Happy Holidays, everyone! This is very likely going to be the last chapter of this year and I'm super sentimental because I actually managed to get a lot of writing done this year! I'm really glad I was able to start writing Prime and 100% focus on one series for once! It's super refreshing and it definitely helps my motivation to write more! I do hope it reflects in my writing ;;;v;;

Here's to a great 2018 for everyone!

As always, critique, thoughts and anything is always welcome with open arms! (^w^)/)

And, again, thanks to Nexus_Schwarz and SugaryDiamond for beta-reading and being super nice and supportive overal! Be sure to check out their respective fanseries, Mythical Precure! and Weather Control Pretty Cure! I also highly suggest to check out Immortal Friendship Precure by curecustard! Do the thing~!

Episode 7: Calling Out

"... Connie?"

At hearing that familiar name, Aeris looked up, eyes that had previously been squeezed shut snapped open and grew wide as they focused on Ember.

"... What?" She whispered, letting her guard down, but only slightly.

Terra tapped Ember's shoulder. "Who?"

Ember hesitated for a moment as all eyes turned to her. "Uh... I mean... you just reminded me of-"

"That was my name once." Aeris said. Her voice was a tad louder this time."But not anymore. I'm Aeris..."

"There is at least that she accepted her real name, unlike some people!" Ray glared at the three Cures but they quickly found themself cowering behind Terra as Splash threatened to kick them.

"Wait, for real?" Ember gently pushed Terra away to get a bit closer to Aeris. "Connie Sokolov. So, you are her, right? Right?"

After a long silence, Aeris nodded timidly. "... That used to be my name." A quick pause. "But you shouldn't know that..."

"Uh... Ember...?" Splash asked. "Mind explaining?"

Ray stomped their foot on the ground. "No time to explain! Hurry, destroy her before she-!"

They stopped when a fist found a way into their stomach. They doubled over and groaned in pain.

"Shut the hell up, Ray!"

Ember ignored the commotion Ray and Splash were causing behind her and instead focused entirely on Aeris, still cowering in the dark. Terra stood tensely in the sidelines, in silence.

"I'm Hanan. Do you remember me? We used to be classmates, and I work at your dad's diner. The Primetime Diner." The red Cure said, debating if it was wise to undo her transformation right here and now. She couldn't entirely trust Aeris. She knew that. Who knows what she had up her sleeves? Even if she looked harmless right now. "You may not remember me like this but... you remember my name at least, right? We worked together on a few projects, with Eclair. You remember her too, right? Right?"

"Ember, you might be a bit too much...?" Terra said with an unreadable expression.

Aeris flinched at Ember's sudden rise of volume. "No! I have to know, Terra! I have to be sure that I'm not crazy!"

The red Cure noticed Aeris' distress and continued with a significantly softer tone. "Look, you suddenly disappeared from class. Like, one day you stopped showing up. You were gone from the class list, from pictures, and nobody batted an eye at that." She took a pause to breathe. Aeris wasn't looking any better. She seemed like she was about to break into tears any second now. "When I asked... everyone was denying your existence, even Aaron..."

"Oh, I don't have a daughter, Hanan." Aaron said, blinking a few times. "Trust me, I definitely would have introduced her to you and Eclair if I did."

"Wait, what? I'm so confused..." Terra rubbed the sides of her head. You could almost hear her brain cracking from trying to get a grasp of the situation.

"Everyone thought I was crazy, and with no actual proof to go on... I started doubting your existence too." Ember admitted, looking away. "For some time I just... thought I'd made you up. That you were never there to begin with and..."

Ember stopped as Aeris took in another, shaky, breath. "... Connie is long gone, and Aeris doesn't belong here..."

"What happened...?" Ember asked, worry evident in her tone and look. She carefully reached a hand inside the rock but couldn't touch Aeris. "Please, let me help you, Connie."

Aeris shook her head furiously before hugging her knees and folding her wings around herself, hiding away. "... There's nothing you can do. Please, please... let me go..."

"Not until you tell us what is going on, who you are working for and what that person is planning!"

"Ray, stop!" Terra closed the rock again as her gaze lingered on the blond. Her expression seemed uncharacteristically stoic, compared to the worried Ember, annoyed Splash, and tense Ray. "Guys, what are we gonna do with her? I feel really bad..."

