Shugo Chara! Middle School!

by MagicalGirl4

Amu and the rest of the gang discover that the very fate of Guardian Characters lies in their hands, just as soon as they enter Middle School! And to make matters worse, they're going up against something much stronger than Easter ever was... [Continuation from mostly the Manga] (Amuto, Rimahiko, Kutau, Yairi, TadaseXOC)

18. Battle on the Rooftop

MagicalGirl4: Hi all, sorry for being so laggy with this update. As you can see this chapter is long, and took ages to write (to be honest, it took even more time to write because I knew it was going to take so long).

I really intended this chapter to be up last year, but I wasn't able to. This year I'm going to put more effort into getting more chapters out, and I have something to help me with that, which is...

A blog on Tumblr!

The link to the blog is in my profile, but if you want to search for it manually, the URL is: shugochara-middleschool

I'll be posting updates for those who want to know about its progress, as well as analysis and facts about the world. You can also ask me anything you like!

Side note: Holy moly I just found out that this fic is put together with my most favourite SC fanfics (due to the length, that being over 100k). I'm so happy to see my story with the others, despite mine having one the least amount of reviews/favourites, haha.

Without further ado, let's begin!

---

Chapter 18

Battle on the Rooftop

---

Kyoushitsu

"Remember… No matter how dark it is, your radiance will always shine!"

.:Amu:.

Concentrating in class was nearly impossible today.

There was no doubt in my mind that I was anticipating tonight, restlessly at that. We had a game plan, which was calming enough, but there was so much about it that was unpredictable. That being the enemy we were facing, and how we had no idea how they were going to fight us.

I sighed into my hand, realising I'm starting to sound like Tadase or Akiko.

Tonight was also the night that I'm going to see Ikuto again, the last time I saw him… it was probably a week ago.

My eyes travelled to outside, where the weather was decent.

Chatter rang around the classroom like usual, everyone happy applying paint to their easels.

But unlike everyone else, I couldn't focus. Thinking about Ikuto made me realise how little thought I've given to… the situation, to how him and I are supposed to be by the end of all this.

We had to love each other, or however Akiko put it.

When Ikuto and I we were alone together at the park, we had kind of talked somewhat about it, but all he had mentioned to me was that… I didn't have to feel pressured to feel that way toward him. Even though, on the contrary, I had to feel that way about him. Something told me that he didn't want to bring it up properly so as to not put even more pressure on me, which was comforting, but… it also reminded me that I needed to address it eventually. If the two of us are both involved… then we needed to talk about it.

A moment later, I hadn't realised that everyone had gotten out of their seats. Rima had walked up to me expectantly, and I turned to her. "Oh… did the bell ring?" I asked.

"It did…" she commented, scanning my face. "Have you been deep in thought?"

With a sigh, I moved away from my table and gathered art supplies. "I have… and you're probably able to tell what about."

She nodded, and looked away. "I know… everyone else is nervous about it."

Unable to respond to her, I turned my head to look at the chara's who continued to chat. I noticed that Miki was intent on finishing a drawing; a sketch that she had started at the beginning of the lesson. Kusukusu walked up to her and peered at her design. "What ya doing?"

Miki tapped the blue pencil against her chin. "Trying to finish this… AHA!" she exclaimed, adding the final detail to her piece.

I smiled at them. "Come on girls, we should get going."

"Okay!" Ran cheered.

We walked out of the art room, and I resumed listening in on their conversation, wanting to hear something light-hearted. From the corner of my eye, I could see Rima looking at me worriedly.

"What's on your mind?" she asked, wanting to get a clear answer out of me this time.

I gave in, not wanting to keep her in the dark. I began to walk slowly so we could stay behind our guardian characters. "I'm just… thinking about everyone… and if we're going to be able to take fighting it again."

Rima blinked, taking her time with answering. "Amu, you know we're going to be facing the exact same threat as last time…"

"Ugh, I know that…" I sighed, burying my face into my hand. "But last time all of us nearly got hurt, and I didn't get the Embryo then either. Who's to say both of those things aren't going to happen again?"

"Amu," she insisted, stopping beside me. "All of us were in danger then because we let our guard down… we won't make the same mistake twice."

I gazed at her from under my bangs, biting my lip. "I guess that's true... We're not dumb enough to do that again, right?" I laughed quietly, receiving a softened look from Rima.

"We'll be fine… I can feel it," she replied, smiling. We continued walking, and I felt a weight lift off of my shoulders, but a thought still lingered at the back of my head. I hadn't mentioned Ikuto because it felt more personal, and I hoped that Rima didn't detect I was still thinking of something.

But of course I was wrong.

"I have a suspicion though – you also have a certain someone in your thoughts," she correctly guessed. I had felt my face heat up.

"Well, maybe I do…" I murmured, shying away.

She tried to keep a straight face, but smirked anyway. "I could tell."

I let out a sigh, but was thankful that she didn't want to go any further and ask how I felt about him being there.

Just as we were about to reach the end of the hallway, another thought occurred to me. "So… what about Akiko's plan for capturing the Embryo… what if my Colourful Canvas doesn't work?"

Rima thought for a moment, looking up at the ceiling. "Well… I can always grab it with my Tightrope Dancer, or someone will be able to jump up and get it, maybe even Akiko herself?"

This restored hope in me, and I managed to smile. "That's true…"

I heard my chara's call for me at the end of the hallway.

Rima and I exchanged a smile, and we caught up to them, reaching the staircase.

---

That afternoon, everyone was in the Royal Garden. Most of us were eating to gain some energy, and although some were talking merrily, you could feel some anxiety floating around the room. School had been out for an hour, and it was only until a few more we would have to be back here, ready to fight.

"Amu-chan, how are you feeling?" Nagihiko had asked, sitting down next to me and giving me a fist bump. He had stayed back to clean his classroom, so he had just walked in the Garden.

"I'm… feeling nervous, I'll be honest about that," I said, finding it within me to be positive.

He nodded, and leant back on the chair. "I am too, but I'm sure it'll work out. You're my partner for this after all," he added, a small grin on his face.

I couldn't help but mirror what he was feeling, and I nodded happily.

The pairings and groups were for tonight obvious at this point. Everyone seemed to group together naturally - Kairi, Kukai and Yaya were chatting, the main drivers of the conversation being the latter, with Kairi adding the occasional calm word in their flurry of excitement. Rima and Tadase were seated beside the triad, listening to their conversation, but also discussing what seemed to be battle strategy (which is probably what Nagi and I should've been doing). Akiko and Hikaru were talking amongst themselves, further away from the group. You could see that Hikaru was on edge, but he seemed to be getting more and more relaxed as Akihiro and Akiko talked to him. Finally, there was Utau and Ikuto, who of course weren't here, but they were going to be tonight. I was told that they were going to meet up and speak about their role within the fight together, which would have been a benefit for Ikuto since he could get everything explained to him by just one person, rather by a loud group.

Eventually Nagi and I got to exchanging thoughts about what we should do to back each other up. He was agile and quick, while Amulet Spade was slightly slower, but had stronger attacks. We decided that he'd look out for me most of the time, while use my wide range of attack and defence. We even theorised a combo that the two of us could use to distract X-eggs, and I felt eager in trying it.

Soon enough, Tadase had silenced everyone, and tried to instil morale for the group, with Akiko right beside him. Their talk wasn't too long, short and sweet you'd call it.

As they spoke, I could see Hikaru staring at them in wonder. He and Aki seemed to be inspired by their words, and it really looked like the both of them wanted to add something in. It was a look I had never seen on Hikaru before, and I should have realised sooner that they were absolutely able to, all thanks to guardian character magic.

"Character CHANGE!" I heard Aki squeal.

My head whipped around, and I was met with the brightest smile from Hikaru. His blue eyes were shining, and I noticed a brown bandana on his forehead.

"They're absolutely right!" he exclaimed, his finger pointing up into the air, chest puffing out proudly. "We're going to give it our all tonight, I just know it! As long as we stick together and have each other's backs, we'll be capable of anything!"

All of us stared, surprised but hopeful smiles brimming in pride. The character change quickly faded, and Hikaru put his hand down, going back to his neutral stance. He realised what he had done, and blushed.

"Yay, Hikaru's chara change again! You're just too cute when you do it!" Yaya cooed, hugging him closely.

Kukai seemed to be crying tears of joy. "The first time I've seen him chara change…" he put a hand on Yaya's back, giving him a thumbs up through the tears. "You've grown so much, I feel like a proud older brother!"

Hikaru let out a small laugh; all the while the rest of us looked on happily as well.

After that, some of us had begun to leave, wanting to get ready sooner. After a while it was just me, Akiko, Tadase and Kukai left. We ended cleaning the plates, food and papers that were left behind. Kukai wanted to talk to Tadase in private about something, so that left Akiko and I on the other side of the Garden. My chara's were doing their best to help us, picking up pieces of food and tossing them into a nearby bin (I'm sure Ran tried to turn it into a competition). Su was definitely being the most proficient, since she had her mini vacuum, and was getting rid of all the crumbs left on the table.

"So… how are you feeling about tonight?" Akiko asked, stacking a few plates and tea cups onto each other.

I breathed in deeply, my posture relaxing. "I'm feeling okay, earlier today I felt nervous. But we were able to have fun with everyone… and it helped."

Akiko looked relieved by my answer. "That's good…" and she continued cleaning up. Only a short moment later, and we were interrupted.

Katsu and Hanako had walked through the doors.

"Oh, hey guys," Akiko greeted, looking slightly confused at their presence.

"How's it going 'round here?" Katsu asked, immediately sitting on the table. All three of us just sighed at his abrupt action.

Akiko went back into guarded mode however, and shrugged stiffly. "It's been fine, the others went home to get ready, and now we're just cleaning up…"

"Is everyone feeling ready?" Hanako asked, concerned. She had her arms crossed, and she was obviously worried.

"I think most of us are," I said with a smile, which made Katsu nod.

"Well, we're just here to see if you were all prepared and to tell you to be careful, and…" he said, taking a piece of leftover biscuit, "That… we're proud of you."

Akiko froze, and looked at her guardians. They smiled sincerely to the both of us. I was grateful for their care, and noticed that Akiko was mustering up the nerve to say something. She tried to be honest about it, "Oh… well, thanks, you two…" she mumbled, glancing at the ground.

"It's okay," Hanako said, and went up to hug her. Akiko didn't move, but didn't reject the hug either.

I didn't want to say anything, but it seemed as though she was getting emotional. She was tensing her mouth, and didn't blink, her cheeks turning red. Eventually, she wrapped her arms around Hanako, and then Katsu joined their hug. They began to talk in whispers and giggle, and then parted, talking as a trio.

I turned my focus back to cleaning the table, allowing them more space and privacy. Snippets of their conversation bled through, and I felt happy for the three of them just listening to it.

"If you need us, call us, okay?"

"We'll be thinking of you, I know you can do this."

From what I heard from Akiko, she was grateful.

Everything seemed to be turning out for the better with them.

However, now I noticed that I was the only one cleaning. Looking over at both Kukai and Tadase, they still seemed to be deep into their conversation – I noted Tadase's surprised, yet attentive expression as the both of them talked. It made me curious, and I stopped what I was doing to try and lip-read. It didn't work.

"Hey, Amu-chan, don't slack off," Miki deadpanned, floating in front of me, and carrying a chunk of biscuit.

"Oh! Uh, sorry about that," I laughed, rubbing the back of my head sheepishly. I had forgotten my chara's were helping me.

Su then clapped her hands together, "Aha, I know exactly what will get all of this done faster!" she chirped.

I felt my heart drop. "W-wait, Su-!"

"Character Change!" she giggled.

I heard the familiar chime ring through my ears, and I knew it was over for me. In an instant, I was smiling and humming to myself, the world becoming hazy and cheery. I had a dustpan in my hands, then a mop, and then a vacuum. I saw Kukai and Tadase walking back up the stairs, both of their expressions saying, 'Oh, seriously?' But I couldn't do anything about it!

Meanwhile, Akiko was obviously enjoying it, and so were her guardians.

I guess I had to wait this one out, didn't I?

---

Eventually, the chara change dropped.

Once it had finished, I dropped into one of the chairs, taking a big sigh. Everything in the Royal Garden was practically sparkling new, and the people around me were wowed.

"Woah, nice job Hinamori!" Kukai cheered, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Now we'll get to go home a bit earlier!"

Akiko nodded vigorously in agreement. "That was surprising, Amu."

I laughed weakly in response, my head drooping. "Ha… yeah…"

Hanako was grinning. "That was some remarkable housekeeping!" she walked up to Su, bopping her on the nose slightly. "I knew I'd like this one the most," she giggled.

Su smiled shyly in return, while Katsu had grabbed Hanako. "Okay, well! I guess that means it's our cue to leave now. See ya!" he said hurriedly, dragging along Hanako. She didn't look happy, and begrudgingly went along with him.

