Chapter 9 - Margulis & Nora

"Hey! What's the hold-up?" An irritant young male shouted at the crowd before him, "Can't you see I'm trying to get to class?". The crowd was unmoved, there seemed to be some sort of incident ahead which held the students. There was general murmuring about what it was. He cursed under his breath.

"It's that quiet boy, the one with the weird hair." He overheard a girl before him tell her friend who stood beside her.

'Huh? The one with the weird hair?' He wondered, getting up on his toes to try to see above the crowd. 

"Ugh forget it, let me through!" he gave up and began eyeing the spots where the crowd was the thinnest. He shoved his way into the crowd, pushing through the bystanders. He didn't have the go all the way through, just to the stairs just after the mob.

"Damn these juniors, always causing a ruckus." He growled, noticing the overwhelming amount of second and first years making up the blockade.

"Goddamit do you know who I am!?" He spoke randomly when he was shoved back, "I'm Nejima for christ's sake-" The blond boy stopped short. He had made it to the middle of the mob. There was a generous amount of space, like a clearing in the woods. In the middle were two other students, standing on the stairs and giving each other menacing looks.

"What the-" Nijima started. He had seen a lot of things but this one was new. He felt his spine tingle, sensing the raw animosity the two were baring, even more, the fact that he knew one of them.

 If Nejima knew anything about surviving in this shool, it was that there was one single person you had to never cross.

Unfortunately, that person was currently between him and his classroom, easily blocking the stairs. What was even more worrying was that someone was keeping her there, someone capable of keeping her there. 

He noted that this person was not in the middle of a confession, that would not be uncommon. This person was staring her down, giving her a menacing death glare as though he could confidently take her on. And worse? From his uniform, Nejima could tell he was a second-year!

"Give me a break. What's Margulis doing here, and who's the other kid?" Nejima scowled under his breath. He caught the boy's eyes as they glossed over him, making the chills run over him again.

"Green hair? He's getting away with dying his hair? Damn these kids are gutsy." Nejima mumbled.

He began pushing through the other side of the crowd to get to the other set of stairs at the far side of the building. "A little more walking wouldn't kill me, unlike Margulis would." He said and shuddered.

Horatio's eyes slid back to Margulis. He wasn't trying to cause a blockade like this. Unfortunately, he had forgotten why he tried to avoid Margulis in the first place.

'There must be over fifty students here, what's gonna happen if a teacher comes?' He thought. Then he spotted one, watching silently from the fringes of the crowd. Horatio noted his expression, he too was waiting for the confrontation to be over so he could use the stairs. Horatio understood just a little more how influential and scary Margulis was. But he did not back down.

Margulis' glare was dangerous. Horatio knew that if it were not for the crowd she would have launched an attack already. He was not judging her, he would too. After all, that's what she deserves for ruining his life.

"Margulis." Horatio's voice came out as a low growl. It was barely audible but those who head it shivered from the chilled antagonism it carried.

Margulis was unfazed. "Don't soil my name with your lips, boy." She said simply and began up the stairs.

Horatio let her pass, not looking back at her but continuing down the stairs.

They both knew this was not a place to fight, they had their battles where it would create no incompatibility. Their reward was usually the rift. So far, out of ten three engagements, Margulis had won two.

Horatio sighed. That was a week ago and yet his classmates had been even weirder towards him, almost as if they were scared. Teachers had even stopped calling on him to answer questions in class, just like the one who was just leaving had.

The final bell had rung five minutes ago. The English teacher had left immediately, uncharacteristic of him. 

Horatio stood up, taking his bag. There was no need to wait, Nora would not be coming today.

"Please tell me you've gotten something," Horatio asked the question routinely.

"No discoveries have been made." The Analyst answered the question for the fifth time. It followed by saying "We are working with limited information. I propose we read a book with relevant information. It should speed up our analysis."

"And what if the book is wrong?" Horatio asked without skipping a beat. He had become more careful about relying on The Analyst's solutions.

"I would recognise falsification based on what we do know. Try it, you have nothing to lose" It responded bluntly. Horatio sighed again.

"Is there a psychology section?" Horatio asked the student librarian. 

"Wait, you're that second-year, the Toldaap's ex!" The black-haired goth boy exclaimed. 

'So that's where this has gotten to?' Horatio thought.

"That's me." He said tiredly.

