Trigger warning for some blood and gore. Also mentions of dead dogs. However, no dogs were harmed in the making of this chapter.


Chapter 19:

Hoshikawa Subaru:

Someone sits down heavily across from Subaru at the lunch table. He looks up to see Gonta, already digging furiously into his food.

"Where are the others?" Subaru asks.

"Busy." Gonta says between mouthfuls, "Student council meeting."

A month after elections, Luna's class president responsibilities had commenced full-swing. And Kizamaro, her trusty secretary, had been attached at the hip for every meeting. Gonta and Subaru had no interest, so they were mercifully excluded. Tsukasa had been his usual self - in-and-out of classes for medical reasons he had yet to explain to his friends.

"I see." Subaru says. He goes back to mindlessly taking bites and scrolling through news streams on his transer. There hadn't been any FMian attacks since Ophiuchus Queen, which is the biggest gap in FMian attacks since they began. Reporters, however, had hardly recovered from the novelty of extraterrestrials. The news stories varied from discussions detailing AMAKEN's data readings to wild theories about the goal of the FMian attacks.

Underlying every report was a current of fear: beware the mind controlling extraterrestrials. Despite the fact that the victims of mind control had come out relatively unscathed. All except one.

"Shirogane has been acting strange around me." Subaru says point blank, "Do you have any idea why, Gonta-kun?"

"I noticed that too." Gonta pushes his now empty plate away and folds his massive forearms on the table, "And it's only you. She's the same around me, Kiza, and Tsukasa-kun. I was going to ask you what you did."

Subaru scoffs, "You think I know the answer to that?"

"No." Gonta says, "But maybe you should try thinking about it. I thought that's what you were good for."

"Haha."

Gonta shrugs, seemingly unbothered by Subaru's attitude. Subaru has a feeling that since the Taurus incident, Gonta has more or less accepted Subaru for how he is. Faults included. Kizamaro, however, seems determined to find all of Subaru's secrets. And Luna was, well, Luna.

The bigger boy pulls a flier from his pocket and hands it to Subaru. It's crumpled, so Subaru flattens it out with his hand before reading it. An add for a dog training competition at the local mall.

"What's this for?" Subaru asks, not understanding the bigger boy's intentions.

Gonta points to the bottom of the flier, "The prize." He says gruffly, "It's a telescope. Not the same as your broken one, but a newer version of the same model."

Subaru's stomach clenches at the reminder of his broken telescope. Like many things it had fallen to the wayside as he's been working with Amachi and Utagai on the new anti-FMian technology. Progress was coming along nicely with Misora's help as well, but it hadn't left much time for personal projects. Like his old telescope.

"I know it's not the same as fixing your old one." Gonta says, "But I'm sure your dad would have gotten you a new one if he was still around."

"That's… very nice of you, Gonta-kun." Subaru sighs, "But I don't have a dog."

"I do."

Subaru glances at Gonta, eyebrow raised.

"Remember the puppy we rescued from those teenagers?" Gonta explains, "Well, she wasn't chipped. And she's very smart." He grins, "I've been training her and I think we stand a chance to win this competition. I just wanted you along for moral support, but I know you're pretty busy yourself…"

"I'll be there." Subaru interrupts.

Gonta smiles, "Well I should hope so considering I'm giving you the grand prize."

"You don't have to do that." Subaru shakes his head, "I'll pay you for it."

"Nah."

"No seriously."

"Wow, desperate aren't you, Space Case?" Gonta grins, "Tell you what. You can pay the entry fee for me and buy me a celebratory dinner when I win. Deal?"

"Deal."

They shake on it.

"Off topic." Subaru says after a minute, "But in an effort to understand why Shirogane-chan has been acting strange, can I ask you a question about Denpa Henkan?"

"Shoot."

"Did you have any issues with your mood after Rockman released you?"

Gonta strokes his chin thoughtfully before huffing, "Honestly, no." He shrugs, "I've told you before that I was really angry and that's what triggered my possession. But afterward all that was gone. Like it was burned up in the process of that denpa whatever thing. Afterward I was a little tired, a little confused. But I realized even though I was angry with you, I had seriously overdone it. I couldn't bring myself to get that mad again. So I just decided not to be. Why?"

"Utagai doesn't talk about it, but he seems fine too." Subaru drops his head into his hands, "But Shirogane-chan has just been… I don't know… kind of cold. I guess a better way to describe it is 'focused.'"

Gonta nods.

"And she hasn't told us what emotion set her off." Subaru continues, "She should have been happy. She just won student council president. We celebrated. And then the next day she was possessed."

"Did you ask her?"

"Not point blank."

Gonta stands and collects his tray, "I think that's your problem. Anyway, see you this weekend for the competition."

Gonta leaves. The warning bell for the end of lunch rings while Subaru continues to sit there and mull it over. Point blank, huh? That seemed like a very Luna method. Maybe he should.

"Maybe you should just ask her." Rock grumbles from Subaru's transer, eerily echoing Subaru's exact thoughts, "You've been walking on eggshells around her and it's annoying."

"She tried telling me something was wrong and I totally failed to notice it and now I don't know how to deal with it."

"Well maybe you should start with just trying something instead of just doing nothing."

Subaru grimaces. Ugh, emotions.

Rock's sigh rattles from the transer, "You should get to class unless you want Blondie to be mad at you for another reason."

Subaru gets to class. Luna is already there, pulling her textbook from her bag and opening her transer to take notes. She glances in Subaru's direction and offers him a tiny smile before preoccupying herself again. And that's the problem. Subaru is fairly certain that if she wasn't angry with him for some reason, Luna would have talked his ear off about uninteresting student council stuff just to annoy him until class started.

"Hey." Subaru says quietly. Luna doesn't look up.

"Shirogane-chan." No response.

Subaru grimaces again. Luna is making him do a lot of that it seems, "Prez."

That get's Luna's attention. "Yes Hoshikawa-kun?"

"Can we talk?"

Luna's green eyes pointedly glance between the arrival of their teacher and Subaru. Subaru rolls his eyes, "After school." He tacks on.

There's a beat of hesitation in her expression before she nods once, "Sure." She says before turning her attention to their teacher as the lesson starts.

Subaru sighs in relief. That part seemed easy enough.

A 'thumbs up' emoji appears in his messaging window. He taps it open and sends a thumbs down back to Rock.

I don't know if I can do this. He writes.

How hard can it be?

What if something is seriously wrong and I can't fix it? Subaru types frantically, Everyone else was fine afterwards… and you already told me Ophiuchus Queen is manipulative. She's clearly mad at me. Just me. What do you think Ophiuchus told her?

