Forgotten Memories Chapter Seventeen

Chrono Crusade

Date Started: June 16th 2005

Sora Kazuma

A heartbeat. A simple, comforting pulsing sound. That was the noise that echoed through my ears. I couldn't tell whether it was my own, or Yugo's. It could have been Jin…I could feel him there in my head too, or perhaps it was Aidan. All I know was that the ticks were numbered and the second that it skipped was the moment that the world around me changed.

The battlefield had been silent around us, cold and misty. It was just the four of us lost on the beach, the two sinners and the two worried family members who were restlessly waiting for this to get over with. They had been in a stalemate for nearly five minutes, but the minute the heart rate in my head hesitated the gloves were finally pulled off.

Aidan let out a vicious scream, charging at his opponent and Yugo snarled venomously rushing forward to meet him. I turned my head away, not even able to watch as they collided in the center, burying my head against Jin's chest. "Make it go away…" I murmured trying to block out the hisses and the screams, the cries and the fury of battle. "Make it all go away…"

'I would allow you passage into my mind, if I were not afraid of what my memories would do to you. I am sorry little sister.' Jin was trying his best to comfort me but it just wasn't helping.

I drew up into my own mind, trying to just let my hearing go and zone out of everything around me. Jin's overwhelming sympathy was warming and I tried to hold completely on to that without invading his thoughts.

I was vaguely aware of the feelings of my body… I felt numb, but I found I could still function perfectly fine with being so lost in my own head. My older brother-in-law was watching the match, his clawed hand cradling my head to his chest, an arm wrapped protectively around my waist. It felt nice to be so well surrounded with people who I could trust and look too. Jin was starting to remind me of Julius in his innocent way of trying to make me feel better.

I waited for a few minutes just simply trying not to feel anything. I wanted to push at the wall but I was afraid Aidan might carry through on his threat and drop it. I sat there, with no feeling in my body and my mind in utter confusion.

'We have seven minutes until that barrier goes off, sister. If anything the battle will only last for that much longer.'

I swallowed against the gagging urge in my throat. 'Jin, that's right! The barrier! How are we going to get them away from here in time? We're way to close!'

'Dear, you clearly underestimate me. Just because you cannot contact Yugo doesn't mean that I can't and I'm also in communication with Chrono and Sieg as well. We are more then well informed of the activity around us. If you would stop freezing up so badly you could reach out to them as well and realize everything is alright.'

'…How is Yugo doing?' I found myself asking after a second, trying to stabilize myself.

'He's very rusty. It's been a while since he was even at considerable devil strength. He is still no match for Aidan but he is not doing badly, either.'

I swallowed. 'Why can't he match up to him? Because of his lost horns?'

'Yes. When they were destroyed, Yugo killed most of his strength. Even at his top fighting power, without them, he is still only at 95 percent of what he used to be.'

'So there's no way he can win.'

'He's not trying to win. He's simply stalling for time.'

I wanted to hide now, even in my own head. If Aidan fought hard enough, he could take down Yugo and I knew there was nothing that would stop him from killing him in an instant. The thought of Yugo dying was worse then breaking the barrier and going into another lapse. 'Aidan…' My plea was a soft sudden one, praying that he would come to his senses about something.

To my own surprise, I could find a path there, as if it was walkable by my own body. I had learned when I first gained psychic ability that all devils could talk through their mind on different paths or connections. The connection to Aidan was now illuminated as if there was a set of steps leading straight into his head.

I tapped his mind and found feelings so intense that I revolted away as if I had been shocked. 'What are you doing?' Jin asked me questionably and even a little wary. I ignored him, attempting another try. This time I withstood the emotions and dug deeper, pushing the connection back as I went. The thought struck me like a blow to the face. I was now in Aidan's mind.

Bloodlust was the first thing on his mind. Immeasurable grief and sorrow were next. He was angry with me for siding with Yugo. He was tired of being patient, of doing things my way. He wanted Yugo dead and he wanted him dead now. He would give him a quick and utterly painless death on my behalf, take me from Jin, if by force if he had to, and retire for the time being, returning to Aion and the others in the morning.

