Chapter 20: Spin, the Wheel of Samsara

By the time Sakura was found, she seemed to have already finished with what she herself had gone off to do on her own. But clearly, something was weighing on the young woman as she trudged down the road, though almost immediately she seemed to endeavor to hide it when she saw the group rushing to meet up with her.

"All of you…? I thought you would have returned to the temple," Sakura said, getting an irate look from Kallen.

"Really? You honestly think we'd be that heartless?" Kallen said, Sakura looking away. "Going off on your own in situations like this is far too dangerous. Shouldn't you know better?"

"There's no reason for all of you to put yourselves in danger for my sake," Sakura countered. "Soleil, Mei, you yourselves have said you are only searching for your mentor. You should concern yourselves with that instead of this. And you two… you perhaps have even less reason to involve yourselves. It is my duty as Miko to protect this village, and that's a task that should remain mine and mine alone."

"Entirely?" Logos asked. "And what would happen to the village then if something happened to you? If you were wounded, or fell ill? Then where would they be? You're setting yourself up for disaster by making it where these people have to rely solely on you to protect them from these monsters. That wound on your arm, for example."

"Never mind this," Sakura hid the arm in question, a fresh cut clearly visible through her sleeve. "This is just a flesh wound, nothing more."

"Nonsense!" Kallen objected. "You went out of your way to care for people who were injured, fed them medicine even! You even set these two up to help them find their missing mentor! And yet you neglect to take care of yourself. Why treat yourself so poorly?"

"You and I are different, Kallen… very different," said the Miko, again turning away.

"We are different. No one cared for you before. And if nobody will… then I'll just have to in their place!" Kallen's statement brought Logos to bring a hand to his head. Mei and Soleil shared a surprised look. "Logos and I will care for you where you won't, right?"

"Don't just…" Logos groaned, rolling his eyes as Kallen gave him a look. "It's… agh, fine. It's not as if Kallen and I have anywhere to go now. So long as we can keep the box out of Schicksal's hands… staying here doesn't seem like that bad of an idea, I suppose."

"Come on Logos, be more into it!" Kallen said, the red-haired man craning his neck away from her gaze. "You're always so obstinate at times like this! Is giving people help truly so hard for you to just own up to?"

"It doesn't help when you put me on the spot like that!"

"These two absolutely have something going on…" Soleil shook his head, Mei chuckling at the short-lived spat.

"Anyway!" Kallen turned back to Sakura, a beaming grin on. "You don't have to fight alone any longer, Sakura. Logos and I will remain and fight with you from now on."

"I… You don't…" Sakura's attempts at rejection fell away, a soft smile finally coming to her features. "Thank you… both of you. Right now I'm tired so… I want to return to the Shrine for now."

"Well then we all will, and while we're at it, we'll dress that wound," Logos said, Sakura nodding. The man then turned to Soleil and Mei, giving an apologetic tip of the head as Kallen led Sakura off, "Sorry for having effectively dragged you two out here, in the end it was Kallen who did most of the work."

"It's fine, you two get her back to the shrine," Soleil replied. "Mei and I will look around a bit, see if we can't find traces of our mentor while we're at it."

"We have enough energy to last a while longer. We'll return to the shrine once it grows dark," Mei added.

"Be safe at least. I'm worried about the state of things… there's far too many corrupted animals near here," Logos put a hand to his chin, a troubled look coming to his eyes. "It… this may be our fault. The box could be the cause of their numbers."

"That purple box Kallen had on her?" Soleil got a nod, "What even is it?"

"We're unsure of its exact nature ourselves… somewhat," Logos said. "It's more or less a bundle of incredibly dense Honkai Energy… and it contains something. Kallen said so herself, as she confronted that is sealed within before we left Europe. I've heard the tales about them but… it may be possible that box contains the essence of something called a Herrscher."

"You mean one of those things from the stories?" Soleil figured he may as well play along. Logos was clearly telling them this since he assumed they had some knowledge on the operation of Honkai energy, but not everything they knew. Mei notably took on an uneasy expression at the mention of the name. "One of the envoys of the Honkai?"

"Yes, though it's only a legend about what one could become, nothing more… but legends always come from something," Logos shook his head. "I won't keep you two from your search any longer. I'll see you back at the shrine later."

As Logos departed, Mei's troubled look grew, and she let out a sigh. "Could that be it? Could this incident have been caused by a Herrscher? Something these people are in no way equipped to handle?"

