Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim all rights to all characters (save for those of my own creation) in this time where there is both hope and a lack thereof… especially for the one who cries those happy tears.

~保護者~

"Something to Protect"

~保護者~

"Right, well… here it is." Locke spread a map across the flat top of a wood table. The scroll appeared antiquated even for this era, but even so the sheer amount of detail the old drawings contained was superb. "Do me a favor and don't touch, alright?"

"We won't," Sonic was quick to promise.

Locke nodded. "Tell me anything you can about the place you're looking for," he instructed. "I'd wager you guys don't know the language this was written in, so I'll handle finding your destination on the map."

"It's a mountain range," Sonic said, "and a big one at that. It doesn't have near as many mountains as the range Chun-nan was built within, but there are still a bunch of peaks. And they're substantially higher."

Already, Locke's eyes were roving over the large expanse of the map. "I'm not seeing anything like that on here, kid."

That nickname shot a metaphorical arrow through Sonic, but he choked back his emotions as much as he possibly could. "How…" He swallowed hard. "How about this, then. Do you know of any regions to the far north that are hidden away by barriers? They'd be immensely powerful, not even letting people like you through."

Now that caught Locke's attention. "...You know what, there is a place like that." He pointed to a part of that map that, upon closer inspection, was filled with inked-in clouds. Perhaps that indicated that whatever was there was unknown? "Actually, this is the only place like that. It's farther to the west than the Uichei Mountains, the ones Chun-nan are in, but teleporting to the edges of that area should be easy enough if you've got that ability."

Sonic blinked once or twice. He'd seen that name written before, but had never been sure how to pronounce it… until now. So it's "wee-chae" and not "oo-ee-chae". Got it. "Yeah, we can teleport just fine," he answered. Then he offered a tentative smile. "Thanks for your help. We really, really appreciate it."

Locke turned to fully face the two hedgehogs and loosely crossed his arms. "You sure you know what you're getting yourselves into? I may not have ever come face-to-face with that society myself, but I've heard the stories. They massacred close to seventy-percent of our world's entire population before they went into hiding for an unknown reason. If the legends are to be believed, they did that in only a matter of weeks. These are not friendly people."

Leave it to Locke to be so concerned, even about strangers. That warm feeling grew alongside Sonic's smile.

"We can handle ourselves," Steam answered softly. "And, even if we didn't, we absolutely need to do this."

"Whatever you say," Locke shrugged. He rolled up the map and began walking off with it, his free hand raised in casual farewell. "G'luck. You'll need it."

"Thank you," Steam murmured, glancing to Sonic. "You ready for this?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Sonic sighed. He teleported away without waiting for a reply, landing as close to the barrier as he dared. Naturally, it was snowy and beyond freezing in this area, and he stood there shivering while waiting for Steam to arrive. Steam landed beside Sonic, a barrier flaring to life around the two to temporarily protect them from the cold. Fighting off the urge to let his teeth chatter, Sonic mumbled, "So… got a plan to get in?"

Steam walked up to the barrier, leaving his own and quietly inspecting it. Flames erupted around his fist, followed by a bright golden glow before he threw a wild haymaker against the barrier, gritting his teeth from the effort in this cold. "Fuck, this area makes it hard to move."

Another sigh escaped Sonic. "I should've guessed that busting a hole would be the only option…" he mumbled as he moved over to join Steam. "I think I can conjure up enough Chaos to help, but I don't want to use it right by you. I still don't fully understand how this stuff affects people and shit."

Steam nodded, moving away to give Sonic room to do what he was planning. "Alright."

Once Steam was safely out of the way, Sonic let out as concentrated a blast as possible with whatever reserves of Chaos he had within him right then. This visibly weakened the barrier in a small area, but already it had begun repairing itself. "Alright, whatever you're gonna do needs to be fast, Steam."

"Got it," he answered, letting his body be flooded with Light before throwing an attack similar to what he had before, expelling every last bit of Light he'd built up in this short time in a burst. This was enough to create a fissure just large enough for the pair to slip through if they were fast enough, so Sonic rushed in at top speed before the opportunity was lost. As he did so, he quickly pulled up what he needed on his communicator, knowing they probably didn't have a second to spare. Steam followed him in, quickly walking up beside Sonic and frowning.

Suddenly, Steam sensed a blade pointed at him from behind, his gaze flicking toward Sonic with a grimace. "Who are you?" the female asked, animosity clear in her voice.

