Dressed in jeans, a dark t-shirt, and gray tennis-shoes, Rosciel jogged around the school grounds, Ban at his side. It was a ritual they had, every few days going out and taking a run since Rosc didn't take gym classes. Didn't matter much to him, from the way classes went, he doubted Gym was what he'd expect from it. So he took it upon himself to get exercise. And in turn it helped keep some of Ban's energy down, less trouble she'd cause him that way.
Or, at least that was his intention. It probably never worked as well as he hoped.

He broke from the jog, into a sprint, working the muscles in his legs as Ban kept pace, her ears flicked back and a trail of dust flying off her fur. It wasn't until a voice called out to him that Rosc slowed to a stop, a frown on his face. The voice had sounded familiar, where had he heard it before?
Rosc turned and frowned at the man walking towards him. The man was older than he was, for all things he looked like a Reaper, but for one terrifying detail.
Rosc didn't need to see in color to know this man's hair was probably blond, his eyes blue. He had a small hawk sitting on one shoulder and was dressed like one ot the Asian demons or monsters would be, his hair loose around his shoulders.

This man looked just like him.
Sure, he was missing his horns and wings and Rosc could see full eyes in his sockets, but everything else looked the same. Bone structure, build, even his scowl was the same. It was unsettling.
Before Rosc could move, the stranger was within arm's length and touched the side of his face. The world of Halloween shattered around him, leaving the pair of them in an old-looking world of breath-taking architecture. A world flooded with colors.
Rosc. Could see. Colors.
"There, that's better...." his doppelganger said and walked over towards a gray bench beneath a tree with white bark and full of vivid red flowers. Rosc hated that color, no matter how much he wore it he hated it for what it represented. But to see it... He didn't know how to react to that. "We need to talk."

He walked over to this other self and sat with him, both of them just staring forward. The other Rosc did indeed have blond hair, Rosc could see now that it was a bit more sandy than his own pale blond, and the color of his glowing eyes completely filled the sockets. A scar bisected his left eyebrow.
"What is this? Who... What are you?" Rosc asked before the other could say anything more. His doppelganger grinned, his teeth just as sharp.

"This is my home, or was anyway. I was born in dreams, fitting that I'd return to where I belong in them."
"So this is a dream."
"It was all a dream, but yes. A piece of you was stolen, me, and placed in a dream. I would have thought your world would be better considering how fragile mine was, but seems to me like we both have our upsides and down. Nice to remember colors again, isn't it?"
"Yeah, okay, enough of that. What do you want?" The other Rosc shrugged.
"To be back where I belong, makes sense doesn't it?"
"I guess it does. What will that mean?" Rosc's gaze traveled their surroundings as they spoke, taking it all in, doing his best to memorize it. He wanted to see Sin so badly.

"Sorry, I can't do that."
"Do what?"
"Bring Sin in. I didn't see her in my world, so I can't show you what she looks like and even if you brought her image in, I wouldn't be able to add the color, at least not the right colors." Rosc frowned at that, receiving another grin from the other-Rosc. "I'm a part of your mind, don't you think it makes sense that I know what we're thinking?"
"Suppose it does. So, what will it mean for you to be back in my mind?" The look of concentration on the other's face worried him. How likely was it that either of them really knew?

"Probably nothing bad. I'm not strong enough of a piece to take over or anything. You'll probably just have my memories and I'll go back to being just another facet of your mind."
"Makes sense. Doesn't seem like too much of an issue. Okay, then let's get this over with." The other Rosc held up a hand, his nails longer than his real self's.
"Hold on, I said we needed to talk, there are some things I want to point out before I leave."
"Fine, shoot."
"You and I have a lot in common. We don't like people, we don't want them around us, bothering us. And yet we're healers, how crazy is that? We both push others away, and you and I both know that's lonely as hell. You have friends, I didn't. Don't try so hard to get rid of them. On top of that, there's no trouble helping others out but for your time. You don't have to be nice about it, but at least do the job." As the other-him talked, Rosc started to get some of the memories from the dream world. The more he saw, the more he realized just how much his life had changed thanks to Sin. How much he had hated each day until she had come into his life and then... And then it was like he had been dead and the first dance they'd shared together had shocked him back to life.

"We're a part of one another, you and I. Looks like even in your subconscious we can't have a happy beginning..." his double said, pulling a sad frown for a moment, looking away. His frown was still on his face when he returned his gaze to Rosc and put a hand on his shoulder. "But that doesn't mean we can't have a good ending. We know what it's like to be alone again, and what it's like to not be. I know it's more your choice to make than it is mine, but... just think about it. Do you really want to go back to that?"

No, no he didn't, but it was hard. Someone he had loved, had put all his trust into, she'd killed his mother, came into his room, hugged him, and ripped out his left eye. Trusting was hard. But... But he trusted Sin. That had to mean something.
"No, I didn't think so," the other Rosciel said when a small smile and a nod. "Much as I like being my own self, I can't help but think you've got a lot more than I ever did. I think I'll enjoy having a happy ending."
And with that, he held up one hand, in a shake gesture. Rosc didn't pause for a moment to take hold of the offered hand.

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In an instant, he sat up in bed, blinking as his pseudo-vision flicked on like a light. He frowned for a moment, trying to figure out if that was just a dream. But when he closed his eyes and really thought... He saw an old world, herbal medicine, and an old trainer. But most of all...
He saw colors.

(WC: 1,240)