Rei wasn't sure what to make of the boy before her.

"A Pulse fal'Cie," she guessed. "That's…really all I know."

"Really? That's it?"

"Hey, I never said I was an expert on fal'Cie. I only know about my people."

"Is this his full form? I've never seen these kinds of markings on your human forms before."

"You haven't seen a lot of things, Saitama."

"Have you seen this before?"

She ran her fingers down his forearm. His skin was still fleshy and malleable as a fal'Cie's skin would be in their true form, yet the texture resembled the mechanical threads and bus strands that would line a motherboard to transfer commands. It was like he was made of a computer. Fal'Cie were highly advanced mechanical beings, of course, but rarely were their mechanical parts so overtly on display. Their controls were as sensitive and tiny as nerves in human beings.

"I think this means he's a weaker fal'Cie," she said.

"What, like he can't take up his true form?"

"No…this is his true form, like you said. He's just…tiny. Not only that, he seems less evolved, less advanced. He's made from more basic technology than I've ever seen a fal'Cie be made from. He's less fal'Cie and more…really advanced AI."

"You're saying he could be a human-made fal'Cie?"

"I don't know. But he certainly wasn't made by the gods. When Barthandelus was in my head, I remember some vague things about having practiced and perfected a technique to subjugate other fal'Cie. That's what he did to me, but because I'm different, the result of subjugating me merged my personality with his to create a whole new being. Our consciousnesses aren't…single entities. He cut off a part of himself and placed the seed inside my body while I was dying — while my consciousness was leaving. It was only a piece of him, but every piece of us holds our entire being. I had access to all of his memories, but I didn't need to use them all. I remember him experimenting with doing more than just subjugating existing fal'Cie."

"You mean he was trying to make new ones? Like…a fal'Cie making its own fal'Cie rather than having to use humans as l'Cie?"

"I remember him thinking up the idea, but he never put it into play."

"So these meteor shards brought a ton of distortions with them. These people were trapped inside some of the distortion crystal that was making up the meteorite. Meaning that these people…"

"They were brought here as a result of the timeline being warped. Pulled from their times, likely because their timelines were destroyed or warped so far that their existences needed to be removed. Their homes might be gone entirely, and it's a miracle that they even survived."

Sai knelt beside her. "So this guy…he's what happened when Barthandelus was successful in making his own fal'Cie?"

"Who can say? Maybe it wasn't him? Maybe this is just what fal'Cie are in his world. When dealing with potential realities, literally anything could be possible. Infinite timelines, worlds where literally anything could be the truth…they shouldn't be able to interact like this."

"It's worse than you thought, then?"

She nodded. "Let's hope we can do something about it."

"Like what?"

"Like waking our new friend up."

"You're sure that's a good…?"

"It's now or never, Saitama. Besides, you're good at making friends with new fal'Cie you've just met."

"To be fair, my sample size isn't that great."

Rei pressed her hand to the man's temple. "You'll do fine. We'll do this together."

She fed her energies into their sleeping companion. They had moved a great distance away from New Bodhum, into the mountains, to make sure that when he woke, he didn't cause an enormous explosion. Rei had nearly blown Sai up when they'd first met.

Rei's hand shimmered with her energy, and it connected to the wiring that made up the fal'Cie's skin. "He's…processing."

"Are you communicating?"

She shook her head. "His mind is just starting up. I just have to —"

The boy's eyes snapped open. The thick lines surrounding his eyes flashed a deep violet and then spread across the rest of his threads across his skin. The moment the glow surged to his fingers, he moved his arm to aim towards Rei.

She saw it coming.

She held up her hand to catch his just as he unleashed a blast of magenta flames at her face. She endured the blast with barely any motion; the only thing affected were her clothes, which blew back as though caught in a fierce breeze.

"Who are you?" the man rumbled. He didn't have a deep voice, but neither was it gentle.

"I am Hotareichan. I am a fal'Cie of life and creation, the Blade Phoenix. Who are you?"

"I was not born with a name. Once, however, my mother suggested to call me Gideon."

"You have a mother?"

"A creator," he corrected. He dropped his hand. She released it.

"You are the creation of a fal'Cie then. Anima?" she guessed.

He nodded. "You have touched my mind, Hotareichan. Why am I asleep? Where have I woken?"

"You are on Pulse. It is the year 3 AF, after the fall of the floating shell known as Cocoon."

"Cocoon?" Gideon sat up, his movements deliberate and robotic. "What is this…Cocoon?"

"You've never heard of it?"

"Once, the King declared he would build a great paradise in the sky, but he had never named it Cocoon."

"Was that recently for you?"

"It was…nary a year past."

Rei sighed. "I'm afraid we have much to talk about. A great deal has happened since then, and I believe you are also in a realm other than your own."

"This is indeed Pulse, yes?"

"Yes, however it may be a different time, possibly even a different dimension."

"Dimension?" He tilted his head slightly, confused. His eyes were a deep, dark void, with black sclera and deep purple pupils.

"I will explain to the best of my ability, if you are willing to listen."

Gideon nodded. "Please, provide me with all the information you are willing to part with."

"Well, that went better than expected," Sai muttered.

Gideon's head snapped in his direction, his hand raised with another blast of beautiful fire shooting in a thin, dense stream in his direction. Sai threw up his arms and summoned a shield of water, which mixed with the magenta flames to create a bubbling stream.

