Edolas: Thieves Guild Sabertooth

16

Yukino turned as she heard the guard's shout, only to see Rogue atop the fence, looking around.

"Come on, Rogue! We're going to get caught!" She called. Rogue's gaze snapped towards her and he jumped down. She heard something snap and ran back to him.

Rogue was staring at the floor, face blank but eyes wide. Orga grabbed one of his arms and started running. Rogue followed, to Yukino's relief.

The trio disappeared in the streets of Cereus, finally slowing down once they were sure they wouldn't be found. More slowly, they made their way to the safe house. 

Wisp flew over to Rogue as they entered, only to turn around and return to the cupboard she had been perched on, eying him suspiciously.

"What the hell happened, Rogue? Why'd you freeze up in the middle of a job?" Orga demanded. Rogue looked at him briefly before answering.

"I panicked." He said simply. Yukino had known Rogue to be a good liar. So what was he doing? Orga seemed equally stumped.

"Let's get you to bed. We'll look at your leg in the morning." Yukino suggested. Rogue nodded and got up, allowing Yukino to support him.

Wisp did not follow them up. Rogue thanked her once they'd stopped in front of his door and entered. She heard the door lock behind him.

Orga had made tea for the two of them and motioned for her to sit down. She sipped her tea while waiting for him to speak.

"It doesn't take a genius to tell he's acting strange." Orga noted.

"Even Wisp noticed." Yukino added. At the mention of her name, the raven flew over to her. "He completely ignored her when she flew over to him."

"What do you think happened?" He asked her.

"I have no idea. We should ask him tomorrow."

They went to bed soon after, but Yukino didn't think either of them got any sleep. Wisp sat in the corner of her room, and Yukino could have sworn she'd said Rogue's name at least once.

Morning came after an eternity and she and Wisp went to have breakfast. She was absentmindedly feeding the raven a biscuit when Orga came over.

"Morning. You sleep at all?" She asked him. He shook his head and made himself some coffee. "Me neither."

They sat in silence until Yukino decided to check if Rogue was up. She had to go to work soon and wanted to know if his leg was alright first.

"Rogue? Are you awake?" She heard him come to the door and unlock it.

"Good morning, Yukino." He said, sitting down on his bed. His tone was too even. It scared her.

"Good morning, Rogue. How did you sleep? Does your leg hurt?" She questioned him, looking at the clock on the wall.

"I slept well. My leg is alright, I've already bandaged it up. I didn't think the jump would be so high." He explained, showing her the bandage. It looked surprisingly well done, considering his previous attempts. She chose not to comment on it.

"I need to go to work now, but Orga will be here if you need him." She thought she heard him saying Orga's name in confusion, but she didn't see what good asking him about it would do. She would mention it to Orga.

Her shift at the bank couldn't end fast enough, though Jura was good company. She practically sprinted back to the safe house.

Rogue was sitting on the couch, reading a newspaper. Orga was reading another at the table.

"I see you two have been having one hell of a party." She quipped tiredly. Rogue looked surprised to see her come in, unlike Orga, who was visibly relieved.

"Given how badly things went, we should go back to Calla and regroup." He told her, looking her dead in the eye. The mission had been a success, but Yukino suddenly realized that Orga was talking about Rogue.

"It would be for the best, yes. Any objections, Rogue?" She asked, doubting he would raise any. Indeed, he shook his head and went back to his newspaper.

"We'll leave tomorrow, then. I'll go buy us something to eat for dinner." Orga announced,  leaving rapidly.

Rogue locked his door again that night, and Wisp slept with Yukino again. She held the bird in her hands, looking at her sadly.

"What happened, Wisp? He just stopped on top of the fence. He hasn't been himself since."

"Where Rogue? Where Rogue?" The raven cawed.

"He's right there, behind the wall. I don't know what's going on. I'm sorry, Wisp."

This time, she actually slept, though she didn't know how. Orga went to get the wagon and the other three met him halfway. Rogue looked at the wagon with apprehension, before reluctantly climbing into the back. He'd loved driving before. Orga took the reins instead.

Yukino wished she could go with them, but she was still on a mission.

-

Dobengal let Sting know that Rogue and Orga had returned his wagon. He heard them coming down the stairs and went to meet Rogue.

Orga was supporting Rogue, who's right leg was bandaged up. Wisp was nowhere to be seen and neither one was talking.

"Rogue? What happened?" He asked, running up to take him from Orga.

"Sting?" Rogue asked. Sting helped him into the office and onto the couch.

"Yes, it's me. What happened?" He sat down beside Rogue and held his hand.

"I misjudged the distance of my jump and landed wrong." Rogue probably thought he was explaining something, but he wasn't making a lot of sense.

"We did a job for Roberta in exchange for the gear. We were escaping and someone noticed us. Rogue was on top of the fence and jumped, like, three meters? He kinda froze first. He's been acting strange ever since." Orga's story was concerning, but what really scared Sting was that Rogue didn't refute it. He simply sat, watching them. Sting signaled for Orga to leave, turning to Rogue when he did.

"What's wrong, love? You can tell me." He told Rogue gently. Rogue hesitated for a moment before answering.

"I... I don't know. Everyone's different. I didn't even recognize Orga. My magic doesn't work and I haven't seen Orga or Yukino use theirs. I don't know what's happening." He confessed, avoiding Sting's gaze. Orga's story hadn't mentioned Rogue hitting his head, so Sting decided to let it go for now.

"Come on, let's have something to eat. Sit in my chair and I'll get us some food." Sting transformed the couch into their bed before going upstairs.

Rufus was still up and made them some food without complaint. Orga must have told him about what had happened. Sting took the sandwiches down and sat down opposite Rogue. It felt strange being on this side of the desk. Rogue ate carefully, watching Sting as he did.

"Are you alright?" Rogue asked him eventually. Sting felt his chest tighten. How could he be alright when he didn't know what was going on?

"We'll be okay. Don't worry." Sting reassured him "Are you done eating?"

Rogue shook his head and finished his sandwich. When he was done, Sting got up and offered him his arm. Rogue took it and let Sting lead him bed.

Sting handed Rogue his pajamas and put out some of the candles. As he put out the last one, he subconsciously looked around for Wisp. He went to bed beside Rogue, falling into restless sleep.