Ha! No idea, I hate that snake. I try not to think about her.

Not helpful, Rock. Subaru attempts to listen to class for a time before a terrible thought occurs to him, Do you think Ophiuchus told her who I am? Would she remember that?

Utagai remembered you, didn't he? It's possible.

Subaru isn't quite sure why the idea terrifies him so much before Rock added:

Although, if Blondie knew, I would have expected a different reaction. Not the cold shoulder.

It was a fair point, Subaru mulled it over. No, it didn't seem likely that Luna knew he was Rockman. And it was pretty self absorbed to think Luna's possession was solely his fault. But he was certain he was a major contributor.

Stop overthinking it and just ask. Rock wrote. Valid, but it was hard to turn off the thoughts running in overdrive in his brain. Luna's words from before the student council elections float back to him:

'Sometimes it's hard to remind myself to be confident.'

That definitely seems like something a manipulative snake could take advantage of and Subaru didn't like it. Not one bit.


"So…" Luna drags out the word, "What's this about?"

Overhead the fake stars rotate slowly, accompanied by the hum of the fan on the projector. Subaru had chosen the planetarium for their meeting point because it was almost always empty. And Luna had been right when she first brought him here - it was his favorite place on the school campus.

Subaru fiddles with the points of his star pendant before he spills his guts, "Are you mad at me about something?"

Luna places her hands on her hips, challenging, "Why would I be mad at you."

This was going to be like pulling teeth, wasn't it? Subaru holds up his fingers with each point, "You barely talk to me unless it's out of necessity anymore. The others know you're upset with me, but won't bring it up with you. You won't talk to any of us about it. And this all started after you got possessed. Need I go on?"

"And why do you think those would be reasons I'm mad at you, specifically?" Luna challenges.

"Because I'm pretty good at doing things wrong." Subaru snaps back.

Luna smirks, "Fair point."

"C'mon, Shirogane-chan, I'm…" Subaru realizes he doesn't really want to admit it, but it's true, "I'm sorry. Okay? I don't know what's wrong, but I miss the way things were. And I'm really worried about you. I don't know what happened with the FMian, but it's clear you haven't recovered."

"You're worried?"

"Yes!"

Luna laughs, though it's more of a quiet huff, "That's new."

"I'm serious."

Luna regards him seriously, "I can see that." She pauses and Subaru waits, "Okay, well… um… how do I go about telling you this…"

Subaru felt like his chest was caved in all over again. Hollowed out.

"I've been having some really tough conversations with my parents." Luna finally says.

That is… not what Subaru was expecting.

"Your parents?"

"Yes." Luna slouches bonelessly into one of the planetarium seats. The lack of decorum is unlike her, and she doesn't meet Subaru's eyes when she says, "They were taken captive by the FMian in the attack."

"I didn't know that." He totally knew that.

"Yes, well. Much like Gonta tried to kill you, I tried to kill my parents."

"And you remember this?" Subaru probes.

"Some." Luna hums, "Although my parents obviously complained about it afterward and I put the pieces together rather quickly." She smiled at Subaru, but it was humorless, "Pretty much since the start of the term they've been planning to make me move schools."

"Then why…"

"Why go to all the effort to drag you to school, the fundraisers, the school play, the elections?"

"Yeah, that."

"Because I'm trying to prove to them that I'm doing fine right where I am." Quieter adds, "Not that it makes any difference when they never pay attention. They wouldn't have even known about the election if the principal hadn't told them directly…"

Subaru digests this. He feels awkward standing over Luna, so he sits on the floor, crosses his legs and looks up at her expectantly.

"And it didn't work?"

"Not at all." Luna rolls her eyes, "Winning the election was actually the cherry on top. My parents said I was wasting my time and decided they weren't even going to give me the choice on which boarding school I was going to."

"So where are you going?"

Luna frowns at him, "I'm not going anywhere."

At Subaru's quizzical expression, she continues.

"It turns out having their possessed daughter try to kill them made them see sense."

"Really?"

"No." Luna sighs, "It's taken multiple discussions with Inspector Goyouda and Amachi-san to convince my parents that I'm not still possessed, I won't try to kill them, and that it might be better for me to stay where the experts can observe me. I think that one was Amachi-san's doing."

"Amachi-san lied for you?" Subaru asks, amazed.

"You think it's a lie?" Luna's reply is sharp.

Put on the spot Subaru answers as honestly as he can, "No one has been possessed multiple times yet." Luna's expression is intense - focused - Subaru can tell she's trying to parse out the truth in his words, "And I'm assuming that you're not feeling that same feeling you had leading up to that FMian's possession, yes?"

"Nothing so severe."

Subaru shakes his head, "Regardless, Shirogane-chan, she's gone. You said Rockman got rid of her, right?"

"Rockman-sama, the… other one, and the Satellite Police." Luna recalls with a furrow between her brow, "But I have the distinct impression she's not gone forever. What's to keep her from coming back?"

"Relying on your friends maybe."

"That's rich coming from you."

"I'm here aren't I?"

Luna sighs, closes her eyes, and leans back in her seat, "Unbelievable, but yes. So, long story short, I'm on probation with my parents, but I'm not going anywhere. And I'm seeing a counselor. That's been nice, actually. You should try it sometime. It might help with your emotional constipation."

"No thanks."

Luna smiles, a genuine smile this time, "I thought you might say that. But no worries, you can share your troubles with your friends as well. If it doesn't give you indigestion that is."

Subaru lets that sink in. He thinks maybe he would rely on his friends if there was anything they could do to help. But in the meantime he was relying heavily on Amachi, Utagai, and Misora to work out the whole 'save the world' business. But for Luna, well, he relies on her to bring her usual gusto into his otherwise boring school day.

Which reminds him, he still doesn't have an answer to his original question, "So you aren't mad at me?"

A long pause.

"I'm a little mad at you." Luna confesses, "Which also might have played into the whole possession thing."

Alarmed Subaru probes, "Why?"

"Hoshikawa-kun, do you consider us friends?"

A bit of a non-sequitur but Subaru nods, "Yes?"

Luna laughs, "Don't phrase it like a question then."

"Then yes," Subaru repeats with more certainty, "We are friends. Although you initiated that process against my will."

"I know." Luna says with a smile, eyes tracking the digital stars overhead, "But you still don't share everything with me like you do with your other friends."

Subaru's mind screeches to a halt at that. What 'other' friends? Who is she referring to? Rock? Does she know?

