"You know what time is it, boys and girls! It's that time of the year again. The Festival of Remembrance is upon us, marking the coming of a new age!" Treize was standing up on the coffee table, her gray eyes shining with way too much energy.
Meanwhile, November was collapsed against the back of the couch, his day seemed to have passed with his eyes half-closed. Not even caffeine could save him from his ails. At his side, the Princess was poking his arm, but even she, he ignored.
Treize droned on, "And as you know, the Festival of Remembrance is extremely important to the Reading Club!" She stomped her feet against the table, making it shake beneath her. If was bothered it did not show on her face. She stood, arms crossed and feet apart, "After all, we are the ones reading the books that must be burned!"
November slowly peeled his eyes open but the light was penetrating into his skull and made him feel nauseous. He just wanted to sleep forever.
"Are you okay?" The Princess's sweet voice nudged at him. She was sitting much too close and for the first time, he felt a throb of irritation at her presence.
He frowned and looked away. The voice he used was clipped, "I'm fine."
She gasped, clearly offended by his dismissive tone. November sighed and ran his hand through his hair, "Sorry. I'm just tired."
"..." The Princess said nothing and backed off, turning her attention instead to their boisterous club leader.
Should November feel sorry? A light tug of concern flickered in his mind, but it was easily ignored. He was also trying his best to focus on Treize who was demanding their attention with her booming voice.
"It is especially meaningful for us to memorialize and say our farewells to all the precious comrades that will soon part with us!" She raised her arms, inciting dramatics that were completely uncalled for in the situation.
Wait, just who were these comrades? Surely not the books, right?
November ran his hand through his hair again, but it did little to settle the cloud of fatigue and the throb of a migraine.
Huit was the only one that clapped after her boisterous speech even though his expression was one that told of indifference. November still wasn't sure what Treize had spoken about, nor did he understand what they were supposed to be doing as a club.
Something, something, honoring books and remembering comrades?
"Okay so now, I want us all to gather the titles that we're to burn ahead of time. And as part of club activities every night before the eve of the Festival, we'll hold a conference where we share the contents of the book and discuss its importance to each other."
November wanted to protest, he only wished for sleep. But the Princess was already bouncing and chirping next to him."That sounds lovely!" She singsonged.
In the end, the Princess was the first to leave, saying that she had someone important at home waiting for her. November would have left with her if it wasn't for the fact that he felt too tired to even separate himself from the couch. He was going to melt into the cushions soon.
It was only after she left that he realized he forgot to even bid her goodbye. November grumbled and rubbed his temples. Somehow, he already knew that she would hold a grudge against him. It was only a matter of time now…
But his thoughts were trailing off to strange and mysterious places.
"Hey, you okay man?" This time it was Huit's voice that harassed him from his disjointed nap. "Treize is closing up and it's getting pretty late," he mused, "might wanna get up."
November groaned but he supposed that there wasn't much of a choice. He peeled himself off the couch and stumbled a little on his feet. He felt ill. "Thank you. Sorry, I haven't been sleeping."
"Bad dreams?" Huit asked, holding out an arm to help steady his friend on his feet.
November nodded. Though he wanted to say that his dreams weren't necessarily bad…it was just that they prevented him from getting any rest whatsoever.
They left the club room, with Treize behind them, shutting off all the lights and locking the door. "I'll take you back." Huit insisted.
November frowned, squinting at the offensively bright lights that littered the school halls in the late evening. Where they always this blinding? "Thank you, but I'm fine."
"You're not fine. By the way Treize."
"Hm?" Outside of the confines of the club, Treize seemed strangely out of place and almost calm. November almost expected her to screech and yell down the halls but she spoke with an elegant voice that reminded him of Lady Roeman, "What is it?"
"Where has Cent-Trent-Trois been? I feel like I haven't seen her in ages."
Treize sighed, "Oh. That girl came down with the flu. She's getting better, I'm sure you'll see her around when it comes time for the festival. She left the club though, said she needs to focus more on her studies, the poor girl."
Huit blinked, "Oh. That's a pity. I quite liked her."
"You like anyone after they've left," Treize laughed. "Well, I'll be going now. You boys stay safe." She sauntered down the halls, her heels clicking as she went.
With only the two of them, the silence that stretched between two old friends was much more comfortable and reminded November of the silences he shared with the Little Queen Cecilia.
"You know…" Huit's voice was soft but still seemed to echo in the empty school hallway. An eerie wind crept through the windows where the night was pressed upon the glass. "If you're really having trouble with sleep, Marilyn can help you a great deal."
Again, with this Marilyn. "Just what the heck is Marilyn?"
"..." Huit hesitated before explaining, "Under better circumstances, I'd just show you myself. But with the Princess hovering around us, it's safer if you looked for Marilyn on your own."
Huit pushed the door open, missing the flow of red hair that ducked just out of sight.
November stumbled after his friend. He was going to rip his hair out if he heard the name Marilyn one more time. November sighed and tried a smile, "Thank you, Huit." He was dropped off back at his place and see? Nothing bad was happening. Everything was fine and he didn't need Marilyn.
But he wasn't fine.
How could he be fine? Dreams continued to haunt him, mysterious names of characters that had yet to even show in his book made themselves known to him and he wanted desperately to know more about them before the Festival of Remembrance. Octivia, Prince Liang, and Valentine. Who were these people?
A bone-deep fear of forgetting plagued him and chased him around his own mind. November didn't even realize he was awake again until the Princess's voice boomed for his attention, "Apologize!"
November blinked, his breath was caught in his throat, eyes blown wide.
He was in class, seated at his desk with his head resting in his palm. When did he get here?
"Apologize at once!" The Princess demanded again. She was fuming and stomping her feet like a petulant child. What would her etiquette's teacher think? There was a whole crowd watching as well, staring daggers into November but he didn't seem to notice.
Clearly he was out of his mind when he said, "It truly pains me to see you lacking in manners, Little Highness."
The Princess gasped and raised her hand. A loud slap resounded in the classroom and November saw white and red flashing before his eyes. A stinging pain blossomed on his cheek and Princess Ceci left in a storm.
November's blood thumped loudly in his ear.
Maybe it was about time he went to find Marilyn.