Thanks for the reviews, hope you all enjoy this chapter! :)

An unnerved shiver ran down Eli's spin for the fifth time in as many minutes. She and Nozomi were halfway to the small restaurant where they usually went for parfaits but she hadn't been able to shake the feeling that someone was watching her.

Nozomi, upon noticing Eli's unsettled distraction, playfully bumped into her side. Eli hadn't been truly listening to her for the past few minutes, it seemed. "What's wrong, Elichi? Am I boring you?"

Eli turned back to Nozomi, quickly shaking her head. "N-No, it's nothing like that. I just…" She glanced around and lowered her voice slightly. "I feel like we're being followed."

Nozomi's brow furrowed in concern. Eli had good instincts. She didn't have Maki's power to read minds but she was hardly ever wrong. She paused, a hand on Eli's arm to keep her from going any further. "Let me check."

Eli watched as Nozomi closed her eyes and focused intently, obviously using her power to feel for anything suspicious. She watched in concern as Nozomi inhaled sharply through her nose, her eyes flying open. Quickly, she stepped forward and placed a hand on her girlfriend's waist in case she buckled.

"Honoka-chan." Nozomi said quietly, trying to push aside the anguish she'd been overwhelmed with a moment ago. "She's hurt."

"What?!" Eli's eyes widened in panic and she looked around, trying to find any sign of their friend. Wherever Honoka was, she wasn't in sight. "How hurt? We have to find her, Nozomi!"

Nozomi gripped Eli's arms tightly to keep her from dashing off. She knew Eli had a soft spot for the girl who looked up to her but she couldn't let her rush in without knowing everything. "Not just physically, she's hurting emotionally. I've never felt anything like it." Something must have happened with Umi or Kotori. Maybe they'd gotten into a fight. She could only hope it was something so trivial. "Something isn't right with her. She doesn't feel like Honoka-chan."

Eli stared at Nozomi in confusion for a moment before she pulled away from her. "I can't just leave her. Come on, help me find her."

Future Honoka closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the wall behind her, having easily heard the discussion. She'd been following Eli for a few days now, ever since she had gone back in time. She needed to speak to her, to all of them, but she'd needed a few days to compose herself first.

She wasn't entirely sure why she'd chosen to go to Eli out of all of them. She'd considered going to Nico but she wasn't sure the idol obsessed girl would believe what she had to say. Kotori would have believed her but she hadn't wanted to risk bumping into Umi and her past self just yet. Maybe it was because Eli and Nozomi had always been the parental figures of the group. Since meeting her, she'd looked up to Eli more than anyone else.

She closed her hand around Eli's cross around her neck and took a deep breath to brace herself. She knew it would hurt to speak to them again but she couldn't give into it. She tucked the cross beneath her hoodie and focused on her power. A second later she appeared in front of Eli and Nozomi, causing them to skid to a stop.

"Eli-senp…" Future Honoka choked on her words. This wasn't her Eli, not really. She swallowed thickly and tried again. "Eli."

If Nozomi's tight grip on her hand didn't keep Eli still, the appearance of Honoka in front of them certainly did. Something was off about her. She looked taller than the last time they'd seen her and her clothes just weren't right. Was it possible for her to have changed so much despite them having seen her only a few hours ago? She was wearing black, from the jeans she was wearing to the hoodie she'd adorned. "Honoka?"

Future Honoka pushed her hood back down, finally allowing Eli and Nozomi to get a good look at her. "I need your help."

Honoka tried not to shift uncomfortably under the weight of the stares directed at her. She felt like she was diving into the situation headfirst but maybe it was easier that way. She awkwardly cleared her throat as the seconds ticked by. They'd gathered in Nozomi's apartment yet nothing had really been said, besides that Honoka was from the future.

"Your hair is longer." Kotori noted thoughtfully, drawing Future Honoka's attention toward her. She blushed at the look and sheepishly shrugged her shoulders. "It…it suits you."