Finally, it was just the four of us again. We had begun to grab our bags, and put our chairs back into place. "Well, we'll see you tonight, okay?" Akiko asked Kukai, who had to run a quick errand.

He placed his sling bag over his shoulder. "You betcha!"

Before he got the chance to take another step though, Akiko mentioned something else. "Oh, and, don't get distracted when we're in battle tonight, we don't need Utau and you running off this time."

He stopped dead in his tracks, and turned around slowly. Maybe it was the light playing tricks on me, but I could see red forming around his face. "Uh, yeah, you don't need to worry about that," his eyes then darted over to Tadase, who was right beside me.

Their conversation and Kukai's reaction to Akiko's comment had to be connected somehow…

"Come to think of it, what were you at Tadase talking about before?" I asked, genuinely wanting to know.

Both of them had sprung into defensive poses. "Ah, it was nothing!" Kukai said, trying to laugh it off.

"Yeah, Souma-san was just telling me about… his strategy for tonight," Tadase nodded, looking at the two of us.

Kukai wildly turned to him, eyes blown open.

Akiko blinked, seeming as though she understood. "Oh, okay. Well that makes sense."

Kukai let out a sigh of relief, and went to turn away again. "Yeah anyway, so… I need to leave, my brother's wanted me to pick up some stuff for them again, so…"

I nodded and waved goodbye. "That's all good Kukai, see you later!"

He grinned, and saluted at the three of us before leaving.

From beside me, I heard Akiko snort. She turned to Tadase and I. "Heh, that wasn't weird at all." Then she looked at me especially. "Boys, am I right?"

I just knew that Tadase was staring at her, dumbfounded.

She walked back to the table to grab her bag, and we followed. She didn't seem to be concerned about what just happened, and I'm sure Tadase didn't want to speak about it. I was curious about it all, but I let it slide, it wasn't really my business anyway.

The three of us walked out of the Garden, making sure it was locked. My phone beeped, and I flicked it open, noticing a reminder that I set earlier today had appeared.

"Ugh, I have to get something for Mama tonight," I groaned, remembering the errand I thought I didn't have to worry about. "I should really hurry."

"Are you going to make it in time later?" Akiko asked.

I gave her a nod. "It's not much; I'll be ready by then."

Tadase turned to me. "Well if you're sure about it, it should be good."

"Yep, see you!" I grinned at them, running off and waving goodbye, with my chara's right beside me.

I made my way back through the trees of Seiyo Academy, hoping to reach the courtyard to my actual school. Ran asked me more than once if I wanted to chara change to get to the store faster, but I felt hopeful in being able to get there in time. Besides, I already went through a chara change today, and I felt worn out just by thinking of doing another.

As I approached the courtyard, I noticed a figure seated on one of the benches - a boy.

Huh, that's weird, students aren't supposed to be out this late, unless they're part of the council…

It was Kuro.

I stood there in disbelief, not knowing how I didn't recognise him sooner. He was hunched over, hair covering his face, and the left side of his body facing me. He had a book in his hand, and it looked as though he was reading it.

I was frozen in my spot, not sure whether he had noticed me or not. Even if he did, he wasn't moving, but I was afraid if I did move, he wouldnotice me. And I did leave… well there was potential for him noticing me too.

And then, he turned his head slightly, and I could see his eye peering at me.

Dia had whispered in my ear, "Amu-chan, we should go…"

My legs began to move on their own, wanting to walk through the doors into the school. It was only us, and it made me realise how creepy it was being in an empty school with a lone figure sitting at a bench, looking like a shadow…

As soon as I took my first few steps, I heard his voice.

I froze again, and took a hard gulp.

"Hey, what are you doing out here?"

It was an overly simple and too casual question. It's been practically the first words he's spoken to me since that time in the hallway.

Shakily, I faced him; my chara's gazing at me in worry.

I didn't even need to explain why I was here. It wasn't his business. But I had to say something… I cooled my head, and looked at him with a stone cold expression.

"I was running an errand for a teacher."

He raised an eyebrow.

For some reason, my brain felt the need to take a shot at him. "Although, I could say the same about you," I jabbed, my tone cynical.

He smirked, and held up his book with one hand, "Studying."

This made me frown.

He was being… too offhand about this, as though we were good acquaintances.

I'm sure he noticed my expression and lack of response, so he put the book down again, and turned to me, the rest of his body in view. "So…" he started with a sly grin on his face. "How have you been finding school work lately?"

This felt like a taunt. I guess it was time to let the "cool and spicy" façade take over.

"Not too bad. Easy, actually; I haven't felt the need to study excessively."

He… actually smiled genuinely? "Good, that's good," he said, nodding his head some more.

It was obvious he was trying to get me to stay here, or try and play some sort of mind game. After I stared at him for a moment, I turned to take my leave. "I'm going to leave now," I said abruptly, facing the school once more.

"You know…" he cut in, now leaning back comfortably on the bench with a hand up. His face seemed to go lazy too. "I've been having trouble trying to understand you."

This made me stop. My head turned, and I tried not to let my confusion show.

"I've noticed some things, like the other day and today. You were scarily cheery, and now you're distant. What's with that?" he asked, now getting up and advancing toward me.

I tried not to let any fear show, so I stood my ground, a glare forming around my eyes.

Thankfully, he stopped a few feet in front of me.

"It's kind of weird, not gonna lie," he finished, standing with his hands in his pockets. My chara's have been silent this entire time, but I could tell they were getting more and more nervous. They clung to my shoulders, but I stood tall, trying to intimidate him as much as possible.

"What's it matter to you?" I asked, eyeing him.

All he could do was smirk again. "… I've just noticed how much of an anomaly you are."

I was silent, yet I continued to try and figure out the meaning behind his words. "What…?" I muttered, not meaning to let that slip out.

"You know, 'different from the rest', is what I'm trying to say," he stated, gesturing with his hand.

I felt myself getting impatient, so I frowned, demanding a more consistent answer. "But why is that even worth mentioning?"

He chuckled, and turned around, walking back towards the bench, "Because I don't talk to people who are like everyone else."

I stared at his retreating figure, unable to speak or move. He picked up his book, and didn't stop to sit at the bench; instead, he went to leave the school from the back way. "See you later," he said, waving idly.

Once he was out of sight, I still continued to relay that whole interaction in my head. It was so… out of place.

"Amu-chan, are you okay?" Dia asked, facing me.

"I'm… I'm okay Dia," I began walking towards the doors once more, my head lowered. "All of that just felt so strange…" my chara's continued to stay silent, unknowing of how to respond. "Did… you know what he meant by that?" I asked them.

Dia shook her head. "I have no idea."

Miki hummed, and placed her chin on her hand. "From what I could tell, it felt like he was trying to get closer to you."

I visibly recoiled. "Yeah, well… he's not doing such a great job at that is he?" I mumbled, grimacing.

Ran then zipped up to me, her pink eyes large. "Amu-chan, I just remembered, we need to go shopping for Mama!"

A brick felt like it was dropped on me. "ARGH, I can't believe that guy held me up!" I howled. It felt like steam was pouring out of my ears. Looks like it was time to go back to the old character change… "Ran, let's go!"

"You got it Amu-chan!"

---

.:…:.

Tadase and Akiko watched Amu run off, the both of them seeing her wave goodbye. Once she had left, they began their walk through the trees. Silence wasn't quick to ensue between them as Akiko felt the need to tell him something.

"So… It just so happens that I haven't yet had the chance to ask you how you're feeling about tonight," she mentioned.

Tadase laughed, and nodded. "No you haven't, but I do appreciate you asking everyone today."

Akiko smirked. "It's the least I can do. I need to make sure everyone's in the right mindset, you know? If not, then…" She paused, and her expression changed. "We couldn't make them fight, it wouldn't be fair."

"You're right, we'd be forcing them into it…" he agreed, gazing up at the now orange sky.

Akiko watched him carefully, and then tapped him on the shoulder, a playful smile on her face. "So how about it, feeling nervous?"

He shook his head. "Not at all, I'm feeling positive about it."

She raised her eyebrows. "Really? … I'm glad," she paused again, and wrung her hands together. "It's good to hear you're one of the few people who are..."

He didn't respond straight away, and looked at her a little more closely. "How are you feeling about it…?"

She let out a deep breath, and glanced at the ground. "I am a bit jittery, honestly. All I've been focusing on is the Embryo, and if we have a higher chance of getting it this time…" she shrugged in defeat. "But I'm more worried about what we're up against now, if we'll be able to take it."

Tadase understood what she meant, and took a deep breath as she did. "All we have to do is rely on each other. I'm sure this time we'll be more cohesive, and we've learnt from last time." He beamed eagerly at her. It seemed to lift her spirits a little, and she looked more sincere.

"You're right, we can prepare earlier instead of jumping into it right away…" she suggested, and then retreated back to her thoughts, more ideas linking in her head. "We don't just have to rush into it and have everyone transform, instead, we'll take a few precautions!" she announced, and formed her hand into a fist. "We basically have all the time in the world!"

The blond looked at her softly, hope rising within him as he heard her words. "See? I have a feeling it'll turn out well."

"You're right, thanks Tadase!" she grinned, and jumped up a little. She moved closer to him, and it occurred to her that she could embrace him in a hug. But she stopped herself, knowing that wouldn't be appropriate.

For Tadase, seeing the brunette full of vigour made everything feel right again. Akiko was one of the few enthusiastic and self-assured people he knew, and to see her worried made him feel that he had to correct it. She was fearless, but at times she was hesitant. Luckily, she could bounce back quickly. He knew that was one of the many signs of her strength.

"You're welcome," he told her, and then added, "I'm glad you're back to your usual self."

Her grin dropped, and she looked at him curiously. "Oh, well, thanks I guess," she laughed, rubbing her neck. "It's just little old me, back at it again..."

He sensed there was something else behind her words, but he couldn't tell what. He didn't bring it up, however there was now a sudden silence between them. He didn't want this happening; maybe he shouldn't have said that…?

"Um, so…" she cleared her throat, and swung her bag restlessly. "What have you been up to lately, y'know, besides the planning and what not?"

He at least felt comforted that she wanted to know more about him. "Mostly studying, or trying to. Balancing it all out is difficult."

"Heh, yeah, difficult alright…" she laughed nervously, once again rubbing her head.

"Although, I understand that studying isn't what you should be concerned about," he pointed out, trying his best not to smirk.

"Well of course not…" she relaxed her posture. "Japanese schooling is interesting, but it's not exactly what I'm here for."

He chuckled. "Well, at least you're trying your best with your actual goal."

"True," she shrugged, but a thought caught her attention. "… I can't help but feel bad about putting this on all of you though, it must be hard…"

He stared at her, realising she felt guilty for something she had no control over. "Hikari-san, you don't need to feel that way. This is something that you can't control."

She looked up at him, seeming as though she knew this was the case. "Well, you are right…" she looked away. "I guess maybe taking on all this responsibility is what's making me feel bad."

Tadase blinked at her, and processed the weight of her words. As much as the amount of responsibility they had to deal with, and especially Amu, he didn't even begin to think about what Akiko's duties were like. She was… a figurehead from where she came. And a great duty was put on her by someone else, to come here and lead him and his friends. He realised that she was able to get by like this and still maintain a mostly light hearted attitude. It… she really did tend to surprise him.

"Ha, yeah, so…" she said stiffly.

Tadase snapped out his thoughts and realised he had been quiet this whole time. He felt like kicking himself.

"Anyway, this was originally about you," she pointed out, gesturing to him. "What else have you been up to other than studying?"

He thought to himself, remembering that there was a certain drama show he had been watching occasionally. He decided to tell her about it, and she soaked in every detail. He was having fun watching her listen in suspense, and she seemed wowed by its entire concept, even though it was fairly simple.

"That sounds crazy!" she exclaimed, her hand hitting her head. "Ugh, I can't believe I never bothered to watch TV properly. Hanako tells me about it all the time, but I never care!"

He laughed at this, remembering that she was from a different world to his. It was strange, but intriguing at the same time.

"So…" he started. "If you don't watch TV… what else do you do at home?"

She chuckled sheepishly. "Well… I've gotten invested into the Internet." Tadase felt that this answer was coming. He had a feeling she'd be curious by it, and judging by how much she randomly mentions things she found online to people, it wasn't much of a surprise. "We don't have that stuff, y'know? And there's just… so much you can see! At any time! Hanako says I'm becoming obsessed but, tell that to her about her potion making."

He laughed at this, and she began to laugh along too. It felt like nothing else in the world existed aside from them at that moment.

---

It was the night of their second battle.

Kukai was tapping his hands nervously as he waited outside of the school. It was roughly 7pm, and just like they organised, most of his friends were already here. There were small mutters carried among them, whispers of conversation that kept them alert and informed. He added a word in every so often, but mostly waited in anticipation for a certain someone to appear.

So far, nearly everyone was here, all except three: Amu, Ikuto, and Utau.

