Kanan woke Mari up when she felt it was time. She sent out a message to Yohane to alert her they were going to do it now. Yohane wished them luck and said she'd be waiting for them.

Kanan and Mari snuck out of their room and down the hall. Mari led the way to the dungeon. They both prayed there wouldn't be a guard at the moment. That would cause this mission to become even more difficult than it already was.

They didn't see a guard. That was a relief. They hurried down to the cell where Dia and Riko were being kept. They made sure to be extremely quiet. They had no clue if there was a guard at their cell. Mari peered around the corner to look. She shook her head and Kanan. There was not a guard there.

They slowly walked into the open. Dia was still awake. Her eyes widened as she saw them. Mari held a finger to her lips as she picked the lock on the door. Kanan kept watch for any movement from a guard. Mari walked into the cell and started cutting away the ropes restraining Dia.

She soon was free. Dia made her way over to where Riko was tied up. She was unconscious and covered in blood and bruises. Mari frowned at the sight. Riko looked horrible. Mari cut away the ropes. Dia picked Riko up and cradled her close in a worried manner. They left the cell. Kanan motioned for them to follow her.

They snuck out a back passageway. Yohane was waiting where she said she would be. Her eyes widened at the sight of Riko. She was shocked by her state as well. Yohane took a deep breath and formed a portal. Kanan went in first. Dia stepped through next. Mari and Yohane went through at the same time.

They reappeared at the house. Kanan opened the door. Dia walked inside. Hanamaru was waiting for them at the entrance. She let out a gasp and ran toward Dia.

"What happened to her?" Hanamaru asked as she took Riko from Dia.

"They tortured her in front of me… they whipped her… stabbed her… punched her… and raped her…" Dia whispered, "She took my punishment as well…"

Mari pulled Dia close to her. Dia hugged Mari. Hanamaru and Yohane left the room with Riko to go and heal her. Yō and Chika came out into the living room and walked up to Kanan. Kanan bent down and pet them.

"Why don't you all get some rest? By morning she'll be fine." Yohane came back into the room.

The three of them looked at each other. They didn't know what arrangement they should make. It was obvious that someone should stay with Dia.

"You two can stay together. I'll sleep by myself." Kanan stated.

Mari took Dia into one of the rooms. Chika ran after them. Kanan and Yō went to a different room for the night. Yohane went back to help Hanamaru.

DIVIDER--

That morning, everyone woke up pretty late. Kanan was the first one to get out of bed. Her and Yō went to see if anyone else was awake yet. It didn't appear that way.

"Can we go see Riko?" Yō asked.

Kanan shrugged. Yō walked over to the door and opened it up. She walked inside. Kanan followed after her. Riko was lying on a small makeshift bed. She wasn't awake. Her wounds looked a lot better than they did earlier.

"Morning, Kanan, Yō." A voice called from behind them

They turned around to see Hanamaru was entering the room. They said good morning back to her. Hanamaru walked over to Riko and examined her.

"She seems better. Some of those wounds were pretty nasty." Hanamaru commented.

"I can't believe them… she's still only a child. Why would they hurt her like that?" Yō whined.

"You think royalty cares about age? If they're deemed a threat, they'll be removed no matter what." Kanan grumbled.

"But why is she deemed that?" Yō asked, "I don't get it."

"I don't really get it either. I feel it's really just because the King doesn't like people who like the same sex. He hates them." Kanan guessed.

"And why is Dia also a threat?"

"She isn't a pure blooded royal. If that's found out, you know what the townsfolk might do." Kanan said.

They were going to talk more, when Riko groaned. She was waking up. Hanamaru stepped back. She pushed Kanan forward. She wanted Kanan to be the one to talk to her.

Riko opened her eyes. She stared at Kanan with a confused look. Kanan carefully helped her into a sitting position. Riko winced in pain every now and then.

"Where am I?" Riko asked as she leaned into Kanan to regain her balance.

"At our house. You're safe now." Kanan said as she wrapped an arm around Riko to steady her.

"Thank you… I thought I was gonna die…" Riko cried as she hugged Kanan, "It was so painful…"

"Are you feeling better now?" Kanan asked as she hugged Riko back.

