Happy Holidays! As usual my gift to all of you is a bonus chapter. This one was a bit of a pain as trying to do all this extra writing was made complicated by me giving myself a new PC as a gift last week. But I persevered! I hope you enjoy!

Bleary eyes were slow to adjust to the morning light as Rean slowly roused himself to consciousness. The swordsman felt far more tired than he had any right to after such a rest and that made everything that followed a lot harder than it should have been. With a groan he sat himself up while taking in his surroundings, even as one hand began to stroke the silver hair resting peacefully next to him.

He was in his room at Thors. Although that should have been surprising it really wasn't. Something about this place put him at ease, as if normalcy had finally returned to his life.

He grimaced as he noticed the clock in the room informing the swordsman that it was almost noon. Maybe things weren't completely normal. He could vaguely recall being caught in a terrible nightmare which could perhaps explain why he had overslept so much.

It didn't explain why Fie was still sleeping in the bed, not that she usually needed much of a reason.

Rolling his eyes in amusement Rean reached down, fully prepared to wake the sleeping girl-

'Relentlessly, without looking back... As long as you do... I'm sure...'

'I'm glad to finally see you again, my son. You've grown into a fine young man.'

It was as if the floodgates in his brain had finally opened and memories flooded to the front of his mind. Their flight from the Infernal Castle. Elise fussing over him aboard the Courageous. Laying in this very same bed for hours before eventually drifting off.

He felt a wave of nausea that had nothing to do with his empty stomach.

That... hadn't been a nightmare, had it?

"Sorry. I wish it was."

He blinked as he glanced down at the now awake Fie. Had he said those last thoughts aloud? "S-Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you..."

She didn't respond verbally, instead moving to wrap her arms around his body in a hug. Rean grimaced as he realized he was still fully dressed from the day before, but that didn't seem to deter Fie any as she buried her head into his chest.

He wanted to say something – anything really – to reassure the girl, but no words came to mind. How could they when he was too busy reliving the events of the previous day in his head?

After everything that had happened his brain had all but shut down during their retreat, but now that he had time to rest and recover his head was working to make up for that last time. All the events. All the revelations. Everything repeated itself in vivid detail, leading the adopted Schwarzer to come up with some very uncomfortable questions that he was afraid to think about.

He had no idea how much time passed like that, with him being caught in his mind while Fie continued to wordlessly support him with her presence. It could have been a few seconds. It could have been an hour. All he knew was that the silence was starting to become stifling, but he couldn't find any words to say to break the stalemate.

Thus the knocking at his door proved to be a welcome distraction. "Rean? Are you awake?"

"Come in!" It was a relief that the person on the other side of the door was the only one he was willing to let see them in such a position..

As the door opened Fie took a sniff of the air before perking up, "You brought grub?"

Fie's senses served her well as indeed when Laura entered the room she did so with a large platter in her hands, "Indeed. Breakfast is served. I had a feeling I would find you in here too, so I made sure there is plenty for everyone."

"Nice. I'm starving." Fie watched with excited intensity as Laura set the plate on the nearby table before her eyes widened in surprise as she gazed upon the contents of the dish, "That's... an Imperial Breakfast, right?" What Sharon used to make for us?"

"It is. She had been teaching me how to prepare one. Without her here to assist me it proved rather... difficult, but I succeeded in the end."

The former jaeger let out a small giggle, "...Must have taken you many tries if you're serving us breakfast at lunch time."

"R-Regardless...!" The blue-haired woman glanced away in a feeble attempt to hide her blush, "Breakfast is served. Please, help yourself."

Fie wasted little time in grabbing a fork before digging into the nearest dish. A part of Rean wanted to do the same. Everything on the platter looked really good and it was clear to him that Laura had put forth a lot of effort into making it.

There was just one problem, however, "I'm happy you made all this for me, but I'm not sure I have much of an appetite at the-"

"Rean Schwarzer." Although the tone of her voice never changed, Laura's use of his full name caused him to stiffen. There was something about the kind smile she was fixing him with that promised unholy pain. "...You haven't eaten a single thing in over a day. After all the fighting we just went through I know for a fact you must be famished. So I insist you eat up."

"But-"

"Eat. The. Damn. Food."

The first piece of toast was in his mouth before she finished speaking. Nothing he was currently feeling could possibly compare to the wrath of an angry Laura.

Beside him Fie began snickering, "You are so whipped. Not that I can blame you. Angry Laura is kinda hot-"

"Fie?" Rean was grateful for that distraction as Laura turned her baleful gaze upon the girl sitting next to him.