"Thanks." Honoka said, her voice slightly raspier than usual. It was hard not to let her emotions get the better of her as she stared at her best friend. It seemed only moments ago that she had watched her die right in front of her. Almost self-consciously, she reached up, her fingers raking through her hair. She'd long since stopped wearing a side ponytail and now let it hang around her shoulders. She'd taken to running her fingers through it in stressful situations, leaving it a bit tousled.

Umi shifted uncomfortable, barely able to take her eyes off the woman in front of her. She looked like Honoka and yet she looked so different at the same time. She was taller, not to mention more mature looking. Against her will, her heartbeat picked up as she continued to stare. She inwardly cursed herself for it. Now was hardly the time.

"So…you're from the future?" She finally managed to speak up, realizing that nobody else was going to. "Why did you come back here?"

Future Honoka looked away from Kotori, the warmth of her stare disappearing completely when she looked at Umi. "I told Eli I need your help but that's not quite true. You all need mine."

"Why would we need your help?" Nico questioned from her spot near Maki. "We can take care of ourselves."

Future Honoka scoffed at that. Clearly that wasn't true. She took a moment to look over Nico, taking note of the differences. It took her by surprise that Nico still wore her hair up but she quickly realized that hadn't changed until graduation, when Nico had decided to leave her school idol days behind. "In four years time you're all going to be killed. Where I'm from you're all…" Her voice broke and she took a moment to recover. Not a moment passed when she didn't think of her friends and their deaths. She'd watched them all, save for Maki's. "My friends are all dead."

"What?" Hanayo gasped, leaning forward in surprise. She automatically reached for Rin's hand and squeezed it tightly. "That can't be right. We…what happened?"

"I was kidnapped by A-rise and you all came to save me." Future Honoka's voice was laced with anger. They shouldn't have done it. They should have just left her there. "It was stupid and reckless. And you all paid with your lives."

"You expected us to leave you?" Eli spoke, visibly shaken by the news that they would die in just four years. "We would never leave our Honoka behind."

Future Honoka clenched her jaw, struggling not to make a cutting remark about Eli's comment. They were all so young and naeve. They had no idea what they were talking about. "You should. She's not worth your lives. I'm not."

Honoka swallowed anxiously at the glare that was shot toward her. She agreed, in a way. She would never want her friends to die because of her. "You came back to fix it, didn't you? So that they don't die?"

Future Honoka was silent for a moment before she nodded her head. "Nico told me to come back. She told me I have to fix this." She glanced toward the younger Nico, barely looking at her for a few seconds before she turned away again. She couldn't think of these people as her friends and yet it was difficult not to.

"Why should we believe you?" Maki finally asked, moving forward toward Honoka. "You could be lying. You could be a shapeshifter."

Honoka's chest tightened at the mention of shapeshifting and she glanced toward Eli and Nozomi. She remembered with disturbing detail how Anju had changed her appearance to look like Eli. She'd taken advantage of Nozomi's love of the blonde to kill her. She shook her head at the thought, Eli and Nozomi's clasped hands catching her attention. She almost smiled at the sight. At least some things didn't change. Their closeness had been the same for years.

"I'll prove it to you. You can ask me anything and I'll tell you." Her gaze trailed around the room, finally settling upon Eli. "You have a scar on your inner thigh that only Nozomi knows about right now."

Nozomi frowned at the revelation and glanced at her blushing girlfriend, wondering how Honoka could know such information. She shook it off quickly.

"That doesn't prove anything." Nico said stubbornly. "You could have found that out by yourself. You could have researched us."

"You're still taking the drug even though you've promised Maki you won't do it." Future Honoka said, turning to stare at Nico. "You're still pushing yourself to your limit because if you can't feel pain you can't feel anything at all. And if you can't feel pain, you can't feel…" she tilted her head toward Maki and watched as Nico's eyes widened in surprise.