Rei quickly snatched Gideon's wrist and pulled his hand down. "He is a friend."

Gideon's face remained stoic. He allowed his flames to die. His eyes had flashed magenta, but now faded back to the deepest violet. "I understand."

"Let us avoid harming others until we are certain of hostility," Rei suggested.

"I have been taught to never reveal my presence to humans," Gideon informed them. His voice was completely flat and monotone.

"That is unnecessary here and now."

Sai held up his hands. "I'm called Sai or Saitama. I'm a fal'Cie. But I was once human."

"A human turned fal'Cie? I was not aware that was a possibility."

"We are special. If you will listen to our story, then perhaps it will make more sense."

Gideon nodded. "Then please, tell me your tale, Hotareichan and Saitama of Pulse."

So much happened the night the meteorite fell. We all had a lot to think about. I wonder if anyone slept.

"Morning Serah!" Shu exclaimed.

"Hey," she smiled. "I hope you slept well after everything that happened last night."

They nodded. "Mat was up all night trying to sneak a listen on what was going on outside. I wrangled him in, but he was just so full of energy. I finally managed to calm him down. Sister and Sai never came home last night…"

"They went to investigate this fal'Cie that one of the distortions brought," Serah explained.

"Oh my, a fal'Cie?"

She nodded. "In human form. We don't want to cause any trouble if they're hostile — or while we're proving we aren't hostile."

Shu brushed their hair behind their ears. Their golden curls had been cut to barely fall past their face, where once they had fallen all the way down to their hips and waist. It had even once been down to Shu's feet, but they had started tripping over it and decided there needed to be a limit. "If Sai's on the case, they'll be our friend in no time! You heard how Rei and Sai met, right? Oh no, maybe Sai will befriend this fal'Cie and fall in love again! My sister may be in danger!"

Serah laughed. "I think they can handle themselves. How about we go get breakfast?"

Shu nodded. "I should bring some to Mat. The boy thinks he's sneaky, pretending to be asleep so he can run off to eavesdrop when I leave."

They headed down the hall and into the main area. The NORA gang and Noel were already up. Noel had been forced to sleep on the couch in the lounge room. They weren't mean enough to force him to sleep outside, at least.

"The impact site is off-limits for now," Gadot was saying.

"Shouldn't we check it out, though?" Maqui said. "Just gonna make everyone more nervous if we don't."

"It's not safe near that thing! There's monsters everywhere."

"If only Snow were here," Yuj muttered. "He'd know how to handle this nightmare."

"Now don't start whining," Lebreau interjected, working on breakfast from behind the kitchenette. "We agreed to take care of things while he was gone."

"Morning, morning!" Shu announced, skipping into the room. They noticed Noel standing at the doorway to NORA House and quickly rushed over to snatch his hand. "You must be the Noel I've heard all about! I'm Asushunamir! Shu! Or Susu to my son. He's a rugrat, everyone says, but he's good at heart. Just be careful not to start a fight with him. He gets in trouble when a fight starts. And his opponents usually don't last long."

"I'll…keep that in mind," Noel said. "Nice to meet you. Are you a part of NORA too?"

"Oh, no, not me. But we're good friends! I tend to their Garden! Well, it's my Garden, but I share."

"They're a fal'Cie like Rei," Lebreau called. "Shu is her sibling."

They nodded, hair bouncing as if it were also agreeing. "I'm a nature fal'Cie! Sister Rei has taken care of me all my life. She likes to bring things to life. Have you met Don the Tonberry? He's one of her creations. We made him from a stuffed animal. Say hello Don!"

The Tonberry sitting on the counter suddenly moved, waving its little lantern and its knife. Noel jumped. He had thought that was just a figurine. "Vengeance is nigh!"

Seeing as that was one of a Tonberry's attacks, Noel tensed, wondering if the members of NORA were going to let him get struck and die and say it was an accident. But nothing happened, so that was good…

"He's in a good mood today!" Shu exclaimed.

"Good to hear," Noel muttered.

Meanwhile Serah was off with the other NORA members across the room.

"You were up late last night, Maqui. Big project?"

"P-Project? Yeah, I was, uh, working on something for Snow! That thing, you know?"

"Hey, Serah," Gadot greeted. "Listen, what's the deal with you and that Noel guy, anyway?"

"If I said I was going with him, would you stop me?"

"Let you run off with some con artist? I'd beat him half to death, first."

"So, you're just taking him at his word?" Yuj muttered. "He says he's from the future, but where's the proof?"

"I guess you're right," Serah muttered. "It's just hard after I had that dream about Lightning. You know what I mean?"

"Serah, Serah!" Shu called. "Food, food!"

She nodded and moved to join Shu at the kitchenette. "Lebreau! How are you feeling? Back on your feet already?"

"You know me. I get restless just lying around. Speaking of which, wasn't your new friend who carried me to safety? Seems like a nice guy."

She smiled. "Yeah, he does, doesn't he? Noel's a bit weird at times, but he's got a good heart, I can tell. Sorry you got yourself hurt because of me."

"Hey, do we have to go through this again?" Lebreau groaned. "I told you, we look out for each other. I won't tell Snow. Noel will be our little secret."

"Hey, it's not like that!"

