Hello, everyone!
I'm so sorry it took so long for me to post this chapter! College life, am I right?
Okay, I'm going to be real with you guys: some of you might hate me after this chapter...
I know not all of you will, but some of you might. I hope you won't, but for some reason I have this idea in my head that this chapter will be met with torches and pitchforks. Please prove me wrong!
Another thing about this chapter, you need to pay attention. Side remarks and stories in this chapter are really important, and will become really big things later on in the story. Don't take them as random and not important!
You guys ready? Let's go!
"We're here, everyone!" Sora's voice crackled through the communications link in the helmets, Gummi Ships and Armors.
Kairi's eyes grew wide as they neared Radiant Garden. She felt an unprecedented happiness rise within her, escaping in the form of an amazed laugh as she leaned forward on her scooter, trying to get a closer look just as they broke atmosphere.
Her eyes drank in the cobblestone walkways, the buildings sitting together in stout little rows, creating pathways to and from various places in the small town. Her brilliant blues landed on where they were heading: a small plaza square with a circular pattern in the cobblestone, small staircases beginning four different paths in the town. Her gaze trailed to the four corners of the square, her heart beginning to race at the sight of the flowers accenting the four corners.
A small, kind voice echoed in her mind. "I picked you some flowers. Thank you for saving me!" As her Keyblade Glider touched down, she realized it was her own voice. She swore she could almost make out Aqua's face as a younger her presented the flowers to her rescuer.
"Kairi?" Lea asked, snapping Kairi out of her thoughts.
"Hmm? Oh," Kairi dispelled her Glider and Armor. She smiled up at Lea.
"Kairi, are you okay?" Sora asked, concern tinting his voice. "You're crying."
The words made Kairi stop in her tracks. She lifted a hand to her face. Sure enough, a single tear met her fingers on her right cheek. Startled, she rubbed the tear away. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just really happy to finally be where I came from."
Sora smiled at the red head. They had filled him in on the way to Radiant Garden what Kairi had found out earlier. He was still getting used to the news, but was elated that Kairi was able to find out where her home was.
"You ready?" Skuld asked Nightly, taking the brunette's hand.
"I…I guess so," she replied, giving a nervous smile to Skuld before her eyes lifted to Aqua, giving her a smile as well.
The poor girl hadn't slept well the night before. Twice, Nightly had woken from a nightmare Chirithy was unable to defeat. Chirithy had explained, after apologizing profusely, that he believed his disconnect from the Dream Realm was the reason he couldn't feel the nightmare, and therefore why he couldn't defeat it like he normally could.
The Spirit in question hopped into Nightly's arms as the group made their way up the stairs on the path toward the castle. At Kairi's wonder, Lea began explaining what he knew about the castle.
"Isa and I didn't go to the castle very much, with Aeleus and Dilan always guarding. But, I did see you and your grandma outside a couple times."
"What was her name?" Kairi asked, suddenly remembering she didn't know that piece of information.
"Um…Eve," Lea replied, his head tilting in thought. "Yeah, that's right. She was called Lady Eve."
Kairi's face lit up at the information, and her smile grew as she repeated the name, mulling it over with her own lips.
"You know, I talked to Lady Eve once when Ienzo was just a kid. I think it was a couple years before Ventus came here." The mention of their friend's name made Aqua's, Skuld's, and Ephemer's ears perk up. "She was watching Ienzo and you playing together in the garden. You could barely talk, and Ienzo was the only kid around that was your age, so before he took up his apprenticeship with Even, he would spend most days with you."
Kairi inquired, "What did she talk to you about?"
"Well," Lea began, thinking back, "she was telling me how Ienzo had come to Radiant Garden under mysterious circumstances. She said he had appeared in the square with no one else around in a bundle of clothes that were too big for him—almost like he'd been shrunk or something."
"Woah, that is mysterious," Sora said, enthralled with the story.
The group arrived at the castle steps, and they stared up at the deep lavender brick that made up the walls of the towering castle. In the middle, gears turned and clicked as they kept the time of the town with the large clock adorning the face of the tallest tower.
"It's a clock tower," Nightly observed, her eyebrows knitted together.
"Yeah," echoed Ephemer.
Riku and Aqua looked back at the three teens, all looking up at the Radiant Garden castle with similar expressions. "Guys?" Riku asked.
Skuld broke from the gaze, looking down at Riku and Aqua before returning her eyes to the ticking gears. "It's…a lot like Daybreak Town," she explained. She pointed a finger at the tower, as if to accentuate what she meant. "Daybreak Town's clock tower was also its main building. Not quite a castle, but…"
"It was where the Foretellers lived," Ephemer added. "And the five of us practically lived there after the War."
"Oh," Aqua said, looking up at the clock tower herself. 'That's quite the similar theme,' she observed. 'Clock towers being used for different purposes at the same time. Here, it's also a castle; in Daybreak Town, it's the leader's chambers; and in Traverse Town, it activates the mural.'
As if reading her thoughts, Sora thought aloud, "You know, the clock tower in Twilight Town is also a train station."
"Really?" Kairi asked absentmindedly.
"Yeah, it is," Lea seconded. He turned to Kairi. "So, are you ready?"
Kairi froze up, the sudden idea of re-entering her old home absolutely terrifying. She felt a warm hand on her own, and looked up to see Sora's eyes meeting her own, a bright smile adorning his face as usual. She returned the smile, and the two walked toward the castle entrance.
Behind them, Nightly was experiencing a similar fear. The answers she had longed for the night before now seemed all too close, the fact that someone else's heart resided within her—and, therefore, the fact that she could lose herself at any moment—all too real.
She felt a hand on each shoulder, and saw her friends' encouraging smiles on each side. Her fear subsided enough for her to bring her feet forward, and together, everyone trekked inside Castle Radiant Garden.
"Ienzo! Long time, no see, pal!" Lea called out, startling the scientist into dropping the file he was holding as he clapped a hand around Ienzo's shoulders.
"Lea," Ienzo replied gruffly, measured disdain coating his voice, "how wonderful to see you again."
"Oh, come on," Lea said in a mock-pouting tone. "I haven't seen you in…how long?"
"Not long enough," Ienzo muttered under his breath.
The others entered the study slowly, looking around at the messy bookshelves lining the walls. "Aww, don't be like that," Lea said, clapping Ienzo on the shoulder playfully. He turned Ienzo around. "Got some people I want you to meet."
