Hey, Orion_7 here with an earlier than expected update. I was a little surprised at how well this was received, so let's keep this train going shall we?

"Oh my god, I can't believe you actually said it to him like that!" Iota said as she failed to hold back her laughter

"What else was I supposed to do? I wasn't about to let Tanner make that kind of mistake. I mean, what high school kid would want to ask a girl out on a date, and then take her to his family's automotive convention," said Hiro who did a much better job at hiding his laughter

"Yea, I know, but the way you said it was absolutely hilarious. You were like, 'I wouldn't do that if I were you, she might think you overcompensating for something.' You absolutely demolished his pride!" Said Iota said through her fits of laughter

The two friends laughed and enjoyed their lunches, unaware of a certain someone watching them. They talked, cracked jokes, told stories, and enjoyed good food together like they normally do. That's what close childhood friends do, and that's what they've been doing. In fact, they were always together, so much so that Hiro and Iota's friends at school joked that they could be in love.

While they were enjoying themselves, a though crossed his mind, something that came to him the night before.

Iota noticed the serious face that Hiro had put on, and hers contorted to one of worry.

"Hiro, is something wrong?" Asked Iota as she moved her face a little closer to his

Hire remained silent for a moment, but then looked up at her with serious eyes

"Iota...have you...no, do you have...dreams? Ones that feel so familiar, and yet you don't know why?" Asked Hiro in a serious tone

Iota's eyes widened in surprise as the words left his mouth, she slowly leaned back into her seat and stared at her empty plate sitting in front of her.

"How did you know?" Iota asked quietly

Upon hearing this, Hiro lifted his head quickly, his eyes also wide in shock, although he was quick to respond

"Huh...so it's not just me then" Hiro said quietly

Again, Iota looked up in surprise

"What do you mean 'it's not just me then?' Do you have those kinds of dreams as well?" Iota asked in equal surprise

"I do, they happen randomly, but they've been happening more frequently than usual. In the dreams, I hear my voice, talking to someone. Every time I speak in my dream, it feels like I'm directing at someone. And then I see blurry faces, faces I'm never able to make out. The people and their faces are always different, all except for one. There's always one face, one person, that is in every dream."

Iota wasn't just surprised anymore, she was utterly dumbfounded. The dreams that Hiro described...

...they were exactly like hers...

"Hiro...would you believe me if I told you that I have the exact same kind of dreams? The blurred faces, the one person that's always in the dreams, would you believe me if I said that?" Asked Iota

Hiro looked up at Iota with a small smile

"You already asked how I knew. The thing is, I didn't know, but you all but confirmed it for me. If you told me that, then of course I'd believe you," said Hiro reassuringly

Iota made a face that only Hiro was lucky enough to to see. She gave on one of the most warm, grateful smiles that any human being could give. Her entire face was beaming with warm gratitude, something that only Hiro every got to see

"Thank you Hiro, that means a lot to me," said Iota warmly

"I know it does. Plus, look on the bright side, we have another thing in common now. We both have dreams that we can't explain," said Hiro through a light chuckle

"Hm...yea, I guess it does," Iota said happily

A quiet pinging sound came from Iota's pocket. It was her communicator pad. She took it out of her pocket, and read a message that was just sent to her.

"Sorry Hiro, my parents want me back at home before they leave for their afternoon shifts at work," Iota said apologetically

"It's alright, we've spent enough time here as it is, it's already 3:30. How about I walk you home, we could continue our conversation. Wouldn't that make you happy?"

Again, Hiro got to see the beauty of Iota's rare expression

"Sure, I would really like that."

Hiro paid for the meal and left the cafe, unaware that they were being watched.

Rooftop-100 yards away...

"This is Corvic to command, possible targets 016 and 002 are on the move, over."

"Acknowledged, the mission has been changed from surveillance to pursuit. Follow those targets at close range distance. Stealth operations are now authorized."

"Copy, switching to pursuit operations. Have the extraction term follow my bio-transponder."

"Affirmative, mission parameters have been updated. Complete the mission Corvic, over and out."