"Yeah… just… down there…" Riko winced.

"I'm sorry. We can't really heal the pain down there." Hanamaru apologized.

Riko looked over at Hanamaru, "It's okay..."

"I'm sure if they need to, they could ease the pain, so don't worry. If it gets too much just say something." Kanan stated. Hanamaru nodded in agreement.

"Where's Dia?" Riko asked.

"I'm assuming she's still asleep." Hanamaru replied.

"Do you want me to go get her?" Yō asked.

They all looked at Riko for an answer. Riko hesitantly nodded. Yō left the room and went to go wake up Dia and Mari.

"How are you feeling? You don't feel ill or dizzy, right?" Kanan asked.

"I'm okay... it's just a little bit of pain." Riko replied.

"Just let us know if it gets worse, alright?" Hanamaru said.

Riko nodded, "Alright."

Yō walked back into the room with Chika on her back. Dia and Mari were behind her. Yohane also came in the room moments later. Dia walked over to Riko and hugged her. Riko hugged her back.

"Are you okay?" Dia asked as she planted a kiss onto Riko's forehead.

Riko nodded, "I'm fine…"

"So… what are we gonna do now?" Chika asked, "They're kinda fugitives now, aren't they?"

"I guess they are."

"Let me see if I can get any news about the escape." Yohane stepped out of the room for a minute.

"Thank you for helping us." Dia said.

"It's nothing."

"What are we gon… uh, going to do now?" Riko asked.

"I'm not sure. It depends on what their retaliation will be." Mari stated, "Something tells me we might soon be regular citizens."

"You think they'll take over your kingdom?" Riko asked.

Mari nodded, "Kanan and I vanished at the same time you guys did. They'll put it together. They just are going to the wrong place."

"Oh… I guess that makes sense." Riko sighed.

Yohane came back into the room. Everyone looked at her and waited for the news. This was the deciding factor for what would be the plan.

"They've noticed. It's a secret only the castle knows. They're going to search around." Yohane stated, "Mari, they're…"

"I assumed as much. It's fine. I don't care if I lose the kingdom." Mari stated in reply.

"I guess we have some new residents in the house." Chika said as she jumped up onto the bed. She carefully moved and laid down on Riko's lap.

Yohane nodded, "I guess we do."

"We're allowed to stay?" Dia and Riko asked at the same time.

Hanamaru nodded, "Of course. Where else would you go? You're wanted."

"Thank you."

DIVIDER--

Toward the afternoon, things got complicated. Kanan and Yohane went out to go shop around town. They froze when they saw soldiers. Diamond kingdom soldiers.

"What are they doing here?" Yohane whispered.

"What if they know? They came here before. They might assume they're hiding out with us here." Kanan worried.

"Let's keep an eye on them." Yohane replied as she climbed up a tree.

Kanan climbed up a different tree. They kept a close eye on the soldiers as they searched through the town. They both prayed they'd leave without causing any harm.

"We're looking for a runaway. Her name is Sakurauchi Riko. She has taken Princess Dia with her. If you have any info, please tell us now."

Kanan and Yohane shared worried looks. This situation wasn't looking good for them.

"They visited the witch's house before. Maybe they're there?" A villager said.

"And where is that at?"

Kanan and Yohane jumped down from the trees and started to run back to the house. Kanan paused suddenly. Yohane looked back at her in confusion.

"Kanan?" Yohane walked over to her.

"We can't both go back." Kanan stated, "It's better if someone tries to distract them."

"Yeah… I guess there is nowhere to really go without magic…" Yohane nodded.

"I'll do it. You should go back." Kanan stated.

Yohane shook her head, "You go back. You're faster than I am."

"But-"

"I can go places you can't."

"Please stay safe. They'll kill you if they find you." Kanan said.

"I'll try." Yohane promised. The thought of dying wasn't pleasant.

Kanan took off running toward the house to tell everyone the news. Yohane listened for sounds. She was going to let the knights see her and hopefully they would chase her. It didn't take long for her to hear the footsteps and sounds of their armor.

The knights came into view. Yohane stood her ground and stared at them. The didn't pay her much mind and ignored her. Yohane growled and cast a small burst of magic at them. That got their attention. They shouted curses about her being a witch and ran at her. Yohane ran away into the forest. She knew her way around very well. But, the nearest hiding spot was a bit of a run from where she was at, at the moment.