Ienzo eyed the party entering the room, the first being the boy he knew very well. Sora waved happily as Ienzo next saw a girl that sparked familiarity in his mind. Wearing a short pink dress, her red hair almost fell into her eyes as it curtained her shoulders. Her eyes met his, and he was sure he could see the same spark of recognition flicker in her eyes.
"You remember Kairi, right?" Lea asked as he guided Ienzo to Kairi. Guided was an understatement—it was more of a push forward while his hands gripped Ienzo's shoulders in excitement.
"Kairi," Ienzo repeated the name, mulling it over in his memories. A little girl came into his mind's eye, and at once he saw the resemblance. "Yes, I do believe so."
Kairi's eyes lit up, a smile lighting up her features. "It's nice to meet you, Ienzo," she greeted, holding out a hand before adding with a giggle, "again, I guess."
Ienzo shook her hand with a small smile as Axel explained, "Kairi doesn't really remember everything, but Lady Eve was her grandma—you remember."
"Yes, I do. May I suggest taking a look around the library?" Ienzo offered. "You and Lady Eve spent a great deal of time there. Perhaps you will find something that sparks your memory."
Kairi's face seemed to get even brighter. "I'd love to. I'll go in a moment, after you talk to our friend." She gestured behind her, motioning someone to the front of the group. A shy girl with brunette locks stepped forward, her eyes avoiding looking at Ienzo as she hugged a cat-like creature to her chest. Behind her, a boy and girl stood. The girl was still taking in all that surrounded her while paying the most attention to her friend, while the boy gazed at Ienzo, his brow furrowed in thought as his head tilted slightly to the side.
Ienzo approached the girl in the front. "Hello there. My name is Ienzo." He held his hand out to her, and she forced her eyes up to his.
"Nightly," she replied politely, taking his hand, giving him a small, timid smile. She looked behind her at her two friends. "Guys, come say hi."
The girl responded first, stepping forward with a spring in her step, taking Ienzo's hand and introducing herself. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Skuld."
Ienzo nodded to her as the boy joined them to complete the trio. As Ienzo turned to him, he watched as the boy's face turned from one of thought to concern, as if his brain had connected an unspoken set of dots.
Still dazed, the boy took Ienzo's hand and introduced himself, "Ephemer." He pulled himself out of his inner shock and asked, "Ienzo, right? Can…can I ask you something?"
"Of course," Ienzo said, straightening.
"Does the name…uh, Brain…mean anything to you?"
At the question, Skuld jolted, her eyes flying back to Ienzo, where her face contorted to match the one Ephemer held earlier.
Ienzo was taken aback by the oddity of the question. "No, I don't believe so."
"What about the number 4?" Skuld asked, making Ienzo wonder if he had heard right.
He answered, "No…why would the number four mean…anything, really?"
Ephemer and Skuld exchanged a glance before looking back up at him with pleading eyes. "It's nothing," Ephemer said, trying to recover his shock. "It's just…you look a lot like a friend of ours."
Ienzo smiled softly, "I believe this would be a good time to say 'I get that a lot'…if it weren't for the fact that that is the first time anyone has ever said such a thing to me." His smile grew into a grin as silence fell through the room.
Lea mulled over Ienzo's words in his mind, before his mouth flubbed open like a fish. "Did…did you just…crack a joke?"
"Hmm?" Ienzo looked back at Lea. "Yes, I believe so. Why? Was it my timing?"
Lea barked out a laugh, clapping a hand on Ienzo's shoulder. "Nah, man, I just wasn't expecting it. We'll work on it later."
Ienzo shrugged as Lea introduced Aqua and Riku. After introductions, Ienzo inquired on the party's reason for visiting.
"Kairi, you said your friend is the reason for your visit, correct?"
"Yeah, that's right," Kairi replied, motioning to Nightly. She opened her mouth to say something, then stopped herself. "Do you want to tell him, Nightly?"
Nightly hesitated before nodding. She gathered herself up before telling Ienzo, "A few months ago, I lost my heart. I think someone else's might have replaced mine."
Ienzo's eyebrows rose at the answer. He briefly wondered how long this girl had thought about her apparent situation to be able to summarize such a thing within two small sentences. "I see," he said, his mind already trying to figure out the finer points. He needed more information. "Care to elaborate?"
Nightly looked up at him, nodding again. "I was fighting in the Keyblade War, and a light took my heart away. I thought I was…you know…but then I heard a scream, and then I was fine. Well, not fine, but…you know…I was able to recover."
As she spoke, Ienzo crossed his arms, one hand travelling to his face, forming a combination of pinching his nose and holding his forehead as he thought. It was a habit Zexion formed, and had surprised himself with the fact he still did it.
"Keyblade War—are you sure?" Ienzo asked. "If you participated in that, it would make you a hundred years old."
Ephemer answered the question: "We're working on that. Somehow, we traveled into the future, and we're still trying to figure out how that happened."
"I see," Ienzo repeated, looking over his fingers at Nightly. "And the scream, you're certain it wasn't your own?"
Nightly nodded. "And you're absolutely positive it was your own heart you saw?" Another nod, more fervent as her eyes gained a strange, fearfully confident look.
Ienzo removed his hand, feeling the gears in his head turn on full throttle as his mind pulled to the forefront a single file. One Ansem the Wise regretted ever beginning in the first place.
"Come with me," Ienzo instructed, turning on his heel and leading the others out of the room. His mind set on where to go, he led them down the hallway leading to the main computer. He knew the file was there, and knew the password for its opening, he just couldn't help but wonder how Ansem the Wise would feel about his regretful experiments being revisited.
As soon as he opened the door, a brunette blur ran past him into the room.
"Hey, Tron, how's it going?" Sora half-shouted to the computer.
No response came. "Sora, the computer is turned off," Ienzo explained.
"Oh," Sora said, looking around the computer screen. He turned to Ienzo. "How do you turn it on?"
Ienzo had to consciously keep himself from face-palming. Leon had told him about the escapades of Sora, Donald, and Goofy in Tron's world, he just didn't realize the part about Sora's ineptitude towards technology was so…accurate.
He moved to the computer, tapping the button at the bottom left corner with the very obvious power symbol emanating a red light. The light turned green, and the machine began to whir to life.
He saw Sora beginning to reach for the controls, and grabbed his wrist to stop him. "Don't touch anything," he instructed with a heavy annoyance coating his voice.
As the computer finished booting, Tron's voice came through the computer. "Good morning, Ienzo."
