X

In the library Anthony came to through the doors seeing a mostly empty section of the school as it was seven in the morning, he walks over to the counter while a librarian was too busy to look up from her work sheets. Anthony stood there staring down at the oblivious woman until he faked a cough to catch her attention to look up from her desk, and almost jumped from her seat when seeing Anthony standing over her counter.

"I like to return this," He frankly said holding up the fantasy book for her to see.

Placing it on the counter he gently slides the book closer to her in arms reach for her to grab, the librarian hesitantly takes the book back.

"C-can I help you with anything else?" she asked nervously.

"No, I'm fine," Anthony told her not even acknowledging her brief stutter before walking away.

As he exits through the door Laura was standing quietly against the walls on the outside of the library quickly catching up to him from behind however even though Anthony didn't even bothered to turn his head around he already knew.

"I thought I told you that we shouldn't be near one another," Anthony reminded her keeping his eyes forward.

"It's been three weeks, can we discuss what your government is doing?" Laura asked

"It's a dictatorship, all in the name of social justice and to pursue a socialist utopia that no one asked."

"Then why did the people vote for it?"

"Don't you get it?" Anthony stopped her, "There is no vote, we have no say in what we do, the state decides what we do and do not need for us."

"I know your message didn't get out, my people can help you," Laura offered.

"If your people didn't knew what was happening in all those years, I doubt they'll help," Anthony regarded halting right in the middle of the hall, "*sigh*... The country I loved growing up almost doesn't exist and if they figure out how to make more of me before anyone on the outside knows what's happening, no one can save us." With his hands behind his back the young man didn't even turn around to meet Laura in the eye, "Soon I have to go back, they already got all the information they needed to learn from me... they're probably closer to building up that army... it doesn't matter how great the IS pilot is because suits like, Perseus, will rip them to shreds like wolves to elk... so if you excuse me I have a love I like to spend my remaining time with."

Anthony walks off leaving Laura behind wondering if there's really no hope for Anthony and the place he used to call home, if no other would look through the shroud to find the truth then she will.

Laura stormed down the hall the clacking of her heels echoing off the walls as she ran all the way back to her room.

\Later/

In the cafeteria Ichika, Lingyin, Houki, and Cecilia were all enjoying their lunch until Charlotte came bursting through the doors.

"Ichika! Ichika!" she cried out in distress.

"Charlotte, what is it?" Ichika stood up from the table.

"Laura's leaving Japan!" she exclaimed in a panic, "She's heading to the airport right now!"

\Airport/

The group wasted no time as Charlotte explained that Laura had packed a bag, but did not say where she was going as she left her dorm, racing through the busy crowd Ichika and the girls pushed passed people that stood in their way. They shouted out her name over and over trying to find her in the packed building as the flights were being called to depart.

"Ichika, I found her!" Houki shouted pointing to the obvious one-eyed, silver-haired girl about to board her flight.

"Flight to Los Angeles will be departing in five minutes," the speaker announced over the horn as the echo faded.

"Laura!" Ichika shouted her name running towards her, "Laura, stop!"

Hearing the voice of the boy she fell for Laura turns to see him and the others come towards her.

"What are you all doing here!?" she questioned with a ticket in her hand.

"We can say the same thing," Cecilia countered.

"I can't tell you," she refused to say, "It's too dangerous to say it out in the open."

"What are you doing?" Ichika questioned, "Laura, you saw what's happening in San Francisco, it's a war-zone."

"Anthony needs help... those people in that country needs help, I can do that, show the world what's actually happening, but I have to go in alone..."

Laura turned away taking her steps forward towards her plane, the rest watch as she boarded not even trying to go out to stop her as she disappears as the plane sealed its door.

Inside Laura headed to her purchased seat stuffing her bag into the over head, she calmly sat down into her chair as others traveling on business, vacation, or just returning home settle down as the trip out to the west coast was about to begin.

While outside the Ichika and the rest of the girls watched concerningly from the window as the plane that carries their friend up into the vast blue air shrinking into the distance until it no longer can be seen.

\IS Academy/

The lock to his dorm room was lifted so he no longer had to kill time waiting for the door to unlock itself, earlier in the day Hatsu have asked Anthony if they could meet up in his dorm however in Anthony's room there was nothing to do, but wait. Sitting at the desk Anthony waited for his girlfriend to come walking through his door wondering patiently what was the occasion for her to make that request.

With a high pitch creek Anthony was brought out from his thoughts seeing Hatsu step right though his door bring a smile onto his, she stopped dying her hair letting her natural color come through to be a dark shade of brown. Ever since they started dating Hatsu has been putting more care to how her hair looked, it no longer looked as wild it did before cutting it shorter to manage it more better, it now no longer went passed her shoulders, but the bangs still looked spiky. Anthony said she looked cuter that way earlier in the weeks, it made her blush she felt more comfortable around him than anyone she came across in her life.

"So... how'd the test go?" Anthony asked.

Hatsu hands him a folded work sheet letting him find it out for himself seeing that her "D" turned into a "C+" it wasn't a drastic change, but one that's still better than before as Anthony smiled.

"Hey, falling flat on your face still counts as moving forward," Anthony told her handing her back the graded sheet.

"Anthony... I have something very important to tell you," she stated shutting the door behind her.