Now and Forever

Moby and Reby hover around me closely, the hum of their machinery beats against my skull. My lids flip open to stare at the two fighting over a little strawberry cake that sat by my night stand. I lean up from the bed to pick up the petite saucer. I inspect the creamy icing in a careful swirl that took its place on the crown of the cake, the strawberry pieces that sit snug between the fluffy cake bread, and the white icing that wrapped the fruit in a sweet embrace.

'Such a beautiful crown should have an equally beautiful jewel to top it,' I think as I use the fork to dig into the dessert. Moby put a stop to the fight by furiously patting Reby's face to make him look at me. They happily hover down to the bed and watch me feast on the strawberry cake. I pat both of their heads gently and ask them, "Did you troublemakers give me this?"

Moby and Reby shook their heads. Reby pulls out a stick to mimic Elsword's battle style and starts beating Moby with it. Although funny to look at, I say to Reby, "Do not do such a thing to Moby. You will damage his frame if you continue, Reby. Besides, Elsword is not a complete Neanderthal. He is very good at being…my friend. I must thank him right away when I see him."

I stand from the bed and brush down my night clothing: a simple sleeveless white shirt with matching shorts. Moby and Reby brought my royal garb and aid me in putting it on. It was a hassle back when I wore my Empress outfit but I made sure that my new clothes would be easy to put on with a simple close-fitting dress and gloves. The only extravagant item in my arsenal is the cape, though, I do not mind it. However, sometimes I wonder if the design of this dress was worth it. It is simple but I have to maintain the halo piece that floats behind my head. I finally pull on my gloves when there was a knock at my door. The familiar, airy voice came through, "Eve? Are you awake? Ciel made some breakfast for us, he calls it crepes! It's very delicious so please come out and eat with us!"

"I will be there in a few minutes, Rena."

"Okay! By the way, did you already eat the strawberry cake? Elsword gave it to me so I could give it to you but you were already, uhh, a-asleep when I came in."

I open the door and give her a small smile, "It was delicious. I would like to thank Elsword personally for his kind gesture. Do you know if he is in this building right now?"

Rena gave me her usual warm grin. She is already in her full gear as Daybreaker: a body suit that shows the form of her body, a branch crown sits gracefully on her head, and her train drapes around her legs similar to a cape. I walk with her down the hall as she responds to me, "I think he went out to train with Raven," she makes an exasperated sigh, "but we all know he's pretty much reached a point where he has to find a stronger opponent to be better…though, I'm not saying Raven's not strong! Elria, no! Please don't tell him I said that."

My hand goes up to cover my mouth and keeps me from chuckling, "Do not worry, Rena. I won't say a thing to him. I would like to try those crepes, however. Anything that Ciel makes will always be delicious."

"Mhmm! Let's get to the kitchen then!"

I love Rena's enthusiasm, even in the smallest things she can smile about. We come upon the dividing stair that splits between the girls and boys of our group and I see Chung walk down the steps. He is in the middle of tying his hair when he sees us and gives us a hearty, "Good morning! How are you on this fine day?"

"We're doing great," Rena says while clapping her hands together, "Did you just wake up, Chung?"

"Oh no, I was already awake; around six AM," he finishes tying his hair and places his crown on his head, "Elsword wanted to train with me so he even woke up at the same time as I did. I was genuinely surprised," he makes sure his cape is secure on his shoulder, "He's matured very much like everyone else but it feels like he's on a whole new level. Ever since he became Knight Emperor, he really grew up."

"Yes. He has grown out of his immaturity. We were all surprised when he showed us his seriousness during the battle with Solace." I say.

Rena nods, "I am proud of his maturity, although, it came at a cost."

Chung and I look toward the ground. We, as a group, remember what happened after the Elsword sacrificed himself to replace the El. He became stronger but it put this heavy weight on him that he must be the strongest no matter what. We see it everyday when we help him train; this desperate drive to keep on going even if it will cost him sleep or food. Everyone pleaded with him, even Add and I tried to make him to realize that he cannot do everything alone. We all thought he at least got that through his head, but I assume it never really registered. I walk with Rena and Chung to the dining room where Lu sat drinking tea. Her massive wings are trying to fold in but they still loom over the table similar to a shady tree. She is not wearing her gloves and sat with one leg over the other. Lu exclaims, "Ah~! Good morning! Ciel has made some very good tea today. I always wonder which flavor he uses next but it's always a mystery!"

