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Tolvia: Spirits Awaken
Chapter 11 - Friend in Need

Chapter 11 - Friend in Need

The two girls talked as they walked down the street. Gemini trailed behind. It was still early afternoon from the looks of things. No different from Veith's time. Back home, their sun would also still be in the sky.

A "bzzt" sound came from nearby. Gemini looked all around. What was that? He didn't see any bugs flying around. He then saw Mason pull a small gray device from her pocket. It vibrated slightly in her hand. Hearing the buzzing emanate from it, Gemini could only imagine why it even buzzed in the first place?

Mason then pressed a button on the device and placed it on her ear. "Oh, hey mom."

Gemini could slightly hear a voice coming from the device. Ah, so it was no different from his communication core. But wasn't it uncomfortable having the device so close to her ear?

Mason sighed. "Mom, I don't care. Seriously, dad can handle it. Stop acting like an idiot and grow up already."

Rita's jaw dropped. Safe to say this wasn't something Mason usually said around her friend. Gemini simply raised an eyebrow. The conversation he had with Mason just days ago came to mind. She hated her parents. But does she really? If nothing else, it was clear she wasn't on the greatest terms with them.

Mason grunted, clicked another button on the device and placed it back in her pocket.

"Mason, what was that about?" Rita asked.

Mason blinked. "What do you mean?"

"You just called your mom an idiot."

"And?"

Rita's eyes widened. "Mason! You can't do that! She's your mother!"

Mason shrugged. "Technically no. But, I call her that anyway."

Rita sighed. "And I wonder how we're still friends."

Mason smiled. "Hey, don't worry about me and my mom. Why did you never tell me you had a younger sibling?"

"Never thought it was necessary."

"Not necessary until you wanted me to play as her doctor today."

Rita snickered. "Hey, you're the one who wants to be a psychologist. Take this as your first real case."

Gemini smiled. Rita, in her own way, had encouraged Mason's dream. She reminded him of how the Integras would help him out on many projects. How they would come together to encourage a cause I aimed to complete. But, at the thought of his motionless comrades, he frowned. He didn't want to spiral into thinking the worst. The reality of not seeing them again still weighed on him though. Nevertheless, negativity wouldn't get them any closer to restoring them. He ran to catch up and walk beside the female duo.

"So, what do you want me to do exactly?"

They approached Rita's home. "Well, you'll see."

~

The three of them all sat within the living room. Two couches faced each other with a table in between them. Mason and Gemini sat opposite of Rita.

Rita laid out on the table several different letters. Mason picked them up, one by one, as she read each document in rotation. Gemini looked at the ones still placed on the table. It amazed him how quickly Mason read such lengthy documents. But he was also amazed that he could actually read them.

On the very first visit to Earth, he never took the time to look at documents or any other reading material so he didn't know if the written language would be the same as his own. Nevertheless, even from glancing the material, the issue at hand seemed fairly clear.

"So," Mason said as she placed the paper back on the table. "These letters are stating that your sister, Cassie, refuses to take naps during naptime and is causing trouble in school?"

"Yeah," Rita replied. "It's tragic really. She would come home and mom and dad would have to stay with her all night until she would fall asleep. I've had my share of nights with her too. She would run around the house and has even tried jumping out the windows just to run away from the house."

Mason frowned. "Sorry to hear that. Where is she right now?"

"Miraculously, she's sleeping. There are days where she would just wear herself out. I-."

"Rita!" A young voice yelled from upstairs. Rita jumped and placed her hand on her forehead. She clearly wasn't expecting this. Gemini heard a patter of feet running towards the stairs. His eyes widened as what he saw also wasn't expected. The girl's red hair flipped from side to side as she ran down the stairs. In panic, Gemini jumped off the couch and landed behind the right side; he did not want to be seen.

Mason scooted over and looked down at Gemini. "Are you okay?"

"That's her!" Gemini whispered.

"And? What's the problem?" she whispered back.

Gemini narrowed his eyes. "Look. If she could see me and you could see me, that would look awfully weird to Rita, don't you think?"

"Good point."

Rita placed her hand on her forehead. "Cassie, what are you doing up?"

The girl jumped at Rita's side. "I want to go to park!"

