note, "We should get married."
"...Wh-what?" Lucca's gaze whipped back up and he stared at Osamu, flabbergasted at the sudden mention of marriage.
Mako had turned his full attention back to Osamu again. After a long pause, he said simply, "...I knew you were gay."
"You did not."
"I did!"
"You did not, because I'm not gay." As Osamu stated this, Pierce rolled his eyes and started on the third circle. 
Mako gestured animatedly at Lucca, "You just said that you were going to marry a guy, and you're arguing that you're not gay?"
Osamu looked smug as he said, "If I was gay, I wouldn't regularly have sex with women."
"If you regularly have sex with women, why are you marrying a guy?"
"Because I also regularly have sex with him, in addition to having a close relationship with him founded in trust and love that I think would make for a good marriage partnership." Lucca made a small noise, his expression by this point an odd mix of mortified and faintly pleased.
"So, you're having sex with him, and also women."
"Yes."
"...So, you're bi?"
"Most of the women aren't human."
Mako blinked at him a few times, "...So, you're just a horny fuck." He looked into space as he added, "I think I knew that too."
"Are we quite done with this topic?"
Mako tapped his chin a few times, "...Mmm. Yes. This topic being your horny fuckness." He turned his gaze back to Lucca and regarded him thoughtfully for a short while, causing the already thoroughly self-concious druid to squirm slightly. Eventually, he turned back to Osamu, "Can you even marry guys? How does that even work?"
"Yes, you can marry two men in Asanon," Osamu explained almost tiredly.
"But like...how? Not like, it's wrong or anything, but like...who owns the stuff?"
"Both of us."
Mako just squinted, trying to work it through. "...Nah, not getting it," he said eventually, shaking his head. "Asanon's got some weird laws."
"It's been almost 200 years; some things are bound to change."
"I'll say," Mako grinned, "You got friends."
"Are we going to keep fixating on this? I can have friends," he said with mock exasperation.
"It only took you 240 years." He gave a thumbs up, "Good job! You got there!" Osamu sighed and rubbed his forehead, but a grin still obviously played on his mouth. Lucca watched their continued exchange with no small amount of amusement, in spite of his embarrassment. He found the newcomer already growing on him, in spite of his initial intimidation. Osamu turned his attentions back towards Pierce, in order to pass him the offering needed to power the spell. Mako looked at Lucca. "So," he said, bobbing his head slightly a few times. "You bone dudes. How's that going for ya?"
The druid winced slightly, his face reddening once more, "I...uhhh...well, I guess?" He offered, adding awkwardly after a moment, "...Just him though...one dude, not plural..."
"Cool." He bobbed his head a bit. "...Reeeeeally need something to go on other than 'bones dudes'. Gettin' a reeeeeally one-sided picture of you here."
"I-I'm a druid...?" He blurted uncertainly, greatful for a chance to change the topic.
Mako gave him a look, "Oh fuck, do you have an elephant life partner too?"
"What...?...Oh...no, no I don't have a companion; I don't roll like that..." He paused, then said with a slight grin, "Pretty sure I read about that, though, a long time ago. It's in the archives...you wanted to hunt this druid's mastodon companion, so for some reason he brought it to your place and then got pissed about it?"
"Why the fuck would you bring your friggen pet to a guy who wanted to buy it if you weren't gonna sell it?!" Mako asked, hands wide in an exaggerated questioning gesture. "I sent guys to buy it, he friggen brought it into my house...and then got all pissy when I wanted to buy it! Of course I was gonna friggen eat it, it's what you do with animals! It's what animals are for! Animals eat each other! Fine, it's your pet, I get it, but then don't friggen bring it over and give me a goddamned lecture on it! Geeze!" He finished his rant and carried on, his voice conversational again, "So, what do druids that aren't shagging their elephants do? 'Cause I only met the one, and frankly after that shit and the stunt he pulled in the command post, I really didn't feel like getting to know him any better. Those guys were fuckin' touched. 'Cept for the Gaivoutnan guy. He was alright."
"The feeling was apparently mutual, by the sounds of it...you got called a 'barbaric fool' in the archives, which is some pretty damn intense wording by their standards." Lucca paused to consider his answer, "Druids do all sorts of shit, really...I mean, at the end of the day we're all supposed to be concerned with learning about and furthering nature, but that's pretty much the extent of the cohesion there. Everyone does it differently...I knew one dude who had spent, like, seventy-five years studying the shit out of this one patch of ferns. That was it, just hangin' with these plants and writing about them in a little book...It was weird. A lot of them do their own thing out in the bush...That's not my kinda jam though. I work in cities, trying to encourage greater integration and harmony with nature for the benefit of both it and the people who live there."
"So...recycling?" Mako looked genuinely confused. 
"Ehh, thats a part of it, but not nearly the whole picture...No, I like to focus on re-integrating nature, generally starting with native flora, back into the built environment, making use of 'dead' space. Taking empty lots and what have you and turning them into little meadows and groves and shit. And along a similar line, I've been working on some excellent initiatives regarding educating people on making better, more sustainable use of their spaces, particularily in the realm of growing food producing plants...sorta like small-scale urban farming? At any rate, it's really cool." As he spoke he gestured animatedly, his enthusiasm bubbling out in spite of himself. With a faint frown, he added, "It was really starting to catch on in parts of Arlington...but I'd imagine its right fucked now...sucks..."
"...Those are some hella fancy words for 'gardening'. Where's Arlington, and why's it fucked? Gardening go out of style?"
Lucca narrowed his eyes for a moment, looking thoughtful. "...Really high level gardening." He corrected with a firm nod. "Arlington is in the middle of Asanon, more or less...It's right where the All started coming through...if what I saw in the capital is any indication, they'll have been rearranging everything and messed it all to shit. They were straight up moving buildings and stacking trees and shit in Kalleandar..."
