It wasn't by himself that he came back to his senses but only because he felt sick when the PTV started to move.
It wasn't Sunny's first ride on the backseat of some of those either, but before… he was always bruised and handcuffed.
Maybe his motion sickness was due to this one's shape?
It was separated into two sections, the backseat and the front seat.
Behind, two sets of two seats were facing each other. Sunny had been placed on one of those closest to the trunk. Beside him was Plume, who was just looking at the scenery changing by the window.
Sadly for him, Nephis was seated just in front of him. Even now, she was watching him in silence. And to make matters worse, Jeanne was now asleep right beside the silent stalker. How could she look this exhausted even when she is unconscious?
The only source of life he could hear in there was Dana talking to Ashe while the matriarch was driving. But to him, everything sounded like some gibberish about the Dream Realm.
So without much of a choice, Sunny was only able to ask about something he wasn't even sure he had heard from Miss Dessert.
-"So I need whose approval before I can leave?"
The girl gave the answer in a tone that was truly irritating, as if anything she said was simply a matter of fact. Or maybe it was just the lack of expression that made it sound like that; he couldn't know.
-"Grandma's, Plume's, Jeanne's, my teacher's, and mine. Why are you asking? If it's too much, we can still throw you to the nearest sewer we pass by."
She was smiling, but not in a good way. Her face had been expressionless for an entire week, and the first one he got from her was a smug one?
Can someone slap that girl for him? Anyone?
-"Weird things to say when you're the one who made that call to begin with…"
No one was reacting, so he thought that no one took her seriously. But in almost every interaction he had with her, they listened to her when things got out of hand. The round table was a good example, so there was a big chance that everyone simply agreed with her since her idea wasn't that bad and was actually helping them move forward in their plan.
Many curse words flew in his mind.
None got the chance to be heard.
At that point, Nephis had finally realized that he wasn't the sole thing to observe. Turning her head away as if it was her best option to kill time.
After that, Sunny had officially had his dose of dialogue with Nephis for the day. But Dana and Ashe were still talking on their side, and Jeanne was sleeping. There was no way he would stay silent all this time.
Always moving.
Always doing something.
It was a good habit to have, even now, despite his unwillingness to think too much, knowing too well that he might not like the reflection that would come of it. Which only leaves him with a single option left.
Turning his head toward the mute bodyguard, Sunless finally tried to talk.
-"So your name is… Plume?... Did I say it right this time?"
He had heard stories of a time when humans had animals for companionship when his mom was…
Whatever. The idea was that before, they would have had something called a dog. The definition of loyalty, always happy to interact with people.
He had never seen one before, but he could almost swear that the reaction that Plume gave him could be described as something close to it.
From being inactive and lost in her own head, her ears suddenly had a subtle twitch as if the sound of her name had been a trigger. Then she moved…
Her head was pivoting as a big smile was shining on her face. Her green eyes acted like a mirror to a soul and a mind that felt only one thing.
Happiness.
'Could it be…that she was waiting for me to talk to her?'
To give her answer, she chose simplicity and nodded. A bit too energetically for him, but hey, at least she wasn't an ass like someone else that he wouldn't mention.
Plume was waiting, like a soldier awaiting orders and eager to fight. She was waiting for orders…or maybe, in this context, another question.
Since everything has been fine for now, Sunny felt like he could humor her. It was better than nothing and a far greater option than spiraling in his own thoughts.
'The more the merrier…hum. What should I ask her?'
After an instant, the boy had his next question.
His tone was a bit more on the defensive, uncertain if he had the right to ask it.
-"Is there any meaning behind it?"
An indescribable flash had passed through her emerald-like eyes. But if he had to try and put it into words, it would be those.
"Oh! I like this question! It's a good one! The answer! The answer!"
Plume had to tap on her suit to find something. Now that Sunny was thinking about it, he never saw her in something else. Even now, while everyone else was wearing a variant of the same attire, Plume was still wearing her usual suit.
The same one that she had while he tried to walk and when he almost got rolled over by them.
It was classy.
Something that rich people would wear for a meeting or administrative stuff. To complete the clichés, all she needed was a tie.
But it seems like she was lacking something else since her face was betraying a growing frustration. Whatever she was searching for, she couldn't find it. Without wasting any more time, she clicked her finger two times. And without looking, Dana instinctively threw to the mute woman a little notepad with a pencil attached to it through the small opening.
It was made of paper and leather? Those are not used anymore, right?
'So she isn't always with her tablet? Or could it be that she simply forgot it somewhere else?'
Her short and curly black hair flew as Plume moved her head to give a thumbs-up to her friend.