Sonic cringed but very slowly raised his hands in surrender. Drawing upon what knowledge he had of chameleon manners, he awkwardly said, "Lady Aniko, we… um, we're actually here on behalf of your family. Specifically, your son. We know him, or rather another version of him, and I can prove that."

Aniko pressed her blade further against Steam's neck, drawing nearer with obvious distrust. "Who are you to say you know my family?" she demanded harshly. "Speak clearly or your heads will be removed."

This was no idle threat, so Sonic wisely hurried up. "If I can be free to move… I'll show you what I'm talking about. It just involves the device on my wrist. That's all."

"You are granted mere seconds. Make any other moves and I will make my earlier threat a promise," she answered.

"Right… so I'm just going to take it off, press a button and hand it to you," Sonic advised, cautiously moving to do as he'd said while talking. He was soon blindly handing the device behind him while saying, "In this era, I know people can view events that once occurred using magic that 'records' them. This is like that, only it doesn't use magic. It's just a recording for you to watch."

Aniko snatched it from him and investigatively tapped the screen, frowning, while keeping her sword pressed against Steam. "No moves, either of you."

"Got it…" Sonic mumbled.

Meanwhile, the video in Aniko's hand began to play. There was nothing of particular importance at first, just some people talking, waving at the camera, and so on, but then whoever was holding the device turned to face Sonic. Sonic grinned and waved, then called out, 'Hey, Shadow, come say hi to the camera!"

Said camera turned to face the hedgehog in question, who had apparently been having a conversation with Espio. Both he and the chameleon traded looks, then Shadow simply shook his head. The cameraman, now revealed to be Silver, audibly pouted. "Aw, you two are no fun. C'mon, Espio, make him say hi."

"I will do no such thing."

The video ended after that, the file too corrupted with age to be played further. But Sonic hoped it said enough to save his and Steam's lives here. Aniko sheathed her sword and grabbed them both by the necks, obviously light enough that she wasn't attempting to kill either of them. "Both of you will come with me," she murmured. "You will speak nothing, do nothing, and merely do as I say. Is that understood?" Sonic was quick to nod. Steam nodded as well. Aniko teleported with them to the village of Hyale, setting them both on their feet and motioning for them to follow her as she walked.

Sonic did as instructed and walked after her. That… went a lot better than I thought it would.

Steam glanced to Sonic as they walked behind the chameleon, a small thoughtful frown on his face. Aniko glanced to them both, turning to face them both as she walked backward. "So, what is your purpose in invading our lands?"

"The invading was… not our main intent," Sonic promised, ears dipping down a bit. Then he got to the point. "Like I said before, we know your son, Espio. I don't know if you're familiar with timelines and all that, but in the one we come from he's an adult now. Beyond that… I imagine you won't want me to mention it around prying eyes and ears. It's… really important."

Aniko glared at him, glancing to Steam then back to Sonic. "The two of you were capable of breaking a hole in our barriers. How?"

"We're semi-Immortals," Sonic supplied, "like you and your people. We're just semi-Immortals of a different variety, is all." His sensitive ears picked up some sounds nearby, but he mostly ignored them. It made sense to him that their walk was being monitored by other villagers.

"Remnants of Light," Aniko muttered, her gaze falling on Steam. "It is not inherently present within you, yet, you used it."

"I'm called a Balancer. I have access to Darkness and Light respectively for various purposes," Steam answered. "I don't have either, but mere access. The Darkness is also neutral in nature, should you be curious."

Aniko snorted at him. "You both are certainly from a time where you have met myself… or you know the story of my people." She didn't wait for a response before turning around, shaking her head. Who are these fools?

A few seconds later, the sound of small feet rushing toward them interrupted the three. A roughly three or four year old (meaning very much still a baby by chameleon standards) ran up to Aniko and immediately skidded to a halt. Seemingly unaware of the visitors, the child raised his arms up high, opening and closing his hands, silently begging to be picked up. He was obviously quite happy to see Aniko and desperately wanted her affection right that second, as babies were wont to do. Aniko cast both of the outsiders a borderline murderous glare, as if daring them to come any closer as she carefully and gently picked up her child with a soft smile. "You were not supposed to come out here at this time. Why have you done so?"

Having known already that Espio had been mute throughout his earliest years, Sonic wasn't surprised when Espio used his hands to reply. "I watching music," he signed happily, pointing at an apparent musician just out of sight around a tree. Sonic couldn't help but smile. "He have a flute, mama."

Aniko shook her head in amusement. "Be careful, Espio," she murmured softly, holding the young child close. "Stay by me for now, okay?"

