For those aboard, the bus ride has been long and monotonous. The bus has maintained a steady speed, only the scenery outside giving an indication that anything has changed.

Only at this moment is the monotony broken as the bus slows down to make a turn. The bus drives on and eventually pulls into an illuminated courtyard, where four other buses can be seen as well.

The open courtyard, large imposing manor and bubbling fountain next to which their bus parks. This is the place where the next set of trials will begin.

The light coming from the many scattered gas lamp posts filters in through the bus windows. This draws the attention of the many Lifeless aboard their buses, Noah and Julia being no exception.

They look out at the hedge surrounded courtyard, the old style architecture giving them a wondrous sight.

Their bus grinds to a stop alongside the large stone fountain, parking just behind the bus in front of it. With one final lurch, the bus comes to a complete stop.

At the same moment, all the Lifeless aboard receive their next trial. Which has had a long delay since their previous trial ended.

“Now beginning trial 6. Lifeless, your task is to enter the estate, decide upon the outfit you will properly wear, then proceed to the designated area befitting your new selected role.”

The whispers and low murmurs that filled the bus, discussing the new scenery all come to a momentary halt, as a new trial is given to them by the Profound voice in their minds.

Then all at once, the noises reemerge even louder than before. The most proactive Lifeless even springing from their seats and running towards the now opened bus door.

After the first Lifeless rushes past her and exits the bus, Julia finally stirs. Only after allowing the thoughts of her newest trial to be contemplated, does she begin to move.

She twists to look over at Noah, the dreadful feeling in her chest that she has ignored throughout the entire bus ride is back to bear down on her. A churning and wrenching in her abdomen, a nervousness for what is to come.

When she looks at Noah however, she sees the same straight face he has had since she sat next to him on the bus. Even after all this time, she has yet to see any semblance of change in it.

This irks her, strikes a chord deep in her heart. How someone can be like this, so unfeeling, so unmoved by anything.

She thinks deep in her mind, does he really feel nothing? But she also has an even deeper thought, a subconscious one. A feeling of envy, to also possess this same unwavering state of mind.

But there is a reason that Julia is only partially aware of, as to why Noah is like this. He is simply ignorant. He exists in a state of obliviousness where he is seemingly at peace, only on the surface.

Noah does not know of the dangers of the trials. He is unaware of just how serious things are. As his only experiences so far are the 5 trials he has passed within the school of dreams of darkness.

So if the question was asked of Julia, would she really wish to be in the same state of ignorance as Noah? Her answer would most probably be no. As she would have to give up so much of herself to obtain it.

Finally building up enough courage to enter the line of Lifeless passing by her through the aisle. Julia stands up, looks back and says, “Noah, let’s go.” She then cuts into the aisle and steps off the bus.

Noah stood up along with Julia, needing no further prompting from her to follow close behind and also step off the bus.

Getting her first clear look at the surrounding courtyard and large imposing manor some distance in front. Julia takes a moment to observe all the details.

To her left she sees another school bus with a constant stream of Lifeless exiting. They are all heading in the same direction along an established pathway towards the manor’s entrance that is to be the center of the estate.

To her right she sees three more school buses. She makes note of the fact their bus was the second to begin unloading, with the fifth just now coming to a stop.

Julia looks ahead of herself, only now realizing she had been caught up in her observations. Her pace faltering as a result, with Noah having overtaken her and now walking along with the rest of the Lifeless towards the manor’s entrance.

Julia quickens her steps to catch up with Noah, finally reaching him as they pass through the threshold of the manor’s large oaken double doors. Which were held open by large door stops before their buses even arrived.

Julia looks around, once again looking at what's around her. She is left breathless by the luxury and grandeur on display.

Whether it be the magnificent jewel encrusted chandelier, holding nearly 100 candles. Or the grand staircase with gold trimmed banisters that occupies the center of the hall.

Her mind jumps through all her memories, comparing this entrance hall to everything she has ever seen. Immediately, she can tell that she has never been to a place so richly decorated.

The delicate fabrics and complex wooden paneling designs across the entirety of the hall and even the supporting beams overhead. Everything is perfect in her eyes.

The many large paintings, statues and sculptures add layers of decoration that she has never been privy to before.

