Symphogear Trill

Stanza 17: Clashing Emotions

The medical scanners slid open as Ryouko finished running the check over on Ritsudo and Hibiki. As she expected their actual injuries were relatively minor. She was more concerned instead with any fatigue the use of their Gears had induced, particularly for Hibiki with how she'd been using it back there.

"At worst all you had was scratches, but nothing more serious than that." The scientist tapped away at a few other readings as the teenagers got off the analysis beds. "Ritsudo-kun, you've adjusted quite well to Ame-no-Murakumo's output. Hibiki-chan, rest up a bit. Using your Gear's energy like that's exhausted you."

"But other than that I'm fine?" Hibiki said, Ryouko nodding. "Then I'll… whoa!"

"She said rest dummy." Ritsudo caught Hibiki as the girl stumbled, Hibiki blinking as she shook her head. "Take it a bit slow for now. Whipping out something crazy like you did has gotta take some kind of toll."

"Exactly. So take the rest of the night to relax and recover." Ryouko gave Hibiki a light tap on the head, the girl groaning.

"I think I'm cursed." Hibiki then perked up, standing straighter. "What about Miku and Wataru-senpai? They saw us, so I was wondering…"

"Don't worry, they're fine." Ryouko's confirmation got a relieved sigh from Hibiki. "It'll be alright. Ogawa-kun and the others are explaining everything to them. Once they explain the need for secrecy, they'll be sent home."

"I see…" Though Hibiki's worried look didn't seem alleviated. Ritsudo could tell she was still troubled even with that. It likely wasn't simply that Miku would have things explained to her… that wasn't Hibiki's worry.

"Just talk with her after you get back." Ritsudo said, patting Hibiki on the back. "You're super close friends after all. Even if it creates a bit of a rough patch, you two are close enough it should blow over. Just don't be afraid to try and talk with her about it."

"But what about Wataru-senpai?"

"He'll be fine. He's the shockingly understanding type of person after all. Also…" Ritsudo then grabbed Hibiki by the cheeks and started pulling on them. "What's with properly calling him senpai and not me eh?! You know I'm older than you, so where did that part about it go?"

"Owowowow! Wha's the problem?! Aren't you fine with me calling you Ritsu?!" Hibiki held her face as she was released, Ritsudo giving her a cricked look as he folded his arms.

"It's the principal of the matter more than anything."

"But we're friends!"

"Doesn't mean you can't be proper here and there!"

"Ahahaha! You two get along so well now." Ryouko mused, Ritsudo stopping from jokingly pulling at Hibiki's ear. "And to think, just a couple weeks ago it was almost entirely different. My how much can happen in a short time."

"And how little can happen in a long time, I'd counter." Ritsudo said, Hibiki nodding.

Both however, did notice something from the woman. An expression the normally blithe Ryouko rarely had on her face, if ever: Longing. Like she was thinking back on some past memory with a hint of regret to it. But, not like it wasn't gone in moments and followed by Ryouko ushering the teenagers out while telling them to go and get changed.

But in a way all that happened was the mystery around Ryouko only growing even more in the minds of the two.


And the situation in the command room was tense within the air due to what happened that day. Genjurro sat at the couch with an air of weight around him. It was in combination both to the revelations of their enemy possessing the lost Ichaival, the identity of it's wielder, and like Kyomei and Tsubasa, the revelation of Scordatura's startling resemblance to Koto.

"All of this is hard to believe." Sakuya said, leaning on his console. "The enemy has the Nehushtan Armor, Araedhbar, a Relic that isn't even in our systems, and now we know they have the Ichaival and the missing Gear Candidate to use it."

"In a battle where we turn Relics into the power to fight, we've lost out superiority." Aoi said.

"Just who are they? What do Finé and Scordatura want?"

The door opened as the operators spoke. Ryouko came strolling in with the four Gear users following her.

"Now now. I know this is serious, but our own Adaptors are perfectly fine. It's too soon to be acting all gloomy. Especially since we've seen Tsubasa and Kyomei Synchronize again, meaning they're only stronger than ever." Ryouko said, giving a bit of a chuckle as she glanced at the two senior Adaptors.

