He went suddenly submissive, feeling the warmth of one his size against the small of his back. Winter, being winter of course, always froze him to death. He was always cold and always went submissive when someone began to warm him up. Though, as a reaction from badly played out early youth, he spun around to face…himself?

The clone itself grinned pulling at the end of his blue turtleneck. Grinning as big as he could possibly force that mouth he stretched out those arms and yawned a bit before responding,

“Do you like it? I was thinking, who better to disguise myself than the damned hacker? I don’t even have to hide my intellect too much!”

Jeremie fell defensive shrugging his shoulders tightly into themselves with his hands forcefully tightening in his pockets. The snow causing a sort of morbid effect upon the two as they stared each other down. What a joy, Christmas break. His parents didn’t want him home so he stayed there with the American Odd who couldn’t get his parents to pay for a plane ticket. Ulrich was there off and on but still, the three didn’t see each other much.

Now XANA was attacking? Great.

The blonde replica’s grin diminished for a second before returning to take a few steps forward, and in turn making Jeremie take a few steps backwards. The perverse smile returning to see this effect in play, this was merely a game!

“You know, you blushed when I got a hold of you, Belpois,” The symbol flashed in his eyes dangerously, begging for a response. “Did you like the company that much?”

Jeremie hacked out a horrid gasp of shock, what kind of attack was this? Some kind of mental trauma? (He admits that if it was that, it was working.)

“What are you planning XANA?” A staccato type speech, Jeremie hissed through his teeth to make his point clear. A set of bright red mode of rage forming at where his glasses sat, his knuckles white in his pockets almost drawing blood.

The digital beast bellowed out a laughter no one would hear. The campus was basically empty as usual.

“No wonder my sister is so,” He paused with a lined grin, “…into you. You’re rather cute, especially when angry.”

Jeremie roughly pushed up his glasses and took an offensive step forward,

“Don’t call Aelita your,” He sneered and hesitated at the word, “sister and…” He didn’t even know how to approach that one, “Did you call me cute?”

The phantom man smirked tilting his head off to one side. His wrist rolling in a way to express a point as he spoke calm, refined words,

“I did, and you are. So cute in fact, I thought, maybe I should take you.” He made his swift movements to his other and took hold of the small bird like shoulders.

“You give me this feeling.” The faker whispered roughly into the boys’ ear. “A machine shouldn’t have feelings should it? But you make one have it. Don’t you feel special? You did the impossible, Belpois.”

Jeremie began to whimper, the hands taking hold of him were tight and hurt. It wasn’t the pleasant hurt he had heard of either it was just…hurt. He looked into the glasses off the other him, a lusty gaze returned him and now, for the first time in awhile, Jeremie felt helpless.

“You may not want me now, boy.” The faker began with a grin letting go of Jeremie to let him cascade to the ground, red and panting, “But you wait. I’ll make you crave me soon enough.”

A ruby ring fitted around his shoulders, the heat of his breathing infiltrated his neck. He simply melted in the position. The cool metal of the others glasses pressed against his cheek and small, infant words of lust began to work at his mind. His blonde hair fell off to the side as he fought the temptation of the devils words. There was nothing loving behind them, there was nothing to want, there was something for him already.

Fingers held onto his jaw line, while others tempted his lips. Teasing them with light touches and light pressure presses. He would’ve begged them to stop if he got the chance; alas he was busy fighting his want to give in. This specter wanted nothing more than to mess with his psyche. Giving in was to lose this fight.

“I want you.” Whispered the phantom man, ever so close to his ear. Jeremie shuddered inside himself feeling the wet breath trick his ear. His eye’s narrowing hatefully and his mouth forcing open to fight off the fingers.

“I hate you.” Jeremie responded scornfully, bird-like hands fighting off the forced hug. “And I will always hate you.”

The duplicate let go, giving a saccharine smile to his original. The kind of smile that simply strangled you with its sweetness.

“You lie.”

The two words seemingly broke the blondes’ world. He stared vacantly at the faker, a thin smile on his lips. As if laughing sickly, “You must be joking!” dancing in his confused, baffled mind. Blue eyes opening a plethora unwanted thoughts, causing illness in his mind.

The nimble clone adjusted his glasses and immediately went to pushing them up his nose with that suffocating grin.

Red does look good on him…Jeremie mentally tore through himself for thinking such things. Terrible thoughts as those would get him killed, he knew this for sure. Returning the smile with a glare, the programmer turned in his chair back in front of the computer.

“Leave.” He barked out a harsh demand to the other, expecting a volt of electricity or a harsh push to his back. Anything, anything normal, he pleaded. He awaited a strike of pain, or an even an attack on his computer. He begged anyone in heaven for this to happen. Do something normal XANA.

