CHAPTER XXV

Pressed, Not Crushed

Ingrid spent some time with Xanthus, giving him all of the information he needed about the attack. Although she and Yuan had made a positive ID on the perpetrators, the ones in actual pursuit in the woods did not have any badges or nametags to associate them with anyone. The sniper had also fought to the death and the authorities failed to get any information from him. The cave that they found was also empty, cleaned out of any identifying marks, though it was clear that it was recently used.

"What do the higher ups think?" Ingrid asked.

"Don't worry about it," Xanthus said. "Just rest."

"I'm fucking tired of resting. I've been here for four days now, damn it."

"Seven if you include when you were out," Perseus said.

"I'm not some goddamned kid. I don't need babysitting."

"Don't be stubborn, Ingrid," Athena said, standing over her bed with her arms across her chest. "You almost died. What good are you gonna be to your team if you don't recover fully?"

Ingrid threw her head back, staring at the ceiling. What team? There were no three-person teams at Beacon Academy.

"Where's Lilly?" Ingrid asked, noticing her team leader missing.

"Said she had something to do," Leon said.

"That's not like her."

"Yeah, well, I guess we all deal with this kind of shit in our own ways."

She sighed, laying her forearm over her eyes.

"You want a smoothie?" Athena said. "I'm gonna go grab some smoothies for everybody."

"I'll help," Echo said.

"Text me your guys' orders."

A minute of silence went by.

"If that really was my family's company," Perseus began.

"Don't start," Ingrid said. "That wasn't your doing."

"Maybe not, but it's my fucking family. I always thought they'd pull something completely fucking stupid eventually, but this? Are they trying to start a war?"

"Let's pray that's not the case," Xanthus said. "I spoke with Penny and the professors about all this and they're pushing for a diplomatic solution, of course."

"The problem is we don't even know what they're after," Perseus said. "Fuck, I don't know what they're after. As far as I know, Jupiter Enterprises' beef is with the Schnee Dust Company. Vale has nothing to do with any of this."

"They might be attempting to establish a staging point. This is typical in early pre-war preparations."

They watched as Leon scooted his chair closer to Ingrid's bed. Her eyes were closed, but they all knew she wasn't sleeping. Her childhood friend reached for her hand, holding it in his. A tear rolled down the side of her head and Leon wiped it away.

"I know this isn't what you wanna hear right now," he said quietly as he kissed her fingers. "But things will end up okay. He's gonna wake up tomorrow and make you pancakes and sushi like he always does."

She took a deep breath, holding it for a moment before letting it out slowly.

"Just you wait, Ingrid. Yuan's a tough motherfucker. He'll pull through just fine."

Even though he was correct that this wasn't what she wanted to hear right now, hearing it from him made it feel like things really would be okay. But in spite of all that, she couldn't get out of her mind the blank look on Yuan's face just before she lost consciousness that day.

—

Echo turned to Athena as they waited for their order of smoothies. The latter leaned her elbow on the table, watching as Vale's citizens walked by, oblivious to what was going on in the world. Perhaps that was for the best. Negativity would bring the Grimm down on the city like a swarm of locusts.

"Athena," Echo said.

APEX's team leader turned to her, midnight blue eyes locking with pale green hazels. Echo found herself dumbstruck. A breeze caught Athena's long, golden hair, which she wore down today instead of the usual ponytail. Her hair went in all sorts of directions, untamed, yet not something one could call completely wild. It had quite the volume to it as well, very different from Echo's mostly flat hair.

"Don't you miss all those locks?" Athena said.

"Kinda," Echo said, looking down to try and get her dark brown, chin-length hair to hide the redness on her face. "It's easier to take care of short hair, though."

"Shit, I know."

"They're...they're gonna be okay, right?"

"Of course they are. Yuan's a tough motherfucker and Ingrid's Ingrid. She might be even tougher than all of us."

"I...I don't know about that part. She hides it, but Ingrid's a lot more sensitive than we all give her credit for."

