I didn't take too long this time. I actually would have had this up a few days ago, but I instead started writing the next chapter, so that should be up soon enough too! Considering I'm moving into college in a week (still unbelievable to me), there is no way I am achieving my goal of reaching the midpoint of the story- unless I go crazy and write more than a chapter per day, which is just impossible especially given the lengths of my chapters. But do not fret: my entrance to college does not prevent me from writing! I'll definitely try to update on breaks and when I can obtain some free time. But enough of that, and onward to the story!
Amu stared at her reflection in the mirror with a grimace. She donned a frilly yellow dress that cascaded just below her knees. Her pink hair was tied into a small ponytail, held up by a matching yellow ribbon. She wore hanging earrings that appeared to be shining, particularly in the darkness of the room. She looked as though she was radiating; why did this seem wrong?
"Arisa picked this out for me," She tried to reassure herself, biting her lip. "She is my forever." Somehow, a lingering doubt filled her mind. It was all going to be over soon, Arisa promised. No longer would she have to plague herself with the troubles of reality or the pain of living a fake life. But why, Amu tried to rationalize, why did it seem as if she was being misled?
"I'm being ridiculous," She mumbled, shaking her head slowly.
"Is something the matter?" She did not even need to turn her head to see the little girl. Arisa stood next to her, her reflection beaming through the mirror.
"Not at all," Amu lied, a small smile forming. "I just… you made me look completely different."
"You look beautiful," Arisa complimented, prompting Amu's face to redden. "Are you ready? Things are going to change—for the better."
"Our forever…"
"Will be reality," Arisa promised. "Soon, your worries will be alleviated. All of the strife you wished to escape will soon be a thing of the past. Are you ready?"
As Amu gazed into the emerald eyes of her companion, she allowed herself to drown in rich promises—promises that guaranteed her the world. In front of her stood a girl, but to Amu, the prospect of the world was what gazed back at her comfortingly, guaranteeing her an eternity of bliss. Freedom was finally tangible; she could embrace the concept of forever once and for all.
"Yes…" Amu replied. A small smile formed on the girl's face.
"Our paths shall join eternally soon. No longer will we be apart, Amu-Chan." Arisa extended her hand. "Do you trust me?" Trust… Amu's eyes glowed, prompting a warm smile to form. She outstretched her hand and took Arisa's smaller hand in hers. Arisa smiled benignly back. The little girl turned away from Amu for a moment. "Soon, Luca…" She whispered, her eyes closed.
Slowly, the mossy blonde haired teenager stirred, her eyes slowly opening. She blinked a few times, focusing on the world around her. She began to rise to her feet, before a hand was on her shoulder. She turned to the side quickly.
"Don't over-exert yourself, Saira," The assistant director chastised. "The use of X-Energy should never be regarded lightly."
"She's ready," Saira began. "Amu Hinamori. She's entirely under my control now." Beside Deidre stood Rima, who maintained a stoic expression. Internally, however, Rima could feel her heart racing. The smile that formed on Saira's face only worsened Rima's mood.
"Already?" Deidre wondered, surprised. "My uncle will be pleased. The indoctrination is quite above schedule."
I speculated a few more weeks! Rima thought, biting her lip. This is worse than I thought. I hope I can prepare the others quickly enough.
"Miss Hinamori is much more susceptible than I would have imagined," Saira explained. "She will be quite easy to control."
"Perfect." Deidre turned to face Rima. "Rima-San, you say that the guardians meet at the so-called Royal Garden located on Seiyo Academy, correct? Where I first met them?" Rima nodded slowly. What is she planning?! "The guardians are the only threat to our plans, though even they are likely unable to cease our plans."
"What are you suggesting?" Rima wondered.
"Tomorrow, I want you two girls to finish them off once and for all. We must test the limits of Saira's abilities and render the guardians useless. Rima-San, I need you to wear them out."
"What about the X-Power?" Rima wondered. "Last time we fought them, they had no issue purifying the X-Eggs." She neglected to explain how the purification could have been easily stopped had she so desired.
"Miss Hinamori purified herself, did she not?" Deidre smiled. "Fujisaki-San's purifications, nor Hoshina-San's, are nearly as powerful as Miss Hinamori's. Besides, Saira's powers work independently of the X-Power now; there is hardly a need for them anymore."
"We're on it," Saira told Deidre confidently.
