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More errends. This was what the day was made of so far, but Sei didn't really mind. It kept him from focusing on his worry, after all, and helped Zero out quite a bit. In between sick children and having to handle preparing things with Wren, having someone to help her out with groceries was a godsent. And Sei was so mature that she had no issue with letting him do those things on her own. He was more than able to follow a list and pay without her being here, after all.

The grocery store's owner and employees where more than used to this sight by now, but still, some of the other clients found themselves looking oddly at this boy, too young to be a teen, but by all apparences a bit too tall to be a young child, pushing a cart around and putting items inside it, following a list calmly and methodically with no obivious parental figure anywhere around. Sei had learnt to pay them no mind, and it had become much more easier to do so ever since they stopped asking questions. This was gaia, after all, and for once, it's illogicness was working in his favor.

After finally gathering every item of the list and paying for them, Sei took the two bags and went on his way back home. It was quite a bit of a walk, but he had refused when Zero offered to drive him there and pick him up afterward. What would have been the point of having him do this if she was forced to drive him around ? Beside, he liked walking. Even if it usually earned him more odd looks. Sei disliked those big, bulky winter coats. They restricted his movements too much, and it wasn't like he got cold. So he walked, in sneakers and with only jeans and a jacket on, the snow crushing softly under his steps. It wasn't too cold - he could only tell by walking at the passerby. He had learned to guess the temperature by looking at the other people outside. Today they had their big coats, but no gloves, scrarves or hats, which meant that it was cold, but not that cold. He liked knowing the fact - at least he wasn't completely stumped when someone asked him how the weather was.

He continued to walk torward his house, when suddently, something dark on the ground caught his attention, a sharp contrast with the soft, white snow. He couldn't have missed it, and as soon as he saw it... he felt pulled in. He had to pick it up. Stopping finally, he let one bag on the ground and took it in his hand, gentely brushing it against his jacket to remove the faint layer of fresh snow that covered it. It was a miracle that no one had stepped on it. And, it was odd, but... he had this urge. This urge to keep it. It had never happened before, and it was overpowering. He had to keep this thing. The pendant was made of what seemed to be black crystal... And he couldn't take his eyes off it. Normally, he would have asked around to see who the object belonged to... but no, not for it. Keep it. He had to keep it. It was his's now. The urge was so strong that he didn't even have the insight to fight it. As quickly as possible, he put it around his neck, took his bag, and walked off before anyone would notice what he had just done. Too bad for the person who had lost it ! Now, he needed to get home... Zero would need her vegetables to make the soup that would wind up as Ronen's dinner, and as part of their own.

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"'m home." Sei said as he stepped inside, after kicking the snow off his sneakers. Surely enough, Zero was allready busing herself making the broth from scratch.

"Thanks, hon." The blue-haired woman smilled, taking the bag from him. She didn't ask if he had everything - it was very rare for him to forget, expecially with a list, and she would work around anything that might have been overlooked. And, as the blonde boy took off his jacket to shake the snow off, she noticed something that wasn't there before. "Sei ? Where did that come from ?"

"Hm ?" It took him a minute to remember. Oh, the necklace. "Oh, that. I found it." Thanksfully, Zero had a very finder-keeper mentality, so she probably wouldn't ask just how he got it. He did feel a bit guilty now, after the fact and the urge had mostly faded. It wasn't a bad deed per se, but he should at least have asked around to see if he could have found it's owner, and that was what he wasn't likely to be proud of.

"It looks nice." Zero glanced at it. "Blacker than I expected you to like, but... Do you want me to try to tell what stone it is ?"

"I guess it's some kind of black crystal ? Or onyx, maybe. Of course, he had no way to know, having no sence of touch, so suptile differences in heat or texture escaped him completely. He was barely done with his sentence that Zero was allready running a finger trough the smooth black stone. How... how odd. The stone felt so warm to her touch. Warmer than it should be coming right from outside... and expecially warmer than it should be while worn by the fa'e boy. Perhaps it was expecting the unexpected, but... there was something odd in here.

"Zero... ?" It was only when called out that the reploid realised that her features had changed, and she cracked out a smile. "Oh, nothing hon. It's just... very warm for a stone."

"Warm ?" Sei himself now looked a bit puzzeled, understanding himself how odd this would be. "How ?"

