Hi everybody, Tiru-chan here!

So, before I begin this chapter I have a few things to kind-of clear up for everyone. In the shipping area of this story, I won't announce any pairings yet, you'll have to wait and see, but I will completely kill one. There is absolutely none, and never will be any Len X IA in this story. Len is fourteen and IA is seven. Just gross! It's more of a sibling or parental relationship that they have than anything, just thought I would get that out of the way. And to one of my guest reviewers, to clear something up, this story is based off of IA's A Tale of Six Trillion Years and An Overnight's Story, pretty loosely. I've kinda run pretty far with it. Hahaha! Thanks for all the wonderful reviews!

`Black White and Superstitious

`zhane 17

`awesome dt

`Icelandic Puffin Cat

`Thestrangedoor 9

` The Awkward Neko

`iDontCare

~Tiruneko ;3

X~39~X

It has been hard, that's not a surprise. But what has been a surprise is how she'd been able to control herself. But now, alone, it was okay.

Miku drops down to her knees, staring up at the sky. It looks the same as it had that day… her eyes burn with the warmth of tears and as she blinks her eyes, once again she finds herself crying. Alone. Well that part isn't entirely true, after all Miku has Len, and Rin, and Gumi, and Oliver, and IA…

IA… Miku begins to choke on the air she hadn't realized that she had been holding. The tears that come gushing from her flow like a waterfall, a downpour of emotion.

Everyone had felt the impact of that day… even the usually stoic Rin and the unreadable Gumi. Len and Oliver had undoubtedly taken it the hardest. Miku remembers walking away that day, her face buried into Len's side. The first time she'd ever seen him cry. Rin had cried to… somehow her tears had hurt more than anyone else's. Oliver didn't cry… no, Oliver didn't feel at all. He walked along like the world wasn't even there anymore, as if it never had been, or as if it was all over for him. Gumi was different, Gumi was… blank. But everyone takes grief differently.

Miku hasn't slept in days, she's simply passed her time by thinking about what her life could be like… but dreams only reach so far. If her eyes were normal, if she could just die like everyone else… maybe the world wouldn't be this cruel. Eventually she saw an opening to be alone and decided to come out here.

It is… overwhelming to say the least. She hadn't had much time to process anything, let alone deal with what had happened. Not to Yuki, IA, or Miki, but what had happened to… her.

Miku gulps, pressing her palm flat against her chest as if waiting for something to rise out of her throat and choke her utterly. Warm tears roll down her face. She is so sick of crying. Because it's all she can do. Rin had saved her from… whatever it was inside of her but what if she wasn't there? What if Rin isn't there if it happens again? Miku shudders, pulling her jacket tighter around her shoulders.

The weather had begun to get colder the farther North they traveled. Right now they are all camped out in some "Luxury Cabin" instead of their RV Rin and Gumi stole together.

Miku looks back up at the sky, her only indication that the sun has begun setting is the tiny pink tint peeking out from behind the gaps in the storm clouds. Miku stands, zipping up her grey hoodie and pulling her scarf closer around her face. They haven't had much time to do anything about clothes, so Miku is still in her filthy mini-skirt and tank-top, but after mentioning something about it to Gumi, the green haired girl had showed up the next morning with a brand new grey hoodie, the kind without strings or pockets. Miku loves it.

Gumi is nice, Miku guesses, walking back up the trail to the cabin off in the distance. She seems to really be trying, although Miku can never get a read on her emotions. Miku is pretty good at picking up on the emotions of other people, but can't on Gumi. It's all just so… blank.

Miku shivers a little, staring down at the goose bumps on her legs. She walks on, slowly uphill. For just a moment, out of the corner of her eye, Miku thinks she sees something blue. But then it disappears, and with a dry, shuddering, sigh she walks on.

Miku has to admit, as bizarre as Gumi is, she's incredibly useful. Within the first day or two after everything that happened, with everyone still in a depressing and festering daze, Gumi had found this place. Within two hours she had hacked the computer system that this luxury-private camping resort runs on, picked the largest and most stocked cabin, rented it under the owner's credit cards and ID's, lied flawlessly to the manager, saying her parents owned a cabin and for her birthday they booked a vacation for her and her friends, and caught the alert email going to the owners saying that their daughter had checked in before it was sent. Her computer skills are incredible, and to be frank, dumfound Miku.

The cabin comes into view. It would be almost a lie to call the place a cabin, or camping grounds, because it runs like a resort where each person owns their own "cabin". The cabins are built like small condos, with working appliances run on solar power only, heated water, two bathrooms, three bedrooms, one master bedroom, TV, wi-fi, a fully stocked kitchen, hardwood and carpet floors, all complete with a fireplace, patio, and indoor spa. It must cost millions of dollars, Miku thinks to herself as she approaches their cabin on the very outskirts of the resort. Whatever millionaire owns the place, Miku is eternally grateful to.