Athena chuckled. "So, you noticed that, too, huh?"

Echo looked at her partner.

"You're right. Ingrid is a softie. But when it comes down to it, she's reliable. They will recover from this. Both of them."

Echo reflected on that day so long ago when Athena nearly lost her own life to those Omega Grimm. Hearing her scream and seeing that spear jutting from her back was the most horrifying thing Echo had ever experienced. She didn't know if she could survive what Ingrid and Yuan were going through right now. Athena was only out of commission for a day. Yuan had been unconscious for just about a week now and Ingrid was still in physical therapy.

"Athena," Echo said, looking at the table.

Athena didn't answer, awaiting Echo instead.

"I..."

The team's leader maintained her silence, giving her teammate and partner a chance to put together what she wanted to say.

"Is it okay, Athena?" Echo finally said, looking deeply into her partner's eyes. "If I stay with you?"

"That's not even a question, Echo," Athena said.

"No. I mean...is it okay if I stay with you...forever?"

Athena let a few moments pass before reaching across the table to touch hands with her partner. Echo felt a shiver run up and down her entire body as Athena's warm grasp made its way from her hands to her heart.

"Echo," Athena said, making the latter's heart skip a beat. "Come sit with me."

Echo swallowed hard before getting up, her legs trembling as she scooted along the circular bench toward Athena, who took her hand and locked fingers with her. The feeling made Echo's heart stop beating altogether. Was this it? Was it really happening now? Butterflies were going crazy in her stomach, but at the same time she could not deny that opening her heart to another person might only set herself up for more tragedy later on down the line. But as Athena scooted closer to her, wiping out the gap between them, Echo stopped caring about any of that.

Her doubts vanished the instant Athena's lips touched hers. Echo had never tasted anything so sweet in her life. She was so overcome that a tear fell down her cheek and she held her breath longer than she should have.

"What's wrong?" Athena said, pulling away from a panting Echo.

"N-Nothing," Echo said, wiping away her tear and taking a deep breath before letting it out slowly. "That was..." She searched her mind for a fancy word to use, something that could capture what swirled around in her heart right this moment, but only one word would come to her. "...That was perfect."

Athena smiled at her, leaning in again to give her another gentle kiss on the lips. Echo found her hand moving to her partner's waist as Athena's moved up to her shoulder and neck, tickling the hairs on the back.

"Our smoothies are probably done," Athena said, softly rubbing her nose against Echo's.

"Y-Yeah," Echo said, leaning away from her, but Athena's grasp wouldn't let her get too far.

They shared in another passionate kiss before Athena took the reins and went to retrieve their group's smoothies. Echo's hands and knees shook as she held the cup tray. She was afraid she'd drop it, or worse, trip over herself and fall face-first into the smoothies. Her body was on fire, hotter than the surface of the sun. Did that really just happen? It must have. There's no other reason why her heart would be pounding like it was now.

"You're not gonna faint on me, are you?" Athena said, snapping her out of her trance.

"Huh? N-No, I'm okay," Echo said.

"Because if you do, I will catch you, and I will carry you all the way up."

"You're making it worse, you know. I think I really will faint now."

"Well, I wasn't kidding about catching you."

This was a girl Echo was willing to follow, someone who knew what she wanted and didn't hesitate to go out and get it. Echo did not mind one bit accompanying her into whatever she wanted to do. Even if it meant marching right through the gates of hell, Echo would be there.

I think I really am in love with you.

She hadn't said those words aloud, but merely thinking them was a start. She'd get there eventually. She'd figure out a way to actually verbalize her feelings for her. Although she figured that was no longer necessary. After all, kisses spoke louder than words.

—

"Okay," Ingrid's therapist said. "I think you're ready to graduate."