The man looked out towards the city, staring at the yellow afternoon sky.

"Finally, I get to find out if it's really you..."

The man jumped off of the roof and out of sight. His mission to pursue the two teenagers had finally begun.

On the ground...

Hiro and Iota walked blissfully along the sidewalk in the warm, and rather dry afternoon air. They didn't mind the weather at all, the only things that were on their minds were their strange dreams, as well as a small sense of happiness knowing they once again shared something in common.

"So, just how long have you been having these dreams?" Asked Iota as she looked over at Hiro questioningly

Hiro looked up for a moment and closed his eyes, a sing of him thinking mire than he usually does. Hiro opened his eyes and looked back at Iota

"Well, from what I remember, my mom told be that I had the first of those dreams on the same night I first met you,"

Iota's eyes widened in shock again, absolutely stunned by what she just heard.

"A-are you sure that's what she said? Are you sure that it wasn't just a random dream?" Iota asked quickly

"Nope, my mom remembered it as clear as day. She said that nightmare she came into my room after hearing me scream a name. I think it was...Zero...I don't exactly remember, but it was Zero something. She found me sitting up in bed in a cold sweat. We talked for a while, and I explained my dream to her. She found it so interesting, she actually wrote down what I said that night," Hiro said calmly

"N-no way...h-h-how is that possible..." Iota said with a scared look on her face

Hiro noticed her visible frustration, and he in turn responded with a look of worry.

"Iota, what's wrong?" Asked Hiro worriedly

"Hiro..."

"Yes Iota?"

"The night that I had my first dream..."

"..."

"It was the same night you did."

Hiro stopped dead in the middle of the sidewalk out of pure shock, wearing that same stunned face Iota had exhibited before

"My god..." Hiro whispered to himself

Hiro stumbled over to a nearby wall and leaned against it, with Iota coming over and leaning next to him

"Hiro..." Iota whispered as she tried to comfort him

"This...this is way too weird. I don't understand, just what do these dreams mean? We both have them, they're basically the same, and on top of that, we both started having them on the same exact night. What does this mean? What's even going on?" Hiro whispered in a slightly frightened tone

"Possible targets 016 and 002 have stopped moving. Extraction team, move in, use non-lethals only."

"Hiro...don't worry. We are in this together, and we will find an answer together. Everything is going to be al-"

Iota never got a chance to finish her sentence. A black hover transport came to a sudden stop right next to where they were standing. The door slid open, and before either of the two could even utter a word, they felt a small prick in the side of their necks. Just as quickly as they had felt the prick, their vision went fuzzy, their bodies went limp, and their minds slowly drifted off into unconsciousness, the last thing either of them saw was The other lying beside them on the warm afternoon sidewalk...

Three men jumped out of the open door, two of them picking up and dragging Iota and Hiro's bodies into the vehicle, and one of them watching as they did it.

"This is Corvic to command, the targets have been secured."

"Excellent work Corvic, bring them back to the main tower immediately. There, they will be properly taken care of."

"Understood, Corvic out."

The man got back into the hover transport and closed the door. Once he was inside, he removed the face mask he was wairing, revealing his pair of black horns. He looked down at the two unconscious kids and smiled.

"Time to find out if you're really who they think you are..."

Unknown location...

"You and I; alone and lonesome. With the wings that I tore apart with my own hands, it will never be possible again to fly away. The days that I could spend as your wing, the sky that I dreamed we could take to some day. It has all started fading away, far, far away."

"My wings exist for you. I'm your partner. I'm not going to leave you alone."

Hiro sprung up quickly from his bed, breathing heavily, drenched in sweat. He quickly noticed that the bed he was in was not his. He quickly looked around the room he was in. The walls And ceiling were made of white metallic panels. He noticed a table, some dressers, a table, a bookshelf, a sink, and two bathroom stalls.

The last thing he noticed was Iota, who was sitting in one of the chairs a the the table, reading a book. She noticed Hiro looking at her, and she immediately became tearful as she got up and ran over to him. She hugged Hiro as soon as she met his side.