"Saira, if you feel ready to indoctrinate Hinamori-San fully…"
"I can do it," Saira told her. "I can beckon Amu under my control." A smirk formed on Deidre's face.
"Everything is moving accordingly. Soon, we won't have even the slightest worry that our plan will fail. Once we have Miss Hinamori in our grasp, nothing—not even the guardians—can stop us." Rima clenched her fists. "Both of you are dismissed. Saira, make sure to rest well. Tomorrow will be very important."
"Yes, ma'am." Saira smiled at Deidre, before proceeding to leave with Rima.
"I'll see you tomorrow," Rima announced to Saira, turning down another hallway. Saira turned to face Rima.
"It is a pleasure working alongside you, Mashiro-San," Saira told her. Rima paused for a moment, turning back to Saira. As a bright smile adorned the greenish-blonde's face, Rima couldn't help but to internally scowl. How could she act like they were best friends when Saira was currently possessing Rima's true best friend?
"You as well," Rima mumbled awkwardly. "We'll get this done." Unless I can wipe that ugly smirk off your face and save Amu.
"For sure!" She lingered for a moment longer, before forcing a small smile and continuing to walk away.
"What are we going to do?!" Kusu-Kusu exclaimed once they were outside Easter. "I didn't think Saira was this close to taking over Amu-Chan!" Rima frowned.
"We knew they were close; that's why we told the guardians in the first place. But this is bad…" She sighed. "I'm going to text them now. I need to warn them."
Kairi frowned at the computer in front of him, absentmindedly watching the status of the X-Power. He knew that he should have been working to improve its ability in order to please his father. He thought back to his father's criticisms, frowning. The X-Power had failed to stop Amu and Tadase from purifying X-Eggs, though he had weakened the X-Power deliberately. However, seeing the disappointment in his father's eyes haunted him, perpetually fixated on him as they had for nearly sixteen years.
"Musashi, what should I do?" Kairi mumbled, taking his egg out of his pocket. He could feel the coldness of the egg in the palm of his hand, prompting him to frown. For the umpteenth time in the past two days, he thought about Rima.
She joined Easter merely to protect Amu… I joined Easter because I was too cowardice to defy my father. I aligned myself with a company I vowed never to again because it was better to betray my friends rather than defy my father. And Rima, she…
"Kairi." Startled, the green-haired teenager turned to face the bane of his thoughts. The taller man stood firmly, his gaze piercing through his son.
"I am currently making progress on the X-Power," Kairi lied, pushing up his glasses. Yaya told me on a multitude of occasions that she found that attractive. He feigned that thought away rapidly. "Its current status appears to be dormant, but it is quite simple to—"
"We no longer require the X-Power." Kairi looked at his father, startled. "As I anticipated, Saira's power have grown entirely independent of the X-Power. Hinamori Amu is almost fully under her control." Kairi frowned. Amu was one of his best friends; he always respected her immensely. As a petulant fifth grader, he swore to love her always, and here he was, contributing to her indoctrination.
Kairi rapidly regained his composure. "What should I do next then?"
"I need you to focus on the power of the X-Energy Saira emits," Seto explained. "Make certain that Hinamori-San cannot escape her. You can handle something simple like that, can't you?" Ignoring his father's demeaning remark, Kairi nodded slowly. Seto huffed, before turning around and leaving without another word. He frowned, turning back to the egg in his hand.
"What am I doing, Musashi?"
"Deidre means to eliminate you guys as a threat entirely. She… this is much worse than I thought. Saira wasn't supposed to have Amu completely under her control yet; that shouldn't have happened for another couple of weeks!"
"Jokes on Easter. They really think they can eliminate us that easily?" The newly eighteen-year-old grinned confidently. Rima sighed.
"I don't think you understand the gravity of this, Kukai," Rima pointed out. "If Saira indoctrinates Amu fully, then they are unstoppable. They have achieved everything they so desired. Even the X-Powers are futile; sabotaging them will no longer be of any use."
"We need to reach her," Tadase persisted, his fists clenched. "Maybe we can convince her that she can't trust that girl Arisa. Perhaps she'll realize— "
"It won't work," Ikuto mumbled, his arms crossed as he leaned against the wall of the Royal Garden. His eyes were fixed on the floor, a frown present on his face. "Amu has no control. She's helpless; she's simply a slave to them…" Utau watched her brother concernedly, but he paid no mind to her.