"Tsubasa, what were you thinking?" Genjurro stood, but rather than scolding his expression was amused. Despite the recklessness of the action, the man was more just glad to see the girl back in action.

"I'm sorry I rushed out when I was still recovering." Tsubasa said, her hand brushing against Kyomei's. "But, when my comrades are in trouble, I can't just stand by and watch. Tachibana and Kenzaki are still inexperienced. But, even so, I think both of them are proper warriors."

"Tsubasa-san…" Hibiki was standing in shock, while Ritsudo looked like hell had just frozen over.

"Who are you and what did you do to Kazanari?" And for his dry remark, Kyomei quite promptly elbowed Ritsudo in the ribs. "GYOW!"

"I'm still far from being in perfect condition." Tsubasa turned to the other two after flexing a hand around, a small, pleasant smile on her face. "But, fighting alongside Kyomei, I think I'm perfectly able to head out there and back you both up."

"Of course not that we're going to let you two get too far ahead of us." Kyomei said, chuckling as he twirled a lock of hair around. "We are your seniors after all. Once Tsubasa is in top form, we're gonna make up for the time we lost while you two got stronger."

"I'll do my best!" Hibiki said, standing straight.

"And nice to hear both of you being so confident. Also, you have a mean right arm, Kyomei-san. Must be from using that bow all the time." Ritsudo winced as he rubbed the spot he'd been jabbed. Kyomei just rubbed the back of his head in response as he muttered a small apology. But, Ritsudo looked more amused than anything.

"Hibiki-kun, Ritsudo-kun, was there anything wrong in your medical checks?" Genjurro addressed the two, and Ritsudo shook his head, while Hibiki gave a fist pump.

"Perfectly normal! If I eat a full meal and get a good night's sleep, I'll be perfectly fine!" Hibiki said, though her bright expression faltered a bit as a thought came to her. "If I just sleep in the place where I'm the warmest. Miku…"

Of course the glum mood was quickly swiped away when Ryouko decided now was the perfect time to poke Hibiki in the chest. Which immediately elicited a sharp, high yell from the girl as she reeled back while bringing her arms up to her torso.

"What are you doing?!" And Hibiki's shrieking only added to Ryouko's amusement.

"The fragments of the Gungnir near your heart are merging with your body in a way they weren't before." Said the scientist, which got the other three Adaptors to look at her with raised brows. Something didn't feel right about what Ryouko had said, even if it didn't seem like she meant anything bad by it. "That might be where your energy and recovery abilities come from. I mean, Ritsudo-kun's body has definitely been affected by his use of the Ame-no-Murakumo, and the same for Kyomei-kun and Tsubasa-chan. But, you're a more unique case than even our precious anomaly."

"Wait, merging?" Hibiki tilted her head as she repeated the word. And all it did was make the ominous feeling the other three had grow that much more.

"It's only a possibility right now, a fancy little theory I cooked up. So don't worry too much."

"Oh. Thank goodness."

"I dunno… I'd be pretty worried if I were her." Murakumo choosing now to comment brought Ritsudo to glance at the Relic, the chain wrapped around his wrist jingling a bit as he moved his arm up. "Look, there's a reason I prevented you and her from Synchronizing before. My own properties may result in you two being Synch Compatible, but… something about the nature of her Symphogear doesn't sit right with me."

"Ryouko-san, do you think that could have anything to do with why Hibiki-san and I couldn't Synchronize when we tried that time?" Ritsudo decided to bring the idea up. He could also swear Murakumo was face-palming somewhere in the back of his head.

"Hmm, perhaps. Like I said before, that failed more in part to both of your mindsets at the time. But, there is a possibility of it. I mean after all, your Relic isn't exactly what I'd call an ordinary Symphogear." Ryouko pointed to Ritsudo's pendant, and he pulled his sleeve down as he glanced away. "I'll refresh you both. Synchronization is the process of overlapping your Aufwachen Waves to boost both of your outputs. While separately a Tuner and Harmonic produce different wave forms, if the two are compatible and wield Relics that are able to connect their Patterns, then you can begin the Synchronization. But it can fail or weaken if the partners don't have the mindset for it."