"Mm-hm. Now, try again."

Serah exhaled. She thought about her new moogle companion and decided to say, "Lebreau! Good morning, kupo!"

"Good mooorning, kupo!" she replied with ten-times as much enthusiasm.

"You win! I can't compete with morning people…"

"Mornings are what I do best!"

"Seriously though, good morning."

"You slept well then? Your new friend talked a lot about Lightning. I kinda figured you'd be tossing and turning all night. We were getting worried about you, don't you know."

"I don't think my sister'd want me moping around. Besides, it's about time I started looking ahead. I won't get anywhere feeling sorry for myself. So…can you give me some cooking tips?"

"What, right now? You want some cooking tips? Well, lemme think about it. The most important thing: trust your instincts!"

"Instincts? I was hoping for a secret recipe…"

"Face it, Serah, we'll never get the NORA Special out of her," Shu lamented.

"Hey, I'd lose valuable patronage if I just gave it away all willy-nilly." Lebreau winked.

"I'd better go get Mat," they sighed. "He'll be asking a lot of questions about yesterday, so I hope you're all prepared. He wants stories of grand glory and monsters and heroes."

"We're prepared," Maqui assured them.

Shu hurried to the back. Mat was hiding in the closet with a tablet he was only allowed to use during his free time — which did not start until after he'd finished all his schoolwork.

"Mat," Shu said, trying not to sound too mean, "breakfast time." They held their hand out for the tablet.

The boy locked the screen before handing it over. He had an affinity with technology, though mainly because he could overload machines if he got upset with them. He quickly learned how to bypass the lock system and use it to his own ends, meaning that Shu and even Rei or Sai couldn't break past his lock screen, but that didn't mean they couldn't take the technology away altogether when he was in trouble.

"Row make yum yums?" Mat asked. Row was his name for Lebreau.

"Breakfast yum yums," Shu agreed.

Mat took Shu's hand and together they headed back down the hall. "Susu tell me 'bout kweh last night."

"We will, little one. Once we get some food."

Shu brought Mat in and set him on one of the high stools. He insisted he didn't need a baby seat because he was big enough. Still needed an extra pillow for height though. Shu went around to join Lebreau while Serah introduced Noel.

"I am death and destruction!" he introduced.

Noel didn't seem perturbed. "Nice to meet you, Death and Destruction. Do you have a shorter name you go by?"

"Oh. I Mat."

"Nice to meet you then, Mat. I'm Noel."

Noel reached out to shake his tiny hand. Mat looked skeptical at the new person, but when Serah explained he was a friend, Mat nodded in approval. "Know a good man."

He chuckled. "I'll take that as a compliment."

"His approval is the greatest of honors," Shu said. They leaned over and put a plate full of bacon and small chicken strips in front of their son. It wasn't healthy for most, but Shu was a carnivore, and Mat was as addicted to bacon as every other human was.

"Use your 'L' now," Lebreau urged. "Noe-la."

"Nooooooeeeeeelllll-a," Mat repeated.

"Good job!"

Shu giggled as they helped hand out more breakfast. "You should have some water too! Everyone stay hydrated!" They took a tray and headed around the room to pass out glasses of water to everyone.

"Mat, you finished your homework, right?" Serah pressed.

"Yes Miss Farron…" he grumbled. "No homework at breakfast!"

"If you were in the little kids' class it'd be a lot easier," Shu said. "But you insisted you were a big boy this year."

In truth, Mat had excelled in most of his classes in terms of mathematics. His language was still shaky, but otherwise he was an intelligent boy for his age — which was unsurprising, given that he was a fal'Cie. At only a year and a half, his intelligence was that of at least a ten-year-old — though he acted otherwise. Mat preferred to be alone rather than play with the other children, even though he got along with them well enough. Though he was brilliant at most of his classwork, he hated actually doing it.

Shu headed towards the front to hand Noel a water and then moved behind the counter again. "You just have to finish your reading. I'll help you, and then we can go out back and play hide-and-seek in the Garden, oka —?"

Shu dropped their glass of water. It shattered on the floor in front of them.

Standing in the doorway to NORA House, the morning sun shining down behind his form, was Charon. He held his head down as he walked in, trying to avoid eye contact. But he glanced up at Shu. He meant for it only to be a glance, but the moment their eyes met, he was frozen in place.

Shu jumped to life first, shaking their head and staring down at the shattered glass in front of them. "I…I'm sorry, Lebreau, I…I'll get some towels…"

"Don't worry about it," she said, moving to open the drawer with the towels and washcloths. "Serah, could you get the dustpan?"

"Of course."

"Yeah, um…I'm not feeling well. All that meteorite phenomena must still be scrambling me. I need to lie down." They'd lost all the energy in their voice.

All the members of NORA recognized that voice. There were still days when Shu just suddenly broke down. It was sporadic at first. Sometimes Shu had managed to compose themself, but then suddenly they were found broken down sobbing in the Garden. Rei and Sai never let Shu be alone. Over time, the periods between breakdowns got longer and longer. Then, they were no longer breakdowns. They were more just shutdowns. Rei and Sai said that Shu needed to be alone, get some rest.

"SuSu?" Mat muttered.

"I'll be fine, little one. We'll play in the Garden later, okay?"

"Shu…" Charon muttered.

