"Alright, your attention, please! Good," a middle-aged woman in the middle of the classroom shouted at the children who were enacting their own version of a zoo. She was wearing dark pants and a lilac sweater on top, giving her a warm dissipation. She smiled and continued in French once the children were settled down. "Everyone, we have a new friend that will be joining us today. Michelle, come along now, don't be shy."

The teacher urged a quiet little girl to come to the front, and the latter did so hesitatingly. The little girl's blonde hair was braided, fluffing her round cheeks even more, and she was wearing a simple casual outfit with tan pants and a full sleeve blue shirt.

"Class, this is Michelle LeBlanc. Let's all join in welcoming her to her very first day in cours élémentaire!"

The class all welcomed Michelle loudly while clapping and the teacher lowered herself to Michelle's height.

"Would you like to introduce yourself, Michelle?" The teacher asked and Michelle shook her head. "Alright, why don't you go back to your seat?"

At lunchtime, Michelle sat alone on her desk eating a sandwich from a convenience store. There were more than a dozen kids in the class but none approached her, for a reason.

"Did you hear? Her last names LeBlanc, it's her isn't it?"

"It should be. I heard my mom say her mom is a homewrecker and a slut."

"What?"

"Yeah. I overheard my parents talking. They said that her mom ruined the LeBlanc family!"

"Do you think she'll do the same?"

"Should be. She's probably just like her mom."

Whispers and snippets made their way to Michelle's ear but she ignored them while eating her lunch impassively. From the day she arrived in France, she had been hearing similar things, despite her father and her new stepmother treating her well.

The rumors and conversation continued even after school as Michelle, who was on her back home, was stopped by two noisy boys.

"Hey is it true your mother is a homewrecker?" One asked.

"Is it true your parents aren't even married?" The other asked. "Is it true your real mom abandoned you?"

"If they're not married, then doesn't that mean she doesn't have a father?"

"You an orphan then?"

As the two continued asking hurtful things, a clenched fist from above smashed into the two boys heads. Both cried out before turning around, their eyes looking for whoever punched them. Standing behind them was a tall teenager in a high school uniform. His undressed school jacket was hooked in his left finger and hung over his shoulder. His blonde shoulder-length hair and long bangs were pushed back by the wind.

"Scram," he said while glaring at the kids with his blue eyes.

"Bully!" One kid shouted as they both ran away.

"Ah shut it, cuv de saindoux!" Raphael shouted back. He turned to Michelle and noticed her looking down, refusing to make sure contact with him.

"Why did you let them continue?" Raphael asked. "When dealing with idiots like that just use your fists."

"Why? They're right," Michelle spoke, quietly mumbling into her shirt with a complicated look.

Raphael sighed and patted Michelle's head. "It's only true if you believe them."

"You … don't you hate me too?" Michelle finally looked at Raphael and asked hesitatingly. Her large eyes were filled with trepidation and she regretted asking the question that had been bothering her for a while now.

"Yeah, I did," Raphael answered while looking away. "I really hated you, when I first heard about your mom and you. I even promised that I would hate you for all my life before you came here. But then I met you and …"

Raphael turned and smiled at Michelle who looked back at him with eyes full of surprise and awe.

"Well, I realized that I shouldn't blame you for something that wasn't your fault," Raphael finished. As he spoke, Raphael placed a hand on her head, surprising Michelle. "Now stop crying. You're a LeBlanc. Remember, we don't cry so easily."  [1]

***

Michelle opened her eyes, waking up from her dream. She sat up from the futon and looked around, her groggy mind trying to remember where she was. Seeing her friends, Alina, Emily, and Asami sleeping nearby made her recall that she was sleeping over at the Loft.

It was at this moment she felt a numb pain in her left hand; she had forgotten to remove the prosthetic hand from her arm. Her original prosthetic was more advanced than the replacement, it could be kept on for long amounts of time, like it was a part of her body, without her feeling uncomfortable. Unfortunately, that arm was damaged.

Michelle removed the prosthetic arm before standing up and quietly exiting the room. She entered a washroom and, after washing her face, used a warm towel on her left arm. She then entered the hallway and looked around, trying to look for a place where she could sit and relax. At that moment, she heard the sounds of an object hitting the floor and followed the source.

