Chapter Text
Arc 1 — The First Crack in Trust
The streets of Paris never truly slept.
The presence of a curse-bearer after the late hours of the evening wasn’t unusual when the sky stretched dark and heavy above the rooftops, when the city breathed out slow and restless, and when the gas lamps flickered in the late night wind, their glow fractured by the thin mist that curled around them.
The faint animalistic sound from the distance was all too familiar by now, cutting through the quiet hum of the night, where only carriage wheels rattling over cobblestone could be heard, and where the air felt tight and heavy with how still it was.
That was when the rush of footsteps across the rooftops reminded every vampire in Paris that everything was under control now. That's when the heaviness of the night was broken by bickering and laughter, even through the stress and fear that lingered within the breaths of the night.
“It’s nearby,” Noé Archiviste murmured, his voice low as he dropped onto another rooftop, his crimson gaze flickering through the dim streets below, alert and searching, in a way that seemed familiar by now from how many times they’d done this. “I can sense it stronger here.”
“How delightfully ominous,” Vanitas sighed dramatically, his tone laced with boredom as he tried to wriggle out of Noé’s tight grip around his waist, only to be dropped onto the rooftop, letting out a grunt in return. “Honestly, it’s like you rehearse these things for the drama effect.”
Noé didn’t look back at him; he knew that Vanitas was grinning wide right now; he wouldn’t let him have the satisfaction of seeing the corner of his mouth twitch faintly.
“I’m being serious, Vanitas.” Noé cleared this throat, lifting up a curled hand in front of his mouth as he stared ahead.
“And I’m so very impressed, my dear Noé.” Vanitas nodded back, placing a hand to his chest, as if he’d witnessed something emotional. “Truly, you belong on the stage, even when we’re under such horrible circumstances.”
“You insisted we come alone this time.” Noé frowned, turning to face the human with a slight knit in his eyebrows, his hand grasping the chimney by his side.
“Indeed, but I’ve informed Lady Dominique of the backup plan, so all she needs is a signal.” Vanitas nodded proudly as he stepped past the vampire, one hand resting at his chin as he watched the streets ahead, trying to locate the curse-bearer through the thick mist and dark. “Only if you decide to be as reckless as usual tonight and throw yourself into danger.”
“I’m not,” Noé huffed, only to earn a wave of Vanitas’ hand dismissively.
Despite his teasing and easy sarcasm, Noé noticed the slight tension in his posture, the little bite of his jaw, and the way something restless lingered within. Vanitas was worried too, of course. Noé could tell by the way he moved and stared around; he’d memorised those expressions and what they truly meant over the time they’d been together, even with how unpredictable Vanitas was.
A sound broke through the stillness of the night, low and thick, like a growl of some sort, something heavy sweeping across stone, dragging itself along a slow path.
“There.” Noé turned in the direction of the voice, already starting to move.
“I see.” Vanitas nodded, following after the vampire before he was picked up by the waist, letting out a huff in return as Noé jumped across rooftops once again, leaving the human helpless.
He managed to find it this time, dropping at the mouth of an alleyway as he set Vanitas down, eyes tracing along the mist that twisted ahead of them, as if it were being dragged and wrapped around the shadows unnaturally, resembling anything but a vampire or human.
Its body shifted wrong, one of its legs dragging behind it as it moved further down the alleyway, stiff and delayed, making the curse-bearer limp with each step, a large clawed hand leaning against brick walls for support.
The true vampire must’ve been disabled in some kind of way, leaving the habit to linger in its now-cursed form.
“It’s not practically impressive,” Vanitas muttered out, his voice quieter than usual, trying to not alert the creature across from them of their presence.
“I wouldn’t underestimate it,” Noé mumbled, turning his head slightly with a tilt to look down at the human, though he noticed how Vanitas eyed the curse-bearer warily.
The curse-bearer let out a sound, something like a scream, as its head tilted too far, too fast; those cursed eyes fractured in a way—like reflections catching onto shattered glass.
“It could be just as unpredictable.” Noé’s fists tightened as he spoke, lips parting slightly as his eyes glanced at Vanitas from the side.