"It is...in a state," Osamu threw in. "We are much better off staying in Lockeport for the near future. It might not even be worth going back to Arlington at all, considering the anarchy that will be going on there. We can go back to see if we can find any of our belongings, but considering that the house had been emptied and moved around along with everyone else's, we are unlikely to reacquire most of our things." He frowned, "Considering that, and the loss of my bag, we have taken a significant financial loss. At least we still have the house in Lockeport."
Mako asked, "Fucked the city right over?"
"Oh yes. It's probably not entirely habitable at the moment."
"Well, that should be great for you," Mako grinned back towards Lucca. "Nothing like breaking something apart to build it back right again. Should have all sorts of empty lots and shit."
The druid returned the smile after a pause, his mind clearly elsewhere as he answered, "Too true, you make a very good point."
Osamu went back to Lucca's side. "We will find what we can, and what we can't is replaceable. The children can come to Lockeport; it will not take long for all of us to straighten the house. Then we can go to Tsimshian and find your grandmother. I would think the girls especially would be better off finally staying in one stable place, so it might be better if they didn't go to the Northlands right away." Lucca considered this, then gave a small conceeding nod. He turned to Mako, "On that note, what is your disguise going to be? I am going to maintain the persona of Victor Erzebet." He thought for a moment, "What is the simplest connection that explains your continuous presence? My brother?"
"What, contracted devil too suspicious?" Mako grinned.
"Brother is likely the simplest. I suppose you'll need to..." Osamu paused, "No, the simplest solution is for you to be my half-brother. Then your disguise can be an elf, and you'll be much less accountable for any sort of personal history or...social imperfections," he said with a grin.
"Ha ha," he replied sarcastically. "Oh! Can my hair be stupid colours?"
"...Yes."
"Sick."
Pierce finished the second spell, and a young woman stood in the center. She appeared to be fully human Yetoman in her young twenties, if that, with an almost otherworldly flawlessness of skin, hair and proportion. Osamu turned his attentions towards her. "And this is my daughter Junko. Junko, this is Percival Webber, and Lucca Wakiya."
She gave a brief smile to them both before turning to Pierce, "Let's get the deal over with quick. It's weird being on the other side of a summoning."
"You cast summons usually?" he asked. 
"I'm a summoner, so yes," she said, picking up the package that had been left for her and dropping it into her shoulder bag without opening it. "Never been summoned before, actually."
"Huh," Pierce paused. "I've never met another summoner before."
"You're a summoner too? I've never met one either. At least not one who admitted it. What sort?"
"I...was, Etherian, until yesterday..." he trailed off. "I tried summoning my eidolon but...but apparently she's...not my eidolon anymore."
"Ooh, you're the man who got altered summoning the All creatures," she said. "That sucks. You're still a summoner though, right? Obviously; you still summoned me. So, you have must have an eidolon somewhere." Pierce didn't reply, though his expression was somewhat despondant. She shrugged, her expression almost patronizing.
"Since this is a formality more than anything," Osamu interjected, "I'll propose the same offer I gave to Mako. Room and board in exchange for assistance while in Etheria. If you'd rather, I can change it for pay. I have enough funds and a job in my name as Victor, I could employ you and you could live on your own."
Junko looked at her nails, considering. "...I'll take the room for now. If I want to move out, I can. But I'd prefer to get a feel for the time first."
Osamu turned towards Pierce and nodded. Pierce straightened and said, "In exchange for service to Osamu Miro while he is on Materia, he will provide for your stay, however the two of you agree at fit."
"That's acceptable," she said, stepping out of the circle. Looking around the attic, she said, "So...this is it, then?"
"This is the attic, yes," Osamu explained. "We are going to go collect the kids. When you go downstairs, you'll notice that the whole place makes no sense; the All moved absolutely everything around, and everything is a mess. If you feel inclined, put things back in a sensical order. Junko, the large bedroom is mine and Lucca's; Virgil's is the blue room on the left. The other two rooms were a guest room and Lucca's old room; feel free to claim whichever you'd prefer, and Xue and Nuan can have the other."
"What about me?" Mako asked petulantly.
"I assumed you'd be living under a rock in the garden," Osamu replied with a straight face. Junko grinned, and Mako stuck his tongue out. He smiled and continued, "In all seriousness, we don't have enough rooms, but you've never preferred having your own space like Junko has. You can set yourself up here, in the cellar, in the shed, or in the living room. Every room is your room."
"Including your room?"
"That room holds a higher than average chance that you'll walk in on me having sex, but certainly."
"Man, you go away for a bit and you get sassy," Mako said, still smiling. He walked past the group, patting Osamu and Lucca on the shoulders as he did. "You shoulda gone on vacation a long time ago. See you later, Pierce; thanks for the lift!" With that, he hopped down the hatch that led downstairs. 
Junko made to follow suit. "We should chat sometime. Compare skills," she said towards Pierce. She passed by the other two with little remark and climbed down after Mako.
Turning back to Pierce, Osamu bowed, "Thank you for everything. There isn't much I can do to convey the extent of my gratitude, but if there is anything you need from me, do not hesitate to ask."
"Oh, um, no trouble," he said, appearing to snap back from deep thought. "What are friends for? I guess if you can keep picking up Shares for me, that would be great." He snapped his fingers, summoning yet another. "Every one that's in a safe place is one less I have to worry about moving right now." 
"Of course, I'll pick up any I see on my way."
"You have an interesting family," he said, grinning slightly.
Osamu returned the gesture, "It would be terribly boring without them."
"Heh. You're right. Anyways," he looked around, but not at anything in the room. "Guess I'll be going then. Call me if you need me?"