"Yeah?"

"Shut. Up."

The lithe gremlin's attempts at disguising her snickering with over-exaggerated eating noises were only mildly successful.

For his part, even if Rean had originally been hesitant to eat, the act of eating finally allowed him to realize just how hungry he actually was. Before he knew it the toast was gone and he was grabbing at the assorted meats and fruits in front of him. His actions earned a smile of approval from the chef before she also began eating at the food – albeit far more sedately.

"Gotta admit. This is pretty good." The frown on Fie's face made it plain that she wasn't particularly happy about that admission even as she kept working to empty the plate.

"Well perhaps if you actually practiced at it instead of sleeping in all morning like a lazy cat you too could become a better cook."

Fie glanced towards him before turning back to Laura and giving a lazy shrug, "Nah. You can spend all morning destroying the kitchen if you want. I'm good here."

"Honestly... You're impossible."

Despite everything that had happened the back and forth between the two did wonders at bringing up Rean's spirits. Not even the Infernal Castle could stop their constant desire to one-up each other. They were true rivals in everything, and it was that normalcy that made him think that maybe things could somewhat return to normal in some ways...

The room fell into silence as the three of them paid respect to Laura's hard work by devouring all the food available. Although the blue-haired girl had said there was plenty for everyone, given Rean's insatiable hunger that claim proved to be a lie. Within minutes the entire platter was devoid of contents, with him managing to steal the very last piece of meat right off of Fie's fork, causing the girl to glare petulantly at him.

"Um..." But before the former jaeger could stab him with that fork they were interrupted by an uncharacteristically meek Laura, "While I was downstairs working on this I talked with a few of our friends. They were all very worried about you."

"Oh..." Rean felt guilty. Had he truly been so caught up in everything that had happened to worry his friends like that?

Laura must have noticed his uncomfortable expression as she took his hand and gave a reassuring squeeze, "Don't feel bad. They all understand you needed some space after everything that had happened. I..." She hesitated briefly, "...I told them that you would probably go down to see them after you've had a little time to reflect upon everything. I'm sorry to have told them that without consulting with you first, but-"

"It's fine. You said the right thing. I don't want them to worry about me..." He grimaced before letting out a tired sigh, "...But I definitely have a lot on my mind right now."

"Wanna talk about it?"

"Fie! You shouldn't press the issue like that!"

The younger of the two shrugged, "Why not? We all know that talking to someone is the best way to get something off your chest, right?"

"Well, yes..." Laura conceded, "...But it's best done on his own terms!"

"It's fine." He finally chimed in, "But uh... Mind if I get changed and showered first? I really want to get out of these nasty clothes. And you need to get dressed too." At least Fie had the decency to put on shorts and a clean shirt before sneaking into his bed.

On a related note, this was the first time he realized that Laura was wearing their Class VII uniform. Despite being the first time in that attire in two months the look was so natural that it hadn't processed in his mind until that moment.

"I'm fine like this." The silver-haired girl muttered as she laid back down upon his bed.

"You need to go to your room." Laura insisted, "Or do you plan on going outside looking like that?"

"I'll just borrow some of Rean's spares."

Fie wearing his clothes? For some reason the idea held a lot of appeal to him to the point where he opened his mouth to agree to her suggestion-

Except Laura had other ideas as the powerful girl strode across the room with a flat expression before scooping up the other girl in a single fluid motion, "H-Hey!?" Fie protested in surprise as she found herself hoisted upon Laura's shoulder.

""We'll be back in a few minutes, Rean." The kind smile on the Arseid's face was in contrast to the flailing legs of the trapped girl.

"If you wanna carry me do it right! Not like this! Let me down!" He watched silently as the two girls exited his room with Fie's frantic cries carrying down the hallway and up the stairs. He found himself chuckling. They really knew how to fix his mood.

That good mood lasted until he left his room while headed to the shower, as directly across from his door was...

He forced down the bile in his throat before continuing onward.

After a quick – but very needed shower Rean found himself looking upon his reflection in a mirror. Wearing the Class VII uniform again felt good, but at the same time he couldn't help but feel that something was off with the ensemble. Everything was in place, but something was missing.

Although perhaps that was less the uniform and more the class as a whole that had lost something important?

With a tired groan the swordsman shook off those morbid thoughts. That was for later. For now he didn't want to keep Laura and Fie waiting for him.