But in her observations, Julia is not meaninglessly looking around. She is making note of anything that could be of worth in the current trial and the upcoming ones.

Her attention is repeatedly drawn back to the many large framed paintings hanging from the walls. She sees a correlation in where the paintings are positioned.

They are clustered in groups, each group surrounding one of four doorways present on the left and right walls of the entrance hall.

But out of the entire entrance hall, there is one detail that catches her eye the most. In Julia’s opinion it feels out of place, like it should not belong. The yellow caution tape that is stretched across the grand staircase from each banister.

All of Julia’s observations occur within the few seconds after she enters the hall. But what pulls her out of her thoughts is the realization that Noah has once again continued walking ahead of her, leaving her behind.

Like a wave of cold water descending on her, Julia feels a rushing panic. She had felt confidence and a sense of control by having Noah with her.

But now that Noah has seemingly wandered off, leaving her with no clear direction of where he went, Julia feels a sudden panic overtake her.

She looks around the hall rapidly, scanning the ever growing and moving crowd of Lifeless entering inside.

She finds it difficult to differentiate between the male Lifeless all dressed in nearly identical school uniforms. She scans through the gathering of Lifeless a number of times before finally spotting him.

There, separate from the crowd she sees Noah walking towards the back right door. He seems uninterested in observing anything and is instead heading directly for the door.

Since before even exiting the bus, Noah already had the vague notion in his mind to enter through this specific doorway. Something had instilled this thought within, as this was not naturally occurring.

The same sort of influence that has already left a major impact on Noah’s trials is once again interfering. Subtly twisting and manipulating events to better suit its purposes.

The tension she had felt while looking for Noah fades. Temporarily setting aside her thoughts about the trial, Julia runs to meet back up with Noah.

Julia makes it over to Noah just as he is grabbing the door handle, about to open it. Julia reaches out and grabs Noah’s left hand, wanting to express her discontent with his actions. “Noah! Where are you going? This is..”

But the words get stuck in her throat as Noah aggressively pulls his arm out of her grip while turning to give her a stinging glare.

Julia pulls back her hands and gives a soft, “Sorry.” Not knowing the exact reason why Noah has reacted like this.

Seconds after her reply, Noah’s face returns to its usual calmness as he faces the door and pulls it open.

Seeing this, Julia gets the nerve to ask her question in a better way, the recent exchange between them leaving her a little stunned.

“Uh, Noah, do you know where this door leads?” She asks while clasping her hands together.

Noah turns back to face her, standing in the door threshold. “No.”

“Then why are you going in?”

Taking a few seconds to think of a reason, but not really understanding what compelled him to go this way, Noah just says. “It's the correct way.”

Julia is confused by Noah’s answer. “But, but the trial said to choose an outfit and properly wear it. Which I think means the outfit determines what our next trials will be…”

Noah disregards Julia’s words and continues to walk into the doorway, leaving her with the choice of either following or separating from him.

Julia feels forced to take the former, as she mumbles to herself, looking at Noah’s figure walking away from her. “This, is an important decision, I’m sure of it. But, fine…”

Julia takes a few studying glances at the large paintings flanking either side of the doorway before entering. She correctly believes they may hold clues to what this doorway leads to.

The left one is an oil painting of a tall man wearing purple robes and regalia. Surrounding him is a group of five swooning women, wearing lavish and overly widened dresses.

The right painting is done in a vastly differing style. It displays several finely dressed noble men and women, all raising cups in a toast around their food covered table.

Julia takes one final deep breath, letting it out in a resigned sigh. Then walking through the doorway, she catches up to meet with Noah.

She thinks to herself, perhaps, this is not the best choice. Maybe going through one of the other doorways is better for her. But she would rather stick with Noah for the small sense of security she feels being around another person, one whom she has some control over.

Entering the doorway, Julia is presented with a long corridor matching the theme of the entrance hall. It is richly decorated, with many side doors leading to unknown rooms.

Noah is currently standing before one of such doors, twisting the handle and walking in. Julia is again presented with a decision, find her own door or continue to blindly follow Noah without knowing the repercussions.

She chooses the latter, already having decided to follow him into this hall, so following him once again cannot make it any worse.