He knew he had the upper-hand and he was trying to utilize everything in brute strength and speed. I sensed no knowledge of the Order crucifix barrier, but he did have quite an extensive trove on the barrier he had firmly in my mind. I didn't understand half of it but I was sure if I sent the information to the right sources, it would prove helpful. I sat memorizing it while a part of me searched elsewhere, going deeper in and away from the layer of conflicting emotions. I found pictures, images that flickered through my vision as if I was watching a film and I swallowed, noticing some were startling familiar.

…There was a brook, a calm small creek that sat on the side of a rolling hill. A small girl was playing at the water's edge, barely more then six or seven years old. She looked up and I gasped softly, realizing the mix matched eyes and the short crimson hair. It was me.

"Sora! Come on! Aren't you going to eat?" I saw a young woman standing over a cloth blanket spread out on the grass, with bright cerulean eyes and long copper-brown hair. She smiled at the child playfully with a hand on her hip. "You're keeping Aidan and me waiting!"

A deep tenor voice laughed, averting my gaze to the man with long raven hair and crimson eyes sitting casually on the blanket. "She's never going to change, Fallon. Always the adventurous one."

"Coming!" The girl came running up the hill and pounced the man, all girlish giggles.

"Don't start now! Sit down and eat you're lunch before Aidan eats it all." My sister sat down by his side, lose enough that her shoulder brushed his. He smiled at her before leaning over and ruffling the child's short bobbed hair.

"Do as your sister commands before you get us both in trouble." He grinned handsomely…

The scene flickered and faded another one replaying. It was dark out and all I could hear was the rushing of water and the screaming cries of a human in trouble. I watched Aidan fly through the trees on dark wings, his eyes complete worry as he flew through branches and underbrush. He landed at the side of the creek, which was overflowing in the rain. I hadn't noticed before but he was drenched, his white shirt and black pants clinging to every inch of his form. He dove into the river without a second hesitance, swimming out to a fallen tree lying on the opposite side in the downpour, which had the stranded child on it. I was me, out so late during such a storm. I was shivering and trembling and so afraid that I clung to Aidan as he scooped me into his arms, not even noticing the reappearance of his wings as he hovered over the water, making his way back to other side. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" I was crying, holding onto him tightly. "But Sis was sick! I had to do something while you were gone Aidan!"

"I know child, I know." He said softly as he touched ground again. "But you gave both of us a heart attack, and now you're going to be the sick one. Rest now, until we get back. Everything's going to be alright."

As soon as the last scene had gone, this one started with screaming, but not of the pleaful kind…of the angry kind.

"Why won't you answer me! Aidan!" Fallon was stalking around the house, with an obvious stumble and a slur to her words. The table was set with empty flasks of alcohol and a tall brown glass wine bottle.

This time instead of seeing it for myself, I was glimpsing it from Aidan's eyes. He was standing by the window, watching me play outside. It was sunset and that detail struck me without a breath. I knew what this day was. This was the day my sister was murdered.

Fallon made her way near him with a drunken smirk. "I figured. You're watching her again. That's all you do. You're obsessive. She's only eight years old."

"She has the potential of extreme greatness." He said softly, his arms crossed over his chest.

My sister snorted. "And what am I? Just another average ordinary village girl you feel you can sleep with at any time you wish?"

He looked over at her. "Fallon."

He reached out to grab her and she slapped him away casually with a small laugh. "Don't you 'Fallon' me. You know damn right I'm right. This has all been a ploy…you caring about me…loving me…how long did you think you be able to get away with it?"

"You're delirious and you're drunk. You need to get some rest." He put a hand on her shoulder and she retaliated, pulling a kitchen knife from her sleeve and thrusting it into his side.

To my horror she let out a cold laugh as she looked up at him. "I don't want to hear any more from you. Everything you say are lies. Why won't you answer me Aidan? When I asked you if you loved me, why could you not give me an answer? You're a very twisted man…I know you're far more then fond of my little sister…the way you look at her is far different from the way you look at me."

Aidan hadn't even flinched from the wound. In fact he hadn't even moved. "Fallon, you can not possibly understand…you have no idea." He sounded saddened and a little angry.

"I don't care. Why is she so special? She's a little girl. What did she do to deserve your complete attention?" Fallon hissed.