His response was swift… and undeniably cute. He snuggled right up to her with a nod, using small hands to help hold himself in place. Only then did he seem to notice Sonic and Steam, and his innate curiosity caused his eyes to immediately light up. Less than a second later, he was signing again, though he did so too rapidly for Sonic to follow. All he got was lots of signs for "fast" and "happy". Did that mean he had seen their entrance and was excited by the speed he'd witnessed…? Maybe, but with a baby it was hard to be sure. Aniko set a hand on Espio's head, gently attempting to calm him down as she resumed walking. This caused the little boy to begin signing a near-endless stream of questions at her in regards to these strangers, seemingly just wanting to ask them and not ever allowing her time to attempt to answer. Sonic thought it best not to laugh at the sight and instead just followed in silence.

Aniko teleported into her home, then turned and teleported Sonic and Steam up with her, walking further in. "Shei," she called. The chameleon in question appeared to be asleep in another room, judging by the feel of his aura, and didn't immediately reply. This prompted Espio to squirm away from Aniko and scurry off to fetch his father himself. The woman turned to them both, a faint sigh escaping her. "You two should sit. You may now speak freely, but watch your tongues." Her scrutinizing gaze locked on Steam. "You especially. I can sense your brashness from a mile away."

Being allowed to sit was a rare privilege for unwelcome guests, so Sonic thought it best to accept the invasion and immediately sat, pulling Steam down at the same time. "The thing I didn't want to say before," he told her quickly, "involves Darkness. I really, really wish this wasn't true, but Espio's has been raging in our timeline. Not continuously, granted, but that's mostly because twice now powerful beings of Light - allies of ours, I swear - have intervened and helped to keep it at bay. We just… we're at a point now where there's nothing else we know of that we can do. If things escalate further, we don't even fully know what to expect." He sighed and lowered his gaze. "We came here looking for help. Help for us, certainly, but mostly for him. We didn't know who else to turn to."

Aniko held up a finger to signal for him to be quiet, frowning. "Wait, for one thing. Shei will be in here soon. He will be present for that conversation."

As if on cue, her partner entered the room with Espio wandering in behind him. He signed a quick, "I heard, Aniko," as he took a seat beside the table. Espio, meanwhile, tottered out to the porch to go bother Aku.

Her gaze fell back on Sonic and she took a seat as well, glancing between them. "His Darkness grew out of control, yes?"

Sonic nodded. "Yeah. At first, it did so naturally - albeit as a result of outside efforts to mess with his emotions in order to trigger the first outburst. That took a good six or seven centuries to achieve, a fact the rest of us were unaware of until very recently, but everything's just been snowballing since then."

Steam cut in to provide more information. "He's also progressed to the point where his markings coalesced into one, and his eyes have also nearly shifted in color to gold once as a result of his Darkness."

Sonic was quick to add one more bit of information for the moment. "That one marking… we've been told that it fading away into nonexistence means… bad news, to say the least. And as of right now, it's barely visible when you're right beside him."

Aniko shifted her gaze to Shei, a notable frown on her face. "Your thoughts?"

Shei was frowning deeply. "This should not be possible. His emotions are never so volatile that they can trigger such a chain of events."

At this, Sonic cringed. "That's… just it. Normally they're not. The only reason they have been lately, aside from when he's actively struggling with his Darkness, is when he's around the woman behind all of this. He… has feelings toward her, to some degree, but also hates her as much as one can hate a person. That creates a lot of chaos within him."

An obviously distasteful expression made its way onto Aniko's face, but she said nothing about it. "Is there anything more you wish to tell us?"

With another grimace, Sonic shook his head. "Nothing else that's relevant to this and what you can maybe help us with… no."

Aniko closed her eyes, thinking. "This is… problematic."

"Is there anything we can do?" Sonic asked her quietly.

"To combat this, it would usually require many years of training, to put it very lightly. He would need to be taught how to properly control his Darkness," Aniko answered. "That is what I and Shei went through to control our own."

"That's not feasible in our timeline," Sonic mumbled. "We don't have the luxury of that much time. We're all stuck in the grips of a massive war, and he's partly at the center of some of the conflict. We know that at least two distinct and powerful enemy forces want him on their side - or at least not against them, and they're doing everything in their power to ensure he completely loses himself to his Darkness. And they're doing this as quickly as they can manage."

Aniko fixed the two of them with a serious look. "Your only real chance would be to keep him emotionally stable, truthfully. He will likely retain control of his energy when in control of himself," she murmured softly. "Other than this, there is likely not much you can do."

