"Everyone, could you please take your seats." The Grand Keeper arrives to the Conference Chambers. He arrives with another set of Royalty, a grumpy looking man and a woman resembling Nozomi. Her hair was purple like Nozomi's and the man's eyes were green. Those were definitely Nozomi's parents. Eli also spots Nico sneak in behind them.

"Umi." Eli shakes her sister. "Listen we can-" Eli can't imagine how it feels. To witness someone she loved with someone else. "Come." Eli grabs Umi's arm and drags her to stand behind the Queen along with their father. Their father looks at both of them and they stand straight. Eli looks at Umi. Her eyes seem to be drifting off and she stares into space. Eli frowns and looks away. She scans the room and looks for that Prince. He was sitting with his father on the other side of the table.

"Thank you all for coming today." The Grand Keeper starts. He coughs and waves his hand. "Let's start the introduction!" He sits and points at the King next to Tsubasa.

"Father we do this every time..." He mutters. The Grand Keeper pulls out a giant wooden staff from under the table and smacks him with it, knocking off his crown. Eli's eyes widen.

"I forgot everyone's name! Do it again!"

"O-Okay, everyone! King Kira Kazuma of the A-RISE Kingdom with Princess Kira Tsubasa and Princess Yuki Anju." He points at Tsubasa and Anju sitting next to him. According to their father, The Grand Keeper is the father of Kira Kazuma and Kira Kanami. Tsubasa is Kazuma's daughter and had lost her mother due to illness. Anju is Tsubasa's cousin and lost both of her parents due to the same illness. "Accompanied by Captain Todo Erena and Knight Kosaka Honoka."

Eli spots Honoka salute as King Kira says her name. "Honoka? A Knight?" Eli was proud of the younger girl. From the daughter of a sweets shop owner to a Knight. King Kira motions for the next set of Royalty to go. It was the mysterious Prince's family. His father rolls his eyes and stands up. "King Kashima Hori of the Kashima Kingdom with Prince Kashima Tatsuya."

"So that's his name...Kashima Tatsuya." Eli couldn't really be mad, nothing was announced yet. But she had a feeling to keep an eye out for him. Prince Tatsuya smiles directly at Kotori. It was at this moment, Eli knew Umi was fuming. Eli turns to Umi and catches her staring daggers at him. The introduction continues but Eli was too busy trying to calm Umi down without causing a distraction.

Eli elbows Umi and she rubs her arm. In the corner of her eye, she spots Nico making a face at them. Nico raises an eyebrow in confusion and Eli only shakes her head. "King Tojo Masayuki of the Tojo Kingdom with Queen Tojo Nanao and Princess Tojo Nozomi. Accompanied by Commander Ichinose Ryuu and Knight Hoshizora Rin." Eli looks up at Nozomi's father. He looked like a scary man with very little patience. He had this aura around him that made Eli shiver. Nothing like Queen Minami's aura.

The introductions continue but Eli's eyes stay on Nozomi's family. That was the family that she was involved with. They didn't know it yet but sooner or later they would. Whatever it takes, Eli wanted to be on their good side. "King Nishikino Shoto of the Nishikino Kingdom with Queen Nishikino Nanaka and Princess Nishikino Maki. Accompanied by Commander Kazuno Yuu and Captain Yazawa Nico." Eli's eyes widen.

"That's who Nakamura-san mentioned!" Commander Kazuno, was an older woman with short spiky black hair. She looked sleepy and Nico kept nudging at her. In return, Eli witnessed Kazuno elbow Nico and Nico grunt. "I'll have to talk to her when I get the chance." Eli feels over the pocket she placed the letter in.

Their Queen clears her throat and Eli turns to her. "Queen Minami Kyoko and Princess Minami Kotori. Accompanied by Commander Ayase Toshinori, Captain Ayase Eli, and Vice-Captain Sonoda Umi." Eli feels eyes on her and she stiffens. She was sure that Nozomi's family was gazing at her. "Stay calm Eli..."

"Alright, now that my memory is refreshed." The Grand Keeper stands once again. "Let's get the meeting started."


Until now, all that's been going on in the meeting is arguing. It was revealed that some people did not acquire abilities. And those with abilities would definitely stir up trouble and break the alliance. The Kings were screaming at each other while everyone watched quietly. But Umi's mind was filled with negative thoughts. She had to know who that Kashima Tatsuya was. "How do I know Masayuki over there isn't going to stab me in the back!" King Kashima slams his hand on the table and breaks Umi's train of thought. King Tojo, who was leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed scoffs.