"I remembered that much." Hibiki said, putting her hands on her hips.

"But there is more to it." Kyomei said, his hand going to Tsubasa's. "When you're Synchronized, it's rather literal. You're not just resonating your songs, you're connecting to each other on a level past merely fighting in tandem."

"You end up being able to see the memories and thoughts of the other person." Tsubasa continued where Kyomei left the point at. "The process is one that, ultimately, requires the pair to trust each other just as much as it requires them to wield compatible Relics. Tachibana, I don't mean to sound harsh, but aside from your Gear's odd nature, but perhaps the attempt failed because somewhere in your mind, when you realized what was going on, you pushed back."

"I know for a fact I just didn't care." Ritsudo said, pocketing his hands. Hibiki looked down again, and that odd feeling came to Ritsudo again. Like he knew what was going through her head. "I know she and I went through the relatively same thing after that concert… but we both came out of it differently. Still… the memories she must have of that time, of when her life was at her lowest… how much does she really hate having to think about that time?"

"It's okay, it'll be fine." Hibiki said, tapping her cheeks. "Even if we can't Synchronize like you two, we'll still do our best! Right, Ritsu?"

"Of course… also I'm gonna keep at the thing of you not calling me senpai." Ritsudo playfully flicked Hibiki on the forehead, the girl giving a complaint as he did… but then Murakumo giving a chime drew his attention. "What now?"

"Before you head on back to the dorms, go out into the city for a bit. It should be quick enough, don't worry."

"And why should I do that when I'm tired as hell?"

"Just trust me kid. I've got a good reason for it."

Ritsudo sighed to himself as the presence of his Relic vanished with that. Amid a lighthearted talk of things as their little group yammered on, he had that now weighing on him all of a sudden. That, and the fact he still didn't feel that darker feeling from Hibiki go away. Even if she was acting like her normal self, it still remained that somewhere down there, Hibiki was pushing away thoughts and feelings she didn't want to express.

Though it seemed at the moment, this was one of those things were only time would tell what the actual case of events was. But… perhaps, Ritsudo thought, he'd do best not to simply let this one sit around and go unaddressed.

"But, for another time… guess I'll see just what Murakumo has in store for me."


Hibiki was tepid as she entered her dorm room. She was quiet as she closed the door and took of her shoes. She leaned past the secondary entrance and peered in. Miku was sitting quietly at the table, thumbing through a magazine. The dark-haired girl's expression wasn't telling of much. But, Hibiki could tell Miku was far from being in a good mood.

"Hey, Miku… how do I, um… that is…"

"Welcome back." The greeting was flat, though. None of it had Miku's usual warmth.

"Ah, yeah. I'm back." Hibiki said, worry back to her expression. "Can I come in?"

"Sure. It's your room too." Miku turned the page without so much as looking at Hibiki as she entered.

"Well… you see, Miku…"

"What?" Miku clapped the magazine shut and stood up, giving a huff. "Those people told me most of it. I don't think there's anything else for me to hear. Geez… Wataru is too understanding about things. He took it too well…"

"Miku…" Hibiki felt like some kind of spike had just been driven into her chest. She wasn't sure why… was it Miku's cold attitude, was it the clear thoughts aimed at Wataru, or some combination of both sensations? Hibiki couldn't pin any of it down… it just made her chest feel tight and painful. A feeling she hated.

"Liar. You said you wouldn't hide anything!" Miku's voice rose as she finally turned to Hibiki. Her eyes had hurt in them, and it made things obvious. She felt betrayed in a fashion. She'd trusted Hibiki not to keep secrets from her, their entire conversation barely even a week before felt like something had been driven through it now that she knew despite that, Hibiki had been keeping something from her for a while now, the entire time.

Hibiki just felt like that "spike" was being driven further in than she wanted it to be. She didn't want this kind of situation, not one where the place she felt most comfortable in was feeling like it was no longer that.