"In hindsight" Luna continues, oblivious, "I am happy you have other friends. But at the time I was just so frustrated that I had put in so much work just to be ignored when I needed some moral support. I'm sorry. It was selfish of me. And so after I thought I would just give you some space."

"Well you can stop."

"Stop?"

"Giving me space. I was fine with how things were before. If I wasn't, I would have disappeared on you, wouldn't I have?"

Luna meets his gaze when she says, "You would have."

Subaru rubs his sweaty palms on his jeans. Geez, feelings. So uncomfortable. He's tapped out.

"Does this mean I can meet your other friends?" Luna's olive green eyes are wide and earnest. Subaru almost doesn't want to say no, but she can't meet Rock and he doesn't have a good explanation for how he knows Hibiki Misora.

He fiddles with his star pendant again, "Not yet." Subaru says quietly, hating how callous he is being after Luna had just shared so much of her troubles with him.

Luna, however, doesn't seem particularly bothered. She shrugs, unconcerned on the surface.

Subaru stands and so does Luna. Clearly this conversation is over. Subaru glances at Luna. Her expression is relaxed, there's a small smile on her face, and she seems… her normal self. So maybe she didn't bounce back with the gusto of Gonta, but she had clearly recovered from her trauma in her own time. However, Subaru still has no idea how much she remembered from the event. Nor why she was at Spica Mall in the first place. It would be unfair to ask for answers to questions she didn't want to share when he was unwilling to respond in kind.

Just one more question,

"Shirogane-chan?"

"Yeah?"

He couldn't meet her earnest gaze when he asked, "How did Ophiuchus get to you? You know, so we can prevent that from happening again."

Luna hummed, "I guess you could sum it up by saying I felt like a failure."

Subaru felt his brow furrow in confusion, "But you're not. You're the biggest overachiever I know."

Luna gently knocks a fist against Subaru's chest, right over his heart, "Knowing and feeling something are two different things, silly."

"Well," Subaru says, "The only thing I've seen you fail at is frying vegetables. But I'm sure you'll figure it out in no time. Which reminds me. My mom is wondering when her pupil will return."

Luna's fist is hanging frozen between them. In a burst of inspiration, Subaru bumps it with his own, "So you should keep trying to remember that you're not a failure. And I'll keep trying to be a better friend, if that's okay with you."

"Sounds good." Luna says, voice soft.


Shirogane Luna:

"Ah, that looks lovely, Luna-chan!" Akane claps her hands together in excitement, "Getting the perfect omurice wrapping is no simple feat!"

Luna feels heat rise to her cheeks at the praise, but she's also extremely proud of herself. The dish looks great. It was probably a one-off accomplishment, but more practice would eventually make it perfect every time.

"Thanks, Akane-san." Luna says instead.

"Are you hungry, Luna-chan? Do you want to eat it?"

Honestly, Luna isn't that hungry. They've been cooking for a few hours and with the frequent samplings, she doesn't think she has the space for an entire plate of omurice.

"Uh, not really." She glances at the staircase, "Do you think Hoshikawa-kun might eat it? I haven't seen him since I got here."

Akane looks thoughtful before she grins a little, "Most likely. He probably hasn't given food a second thought today."

"Why?"

"He's scheming."

"Funny," Luna says, "That's what he said about you."

Akane laughs, "We're a scheming family. But yes, I don't think he's eaten anything since breakfast. Why don't you run that up to him. And let him know he has plenty of dishes to do when he's done with whatever he's doing."

"Okay." Carefully, Luna balances the plate on her trip up the stairs and comes to a stop in front of Subaru's bedroom door. Curious, she sits down on the top step and listens to the heated discussion he seems to be holding with Utagai.

"Did HN say how far apart the wave pylons can be placed?" Subaru asks.

Utagai sounds slightly canned over the speakers, but he has a frenetic energy when he responds, "It sounds like degradation begins around the edges of the field if they're placed more than twenty meters apart. I plan to strengthen the signal eventually, but right now, I'm just running tests on the smaller fields. We can work on expanding it later."

"I agree." Subaru says, "Also, about that auxiliary device with the wave transformer. How big is it right now?"

Utagai groans, "Right now… entirely too big to be portable. The one I have in my lab weighs about as much as you do, Hoshikawa-kun."

There's a frown in Subaru's voice when he says, "I thought we were making this transer compatible."

"Eventually."

A pause.

"Well, that aside," Subaru barrels on, "Do you think I could borrow it tomorrow?"

"Did you not just hear the part where I said the equipment isn't very portable?"

"No, I heard you. I was just thinking I could take it in pieces and set it up surreptitiously."

"Where?"

"At Spica Mall."

Utagai seems to be growing more leery in the face of Subaru's enthusiasm, "Why the mall."

"I… uh, was thinking about cheating at a dog training competition."

A long pause.

"Hoshikawa-kun, this makes no sense to me. Can you explain?"

There's a crackling chuckle that seems to travel over the speakers of the phone call, but it doesn't sound like Utagai.

"I was thinking about entering a 'virtual' pet in the competition to win a telescope."

"This sounds like a terrible idea."

"Well, my friend is participating, but I just thought, two chances are better than one, right?" Subaru sounds like he's trying to be convincing, but he's doing an atrocious job of it.

Utagai sighs, "Why don't you just trust your friend to win?"

"I really want that telescope."

"I can tell."

A much longer pause.

"I have an idea." Utagai says.

Subaru waits.

"AMAKEN can do a demonstration. A minigame if you will. I did it for your friends a while back and as you know I've fine-tuned it since then. We don't have to advertise it as anti-FMian technology. Just another public event to show we're making progress on wave technology. But Hoshikawa-kun…"

"Yes."

"I think you should just show up and support your friend. Otherwise, how would you explain your 'pet'?"

"That's what I told him." A gravelly voice interjected, sounding annoyed.

Luna knows that voice. Knows she's heard it before and only around Subaru. And now, with the knowledge she knows, she almost wonders if it's Hibiki Misora using some sort of voice modulator technology. She would have those kinds of resources. And what was the likelihood that Subaru had more than one secret friend?

"You owe me." Is all Subaru says in response to the voice.

Utagai answers instead, "Be that as it may, Hoshikawa-kun. The two of you have other avenues to procuring the telescope. After all, how much Zenny have you made with virus busting since you started doing it earnestly months ago?"

"A lot. But Utagai-san…" Subaru is whining now, which makes Luna's lips curl in amusement, "Most of that goes back into purchasing better weapon cards and better bandwidth."