With a sigh, Splash impatiently tapped her foot. "I say let's kick her ass! Because you guys are forgetting an important detail." Another sigh. Longer this time. " She's a bad guy. She's working together with those other guys, who are constantly turning people into monsters."

"Precisely!"

"Shut up, Ray."

"... Yes, Unda..." Ray jumped when they received a deep glare from the blue Cure. "Splash! I meant Splash!"

"So, what... do we just... keep her in there?" Terra asked, fidgeting with the flowers in her hair. "... Like a caged bird?"

All four fell silent at that. What were they supposed to do? They couldn't just let her out. Who knows what she was going to do. Despite Ember's words, this could just as easily be a trick to get their guard down. She did defend Elegy and did ''kill'' Ray, after all. Even though the latter was more of an accident.

They couldn't completely trust her just yet.

Lost in thoughts, the four were trying to find a way out of this mess. Splash leaned against the rock, arms crossed, while Ember and Terra exchanged some worried looks. Even Ray couldn't think of anything to say.

Elegy's awakening was painful.

Feeling your entire body pressed against a cold, hard wall with such intense force was sure to wake anyone up. The shortage of air was also likely to be a factor, as a big hand had wrapped around her neck.

The image she was greeted with when opening her eyes were two glowing dots staring at her.

Shade was standing below her. His body had a dark... dim around it. Like he himself was turning into a shadow, merging with the already dark room. He was using his living shadow to hold Elegy in the air by her neck.

"Where is Aeris?" Shade asked. His voice was unusually cold and low.

She didn't dare open her mouth, even in the position she was in. Besides, she could barely breathe. So even if she wanted to, talking would be next to impossible.

"Where is she!? Where!?" Shade asked again, voice cracking a little. His shadow slammed Elegy against the wall, before dropping her to the ground.

Just then Elegy noticed that Bronze, Smoky, and Hail had also been in the room. They instantly rushed to their friend's aid the second she hit the floor.

Smoky hesitated a bit, then snapped his head to Shade. "Dude, you need to chill." If he wasn't so tense, he and Hail would have shared a high-five. "Like, right now."

"You've messed up everything! Everything!" The smaller boy snarled in rage as he started pulling on his hair, letting out another cry of pure frustration. "No, no, nonono...! So much power wasted thanks to you! If Aeris dies... I can't... argg!"

Swallowing all her distress, Bronze managed to speak up. "I'll go find her and make sure she's okay, so-"

"No!"

Everyone fell quiet as Shade's loud cry resonated in the room. His shadow hovered behind him, unfazed and still.

"I'm going. You four stay here." He said, softer this time. "Those girls... I am dealing with them myself."

He took a deep breath, fumbling with his hands a few seconds before summoning a portal.

"This ends now."

Aeris let out a tiny yelp as Terra made a small opening again, and poked her head in it.

"Tell us what happened to you!" The green Cure yelled. "We will help you! We are supposed to be friends! Like Ray said, four Titans! Can't have one without the others!"

At hearing that Aeris tensed up completely. Her chest rising and falling rapidly.

"... You... are...?" She started, unable to form words. "... Titans? Did you say...?"

Terra nodded. "Yup, that's us! Apparently. I'm Terre." She then pointed at Ember. "Ignis." And finally to Splash. "And that's Unda! But don't call us by those names. They're not our real names. No matter what Ray says."

"But they ar-"

"Shut up, Ray." Terra said, a rare display of annoyance on her face. Only for a second, though.

Meanwhile, Aeris anxiously hugged herself, clutching on her wings as she drew in a breath. "You have... you have to get away. If he finds you..." She paused. "If he... gets you..."

Terra waved dismissively. "Pfff, don't worry! Nobody is gonna get us! We'll beat them up for su-!"

Before she could finish, a massive hand yanked her to the side by her waist, sending her flying against a tree with great force. If she hadn't been transformed, Terra was sure that crash would have broken her back.

The same pair of pitchblack hands swatted Ember and Splash away with ease. It was almost like it evaded hitting Ray, who stood frozen in place in the middle of this. Their eyes were wide and unfocused, like they weren't even aware what was happening around them.