Ingrid was panting. The physical exertion wasn't what got to her. Walking and moving her muscles was as easy as it was before her injury. The exhaustion originated from her mind. She had the freedom to walk around on her own two feet now, but not him, not the man who had saved her life. It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair at all. Why did she get to be free while he was trapped in his own mind?

"Is it..." she began, holding tears back. "Is it okay if I see him?"

"Sure," her therapist said. "But make sure to do whatever the nurse asks you to do, even if that means you have to leave."

She nodded before exiting the room. Her body was still sore, but her aura healed any major injuries. Still, she would probably be out of commission for another week. She limped over to his room, eyes opening wide. Could she trust her sight? Was this real? Was she imagining it?

"Y...Yuan?" she said, barely audible. She limped faster toward his room and went straight to the door, swinging it open.

"Mister Ren, please," the nurse said, bracing him. "You've got to get back in bed. You're in no condition to stand up right now. You've been in a coma for a whole week."

"A...week?" he managed.

Ingrid's heart skipped a beat. His voice was awfully feeble, but just hearing it again made tears cloud her vision.

"Yuan?" she said meekly.

He turned to her, managing a weak smile before grimacing.

"Ma'am, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave—"

"No, it's okay," Yuan interrupted the nurse.

"Mister Ren, you need rest."

"I know. It's just...I need to see her."

The nurse looked over at Ingrid, whose piteous face told her all she needed to know. She turned back to Yuan. "Okay, but make it quick. I don't want you losing consciousness again and injuring yourself or something. Your aura's up, but you've been healing really slowly."

He smiled as he looked at the ground. Physical healing wasn't what he needed at all. There was something else. A dream, perhaps. No, it was too vivid to be a dream.

"Yuan," Ingrid said as she hurried over, throwing herself on him.

Her affection surprised him more than anything, but he found himself returning it, wrapping his arms around her as she did the same.

"I thought I'd lost you," he said.

Ingrid pulled away from him, her cat ears matching the furious look on her face.

"Don't you ever do anything that stupid ever again!" she screamed.

"Ingrid..."

"I don't want you ever to do that!"

He didn't answer.

"Swear to me!"

"I can't do that."

"Why not?" she demanded.

"Because. I just can't."

"I don't want you throwing your life away like that!"

He turned away from her momentarily before looking back into her amber eyes. "There are some things in life that are worth dying for, Ingrid. You're one of them."

Her heart stopped.

"I would die a thousand times for you, Ingrid."

"Shut up," she growled, balling her fists and squeezing her eyes shut. "Just shut up."

"I mean it."

"I don't care!" She threw her arms around him, holding him so tightly that it hurt. "I don't ever want to see you like that ever again!"

He closed his eyes, leaning his head on her shoulder.

"I don't know if I could have gone on...if you hadn't woken up..."

"Don't say that, Ingrid," he said. "You're a strong woman."

"I'm not as strong as you all think I am..."

"I don't believe that."

But her sentiments were sincere. She was the heiress to a legacy. Her mother was now the leader of all of Menagerie, her father the former headmaster of Shade Academy and now leader of Menagerie's security forces. Her grandfather was also once the former chieftain of the settlement. Ingrid had enormous shoes to fill. And yet, despite all of her achievements thus far, she always felt as though she fell short of them. She stood on the shoulders of giants. She could not even compare to them.

Yuan held her at arm's length, his jade eyes connecting deeply with her ambers. He brushed a lock out of her face with a finger, giving her a smile despite the physical pain his body was in.

"Ingrid," he said in a near-whisper. "Is it okay if I kiss you?"

If she wasn't red before, she certainly was now. Ignoring a pounding pulse and a mind going all over the place, she leaned forward, closing her eyes as her lips touched his. Just like that, all of her doubts departed her, leaving behind a firm sense of elation and tranquility. It felt as though their souls were connecting them into a single being. Or perhaps that was his Semblance acting according to his subconscious will.

"Are you doing that?" she asked, pulling back just enough to see his jade eyes.

"Doing what?" he said.