"If it is… that would also mean it was a Herrscher from the Previous Era," Soleil noted. "The First Herrscher didn't appear until 1952, so there's no other plausible chance of that. But then the question is… which Herrscher was it? From what I know, in the Previous Era they were able to eliminate most of the Herrschers that appeared, so which one would need to be sealed to neutralize it?"

"So it couldn't have been an ordinary Herrscher either," Mei's eyes widened as realization hit her, "Considering the situation we're in… this also explains what happened to Theresa! The Stigmata we've entered must be the one belonging to this Previous Era Herrscher!"

"Ah shit…" Soleil put a hand to his forehead as the same realization hit him. "This just got a lot more dangerous than we thought it was… finding Theresa just got a lot more important than it was already. If it is a Herrscher… well we can only hope it'll be too weak to do anything if it somehow takes control before we get Theresa out of here. Bronya!"

"Da?" As thankfully quick as Soleil could hope for.

"You and the other two need to be extra cautious," Soleil said, "The Stigmata likely belongs to a Previous Era Herrscher that was sealed away somehow. If it takes control of Theresa's body, make sure she stays or else this could get a lot worse."

"Ponyal," Bronya replied, "I will inform Kiana and Siegfried of the change in situation. The Bronya recommends hurrying the search for Theresa to avoid problems. What is your current situation?"

"Things are still progressing according to this simulation… or maybe recreation," Mei said. "We still haven't found Theresa though. We have some time, so we'll get searching for her since we seem to have some time now. Do you have any read on where she could be here?"

"Theresa's signature is weak, but she seems nearby. The Bronya cannot pinpoint where though. It is as if something is interfering in attempts to locate her."

"Meaning whatever started this knows we're here to get her back," Soleil clicked his tongue. "Alright. Hopefully she's still her and didn't get her consciousness shoved into something else that'll make it hard to notice…" Soleil felt an internal lurch, "Why do I feel like I missed something before?"

"Let's just get looking," Mei stated, "This space can't be that large, so she has to be somewhere in here, even if… not as herself," Mei then gained a similar expression to Soleil, "Maybe we should be absolutely sure of that idea."

"… Theresa is gonna be so mad at us if it turns out we missed her when this is all over," Soleil got a nod of agreement from Mei. All they could do now was hope they could do this quickly. And not be punished for it afterwards if such was the case.

After what felt to them like hours of searching, Soleil and Mei hadn't turned up any signs of Theresa anywhere they looked. The villagers had no idea who they were talking about when asked, and all signs around the perimeter of the village didn't lead to any clues either. The two knew they couldn't give up, but by the time they arrived at the steps leading to the shrine, they nearly felt half a mind to.

"How is it possible for there to be no sign of her?" Mei wondered, sitting down to rest her legs. "She has to be somewhere within this dataspace! Bronya-chan said she was nearby, so where could she have gone?"

"The other thing is it's unclear if there's a slight time dilation between this space and the real world," Soleil noted. "When Kiana and I used these things last, Bronya had them tweaked so the lesson could be given in a short time. What felt like a day or two to me and Kiana was barely even an hour. And if this space is made and controlled by a Herrscher… well, I don't want to consider it got to Theresa before we did."

"I mean… when we arrived, the data scape we entered from was already collapsing," Mei noted. "Is it possible it was in collapse because Theresa had already been through these events herself?"

"We shouldn't rule it out… but then wouldn't she have wound up here?" As Soleil tried to piece things together, further up the steps, he caught sight of that same white cat from before, staring down at him and Mei from its perch. "That cat again…"

Before they could ponder it further, both felt some kind of pulse in the air. As if it glitched, the sky changed without warning, becoming dark as night, and smoke was now billowing into the air from the temple. Soleil and Mei shot to their feet, and they could see the village was in no better state either, the echoes of panic rising even to them.

"What in the… what happened?!" Mei gasped.

"It just shot us forward!" Soleil grit his teeth as he looked up the path and saw zombies and minor beasts beginning to wander out before them. "As much as this is a recreation, part of me bets the Herrscher wants to stall for time. We probably would have been shoved here if we'd been somewhere else."

"So then what do we do?" Mei asked, and the cat elected to perch itself on her shoulder. "What are you doing here?"

The cat pointed with it's tail up the path, as if signaling for the two to head to the temple.