"Whoah, can I ask you for relationship advice? There's this girl I have a crush on and I want to ask her out. She's got this beautiful green eyes and wonderful brown hair. I-" 

Horatio held out his hand, stopping the boy, "The psychology books please." He said. 

"Oh, sorry." The goth deflated, "Should be by the History books, at the far back." He said sadly.

"Thanks!" Horatio waved, leaving him

'What the. That guy's weird.' Horatio thought to The Analyst. 'But he thought I was a master of relationships? I mean I don't mind-'

"He was wrong." The Analyst cut him off swiftly. 

"You don't have to say it like that." He said.

Horatio reached the end of the library. Before him was a massive shelf packed full of titles, all under the sign that read 'Psychology'.

"Which one should I pick?" He wondered aloud.

"I recommend one relevant to our task." The Analyst answered.

"Thanks for the help." Horatio hissed.

"I guess this will work." He spotted a small book with the title 'How to apologize'.

"This is useless, it's not as if we're going to understand Nora's heart through a book." Horatio groaned in frustration. He shut the book, running his hands through his hair irritably. There were several books before him, training in size from massive six-hundred pagers to pamphlets as tiny as five pages.

He had skimmed through all of them but noticed nothing useful. Most of the possible solutions he had extrapolated involved taking advantage of Nora's mindset.

"That would be wrong." He said again after The Analyst recommended he employed another manipulative tactic.

"Do you really think talking to Sylvia is a bad idea?" He asked in frustration 

"That's an irrefutable point, according to my analysis taking that path could cause more trouble for you later." The Analyst responded. Horatio sighed.

"I'll just return the books. I've had enough." He said, standing up.

Horatio slung his bag over his shoulder. He sighed again, rubbing his temple. The stress of all this was getting to him, he wanted to hit a rift to let it off.

"Hey, I'm thinking of forcing the one at Jermanson park open. Any objections?" He asked routinely.

"None, it should be relatively simple to close." The Analyst responded.

Horatio smiled. He had been monitoring the area around the school for anomalies. He had gotten a hit but it hadn't opened for several weeks. Like a resilient pimple, it was noticeable, but not quite ready to go. He could force it open by passing large amounts of energy through the centre of distortion.

"Alright, let's get to-" Horatio trailed off. His heart rate quickened and his blood surged.

"What?" He mumbled. He collected himself and hid behind a shelf, steadying his breathing.

He had not expected it to be like this, he wasn't ready. Why was she here? He felt his hand become clammy with sweat.

"Calm down, or I'll have to sedate you." The Analyst warned.

Horatio was on the verge of a panic attack. He felt his body weaken, and his mind dulled. The Analyst had released hormones to calm him down. He sat on the ground.

"Nora is here, talking with the librarian," Horatio said in slow breaths. 

"This is your chance, try talking to her." 

"It is? I don't think I have it in me."

"Nonsense, you're not going to get anywhere hiding here."

Horatio knew it was right. But why did he not want to face her? Why was he so scared?

"Collect yourself! Get up!" Horatio heard its voice loudly in his head. He shook it, clambering to his feet. He took another look only to see Nora was leaving. He had to catch up!

Nora pushed through the door, leaving the room.

"We're doing this now." Horatio declared, following after.

He left the library, but he did not see Nora. 'No problem.' He thought to himself. He knew where she would go, they were friends after all.

"Here." He mumbled, coming up the stairs to a chained door. He walked up to it, lifting the rusty chain.

The school roof was out of bounds, or so everyone thought. In truth, it was open to all students, a place where they could spend their breaks.

Horatio pushed the door open, rust on his hands making the handle slippery. He pushed through, shutting the door behind him while leading part of the chain through so it looked locked from inside.

"Hey, Nora." Horatio waved. Nora ignored him. She looked away from him, towards the fenced edge.

"It's me, Horatio."

"The view here is as wonderful as ever," Nora spoke. Horatio smiled.

"Yeah it is, remember when we spread the rumour?"

"Haha, that chain came in handy, and now we've got this all to ourselves."

Horatio was surprised, he thought Nora would be more tight-lipped towards him. He was happy.

"Hey Nora, I need to talk to you." He said. He needed to let her know the truth. It was a sudden resolve but he had no choice now.

'This is all Margulis' fault!' He thought. It was for her that Sylvia got hurt, and now for her that Nora withdraws from him.

"Hey, Horatio. I need a favour." Nora said suddenly.