Her way of saying "thanks."
She had to look at Sunny for a second to remember the question, and then her hand moved at the same speed that it did before.
The poor pencil didn't even know it could write that fast because in less than half a second, the answer was shown to him. Her writing was efficient and easy to read, but Sunny was spotting some letters with more style than others. As if she had tried to get a bit of a mix between efficiency and aesthetics.
-"[It's mean "Feather" in one country of Europe. And you? Why "Sunless"? Is there any meaning behind it?]"
Turning his head just enough to have the sleeping doctor in the corner of his sight, Sunny took a moment to actually decide of an answer to that question. Not that Plume seemed to dislike it, since her smile didn't even lose a bit of its joy, as if time didn't matter right now.
'Jeanne already knows, so…'
-"My mother was named Luna. My dad's name was Elios. Both were named after something far beyond the sky. So my mom had tried to stay on the subject. I was born during a solar eclipse, which led her to name me Sunless. My little sister got luckier than me, since she was named Rain. No need to explain why."
Despite his lying habit, Sunny wasn't the type to have too many secrets to share or to hide.
The only ones that mattered were the position of his stash of rations and the existence of his sister.
The former was now ancient history since he wasn't stacking any and his "base" had been discovered.
And for the latter? He had already shared it before with Jeanne…and there was no way that Ashe didn't already know about it even before he arrived at the manor.
So there was almost no point in hiding it if not for being an ass for the fun of the game.
…
'Missed opportunity… f-'
Well, it's too late now, isn't it?
No, it's never too late to be an asshole. This is even more the case if the target in question is the one that dared to mock him.
And so…
-"Please, Plume, I reeeeaaalllly want to know. Is Nephis afraid of something in particular?~"
Playing the card of the poor boy, Sunny had sadly gotten back the girl's attention, as she was now shooting daggers at him.
Which only worsened when she saw the pencil moving. Plume was completely amused by the situation, and even if Nephis was hoping that the bodyguard would take her side, she was forced to see the opposite. A silent exchange where Nephis had to fold…
The book gave an answer.
-"[Thunder]"
-"Ohhh~ I wouldn't have thought tha-'
The words weren't even out of his mouth when the girl had already spat her poison.
-"Plume, I swear… I'll find a way to make you scream! And you… one word and I'll make you see the stars up close."
Sunny was immobile, feeling a mix of fear and amusement at her reaction. She had been acting weirdly since their first word shared, and as time moved on, he could only watch as she was slowly getting comfortable enough to be just a pain in the arse for no reason at all.
Now, Sunless wasn't left unequipped. He had a card to play; it would almost have been a victory if not for the matriarch that talked just now.
A bad omen, especially when he saw her mischievous grin through the rearview mirror…
"Sweetheart, please… Jeanne is sleeping; if you want to kill someone, wait until we arrive. Or make it quick and silently."
Okay…
All that sounded a bit too much like an assassination attempt that got planned. The inexpressive girl was now a bit too expressive. It was clear that Nephis was forcing herself to make it even harder to not be afraid of her. She and her carnivorous smile. That gave him a shiver, as if he had taken a first step into a minefield.
'Maybe I should change the subject…'
A minefield that he tried to take a step back from.
He had to ask something.
Then an illogical fact came to his mind.
-"I'm not sure, but…aren't Awakened stuck in the Dream world while sleeping?"
Still half-looking through the mirror, it was "Grandma" that answered him.
-"Yes, they are. But that doesn't apply to Jeanne since she's a Master."
-"Hum?"
-"Oh? You didn't know?"
He had always trusted his gut to recognize those who were walking the path of the Nightmare Spell. But he had never expected to interact with a Master. The fact that she was so…down-to-earth didn't truly help him to make his usual method work.
That feeling of not being able to blend with her wasn't that strong, but it seemed like that wouldn't work with people that tried to help him.
A system based on rejection can't really process a situation where someone tried acceptance, right?
-"..."
As if she was in a good mood, Ashe gave him a bit more information.
-"We have two Masters with us. Jeanne is one of them, while the second is Theseus, Nephis' teacher."
-"Wait, so I need to get two Master's approval on top of yours? Isn't it a bit unreasonable to ask that much? "
It was Nephis who spoke, answering him even if he wanted for her to stay as far as possible from him.
-"Honestly, if you can get my teacher's favor, you'll get mine as well."
-"..."
The whole situation was getting even harder to grasp.
Like, how was he supposed to do it?
Jeanne was obviously going to look at his health on her side, but what about the others? He could still merely visualize it for some of them, but Nephis? What could he do to get her approval without having to pass by her teacher's?