Utagai huffs, "I understand. Anyway, I have to make some phone calls if this is going to be set up by tomorrow. Meet me at the exhibition courtyard tomorrow morning, Hoshikawa-kun. Eight in the morning and I'll show you how to set it up outside of the lab environment."

"Eight in the morning?" Subaru groans.

"Beggars can't be choosers, Hoshikawa-kun."

"Got it." Subaru grumbles, "See you bright and early."

A chime sounded as the call ended and Luna took that as her queue to knock.

"Come in."

"What's this I hear about the exhibition courtyard tomorrow morning?" Luna asks cheerily, pretending like that's the only part of the conversation she had heard.

Subaru raises an eyebrow at her and her plate of omurice, "Did Gonta not tell you?"

About the dog training competition, no doubt. Since Gonta was the only one of her friends with a dog, she could come to that conclusion on her own thank you very much. But Gonta hadn't mentioned anything about it. And she didn't want Subaru to know she'd been listening that long.

She tipped her head to the side, pretending to be thoughtful, pigtails bouncing and barely missing the plate of food "Gonta hasn't shared his weekend plans with me, so no, I don't think he told me. Told me what?"

Subaru hands her a crumpled flier from his desk and she hands him the omurice in return.

"Thanks." He says as he digs in and she reads the flier.

"I see. And you're going to cheer him on?"

"Yep."

"I wonder why he didn't invite the rest of us?"

"Well… we weren't really talking at that point, so I think he didn't want to make it awkward?" Subaru shrugs helplessly and shoves another bite of food in his mouth, chews, swallows, then says, "This is really good, Prez."

Luna leans against his desk and sets the flier back down, "I was actually practicing over the past month." She confesses, "Just, not with much success."

"Practice is practice I guess."

"Back on topic." Luna says, "That sounded like Utagai, right? Last I checked he didn't have a dog. Why is he going to be at the mall?"

Subaru sets his plate down and turns his computer screen to face her. There's a graph beside a video sequence of Kizamaro hammering a bubble. Subaru presses play and the data stream goes haywire, "This is the footage from that first time you guys helped Utagai out with his project. The denpa atmosphere was really unstable." Subaru clicks a few more windows open, "And this is the most recent trial." This time it's Subaru smashing bubbles. The data stream shivers, but otherwise stays constant, "So Utagai has managed to stabilize the denpa atmosphere. However, he wants to increase the number of objects manifested. Hence the demonstration at the mall. More participants. And you know, for public morale."

Luna scrutinizes Subaru's expression. Everything he has said so far appears to be true. He only seems to be omitting the part where he's planning to use the denpa atmosphere to manifest a dog. Luna wants to roll her eyes at his stupidity, but doesn't want to give herself away.

"Well that sounds like a reason for myself and Kizamaro to be there." She flips open her transer and types up a message to her most vertically challenged friend, "Why don't you invite Tsukasa-kun."

"Why me?" Subaru seems genuinely puzzled.

"Because you guys are closer friends." Luna is not sure why she needs to remind him of that, but she does anyway. Out of the goodness of her heart.

Subaru, however, hasn't moved. There's an odd expression on her face. One she can't read. He seems nervous? No, more like out of his depth.

"I think you should invite him, Prez."

Luna narrows her eyes at Subaru and he glances away, "Why?" Luna presses.

"Um," He pauses, "Because you're the leader?"

She waits for him to elaborate and, of course, he doesn't.

"Fine." Luna sends the same message she sent to Kizamaro to Tsukasa, "I'll do all the heavy lifting." She pushes off his desk and marches to the door, "But Hoshikawa-kun. If you want to be better friends, you need to reach out too. If I recall, you told me you were working on that, hm?"

Subaru sighs, defeated, "Yes ma'am."


Luna and Kizamaro run into Utagai and Subaru outside the mall. The four of them get right to work, unloading the crates of equipment from the AMAKEN Labs duty van.

"I'm kind of surprised you got approval for this in less than twenty-four hours, Utagai-san." Subaru says between heavy breaths and heavy crates.

Utagai hands Kizamaro a few small devices so the smaller boy doesn't try lifting anything he can't carry. "Those are fragile, Kizamaro-kun, so don't try juggling them with anything else." Utagai turns to Subaru to answer his question, "The news outlets have been pestering me for a while about my project, actually. It was simply a matter of siccing the media on the mall administration to get the space reserved."

"Tricky." Luna says with approval.

Utagai's eyes shine with amusement.

It's Kizamaro who ruins the moment, "Utagai-san, I'm kind of surprised you are so willing to show off your work. Aren't you worried?"

Subaru shoots Kizamaro a death glare and Luna just sighs with disappointment. Surprisingly, Utagai chuckles, "This is a party trick compared to the real project." Stunned silence. Utagai clears his throat, "No Kizamaro-kun, I'm not worried. AMAKEN's intellectual property rules are very strict and their data security is very tight. If anything were to happen, Amachi-san has his IP lawyers on speed dial."

Kizamaro laughs.

"No, seriously." Subaru deadpans, "They're number four. So don't think about stealing anything Kizamaro."

"I wasn't!" Kizamaro screeches, "I wouldn't."

Utagai laughs, "Hoshikawa-kun, that's not very nice."

Subaru grins, but Luna finds that she's grinning too. They move the equipment inside. Across the courtyard from their designated area, another group of people are setting up fake turf, poles, rings, and hurdles.

Subaru grabs what Luna assumes to be a wave pylon and bee-lines towards a woman who appears to be in charge. They have a short discussion wherein Subaru gestures to a place just past the competition space. The woman asks a few more questions before she nods her head. Subaru sets up the wave pylon and leaves a sign dangling on it, presumably to keep curious hands away.

"What was that about?" Luna asks when he returns.

Subaru distractedly pulls a second wave pylon out of its case, activates it, and looks it over for damage. Luna pokes his arm, although it barely touches him through his puffy AMAKEN jacket.

I miss that jacket.

Luna frowns. Okay, brain, stop being weird.

"Hmmm?" Subaru looks up and follows her gaze toward the woman, "I was just letting her know what we are doing."

"She seemed concerned."

He huffs, "She just didn't want it interfering with their event."

Luna pins him with what she knows to be one of her most intense stares, "And will it?"

Subaru hesitates as he checks a third wave pylon.

"Will it, Hoshikawa-kun?" She presses.

"No." Subaru sets down the third pylon and repeats the process with the fourth.

"Good."

"Why do you sound so smug?" Subaru asks with some trepidation.

"No reason. By the way, I am really excited to see Gonta's puppy. What did he name it, again?"

"Taurus."