"That...thing, with your aura."

The look on his face was one of confusion.

"Never mind," she chuckled. "I must be imagining things."

"Oh."

"I should probably get outta here. You still have to rest."

Something was strange, though. Yuan felt as though nearly all of his strength had just come back. Curiosity got the better of him and he got off the bed, standing up straight and tall. Ingrid's eyes were wide open as she looked up at him.

"What...?" she managed.

"Huh," he said. "Weird. I could've sworn I couldn't even stand just now."

Before he could take a step forward, though, he started to get dizzy, but Ingrid was there to catch him, carefully lowering him back to his bed.

"Don't get all cocky now," she chuckled.

He chuckled as well, but as he started to lay back down, his elbow slipped from underneath and he fell, bringing Ingrid down with him. She rapidly propped herself up above him, staring down into an equally red and startled Yuan. Somehow, in the midst of that commotion, she managed to end up straddling him and now she was frozen.

"Uh," Yuan managed.

"I should probably go," she said, preparing to leave, but his hand went to her wrist and she slowly turned back to him. His eyes were filled with sincerity.

"You don't...actually have to leave."

Her whole body was hot now, her heart pounding in her chest. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The nurse would probably flip if she came in and saw them right now, but for some reason, Ingrid didn't really care.

She gave him a small smile before laying down on top of him, placing her ear right over his chest to listen to his strong heartbeat. She closed her eyes as he placed one hand on her shoulder, the other clasping her free hand. She laced her fingers with his before allowing the rhythm of his heart and breathing to lull her to sleep.

Meanwhile, Lilly had been outside the room the whole time, peeking through the window as her two friends were reunited. It was another job well done. She smiled to herself, leaving the two to be alone at least for the day.

—

"Good to have you back, motherfucker!" Leon said, giving Yuan a hard slap on the back.

"I might have healed fully," he said, "but your slaps don't hurt any less than they did before."

His partner laughed. "Just tryin'a show you some manly love, bro!"

"Two weeks out of commission is way too long," Perseus said, bumping fists with Yuan. "You think you'll be up to snuff for the tournament? It's less than a month away, you know."

"I'll be fine," he said.

"Of course he will be fine," Xanthus said, shaking hands with him.

"That's right," Athena said as she and Echo gave him hugs. "The Last Aura Bender won't disappear when his team needs him most."

Yuan looked over at Lilly, who had been quiet this whole time. She wore her signature smile, which, as always, was contagious. He gave his team leader a salute before she ran to him and gave him a long embrace.

"Thank you," he whispered into her ear.

"For?" she whispered back.

"I think you know."

"Training halls, anybody?" Athena said.

"Yes," Yuan said. "My body is getting stiff. I think I need the exercise."

"We should have a team battle right off the bat," Perseus said, pulling out his scroll to notify Penny.

As the rest of the team headed toward the training halls, Yuan glanced back at Ingrid, who lagged behind. She smiled at him. He returned her smile, admiring the way the wind caught her long, black hair and tossed it to the side, revealing the lapis lazuli earrings he had gifted her on her birthday. She joined him and they walked shoulder to shoulder all the way to the training halls.

—

Penny let out a heavy sigh of relief as she read Perseus's text message. Yuan was back on his feet. Everything would be okay again.

Except that it wouldn't be okay, not with the looming war on the horizon. This year's Vytal festival would be a unique one. Jupiter Enterprises and the Schnee Dust Company, and by extension their home countries, would be on the same stage together. And even though the primary purpose of the event was to show solidarity between the nations, that there was a tournament involved symbolized the constant competition and tension between the four kingdoms.

Add to that the resurgence of the Labyrinths and Penny could already see the disaster brewing on the horizon.

She was about to put her scroll away when she got another text message. Her heart filled with all sorts of emotions as she read the sender's name. The message didn't even matter at this point. This was the first communication she'd had with him in three years. Most of that was her fault, of course. She was the idiot who stormed out on him because of one stupid misunderstanding.