“Yes, yes. Of course.” Vanitas nodded just once; the smile on his face wasn’t there anymore because, of course, the human was serious when needed, even if he did try to mess around with Noé; he knew when it wasn’t the time.
That was all the assurance Noé needed; his feet were already moving to stand in front of the human, just as Vanitas shifted to move behind, heels clicking faintly against the damp cobblestone, one hand already reaching for his book, eyes alert and ready.
It was like a man moving behind his shield, and over the time that had passed between them, Noé didn’t mind the comparison anymore.
The routine was common by now, a silent conversation between a human and a vampire, a familiar dance performed before the threat was gone and the city went back to peace once more, another name returned, and another vampire saved.
Noé had just enough time to strike; he had to take that creature down enough so that Vanitas could take care of it. He stood still, waiting, the seconds counting in his head as he kept a lookout, his body tensing just slightly as he heard the curse-bearer letting out another broken sound—finally aware of their presence lingering in the dark.
He moved first, lunging forward, faster than most could track, meeting the curse-bearer halfway through the alleyway. His eyes burnt a crimson red as he struck, the impact just enough to crack against the stone beneath their feet.
The creature’s movements were erratic—a mess, really. Sometimes it was sudden, other times delayed; it made it unpredictable—it frustrated Noé. He barely had time to react before he was punched in the chest, the impact sending him flying out of the alleyway before crashing at the mouth of it, his eyes opening to find himself by Vanitas’ feet.
Vanitas only let out a low whistle as he looked down to his vampire companion, raising an eyebrow as he nudged his shoulder with the edge of his shoe, earning a grumble as Noé flipped onto his feet once again in a quick movement.
“Noé,” Vanitas’ voice cut through, the air around them sharp, a hint of worry in his tone, but of course, he never makes it obvious.
“I’m fine.” Noé squinted, already stepping forward to go back into the alleyway once again. There was nothing that was going to stop him from tonight’s mission, and he definitely wasn’t going to give up now.
“Try to stay that way,” Vanitas muttered, his grip on the grimoire tightening as the creature shrieked once more, the sound high and fractured, like glass shattering under pressure.
Noé ran forward once again, sending punch after punch to the curse-bearer, only managing to let it fall back for a moment before it had gotten up once again, lunging forward at him, with only enough time to bring his arms up to block the attack, his feet tightening against the stone beneath his feet.
He managed to get a few more kicks before he was slammed into the wall, cracks forming in the bricks around him, leaving evidence of the force of the attack and sending Noé down into a crumbling mess without breaking a sweat.
Noé ducked, the next strike barely grazing against his shoulder, and he used his crouched position to jump at the creature, managing to land a strike under where the chin of the curse-bearer was supposed to be.
Instead of attacking once again, he jumps onto the building behind him in the alleyway, trying to catch his breath for a moment as he watches the curse-bearer crash into the spot he was in just a moment ago, making the building beneath him shake with the impact.
He noticed Vanitas moving from his place, not directly towards the creature, but around it. He circled it slowly, keeping a wary eye on it.
“Keep it occupied,” Vanitas called out, and Noé didn’t need to be told twice.
Sucking in a deep breath through his teeth, Noé dived back once again, bringing down as much energy as possible as he crashed down into the creature, the force of the attack making the stone beneath sink into a dent around the beaten-up curse-bearer, leaving the vampire above it heaving for breath.
A blue flash in the dark of the night had him squinting, one arm reaching out to cover his eyes from the impact of the sudden light, the sound of those pages familiar as Vanitas stepped closer into the alleyway upon noticing how still the air had gone.
“You did it fast this time,” Vanitas called out, holding the book ahead of him, constellations appearing onto ink-dark pages, a natural process by now before the force of it moved toward the curse-bearer with an unmistakable blue light, one gloved finger dancing over the pages.
Noé watched Vanitas do his work, sliding off the creature and onto the ground once again, wiping the mix of dust and sweat off his forehead with his sleeve, making him grimace at how the white fabric of his coat turned slightly grey.