"I'll be in touch," Osamu replied. With that, Pierce disappeared. "Well now," he turned to Lucca, "Ready to collect the children?"
The druid nodded, the faintest tinge of misgiving colouring his expression. "What are we telling them, though? About all this?"
Looking thoughtful, he considered the question before responding, "I...I would tell Virgil the truth, at least. I attempted to hide it before, from Junko, and that...eventually led to conflict. It wasn't fair to her. As for Xue and Nuan, I am unsure. They have already had so much tumult in the last few weeks that I doubt they need more, but I don't want to leave them in the dark, as it were. I would appreciate your thoughts on the matter."
Lucca pursed his lips thoughtfully, then shook his head, "No, they all have to be told. That's not even a question, really. 'Cause like you said, it's simply unfair to leave them in the dark, any of them." He considered the matter a while longer before saying, "I guess with the girls, what I'm wondering is: is it better to wait in an attempt to mitigate the amount of craziness getting thrown at them all at once, or is it better to tell them now, get it all out there right away? I almost think option two is the better one...that way they're on the same page as the rest of us, they can adjust to it right away, and it's not one last upheaval lurking in their future, you know? I definitely don't like the idea of keeping something like this a secret, especially from just them...that seems like a good way to breed problems down the line. And I mean, yes, now is a stressful time to break more weird news, but, at the same time, maybe thats almost a good thing? Get all the weirdness out of the way at once, together and then move forward...Yeah?"
"Hmm...perhaps you're right," he conceded. "Perhaps the girls should be told seperately, however. Virgil will demand details and demonstrations, and that might be much for the girls right now. Just the knowledge should be enough for them for the moment, and we will leave the overwhelming proof for later."
"Yeah...probably a good call, I agree." Lucca nodded, adding thoughtfully,"...I'm honestly thinking we might be best off just framing like it's no big thing...just kinda how it's always been, almost? They're still getting to know us anyway...I'd imagine we could just slip it in there like another fact that's kinda neat but isnt anything to worry about? That way they know, but hopefully its easier to digest..." He finished with a shrug.
"Exactly." He brought his tail and wing around the shorter man, wrapping about him affectionately. "I will leave the girls in your capable hands while I explain to Virgil. Or, less explain and more answer to." He leaned his head into Lucca's, nuzzling his hair, "Do not press yourself into revealing what you aren't comfortable with."
Closing his eyes, the druid leaned into him and gave a small, crooked smile."I dunno...I don't overly want to, but I think it might be time for it." He sighed softly,"It doesnt seem right to keep it from them anymore, especially when so many others know now, and especially if we're telling them about you, you know? Heck, it's probably for the best to do it all together anyway...easier like that and all."
"I support your decision either way. I am sure no one will even give it a second thought, least of all the girls. What did Clover say, that changelings are considered lucky in Arroyito? Far less strange and scary than devils, I'm sure. They might appreciate some good fortune."
"Heh, yeah...'lucky'..." Lucca dropped his gaze, something almost forlorn flitting across his face. With a sigh, he shook it off. Fuck it, let's do it. I'm ready as I'll ever be.
Then let's be off.
-----------
"You're back!!" Virgil yelled out, running towards the two men. He threw himself into a hug, shoving his face into his father's waist. "Mr. Komatsu said you won!" He looked up and frowned, "Your hair changed again!"
Osamu, looking like Victor, smiled, "Yes, I thought it would be better if I didn't have everyone at home asking how my hair went entirely white all of a sudden, so I made it look like it was before." He picked up Virgil and hugged him, "I missed you..."
"I missed you too."
"Were you good for Mrs. Komatsu and Cheko?"
"Uh huh! And I tried really super hard to help Nuan an' Xue feel comfy, and Shintaro helped too when he wasn't at school."
"Excellent." He put down the boy and held out his hand, "Can you come with me? We need to talk about something before we go home." Virgil frowned, but let himself be led down the hall into a room, where Osamu closed the door. He gestured to the bed, which Virgil hopped up onto and crossed his legs. Osamu knelt down on the floor, putting him slightly below Virgil; he looked up at the boy with a deeply considering expression.
Virgil returned his father's gaze. After a quiet moment, he asked, "What are you doing?"
"...I'm thinking..." he said. After a pause, he said, "...I have a very long story, and I don't know how to start it. I don't know how to tell it, and what to put in and what to leave out."
Thinking himself, Virgil offered, "...Start at the beginning? An'...you can't put everything in. No story has everything in it, or you're gonna talk about trees and breakfasts and shirt colours and all sortsa stuff. So, just the important parts."
"Important parts?" Virgil nodded. "OK. I will tell you the important parts. Before I start though, I need you to remember something, alright?"
"What?"
"The story has a happy ending." He held his hand out to Virgil, "The story gets scary and sad, but at the end...it's happy. Alright?"
Virgil took hold of Osamu's hand and nodded, "Ok!"
Taking a deep breath, Osamu started, "Extraplanar creatures called the All arrived in Mirilarin. It was strange to them, and they were strange to it. So the All wanted to fix Mirilarin. That would be bad for everyone who lived there, because the All wanted to make it like their home, which isn't somewhere that humans and gnolls and everyone in Materia could live. A bunch of people from Mirilarin needed to stop the All from changing Mirilarin and the rest of the world."
"Daaad, I know this stuff," he said, grinning and leaning back.
With a smug face, Osamu said, "You told me to start at the beginning, didn't you?"
Still smiling, he said, "Augh, start from the beginning of the stuff I don't know!"