Rita gave a small smile. "Cassie, that's great but I can't. I'm talking with a good friend of mine." She pointed to Mason.

"Well, my friend could take me," Cassie said.

Rita tilted her head. "Oh? Who would that be?"

"He's over there," Cassie said at pointed in Gemini's direction.

His eyes widened and could imagine that Mason was just as shocked. He didn't expect his cover to be blown so easily. Truth be told, he didn't expect to see her again like this. But there she was, looking at him with the same curiosity as before. Yet Drexel kidnapped her. What did it all mean?

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"There's no one over there, Cassie," Rita said with a frown. "I know you've been having nightmares. You may be seeing things."

Gemini stood up and look towards Mason. Mason bit her lip as she looked at Cassie. He imagined this would not be easy to explain. Maybe she would give Rita the same ghost story he gave to her. Maybe she would just say it's all because Cassie's tired.

"Oh, so you see him too? This is my imaginary friend, Greg!" Mason said, stretching her hands towards Gemini. Gemini nearly fell over at the notion. Well, if she was going with this bit, might as well run along with it.

"Imaginary friend?" Cassie said as she tilted her head.

Rita raised an eyebrow. "Wait, this is the same imaginary friend from earlier?"

Mason nodded. "This is something I'm trying out. I know of younger hospitalized children that cope better when having friends like Greg. You know, when they're all alone for periods at a time, they need at least someone to interact with. And if I can relate to them, maybe I can help them out better."

Gemini grinned. This actually sounded reasonable. But, still, good luck convincing Cassie who saw him for the person he was. Or rather, saw him for the "kid" he was.

"But, I touched him earlier," Cassie said.

Mason touched Gemini's shoulder. "See? I can too."

Cassie jumped off the couch and touched Gemini's shoulder. Gemini just smiled. He was at a loss for what to do next. Then again, this could be the perfect time to see if he could see her dream. He extended his hand.

Mason smiled. "And see? He wants to shake your hand!"

Rita chuckled. He could see this was rather amusing to her. But that didn't matter at the moment. Finding out what's in Cassie's dream took top priority.

Cassie extended her hand and touched Gemini's. A vision entered his mind. There were bars. Metal bars all around him. He then looked down at her. She was sleeping. Interesting. When he touched Mason, he could only see her counterpart. But here, he could see her just like she was on Earth. And through the bars he could make out the scenery. The grass seemed to go for miles. Trees were in every direction. This was a field within Veith. But which region? Which area was she in? He could see in the distance an ensemble of monsters. Nocturns. There were many. Too many for him to face alone.

He then looked over to see Drexel tossing up and down four beads in his hand. Strange. Drexel was never one to be a collector of any jewelry. But then the thought occurred to him. Those four beads must have a purpose.

Then he heard Drexel talk. "We visit Trutess tonight boys. Take out the inhabitants and take hold of this land as our new home!" Drexel then held his fist full of beads in the air. "And with the souls of my dear comrades, we should have no problem taking it all!"

So, those were the Integras' souls in his hands. And Barum normally guarded Trutess. It would be completely unprotected!

Gemini let go of the little girl and gritted his teeth, averting his gaze from her. This was not good. He was alone and wouldn't be enough to take Drexel and the rest of them on his own. There must be something that could be done. He then heard sniffling as he looked back at Cassie. Tears rolled down her face. His eyes widened, smiled, and placed his hands on her shoulder. He must've looked upset thinking about Drexel.

"I upset you, didn't I?" Cassie said.

Mason looked at Gemini, who shook his head, and back at Cassie. "No, you didn't Cassie. He just has a lot on his mind."

Rita stood up and walked over to them. "Cassie, it's alright. You're just tired." She placed her hands on his shoulder but phased through it. "Greg is nice, see?"

Cassie gasped. "Stop, you're hurting him! He's going to be even madder! Just like the man in black!"

Mason and Gemini exchanged glances. He opened his mouth but immediately closed it. Telling Cassie about Drexel in front of Mason may not be the best choice. The situation currently was tense enough. Cassie rushed upstairs.

Rita got up and ran after her. "Cassie, wait!" She stopped and glared at Mason. "Some psychologist you are."

Mason's jaw dropped. "Rita, I didn't do anything!"