"Impossible."

They felt something pulling on their chest and started rubbing their hand nervously.

The identity of the assaulter was a floating, tall, ghastly humanoid of pure black. It reached for the rock that held Aeris captive, cracking it open with some slight effort, roughly grabbing the terrified girl out of it and dragging her back to its master, a teenage boy standing in the shadows.

The boy seemed roughly around the same age as the Cures, if not a tad younger. His two-toned hair as messy as his stance. His eyes had the usual black sclera that revealed that he was at least associated with their enemy.

"What!? What!?" He cried out, gritting his teeth in confusion as he eyed the fallen Cures and Ray. "The Titans? Radiant Lumiere?"

"Shade...?" Ray finally snapped out of their trance. They clutched their chest at the huge amount of darkness they sensed. "You... are alive? How...?"

The boy, Shade, snorted in return. "Come on! You are the one who isn't supposed to be alive, you know!? But here you are... looking... different." He crossed his arms with a very forced smile. Despite his efforts, it was obvious that he wasn't happy with this turn of events in the slightest.

"... If I wasn't allowed to die, I should have figured you weren't either. I do wonder why..." Shade continued and squinted his eyes, as if that would force the answer out of Ray.

Ray genuinely looked regretful as they uttered their response. "I... I do not know. If I could... I would have rather dimmed out back then..."

"Ha! Shows how weak you are, you wet candle!" He seemed really proud of the nickname he had just made up. Ray, on the other hand, was both shocked and offended. "But who cares anymore? I have given up giving up long ago!"

"I do not understand... what about Nox, is he not the one doing thi-?"

"Do not speak my dad's name with your filthy mouth." Shade's face morphed into one of pure rage and Ray stepped back. "You know exactly what happened..."

Shade gnashed his teeth, biting back saying more and instead turned his attention to the three Cures, who had gotten up and were standing protectively in front of Ray.

Terre sniffed loudly and covered her nose. "Yuck, he smells like trash..."

"What!?" Shade gasped. He seemed offended for a moment but then recovered with another demeaning sneer. "Terre, you eat trash!" He then snapped his attention back to the other Cures. "Well, it seems like you've been busy, Ray. Got your own band of merry little men! I do wonder... how they got to become like this..."

"Who is this guy, Ray?" Ember asked, as the still weary Terra leaned a bit on her. "Is he also from your world?"

Splash tapped her foot and cracked her knuckles before Ray could reply. "Who cares? I like his face. Seems like it would make a great punching bag!"

"Gee! Ray really did a number on you, Unda." To say Shade looked amused was a heavy understatement. All that resentment from mere seconds ago had seemingly completely washed away. "What happened to your gigantic butt? Oh, wait. It's still really huge! Hahahaa!"

The dark hue of red on Splash's face didn't really go well with her blue outfit and hair. She was almost literally seething with rage, while Shade was laughing so hard, tears appeared in his eyes.

"He is not wrong, Splash..." Ray agreed awkwardly, looking over at Splash's behind and just barely managed to evade a kick from the blue Cure. "S-Sorry!"

"Oh no! Never knew Unda could be so violent~!" Shade continued, having a hard time not bursting into uncontrollable laughter again. "I thought that was more of Ignis' thing." His eyes turned to Ember, clapping his hands together. "Where are those volcanoes to help you now, huh!? But, hey, you can at least see me, and not just because you're not a giant anymore!"

When Shade bursted into laughter again, Ember had to stop Splash from charging right at him. "What is that even supposed to mean...?" The red Cure frowned.

"I don't know and don't care. All I see is an invitation for an ass-kicking!" Splash shot a large water tendril at Shade, but the shadow quickly floated in front of the boy, Aeris still in its grip, and used its free arm to shield both of them.

"Haha! An 'ass-kicking'! That's not gonna be hard with a butt as big as yours, Unda!"

Splash launched herself towards Shade, ready to land a perfectly timed kick. "You little shit!"

"Oh, what happened to 'cockroach'? You Titans used to call me that all the time." Shade grinned, standing still as all of Splash's kicks and attacks were blocked by the shadow effortlessly. "But now you're a bug too... what could be a good nickname for you...?" He pondered. "Oh! I know! An assassin bug! Perfect!"