"If this is anything like Death Rebel, it's not hopeless," Utau pointed out, her gaze shifting to the rest of the guardians. "Amu was able to reach Ikuto. Maybe one of you two can reach to her."
"Deidre and Seto are well aware of our, err, the guardians' emotions," Rima pointed out, biting her lip. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Nagihiko frown at her stammer. "It's been central to their plans; there's no way that some declaration of love would manage to fix everything."
"What do you suggest we do?" Tadase wondered, glancing at Rima. Her eyes remained fixed on her hands. What can they do? She wondered bitterly, Deidre's confident smirk and Saira's accomplished smile fresh in her mind. They're going to win. They're going to claim Amu and turn her into their freaking slave.
"We need to stop Saira," Rima mumbled. "She's the center of all of this. Without Saira, they have no means of controlling Amu."
"We can do it!" Yaya announced. "There are seven of us—eight, plus Kairi-Kun—and one of her! We'll defeat her easily!"
"Six of you," Rima clarified. "I'll have to fight alongside them. It's too risky to compromise my position." The blonde sighed. "Tomorrow right outside the Royal Garden, Saira and I are going to strike. I won't do anything that will put Amu in danger, but I can't promise that I won't fight you guys. I don't want to, but…"
"It's okay," Nagihiko reassured. "You have to maintain your cover; we understand." A smile tugged on the corners of her mouth, but she resisted.
"Will there be X-Eggs?" Kukai wondered.
"I believe so."
"If Saira is the main focus, we will direct our attacks to her," Tadase pointed out. "Last time we met her, she was quite powerful and could simply move us around as she pleased." Tadase thought for a minute.
"If there are X-Eggs, I can take them," Nagihiko pointed out. Tadase looked at him surprised.
"Alone? With the X-Powers and whatnot—"
"We don't have much of a choice," Nagihiko urged. "We need to weaken Saira before she gets strong enough to indoctrinate Amu-Chan. Perhaps it would make most sense for the rest of you to take on Saira. Though," Nagihiko gave a side glance to Rima, before looking away rather quickly. Rima bit her lip, her eyes studying the table as he spoke. "It would be awfully suspicious if we just didn't fight…"
"I'll take Rima!" Kukai announced. Rima turned to face him, an eyebrow raised. "Hey, it makes sense, doesn't it? You did knock me out last time, which was quite rude."
"Sorry…" Upon seeing her guilty expression, Kukai's smile softened.
"Hey, relax Rimy! I'm only kidding! It's hard to hold a grudge against the girl who freaking saved our lives. Knocking me out was simply a consequence of protecting Amu." Rima grimaced uncomfortably.
"What about Kairi-Kun?" Yaya wondered.
"He… He isn't in any position to be aiding us," Rima explained. "His father is the director; he can't just aid us." Rima turned to her chara. Kusu-Kusu shook her head slowly, prompting Rima to nod subtly.
"Ikuto, Utau, Yaya, and I will focus on Saira," Tadase proceeded to elaborate. "Nagihiko will purify the X-Eggs, and Kukai will fight Rima to prove as a distraction. We'll all have to stand our ground. We have to prove Easter wrong and demonstrate that we have the capacity to protect Amu-Chan."
"Sounds perfect." Kukai stuck his thumb up.
"And Rima, be careful as well," Tadase advised. She looked up at him, surprised. "You've done a great job at maintaining your identity at Easter, but just make sure you stay safe."
"I…I'll try," Rima stammered, taken aback. Tadase smiled.
"Even if you are an Easter employee, do not forget that you are still a guardian, and we consider you as much." Rima smiled lightly.
"I-I appreciate that, Tadase."
"I suppose we can adjourn our meeting now. Everyone, make sure you're all well-rested. We must be at our strongest to fight against Saira."
As the guardians filed out of the Royal Garden, Nagihiko couldn't help but to notice Rima walking out at a particularly rapid speed. Upon leaving the Royal Garden himself, he could see her walking in a direction opposite her house. Frowning slightly, he fumbled in his pocket, feeling for his car keys.
"You can't keep making everything super awkward, you know." Turning his head, he found himself face to face with Kukai.
"Oh, hello Kukai," Nagihiko greeted, a little taken aback. To his surprise, Kukai didn't grin or greet him back. His expression was serious—which was quite seldom for the eldest guardian.