Returning the grin, he said, "Alright. Nine people went back to Mirilarin in a ship. Mr. Webber, Mr. Komatsu, Dr. Cohen, Ms. Redfern, Harlequin, Gemini, Cress, Lucca and myself. We had to stop the All. The All had frozen everything. They had moved everything and everyone around, messing up people's houses and putting people in the wrong places. In the center of Asanon, they did worse: they moved buildings and trees, and mixed everything and everyone around in a great big, messy jumble. The very worst things though, were that they made the small planar hole huge, because so many of them had pushed through it, and that they made a giant spell. A huge spell, blocks wide, that would freeze everyone in the world. We had to fix the hole, stop the spell and make the All go away, at the same time."
"But you did, right? If you didn't, you wouldn't have come back."
"You're jumping to the ending."
"Heh, sorry."
"Mr. Webber was the only one who could change the spell. Lucca, Ms. Redfern and Dr. Cohen had to close the hole. Cress protected Ms. Redfern, Mr. Komatsu protected Dr. Cohen, and I protected Lucca. We went to Korova, Lucca and I, and he managed to cast the spell and get away."
"Get away from what?"
"There were so many All. Big flying ones, and eyeball creatures like the one that Lucca, Clover and the doctor fought in Duvallon. There were lots of them, and they were all very, very powerful."
"But, you got away."
"Lucca got away," he corrected.
"But...you're here, so you had to have gotten away...?"
"I didn't, Virgil," he said with an odd expression.
"...But..."
"I didn't get away." His voice dropped, and he added almost conspiratorially, "But I came back." Virgil looked at him, at first in confusion, slowly changing to a wide-eyed realization. The boy drew a shaky breath and began to curl up and away as Osamu continued, bringing his hands up to the bed openly, "Please, I don't want you to be sad or frightened or confused. Remember, what did I say at the beginning?"
It took Virgil a few minutes, looking at Osamu with worry and concern, "...It has a happy ending..."
"Virgil, I didn't get away because I was trying to make sure that Lucca wasn't hurt, and that he could save the world. I woke up somewhere else, and the first thing I did was come back, because I was so worried that I'd lose time, that I'd be missing for years and I wouldn't know that you were safe and happy. That you...that you would be sad, because you'd think I was dead. That you would worry that I was somewhere else, not caring about you. And I was so incredibly lucky, that I came back and had only been gone for a few hours, and you were asleep and didn't know what had happened, and wouldn't ever have to be sad, thinking that I was gone." He gave the tiniest hint of a smile, "I promised that I'd be back for your birthday, and the last thing I want to be is a liar."
"Heh," Virgil gave a timid chuckle. "...You...You're...really my dad?" Osamu nodded. "...How do I know?"
"Well...there can't be very many devils who would come here claiming that, can there?"
"You're...really a devil?" he asked, and Osamu nodded.
"OK..." Virgil took a breath before beginning to ask an extensive series of questions regarding himself, Lucca, his father, their homes, their friends, their lives and other things besides. Osamu answered them all patiently and correctly, considering his honesty in declaring which things he didn't or couldn't know because he wasn't there.
Eventually, he ran out of questions. The boy thought about this for a few moments, then said, smiling timidly, "You...came back."
"I promised you I would. And now I won't leave again."
"Never?" Osamu shook his head. The boy considered this, and when he finally replied, there was a hint of sadness in his voice as he asked, "You're not gonna adventure anymore?"
"Heh...heh heh..." Osamu started to laugh. "Do you want me to?"
Virgil sniffed, then nodded slowly, "If you don't...who's gonna help people?"
"Someday, you,” he smiled. “You’re going to help so many people, because you are amazingly strong. I don't know anyone else your age who could handle the things you have with the grace you did."  Virgil grinned, part proud, part embarrassed. Osamu continued, "I might adventure more, but right now, I think I'm ready to go home. Are you?" The boy nodded. Osamu smiled and said gently, "I won't die. I won't lose my memory. I won't forget you or leave you. I can promise that now, because now I have all my memory. I am...probably going to seem a bit different, but not half so much as when I lost my memories a few weeks ago. Can you be patient with me, if I seem a bit odd?" Virgil nodded again. "Thank you." He held out his hand to him again; Virgil hesitated, then took it, pulling himself in to hug his father, who returned the gesture fully. "I love you," he said. "I love you so much."
"I love you too," he said. After a few moments, he pulled back, "So...what do you look like?"
"You think I don't look like this?"
Virgil frowned and shook his head, "Nuh uh. You were turning devil-y before, and you turned all white with horns 'n stuff." Osamu smiled placidly, and removed his shift. Virgil considered this with rapt interest, but without shock or fear. “...You look kind of like Mr. Komatsu,” he said finally.
“While I’m not sure he’d appreciate the comparison,” Osamu replied, abandoning the accent he’d had to fake, “I am from Yeto, yes.”
The boy noticed immediately, “You sound different.”
“I’m sorry,” Osamu winced slightly. “I have a Yetoman accent.”
“You didn’t a minute ago.”
“I was pretending.”
“How many voices can you do?”
Osamu blinked at the question. “Hmm...probably...a few. I never really tried…”
“Try!” Virgil grinned. “I wanna see!” Osamu considered this, then practiced a few sentences, affecting a different accent each time. “Hee hee. That’s cool.” Virgil judged, “How come you look an’ sound like you’re from Yeto?”
“I was born there. I was born human; I turned into a devil when I ascended, but I still look and sound like I did before.”
“How’d you ascend?” he asked with some excitement. “Did’ja climb another tower?”
“No, I didn’t. But that’s a much longer story for when you are older.”
“Awwww…” he whined hopefully.
“No.”
“Awwwwfine.” He considered something before asking, “How old are you?”
“I would be...about 225, I think.”
“Wooah. That’s really really old.”
“Well, time doesn’t really pass outside of Materia. It didn’t feel that long.”