"Y-you don't know what you're talking about!" Nico exclaimed though she hurriedly stepped back, her hands anxiously clenching her sweater.

Future Honoka was about to ask if they finally believed her when she felt something familiar, like something pushing into her mind. She knew that feeling well, though she was used to it being stronger. She grit her teeth together and forced herself to concentrate on pushing the intruder out. It was done within seconds. Her Maki had taught them all well.

Maki's eyes shot open in surprise. Nobody had ever shut her out before. She didn't have much time to ponder it before her attention was stolen by a fist flying toward her face. She barely had time to brace herself before a sharp pain shot through her jaw. She found herself on the floor a moment later.

"Maki!" Several voices echoed around the room.

Eli leapt to her feet, a fireball forming in her hand while Umi stepped forward, ready to aid the blonde if needed.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Future Honoka asked angrily as she stared down at Maki. "Do you want to see all of your friends being killed? I've already seen it and trust me, you wouldn't be able to deal with it."

Nico hurried over to Maki to check on her and Future Honoka almost softened at the sight. Those two always looked out for each other, even if they denied it. She took a deep breath and turned away. "If we're going to fix this, we need to train."

"Train?" Rin asked uncertainly, her grip on Hanayo tighter than ever. "What for?"

"I'm going to make you all stronger." Future Honoka declared without looking toward them. For what felt like the hundredth time, she closed her hand around the cross that hung around her neck. "I told you I would help you."

Two days later

"So now that we're here, who wants to hit me first?" Future Honoka's question was met with surprised silence but she waited patiently until one of the other members spoke. Unfortunately it was her past self who chose to do so.

"Um…why would we want to hit you?" Honoka asked tentatively , taking a small step forward from the rest of the group.

Future Honoka didn't fail to notice Umi reach out and grab the hem of Honoka's shirt to keep her from getting too close. It was a good call. "I want you to show me what you can do. Obviously." She answered with a roll of her eyes. "Who's up first?"

When nobody answered, she started to get irritated. They all faced certain death, aside from Nico, and none of them were taking it seriously enough. "Eli. You're up."

Eli glanced briefly at a worried looking Nozomi before she took a step forward. "What do you want me to do?"

"I don't know, throw a fireball at me or something." Future Honoka answered, motioning for her to hurry up and get on with it. "Whatever you'd usually do."

Eli sighed but lifted her hand, hesitantly forming a small blue ball of fire. "Are you sure about this?" She glanced skeptically between the flame and Honoka. As aware as she was that this Honoka wasn't the Honoka from their world, she still looked like her. "I might hurt you."

Future Honoka laughed darkly under her breath and shook her head. "Just hurry up and attack. I've had worse."

Eli took a deep breath and lifted her hand, hurling the fireball in Future Honoka's direction.

Honoka easily ducked under the flame, feeling the heat of it pass over her. A memory played out in her mind, of Eli throwing herself onto her. The comforting yet scorching heat from her flames as she set herself ablaze and then died to protect her. Clenching her teeth together against the ache of the memory, Future Honoka dashed toward Eli.

Eli's eyes widened in surprise and she instinctively formed another fireball, tossing it toward the rapidly advancing older girl.

Future Honoka dodged the fire easily, propelling herself forward to reach the blonde. She gripped her wrist and wrenched her arm behind her back. She was merciful. She didn't tug hard enough to break it. Still, Eli cried out in pain, her knees buckling beneath her.

"Stop it!" Nozomi cried out though she was frozen in place. "Let go of her!"

Future Honoka relented and let go of Eli's wrist. She motioned for Nozomi to help her up and watched as the purple haired girl rushed to Eli's aid. "You're a lot better at that in the future." She assessed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "If you'd set yourself on fire completely I wouldn't have been able to touch you."

Eli stood shakily on her feet next to Nozomi, rubbing her aching shoulder. "I can set myself on fire in the future?"