"You can't ignore this." A sigh escaped the purple-haired teenager's lips.
"I…It's not the time now," Nagihiko muttered. Kukai frowned.
"Why not? She's really uncomfortable around all of us, but especially when you and her have any sort of interaction—"
"I know," Nagihiko interjected, biting his lip. "But she…she probably needs space. And I have to, um, get going to—"
"Dude, you need to grow a pear." Nagihiko's eyes widened. "This isn't about your comfort level. In fact, this has absolutely nothing to do with you." Kukai's face softened. "I mean I totally understand what you're going through. It's a weird thing, especially considering how much history you two had. But none of that matters. The fact is that you need to be there for her. She lost literally everything just to try to save Amu. She sacrificed her friendships—her relationship—for what she believed was the greater good. And after a month of being in basically isolation, she's back with us. Just imagine how hard that is." Nagihiko grimaced. He had in fact imagined the difficulty of Rima's situation. But every time he tried to imagine himself in her shoes, he had to blink back tears and immediately fend off the thought.
But as Kukai lectured him, it dawned on him that he was being extremely selfish. Kukai was right; he needed to grow a pear. He couldn't let his own disarrayed emotions get in the way of being a good friend—or more.
"The truth of the matter is I don't really know what it's like to be going through all that shit. But what I do know is that nothing I can say will help her in any way. Nor can Tadase or Yaya or Utau or Ikuto. There's only one person that knows her inside and out—and I don't mean that in a sexual manner." A light crimson tainted Nagihiko's cheeks. Kukai smiled gently, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I'm not saying you need to sweep her off her feet and be a dashing boyfriend like you used to be, but you need to talk to her like a normal human being as opposed to weird awkward exchanges."
"I…You're right." He let out a sigh. "I'm being overdramatic. I need to be there for her."
"Hey, every so often I can offer some words of wisdom. But thank me later! Go catch up with her!" Kukai shoved him lightly in the direction she had walked.
"Catch you later Kukai!" Nagihiko called as headphones appeared around his neck. He broke into a light jog, faintly hearing Kukai's laugh.
After jogging ten or so minutes, he could see the nearby park in his vision. He broke into a halt, the headphones around his neck vanishing. He panted slightly before proceeding to enter the park.
"You think she's here?" Temari wondered.
"It's likely," Nagihiko began, "I know she always used to come here when she needed to decompress from her parents…" His voice trailed off. Are her parents still fighting? He shook his head slowly, frowning at his thoughts. Of course they are. It's only been a month; everything wouldn't magically be okay. Upon thinking more about her parents, he bit his lip. She always used to call me when things got really bad. But she couldn't all this time; she had to deal with everything alone. Everything…
"Nagi, look!" Nagihiko turned, watching where Rhythm pointed. To his dismay, he saw the girl in question sitting on a bench on the other side of the park. Her blonde hair was tossed over one shoulder, and her eyes were fixed on the ground. He could feel his heart begin to beat extremely rapidly within his chest. A part of him was tempted to jog right back the way he had entered. He could lie to Kukai and pretend he comforted her; he was always very gifted at lying.
And apparently so is she. All thoughts of fleeing vanished upon thinking of the illusion she created. Kukai was right; she needed someone desperately, and as he always promised to be in the past, Nagihiko would be that someone for her.
Taking a deep breath, he concealed his insipid anxieties and began to make his way to her. Upon making his way to her, he hesitated for a moment, leaning against a lamppost. He watched as her eyes seemed to be watching kids running jovially around, a saddened expression present. He could make out the red-and-black headphones in her ears—headphones that Yaya had given her for her birthday last year. He wondered how many times those headphones helped her escape the world. Could she use the loud music to help console her when she felt alone? Could the music distract her from the fact that her friends believed she was a traitor, when in reality, she was a hero that was unacknowledged for what she did?
"Don't just stare; go!" Rhythm hissed. Exhaling heavily, he leaned forward, making his way beside her.
"Hey," He greeted, a nonchalant smile forming. Inwardly though, he felt his anxieties deepen. The blonde turned around, seemingly surprised. He did not miss the panicked expression before it transformed into an artificial smile. She pulled her headphones out and peered down at her cell phone for a moment, before glancing back at him.