Come to find out he needn't have worried, as the two girls were nowhere to be seen when he got back to his room. He didn't expect them to take long, however, so he contented himself by doing a more thorough exploration of his bedroom now that he was back for good. Surely by the time he finished his girls would be arriving.

...Or at least that had been his mindset before waiting around for half an hour.

With boredom growing he decided to do something that he really did not want to do at all – He left his room and entered the one opposite his. The one that used to belong to Crow.

He had visited the room only two days prior, but it felt like a lifetime ago. And even though everything was the same as it had been back then, there was no doubt in his mind that everything was completely different.

Back then he saw the empty room as something he needed to fight to restore to its original state. Now he struggled to accept that this was the way it would remain for all the days to come.

"At least he proved he was one of us in the end."

He had been so focused on Crow's room that he failed to notice the arrival of the girls behind him. Spinning around he gave a curious look to the now-dressed owned of those words, "Fie?"

"I was afraid the Crow we knew might have been completely gone." Fie admitted with a heavy frown, "I knew lots of people back in the corps that started off bright and cheerful, but once they got a taste of the cruelties of the world..." She shook her head, "They became like rabid dogs who lived only for the violence they inflicted upon others. I... I was worried that Crow would end up like that too."

The ex-jaeger was quick to wipe her eyes before looking back at him with a small smile, "...But you brought him back. Nothing will ever make up for what he did, but at the end he was Crow of Class VII and not C the terrorist leader. I wish he didn't die, obviously, but at least now we know that he was always our friend."

"He might have been responsible for a lot of the chaos that gripped this country, but he died protecting this country and the ones he loved from an unspeakable horror. In the end I believe that was truly worthy of praise." Laura finished, earning a nod from Fie.

"You're right." He agreed at last, "Nothing will ever bring him back, but at least he went out with a smile on his face. I just wish..." He shook his head before dropping that train of thought. Crow's life had meaning, even if his ultimate goal had gone unfulfilled, "...Thanks. I feel a little better now."

He let out a wry chuckle, "I can just imagine how much grief he would give me for moping around over his death."

"That does sound like him, alright." The taller girl agreed.

The black-haired swordsman allowed himself to be led away from the vacant bedroom back to his own room, "Should I ask why you two took so long?"

"We had a quickie in the shower." Fie answered proudly.

"We did not!" Came the very loud and immediate retort.

He couldn't stop himself from laughing at Laura's expense, much to her chagrin. This was classic Fie. One minute she could say something wise beyond her years, and the next she could be telling a joke to lighten the mood.

...Although given the prominent flush on Laura's face maybe Fie's words hadn't been entirely in jest? Now that was a thought worth thinking about-

"Ahem." Laura cleared her throat loudly before shooting him a pointed look. Beside her Fie merely grinned, clearly finding the whole situation amusing... M-Maybe he should be more careful with his thoughts in the future since it was increasingly clear they were getting good at reading his mind? "Now that that's out of the way I take it you have something to tell us?"

Clearly Laura was at her wits end if she was completely foregoing tact like this.

Her demand was something he knew was coming and had done his best to prepare for, but still managed to cause a lump to form in his throat. Doing his best to rid himself of it Rean prepared for the most difficult part... the beginning. "I-I suppose I don't need to talk more about Crow." The past few minutes had done a decent enough job at broaching that subject. Plus it was a grief he knew they all shared as well.

Instead he went with something equally as painful to think about, "...Did anything we do have any purpose?" He asked at last, "Everything that's happened in these last few months... He somehow knew it all. From the very minute we left Trista we were all pawns in my father's hands. Maybe even before!"

Had Osborne somehow known about Valimar and how Rean would end up as the Awakener? It seemed impossible, but for some reason Rean suspected otherwise.

He noticed the looks of surprise upon the faces of the two girls and knew exactly what they were thinking. He had called the chancellor his father, "Yes. Somehow I know he wasn't lying when he said that. It's like... something in my heart is telling me it's true." He was being honest, too. Even thinking about Osborne like this caused the scar on his chest to throb. "I know he was the one who left me in the snow outside of Ymir for..."

Rean hesitated briefly. What was next on his mind might have been of much less importance in the grand scheme of things, but it was a betrayal that stung most deeply, "...My parents knew about it, didn't they? Father – the one in Ymir – would always tell me that he would explain my true parentage when I was ready... Clearly he never thought I was." Rean couldn't help but spit out that last sentence with more venom than he thought himself capable of.

"It's... It's all too much. How am I supposed to deal with everything that happened? How am I supposed to sit here and watch as that man makes a mockery of Crow's sacrifice? How am I supposed to watch as he leads us into a war against Crossbell?"