"Hi, Tron!" Sora called out.
"Oh! Hello, Sora," Tron greeted. "Are Donald and Goofy there?"
"You bet we are!" Donald piped up, jumping up to stand on the computer. Ienzo grabbed him before his feet could hit the keyboard. Biting back a growl, he put the anthropomorphic duck back on the ground.
"Tron," Ienzo said, holding back the anger in his voice as much as he could, "would you please retrieve the old programs having to do with the Experiments of the Heart?"
"Absolutely," Tron replied cheerfully. "Give me one moment while I pull them up."
"Wait a second," Mickey said. "The Experiments of the Heart? But, I thought Ansem the Wise got rid of everything to do with it."
"Well, not exactly," Ienzo explained. "Yes, Ansem the Wise ceased experimentation at your request, but he kept back-ups of the data in case anything was to come up in regards to the results." He glanced over his shoulder at Nightly.
'I wonder if he knew about this,' he speculated to himself.
Mickey considered what Ienzo said. "I guess that would make sense. Either way, it's a good thing ya still have the files, or we'd be at a dead-end right now."
"I have the files for you, Ienzo," Tron said. "Would you like me to start the prerequisite program for you?"
"Yes, please," Ienzo replied as he read through the documents that had appeared on the screen.
The large machine behind the party whirred to life, and Nightly's nervousness only grew.
"So, umm…" she asked. "What does that…program…do?"
"The program will be able to analyze different energies existing in one place. Should another heart reside where yours should, this different energy will be picked up, and we will be able to differentiate what is you, and what isn't," Ienzo explained.
Nightly nodded along, trying to wrap her head around the information being given to her. "What do I need to do?"
"All you must do is stand in front of the scanner behind us," he explained, gesturing to the large circular machine behind them.
He addressed everyone behind him, "Would you all mind backing up a bit? If any of you are too close to the scanner, it will pick up your energies and interfere with the analysis." Everyone complied, leaving only Nightly and Ienzo at the computer. Chirithy gave his wielder an encouraging smile before hopping out of her arms to Ephemer and Skuld.
Ienzo typed on the computer as he told Nightly. "When you face the scanner, stand with your feet apart at about the length of your shoulders and hold your arms out a little with your palms facing the machine. Okay?"
Nightly nodded. "Okay."
He hit a final key. "Go ahead," he said nodding her to the scanner. She approached it, checking her feet and holding out her arms like he instructed. The whirring crescendoed before a white light filled her vision.
Nightly flinched against the light, shutting her eyes as it passed over her. It only took a moment before Tron announced, "Scan complete. Please wait a moment while I upload the analysis."
Chirithy hopped into Nightly's arms again as she joined everyone as they gathered behind Ienzo, watching the computer beginning to load the data. Finally, an outline of Nightly appeared onscreen. The outline moved to the left while two dots accompanied by three blocks of text appeared on the right.
Ienzo skimmed the text. "Intriguing."
"What is it?" Chirithy asked.
"It appears there are two hearts residing within Nightly," Ienzo said, his eyes speeding over the rest of the data.
"Wait, what?" Skuld asked. "Two?!"
"Yes, it appears so," Ienzo replied, moving a little to the side so everyone could see the screen. He pointed to the first dot and text block.
"This point is your energy. The analysis found it within your Body and Will, which makes it entirely yours."
He moved on to the second block of text, its corresponding dot locating something slightly beneath the first one.
"See this point here? That's the Heart I believe you are referring to, the one that has replaced your own. According to the analysis, there is a Will connected to and surrounding it. Their energy is different from the one you hold, thereby making this Heart and Will a completely separate individual."
"What about the other part?" Nightly questioned.
"That's where this gets interesting," Ienzo stated, gesturing to a third point right below the second point. "It appears this second heart seems to be made up of half of your own energy but has not attached itself to your Will. I would think it was your Heart if it wasn't for the other half of the Heart that holds its own energy. It appears to almost be a hybrid of something: half of it is you, the other half isn't. Quite bizarre, if I may say so."
"So…what can we do with that?" Lea inquired.
Ienzo pulled up another program. "We will be able to extract both Hearts to see if there are any more analyses we can run. The Heart with the Will attached will be able to speak to us, so long as we keep it contained, and it may be able to tell us a little more about this other Heart."
"Hey, Ienzo," Sora asked, "You mentioned a…a Will? What is that?"
"Hmm?" Ienzo thought back to his previous words. "Ahh, my apologies. I forgot to explain the results of Ansem the Wise's research.
"What research?" Kairi inquired.
Ienzo explained, "Ansem the Wise ran many experiments on the matters of the Heart. But along with that research, he also looked into what connects to a Heart in order to make someone human."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Lea inquired. "Did he look at bodies, too?"
"Yes," Ienzo required. "But not just that, either. Ansem the Wise had a few theories, one of them was whether a person's drive to live truly came from the Heart, or if it came from another aspect completely.
"In his research, he was able to conclude that humans are made up of three things: the Heart, the Body, and the Will. Once he discovered the existence of the Will, he conducted experiments pertaining to what would happen should any of the factors cease to play their role.
"He found that a Body could not sustain existence without either a Will or a Heart, yet a Will or a Heart alone could persist so long as it had something to contain it. Likewise, when the Body is no longer present, the Heart and Will may persist for a time depending on the strength of the Will, though they appear to the human eye as a ghostly presence; completely human in form, but transparent in appearance."
Sora's mind took him to the past when he heard the explanation. Almost like it was yesterday, he could see the ghostly form of Roxas finally revealing himself so he could meet his Nobody face-to-face.
Ienzo continued, "Similarly, if a Heart and Body lack a Will, a person may be animate, but will not be able to do even rudimentary tasks. Without a Will, a Heart and Body will perish quite quickly, as the Will is the reason a person lives in the first place.
Thoughts of Roxas rose again, this time for Lea. Axel's memories came to the forefront of his mind as he remembered his Nobody speaking with Roxas during his first week. Hardly able to form a sentence, completely blank, Axel had to stick by Roxas almost all the time just to make sure he was still breathing until he finally came out of his "zombification".
"Finally, without a Heart, a Body and Will can exist for a very extended amount of time, just not be animate until either the Heart returns to them, or someone eliminates the Body."
'Just like Ven,' Aqua thought, thinking of her comatose friend.
"What if…the Will…doesn't want to continue living?" Nightly asked nervously.
Ienzo looked over at the girl. "Could you please elaborate?"