'No…' The echoing through his mind caused me to jump as if I'd been caught stealing. I pulled away from the barrier, hoping to stall time, trying to keep him from getting to me why I finished this. I had to know how this ended.

"It doesn't matter. She's a thief. She stole your heart from me and now she'll pay!" My sister continued with a hiss.

'No.'

"I'll kill her…" She grinned. "I'll kill her and then you'll have no choice but to come back to me. I can't make you love me, but I can stop you from loving her."

'NO!'

I pulled away at his presence getting closer I her mind, passing by him with the thought. 'I've seen what you were hiding so badly. What are you going to do about it now?'

He was enraged and upset with me and I fled back to my own mind as quickly as possible.

'There you are! I was wondering where you went! What the hell did you do!'

'Did I…?'

'Return to your body.'

I did as was commanded, looking up with slightly blurred eyes to the two. Yugo stood shakily on two legs a mass of bruises and scars and a few very serious wounds, but nothing I know he couldn't handle. Aidan however was clutching his head in sharp moans and groans as if someone had taken a very serious beating to the head.

'Yugo didn't touch his face. He suddenly just went insane. We have literally a minute to get out of here.' Jin swallowed. 'Yugo wants to finish him.'

I felt the barrier slipping in my head and I was scared to touch Aidan mentally at the moment, knowing he seemed to be going completely crazy.

Yugo felt it too and looked back at me with bright glimmering amber eyes. "Leave him." I whispered. "Come back to me."

The ground beneath us began to pulse in crimson, the earth shaking. I swallowed, my gaze never leaving his. "We need to go, now."

He spun around, lifting himself into the air with his mighty wings. He grabbed, me, lifting me into his strong arms while Jin ran beside us across the beach, trying to get to safety. The holy barrier was becoming stronger with every passing second, the walls building on the side. Meanwhile, the barrier in my mind was slowly failing and with it a headache was oncoming. Yugo was trying with all his might to get us out to safety and as quick as possible.

I saw the barrier was becoming thicker and thicker as we got closer and I swallowed. "Will you be alright?" I asked him worriedly.

"We're getting ready to find out, won't we?" He said, streaking through it at the same time Jin gunned through it. I saw nothing but bright light but I heard the short gasp of agony and suddenly we were on the grass outside the barrier. I picked myself up, accessing the damage. My mental guard had faded but I wasn't seeing any effects from the small lag Yugo had placed on me. He had transformed back to his sealed form after exiting the barrier and so had Jin, both lying face down on the grass. Jin was the first to recover, sitting up and folding his legs Indian-style underneath him with a satisfied grin.

"Well that was intense, eh brother?" He grinned at him.

Yugo picked himself up at that point and both Jin and me lost our smiles. Literally half of his face was missing, his left cheek torn to shreds and his clothes were spotted with blood. He couldn't save us and heal all of his injuries in the time he had had left but he wasn't seeming to complain. I, however was so appalled by the damage done to him that it brought tears to my eyes.

"So did he- why are you crying?" He stared at me casually.

"It could have something to do with that fact that you're a total wreck." Jin supplied helpfully.

"I'll have healed in a few days." Yugo shrugged it off as if his injuries were nothing but a simple scrape.

The ride back to the Villa was clouded with so many thoughts that I didn't even realize we were on the move until we were pulling into the long drive of the glamorous mansion. Mia had graciously decided to drive us back since I was in now condition and Yugo was worse off then I was. Jin and Sieg retreated back, vanishing in the chaos of the sight once the crucifix barrier was in place and orders were being given for a sound retreat. Duffau and Gurio were about, though they both did not seem happy of the loss of their comrade, who had died taking out Sinner Viede. Out of nine, three were with us and four remained against us…four lives we would be forced to kill.

