Chapter 21 – A Bat That’s Way Too Famous.

Lyon lowered his gaze a little toward the sandwich he had in his hand.

Then he looked at the food baskets.

Then he looked at the apartment.

Then he looked at his own clothes.

He had a simple t-shirt, some comfy stay-at-home pants and the general appearance of someone who hadn't slept well.

In other words, it wasn't exactly the best state to go out with a girl.

Much less with Cya Hogwarts.

Lyon cleared his throat.

"Ah… look, Cya," he started, trying to sound as normal as possible. "It's not that I don't want to, but right now I don't have any clothes to properly go out to the movies in."

Cya observed him in silence.

Then she looked down at Lyon's clothes. Then she looked back at his eyes.

"You can go in the clothes you have on right now," she answered. "I don't have any problem with that."

Lyon stayed quiet.

'Of course she doesn't have any problem with it,' he thought. 'The woman who took me to a luxury phone store wearing old shorts clearly does not have the same sense of public shame that I do.'

The voice inside his head let out a small laugh.

"That's true."

Lyon sighed.

"Fine," he gave in at last. "Give me a few minutes to at least wash my face a little."

"Are you going to come?" she asked.

Lyon raised an eyebrow.

"Didn't you just invite me?"

"Yes."

"Then yes."

Cya stayed looking at him for a second. Then she nodded.

"Understood."

But her voice sounded a little different. As if, for some reason, she really hadn't expected him to accept.

Lyon set the sandwich on a napkin, wiped his hands, and walked to the bathroom.

As soon as he crossed the doorway, the voice inside his head spoke.

"What are you doing?"

"Washing my face," Lyon answered in a low voice, closing the bathroom door.

"That's not what I mean."

Lyon turned on the faucet and leaned over the sink. The cold water fell into his hands, and he splashed it on his face carefully.

"Then be more specific."

"Why did you accept going out with her?"

Lyon didn't answer immediately. He splashed water on his face again. Then again.

The water helped a little. It took the heavy feeling out of his eyes, though it didn't work any miracles with the dark circles he had.

The voice didn't wait long.

"Lyon, that girl suspects you. She suspects you might be connected to the Night Watcher. Or worse, that you might BE the Night Watcher. Yesterday she was asking you about bats. She bought you a weird phone. She called you during the rift. And today she showed up at your house with food like she was one of those intense girlfriends from those human stories of yours. This is a bad idea."

"I know."

"You know?"

"Yes."

"So, again: why did you accept?"

Lyon turned off the faucet. He stayed a moment leaning against the sink, watching the water drip down his face onto the basin.

Then he looked up at the mirror.

His reflection didn't look great.

He had a tired face. Slightly sunken eyes. His hair still had that improvised scissor cut he had done in a hurry.

He didn't look like a guy ready to go to the movies with a woman from a famous guild. He looked like a college student on the verge of making another bad decision.

And, precisely because of that, Lyon let out a small laugh.

"Lately every decision I've been making has been bad," he murmured. "So… why not take this one?"

There was a silence inside his head. Then the voice spoke, dry.

"Your reasoning is garbage."

"Thanks."

"I'm going to suggest something. If you're going to make decisions like this, better stop thinking with the head on top and admit for once that you're thinking with the one below."

Lyon looked up at the mirror with a tired expression.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"When I saw her for the first time, you were having a blast."

"That was before."

"You made fun of me nonstop."

"Because it was funny."

"You kept saying she was interested in me."

"Because it looked funny."

"You pushed me to accept the food."

"That was survival. You were hungry."

"And now that I accept watching a movie with her, all of a sudden you have this crappy attitude."

The voice made a low sound, like she had grumbled.

"It's not a crappy attitude."

"Yes it is."

"No."

"Yes."

The voice went quiet for a few seconds. Then she answered in an annoyed tone.

"Fine. Do whatever you want. But don't expect me to help you if things get ugly."

Lyon dried his face with a towel.

"You didn't say that yesterday when you were shouting at me to dodge arrows."

"That was another context."

"Uh-huh."

"Don't use my 'uh-huh' against me."

"I learned it from you."

Lyon set the towel aside and looked at himself in the mirror again. He still looked tired. But at least he looked a little more awake.

'Okay,' he thought, breathing in deep. 'Let's think positive. Maybe the movie could be fun. Maybe it's not a trap. Maybe Cya really just wants to spend time with me.'

The idea made him feel something odd in his chest.

It wasn't a bad feeling.

It was uncomfortable, yes.

But not bad.

'And maybe…'

Lyon hesitated even inside his own mind.

'Maybe that girl really is interested in me.'

"No," the voice blurted out immediately.

Lyon closed his eyes.

"Let me have a positive thought for five seconds."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because it's impossible."

"How kind."

"That girl isn't interested in you the way you think. You said it yourself yesterday. She took you to a hotel, and you understood it could be a trap. Now she's doing the same thing, but with a movie. You're falling for the same trap that before you managed to avoid with your diarrhea theater."