"What is it?" Horatio accepted in a heartbeat, he would do anything to fix their relationship.

Nora turned to face him, standing with her bag over her shoulder. "Please forget about me, we'll both be happier that way."

Horatio felt time freeze, but he only felt that way. Nora walked by him, leaving the rooftop.

"Nora, you're kidding me." Horatio couldn't move, as if his body was protesting against him.

He felt pain as though he had never felt before. His muscles ached, his mouth felt dry. He felt as though he were about to cry. Nora was leaving, and she was never to come back.

No, he couldn't let that happen, he had lost too much already. Sylvia, Margulis and Nora. He couldn't have all three of them be happy.

He knew having Margulis could cause him to lose the rest, he had to lose her and keep the others. So why has giving her up not gone to plan?

"Damn you, Margulis!" He yelled, dropping to his knees. "You've taken everything from me!" His fist came hard upon the ground. He felt burning pain, the floor was cracked and red began to pour into the cracks, but the pain made him think.

He was focused now. He had thought this situation was simple, never would he be so stupid again, taking their relationship for granted. He would move now, taking the necessary steps to make sure he was forgiven and to make sure that Margulis Toldaap paid for messing with him.

Horatio powered down the stairs, he pushed his energy out, collecting the information of Nora's passing. Thankfully it was fresh, and he could easily track her.

He pushed through students and teachers alike, noting would stop him from getting to Nora.

He was out in the courtyard. Nora's trail led to the back, and he followed.

'Please let me make it in time.' He prayed, powering after her.

Then he saw her, she was still walking.

"Nora!" He called out and was ignored.

"Dammit, I've got to get her to listen to me."

He had an idea, a bad idea but there was nothing else. So he took it.

Horatio got in close, Nora hadn't turned to acknowledge him.

"Nora please listen to me." He was ignored again.

He took a deep breath. "Nora!" He slammed his palm against the wall, just before Nora, and the other behind her, pinning her against the wall. He remembered this place. The place where Margulis had done the same thing to him.

"Nora." He said again. He was unprepared for this, it was a random idea.

Nora looked away from him, her eyes lowering to the ground.

"Back of Horatio, or I'll scream." She said.

"I won't, there's too much at stake here."

Nora was taken aback by his statement, she blushed.

"I-I'm serious." She repeated.

"Nora, there's something I need to tell you, no, something I need to show you." He said determinedly. He had managed to get her to listen to him, he would not take any chances.

Horatio had sent his energy out for two reasons, the first was obvious and the second was simply stupid.

He needed a way to explain things to Nora without her thinking he was lying. After all, telling someone you fight monsters to save the world is highly unbelievable.

He would take her to Jermanson park, he would show her the truth of this world. He couldn't care about incompatibility anymore. Not when Nora was being taken from him.

"Come with me, I'll show you something unbelievable. But you have to promise not to tell anyone else."

Nora was silent, Her eyes moved over Horatio carefully. "You want to show me?" She asked. Horatio nodded, "Please!" He reached for her hand but she pulled away.

"Why can't you just tell me? I don't want to go anywhere with you." Nora said plainly. She pushed Horatio lightly, creating room to move away.

Horatio reached out quickly, grabbing her hand. Nora spun, Horatio noted the surprise on her face. "You wouldn't believe me."

"I don't believe you even now. I can't trust you, Horatio, I won't trust you, when you can't even trust me!" Nora cried, shaking free of Horatio's grip.

"Her name is Margulis Toldaap." Horatio had to say. He felt the bitter feeling of guilt fresh in the air. "It has to do with her." He said and waited, waited in the bog of guilt for Nora's response.

"Horatio..." She said, her voice was light. He knew it.

'So that's why.' He thought to himself. The pieces were falling together, a few more moves, and he'd know for sure.

"So you'll come?" Horatio asked, reaching out to Nora. She responded with a concerned stare, then a nod.

Horatio took her hand.

"We're going to head out of school, there's a place not far from here that'll be perfect for this," Horatio informed. Nora said nothing. She kept his hand in a loose grip while staying as far from his as she could.

Horatio tried to make small talk, to ease her but she ignored everything he said.

They left the neighbourhood, heading towards Jermanson park, half a kilometre away from the school.

The closer they got, the fewer people there were, the more dilapidated the buildings looked. Horatio realised Nora was getting antsier and antsier, as though she was scared. He said nothing of it.

