Chapter 7:

We finally arrived in Akademeia and disembarked from the airship. Kurasame met us at the end of the ramp.

"Reporting back sir." Eight said to him.

"Submit your mission report. The consortium may choose to open an inquiry." Kurasame replied.

Cater jumped in, "You mean that's all you have to say—after everything we've just been through!?" Eight held out his arm to stop her.

"Just tell us: why didn't you answer our transmissions?" Ace asked.

"We didn't receive any. Our communications couldn't reach you, either." Kurasame answered.

Nine shook his head in frustration, "What a load of crap, yo! You saying that all our COMMS just died all at once, huh?"

Kurasame merely replied, "The inquiry board believes you may have intentionally cut off communications."

"What!?" Nine shouted angrily.

Kurasame continued, "Welcome back. You are free to rest until further notice."

Nine pointed at the him and began to say something back, but King gave him a look that told him to not say anything. "Let's go," was all King said.

Nine, King, and I all left at the same time. When we reached the entrance hall, I said goodbye to them.

"Where ya going, hey?" Nine asked me.

"To see Mother about something important." I replied.

King nodded, "Go. We'll see you later."

I made my way to Mother's office on the Sorcery floor. She greeted me with a kiss on my forehead. "I'm glad you made it back safely darling."

"Thank you Mother. Can I ask you about something?"

"What is it?" she replied.

I furrowed my brow as I thought about how to explain this to her. "I have come to realize that I have memories of those who have died. I know the Crystal is supposed to erase the memories of those who die."

Mother closed her eyes thoughtfully, "Think of it this way, someone has to remember those who are gone. The memories of them never just disappear. Does it bother you?"

I shook my head, "No, it's proven to be useful already. I know for a fact that we did not assassinate the Queen of Concordia. Please believe me Mother!"

She smiled and patted my cheek affectionately, "I never believed those accusations for a moment. Now, about that wound you sustained, let's have a look at that."

My eyes widened in surprise, "How did you find out about that?"

"Your Commanding Officer is very thorough." She chuckled.

I giggled too, "Yes, he is."

"He also asked me a very interesting question." Mother said as she examined where my wound had been.

"What did he ask you?" was my response.

"I can't say. Now, your wound looks like it healed properly. You are good to go, I'm going to send for Cater now."

I smiled and nodded, getting up from my seat, "Thank you for everything Mother."

"You're welcome, darling." She replied with a smile.

I closed the door to her office and was greeted by an unexpected sight. Kurasame was waiting for me outside the door. "Hello Kurasame. What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"I came to get you. There's something important you should know." he told me.

"Oh? What is it?" I asked curiously.

"Not here. Come with me." he said as he began walking away.

I followed him into the portal. What's going on? He has to take me somewhere to tell me this important information? I don't understand. Kurasame led me to a part of Akademeia that I didn't even know existed. His poor little Tonberry was doing his best to keep up. I leaned down and offered to pick him up. He sat happily on my shoulder as I walked behind Kurasame. "Where are we? I don't remember seeing this place on the map…" I asked him.

He stopped just before a beautiful ornate door. "Close your eyes."

I narrowed my eyes at his suspicious behavior. "Why?" I know he wouldn't do anything strange, but I don't like the idea of being that vulnerable.

"Please, just close your eyes." he said. I did as I was told, and I closed my eyes. I almost flung them open when I felt him take my hand. He gently pulled me forward and I heard the door opening. What is on the other side of this door?

"Open your eyes." he said.

I opened my eyes and saw a beautiful field of flowers. "Wow! It is absolutely beautiful up here! There are so many flowers!" In all directions were flowers of different colors and types. "What kind of news are you going to give me that needs to be done in a beautiful place like this?" I asked, placing the Tonberry on the ground so he could explore.

He took a deep breath and took my hands in his. My began to beat faster at this sudden gesture. "After seeing you hurt in Milites, and during the last few days while you were running around Milites whereabouts unknown I was really worried about you. This made me realize something."

I opened my mouth to interject, but his raised his hand to stop me. "Please let me finish, if I don't, I might never be able to get the courage to say this again." I nodded in acknowledgement. "I've known this for a while, but I didn't want to admit it. I'm sure you could tell though, even though I tried to hide it. Lily, I…"

I could tell that he was having a hard time saying what he was thinking. I didn't think it was possible, but my heart beat even faster in anticipation of what he would say next. Is this it? Is he going to say what I think it is—the words I have wanted to hear for so long now? I smiled and squeezed his hand in encouragement.

He took a deep breath and started speaking again, "Lily, I-I love you."

My heart almost stopped when those words finally came out of his mouth. I couldn't contain the love and excitement that were overflowing from my heart. I threw my arms around him and hugged him tightly, burying my face in his chest. "I love you too. I've wanted to hear you say those words to me, so much so that my heart would ache whenever I saw you."

He wrapped his arms around me and hugged me back, "I'm sorry I've kept you waiting this long."

I giggled, "I forgive you, it's all okay now." I reached up and cupped his covered cheek. The metal mask was cool on my fingers. "Can I take it off?" I asked timidly.

At first he hesitated, but after some thought he said, "You can take it off, if that's what you really want."

I couldn't hide my surprise at his answer. "A-Are you sure? Is it really okay?" I replied.

He nodded and guided my fingers to the clasp that helped keep the mask in place. I gently undid it and removed the mask from his face. His really is handsome. I'm a lucky girl, not many people have seen him like this. I returned my hand to his cheek. My thumb tracing the scar that was there.

"I absolutely love you, you know." I said to him, smiling gently. I stood on my tippy-toes and pressed my lips against his. They were warm and soft; my heart raced as we stood there with our arms around each other sharing our first kiss together.

When we pulled away from each other I couldn't help the giggle that escaped from my mouth. "You're the only man I've ever kissed, just so you know." I smiled at him. He leaned down and kissed me again.

"I love you too, Lily. I'll love you forever. I want to be the only man you ever kiss. All I ask is that you be patient with me; I'm a little rusty in the area of dating," he said.

I giggled and nodded, "Of course. I've never dated anyone before, so we can learn this together." I took his hand and squeezed it. In response, he leaned forward and kissed my forehead.

In my happiness, I ran about the field and spun around among the flowers. I could hear a chuckle come from somewhere behind me. I turned and looked at Kurasame standing by the door. "What's so funny?" I asked him.

"It's not often that I see you act this girly. I find it quite adorable." he said as a faint blush began to appear on his face. I ran back over to him and threw my arms around him. The unexpected impact sent us tumbling into the flowers. We laid there side-by-side among the flowers for some time. "I have to warn you Lily, this isn't going to be easy for us. There's a rough road ahead, and not just because of the war with Milites."

I reached over and grabbed his hand, "I know. But as along as I'm with you, I'm willing to take on whatever comes my way."

A/N: as always thanks for reading! We appreciate our followers and would love any reviews! Thanks!