"Oh Hiro, I'm so glad you're okay! You we're asleep for a whole day, all you did was toss and turn in your sleep!" Iota said

She quickly hugged Hiro tightly, burying her face into his chest

"Don't you ever scare me like that again!"

Hiro just smiled and hugged her back.

"It's alright Iota, I'm okay, I'm here for you. I promise I wont scare you like that again."

Iota stood back up and looked at Hiroshima with a smiling, yet still teary face.

Hiro looked around the room once again, and looked back at Iota.

"So, where do you think we are Iota?" Hiro asked

"I think we were taken to some kind of research faculty, at least, that's my best guess. This room we're in...it's not an apartment or a dormitory, and it's not a patient's room at a medical center. This room being part of a research facility is the best guess I have," Iota said

"The subjects are awake, retrieve them and bring them to Kitaroshi as requested."

"A research facility? What would some shady research company want with two teenagers like us?" Asked Hiro, who was confused but the whole situation

"I have no idea for you, although they may want me because I'm one of those rare individuals who has klaxxoriosis. Maybe they took you so that way you wouldn't be left as a witness."

"Hmm...if that's the case for you...then it might be the same for me as well," said Hiro as he brought his eyes away form Iota

Iota gave Hiro a confused, and somewhat amused look.

"Now's not the time for jokes Hiro. We both know you don't have..." Iota said as she noticed Hiro looking back at her

His face had an exceptionally rare expression on it, one that she only saw once before. It was Hiro's look of guilt

"Hiro...don't tell me that...you can't possibly..." Iota said as her eyes began to water

Hire slowly used his hand to lift his black wavy hair up, revealing small blue horns underneath.

"I'm sorry Iota, I knew that if I told you, you'd blame yourself for my condition. It was my fault that you got hurt that day, so I guess you could say that this is the universe's way of punishing me," Hiro said with a small smile

Iota just stood looking at Hiro, heartbroken at what she had just heard. The day he spoke of was the night they first met. Hiro heard Iota coming, but he chose to ignore her and not warn her about the exposed tree root. Iota tripped over one of the Great Sakura's roots, she skinned her knee, and the wound began to bleed. Without any first aid equipment, the only thing Hiro thought of doing to help was to clean the wound himself, so he licked Iota's knee to prevent any harmful bacteria from entering her blood. He didn't even care at the time that the blood was slightly more purple than it should have been...

"Hiro...I...I'm so sorry. I did this to you, I gave you my condition. If these people really were after me because of my condition, then it's my fault they took you too." Said Iota though her tears

Hiro smiled at her sympathetically.

"I knew she'd react this way..." Hiro thought to himself with a smile

Hiro stood up and walked over to Iota, and tightly wrapped his arms around her in a hug

"Iota, I was the one who chose to do that. I did it because I wanted to help you, and because I helped you, look at what our lives like. Sure, we're in this mess now, but I'd rather be in this situation a thousand times over rather than not becoming friends with you," Hiro said soothingly

Iota upon hearing this, smiled and returned Hiro's hug. The pair stood hugging, not caring If anyone was watching, not caring whether or not someone walked in. The two broke apart, and both of them had looks of warm happiness on their faces.

It was at that moment that the sound of a metal door unlocking caught their attention, and the both looked towards their door as it began to open.

Standing in the doorway was a man in jeans and a leather jacket. He had a silver chain around his neck, a chain that was reminiscent of his eye's grey color. What stood out the most was a pair of black horns protruding from his forehead

"You two, come with me. My employer wants to share a few words with you," said the man as he made a gesture with his thumb, pointing away from their room.

Hiro and Iota looked at each other with uncertainty, and yet they followed the man out of their room and into the corridor.

Upon exiting their room, they entered a corridor made of the same white paneling as in their room. People in business attire and or lab coats were walking up and down the corridor. To the two teenagers, this was not the sight they expected when entering the building of their captors.

They followed the man through the corridor, people giving them skeptical glances as they walked past. Others smiled at them, and a few even waved at them.