Before Sonic could do more than let out a couple internal curses, Espio came running back in so fast that he tripped over his own little legs. He recovered almost instantly, however, and practically flung himself into Aniko's arms while he rapidly signed at her. "Mama, Mama! Aku say he bite me if I play with him!"

Shei smothered a voiceless laugh behind his hand. "Perhaps you should cease bothering him, in that case. You know he enjoys being allowed to sleep, son."

Aniko held Espio close and sighed softly in amusement. "Leave him be for now, my child."

The baby pouted up at her with surprisingly adorable eyes. "I want play, mama," he complained.

"Do you want Aku to bite you?" Aniko questioned with a small chuckle. Espio pouted more and shook his head. "Then you would be wise to leave Aku alone for now. Perhaps when he is awake, he will be feeling more lively."

Espio seemed to think about this for a time before perking up. "I go train please? Dada give me new knife!"

Aniko smiled. "That is fine, my child."

Shaking his head in amusement, Shei stood up. "Come, Espio, I will work with you." Visibly delighted, Espio sprang up and followed his father out the door.

Sonic was unable to conceal his smile. Who knew such a dangerous guy could have once been such a sweet little kid.

Aniko's gaze fell on Sonic and she frowned. "What?"

Realizing he was caught, Sonic coughed a little and said, "Just… sort of marveling at the fact that he was - or I guess is, here - such a sweet baby, is all. It's an interesting change from what I'm used to seeing."

There was immediate confusion on her face that made way for curiosity to take hold. "How is he as an adult?"

"Well… a lot like you, really. Calm, collected, sure of himself, protective of those he's close to… that sort of thing," Sonic answered. "When his temper does show itself, we all know it to be quite fierce. When he's sad, he's really torn up about something. When he's content, he's really at peace with his surroundings and current circumstances. You know?" He shrugged a little as he quietly added, "He may seldom reveal much, but it's always seemed to me that there's a lot more going on under the surface than we know. For one thing, he feels far more deeply than most people are capable of. Don't… cut me for saying that, though. I mean it as a good thing."

Aniko frowned thoughtfully before giving a small nod. "You may stay here for now, but do not wander. I will not protect you from other villagers should you leave this house. You would be best off leaving if you have no other business here."

Sonic gulped and nodded. "I don't know that we do," he admitted. "But… thank you, anyway. For being willing to hear us out, that is."

"The life of my son is of utter importance," Aniko answered. "I needed to heed your words if only to know what danger he may be in." Sonic answered with another small nod. Her gaze flicked to Steam. "You speak little."

"I try not to piss people off unless I have to," Steam answered.

Aniko snorted. "Wise, for a Light-bearer."

Steam managed a small smile. "There may come a day when you will meet beings of Light that are not the type to commit atrocities. I ask that you give them a chance."

"You ask much for an intruder."

"I know you're going to listen."

"Perhaps I should have removed your head," Aniko mused. For once, she didn't seem entirely serious.

Sonic tossed Steam a look. Should we go…?

Before Steam could answer, Aniko asked another question. "Why are you in our time? Surely you did not come solely for our opinion."

"We were sent back against our will by one of our enemies," Sonic answered her. "We only decided to come here once we realized that Espio would have been around in this era. And, thus, you."

Aniko nodded slowly to this. "I see."

That they had been given the choice at all to stay was not lost on Sonic, but he nevertheless stood. "Thank you for the offer," he murmured, "but we'll go ahead and stop troubling you now. If and when we ever meet again, I'll be sure to let you know what else has happened with your son."

"Thank you," she answered, giving one last look to Steam. "Watch your tongue. There are those less inclined to care about killing."

Steam stood and shrugged. "Met a few of them. They tried," he answered. He gave little else as a response, glancing to Sonic. "We leaving, then?"

"We probably should." Since it was polite in his own culture and in Aniko's, he gave her a quick but respectful bow before turning to leave. It felt silly doing it, since he seldom ever did, but he knew she cared about respect and traditions. It would mean more to her than to him. Then, with one last look at Steam, Sonic teleported away.

~保護者~

Alana straightened from her semi-inclined position beside the couch in order to lay a hand on her husband's arm. "Sein, there is some sort of commotion on the ground floor," she murmured, hoping not to awaken their son again.

Sein frowned faintly, glancing to the door. "Do you want me to check it out while you stay here?"

Being unwilling to leave Jet's side at the moment, Alana accepted the offer with a nod. "Yes. If you would not mind."