"You're so annoying Hori." He stands from his chair. "You're lucky I don't stab you in the back right now!"

"Woah woah woah!" King Nishikino stands and waves his arms around. "Let's not forget what this meeting is about. We need each other now more than ever."

"I don't think losing Hori is such a big deal. What's he gonna do? Take the Minami Kingdom with him?" King Tojo glares at King Kashima.

Umi narrows her eyes at King Kashima. "What does this mean?"

The Queen clears her throat and everyone stays silent. "My daughter isn't married to your son just yet. We have our own separate Kingdoms, so if you'd like to resign from the alliance then consider the engagement off." Umi's heart drops. She couldn't believe it. She didn't want to. But the words that came out of her Queen's mouth wasn't just her imagination. Umi can feel Eli's hand on her shoulder. King Kashima sits back down and glares at Tojo. "Now wasn't the time or place to announce it but yes, my daughter is engaged." Queen Minami sighs. King Nishikino stands and slams his hand on the table.

"I request a 15 minute recess!" King Nishikino yells.

"Approved. See you in 15 minutes!" The Grand Keeper yells.

"Umi!" Eli whipsers.

"I feel sick." Umi feels her head spinning and quickly walks to the exit. She didn't know where she was going but all she knew was that she needed to get away.


Eli wasn't fast enough to grab onto Umi as she ran out. She herself couldn't believe what just happened. They had never heard anything about Kotori's engagement until this moment. Eli knew that was the tradition in the Minami Kingdom but they weren't expecting it, especially since their Queen had not mentioned a single word in years about sending Kotori off. "Eli!" Nico's voice breaks her train of thought. "Hey, listen." Nico throws her arm around Eli and pulls her down. "My gaydar just went off. Umi looked terrible but I think you should let her cool off. We've got bigger problems in this room."

"But...I'm worried about her." Eli clenches her fist.

"I know." Nico releases her hold on Eli. "But we've got to save face in front of Royalty. You do remember what Princess Tsubasa said to us, right? They're literally talking about our future in here. Unlike everyone else, we got powers directly from the meteors. And I heard that Captain Todo over there did too." Nico turns to Erena's direction.

"Huh?"

"Yeah. Heard she's got like...the power to control earth."

"What?!" Eli whispers. "The Earth?"

"No!" Nico gives Eli a weird look. "Like she can control rocks and stuff, not the planet you idiot!" Nico punches Eli's arm.

"Sorry I...I just have a lot to think about." Eli rubs her arm. She turns around to find Kotori waiting for her.

"Can we talk outside?"


"I'm sorry Eli-chan." Kotori looks down and rubs her arm. "I wanted to tell you sooner."

"Kotori..." Eli mutters. "How long did you know?"

"Mother only told me at the beginning of the month."

"But Kotori...What about Umi?" Eli meets her Princess's eyes and she averts them quickly.

"I have no choice Eli-chan. I have to marry him. And...It's not like we're anything..."

"Kotori..." Eli reaches for Kotori but takes it back. "You have to talk to Umi."

"I...I'm scared to face her. I like her with all my heart and it's only going to hurt more if I make it any harder than it has to be." Eli knew there was no fighting this. This was normal in society, for a Princess to marry a Prince. And sooner or later, Eli would have to face the same issue with Nozomi.

"Princess Kotori. The meeting is going to start." Eli's father peeks his head outside the door. Kotori gives Eli an apologetic look and turns away.

"Coming." Kotori leaves Eli in the hall. Her father holds the door open for the Princess and spots Eli.

"Eli? Where is Umi?" He asks.

"She's not feeling good, father. But she'll be back." Eli walks past him and into the Conference Chambers. She takes her spot behind the Queen and waits for him to catch up.

"I'm assuming you saw Kazuno." He starts. Eli looks up at him. "Don't expect much. She's dishonorable." Eli didn't understand why her father was being so cold. Kazuno didn't seem bad, but then again Eli hadn't spoken a word to her. She scans the room to find Kazuno but notices she's nowhere to be found.

"Recess is over." The Grand Keeper slams his staff on the ground. "We've strayed from the topic. Although congratulations on your engagement. Anyways-" He coughs, "Let's talk about powers. Specifically...from the meteors." He looks over at the girls who were affected. "It is true that those affected by the ash have gained powers, but some can gain them from the meteors under certain circumstances. And the only known people to acquire it like that are in this room, correct?"

"And who would that be?" King Kashima asks.