Coming down the hoverlift, she saw Jason drinking while sitting alone in the dark living room. Across the room, she noticed the remains of a phone and realized that Jason had thrown it at the window.

"Jason? Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas?” Michelle asked, concerned. She walked towards him while Jason turned to her in surprise, he was so wasted he failed to detect her.

"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you," Jason said, his speech slightly slurred but not from drinking. He hadn't spoken in hours and his throat was hoarse.

"You didn't - mon dieu! What is this?" Michelle noticed the bottles next to Jason halfway through and exclaimed in surprise.

"Been a few tough days," Jason said while taking another sip.

He looked at her with a small smile when he noticed her wearing a new set of pajamas that he had gotten for Alina. Unlike Emily, Michelle and Asami were able to wear Alina’s clothes since they fit they were almost the same size. The only difference was the height, this resulted in Michelle and Asami having shorter sleeves and pants, but neither of them complained.

Michelle reached out and studied an empty bottle before her face turned serious. It was spiced rum with over 35% alcohol content, and Jason was on his third bottle.

"Ça suffit, no more," Michelle took the bottle away with a grimace. With a shake, she noticed that two third of the bottle was already gone.

"Hey now, you ain't my mom," Jason said and reached out for the bottle slovenly. He stopped when he noticed Michelle flinching with her face in discomfort. "Sorry. You alright? I, uh, didn't mean to frighten you."

Jason thought Michelle was frightened by the way he approached her, which wasn’t surprising to him since he recalled how he had molested her when he was drugged and delirious.

"Non, it's my arm," Michelle explained hastily, trying to clear the misunderstanding. "It's hurting a bit, mais c'est normal."

"Ghost pain?" Jason asked and she nodded. "Here, sit here."

Jason got up and patted at the single seat sofa he was on and Michelle, after making sure he wasn't going to wrestle the bottle of rum from her, sat down. Jason sat down on the armrest on Michelle's left side and held a hand out.

"May I?" He asked and Michelle nodded before placing her arm in his hand.

Her left hand, wrist, and about an inch of her forearm was missing. Jason gently massaged the tip before moving to sides of her arm slowly, using his thumb to massage in circles. Soon, the uncomfortable jabs of pain faded and warmth seeped into her arm.

"You are very good at this," Michelle said, slightly surprised. Jason seemed to know exactly where to massage.

"That's because I've had experience," Jason smiled but didn't elaborate.

In his mind, he was remembering the times when he was a child soldier. The mercenaries had taken the children in to be Sweepers, and Jason was one of them. Sweepers were forced to do the most dangerous jobs on the battlefield. Scouting the enemy forces, walking through areas known to be minefields, and running kamikaze attacks were the norm for them.

These dangerous jobs often led to the deaths of the children but, more often than not, kids would return with severe injuries, like losing a limb. Because the children were uncertain of their fate, they would help the injured ones, learning how to take care of them in hope that one day, should they befall a similar fate, karma would arrive and someone else would help them, just like how they helped their brothers and sisters. This was why Jason knew how to help Michelle, he knew exactly which pressure and acupuncture point to press and rub.

Jason massaged Michelle in silence while the latter, realizing how close she was to Jason, recalled the last time they were alone together. Jason was on top of her, holding her down intimately while leaning forward to kiss her. Shaking her head, she turned her blushing face away, trying to avoid looking at Jason while her heart pounded.

Dieu, quel est ce sentiment? Michelle thought. Pourquoi suis-je si nerveux? [2]

The poor child had never liked someone before, so she was unaware of her crush on Jason. Sneaking a peek at Jason, Michelle froze when she saw his face. He was staring ahead with empty eyes, his stoic face devoid of emotions. Yet, with her intuition, Michelle knew he was worried, almost panicking, about something.

"Why were you drinking?" Michelle asked, breaking the silence. "Are you worried about something?"

"That obvious?" Jason asked back and Michelle shrugged.

"To me, oui," she answered.

Jason smiled and looked away with a shake of his head. He thought about it for a moment and decided to ask for a bit of advice. After all, she was quite similar to Alina; both had big brothers who showed up when they were young. "Did -. You … ever had a moment ... where ... you hated Raphael?"

"Every time we fight, oui," Michelle nodded and answered quickly without thinking.