The curse-bearer recoiled, its body spasming violently, a scream leaving the creature from where it lay on the floor, the light around it blooming outwards, almost blinding in the darkness of the night.
Then it flickered, making Vanitas’ expression drop its usual confidence. Too sharp, too immediate.
“What?” He whispered, his hold tightening on the book in his hands as the pages flickered faster than they should, almost violent.
“Vanitas, something’s wrong—” Noé started, his eyes on the curse-bearer as the light around it twisted inwards, like the energy around it was collapsing and folding into itself, like a star imploding before moving on to its next stage of life.
“Noé!” Vanitas practically screamed, reaching out for the vampire and dragging him away from the creature, his eyes wide as he stumbled back, dropping his book like it burned to touch, but letting it drag behind them from the chain connected to the human himself.
“Why’s it doing that?” Noé muttered as he regained focus, wincing as the curse-bearer let out a high-pitched scream, making Vanitas let go of him to cover his ears. Of course, a human’s senses weren’t the same as a vampire’s.
Noé’s arm looped around Vanitas’ waist with familiar ease, gathering little bits of energy as he jumped onto a higher rooftop, setting the human down as they looked below at the creature recoiling in on itself.
“We have to get away… that curse—non, something isn’t working right. The Book—” Vanitas gasped out, tugging at the chain to pull The Book back up towards him, hissing as the continuation of those screams pierced through his ears.
“Is there an explanation to this?” Noé asked, reaching for the chain to help Vanitas, who had let go of it to cover his ears once more, the pitch too high for regular human ears to take. The sound even made Noé shudder slightly, but he felt he could at least handle it a little better than Vanitas could.
“Shit–” Vanitas gasped out, watching as The Book connected to him pulsed again, more violently this time, enough for the chain to snap, the metal giving way with a sharp sound.
Noé didn’t hesitate, following right after as he reached for The Book, barely managing to throw it back up to Vanitas with a sudden force. The human scrambled on the rooftop before he caught it, holding the grimoire tight to his chest as he looked down to the vampire who’d dropped back into the alley.
“Noé, get out!” Vanitas screamed out, running across the rooftop to look over where his vampire companion had fallen, gasping as he watched the curse-bearer somehow regain composure from its previous paralysis, crawling on the floor towards Noé’s direction. “You idiot, it’s not the time to pass out! Get out, Noé!”
He really couldn’t feel his body after that drop, body shaking with each movement as he tried to move up, wincing as he lifted his head, Vanitas’ screams piercing through his ears, somehow reaching him higher than the curse-bearer’s screams had just seconds ago.
Before he could manage to get an answer out, a sudden force crashed into him, making him cough out blood as he was grabbed and thrown into a building outside the alleyway.
He didn’t get the chance to get up again before he was lifted into the air once more, the motion making him nauseous before he was tossed back to the alleyway, giving him just the chance to barely grasp onto the edge of the rooftop, his grip tightening further as he pulled himself up, standing at the edge of the rooftop as he looked down at the curse-bearer.
“Noé! We have to leave!” Vanitas yelled out from the rooftop across the alleyway between them, The Book held under his arm as he pointed with the other hand to move further away. “That thing’s gonna—I don’t know what’s gonna happen, actually, but it won’t be good!”
“We can’t just leave this! What about the vampire in there?!” Noé yelled back, his eyes meeting Vanitas’ in the dark as he limped to lean against the large chimney behind him, heaving slightly.
“Idiot, what are you even thinking?!” Vanitas screamed out as he dropped his pointing hand, clearly seeming rather pissed off now at Noé for not listening to him.
“Why’s it not cured yet, huh?!” Noé managed to yell out, covering his mouth as he coughed out blood, staining his gloved hand. The sight made Vanitas’ eyes widen as he stilled, staring at Noé with a worried look he’d never seen on the human before.
“Forget about the stupid curse-bearer!” Vanitas yelled out, slamming a weak fist against the chimney beside him, making the vampire heave slightly as he pushed himself upright with one arm. “Just- just stop being so… so reckless for once!”