"Pretty Cure Hydro Flood!" Splash's eye twitched as she send a powerful wave at Shade. The shadow quickly lifted him up with its free arm and floated out of the way. "Damn it!"

Shade blinked in surprise as his shadow dropped him safely back on the ground. "Wow, that is pretty strong actually. Hm, Ray, how about we trade minions? Mine are kinda useless, like you!" He sneered at seeing Ray's defeated look. "It's a perfect fit!"

"We're not Ray's 'minions'! We're their friends!" Terra insisted, stomping her foot on the ground and shaking it slightly.

"Pff! Since when do you care about 'friends', Terre?" Shade replied, wearing a smug smile. "All you ever did was kiss Ignis' ass, all the time. A great beacon of friendship, right there."

Ember's eyes focused on Shade as a fiery glow surrounded her. "Let us talk to Connie." She commanded, the fire in her hair growing slightly. "Let her go."

"Wait, who?"

"Her! Aeris!" Ember gritted her teeth and pointed at Aeris, still hanging idly in the shadow's grip. She made no attempts to get free at all, and had seemingly resigned to her fate. It was almost pathetic to look at.

All Ember's doubts from before had disappeared. How Aeris had acted before suggested, no... outright revealed she was completely unwilling in this. Something had happened to her, and now she was trapped.

Ember wanted to know the truth.

And, maybe she also missed seeing Eclair completely melt whenever Connie was brought up.

But the point still stood. Ember couldn't leave her be. Not like this.

"Ah, Ignis, always the bossy one. Not anymore, you have no power." Shade smirked and shot a quick glance at Aeris, then back to Ember again. "... Well, you're always welcome to come hang out in my Abyss of Darkness. All Titans are invited since it'll be where you will spend the rest of your lives after I'm done! You will all serve me, the supreme master and the heir of Darkness' throne!"

The three Cures exchanged some worried glances. They didn't like the way he phrased it, let alone the outright gleeful tone he said it with. The nickname he gave himself was pretty silly though, as was his attempt at a menacing laugh.

Meanwhile, Ray clutched their chest as they leaned against a tree, rubbing their hands so frantically it started turning red. They were unable to speak and unable to move. They had wanted to do something, say something, there was enough to say, but they just couldn't.

Shade fell into a laughing fit again. "Look at her, she's speechless." He sneered at Ray. "So intimidated by my supremacy!"

"'Her'?" Ember snarled as her fiery glow intensified. Terra hid behind Splash in fear. "Ray is not a 'she'. Have some respect, you cockroach!"

"It is fine... really... " Ray's eyes widened at seeing how angry Ember looked. Was it really that big of a deal? "I do not care about-"

"Oh? Oh, really now?" A forced smile appeared on Shade's face. "That doesn't change the fact that they are a wet candle anyway." He chuckled to himself while Ray seemed more hurt than before. "Look, I would love to catch up some more over some snacks but alas, I have work to do." Shade grinned as his shadow grabbed a rock and threw it at Ray. It hit them right in the face and they fell over, clamping a hand over their mouth.

Ember and Terra darted to Ray's fallen form. Ember's hand refrained from touching Ray, while Terra's were slapped away, as usual. Old habits were gonna die hard.

"Ignis, Terre, Unda. Soon, you will all submit to me. Just you wait." Shade smirked, waiting for a moment to let his words sink in.

He summoned a portal behind him, the shadow going in first with Aeris. Just before turning around, the boy's smile faded as he silently went through the portal.

"Wait.. ! Wait!" Ember's hand hovered in the air for a moment. Her heart sank as she saw the portal wither away.

The four stood in silence for a long time, unmoving, and each with their own train of thoughts to ride through.

"Let's go back." The red Cure suggested solemnly as she undid her transformation. Terra and Splash followed her lead. "We... learned a lot today."

As soon as they arrived back in the base, the shadow dropped Aeris, causing her to collapse on the ground. She didn't dare move from her place, instead hugging herself and sobbing silently.

She soon realised she wasn't even in the main room. Shade had teleported them back to the throne room instead. She hadn't been here much but the times she had been... hadn't been pleasant.

This was also the place where Aeris was 'born', and where Connie had 'died'.