"Guess this cat was having the same idea as me!" Soleil shot up the steps as he drew one of his swords, the blade flashing through the air as he cut down the first zombie to lunge for him. "Let's get there as fast as we can!"

"Right!"

There was no hesitation as Mei joined Soleil in a sprint up the stairs. As the zombies and beasts tried to harry the two, the air flashed from the swings of their blades or blasts of energy from Soleil as they charged. Perhaps it was also the knowledge this was a mere simulation that made it easier for them to drive forward so fiercely, they only had to focus on advancing and not about the village below… but inside, Soleil felt himself realizing that thought was a bit cruel in and of itself. But with Theresa on the line, he knew they couldn't afford to hesitate for the sake of fragments of memories alone.

As the two broke through the crowd and to the ground in front of the shrine, they spotted Logos and Kallen fighting off another group of zombies, and they were quick to turn once they spotted Soleil and Mei approaching.

"You two have been gone for a while!" Logos said, lowering the black gun in his hands as the crowd finally died down. "Where did you get here from?"

"We were away from the shrine," Soleil said, "What's going on?"

"Sakura, she…" Kallen clicked her tongue as she stamped a foot. "I should have been warier! It was the box! She's fallen under its influence. And when I said we would look out for her… how did I fail to consider that option?"

"It's not your fault Kallen," Mei said, "Whatever was in that box must have been preying on something within Sakura. Do you think we can save her?"

"It's possible, hopefully," Kallen said. "She's still in the shrine! Let's hurry before this gets worse!"

Soleil and Mei nodded as Kallen shot off first. The fires only raged higher as they entered the shrine grounds, and right at the center was Sakura, standing in place and looking skyward with a gaze seemingly staring at something else. And a faint, purple colored aura was surrounding her body.

"Why… why Rin?" Sakura spoke unawares of the approaching group. "What did Rin do wrong?! I refuse… I refuse! You won't take her away from me!"

"Sakura!" Kallen called, "You have to wake up! What's speaking to you, the things it's telling you are all false! Don't listen to the voice from the box!"

"I cut the ropes that bound her… we were supposed to escape together!" But Sakura's cries continued. "But they… they hamstrung her hands and feet. She knelt there… right there. Then she raised her head and said: "Kill me, Sakura. Let me die to save this village." That…"

"Sakura, you need to stop!" Logos yelled. "That thing preys on negative emotions! Whatever ill-will you hold will only be amplified! If you seek retribution from the village then fine, but don't give into the whims of something like that monster! It doesn't wish to help you, no matter what it whispers to you!"

How much of this is just a recreation of memories, and how much of this is really happening? Soleil grit his teeth as the thought came to him. There had to be some reason Theresa had the Stigmata on her. It couldn't have just appeared, meaning something, or rather, someone passed it to her. But who? And how? Part of me isn't sure I want to be right…

"To think… Rin was in so much pain…" And still Sakura continued as if unaware of the others around her, "To think they'd do that to her… and yet… she smiled at me. She was in so much pain, and she smiled at me, told me to protect everyone. What could I do?! I couldn't save her! I… I had to put her out of her misery…"

"Sakura, it isn't too late!" Soleil shouted. He wanted to try and bank on something. "You can stop this! You can put aside the things the Herrscher is telling you! I saw it, Sakura! What happened to Rin, what happened to you! I know how you feel but you can't keep wallowing in it!"

"It's already too late!" Sakura shrieked, finally facing them… or rather, facing Soleil. "It's way too late! She's dead! My sister Rin is dead! They… everyone I cared for is dead!"

"Well well! This has gotten more interesting!" A new voice cackled as the world around Soleil and Mei froze in place. Sakura however, didn't. A viscous smirk split her face, and foxlike ears sprouted to form on her head. But the voice that came from her mouth wasn't hers. "To think someone bearing that one's light would find their way too me in this place! Ahahaha, it's almost comical, isn't it?!"

"So, you are a Herrscher," Soleil growled.

"Of course I am! Who's Stigmata do you think this is? It certainly isn't Sakura's!"

"Then what is this!?" Mei demanded, leveling her sword.

"It is as you see it. A recreation of memories… of Sakura's memories," The Herrscher snickered as Soleil and Mei glared at them. "Oh, realizing it are you? Don't you know your history? Or do I need to tell you the sordid tale of the girl who wandered this land for 500 years bereft of the only two people she cared for?"