Nightly shuffled her feet, finally saying what was on her mind. "The last thing I ever wanted to do was end the War, and I failed. What if, after you extract these extra Hearts, my Will isn't strong enough to…um…keep me here?" Her friends' hands returned to her shoulders, and she glanced over to them, meeting Ephemer and Skuld smiling encouragingly back at her. She couldn't help but smile back.
Ienzo's brow furrowed as he understood what she meant. "You won't have to worry about that. The device we'll be using can also put you in stasis, meaning you will essentially be frozen in time while we speak to the Will attached to the other Heart. You won't physically be going anywhere," he assured her.
She gave him a smile, silently thanking him.
"What about finding her Heart?" Aqua asked.
"Ah, yes, that is another reason why extracting the Hearts will be a good thing. Even though the Body and Will do not have their Heart, they will still try to connect to it. Essentially, Nightly's Will will attempt to reconnect to her Heart. Though it is very unlikely her Will can bring her Heart back, she will still be able to get a glimpse of what her Heart is seeing. This will therefore tell us where her Heart is and if it can be reached in order to bring it back to her."
"So, it'll be like a really deep sleep," Chirithy concluded. "And she'll have a dream where she sees her Heart and where it is."
"Precisely," Ienzo nodded to the Spirit, not even phased by the talking creature. He addressed Nightly. "You will be perfectly safe. No harm will come to you while we speak to whomever we find."
Nightly fell silent, her gaze trained to the floor as she considered all the information she was given. She drew a deep breath. "Okay. I'll do it."
"Are you sure, kiddo?" Lea inquired.
Nightly nodded, a new determination in her eyes. "We need to know what's going on. I need to know what's going on. If this will give us all our answers, then it needs to be done." She raised her eyes to Ienzo. "I'll do it."
Ienzo conducted the safety test for the third time. The containments units were sturdy, and the stasis program was operational. The exam table was in place, aligned perfectly so the machine's ray wouldn't miss.
He glanced over at Nightly, who was talking to Ephemer and Skuld, a nervous yet serious look in her eyes. No doubt, she was telling them what she wanted them to ask the Will in her absence.
He took a breath, nodding to himself. 'No time like the present,' he told himself.
He stepped away from the computer, turning to the three. "Everything is ready, Nightly."
The girl paused. Her friends smiled encouragingly at her, and she took a breath for herself.
"Okay," she said to herself.
Chirithy gave his wielder a quick hug before hopping out of her arms and standing between Ephemer and Skuld.
Ienzo led Nightly to the table. She hopped up and lay as Ienzo instructed: as much in the center as possible so she wouldn't fall off once the Hearts were extracted. Ienzo went back to the computer, and after a nod from Nightly, pressed the button.
Nightly kept her eyes trained to the machine pointed down to her. She pulled in several deep, slow breaths as she heard it power up. Her forced calmness turned to instant horror as a blue hue filled the crevices of the device—the same blue she had seen that night.
She barely had a second to register such a thing before it fired. A familiar pain tore through her, and her body jolted. She clenched her teeth to try and bite back the scream rising in her throat.
"Nightly!" Skuld cried, seeing her friend's distress. Ienzo grabbed her when she tried to run to her.
"You cannot get in the way of the machine. It will extract your heart, too!"
Skuld protested, but Ienzo shut her down with a look. Nightly heard none of it, however, feeling as if she were being torn in two. Inside, her mind had transported her back to the battlefield, and she lay helpless on the dirt and dust as her heart sped away from her.
Outside, the others watched Nightly relax as two glowing orbs formed above her. Her body grew unnaturally limp, her eyes gaining a lifeless, dull gaze before falling closed, her head rolling to her shoulder.
Ienzo slid a hand over the controls, his finger landing on and hitting a button. In response, the hearts separated, each going into their own containment units. On the left, one of the hearts entered a small, jar-like holder. At the right, the second heart entered a glass cylinder that ran from floor to ceiling.
This heart had what appeared to be a transparent white cloud surrounding it. Upon reaching the container, the heart lowered from the height it was pulled to and hovered at about the height of the chest of a child.
The white mist, however, stretched down until it reached the floor, forming two appendages that appeared to be legs.
"Containment is holding," Ienzo announced, reading from the screen. "The Will is taking form."
As he said it, the Will seemed to draw itself up. What was clearly a head rose to sit on shoulders, while arms formed at its sides.
All at once, the Will lost its haziness. Color filled the Will's face and hands, clothing taking form on its body while hair sprouted from its head and fell down to its knees also gaining a color of its own.
When the formation ceased, the party took in the sight of a transparent young girl around Nightly's age standing before them. Standing in white boots that rose to her thighs, she wore a white dress with black ribbon acting as both the collar and the straps before joining at the center of her chest in a bow, the trailing ribbon stopping almost at the hem of her dress, which ended right above the top of her boots.
Black ribbon held white sleeves in place between her shoulder and elbow, matching her dress perfectly. A black choker and necklace with a purple gem adorned her neck, her orange hair parting at her shoulders and held in their own ponytails by red ribbons. Her face was turned upward, the light of the lab reflecting off her fair skin.
The Will's mouth opened, and it seemed to draw in a breath before its head fell, eyes opening to reveal bright, intelligent green eyes. Ephemer blinked, realizing they were the same eyes occupying Nightly's own that night atop the clock tower.
The Will's eyes lazily looked around at those staring back at her. It finally occurred to her that she was being observed, and she gasped, taking a surprised step back as she looked back and forth between everyone fearfully.
Ienzo tried to calm her down. "It's alright. You're perfectly safe." He gestured to himself. "My name is Ienzo. How do you do?"
The girl regarded Ienzo for a moment before shuffling on her feet, folding her hands at her stomach.
"G-good day," she greeted. Her eyes flicked from Ienzo to Ephemer before doing a double-take, her head tilting as she looked at him. She didn't the hear the next question Ienzo had asked her.
"I…I apologize. Could you repeat that?" She said when she realized her had asked her something, pulling her eyes away from Ephemer.
Ienzo smiled patiently. "Do you know where you are? Do you remember what happened?"
The girl paused, glancing down before answering. "As to where I am: I am not sure. As to what I remember…" she trailed off, averting her gaze as she thought. Not a moment passed before panic filled her eyes.
"Wait," she said, bringing her hands up, noticing she could she through them. "Wait," she repeated, fright filling her voice as she looked up her arms, then down at herself. She grabbed her hair, looking at that as well.