“Mission first,” Noé muttered, his eyes finding the curse-bearer, which was thrashing through the alleyway, managing to break anything around it with the way it was moving. He took in a deep breath, filling his lungs with fresh air after being restricted from it when he’d been caught by the curse-bearer.
“Don’t!” Vanitas scolded, stomping his foot against the rooftop, unable to do anything as he watched Noé stretch his limbs out, a slight wince on his face with every movement. “If you get hurt, I’m going to kill you!”
“Let’s try again?” Noé spoke up, tilting his head to the side as he looked over to Vanitas, who stared at him with disbelief.
“The stupid book’s malfunctioning! Do you really wanna try that?!” Vanitas huffed out in frustration, one hand coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose, like he was listening to something inhumane.
“It won’t hurt to try,” Noé suggested as he leapt across the rooftop, landing just a step away from Vanitas, his eyes glowing a crimson red colour once more. The human across from him stared up with a scoff, his eye twitching just slightly. “We can’t just leave it, Vanitas—”
“Why- why are you always like this?!” Vanitas yelled, sending a punch against Noé’s chest, clearly frustrated at the vampire now, more than he was at the situation they’d ended up in. The punch didn’t hurt, really, but it made him step back slightly. “Why are you always thinking of one thing and not the other possibilities of what else could happen?”
“Vanitas, that vampire could die,” Noé states, stubborn as ever as he reaches out to the human once again, trying to convince him to try one more time.
“And what if you die because The Book isn’t working right?! What am I supposed to do with myself if that happens!?” Vanitas screamed, hands reaching out and clutching Noé by the collar, as if trying to shake some sense into his thick skull. He glared up at the vampire, his teeth clenching as clawed gloves tightened and dug further into the fabric of Noe’s shirt.
“It won’t happen, Vanitas,” Noé tried again, reaching his clean glove out and touching Vanitas’ face in return, making him drop his grip on the vampire, shoulders slumping by his sides as he looked down to the grimoire like it was some cursed thing.
“How are you so sure?” Vanitas looked up once again, his throat suddenly dry, and he forced himself to swallow back any other words he had to say—not now, not in this situation. He tensed up when the building beneath them shook, the curse-bearer below growing restless.
“Because I trust you.” Noé smiled back softly—too light for this situation, too genuine, like he meant every single word he’d spoken out; it made Vanitas sick.
The vampire jumped after the curse-bearer once again, making Vanitas curse after him while opening The Book once more, trying to focus on his work and try again.
That little breather was enough for him to regain enough energy, crashing down into the curse-bearer with full force, managing to get a few punches and kicks in to try and distract it while Vanitas did his side of the work.
“Ha-!” Noé gasped out as he was suddenly grabbed and tossed into the air, the force of the movement sending him higher than he could ever jump. His eyes traced star constellations as he reached the highest limit from the throw, a breath leaving him when gravity did its work to bring him down again.
The flash of blue beneath reassured him at the very least, the presence of the curse he’d felt earlier leaving his senses once and for all; the only thing dawning on him was how harsh that fall was going to be.
“Noé!” He managed to make out through the rush of wind filling his ears as he came crashing down, Vanitas’ voice like a scream muffled before reaching his ears, like he was drowning in water while the human screamed at him from the surface.
“Noé!” His chest tightened when the worried tone reached him closer this time, making him turn instinctively, trying to reach out towards the voice—towards Vanitas, his fingers just barely brushing against the edge of the rooftop before he came crashing down onto cobblestone, another cough of blood leaving his lips.
Voices moved around him. Noé recognised two, maybe three, as they got closer and closer. He couldn’t focus on anything, vision blurry and unsteady, barely able to even keep his eyes open as darkness pulled him in, allowing him to relax from the ache he’d felt all over.
—
Consciousness returned slowly. It wasn’t clean and sudden but in fragments, moving in and out of waking.
It reminded him of a time when he’d had a fever, where he’d slept for hours, only waking up every now and then, barely staying up for longer than half an hour before sleep enveloped him once again with open arms.
Sounds hit his ears first. The muted and distant voices filtering closer, like he was approaching the surface of metres of water he’d been buried under, finally making it to the very top.