He tried to focus on what the people around him were saying – Akiko, Tadase and Nagihiko were discussing battle preparations, and telling everyone to be cautious. Kairi was mentioning the statistics of how many X-eggs they were going to be facing, and if there was going to be another Ogre. Yaya was encouraging Hikaru with his chara transformation, while Rima was listening in and being silent.

Kukai really did try, but he couldn't help but practice what he was going to say to Utau in his head.

It was poor timing. But something had to be done.

He heard a new voice to the side of him – Amu.

"Hey, everyone!" she greeted. She looked prepared, not hint of reluctance in her eyes.

"Hey, you feel ready?" Akiko asked with a grin.

Amu gave a strong nod, and stood tall, "Definitely."

Kukai felt his spirits lift just by looking at Amu. "We're going to give it our all tonight, right?" he asked his friends, fists rounded.

Yaya cheered, her hands rising up. "Yeah! Let's do our best everyone!"

Tadase laughed, "I'm sure we will. But Ikutonii-san and Utaunee-san haven't arrived yet, we'll motivate each other once all of us are here."

The group had agreed, and quietened down. Kukai was feeling a little more amped up now, but hearing Utau's name had set him back. He still had a job to do; try and talk to Utau about his feelings before they began to prep. He began to think it over, wondering how it was going to play out. Would he even have enough time to do so? He spoke to Tadase about it, and the blond said he would give him time to talk to her before they started, but he had agreed with Akiko that as soon as everyone arrived, they would start.

Kukai felt his palms starting to get sweaty.

Doing this all under a time limit was starting to seem unfair. He needed more space to breathe and pace himself, get his head levelled.

Maybe… it wasn't going to come together as smoothly as he thought.

Before he could process what was happening further, two figures had finally emerged from outside school.

The Tsukiyomi siblings had walked across the street with cool confidence, the energy around them calm and self-assuring. They were poised, and walked with purpose. Utau held most of this certainty, her eyes brimming with fearlessness and back straightened. On the other hand, Ikuto had more of a laid-back nature, his face impassive, and posture relaxed yet secure.

It was an understatement in saying that they looked professional, their company already instilling more hope into the group.

Kukai felt his heart beat faster as he looked at Utau, remaining conflicted on whether he should follow through with his plan.

Once they reached the group, Ikuto gave a quick salute. "Yo," he greeted.

Some had chorused back a greeting, the loudest being Amu. Tadase was silent, but had brightened once he saw the two up close. "It's good to see the both of you again," he said fondly. "Are you ready?"

Utau smirked at him. "I'm always ready."

Akiko approached them as well. "Before we start, we're going to have some time to motivate one another and then run through things; that all good with you?"

"Fine by me," Ikuto said while putting his hands into his jean pockets. He tilted his head, and his eyes landed on Amu, who looked back in surprise.

"Great," Akiko chimed, who turned to walk back to Hikaru, but Tadase stopped her.

He placed his hand on her shoulder, and she whipped around. "Didn't you say we would start as soon as everyone arrived?"

Akiko gave him a wink. "I thought it'd be good to give everyone more a breather. Besides…" she trailed off and turned to Hikaru. "I definitely need to talk to him more."

Everyone dedided to talk amongst themselves once more, glad that they could still relax before it began. Amu had hesitantly walked up to Ikuto, giving shy but sweet greeting. That took his attention away, and Kukai realised this was a chance to talk to Utau without her brother staring at them.

"Hey, how've you been lately?" he asked the idol, putting his hands behind his head. Hopefully he looked casual enough.

Utau was quiet before she responded, and closed her eyes. "I've been well, great, actually."

Kukai gave her a grin. "That's good to hear, we haven't really caught up in a while so…"

"My thoughts exactly," she agreed, and turned to him. "I have a new concert coming up, so I was going to say you could come to that too."

Kukai definitely saw tint of pink forming on her cheeks, and because of that he felt a burst of energy coming on. "Sure! I'd love to come, last concert was like, two months ago right?"

Utau softened at this, and she even felt her heart pound a little faster at this excitement. "Yep, it'll be on Saturday next week. I'll get to telling everyone else soon."

He lent in at this, smirking. "Oh, so am I first to hear about it?"

Utau turned away in a huff, her twin tails flicking about. Kukai knew she was trying to cover up her red face. "Of course not, Ikuto already knows. And so do the rests of my fans."

"Well, I meant the first out of our friends. Family and fans don't count," he corrected, which lead to Utau to pout.

"Yes… that does mean you're the first to know then," she said stubbornly, still turned away.

Kukai caught a glimpse of her pout, and couldn't help but think how cute she looked. He was going to make another comment while in the moment, but his mission from before had returned. He remembered he still had to ask her out somehow.

Even though she asked him to come along next week, he didn't know he could wait until then to ask her, even see her.

As he thought of this, he also knew he had to say something to fill the silence. But nothing came.

Utau noticed his lack of words, and turned to face him again.

She amazed to see such a thoughtful expression on his face.

"Kukai?" she enquired, which caught his attention. He looked deep in thought, and to say it caught her off guard was an understatement.

However, his usual laugh returned. "Oh, was just thinking about something there." He turned to the rest of the group, and found a perfect excuse to give her. "We're meeting up again for the sake of a fight, it's like we can't see each other outside of that."

Utau followed his line of attention, seemingly worried at first. She had to agree with him; it was a shame that they were all together for a cause that was much greater than them, and they were all still so young too (sans Ikuto). She calmed herself though, knowing that this group was strong, and they'd be able to pull through. Yes, they looked anxious, but there was hope there, and not just a glimmer of it. They were fragile at that moment, and they needed each other to rely on, with nothing else distracting them.

However… the blonde thought back to what he said.

"We're meeting up again… It's like we can't see each other outside of that…"

He did mean everyone, right? She didn't misinterpret his words, thinking that he was talking about the group, when he was actually thinking about… just the two of them.

She could feel her face beginning to heat up.

No, don't think of it like that! He meant everyone else, not just us!

"Utau, there's actually something I've wanted to ask you."

She flipped around, her eyes large and cheeks unfortunately rosy.

Kukai stared back at her in the same way, not knowing if he could go through with it.

Everyone around them had been on edge, he knew this. And the longer he left it up to the silence between them, the more Utau started to look confused.

It wasn't right.

If he asked her then and there, it could mess up their fighting chances. The last time they were together in a battle, they were distracted and too caught up. That couldn't happen again; he had to think of everyone else.

As he looked at her, he realised she had thought the same way. She was looking at everyone in concern before, and she knew what the situation was like.

This wasn't chickening out, he told himself. There's a better time and place for this. And right now, he couldn't think of himself at the moment. Kukai knew he needed to be there for everyone else, especially Utau.

"Ah… actually, don't worry about it," he confessed, his eyes not meeting hers. "I promise, I'll ask you after tonight." He smiled reassuringly at her, and placed his hand on her shoulder.

Utau nodded while in a daze, unable to name what she was feeling. It felt like relief, disappointment and anticipation all at once. She hadn't noticed until he put his hand on her how tall he was. He'd matured physically… and at this moment, she felt he had matured with his thinking too.

She snickered under her breath, red cheeks still present, "Such a kid…"

---

.:Ikuto:.

Before Amu had greeted me, something had felt off about all of this.

Looking around at everyone made me realise yet again that they were all just kids, and they were being roped in to doing something dangerous.

It ticked me off to say the least, but I held back showing it. I had already thought over this yesterday, and concluded that it had to be done; we were doing this for the sake of guardian characters. But putting them through this as well… From their perspective, everything may have seemed fine. They've done this before, too many times, and I'll admit I didn't see anything wrong with it in the past.

But I now that I'm nearly eighteen, I knew I had to be the one to look out for them.

From the corner of my vision, I saw Amu walking up towards me.

I smiled and turned my attention from the crowd to her, my worries melting away. It had been a week since we last talked, and it'd be good to catch up.

"Hey Ikuto, how've you been?" she said shyly.

"Not that bad. You've been holding up well?" I asked, leaning against the brick wall of the school gate. It was a cool night, and the sky was devoid of any clouds. For now, it was peaceful… but later it'd be different.

She shrugged, and leant against the wall too. "Kinda, a few things have happened since we last talked…"

I felt concern prick at me. "Bad things?" What we had talked about last time caused me to get angry, I can't begin to imagine how I'd feel if something like that happened again.

She didn't meet my gaze, and it made my stomach drop. "A few good and a few bad, but it's nothing we can't solve." Then she did look at me, much stronger and hopeful than before. It eased my nerves instantly.

"I'm glad," and I was genuine about that. Amu didn't deserve anything bad to happen to her, and after hearing what had been done to her, it made me want to find this Kuro guy myself. It definitely felt comforting knowing that Tadase and everyone else were with her to help, but it felt wrong knowing that I wasn't always there as well.

"I was just thinking," I started, earning her attention. "I'm really not there most of the time to help you…"

I didn't know how to continue with my words, so I left it up to chance that I'd be able to say something. Instead, Amu filled it in for me.

"U-um… well you can't be, since you don't go to my school," she stammered.

This was something I could go off. "I know, and I wish I could be there for you."

She blinked rapidly, her face turning a little red. "Oh…"

I turned to face her fully, leaning a little to emphasise my point. "But I can't. Even so, I want you to know that I'm always there for you, supporting even if I'm not present."

My words had really gone and done it. She looked cute as always, her face turning its usual cherry red as she tried to sputter out a thank you. "E-ehm…" she put her hand to her head, looking at the ground. "Thanks…Ikuto."

I looked at her softly once more, glad she knew I meant it.

As she stared at the ground, it seemed like she wanted to say something.

"Actually, there's something I had to ask you…" she admitted, sinking into the wall.

I was giving her my full attention, ready to answer her.

"So… how do you feel about…?" she stopped herself, searching for words. "The two of us, how we're supposed to…" I then realised what she was getting at, but I remained quiet until she was able to speak about it. "Um, be in love…"

Her face had turned away, so I couldn't see her expression, which was perfectly understandable.

I leant back against the wall, looking at the sky. "Well, in all honesty, if you really want to know my opinion on it…"

She glanced at me, silently wanting to know.

"I think it's sort of unfair. Others are telling us how we should feel about each other, especially when…" I too searched for the right words, my eyes downcast. "You're young. You don't know how to feel that way about someone yet."

Suddenly, a huge sigh escaped her. She relaxed, and rested against the brick again. "I was really hoping you'd say something like that."

"And I did," I chuckled, facing her completely.

"Yeah…" she nodded, truly seeming like a weight was lifted off her. "You're right, I think. I don't want something to force us like that," she admitted.

"I agree."

She seemed happy, yet still pensive. I knew that Hikari has told her this, time and time again, but it wasn't right. To put pressure on Amu, and on me, to feel that way, it's all a load of bull.

Regardless of how we felt about each other, we'd still be able to beat the guy that's caused all of this.

"No matter how we feel about one another, I'm sure everything will be fine."

She gazed up at me, her eyes wide. "You really think so?"

"Of course, why can't we be as we are and still win in the end?"

She stared at me, realisation dawning on her. "That… definitely makes a lot of sense," she pointed out, another hopeful expression on her face.

This made me smile. I leant my head back on the wall, content that she was feeling better. "I'm relieved then…" I murmured, but I wasn't sure if she heard me.

Yet Amu looked up at me, confident as ever. "Thank you, Ikuto."

I glanced at her, and my face felt warm.

There was a pause between us after that, until she asked again how I was going, since I didn't give her much of an answer. I told her about what I've been doing here since I arrived, such as busking and keeping in contact with my orchestra, which she was happy about. Now she knows that I've been staying with Souko, and that Utau was still unsure if she wanted to move back in, as she was comfortable at the family mansion. I hadn't told her about my mother's marriage papers, and how I wasn't officially apart of the Hoshina family, but that would definitely be for a later date.

"It's really good to hear that you've been playing for people, though," she giggled, tapping her shoes against the pavement.

"You're welcome to come see me play," I mentioned.

She darted her eyes up to me, "Really?!"

I had to let out a small laugh, "Of course. I'll be at Chiisai Mall on Sunday, 2pm, near the grass area."

She looked away briefly, a grin emerging on her face. "I'll see if I can go."

Yoru then jumped onto my shoulder, holding out his paw. "You better be there!" he called.

Amu laughed and said she will be there; her chara's also joining us. "Did Amu-chan just agree to a date?" whispered Su to her sisters.

Amu went bright red and tossed her head about. "S-Su, it's not a date…!" she argued, turning her back to me to explain to her chara's.

I let out another chuckle at this, until my attention was taken away from her and onto Tadase, who called for us. "Alright everyone, we're going to get into head up and get into position. I hope you're all feeling ready."

"Yes we are!" Yuiki cheered, standing close to Souma and Sanjo.

We began walking up, with Amu close to me at first, until she decided she should go with Fujisaki since they were a pair. I wished her good luck, as did she, and I sought after Utau.