"I have no idea." She admitted. She heard a faint sound, but... didn't identify it with the stone. "Well, beside that odd warmth, it does seem that you're right, seems like it's crystal. Very well worked too, a very smooth one." She let the stone fall back on the boy's chest. "But, you keep an eye on this, allright ?"

Sei just shrugged. Warm or not, it was a pendant, right ? Nothing else to it. Sure, he's heard Zero talk about some of the odd origins most of her children had, but... No, couldn't be. It was just a pendant, he was convinced.

Those things only happened to other people, after all, right ?

As Sei had imagined, he was in big trouble once he had finally made his way home. Zero definitively was not happy when he came in, looming at him as much as someone 5 inches taller than you could have, blue eyes sightly narrowed. "I do hope you have a very good explanation, or do I have to tell my brother he spent hours looking trough town over something silly ?"

"Can I at least sit first ?" He snapped. Granted, this was not the best way to help his case, but the fa'e couldn't really care less at the moment, pulling a chair and sitting on it, running an hand in his long bangs much akin to someone who had a severe headache.

Well, THIS was unusual. Where as about anyone else would have snapped back, Zero was quick to realize that something had happened. Instead of answering directly, the reploid crutched beside the chair to look at the child at eye level, her face and eyes having softened, anger quickly replaced by worry at the bat of an eye. "Sei, talk to me. What happened ? What's wrong... ?"

"Everything's wrong." He sighed, pulling the pendant out from under his shirt and letting it fall on his chest. "You remember that, right ? And how you said it was odd ? Well... you where right. There's a child coming out of this thing."

"A child." Zero did not sound too surprised - after all, the only child of hers that had came in a relatively natural way was the one sitting before her ! "Who told you that."

"Some creepy lady. Well, when you dropped me at the arcade I just felt this... pull to go somewhere, it was wierd... I got there, then Riven came too." The blonde explained, gray eyes focused on the black rock. "Then she made us come in in her house and she told us that there where babies in there. She said mine was Shadow and Riven's was Serenity and she wasn't polite at all." He couldn't help but frown at the comments that had been directed to the older fa'e. "Riven is pretty sure she said the truth..."

Zero couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. At least he wasn't alone, and Riven... she had not seen him much, but she trusted him. "Well, he's probably right." Couldn't he sense spirits or something ? She didn't remember. "And I imagine it is linked to you, right ?"

"He's gonna use a bit of my soul energy to get out. Or.... something." The child frowned, the confusion of the meeting returning to him now, and then blinked. "How did you know ?"

"Oh, that's always how it goes. You where sending me dreams months before you where even born. Yes, you !" Zero couldn't help but smile a bit at Sei's dumbfounded face.

"I did that... ? I... I don't remember. What where they about ?"

But Zero remembered all too well. An huge machine, death, destruction, fear, grief, a calling for help... How could this actually be linked to the blonde boy sitting in front of her ? But... it had been... She shook her head a bit - he did not need to know. "It's been a long time, sweetie. I don't really remember. They where pretty vague, anyway."

Of course, Sei knew his guardian was hiding something from him. It was easy to see with the look that flashed in her eyes for a moment, but he let it go. He was still technically on tin ice, anyway.
"So... What are we gonna do with him, anyway ?" He found preferable not to mention what the Medium had said should he fail. He was not dragging his guardian into this.

"Well, what else can we do ? Raise him." Zero said, softly. "I've got the attic I can clean up, for when he's older, but... Where he comes out of here." She tapped the crystal sightly, but backed up after seeing Sei frown. Did he even notice how protective he was of the thing ? Probably not. "...it would be better if he stayed in my room... or yours. That will depend on him. He's probably going to see you as father even if you don't want it, at least when he is younger.

"A father." Sei couldn't help but frown again. How was it supposed to know how to be a father ?

"Don't make that face. I will NOT abandon you on this." Zero said, in her most serious tone. "You should try to think up a name for him, but for now, go sleep."

Sei nodded, went to his feet, and began to walk torward the staircase. Oddly, he felt... almost better about all of this now that he let it out. He stopped midway into the stairs and peered down. "Am I grounded ?"

Zero rolled her eyes to herself playfully. "You had a good reason, and you had Riven with you. Go sleep." She said softly.