Julia rushes over, grabbing the door just before it closes. She lets the door swing shut and lock behind her while walking in a few steps. Julia looks around, immediately being met with an abundance of colors from differing fabrics.

All together, the meshing of this wide variety of clothing is quite garish. But once Julia understands what this room is, it all makes sense. The many pieces of information and observations she has made all fall into place.

This is a storage room for clothes. As indicated by the plethora of racks and wardrobes that make the room rather cramped.

This is one of many changing rooms in the hall that will be utilized by Lifeless to choose their preferred outfit.

In Julia’s mind, a connection with the trial prompt is made when she sees the type of clothing displayed on the racks. The styles of luxury and elegance in the dresses. The amount of intricately woven and tailored suites.

These all connect with the paintings she has just seen beside the door that led to this hall. She realizes what the trial had meant by choosing a role and outfit.

As soon as she makes this inference about the trial, her eyes land on Noah standing farther into the room. He is beside a rack of suit jackets, attempting to put on a brown one by slipping his arms through the sleeves, directly over the top of his school uniform.

Julia walks through the narrow space between two clothes racks and comes over to stand by Noah, giving him a questioning look as he puts on the jacket. She asks him with an odd tone. “What is your plan with that jacket?”

Noah stops mid action and looks at Julia, stating the obvious. “The trial said to choose clothes and put them on. So I am.”

“I see that, but uh, don’t you think you are going about it the wrong way?” Julia says, hinting that what he is doing is wrong.

Waiting a few moments for Noah to understand what she is implying, but getting no result as Noah just looks at her blankly, Julia decides to be more direct.

With a deep sigh, Julia begins. “The trial said to properly wear our chosen outfits. Properly, you hear? Now, what does this mean?”

“I think it means we have to fully change out of these school uniforms and put on these,” She points to the room, “What I think are the clothes of nobility, like kings and queens.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

“So don’t put that jacket on yet, please.” Julia finishes her thoughts with a more direct command towards Noah, fearing he still might not understand.

Slipping his arms out of the jacket sleeves, Noah responds with a simple. “Okay.” then sets the jacket onto the floor, asking, “What should I do instead?”

Julia brightens up at Noah’s rational response. In her mind, she almost expected him to ignore her and continue to incorrectly put on a mismatched outfit. She didn’t even want to think of the consequences if that did happen.

She puts on a cheerful smile and tells Noah. “Well, there's not much I want you to do, but if you would let me, I can pick out a matching outfit that you could put on. How is that?”

Briefly looking around the room, feeling overwhelmed by the wide variety, Noah looks back at Julia. Seeing her still smiling towards him, Noah gives his response. “That will work.”

Nearly jumping forward with Joy, Julia lets out a, “Wonderful!” While nearly yelling and skips over to a large wooden wardrobe. She seems to already have an idea on how to create an outfit for Noah.

She cannot help but feel excitement at sorting and picking through fancy clothing for what she presumes is nobility. It's not only that, but she gets to piece together an entire outfit for another person.

For a reason even Julia herself does not even understand, this is something that brings her a small bit of happiness in her otherwise dour existence in the Afterdeath.

Julia spends several minutes sorting through the many draws of the nearby wardrobes to finally understand where everything is located.

Pulling from the bottom left most drawer of the dark wooden wardrobe, Julia takes out a simple white cotton undershirt.

Looking over towards Noah, who is merely staring across the room doing nothing. Julia gives him a scrutinizing glare. Her mind wondering if the shirt she is holding will fit him.

Clicking her tongue in thought, Julia stands up straight and walks over to Noah. She holds the undershirt stretched out before her, lining it up with Noah’s torso.

“It should fit, slightly small is actually better..” She trails off in a quiet voice, her words more intended for herself.

Speaking up louder this time, she addresses Noah. “This is your undershirt, which you will put on first.”

She stops herself, realizing the commanding tone with which she is speaking. “Are you capable of putting it on yourself?” She asks this while bringing the shirt down, setting it into Noah’s unprepared hands.

Grasping onto the cluster of fabric, Noah confirms he is able to put on clothes, not needing Julia to do so for him. Which would lead to an extremely awkward situation, for Julia specifically.