"What…? Where's Nightly?!" she exclaimed, looking desperately at Ienzo.
The question threw him for a loop. He glanced at Nightly. "Oh…umm…"
The girl caught the flick of his eyes, following his gaze until her eyes landed on Nightly's still form. With a pleading cry, she tried to rush to Nightly, her head hitting the glass of the container before she pressed her hands to it. "You have to let me go to her. Please! She'll die if I don't get to her."
"Please calm down," Ienzo said calmly, his cool demeanor making the girl pause as he explained. "The device behind her is keeping her body in a sort of stasis. She will not fade away while it is on."
The girl seemed to relax a little, but trouble still brewed in her eyes. "Are you sure?" she questioned.
"Absolutely," Ienzo nodded, giving her an encouraging smile. "Now, if you wouldn't mind my asking: what is your name?"
The girl looked down again for a moment, folding her hands once more before complying.
"Strelitzia," she replied. "My name is Strelitzia."
Nightly first became aware of the feeling of weightlessness. She cracked her eyes open, needing to shut them again immediately against the light that almost blinded her. She tried to bring her hands up to cover her eyes, only to find she couldn't feel them.
'What?' she thought, realizing she couldn't feel any other part of her body. She opened her eyes again, her vision adjusted to the brightness. She looked down, trying to find her feet, but only saw…wood? It was…blurry, somehow.
She tried to look closer, her vision getting closer to the surface she was standing on. Standing. Was she standing? It felt more like floating.
She collided with something, her vision just a bit too far away from the wood.
'What? Is that…glass?'
Yes, that made more sense. The wood beneath her was blurry because there was warped glass right in front of it.
Wait.
She looked up, gazing at her surroundings. She could barely make out objects around her, but they were all bent and warped as the light around her refracted and shone through an invisible surface standing between her and the outside world.
Dread filled her existence when she realized where she was.
She was in a glass jar.
Ephemer couldn't look away from Strelitzia's eyes. Ever since he'd seen them, the night on top of the Gizmo Shop wouldn't leave his mind.
"Strelitzia," he asked. "After the Keyblade War, me and Skuld were talking to Nightly on the roof of the clock tower in Traverse Town." He watched Strelitzia perk up, already knowing what he was about to ask. "Was that…you?"
Her gaze shifted away from him in embarrassment. "Yes, it was. I apologize if I scared you. I had forgotten what had happened. You calling me Nightly made me remember. I left in a bit of a hurry, though, and I know Nightly wasn't conscious at the time. I'm…I'm very sorry."
"It's alright," Ephemer chuckled. "Everything right after the Keyblade War was so chaotic. I'm surprised we didn't see you again later."
Strelitzia gave a small smile. "After that, I was more aware of what was going on. All I wanted to do was give Nightly a second chance, and I didn't want her to have to deal with me in the way, so I hid myself, letting her personality take the forefront of…well, everything."
Skuld picked up. "Nightly said she heard a scream after her heart left her. And then once she heard it, she felt like she had a heart again."
Strelitzia nodded shyly. "That…was also me." She took a breath before explaining. "After I…well…I couldn't feel anything. I was just floating in this…nothing. I thought I heard someone say something, but I can't recall what was said. After that, all I saw was Nightly lying there, in the middle of it all. I was so scared, I…I screamed, and rushed to her. The next thing I know, I'm waking up in that apartment." She smiled humorously. "You know the rest of that story."
A momentary ease fell through them as they shared a laugh. Thinking about the previous moment made Ephemer remember what Nightly wanted to know.
"Oh, wait, Strelitzia," Ephemer said suddenly.
"Yes?" Strelitzia asked.
"Nightly wanted us to ask you something."
Strelitzia's eyes widened, before she composed herself again. "Yes, what is it?"
Skuld picked up, "She wanted to know what Union you belonged in. She wants to know who you fought for in the War."
Strelitzia's brow twitched, and she froze in place. "Umm…," she hesitated. "I didn't fight in the War."
She looked at everyone as what she said silenced any possible response.
Lea broke the silence. "Wait…what?"
"Strelitzia, what do you mean you didn't fight in the War?" Ephemer asked slowly.
"I…I was killed before it even happened," she replied.
"Why? What happened?" Skuld questioned.
"Umm," Strelitzia stuttered. "Th-that's not…something I'm supposed to talk about."
The answer sent a hint of familiarity through Ephemer and Skuld. They looked at each other, thinking the same thing.
That's what they were supposed to say, too.
Dread filled Ephemer's gut as he asked, "Strelitzia…who told you to say that?"
Strelitzia averted her gaze from him. "I—uh…I can't—"
"Was it Master Ava?" Skuld blurted out. Strelitzia gasped, her eyes returning to Skuld, giving her the confirmation she needed.
"What are you two on about?" Lea asked, looking at the two. The faces they held when they looked back at him told him something was wrong. Very wrong.
His own brow creased in worry as their attention returned to Strelitzia. Ephemer opened the pack at his hip, pulling out a thin, green, spiral-bound notebook.
Skuld covered her mouth at the sight, tears brimming her eyes as Ephemer asked:
"Did she give you something that looked like this?"
Their eyes stayed locked onto Strelitzia as she asked, "Where did you get that?"
They stared at her in shock and horror as she realized what the notebook meant. "Wait, you're one of the five?" she almost shouted.
"You're one of the five?!" Skuld almost screamed through her tears. Finally, it clicked, and everyone looked between the three in disbelief.
Strelitzia's gaze gained a forlorn look. "Yes, I am. Or, at least, I was supposed to be."
"Strelitzia," Ephemer said slowly, "I don't mean to alarm you, but…we didn't know you were missing."
The girl in question seemed like she hadn't heard the statement. Finally, she said, almost in a daze, "Oh."
"What are you saying?" Aqua questioned. "That the person who killed her took her place?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying," Ephemer said bluntly, looking to Aqua with a sickening seriousness.
'Okay, okay,' Nightly told herself. 'Just calm down. I need to see where I am. Look around, Nightly. You need to find where you are.'
She pulled her vision back up, approaching the walls of the glass jar she currently occupied. She peered through, seeing what appeared to be an ornate white fireplace on the other side of the room. Two plush armchairs sat on either side of the hearth, and they appeared to be two of the same kind, though the one on the left was covered up with a white sheet.
Come to think of it, nearly everything in this room was some shade of brilliant white or gold. The only interruption was the light pink of the uncovered armchair, and the odd reflection she kept seeing out of the corner of her eye.