The paramedics had been at a loss healing Yugo's wounds…they didn't know how to treat a devil and he was being stubborn and sensitive about it anyway… it took me settling him in my lap with a layer of cloth pressed to his face before he finally let anyone near us and even still the attendants were not going to go anywhere near him anyway. They took care of my own scrapes from falling, wrapped my hair back and a cold compress on my throbbing head and gave me a pain reliever for the oncoming headache. I sat in the back seat of the car with Yugo's head cradled against my chest, keeping a firm and gentle grip on the cloth on the horrendous wound, trying to ignore the trickle of blood that was dripping down the side of my hand, running from the edge of the drenched rag. Yugo was lying contently in my arms and a scan of his mind showed me that he wasn't in any pain he couldn't tolerate, and he was trying to rest, blocking everything out and keep from laboring the injury any further.

In the silence I found myself thinking over what I had learned… what I had seen in Aidan's mind. If the memories were true, which I believed them to be, then how come I had not remembered him from the beginning? I should have known him if he had spent so much time with me… and I had no clue. It was startling to know that he had been watching me since I was a small child…he had cared for me all this time and I had no idea.

'The contract was put into play the moment we entered the pact, love.' Yugo's voice echoed through my mind, and I lifted my head, surprised by his sudden presence…he had been residing in my mind for the duration of the trip. 'It started working immediately…and I'm just guessing here, but it probably took away the most unwanted memories first… things you didn't want to remember about your past. I knew when I first established a link with you, your mind was in constant pain about Fallon's death…the unwanted detail that Aidan was the one who had hurt you was something you didn't want to admit and so it was taken from you first. You have retained most of your most precious memories…the people you care about, and the people most important to you' He didn't move, didn't flinch, the only moving of his body the beating of his steady heartbeat.

I dropped my head against his, brushing the messy cyan locks with a touch of my lips. My eyes closed and I let out a soft sigh. The more I thought about it, I realized it was probably the truth…my own curse had been trying to save me from past pain…a little ironic. It didn't surprise me though…it had been a contract that Yugo had created from his own past, it was a part of Yugo and just like the handsome wolf devil, it was filled with sympathy.

The abrupt stop of the car as it stopped in the driveway caught my attention and I lifted my head as Mia looked back at us, blinking dark brown eyes. "You two going to be okay?" She asked softly, fine blonde eyebrows furrowed.

I nodded as Yugo sat up slowly, bright amber eyes blinking open. The cloth stuck to his bloody face and he reached up, pressing it back against his cheek. "We'll be okay. Call me later and let me know what's going on over at the Order."

She gave a return nod. "Will do. Say hi to the others for me." She said, tilting her head in the direction of the porch where Julius and Azmaria were awaiting out return.

"No problem." I replied, getting out of the backseat and extending a hand to Yugo. He growled slightly and ignored the gesture, climbing out himself and wrapping a firm hand around my waist.

The kids were all over Yugo in an instant, offering any help and wanting to know what happened, and he shooed them off with a loud hiss, though it was not out of anger rather then exhaustion. Steiner was helpful as always getting a tub of hot water, alcohol and rags and bringing them to our room and asking for no further help. He stood in the doorway to keep the children at bay while I removed the cloth from Yugo's wound to get a better look at it. It was still bleeding and showed no signs of stopping. I cleaned it up as best as he would tolerate, meanwhile asking questions to Steiner to keep his attention focused on the conversation and less of what I was doing. Rosette and Chrono had returned and she had gone to get a bath while he was out on the courtyard. Sieg had come in and gone straight to his room and Satella was lying down asleep. The kids had gone off, Julius trying to calm down Azmaria who was all upset over the battle wounds we had received. I was holding back my frustration…by the time I had a clean cloth over the injury it was already seeping through.

Tossing it in a pile of half-a-dozen more, I was at wits end. Yugo looked drained... his golden tan skin was getting paler and paler and I was tired of him being stubborn.

"Steiner, if you would excuse us for a few moments." I replied, beaming a smile at the helpful butler.

"Not a problem Miss. I'll take the opportunity to fix something to eat." He smiled, shutting the door as he exited and locking it with a swift click.

Now that we were alone I fell back, landing on the hardwood floor with a thud. "Alright. Now, release the seal and transform."

He looked at me as if I had gone insane. "You're mental woman." He said arrogantly, holding a cloth to his face as he tried to save his pants and shirt from crimson stains.

"Look, I'm tired of cleaning up your mess… you're going to pass out and die of bloodloss if you don't take care of that damned wound." I snapped back, narrowing my eyes slightly.