"Alright shiv, what's the reason you dragged me out here hmm? I'm still tired from the fighting, so this better be good." Ritsudo rolled an arm as he strolled through the park. Night was finally coming around so the sky had darkened and the city had lit up. There wasn't much more than the street lights illuminating the paths in the park around him as he'd been following Murakumo's directions.

"Ah it's pretty easy. While the systems you lot have may not be able to keep a track on a Relic, I can. I've been locked to that girl's Ichaival since she fled. So even when it's inactive I had a rough idea of where it is."

"What." Ritsudo stopped as the flat statement of shock came out of his mouth. "Of all the… just what the hell can't you do huh? I know for a damn fact you're anything but normal, but for real. What are you, some ultimate multi-tool?"

"I'm flattered you think that. But, sadly no. I'm just good at reading and messing with wave patterns. It's kind of my thing."

"Damn thing… fine. So, Yukine-san is in this park then?"

"Likely, yes."

Ritsudo sighed to the vague statement as he shoved his hands deep into his pockets and kept along. Since he had no clear idea where to even look, he just took to scanning around the park for any possible sign of Chris. What did get his attention, was when he picked up on the sound of a girl's crying from somewhere not far off. He heard someone else's voice come up as he got closer, but couldn't really make much of anything out.

What he did see once he got closer, was a bit of a scene. Two small kids, a boy and a girl, with the girl crying on the bench. And an older girl who in the moment didn't really click anything. Ritsudo was more concerned with the fact the older girl looked about ready to hit the boy as she shouted.

"Oi! What do you think you're doing, getting ready to hit a kid like that?" Ritsudo interrupted and grabbed the older girl by her forearm. As the girl snapped around to look at him, both she and Ritsudo gasped. It was Chris he'd just grabbed. "Oh. Well then."

"W-What the… you?!" Chris pulled her arm free of Ritsudo's hand, the young man sighing as he pocketed his hand.

"Alright, hold up. You two, what's going on here? Why's the girl crying? Kids your age shouldn't be on their own at this time of night anyway. So, what's the deal?" Ritsudo stepped over to the kids and knelt down to look them in the eye. Chris was also giving him a look. Because the expression on Ritsudo's face was calm, with a warm smile meant to make sure the children didn't get scared of his sudden arrival.

"Wait a second, he was being mean to you right?" Chris said, Ritsudo glancing at Chris with a suddenly narrowed look. "Oh don't give me that kinda look!"

"No, he wasn't! We're siblings!" The little girl said, Ritsudo giving a hum.

"We got separated from our dad." The brother said, putting a hand on his sister's shoulder. "We've been trying to find him, but my sister said she couldn't walk anymore, so…"

"Hmm, I see, I see." Ritsudo folded his arms as he nodded, then smiling again and putting a hand on the girl's head. "Your small, so resting if you're getting tired is helpful. Did you get hurt while you two were looking?"

"No. My legs are just tired." The girl said, Ritsudo nodding again as he stood up.

"Yeah I get that. I did a lot of stuff today so I'm kinda tired too." Ritsudo then held up a finger. "But, crying because you're sore is no good. Your brother is just trying to help you, I'd guess, so try to make it a bit easy on him alright? Rest if you need to though. Like I said, you're small so it'll help you."

"That's what I was trying to tell her." The brother said, Ritsudo giving the kid a nod too.

"That's mean!" The girl whined, she and her brother glaring at each other.

"Okay, okay, come on now don't start fighting." Ritsudo knelt down again, the kids looking to him. "So, let's go over this. You two are lost and looking for your dad. Do you know where you guys got separated?"

"Yeah. We were in town when we lost him. We were going to head to the police station, but…" The boy trailed off, and Ritsudo nodded again.

"If you're just lost then say so." Chris huffed, shaking her head. Ritsudo gave her that narrowed look again.

"But… but…" And the little girl started to cry again.

"Don't start crying!" Chris snapped.

"You made my sister cry!" The brother then got between Chris and his sister. Ritsudo sighed again as he stood up, and Chris grumbled as she turned.

"Aghh, this is such a pain!" Chris pulled at her hair a bit, Ritsudo shaking his head.