The group's cabin is very large, to Miku's scale, but yet is one of the smallest ones on the property. The walls are made out of the classical massive tree-trunk looking wood boards, but the majority of the surface area is made out of a durable glass. You may ask how Miku knows it's durable. Well, that's because the first thing Gumi did when they got to the cabin, was pace the entire perimeter, bashing her crowbar against each window. Very hard, if Miku may add. The patio stems off of the sliding glass door, which leads right into the kitchen, where everyone expects Miku to be right now. As she approaches she jogs a little faster, her legs still weak from her time spent in confinement.

She is looking healthier now, not as pale anymore, and not as bony, but after the past week, her eyes have reverted back to looking sunken and a little dull, her voice sounds a little hollow to herself, but no one else seems to have noticed.

Miku gently pulls off her shoes and lies them beside the other's on the patio. Rin's black combat boots lie in a corner, one fallen off the patio and one still on, tipped over from where she kicked it. Len's are beside hers, standing up next to each other, but still crooked. Gumi's are little grey ankle-length boots with two buckles on each side, the right shoe, however, is entirely different than the left. It is a bright red sneaker with filthy white laces, worn to a dark brown and grey. Oliver's shoes are lying down on top of each other. They are two grey sneakers, one with a tiny splatter of blood on the toe. Miku bends and wipes it off after setting her own black, slip on sneakers beside his. She turns and hurries inside the cabin.

The kitchen is relatively small, but it functions nicely. Miku slips in quietly, locking the door behind her like she was taught. On the counter rests a blue, square shaped tea pot on a wooden tray with six cups. Miku takes the sixth cup off the tray, setting it on the counter beside the sink carefully. Rin and Len's shouts travel into the kitchen. Miku takes the pot off of the stove as it hisses. She had made sure to set it there before she left, so it would be warm by the time she came back. Miku picks up the pot with her bare hands and scalds her delicate skin. She jumps back, cramming her fingers in her mouth.

She is confused. Miku knows it needs to be warm in order for her to make tea, but this isn't warm. It burns. How did it even get so warm? Was the stove top magic? How does she turn it off? Why is the pot hot? If it's this hot how is she going to get it off the stove? If she can't get it off and it just sits there, will it light on fire? When does she know to pull the tea bag out? What if she spills the tray and it burns again, and then she falls on the glass and the cups break?!

Miku stands a little petrified, about to yell for Len. But no, that will worry Len…

I can't worry Len… Miku thinks to herself. Now with renewed determination Miku moves back over to the stove. She inhales deeply, gripping the burning hot pot and pulling it off the stove. She hurriedly sets it on the tray and pulls her hands away fast, staring at her burning skin with tears forming in her eyes.

No, I can't cry. It'll upset Len… Miku sniffles. She opens the pantry and searches for a caffeine free tea. Her red eyes land on a tea bag with a blend of black teas with the label, HIGH CAFFEINE. Miku gulps. She picks up that bag and then a bag of plain green tea. She puts the green tea bag in the pot after filling her cup with warm water and putting the caffeinated bag in.

"So… caffeine huh? I didn't take your for a caffeine person." A voice says from behind Miku. She gasps, spinning around, embarrassed. Gumi stands, leaning against the counter behind her, hands folded over her chest. She is wearing a see through white tank top over a grey exercise bra. She has on grey and baggy, knee length pajama pants with a string on the front. Her feet are bare and her crowbar is lying on the counter behind her. She's been there for a while.

"S-sorry…"

"'Bout what?" Gumi asks, blowing some hair out of her face.

"… just… because I…" Miku sputters quietly, playing with the rapidly healing scabs on her palms from the tea pot.

"Because you left?" Gumi responds for her, raising an eye brow. Miku gasps, turning away her head so her eyes are hidden. She nods as her shoulders sink and she pulls her scarf over her mouth. "You've been crying too. And I watched you burn your hands. You're making caffeinated tea because you haven't been sleeping since IA and Miki were taken and Yuki died." The way Gumi says everything so bluntly sends shivers down Miku's spine and makes her feel as if she's going to burst out crying again. Her shoulders begin to quake as she holds her breath so she doesn't cry.

"How'd you know?" Miku asks so softly that anyone else wouldn't have heard.

"Miku, I see everything. I may not have your 'demon glare', but nothing goes unnoticed to me." Gumi says, her voice taking a soft turn as she moves slowly over to Miku. "You don't want to worry anyone, so you haven't been saying anything, and you've been trying to handle things on your own. Miku, you're crumbling. You're trying so hard not to, I can see that, but you are anyways, there are some things that you can't escape, some things just have to be dealt with." Gumi takes Miku's hands off of her eyes and holds them in hers. Even though Gumi is almost a foot shorter Miku finds herself walking into her arms and leaning her head on Gumi's shoulder. "You don't think you're strong enough or brave enough, but you are. And this is proof of it. Just the fact that you've been trying this hard to be independent and not worry anyone is amazing, Miku. You're so brave, you just need someone to tell you that." Gumi says as she begins to feel her shoulder get wet.