“If that’s what you want.” The replica replied smoothly turning, looking over his shoulder to see the boy once more. “I guess I’ll see you later.”

When Jeremie turned to retort, XANA was gone. The thing was gone. He looked over his glasses restlessly. He slumped on his knees running a hand through his thin locks.

Some break this is going to be.

It had become habit for his friends to leave him alone during winter time. Somehow, he despised the fact that they had also informed Aelita about this. Now he was alone allot more often than he usually did. That meant more company with the specter.

“They’re hardly around you.” XANA cooed sauntering to Jeremie, running his fingers on his chin. Why did he have to do all this in his own body? Why his form?

“I don’t like company during the winter.” He didn’t know why he answered him, it just came out.

The marked blue eyes looked at him questioningly before looking down at his hands to adjust the brilliant red scarf.

“Must be tough on you.” He murmured. “Something happen?”

Jeremie sneered in the direction of his clone, hands going deeper in his pockets. Clenching until they bleed.

“I don’t have to answer,” He growled “to you or anyone.”

The phantom shrugged taking it as a reply before looking at the snow. Fingers, bare, catching some. He sighed looking at the sullen genius. The cold beginning to frost the glass lenses.

“I suppose you want me to leave now.” He seemingly evil being breathed turning. “I’ll be seeing you.”

No one spent their time outside during these days of winter. Only a single blonde boy stood in the chilling snow, tightly warmed by the thick layers of clothing. He despises the cold yet is out all day during those that time. Just staring at the placid sky, wondering and waiting for something to happen.

His breath is a mist, catching all things in a moving picture. When he stares at his other, only lust overcomes him. There is nothing worth exaggerating on, nothing at all, just want and never need. The bright red is a very bold color in the snow, notably so when people see this Jeremie and swoon. Something about this Jeremie was attractive, sexy. He flashes a lusty smile at them and they blush with a small giggle. What happened to the Jeremie before?

However, no one paid any heed to the one out of the corner of their eyes. A transfixed gaze set off somewhere, contemplating some lost thought no one cared for. His angelic blonde hair flittering in the light wind, messy yet so trite no one can distinguish him. His head is dipped in, shoulders downward shrugged with the weight of life. His lips parted only to look up at his other, letting loose an effeminate sigh.

“Come to bother me again?” The original murmurs turning his sapphire gaze elsewhere. “Really, you’re getting more annoying than intimidating, XANA.”

The aberrant one only smiled listening in on the chorus of his faults. Only when Jeremie, the true Jeremie, was done speaking he responded with another one of those saccharine grins,

“Don’t you remember?” XANA hummed taking hold of the flushed cheeks of the genius, “I love you.”

Only a little longer and Jeremie would have subsided with the copy, but rather he grit his teeth and broke away. A heat of embarrassment and rage rose between his eyes as he bolted a glare on the counter part. Fierce and determined to set his clone on the right track of mind he began to speak loathingly,

“Get it through your thick digital head: I hate you.”

XANA grinned to himself turning his head off towards the school, eyes unfocused but beguiled for sure. Simply enough he let his words come out just as calm and flirtatiously as before,

“You do like to lie to yourself don’t you?”

The original sneered matching earlier hatred. Even like that, the snow danced as if nothing happened. Clutching his hair, clinging to his clothes; how could they survive around such a heated stare?

As easily as he could disappear XANA motioned inward, teasing Jeremie’s lips with his own. Fifteen seconds of shock before his body screamed (THIS IS WRONG!) breaking free from the lips that begged for more. The genius shuddered inwardly, ignoring the fact he enjoyed it to a degree. As if his life didn’t have enough problems, XANA let a knowing grin escape.

“What are you doing?” Jeremie demanded in a grim hiss.

The replica only smiled, sweetly at that, toward his original. Adjusting his glasses he turned toward the snowy areas. Humming a morbid tune, he sauntered away.

Jeremie gritted his teeth, letting loose a stare of a weakened beast. Infuriated and beaten.

“You’re small, like a bird,” exclaimed the replica with astonishment holding the frail arms.

Quietly, Jeremie snorted in frustration as he retrieved his hand from the phantom. His dark blue eyes watching the clone carefully, awaiting for an attack. But of course, against his wishes, XANA propped his head on Jeremie’s shoulder to get a good view of what he was doing in front of that computer.

“I could help you,” XANA offered with a smile. “Some of these problems were caused by me.”

Again, Jeremie sniffed out an angry noise. His eyes darting to XANA with bottled thoughts of bloody work.

“I can do it myself,” the blonde retorted spitefully, “I also intend on doing it myself.”

The clone pouted laying back on the cushioned surface (What were they called? Beds?) Cheeks pink.

Jeremie sighed heavily continuing with his work. He wasn’t going to take back his word yet.