Lyon stayed silent.

The memory of the hotel came back to him.

Cya's face.

The gold entryway.

The line "will you come with me?"

The way he had escaped by inventing a bowel emergency with the most embarrassing level of acting of his life.

Lyon ran a hand over his face.

"Shut up."

"But I'm right."

"Shut up anyway."

"Then don't say I didn't warn you."

"I won't say it."

"Yes you will."

"No."

"You're going to say: 'Oh, you were right, beautiful and wise voice that lives in my head.'"

"I'm never going to say that."

"You should."

Lyon breathed in deep, ran his fingers through his hair, and opened the bathroom door.

When he came out, he found Cya sitting on one of the pieces of furniture in the living room. She was upright, with her hands on her legs and her eyes closed.

She didn't look like she was sleeping. She looked like she was resting without wanting to admit that she was resting.

The image was strange.

Cya always gave the impression of being completely alert, as if nothing could surprise her. But now, with her eyes closed and her face in silence, she looked a little tired.

Lyon took a step and Cya opened her eyes to stand up instantly.

"I'm done," Lyon announced.

"Yes."

Lyon looked at her with a small smile.

"What? Are you very tired?"

Cya stayed quiet a moment, but then answered:

"Last night I was busy with the guild's work because of the rift."

Lyon's back tensed up a little.

"Ah," he let out, with a nervous laugh. "Right. What happened last night. I'm sure it gave you all a ton of work."

"Yes."

"I can imagine. A portal in the middle of a highway, monsters, army, reporters… all that must be an administrative disaster."

"It was."

Lyon kept smiling.

On the inside, however, he was very aware that he was one of the main reasons that job had been even more complicated.

Cya was looking at him attentively and Lyon cleared his throat.

"Well, then I feel even more flattered to receive a visit from you today," he added, trying to sound light. "If you were so busy, it means you took time out of your day to come."

Cya blinked.

Then she lowered her gaze a little.

"Yes."

Lyon felt like that answer had come out too directly.

And, before he could think about how to respond, Cya took out her phone.

Lyon stared at the motion.

'No.'

Cya tapped the screen several times.

'No, no, no.'

Then she turned the phone toward him.

On the screen there was an image.

A drawing.

It wasn't a real photo.

It was fan art.

Fan art of a small black bat, with crooked wings and red eyes, coming out of a purple portal with patrol car lights behind it.

The drawing made it look cuter than Lyon remembered feeling at that moment.

It also made it look a lot more heroic.

And that was offensive for reasons he couldn't immediately explain.

Lyon stayed completely still.

Cya observed him.

"Have you really never seen a bat like this around here?"

Lyon felt every muscle in his body prepare to die.

The voice inside his head spoke in a fake whisper.

"Yikes."

'Don't help me.'

"I wasn't planning on it."

Cya was still waiting. Lyon concentrated all his strength on his face.

All his energy.

All his self-control.

He had to be a normal citizen.

A normal college student.

A normal graphic designer.

A normal guy who had absolutely nothing to do with a bat that had escaped from hunters, soldiers, archers and a guild leader.

Lyon looked at the image.

Then he looked at Cya.

Then he looked at the image again.

"No," he finally answered, with clean seriousness. "I've never seen a bat like that around here."

Cya lowered her gaze a little.

She looked disappointed.

And that, for some reason, hit Lyon right in the guilt.

"I see…" she murmured.

Lyon scratched the back of his neck a bit.

Cya looked at the screen again. Then she showed it to him a little closer.

"What do you think?"

Lyon blinked.

"What?"

"The image of the bat."

Lyon looked at the fan art.

The bat had red eyes that were way too shiny, wings that were crooked but stylized, and an expression the artist had probably tried to make mysterious, though to Lyon it looked like a confused animal running from its problems.

Which was to say, pretty accurate.

The voice inside his head spoke in a tone that was way too cheerful.

"Yes, Lyon. What do you think?"

'No.'

"Come on. Weigh in."

'No.'

"Clearly it's super important. You have to be super detailed. Toss out some pretty comments to earn the attention you now so desperately want from that Cya girl."

'I don't want anything.'

"Uh-huh."

'Don't use the uh-huh against me.'

"You did the same thing~."

Lyon pressed his lips together.

Cya was still waiting for his opinion.

And Lyon, determined not to give the voice the satisfaction of getting nervous, adopted a serious expression.

Very serious.

Then he pointed at the phone.

"Okay," he began. "As a drawing it's fine, but if we're talking about real bats, there are several things to consider."

Cya blinked.

"Real bats?"

"Yes."

Lyon crossed his arms.

"To start with, bats don't usually seek contact with humans. Most of them avoid people. They're nocturnal animals, and many species use echolocation to move around and hunt. They emit sounds and listen to the echo to orient themselves, detect obstacles and find prey."