"Sakura never died…" Soleil recalled what he had learned previously. While the records had been scant, they had never said anything of Sakura dying herself. "But then how?!"

"You haven't pieced it together?! It's that damned box!" The Herrscher spat, "For too long I was sealed in that damned thing, and that one…" they pointed to Kallen, "Made sure I would remain there! But oh neither her nor the man knew what to expect when they brought me here! Hahahaha! Sakura was the perfect vessel! So full of hate and loathing for the people around her! All it took was a few suggestions and she was mine! But… damn fool she is! Just when we had regained a body, she gave it up to save that other woman all because she looks like Kallen!"

"So that's why she has the Stigmata," Mei said. "Which means if we beat you, we can free Theresa!"

"Ahahaha! You honestly think it's that simple! FOOLS! I've already conquered that woman!" The Herrscher's joyous howl of laughter shocked both teens to the core. "It was surprisingly easy to do to be honest. Just the proper set up of a situation, and I was able to seal her mind where it won't cause any trouble for me! All that's left is to bring her body under my complete control… so, I'll let you two continue to play around with this false history a bit longer! The better for me Sozo's chosen remains here!"

"Wait!" As Soleil stepped forward, a blast of force kept him back, and the world around them resumed as if a film had been set back to play. "Dammit!"

"It has been a long time, Kallen!" The voice of the Herrscher sounded again, but now was accompanied instead by the aura around Sakura growing into a vaguely humanoid shape with glaring red eyes.

"You… the demon in the box." Kallen grit her teeth. "You're the one who corrupted Sakura! Return her to us now!"

"Return her?" The Herrscher chuckled, then breaking into full on laughter. "Sakura wanted things to end this way! Don't you get it?! I offered her the power to get back at the people who stole her sister from her, and she willingly chose it! I have nothing to return to you!"

"That's impossible!" Kallen shouted back. "Logos and I have only known her for a short while, but I know for a fact she's a kind, determined person! She isn't the kind who'd fall to the likes of you!"

"Soleil-kun, what do we do?" Mei whispered, Soleil knitting his brow.

"Right now, all of this is just playing out like before but… if what the Herrscher said is true, Sakura is the lynchpin to all of this," he stated. "If what that Herrscher said is true… then the Sakura in front of us right now is the real thing."

"What?!" Mei gasped.

"Kallen, talking won't get us anywhere," Logos said, twirling his guns upward. Right… Logos was carrying the Judgment of Shamash with him until Kallen died, Soleil recalled, his eyes staying on the guns. Meaning the Herrscher and Sakura have memories of them… I wonder…

"The Knight is correct, Paladin!" The Herrscher's phantasm faded down into Sakura, her eyes glinting red as she drew her sword. "There is only one way for us to settle this, as warriors do! You desire to save Sakura? Then expel me from her, as is your duty!"

"If that is what must be done… then fine!" Kallen whipped an arm out, and to Soleil and Mei's surprise, the familiar cross of Oath of Judah formed by her hand, opening so Kallen could draw a javelin from it. "We'll defeat you and save Sakura! Soleil, Mei, I know this is asking much, but will you fight with us?"

"Not like we have a lot of options," Soleil said, flipping his sword around to have the back forward. "Not sure how much help we'll be, but we'll do our best! Mei…" Soleil shifted expression as he glanced to Mei, "Play along for now… I need to find an opening so I can get a hit in. Remember what me and Kiana did back in Nagazora?"

"You're going to see if that will work on Sakura as well?" Mei looked ahead as Soleil nodded. The girl smiled as she reversed her own sword. "Alright then! Let's fight our hardest to save Theresa and Sakura!"

"Ahahaha! You fools are welcome to try!"

"Sakura" shot forward with a manic laugh, swinging her sword at Kallen. The paladin blocked with her javelin, twirling the weapon to force "Sakura" back. Logos took aim, "Sakura's" sword batting away the orange bolts as he skirted around the edge. Mei dove in as Kallen charged again, "Sakura" drawing her shorter sword to block both of their weapons, turning things into a melee with Logos taking his chances to shoot. But, "Sakura's" reactions were quick, not even a three-way assault being enough to deter her as the air rang with the clashing of weapons again and again.