She sighed heavily, closing her eyes as she opened the message.

We're one member short. Would you like to join us?

Again, her heart clouded with conflicting emotions. Of course she wanted to join them. She was eager to see him again, to hear him again, to listen to his silly laughter and that peculiar way he spoke again. But she would be on the team as well. There was no doubt about that. Penny could already see it. Her enthusiasm would be completely overshadowed by those stupid feelings of jealousy and insecurity.

She pocketed her scroll without replying to the message, clenching her fists and gritting her teeth. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to push those emotions out of her mind. She had a job to do right now and she couldn't be distracted. She left her office and headed to the training halls.

—

"Not bad for a dead man!" Perseus said, blocking a lightning strike from Yuan's weapon with his shield.

"I am walking dead," Yuan said, spinning his Heaven Scorcher around before dashing forward alongside Leon. "Get it right."

Lilly giggled before joining Ingrid to attack Echo and Athena. They ended their scuffle after only a brief bout, facing off against them with only twenty yards separating the duos.

"Tell me something," Ingrid said. "You've been really quiet lately. Why's that?"

"You're imagining things!" Lilly said before projecting an Ice Dust attack at Athena and Echo, the first of whom blocked the attack with her shield before Echo countered with a Fire Dust arrow, which Ingrid blocked with an Earth Dust shadow clone.

"Not imagining anything at all," Ingrid said. "You've been quiet lately. And, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you've been avoiding us this past week."

"Just getting some private lessons in with Penny," Lilly said. She couldn't very well tell her partner that she had been making incursions into that parallel world by herself. Not only would that worry her to no end, she might also try to follow, which she couldn't permit, not with the dangers present in that foreign domain.

Athena threw her shield before attacking, but Ingrid deflected the flying disk before engaging her in a battle of spears. Echo and Lilly exchanged a number of projectiles before they ended in another face-off to reorganize and recuperate.

"I see," Ingrid said. "What have you been learning?"

"Oh, you know," Lilly said. "Stuff."

"Stuff, huh?"

"Mm-hmm!"

"Echo," Athena said.

"Do the thing?" Echo said.

"Do the thing."

"Hooah," Echo said before nocking an Explosive Dust arrow, whose power was so great that she had to arm it before she could even use it.

"Uh-oh," Lilly said.

"We should probably run," Ingrid said.

Echo let the arrow soar. This particular projectile was armed with an airburst timer and the instant it was within range, it exploded, sending Lilly and Ingrid flying in two separate directions. They were far enough away from the blast to not have their auras completely knocked out, but the concussion still had its effect on them.

"Ow," Lilly said, rubbing her head. She turned to face Athena, who was closing in quickly. Without another thought, Lilly aimed Myrtenaster at her opponent and a rune appeared in the air.

Athena gasped before holding up her shield to block the massive rock spear that materialized from Lilly's rune. The force was enough to completely stop her forward movement, but her shield probably saved her hide just now.

Thank you, Aegis, she thought, looking at her shield. Her arm felt like as though she had just punched a slab of concrete, but at least her body was intact. She looked over Aegis to Lilly, who was holding Myrtenaster out at her, ready to continue the battle. Athena had never thought Lilly would have progressed so much in such little time. The school year wasn't even finished and this girl was easily among the top five now.

Still, the Golden Girl of Vale was not going to be outdone, not even by the daughter of the Silver Maiden.

"I guess I should stop holding back on you," Athena said, keeping her shield up.

"You probably should," Lilly said with a smirk.

"Here I come!"

Lilly was surprised at Athena's speed. Even though the latter was the best first-year student for the entire duration of their tenure at Beacon, she never once slowed down. As much as everyone else around improved, Athena also continued her journey toward perfection.