“You don’t look that old.”
“Thank you,” Osamu said only somewhat facetiously, bowing his head.
“You look kinda younger.” He paused and leaned in, “Do you remember what that is now?” He pointed at Osamu’s face.
“What?”
“The line,” he pointed closer, nearly poking his face. “You didn’t remember before. What is it?”
Osamu made a tight-lipped frown, but pushed his bangs aside so Virgil could see it more clearly as he scooted forwards. “...It’s not a very interesting story.”
Reaching out, Virgil drew his finger along the mark on Osamu’s face. He grinned, “A boring story is better than none.”
“Heh,” Osamu grinned slightly. “When I was young, I was in the Hobgoblin Army."
"That's the army that's up in the north, right? That fights with Yeto?"
"Yes. I got permission to train with them, and when you’re training there, you need to win fights to keep your rank. They don’t use fake weapons, ever, even when it's jut practice; they make soldiers fight for real. I was in one of those fights, and I forgot that just because someone is a wizard, doesn’t mean they don’t know how to use a knife.”
“That was kinda dumb,” Virgil declared.
Osamu nodded, “I was very dumb. He cut my face because I let my guard down. They don’t let you use magical healing, so it scarred." He frowned, "I...really didn’t like how it looked. It bothered me so much, that when I turned into a devil, the mark stayed there, because that’s what I thought of when I pictured my face.”
“...Huh…” Virgil touched it again, “So...it was a scar, but it isn’t anymore?”
“No, it’s just a mark now.”
“Is it why you’ve got your hair covering it?”
“Hmh...yes…” he muttered absently. “I’d just...been wearing it like this for so long...I just never changed it.”
“It looks kinda silly. Sillier than the scar-mark. An’ you can still kinda see it anyways.”
Osamu smiled, “You’re rather brutal, aren’t you? What have I told you about being polite?”
“Sorry…” Virgil apologized, looking slightly remorseful as he bowed his head.
“I suppose you’re right though...here.” He straightened and moved forwards, “Help me fix it.”
Virgil looked confused, “How?”
“Well, devils always look the same. It’s hard for them to change what they look like, even their hair. They have to change themselves to do that. So, I need your help.”
Virgil crossed his legs and sat up straight, “What do I do?”
Osamu undid the tie holding his ponytail back, and tilted his head towards Virgil, “We want the bangs longer, to match the rest, correct? So, mix them back in.” Virgil looked thoughtful for a few seconds before cautiously manipulating Osamu’s hair. He prodded it a few times before Osamu said with a touch of humour, “Come now, you can mix better than that.” Virgil grinned, and ruffled Osamu’s hair vigorously. When his white hair was a complete mess, he pulled back; he shook it out and ran his hands through it once, smoothing it out. When he did, his bangs were suddenly longer, blended in with the rest of his hair, as it had been when he was Victor. “Is that better?”
Virgil nodded, still grinning, “You just did shifty magic though.”
Osamu shook his head, “No, it will stay this way.” He smiled, “And I can say with every bit of honesty that I couldn’t have ever done that without your help.” Virgil rolled his eyes good-naturedly, and Osamu tied his hair back once more. “Shall we get your things ready to go home? The All messed everything up, so the whole house needs a very thorough straightening.”
“Aww...cleaning is dumb.”
“Well, if you don’t come now, you won’t get to see all of the furniture upside-down.”
Virgil giggled, “Why’d they do that?”
“We don’t know.” Osamu stood up and held out his hand. “Let’s go home. There are two more people there I want you to meet.”
“Ok,” Virgil agreed. He took Osamu’s hand, and pulled himself up to hug his father once more. “You can’t go away again.”
“I won’t.”
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
With a final squeeze, Virgil let go. Osamu shifted back to the appearance of Victor, giving the boy pause. “...So, you can really do magic?”
“Yes. I can shift...somewhat like Lucca. Only people. I can teleport myself, and cast some spells, among other things.”
Virgil considered this, nodding, before adding critically, “You didn’t change your voice.”
Osamu made a self-mocking frown, adopting the accent again as he said, “I’m going to keep forgetting. Give me a nudge if I forget, will you?”
Virgil nodded, then asked, “Can you fly?”
“Hmn?”
“You’ve got wings. Can you fly?”
“...Yes, I suppose,” he replied hesitantly.
“Can you fly me?”
Osamu looked less than thrilled as he replied, “...That’s...not likely…”
“Aww, why?” he whined, grinning.
“You know very well why.”
“No I don’t, why would…” Virgil stopped and frowned incredulously, “You can’t be afraid of heights! You’ve got wings!”
“Flying means I’ll just fall farther.”
“Auugh, Daaaad, that’s the stupidest thing!!” Virgil exclaimed. Osamu paused and looked at Virgil with a curious sort of expression for a moment. Virgil looked back at him, “...What?”
Osamu smiled, “...Nothing. It’s nothing. Let’s go.”
“Ok.”
As they approached the door, Osamu said, “I love you, Virgil.”
Virgil gave an embarrassed grin, “Heh. Love you too.”
----
Lucca watched for a moment as Osamu and Virgil left, a faint smile playing on his lips, before turning his attentions to the other people in the room.
"Hello, ladies," He said with a smile that encompassed all three of them, and took on a playful sort of cast as he glanced at Cheko. The mimigan returned the grin. Moving to take a seat crosslegged on the floor, he asked "How have you all been? Have you two been having a nice time with Virgil and Shintaro?"
Cheko smiled, looking at the girls, "We've all been having a good time." Turning to Lucca, she added, "We're all just lucky I can cast language spells. It ain't perfect, but we've been gettin' by."
"We are very lucky, thank you so much for all you've done." He replied earnestly.