The first thing he was suddenly aware of was the quiet surrounding him.
It wasn’t the silent type of quiet—because of course, it was never silent here—but it was a softer version of it, one that had the distant sound of carriage wheels, muffled voices through walls, and slow footsteps walking up and down a hallway somewhere. The kind of quiet where everything seemed to be far away, like he was watching a world through a thick, glass window.
A dull ache in his body came in after that, a slight pulsing beneath his eyelids with each heartbeat. His limbs felt weighed down by something invisible, making it hard to move, like they needed more effort than usual to do so.
Noé’s body feels heavy, and his head hurts in a way that tells him it was more than just a normal headache, but he can’t really put a finger on it.
He took in a deep breath, the smell of old parchment and lavender filling his senses. It was familiar. It felt safe in a way.
He forced his eyes open, even though his body told him not to, only to shut them closed once again, the bright light of the room burning his vision as his fingers twitched against the sheets.
Noé tried again, slower this time, focusing on the ceiling above him as he blinked slowly, trying to adjust his vision to the light of the room. It was unfamiliar, plain and white, not his room.
His eyes trailed around as he dropped his head to the side, his vision landing on a small bedside table beside him, cluttered with medical supplies, and a single chair beside it, facing him. A bit further, he saw another bed, the sheets flat on the mattress, like it had never been touched before.
So many medicines were beside him; he could smell an antiseptic, though the smell was fainter now. He wondered just how long he’d been in bed for; there was no way he could’ve possibly been given all of those pills in just a day or two.
A window sat slightly ajar, letting in the glow of morning light. Beyond it was Paris; at least that made sense. It made a sense of relief pass through him.
He remembered Paris, the airship… there had been a doctor on the ship, he thought. Miss Amelia had looked sick back then; maybe that man had treated her after they’d landed.
“Strange,” Noé hummed to himself, his voice coming out as a whisper, unable to really put any effort into getting his vocal cords working right, not now at least.
He coughed, wincing at the sudden ache he’d felt all over his body and limbs. Noé had been injured somehow. Did he fall down the stairs or something of that sort? The thought raised multiple questions in his head, and he wondered how he’d got here in the first place.
The door of the room he was in creaks open before he could try to move up and off the bed.
“Finally awake?” A voice asked, the speaker’s tone light and casual in a way that seemed almost fond.
Noé turns his head towards the sound, his movement slower than he usually would, trying to prevent the dizziness and nausea that lingered within when he moved too fast or suddenly.
At the entrance of the room, a petite man leaned against the doorframe, dark hair framing pale skin, sharp blue eyes beneath that looked at Noé with a hint of ease in them, one that felt unearned, a smirk already in place like it belonged there. He looked completely relaxed, like this was normal, like he should be there.
“You certainly took your time,” the man continued, pushing off the door frame and stepping further into the room as he laughed lightly. “I was starting to think you’d sleep through the month.”
Noé blinks slowly. Once, then twice. He waits for the recognition to settle in, he really does, but it never comes to him.
“You must be lost, right? Well, my dear Noé, allow me to explain.” The man smiled, his voice so casual and carefree, it made Noé watch him in awe as he spoke. “After you fell, I called for backup, and we carried you to a nearby hospital, and they wrapped you up like the little mummy you are, and you were there for a two weeks, then we brought you back here because hospital stays are just that pricey—”
“Are you the doctor?” Noé cut through, his voice rough from the lack of use—it made him wonder just how many days he’d been passed out for. If this man said two days alone in the hospital, other than the days he’d spent here, it must have been a little bit less than a month or so.
The man’s smile doesn’t drop right away, but it stalls for a split second. It was barely noticeable, but it was still there.
“I beg your pardon?” He scoffs, something light-hearted in his voice. “Please, don't tell me that title was the first thing you thought of.”
Noé stares, his eyes tracing the man’s face more carefully now.
He was a human for sure, Noé noted, eyebrows knitting together as he tried to piece together why this human was looking at him so fondly, so directly, like there was something the vampire was supposed to return.