They flinched as they turned to walk back down the hall further into NORA House. Then, they moved on without saying a word.

Mat immediately zeroed in on Charon. He jumped out of his high chair and landed with a heavy thud of a boy that weighed far more than he appeared. He ran over and kicked Charon as hard as he could in the shin before dashing down the hall after Shu.

Charon was stunned when he was actually able to feel the hit. Oh he felt it. It hurt. He doubled over and grabbed his leg, burning from the impact. "Shit, what the hell —?"

"You've got a lot of explaining to do," Lebreau said.

"I know," he said. "I'll explain everything. I will. I just…"

"Where are Rei and Sai?"

"They went to the recovery camp to check on the other new people that the meteor produced."

"Did they say you could be here?"

"Yeah, but…I couldn't…last night was already tense, so I…"

Lebreau was holding tongs. She pointed them at him over the counter as if she were wielding Zanmato itself. "You do not get to speak to Shu until they get back. Understood?"

He nodded.

She pointed her tongs at the seat in front of her. "Sit. Now. You are going to eat breakfast."

Even though he didn't need to eat anything, Charon complied. He had trouble putting weight on his leg from Mat's hit.

"I'll get you up to speed," Lebreau said as she gathered up a plate of food for him. "Then you'd better start doing some explaining to me."

"Of course."

Noel leaned over to Serah. "Am I missing so —?"

She snatched his hand and pulled him out the door to NORA House. "Well I'm gonna show Noel around the village!" she announced.

"Hey, wait —!" Gadot called.

"Don't worry, we aren't going anywhere! We'll be back before lunch! Promise!"

Before anyone could protest, Serah quickly dragged Noel down the steps and away.

"Hello. I am called Rei," she introduced. "I'm sure this is all very disorienting for you."

Three others. Along with Gideon, that made four. Four people who had been ripped out of time for one reason or another, only to end up here.

Rei caught them all up to speed as best she could. All of them were surprisingly unfazed by the idea of time-travel, different realities, and the like.

The first of the meteor fragment people was Mira. She was a tall, imposing figure, which was augmented when she woke up and they found out that she was a fal'Cie. Unlike Gideon, this was just her condensed form, and so she more resembled Rei and Sai. She wore an elegant black sundress, clearly not designed for any sort of combat, but her figure was that of a warrior.

"I have power over death," she explained. Her dark hair cascaded down her face, as if to hide her features. "I…it…look, I have a family. I need to get back to them — Ella!" Her eyes shot open. "Is Ella here? We were together and then…"

Rei took her hands. "Slow down, sweetheart. Who is Ella?"

"My girlfriend. She's…she's human."

"I see. There were a couple other people who came from meteorite shards like you. One of which is Gideon here. Do you recognize each other?"

Her dark eyes raised to Gideon. He was standing stoically at the door to the tent Mira had been given. He moved his eyes to Mira. They stared at each other for a moment. Then they both averted their eyes.

"No," Mira said regretfully. "I'm sorry, I don't…"

"That's okay. We're assuming, at the moment, that all of you were brought from different timelines and different eras." She pursed her lips. "Do you happen to know anyone named Hyacinthaja? He might also go by Mataecharonsan."

"Yes, I…how do you know him?"

"He's…" Her shoulders slumped. "He's a good man who faces man struggles. I respect him. He is a good friend. I'd like to think he is family."

"Can I meet him? I mean…I already know him, but —"

"Ours might not be the same as the one you know."

"I know. But…why do you ask if I know him? Why not ask if I know you first?"

"Do you?"

Mira shook her head. "No."

"Well you remind me of him."

"Do I?"

"You're quite different from regular fal'Cie. You appear to be one of our kind. And Charon has power over death, so I made a hypothesis. Come, let us meet the others. Perhaps one of them will be your Ella."

Mira looked conflicted. She couldn't seem to tell if she was eager for Ella to be alongside them or if she was nervous about it.

Rei knew that feeling. Back when Sai was human, he felt so delicate. Rei didn't know if she trusted him in danger, even if he could handle himself in most situations. Loving humans was like loving the most fragile of things. Other fal'Cie saw them as nothing but lesser beings, as tools even. But their kind could love them, in their own way.

Rei knew there were only four fal'Cie of Etro in existence — herself, Shu, Styx (who was now Sai) and Charon. She didn't know of this Mira, and if Mira wasn't just some alternate version of Charon, that only left…

Upon entering the next shelter (they'd set up tents for all of the new folk who didn't have homes to return to, along with a few others for anyone injured who couldn't safely be moved), Rei was greeted with her husband and the pink-haired person. They'd removed their shawl to reveal a floral blouse and had exchanged their baggy winter pants for some blue shorts embroidered with roses that fell to their knees.

"Oh, hello! Greetings madam!" They bowed their head.

"Please, call me Rei. I assume Sai has filled you in on the situation."

They nodded. "Yes. I am called Orlov. I am a fal'Cie creation of life and growth. Saitama tells me we will get along!"

She chuckled. "Yes, we will. I am a fal'Cie of life and creation."

Orlov took her hand and shook it frantically. "I see, I see! Yes, you are quite wise and powerful, Madam Rei!"

"Just Rei is fine, darling. You wouldn't happen to know someone called Asushunamir, would you?"

They gasped. "You know of my Creator?"

"Creator?"