Xue smiled, "We got to make paintings! We never got to play with paint before," her words translated by the spell he had cast earlier. Nuan nodded, looking a tad shy, though it seemed perhaps that it was less particularly directed at Lucca, and more that she was just quiet.
"Aww, and I missed it!" He playfully lamented, "What sort of things did you paint? We'll have to do it again sometime, now that we're all together again, what do you think?"
Nuan nodded again. Xue ran off, and came back in a hurry. "I painted fish!" Indeed, she held out a messy childs painting of colourful ovoid shapes in a sea of blue.
"Wow, lookit all of them! They're so pretty!" He exclaimed enthusiastically, "They remind me a bit of the fish we have at home, a whole pond full of big fat orange and white ones. They're pretty cool, they'll kiss your fingers if you stick them in the water." He turned to Nuan, "What about you? What did you paint?"
"Woah. Can we come see 'em sometime?" Xue asked. "I like fish."
"Absolutely." Lucca nodded, "You'll get to see them very soon, actually."
Nuan looked down, embarassed, "...S'not very good..." she said quietly.
"Aww, come on and show him, hun. It's a lovely picture!" Cheko encouraged. She blushed a bit, but went to get her picture to show. It also was rather messy, from someone who had never painted before, and probably didn't have much practice with writing tools, but it appeared to be a standing brown rabbit. Cheko smiled, "I think it's a pretty good likeness, don't you think? I asked her if I could keep it to put in my room."
"Oh cool, it looks just like her! That's awesome!" He gave her a warm smile, "It looks like you're a natural, kiddo. We'll have to set you up with some paints of your own when we get back. Speaking of which, you guys heard from Mr. Komatsu that we beat the monsters, right? That means we get to go home now, all of us....you guys and Virgil and Victor and I. I know it's another big change, but it'll be the last one for a long time. I wanted to talk with you guys about it first though, that way it wont be such a big thing, right?"
"How's mommy gonna find us?" Xue asked, her expression becoming slightly downcast; her sister looked at her with disappointment for asking a silly question. "If we're so far away?" 
Lucca faltered, glancing to Cheko for help as he fumbled for a tactful answer. When the mimigan only returned his helpless look, he looked elsewhere, directing his thoughts to Osamu. Eugh, a little help here? I don't know how the heck to answer that...
Hmm... Osamu replied in his mind. After a pause, he offered, Her mother is a servant of a lord of the ocean. We live barely minutes from the bay. I'm sure if she's near the water, her mother could find her. At least, the Whale Mage likely could. Will that suffice?
Hopefully...We're gonna find out. Thank you. Returning his attention to the girls he began slowly, "Well, sweetheart...you know how your mom went back to be with the great ocean spirit, right? He's the king of all the oceans in the world, and he knows who and what is going on in all of them. So if you're near the sea, any sea, he'll know and be able to tell your mom where you are." He gave a small smile, "And it so happens that while we don't live right on the water, its only a very short walk to the ocean from our house. So, when we get there, we can go down to the beach and let the ocean spirit know where you are, that way your mom will know just where to find you, kay?"
Xue considered this, and nodded, the answer satisfactory. Cheko smiled and held out her hand, "That's right. Now, come on sweetie, you weren't finished packing yet." Xue nodded again, took her hand and left the room.
Nuan still sat, looking sad and a bit bitter.
"What's the matter, hun?" Lucca prodded gently.
"She's not coming back..." she said very quietly to the floor. "Spirits don't come back. They never come back."
Lucca inhaled deeply and sat back, studying the ceiling for a second. After a moment he said softly, his tone almost apologetic, "...There's a good chance you're right...when she asked us to take care of you and your sister, it sounded like that might be the case." He returned his gaze to her and added quietly, "I'm...really sorry..."
"Xue's stupid..." Nuan said, wiping at her eyes. 
"Hey now, that's not very nice..." He said with a small frown. He fidgeted slightly, looking conflicted for a moment before saying gently, "Your sister isn't stupid, she's just young...it's something that's hard for her to understand right now; she's trying to make sense of it in her own way, I guess."
Nuan wiped her eyes again. She took a deep breath, trying to keep herself composed. "...Where are we going now?" she asked, looking at the floor still.
He regarded her for a moment, his expression once more conflicted, before answering, "To a town called Lockeport, in a place called Mirilarin. It's kinda a small town, close to the ocean, like I said earlier." He paused to think of how to describe it, "It's a nice place...it stays warm all year, and there's lots of forest and stuff with all kinds of animals around. Virgil might've told you a bit about it; our gnoll friends live near there."
She nodded, "Virgil...talks a lot." She paused, then asked with all seriousness, "What do we do?" She played with the fabric of her skirt as she elaborated, "I know how to cook a bit, and I can clean...we'd help mother untangle fishing nets, but Xue's not very good at it yet, and I'm not that good either...We're...not really good at anything, but we can learn! We'll try really hard! I promise!"
Lucca blinked a couple times, taken aback. A sad, almost pained look suffused his features as the realization of what exactly she meant dawned on him. "No...no, Nuan that's...that's not how it works at all. Not in our family anyway. You and Xue will do the same things as Virgil; pretty much the same things you've been doing here...you'll play and read and learn and eventually you'll go to school too, once it's fixed. But things like cooking and cleaning and chores...that's not your job at all," He shook his head again, looking at her earnestly, "We don't expect that."
Nuan bit her lip, looking a bit nervous and sad. "We...we have to work..." she said very, very quietly. "Because...because..." she trailed off, clenching her hands tightly. 
Lucca closed his eyes and hung his head momentarily. Looking back up at her, he shook his head firmly. "No." He said, and though his voice was gentle, his tone held an edge of finality. "No you don't. Maybe before, but not anymore. That isn't how we do things, that's not the way it is. You and Xue and Virgil don't work, Victor and I do." His expression softened as he added, "You guys are just kids...and that's all we expect you to be, to do."