"Is something wrong?" Horatio asked, seeing her look over her shoulder for the fourth time. She shook her head. "Okay then," Horatio responded.

'Something's off.' Horatio spoke inwardly.

"She responded." The Analyst noted. "Running a scan."

Horatio felt heaviness build up as his unformed energy began to leak. It was carried on the wind, spreading far, a radar blanket. Then it came back.

'Nothing.' He noted, dismissing his prior suspicions.

They were reaching their destination. Fifty metres ahead was a park, large enough to hold fifty but was empty.

"Is this the place?" Nora said, following Horatio's gaze. He easily noticed the suspicion in her tone, her stance carried the same suspicion.

"This is the-"

"Goddamit Horatio!" He was cut off by someone yelling behind them, "Just what are you trying to do?" He spun quickly but was shoved to the floor before he could see who it was. He heard Nora scream before he hit the ground with an unsteady thud.

Quickly he tried to get up. He felt weight press on him as his assailant mounted him.He shoved in the direction, pushing them off him. He swiftly rose to his feet, before stopping in shock.

He saw the plentiful locks of crimson-red hair first, then her face.

"Margulis!?" He said surprised. His fists clenched, as she got up.

"Why have you brought her here?" Margulis demanded, gesturing wildly at Nora.

"Why do you care? So you can hurt her too?" Horatio yelled. His anger flared. He felt his energy flow faster and faster. Adrenaline poured into his bloodstream, he spat.

Margulis sook her head. "I should have known better than to leave you be, you'll damn us all!" Horatio could sense Margulis' frustration. He could feel it change to hatred. He breathed, he did not need to be angry at her. She was wrong, she did not know his pain.

"Girl," Margulis growled at Nora who jumped back, startled "You're in the wrong place, with the wrong person. Leave now, and forget all this..that is if you value your life." Margulis' threat made Nora drop to her knees. Her legs shook so much she couldn't move.

"Don't you dare threaten Nora!" Horatio felt his anger flare back up, more powerful than before. His chest thumped in his rage, it hurt, but that pain was much less important to him now.

He knew what he had to do, a simple task to free him from the hell he had put himself. He had to break his shackles, no matter what form they took.

Margulis pointed her palm towards him and a sigil formed. Red as her hair it was. Her energy began pooling towards it.

Horatio sighed. "That won't hit." And in a moment he had closed the gap. He grasped Margulis' wrist and pointed it towards the sky. The spell fired up, like fireworks it exploded, painting the sky with brilliant orange sparks.

Margulis gasped, realising Horatio was just before her. She yanked her wrist but Horatio's grip remained strong.

"You don't know me, you don't know what I've been through. You think you know me, but I'm no longer that person from two months ago." Horatio growled. His voice reverberated through the energy that clouded the area, making it sound more twisted, like a beast.

"I should apologise...to the rest of the Toldapps." Horatio sighed. His fist glowed. He ran it across Margulis' face, lightly tracing her skin. "This will kill you." He said solemnly. "I would rather not do this, but you've given me no choice."

Horatio pulled his hand back, clenching his fist. It glowed even brighter, sparkling as energy overflowed. "Goodbye Margulis." He swung.

"Stop!" A voice cried out. I pierced Horatio's mind, forcing obedience. His hand froze, the energy instantly returning to normal flow.

He turned his head. Nora was on her knees, tears in her eyes, a hand on her heart and another reaching out. Her jade green eyes had shifted to blood-red ruby. 

"Stop please," She said. Her voice was light and timid, but it carried a command. Horatio did not understand but he was compelled to listen.

He let go of Margulis' hand and began towards Nora.

"Yes, let her go," Nora said in the same timid tone, but with even more command. Horatio fell to his knees before her.

"I'm doing this for you." He said. He was unsure. He did want her to forgive him, he did want to keep her safe, but was it really for her sake. Not his?

"That doesn't matter," Nora spoke, hugging him. It was as though she was speaking to his soul, not his body. He felt oddly at peace. It was as though she was not seeing his mistakes, the broken wretched creature he was, but she looked within, seeing his pain and making it her own. For the first time in months, he felt his soul come to rest. His body didn't ache, his mind was free. He felt sleepy. He leaned into her embrace. He felt tears stream down his face. He wanted to stay awake but the strain on his mind was too much. Darkness came, he went to sleep.