"Your power gets a lot stronger." Future Honoka answered with a nod. She turned back to the others, glancing between them. "Kotori-chan. It's your turn."

"No, wait!" Umi looked alarmed by the prospect of Kotori facing the same kind of thing Eli had. "I'll go first."

"Not yet." Future Honoka said sharply in that tone she seemed to reserve only for Umi and her past self. "It's Kotori-chan's turn."

"It's fine, Umi-chan. I'll be alright." Kotori said, resting a reassuring hand on Umi's shoulder for a moment. She paused for a brief second, meeting Umi's worried gaze before she stepped away from her. She closed her eyes for a moment, allowing her power to wash over her.

Future Honoka watched as Kotori disappeared from her sight. Allowing her eyes to slide shut, she focused intently, listening for the sound of Kotori's footsteps, her breathing, any sign that she was close really. Finally she sensed her presence and she reached out, swatting at the air. Her hand collided gently with Kotori's shoulder, in much the same way it used to when they played tag as children.

"You lose." She remarked, opening her eyes in time to see Kotori appear out of thin air in front of her. She gave Kotori's arm another pat, a hint of a smile tugging at her lips. "You can only turn yourself invisible right now?"

Kotori stared at Future Honoka through wide eyes, having expected to be brought down in the same way as Eli had been. The blonde in question was grumbling under her breath as Nozomi looked over her arm.

Future Honoka's chest tightened and she looked away, the corners of her eyes stinging. It was too hard to look at her childhood friend after she'd died in her arms. The same could be said for Eli. Umi too, though Future Honoka was trying to focus on the resentment she still felt toward her other best friend. Even if Umi hadn't betrayed them, she had still lied to her.

She looked over the others for a moment before her gaze landed on Umi. She unsheathed her knife from her belt and tossed it toward Umi. As expected, the archer caught it without blinking an eye. "You have to cut me and I have to stop you. Got it?"

Umi cast a glance toward Honoka who was watching with wide eyes. She reminded herself of how Future Honoka had been treating her over the past couple of days. Their Honoka would never talk to her in such a way. "Fine." She muttered, gripping the knife tighter. "Whatever you want." She waited until Kotori had moved to stand next to Honoka again before she rushed the older girl. It baffled her that their Honoka could have changed so much in just a few years.

Future Honoka waited until the blade of the knife was slashing through the air toward her arm before she reached out, her hand curling around Umi's bicep. At the same time, she twisted her body and kicked the back of Umi's knee, sending her to the ground with a cry of pain.

"Next." Future Honoka turned her attention back to the rest of the group as Umi dragged herself to her feet.

Umi glared at Future Honoka and limped back to Honoka and Kotori. She nodded at the apologetic smile she received from Kotori. "I don't see why she didn't go easy on me too." She mumbled, casting a contemplative look at their Honoka. "Do you like her more than me or something?"

Honoka turned to Umi with wide eyes. "Eh?!"

"Quiet!" Future Honoka said sternly as she continue to look over the group. She finally settled upon Rin, who was blocking Hanayo from view. "Rin. Your turn."

Rin looked nervous as she stepped closer to Future Honoka, her hands clenched nervously at her sides. "What do you want me to do?"

Future Honoka shrugged her shoulders. "Just show me what you can do."

Rin wasn't sure what that meant but she took a deep breath and broke into a dash, heading straight for the future version of her friend. Before she could collide with her, she changed her course, lapping around Honoka once, twice, three times.

Future Honoka lifted one hand to shield her face from the wind being generated by Rin's speed. She had to admit that it did make it hard to concentrate. Still, she had time on her side and she focused intently until she could see Rin running around her. After a moment, she reached out, flicking the younger girl in the forehead.

"Ouch!" Rin's eyes widened in surprise and she abruptly came to a stop, lifting her hands to her forehead. "That hurt, Honoka-chan!"