"You feeling ready?" she asked me, El and Il by her side.

"You bet!" Yoru snickered, El looking at him in disapproval.

"Even though it's been a while since I've transformed with Yoru, I do," I reassured, my chara puffing out his chest.

"Told ya so," he said.

Il rolling his eyes at him. "Well Utau and I are totally gonna rule the battlefield. We'll beat that darkness guy in no time!" she cackled to herself.

"Ikuto will be just as good, won't we?" he asked, turning to me.

"For sure, but the two of you can't argue, yeah?" I mentioned, looking at the chara's and then to my sister.

She smirked. "We're working together on this, remember?"

Il sighed, and waved a hand. "Yeah, yeah, I know."

I glanced at Utau, while she gave me the same look. She and I had only once been on the same side during a fight, but it'd be interesting to work with everyone else too.

"No competitions," I said suddenly, earning a surprised look.

She scoffed, unknowingly making the same hand motion that Il did. "Of course not, I may be fond of competition, but I know when to work with someone." She then looked at me, strength in her eyes. "We got this."

I mimicked her. "You'd be right about that."

---

.:…:.

The large group had made it to Seiyo Middle School's school roof, each of them psyching themselves up for the battle ahead. Kukai was doing stretches beside Yaya and Kairi, who stood close to one another, whilst their older brother figure also said encouraging words. Tadase and Akiko were still discussing things over, until they realised they needed to pair off. Tadase went to Rima, while Akiko went to Hikaru to chat about idle and small things, so as to not make him nervous. Amu and Nagihiko were together, observing everyone while also reassuring each other. Ikuto and Amu occasionally glanced at each other, the older teen giving her a confident smile, to which Amu returned. Utau and Ikuto were silent amongst everyone, but they had known about their goal that was set out for them.

"Is everyone good to go?" Akiko asked the group.

They nodded with assurance, ready to give another fight.

"On my count?" Amu asked them as well, with a shy sort of confidence.

Ikuto noticed this, everyone did, and they all agreed that she should do it once more.

"Alright…" she breathed in and out, putting her hands into place.

"My Heart, Unlock!"

Akiko and Hikaru gazed at everyone, watching them be enveloped by shining light. Hikaru smiled fondly at them, finally knowing how it felt to be a part of something like that.

A few seconds later, and everyone had appeared from the light.

"Character Transformation! Amulet Spade!"

"Character Transformation! Black Lynx!"

"Character Transformation! Platinum Royale!"

"Character Transformation! Lunatic Charm!"

"Character Transformation! Sky Jack!"

"Character Transformation! Beat Jumper!"

"Character Transformation! Clown Drop!"

"Character Transformation! Dear Baby!"

"Character Transformation! Samurai Soul!"

All of them stood tall with the glowing moon behind them, and Akiko noticed that they looked like lone silhouettes among the night sky. But seeing past the shadows that they casted, it was known on how strong they were together, as a team and as friends.

One day, they'll be ready, she thought.

She raised her arms to direct attention to herself. "Alright everyone, spread out, we're going to be starting soon."

They parted ways, each going to specific sections of the roof. Hikaru and Akiko were stationed in the middle, while Utau and Ikuto were in front of them. Rima and Tadase were on one end of the roof, while Amu and Nagihiko were on the other. Yaya and Kukai were in the air (Yaya was seated on one of her large duckies), and Kairi was right below them.

They all had a perfect view of their surroundings, knowing that the enemy could strike from any direction.

Amu's heart swelled with nerves, but she calmed herself, knowing that she was with her friends who had her back. Nagihiko noticed that she was taking deep breathes and he smiled at her, putting his hand on her shoulder.

Akiko had turned to Hikaru once she noticed they were in position, and nodded. "You got this," she whispered softly.

Akihiro grinned brightly at his owner, who had closed his eyes. Hikaru had felt the familiar warm sensation in his chest, envisioning a bright sparkle unlike anyone has ever seen before.

"My Heart, Unlock!"

He saw himself spinning with Akihiro, who welcomed him happily. The two merged, signalling that the final transformation was underway.

"Character Transformation! Pure Star!"

Once Hikaru's feet had touched the ground, everyone had sprung into a battle stance.

It was a tense few moments, with no one speaking at all. They kept their eyes out in front of them, weapons ready by their sides.

The cool night air drifted amongst them, with something dark and foreboding emerging from the distance.

---

.:?:.

Pain.

White searing pain.

That's all I could feel in my left eye.

It wasn't a new feeling, but it was something I didn't receive gladly either.

The world around me began to turn numb as the army of Dark Energy gathered behind me, a burning stab still present in my head. Walking along the path to the fight would allow me to gain my energy while I still could, at least until the pain stopped.

For a while now I could sense that they were planning something, and I knew I had to prepare myself for the next onslaught of attack. And this time, it'd be me to fight them. The ogre could only function by itself for so long last time, but with a battalion of Dark X-eggs at my disposal, I knew I could do no wrong.

The ground that we traversed seemed to coat itself in black matter, the miasma spiralling its way up my body and coating it, forming my armour and mask.

It was a certain thickness that I could see through, close to smog. But I found myself struggling to breathe in it as well.

Then the earth quivered beneath me, and my legs started to sway. But the school was just up ahead, its daunting figure casting a darker shadow over me.

The smog then blocked my eyes, and I stopped walking. There were black statues circling my vision, of maniacal laughter and murky water.

Why couldn't I see properly anymore?

Yet in an instant, the pain in my eye had returned, and cleared the smoke. Its sting was unbearable, but it made things sharper, more defined. Like a resistance on the verge of revolution.

Gripping my hands, I rose to the sky, an armada of blackened Heart's Eggs following me.

I saw the Humpty and Dumpty users, and of course, the Princess of Light. Rage flashed through me, and with a precise air strike, black energy clouded my view.

---

.:…:.

Desperate voices cried into the night upon seeing the army.

Only two people were fast enough to react.

"Holy Crown!"

"Go Little Duckies!"

Everyone on the roof was left to stare in horror, seeing that the X-eggs were firing Dark Energy. Their previous battle had been difficult enough, but to see that the Prince of Darkness was commanding them…

"NO!" One voice had cried out, breaking everyone's terror.

It was Amu. Tears had threatened to fall from her eyes as she watched Tadase and Yaya, the two barely holding the defence together, suffering under the weight of the attack.

She dove forward, braving on the sight of the X-eggs. "Colourful Canvas!"

The Dark Prince sent a wave of X-eggs to counter her on coming assault, the entire group moving to support the others. The X-eggs that Amu had aimed at had only half been caught in the pain, and she doubled back upon the sight of black matter approaching.

"Amu!" Ikuto roared, jumping in to grab her, the dozen of X-eggs still charging toward them. She held on tightly to his waist, while he extended his claw to counter the furious eggs.

"Lightning Blade!"

A cloaked figure leaped through the sky and struck lightning into the heart of the X-eggs, separating them completely.

Kairi returned to the ground, landing in front of Amu and Ikuto. She was still in his arms, and the older teen silently thanked the samurai.

But Amu didn't relax. She began screaming at Yaya and Tadase, who were now on their knees.

Akiko had finally made it towards the two, also taking the brunt force of the Dark Energy. Rima joined her, as did Nagihiko.

Despite the joined efforts, it didn't seem like enough, so Kukai took to the sky.

"Time to get these off your backs!" he announced, the group looking above in shock. He flew directly towards the X-eggs that were holding them down, and readied a ball of fire. "Golden Victory Shoot!"

The fire was a direct hit, and at last separated the X-eggs.

Everyone stopped to gratefully stare at Sky Jack, while he jumped back onto his board and celebrated quietly to himself. He didn't notice the Dark Prince growling at him however, who lunged at him with a roar, purple light charging in his hand.

Kukai gasped and tried to dart away, but was saved by a voice from the rooftop, "Nightmare Lorelei!"

The Dark Prince was bombarded by vengeful bats, his arms held out for protection. He washed away the red light with more X-Energy, looking down at his attacker.

"If you'll want to fight someone, fight the two of us," Utau dared, twirling her trident and slamming it into the ground. Beside her was Ikuto, who had softly let go of Amu. His teeth were bared, and he was ready to pounce.

The black figure laughed at them. "As you wish," he muttered, diving forward with a streak of light.

Then hundreds of X-eggs followed him, and at once they all knew that the real fight was starting.

Rima began lashing out at X-eggs with her ropes and bowling pins, using as many of her items capabilities as she could. Yaya had flown past her on a duckie in hopes to reach Kairi, noticing the blond could be over extending herself. "Don't tire yourself out Rima-tan!" she called, not noticing a couple of X-eggs flying her way.

Rima threw a pin at them, successfully distracting them. She then looked at Yaya pointedly. "Don't worry about me, look out for yourself."

"Mashiro-san's right!" Tadase agreed, zapping a beam of orange light at the X-eggs that Rima distracted.

Yaya pouted at the two of them, but thanked them anyway. She soared over to Kairi, who was hitting the X-eggs with the dull parts of his swords. She admired how cool he looked before jumping down beside him. As she touched the ground, she commanded her duckies to help him out.

"Yaya!" he gasped, head tilting to see to the smaller girl. They were standing back to back, but he could clearly see that she was alleviating his work load.

"I'm here to help, Kairi-kun!" she grinned, pointing in multiple directions for her duckie's to follow.

He smiled softly at her, thanking her in his head. He then ran forward to strike more X-eggs, deflecting the bullets of black energy away from her. She followed him jumped to his side, sending a wave of duckies to push them back even further. Once they saw their effect on the eggs, they shared a bright grin, and got back to work.

Right beside them, Akiko was relieved that had assimilated into their designated places. Hikaru was behind her, using his wings as protection for the both of them against Dark Energy, which were very effective, she noted. Her Light Energy continued to strike at X-eggs that came too close, not all of them hitting the desired targets. She cursed to herself every time she missed, but she knew that there'll be another chance to get them all. For a brief second, she glanced above, seeing a large purple dome that surrounded the roof. Would the Heart's Eggs be enough to burst the dome like last time? She wasn't sure, but it's all she could rely on now.

Meanwhile, Amu and Nagihiko were working together fluidly. Every Blaze Shoot he sent out, she followed up with a defensive stance by spinning her paintbrush. Every Colourful Canvas she performed, he made sure to block out any potential hits.

After a minute or so, it felt like the X-eggs wouldn't stop surrounding them.

Amu was growing weary, and the urge to purify them was tempting, and growing too. She glanced over at Akiko, who seemed to be making minimal progress with cleansing them, since she was looking out for Hikaru at the same time.

"Amu-chan!" Nagihiko called, still jumping around. She listened in on his words and she continued to dodge attacks as well, hearing the smirk in his voice. "Let's do what we talked about."

She immediately knew what he was referring too, and switched out her paintbrush with her baton, clutching it tightly.

They stood back to back, and Amu began to produce music notes from her baton, gently flicking it, each stroke becoming grander. Nagihiko began to dance, gaining the attention of the dark eggs. More and more began to surround them, while also grabbing the attention of their friends.

"Wow, look at Amu and Nagi-tan go!" Yaya gushed, pointing to them.

"Stay focused Yaya!" Kairi reminded, fiving past her with electricity running through his blades.

"Right!" she shouted, going back into battle.

Amu and Nagihiko had soon gathered enough onlookers, and glanced at each other. "We're glad you could enjoy the show, but now…" Nagihiko started, flipping into the air. "It's time for a Beat Dunk!"

The X-eggs seemed to have gasped, and tried to escape. But before they could, a sphere of blue light crashed from below them, creating a shockwave that pulled them in.

"And don't forget to add a Colourful Canvas!" Amu called, pushing down her paintbrush. The rainbow paint connected with the shockwave and bounced back onto the X-eggs, leaving all of parted and frozen.

The shockwave was strong enough to gain Akiko's attention. "Wow, great job guys!" she shouted, jumping into the air and flicking her hands. White light burst from them and soaked into Amulet Spade's paint, causing all of the eggs to turn pure. She landed again, watching the Heart's Eggs rise to the sky. "That'll take away the load we're already bearing."

"I hope so," Amu replied, looking over at everyone. She froze once she saw Ikuto going toe-to-toe with the Prince of Darkness. "… Any idea when we'll be able to get the Embryo?" she asked absentmindedly, obvious fear on her face.

Akiko turned around to see what she was looking at. "When he's gone; but don't worry, Ikuto and Utau will be able to handle him. We just need to get rid of these X-eggs first!"

Amu watched her run away again, and took the time to sigh. Nagihiko grabbed her shoulder and reassured her. "There's no need to worry, Amu-chan. If I was able to take him on, so can they; and they are far more experienced than me."

She smiled at him, turning to face a few trickles of X-eggs that were approaching from behind the paint coated ones. "You're right Nagi, thanks."

He nodded at her, and the two ran forward to fight once more.