Athena's striking speed was amazing, but Lilly would not be overwhelmed so easily. She countered with all sorts of runic projections, walls of rock or ice, powerful gusts of wind, lightning strikes, and even waves of fire, but none of them worked on Athena. She was far too adept with her Semblance, using her spear with both hands for greater power strokes while her shield orbited her by the power of her ferromagnetism, blocking Lilly's attacks no matter what direction they came from.

Athena closed the gap between them and the battle shifted into a close quarters fight. Lilly found herself outpaced and outmatched by a wide margin, only managing to evade and deflect her attacks. That shield continued to float around her as well, acting as both an extra defensive and offensive implement.

It's now or never! Lilly thought as she summoned the power that she had been nurturing for the past month with her repeated solo excursions into that parallel world.

"Gehärtete Verteidigung!"

"What?"

"Stahl Knöchel!"

Athena stopped her assault, shielding her eyes as Lilly was bathed in a brownish glow. She wasn't sure what exactly happened, but she spotted a brown, rune-like holographic projection in the air slowly fading away. Whatever Lilly just did, it must have been to herself, given the way she glowed.

"Yo, what's going on?" Leon said as they stopped to watch the duel.

"I don't know," Xanthus said as he and Perseus joined Leon and Yuan.

"Looks like she's getting the hang of her new power," Ingrid said. She glanced over at Echo, who was starry eyed, her fists held in front of her chin. "Dude, what in the world are you so excited about?"

"All the things!" Echo squealed. "She is so cool!"

"Like in those animes, right?" Perseus chuckled.

"Fuck yeah!"

"I don't exactly know what you have up your sleeve right now," Athena began, squaring off with Lilly, "but don't think for one second that a little magic trick is gonna make you number one."

"Oh, don't worry," Lilly said. "I know better than to underestimate Athena Rose."

They both grinned. Athena's charge was quick, almost too quick for the human eye to follow, but she was still nowhere near the same level as Penny, who watched their every movement as they sparred. She had given them everything they needed to know, particularly Lilly. What that girl needed more than anything was self-confidence. And it seemed that she had found it. Whatever it was Lilly had done to herself, it enabled her to match Athena pound for pound, her speed nearly identical, her blows just as powerful, and her durability equally matching.

"I can't believe what I'm seeing," Perseus said, his mouth open. "Did she just take a hit on the chin from Athena's shield?"

"I'm pretty sure that's what just happened," Xanthus said. "But I can't believe it either."

Yuan continued to closely observe Lilly's every movement. Contrary to what the rest of the group thought, he wasn't studying her combat style. There was something bizarrely familiar about the way she fought. He had seen this before, sensed this power before. It wasn't until she cast a powerful combination fire-lightning blast that he realized what it was.

"Holy shit!" Athena said, her shield and aura barely withstanding the intense dual elemental attack.

That last one drained Lilly of all her power and she fell to the ground as something around her broke. It wasn't her aura, though. It was something else, as if an invisible shell of energy that had been surrounding her all this time finally shattered like glass. Athena recognized the brownish color. It was that same light that had enveloped her at the start of their battle.

"Lilly!" Athena said, rushing to her.

"I'm okay," she panted.

"What was that?"

"What was what?"

"That. You know, how you kept up with me for the last five minutes."

"I know."

"Huh?"

"Five minutes is as long as I can keep it up. Any longer than that and I'm no good in a fight."

Athena looked at her questioningly. "The hell is that supposed to mean?"

Lilly leaned back against her arms, looking up to the ceiling to try and expand her lungs so she could get air in them.

"Not bad," Penny said, slowly clapping as she approached them.

"Still," Lilly said. "I can't use this power without tiring myself out."

"The fact that you can use the power alone already puts you at a huge advantage."

"A match at the Vytal Festival is way longer than five minutes, isn't it?"

"Depends on your opponents. Personally, I believe Team LILY can steamroll its way to the finals."

"Unless we run into Team APEX on the way there," Leon said as the group joined them.

"You're making me blush," Perseus said.

"Psh."