It was a quiet little afternoon - Sei had done some chores with the other children and now he had the rest of the day free. It was a toss-up in between the arcade, or staying in his room playing games, or surfing the internet. He decided on the second option - he didn't really feel like going out again. So he did as usual - tossed cushions and sheets in the middle of the room in a pile. This wasn't for his comfort, however, and he knew well, from the feathers and the purple eyes he saw in the crack of his sightly-open door. He paid it no further mind, as always, as he took a specific case from the bookshelf he used to store his games in - this was Aylen's cue to slip in and pretty much nest into the bundle of cushions and sheets. This amused Sei greatly - a phoenix nesting ? - but he kept his amusement hidden. Aylen was hanging out with him alot, ever since Ronen became busier, but the fa'e did not mind much. He guessed she liked seeing him play Kingdom Hearts because of all the Disney stuff in it. She was such a closet Disney fan.

He sat beside her after putting the disk in and starting up the console, but he was starting to feel... tired. This was odd - it was the afternoon, and he had NEVER been tired so early before. He did his best to ignore it - had to be his mind playing tricks on him, so he did his best to focus on his game.

However, it did not take too long for the phoenix to notice. There was... something odd in the air. Like a spell building up energy for a release. And Sei... "Sei ? Are you okay... ?" She said, worried.

"Im... Im not sure..." He admitted, and then... it happened. Suddently, it felt as if all his energy was snapped from him. He couldn't stand, he couldn't move, he couldn't...

The last thing he heard before he felt asleep was Aylen screaming his name.

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There was only black, at first. Black and nothing else but him. This reminded too much of... that one time, before he grew, and he did NOT like it. What the hell was going on, now ?

"ANASTACIA !" He found himself screaming, without meaning it. The last few months had taken it's toll. "Why am I here ?! Let me out !"

But there was no answer. She wasn't there. There was no sign of her. The child grumbled to himself, but then, he figured something odd.

The void... unlike the one the girl had created for him... This one... was moving, cloud after cloud of darkness. Darkness, no... Shadows navigating in darkness.

Shadows... ?

Then, nothing else existed.

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It was the panicked voices of two ladies that slowly stirred out of his sleep. No matter how long it had been, his body complained that it had been all but TOO brief - What WAS going on ? He had never felt like this before ! He never got sick, and he sure never got THIS tired...

"Sei !" Zero was the first to react when mercury-colored eyes opened. "Are you okay ?!?"

"'m tired..." It was all he could say, really. He wanted to at least sit up in his bed but he didn't find the will to do so. Suddenly, however, Aylen's eyes widened, hands going over her beak in shock. "Oh no, I broke him !"

The fa'e was just about to retort that he wasn't broken, but a sudden swirl caught his attention. On his chest laid the crystal.... but there was a very noticeable crack on it's surface, and a soft purple mist waving out. So, this was what happened... Was it why he felt so tired ? He will feed off your own energy... Or something among those lines. He remembered quite clearly. The blonde boy attempted to sit up, but the only thing that kept him from tumbling was the phoenix's quick reflexes, in putting her staff down for him to grip on and slowly use the pull to move into a sitting position, back laying against the wall for support. He hated this already. "No, no, it's fine... That was supposed to happen. He's okay."

"But what about you ? Was THAT supposed to happen ?" Zero said, watching the two children worriedly. Thank good for Aylen's training, she couldn't help but think. That girl had reflexes that some adults could only dream of having. "You should rest."

"It might be an after effect of that soul thing." He couldn't hold on anymore - he let go of the staff and let himself fall back into a laying position. Clearly, even he knew better than to argue.

"Come on, Aylen. Sei needs to rest." Zero said softly, turning the ps2 and the tv off on her way out of the room, followed by the phoenix that kept sending the fa'e worried glances.

If Ronen was too busy, and Sei was sick... Who could she talk to, now ?

Sei, every now and then, found himself staying in his room alone, going trough drawers and closets, just looking trough about anything that he had held on to so far. It was usually in those times, alone, and "safe" in his own room, that he allowed himself to live trough things. This time, he had ulterior motives beside sheer nostalgia - he had to see if there was anything there that could be of use for Alden once he... did his thing.