"Yes. Asushunamir is my Creator. A High Fal'Cie, you see. Do you not have those in your world?"

"By High Fal'Cie, do you mean a fal'Cie that can create other fal'Cie?" Sai asked.

Orlov turned their eyes to him. Their eyes glowed an unnatural yet beautiful shade of green that was bright as their pink hair. It was a living thing, their hair, pulsing like it was breathing. "Oh yes! Our High Fal'Cie are blessed Old Ones made by the gods themselves! They maintain our population during the…" Their face fell to a frown. "The wars."

"There is war in your world?"

"Yes. Between each other, between the humans. The great deities Lindzei and Pulse declared their fal'Cie to be enemies, and so we are. We sometimes use l'Cie to gain an advantage. It is…I don't like it. The wars are not as intense as they were during the beginning, and we have even begun to make peace as some of the High Fal'Cie realize that the gods have left us. Though there are some that still intend for war, many of us have banded together to start a new era of peace."

"That sounds lovely. We too have moved beyond war and are attempting to know peace. To the best of our ability, anyway. But it seems a new war may be on the horizon."

They released Rei's hands and stepped back. "That is unfortunate, yes. It appears we cannot return to our original homes so long as distortions remain along the timeline."

"You know of the distortions?"

They nodded. "To some extent. I can sense great discord, as if the very air we breathe is tense and being held captive. We need to do something to resolve the tension, find a key to unlock the air so that it's clear again. But it's twisted into such a tight knot…I can't really see it all. It's too big. There are too many locks." They sniffled. "It's making my nose itchy."

"Well, this is Gideon and this is Mira. They're also refugees in this timeline."

Orlov jumped to attention with a new, blindingly adorable smile. Yes, they were a descendant of Shu all right. "Hello, hello! It's so nice to meet you both, is it not?"

Mira laughed and took Orlov's hand. "It's very nice to meet you too, Orlov."

"I have not the knowledge yet to conclude whether our greeting has indeed been rendered a positive experience," Gideon said.

Orlov blinked, as if just noticing he was in the room. For a moment, Rei thought they were offended, but then they burst into an enormous smile. "You're so cute! What was your name again? Gideon?" They dived forward and took Gideon into a hug. For the first time, Gideon showed a hint of emotion on his face, nearly knocked off balance from Orlov's tackle. "I'm gonna keep you, Gideon!"

Sai chuckled. "Orlov, you can't just keep people. Without their consent."

"Do you consent to be kept, Gideon?"

He blinked down at Orlov. He looked utterly shocked to have been asked that question. He didn't seem prepared. "I…" He cleared his throat and schooled his features again. "Yes, that would be fine."

"Yay!"

"Wait, um…" Rei honestly had no idea what to make of this situation.

"I have never been kept before," Gideon said. "What does this role entail?"

Orlov pulled back and took up a thinking pose. "Hm, well you will stay beside me unless ordered otherwise, you will protect me and be protected by me to the end goal of both of us being in peak efficiency and health at any given moment, you will speak to me and be spoken to, we'll learn new things together, we'll eat together, sleep together, do other general activities associated with entertainment together, and we will work to the glorious preservation of our sanity!"

Gideon nodded. "Understood. I will do my best to accommodate your needs."

"Oh! And we must find Rufus! Anything that is mine is his. He is a creation of two High Fal'Cie! He's amazing," they swooned.

"I am a creation of Anima," Gideon informed them.

Though she hadn't known Gideon for long, this was more animated than Rei had ever seen him. He was offering information without being asked. His eyes seemed to be focused, his attention fixed on a single point rather than remaining neutral and observing all that was around him.

"The Lady Anima?! She is the Queen of Pulse!"

"I do not know her as Queen. We are exiles. I was created and raised in isolation until she was taken by the one known as Barthandelus and subsequently perished."

"How horrible! I'm so sorry."

Gideon tilted his head slightly. "You have no reason to feel remorse. You did not know her, and therefore have developed no reason to mourn her absence."

"But you knew her, did you not? If you should mourn her absence, so shall I. Because you are mine now, and I mourn what you mourn."

"I do not know how to mourn," he informed them. "I simply know of the concept itself."

"That's okay. Rufus and I can teach you."

"Is Rufus your lover?" Mira asked.

They nodded. "He began as my protector. He once thought himself to be human, as he was raised among them for many years, but then we discovered he is fal'Cie — he has two Creators!"

"Is that so?" Rei hummed. "Well, we still have one more person to check up on —"

"Then let's go see them! They can meet Rufus too!"

Rei sighed, but she and Sai led them off to the final tent. It had been a long time since Rei had dealt with someone so animated. Shu used to be like this, but now even on their best days they couldn't muster this much energy.

Upon entering the final tent, Orlov shouted, "Rufus!" and dashed inside.

"Hm, so they do know each other."

Orlov was shaking Rufus awake. "Up, up, up, up!"

"I'm up," he groaned, rubbing his eyes. "I'm up."

"Rufus, Rufus, I have a new friend!"

"What? What is it this time —?" He noticed Gideon, who had followed close to Orlov's side, eyes moving up to his face. "Hello there."

"I am being kept," Gideon said flatly.

Rufus sighed. "Orlov, you can't keep every cute thing you find off the street."

"He consented! Right, Gideon?"