"My Captain Ayase and Vice-Captain Sonoda can control ice and lightning."

"My daughter and Captain Yazawa can control fire."

"Our Captain Todo can control earth."

"And in the prophecy, those people were the most powerful. Which means we have to keep track of them." The Grand Keeper scans the room.

"You don't mean...lock up the girls?" King Nishikino asks. "No way."

"Well do you have any better ideas, Shoto?"

"Execution." King Tojo yawns.

"This isn't a joke..!" King Nishikino glares at King Tojo.

"Don't come crying to me if you get overthrown by a kid that looks like she belongs in grade school still." King Tojo rolls his eyes and leans on his hand. Eli catches Nico glaring at King Tojo.

"Don't say that about our Nico-chan..." King Nishikino slams his hand on the table and Princess Maki narrows her eyes.

"You are all foolish." Queen Minami sighs, "How about we register everyone's powers. We'll find a way to organize them all. The girls who were affected by the meteors already hold high standings within the Kingdoms they belong to. It won't be hard to keep track of them."

"...That sounds like a good plan actually." King Nishikino replies. "Plus, with all these new powers we'd have to reform our system. Meaning changes in military officers, doctors, everything."

"Whatever, I'll agree with it." King Tojo looks at both King Nishikino and Queen Minami. Many more people start agreeing and then King Nishikino makes a face like he'd just come up with the greatest idea.

"I've got it!" His voice rings loudly around the chamber. "Let's have a tournament. A tournament showing off people's abilities. It'll encourage those with power to get involved!" He looks around waiting for responses.

"That's not a bad idea." King Kashima nods his head and looks over at his son.

"Let's call it...The Tournament of Champions. The reward will be...Maybe gold or a chance to make it into our military without going through basic training?"

"What are the requirements for participants?" Queen Minami asks. King Nishikino plays with his beard.

"Hmm...Anyone with powers? Older than 15? Let's figure that out later. Nico-chan will participate, yes?" He looks over at Nico and she smirks. "How about it? Eli-chan? Erena-chan?"

Erena nods and all eyes turn to Eli. She crosses her arms. It wasn't a bad idea, plus she might benefit from the experience. Fighting was going to be way different from now on. She looks at King Nishikino and smirks, "I'm in."


Umi didn't know where she was. She ended up outside the Castle, in the cold snow. It was so cold but she didn't care. She didn't know what to feel. She knew she had an interest in Kotori but she didn't know it could hurt like this. It was a different hurt than when she lost her parents. "I don't understand..." Umi fell to her knees.

"You're heartbroken." A voice Umi doesn't recognize replies. She stands and turns around. The Commander of the Nishikino Royal Guard, Kazuno Yuu stood before her. The older woman didn't give Umi any weird looks, despite finding her outside in the freezing cold.

Umi didn't know how to reply. She didn't know this woman but she found herself in a conversation with her. How does one explain them self in this kind of situation? "Sorry. I noticed you didn't look too well in there. Thought I'd come check on you." She takes a step past Umi and puts her hands on her hips. Umi looks at the woman and notices a vertical scar just at the edge of her right eye, cutting off some of her eyebrow. Some of her spiky hair was sticking out of her cap.

"Thank you, Commander. I'm sorry you had to witness that."

"Hey, stuff happens. Being in love with a beautiful girl who's engaged? We've all been there." She sighs to herself. Now Umi was confused.

"Being in love?" Umi tilts her head. "I don't believe I am."

Umi's response makes Kazuno laugh. She sighs after and looks at Umi. "It hurts, doesn't it?" Umi covers her heart. It did indeed hurt but she wasn't going to show anymore weakness in front of a stranger. "Acting strong is all fun and games until you can't hold it all in anymore." Kazuno pats Umi's head and walks in the direction of the Castle entrance. "Come with me. I'm assuming the meeting has already started again, so I'll cover for you."

"Eh?" Umi follows behind Kazuno.

"I don't do meetings with Royalty. Nico will get the information we need, so you and I can just relax." Commander Kazuno was strange. Nothing like her father, who was always attentive and never stopped working. But she had no choice. There was no doubt her father was going to lecture her once the meeting was over, she might as well try and get out of it.


Immediately after the meeting, Grand Summit Knights set up stations around the town to register powers. The station at the Castle went fast. Some Royalty had powers, some did not. It was unknown to Eli if her Queen, Kotori, and Nozomi had powers. At the moment, she couldn't meet with Nozomi due to her catching up with her parents. The Queen, her father, and Kotori were busy meeting with King Kashima and Prince Tatsuya. "Eli." Nico waves her hands in front of Eli's face. "Let's go find Umi."