"Hey," She greeted back. Silence ensued, prompting Nagihiko's nerves to continue to grow. He continued to stand awkwardly, his eyes looking everywhere except for her.
"Can I, err…" He began, gesturing to her side.
"Go ahead." Hesitantly, he took a seat beside her, immediately becoming alert to the large gap between them. Before, there was never even a fraction of an inch between them. Whether they were holding hands or hugging—or even showing physical aggression in her case—Nagihiko made sure never to never leave her side. He wanted to make her feel loved; he wanted to show maximum affection.
But now, things were different, and the large space between them was a blatant reminder of that.
Nagihiko forced himself to look at her. Upon looking at her, the month of resentment and sadness returned to him. He could easily recall the feelings of deep betrayal that pierced through him like a sharp knife. And yet, he no longer could possibly feel that. She lied for an entirely justified reason; she was a hero. So why was everything so awkward?
"So… how are you?" She wondered, breaking the silence finally. Nagihiko blinked for a moment, his cheeks heating up upon his realization that he had been borderline staring at her. Her eyes had met his, and in that instant, he could feel as if there was some form of clichéd electrical charge between their eyes. But her quick averted glance immediately snapped him back to the reality of their situation.
"I'm good. How about you?" He immediately knew that the question was a colossal mistake.
"I'm fine," She quickly replied, and for the first time in well over a month, Nagihiko could actually see that she was lying to him.
"Are you sure?" He wondered quietly, his voice nearly a whisper. Hesitantly, the blonde nodded.
"I'm just worried about Amu, but other than that, I'm all good."
"I'm sure we can save her," He reassured, though he was not sure at all. She frowned. "I mean, we're together now, right?" He bit his lip, immediately regretting his choice of words. Her eyes darkened. But are we together now? Will we ever be together again? "We have your information, unbeknownst to Easter. That's a huge advantage."
"I guess so." He could vividly see the doubt in her eyes. Nagihiko knew that he was doing a feeble job in comforting her; in fact, his presence seemed to be unhelpful and possibly damaging. He took a deep breath.
"Rima." Her eyes darted upward. It felt good to say her name. The way the two syllables escaped his lips felt natural; its iambic sound seemed appropriate on his lips. "I know… I know it's been hard on you these past few months—and I know that saying that is a vast understatement. You say you're alright, but how can you possibly be? You…you've gone through so much." She let out a sigh, a frown adorning her features.
"I'm okay," She maintained. "It wasn't that bad."
"You've managed to keep up this façade for so long, this façade of someone who is cold and uncaring. And for a long time, I believed that it was really you. But I can see through it now; I can see the pain and stress you've gone through." Rima turned to her side for a moment. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see their charas floating far away, whispering amongst themselves but keenly watching. She turned back to Nagihiko, a resigned sigh escaping her lips.
"How do you do it for so long?" Rima wondered. "Keeping a façade, I mean."
"It's hard, isn't it?"
"It's tiring. But you've done it for all of your life; you pretended to be someone else. I just…" Rima's voice trailed off. "I guess I did too, to an extent. I thought it wouldn't be too hard because that's how I was when I first moved here. I was callous and cold, especially to Amu. But all of this… it was just so hard…"
"You don't need to pretend to be anyone you're not, Rima," Nagihiko promised. "Well, I guess you still have to pretend to trust Easter, but to us, you don't need to lie anymore. You can be you." Rima bit her lip.
"What does that even mean anymore?" She murmured. As Nagihiko watched her, he could see some tears building up in her eyes. She aggressively shook her head in an effort to prevent her tears.
"I could tell you what it means to be you, but that's not for me to say." A small smile formed on Nagihiko's face. He hesitated for a moment, before reaching toward her. He touched her cheek for a moment, benignly caressing it. He remembered the first time he had done that all those years ago when she had confided in him about her parents. A lot had changed since that moment; simple caresses had quickly turned into small hugs and then holding hands until they become soft kisses. But here he was, caressing her like he had done as a sixth grader. "You need to find who you again are yourself, okay?"
"I…" She sniffled, prompting her to wipe her eyes rapidly. "I—"
"Rima, I'm here for you," He promised again softly. "I told you once that I would always be there for you, no matter what. And that promise hasn't expired; I'll be there in an instant for you whenever you need someone. A lot has happened, but if you ever need someone to talk to or just someone to be with, I promise to always be there." Tears were coming down her cheeks rapidly, but she quickly wiped them away.
