By the time everyone was finished with their little morning work out, it was 9:24 AM. Durbe was hunched over, panting heavily. His breath was short and ragged, each one he took threatening to be the last one before he passed out from exhaustion. That had to have been the toughest wake up call he had ever been put through, and it was driving him crazy to think about what tomorrow might hold in the morning.

Alit had been one of the last ones to finish. He came very close to collapsing on the forty-eighth push-up, but somehow, he'd managed to pull through. Now, it seemed that everyone but three or four of the soldiers was either sitting down or laying on the ground. Durbe looked around. He, Shark and a few unfamiliar soldiers were standing, but the rest were on the ground.

He feared for them. What would the general think when she saw this? She'd probably blow a fuse!

Boy, he couldn't have been more correct.

"What are you people doing!?"

The voice of the general sent everybody shooting up, even the ones that were standing. Durbe about choked on his gasp, since he wasn't exactly expecting that. When the general came walking forward, she had a very miffed-off look on her face.

Oh, dear. They were in for it now.

"I can't believe you! Sitting around while we're at war! What's the matter with you lot?"

No one answered. Alit was about to croak something out, but Durbe shot him another glare, one that was very similar to the one from the previous night. This caused the green-eyed soldier to zip it, biting his lip to make sure he said absolutely nothing.

"Now, we can take a break. I'm sure you're all awake now," the general said. Part of her shoulder-length, chocolate-brown hair was covering her face. It made her piercing green eyes seem all that more freaky. "Do what you need to, bathroom, calling home to tell them of the news, blah blah blah. We'll meet back here in exactly one hour."

Each soldier nodded, rushing away to do whatever it was they intended to, whether it was sleep for the next hour or simply go to eat. Durbe, on the other hand, decided to go back to the cabin. He walked away, not even turning to see if Shark, Alit or Gilag were following behind him.

The door squeaked when he opened it. His smokey-gray eyes darted around until he found the phone. Without wasting one second, Durbe was already over to it, frantically dialing his home number.

A small smirk began to cross Durbe's lips. "I can only imagine Mahpari's freaked-out face when she hears this," he muttered.

XxXxXxXx

Mahpari was curled in her bed, a soft snoring sound emitting from her as she slept. Just one more room over, in Durbe's room, Mizael was asleep as well. His snoring was a lot more loud than Mahpari's was, but at least they were both asleep.

That changed pretty quickly.

The phone rang, loud and proud. Mahpari jolted from her spot with a scream, bouncing to her feet when she heard Mizael's startled yell. The gray-haired girl went rushing around the corner, knowing her older brother's best friend would not be fast enough to get to the phone before it stopped ringing.

"I got it, I got it!" Mahpari yelled, basically tackling the table the phone sat on. She grabbed the ringing item from its spot, then hit the button, not bothering to get up from her spot on the floor. "Hello? Who's callin'?"

"Mahpari, it's me!"

Mahpari's eyes went wide. She blinked, then sat up slowly. "D-Durbe?" she stammered, nearly choking on the oncoming tears.

"Yeah. What time is it over there?"

"5:56 AM. Why the heck are you calling so early?"

A small bit of hesitation came from the other end. Mahpari could hear the way Durbe's breathing changed the way it usually did when he blushed. He often made an awkward, inward hissing sound when he did.

Mahpari smirked. "Oh, please. You know Mizael and I aren't mad. We're just kinda shocked. What time is it over there?"

"9:58 AM."

"So, four hours faster than us. Okay, that makes sense." Mahpari giggled, the smirk she had on earlier now replaced by a soft smile. It was just so nice to hear Durbe's voice, to know he had made it there safely. "Well, then I suppose the better question is, what have you called for? I know it's not just to talk. You haven't got the time to just talk with us."

"I called to tell you amazing news!"

A light chuckle came from Mahpari. "What's this 'amazing news' you're so excited about?"

"Do you remember how I was supposed to be gone for a whole year?"

"How could I forget that?"

"The schedule has changed. I'm only going to be gone for four months! How great is that?"

Mahpari froze. She gasped, then simply stared at the floor.

"Sis? Sis, are you okay?" Durbe asked, knowing his little sister was frozen at the moment.

"Y-Yes," Mahpari responded. She looked up at Mizael when he came around the corner, still rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "I'm alright. Just overjoyed about this, that's all!"

Durbe chuckled, a few tears streaming down his cheeks and making him thankful he wasn't talking face-to-face with Mahpari. "Good to hear. I'll be home soon, little moon fairy. That, you can count on."

"Okay," Mahpari said, standing up and brushing herself off. "I'll see you soon, then, nii-san. Just don't get killed."

"I won't. But I may come home injured."

"No!"

The two of them began to laugh. Once it died down, Mahpari sighed. "I need to go back to bed."

"That's fine, sis. I'll see you in a few months."

Mahpari nodded. "Right."

The two hung up at the exact same time. Mahpari turned and stared at Mizael with a broad smile, making him tilt his head to the left.

"Well, are you going to leave me in the dark?" Mizael questioned. "Tell me what Durbe said!"

"He's going to be back home in four months! Can you believe it? Four months!"

Mizael's sky-blue eyes went wide. "You're serious?'

"I've never been more serious in my life."

The two of them simply smiled at one another. Mizael extended his hand, and Mahpari took it in hers. He led her back to her bedroom, then pulled the blankets up to her shoulders and smiled sweetly. Mahpari smiled back, rolling over when he left.

He'll be back soon, she told herself as she began to fall back to sleep. Durbe will be back soon.

She just hoped that would turn out to be true.