"Oh yeah, that's perfect and then you have another seizure and go into a coma and die." He hissed back with a slight growl. "I think I would go insane from the loss of you."

His worry was touching but not deterring. "Do you think you could place up a barrier like the one Aidan created, if you knew how?" I replied quickly, not losing the edge in this fight.

He just blinked those golden eyes at me, startled by the question. "If I knew how to make one, I would be using it regularly." He said, trying to get a grasp back on the argument.

I smirked arrogantly. "Well I guess it's a good thing I found how to make one while I was looking inside Aidan's mind."

His face brightened at that, eyes sparking. "And you didn't tell me?" He snapped.

"I couldn't get everything… so I don't know how helpful it's going to be to you. But we can try." I showed him what I had picked up, being very careful and precise about the spell. Yugo was a little confused, but he was sure if he reacted off instinct, he could probably pull it off. He improvised, tested things and tried the mental barrier several times, using abilities and spells of his own to gauge the strength of the semi-permanent wall. At one point, we were so into figuring out the kinks that he lost the cloth he was holding on his face and crimson was leaking down the side of his neck and chest in a small but steadily flowing stream. I found to my surprise that I deemed as really attractive and he simply grinned, pushing back blood tipped strands of hair that had turned from teal to awkward shade of purple.

Steiner brought us sandwiches on a tray and we ate as we planned and talked, sitting around by ourselves. It was nice…being near him and yet not…just causally spending time together, even if it was over something battle-hardened as a protective barrier. After almost three hours we had improvised and devised a spell that seemed to work. My mind was exhausted and lagging a little but nonetheless, we were ready for a final test.

"You ready?" I asked him, holding the cracked jewel of the necklace around my neck.

He nodded, erecting the barrier. I used my own power to crack the transformation spell, watching intently as the clear crystal in my hand glowed dimly blue and then vanished back to it's glass like stone. A blue aura surrounded Yugo and he stood as the spell continued, saving the bed from the pulsing energy as it wiped the area in the room like a cyclone swarming around him. I stood up myself, backing off slightly as I recognized the familiar cerulean light, which erupted into a void of white. Blinking I saw him as he was meant to be, in everything I had met him as. Looking up at him as the aura faded I stared at him in awe- the wounds had been gone with the white light and he was smiling at me. "We did it." He replied, his deep voice rolling through me, causing my body to tremble.

The door burst open, creaking on its hinges and I recognized the crimson hair and golden eyes. Jin stared at us as if he couldn't believe his eyes. "Yugo…there's…"

The older sibling winced and the aura around him flared as he clutched his head. I felt the barrier fall and so did his transformation, returning to his sealed form. With the spell breaking so did my strength. My knees gave out on me and I buckled, falling to the floor. A pair of arms wrapped around me and as I hit the ground I realized Jin had moved with lightning speed to try and stop Yugo only to go down with both of us.

The crash had to have been heard throughout the house because Chrono, Rosette, Julius and Azmaria were all immediately at our door, but all they found were the three of us laughing. Jin made it a point to regain his composure and ignore the kid's prying questions while Yugo just smirked and changed the subject. The two of us changed clothes and then joined the others for a late dinner. There was no talk of Aion, or Joshua, or the battle we were fighting in and out everyday…it was about us, our plans and our goals. Julius wanted to go back and show off his swordsmanship to Remington and his brother. Azmaria was practicing to be a professional opera singer. Chrono and Rosette had no plans, only that they both wanted to be there at my wedding… which was starting to sound more and more like a reality then a dream. Jin was giving Yugo a hard time, telling him he was going to make him mess up his vows and that he was looking forward to it more then anyone else. Sieg joined us at one point, not saying anything but the faint smile he was wearing as he leaned against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, was a sign he was cheering up slightly.

Yugo and I recalled the wedding ideas lying in bed that evening, holding onto one another through utter exhaustion but to afraid to let each other go. For the first time in a while everyone was looking past despair and hopelessness and I felt we were going to be alright.