"Alright then. So, you two need to find your dad right? Then I'll help you." Ritsudo said, tapping a hand to his chest. "I can't just leave a couple of kids wandering around at this hour. So, let's go to where you two remember and start looking from there."

Chris then went quiet as Ritsudo and the kids looked at her. The quiet moment said more than enough of them basically saying "Are you going to help too?" at her. And she grumbled as she shied away from it. And when Ritsudo started leaning in with a smug look on his face, Chris groaned again.

"Ahhh fine! I'll help you out with it, so just quit giving me that smug look!"

"What smug look, this is just my face!" Ritsudo's joke pulled a laugh from the kids. Chris snapped around and shook her fist at Ritsudo as he snickered. Then the girl just huffed at folded her arms under her chest. No use getting around it now, was what she thought.

And the following search through the nearby district of the city was for the most part, quiet. Thankfully the crowd was thin, so scanning through them to try and point out the father of the two kids was the main strategy. There wasn't much talking aside from Ritsudo asking if anyone fit the description of the father he'd been given by the brother as they searched. But, so far no luck. So, while Plan A was to hopefully find the father as they wandered, Plan B was to take the kids to the police station so that they'd at least be in a safe, easy to find place since it was easy to assume their dad was looking for them.

Well, to say it was entirely quiet wasn't quite true either. Ritsudo had noticed but chose not to point it out. Chris had provided a bit of noise, though perhaps unintentionally. She was humming a tune to herself as they wandered, though from the idea, Ritsudo gathered she was simply doing so seemingly out of habit more than anything. But, he found the sound pleasant, so he didn't point it out. More for his own amusement than anything really.

Though the little girl did notice. Her wide eyes looking up at Chris finally caught the short girl's attention. Chris stopped her humming and looked down at the kid, a questioning look on her face.

"W-What?" Chris muttered.

"Do you like singing?" The girl asked, Chris letting out a breath.

"I hate songs." Chris bitterly grumbled in response, Ritsudo pocketing his free hand as he more directly looked at her, "Especially mine… all it does is break things."

"Well sometimes you have to break a thing to fix it." Ritsudo said, putting his arms behind his head. "That and you've got a cute voice."

"EH?! Where did that come from?!" Chris snapped, a blush coming to her face that got fiercer as Ritsudo shot her a smirk.

"Dad!" The brother stopped in his tracks, his sister gaining her own grin, Ritsudo turning to see the man they'd found, a grin showing as the kids ran over to their father, Chris looking on herself.

"There you are! Where did you go?" The father asked the kids, concern in his voice, his daughter then pointing to the teenagers.

"They got lost with us!" The girl stated, her brother sighing.

"Wrong. They helped us find you." The boy corrected, Ritsudo giving a chuckle at his deadpan remark.

"I'm sorry you two had to do that." The father bowed his head a bit, Ritsudo putting up a hand.

"It's no problem sir. I like kids, so helping a couple find their dad after getting lost is no skin off my back." Ritsudo replied, Chris nodding.

"Yeah… It was on the way for me anyway." Chris muttered, looking to the side with a "Is this really happening?" look.

"Did you two say thank you to them?" The father asked, his kids also bowing.

"Thank you!" The children thanked, Ritsudo nodding to them both.

"You're very welcome, I'm glad I could help." Ritsudo replied, giving a small bow of his own, Chris showing a small little grin of her own.

"You guys are close. Hey, would you mind telling me how you all came to be so close?" Chris inquired, kneeling down in front of the girl, who then hugged her brothers arm.

"I don't know. We always fight." The brother replied, Ritsudo shrugging with a slight, amused snicker.

"We fight, but we make up, so we're friends!" The sister added.

"Hehe… that's siblings for ya' I guess. Well then, make sure you don't get lost again a'ight?" Ritsudo hummed, the kids nodding, waving to him as they left with their dad, the teenager returning the gesture, then glancing at Chris as she turned to leave. "What, just going to leave without another word? Kinda rude isn't it?"

"Oh you shut up! Besides, as far as I'm concerned right now, you and me are still enemies!"