Shade himself stood a bit further away. He let out an anguished cry as he punched the wall, before resting his head against it. His shadow hovered behind him, still as usual.

Radiant Lumiere. Ray. Firefly. He had seen her- no, them being called many different things by a handful of people. Obviously 'firefly' was made up by the Titans, and it was disturbingly fitting Shade had to admit.

One would be honored to get a specific insect nickname from the Titans. He could only count a handful of people who had that 'honor', himself and Ray included.

Shade shook his head and punched the wall again. It should hurt, and it did, but his hand also felt... numb.

He should have known. He should have expected this. Ray was still alive. Just like him. It all made sense now. Like a puzzle piece falling into place. It confirmed his suspicions... but he wasn't sure how to feel about that.

Despite everything, he hated himself more than he hated them.

Aeris flinched as Shade punched the wall again. It was like he had completely forgotten she was there. She had wanted to go away but instead kept still and held her breath, in fear of drawing his attention.

The shadow slowly cracking its head around to look at her was enough to tell her that her fear didn't go unnoticed.

Shade followed his shadow's lead and turned around. His face was twisted into a demeaning sneer as he wandered towards her.

"... Well, I learned some things today." He said, narrowing his eyes. "Those Pretty Cure girls are the other Titans! And even Ray is alive! What a bunch of fun surprises, right!?" A bitter laugh echoed through the room, and Aeris covered her ears. "I didn't see that coming!"

Still sitting on the floor, Aeris cringed away from his approaching steps, until her back had reached a wall.

"Now, don't be sad, Aeris." Shade placed his hands on her cheeks and forced her to look at him. His sneer widened even further. "I promise that you'll all be together again soon."

Bright had picked the four up with his car. The mood was heavy, but Morgan still found a way to insult the eyelashes that Bright had on the headlights of his car. Maybe she was trying to lighten up the mood in her own way?

It was too late to go back to school, as the day was already over.

Ray sat in the passenger seat next to Bright, head hung low and rubbing their palm again as their eyes stared into thin air. They hadn't said a single word since Shade had left, and they had barely even reacted when Hanan had called Bright to pick them all up.

It was like their mind had wandered into the past, again.

The three girls were seated in the back. Due the car's size they all had enough space to sit comfortable... but, it's not that they were feeling comfortable at the moment.

Morgan had rested her chin on her hand as she looked at the houses passing by in the window, Hanan was absentmindedly fumbling with the sleeve of her shirt while Beryl sat in between her friends, hugging her knees with a somewhat blank look.

"Whatever happened..." Bright finally spoke up. "I take it you don't want to talk about it now?" He asked to no one in particular.

Morgan was the first to speak up. "What is there to say?" She shrugged.

"Sorry, Bright. I can't speak for the others but I would like some time to think. I'm not feeling so well either." Hanan offered a polite smile as she placed a hand on her forehead. "Besides, my mom would kill me if I were late for dinner again."

"That is fine. I'll take you guys home and we can talk it over tomorrow. I'll even make something nice to eat!" Bright replied with smile. "So, Hanan, when we arrive at your house... does your brother want another selfie with me?"

That managed to get a laugh out of Hanan.

"Always."

Ray couldn't catch sleep that night. They hadn't even spoken a single word after Bright had taken the other girls home and they had arrived back under their own roof.

They had to admit, while they had only been living here for roughly a month and a half, it already felt more homely than their castle had ever been.

It was smaller, less spacey and more... cosy? It made them feel safe, despite the lack of guards.

But they had Bright, and they trusted him.

Ray clutched the blanket they had wrapped themself in. They had safely confined themself in their room. It was dark outside, but the room was illuminated by a night light. If they were feeling better, they would probably have provided enough light from their body to light up the entire room.

But they felt terrible.

Today had been a rough day, to put it mildly.

They didn't want to think anymore. They just wanted to... turn their brain off entirely. But they didn't want to sleep either. Sleeping always brought them back. So vividly. It was always like they were experiencing their fight all over again.

They had flickered so many times during it.

Now that they thought about it, before today, during their fight had been the last time they had flickered.

Well, they had flickered only a few times before that. Most of them due to small accidents.

Their first flicker had been a high fall from a balcony.