"I-I-I'm n-not… I c-couldn't do anything…" Miku sobs quietly with shuddering breaths.

"You did do something, you held out. That's amazing, Miku. You were amazing, and you still are. So please stop crying." Gumi holds her a little tighter. "Uh, seriously stop crying you're making me uncomfortable." Gumi shies out of Miku's grasp, picking up her crowbar and leaving the kitchen back into the living room where Len and Rin are still shouting furiously in some sort of heated argument.

Miku wipes the last of her tears away and stands slowly, picking up her tea tray and carrying it out into the living room. On the coffee table is a massive map with large red and black pen marks everywhere on it. Rin hovers close to Len, shouting in his face.

"No, we were here in February!" She shouts loudly.

"No, we were here!" Len yells back, an exasperated look on his face as he presses his thumb into his temple and mutters something Miku can't hear. Rin looks even angrier.

"Oh really? Why don't you say that so everyone can hear?"

"I said you were being annoying, Rin, and that you needed to go calm down." Len repeats louder. Gumi holds her breath to stop from snickering. She's sitting on the couch's arm and Oliver is sprawled out, face down, seemingly asleep on the same couch.

"Fine! Be an asshole is you want…" Rin mutters bitterly, standing up and storming out of the room. The sun had already set and the moon was becoming bright in the sky. Miku sets her tray down on the coffee table where Len still sits, wrapped in thought. She hands him a cup and moves to sit where Rin was, beside him.

"What are you talking about?" Miku asks gently.

Len sighs dryly. "Me and Rin were trying to pin point the locations of the 'facilities' where… where IA and Miki could be." At the mention of their names Len cringes, his shoulders sagging.

Miku wants to comfort Len, but isn't sure how. She puts on a brave face and moves a little closer. He looks at her out of the corner of his eye and notices the dark circles under Miku's.

"Are you okay?" He asks her, sitting up and moving away from "map mode".

Miku thinks for a moment before answering. She doesn't want to concern Len, but doesn't want to bottle up like Gumi warned her. Afraid, her voice croaks out the opposite thing she wanted to say.

"N-no…" For a moment Len notices the fear in her eyes. Then an image of the Miku Len pulled out of that terrible cell flashes through his mind, and guilt pulls at his heart. His eyes soften and he lifts his arms, pulling Miku into him. Her head lands clumsily on his shoulder.

The sweet smell of honey suckle and cinnamon floods Miku and without warning she bursts into tears, gripping Len as tight as she can. Oliver moves his head up from the couch cushion and sighs, lying back down moments later.

"Aw come on, don't be so mopey. It's sweet." Gumi says to Oliver, smiling a little. Her expression changes and she sticks out her tongue distastefully. "Okay, a little sickly sweet, but sweet none the less."

Oliver mumbles in response and turns over, his head facing the back of the couch.

"I-I couldn't help you… I couldn't help anyone. Gumi… Gumi said I was brave but… I'm not." Miku cries helplessly into Len's shoulder like a child.

"No, Miku, you're so brave. You're so, so, brave. You're the bravest person I've ever met in my life! You've survived and been through so much… you're braver than me." Len comforts her.

"Really?" Miku asks.

"Yes."

"Braver… than Len?" Miku says out loud, her sobs finally subsiding.

"Yes. Braver than me." What no one in the room could see was the tears that started to form in Len's eyes. He hid them behind his brave face, and buried himself in Miku. She is the brave one.

~ ~ ~X~ ~ ~X~ ~ ~

Luka sighs, splashing water on her face. In the bathroom mirror, through the thick layer of fog, even her face didn't look so bad. It looked terrifying.

"Luka?" A voice calls from the other side of the door. "Are you still in there?"

"Yes."

The voice is quiet. "Okay."

Luka turns off the water of the sink and steps out of the bathroom. She wasn't even doing anything anyways, just sitting in the steam made her feel a little better. No, not better, it made her feel numb.

She moves out of the bathroom and past Gakupo into the kitchen. Don't get the wrong idea here, this wasn't a relationship. The knight after everything that had happened with Kaito, no one really wanted to be alone. That's the only reason Luka let Gakupo into her apartment. She hadn't really wanted to be alone either. Her fingers play with a now lit cigarette and she relaxes into her couch, sighing.

Luka has work in three hours.

Three hours.

Three hours…

She stands, grabbing her purse off of the kitchen counter and placing her cigarette in between her teeth.

"Where are you going?" Gakupo asks a little worried as he watches Luka throw on her jacket.

"I'm going to work." Luka says smirking, closing her door behind her.