"Right." Eli nods and they exit the Conference Chambers. "I'm really worried about her."

"Yeah me too. If Maki-chan was ever engaged, I'd be devastated. That's my girl." Nico looks up at Eli. Eli just stares at the smaller girl. "My girl who's not my girl." She sighs. "It's been hard for her lately. With her powers and all. She's afraid of hurting someone."

"That's understandable." Memories of Umi and her fight, play through Eli's mind. "How have you been with it?"

"I'm fine. My body temperature has been stable, I just need to figure out how to create fire from different parts of my body."

"Where else would you need to make fire from?" Eli raises her eyebrows. Nico lifts up one of her feet high.

"My feet. I'm thinking maybe I could use it to launch myself in the air? It wouldn't hurt to try."

"Since we're staying here for a couple days, why don't we train together? We'll get stronger."

"Sounds like a good plan. I'm totally gonna kick your ass at the Tournament of Champions though."

It was decided that the Tournament of Champions was going to be held next month at the Grand Coliseum. They had a month to prepare for it. The Captains participating really had nothing to gain from winning, it was just an excuse to fight each other in a cool setting. Eli would be lying if she said she wasn't excited. It's a chance to impress Nozomi's family.

"Wait...Where are we even going? Do you know where you're going?" Eli stops and Nico continues walking.

"Nope. But we can't just sit still." Eli nods in agreement. Then a light bulb in her mind turns on.

"Oh! Your Commander Kazuno. I need to talk to her."

"Yuu? She takes off during meetings so I have no idea where she is. She's so lazy sometimes, one day I'm gonna one-up her and take her position." Nico scoffs and stuffs her hands in her pockets.


It wasn't until after dinner time that Eli and Umi met again. She spots her sister waiting around the Great Hall. Many of the Royalty were conversing and Knights were doing the same. Maids and servants were around handing out drinks and snacks. "Umi!" Eli runs over with Nico at her side. "Where have you been?!" Eli pants and puts her arms on her shoulders.

"Sorry, Captain." An unfamiliar voice speaks up. Eli turns to find Commander Kazuno walking toward them. "She was with me."

"Commander Kazuno." Eli lets go of Umi and meets eyes with her. Kazuno's dark red eyes pierced Eli's focus. She had this look like she could see through everything.

"Yuu?" Nico snaps. "You had her this whole time?! Why didn't you say anything?" Nico gets in Kazuno's face. Her smirk drops and Eli can see her face scrunch up.

"Ehhh? Is that how you should be talking to superiors in front of others?" Kazuno's forehead hits Nico's. Both girls didn't budge.

"As if! You make me do all the dirty work, you lazy-" Kazuno suddenly grabs Nico's head and gives her a noogie. Sweat drops down Eli's head. Kazuno wasn't what she expected her to be like. But of course with the way she was acting, her father's choice of words made sense.

"Kazuno's a good person." Umi stands by Eli's side. "I'm sorry I didn't let you know sooner. She was giving me good advice."

"Is that so?" Eli asks. She looks over at Kazuno and Nico. They were both teasing each other. Kazuno crosses her arms and looks back at Eli. "Thank you, Commander." She bows her head.

"No need to thank me. But anyways, meet me in an hour. All of you." She walks away from all three girls, leaving them confused.

"Do you know what she wants?" Eli looks at Umi. She only shrugs. Eli brings Umi to the side and whispers, "Umi. Are you okay?"

"I'm okay." She replies in a low voice and looks down. She raises her head after a couple seconds, "It happens. I'll be fine, I promise."

"Umi..." Eli mutters, placing a hand on Umi's shoulder. She watches Umi clench her fist. "When you're ready to talk, I'll be here." Umi only nods in response and Nico waves at Eli to sit down.

"Drink up." Nico offers Umi a mug. It was full of an alcoholic beverage. Eli narrows her eyes at Nico who takes another mug from one of the servants behind her. "What? They're not going to do anything to us. Drinking laws don't apply to us."

"I shouldn't." Umi shakes her head. Nico only moves the mug closer until Umi sighs and takes it from her hand. Nico slides another mug toward Eli before grabbing herself one.

"Just one. It's been a long week." Nico raises her mug up for Eli and Umi to do the same. Umi glances at Eli and they both nod at each other.

"Cheers."