Rena chuckles as she sits herself down, "I agree that Ciel is probably the best cook out of us all. I remember when we tried to feed each other some food when we first started our journey…nobody had anything good to offer."

I laugh, "I remember that as well. You were all so fooled by my food that you thought it would taste good. But clearly I did something wrong with the flavor factor of how food is supposed to taste."

Chung and Lu are confused about what we said but Ciel came around the kitchen entrance wearing an apron; he carries plates of crepes in one hand and cups of tea on the other. He is not wearing his fluffy coat so I see the nice suit he wears. He sets down the plates and saucers while saying, "I have taken measures to ensure that we all eat well today. I have many more crepes coming if you're all hungry for more."

When he sets the plate down in front of me, I can tell he knows my taste very well. He made sure to place sweet fruits inside my crepe that are held together by a rich chocolate syrup and it is topped off with powdered sugar. I thank him with the others and we begin to feast on our crepes. Chung takes one bite of his only to quickly scarf it all down within seconds; he immediately rises and wanders into the kitchen to ask for more. The sweet fruits that Ciel put in my crepe is just a blast of flavors that is different from the strawberry cake; the chocolate is a little too sticky but it is what made the crepe so amazing. Chung comes back with a plate piled high with different crepes and held a tea pot in his other hand. I always enjoy my time with the others when I do anything with them; Chung's voracious appetite is interesting to watch and Rena always tries to tell him to not eat so fast. Ciel finally sits down with us and says, "How do you like your crepes, everyone? I hope that the rest of the team will come down to eat. I prepared so much food today."

My utensils clink when I put them down, "Shall I fetch the others so they can eat?"

Before I could even stand up, the door entrance quickly opens and slams against the wall. A few pair of feet walk in and Elsword came into view. His sword is sheathed to his back under his cape and he places a hand on the stair railing. I immediately stand to see what is wrong to see Raven and Aisha walk in. Raven's sword is down on the ground and annoyance does not begin to describe the face he is making; his brows are sewn together, his eyes narrow and seething with controlled anger. The corners of his mouth twitch, "Elsword, stop! Don't you dare take a step further!"

Aisha walks behind Raven, her cloak wraps around her like a protective barrier. She seems to have already been crying since her eyes look bloated and she is wiping her face with small handkerchief. Her voice trembles as she says, "Elsword, don't push us away anymore! We're your friends! We'll do anything to help you just, please, don't make us tell you again that you can't do everything by yourself! Don't sacrifice yourself again and make us worry about you all over again…"

I approach Elsword and reach a hand out to him, "Elsword, what is wrong? Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm fine," Elsword huffs and took his place on the third stair, "Don't worry about me, Eve."

"Don't ignore me, either," Raven's eyes widen and he lets out a sharp breath, "Look at me when I talk to you. Do you not remember when you sacrificed yourself to the El? Do you not remember when we all did our best to reach you to free you from the El so that you can stay alive? Does all that not mean anything to you?! You need to stop this act that you have to shoulder everything—you don't have to. As Aisha says, you have us! You have a lot of friends that are willing to lay everything down as well."

Elsword leans his head against the railing, letting the silence hang in the air. Raven stands stiff, Aisha goes to Rena for an embrace, and everyone else is watching the two in silence. I want to say something but I can feel something holding me back. The wall between my friends is so apparent. Elsword tears it down with, "I'm going back to my room."

The sound of Raven's fist knocking down the right hand stair railing tears the silence apart, "Don't you dare go back to your room when I just spoke to you! You can NOT ignore everything I just told you," his human hand combs through his mostly white head, "I always knew you're thickheaded, but I never knew you could be this thick skulled. Fine, go ahead. Go back to your room. I'm finished talking sense to you."