"I can't afford to feel this way; I'm supposed to be stronger than this…" She mumbled.
"Rima, you're the strongest person I know—and this all confirmed it." Her eyes widened. "But more importantly, you are a human, and you're allowed to feel emotion. In fact, you should feel emotion." He moved his hand slightly from her cheek to brush some hair out of her face. He could see a shade of pink present on her cheeks. "Do you remember all those years when I told you that tears don't suit you?" She nodded slowly. "I was wrong." He hesitated briefly, watching as Rima gave him a confused look. "I mean, I wasn't wrong that a smile suits you more. Your smile is still enchanting as it was all those years ago." Her cheeks reddened significantly. "But… But the truth is, tears suit everybody. It's okay to cry. Crying isn't a sign of weakness; it's a mark of humanity. It signifies that we feel emotion, and that is entirely natural. And I shouldn't discourage you from crying; you should let yourself feel emotions and cope with everything." He smiled warmly. Rima stared at him for a moment, amazed.
"Nagihiko…" She began. The sides of her lips began to rise, before the tears started flowing faster. She sniffled once more, before she began full-fledged crying. A whimper escaped her mouth, and Nagihiko could see her eyes becoming quickly red and puffy. To his surprise, she immediately rested her head on his shoulder, continuing to cry. Without saying another word, he ran his hair through her blonde curls. He had missed the feeling of her wavy blonde hair in his fingers. He hugged her closer to his body, feeling her petite body pressed closer to his—a feeling he had once been quite acquainted with. He wondered if she could hear the rapid beating of his heart as her head pressed against his shoulder near his chest.
He couldn't be sure how long they stayed in that position, with his hands benignly running through her hair while she sobbed against him, but after some time, she picked her head up, her hand rubbing her eyes.
"I probably look like a mess," She mumbled. He chuckled lightly, shaking his head slowly. "I… Thank you, Nagi." She paused for a moment, looking at him eagerly. She shook her head slowly, rising to her feet.
"Hey, if you ever need anything Rima, don't hesitate to call me." She smiled lightly, before exiting the park, Kusu-Kusu immediately floating to her side.
"Well, you two seemed awfully close," Rhythm mused, floating beside him. A flush formed on Nagihiko's cheeks.
"It's not like that."
"Why not?" Temari wondered. Nagihiko didn't answer. His mind was racing, his fingers still tingling with the soft texture of Rima's hair.
"Let's go home," Nagihiko persisted, rising to his feet as well. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Temari and Rhythm exchange a look, but he chose to ignore them.
Ikuto sat at his childhood dining room table, staring absentmindedly at the eggs in front of him. He had become quite unaccustomed to the idea that someone—especially his mother—would make breakfast for him. He had insisted that he was twenty-two-years-old and could handle breakfast on his own, but his mother was persistent. Upon seeing Ikuto's apprehensive expression however, Souko had decided to finally give him some space.
He thought about Amu—as he had since the moment he returned. He had not seen her ever since the day she told him that she did not want to see him. A large part of him longed for her, but his worry overpowered everything. Even Dia had been increasingly worried; her own charas were unable to restore her.
But she did have a guardian watching over her. Ikuto thought to himself, the image of the petite blonde flashing through his mind. He always found it slightly amusing how protective of Amu she had always been. Whenever Ikuto would mess with Amu or tease her, Rima always seemed to give him some form of a glare. There was a time Ikuto questioned Rima's own feelings for Amu, but upon seeing her relationship with Nagihiko, all thoughts of that were abandoned.
"Ikuto, your phone!" Yoru called suddenly, floating beside him. Ikuto glanced at his cell phone, reading the group message Rima had sent to everyone—with the exceptions of Amu and Kairi. It suddenly dawned on him that Amu probably had no idea about Rima's true loyalty. Sure, her charas knew—or at least Dia—but he doubted they told her.
"It's time." It read. Ikuto immediately rose to his feet.
"Utau," Ikuto called. "You ready?"
"Coming." It only took a few more minutes for his little sister to bound down the stairs. "Let's do this."
"I thought Rima-Tan said it was time?" Yaya whined impatiently, as the guardians and Tsukiyomi siblings gathered inside the Royal Garden.
"I'm assuming that Rima-Chan was giving us some time to get situated before they attacked," Tadase pointed out. "We are supposed to act natural after all."