"Not like that," Jason replied, exasperated. "Did … was there ever a time ... when you felt - when you thought that he ruined your life? Maybe he did something that hurt you?"

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

Michelle looked at Jason knowingly. "This is about Alina, n'est-ce pas?"

" … That obvious?" Jason asked again and Michelle smiled.

Jason looked away and licked his parching lips before continuing. "I … made a mistake. I sinned and … I don't know what to - how to tell her. I know she'll find out, but I can't ... I can't tell her. Not without hurting her and …"

Jason paused and took a breath. Suddenly, Michelle was reminded of the pain and sorrow that were in his eyes when he confused her for Katelyn. She had an inkling that whatever happened was related to Katelyn, that Jason was acting like this because of her and, for some reason, an ache developed in her heart.

"It's funny actually. I've been through terrible situations," Jason continued, not noticing the melancholy Michelle was emitting. "I've been through war and I’ve seen, lost, so much but not once was I scared. Worried, yes. Yeah, I've been worried. But scared? No. This … is a first."

Michelle mulled over Jason's words as her eyes moved to her left arm. She smiled sadly when she saw the place where her hand should've been.

"I do know what you mean," she said after a while. "I also felt like that. Once. About Raphael. I … never blamed him, pas même une fois, for what happened but I …"

Michelle took a deep breath before continuing. She steeled her eyes and looked at Jason. "Il est facile de pardonner mais plus difficile d'oublier."

"Easy to forgive … but not to forget?" Jason repeated slowly. The light returned in his eyes and the feeling of heaviness emanating from him was lifted. "I don't expect her to forgive and forget. I just … I don't want to lose my sister."

Again, He added in his mind. Jason smiled and looked at Michelle gratefully. "Thank you, Michelle. I know what I should do."

"De rien," Michelle blushed and looked away when she saw his gentle look, her face was as red as a ripe tomato.

Jason massaged her arm with more vigor as he poured what little Qi that he had into it. This would help Michelle's arm and she wouldn't feel discomfort for a while.

"You should get some sleep," Jason said after some time had passed and Michelle nodded. "There's school tomorrow and you don't want to be late. Silvie will be looking for, uh, what’d she call'em? Oh, right. Tardy students."

Michelle smiled and left for the bedroom while Jason sat back down. At the entrance, Michelle hesitated and looked back for a moment before leaving. Jason sighed while looking at the time. The HUD in his holo-lens showed that it was almost four in the morning.

Hm, might as well get some food ready for the girls, Jason thought as he got up. He stretched his back and forced the alcohol in his system out, flooding the room with spicy alcoholic vapors. He coughed a bit of blood after doing that; his Qi resources were almost depleted and he was forcing himself to use it which was harming him even more. But first, I think I'll take a shower.

***

Watson strolled down an underground hallway of the AEM base, nodding at officers and soldiers who saluted her as she walked past them. She was on her way to meet with General Sato, the commanding officer of AEM after he called her for an emergency meeting.

"Colonel!" A voice from behind her called and Watson slowed down as she turned her head to look at the newcomer. Behind her was Raphael, who jogged until he was walking beside her.

"Raph, what are you doing here?" Watson asked as they walked together.

"The General called me back for some reason," Raphael replied.

"You too?" Watson asked and Raphael looked surprised.

"It must be serious if he's calling us both," Raphael muttered his face turning serious.

"We'll see," Watson replied.

"Speaking of which…" Raphael cleared his throat. "Uh, how's Michelle? I haven't seen her for a while and I … didn't visit her after her injury."

"She's fine. Really misses you though," Watson answered before grinning as she used a holo-ID to open a maglev elevator. "She's having a sleepover with Alina and her friends."

Raphael froze when he heard this. He only entered the mag-lift after hearing Watson's remainder.

"Uh … is she having a sleepover at Alina's place?" He asked.

"Yep."

"And … Jason's there?"

"Probably."

"That … doesn't bother you?" Raphael asked incredulously. “You’re not scared of him …?”

"Oh, it does. But I doubt he'd do anything," Watson gave a smile full of danger as she said that and Raphael internally agreed with her: Jason wouldn't risk angering the mother bear that was named Watson.