"Is it just me, or does this place seem like it's just way too friendly to be some villainous base?" Hiro whispered quietly to Iota

"Yea, I know what you mean. The people here are acting as if we are completely normal, as if they knew beforehand we'd be here," Iota whispered in response

After waking for a few more minutes, and going up more floors, they came to a stop in front of a huge pair of black steel doors, engraved with elegant designs, much like doors found in palaces or mansions

"Those are some big doors," Iota said as she looked up at them

"Big, and completely unnecessary. He just likes to do these kinds of things because he has the money for it," said the man escorting them

The man walked over to an intercom mounted on the wall and announced their arrival, after doing so, a deep and loud metallic sound emitted from the doors, and they slowly opened inward.

It was like the huge doors were a gate to another world, as what was behind them was nothing like they had ever seen before. The room behind the doors looked like someone's own private penthouse, with expensive furniture and appliances everywhere. Expensive paintings hung from the walls, and precious statues and jewelry were on display in beautiful glass cases. Fancy lights hung from the ceiling, although they were overshadowed by the sunlight pouring through a massive, wall-sized glass window that gave a sprawling view of the city.

"Wow...just who in the hell is your employer anyways?" Said Iota in awe as she and Hiro gazed around the room

They were broken out of their trance when a loud, energetic voice was directed towards them.

"Welcome! I'm so glad that you have finally made it all the way here to me!"

Looking in the direction of where the voice came from, Hiro and Iota turn to see a man in a suit walking down a set of stairs, looking back at them with a beaming smile on his face. As he got closer, the man began to speak once more.

"My dear friends, allow me to introduce myself, my name is Juugo Kitaroshi, but please just call me Kitaroshi. It is a great pleasure to finally meet you two!" Kitaroshi said excitedly

Iota just gave an awkward smile at the man, but Hiro had a look of surprise on his face.

"Wait, you're Juugo Kitaroshi, as in, head of Franxxinus Industries Juugo Kitaroshi?" Asked Hiro is amazement

"Indeed I am, I am the man who runs all of Franxxinus Industries. Everything you see in this room was thanks to the immense wealth generated by my company. Everything you saw in this building was created because of this company. Things in your home, your schools, basically anywhere you look, probably has something from my company," said Kitaroshi proudly

"I can't believe it...we were kidnapped by one of the most wealthy and powerful people in the world. This is just fantastic," Iota said, clearly annoyed

Kitaroshi gave a guilty laugh before he began to explain himself

"I do apologize for my methods of bringing you here, I truly am sorry. But I knew that if I had just straight up asked you to come here for the reasons that I have for needing you, you two would have without a doubt...refused me," Explained Kitaroshi

Hiro noticed Iota shoot him a worried glance. Hiro couldn't help but wonder what the head of the largest global industry wanted with two teenagers with klaxxoriosis

"So what did you want us? Why go through all the effort just to catch two teenage kids with a genetic condition? Why are we so important to you?" Hiro asked demandingly

Kitaroshi posture straightened as he began to explain

"That, my dear friends, is the money question. Why did I go through the trouble of using one of my best private officers...(gestures at Corvic)...to track you down and bring you here?" Sated Kitaroshi

"You tell us," Hiro and Iota asked in unison

Kitaroshi walked towards the two and got within arms length of them. He then leaned over until his face nearly met theirs.

"Are you sure you want to know the truth? Once I tell you, your lives will never be the same." Kitaroshi whispered quietly

Hiro and Iota both nodded their heads. Kitaroshi smiled, and then he stood up straight, cleared his throat, and dropped the big explanation

"The reason I had you brought here was simple really. I, along with my entire research team, have been monitoring you two since the moment you were both born. We have reason to believe that you two are, without a doubt, the reincarnated Parasite pilots of the Franxx known as Strelitzia. In other words, we think that you two are the reincarnations of the two teenage Franxx pilots who saved all of humanity from the VIRM a millennia ago!" Said Kitaroshi enthusiastically

"..."

"..."

"..."

"WHAAAAAAT!?"

Hope you enjoyed part 2 of DITF: 1000 Years Later. Part 3 will be coming soon. Cya then!