"I think it's time for a break," Penny said. "You've all been at it for a half hour straight already and—"

"No, I think we can keep going," Lilly said, glancing at her team. "We still have a lot of energy to burn."

Penny looked around the group. No one objected. "If you insist," she said, "but remember that it's also important to pace yourselves."

"I know what we can do," Perseus said with a grin. "Do you remember your offer, Penny?"

"My offer?"

"Yeah. The one you made after our pillow war."

"I do recall you saying something along the lines of 'Penny vs. all of Team LILY and APEX," Xanthus said as he pushed up his glasses.

"Did you just say the other team's name first?" Athena said, putting both fists on her hips.

"I, uh, I mean—"

"Of course we come first," Leon said with a grin, mock-pushing up non-existent glasses. Lilly and Ingrid were instantly to either side of him, leaning backward against his shoulders with their arms folded across their chests.

"Oh, brother," Echo said, rolling her eyes.

"Well," Penny began, "if you eight really think you can do it, then okay. Just land one hit on me and we'll call it a victory in your court."

—

"Oh, my god, my whole body hurts," Perseus said, rotating his shoulders.

"It was your stupid idea to take on Penny of all people!" Athena said.

"I am so tired!" Lilly sighed.

"I think I'm gonna pass out now, thanks," Leon said.

Penny couldn't help but giggle. "Look on the bright side," she said. "You guys won."

"Yeah, barely," Ingrid said. "How the hell do you even move that fast?"

Xanthus shared a quick glance with Penny, remembering her request to keep her secret a secret. "She's a professional Huntress, after all," he said, pushing up his glasses.

"But even grandpa Qrow doesn't move that fast," Leon said.

"The key word there is grandpa," Perseus said.

While the rest of the group continued to converse on the way to the campus café, Yuan lagged behind with Lilly.

"That was you, wasn't it?" he said to his team leader.

She turned to him without a word.

"You were the one I saw in my dreams."

"Your dreams?"

He nodded. "The reason I could not wake up was because I thought I had failed to save Ingrid. But you entered my dreams and showed me that I was wrong, that Ingrid was alive and well."

She didn't answer right away.

"It was the same as that one time you disappeared, wasn't it? Earlier this month? Or last month. Is it June already?"

She chuckled. "Yeah, it's June. You have been out for a while, you know."

"Hmm. What was it like? My dream world, I mean. You said that Mizuki's was very dreary."

"Yours wasn't as visceral. It was really difficult to distinguish from the real world, other than a constant overcast...and lots of bars over windows and a lot of sealed off doors."

"I see." He paused for a moment. "And you've been going through this other world, haven't you?"

She didn't answer.

"It must be dangerous. Is that why you won't tell the rest of us about it?"

"Yuan."

"It's okay, Lilly. I won't question your motives or your reasons for keeping it from everyone. I just wish to let you know that you are not an island. You have a team. Use us."

She smiled. "I know. And I need you guys most for the upcoming tournament."

"If that's what you require of your team, then I will not question."

"Yup! Now, get over there and walk with Ingrid cuz Leon keeps bothering her!"

He chuckled before doing as she commanded. Lilly continued to lag behind, watching their whole circle of friends as they laughed and talked and reminisced. She could not involve them in her excursions into that other world. Yuan was correct in his assessment that it was dangerous. It was extremely dangerous. The only thing that kept her alive in that other world was her magic, these runes that were somehow so much more effective in that world.

She looked at her hand, trying to will one of the runes, but out here, it was far more difficult and she was too exhausted from their training to bring it out.

"Lilly!"

She looked up to see the group stopped way ahead of her. It was Athena calling out to her.

"The heck are you doing all the way back there?"

"C'mon!" Leon said, his hand on his hip.

She admired how the sunlight hit his hair, making it glow more red at the tips than usual. His black and red coat fluttered as a small breeze caught it. She let a smile form on her face before skipping up to her group and walking in the middle all the way to the café.