Raven takes his sword, I hear it drag on the ground, and his figure swiftly passes by Elsword. Everyone is silent: both watching Raven walk upstairs and Elsword resting. Once the sound of footsteps fade, I walk to the base of the stairs and put my hand on his shoulder, "Elsword…? Are you fine?"

My hand immediately falls from Elsword's shoulder. This feeling I felt when I saw him sacrifice himself comes back to me—that feeling of emptiness, or is it helplessness? I faintly hear him say, "I'm going back in my room. Sorry about that…"

My body acts out on its own; my arm, like a speeding bullet, grabs Elsword's elbow and my fingers dig into his muscles. I can see him slightly raise an eyebrow and mouth open to say something but nothing escapes his breath. Something inside me is bubbling fast; this heated sensation that is making me…flustered.

Angry.

Elsword's eyes finally makes contact with mine and I can see him finally become aware of what I am doing. I feel a wet sensation fall from my eyes, down my cheeks, and I say with a shaky voice, "Elsword…don't you see what happened between you and Raven? Can you not see why Raven gave up on you…?"

I can see his glazed eyes glisten back to the lively red they used to be. He places his gloved hand on my cheek, wiping away the tears that fell, "Wh-what happened, Eve? What's wrong? Why're you…crying?"

"Do you still not see? Must this still be explained to you time and again when something happens? You—," the urge to yell must be quelled and I take a moment to breathe, "you are still being so ignorant to the fact that you are still shouldering the weight of becoming strong, stronger than your sister, stronger than any of us. Please, Elsword, why can you not see how much we care for you? How can you not see that we want to help you?"

"I-I did listen to you…to you guys—"

"No! We all know you didn't listen," my hand clamp down on him, "and you know it as well. You shouldn't ignore us anymore, Elsword. We can all tell you've changed but it's for the worst! You went through trauma and that did nothing to change your mindset! If you are not going to listen to Raven, then listen to me. To us. We are your friends, Elsword. You are not the only one that is willing to give up everything for the good battle. Why can't you see that?"

"Eve," Elsword leans over as if he is about to throw up and his eyes begun to turn into a dirty crimson, "I just…can't let go of the idea that I'll never be able to catch up with Elesis. She's better than me in every way: both in battle and in everyday life."

Quiet footsteps come up behind me and Rena's gentle hand falls on my shoulder, "But look at yourself, Elsword. Look at how far you've come," she comes to my side and puts her hand on his cheek, making him look into her eyes, "It's obvious that you have grown so much since you've become Knight Emperor, and it's obvious that you chose to follow under Elesis' shadow. But you don't have to be the Captain of the Red Knights; you don't have to hold your own when the going gets tough; and you definitely don't have to save the world by yourself."

"Yes! Remember Elsword," Chung comes through the dining room entrance and folds his arms, "You are not the only one who can take a beating and carry weight far greater than your used to. I hope you didn't forget that I have a father to save from the demon realm."

Lu walks past Chung while gracefully shifting her hair behind her, "And I have an entire throne and land to recapture in the Underworld. Although it may not be as heavy as saving the world, it is still a feat that must be done for my sake. However, I realized that I could not do it alone," she puts her hand on Ciel's, "and now I have someone who is willing to help me from beginning to end."

Ciel lifts Lu's hand higher and plants a kiss on her middle knuckle, "That is correct. When I signed the contract, I will be honest: I did not know what I was getting myself into. But I could not bear the idea that she will die and nothing will be resolved. The closer we come to the demon realm, the more I realize that this is my fate. And I wholeheartedly accept it."

My eyes come back to Elsword to see his eyes slowly turn back to the fiery red they once were. I see that his skin is now black and purple from my hands. I make sure that his eyes are looking deep into mines, I gingerly place my hands over his bruise, and I whisper, "You can see that we all want the best for you, and we all have went through trials and tribulations that were, or are, similar to yours. So, we know your pain and we know how difficult it is to carry heavy weight, especially yours," my hand gently goes over the bruise, "Do you realize now? Do you finally see the reason why we are still here by your side?"