Yohane was easily outpacing them. She had faith she could make it and hide. That faith wasn't enough, though. Yohane was able to see where the spot was. There was no way for the knights to follow her through the thick forest. She was skinny enough to fit through the dense trees with ease.

Just before she reached it, an arrow found its way through her. Yohane coughed up blood as she fell to the ground. She was done for. She had known that this was probably going to be the outcome, as much as she hoped she could've made it and hidden. The knights stood over her. A second arrow pierced through Yohane's heart.

DIVIDER--

Kanan reached the house quickly. She was panting heavily as she rushed inside. Yō quickly jumped up and ran over to her.

"What's wrong?" Yō whined.

"There's knights… they're coming here… Yohane's trying to distract them, but who knows if there's more." Kanan panted.

Yō ran off and went to inform Hanamaru of the problem. Hanamaru opened up a secret room and ushered everyone into it. Kanan refused and said she was going to help Yohane. Just as Kanan was going to leave. Hanamaru suddenly let out a shriek and fell to her knees.

Kanan and Yō were instantly by her side. They knew what that meant. Hanamaru and Yohane had a connection. They could feel each other's pain.

"Maru? What are you feeling?" Kanan asked.

Chika nuzzled herself into Hanamaru's legs. Mari, Riko, and Dia stood close by and watched with concern.

"She… she's been hit… in her stomach…" Hanamaru gasped out.

"Fuck." Kanan cursed.

Hanamaru suddenly let out another shriek and fell to the ground. She writhed around in pain.

"Maru?" Yō whined as she tried to keep her still.

Hanamaru was crying as immense pain overcame her senses. She had never felt such pain before in her life. It was scary.

"H-heart…" Hanamaru managed to mumble before she collapsed from the pain. Even if it wasn't really happening to her, it still hurt just like a regular wound would.

At that announcement, Kanan ran out of the house. Yō ran after her. Chika licked Hanamaru's face and tried to help her.

"Pick her up and lay her on the bed." Chika ordered.

Dia did so. Chika jumped up and sat beside Hanamaru. Hanamaru was crying. They all weren't sure from what. It could be from the pain or it could be from what she knew had happened to Yohane.

DIVIDER--

Kanan and Yō ran through the woods. Yō picked up on Yohane's scent and was leading the way to her. As they neared the place, they heard talking. The knights were still there.

"Yō, this is the one time I'll let you kill someone." Kanan stated as she grabbed her knife tightly, "They all need to go."

Yō nodded and got into a stalking stance. Once Kanan gave the signal, they would attack. Kanan was filled with rage at the sight of what they were doing. The knights were jeering and kicking Yohane's body. The arrows had been removed from her body, but their marks were easy to see.

"Now." Kanan said.

Yō charged out of the brush with a snarl. The knights screamed. Yō's teeth found their way into one of knight's necks. Kanan ran out and sunk her knife into another knight's neck. There was one more knight left. Yō took care of them easily.

Kanan knelt down beside Yohane's body. Kanan turned her over so she was lying on her back. Yō ran over and started licking Yohane's face. Yohane didn't respond to it.

Kanan looked at Yō and shook her head, "It's too late…"

Yō let out a cry and buried her face into Yohane's hair. Kanan frowned and pet Yō. They stayed like that for a while. Eventually, Kanan convinced Yō they should head back. Kanan picked up Yohane's body and started walking back. Yō walked beside her with her tail completely dragging across the ground. Her ears were flat against her head.

Neither were looking forward to having to go back. The reactions wouldn't be good.

"It's not your fault, Kanan… I know you blame yourself, but it's not." Yō said, "She knew the risks."

"I should've been the one distracting them…"

"What more could you have done? There wasn't anywhere to run. It was basically a suicide mission." Yō stated.

Kanan stopped walking, "What?"

"There's a reason she did it… she knew one of you would end up dead. She rathered it was her than you." Yō replied, "You really thought there was anywhere to hide? Even the places they can't fit aren't safe. Not with those weapons."

Kanan started walking again. She said nothing more the entire walk.