Noé offers nothing.
He only moved slightly to push himself up into a sitting position, wincing through the ache that spread through him, but he didn’t fall back; that definitely would’ve hurt more.
There’s a beat between them, then two. The man straightens after that, stepping forward with a focused stare before he fully approaches Noé’s bed, placing a few pillows behind him to keep him upright, even adding the pillow from the other bed alongside the others.
“I don’t… recall meeting you before,” he admits honestly, his hand coming up to his chest in an apologetic gesture, earning another long silence in reply, one that was more tense than before.
The human then cracks into laughter, one that is sharp, light, and effortless. His shoulders shook as he laughed out loud, almost curling into himself and holding his stomach.
“Oh, that’s a good one,” he finally speaks, his laughter calming down as he waves his hand dismissively. “Very good, really; you had me convinced there for a second, Noé.”
“I’m not joking.” Noé frowns, his confusion deepening further as he watches the human across from him.
The man’s expression flickers; it's small in a way that anyone would miss it, but Noé has noticed, yet he doesn’t seem to know this man too well to know exactly what that slight slip-up meant.
“Of course you’re not,” the human shrugs, dragging one hand through his hair as his gaze flicks over to the ceiling, like he was deciding on what to say for a moment.
Noé blinks as he watches the man for a long moment, more careful than before now, eyeing the way the human’s gloved hand found its way to the pale skin of his chin.
Blue eyes find his own. They looked like bright gemstones that had a copper sulphate colour; that felt like the most accurate way to describe them. They weren’t wary, they weren’t cautious, but they seemed to be expecting something, like waiting for something that wasn’t happening.
“You truly don’t recognise me?” The man asked, pursing his lips into a thin line.
The question made Noé hesitate, pausing as he looked down to the blanket in his lap. He, in fact, did not recognise the human, but something told him that the answer he gave mattered more than it should.
He thought for a long moment, searching through the names of people and faces he’d encountered, to see if there had truly been someone who was even slightly similar to the human in front of him.
Noé’s eyebrows drew together before he looked up again.
“I’m not quite sure…” He finally shook his head with an answer, watching for a long moment before the human’s shoulder stilled.
His gaze sharpened in a way, aggressive, maybe angry, but not at Noé, like something had occurred in a way that wasn’t supposed to happen.
“Unbelievable,” he scoffed, his hand moving from his chin to his hair, pushing the curtain of bangs backwards as he looked up at the ceiling once more, eyes wider than they’d been before, like some kind of realisation was dawning onto him.
What does this man really want?
Why was a human so normal with being so close in distance to a vampire like Noé?
He focuses back when he notices the man staring blankly at him now—really staring this time, like he was trying to peel Noé apart and figure out what was wrong with him. It made the vampire shudder slightly.
“Can you tell me who you are?” Noé asks, his words coming out slowly as he averted his gaze from the human’s.
“What’s the last thing you remember?” The man asks instead, the question sudden as he continues to stare at Noé, not shifting his gaze even once, as if he were trying to take Noé in and analyse every single bit of him.
“I was on the airship,” Noé answered after a long moment, looking back at the human, noticing how he’d tensed up slightly, standing straighter than before, completely still. “I had a task I was supposed to fulfil, though I don’t quite recall it…”
“I see,” he answers quietly. The man’s voice wasn’t light or mocking anymore, just flat, plain.
“That doesn’t answer my question,” Noé muttered.
“No… it really doesn’t.” The man shook his head, turning away from Noé and staring out of the window for a long moment. It made the vampire want to admire how that ink-black hair moved with the slight breeze coming from the window, but his mind was racing with too many questions for that thought.
“Nothing after that?” The human presses again, as if wanting to be totally sure, like he didn’t believe Noé the first time.
“No,” Noé replies, staring at the man blankly now.
“No fight?”
“No.”
“No curse-bearer?”
“No?”
This was getting tiring. Why couldn’t the man just take Noé’s word for it?
“No fall?”
“Well, my body does ache quite a bit,” Noé reconsiders this time, his fingers tracing over his blanket, drawing invisible shapes in it with his nails. “Did I fall off the stairs or something?”
