If there was a god who watched over humanity, who decided fates, he surely must have been laughing right now.

"...Why...?"

Why did he want to know? Nineteen years...it had been nineteen long years. It was part of his past, a past he was determined to forget so that he could move on with his life. He thought he had. He'd even heard the place burned down...he even went to see it, and there was nothing left but a church, and a handful of orphaned children in it.

"He's..."

And now it all had come crashing back. Was he happy or sad? He didn't even know, it all just swam inside him, until it was a jumbled, painful mess. Perhaps this was karma, for everything he'd done, every person he'd cheated, every girl he'd seduced, those he'd killed.

Because if there was one image that would remained burned in his mind forever, it was those pitch black, burning wings.

"He's..."

He grabbed the ledge of the window, pulling himself up to eye level with the girl. His hair was still damp from the rain earlier, his eyes raw from the tears and bloodshot from the drinking.

His black hair...

His red eyes...

"My son..."

Mayako instantly pulled back once Garv positioned himself right in front of her face. It was just for a moment, though, that she lingered with her head cocked back, but body still leaning against the windowsill. She was just surprised, that was all.

And the reason she was able to lean forward and poke her head back through the window again (then just a foot from Garv's face) was the surprise that topped that.

Things like that didn't happen often. They shouldn't happen often. It was almost impossible! The chance of Garv stumbling upon his son of all people, in a world this big . . . it was impossible. But then again, fate always had a habit of drawing people into situations like this. Eldridge Tsukimono never knew what he was, but horrible things happened to him-- to him specifically, simply because of what he was, and everyone else was dragged into it. Destiny, whatever it may be, demanded that Eldridge Tsukimono's life be anything but simple.

Maybe fate had the same thing in store for Garv, or Fenix. Or her. Maybe Eld's problems, Emma's problems, and now Fenix and Garv's problems were all just byproducts of meeting her. Maybe that was the case, maybe not. Mayako didn't know fate or destiny, or what paths all people were supposed to do. All she knew was that destiny always chose the odd way with them-- her, and apparently everyone she knew.

"Th-- then . . ." Mayako stammered.

Whether or not she believed Garv was unimportant. Whether or not it was the truth wasn't important, either. What was important was the theory. If it was, in fact, the truth, then Fenix didn't recognize Garv-- Fenix, who lived with and took care of orphans, who was more than likely an orphan himself. He didn't know who Garv was. He didn't recognize him, and as far as Mayako knew, didn't feel anything from him. Metaphorically speaking, Garv wasn't Fenix Black's father. A son knew his father.

"Then y-- you should already know his name . . ." Mayako whispered.

If he hadn't put a knife to her throat earlier, it was very likely that the look of severe sadness that crossed Garv's face at her comment would have wrenched her heart. He collapsed back onto his knees, falling into the shadows once more.

"I should...but I don't..."

There were several moments of silence, and it seemed like he might start let out another sob, but he suppressed it for the moment.

"I could never look at him, so I left...not even a year old...all I ever saw was Lucy...my Lucy..."

This time he couldn't help it; a loud sob escaped him, and after that there was a long silence as he attempted to regain his composure. He only partly succeeded.

"Please," he repeated eventually. "What's his name?"

"Y-you . . . didn't e-even name him?" Mayako asked aloud.

She'd really just been thinking aloud, though. She wasn't intentionally being cold, not there. Just seconds ago, she had been. If Garv was, in fact, Fenix Black's father, then she didn't feel any sympathy for him. Emma would've probably said that Mayako watching and talking to this man was all just proof that she was crazy--which was probably accurate, at least partially. Mayako felt just as pathetic as Garv, leaning against the window-sill, head poked in, butt poked out, like some sort of cheap hooker wheeling and dealing her skin away right in a client's window . . .

Garv was so drunk . . . he might even have thought that, if Mayako were wearing less clothes.

She didn't correct herself, but she did hang her head and sigh. She should've just gone back to the clinic, told Mr. Tsukimono about this mess, and had someone go and collect the drug, get him out of the church, and somewhere to detox--and then send him to Galaens or something. He was a potentially dangerous person, after all.