She was master of nothing and no one. Nothing to put on the table to make it logical for her to have her word to say in this mess. And the worst part? It was as if she was reading his mind because at that same instant, she simply smiled at him.
The same smug smile as before.
'Oh…you've done it now.'
-"I hope that a storm is coming… "
-"Oh, you little—come here so that I can beat yo-"
Containing his laugh the best he can, Sunny tried to move toward Plume in a silent attempt to ask for help. After all, she had given him that intel; she had to help him now!
But he was only met with a simple gaze.
One that he was able to understand without any book or tablet.
"It's not my war, kiddo."
It would be a lie if someone dared to say that the ride had been calm after that… Ashe and Dana were smiling in silence without a word while in the backseats; only Plume had noticed that the sleeping Master now had her lips slightly curled up.
Sunny may or may have not regretted his previous choice of words…
Nephis was terrifying.
But hey, Plume had decided to step in and protect him at the end before anyone could get hurt. But as in a continuation of that act, she had also moved to wake up Jeanne. He knew just from that… this part of the journey was about to end or simply change to turn into something else completely.
There was no smoke without fire and no blood without a wound.
If she had to wake her up, it means that something was about to happen.
But now that he was thinking about it, what he noticed was that his motion sickness got a lot better. It looks like all he needed was a little time to get used to the sensation.
Or maybe it was just because the PTV had stopped moving.
Both sounded good to him.
Some doors opened, but only three people moved out of the vehicle. Sunny wasn't one of them, forced to stay behind with Nephis and Plume without much information given to him. For that matter, Sunny would have asked some questions to the mute bodyguard if not for the girl with black hair and grey eyes that took the initiative out of him.
-"A few tips for you: don't close your eyes, and keep your focus on one point. I don't want you to throw up on me… But if you ever did, turn your face toward Plume. It would be only fair since she spilled the beans…"
He could swear that he heard her whispering about something deserved for traitors…
-"What are you even talking abou-"
Once again, without even the time to ask his question. The rug got pulled out from under him as a weird noise came from outside. Something closer to Spelltech than anything else. Blinding lights were flashing through the windows as Ashe, Dana, and Jeanne ran back into the PTV. Fastening their belt as the doctor started to give some instruction.
She was directly staring at him.
-"Don't worry. Weird. Very weird. But fast. Eyes open. Focus on one point. Don't push. First time. Hard. Might faint. Not dangerous. Just… Otherworldly. Hold tight."
-"See, just as I told you. Now, do your best to not throw up inside."
Jeanne gave a sharp look at Nephis, but only for a second, because the vehicle was now moving once more. And the atmosphere inside had changed from playfulness to complete silence. No one was talking; all were focused on their breathing, and so, Sunny did the same.
For a second, he was in a PTV, and the next, Sunny's view turned into something close to a kaleidoscope. Forms were merging and splitting themselves to create something new. Colors were now an unknown concept, one he realized he had taken for granted until now. Except for one point, the one he was told to hold on to.
The best way to describe it would be that he could taste the past, the present, and the future at the same time.
His head was getting lighter and lighter as focus became harder to keep. But just to prove Nephis wrong, he pushed himself…against Jeanne's guidance. His spiteful nature would surely get the better of him someday, but for now, it was the last thing that kept him from fainting.
Thirty-five seconds later, Sunny got the impression that something was pulled out of him. Reality was distorting itself, and then, like a spring, it turned back to its original form with extreme force.
It took a moment for him to realize that this unpleasant experience had reached its end. His mind, still trying to figure things out, was taking its time to make him feel things "normally." His sight started to get back to its usual self. Followed by his smell and taste buds. Nephis looked a bit paler than before, and the same goes for everyone else. Or at least, for those he could see.
He wanted to mock Nephis, but he suddenly felt sick. Jeanne was already opening the door as he ran to the closest bush. It was awful…
Meanwhile, behind him, remarks were made.
-"Thought he would pass out. Happened to all the mundane that passes through."
-"Forget something. Still recovering. Only solution. Hard will. Or. Ma—"
Sunny couldn't focus on the discussion made behind him, since he was finally catching up to something. He ran toward what?
Lifting his head up, Sunny was now looking at something he thought would stay in his dreams or in history books.
-"Where are…we?"
The matriarch then came to join him. He could see from the corner of his eyes that she was both checking on him and being amused by his reaction at the same time.
-"Our hideout for the next year."
Standing in front of him was the interior of a cave, with a giant lake standing in the middle. Beside it stood a proud and magnificent palace.