Night Terrors and Confessions

Much time passed for Silas.

He was still dwelling with the Visoreds, who had grown accustomed to his new behaviour. Every morning, he would try and clean up things around the warehouse and prepare breakfast. Afterwards, he would help Hiyori manage everyone's chores that day.

If Hiyori was like the mother of the group, one could say that Silas was like the father. And he truly was a father. What they weren't aware of was that all of his acts were what he did back on earth.

It was only during the night that things seemed out of the ordinary. Silas would be seen sweating profusely in his sleep. When he arose, he had tears in his face, unable to recall what he had dreamt of.1

None of the Visoreds were able to help in this situation. All they could do was offer him advice, stating his dreams could be his memories trying to come back to him. Perhaps he had a burden past, something each of them could relate to. Silas, therefore, accepted their sayings, spending almost three weeks with night terrors.

On one such day, he became so frightened to fall asleep that he stayed up the whole night. That same morning, he pondered whether or not it would be a good idea to visit Kisuke's shop. It was the only place the Visoreds refused him to venture around—apart from Ichigo's residence.

Since Silas had told the Visoreds that Kisuke helped him years from now, before his memory loss, then maybe the scientist could help him again.

"Don't go..."

"Huh? You don't think I should?" Silas asked Shinji.

"Should what?"

"You said 'don't go'."

"No I didn't. Now come on. We're gonna late for work."

"Oh. Right."

Silas could have sworn he heard someone tell him not to do what he was thinking. Although it wasn't Shinji's voice, the two were the only ones in the warehouse at the moment. So what did he just hear?

• • •

For the remainder of the day, Silas helped Shinji perform typical tasks around the town to earn some money. Most of them dealt with sending Souls to the Soul Society.

Silas questioned him on why he charged for his services if he was a Soul Reaper. The question prompted Shinji to ask him why this was on his mind. When Silas couldn't answer, Shinji told him that he wasn't a Soul Reaper anymore, but a Visored. The two statues were different.

"Tell me something, Ichigo. How do you feel about being one of us?"

"What're ya askin'?"

"I mean how do you feel? It's been weeks since you've thought for yourself."

Shinji was right. For some time, it felt as if Silas was living in someone else's shoes. Weeks had gone by and he hasn't once proven that his memories were returning.

"Honestly, Shinji... I'm happy just being here."

Shinji focused on Silas, only to notice how lively his smile was. If there was anything charming about him, it was his generosity. Not once had Silas caused trouble for them.

Perhaps he couldn't swing a Zanpakutō or summon his mask, he did everything in his power to be a part of the Visored—he was treating them like family.

"Sometimes I have these thoughts of being in a house with people," Silas said with glee. "I can't see their faces or hear their voices, but that doesn't mean I've given up trying to find them."

What he said brought Shinji a sense of joy. Many people could always amuse him. And for the last few months, Silas had been on the top of his list. So he said, "Then consider us those people."

"Huh?"

"You're sad every night because you miss your loved ones. Kinda heartbreaking that you don't consider us like your loved ones."

"That's not what I—"

"Relax! I was joking."

In more ways than one, Shinji not only teased Silas, but he also assured that they would help him until the end. Words like that were enough to make him give the Visored a sincere hug.

"Umm, Ichigo... I don't swing that way!"

• • •

When the two returned to the warehouse, all the other members were present. Silas looked over to Lisa, who darted her eyes to another direction. She always seemed to do that. Then an idea popped into his head.

While they were explaining to him about what transpired before his memory loss, they mentioned that he was getting along well with Lisa. This was said more playfully than romantic. But what if it was the latter?

"Hey, Lisa, can I talk to you for a second?" he asked, approaching her.

While Hachigen was watching the dishes, Love put his book down and Rose stopped stringing his guitar. They each seemed interested at this scenario.

"What is it?" she casually asked.

"Outside. It'll be quick."

Mashiro was ready to burst out something childish until Kensei quickly stopped her. Neither of the Visoreds knew what was going to happen next. And if they tried to eavesdrop, Hiyori was bound to stop them.

Acting as if things were normal, Lisa and him went out and onto the roof. It was dark outside and there was hardly any wind. Looking at the clouds, Silas couldn't help but notice the moon wasn't out. He liked it when it didn't show.

Lisa watched him, remaining silent. Since the two hardly spent alone time, she felt a tad awkward. When Silas noticed, he turned to face her and gave a smile of reassurance, saying, "Sorry, I tend to get lost looking at the sky."

"It's okay," she calmly said. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Ugh... How do I explain this?" he said, rubbing his head. "I've been having these dreams about a woman with black hair. She's really pretty and I can't stop thinking about her... And every time I see you, it reminds me of the girl in my dreams."

His words hung heavy in the air. Lisa couldn't tell what he was getting at.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that you're the girl I've been dreaming about... Lisa, you're really beautiful and I love the things you do."

"Ichigo..."

"It's alright if you don't feel the same way I do. I just like being around you. You're pretty cool, after all."

Being in this situation made her feel a tad tense. There was a slight hesitation as she explained that she wasn't really good at things like confessions. Seldom did she think about being in a relationship with someone.

Even in darkness, she managed to pull off a friendly smile and went with what her heart told her.

"Ichigo, I don't think you and I would be a good pair. Let's stay friends."