"It-- It's Black," Mayako sighed, finally telling Garv what he wanted to know, "Fenix Black."

There was another sob. No, he hadn't named him. He tried to, he really did. He wanted to name him, even if that was all he could bring himself to do. But in the end, that would have required thinking of the boy as human, and he couldn't do that. He couldn't even sleep at night in the same house as his own son...

And so he left, fleeing the village and his son.

"Black...huh? Godric Black...the priest...'e must've taken 'im..."

On one hand, it was relieving to know that someone had taken him in...on the other...was he supposed to happy with someone else raising his son?

There was again a term of silence, before Garv asked, "You....you seem close to him....what's he like?"

"I-- . . . I'm--" Mayako leveled her elbows upon the windowsill and held her forehead in her hands. This shouldn't have been her job. This wasn't what she was supposed to be doing. She wasn't here to cheer up the man that tried to kill her--or help him at all, for that matter! Hell, she'd done him the greatest disservice of giving him information already. She should've just ignored him, went back to the clinic, and had someone pick him up . . .

Mayako sighed.

What a day . . .

"I-- I don't," Mayako stated outright, "I d-don't know him. N-not th-that well. We're . . . we're probably n-not even friends. We're ac-acquaintances, at best."

Which was sad to say, because it seemed Garv was depending on her for information about his son--but she could only give so much. They weren't technically friends. She was his nurse. Mayako didn't really think anything more about that relationship. Sure, a friendship could bud out of a nurse-patient relationship, but he'd probably leave town before they even had the chance to build a friendship. No, they were acquaintances; her care for him was general and professional, and he . . . didn't really care that much about her. A little, perhaps, but it was probably a very general giving a shit. He probably gave all the girls that much care--which really didn't seem like much. Truth be told, Fenix kind of seemed like a cold person at times.

But she wasn't about to tell Garv that.

"B-but . . . he's-- he's a k-kind person," Mayako continued--she wasn't lying, either. She was just leaving out the details--that Fenix sometimes had a really cold personality, "H-he tried to save m-my life, after all. Remember? A-and he barely even knows me, you know? H-he's a nice person, brave-- I-- I might even call h-him gallant, a-after today. A-and stubborn. Really, really st-stubborn . . ."

Whether or not Garv heard her correction on their relationship was unknown, as he didn't say anything until she'd finished entirely. Hopefully he did; it would be troublesome if someone starting spreading word that Mayako had anything more than feelings of friendship for a patient, especially a stranger.

"S'that...so...?"

The boy had grown up alright, then, despite his father, or so it seemed. Perhaps he didn't have the right to be proud about that, but he did.

"Good..."

And with that, the conversation would come to an abrupt end as Garv slumped back to the cold stone floor, and no amount of calling would rouse him from his alcohol induced coma.

Mayako was silent for some time. She remained there, leaning against the windowsill, just staring at the broken glass. Garv wasn't saying anything anymore. She doubted he was going to for awhile, too. She'd been around people who had drank to a similar state before. She'd been down that road personally, even. Once you lay down, that's the end. That's where the story comes to a pause, blackout, move on to the next day and the next utterly deplorable hangover.

Her suspicions were confirmed once she looked at Garv again. He was unconscious. He'd completely passed out. He was probably going to be out for awhile, too.

Unfortunately, he was in a dangerous place. If a few strong winds hit it in succession, it'd probably collapse in on Garv, and probably kill him in the process. He may have held a knife to her throat, but she couldn't let that happen to him. Maybe Mayako was a little too merciful, but she just couldn't let that sit with he conscience. So, she stood up straight, turned, and went the other way.

Forty five minutes would pass until she returned to the clinic. Her feet were a little dirty in sandals; it was still a little too muddy outside, and she had trekked quite a ways, but darnit she found the pendant! Too tired to even worry about washing her feet off, Mayako just wiped them on the floor mat in front of the door and returned to Fenix and Emma's room.

Mayako said nothing. She simply walked in with Fenix's pendant in hand, and without looking at him, set it upon his lap and collapsed on the bed next to him. Mayako was done with this crap today. It was time to sleep, before something else came up.

