Well, this chapter came out quite a bit differently than I had anticipated. One thing to note is that I began the prologue months ago, so there are some...inconsistancies with season two. I went with whatIalready had written though,considering when I first concieved this it wasmonths before seasontwo was aired.

Princess by Ransomed Heart

Chapter One: Visitation

One Year Later

I watched as Ulrich bent over and moved the cover off of the manhole and moved down it slowly with his skateboard clutched under one arm. Yumi went right after, followed by Aelita. I peered down and saw Ulrich standing ready. I dropped my own skateboard down so my hands would be free, then descended myself, pulling the cover back over the hole after myself to cover our tracks. After keeping our secret for so long it would be stupid to blow it now.

We set off through the sewers, the only noise between us the rolling of skateboard and scooter wheels. It was a solemn time for all of us, and it seemed like talking would shatter it.

The end of the tunnel was in sight, and the old abandoned factory could be seen looming through the iron bars. We ground to a collective halt, leaning our boards on the wall so we could ascend.

I glanced up on the way up the ladder. Shoot! I averted my gaze, having totally forgotten that Aelita still wore a dress. My heart had skipped a couple of beats there.

Man, I was lame. Today of all days too, it was hardly the time to be having thoughts about Aelita.

I shook it off, gripping the rungs harder and forcing myself to stare forward and not up. Looking up is a bad idea, I reminded myself sternly. A very bad idea.

We climbed out and walked the bridge to the factory. It was weird to walk. After so many days for hectic sprints it was awkward to be able to really look around.

The ropes still hung from the ceiling at the entrance. Ulrich hung on one to test it's strength, then went ahead down as the rest of us followed.

In unspoken agreement we marched to the elevator in silence. Ulrich pressed the button and the doors opened with a hiss. We entered and waited as the gears turned and we descended.

The doors rolled open to reveal the factory's first sublevel, where Jeremie usually sat in front of the computer screens to monitor us.

There was a long tense moment, but Aelita shocked us all by being the first to step out. Compelled to follow, I went next with Yumi and Ulrich behind me. The latter moved to the far wall and leaned on it, closing his eyes. Yumi stepped up to Aelita and placed on hand on the other girl's shoulder and let the other rest on the yellow chair. She had a pained expression on her face. I stood between them all, overcome by the feelings this room brought back.

"We did do the right thing, didn't we?" I turned to look at Ulrich, whose voice had shattered the fragile silence. I had no answer; there was nothing for me to say. Yes, I know how...well...odd that is for me, but there are moments when even a joke seems wrong.

Aelita reached up to the screen, using one pale finger to wipe away a year's worth of dust. A single tears coursed down her cheek, but she nodded with conviction. "Yes. We didn't have any other options."

Yumi made a small noise of dissent, and my gaze flew over to her. "We couldn't have kept fighting," I snapped at her, knowing full well what she was thinking. I hated the tension in the room, hated how uncomfortable it made me feel. Maybe I was looking for an excuse to lash out.

"Yes we could have," she spat back defiantly, moving away from Aelita to glare at me. "We could have found a way!"

My eyes narrowed. We had experienced this debate before, just after Jeremie fell into the digital sea. None of us was computer-savvy enough to bring him back, and even if we had been, none of us knew the materialization code. He had written an manual for the supercalculator, but he purposefully left that code out, since he assumed that no one would ever need it again since we had Aelita. "Multiple attacks a day for a week, Yumi," I scoffed, giving her a wry grin. "None of us had the ability to bring him back, it's his own fault for not leaving us the code!"

Her eyes widened and she moved towards me, arm raised as if to slap me. She didn't though, despite the fact that I probably thoroughly deserved it. "Don't you dare blame Jeremie," she hissed in a low, dangerous voice.

"You're right, it's not fair to blame him," I rambled off. Boy, was I on a roll now. My voice rose in volume. "You weren't doing anything but sitting on your rear at the computer shouting orders like you knew what you were doing. Maybe if you hadn't broken your ankle you could have stopped him from falling." Open mouth, insert foot.

Her gaze became fiery, and on some level I knew I had set myself up for what was coming. "You're the one who dropped him," she shouted back. "Maybe if I was there he would still be alive! You certainly weren't strong enough to save him!"

She hit a nerve, and she knew it, just like Ulrich and Aelita knew. He was watching from his position on the wall, eyes wide, too shocked to stop our feud, and she had her back to us the entire time. Suddenly a dry raspy sob broke through the moment, and Aelita turned and brushed past us as she sprinted for the elevator. The doors hissed shut before any of us could move to follow her.

Ulrich sighed and pushed off the wall, moving to stand between us as though we would lunge at one another at any given moment. "Happy now, you two," he challenged quietly. Neither of us answered, so he continued.

"We came here to honor Jeremie's memory, not to fight amongst ourselves." Yumi took to staring at the floor, obviously ashamed of her outburst. I was used to being scolded, this didn't even faze me. "Now, who's going to find Aelita first and apologize," he probed.

"I will," I said, anxious to get out of the room. I didn't wait for approval, I just went to the elevator.