“Uh—sure? Something like that.” The man replies, his voice sounding like he was guessing rather than confirming.
So he was straight up lying to Noe’s face. Great.
“You didn’t answer my question, you know,” Noé spoke up after a long moment of silence between them, watching the man put a hand up to his chin once more, as if he were deep in thought. “Who are you?”
“Someone you won’t remember,” he said as he turned back to look at Noé, a slight smile returning to his face, one that was thinner than before, sharper. “That, I’m sure.”
The words didn’t make any sense to Noé, but something about them felt wrong in a way. He bites his lip, considering the human’s words.
Was he hurt? Maybe Noé was missing some kind of hint he’d left behind within the words spoken. The man had been teasing and light when he’d first walked into the room, but now he felt more distant, colder.
“Should I… know you?” Noé tries again, his tone careful as his eyes find the human’s once again. He’s met with a slight squint of those bright eyes instead, pupils dilating like he’d been met with a fear he hadn’t even considered existed. A scoff leaves the man.
“Should you?” The man sounds rather pissed off now, a slight grit of his teeth as he stands up when there’s a knock at the door, reaching out to open it without looking back to Noé.
Had he messed up again?
“…You should,” he mutters quietly, his voice softer now, quieter, compared to how it’d been just a second earlier.
“Noé!” A voice calls out as the door flies open before he could answer the human, and there’s an immediate shift in the mood.
“Domi!” He breathes, his face lightening up as his eyes take in Dominique’s frame rushing towards his bedside, some sort of relief flooding through him, a feeling he didn’t even know he’d needed right now.
He straightens up despite the ache he feels all over.
“Do you have any idea how reckless that was?” She snaps, grabbing him by the shoulders, as if wanting to shake some kind of sense into him. He tries to laugh through the dizziness he feels through the sudden movement, unable to ignore the familiar warmth blooming in his chest.
He furrows his eyebrows in confusion at the statement, his smile curling slightly as he holds a hand up to signal her to stop shaking him so much, but Noé was met with a hug instead, and he relaxes slightly into it.
“Vanitas was so worried about you; he was practically pacing around nonstop until the doctors came out and told us we could see you again,” Dominique sighs, pulling back with a final squeeze as she settles down onto the edge of the bed, looking back to the human from earlier.
He stood by the door, still holding the handle as he watched the interaction between the two; his body was so still he could’ve been mistaken for a statue.
“What was?” Noé asks when he could finally breathe again, blinking up at his friend in confusion. He glanced up when he felt her freeze, just slightly, but he noticed.
“You don’t remember?” Dominique asked slowly, watching carefully as Noé shook his head, making her tense up as she turned over to the man by the door, her gaze quick and sharp.
The man shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest, like he didn’t care about what Dominique was silently asking, like he wasn’t bothered by it.
“Last thing I recall is the airship,” Noé mutters, watching the two interact silently, totally leaving him out.
“I see,” she replied, turning back to Noé once again, as if some sort of realisation had dawned on her, causing her tone to shift into something more careful and measured. It made Noé frown.
“You remember me, though, right?” She asks, even though she doesn’t need that kind of reassurance, Noé had practically brightened up at the sight of her.
“Of course, I do.” Noé nods slowly, his smile reaching his eyes so bright and easy, so certain and warm. The answer comes easily, almost instinctively, unlike how he’d answered before. It makes the man across the room let out a sharp laugh.
“Well, that’s great, isn’t it? So reassuring!” The human laughs out, almost hysterically, as he runs a hand through his hair to push it back. “At least your memory isn’t completely useless now, is it?”
“Vanitas–” Dominique speaks up, her grip on Noe’s arms tightening slightly. She seemed to catch onto something Noé didn’t.
“Honestly, I thought your memory completely abandoned you.” The man—Vanitas was his name–continued through laughter, reaching a hand up to wipe a tear forming in his eyes from the laughter. “I was starting to think I’d have to start from the basics. Oh, how convenient.”