It had happened so fast. Before they knew it they were falling, seeing the distance between themself and the night sky greaten, followed by a painful crack.

Everything after that was pitch black, but only for a minute.

The next thing they knew, they were lying in a flowerbed. The soft petals touched their skin. It felt... nice? At least until the sound was returning to their ears and they heard incomprehensible murmuring, more and more. The physical pain was gone but the almost throbbing sensation lingered around much longer.

They opened their eyes and noticed some splotches of white had dirtied their nightgown. Their hair was messy, and their legs felt a tad stiff.

But despite all that, an odd grin found its way on their face.

"... Ray?" Bright's gentle voice pulled them back to reality again. "I'm sorry for intruding but... would you at least tell me what happened? I'm worried about you, and the others."

All Ray could do was shake their head. They didn't want to talk, or think, right now.

When Ray looked up, they noticed he was in his peacock form. "That is all right. We can talk when you're ready. I won't bother you anymore." He paused. "Oh, well before that... do you want anything? Some water, maybe?"

This time Ray nodded and Bright instantly rushed out of the room and came back with a glass of water. He was easily able to balance the glass in his wing. Their hand reached out of their blanket and they emptied the glass in a single gulp before handing it back to Bright.

He gave them a little nod and a "Good night.", before going to the door. His wing hovered over the doorknob before Ray called out softly.

"Bright...?"

He turned around and almost dropped the glass when he saw that Ray was crying.

"Will you... please... please stay with me?" They whispered meekly as they rubbed the tears from their face. It didn't really work because for every tear wiped away, another came in its place. "I am scared. I do not think I can do this, Bright..."

Bright closed the door behind him and hopped on Ray's bed. "Ray, you won't have to do this alone. Hanan, Beryl, and Morgan are there to help you. I am here to help too. I will not let anything happen to you, I promise."

His words had the opposite effect entirely, as Ray started crying even louder at that. They completely buried themself in their blanket.

They owed him so much, and they had only let him down. Like everyone else.

They had let everyone down.

They hadn't delivered the miracle they had promised.

Even Shade was disappointed in them, even he felt let down by their failure. It was obvious in the way he had looked at them. The disdain had practically dripped off his face.

That look full of resentment. It hurt. So bad.

Ray didn't blame him for being upset. He had all rights to be angry with them.

For some reason Ray couldn't wrap their head around, Bright had never given them that look. He had lost people too. He had lost his dear mother, Lucille, because of their stupidity. How could he not be upset with them?

They didn't deserve Bright. They didn't deserve his kindness.

"Why? Primo got destroyed... everyone is gone... everyone... and it is my fault!" They squeezed their eyes shut. "How can you not hate me, Bright!? How!?"

"Ray..."

"You are just like Lucille! Making me think what I am doing... or saying ... or feeling is okay, while it is not."

Bright finally mustered the courage to place a firm wing on the blanket around Ray's shoulder area. They flinched, but kept still.

"Ray, please." He begged. "Stop this. Stop blaming yourself for what happened back then. I don't know exactly what happened but... that's in the past. And the two of us, as the last remnants of Primo, should continue letting our lives burn bright..." He let out a small chuckle, although it was a bit forced. "... for everyone's sake. If anyone is to blame for Primo's destruction, it's the Titans."

"The Titans. Not the Cures." Bright added quickly, then lowered his gaze. "... They are simply forced to carry their burdens, and that saddens me. They don't deserve that, and neither do you."

Ray poked their head out of the blanket, but they didn't say anything. Their eyes focused on Bright, blinking a few times.

Still with a firm wing on the blanket, Bright gave them a soft smile.

"Bright, can you... will you... um...?" Ray paused, meekly hiding inside the blanket again. "... sing me a lullaby?"

"A lullaby?" He asked, completely taken back by Ray's sudden request. "But I'm no singer. I mean... I will do it if you want me to, but don't expect me to be have such an angelic voice as my mother..."

Ray poked their head out again. "I like listening to your voice."

A gentle laugh filled the room.

"Thank you, Ray."

The blond shook their head in response.

"No, thank you, Bright."

Bright let out another laugh. Ray's smile made him feel better, and a bit accomplished. He closed his eyes and, to his best ability, sang a gentle little melody like his mother had done for him many times.