"What? Seriously!?"

"No joke," Subaru says, deadpan.

Luna crosses her arms over her chest, suddenly wracked by a chill, "Well, I for one, will not be naming any of my pets Ophiuchus."

"I couldn't agree with you more."

"Why's that, Hoshikawa-kun?" Luna's tone is a touch bitter, "It's not like you were there for any of it."

Subaru's hands still in their task. Luna doesn't miss the sharp glance he sends her. Calculating. A little furrow forms between his brows as the proverbial gears turn in his head. Wow, Luna thought she was over the whole 'ditched for a pop star' thing, but obviously not. And now she's dropping hints at Subaru left and right. A desperate bid for him to pay attention to her. Strange.

"Why would any sane person want to remember a creature who took advantage of their insecurities and then mind controlled them?" Subaru asks.

"I am unsure, Hoshikawa-kun." She says primly, "But Gonta has always been a strange young man."

"We can agree on that." Subaru gathers the rest of the wave pylons in his arms, "Well, I am going to go set these up. If you're not busy you could ask Utagai if he needs anything else done."

"As a matter of fact, I was just about to go and do that."

"Have fun."

"Don't I always?"

Subaru doesn't condescend a response to that. And, okay, fair. He clearly wanted out of that conversation. Even Luna herself wasn't sure where that was going. Did she want Subaru to feel bad for her?

Maybe a little.

Well that's not very mature Luna.

She resolves to be on her best behavior for the rest of the day and maybe talk about this in counseling at the next session.

So I think I might like this boy at school…

Or maybe not. Luna is not really in the mood to acknowledge feelings. Especially those ones in particular. She likes Rockman-sama more anyway… right?

"Utagai-san!" She waves down the skinny scientist, "What should be done next?"

At Utagai's request she works on setting up the queue for the next half hour and doesn't look in Subaru's direction once.

The preparations are complete long before the mall opens, so Luna and Kizamaro run a trial with the equipment. Utagai seems satisfied that everything is operating smoothly. A few of Amachi's junior scientists show up to help with the demonstration as well as help Utagai run the queue. Utagai shoos the three teenagers away, instructing them to get snacks around the time the shops open up.

"Let's get donuts." Luna takes the lead, because that's what she does. Subaru and Kizamaro fall in behind her without objection, because that's that they do, "What kind do you think Gonta and Tsukasa want?"

"Gonta-kun likes the curry ones." Kizamaro pipes up.

Luna scans the case for the curry donuts and orders two.

"And Tsukasa would like a matcha creme donut." Tsukasa says.

Her head whips around in surprise. Sure enough, her lanky classmate had silently brought up the rear. He's wearing his usual baggy purple zip up hoodie and loose fitting jeans. But his green hair is neatly pushed back with a lavender headband, not a strand out of place. Always the conundrum. Even Subaru looks a little startled at his sudden appearance, which Luna thinks is quite the feat.

"When did you arrive, Tsukasa-kun?" Luna asks.

"Just now." He steps up next to her to peruse the donut selection, as if ascertaining he had made the right choice, "And I can't stay long."

"Don't tell me you have physical therapy on a Sunday, Tsukasa-kun. I'm not buying that."

"But you'll buy me the donut, right?"

Luna rolls her eyes, "I'm buying for everyone, silly."

Tsukasa's honey brown eyes light up at that, "Oh!? What's the occasion?"

"Having all my friends together."

Luna doesn't miss the raised eyebrow Tsukasa sends in Subaru's direction. Subaru has a puckered expression on his face, his hands in his jacket pockets, and shoulders by his ears when he gives Tsukasa the smallest shrug known to man in return.

"Well that's exciting!" Tsukasa says, turning his attention back on Luna, "We should do it more often so it doesn't have to be such a big deal. And also because I really can't stay that long."

"You neglected to say why." Luna reminds Tsukasa as she herds him out of the way so the other two can order. "I'd like the lemon custard and an iced coffee." She tells the employee belatedly.

"It's my turn to weed the community garden near my apartment." Tsukasa sighs, "And it's likely going to take me all day because the guy who usually helps me can't do it this weekend."

"Why?"

"His dog died this week."

"That sucks."

"Yeah," Tsukasa tucks a long strand of hair behind his ear, "And he has a toddler who has been distraught about it. So he told me he was bringing her here, actually. For the dog training competition. And a day at the mall to distract her. I personally think he's just trying to wear her out so she actually sleeps and doesn't cry all night again."

"That really sucks."

"Tell me about it." Is all Tsukasa says.

The four of them get their donuts, drinks, and a little baggie for Gonta before relocating to the food court seating and promptly devouring their treats. Subaru ropes Tsukasa into a lecture about easy-to-grow vegetables and canning processes. Kizamaro decides, after about thirty seconds, he'd rather learn about literally anything else and pulls up the roster and agenda for the dog training competition. He's regaling Luna with the details when Gonta arrives, his own dog in tow.

Despite the poor name choice, Luna has to admit, Gonta's dog is a handsome thing. Still obviously a puppy despite her large size, with paws slightly too large for her limbs, but definitely filling out with muscle.

"She's an athlete. Got some Tosu blood in her." Gonta says with a proud glint in his eyes.

"She's excitable." Kizamaro says, straightening his glasses and attempting to wipe the dog slobber from his face.

"Duh, she's a puppy. And you are puppy-sized, Kiza."

Taurus's tawny gold fur is fine and soft. Not that Luna can appreciate it much, because any time she gets close enough to pet the puppy, her hand is covered in dog saliva. Yet that's the worst of it. Taurus shivers with excitement but stays obediently and properly seated on the floor.

"How long did it take for her to figure out 'stay'?" Luna asks with a giggle as she attempts to pet Taurus's head and Taurus attempts to lick her hand.

Gonta shrugs, "Not long. She's very treat motivated." He turns to Subaru and Tsukasa, "Do you guys want to pet her?"

"Can I give her a treat?" Subaru asks as he stands and joins them.

"Just one." And sure enough, Taurus's eyes are glued to the treat the whole time Subaru has it in his hands, "Ask her to play dead." Gonta instructs.

"Play dead." Subaru says, holding out the treat.

Taurus immediately tips back her head and lets out a brief throaty howl before falling to the floor and laying still.

Luna laughs and Gonta shoots her a big grin, "I taught her to make it dramatic. Just like her namesake."

Kizamamro stifles a high pitched giggle behind his hand. Subaru is rolling his eyes. Tsukasa looks vaguely perplexed. Luna and Gonta can't stop laughing.