“Yes, I can put on clothes.” This line is said by Noah with a straight face and level tone. However to Julia, these words being said seriously by a grown man have a trace of humor in them.

Giving another smile, Julia replies. “That is good.” Turning away to look through the racks and wardrobes, she adds. “Now put on the shirt.”

She doesn’t realize what sort of implications this statement has, as Noah is still wearing his school uniform, shirt and all. So in order to wear this old fashioned undershirt, certain articles of clothing need to be taken off first.

The reality of what Noah is doing and what Julia herself will eventually have to do, strikes her at this moment. As she sees from the corner of her vision, Noah taking off his school uniform shirt.

She pauses in her current action, grabbing onto a dress shirt from the wardrobe and begins thinking of how she will handle her own manner of undressing.

She cannot bring herself to do the same shameless actions as Noah, undress in the center of the room. So Julia begins to look around with a new intention, not simply looking at all the fashionable dresses and suits that catch her eye.

Deciding upon a method of finding privacy for herself to change clothes in the corner of the room, Julia returns to sorting through the racks of suits.

She takes several minutes more to find complementary pants for the dark navy suit jacket she has chosen. Grabbing from the same wardrobe a pair of long white socks that stop just below the knee, Julia believes she has completed Noah’s outfit.

Returning to Noah’s position in the center of the room, Julia sets down the jacket, pants, plain white socks and beige shirt in a pile on a nearby chair.

She turns to address Noah. “I will let you put this all on, I need to go choose a dress for myself.”

Noah simply nods his head in agreement, already reaching for the beige shirt with its long sleeves and excessive frills around the neck.

Julia turns her attention entirely away from Noah, weaving in between the dense racks of clothing. She cuts off her line of sight of Noah, knowing in the back of her mind what he will be doing and preferring not to be involved with it.

Whether he manages to wear the clothes himself, or gets into a tangled mess. Julia decides she will sort it out when she is finished dressing herself.

Several minutes pass by as Julia searches across the room while avoiding the area near to Noah. She manages to find a dress and matching pieces to form her own noble outfit.

What she eventually settles on is a slim fitting dress of primarily white with light green accents. A small brown corset to hold the waist together which transitions smoothly into the long folds of the skirt.

She found many options of dresses that included petticoats, crinolines and bustles. But in her view, these objects which serve the sole purpose of widening the dress, would only impede her if the time came when she needed to move quickly.

Including the fact that Julia simply does not like the aesthetic of an oversized or widened skirt, she decides against implementing them into her outfit.

Whether the excessively widened skirt will be in style with the others that are dressing as nobles, Julia does not know. But she chooses to take the risk of potentially looking a bit different rather than to be impeded in movement.

Her view of prioritizing mobility in case of an emergency is also reflected in her chosen footwear. She finds a set of ankle high leather shoes that are similarly colored to her corset.

Having chosen all this along with a bonnet and shawl of matching colors, Julia moves to the farthest corner of the room through the narrow gaps between clothes racks.

There, she arranges the racks in a way that creates a private corner where she can undress without worry. As subtly in her mind, she is still cautious of Noah, not willing to put herself in a compromising or vulnerable position in front of him.

Even if she knew him for a longer time and thought she understood his character. She would still be just as cautious.

This is because she understands a great deal about the trials, the varying degrees of dangers presented not only by the trials themselves, but also by the Lifeless participating in them.

Every Lifeless that aspires to go far in the trials needs some level of caution. As those that are naive and trusting are the easiest to take advantage of. A fact Julia is well aware of.

Thus she does not rule out the possibility that Noah is putting on an act, pretending to be ignorant and oblivious. Just waiting for a momentary lapse in her guard, for the perfect opportunity to stab her in the back and betray her.

Julia is aware of this possibility, yet she still wants to believe Noah is as ignorant as he acts. Perhaps this is because of her own personal biases.

Finished changing out of her simple school uniform and into her new outfit, Julia makes her way back through the cramped spaces between the clothes racks, towards Noah.

Stepping out from behind the last rack, Julia gets her first look at Noah, now fully changed into his own outfit.

Her initial response is of surprise, as he has managed to wear the outfit in a normal manner. However, there are still several glaring issues.

His beige dress shirt is untucked, falling below his jacket. His collar and sleeve cuffs are also not properly folded.