A starry blanket was found and put aside, as well as a few stuffed toys. A few more trinkets went back in the drawers, to be kept for himself alone. It might have sounded weird to anyone for the young boy to find himself a bit nostalgic over these trinkets, some that he had almost forgotten he processed. But Sei somehow found the feeling founded, somehow - he always had felt a bit older than he looked and then, his life had taken twists and turns that boys his age usually didn't have to go trough. Or at least, would never have to go trough, in a perfect world.

It was then that he had found it, safely tucked away into the envelope that the valentine present had came in with. The incense was burning on top of his desk, so that was not what was inside. No, it was a feather, long and pristine, white tipped in gray. The boy's eyes softened. How long has it been ? And still no news... and still no clue, no way for him to go and effectively look for her, else he become lost himself.

He smoothed the edges of the feather softly, slowly, as if it might have cumbered down into nothing at the slightest thought, then put the envelope back in, rising on his feet from his crutched position to rest the feather on his night table.

"...Mother..." He sighed softly, one hand going to cup the wisp of smoke around Alden's pendant. "You will meet her, one day. I will do everything in my power to make it happen, but... I can't leave, right now. Not with you right there and so fragile..."

Finally, he gathered the things he had set aside for his young charge, and took one more look at the feather. "...I wonder what she would have thought of all this... Would mother be happy to technically have a grandson... with me so young ?" He asked himself, before finally going out the door.

Sei had found himself lingering in the attic-turned-room for a moment, listening to the silence as he sat on the lower part of the bunk bed. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all, now that he had time to mull it all over. It was certainly comfortable - he had open worry about the temperature but Zero assured him that it was all fine. And considering the only concept of temperature he had was pure theory... that, and there was no reason to doubt his guardian. And an old attic sure cast some amusing shadows that would doubtless amuse the small guardian. He found himself staring at them for a moment, idly, then gray eyes widened.

Had that shadow moved ? No, no, it had to be his imaginatio-

Suddenly, he let out a scream as the shadow jumped and swallowed him, and then... nothing.

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It was much like the time when the crystal had cracked - the world of shifting shadows. This time, he knew better than scream, so... he waited.

It didn't take long, for a form to create out of the mist - the only clear attribute being twin, glowing green lights. Eyes. Sei froze, and the form, tall and thin, did not move.

...Thank you.

Then the world went tumbling again.

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When his gray eyes opened next, he was back in the attic, finding himself awkwardly laying halfway on the bed, and halfway not, yet his body refused to move. Just when the crystal had cracked, it just seemed like he had been drained of all energy.

Damnit.

Then there was a small giggle from his lap, and somehow, he willed himself to look down. There was... dear lord, there was a baby there, with dark gray skin, black hair, some odd wraps on his arms, and wings... wings that shifted, wings that didn't seem to truly exist. And those eyes. Those same, almost glowing green eyes.

"You need to stop doing that." He announced, but couldn't help cracking a smile as panicked footsteps - surely his guardian - started to make themselves known.

This time, it hadn't taken quite as long for Sei to recover. That was the good thing, and he couldn't really complain - trough it seemed a bit illogic to think that a crack had affected him to much and an actual manifestation...

But then, Sei had about mastered a lovely art of overthinking things, which Zero has quickly reminded him as she sent him outside to the park with Alden. After all, the boy needed to go out a bit. Well, both boys, but that was beyond the point.

Sei has quickly noticed that Alden and the sun did not like each other. Or rather, Alden did not like direct sunlight. So he was quick to duck, infant-gone-screaming-banshee in tow, to a park bench situated in the shade of a large tree. This made the little terror quick to quieten and take on his usual giggling dispositions. The old ladies sure seemed to find him cute.

It was a bright, warm day - not too hot not too cold, Zero had said. It felt so odd to have to depend on someone else on things like this - on if he should bring water or not... For the first time to Sei, his lack of feeling temperature showed itself as a setback in his mind. And that was odd.

Of course, with Alden in his arms, he did not get to think about it too long before the boy let out an odd chain of sounds to catch his attention. And the fa'e let out one of his few genuine, deep smiles as he ran his finger trough one of the infant's black locks, making him giggle.

The fact that Alden could melt so easily trough all and every of his emotional walls was also a bit disturbing, but he tried not to think about that. They spent about an hour there - just watching and eventually throwing bread crumbs to the birds that soon made their way to the front of the pair expectively - and when the young one started to show signs of fatigue, they made it back home.

Overall, a good day.