AN: Bit the bullet and ordered a limited edition Trails to Azure!

Abandon (Kurt)

Some dreams die harder than others. Kurt speaks from experience.

He'd slipped into the training hall, steeling himself as he lofted one of the practice greatswords aloft and began a sequence he'd seen all too often, determined to silence his doubts once and for all.

His footwork, normally so sharp with his dual blades, faltered again and again as his leg muscles burned to ashes. His strikes proved to be no better, clumsy and overcompensated as they were.

Kurt had fallen to his knees, his hope vanishing like smoke. He'd been able to see, yes, but not touch.

Never touch.

Song (Valerie, Pablo, Gustaf)

Unsurprisingly, rock music isn't to everyone's taste. She can't exactly blame them, even if it does kinda tick her off. It's loud, aggressive, in your face; qualities that make it all too easy to dismissively label as 'noise' and throw away.

Their loss. She couldn't get enough of it, and it wasn't just because of her upbringing. Rock was what people were afraid to reveal to the world, what lay seething underneath the surface. It was raging souls roaring to the heavens so that even the Goddess could hear.

Pablo grins. Gustaf nods.

Valerie opens her mouth. Her soul roars.

Yes (Tita, Professor Russell)

Tita remembered her grandfather calling for her one day, a pile of parts in front of him and a mischievous look on his face as he asked her for 'help'.

"I can't seem to figure out how this goes together," he'd said, theatrical defeat lacing every word, "but maybe with some younger eyes…"

Quickly she'd gone to work, her hands carefully sifting through the mess of pieces and her eyes taking note of what went where, what did what –

"So?" Grandfather asked, eagerly observing. "Do you think you can fix it?"

She'd never forget the proud smile on his face.

Everything (Nu Class VII, dialogue only)

"… I fail to see why this is labelled 'everything'. There are clearly a number of toppings missing on the list."

"U-Uh, it's not really meant to be literal, Allie. Usually 'everything' just means a lot of stuff on a pizza."

"I disapprove."

"You and me both. Who the hell thought half this crap even goes well together?"

"Oh, hush. Surely there's nothing wrong with a little bit of this and a little bit of that~?"

"I'm inclined to agree with Ash. This combination looks like it wouldn't be at all appetizing."

"Oh, for – could you guys just pick something?!"

Is it supposed to make THAT much noise (Gaius, Laura, prequel to The Better Part of Valor)

"Surely this is normal…?"

"As much as I wish that I could agree with you, I unfortunately can't," Gaius answered, raising his voice to be heard above the racket that was coming from the direction of the oven.

An oven that sounded, quite frankly, like it was borderline offended at being used to bake whatever was inside it.

"Well," Laura said after a moment, somehow managing to keep her wits about her when a loud boom echoed, "at least we won't have to endure for much longer. The cookies should be almost done, correct?"

"I believe – "

BOOM

"… so."