There are also the unmatching brown dress shoes Noah is wearing, pointing out the fact Julia forgot to pick out a suitable pair for him.

Julia lets out a light sigh, deciding it best to add the final touches to her own outfit before focusing on helping Noah.

She walks over to the sole mirror in the room, which she had seen when first entering the room. She sits down on the small stool in front of the desk which holds the mirror and looks at her own reflection.

Her brown almond shaped eyes look back at her, surrounded by her straight, shoulder length black hair. Her expression is calm, but gives way to slight sorrow as she looks longer.

The reason for her dreariness is because of one simple thought that passes through her mind. This is the first clear look of her own appearance she has had in a very long time.

She gives a melancholic sigh, staring at her own face, which can only be referred to as ordinary. Shaking her head while pushing these worthless thoughts aside, Julia resumes her focus on the task at hand.

Taking up the wooden comb in her hand, Julia begins running it through her hair. Straightening any outlying strands.

Finishing with this, Julia picks up her white bonnet, centering it on her head while looking at her reflection in the mirror, she then securely ties it in place.

Taking a few moments to make other minor corrections to the hems of her dress or folds of her bodice. Julia finally turns away from the mirror to address Noah.

“Noah, come over here please.” Julia calls out to Noah who has been standing around doing nothing for quite some time now.

She stands up from the stool while Noah walks over to her, taking these moments of his walk as an opportunity to scrutinize his clothing and the way he has put them on.

Unaware of her commanding tone, Julia tells Noah as he waits in front of her. “Alright, first you need to tuck in your shirt, it’s too messy like this.”

Standing with her hands on her hips, Julia watches while Noah tucks in his beige dress shirt beneath his pants. Despite the sloppiness in which Noah does so, Julia is not inclined to help him correct it.

Seeing him finish tucking in his shirt, Julia commands again. “Now, hold out your arm.” Noah raises his right arm without any words, he seems fine with following her directives.

Julia grabs the beige shirt sleeve that is hidden beneath his jacket sleeve. Pulling out the decorative cuff, she folds it around the outside of the jacket, using a button to pin it in place.

Pulling her hands away from Noah’s arm, Julia commands. “Now, the other arm.” Noah drops his right arm and slowly raises his left.

About to perform the same actions as before, Julia hesitates with what she wants to say upon seeing the reddened skin of Noah’s hand. But she finally decides to ask anyway. “Uh, Noah, what happened to your hand?”

Noah moves his eyes away from Julia’s face and looks briefly down at his own hand. “A candle melted on it.” He gives his simple response, giving his slight burns no real concern.

“Okay.. then.” Julia says, finally finding an explanation for the strong incense smell that has lingered around Noah. But also piecing together his earlier reaction when she had suddenly reached for his left hand.

Not putting any more concern into Noah’s burns, as he doesn't himself. Julia returns to correcting his sleeve, taking only a few seconds to do so.

She takes a step back, looking up to analyze Noah’s collar. Which is in a catastrophic state, as the suit jacket rests completely over the top of the beige shirt’s fancy frills.

Julia, knowing the height difference between her and Noah, decides against struggling to reach around his neck and tells him. “Noah, sit down over here.” She points towards the same stool she had used to look into the mirror.

Noah walks over and sits down while looking away from the mirror. He still does not mind the commanding tone Julia has been using to direct him.

Julia moves over to stand beside the now seated Noah, who is still around her height despite sitting down.

“Keep your chin up, look towards the ceiling.” Julia says while attempting to fix the folds of his falling collar.

Noah raises his chin, but keeps his eyes lowered to look at Julia. Since she first started correcting his outfit, Noah’s gaze has been focused on her.

Finishing with his collar, Julia takes a step back from Noah to give him another look over. “Okay, that should do it. All you need is a few finishing touches, everything else is good enough.”

Julia says this while picking up the same wooden comb she had used earlier and begins running it through Noah’s hair. She attempts to organize the chaotic mess it has been since she first met him.

While she does this, Noah continues to keep his eyes on her. Intently staring at every minor change in her expression. He is interested in the intricate level of detail that can be found in the appearances of others.