Ordinarily, Mayako being gone for such long would have been an extreme cause for alarm to Fenix, as she ended up staying out over twice as long as she'd said she would. He would have at the very least made sure someone went looking for, even going himself if he could. However, with no way to tell the hour in the hospital room and with all his energy being spend merely staying awake, he couldn't tell how much time had passed.

As Mayako dropped the pendant onto his lap he looked up at her suddenly, and though she would miss the relieved look on his face, she'd be able to hear it in his voice: "Thank you." It was perhaps the most emotion he'd put into anything he'd said since waking up.

Quickly securing the pendant so that it was around his neck and in contact with his chest once more, he allowed himself to finally sink down and let his head rest on the pillow. He was just as exhausted as she was, and unless she had more to say to him he would soon fall fast asleep...

The next day came, and they--Fenix and Emma--barely saw anything of Mayako. She busied herself with other things. There were more things she could do as a nurse than swing by and see the patients. She didn't need to do that. She didn't want to, either. Not that day. She didn't feel like cooking or being around people at all--and it was a reasonable thing to feel, all things considered. The patients instead saw their doctors when it came time to deliver the daily meals. But that didn't mean Mayako was being completely useless in the clinic. She'd have probably gone the same route as Emma if she genuinely had nothing to do. So, she did all the prep work. She got the Tsukimonos to teach some things that were actually fairly advanced, things that Mayako would've learned if she were to go a medical school of some sort--genuine nurse's duties. Mayako was a smart girl, though. She could pick up on things quickly; not as quickly as Emma, but Emma wasn't supposed to be around sharp objects, anyways. Mayako didn't receive a lot of new duties, but enough to keep her busy, and still help out significantly around the clinic. And thus, she went unseen for the entirety of the day, and the following day. Mayako didn't even return to the room to sleep. She slept elsewhere. She needed a break, and this was about the closest she would permit for herself.

The following day, though, she had a different duty. This one was actually picking up a bit of Emma and Davis's work. Mayako had to travel by horseback with money to pick up some medications for the clinic. At first she wasn't going to, by virtue of the potential danger involved, but she insisted. She'd be out there doing nothing, but still being useful--and still, she'd have something to keep her mind on.

She threw on something warm before she left--one of her own clothes, actually, from back home. It was a traveler's kimono, intentionally thick for warmth, and loose for the sake of storing goods within the confines of the kimono. Hers still fit her, and was dark purple with a subtle pink pattern that reoccurred throughout it. It wasn't the same quality of work as some like Mai Uematsu's, but it was still nice.

Mayako needed to rent a horse, first and foremost, and since the Vaerbond Ranch had shut down indefinitely, and none of its animals remained in Hillcrest, she needed to go elsewhere, to a less friendly place. One that was actually going to charge her to ride a horse to Galaens, even though the people knew she'd bring it back . . .

Mayako's trip would be largely uneventful; despite the morose atmosphere in Hillcrest, Galaens was as bustling as it ever was. Even if the population's memory of the incident that trashed the market hadn't been erased, it was likely the rush would have continued with just a small bump; such was the life of a town built around trade.

It wasn't until she would arrive back in Hillcrest, as the sun was setting, that her day would be interrupted--by the person she probably last wanted to see, to boot.

"Oi, miss, can I speak with you for a minute?" Though no longer wasted out of his mind, Garv was far from the jovial person he'd seemed when he first talked to her on the hill. He had a pack on his back, and a brimmed hat that was pulled down low to hide his face--he didn't particularly feel like showing it at the moment.

Mayako had paid for a horse--overpaid, in fact; they charged her more because they knew they could, because she was only a child in their eyes, and already seemed a little depressed, so she'd just pay for whatever the heck they'd charge! And she did!--and went on through the day, picking up a supply of medicine before heading back to Hillcrest. It was mundane, but she was still doing something.

Upon returning the horse, she started back to the clinic, only to be intercepted on the way. Mayako was carrying a box with supplies and a handle on top; it was like a miniature crate, and was actually kind of heavy. Maybe if she swung it at Garv hard enough she'd convince him to go away.

