"No one ever expects them," Ritsuka said, looking to his side as Albedo edged in closer. The pale-haired boy was so close they were almost touching, but he kept far enough away - likely a lesson learned from this morning. It was still weird how Albedo talked about Ritsuka's ears, but not in a bad way. It was more due to a strange sense of nostalgia, and Ritsuka almost expected the words to come in a different voice and from an older man. The memory was painful, however, and he pushed it aside for now. Nigredo's embarrassment would only be made worse if Ritsuka allowed his brother to tease him like this. "But it's alright, you don't have to apologize. I'm the only one left here like this so--"

His ears shot up as they picked up noise from down the hall and Ritsuka turned his head in that direction. Someone - or something - was coming. With his hallucinations, he had no way of knowing if what he heard was real, but soon enough the darkness gave way to two human shapes - two adult human shapes - and he relaxed. The woman was Japanese and seemed to know Albedo and Nigredo, the man seemed to be frozen to the spot as if he'd just seen a ghost. Perhaps he was under the same drug effects as Ritsuka then. Yomi and Klavier, more friends (if that were really the case) that Ritsuka didn't know.

"...Aoyagi Ritsuka." He spoke hesitantly, emotion mirrored by the way his ears flicked back and his tail swung behind him. Were they all going to the basement? There was safety in numbers, certainly, but there was also danger. Would it be wise to go with so many? "...You guys all know each other?"