Why does something seem off? Soleil could swear the image before him was flickering. Or rather, he was seeing something else. The image of a giant, fox-like creature, of Logos and Kallen fighting that instead. Flickering in and out of form over the fight he was currently watching instead. Is that the real history… or something else going on with this data space? It can't be stable at this point…

"Soleil-kun!"

Mei's shout pulled Soleil out of his short stupor. His sword flew up on reaction along, the air screaming from metal collision as he found "Sakura" in his face, the wicked snarl she bore getting uncomfortably close as she pushed the blade lock back. Soleil grit his teeth as he pushed back, blue light flaring around him as he stamped his foot forward, the edge of his sword flashing as he pushed down. A ribbon of blue followed the edge as "Sakura" moved her sword down to avoid being hit, though Soleil refused to let her back away as his sword came back from the side, all the while still trailing ribbons of sky blue as the swords slammed against each other.

"What are… you're one of them!" "Sakura" yelled, dodging away from a stab. "You… I know those kinds of powers… is this some kind of joke?!"

Soleil was almost surprised by the sudden increased in force at the swing that came for him next. "Sakura" was forced back as Kallen and Mei attacked from behind, Logos' next volley of fire keeping her further away. Soleil cursed at having failed to find a chance for a direct blow, but now he knew something at least. She's familiar with my powers… meaning this Herrscher's encountered someone like me before. If they are from the Previous Era then, I wonder…

"We won't be getting anywhere at this rate," Logos said, "Kallen, you need to bind her with Judah so we can stop her from moving. Sealing her may be our only option…"

"But if…" Kallen clicked her tongue, seeing that Logos was just as visibly frustrated as she was. "You may be right. If it is our only option… then I will do as I must!"

"Soleil-kun?" Mei looked to Soleil, who let out a breath.

"I just need one opening… if I can see into Sakura's memories again, then maybe," Soleil shut an eye as his vision flickered again. "There has to be a way… so let's go!"

"Sakura" let out a roar as they charged again, the phantom image of something akin to a samurai rising behind her. With a slash of her sword, the phantom shot out, swinging its twin blades down at Soleil and Mei. The two blocked the phantom swords, allowing Kallen to rush through as Judah's chains trailed behind her. The woman used the phantom as a springboard, Logos keeping "Sakura" in place with a volley of fire. Kallen descended, throwing her javelin down, Sakura batting the weapon aside, only for the chains connected to it to lash out and bind her. But, that snarl turned to a smirk.

"Jizo Mitama!" At her roar, the phantom shot back from Soleil and Mei, zipping around to slash at Kallen… only for a sudden storm of chains to appear in the air and bind the phantom in place. "Damn you… Damn you Kaslana!"

"Mei, Soleil!" Kallen barked, Mei and Soleil rushing forward and driving their swords through the phantom, sparks of electricity and ribbons of sky blue cutting it down.

"Sakura" roared as she fought against the chains binding her. One of her arms got free, lunging for Kallen… only to be met by Soleil rushing past and shouldering her. As the Herrscher realized just what was occurring, Soileil had already brought his light covered hand around, slamming it into "Sakura's" gut hard enough to buckle her over his arm. Come on! If you are the real Sakura, then let me in! Let me in at least a bit!

"For so long… why…? Why have I been saved…? Kallen… Logos… why save me and not yourselves…"

And he felt it. Vaguely, but there. The fragments of memories flowing into him from the brief contact before "Sakura" shoved him away with a rough punch. As she stumbled back, more chains came out with a wave of Kallen's hands, further binding her into place as Kallen reclaimed her javelin. With a face filled with regret, Kallen raised the spear towards "Sakura."

"You're going to seal me again?!" the possessed girl yelled. She tried to struggle, only to find she couldn't move so much as an inch. "Why can't I… it's you?! You're still fighting me, Yae Sakura?!"

"Sealing you is the least I can do," Kallen stated. "Forgive me, Sakura… were we more prepared, perhaps we could have avoided this."

As Mei and Soleil watched Kallen's javelin move forward, they saw the world around them suddenly flash white. The air whirled like a storm, heated like an inferno as they felt themselves carried up and thrown away like being cast through the air. It was only for a few moments, then they came crashing to a stop just as quickly.

"Where…?" Mei looked around as she sat up, finding they were at the very riverbank they had first arrived in when they came to the Stigmata space. Though thankfully not in the river this time. "We're back here? Did we get thrown into another data space?"