Arriving at the General's office, Watson knocked at the door and the two entered after receiving permission. Sitting in the desk and writing on a paper was General Sato. He was a renowned WWIII veteran who was known to be the best AKEERA pilot in history. He had a crew cut and the sides of his hair were speckled gray while his leanly muscular body was draped under a military half shirt uniform that showcased his refined biceps.

"Have a seat," Sato said and the two did as they were told while he stopped writing and massaged his eyebrows. The dark circles permanently engraved around his eyes indicated that he had a tough job for several years.

"Colonel," Sato said. "I want to begin by personally thanking you for transferring from the EOU to AEM, I'm honored to have you here."

"Thank you General," Watson said politely while Sato turned to Raphael.

"Major, good job in handling those Practitioners in the park," Sato said to Raphael who nodded. "But next time, try not to engage the enemy alone. You lead a team for a reason."

"Thank you, sir," Raphael said sheepishly. "I'll try not to be so ... reckless."

"I called you both here to discuss Fenrir," the General began to speak about his reason for calling them. "You both have had interactions with him, and I'd like your opinion. But first, watch this."

Both Watson and Raphael turned to look at the large screen that covered a wall. On it, the fight Jason had with Katelyn was shown, specifically the moment he unmasked her and let her escape. Watson closed her eyes with a knowing look and Raphael scrunched his eyebrows.

"Opinions?" Sato asked.

"He knew her, probably an acquaintance of his," Raphael said. "Judging by the last scene he seems to still be injured, that's why he wasn't able to catch her."

Sato nodded but didn’t agree before turning to Watson. "Colonel?"

"She was clearly more than just an acquaintance," Watson said slowly, contemplating her words before speaking. "And his injury is more serious than we thought."

"Can you elaborate?" Sato asked, approval apparent in his eyes.

"He was fighting very well for someone injured. He only collapsed when he tried using his powers," Watson said while her eyes were locked on the screen. "If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say he faced a backlash from his powers."

"Agreed," Sato nodded. "Anything else to add, Colonel?"

"From his body reaction, he knows this Practitioner. Intimately," Watson said. "I don't trust him to bring her in."

"You think he'd help the enemy?" The General asked, seeking confirmation.

"I think he'll think with his dick instead of his head," Watson answered bluntly and Raphael looked away, embarrassed. He knew her relationship with his father was the reason why she had little faith in men.

"Hm … agreed. I'll request the Council to assign a different Phantom to hunt her," Sato said while gesturing at them to leave, indicating that the meeting was over.

"Sir, I wanted to debrief you on something," Raphael said abruptly and Sato looked at him inquiringly. "Sir, the thing is yesterday, during the day, I might have met with Fenrir …"

Raphael explained his conversation with Jason and Sato chuckled, interrupting Raphael. Watson also smiled wryly while shaking her head, she found Raphael to be naive and too believing of others.

"Major, he was pulling your leg," Sato said when he saw Raphael's confused face.

"Sir?"

"That headless creature he fought wasn't a ghost, it was a zombie," Sato explained. "A zombie is a corpse refined into a puppet by a Practitioner who is skilled at necromancy. There is nothing supernatural about it." [3]

"But that clip with something shedding-"

"An Esper that could transform into a beast," Sato interrupted. "We still don't understand how Esper powers work but that one turned into something like a werewolf. But again, not a ghost nor a spirit."

"So then …"

"There have been reports of ghosts or spirits, but nothing substantial," Sato said. "My guess? He was annoyed at your interference and decided to fool you."

"That son of a …"

"Language," Watson said, interrupting Raphael's swearing and Sato chuckled again. It was rare to see Raphael losing his cool and swearing.

"Wait a minute," Raphael said, his face changing as a thought struck him. "If he could lie about this, then couldn't he have had lied about much more?"

"In what circumstances are you referring to?" Asked Sato.

"Do we know where he was when the western dock was attacked?" Raphael asked seriously. Both Sato and Watson's face changed when they heard him.

"You're suggesting that he was the one responsible for the assault?" Sato asked with a frown and Raphael nodded. "Our satellites and security cameras indicated that he never left his base of operations. Not to mention he was busy entertaining guests."

"I can confirm that. Michelle and her friends had a sleepover with Alina at his place," Watson added when she noticed Raphael's inquisitive stare, reminding him of what she mentioned earlier.