But just as they were making progress, the battle with the Prince of Darkness felt slow on Ikuto and Utau's part. They were situated at the far end of the roof now, cornered into it by their enemy. Utau swung her trident back and forth, swerving attacks he sent toward her. The Dark Prince lunged for her again, realising she could block projectiles he sent out, but made the wrong move. He got jabbed in the stomach by the end of her trident, and recoiled.

Ikuto then skidded in from behind and made a clear swipe against his helmet.

The Dark Prince was sent tumbling forward, the Tsukiyomi siblings finally seeing an opening. They charged, with Ikuto's Slash Claw at the forefront. He made an accurate blow, and the dark figure howled.

He clutched his wound, right above his heart. He was in disbelief that he had pierced through the suit, but didn't check to see if there was blood.

"It seems that you are formidable opponents…" he rasped, standing up on shaking legs.

Utau and Ikuto didn't respond, only preparing themselves for another one of his attacks.

"Especially you, Dumpty Key – but that's what makes this fun!" he cried, a pillar of X-Energy pouring out from his palms.

Utau used her trident as a shield, spitting out a reply. "You're sick if you find enjoyment out of this!"

Ikuto silently agreed with Utau. He had to admit that this guy wasn't joking, and from the way he attacked hem, he had full intent to cause injury. He may have been tough, but not completely unstoppable.

Ikuto landed in front of him and landed another stab, but the figure grabbed his wrist.

Damn, he had gotten too cocky.

Ikuto was flung to the side, hitting the metal fence. Utau gasped, wanting to rush over to her brother and help him up. She resisted however, and in anger charged another Nightmare Lorelei. "You'll pay dearly for that," she said darkly, screaming her attack not long after.

From afar, Kukai saw Utau attack the dark figure, and looked on in worry. Ikuto had seemed to get hit, and she definitely had it out for the guy now.

To say Kukai wasn't thankful for before was an understatement. He knew that this was a serious situation, and Utau was going to end up fighting the Prince of Darkness anyway, but he still got butterflies in his stomach he thought about her saving him.

He brought himself back to his senses though, soaring through the sky once more. He came across more X-eggs appearing from above, finally seeing that there was a purple tinge to the sky, a dome surrounding them. He remembered Tadase telling everyone about this before, that the Prince of Darkness used force fields and to surround his enemies when he fights. It's so multiple X-eggs could use Dark Energy.

Kukai got closer to it, looking at Heart's Eggs that were trapped in between the thick lining of the wall, seeing they were slowly merging back into X-eggs. He shuddered, knowing he should back away before they were fully formed.

Hikari also mentioned that brute force wouldn't work on it, and you need to purify Heart's Eggs to make it disappear... but what if the wall was too thick?

He turned around and flew towards the roof, knowing that he should tell them so they could think up a game plan of how to get rid of it.

Before long, X-eggs began to chase after him, screaming their usual chant and firing Dark Energy.

"You gotta be kidding me!" he complained, strafing left and right. The X-eggs didn't budge from their fixed focus, but he had already reached the roof. "Hinamori!"

Amu whipped her head around, finding that despite Kukai's efforts to shake off X-eggs, they were still on his tail. She summoned her baton, flicking her wrist twice. "Prism Music!"

The colourful notes divided up the eggs, all of them listening to each melody and getting caught up in the vibrant sound.

Kukai landed on the ground to speak to her, out of breath. "Thanks, I came here to tell you guys something."

"Make it quick!" Nagihiko said. Both Kukai and Amu jumped back as they watched him send out a Blaze Shoot, making sure to stay quick on their feet.

"There's a giant dome around us, the ones that power up the X-eggs," Kukai explained, earning an already knowing look from Amu.

"The X-eggs wouldn't be able to use Dark Energy without it," she confirmed, jumping into the air and swishing her baton.

"But the purified Heart's Eggs aren't doing anything to it!" He gestured toward her, holding out his arm so she could pay attention to him. "They're turning back into X-eggs."

"What?" Nagihiko questioned, stopping his movement as well.

Amu's face darkened, and she raised her gaze to the sky, seeing what he was talking about; X-eggs seemed to descend from the sky the moment they tried to escape. In an attempt to push down the panic rising inside her, she looked around. "Akiko, we need to tell her and she might know what to do."

Kukai nodded, saluting the two of them and hopping onto his board. "On it!"

He promptly glided his way over to the other side of the roof, at first unable to see the brunette anywhere, until he saw her hiding behind Hikaru's wings. He sped up his board to speak to her, but was stopped by one of Tadase's attacks.

"Sacred Ray!"

Tadase's aim of fire successfully prevented three X-eggs from hurling energy at Rima, but it had nearly rocked Kukai off his board.

The blond looked sheepish once he saw his upperclassman hovering just above him. "Ah, sorry Souma-san!"

"That's okay!" Kukai replied, also saluting him.

"Let me guess, you're trying to get over to Akiko?" asked Rima, her bowling pins swirling around her.

"Uh, yeah…?"

"We've been meaning to get to her too, but there have been too many X-eggs in this area," Tadase explained, jumping up and using Sacred Ray once more.

"You noticed the dome above us too?" Kukai asked, jumping off his board, dodging another blow from the eggs. All of them sure have gotten good at multi-tasking lately…

"Exactly, it's like getting barraged when we try to make it past our area," Tadase pointed out, gesturing to where Rima was holding off more dark eggs.

Kukai went quiet, thinking to himself. Victory Shoot was an explosive move, and along with Rima's flexible attacks, together they'd be strong enough to hold the X-eggs back for a few moments, maybe just enough so Tadase could reach her.

"Mashiro, we're gonna take care of the eggs together while Tadase gets to Hikari," he stated, jumping onto his board again, clicking his heels.

Rima flicked her head around, frowning slightly.

Tadase also turned to him, about to protest.

To his surprise, Rima replied. "You think we can take them together?" she said, tightening the grip around her ropes. The copper-haired boy nodded enthusiastically.

Tadase looked between Kukai and her, seemingly already prepared to go along with this.

"Souma-san…" he muttered.

"We got this Tadase, you go on ahead!" Kukai cheered, kicking up another ball of fire.

Rima smirked, and unleashed her Tightrope Dancer onto the X-eggs in front of them, the ropes lashing out wildly. Kukai then flung his Victory Shoot into the pit of erratic rope, and a horde of X-eggs fled away from the explosion and to safety.

Tadase, although surprised, was thankful.

He jumped over the pit, summoning his Holy Crown and running head first to his destination. Within a few steps, he had reached Hikaru, who had his wings spread out, effectively protecting Akiko. The small boy was charging yellow light in his hands, and every time he threw it, the light would form into a bright yellow ring. The ring would then trap a single X-egg and became a sphere, leaving the egg to bounce around angrily.

"Binding Halo!" he shouted.

After he had trapped at least five X-eggs, Akiko jumped out from behind his wings, Light Energy pulsing in her palms. With a war cry, she pierced all of the eggs in one shot, leaving all of them purified. They broke out of the Binding Halo, and floated towards the sky.

Tadase looked on in awe, gaping at the girl before him.

"That's the most I've ever gotten in one shot! I think we're both improving, Hikaru-kun!" she grinned, hi-fiving the younger boy.

Hikaru smiled up at her, cheeks rosy from all the movement.

Tadase cleared his throat, "Hikari-san."

Akiko jumped and turned around. "Ah, Tadase!" before she moved toward him, she brought up a Light Energy shield to protect the three of them. "What are you doing here?"

"There's an X-dome surrounding us. Heart's Eggs aren't able to break through and are turning back into X-eggs," he said gravely.

Akiko looked up at the dome, watching the eggs being corrupted once more. She thought that if they purified enough at once, they'd be able to break through and destroy it, but she now she knew it wasn't the case.

She closed her eyes, and reopened them to look at Tadase. "We need a strong force of Light Energy to break it. I'd use my own, but I'm conserving it."

"Do you think Amu will be able to use Open Heart to destroy it?"

Akiko looked to the side. "I'm not sure. There's too many X-eggs for her to do it safely, we need to come up with something else-"

Akiko stopped, noticing Utau and Ikuto still going to head to head with the Prince of Darkness again. Tadase was about to turn around to see where she was looking, until she stepped closer to grab his attention. "I got it! We'll use Utau's Angels Cradle again, while I switch with her and take out the P.O.D."

Tadase didn't take a step back; instead he smiled brightly at her plan. But faltered once he heard her saying she'll fight him. "Are you sure? Last time you weren't able to do it by yourself-"

"It's okay, I'll have Ikuto," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder.

Tadase didn't know how to respond, yet he felt his face turn warm.

Akiko turned to Hikaru. "You two are going to work together," she said, taking down her shield. "Trap as many X-eggs as you can!" And she ran off, leaving Hikaru and Tadase to jump into action.

Be careful, Hikari-san…

---

Utau was starting to feel tired. Every stab and swing she took was getting progressively sluggish. Her attacks were on the mark in the beginning of the fight, but now, she would miss hitting the Dark Prince by a second. Ikuto seemed to be going slower too. His reflexes were quick enough, but attacking was difficult.

The dark figure was now clearly enjoying their losing fight, his vigour returning every time he sent out X-Energy.

He lunged for Utau after whipping more purple matter at Ikuto, the idol weakly bringing out her trident to defend herself.

But before he collided with it, white light hit him in the face. He recoiled and groaned, holding his head.

The sibling duo looked at the source of the light in surprise, finding Akiko with her arm stretched out, an aggressive expression on her face.

"Utau, we need to get rid of the dome above us! Use Angels Cradle so we can purify Heart's Eggs, I'll switch out with you," she offered, running up to them.

Utau was silent for a moment, but then without hesitation, beckoned for El. Ikuto gazed at her with uncertainty, yet knew that when Utau made a decision, she was going to follow through with it in the best way she could.

"Let's do this, Utau-chan!" El cheered, winking and sticking her tongue out. From within the flash of pink light, Seraphic Charm appeared, and so did Il, the devil chara wishing her sister good luck.

Akiko started to speak to the blonde, "We need to be quick, before-," But no more than a second later, the Prince of Darkness recovered from Akiko's initial blast of light, and snarled at the three of them.

He went to attack Akiko, but Utau flicked one of her wings at him, "White Wing!"

A gust of feathers buffeted him, flinging him to the ground. Ikuto jumped in front if he were to get up again, clawed arm at the ready.

Utau turned to Akiko, whose alert gaze was kept on the downed figure. "I'll be as quick as I can, and I'll head to where most of the X-eggs are."

"Right…" Akiko muttered out. "And thanks."

"Be careful, Utau," Ikuto said, not turning away from his target.

Utau smiled in thanks to her brother, while giving a final firm nod to Akiko. She extended her wings, and shot up toward the sky.

On the ground, the Prince of Darkness coughed and stood up, glowing feathers falling off his body. Ikuto tensed up at his recovery, until Akiko was by his side. The Dark Prince held a glower at Akiko, and then chuckled. "You think you're going to be able to go up against me again?"

Akiko smirked, and darted her gaze to the teen beside her. "Yeah, cause I got help."

Ikuto held a ghost of a smile, and then leaped forward, swinging his Slash Claw. The Dark Prince jumped back and threw X-energy at him, which dissipated before it could reach him, thanks to Akiko's blast of Light Energy.

As the black figure cringed at the closeness of the light, Akiko turned to Ikuto. "He has a weakness I can get to, just get him open for me!" she shouted.

"Got it," he muttered, flipping over the figure. As he was about to strike him from behind, the Dark Prince blocked his punch, countering his attack.

Ikuto stumbled slightly, and then jumped back. He skidded to a halt, eyes grinning at the figure mischievously.

The Dark Prince stopped at his suspicious expression, lowering his hand. While he was distracted, Akiko screamed and shot more light at him, the shard colliding with his shoulder.

He winced in pain, but swivelled around to fire at Akiko.

She dodged, cursing to herself. "Dammit, I was close…"

Ikuto was still yearning to land a hit on him, the dark figure laughing gleefully at Akiko's attempt to shoot at him while flying. He then fired a spray of X-Energy at Ikuto, the miasma cloaking his vision. He slashed at it, the smog clearing right before he could see the Dark Prince about to kick him. Ikuto dodged and scratched at his torso, the figure once again wincing in pain.

"I'm not going to let my guard down again," Black Lynx growled. "Not to you."

He dove under the figure, swiping at his legs, and he fell to the ground, metal helmet clanging against the cement.

Ikuto approached him, ready to use another Slash Claw, but the figure evaded his approach and shot up from the ground.

As he was about to slide away, Ikuto sprinted towards him and leapt, his knee bending and colliding with the Dark Prince's chin. The figure flipped over and landed on his chest, wheezing in shock and pain.

"Nice one," Akiko breathed, holding her a hand against her thumping heart. She held out her hand, aiming at his back. "Let's end this."

---

Utau floated above the battlefield, watching the conflict thrive and become more intense with each second. The dome above her emanated an irritating presence, a slew of negative energy raining down from it. Everyone was fighting so hard, their desperation heightened because of the dome. She wanted to cleanse that feeling, and purify it, so no one else would have to experience it.