The young girl bit her lip again; she looked up at Lucca for a moment, and her expression spoke deeply of confusion, of fear: fear of doing something wrong, of being punished, of being left again. She bowed her head, and whispered, "I'll try very hard..." 
The druid returned her gaze, his own expression a poignant mix of compassion and sadness. "It'll be different, you'll see..." He said softly, wishing desperately that there was something he could say or do to make her understand, to assuage her fears. The two sat quietly, until Xue and Cheko returned. 
"You two both ready to go?" Cheko asked; both girls nodded their heads dutifully. "Great! You'll both be set up in your new home in a jiff." She turned to Lucca, "Can I talk to you in the hall for a sec?" With a questioning look Lucca nodded, standing up and following her out into the hallway. She shut the door; she looked away uncomfortably for a second, then said quietly, "...He ain't the same anymore." She looked pointedly at the door to the room where Virgil and his father spoke, then looked up to Lucca, expression asking for an explanation. 
An odd, bittersweet look flitted across the druid's features and he affirmed quietly, "No...he's not." Even as he spoke, he directed a thought toward Osamu.Do you mind if I tell Cheko what happened? She's asking...
...I suppose that is alright. Go ahead.
He looked to the ceiling for a long moment as he considered his words carefully before asking, "Ryuji told you how we dealt with the All, yeah? How Pierce had to deal with that big spell while the rest of us sealed the rifts and all?" He continued quietly, "Victor and I...we kinda messed up while we were sealing our part of the rift...pretty bad. We got it done, but..." He trailed off with a shake of his head, looking slightly pained as he finished, "He's different now, yeah...but he's here, and he's the same where it counts...that's all that really matters."
Cheko rubbed her paws together, looking back at the door. Her expression conveyed fear, mistrust and the overall impression that she didn't agree with him. "...He gives me the twitchy feeling. He shouldn't be here. He's not the same person." She turned back to him, looking worried, "...Is it safe? For the kids? I mean...we don't even..." she trailed off, unsettled and unsure.
"Don't even what?" He prompted her to continue gently.
"We don't know..." she stopped and shuddered again. "He's always been a...a cruel sort of man. Now he's...together again, and the feeling I get...it ain't a good feeling. I know you think he's the same, somehow, but he's not, and I worry. Maybe I'm worryin' where I shouldn't...but I'm concerned about the kids. Is it...really good for them?" She sighed slightly, "I'm stickin' my nose where it don't belong, I know."
Lucca closed his eyes, his expression taking on a weary, almost resigned sort of cast. "Whatever cruelty he has has never extended to those he cares about, nor to those who hadn't earned it in some manner. This I am certain has not changed." His tone, although still gentle, held something hard and slightly aloof within it. He reiterated firmly, "He is not the same, but neither is he so different, and certainly not in that respect. I know this, I can feel it just as you can feel that he's changed. The children are in no danger from him; frankly, with him is probably the safest place in the world for them, all three of them. I honestly believe this." His expression softened as he added, a bit more quietly, "I appreciate your concern, Cheko. I really do...but it's okay. I know it doesn't seem or feel okay, but it is...trust me. I won't let any harm come to any of them, from anyone; I wouldn't do anything to put them at risk."
She still looked uncertain, but nodded, "I'm sorry. I know it ain't my place. If you think it's fine...well, it's your kids, your family, not mine." She sighed, looking back at the door. "Are you goin' to tell 'em anything about it?"
"Don't apologize, not for that." He said with a small smile. "You're just looking out for them, for us; I do appreciate it, really." His smile faded as he followed her gaze, replaced with something of a nervous look. Beginning to move back towards the room, he said, "Absolutely. I was just getting to that, actually ...Victor will be talking to Virgil about it right now."
"Want me to come with you, hun?"
"You're welcome to, if you'd like," He gave a wry smile, "Heh, I wouldn't say no to a little moral support." She patted his arm and made to follow him in.
Taking a deep breath he opened the door and stepped back into the room, once more taking a seat on the floor across from the girls. "So...seems like we're pretty much ready to go now, there's just one last sorta thing I wanted to talk to you two about." As he spoke he fiddled with the edge of his shawl, his trepedation clearly growing. "It's not a big deal or anything, just...a few things you should know since we're going to be...family. I guess you could say Victor and I...we're both a little...different...I'll start with me..." There was a long pause as he struggled to find his voice and begin. "You guys know how your mom is a spirit, yeah?" They nodded; Nuan showed some trepidation, but Xue was unfazed. "Well, I guess you could say...mine was too." He gave a small, shaky smile, "Both of my parents were, I suppose...but I was born here, in this world instead of the spirit world, and so because of that, I'm not a spirit...I live here, not in the spirit world; I couldn't go and stay there even if I wanted to. I'm a...I dunno if either of you have heard of the term..." He faltered for a moment, glancing up at them uncertainly "'changeling'?"
Xue bounced her doll up and down, while reciting, "Changelings are people that didn't get inta heaven, but God gave a second chance to, an' they gotta be real good so that they can go to heaven. If they don't, they go to Hell where bad people go." She smiled, "I learned that in church."
Nuan looked confused, "But...the lady was a changeling, wasn't she? Changelings have bright colours."
Lucca let out a small sigh and relaxed slightly, clearly relieved at both girl's reception. "Yes, you're right Clover is one too." He said with a slight nod, pausing a beat. "She and I talked about that, and I'm pretty sure it's just different where I come from...for some reason. I've never heard of any changelings there having bright colours like she does. I'm actually kinda the exact opposite. But we're really good shapeshifters, instead; I can change to look like anyone I want, just by thinking about it."