"I consented," he agreed.

"Besides, I didn't find him off the street. He walked into my tent."

"Speaking of which, why are we in tents?"

"Let us explain," Rei announced.

Rufus reacted instantly. He jumped out of bed and threw out his hand and in a blaze of deep blue fire, a golden weapon appeared. Rei summoned one of her hovering blades to intercept him. He summoned another half a dozen blades, azure and glowing with blue fire, golden hilts. Rei's golden and silver blades struck out to match them. Instantly, the small tent (and some area outside of it) was covered in swords parrying one another in the air.

"Who are you? What did you do?"

"I think you must have the wrong person," she said. "I didn't bring you here, and I've never met you before in my life."

"Don't lie!"

"Rufus, calm down!" Orlov took his arm and tried to pull his sword away. "They're nice, I can tell! Right Gideon?"

"I do not know what the definition of 'nice' means in this context," he replied.

"How concerning…" Rei muttered. "Perhaps this means you've had an encounter with someone who looks like me." She glanced at Sai.

He's brow crinkled with concern. "It couldn't be…?"

"Unfortunately, it's a possibility. I had hoped to dismiss the concern, but now…" She shook her head. "You must all be wary. Do not trust me. None of you. She will have my memories, my power —"

"Rei!" Maqui came dashing through and doubled back when he noticed the tent covered in weapons. "Rei! It's Shu. Charon came and —"

She cursed. "I knew he wouldn't be able to stay away." She flicked her hand and all of their weapons disappeared. Rufus staggered back as if he'd been hit. "Sai, keep them from getting into trouble. I'll be back."

"Hey, wait —!"

"Rufus, calm down," Orlov urged again. "Meet Mira and Sai and Gideon!"

Rei hurried to NORA House and rushed past the others with a small wave. She grabbed Charon's hand and dragged him out of his seat. He had a piece of bacon in his mouth, his breakfast half gone.

"Listen to me," she said as they moved down the hall. "Shu has been coping as best they can, but they have dreams about you all the time. They kept seeing you, even when they were awake, and then you were gone again. It started to drive them mad."

Charon frowned. "I…that was me, I think. I was looking for Shu. I was trying to see them so many times…"

"Well Shu still has breakdowns every now and then — though they're more like shutdowns. This isn't a good time, but we can't have this happening over and over, okay? I…I'm not happy about this, but I understand better than any of the others. They're still wondering how you're alive, but that doesn't matter as much as fixing this first."

Charon nodded. "Yes. Please. Rei…I want to…how do I…?"

"I don't know. But this is your one chance, you understand? If you fuck this up, I'll throw you back through a damn rift to Valhalla again, you hear me?"

"Yes ma'am. Please don't."

Rei sighed. Charon wasn't sure if she meant it, but he knew she was fully capable. He didn't assume she was incapable of anything. But he knew she was still the kindest person he'd ever met. She was strong, powerful, and it was better to have her on your side. No matter how upset she was, she was going to try and make Shu happy. Charon was going to try too, and if that was the only thing that united them in this moment, then Charon would take it.

Rei sucked in a deep breath. "Okay. Here we go."

She pushed open the door and led Charon inside. Shu was buried under the covers of the left half of two beds pushed together to make a large one. The little boy that had kicked Charon in the shins was wrapped in Shu's arms, reading from a book.

"So both of them thought the other was more skilled than they were," he said carefully, annunciating each of his words and slowly going over each of them.

"Yes," Shu smiled weakly. "So how did the duel go?"

"When the man said to start, neither of them mo —" He slammed the book closed upon seeing the pair enter. "Mama! Bad man behind!"

"It's okay, sweetheart. He's not a bad man." She held out her arms. "It's okay, love. It's fine."

Rei scooped up the little boy into her arms, book and all. He held it out like it would suffice as a weapon against Charon if need be.

Shu sat up slowly. "Rei…?"

Charon hardly recognized them. Their face was pale and thinner than normal. Their entire body seemed to be thinner than it should've been. Their eyes looked tired, sunket in as though they hadn't slept in ages. Their skin was pale and their frame weak, so they hadn't been working out in a long time either. The most notable thing that drew Charon's eye, however, was that their curly, dirty-blonde hair was cut to barely make it past their chin.

"It's okay, sweetheart. Just breathe."

"Rei…make it stop," they whimpered. Shu pulled the covers up as if to shield themself.

"Susu." Mat climbed out of Rei's arms and dropped his book on the covers. He climbed under the sheets with Shu and snuggled against their front. "I protect Susu. Bad man go away!"

"He's not bad, Mat," Rei insisted. She seemed to be struggling for a way to explain. "Shu, he's here. Little gem, he came back. He's been fighting to come back to you for a long time. You know he never stopped."

Shu carefully glanced at Rei. Then at Charon. Then back at Rei. "You see him too?"

"He's real, honey. It's okay. He's right there. He's real. Come here, Charon."

He obeyed. He moved around to the other side of the bed and kicked off his shoes and unclipped his swords to set them aside. "Shu?"

They flinched again at the sound of his voice. With Mat in one arm, Shu carefully reached out with their free hand and poked his cheek. Shu's hand retreated quickly, as though surprised they had actually felt something solid.

Then, Shu uncurled their fingers and slid their hand down his neck. "You're back…?"