Heart's Eggs rose from Akiko's section of the roof, each of them becoming entangled within the dome's surface. There were no new X-eggs emerging from above Utau, so she had time to survey the area and decide where she should use Angels Cradle.

And it was here.

With a soft hum, she began her song, pouring her feelings into her voice.

Light began to surround her, and feathers fell from her wings.

X-eggs that were zipping about had been brought to a halt, their movement turning tired and sleepy. They then turned into an innocent white, but didn't move upwards; instead, they continued to listen.

But in the midst of the song, Utau felt a pang of regret.

She didn't stop to consider her irresponsibility in the first battle. Instead of healing the eggs then, she was scattering about with Kukai, neglecting her role.

In this surge of guilt, she sang louder, wanting the eggs to be free of their sadness.

El was beside her, listening intently to the soothing melody. Utau had grown so much as a person, and even as a musician. Her song had become a lot lighter, more sincere, and it was beautiful to listen to.

Utau then came to the end of her song, and opened her eyes, watching the dozens of Heart's Eggs ascend.

Everyone gazed up at her, marvelling at the sight. Her power was serene, yet was so strong. It lifted the pain that the corrupted Heart's Eggs were experiencing, but also the pain of everyone having to fight them.

There were some still scattered about, which Rima and Kukai were chasing down, but for the most part, every egg was healed.

She smiled, putting a hand to her chest.

That should do it – while they undo the dome, she will be able to help a little more with everyone else.

She descended onto the roof, ready to help Ikuto and Akiko once more.

They were completely silent standing over the Dark Prince, Utau catching only a whisper come from Akiko. The brunette shot at him, her light scrapping his back. A glow began to emerge from it, white lines spreading over his body. Akiko seemed satisfied with this, until she doubled back when he started to get up again, the figure coughing violently and holding is stomach.

"Ah… is that…" he stared, voice like sandpaper. "Really all you can rely on… to take me down?"

She was about to strike him again, her face contorted in disbelief. But before she could, the figure spread out his palm, and a purple ball was within it. He smashed it onto the ground, and laid it out, smoke rising from it.

The three of them stepped back, watching the smoke form into a beast-like creature, while the Prince of Darkness was chuckling hoarsely.

He stood up, the ogre looming like a shadow behind him. They gaped at the sight, feet rooted to the ground.

"Let's…" the Dark Prince panted, clutching his wounds. "Begin."

The ogre then howled, its wail causing everyone to go into a stand still.

Horror crept onto the battlefield, all of the fighters will lost.

Above them, the X-dome still stood, trapping more Heart's Eggs as seconds rolled by.

---

"Slash Claw!" Ikuto cried, tearing at the ogre's head.

A chunk of its face was torn away by his metal barbs, the remains falling onto the ground. The ogre reacted in a lethargic way, its body tilting over slightly as a gargled moan left its throat.

Ikuto was seething in desperation, finding everyone to be too shocked to react. He had heard that this monster was near invincible, and had left the group scarred after they tried to fight it. As long as he kept hurting it, it'd be stunted and slow enough to not attack.

"Utau, Hikari!" he called, snapping them back to reality.

Akiko screamed, her eyes burning in anger. She ran and jumped into the air, her hands combining the light that was tipping out of them, aiming for the ogre's heart.

Utau saw that the Dark Prince was about to stop her from hindering the ogre, and unleashed more of her feathers, sweeping him away like paper, his back hitting the metal fence.

Akiko then made contact with the beast, her light tearing right through its chest, leaving a gaping whole.

She landed on the ground again, her breathing ragged. "We… we need to keep attack-…ing it." She stumbled, and Utau offered to help her up. "Switch to Il, Ikuto, keep-."

"Akiko!" a voice screamed. Amu.

The trio whipped their heads toward her, finding that Nagihiko was right beside her. They were overwhelmed with worry, the pinkette especially. Ikuto went up to her, and she found his presence the slightest bit comforting.

"What's wrong?" Akiko asked, her voice cracking.

"The dome…" Nagihiko whispered.

The five of them had looked up at it, seeing that it was still standing.

Utau gasped, her hands covering her mouth, while Ikuto's fist tightened, his teeth gritting. Akiko looked on, too many emotions swirling within her.

"Shit," she said under her breath, tears pricking at her eyes.

Utau's head lowered, her hair covering her face. Amu walked toward her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I saw you up there, Utau. You did what you could, and still ended up helping us."

Utau nodded numbly, a grateful smile on her lips.

As the two exchanged words, Nagihiko looked among the five, realising that Akiko was out of commission. He spoke clearly, knowing that he had to be the one to cut through the solemn atmosphere. "We still need to act, everyone. An ogre is here and we need to put in our all to take it out, just like before." They turned to him, their faces surprised, but attentive. "The Prince of Darkness is here too, so we need to make sure he's taken care of."

"You're right, Nagihiko…" Akiko muttered, standing tall. She looked to the Prince of Darkness, knowing that he was at his weakest point. The large X on him was still present, making his efforts to move his limbs futile. "You and I'll be taking care of him. Leave the ogre to Utau and Ikuto, it'll be easier to hit because it's slow."

Utau and Ikuto looked at her in uncertainty, but she pressed on into their gaze, confident. They looked to each other, expressions changing to earnest.

"And everyone else?" Amu asked, holding her paintbrush tightly.

Akiko was silent at first, wanting to emphasise her sincerity. "Get ready for when the X-eggs come back. Get everyone together, and-… "She stopped short, her voice then turning soft. "… Look out for Hikaru, please."

Amu was frozen, finding the care in her voice heartfelt. Amu then felt Ikuto shift beside her, and she looked at him, seeing his honest and unabashed smile. She felt everyone's gazes on her then, and breathed out, realising what this meant.

They were counting on her.

She smiled brightly, hair swaying as she gave a single, passionate nod.

Akiko broke into a grin. "Let's do this!"

Once their talk had finished, Amu had rushed out to find Hikaru. She found the small boy with Kukai and Rima, who wanted to know what was happening. She explained that they needed to be cautious of the X-eggs returning, and the two understood it was a good idea to form their own group. The four banded together, conveying to Tadase, Kairi and Yaya (who were on the other side of the roof), that they were going to take care of a specific side. This led to Tadase, Kairi and Yaya banding together, promising to keep an eye on each other. Both groups new that those apart from them, the duo's, were going to be fighting the Prince of Darkness, and the ogre – to which Amu said that Akiko confirmed they could handle it.

As far as everyone knew, it was equally divided.

While the groups kept their artillery at the ready, the fight had once again started on Utau and Ikuto's end. Utau, once more Lunatic Charm, was cutting away at the ogre's arms, leaving it to scream in pain. Ikuto swiped at its legs, slowing it down to an incredibly slow pace.

Amu glanced away from their fight, and onto Akiko and Nagihiko's, which was picking up speed.

At first, Akiko and Nagihiko were surrounding him as he lay limp on the ground. He spit insults at them as they approached, Blaze Shoot and Light Energy in their hands. Before long, he was able to use X-Energy again and could float, although he was also much slower than before.

He dove in close to the duo, a smirk in his voice. "Heh, looks like you've gotten more agile," he taunted at Nagihiko, who didn't answer.

The break dancer jumped back, spinning more blue light into his direction.

"Don't forget about me!" Akiko shouted, slashing at him.

He dodged both of their attacks, and Akiko grunted. The X on his body was still there, but he was moving perfectly fine! She glared at him, her eyes boring holes into his helmet. Over the past couple of weeks, he had definitely gotten stronger, but so have they.

Meanwhile, Rima, Kukai, Amu and Hikaru noticed that X-eggs were starting to return. Kukai propped his board up, and jumped on it, saluting to the three of them. "Let me take care of this! Watch out for more as well," he said, a boyish grin on his face.

Amu looked back in thanks, watching the boy distract multiple X-eggs as they chased him through the air.

"Amu," Rima said, holding onto her ropes.

The pinkette turned to see where she was looking and saw more X-eggs falling toward them. She summoned her baton with a smirk, twirling it between her fingers. "Got it! Ready, Hikaru?" she said, turning to him.

He looked tense, but his eyes had a certain determination to them. She would've had to guess he was more confident than ever after fighting for his own, and she felt more pride swell within her.

"Y… yeah," Hikaru mumbled, balling his fists.

She smiled, and pointed her baton at the eggs. "Let's go! Prism Music!"

"Binding Halo!"

"Tightrope Dancer!"

Their collective efforts paralysed some of the eggs, while others were chased away. Kukai came rocketing back to the ground, Dark Energy on his tail.

"Watch out everyone!" he shouted, the trio jumping back.

The Dark Energy crashed into the ground, leaving behind a tornado of black miasma. It spun out of control, reaching the four, leaving Rima and Kukai to cover their faces. Amu began to cough, darkness flooding her vision as it swiped at her. Hikaru was still next to her, so she put his hands over his eyes. "Hold… your breath," she said, a strain in her voice.

He did as he was told, and Amu stood up again. She began running towards the tornado, Kukai screaming out for her. "Wait!"

Rima watched in fear, wanting to use her ropes or bowling pins to help, but needed to use her hands to block out the smog.

Amu's paintbrush then appeared in her hands, and she jumped into the air, hovering just above the murky fog. "Azure Whirlwind!" she declared. A line of neon blue paint zipped out of her brush as she spun, reaching the tornado and circling it erratically. The tornado then ceased, and the smoke cleared.

Kukai and Rima breathed out in relief, while Hikaru looked at Amu in awe.

"Don't risk yourself like that again," Rima said as Amu returned to them. "You could've been hrut."

Amu smiled, rubbing her neck. "Sorry, but I had to. It's a new move I just discovered and I had to be close to use it…"

Kukai puffed up his chest. "No matter that, you still saved us! I'm impressed Hinamori."

She blushed, laughing along with the group. Soon enough, they had to jump back into action, the X-eggs not once overcoming them.

As for the other group, they were holding out well. Tadase continued to use Sacred Ray whenever he could, backing up Yaya, who was also backing up Kairi. His attacks did the most damage, creating a wave of lightning that held back most of the eggs.

Utau and Ikuto were right next to them, the ogre coming dangerously close to their establishment.

The siblings were doing their best to hold it off, but its sheer size was beginning to trump them. The two stopped to catch their breath, but waited far too long to attack again. The ogre screamed in frustration, defeating their ears. Ikuto dropped to the ground, his sensitive ears being flooded with pain.

The group next to them realised that their main offense went down, and gasped.

Akiko and Nagihiko heard the scream and halted, looking at the group not far from them.

The Prince of Darkness laughed, his body rising from the ground, "Looks like their time is up."

Tadase, Kairi and Yaya were still frozen, the ogre looking directly at them. It wailed again and charged, creating tremors as it stomped. Its arms began to swing wildly, and before the trio knew it, they were hit.

But only one figure was fast enough to react; Kairi.

Tadase and Yaya cried out as they were thrashed at, their bodies collapsing onto the cement.

"NO!" Kairi shouted, diving back down towards Yaya.

Kairi was swiftly able to pick her up and jump away again, the girl resting in his arms with closed eyes.

Tadase was still on the ground however, and the ogre looked down at him. X-eggs surrounded the beast, and its large hand came forth, ordering the eggs to attack. He didn't have time to react, his head still throbbing and eyes still heavy.

"TADASE!" a muffled voice rang out.

He couldn't tell who it was, but he held his head up, trying to see.

A body jumped in front of him, white light erupting from their hands.

Tadase breathed heavily, his chest hurting. "H… Hikari-sa…"

Akiko held out her shield, teeth bearing and face contorted into one of exertion. She struggled against the X-eggs, her knees begging for her to rest. "Ahrgh!" Her voice came out strangled, in agony.

He jumped up at the sound, appearing at her side. "Hikari-san!"

Akiko's eyes creased, and a pained smile was on her face. "Tadase, you're alright…"

He couldn't bear to see her take this kind of weight. The force of a dozen darkened X-eggs hurting her… it was beyond cruel.

He held up his sceptre, aiming it at the black matter that was holding her down. His jaw locked, and ferocity coated his eyes. "Sacred RAY!"

From within the force field, Tadase's ray of light broke through, stabbing the X-eggs. As it emerged from the other side, it appeared white. It was a shining laser of white energy, striking through the sky.

Akiko looked up, her face twisting into shock, just as Tadase's did.

Their light glazed over the X-eggs, transforming them into Heart's Eggs.

They looked to each other, their faces suddenly close.

Akiko kept up her shield, the burden of the X-eggs no longer there. She moved in closer to Tadase, who also had his sceptre still pointed at them. Together, they moved the laser and purified each and every X-egg.

The ogre's now repaired face grew angry, a rage-filled shout emanating from its lungs. Tadase flicked the sceptre onto his face, and sent it stumbling back, blinding it.