"Can you make your hair pink?" Xue asked.
He blinked, and with a crooked smile replied, "Sure can." Even as he spoke a brilliant fushcia shade began to creep down from the roots, and within seconds the entirety of his hair was aflame with the colour. Xue giggled and clapped her hands, earning a soft chuckle from the druid.
Brushing his bangs back from his face, he returned to the point at hand. As he began once more, his demeanour was far more calm than it had been. "Alright, so thats me...like I said, kinda weird, not such a bad thing though, right?" He smiled slightly, continuing. "So, Victor...he's a little bit like that too, where he seems like a normal guy, but he's a little different. He's not a changeling though; he's something else. It might sound kinda scary when I say it, but I promise its not." He took a deep breath then said plainly, "Victor is a devil. I know you've probably heard some pretty awful stories about them, but he's not like that. It's nothing to worry about."
At this, both girls' eyes widened. Xue shuffled towards Nuan more. She whispered, "Devils are Yoru's servants. They're the baddest people, and they punish people who don't do good. They're scary, and they come for you when you're bad..." She looked up at Nuan, expression fretful, "You said it wasn't our fault..." Nuan put her arms around her sister, and her expression was that of someone who wanted to disbelieve, but had seen too much recently to dismiss the claim.
"No no no...it's not like that at all, I swear." Lucca said gently, his expression one of utmost earnestness, "He won't do anything at all to either of you, ever; neither of you did anything wrong, and he isn't here to punish you...not at all, I promise." He pursed his lips for a moment as thought of how to explain. "He didn't come here to hurt anyone...He got sent here by another devil who wanted to play a trick on him. Part of the trick took away his memories and made him a man and for a very long time he didn't even really know he was a devil at all. So he just lived like a normal guy until those monsters came, and now that they're gone all he wants to do is keep doing that...looking after his family and pretending to be a normal person for a bit." A slight crooked smile touched his lips as he added slightly conspiratorially, "He's really not very good at being a devil, to be honest, he's way too boring and nice." Xue looked up at Nuan, who had a somewhat downcast look to her; neither argued or complained. Lucca regarded them uncertainly. After a long moment he said, "I know everything I've just told you is kinda weird and probably pretty confusing...but I want you to understand that none of it is anything to worry about, alright?" He glanced to Cheko for backup. "It doesn't make anything different, really. I just didn't want anything like this to be a suprise in the future..."
Cheko tugged on her ear, looking as uncomfortable as the girls. When Lucca looked to her, she sighed and approached them. She put her paw on Nuan's knee and said, "I know things seem strange and scary now hun, but, Lucca is a good man and he'll take good care of you, ok? If he says somethin' is ok, even if it seems bad, then it'll be ok. I trust him, so you can trust him too." Nuan looked at her earnestly, before leaning forwards and hugging her, burying her face in the mimigan's fur. "Everything will be ok, sweetie. It'll be ok." Xue followed suit, hugging Cheko's waist. Lucca sat back and watched, letting the girls have a moment.
Eventually, the door opened, and Virgil and Osamu entered. "We get to go back home now!" Virgil said excitedly to everyone. He dashed forwards and hugged Lucca. "Hi Lucca! 'M sorry I didn't say hi before, but Dad needed to talk to me. You beat the guys!"
"No worries, dude." He said with a chuckle, returning the hug tightly, "And yeah, we definitely did. Kicked their butts right back to where they came from."
"Awesome!"
The girls still hovered about Cheko nervously, darting frightened looks at Osamu. The man looked calmly between everyone in the room before asking, "Are we all ready to go?"
"I think so..." Lucca answered after a moment, looking at the girls sympathetically. Glancing to Cheko, he asked, "You're coming with as far as the LT stop, right?" Cheko nodded.
Osamu looked at the girls gently before taking a few steps forwards. They cowered back a bit further as he knelt down to make eye contact. He was quiet for another moment, before he said, "You know you're both very good girls, yes?" The didn't reply, but continued to eye him warily. "I know that. I can tell. I know exactly who is good, because those are the people I protect from those who are bad." He smiled gently, "I will make sure that no one bad ever hurts you, ever again. That's what my job is." 
Virgil suddenly interjected, "Are the animals ok?!"
Osamu turned to him, standing up, "Let's go home and make sure."
------
Virgil practiced his violin dutifully, when he noticed his father watching him from the doorway. The boy looked up questioningly, and Osamu waved him off. “I’m just listening. You’re getting very good.”
“Can you still play?” Virgil asked, having not heard his father play since having returned home a few days ago.
Osamu broke into a smile and left, returning a few minutes later with his older violin, the one that had been left behind at the house, as the one he had kept with him had been lost when Victor died. Virgil twisted around to face him, looking interested. Osamu, still grinning, knelt down and positioned himself. He began to play a familiar song that Virgil knew well, and Virgil smiled at the comforting sound. Osamu opened his eye a crack to look at Virgil, and grinned as he transitioned into a different song. He picked up the tempo, and played a complicated, lively song well beyond the skill level that Victor had ever shown, a particularly far cry from the tentative, confused playing he had performed after his recent memory loss. Virgil watched with a slight smiling awe, and when Osamu finished, he clapped. “Woah! You never played like that before!”
He still smiled, “I’ve been playing since I was younger than you, after all, but the amnesia took away my memories of study, leaving nothing but the vague recollection of motion. Just having played for a long time isn’t as good as actually remembering your practice. Keep that in mind as you study.”
Virgil nodded vigorously. He picked up his instrument. “Show me! Show me the song! I wanna play it too!” Osamu chuckled slightly, and began walking him through the introductory measures.Category:Advent of the All