Sein nodded and silently slipped out of the room, vanishing down the stairs and landing on the ground floor as his curious gaze roamed the area to find out what was going on. Seconds later, a small child (perhaps seven or so, meaning they were just small enough for a Babylonian to be held and carried around) came running through the room Sein was in. He dodged all the well-meaning hands that grabbed for him and promptly ducked behind a table in an effort to hide. Upon being found, as he inevitably was, the child darted away again and started making a break for the stairs. Sein, being the ever-concerned parent he was, teleported to the child and scooped them up off the ground before they could bolt off and cause any more commotion in their panic. "Woah, woah. Calm down for a second, you're alright," he said, hoping to comfort the kid in his arms. "What's your name?"

The boy only seemed to grow more upset and began struggling valiantly to break free. "No!" he cried out, squirming and pushing in an effort to escape. However, now that he wasn't running at such (surprisingly) high speeds through the crowds, it was easier to make out what he looked like. His feathers were a unmistakable emerald green and his dangerously watery eyes were a deep, ocean blue. Even his windswept hair was distinctive. "Let me go!"

Sein kept a firm grip for the moment, a soft and worried frown on his face. "Are you okay? Where is your guardian?" The physical features struck Sein as incredibly familiar, but now wasn't the time to be thinking too deeply on that matter. "I'll help you to get back wherever you need to go, but I need you to breathe and talk to me."

For better or for worse, this kid had some serious fight in him for his size and age. "Let me go, let me go!" He struggled some more before finally exclaiming, "I need to find my dad!"

"What's your dad's name?" Sein dared to ask, kneeling down and keeping his grip on the kid firm yet still. "I promise we'll find him together."

That finally made the boy stop and look up at Sein. "...You'll help me?" he almost whimpered.

Sein smiled brightly. "Of course. I help anyone I can."

There was a bit of silence before the boy finally relaxed in Sein's hold and mumbled, "My dad's name is Jet."

The older hawk froze up for a moment before nodding and smiling. "I know exactly where he is. I'll take you to him." With this said, he stood up and began climbing the stairs. Jet's kid… I… wow.

They walked for a bit without the boy giving any comment. He simply looked around, taking note of his surroundings. "...Stuff looks different," he finally mumbled.

"You've been gone for a while, then," Sein murmured softly. "I'm actually from the original Babylon, so all of this is new to me," he said, chuckling. "We can take it in together."

The child blinked several times in utter confusion. "...Gone?" he echoed, not at all understanding.

"Let's not dwell on that for now. My name is Sein, what's yours?" he asked, turning his head to look at the child.

"Lucas," the boy mumbled, eyes downcast.

Sein smiled. "Jet mentioned you when we were talking one day. I'm sure he'll be overjoyed to see you again."

After a small pause, Lucas's young mind came to a realization. "Where's sissy? Where's my little sister?"

A small frown came across Sein's face. "I don't exactly know, bud. When you talk to your dad, that's something you'll have to ask him."

"How much farther?" Lucas asked, looking around again.

"Shouldn't be too long now. I didn't wanna move too fast with you in my arms," Sein admitted gently.

Lucas dramatically slouched backward with a groan, arms drooping by his sides. "But you're being so slow," he complained.

Sein laughed a little. "Well, I can't go running up a flight of stairs with a child in my arms. That's just dangerous."

Another groan, this one louder. "Why?"

"Accidents happen, and if I fall or trip, then one or both of us could get hurt." Sein blinked a few times before realizing that, leaving out the way he spoke in comparison to Kath, that this was something that Kath himself might have needed to explain to him when he was this young. Damn. He put up with a lot.

With an annoyed sigh, Lucas sat back up, crossed his arms and pouted. "My dad is faster than you," he grumbled, as if this was meant to offend Sein somehow.

"I'd hope so," Sein answered brightly. "I hope he's the best person in the world to you."

The much younger hawk perked right up. "He is," Lucas grinned. "He's the best ever."

"I'm really glad you say that. A child should always be able to look up to their parents as role models."

That bit was lost on Lucas, but he was hardly paying attention, anyway. He was too busy saying, "Did you hear my dad won a whole war all by himself one time? Well, actually, he had some help I guess, but it's still cool!"

"He's super strong, so I'd totally believe it," Sein replied. "I've seen him fight before. He's amazing."

"Yeah." Lucas positively beamed up at Sein, appearing impressed by Sein's statements. But… then he was pouting anew. "Dad doesn't let me watch when he really fights, though. He says it's okay to watch training and stuff, but not real fighting. It's not fair."