"Sometimes I just feel like...like not alive. You know?" Eli hiccups and drinks the rest of her mug. It was her 3rd glass. Or maybe 4th. She couldn't really remember. Next to her, Umi was laying her head on the table, only after 2 drinks. Across from her, was Nico downing another glass like nothing.

"Yeah, all the time." Nico wipes her mouth. "Man Eli, you're bad at this. Both of you." Nico laughs.

"Father doesn't-" She hiccups, "He doesn't approve. Kotori doesn't either. But they're not here right now, am I right?" Eli looks around, waiting for someone to agree with her. Nico only stares at her and Umi slightly raises her head at the mention of their Princess.

"Kotori..." She mutters before hitting her head on the table.

"Now look what you've done." Nico crosses her arms and looks at Eli who only tilts her head.

"Screw you." Eli points a finger at Nico.

"Screw you too." Nico flicks Eli's forehead and she winces.

"Ugh...Where's Nozomi..." Eli groans.

"What the hell...!" Kazuno appears and smacks the back of Nico's head. It makes Eli laugh. Kazuno sighs, "Nico help them sober up. Toshinori is busy meeting with King Tojo and his family. Pretty soon they're going to want to meet these two." Kazuno was already shaking Umi. As for Nico, she got up and got a glass of water. Then she walked over to Eli's side and held her chin.

"Ow! Nico!" Eli groans. Nico's grip tightens.

"You're just like Maki-chan. You're always so loud." Nico rolls her eyes, "Drink." Eli slightly parts her lips and finds the glass. Nico tilts the glass for Eli to drink. She takes a few small gulps before Nico dumps the rest of water on Eli's face. Some water goes up Eli's nose and she coughs. "Good lord." Eli smacks Nico away and tries to wipe her face with her gloves. "Sorry." Nico gently grabs Eli's face and wipes her with a handkerchief.

Eli looks up at Nico. She had this empty expression across her face as she cleaned Eli up. "You've seen some shit." Eli mutters.

"Yeah." Is the only thing Nico says before releasing Eli from her grip. She lightly slaps Eli's cheeks, "Feel better?"

"A little." Eli massages the sides of her head. Her mind felt fuzzy and the strong taste of alcohol was lingering in her mouth. Eli looks around for Umi. Kazuno was doing the same to Umi but there was no hope for her. Umi was gone. Eli can see Kazuno sigh and look at Nico for help. Nico only sighs and scans the room once more.

"Rin!" Nico calls for the orange haired girl. Rin appears out of nowhere.

"Rin reporting for duty nya!" Rin replies. She had some cookie crumbs on her face, making Eli giggle.

"Could you take Umi to bed? She's not feeling so well."

"Roger that!" Rin glances at Eli who only waves her off, and she heads over to Umi. "C'mon Umi-chan."

"Get your shit together, King Grouchy is coming." Nico lightly slaps Eli again. Eli looks to the direction that Rin came from and finds Nozomi and her family approaching, with her father. Warning bells go off in her mind. Kazuno passes her to greet them.

"Oh no..." Eli mutters. She quickly pinches herself. "Ow." And then smacks her cheeks. "Ow."

"Greetings, Tojo Royalty." Kazuno bows her head. "And Toshinori-chan."

"Enough with the foolishness, Kazuno." Eli can hear her father. She can feel sweat building up.

"Aw, since when did we become so distant? We used to be best friends, y'know."

"Excuse this buffoon. She's only useful in combat."

Kazuno only sighs and shakes her head. "Nico. Let's go." She bows her head and walks away. Nico only glances at Eli before departing. Eli nervously swallows at she meets Tojo Masayuki's gaze. He looked unimpressed with the sight before him. Eli quickly stands and bows.

"This is my daughter, Eli. She's an excellent soldier and is a Captain of her own squad within our Royal Guard.

"...It's an honor to meet you." Eli keeps her head bowed. She didn't want to say much more. She was drunk in front of her father and in front of the parents of the girl she wished to be with. This was a bad- no, horrible time to drink.

"Hmm. A good candidate if what you say is true, then she might be worth recruiting. Let's see how she does during the Tournament." Eli stops all movement.

"Recruiting? Me?" She mutters. Then she would move to the Tojo Kingdom. And then she would be able to see Nozomi more often. And perhaps maybe even live with Nozomi and-

"Don't get ahead of yourself." His voice makes sweat drop down the side of Eli's face. "Raise your head." She nervously swallows and looks up at him. He gives her a menacing look. His green eyes pierced Eli and all thoughts that were running through her head about how screwed she was, stopped. It was at this moment she felt both judged and embarrassed. If Nozomi's father could look at her this way, Eli hopes that Nozomi would never look at her like this as well. "Toshinori. I didn't think your child would be so pathetic." King Tojo laughs and walks away.