"Yes, Elsword," I hear Elesis say as she comes down the stairs from the girl's side of the dorm, "There's a reason why we are still here for you; a reason why we still fight even though right now it's still a haze that we're still trying to get through," she places her hand on Elsword's head and ruffles his already messed up hair, "I agree with what Rena says: you have grown up so much that I think you've gone farther than I did."

Elsword gazes at his sister's eyes that are glistening, "What do you mean?"

"You have grown stronger than I could. I have already went past my limits—there may be room for more progress but it's not as much as you. You don't realize it now, but you have more potential than any of us in this group. The power you hold in your hands is far greater than you can imagine."

I can tell everyone's eyes are on him as he lifts his right hand to his face. It turned into a tight fist, "Do you really think that I have the power? I mean, when I see everyone else, I can tell you're all better than me. I can see that you guys are powerful and adept with what you have. But me? I'm just another idiot that swings a sword around."

"Don't say such a thing," Chung appears at the base of the stairs and holds his usual encouraging smile, "If that's your thinking, Elsword, then I'm also an idiot that swings a one-ton cannon around."

"And we can say the same thing for everyone here," Rena sweeps her hand to everyone in the room, "Everyone in this group can be described as an idiot with no direction. But here we are, fighting together with a common cause of defending Elrianode from Henir fanatics. But when you say it out loud it kind of sounds crazy, huh?"

There is soft laughter at Rena's comment about their mission. I also laughed because it is true: we are fighting off fanatics of the god Henir so that the world as we know it can stay in one piece. It may not sound like it should be laughed at, but we could not help it. Once the laughter dies down, Elsword's smile still lingers and his hand immediately rests upon mine, "It does sound crazy. But…that's my destiny. No, our destiny."

"Yes," I say while wrapping my hand around his, "This is our fight. That weight should not be held by your shoulders alone. It is held by all of us."

The fire that burn in Elsword's eyes lit up and the faint blue came with it. He adjusts his figure to its full length; his broad shoulders opening to the room and his presence taking up the atmosphere. When I see him, I do see a leader. And when I see him stand there, I can feel his power. This is why Elsword is the true leader for our group: his strength is like no other, his will is stronger than any man, and his tenacity is what draws us to him. Elsword's shoulders finally released and he tries to look at everyone, "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry that I couldn't wake up to this realization that you guys are here. Really…I'm so sorry."

"I think you should be saying that to someone else, Elsword," Rena nods her head toward the boy's dorm, "We already forgive you. We just wanted you to realize that you're not alone in this mission. Go," she gently pushes Elsword up the stairs, "I think he needs an apology."

Elsword nods and he quickly goes to the rooms. We all stare at him and Elesis sighs, "I truly hope this time he can see that he is stronger with us."

"If we are here to constantly remind him that he is not alone," I say with the corner of my lips slowly curving upwards, "then he will stay on the path he has chosen."

We feast on the remaining breakfast that Ciel made and talk about what we must do in order to get to the demon realm. Elsword and Raven eventually come back down stairs, Raven's human arm quickly slung over Elsword's shoulder and his Nasod arm ruffling his hair, "And don't you dare disrespect me like that again! Y'hear?!"

"Ah, yeah, yeah, I won't! It actually hurts, Raven!" Elsword's hands are trying to pry Raven's iron grip from him.

Everyone laughs at the silly display. Chung thought it an opportunity to use his strength to lift both of them by their collars and say, "There's no fighting in this house when I'm around! Behave!"

Their heads collide causing dizzy swirls to appear where their eye sockets are. I chuckle this time at the sight and get up to help Elsword stand, "I think their skulls are not as tough as yours, Chung. You should not be too harsh on them."

Chung's love for smiles is always there on his face. He helps up Raven, "Sorry, Eve. I just couldn't help but join the fun!"

Elsword gingerly goes over his forehead, "I don't think that's the fun we're used to. Ah, thank you, Eve."

My arms embrace him, "No, thank you."

"Eh? What for?"

For everything. For now, and for the future we have together as…friends. I release my hug and pinch his cheek, "For the cake your brought me this morning."