She turned, trying to find the source of the reflection, and found a mural towering above her. Made up of a light forest green with twisting, turning lines of deep brown, it took her a moment of staring before she realized it was a family tree.
'It's not very big, though,' she observed, noting the few branches that had sprouted from the very beginning. Just seeing it through her blurry point of view, she could only make out about ten generations, and none of them seemed to branch out very far. One branch even ended abruptly near the middle. Curious, she looked at the cursive writing closest to her. She squinted through the glass, just able to make out the bottom-most name.
Sora
Wait, what? Why was Sora's name on this family tree? Was it the Sora she knew? Maybe it was a different Sora? How many Soras were there in all the worlds?
All this thought was making her head hurt. Here she was, in a glass jar on a shelf, and she was worried about a name on a painting. She could figure that out later. Right now, she needed to figure out where she was and why.
She was pulled from her thoughts when she heard the click and turn of a doorknob. Her vision flew to her side, where a large white door opened, and a woman stepped inside.
Even through the warped glass, Nightly could tell she was stunning. Her golden hair fell in waves past her waist. It covered an ornate white dress that seemed to touch the floor as she walked into the room. She held a book in her dainty hands, her gaze on the covered-up chair.
'She's…sad,' Nightly thought to herself, struggling to see the sorrow in the woman's eyes. She didn't need to look for long before the woman's face turned to Nightly.
Nightly jumped, backing into the jar wall behind her. The woman's eyes seemed to widen, and she approached the shelf.
The woman lowered her gaze so she was eye level with Nightly; and Nightly wasn't sure whether or not it was the light playing tricks on her, but she swore she could see the very stars that shone in the night sky reflected in the woman's brilliant blue eyes.
Finally, she spoke.
"Are you dreaming, little one?" she asked, humor in her voice. The question caught Nightly off guard, and she hesitated.
She opened her mouth to answer, but found she had no voice, either. Instead, the woman asked another question.
"Can you see me?"
Nightly nodded, though her vision only bobbed up and down. The woman smiled patiently, "It must be time, then," she said, seemingly to herself.
'Time? Time for what?' Nightly wanted to ask. The woman stood back up, placing her book beside the jar before Nightly watched her hands gently grasp the jar she was in. The jar lifted, and Nightly went with it.
The jar rose to the woman's face, and Nightly was met with a smile. "It is time for me to show you a glimpse of what is to come." The woman's eyes rose above Nightly as she turned, and she pushed the door open, carrying Nightly into a hallway as she turned right.
Just like the room she was just in, the hallway was mostly white with outlines of gold lining the corners of the ceiling. On the way to wherever the woman was taking her, the two passed a gold-framed mirror. Nightly stole a glance, seeing a radiant orb where she should have been. Panic rose within her again as she realized what it meant.
One: what Ienzo said had worked. She had connected to her heart, and was seeing what it was seeing.
Two: whoever this woman was had her heart in a jar.
"Now, little one," the woman said, "you will soon face a very strong adversary, and will need all the help you can get."
'Um…okay? What is she talking about?'
"I want to show you all those who wish to fight alongside you. They were all wronged, and wish to atone for their mistakes. It is the final thing they wish to do, and will stop at nothing until they have done just that."
As she spoke, she approached a door. She lay a hand on it before saying, "The only thing you must do is figure out how to free them."
She pushed the door open, revealing another hallway. This one had strange pods lining the walls, a strange light coming from each one. There was…something inside them.
"Do you recognize them, little one? They are the ones who came here before you."
Suddenly, Nightly did. Conflicting emotions rose within her as she realized a third fact.
Wherever she was, the other wielders of the Keyblade War were there, too.
And this woman was watching over all of them.
"No, I didn't get a good look at them. All I know was I was in a dark room, trying to find Nightly, then a figure emerged from the shadows. The next thing I know, I'm on the ground and can barely move."
Strelitzia shuddered as she recalled the last moments of her life, hugging herself as she closed her eyes against the memory.
"How long ago was that before the Keyblade War?" Skuld asked.
"I'm not sure. It was only a couple days after I was given the rules."
"Did you hear the bell toll on the clock tower before it happened?" Ephemer questioned.
Strelitzia's eyes opened as her eyes searched. "No, I never heard it. I…didn't realize it could toll."
Ienzo's head rose from his hand as he heard her say those words. "But the Keyblade War didn't take place until five days after the bell tolled. You are implying that you were deceased nearly a week before joining Nightly." Ienzo's words made Ephemer freeze.
"Is that possible?" Kairi asked.
"Normally, no," Ienzo replied. "If you wouldn't mind my asking, Strelitzia, what were your final thoughts?"
Strelitzia's gaze rose to meet Ienzo's. "My last wish was to meet Nightly. I wanted us to be friends, but I'd never had the courage to even say hello to her."
Skuld looked at her in sympathy as Ienzo mulled over her words. "Perhaps your Will was strong enough to persist until the Keyblade War, where you saw her and saved her."
Ephemer finally shook off his shock and addressed Ienzo. "Ienzo, how did you know the Keyblade War happened five days after the bell tolled?"
"Hmm?" Ienzo asked as Skuld gasped, realizing what Ienzo had said. Ienzo tried to recall where he had read, or heard such a thing before.
"I…don't seem to remember. I'm sure I read it somewhere, but I cannot tell you where at the moment."
Ephemer and Skuld exchanged a glance, both of them thinking something they couldn't put to words at the moment.
"In any case," Ienzo continued, shaking off the earlier question, "I wanted to ask you about this heart." He gestured to the other heart floating in the other container. "Do you know of its origin? I have a theory, but I wanted to confirm it with you before I take any steps in its analysis. If I were to open this container, the heart would try and return to its owner. However, if the owner is not here, it will not be able to sustain itself. Do you understand what I'm asking?"
Strelitzia bit her lip, glancing to the side before pulling her eyes back to Ienzo. "If your theory is what I know, then it will not leave this room."
Ienzo's eyes widened, and he glanced to the side as well, in the same direction Strelitzia did.
"What are you two talking about?" Riku asked, looking between the two.
Ienzo looked to Riku, the others listening to Ienzo intently as he explained, "There is something peculiar about this heart." He approached the computer, his finger hovering over the button that would release it. "The first half that is Nightly is the only part of the heart that appears to be human. The other half," he pressed the button, the container whirring as it released the heart, "seems to be something entirely different."