"Must have…" Soleil groaned as he stood, stumbling a bit as he put a hand to his head. "The one we were in… must have collapsed at that moment. As if… as if reaching that point forced it to collapse and move to the next one."

"So… are we in some kind of loop?" Mei looked to the side, spotting the white cat from before standing on a tree. "Did it fall here with us? Or is it another part of the data space?"

"Dammit!" Soleil punched a tree without replying to Mei, who flinched at this sudden outburst. "It was close! I got close, I know it!"

"Did you see Sakura's memories?" Mei asked.

"Kind of. I heard her, like when Kiana and I fought the other you," Soleil said, sitting down by the river, picking up a stone and skipping it across the water. "But it wasn't enough. The question then is… what?"

"Maybe… maybe we should interfere more," Mei suggested, Soleil raising a brow. "This is a recreation of Sakura's memories right? And yet it still responds to us as if we're totally natural. Wouldn't that mean we can interfere more than we have? Bronya-chan!"

"Yes?" Bronya's answer was instant as ever, "Your locations have changed. What occurred?"

"We lost your signals for a moment there!" Kiana leaned in as well, "Did you fight something?! Bronya said the readings were starting to go nuts!"

"Well, it turns out this is absolutely a Herrscher Stigmata," Soleil said, Kiana visibly double-taking while Bronya flinched. "We got thrown back to where we started from last time. This thing must be running these memories like some kind of cycle."

"And I figured, if we're going to free Theresa, then maybe we need to interfere with the memories," Mei stated. "Everything here responds to us naturally, so it seemed like that could be possible. We still don't know where Theresa is though… but it's the best idea I can think of."

"Interference could cause destabilization within the data scape… but…" Bronya hummed in thought for a moment. "If you were to cause a radical change in events, then perhaps it would cause a change in the status of the Stigmata and its hold on Theresa. It is indeed logical. If this is a cycle of events repeating itself, then it is logical some outside force must intervene to break it."

"Wait, are you saying Mei-senpai and Soleil-senpai are in a time loop?" Kiana's expression changed as she started processing the idea. "Well… not a normal time loop, but like, one where… agh, my brain hurts trying to think about it!"

"Don't burn yourself out on it, Kiana," Soleil said, shaking his head. "There was something else I figured; I think the Sakura we've met is the real one," Soleil nodded when Kiana gasped, "Its farfetched, but I think that whatever happened 500 years ago meant Sakura was still alive, somehow. And spending that much time bound to a Herrscher… it would almost make them inseparable."

"Interference…" Mei mumbled. Her eyes widened as something came to her. "That box! Everything that we saw happened because Sakura interacting with that purple box, right? Meaning it must be the thing we have to interfere with to try and break the cycle!"

"What are you talking about?" Kiana asked. Then she also gained a look of realization. "Wait! I know this! It was a thing from when Soleil-senpai and I did this before! Didn't Kallen and Logos steal something from Schicksal before they arrived at the Far East? The box is that, right?! It has to be!"

"Glad you remembered the lesson," Soleil mused. "So, the box, eh? Yeah… that sounds about right. Alright! I guess this time, we're gonna be taking the role of the cycle busters! Hehehe, actually sounds kinda fun. But… what even caused it? Kallen had one hell of a fight hold on that box. So something had to happen."

"Then let's be sure to stick with Sakura as much as we can," Mei said. "If we stay around her, then maybe we'll see what happened ourselves. Remember that first night, when she went out hunting on her own?"

"That may have been in," Soleil put a hand to his chin, a small grin coming to him. "Yeah… that's a plan for sure!"

"Then the Bronya believes the mission has been set," Bronya stated, "Soleil-niisama and Mei-neesama will interfere in the events of the Stigmata's cycle so that it will destabilize. Hopefully, this will lessen the burden on Theresa and make locating her easier. We will continue observation. Good luck."

Soleil and Mei nodded, turning and heading off down the riverbank yet again. And from its perch in the tree, the cat was watching them with what one could perhaps consider an annoyed expression, swishing its tail back and forth for a few moments before leaping down to follow the teenagers. Why it did… perhaps they were merely missing something that perhaps was much more obvious than they were considering it to be.

A/N
Ahhh I didn't wanna take so long to get to this but hey it happens. Getting through the rest of this SHOULD be a breeze but considering my update speeds... eh. This ALSO marks the 20th chapter of this fic so hey, milestone!