The next morning however was no different then the past few. Everyone had returned to doing fifty million things at once and the feeling of mass dread was hanging over everyone's head. Sieg had not left his room and Satella was up only briefly before she locked herself away again. Rosette, Chrono, Yugo and myself were at the Order the next morning, in contact with Mia, Sera, Gilliam, Duffau and the team from New York. We were back to square one, searching for the one group of people we wanted so desperately to find. We would come home around dark, eat and go to bed, spend the midnight hours in Yugo's arms and wake to make a repeat of the previous day.

The barrier that Yugo and I had created that one evening had been tested over and over again on different occasion and at it's best it could be contained for five minutes under Yugo's true form. Five minutes for a battle with a full-powered devil should be enough, but against the sinners we could only hope to make it work.

The first sign that something was changing was the day Azmaria came running in with a beaming smile, ruby red eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. "Come on you three, let's get going!" She smiled.

Yugo and I looked up from the map we had been looking over on the floor of our bedroom and Julius sat up on the bed, closing the small leather-bound book he had been writing in. "What's going on?" He asked.

"You'll see! Come on!" She replied, dashing out of the room as quickly as she had appeared. "And make sure you all look nice! We're going out!" Her voice echoed into the room as she yelled down the hall.

The three of us looked at one another and then shrugged, complying to the demand. Julius left his things on the dresser and went out, returning moments later in a crimson shirt and black pants, his fancy new sword buckled at his waist. He had undone the ribbon he had tied his hair back with to write, the dark chocolate brown hair falling in locks around his shoulders. The few moments had given me enough time to change into a modest pale green sun dress and Yugo into a black button down shirt, and matching slacks, his long hair braided practically down the back of his head, tied with a white ribbon at the end.

While I was admiring him in the dark clothes, I didn't hear the sound of footsteps entering in the room. "Dear me! Is that what you're planning to wear!" I recognized the immediately grating accent and glanced over to see Satella in a yellow strapless dress, a small arm warmer secured around her shoulders. She was staring at me, face emotionless, crimson red eyes watching me.

"It's not like I dress up often!" I hissed, my temper flaring.

She huffed, grabbing my wrist. "Yes, that's apparent." She chided, dragging me out of the room.

"What are you doing! I'm not ready yet!" I scoffed as she dragged me through the house. I didn't realize where we were until she opened the door to her bedroom and led me in.

"Stay here." She replied, walking off into another room and coming back moments later with a beautiful gold shawl and a set of yellow ribbons. "Don't move." She replied, grabbing a brush from the bedside table and running it through my hair.

I was shocked by the woman's sudden change of heart. She had seemed like she hated me, wanted nothing to do with any of us and had a completely different agenda in our plans… we were nothing to her.

"Azmaria told me about your proposal. Congratulations." Her voice was soft, and hard to read, but she sounded like she meant it.

I swallowed. "Thank you."

"I've been thinking a lot about what you said the other day." She continued after a minute. "And I have to say that I'm wrong. I owe you an apology."

I blinked. "Okay what did you do to Satella, because you're not her." I said before I had even realized it.

She laughed quietly, securing the ribbons in my hair in a style more suitable to our blonde-haired partner. "The look suits you better then it does Rosette." The Jewel Summoner told me. "But I didn't say that." She handed me the shawl with a faint smile. "I want this back at the end of the night." She responded arrogantly, before heading towards the door. "Now, do you have a decent pair of shoes to wear or do I have to lend you a pair of those too?"

Rosette was literally walking up the drive as we were leaving, much to Azmaria's delight. "Where are you all going all dressed up?" She asked, blinking bright blue eyes.

"We're going out." Chrono told her with a sheepish grin.

"And you're joining us. Hop in." Azmaria said, opening the car door.

"One car is not going to fit all of us. I'll follow behind you." Yugo responded, shrugging on his gray trenchcoat.

"No you won't." I snatched the keys from him. "I'll drive."

He glared at me but as soon as I had stolen the keys, they were taken from me. "That settles it. I'll drive." Julius replied.

"You?" I blinked.

"I don't plan on crashing, kid." Yugo looked at him, arching an eyebrow.

"Trust me, I can drive." Julius told us both with a small sheepish smile.

Azmaria nodded in his defense, before glancing back to the house. "Mister Sieg, are you coming?" She asked.