The container lifted, releasing its hold on the heart. It seemed to hesitate a moment before beginning to vibrate. The trembling increased before shooting away from its little platform.
The group gave a collective cry of surprise as it made a beeline for one of its members. Skuld watched with wide eyes and a dropped jaw as the heart disappeared into Chirithy's chest.
Light exploded from the Spirit, who gave a shocked shout. It was only a moment before it subsided, and where the Spirit used to be, a boy now sat, his light blue eyes staring in bewilderment as he tried to comprehend what had just happened.
His gaze traveled down himself, taking in the sight of his gray slacks and shoes. His cape had grown with his newfound size, and what used to adorn his shoulders and back was now tied around his waist, the pouch resting at his left hip.
He flexed his fingers, staring at them in wonder as his eyes took in his light gray sleeves and purple vest lined with gray buttons. Riku, who stood behind the new human, saw the dark gray backside of the vest, the sigil of the Dream Eaters still adorning the boy's back.
The boy reached up cautiously, his fingers feeling the tussled hair that had replaced his fur, the human ears that had replaced his Spirit ones. He looked up at those in front of him, and Ephemer and Skuld stared back at him with expressions that essentially summed up the way he felt. Their dropped jaws told him they were seeing what he was seeing.
He tried to speak. "What just—" he stopped himself, covering his mouth. His voice had dropped an octave, and now he sounded like a regular human.
He uncovered his mouth. "What?" He covered it again, speaking through his hands. "Why do I—my voice!"
His words seemed to snap Ephemer and Skuld out of their stupor, albeit not very much.
Ephemer's mouth tried to form words, but failed miserably. Skuld tried also, her face contorting as she tried to put her thoughts into proper words. Failing, also, she had no choice but to continue to stare in bewilderment.
"Perhaps I should explain," Strelitzia said from behind the glass.
The now-human Chirithy tried to speak again. "Yes—" he covered his mouth again. "Yes, please."
Strelitzia couldn't help but smile at the sight. "When I saw Nightly on the battlefield, you were already trying to comfort her, Chirithy. On my way to her, I passed through you, and knocked into your Spark, accidentally taking it with me."
"Wait, Spark?" Riku asked.
Strelitzia nodded. "I am not sure of the proper term for it, but all Chirithies have a piece of their wielder's heart within them. That, combined with the ingredients used to create a Chirithy, creates what I like to call a Spark. I talked about it with my Chirithy, and she said it was how a Chirithy was able to form such a close bond with their wielder, and why a Chirithy will perish when their wielder does." At her last sentence, her gaze fell as she thought about her lost Chirithy, tears brimming her eyes as she thought about never seeing her again.
Chirithy tried to speak again. "But, what does—" he cut himself off again, his hand flying to his mouth. He stared down at his hand, annoyed at his changed voice. He took a breath, removing his hand before slowly saying, "I know about these 'Sparks' you're talking about. But what does that have to do with it forming into a heart?"
Strelitzia shuffled on her feet. "I'm not entirely sure. I think it has something to do with your body. You and every other Chirithy have normal Spirit bodies that are only capable of holding your Spark. When I knocked your Spark to Nightly, it was suddenly inside a human body. I think that let it grow into a normal heart. But because it is still your Spark, it still recognizes you as its owner, even though it has now developed into a full heart."
Ienzo picked up, "And your fully human heart has turned you into just that—fully human."
"Oh," Aqua said, connecting some dots. "Chirithy, that must be why you're having a harder time than usual reaching the Dream Realm. It's because your Spark turned into a Heart."
"And humans don't have a natural connection to the Dream Realm like Dream Eaters do," Riku added. "You're still a Chirithy, so you still have enough of a connection to know it's there; but now that you have a human heart, you can't get to it like you used to."
"But, why was I able to exist without it?" Chirithy asked, growling under his breath at his voice.
Strelitzia picked up, "I believe it once again has something to do with the makeup of a Chirithy. Humans need their hearts to survive. Since you're not human originally, your body didn't need your Spark to exist, just to be connected to your wielder. And since it's your own Spark, you were still able to keep that connection even with it removed."
"Oh, that makes sense," Sora said, his brow furrowed in concentration. "I think."
"You think?" Riku asked. 'That's dangerous.'
"Yeah, I mean, I guess so. Riku, when we were taking the Mark of Mastery, we created some Dream Eaters with those ingredients we found in the Dream Realm. They didn't need a heart, but those ingredients brought them to life. So that's a Spark?"
"Yes," Strelitzia replied with a nod.
"Wait," Chirithy said, trying to get up to turn around and face Sora and Riku. His arms trembling, he barely managed to push himself onto his knees before he fell back down again. He growled to himself. "You were actually able to make other Chirithies? Only the Master of Masters can do that!"
"No, not Chirithies," Riku clarified. "Just Dream Eaters. The ones we synthesized couldn't talk."
Chirithy tried to stand again, putting a foot down under him, but unable to push himself up to standing. Ephemer and Skuld came to either side of him and each took hold of an arm. They hoisted him up, holding him steady as he tried to control his trembling legs. He looked down at himself, then up at his surroundings, his blue eyes taking in everything from his newfound height.
"Everything is so much smaller now," he said in amazement.
Skuld couldn't help but laugh at his statement. "Well, you were about a fifth the size you are now."
"How do you even…" he trailed off, looking back down at his legs. "How do you control these things?!"
The sentence sent a peel of laughter through the group. Even Ienzo found himself giving a hard laugh at the situation. Chirithy looked at everyone, his shocked expression melting away to his own humor. Though he didn't laugh, he seemed more at peace with the matter.
"Okay, okay," Chirithy chuckled, still feeling a pang of annoyance toward his new voice. He shook his head, looking over his shoulder to the two supporting him on either side. "How do you think Nightly's gonna react?"
Ephemer chuckled again, "Not too sure, but I'm sure it'll involve a dropped jaw and several attempts at actually trying to speak." Skuld laughed in agreement.
"Speaking of Nightly," Strelitzia began, "shouldn't we be waking her up? I'm sure she's dying to tell us what she's found out."
The group quieted down, collectively looking to the orange-haired girl in a heart wrenching mix of emotions. They had just met her and now she had to leave them.
She read their faces like an open book. Smiling encouragingly, she said, "Don't worry about me. I only wish for Nightly's safety. I'll still be here with you all, I'll just be a little harder to see." She hummed, adding, "Make sure to tell Nightly I said hello, okay?"