Cya looked at him.

The voice inside his head went quiet.

Lyon continued.

"It also depends a lot on the type of bat. Most eat insects. Mosquitoes, moths, beetles, things like that. Others eat fruit. Some feed on nectar. And the ones that drink blood do exist, yes, but they're very few compared to all the species out there. It's not like in the movies where every bat wants to bite somebody."

Cya lowered her eyes a little toward the image.

"I see…"

"They also tend to stay in dark, quiet places during the day. Caves, hollow trees, roofs, cracks in walls, attics, areas where nothing bothers them. In the city they might show up in buildings if they find a safe opening, but it's not because they want to live with humans. It's because they found shelter."

Cya stayed quiet.

Completely quiet.

Lyon kept his serious expression.

The voice inside his head finally spoke.

"…Wow."

'What?'

"That was pretty good."

'Thanks.'

"No, really. You know a lot about bats."

'Uh-huh.'

"When did you learn all of that?"

Lyon raised an eyebrow, though only he could feel the gesture directed inward.

'Don't you remember that when you started living in my head it was the first thing I researched?'

There was a pause. Then the voice let out a small laugh.

"Ah… true."

'You forgot?'

"A lot of time has passed."

'Not that much.'

"In mental time, yes."

'Mental time doesn't exist.'

"It exists if I say so."

Lyon almost sighed, but held it back.

Cya, meanwhile, was still looking at the image.

Then she looked at him.

"You know a lot."

"Not that much," Lyon answered quickly. "I just looked into it a little once."

"Out of curiosity?"

"Yes. Curiosity."

The voice laughed.

"Curiosity, he says."

Cya swiped her finger over the screen, zooming in on the drawing a little. Then she asked:

"So, if someone wanted to attract a bat… what would you recommend?"

Lyon felt like all the calm he had managed to fake was breaking on the inside.

"Attract a bat?"

"Yes."

"What for?"

"Research."

"Sure."

Cya looked at him.

Lyon swallowed again.

He had to answer carefully.

Very carefully.

"That's complicated…" Lyon started. "To begin with, it's not a good idea to try to attract bats like they were cats or dogs. They're not pets. They're wild animals. If one shows up in a house, the recommendation is not to touch it, open an exit and let it leave. If it doesn't leave, call animal control or somebody trained."

Cya listened to him attentively.

Too attentively.

Lyon continued.

"In general, bats look for shelters that are safe, dark, quiet and easy to access. They also go to areas where there's food, like places with lots of insects. That's why sometimes you see them near outdoor lights, not because they like the light, but because insects gather there."

"I see."

"But if we're talking about attracting them safely, what people sometimes do is set up bat houses outdoors. Shelter boxes. Far from areas where they'd bother people. In high spots. With a good temperature. But that's for conservation, not for capturing them."

Cya nodded slowly.

"And if the bat were very intelligent?"

Lyon felt his heart give an uncomfortable thump.

"Very intelligent?"

"Yes."

"Well…" Lyon forced a small laugh. "If a bat were very intelligent, it would probably avoid anything that looked like a trap."

Cya looked at him.

"You think so?"

"Yes. I mean, if we're talking about an unusual bat, of course. If it were capable of understanding humans, it would understand that getting close to a person who wants to catch it is a bad idea."

"And what would it do?"

"It would stay far away."

"Even if the person didn't want to hurt it?"

Lyon stayed quiet for a second.

The question sounded more serious than expected.

Cya wasn't looking at the phone now.

She was looking at him.

Lyon lowered his gaze a bit toward the screen, pretending to think about the drawing.

"I guess it would depend on whether the bat could know that," he answered. "Animals don't understand human intentions that easily. If someone gets too close, if they chase it, if they try to grab it, the bat is going to sense danger. It doesn't matter if the person thinks they're helping. To the bat, that's still a threat."

Cya kept silent.

Lyon wondered if he had said too much, or just enough.

Then Cya let out a small laugh.

It wasn't a big laugh.

It wasn't an open laugh.

It was short, soft, almost surprised.

And when Lyon looked up, she was smiling.

"It seems you are quite smart," she observed.

Lyon blinked, surprised, and the voice inside his head spoke in an annoyed tone.

"She's smiling too much."

'Who?'

"Her."

'And so what?'

"Nothing."

'Uh-huh.'

"Don't use that uh-huh."

'I learned it from you.'

Cya turned off the phone screen and put it away.

Lyon decided to take advantage of that moment before she asked something else that could kill him.

Lyon walked over to the entryway, grabbed his keys and ran a hand through his hair, trying to make the improvised cut look a little less improvised.

It didn't really work.

But at least he tried.

Then he opened the door and gestured for Cya to go out first.

"Alright," said Lyon, trying to recover some normalcy. "So… where are we going to watch the movie?"

Cya walked toward the door and passed by him. She stopped right at the threshold. Then she turned her head toward him with total calm.

"At my hotel."