I watched Satella freeze as the front door closed and Sieg stepped down the walk, dressed in a white shirt and black pants. He looked good that way… the messy crimson hair and crimson eyes throwing off the formal clothing. "I'll meet you all there." He said quietly

"Alright then." Chrono nodded. "Let's get going."

Just like he had promised, Julius could drive… and he was better at it then Yugo was, which caused the devil to mutter curses the entire way there. We stopped in downtown near the boardwalk in the heart of a festival. "Are you serious?" My eyes lit up as I watched the event from the car window, grinning broadly.

However the idea didn't go ever well with everyone else. Sieg and Satella were in no mood for a carnival and Rosette was more focused on finding Aion and getting Joshua back then anything else... she didn't want to take the time out to go to the festival. The look of dissapointment that echoed in Julius's eyes at the talk silently told me he had been looking forward to it, whether he knew all the details at the moment, and poor Azmaria was close to tears.

"Please…" Julius spoke up, turning to face us. "Can't we just enjoy ourselves for a little while?" I was surprised by his forwardness, smiling affectionately at him.

Azmaria nodded. "Everyone just seems so distant. Please…just for a little while?"

Yugo wasn't saying anything, but he had already crumbled and was willing to defend the kids. Satella let out a small sigh after a moment, reaching out and grabbing the two, squeezing Julius's shoulder while she ruffled Azmaria's silver hair. "Alright. For a little while."

Rosette nodded, coming back to the idea. "I guess it will be alright." She looked at Chrono who nodded in return.

And from there it was as if we were back on that one night sitting around and talking- everyone was together, smiling and laughing, if still a little awkward. Sieg, Chrono, Yugo and Julius tried their hand at a shooting game while we went for food. While they rivaled in a five foot kiddy game we stood around eating ice cream and drinking lemonade. Poor Julius hadn't gotten any better at shooting, but Yugo got to take home the grand prize- a nicely-made plush teddy bear. The look on his face when they handed it to him was priceless... he tried to hide the bear off to me and I gave it to Azmaria who was almost in tears as she accepted the gift. Late afternoon gave way to evening and by that time Sieg was back to his normal self, even if he was still distant to Satella. He had snagged a black top hat from somewhere and was wearing it crookedly as he stole Yugo's stick of cotton candy, which was eaten before Yugo retained the sweet confection. The carousel was probably one of the biggest and most impressive things at the festival. Azmaria and Julius rode it about five times straight but Yugo found it boring and Sieg was trying to take off with one of the carousel horses (in enchanting it to life).

We found the dancing hall and the live band…you couldn't miss it with the large crowd surrounding it on all sides. "Oh wow!" My eyes lit up as I watched the groups on the dance floor. "Yugo, can we?"

He blinked his golden eyes at me and then gallantly bowed in front of me. "May I?" He replied, grinning tigerishly.

"Wow… can you really dance Sora?" Rosette asked me with wide blue eyes.

"You're about to find out, aren't you?" I smiled as I was led away.

I was nervous about the large group of people watching, but Yugo reassured me. 'Keep your eyes on me and you'll be fine.' He replied arrogantly.

'I'll be fine, even without you.' I snapped back, though I was smiling.

'I'm guessing you can dance then?' He replied.

'If I can recall what my sister taught me.' My memories were foggy... after three or four steps everything blanked.

'I'll take lead then' Yugo said, lowering me slightly.

I looked up at him in surprise. 'You can dance!'

'I guess so. I had to do something in my last thousand years.' He replied with a small laugh. He was reacting off my moves and telling me what he was remembering from them. It was different from what I was sure I remembered, but I could improvise with it.

I looked up, recognizing Satella on the dance floor with a very handsome young man, and my heart lurched. Go figure she would ditch any relationship with Sieg to be with someone…human.

My thoughts were shattered by the thuds of something hitting the wooden floor. Chrono and Rosette were attempting to dance and managing a great stamping match, which eventually broke out into a swinging and very clumsy form. I laughed as I watched them, my body moving on it's own as I moved with Yugo. 'You were saying about Satella…' Yugo told me, his voice greatly pleased as he twirled me around. I looked up catching a flash of her as they flew by. She was dancing with Sieg.