The woman walked casually down the hall lined with the sleeping pods holding the wielders. Nightly looked back and forth as they traveled, observing each of their faces. Some sent an odd surge of déjà vu through her heart, and she could feel the inner tears welling up within her, unable to speak what she was feeling in the confines of the jar. She looked left, then right, then left again, and right again, then stopped. There he was.
His white hair tussled, his eyes closed, the boy she killed that night slept peacefully in his pod. She remembered how not so long ago his face was contorted in anger, how he held his Keyblade above her, ready to strike her down…
And how she ended his life with a fire spell.
The woman seemed to sense her emotions. She moved the jar so she blocked Nightly's vision of the boy and brought the jar up to eye level. Nightly's gaze met her starlit eyes as the woman spoke.
"He does not blame you, little one. He forgives you, and now wishes to fight by your side, just like the rest of them."
The news only added to Nightly's distress. She wanted to weep, cry, scream out how sorry she was. She could do none of it, though, and was only able to stare into the woman's eyes as she brought the jar down. They had reached a corner in the hallway, and the woman rounded it, giving Nightly another sight to behold. One she didn't ever think she'd see. Something horrid began clicking into place in her mind as she saw the solitary pod at the end of the short section of hallway.
"Now this one does not know what has transpired," the woman explained. "He brought forth the Kingdom, and paid the price for it. He has been trapped here ever since, but will be released with the rest once you find the proper way."
Nightly's metaphorical jaw had long since hit the floor. The mask of the leopard peered lifelessly back at her, Master Gula slumbering like the rest in his own eternally suspended sleep.
Just as she became paralyzed in her own thought process, she felt a tug on her heart, a voice she didn't know ringing through her.
'Nightly, are you there?'
The woman somehow noticed the change as well. She held the jar up to her eyes again. "Ah, it seems the flower is calling you back."
'The flower? What?'
Her vision began to grow black around the edges, and the woman spoke as the tug grew stronger, "Listen to me, little one: you need to find the Book. Any questions you may have can be found within its pages. You will know it by its familiarity. And you must trust yourself. Even when you don't know what to do, trust your instincts; and trust your friends, both new and old. They will be your guiding key in the darkness. Do you understand, little one?"
Nightly nodded, feeling a strange drowsiness overcome her as she mentally sank to her knees, her vision turning dark.
"I want to give my heart back to her," Chirithy said strongly. He stood straight now, but still supported himself on the console, being careful not to touch any buttons.
"Are you sure about that?" Ienzo asked quizzically.
"Yes."
"But, once Nightly hears what happened, she'll just want to give it right back to you," Skuld argued.
"If my heart is even a fraction of the reason she's still alive, I want her to have it," he fired back. 'My whole purpose is to make sure she's alive and safe. I want her to have my heart if it means just that.' He looked up and gazed at her sleeping figure lying on the table.
'It belongs to her, anyway.'
Chirithy felt a tug on his heart, and felt the console grow, getting higher as his frame seemed to slip closer to the floor. He looked at his hand, startled to see it beginning to glow the same light that had turned him human in the first place. A flash of light engulfed his being, and he was suddenly back on the floor again, staring at the orb that was his heart as he held it between his Spirit paws. It floated away from him peacefully, hovering back above the platform under its glass container, waiting to be given back to Nightly.
"Woah," Lea said, staring at the heart. "How'd you do that?"
"Ah, I see," Ienzo answered. "It seems Chirithy's Spark is both his Heart and part of his Will at the same time. He wished his heart to be with Nightly, and his Will made it so. The part of his Will that is with his Body allows him to move without his Heart, as a Dream Eater's Body seems to be able to do so."
"And now I'm confused again," Sora admitted, scratching his head.
A peal of laughter flowed through the group. Ienzo, smiling, looked to Strelitzia. "Are you ready, Strelitzia?"
The laughter died down as Strelitzia answered with a nod, "Yes, I am."
Ienzo nodded in return, pressing a button on the console. Strelitzia's eyes closed peacefully as her Will dematerialized, surrounding her Heart in the translucent white mist before being pulled up in the tubing again. Coming out right above Nightly, her heart joined Chirithy's Heart as her Will settled over Nightly's Body. The mist that was Strelitzia's Will gathered tightly around both Hearts before disappearing into Nightly's chest.
After a moment of silence, Ienzo looked to the two teens taking cautious steps toward Nightly. He smiled encouragingly, "You can go to her now."
His words seemed to break a spell. They didn't even give him a glance as they rushed to Nightly's side, looking her over as her chest rose and fell with light breaths.
'Come on, Nightly,' Skuld mentally pleaded. 'Wake up.'
Nightly's vision had faded, but her consciousness had remained. Everything she had seen in that strange place kept flashing through her mind on repeat. The chair, the bookshelf, Sora's name, the wielders, the woman, Master Gula. It was too much. She needed to do something.
Her movements were still nonexistent. She felt all her emotions building, her fears and anxieties forming a tight ball within her, demanding to be let loose.
She needed to breath, realizing she hadn't been nor needed to in whatever that place was. Now she needed it. Desperately.
In her panic, she felt her back connect with something. She could feel her fingers twitch, her legs regain a bit of feeling. Her emotions only seemed to rise as she felt her skin, her clothes, her hair. She couldn't hear or see anything, but she could feel her throat, and she did the one thing she'd been desperate to do, the one thing she had been deprived of the most.
She screamed.
NightOwl: Do you guys see why I thought you'd be mad at me now?
Nightly: Aww, I don't think they'll be mad...
*Cannon fire sounds in the background*
Nightly:...
Nightly: Maybe it was just thunder?
Ephemer:*bursts through the door* We've got a problem!
NightOwl:*sighs heavily* How many are there?
Ephemer: Uhh...they're not haters.
*Nightly and NightOwl exchange a glance before rushing after Ephemer to the balcony.*
*Skuld hands NightOwl a pair of binoculars and points out to the sea*
*NightOwl puts up binoculars, and sees a small ship with a banner hanging off the side.*
Nightly x Chirithy
*NightOwl pulls the binoculars back down, brandishing the Yellow Diamond face*
NightOwl: Shippers...
*Ephemer, Skuld, and Nightly back away slowly before running off in a full sprint as NightOwl mans the closest cannon.*
NightOwl: IT'S PLATONIC! *fires the cannon*
Art of human Chirithy will be on my Deviantart within an hour of this chapter being posted! - nightowl9810