“Vanitas, calm down,” Dominique spoke up again, standing up from the bedside to fully face the human, taking a step forward. She seemed to be thinking about what to do in this situation.
“Ha… really. It’s almost like our dear Noé here has decided that I’m unworthy of being in his memories, so unworthy of recollection,” Vanitas spoke again, laughter calming down as he stared at the floor ahead of him, almost in disbelief, even through that odd smile creeping across his face.
“Vanitas,” Noé repeated slowly, the name somehow unfamiliar to him, like he wasn’t the one who was supposed to be calling it out.
Vanitas met his gaze, his smile fully dropping as his eyes stared into Noé, a flicker of something he couldn’t name beneath that gaze.
“Yeah,” Vanitas scoffed, squinting slightly. “Try not to forget it again.”
“I’ll do my best.” Noé nodded, trying to sound reassuring, but the way Vanitas looked at him, the way his face curled in disbelief and something so similar to a snarl, it somehow felt worse.
“Now, if you’ll excuse me,” Vanitas spoke up lightly, turning before any more words could be said, already opening the door once again. “I’ll leave you to your heartfelt reunion.”
“Vanitas, wait–“ Dominique spoke up again, already walking forward, reaching for the human’s wrist, who immediately snapped his arm away with a glare.
“Don’t.” He muttered, gaze almost deadly, before he turned and stepped out of the room, the door slamming shut behind him.
“Did I say something wrong?” Noé spoke up after a long moment of silence, a frown on his face as he looked at the door. His gaze turned to Dominique, noticing the way her expression shifted—the troubled look in her eyes, the way she bit her bottom lip.
“No,” she finally answered, not seeming convinced with her own words. “I don’t know.”
“Can you tell me what happened?” Noé asked, trying to shift off the bed, but Dominique was by his side once more, gently pushing him down the bed once again, forcing him to rest back.
“You fell during a mission,” Dominique answered, tucking the blanket around him once again. She didn’t meet his gaze, hesitated before she even spoke, like she knew something but couldn’t tell him about it.
“Was he there with me?” Noé asks, staring down at the way she fiddled with one of the medicine bottles on the bedside table, reading a prescription with her free hand, like she was trying to figure out which one he was supposed to take right now.
So Dominique hadn’t been the one by his bedside for the past few weeks.
“Uh, yes,” she nods, her tone more careful now, her eyebrows furrowing as she looks between the medicines on the table, seeming lost now. Her head turned back towards the shut door, pursing her lips into a thin line.
So Vanitas had been the one in charge of his medications.
“And I know him?” Noé spoke once again, watching with little pity at the way Dominique scrambled through the things on the bedside table before dropping them once again with a sigh, like she was giving up for now.
“You… worked together,” she answered after a long pause, finally turning towards him once again, looking at Noé like he was something broken and helpless; it confused him further.
“I see.” Noé nodded to himself, looking back down to his hands curling into the blanket once again.
—
Vanitas didn’t stop walking, not until he reached the emergency staircase and made his way up to the roof, not until he found a spot behind a chimney, away from the room Noé was in—their room, but it didn’t seem like theirs anymore.
He dropped onto the rooftop, his mouth parting in light pants like he had trouble breathing. His hand moved up on its own accord, pressing against his chest, just below his collarbone, like something there hurt.
Vanitas wasn’t the best at realising his own feelings; he knew that part well enough. He wasn’t on the emotional side of thinking; he was more logical than anything. Not like Noé, nothing like Noé, who had been the only one who had helped him figure these things out—now it was all gone.
Vanitas’ breath hitched, sharp and unsteady, just once.
“Of course,” he murmured, his words quiet, almost amused in a way as his hands tightened into the fabric of his shirt. “He remembers everyone else.”
“Why wouldn’t he?” He breathes. A soft laugh follows as he tilts his head back, one hand behind him to keep him still on the rooftop, his eyes tracing across the clouds littering the sky.
How did he always end up in ridiculous situations like this? It was pathetic, really.
“So I’m the one he forgets,” Vanitas continued, biting his inner cheeks harder than he’d intended to, and then a scoff leaves him. “…How predictable.”