"I sense X-Eggs," Temari pointed out. "As well as an overwhelming amount of X-Energy."
"You guys ready?" Kukai wondered. "Like Rima said, we have to hold our own. We have to prove to Easter that we've got this."
"Let's do it!" Yaya called confidently. They rose to their feet and exited the Royal Garden.
"Well, well, well, look who it is," Kukai hissed, feigned anger rising to his voice. Tadase turned to his friend, surprised by his skillful acting. Beside the X-Eggs stood Rima—fully transformed with Kusu-Kusu—and Saira. Rima maintained a stoic expression, faintly reminding Tadase of when he first met her all those years ago. She appeared to be emotionless, as if she had truly betrayed her best friends without a care in the world. Saira, on the other hand, had a cocky smirk present on her face. Her hand was on her hip, and X-Energy seemed to radiate out of her hand.
"The guardians of Seiyo," Saira mused. "Though, I see a few members are not present." Tadase frowned at her.
"We're going to save Amu-Chan," Tadase announced. "We won't let you harm her anymore." Saira only appeared further amused.
"Geez, Rima-San. How did you deal with these emotional wrecks?" Rima shrugged slightly, prompting Saira to laugh. "Easter is a better place for you." Out of the corner of his eye, Tadase could see a wince from Nagihiko. That surprised him; this was all an act, and Nagihiko was fully aware. Tadase knew that anything regarding Rima was sensitive for him.
"Well, I guess it's time to eliminate these emotional wrecks," Rima pointed out. "It should be easy to wipe them out if they're too blindly attached to Amu."
"I'd love to see you try." Kukai smirked. He turned to Tadase. Tadase nodded slowly.
"My own heart, unlock!" Tadase announced, leading the guardians into their respective transformations. Upon completing his transformation, he turned to face Ikuto. The midnight-blue haired adult nodded.
"Crushing Claws!" He yelled, lunging for Saira. Immediately, Saira shot X-Energy at the cat man, prompting Utau to counter it and launch her own attack.
"Holy Crown!" Tadase yelled, forming a shield around both siblings.
"Looks like it's me and you, Rima," Kukai looked like he wanted to grin, but he held back. "This is for knocking me out because that really hurt! Golden Victory Shot!"
"Tightrope Dancer!" Rima immediately countered with her ropes, shooting the ball back at him. He dodged it, a smirk forming.
"Not bad." Rima gave him a dirty look, prompting his smirk to disappear. He formed a false angry expression, prompting the blonde to raise an eyebrow.
Nagihiko watched the others take on their assigned roles. Kukai seemed to be at a stalemate against Rima, both of them fighting legitimately without causing pain to the other side. Saira's cocky smirk had been wiped clean, a frustrated look replacing it as she fought the four guardians. Sighing, Nagihiko turned to face the X-Eggs, his hands clenched.
"Blaze Shot!" He called, shooting a basketball at the X-Eggs. Not to his surprise, the X-Eggs flashed blue, reflecting it back at him. He extended his hands, powering the basketball further and sending it right back at the X-Eggs at a much faster speed. Saira turned to face him, grimacing slightly as the barrier shattered.
"Nice going Nagi!" Yaya called reassuringly. Rima looked at him, quite surprised with his haste, before turning back to Kukai and narrowly dodging an attack. Saira shot X-Energy at Nagihiko. He prepared another blaze shot, when Tadase formed a shield around him as well. He clutched the scepter in his hands.
"Holy Scepter!" Tadase raised the object in his hand, watching it transform into a sword. He immediately charged at Saira, who looked quite startled by this action. To her dismay, the X-Energy she countered was immediately pierced by Tadase's blade.
Nagihiko focused his attention on the powerless X-Eggs. He took a deep breath, before taking another step forward.
"Basketball—"
"Spiraling Heart!" To everyone's dismay, a baton was tossed in a heart pattern in a seemingly random spot. As everyone turned, they could see the baton return to its bearer. Amu, transformed as Amulet Heart, stood a few feet away, an emotionless expression present.
Oh, how I love plot twists. Wouldn't it be awfully cruel of me to leave you this without another update before I leave? Good thing I'm about two-thirds of the way done with chapter 9!
Please, please, please review! I haven't been getting a lot, so I would definitely appreciate more! You guys rock!