After his rant he found himself panting. That had been more tiring than he had expected. He glanced between the two girls wondering if either of them had any sorely needed answers. Laura appeared contemplative, while Fie... "Feeling any better?"

"Huh?"

"Letting it all out like that." The girl explained like it was obvious, "People always say that getting everything off your chest will make you feel better."

Did it, though? Rean wasn't so sure about that. It still felt like he was stranded in the ocean with no hope of rescue in sight. That being said, Fie wasn't entirely wrong. While he still felt trapped in the water at least it didn't feel like he was about to drown under the weight of his burdens anymore. "I guess I feel a little lighter, maybe?"

"Most of your questions are impossible to answer, as much as it pains me to admit it." Laura chimed in at last, "In fact I have found myself wondering a lot of the same things ever since yesterday..."

Rean closed his eyes. He hadn't expected any answers from them, but it was still disappointing.

"...However, there's something I wish to show you. I believe it might help." She continued, much to his surprise. Rean glanced at Fie, garnering an equally confused shrug from the other girl, "Do you feel ready to head downstairs?"

That... was an unexpected question. Was he ready to see the others right now? He honestly wasn't sure himself.

That was until Laura took one of his hands in both of hers before giving a reassuring squeeze. Somehow that simple gesture buoyed his confidence enough to nod his head in assent. That being said, it also left him feeling a little bad about everything, "...Sorry. You two probably have better things you could be doing than being stuck up here with me like this."

"Eh. Don't worry about it. You helped us with our problems so it's only right we help you with yours." Fie narrowed her eyes dangerously at him, "Although you're kinda stretching it a bit. Had I known that you were gonna be such a hot mess I probably would have just stayed away from you and seduced Laura instead."

Rean couldn't help but laugh a little at her good-natured teasing, "Haha... Sorry about that. I wanna say that I'll get better soon, but..." Osborne's final words rang in his mind once again, "...Let's just say I would be so much worse off were it not for the two of you. I promise to do everything I can to make myself worthy of your support."

Laura opened her mouth, probably to tell him he didn't owe them anything, but he cut her off with a cheerful clap, "Now then. Shall we go say hi to the others?"

With Fie and Laura trailing behind him he left his room before descending the stairs. He wasn't sure what was about to happen or what Laura wanted him to see, but he was ready to accept it all the same. Reaching the bottom he looked across the room and-

"Rean!"

"There you are!"

"Good morning, sleeping beauty!"

The Ymir native could only blink in shock as he was swarmed almost immediately upon his arrival. He knew the others were concerned for him, but even still...

He allowed a genuine smile to adorn his face, "Hey, everyone. Sorry for worrying you all..."

"That's irrelevant now. How are you feeling, my friend?"

"I'm fine, Jusis."

Alisa however appeared unconvinced, "Are you sure? After everything that's happened...?"

"I'm sure." He reassured her, "There's a lot on my mind, of course, and I can't recall the last time I've ever felt so worn out, but how is that any different from the rest of you?"

Gaius let out a short laugh, "He has a point there."

"Bold words from the guy who was up before anyone else." Machias countered, "Did you wake up at dawn like always?"

"What can I say? Old habits die hard, I guess." Despite himself the Nord looked uncharacteristically miffed, "...Although in this case I wish those habits could die a little easier. It feels like my body has been carved out of rock. I think Rean had the right idea sleeping in like this."

Elliot approached Rean with a smile, "I'm so relieved that you're alright! So, um... I was actually thinking about putting on a little concert for the people of Trista in a few days and was hoping that you would be willing to play with me?"

"That sounds great. Just let me know, when, alright? I'll try not to let you down."

"I know you won't!"

The swordsman found his attention drawn to a surprisingly pensive looking Millium. Upon realizing that his gaze was upon her she stood upright, "Um... I'm really sorry, Rean. About everything that's happened, I mean."

He couldn't stop himself from smiling down at her, even as he reached over to rub her hair affectionately, "You have nothing to apologize for. None of that was your fault. I never even considered blaming you for anything."

"Hehe! Thanks, Rean!"

"Told you." Fie commented from behind him. The silver-haired girl looked annoyed as she approached the group, "Feeling kinda jealous of Rean here. Anyone gonna say good morning to me?"

"Not at all."

"Aren't you always sleeping in?"

"Haha... I didn't even realize you weren't down here until now."

The only thing preventing Rean from laughing at the flat unimpressed look on Fie's face was the certainty of dire consequences had he done so, "Wow..." The lithe girl drawled, "You guys actually suck."