Taurus tips up her head to check on her audience, tongue lolling out the side of her mouth. Subaru gives her the treat and a few good pats.

"You gonna pet her, Tsukasa-kun?" Gonta asks once he's recovered enough for words.

"No thanks."

"You sure."

"Thanks, Gonta-kun. But I'm not very good with animals. They kind of freak me out, actually."

Gonta shrugs, "No problem. Anyway, we should head over to the competition and get checked in. Catch up with you guys later!" Luna hands him his donuts before he leaves.

"I better get going too." Tsukasa says after a beat.

Luna gives him the most supercilious look she can muster before crossing her arms and saying, "Oh, I see how it is."

Tsukasa smiles back, unperturbed, "And how is it?"

"You show up for the donuts and then leave. You only stick around for my deep pockets, Tsukasa-kun."

"Your deep pockets and your pleasant attitude, Shirogane-chan." But Tsukasa's eyes are sparkling with amusement and she knows he doesn't mean it one bit. Tsukasa bows dramatically and leaves with a gallant, "Have a lovely day."

When he's out of earshot Kizamaro observes, "Tsukasa-kun is a weird guy."

"Seconded."

"You discussed canning methods with him, Hoshikawa-kun." Luna fires back, "You both are weird and you know it."

"Well if it was a competition." Subaru mutters, "Tsukasa would win."

Luna spins and links her arm through both of her boys, "Speaking of competition. We've got one to attend. Onward!"

She drags them backwards and ignores squawks of protest.

Tsukasa may have gotten weirder since his accident, but it honestly didn't faze Luna. They were all a little weird in their own ways.


Hoshikawa Subaru:

"Blondie is so oblivious." Rock grumbles, "Watching Green Bean flirt with her and seeing it go straight over her head is ten times worse than any soap opera your mom watches."

"Welcome to my life." Subaru grumbles back. He likes Tsukasa and all, but when Luna is around, Subaru swears Tsukasa's smarts get whittled down to a single brain cell. And that brain cell thinks it's Tuxedo Mask who thinks his work here is done. "In my defense, it wasn't like this until you came around, Rock."

"Yes, because you didn't leave your house."

"Those were simpler times."

"Yeesh, now who's being dramatic?"

Subaru didn't have a good comeback for that, so he shut up.

The crowd surrounding the dog competition had swelled when the events started, as cute dogs tended to attract crowds. Subaru had hung around for the first part, but it quickly became clear that the competition was mostly for novice dog trainers and Gonta was crushing the competition. Only one other dog, a grey-blue Akita, seemed to be giving Taurus a run for her money.

Subaru had to step away to give himself some breathing room, but had ascended to the second floor so he could still see the final events. That feeling that something was not quite right had been nagging him since the event started and he needed Rock's opinion on it, not his opinion on teenage drama.

"What is up with that dog?" Subaru whispers, lifting up his transer screen so that Rock could use the lens for an unobstructed view.

"Oh, Ricky? Yeah, I noticed that too. I don't know much about dogs, but something is not right with that mutt."

It moved strangely. Never restless. Not a twitch out of place. Subaru hadn't identified its owner, but they had to be close by, right? Otherwise, how would it know to run the events?

A loud chime and a round of applause echoes through the exhibition courtyard. Subaru spares a glance at Utagai's demonstration as the AMAKEN scientists announce the winner. Everything appeared to be going smoothly there at least.

A loud cheer that is most definitely Luna's catches his attention. The announcer for the dog training competition is saying something and Subaru holds his breath, hoping against hope that the woman is going to say Gonta won and they could all go home and Subaru can leave the mall with all its people and weird dog vibes.

"This has never happened before!" The woman says instead, "We have a tie!"

"Yay, Ricky!" A little girl's voice screeches.

The woman chuckles, "Yes, it appears Ricky and Taurus are tied for first place. We will now draw an event at random for the tie breaker." A little quieter the woman mumbles, "Good thing I prepared for this."

The grey Akita just stares at the woman intently.

"Rock." There's a sinking feeling in Subaru's gut as he has a terrifying realization.

"The tie breaker is…"

"Yeah, kid?"

"Frisbee throw!"

"Um…"

"Why don't we have this little one throw the frisbee for us. What's your name, honey?"

"Mayu!" The microphone screeches with feedback.

Subaru winces, "I think we messed up."

"Mayu-chan! How sweet! Why don't you let daddy help you throw the frisbee, Mayu-chan."

"I think we messed up big time."

"Alright, everyone count with us!" The woman announces cheerily and Subaru can feel a ripple in the air. Killing intent. He feels a bit sick. "On 'three!' One. Two…"

Luckily, Rock isn't far behind Subaru when it comes to connecting the dots.

"Oh shit."

"No shit." Subaru whispers.

"Three!"

In a streak of grey and gold, the two dogs race after the frisbee. They don't have far to go. The arena is not that big and Mayu's throw is not that skilled. The two dogs leap into the air and catch the frisbee simultaneously. They land in a graceless tumble, but now the game of frisbee has turned into a game of tug of war.

"Go Taurus!" Kizamaro's high pitched yell somehow rises above the cheers of the rest of the crowd.

"Oh shit." Rock says again. Redundantly.

Subaru is already racing down the steps to the first level. He can feel the malevolence rippling through the air. Somehow it seems more wild. Uncontained.

"It's Wolf."

"No shit." Subaru says again. Redundantly. "And he's not using a host. He's using the denpa atmosphere to manifest. All because I had that stupid idea."

"He still won't be as strong without a host. Now's our chance to strike, kid."

Subaru finds an employee access door to hack. Ducks through it and quickly wave changes. He's back out in a flash. Invisible. But the few seconds was more than long enough for Taurus to wrench the frisbee away from the grey Akita masquerading as a dog. Taurus proudly trots back to Gonta with his prize, content with a job well done.

A growl ripples through the air, accompanied by another pulse of power. The rest of the crowd seems to realize something might be wrong as no one moves to corral what appears to be a now pissed off and aggressive dog. There's an uneasiness pervading the air. A touch of anticipation. The crowd collectively takes a step back. And Subaru notices a few people are holding their heads. Others are holding their stomachs and looking a little green in the face.

The little girl, Mayu, runs up to Wolf's manifested form and pets it on the head right between its pointed ears, seemingly deaf to the FMian's growls. Wolf's canines are bared and its grey eyes are fixed on Gonta and his dog. But Mayu just sing-songs in her high pitched voice, "There there Ricky-chan. You did great. What a good doggie!"