"Sorry." Future Honoka lowered her hand back to her side and shrugged her shoulders in response. "You're still kind of slow. We'll have to work on that."

Rin pouted and went back to Hanayo, rubbing her forehead.

"Even Rin got off lightly." Umi muttered unhappily, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

Honoka felt the back of her neck prickle as a result of Umi's contemplative glances but she tried to ignore it, focusing on the others instead.

"Hanayo." Future Honoka declared before Hanayo had a chance to inspect Rin's forehead.

"Ah, I'd…rather not." Hanayo said awkwardly. "I don't think my power can be used to hurt people."

"Don't be ridiculous, of course it can be." Future Honoka answered bluntly, though there was no anger in her voice. She was merely stating a fact. "Come here." She motioned to the space before her and waited patiently until Hanayo shuffled over. When she was close enough, she grabbed her arm. "Phase your arm up to where I'm touching."

Hanayo swallowed apprehensively but did as she was asked, phasing her hand and wrist up to just below where Honoka was gripping.

"Don't hurt her."

Future Honoka glanced up from Hanayo, her gaze finding Rin, who had spoken up. She looked panicked, her eyes fixed on Honoka's hand. A quick scan of the rest of the group revealed that they all looked equally distressed. They had always been protective of the first years. Not so much Maki, she could take care of herself, and she had Nico for that anyway. But Hanayo and Rin were the youngest of the group. They'd always been looked after on some level. And yet they'd still been the first to die.

Future Honoka looked back to Hanayo, took a deep breath and thrust the younger girl's arm into her own chest. She didn't answer the resounding gasp from around her, too busy focusing on Hanayo.

"Focus." She said sharply, realizing that Hanayo's concentration was slipping. "If you unphase right now, you'll kill me."

Hanayo's eyes widened in panic for a moment and she instinctively leaned back, trying to extract her hand from Honoka's chest. "Honoka-chan, please let go."

Future Honoka held on for a moment before she released Hanayo's hand. The quiet girl stumbled backwards, her hand unphasing. "You're just as strong as everyone else, Hanayo. You just have to realize it."

Hanayo nodded shakily and moved back to Rin's side. She supposed she should be relieved that Honoka hadn't done anything to her but all she felt was sick. She'd never imagined her power could be used in such a way.

"Kayo-chin?" Rin reached out and took Hanayo's hand, giving it a light squeeze. As if she could tell what Hanayo was thinking, she gave her a soft smile which Hanayo couldn't help but return.

"You can choose who's next." Future Honoka waved a hand toward the four remaining members of the group. As she'd expected, Honoka took a step closer to Umi. She couldn't help but scoff. It was pathetic, the way her past self relied upon Umi.

"I'll do it." Nozomi took a step closer though it took quite a bit of tugging to get Eli to release her hand. "I'll go next."

Future Honoka nodded, looking Nozomi over with an appraising eye. "I won't go easy on you just because your power's weak." She cracked her knuckles of her right hand against the palm of her left.

Nozomi smiled at the mocking tone of Future Honoka's voice. She couldn't imagine their Honoka speaking to her in that way and yet hearing it from this Honoka didn't annoy her in the slightest. "Still so shortsighted in the future, Honoka-chan?"

"Hey!" Honoka exclaimed though she didn't step away from Umi to defend herself.

Future Honoka didn't react to Nozomi's retort but stared her down instead, waiting for her to attack. As Nozomi stepped closer, she could see a slightly irritated look on her face. She knew it wasn't because of what she'd said about her power. It was because of Eli.

"Do you know what your weakness is, Nozomi?" She waited patiently until Nozomi was within a couple of feet. It was clear she was biding her time, trying to find an opening. "It's not your power."

"Then what is it?" Nozomi asked though she worried that she already knew the answer. It was the reason she had volunteered to go next. She wondered how she had reacted in the past when she'd watched them being cut down one by one. She didn't know what she would do if she saw Eli die. A deep ache formed in her chest at the thought and she lurched forward, pressing her hand over Future Honoka's heart.