"I missed you!" Millium cried excitedly, "Your advice on how to sneak into Jusis' bed was really helpful!"

"Honestly, you two..."

"Actually, I've decided to change my opinion." Machias interjected after his rival's complaint, "Hearing Albarea scream like a little girl this morning... It's a memory that will live with me until my dying day." He let out a wistful sigh, "I don't always agree with your attitude, Fie, but that definitely makes up for all of it."

That comment naturally served to earn the ire of Jusis and the two rivals looked ready to butt heads once again. Before that could happen however, Rean found himself with a question to ask, "Since we're on the topic of tormenting Fie-" Yeah. He definitely earned the sharp poke to the ribs with that comment, "...where is instructor Sara?"

There was no way that teacher would miss the chance to pester the girl she had all but adopted.

There was a momentary quiet as a few of his classmates glanced at each other in confusion, "Wouldn't she's still be upstairs?" Alisa answered unsurely.

"I think we all just assumed she would be remaining in her room today nursing a hangover..." That that comment came from kindly Emma of all people and nobody bothered to comment on it truly spoke to how they all perceived their instructor.

"Actually..." Surprisingly Gaius seemed to know otherwise, "Instructor Sara woke up not long after I did. She told me before leaving that she would be back later once she figured out what was going on."

"Really?"

"And you didn't think to inform us of this?"

The spearman shook his head, "While important, I felt like we all had larger concerns to worry over this morning."

In other words: Rean himself. The swordsman let out a sheepish laugh, "Thanks, guys. Still, I am curious what she'll find out..."

It bothered him a little that he had been so caught up in everything that he hadn't even considered what was going on at the moment. Os- His father's machinations must be in full swing at the moment and there would probably be a lot of confusion around Erebonia. Hopefully Instructor Sara would be able to give them a decent picture of it.

"I think we all are." Elliot pointed out, "Probably why we've all been hanging around in the dorms all day..."

"It is getting rather late in the afternoon..." Emma frowned thoughtfully, "Perhaps we should take a break for lunch?"

A few of their classmates nodded their head in agreement, and Rean was sure he heard the sound of someone stomach growling, "I miss Sharon..." Millium whined.

Alisa stiffened as multiple pairs of eyes focused on her, the question obvious, "Sharon told me that she was going to come back in a few days, but for now she was going to help Mother straighten out the company now that the war is ending."

Her answer elicited a few miserable groans, but to Rean it presented an idea, "I kinda feel like cooking something. Why don't I make us all some lunch?"

It was the right thing to say as an excited murmur spread through Class VII, "That's a great idea!"

"I'll help!"

"Tell me what you need and I'll go buy them for you."

Nodding happily at his friends Rean moved towards the kitchen, but he sound found he wasn't going there alone. Walking beside him Laura whispered quietly enough that only he could hear over the din of excited chatter from their friends, "That was what I wanted to show you." At his curious look she elaborated, "I cannot say for certain whether our actions as a class had any affect on the war or not..."

She paused, causing him to follow suit. As she turned towards him Rean saw an intense fire in her eyes, "...But never say that our actions were meaningless. Even if Erebonia as a whole was unaffected, what we did this past month meant the world to the people in this building and our other friends. And you were the one to bring us all together, Rean."

"Even if the chancellor has been manipulating you this entire time, that doesn't change the fact that everyone here loves you, and that is entirely because of your actions and words. No matter what happens, that will never change. And I think that is more important than whatever machinations the chancellor has concocted."

Rean blinked in shock. Her words struck him deeply. Laura, Fie, Elliot, Gaius, Alisa, Emma, Machias, Jusis, Millium, Instructor Sara, Towa, Angelica, George... Even if he had lost Crow and even if the future was suddenly looking quite murky...

He had still gained so much since arriving at Thors.

"Thank you," Rean admitted with a warm smile, "for showing me just how silly I was being. It'll take some time, but I'll be alright. I promise."

Without waiting for a response from the blue-haired girl he began moving again and walked into the kitchen...

And froze.

Mechanically his gaze turned from the apocalyptic scene of messes, dirty dishes, and many failed creations to the now very sheepish looking girl, "I-I did mention it took me a few attempts to create breakfast!" She defended weakly.

Rean sighed loudly, but he also smiled to himself. Right now the idea of fighting a messy kitchen didn't seem so bad, because once again he was fighting for Class VII. He was fighting for his family.

It was a cause he was glad to fight for.