Nobody really knew when she first appeared.
She was just…there.
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.
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Maybe she was always there?
They didn't know, and frankly, they didn't even think to question it.
The faint outline of a teenage girl just appeared one day and they didn't think to question it. Or maybe, she hadn't just appeared one day. Maybe she had been there since the start. Maybe they just didn't remember her.
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No one knew.
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As time went on, they noticed her more and more frequently.
They didn't question it or ponder over it because they just knew she meant no harm. She was good and she wouldn't hurt them. They could feel it.
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They never talked about her or acknowledged her. She was just there, at the edge of their existence, in the corner of their eye- just barely able to see her. Somehow, they all knew the whole team saw her. Knew her.
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Maybe…. Maybe they should've acknowledged her.
Maybe they were right not to.
They didn't think the girl cared.
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But-
She was there.
And they were oh so thankful for that.
Or at least, they think they should be.
.
.
Because maybe
Just maybe
She was the one who sang softly to them when they had a hard time falling asleep after a particularly hard and exhausting mission.
Maybe she was the one who ran soft, comforting fingers through their hair after they woke from a terrifying nightmare.
Maybe she was the one who held them and whispered soft nothings in their ears while they hid in their rooms or in out-of-the-way hallways on the verge of a breakdown.
Maybe she was the one who quietly coaxed them into getting up in the morning when they just couldn't work up the motivation to get up.
Maybe she was the one who kept them going when they thought they couldn't keep moving (living).
.
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Maybe they were thankful because she was just there and she always would be.
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Nothing could change that.
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Nothing.