He knew he should be more careful, but he instinctively reached up to wrap his hand around Shu's wrist to keep them there. They tensed, but they didn't pull away. "I'm back. I promised I'd always come back, didn't I? I'd find you no matter what."

Shu slowly moved forward. They wrapped their arms around Charon and squeezed. "You're real? This is real?"

"I'm real. For the gods' sake, yes, I'm real." He wrapped his arms around Shu, reaching up to run his fingers through their short hair. "I'm here, love. I made it. Three years. It's only been three years…"

"Mama, who is bad man?"

"He's not bad, Mat. He's good. He's always been good."

Charon relaxed his grip on Shu, but kept them in his arms. "Who's this?"

Shu sucked in a sharp breath. Charon realized they were crying. "Oh, um…this is Mat."

Mat tugged on Rei's shirt. "Mama, is good man Susu'sa wife?" He'd only ever seen Rei and Sai touch like that, gentle holds where just a simple motion could make them relax. And they were married. Husband and wife. That meant they had to be married too.

She chuckled and hefted Mat into her lap. "Yes, he is. He got lost on his way home from work one day, but now he's back."

Mat looked displeased. "Tama no get lost."

"Because Tama always has others to help."

"Good man alone?"

She nodded. "He's not been alone, but he's been very lonely."

"Lone. Lone…ly?"

"Is he yours?" Charon asked.

"He's yours, Chare." She set Mat on the bed. "This is Mataecharonsan Jr. — Mat."

"Mat?" Charon's eyes widened. The boy did indeed look a lot like Charon, but with his dark hair and eyes, Charon had mistaken him for Rei and Sai's.

"Mat, this is your Papa."

"Papa?"

"Papa."

He reached out a small hand. Charon took it and gave a gentle shake. "Nice to meet you, Mat. I'm Charon."

"Papa fun name," Mat said.

"Is it funny?"

The boy nodded. "Sorry for kick."

"Kick?" Shu repeated.

"He gave me a bit of a smackdown when he saw I upset you," Charon informed them.

Shu giggled lightly. "That's my little defender."

Rei scooped Mat into her arms and stood. "Susu and Papa are going to take some time to talk to each other. Let's go meet some new friends, shall we?"

"Kick?"

"Maybe. If they're mean. If they're not, we hug and be nice to them."

Mat hummed in agreement. He stared down at Charon. "I kick more if Susu sad."

"Understood," Charon agreed.

Mat nodded, satisfied, and let Rei take him out of the room.

"Chare…" Shu began.

"I'm sorry I left. I'll explain everything. I just…can we just stay here a little longer?"

"Yeah…yeah okay."

Shu closed their eyes and rested against Charon's chest. "You're back?"

"I'm back, my love. And I'm never, ever leaving you again."

Shu tried to move but couldn't. They tried to roll over, but they were pressed against a nice warm chest. "Sai…you're smothering me."

"Oh, uh, sorry."

That wasn't Sai.

Shu's eyes snapped open and they jumped up. They were released as Charon let them free from his grasp. "Sorry love."

"You…" Shu had thought it was a dream for a moment there. "You're still here?"

"Do you want me to leave? Because I said I wouldn't."

"No, no. You…that's fine." Shu rubbed their eyes. "Did I fall asleep?"

Charon nodded. "I did too. It's been…it's been a long…few years."

"Has…where were you?"

"I got dragged to Valhalla."

"Valhalla?"

He nodded. "Remember when Rei came back and Sai received Sytx's power? When everyone was freed from their crystal stasis? The Goddess Herself had intervened, sending her miracles to the human world."

"But there were consequences," Shu realized. They tightened their hands into fists around the sheets. "They took you back to Valhalla too."

He nodded. "I didn't want to go. I tried to fight back. But Rei…"

Shu's heart twisted. "What about her?"

"It was trying to take us both. She…she said it was her fault. She said it was because she belonged in Valhalla and dead and that this was fate telling her to go back. I…"

"You went instead," Shu realized.

"I didn't jump in thinking it would prevent her from being taken," he said quickly. "I didn't make some trade-off. I fought for us both. I tried to protect us both. But it grabbed onto her and she didn't fight back. She told me to take care of them like I had when she was gone before. She was gone before and we could live without her again. But I said no. I fought for us both. It just happened that I wasn't strong enough."

"You saved her."

"I got lucky. Or unlucky. It could've been either of us. I thought that if Rei had made it back, I could too, but Ananda and Kasyapa told me that Rei made it back because she needed to deliver Etro's blessing, and that's what caused the darkness to slip though in the first place. I thought I could get back, Shu, I never stopped trying —"

Shu tackled him into the mattress. He cried out in surprise and Shu wanted to hold onto the sound forever. "You beautiful man…you beautiful, selfless, brave, idiototic man…!"

"Shu…"

Shu was crying. Everything burst free at once. Day after day after day of waiting and waiting and hoping and then being let down. Days of seeing him and thinking he was back and then losing him all over again when it wasn't real. Waking up from a dream about him and losing him again because it wasn't real.

He was real now. His kisses were real. His touch was real. His laughter was real. His tears were real.

It would take time for Shu to remember that it was real. It would take time for them to accept it. But Charon wasn't going anywhere, not if either of them had anything to say about it.

It was real.

"You cut your hair," he said. He ran his fingers through it.