My heart soared at that. 'And Julius...' Turning so I could see them, I got a glimpse of Julius and Azmaria dancing on the outskirts of the floor, making up the moves as they went along.

I sighed, leaning my head against his shoulder as the music slowed. 'Can time stay like this?' I asked him, my hands running along his sides, wrapping around his waist.

'You are not the only one wishing that.' He said truthfully, kissing the top of my head. 'This afternoon has been so much fun…'

'Didn't think you would grow to like humans as much as you do, did ya?' I asked teasingly, and he responded by squeezing me against him. 'You have shown me so many things…I will never be able to repay you for all the faith and love you have given me.'

I laughed. 'That I agree on.' Leaning up I kissed the side of his neck. The moments were completely carefree.

Two more songs and we left the dancefloor with the others. Julius and Azmaria were pestering Satella and Sieg with a million questions about their relationship and it seemed neither one of them could give a straight answer through a crimson blush. We were pulled aside by a photographer who was willing to take our picture and I nearly spit out my lemonade. I had never had my picture taken before.

It seemed Yugo hadn't either and he fidgeted under the camera's lens, but overall I was excited to see the end result. At that point I went over to look at some of the shops and for the first time all day the group split up. Julius and Azmaria ran off toward the games, Satella and Steiner hot on their heels and Chrono and Rosette simply took off…I shot Yugo a questioning look at that but he just shook his head and smiled. They had wanted their own alone time, and I was feeling the same way. Walking from shop to shop with Yugo's arm around me I was content to stay like this for the rest of the night. A group of people near one stand were eagerly talking about the fireworks display that was going to be going off at nine. That caught my attention, relaying the message to Julius who told the others. They had stopped to get something to drink and apparently Sieg had been around winning more teddy bears. The fact that we were all alright, that we were all okay with one another and that we were having a good time was overwhelming. Since the business with Aion started more then three months ago, every day had been seemingly never-ending, and edgy. Today was so different, that thinking about how apart we had been was bringing me close to tears. I wanted Mia to be here, and Remington. Jin and Lena and even Joshua. If they all could have been here to experience the day I had had then maybe I could take away some of their pain, their strife.

'You're a very kind-hearted woman Sora.' Yugo told me, wrapping his arms around me. 'It doesn't surprise me that you are so close to Rosette.'

I blinked up at him. "What's that supposed to mean?" He suddenly looked upset, but his mind was empty.

His answer was drowned in the sound of the fireworks going off near the harbor, and my attention to the subject was lost as I stared up at the shimmering lights. I was sure whatever it was could wait until later. The entire shop district calmed as everyone watched the beautiful explosions, raining purple, red and green sparks into the night.

I was so awed by the sight that I didn't catch Yugo's movement until he called to me in my mind. 'What is it?' I asked, looking at him. His eyes were wide as he glanced around a small sniff catching the evening air. I knew that movement…what it meant. 'Who is it?' I asked softly, dread filling me. Not here…not now. 'Aidan?'

He shook his head slightly, eyes narrowing slightly as he glanced into the mass crowds.

I swallowed. 'Aion?'

'No.' He responded looking back at me for a second, his face a mask. 'Joshua.'

Author's Notes- Evening all you Chrono Crusade fans! As I promised chapter seventeen was supposed to be out weeks ago, and yet again I fell behind on my deadline. –bangs head on desk- I try to have everything out by the 21st of every month, but computer problems suck. Sorry to make you all wait… you can flame me when I've finished the story... which doesn't seem like it's to far off.

If this chapter seemed like it was rushed… it pretty much was. I had all this done up to the festival and then I lost it all. So you'll have to excuse me on that. As for chapter eighteen- the confrontation with Joshua/Aion does not go well (well duh, you knew that from the anime) and as Hirelena once again reappears in storyline (finally) a startling discovery will be made about her and Joshua (it'll just be another reason for you all to hate Aion –grin-) and Yugo takes a beating only a sinner could live through. Sora puts her limitations to the test on both her love for her new-found family and her memories…how much longer can she last before someone dies? Until I write again!

--Sora Tokumi Kazuma