"Yeah but last I checked your boss ditched you and then sicced her buddy on you." Ritsudo pointed out, Chris glaring at him, "From my perspective, that makes you one of two things: A neutral party or someone effectively on the same team as me."

"Pffhahaha! Me, on the same team as you and that Gungnir girl? Don't make me laugh!" Chris scoffed, but Ritsudo easily saw her smirk wasn't genuine in any way.

"I'm sensing tsundere… lots of it…" Ritsudo sighed, putting a hand over his eyes. Then his stomach growled. "Do you wanna get something to eat?"

"What." Chris couldn't say much more than that flat statement. That question came right out of left field and to the head as far as she was concerned. "Why the hell would I do that?!"

"I dunno, maybe because today was exhausting and I'm thinking you might be hungry too. Plus there's this ramen place around here a friend told me about and I wanna check it out." Ritsudo then had a smirk spread on his face as Chris's stomach proceeded to loudly growl too. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Ugh… only because I'm hungry." Chris muttered, folding her arms again as she turned back around.

"Well alright then. It's this way."


The situation at Hibiki and Miku's dorm was still a tense one. It had been quiet the entire time, and Hibiki wasn't feeling good about it. As Miku just kept thumbing through her magazine, Hibiki took in a breath. Like Ritsudo had said, all she had to do was talk to Miku about things. It could smooth over then, right? It couldn't be that hard to settle this issue.

"Miku, I want you to listen to me. I-"

"You're just going to lie again, right?" Miku shut the magazine hard and stood up, her look as cross as it was before.

The dark haired girl went to the bunk bed, throwing aside the curtain. Normally, Hibiki and Miku used the lower bunk as extra storage for some things and shared the top bunk with each other. But, in a clear sign of how aggravated she was, Miku removed the boxes in the bunk and shut the curtain behind her.

"I'm sorry." Was all Hibiki felt she could say as she peered through the curtain. Miku didn't turn around, just facing away from Hibiki. She turned back and looked to a picture atop the piano across from the bed. A photo of the two girls when they were still in middle school. A happy picture, of both smiling with each other as Hibiki was jumping onto Miku.

Right now, that time felt all too far away for Hibiki. That "spike" she was feeling just felt all the heavier.


"Thanks for the food."

Ritsudo clapped his hands together in the usual gesture. The pleasant scent from the bowl of ramen in front of his nicely wafted up to his nose as he pulled the chopsticks he had apart. Chris just looked at him with a narrowed look, then to her own bowl as she muttered a bit.

"You didn't have to pay for me y'know?"

"Do you even have money on you?"

"… no."

"Then I would've had to anyway."

Chris just muttered again as Ritsudo got to eating. The boy slurped down a generous portion of the noodles, giving a satisfied sigh as he downed it. Chris took another moment, then followed suit on eating herself. And once she got the taste for it, the white haired girl's eyes lit up and she got to downing the good at a voracious pace. Enough that when she took a moment to stop, she had flecks of other ingredients and bits of the broth on her face.

"Kind of a messy eater huh?" Ritsudo leaned on a hand as Chris just brushed him off and kept eating. "So… why not tell me a bit about yourself hmm?"

"Why should I do that?" Chris bit, Ritsudo humming before downing another bit of his own meal. "Not like you can just buy me off with good food y'know?"

"I just think it's a fair trade. I feed you, and you tell me a little bit about what your case is. Not like we're not technically on the same side now after all." Ritsudo picked at the ramen a bit, glancing at Chris as she started to slow down. "I mean in a way it's just courtesy I'd suppose."

"Don't go expecting me to tell you my damn life story." Chris huffed a bit, then going red when Ritsudo plucked a stuck bit of noodle off her face. "What're you doing?!"

"Messing around." Ritsudo popped the noodle scrap into his mouth, and Chris let out a noise from her shut mouth as her face burned to her ears. "So?"

"It's not like it's super complex." Chris then put some fingers to the Symphogear pendant around her neck. "Finé picked me up two years ago when I was being returned to Japan. Everything that follows from there is just kinda history for me."

