Passing Notes

Chapter 31: Buckle in tight everybody!

"He never changes does he? Seems your tormentor has set mine free from house arrest. We never should have been soft towards him, but we were blinded by the past. I won't be this time; enough is enough."
Cross nodded, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I understand. I'll help you in any way I can; they're after both of us afterall. I also want to keep our friends out of harm's way. Plus, I have a score to settle with my so-called father."
His voice was dripping with venom as he said the word father. It was clear he didn't actually see this man as a father, at least not anymore.

Nightmare watched on. One of his best friends; about to have to face the abuser who experimented on him and slaughtered his family. The girl who had captured his heart, talking about trying to give someone grace; only for that to come back to stab her in the back. Both of them were more selfless than Nightmare could ever be; he would get his friends to help. He knew too much to just let them go through with this plan on his own.

"Don't forget about me. You may not want my assistance, but it's too late for me not to get involved. My brother may be in harm's way, as well as my gang and two of its members. I'm not going to go down without a fight, and you clearly need backup. This is not something we're debating."
Dawn and Cross shared a concerned look. Nightmare had nothing to do with this. Besides, Dawn couldn't bear the thought of him getting hurt over her mistakes. She was about to talk but was interrupted by the sound of someone trying to drink the last drops of a juicebox.

"You know, he'd just show up to help you anyway. Plus, it's a lot more meaningful if you guys go into battle together."
Everyone jolted around; to see Eight leaning back on the bleachers. They had a straw literally going through their face where a mouth should be. She was sitting with her feet propped up, aggressively pressing buttons on their gaming console. It was a wonder none of them had noticed them sitting in the open like that. Although, they were all very distracted. They looked down, amused.

"You guys know you're still on school property right? You have to be supervised by a teacher. Since I'm not a crabby old gym teacher, I figured I'd let you stay."
Cross and Nightmare eyed Eight warily. Dawn however glanced over and crossed her arms at the mischievous slime.

"You're not gonna tell the others are you?"
Eight feigned surprise.

"Who me? Never."

They dropped the sarcasm.

"Seriously though, I wouldn't. The others would probably create huge property damage. They don't care about settling down in this town. They can always move to another one. You and I have friends here, and have our own lives here. I can't interfere, you know I'm a pacifist. I believe in you. Keep your guard up."
She stood up and stretched. They picked up their trash and game console, and headed to the door. Everyone took that as a sign that they needed to leave, and followed after her. Once outside, Eight locked the door behind them. They turned to face the others.

"If you need me for anything, I'll be at the Cat Cafe on 7th. I work there every morning and hang out every afternoon. My roommate works there, and he owns the only keys to the apartment. Plus, it's fun to tease him during work hours."

With that Eight walked away, waving without looking back. Nightmare and Cross exchanged confused glances, and Dawn rolled her eyes and smiled. Eight was an agent of chaos, and that would never change. She wondered if Blossom knew about her old pal being in town. Knowing Eight, she'd reveal it by kicking in their door. She smiled fondly. Eight was like a chaotic older sibling; you can't stand them but they have your back when you need it the most.
She sighed. Her backpack rubbed against her shoulders uncomfortably. Everyone else had long since made it home, and she really didn't want to walk. She turned to Nightmare and Cross.

"I'm too tired to walk. We'll take the express route."
Nightmare chuckled and nodded, glancing at Cross. He knew it was mean, but he really wanted to see his reaction to being dragged through shadows. It was disorientating to say the least. Cross blinked and tilted his head.

"Express route? What, are we calling an Uber?"
"Not quite."
Dawn grabbed Cross and Nightmare by their hands and took a leap into the shadow of the building. Nightmare stayed silent, but Cross yelped in surprise, thinking they were about to fall face first onto concrete.

"OKAYTHISDOESNOTSEEMLIKEAGOOD-"

With that, they delved into the shadows. Cross felt like he was living through what it felt like to become Eight. He felt all gooey and melty. As soon as it started, the eternity of strangeness stopped. Cross keeled over on the floor, disorientated. Nightmare grinned smugly and Dawn rolled her eyes.

"I'll get you some tea and scones. Nightmare, be helpful and help him sit up on the couch. Laying down will just make it worse."
Nightmare obliged, something Cross was confused about yet very grateful for the help. Dawn quickly brought him some tea, which he reluctantly sipped. When it made him feel better, he chugged it. Dawn chuckled; he was just like Dream in that way huh? He greedily ate a scone, like it was the best thing he'd ever tasted. Swallowing, he turned to Dawn.

"So if you can control Plants and Darkness at this point... is there anything you can't do?"
Dawn looked down and smiled sadly.

"Plenty. I wish I couldn't do this much."