Akiko gasped, a small giggle bubbling out of her.

They then turned to each other again, keeping up combined move. Neither of them went red, and they continued to look at each other, smiling softly.

Their laser was still pointed at the sky, and before long, it reached the surface of the dome.

A large crack resonated across the battlefield, and everyone glanced up. Their stream of Light Energy was breaking the dome, glowing white fractures spreading across it.

"We're breaking it," Akiko squeaked, hands still raised.

"Yeah…" Tadase mumbled, watching the damage unfold.

The Prince of Darkness was watching it happen too. "No!" screamed, prepared to attack them with purple matter swirling around his hands, until his helmet was struck by a ball of blue light.

"We're not done here," Nagihiko said to him, a hand on his waist.

The Prince of Darkness snarled, and pounced onto his prey. Nagihiko flipped back and blocked his attack, finding that he suddenly regained a lot more strength than before.

"HARH!" the Dark Prince howled, a pillar of purple energy visible in his hands.

With no time to dodge, Nagihiko flinched, his arms held out to protect himself.

"Juggling Party!"

Multiple blowing pins then knocked the dark figure off course, colliding with each limb he had. One had hit the back of his head, and he fell to the ground, groaning weakly.

"Rima-chan!" Nagihiko gasped, his heart pounding as he looked at Clown Drop.

"Here to help…" she said softly, a small smile on her lips. Bowling pins danced around her, and then she collected them one by one, running up to the boy.

"Thank you," he said sincerely.

She could feel her ears go red, and she looked away. "You're welcome, I guess…"

Before he could speak any further to her, a large boom sounded from above them. They glanced up, seeing that the X-dome had been completely undone.

Akiko and Tadase's laser ceased, and the two continued to stare at the now completely clear sky. A few X-eggs that were still present began to hum softly, a dark fog lifting off of them – the Darkness, washing away.

"We did it…" Akiko whispered, looking into Tadase's eyes.

The blond looked back into hers, not knowing what to say.

"We actually did it!" she squealed, jumping onto him and hugging him tightly.

He felt his heart leap out of his chest, but returned the hug nonetheless. Everyone looked on as the two celebrated, smiling gratefully. Akiko pulled back and laughed, Tadase with a near visible pink face.

"Isn't that cute?" Ikuto mused, crossing his arms.

Utau turned to him with an eyebrow raised, knowing that he was gaining some sort of satisfaction from this.

The ogre was behind them now, on the ground, clawing at its face. It had successfully been blinded, groaning as it tried to sit up with no sight. Ikuto and Utau flicked their attention toward it, readying themselves.

"It's not over yet though," Utau said, spinning her trident.

"But it'll be easier this time," Ikuto affirmed, being the first one to run towards it.

Meanwhile, Yaya was still in Kairi's arms, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

"Ah, what time is it…?" she slurred.

Kairi looked at her softly, and placed her on the ground.

She awoke with a start after just beginning to stretch. She stared at Kairi in bewilderment, confusion on her face. "Kairi-kun? What happened…"

The samurai's smile left his face, but fondness was still present in his eyes. "The ogre had attacked you and Hotori-san. I was able to get you to safety, but…"

"And Tadase?!" Yaya squeaked, clasping her hands together.

Kairi breathed out in relief. "Thankfully, he's alright. Hikari-san saved him, and together they…" he looked upwards, and pointed to the sky. "They got rid of the dome."

Yaya gasped, and her cheeks grew rosy. "Ah, that's amazing!"

Kairi nodded, turning towards the rest of the group. "We need to get back to everyone though. There is still the ogre and the Prince of Darkness left, as well as a few X-eggs. Are you ready, Yaya?" he asked, standing up. He held her hand out to her, waiting.

She looked up at him, the red on her cheeks persistent. "Ah… yup!" she said, taking his hand.

As they walked back to the group, Yaya admitted that she had felt weak after taking the first blow of the X-eggs when the battle began. She didn't tell anyone so as not to worry them.

This, however, made Kairi experience tightness in his chest.

Finally, the two returned to the group, finding that Nagihiko and Rima were taking care of the Prince of Darkness, and Utau and Ikuto were handling the ogre. The rest of the group was talking, formulating a plan. Yaya excitedly began to ask what they were going to do now.

"Some of us are gonna help out Utau and Ikuto," Amu explained, "While the rest will help Rima and Nagi."

"Tadase and I are going to take down X-eggs," Akiko proclaimed, standing close to the boy. "There are some that are flying around with no direction, so we'll purify them," she said, looking at him.

"You won't need me?" Amu asked.

Akiko shook her head. "We'll be good, there are some on ground level and we can take care of it. Everyone else's strength will be enough to help the others."

Amu took a moment to understand, but then nodded, and glanced at Kukai and Hikaru. "Let's go help Rima and Nagi!"

The three then ran toward the duo, joining in on the fight. Yaya watched on in anticipation, the battle unfolding like a spectacular. Amu was back-talking with the Prince of Darkness, while he laughed on maniacally; it really was a sight to behold-

"Yaya-san will be staying with me." She heard, and snatched her attention away from the fight and onto Kairi.

Tadase frowned slightly. "Are you sure? The ogre is dangerous, Utaunee-san and Ikutonii-san are barely holding up."

Kairi stood his ground, a protective tone in his voice seeping through. "I'll look after her and help them."

Yaya stared at him, blinking innocently. Although she looked calm on the surface, emotions rolled over in her stomach, butterflies rocketing around in it and the realisation that Kairi… wanted to protect her.

Tadase sighed, but obliged with his decision anyway. "Okay. Once the X-eggs are taken care of, Hikari-san and I will join you."

Akiko smiled. "See you two then."

The four parted, and Tadase and Akiko reached the edge of the roof.

"There!" Akiko shouted, pointing to a group of five rogue X-eggs.

They were spinning freely, enjoying the fact that the Darkness no longer had hold of them. Tadase saw the eggs bouncing around, and then noticed there was more below them. In fact, they had reached all the way down to ground level.

"There are more down there…" he muttered, leaning over the rail.

Akiko looked on with him, gripping the rails nervously.

"I know- I'll jump run down there and use White Decoration," Tadase stated confidently. "Then once they're stable, you can purify them."

Akiko's eyes darted to the side, unsure of the idea. "I don't know… you'd be separated from everyone."

"I'll be okay," he reassured. "Besides, you'll be up here watching me. If anything happens, you can come down as well."

Akiko managed a smile, and held a hand on her arm. "That sounds okay with me."

A moment later, and Tadase was on ground level after running through the fire escape, attempting to round up of the X-eggs. Akiko watched on anxiously, striking at a few eggs that came her way.

Meanwhile, the battle with the ogre was raging on. Kairi crashed his Lightning Blade on the the ogre, but it persisted, stumbling around groggily. Its large arms swung without warning now, leaving nearly no space to attack. Yaya was kept on the sidelines, watching as Ikuto and Utau tried to swipe at it.

"Argh, this is useless…" Utau grunted, letting go of her trident. "Nightmare Lorelei!"

A swarm of bats snaked up the ogre's legs, keeping it still.

"Slash Claw!" Ikuto scratched one of its arms again, leaving gaping claw marks alongside it.

The ogre grieved, holding its injured arm. It then lashed out at Ikuto, thrashing desperately, but missing.

Yaya felt like this was never going to end, her friends getting more and more tired as the ogre barely decayed. She balled up her fists, slightly annoyed that Kairi wouldn't let her participate, but she knew why. He cared for her, which she knew was an understatement, but she could do things herself too!

Just by watching the ogre fight, she knew that it had to be frozen in some way to get enough damage done to it. But Ikuto, Utau and Kairi didn't have any paralysis moves. Her other friends did.

Yaya's heart drummed steadily, hearing what her mind had been conjuring up.

She did have a paralysis move.

But it was fatal for her.

Breathing out slowly, she closed her eyes, and then began to run forward.

Kairi, Utau and Ikuto didn't see her coming, leaving for a perfect opening.

She skidded on the ground in front of the ogre, her world turning slow.

Kairi finally noticed the girl charging an attack in front of the beast, and shouted. Ikuto and Utau darted their attention to her, faces morphing into shock.

The young girl smirked at the attention, light sparking from her hands. "I wanna see how you handle this, ugly!" she chimed. She flung out her arms, a baby mobile protruding from the light. "MERRY MERRY!"

A soft melody then circulated around the ogre's body, its thoughts completely enraptured by the mobile. It slurred, and began to drop its head. Soon enough, it had fallen to the ground with a loud thud, snoring soundly.

Ikuto and Utau gawked at the sight, dropping their shoulders.

They were about to turn to Yaya to say a very, very astonished thank you, until they saw her too, sleeping soundly.

"Yaya!" Kairi gasped, dropping to his knees. He saw that the girl sleep was resting peacefully, and sighed in relief. He brushed a strand of her away from her face, smiling. "Thank you, Yaya-chan."

Ikuto and Utau glanced at each other, and then to Kairi.

"Sanjo," Utau called. The green haired boy turned to her, while she smiled back. "Yaya did this for us. Let's take this ogre out, together."

He stood up, sword raised. "You're right. Tsukiyomi-san?" he said to Ikuto.

The teen turned his head while standing comfortably. "Hm?"

"The two of you need to strike the beast's heart, and I will destroy it completely with my lightning after you do."

Utau and Ikuto smiled, and nodded, agreeing to attack together.

A moment later, and the three were in position, with Yaya safely out of the way. The beast continued to snore, Merry Merry's effects lasting particularly well.

Ikuto glanced at Utau, making sure she was ready. "Now!" he called, plunging his claw into the ogre's chest.

Utau did the same, twisting her trident to deepen the wound.

The ogre didn't react, but its breathing grew ragged. It's skin began to decay, not having the ability to regenerate.

Ikuto had to admit that Yaya's move was incredibly smart. She managed to figure out that to hurt it, it needed to be immobile. He smirked, satisfied at the ogre's defeat. "Now, Sanjo-san!"

Ikuto and Utau leapt away, Kairi speeding up to the ogre with his swords raised. He bounded into the air, flinging his swords downwards and into the ogre's centre. "Lightning BLADE!"

The ogre's entire body crackled with electricity as he landed on it, the limbs, torso and head trembling sporadically. He sunk his swords in deeper, the lightning spreading and frying the structure that the being was made up of. It groaned as it perished, its cry wafting away as it was vaporized.

Kairi was left on the ground, sword stuck in the cement. He pulled it out, and swung it over his shoulder, looking proudly at the Tsukiyomi siblings. They looked on in confidence too, thanking the heaven's that they were finally rid of this monster.

On the other end of the battlefield, the Prince of Darkness was losing. He saw how they wiped out his ogre, his last resort. He gasped and held his stomach, wounds stretching over his body. The group of kids watched as the stumbled, falling onto the ground. They didn't do a lot to him, only simple and light attacks were thrown, but he was weak previously to this, and they guessed he was at his limit.

He scrapped the ground, finding no reason to continue.

Bit by bit, he started to disappear, black smoke covering his body. He looked up at Amu, hatred dripping in his voice. "I'll come back for you, all of you. And you'll pay."

She shivered, the venom in his voice not for once leaving her memories.

With no more than a second later, he disappeared completely, leaving nothing behind but a sick feeling.

They dropped to the ground, all of their energy tired out and gone. Rima and Amu sat next to each other, leaning against one another for support, their hands intertwined. Kukai and Nagihiko had an arm around each other, talking aimlessly and patting their backs. Hikaru sat in between the teens, resting his head on Amu's; his eyes were drooping every few seconds.

Eventually, Kairi, Utau, Ikuto and Yaya had joined them. Yaya had woken up and was full of energy, over the moon about how Merry Merry had worked. Ikuto and Utau were congratulating her, everyone wowed at the fact she was practically the one to defeat the ogre. The chara's left over, that had been on the sidelines nearly the entire time, had joined them. The kids were all tempted to drop out of character transformation, but knew that there was one job left to finish.

The only one who stood by their lonesome was Akiko, still watching Tadase gather as many X-eggs as he could. They had nearly cleansed all of them, the two of them knowing they were close to their limit.

Akiko sighed and rested her head on her hand, a fluffy feeling covering her heart. She tried not to let herself go red or show any type of embarrassment around Tadase, but now she could let it out. This feeling that she was experiencing, she had felt something similar to it before… but with everything that she could, she ignored it, wanting to save the thought for another day.

"Akiko?" a voice asked. The brunette turned, realising she looked like she was probably day dreaming.

"Oh- ah, Amu…" she laughed. "Hey."

"Hey, is everything all good?" she said, tilting her head.

"Yeah, everything's fine…" Akiko wanted to get rid of the awkwardness of the situation, so she cleared her throat and thought to get to business. "We still need to do one last thing."

"Yeah…" Amu breathed out, putting a hand on her head. "I'm ready."

"Good, that's good… Is Hikaru ready?"