Sein cast him a smile. "It's because he cares a lot about you. There's crazy things that happen, sometimes, and you shouldn't have to worry about that."

"I guess so." There was a teeny pause, then Lucas asked again, "How much father?"

"A few more feet," Sein answered, walking up to a room. "Now, stay calm. He was tired, so he's asleep. Try not to scare him awake, okay?"

That made Lucas frown a little. "How did he get tired? My dad barely ever sleeps." In his young mind, that was such a cool thing, since he wasn't allowed to skip sleeping due to being a kid.

"He had to fight some strong enemies recently. He didn't get much time between each one, so he has to recover now while it's peaceful and calm," Sein explained. "That's all."

Lucas's eyes went wide. "Wow, really? How strong were they? What were they like? Were they here?"

Sein smiled softly and set him down on his feet. "We can talk about that more soon, alright, Lucas? Go see your dad."

Happy as could be, Lucas opened the door and walked in. Immediately upon seeing Alana and her distinctive grey feathers and lighter blue eyes he blurted out, "Why does she look like Kath?" This prompted Alana to look over in confusion. That confusion rapidly bled away into surprise that caused her eyes to subtly widen.

The older male hawk walked in after him and knelt down by her. "This is my wife, Alana. She's Kath and Laralei's daughter."

Now it was Lucas's turn to be shocked. "Kath has a daughter?" he squeaked. "He never said that!"

Sein chuckled softly at this. "We can explain more about that another time. It's a long story." He motioned his head lightly in Jet's direction, hoping to get Lucas to go see his father.

Only then did Lucas take notice of Jet, and he promptly ran over and scrambled up onto the couch. This, unfortunately, did startle Jet awake, but his jump was interrupted by Lucas latching his arms around his dad in a tight hug. "You're awake!" Lucas cheered.

It took Jet a few seconds to fully blink the sleep away and make sense of what was going on. Supporting his son in one arm, he pushed himself up. "...Lucas?" he eventually murmured, too stunned to say much else. Memories of the last time Lucas had been this small flashed through him, coupled with memories of how the child had died, but he was quick to push them all away for the time being in order to focus on the present moment.

Sein watched this all with a bright smile, pulling Alana close with a hug. This is great.

While Lucas snuggled closer, Jet threw a beseeching look his parents' way, silently begging for an explanation. How is this… real? In the back of his mind he supposed he knew, but the emotions rising up in him as he held his child close were creating some difficulty in being logical right this second. The last time he had held Lucas had been… that day. He'd never thought, after then, that he'd have the chance to do so again. It was honestly choking him up, try though he might to hold everything back and down.

Seeming to understand what he was thinking, Sein gave a soft nod. Enjoy it. He's back with you, now. That was nearly all it took for the damn of emotions to break and Jet quickly stood and teleported away to a more private area with Lucas still in his arms. He didn't want to break down again, as he had on that one horrible day when his son's life had been stolen, but if it was going to happen anyway… he needed it to be away from prying eyes. "I'm glad he's happy," the man murmured softly, leaning into Alana.

"I am as well," Alana agreed quietly. To think that his child was revived… seemingly young enough to be spared the memories of his own passing… how was this done? She thought for a moment before saying, "Sonic is partly responsible for gathering the Light needed to revive allies… meaning his thoughts and emotions influence who comes back. Perhaps his recent concern over Jet caused this, somehow…?"

"Probably," Sein answered. "Which, honestly… it's good. Jet likely needed something like this."

"Something to protect," Alana murmured. She looked up at Sein. "Do you remember… what father once asked you, on a particularly terrible day when your anger nearly overwhelmed you?"

Sein blinked a few times. "Which time?"

She shook her head. "The time, Sein. The time when we were all afraid you were about to lose sight of who you truly were."

His gaze shifted away slightly, sighing. "Yeah, I do," he admitted slowly.

Despite this, Alana murmured, "At the height of his argument with you, he asked you if you had something to protect. Because… having that is one of the most important things for a person. If you cannot find it in your heart to protect others as opposed to simply triumphing over them… then you are unworthy of sympathy. And... having something to protect makes one stronger than anything else ever could." She managed a smile. "I believe that, like you, Jet needs people to protect as well… even if he may not so openly admit to it."

Sein nodded slowly. "And he has that now, more than ever."

"Indeed, he does."

~保護者~

5,821 words this time. Hope you all enjoyed. Many thanks as always to Blazing Winds for all of his help and support. Posted (at about 12:00 a.m.) 05-19-20.