"Oh, um…I…new beginnings." Sai said cutting hair was symbolic of new beginnings. "It was shorter before."

"You cut it early…?"

"When Mat was born."

"Speaking of Mat…"

"Rei had to help me. But…I still…I mean I never lost the pieces of you that were inside me. I just…wanted to make something of you. He's just like you."

"Annoying yet charming?"

"Loving and kind and acting all tough. And annoying yet charming."

He laughed. His laughter was real. Shu could feel it. It was different than they remembered, or maybe it had just been that long. Three years wasn't long. It wasn't long for fal'Cie. It shouldn't have been. But Shu, Rei, and now Sai…none of them were regular fal'Cie.

"Do you wanna see the village?" Shu offered. "It's not much, but…"

"It's your home, Flower. If you showed me around…"

"Yeah."

The two of them pried themselves out of bed and Shu explained that this was Rei and Sai's room. "I used to sleep with them in one bed while they took the other. Sometimes I had to sleep with them. I didn't really like sleeping at first, but then I learned that I would probably go mad being awake 24/7, stuck with my thoughts. Sai still needs to sleep. It's a human habit. He tends to oversleep now that he's blind."

"And Mat?"

"He always slept with me. When he was born, I moved into Serah's room. The two of us were both grieving, but it helped when we were looking after each other. Mat alternates between our room and Rei and Sai's room. Sometimes he stays up all night. So much energy in little ones."

"You were always a little one, then?"

"I wasn't little! I was old and wise when we met!"

"Very." He kissed their temple. "I loved who you were then. I love you now."

Shu pulled on Charon's arm to keep their bodies close. "Let's go exploring. I'll show you the Garden!"

"Nice eyes," Rufus said.

"I accept your compliment," Gideon replied.

Rufus just laughed. "You're cool, Gideon."

"I accept your compliment."

"Unfortunately, his eyes might be seen as scary to others," Sai said. He had been fiddling with some water to make it take shape. He leaned over and placed a pair of glasses across Gideon's face. "There. That's better. I gave it a bit of magic to help hide them from all angles. What do you think?"

Gideon reached up to readjust the glasses, but they fell right back into the same position. "I accept your gift."

"Aw, look at how cute he is with glasses!" Orlov exclaimed.

"He almost looks charming," Mira said.

"I accept your compliment."

"What a charmer indeed," Rufus muttered.

"Come on, guys!" Sai announced. "We're taking the tents down! Hope you all don't mind the sunlight."

"I love sunlight," Orlov said. "Do you like sunlight, Gideon?"

"I have no aversions nor preferences towards the sun as a whole," he said.

"Aw!"

Rufus took Orlov's hand. "Come on, Lov. Stay focused."

They all headed out into the sunlight and followed Sai down to the beach. "Guys, this is Gadot, Yuj, and Maqui. They're members of NORA. They basically serve as New Bodhum's main protectors and acting leaders."

"Nice to meet you all," Yuj said.

"So you're all special fal'Cie?!" Maqui exclaimed. He zeroed in on Gideon and took his arm to inspect his computerized skin. "Far out! Are you electronic parts all the way through? Do you mind if I open up —?"

"Maqui, you can't just offer to open someone up," Gadot groaned.

"Oh, right, sorry."

"I consent to your offer." Gideon flipped his palm upwards and his forearm shifted, small wires parting and pulling back to reveal a compartment inside. He had muscle and bone structures made entirely out of wires and metal.

"Awesome! Do your systems work entirely like a human's just made out of metal?"

"Metal and magic interwoven into a unique system design, yes."

"So do you have a processor in your head functioning as your brain and a power bank in your chest like a heart? Are you capable of adding extensions for extra functions? How many bytes do you have to process to mimic a human brain?"

"Technically, he isn't human," Rei said as she approached with Mat in her arms. She set him down onto the beach. "Introduce yourself, like we practiced."

Mat nodded shyly. "I am Mat. Nice to meet you. I'm not allowed to kick shins."

Rufus knelt and held out his hand. "Nice to meet you too, Mat. I'm not allowed to kick shins either."

Mat seemed to brighten up at this response and quickly moved to shake Rufus's hand.

"Hello, hello!" Orlov exclaimed. "Aren't you adorable? You must be very powerful to have been banned from shin-kicking. It is a dangerous skill, indeed."

Mira swept her dress (she was wearing a black sundress) aside so she could kneel beside Mat too. "Hi Mat. I'm sure you're brilliant even without the shin-kicking."

The three of them doted upon the small boy. Once he got comfortable with them, he opened up quite nicely. The three of them seemed to be good with children. Gideon meanwhile…

"You are a tiny person."

"I am," Mat said. "I get big soon."

"You will get big soon," Gideon corrected. "At present, your diminutive size proves appealing for evasive and stealth, as well as attracting attention and a cautious nature from those you interact with."

Mat stared at Gideon like he was speaking a different language.

"Mat, why don't you go hang out with the other little ones?" Rei suggested. "School is out for the weekend, so everyone will be out playing."

Mat nodded. "Bye nice people and strange man!"

"Bye!" they chorused, with Gideon adding a "Farewell tiny one!" in a flat voice that seemed more like a threat than a farewell.

"Now," Rei announced. "I think it's time we all gathered and discussed our situation."