The gowling stops. And for a moment, Subaru wonders if that's it. Some of the fight seems to drain out of Wolf.

"Mayu," A man with a ponytail and a scar across his nose cautiously approaches the pair, "That is not Ricky. Please come here."

"Daddy, look!" Mayu smiles sunnily, "Ricky is fine, see? He didn't have to go away after all!"

The man comes closer and Wolf's head whips around. Subaru freezes so as not to draw attention to himself. He's still unsure if Wolf has noticed him. But he's ready to leap in at a moment's notice.

"Mayu." The man's tone is more firm, "Come here."

Mayu pouts, "Can we take Ricky and go home now? Mayu is tired."

"Mayu, leave the dog alone and come here. Now."

Mayu reluctantly pauses in giving 'Ricky' pets. She glances between the grey Akita and her father. But thankfully, she seems to register her father's concern. She gives Wolf a kiss on the head and says, "Sorry, Ricky-chan. I've gotta go. But I'll see you later."

She trots off.

There's a few clues Subaru doesn't really fully register before he's already moving on instinct. Wolf's lips peel back into a snarl. There's a flash of ruby light behind its grey eyes. The image of the dog doesn't even bother to crouch before he pounces in an unnatural burst of speed.

But Subaru is there in a flash. Solid. And grabbing the girl before Wolf can succeed in whatever it has planned. Subaru cradles the little girl's head and rolls with the momentum. He's back on his feet in time to see Wolf skid to a stop. Subaru, Wolf, and Mayu's father form a triangle on the competition turf, locked in a standoff. But it doesn't last long.

Wolf's image seems to shiver. Data drips from its haunches, splashes to the ground and then rises up in larger sections, reforming over its image like armor. It growls, and before Subaru's eyes, Wolf's canines enlarge and huge claws spring from its paws. Its size seems to swell as it unnaturally drags itself into standing position, body stooped and hunched, more like a fictional werewolf than a trusty little Akita. Subaru's adrenaline spikes, heart racing. While he's fought more than a few FMians, Wolf's appearance and loose energy waves give off a monstrous impression. Like Wolf wouldn't even hesitate to tear out his throat and chew on his bones.

"Don't let him intimidate you." Rock growls, undeterred, "You still have the upper hand. Make the first move."

Subaru steels himself.

"Everybody get out of here!" He yells. Holding Mayu in one arm he activates his most powerful ground wave with the other, slamming his hand into the fake turf. He's adjusted the attack to terminate right where Wolf is standing so he doesn't hit any bystanders. The energy wave lands with accuracy well-earned by practice, blasting the manifested FMian into a courtyard pillar. Still within range of the denpa atmosphere.

"Dang it." Subaru mutters. He seizes the opening all the same. The crowd is fleeing the courtyard, good. Subaru spots Luna, Kizamaro, and Gonta around the periphery, directing traffic and keeping their eyes on Wolf's downed figure. He also spots Mayu's father, still frozen in a fighting stance in the middle of the courtyard, less good. The decision isn't a hard one to make. The priority is getting the little girl away from the bloodthirsty alien.

He flashes over to his friends and pushes the little girl into Gonta's arms. Mayu is strangely still, probably in shock, but Gonta's large arms envelop her and give her a reassuring squeeze. Taurus is back on her leash and lets out a whine.

"Get her out of here."

Gonta nods in agreement and sets off with his two charges.

Subaru is ready to launch himself back into the fight and finish it when a hand grips his arm and he glances back. Luna green eyes are wide with worry and an edge of steel. "Be careful." She instructs.

That's odd. Where's the hero worship? Not that he's complaining, but Subaru wonders for a second if she remembers how Ophiuchus Queen had tried to strangle him. He shakes his head. Fight now. Wonder later.

"I usually am." Subaru says with forced confidence. Luna nods and lets go.

"SP is on their way." Kizamaro informs him.

Which only means Subaru should do his best to make some progress wearing down Wolf before they arrive.

"Roger that." Subaru says, checking his periphery. Wolf is getting up, "Well, thanks for the help."

"No problem, Rockman-sama." Luna says, "Now, Kizamaro, let's go find Utagai."

The two run off and Subaru dearly hopes Utagai isn't anywhere near the courtyard anymore. Wolf is on its feet, claws poised wide and ready to disembowel the closest thing. Which so happens to be Mayu's father, but the man dives out of Wolf's reach, rolls, and bounces back up into the same fighting stance he'd assumed when Wolf transformed. Subaru downloads a wide sword and flanks Wolf in a way that pushes the FMian farther from the soft and vulnerable human.

Subaru swipes viciously in an effort to decapitate the FMian, but Wolf bends back like a grotesque Halloween attraction and swipes at Subaru's face in return. It collides with a green energy shield and Subaru shoves Wolf back in an effort to unbalance it.

It doesn't really work, but Subaru does succeed in keeping Wolf busy.

"Hey Ponytail." Subaru shouts at Mayu's father, "Can you reach that computer on the other side of the courtyard."

"Why?"

"I need you to shut down all the programs running."

Subaru blocks a claw to the face, but Wolf presses in and scratches his visor before Subaru can throw him off. Best to deactivate the denpa atmosphere or push Wolf out. He activates a tidal wave to force Wolf back further, but the FMian leaps to the second floor balcony and hangs off the railing like a medieval gargoyle.

"Can do." Mayu's father says gruffly. Subaru watches Wolf as Wolf tracks the man's movements across the courtyard, ready to intercept. He downloads an elec fist, right hand heavy and humming with energy. Nothing like capitalizing on Wolf's momentum the moment it tries to strike.

The plan goes off without a hitch.

Wolf dives for the human. Subaru tracks its trajectory, flashes into position, plants his back foot, and rotates through the punch with his whole body. His fist lands with a flash and a discharge of sound powerful enough to rattle the merchandise in nearby shops. There's some recoil, but not as much as Subaru expects. Which is soon explained by the gaping hole in in the center of Wolf's construct. Arcs of electricity flicker around the jagged edges and data drips off Subaru's fist. Wolf's and a little of his own, no doubt. There was a lot of force in that collision. The FMian shudders, but doesn't move, paralyzed for the moment.

Mayu's father makes it to Utagai's computer without issue, but the puzzlement on his face tells Subaru that this is not a man accustomed to technology.

"Um, how…"

A glance at Wolf reassures Subaru the FMian isn't going anywhere.

"Here let me."

He flashes over and pulls up the program manager. He knows he's looking for the one running the auxiliary device so he can shut down the transformer creating the local atmosphere, but there's a little window blinking urgently in the top left corner.