"Not gonna be more specific?"

"Well then why don't you tell me something about yourself and we'll see how I feel!"

"… I lost my parents when I was twelve." Ritsudo actually answering after his short pause made Chris freeze. She hadn't actually expected him to do so. "They died in a Noise attack while out shopping one day… I didn't find out about it until the alert was over and someone from my extended family arrived to pick me up from the station. After that, extended family went helicopter distance till I was 14, then I got ditched. Two years ago, that mess at the Zwei Wing concert happened, and I lost my best friends at the time there. I got picked by the 2nd Division after I kinda… snapped and beat some guys hard enough to put them in the hospital. And now I'm here after a cavalcade of things that set me straight."

"Get right to the point why don't you?" Chris said, sighing. There was no way she couldn't say anything after that. "Ugh. I lost my parents almost ten years ago. You know how South America has been having tons of civil wars in the past couple decades? They… well, they were trying to help put a stop to things, peacefully… they got killed in a bomb attack on the place we were staying at and… things happened. Eventually I was found by UN people and was slated to be brought back here. And then like I said, Finé found me first and took me in."

"I imagine there's a bit more but I won't press the issue." Ritsudo downed more food and then let out another sigh. "But lemme guess a bit. You were useful to have around since you were an Adaptor Candidate, meaning there was somebody who could use that Ichaival of yours. Though from what you've said… you hate the idea of using it."

"What good do songs even do on a battlefield?" Chris said, a growl to her voice. "Songs won't do anything… you need power, to stop others before they can use their power to hurt people weaker than them. I don't have any use for songs when that's my aim… besides, what good is a song that's only good for breaking things?"

"You'd be surprised how honest the songs our Gears produce actually tend to be." Ritsudo then finished his bowl by downing the broth in a single go, tapping his chest as he cleared his throat. Chris just went back to furiously eating as he set his chopsticks down. "I'd know. I had a song that hated the world before recently… all it said was how much I hated things, how much it hurt in a world like this… but, then someone told me what else was there. That behind that hurt, my song was one of someone who desperately wanted to live despite that pain. I may not be super confident in my new song yet… but I know I'm heading where I need to. And for now that's the best I can do. Even if it's frantically, even if I keep getting hurt because of it, I realized I really wanted to sing about how much I still want to live."

"But people abandoned you, didn't they?" Chris had a darkened look as she stared down, her hands bunching up. "All people did was hurt you and leave you alone before. How can you still want to live so badly, to want to save people, when that was what the world showed you when you were at the lowest? I don't get it… it just doesn't make sense how you can be like that after so much!"

"Are you talking to me, or yourself?" Ritsudo gave a breath as Chris froze up, folding his arms on the counter as he rolled his arm to look at Murakumo's pendant. "I made that choice because if I gave up, if I kept running away from life, then I'd be doing nothing but making what I lost mean nothing. My parents, my friends… if I ran away when I was still alive, then I'd do nothing but trample all over their memories. My parents, who did everything to give me a normal, peaceful life. My friends, who were there even when others made me an outcast. And now… now I have too many things I want to protect to even think about running away again."

Chris just went silent, just getting to silently finishing off her own food. Ritsudo sighed to himself, then pulled the receipt from his payment, pulling out a pen and then scrawling some numbers onto it. He tapped Chris on the shoulder and then held the paper out, the girl staring at it as she took it.

"Those numbers belong to me and my boss. If you've got nowhere else to go after this then just give me or him a call. Trust me when I say that man will help you. He was willing to help a mess like me no matter how much I pushed back. I'm sure another won't be a problem for him." Ritsudo's soft smile made Chris flinch again. She just looked away and shoved the paper in the one spot she really could, in her chest, and then stormed out of the restaurant without another word.

"You know she's going to be heading back to where Finé is, right?" Murakumo said, Ritsudo nodding.

"I know… and I can guess what the result might end up being." Ritsudo sighed to himself, then waved down the chef when the man asked what the scene was even about. "Just… a bit of a complex situation… hagh, tomorrow is gonna be a looong day."