"You reminded her of the nightmare she's been having. She'd constantly talked about the man in black that tortured her. But, no. You have to bring your imaginary friend nonsense and rub that in her face!"

Mason grimaced at the words but stood up from her seat. "Are you sure you want me leave? I'd like to help out if I can."

"You've helped enough. Thanks." Rita ran upstairs and out of sight. Gemini frowned at the scene. This was not the intention of the visit at all.

Mason narrowed her eyes as she turned to Gemini. "Okay, talk. You saw something in her, didn't you?"

Gemini blinked. "How did you know?"

"You examined me the same way by touching my hand. I'm starting to think it was more than just merely guessing my passion."

If there was any time for a portal to show up to free him from this mess, it would be right now. But then, he raised an eyebrow. "Wait, and why weren't you surprised she could touch me?"

Mason sighed. "I don't know. Something in me just felt like she could. Is it because I believed she could see you? Is it a matter of belief on her part?"

He wished he knew the direct answer to that himself. "Maybe. I'm not entirely sure. But one thing I do know is that I'm going to help her."

Mason looked up at the stairs. "Well, from the looks of things, Cassie obviously trusts you and sees you as a friend."

"Agreed. Nevertheless, I want to do what I can to make her nightmares stop. I can tell it's eating away at her."

"Good luck then," Mason said as she patted Gemini on the shoulder. "I'm going home."

"You're not going to stay and try to talk to Rita?"

Mason gave a small grin. "Listen. I've been on this Earth a bit longer than you, and if there's one thing I've learned it's that if people push me away, I cut them off completely. Whatever happens from this point forth is none of my business."

Gemini frowned. On one hand, this was understandable. There were plenty of times citizens of Veith didn't want Gemini's help and he had to respect it. But if it was a matter of the Integras, he made it his business to at least to try a bit harder. Cutting anyone from his life had to be a matter of serious consideration. "She's a close friend, isn't she? Give her a chance to cool off."

Mason sneered and walked to the door. She had her hand on the knob, when Gemini said, "Some doctor you are."

Mason turned around. "What?"

"I don't know much about doctors here, but from where I come from, they help to the best of their ability. You, Mason, showed up and helped but you're not done. Rita's upset and if you want to be a doctor and friend for real, then don't abandon her."

Mason gritted her teeth and averted her gaze. "I'll think on it. But honestly, if I'm still here, she won't cool off. I learned this the hard way from home and I will not subject myself to it again." She sighed, opened the door, and looked at him. "Are you coming along?"

Gemini shook his head. "Can't. I have to finish what I came to do. I will rid her of her nightmares. When you get the chance, let Rita know the man in black won't bother her anymore."

Mason shook her head. "Not even going to ask how, but okay. I'll do my part."

Gemini nodded before heading towards the stairs. "Good. It's been a pleasure, Mason."

"Wait!"

Gemini stopped and looked back.

"We will meet again, right?" Mason said. A slight heaviness weighed on him. Given how much Veith needed him, there's no telling when he'd come back to Earth. But seeing how much she helped out so far with Cassie, this "ghost" could haunt her once more.

"We will. I promise." Gemini said.

Mason smiled. "Until we meet again." The door closed and now, Gemini was alone in Rita's living room.

He could hear the constant yelling from Cassie and the tender tone of Rita's voice. The girls were at odds with each other but it sounded like Rita wanted to take the calmest approach possible. Gemini sighed. If he went in there now, he would only cause more trouble for Rita. He didn't want to give Rita anymore reason to hate Mason nor make Cassie look crazy. Now, between Cassie and Mason, he hoped one of them connected to the books he brought.

He pulled out the three books and scanned their matte hardcovers. The entire time with Mason alone, none of the books were warm or glowing within his pocket; but, now he could see one of them had a small glow. That one was Joy. So, Cassie must be the key bearer for that book. Ironically so, since Drexel stripped her of all her joy.

He glanced at the staircase. He wanted to save Cassie while on this side of reality, since fighting Drexel and his army on his own was borderline suicide. Nevertheless, he had to go back. He put away the books and walked out the front door.

It was time to go back to Veith. Formulate a plan, save Cassie, and give Drexel what he truly deserved.