"My apologies." Her father looks at her in disappointment and walks with him. Queen Tojo looks at the both of them and shakes her head.

"I'm sorry, he's always like that." She speaks. She takes a step closer to Eli and grabs one of Eli's hands.

"Huh..?" Is all she can say. Queen Tojo was basically an older looking Nozomi. She shared the same long purple hair except for the green eyes that Eli loved, and now feared so much. She gives Eli an apologetic look.

"Mother, you're embarrassing her." Nozomi speaks up. Queen Tojo lets go of Eli's hand and takes a step back. She chuckles at looks at Nozomi.

"Nozomi has told me all about you." She smiles at Eli. Once again, Eli nervously swallows.

"O-Oh." Eli laughs awkwardly. "So she knows about us? I thought Nozomi said they couldn't know. Good lord what a me-"

"He may not look it, but my husband is grateful for you. We're so happy that Nozomi was left under your care, Captain Ayase. If anything were to happen to our little girl, we wouldn't know what to do."

"Mother!" Nozomi pouts. Her cheeks were turning pink. "Now you're embarrassing me..." Queen Tojo laughs and pats her daughter's head.

"I'll let you two converse. I've got to check on your father before he starts another fight." She nods to Eli and begins walking away.

All Eli could do was stare. She lets out a deep breath she didn't know she was holding.

"Jeez..." Nozomi shyly looks at the ground and then at Eli. An embarrassed Nozomi was a sight Eli would love to see more often. "Let's um...let's go over there." Nozomi looks around and grabs Eli's arm to lead her to a less crowded part of the hall. Eli starts to feel a little dizzy. She can feel Nozomi hug her arm tighter. She notices Nozomi sniffing her. "Elichi? Is that...?" Nozomi narrows her eyes at Eli.

"Uh.." Eli mutters. Nozomi makes a face at her and Eli's eyes widen and she looks at the ground.

"Elichi..!" Nozomi gasps. "You were drunk in front of them..!" Nozomi lightly hits Eli's arm.

"I-I'm sorry?" Eli massages her head and Nozomi tilts her head in confusion.

"Is that a question or are you trying to apologize?" She puts her hand on her hips. Suddenly, Eli's ears begin to ring and she can only see Nozomi's lips moving.

"Huh.." Eli narrows her eyes in confusion. Nozomi rolls her eyes and shakes her head. She feels Nozomi take her arm again and she lets Nozomi lead her away.


Nozomi leads Eli to a bedroom. For maybe the first time in her lifetime, Eli's mind fills with inappropriate thoughts. "A-Are we going to make out?" Eli blurts out. Nozomi stops in her tracks and gives Eli a look. She looked in deep thought for a couple seconds before smirking at the blonde.

"You don't deserve any kisses from me at the moment." Nozomi ushers Eli onto the bed. "Now lay down. I'd rather have you here than out there making a fool of yourself."

"But...I want kiss..." Eli pouts and turns her backside to Nozomi. Nozomi giggles.

"Wait here." Eli can hear her footsteps. It slowly fades away as the door closes behind her.

"Hmph." Eli sighs. Her mind went blank. She felt like she was falling. "Woah..." Eli tries to move around to stop herself from falling and feels herself hit the floor suddenly. "Ouch." Her right arm throbs and she hisses at the pain. She closes her eyes and curls up on the floor.

"In here, Yoshino-san." Eli can hear Nozomi's voice.

"Nozomi...?" Eli groans.

"Oh dear." An old woman's voice speaks. "Nozomi-chan, would you help me lift her up?"

"Of course."

Eli feels hands touching her and she feels herself flying. She didn't remember when she got so tired. She tries to open her eyes but they don't comply. She can only listen to her surroundings.

"Nozomi-chan...You've truly brought me a mess."

"I'm sorry, Yoshino-san."

"I never said it was bad." The voice, assuming it's Yoshino, giggles. "Oh how I've missed you, Elichika."


Author's Note:
hi all, i've been busy (I just started college) so i haven't been able to update much...but i'll do my best to get out a chapter at least once or twice a month! i made a tumblr( yuzukikun) for my fics so feel free to ask me anything on there or maybe even give me more fic ideas/suggestions or ask about my progress on this one. feedback is always appreciated!