"Even if he is responsible, we should be thanking him instead of condemning him," Sato said when he saw Raphael open his mouth to continue arguing. "Major, he just stopped a large scale abduction of children. Children, who would, in this situation, be enslaved and possibly forced to become our enemy."

"Due respect, sir, you haven't seen him in action," Raphael said. "He's a dangerous individual who kills."

"Raph, taking a moral stance on this situation is ridiculous," Watson said. "We're soldiers. We've killed people, children and the innocent, whenever we deemed them as a threat to us or our country. We're no better than he is in this aspect."

"We follow our orders and our commitment is to protect this city and its citizens," Raphael argued. "We kill, we dirty our hands, to protect others and so that they can live in peace. That's not the same, he enjoys killing and maiming people. That’s the sign of a madman. He's sick."

“Maybe so,” Sato said. “But you of all people know that sometimes you need to fight fire with fire. And I don’t doubt his commitment to this city, especially since his sister, the only thing he appears to care about, is currently living here. Even more, after he began teaching, he managed to develop an attachment to his students.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that he’s a walking time bomb, sir,” Raphael said quietly.

“Perhaps you’re right,” Sato said. “But he’s not the only monster the Council has. Remember, almost every phantom is just as unstable as he is and there have been no escalations between them and the city.”

“No escalations?” Raphael asked disbelievingly, his eyebrows raised. “What do you call poisoning an entire family, including the young and old? The innocent? And just because a scion of the said family tried molesting that Phantom?”

“That was before Viperess became a Phantom,” Sato answered. “And she has been cleared of all charges by the Council.”

“General-”

“Major, the decision has been made,” Sato firmly shut Raphael up. “No matter what you think, the Phantoms will continue to remain active and Fenrir will be free of suspicions. You are dismissed.”

“Sir, yes, sir,” Raphael said grudgingly as he got up and exited the office.

Sato gestured his head to Raphael while looking at Watson, silently asking her to talk to Raphael. Watson nodded and followed Raphael out the door.

"You shouldn't have pushed so hard," Watson said once they were alone.

"I know," Raphael replied. "I just don't think it's a good idea to rely on psychos to protect this city."

"Even so, what do you expect the General to do? His hands are tied by the Council," Watson said.

The two entered a mag-lift, but Raphael didn't answer and Watson turned to look at him.

"Besides, I feel this is more personal for you," Watson said with a knowing look. "You dislike him that much?"

"It's not about how I feel. Although, he is an asshole," Raphael said. "I just don't feel comfortable with him in the city. The man's a magnet for troubles and he is unstable. You haven't seen him, it's like he becomes someone else when he's in battle mode."

"Agreed," Watson nodded, reluctantly agreeing with Raphael. "Regardless, the only thing we can do is pray and hope nothing serious happens."

***

Elizabeth groggily reached out and silenced her phone while swearing. It was four in the morning and she was ready to kill whoever interrupted her beauty sleep.

“Murt!” she muttered as she rubbed her puffy eyes. She traced her finger over the phone as the message turned into Braille. It was a notification for several missed calls. Her heart skipped a beat when she read that it was Jason who tried to call her. The phone began ringing again as Jason’s name raised itself as dots but Elizabeth didn’t answer. Only after three more times did Jason stop and Elizabeth released the breath she was unintentionally holding.

Before she could do anything else another notification rang out. She traced the new message and frowned as she read it before sighing after she finished it.

“Quite the busy night, eh, laddie?” Elizabeth muttered as she lied back down after tossing her phone aside.

The message was from Morta and detailed what had occurred earlier that night. The attack on the western pier as well as the fight Fenrir had with a mystery Practitioner was described to her in great detail. In fact, unlike AEM, Morta managed to detect Jason leaving the Loft the first time and accurately assumed that he was responsible for the massacre at the dock.

This won’t be pretty, Elizabeth thought. If that Practitioner is related to them …

Elizabeth shook her head and turned around, trying to force herself back to sleep. Her mind drifted back to Jason and she couldn’t help but feel down.

I … I might have to fight him ... Jason ...

[1] The entire flashback convo is in French

[2] Basically her thoughts translate to: "What is this feeling? Why am I so nervous?" (Somethin like that, I don't remember the exact wording)

[3] Yep, so in Chapter 17, Jason trolled Raphael and his team