Honoka didn't move, she merely stood there and watched as Nozomi's eyes widened in surprise. As Nozomi's knees buckled, she reached up to grip her hand, keeping it pressed to her chest. It meant that she was forced to her knees with Nozomi but she didn't mind. Not when she had a point to prove.

"Did you forget that I watched almost everyone I love die?" She asked, her voice a harsh whisper as she stared into Nozomi's dampening eyes. She knew that Nozomi couldn't see what she'd seen. If that had been the case she would have pushed her away without hesitation. Like she had with Maki. She never wanted either of them to see the kind of things she had seen that day, or even before that. "Arisa, Rin, Hanayo, Kotori, Umi, Eli, Maki, you…" She pressed harder against Nozomi's hand at that, focusing on the memories.

Honoka cast a cautious look at Eli, not failing to notice the flames licking at her skin. The blonde looked furious at the treatment of her girlfriend though she was obviously making an effort not to step in and help.

"Stop it." Nozomi gasped, clutching at her own chest with her free hand as tears spilled relentlessly down her cheeks. She'd never felt such a deep ache before. Not when she was caught in her own loneliness or when she was pining over Eli.

Future Honoka clenched her jaw, refusing to let go. The last time she'd seen Nozomi in such a state, with the exception of when Eli had died, was when she had watched Eli crying over Arisa's body. It had killed Nozomi to watch it, and Honoka knew that she'd done nothing to keep herself from feeling Eli's pain. She'd felt everything Eli was feeling when it came to the loss of her sister. That was what the two of them did. They shared their burden.

Future Honoka struggled to keep her own eyes from watering. "It's her, you know. Eli's always going to be your weakness. The rest of them are too, but never as much as her."

"STOP!" Eli, finally unable to hold herself back moved forward and shoved Honoka away from Nozomi as hard as she could.

Honoka stumbled back and hurriedly patted her clothes to put the flames left in the wake of Eli's hands out. She winced as the flames licked at her skin. They weren't bad burns but she could feel them. She supposed it was a good thing she had access to so much money, thanks to her parents and Umi. They had given her all of the account details in the future.

She watched as Eli sank to her knees next to Nozomi, the flames that surrounded her arms going out the moment she reached for her. Future Honoka realized with a start that it wasn't just Eli's hands that had been ablaze. The fire had spread right up to her shoulders.

Eli drew Nozomi toward her, embracing her tightly and looked over at Future Honoka with accusing eyes. "How could you do that?" She snapped, her own voice thick with emotion. "How…" She trailed off, paling as she thought back to what Future Honoka had said. "Arisa. Did you you say Arisa was…?"

Future Honoka cursed under her breath. She should have known better than to let that slip out. She nodded solemnly. "It was before. In my time, it's been a year since she died. I'm sorry, Eli."

"Don't say you're sorry, you're here to fix it." Eli felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes. She didn't know what she would do if Arisa died. "We're going to fix it, aren't we?" She continued to hold onto Nozomi tightly but she didn't know if she was giving comfort or seeking it. Nozomi had calmed down at least.

Future Honoka looked away, unable to speak past the lump in her throat. She didn't know if she could fix that but she hoped so. Eli wasn't the same in her future. She was reckless and out of control. While she still cared for her friends she didn't value her own life. Yukiho too, had been greatly affected by Arisa's death. She barely spoke to her older sister anymore.

"I don't know if…"

"Shut up!" Eli pushed herself to her feet, her hands clenched into fists. "I'm done with this. I'm going to see my sister." She rushed past Honoka to get to the door.

Nozomi was on her feet a moment later, rushing after her distraught girlfriend.

Future Honoka sighed heavily and ran her fingers through her hair. This was much harder than she thought it would be. "You can all leave. We'll pick this up tomorrow."