"A download?" He mutters to himself. Status is ninety-two percent and rising quickly. Subaru looks over the laptop for an external memory storage device and finds none. Status is ninety-five percent. Uncertain, he tries pausing the download. Which doesn't work.

"Did you download something, Ponytail?" Rock asks.

"I wouldn't even know how." Mayu's father grumbles.

Subaru tries aborting the download, but now the laptop is frozen, save for the status bar.

Ninety-seven percent.

"Rock, can you inspect the code?"

"Not without undoing Denpa Henkan."

Ninety-eight percent.

"You can, though." Rock reminds him.

"Now is not the time to be trying experimental techniques, Rock!" Subaru snaps.

Ninety-nine percent.

"No time like the present."

Subaru rolls his eyes and lays a hand on the laptop. He doesn't wave in. No time for that. He just focuses on the most active programs, running right under the surface. Data streams under his fingertips and he finds the stream that's running parallel to the download speed. The program is straightforward and surprisingly familiar. There's one of these in every planetarium on the planet: an exhibit on the phases of the moon. It's been crudely linked up to the denpa atmosphere and set to auto run the moment the download completes. Strange. And also, why?

One hundred percent.

The courtyard darkens as the edges of the denpa atmosphere fade to black. It's still transparent enough that light leaks through, making the overall effect like a solar eclipse. The sky forms a dome, mimicking a planetarium. Stars stutter into view and flicker as the program tries to translate the data into tangible denpa. A golden crescent moon rises over a horizon of shadowy faux mountains.

"What is happening?" Mayu's father whispers.

"I have no idea." Subaru surmises.

"Kid," Rock says suddenly, "Finish Wolf."

"Now?"

"Yes, now!"

The moon waxes from crescent to quarter to gibbous.

A low growl builds in Wolf's throat, grabbing Subar's attention. The FMian claws scrabble at the fake turf, tearing through and screeching on the tile underneath in its effort to stand again. Subaru downloads a break saber and leaps over the desk. He's not sure what to target considering there's already a gaping hole in Wolf's manifested body and yet the creature is still moving, but he doesn't like the tension he can feel through Rock's connection. There's an insistence there. An urge to kill he hasn't felt before. Subaru levels the saber and aims for Wolf's right eye.

He shifts his weight to drive the point of the saber home. Behind him, a full moon rises to its zenith.

Wolf's eyes flash from red to gold. It lunges, but not at Subaru. Past him.

Behind him, Mayu's father hits the floor with a muffled grunt of pain. Subaru whirls to find Wolf, jaw firmly latched on to the man's arm. One canine is sunk into the man's transer and the other into the muscle of his forearm. Blood drips down his arm and onto the floor in steady rivulets. Wolf wrenches back its bite, drawing a scream from the man and looms over him with one large paw on his chest, pinning him to the floor.

That's strange, Subaru thinks, I barely even saw Wolf move, it happened so fast.

But it doesn't matter. There's still a job that needs doing.

Subaru leaps into the air with a rotation to give his strike more power.

Just drill it through its head. One blow. That's all.

Wolf's neck soundlessly twists a full one hundred and eighty degrees. Subaru is met with the grotesque sight of Wolf's bloody maw and baleful golden eyed stare. It opens its jaws wide and speaks without moving its mouth.

Subaru feels the reverb around him as much as he hears it with crystal clarity.

"Denpa Henkan. Asakura Tensei. On-air."

With a howl, a concussive force knocks Subaru off his intended trajectory. He rights himself, lands and skids backwards, break saber still held out and ready. He squints through the dust and wave noise in the courtyard obscuring his view.

"Rock, what the hell is going on?" Subaru is on the balls of his feet, ready for anything. And he has a really bad feeling that's not going to be enough, "Did Wolf just force Denpa Henkan?"

"It appears so."

"How… okay, nevermind." The noise attenuates, and now Subaru can indeed confirm that Wolf has possessed Asakura Tensei - Mayu's father, "I still have the advantage if he has an unwilling host."

Another howl fills the courtyard, a sound more akin to an eerie moan.

"Technically you should have the advantage." Rock growls.

"But?"

Wolf's armor shifts, blue darkening to a rust red. Its claws elongate, now the size of a machete only its got multiple on each extremity. There's still blood on its teeth and it sounds like it wants more. Eyes the color of a harvest moon burn into Subaru like a hunter tracking its prey.

"But Wolf goes berserk sometimes..."

"And someone put that program on Utagai's laptop to trigger it." Subaru finished.

"Undoubtedly."

"Great."

"Stay on your toes, kid."

"I am."

Wolf crouches and digs his ridiculously long claws into the tile. Subaru has seen enough Animal Planet to know Wolf is about to pounce. But Subaru is ready.

Being ready isn't enough, it seems.

Wolf practically disappears. A blur of movement wrapping around the courtyard.

"On your right!" Rock yells.

Subaru lifts his saber to catch the claws that would have turned him into ribbons from shoulder to hip. The attack is deadly and heavy. Subaru grunts in his effort to slide his back foot behind him and angle his saber so the claws screech along the edge of the saber and momentum drives them into the floor. The resulting damage unsettles his footing. And in that brief moment that he fights for balance, Wolf brings up a leg and viciously kicks him into the nearest wall.

Subaru's vision blinks out.

Ow.


*insert vague noises of excuses here*

I'm back! With a cliffhanger! Sorry about that. Just know, now that I've written this and I have plans for this fight it shouldn't take me long to get it out to you, but this chapter was getting massive.

Subaru's fine. Don't worry about it. You've probably realized by now that if Subaru thinks everything is going according to plan, it probably means he's going to get beat up soon. Sorry dear, but that's what writers like doing to their favorite characters.

Anyway, I actually had a lot of fun adapting this fight because the whole thing in the anime was really dumb. So I thought to myself "how should I make this interesting?" Easy. Make it horror. And just in time for Halloween too! I really do enjoy writing fight scenes. And this one is about to TAKE OFF, so stay tuned.

I didn't mean to put so much in Luna's perspective in this chapter since the whole last one was all her, but I had to digest her little bit of PTSD and finally cement her friendship with Subaru. Although Luna is realizing it might be more than that (thanks jealousy). I really can't wait for the reveal though because there's just going to be SO MUCH material to work through. Her data is still a little incomplete, but she's getting there.

Speaking of incomplete data, Tsukasa done f-ed up!

THIS HAS NOW BEEN CROSSPOSTED ON AO3 FOR PRESERVATION PURPOSES. SAME AUTHOR AND TITLE. THANKS!