Amu nodded, and the two made their way over to the group. Tadase knew that he would have to stay down there until the X-eggs were trapped, so therefore Akiko knew that he would be fine to handle himself and be alone, but… at the same time, she didn't want to leave him.

Once they reached everyone, Akiko had to snap out of her thoughts and speak – they were all looking at her expectantly, so she cleared her throat, and began. "Before we start the last part the plan's phase, I just want to say… I am so, so proud of everyone." A comfortable silence dropped over the group, paying attention to her sincere voice. "Everyone worked so well together, and you managed to take down the ogre and the Prince of Darkness. It's… I'm honestly really proud of you all."

Grins were shared all around, small talk amongst the group agreeing with her. They were all really proud of each other too, there was no denying that.

With a big smile on her lips, Akiko looked to Hikaru. "Now, we need to do what we came here for. Hikaru," Akiko said, gesturing to him.

He stood up, standing beside her.

"You ready to do this?"

He held the smallest smirk you'd ever see on someone, but still, Akiko knew it was there, "Of course."

She laughed, and told Amu to join them as well.

"Okay, let's start."

---

Hikaru was in the sky, hovering peacefully. Down below was Amu and Akiko, who were prepared for him to signal his beacon. They looked up at him too, nodding and giving him thumbs up.

Hikaru took this as a sign to begin, so he put his hands to his heart, drawing upon his radiance. He looked at his hands, seeing the soft golden light within them.

He raised his palms to the sky, a brilliant beam on his face. "Radiant BEACON!"

Like before, a firework burst from his hands, exploding and cascading down in shining fragments.

The group of kids smiled at the sight, feeling happiness upon the star-like fragments touching them. Tadase looked on at the sight too, knowing it was nearly time for them to grab the Embryo.

As for Amu and Akiko, they were on the alert. Ten seconds had passed and still no Embryo.

Last time didn't take long, but since they knew it was coming, their nerves racked and their fingers twitched.

Then, Akiko felt it - a warm sensation in her chest, like no other.

"Amu!" she said, grabbing her attention.

The pinkette glanced toward her, knowing she could sense it nearby. Amu scanned the sky, flicking her head around. Finally, she spotted it. It was fluttering about harmlessly, admiring the Radiant Beacon.

Amu didn't speak or tell Akiko she saw it, instead wanting to be as quiet as possible in catching it.

As she began to walk stealthily, the brunette not far behind, a blast of purple light singed the ground next to them. They gasped, and saw a rogue X-egg floating above them. The X-egg noticed the Embryo in front of them, and unleashed another attack, eyeing it scornfully.

"No!" Amu shouted, watching the X-Energy rocket towards the dream egg. "Colourful Canvas!"

The X-Energy halted, but so did the Embryo.

Both were trapped.

Amu let out only a gasp of breath, before she saw the Embryo fall.

It had been floating in mid-air, away from the roof, and was descending to ground level.

Amu shrieked and ran toward it, while Akiko was right behind her.

As the pinkette watched the dream egg fall out of sight, she dove for it, jumping off the roof.

Akiko screamed, body hitting the railing, but Amu kept falling.

The girl's arm was outstretched, reaching for the paralysed egg. Time had seemed to slow once again, but she could feel her fingers just inches away from it. Then, at once, she grabbed it, flipping herself over and hugging it tightly. With no way to stop herself from falling, she shouted. She could feel the egg begin to wiggle its way out of her grasp, but she only held onto it tighter, not wanting to accept the reality unfolding in front of her.

Then, the Colourful Canvas had worn away, and the Embryo shook in a panic, shooting out from her hug. Amu screamed again, watching as she fell without it, watching as it escaped her again.

From below, Tadase saw all of this happen. He dashed toward her, summoning his Holy Crown before she hit the grass. Thankfully, he caught her, and undid the Holy Crown.

Amu didn't know if she had enough energy to feel confused as to who was holding her, or even look at them. She was taken aback, disappointed and… something else.

"Amu…? Are you okay?" came Tadase's voice.

She opened her eyes, and turned to see him, noticing the clear concern on his face. However, he didn't look directly into his eyes, and instead glanced at her hands. "I… the Embryo…" She felt a weight on her chest; guilt. "It got away, again."

Tadase grew worried for her, and settled her down on the grass. "That's alright, what matters is that you're not hurt."

She nodded numbly, her hands brought close to her chest, where the Embryo sat before it escaped. Tadase sat beside her, unsure of what to say.

From above, Akiko was watching all of this play out.

The fact that they were so close together turned her stomach into a pit. Something sick and hot was rose within it, but she tried to push the feeling down. From behind her, she heard rapid footsteps- it was the rest of the group. They were shaken, obviously having witnessed Amu jump for the Embryo. Ikuto was in front of all of them, dread covering his face. He too gripped the railing, finding Amu on the school grounds, along with Tadase.

"Amu!" he screamed, leaping over the railing.

He made it down safely by gripping onto the building every few flights, then eventually reached the ground, leaning down to the pinkette's level.

"Are you alright? What happened?" he asked as he reached her.

Amu leant up, surprised at the frantic tone in his voice. "Uh… the Embryo, it…" she trailed off, but Ikuto waited patiently. "… I tried to hold it, but it got away and then Tadase caught me…"

Ikuto smiled, though it looked a bit sad. "We can always try again next time to get it. I'm just happy you're safe."

Amu's heart fluttered slightly, but she too managed to feel better. Ikuto looked at Tadase, sighing in relief.

"I'm really glad you were here," he said.

Tadase nodded, also taking a deep exhale, "I'm also glad. If Hikari-san hadn't assigned me here then…" His gaze then shifted behind Ikuto.

The teen turned around, only to see Akiko running up to them, out of breath.

"Hey, what's going on?" she asked, arriving at where the trio sat. Her eyes were hard, and it seemed as though she was glaring at Tadase. "What did you do?" she asked again, leading him to stand up defensively.

"I caught Amu from falling, she would've been hurt if I wasn't here," he explained, frowning slightly.

"Right, yeah…" She turned to Amu, and faltered. The girl was confused as she looked up at her, and was oddly withdrawn. Akiko couldn't discern her feelings, so she offered a quick smile. "We'll talk soon, okay?"

Ikuto had frowned, while Amu couldn't help but do the same.

The brunette turned to Tadase again, gesturing over to a spot further away from Amu and Ikuto. "Can I talk to you for a sec?" she said, earning another surprised reaction from the boy.

"Oh… sure," he said, and then followed her to where she had pointed to.

As they walked away, everyone else had eventually joined Amu and Ikuto, checking to see if she was hurt or not. To everyone's content, she was fine, but upset over the Embryo escaping. They soon had cancelled their chara transformations, congratulating themselves and ensuring that next time, they'll win. Kukai and Nagihiko had remained most positive about it, but others like Yaya and Amu weren't sure if they could fight in another battle. Utau and Kairi managed to round everyone together emotionally (more so on Utau's part), and decided that they'd wait for Akiko and Tadase to return before they leave.

Ikuto and Amu's chara's were the one most by the pinkette's side, consoling her when they could.

As she sat on the grass, listening to them and everyone else, a glimmer of hope still sparked in her. She knew it would take time, and there'd be no way they could retrieve it that easily. There was always another chance, and who knew, third time's the charm, right?

On another part of the school grounds, Akiko was leaning against a tree with Tadase in front of her. Her arms were crossed, and she looked contemplative. Tadase felt somewhat anxious. He didn't know what would have triggered her to be like this; disregarding Amu and not appearing worried at all for her, not to mention leaving everyone to just talk to him. He had cancelled out his transformation too, and told Kiseki to wait with the others. Whatever she had to say, it may have been important, and possibly private.

So he waited for her to speak, shifting around on his feet.

She then opened her mouth, avoiding his gaze. "Do you still have feelings for Amu?"

The question came as a shock.

"… What?"

She sighed, and closed her eyes. "You heard what I said."

Tadase was trying to grasp for words. "What… what would make you want to ask me that now?"

She frowned, and looked at him. "Because of how you were carrying her, it looked like something was going on."

He prevented his jaw from going slack. "I… I had to catch her somehow. She would've been injured if I didn't."

She was silent, scanning his face. "Are you sure?"

He paused. "Hikari-san... I saved Amu because I had to. Not because I have feelings for her."

She tapped her finger on her crossed arm. "So do you or don't you?"

He stared at her wide-eyed, almost in disbelief. Before answering, he took the time to figure out his feelings. What exactly did he feel for Amu?

He still cared for her, and would have been devastated if she was hurt from her fall. He liked being around her and seeing her laugh, but to say he still felt the same way about her like he did a year ago…

"I don't know."

Akiko tilted her head, wanting to know if she heard right. "What?"

Tadase shrugged, and looked at the ground. "I'm not sure if I do anymore. I care a lot about her still, but… it feels different."

Akiko stared at him, her defensive stance lowering. She felt a tiny flame ignite within her- hope, right? "I see…" she said, uncrossing her arms.

Tadase pursed his lip. "That's all you wanted to know?"

Akiko had a start. "Uh… Y-yeah, that's it."

Tadase didn't speak afterwards, finding it strange she would jump this on him. He hadn't been navigating his feelings about Amu since the park, but he figured she was moving on, finally accepting Ikuto as the one she wants to be with someday. That made him feel empty, so to say that he still had romantic interest in her anymore was… likely gone at this point.

Despite this, dead silence consumed the two as they walked back to the group, being welcomed cheerfully by everyone. They separated, happy to be back where the crowd was.

After a pep talk by their two leaders, the kids went home, rightfully exhausted, but still pleased.

Hikaru and Yaya were probably the most tired out of all of them, Kairi having to make sure that they got home safely and promptly.

On one side of the school, Ikuto and Utau were leaving together. Kukai had been staring at Utau, not forgetting that he was invited to watch her perform in the following weeks. But next chance he got, he would definitely ask her out on a date.

But before he left, Ikuto didn't forget to remind Amu about Sunday, the younger girl beaming once she remembered she had something to look forward to on the weekend. Akiko and Rima wanted to know what she was so happy about, and eventually the pinkette explained. After insisting to them that it was not a date, she had the bright idea to invite them, figuring it would be good to have Tadase and Nagi come along too.

All in all, Amu knew that things weren't over with their mission, or the enemy's mission. With the friends she has by her side, she knew they were all capable of great things. She just needed to hold her head high, and continue on in tomorrow, knowing that the future would turn out bright, eventually.

---

.:?:.

He couldn't be serious.

Deep within me, and for some reason, it felt wrong to go forward with his words.

"Are you listening?" he asked, impatience growing.

"Yes… sir," I complied, bowing my head.

Rejecting his idea would only lead to him lashing out, and injuring me further, I reminded myself, while clenching onto my heart.

"Then you will initiate the plan in the following days as a test. If you happen to run into Princess Araceli, do not hesitate in challenging her."

The grip over my chest tightened. "Yes, sir…"

My left eye began to throb, wanting to intervene. "But-" I spoke, my voice becoming softer, weaker. "If infusing Darkness with Heart's Eggs decays the owner, what were to happen to them if the Darkened Egg were given back to them?"

He scowled, the black matter around the room shifting rapidly. "Is that concern in your voice? What does it matter to you if a mortal's mind is deranged even further?"

My breathing hitched; the space around me seemed to lack oxygen at that moment.

He leaned in close, his voice a baritone whisper, "You've become fragile since you've arrived on Earth. I will hear no more of your resistance. Obey me, or you will be treated and replaced."

A voice inside my head screamed for mercy. It begged for no more treatment.

"Yes, sir… I understand," I said hoarsely. The pain in my eye persisted, expanding and growing stronger. "I will… make sure to… gain control of Decayed mortal's, by forcing back their Darkened Heart's Eggs."

The pain then pierced my skull, but I still stood up right, glaring at him.

He grinned, satisfaction rolling off his voice. "Good."

---

…

"We moved, and it's a new start, but…

What's this feeling?"

…

---

MagicalGirl4: Finally, a complete chapter 18! It was quite along read too, and next chapter definitely won't have as many words.

Anyway, onto a Fun Fact!

SC!MS! Fun Fact: The girl's middle school uniform is different to both what the anime and manga show; this is because I wanted to show that this fanfic is in an alternate universe, an AU that takes elements from both the manga-verse and anime-verse.

The anime showed the uniform as green and the same style as the boy's, while the manga showed that it's a red seifuku. I didn't want the girls to have the same colour as the boy's (after all, they different have colours for elementary school), and I didn't want to keep the red, since the boy's got a change from blue to green.

So I made the uniform purple. Instead of the skirt being checked and tie plan, the pattern switched (since the boy's uniform has the tie checked as well). As for the blazer, the girls have the same design that the boy's do, with golden buttons on the lower half, and white on the collar lining. If you want to see what it looks like officially, check out my blog for this fic!

MagicalGirl4: Couldn't be bothered to write character interactions for this closing A/N, ha. See you next chapter though! Bye!