While Julia is combing Noah’s finger length hair, following along the natural part on the left side of his head.

Noah is intently looking at every minor detail of her face. From the small hairs that grow around her eyes to block out dust. To the small darker spots of skin on her cheeks.

Noah is fascinated by these levels of detail that he has never noticed before. He has never really observed someone’s face so intently.

Thus, Noah cannot help but to voice his fascination. “You look, very nice.” He says slowly.

His unexpected words stun Julia for a moment. Running the comb one last time through his hair, Julia steps away with a smile on her lips.

Looking Noah in the eye to get a better read of him, she says. “You look very nice too. Try taking a look in the mirror.” She points to the mirror behind him.

Noah hesitates, the idea of looking into a mirror touches upon something in his mind. Something that has to do with his recent exchange with the odd bus driver.

Making a slow turn while sitting on the stool, Noah finally comes to look directly at his own appearance in the mirror.

At first, all he sees is a stranger. A well dressed man with parted and combed dark hair. Black eyes that stare directly at him from sunken pits.

The darker shade of skin, the dense collection of hairs that form his eyebrows. The wide nose, the stubble on his chin. It takes a moment for him to realize, this is how he looks. This is Noah, this is himself.

Once he comes to this conclusion, strong emotions rise to the surface of his mind. Despite him not wanting to, his body reacts.

His lips give a small, almost imperceptible quiver. His nostrils flare for a brief moment. A glint of intensity flashes behind the blackness in his eyes.

Noah quickly turns away from the mirror with a feeling of accumulating tears in his eyes, which forces him to close them, to hold back the tide.

He can only stand to look at himself for those few moments. Any more would cause him more distress, more realizations of what and who he is.

Standing behind Noah, Julia is able to see this. From the way Noah had looked at himself in the mirror, to the emotions that crossed his face.

She had witnessed this all. Yet, with the many questions passing through her mind about Noah, she does not ask. She simply turns away without saying a word.

Whatever struggles he is experiencing internally, she does not dare to help him. Even if he asked her, she would still not help, as she has many struggles of her own still to face.

The looming threat of the trials is just as prevalent as it was before. There is no stopping them, to have these moments of vulnerability. There never will be a time or a place for weakness.

There is no security, no paradise where the Lifeless can go to overcome their mental burdens. Even if such a place existed in the Afterdeath, the Lifeless are not deserving of it.

Julia picks up her white shawl and drapes it across her shoulders. Pulling at parts of her dress to straighten it and nervously wiggling her toes in her shoes, she makes her last preparations.

Taking a deep breath while facing the door, Julia softly claps her hands together. “Alright, it’s about time we go out. There are still trials to do.” She says this to build up her own courage, as well as to get Noah moving.

Not hearing any movement from behind her, Julia calls out. “Noah?”

She hears the sounds of him getting up off the stool and replying, “Yes?” In a low tone.

“Come over here” Julia says with the same commanding tone she has used throughout their time in the room.

Turning around to look at Noah, Julia sees him walk over to the side of a wardrobe and pick up the mop he had set there earlier.

Julia watches with slight concern as Noah carries the mop to stand beside her. Not sure how to approach this subject, Julia opens her mouth and blinks a few times, before saying.

“Um, I think it's best if you leave the mop here.” Then thinking that the mop is an artifact she adds. “It doesn't do anything special, does it?”

Noah looks to the mop in his hand, then says. “Not really.”

“Then, could you please leave it behind? I fear something might happen if you hold a mop while looking like this.”

Taking a while to think, Noah finally agrees with Julia. “Hm, alright.” Walking back over to the wardrobe, Noah hesitantly leans the mop back against its side.

Staring at the trusty mop that has been with him for a majority of his trials, Noah finally turns away from it.

Julia held a slight fear that Noah would be stubborn and refuse to leave the mop behind, which is obviously something he sees value in, as he has brought it along this far.

But fortunately for Julia, Noah is a simple and quiet man. One who is willing to follow her commands and be ordered around by her without a hint of resistance.

Julia is pleased with this, as the type of ally that is most suitable for her to work with, is one that will follow orders without any questions.

Especially for the upcoming trials, where Julia only has a vague idea of what to expect. She believes Noah’s current behavior will prove to be very useful to her.