Mayako didn't act on that thought, although it was tempting.

"A-ah . . . y-you . . ." Mayako glanced around awkwardly. There was no one around. That was bad. That was very bad. At first, she was scared, and considered running away. Garv was sober this time, after all. He might have better judgment--and that better judgment might tell him to kill her. But she'd also seen him at his lowest point. Something told her that she'd be fine. So, instead, Mayako was just frustrated. She really, really, really wanted Garv to go away--to leave Hillcrest and never come back. She furrowed her brow and replied in seriousness, which with the pitch of her voice and all, was something that couldn't be taken all that seriously at all! "I . . . I think I've answered enough question, M-Mr. Phibrizzo . . ."

Garv held up a single hand, palm out, as though to stop her protests. "No questions, love. Just something I feel you oughta know."

He moved a bit closer, not uncomfortably so, but enough so that he could be sure if there was anyone hiding nearby, they wouldn't overhear. Not that the village seemed like the kind of place he needed to worry about that, but it was habit.

"I'm not the only one looking into Theleaus. If I found out about you, sooner or later someone else will too...and while some of my associates are a lot nicer than I am, some are the kind of people you'll like even less than me, the kind that'll do unkind things to you just 'cause of what you are."

"Far be it from me to tell you what to do, but...the longer you stay here, the greater the risk you take--and if there's one thing I've learned, it's to minimize risks whenever possible."

Garv raised his head enough to look her in the eye, as though he were trying to decide what to make of her. If he came to a decision, he didn't let it show on his face. "Anyway, consider that tidbit my thanks and apology rolled into one."

He walked past her, heading for the road to Galaens, but stopped a few yards away, not turning around, but standing still, as though debating on whether or not to say something.

"Take care of him, okay?" His words were soft and quiet, almost too much for a man like him...enough that it might take Mayako a moment to wonder if she heard him correctly.

And then he'd be on his way, heading down the road and soon would be out of sight...

Mayako didn't say anything the entire time. She kept staring up at Garv, curious and frustrated, at least at first. Initially, she didn't know what he was getting at, wanting to talk to her again. What, was he here to apologize? He didn't seem like the type to care enough to apologize. After all, he abandoned his only son and carelessly held a knife to her throat, and only gave a damn after he drank enough.

But as he spoke, Mayako seemed less frustrated and more confused. It didn't take long for her confusion to drop as well, with an expression of concern replacing her prior bewilderment.

Because of what I am . . . Mayako found herself wrapped up in that one idea. Someone would want to kill her, just because of what she was? That . . . didn't seem right. Yet somehow it sounded familiar. Not regarding her, but . . .

It hurt her head to think of it. By the time Mayako became aware of her surroundings again, Garv was gone; he'd left with a paternal whisper--but as kind of a person as Mayako was (she did spend a lot of time getting someone to help Garv last night, after all!), she wasn't concerned with that at all. The entire walk home, she was simply replaying what Garv said: that people would track her down for information and kill her for what she was, and that it was safest for her to just leave the town behind.

That . . . was too cruel . . .

It was all she could think of as she came back to the clinic, dropped off the small medicine crate, and silently returned to her room for the day.

Something was wrong. He'd been distinctly getting that impression for the last few days since the incident. Granted, having ones life threatened was going to be a traumatic event, but there was something else, he was certain. Mayako wasn't really frightened so much as...preoccupied. Whereas before she concerned herself with Emma and him to the point where it was almost annoying at times, the last few days he'd hardly seen her, and she'd scarcely said a word when he did.

He knew the doctors weren't going to tell him anything even if they knew--after all, he was just a patient, and technically had no right budding in on a nurse's business--so he didn't bother asking. And Emma hadn't moved from her bed, so naturally she wouldn't know either.

But then again, she knew Mayako much better than he did; even if she didn't know, she might have an idea, just based on how Mayako was acting. "I don't suppose you have a guess about what's bothering her," he commented to Emma finally, who he assumed was awake--as far as he could tell, she either didn't sleep or timed her sleep so she was always awake while anyone else was present.