Muv-Luv Reversal (Neo New Sawatari Version)

by Zuoriel

A small ripple grows to a wave, washed ashore of Yokohama Base once more. Returning from Extra, Takeru sets out to endure another loop to protect his home and dear ones from causality's whims. Yet soon he'll see things are not the same, receiving no warm welcome from his comrades. Without knowing who is on his side, Takeru must navigate a chaotic tide against the odds. And himself.

21. Rereading Yet Blank Pages

Chapter 20:

Rereading Yet Blank Pages

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In previous chapters: The cadets have escaped their chasers in the CCSE, although not without its cost. Takeru remains unconscious after suffering through multiple and vicious fights, receiving many injuries. Only time will tell the severity of the scars the encounter left in the girls, nevertheless they keep on marching to their goal, minds alert and heavy. Other heavy minds also remain with an extra eye set on the island at the distance, awaiting for the resolution of the test and what after it should come.

One mind, however, simply waits and observes the ripples already spreading, expecting snake-eyes to roll again.

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Warning:

this chapter be long

its over 30k words nothing dark in it, its just a super long chapter that you probably won't finish in a single sitting unless you speed read this at mach 4.

sorry for the behemot but I regret nothing this chap was really fun to tackle and stitch together despite the edit pains of some scenes

have fun down there I'm going to sleep

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[Recommended Music: A Moment of Weakness, album by TPR.]

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Circa August, 1986. Reversal Timeline.

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Sunshine blooms and showers gently onto the quiet and modest town, opening a lush, homely undertone in the streets swaying from shade to light as spices waft through the air along steam from the windows, the fluttery curtains.

Under the sun there was only a sliver of distant echoes, mothers taking their children somewhere, busy mailmen cycling on the dirt roads, the usual rowdy clerks dusting off the shelves and shutters, even a few scar-dressed solitaires watching other, distant clouds as thickets of smoke they exhale in longing.

All seem equally large to the little eyes, all equally complicated and erroneous.

There is nothing but fun under the sun, kids chasing a ball amidst a small little park while their mothers platicate nearby. Pleasant talks along the breeze end when the children start bickering as they can't take the ball off one of them, the messy chestnut brown threads avoiding the rest in rushing escape to the point the others have to tackle and grapple at the blue shirt.

The moms have to attempt parley and share candies to stop the whacking shared from each side, squeaks and scuttles resulting from hair or cheeks pulled in scolding.

"Takeru, what do you have to say?" Shirogane Miho says, glaring at the little one hiding his eyes under his overgrown fringe in her same color.

"…I'm sorry," he says, cheeks puffed.

"Shigeo, what of you?" says one of the other moms, pushing her son's back slightly.

"Sorry for pulling your hair… Takeshi."

Boiling anger almost spills over as the wrong name is echoed by the pranking children, appeased by small pats to the head, like a refreshing cold shower. Miho apologies to the other moms, who return the pleasantry while the little ones stick tongues or make faces from behind their backs, earning more cold glares in scolding. Still, the tiny hands wave away when leaving the park, going to other roads in the small town. Unlike the calm shine above and around with only distant radio or some cicadas chirping about, little Takeru remains groaning and with lips pursed. Miho laughs and pokes at his rebelling hair, making the little one complain at the teasing, earning only more quiet laughter.

"Come now, you don't need to be so angry," she appeases, trying to massage the rebel hair.

"…But my name is Takeru. Who is Takeshi?" he keeps complaining, par for the course.

"They're just poking fun at you, you silly. I told you, your name's kanji has two readings."

"But my name is Takeru… They're all so dumb."

"Even if they tease you, you shouldn't get upset so easily," she admonishes, shaking her head. "And no bullying them in the games either, Takeru."

"But I'm not bad, they can't get their game on…"

"The other day Shige-chan's mom told me you took all the candies from the rest?" she asks, staring.

He puffs his cheeks again. "It's not my fault they're so bad at Koi-Koi… They're all salty they can't win!"

Miho sighs, deflating at the unchanging complaining little Takeru always basks in. "But still, no being mean, Takeru. Mom won't get you mackerel if you keep getting in trouble."

"…Okay. Sorry."

"It's fine, just remember that games are supposed to be fun too. You don't need to always win."

"But losing isn't fun," he pouts again. "And they all make fun of me because I can't write that many hiragana. They're the mean ones," he nods and speeds up, puffing cheeks again as he looks away in protest.

"Siiigh… Just don't hit anyone anymore, Takeru. They're your friends too," Miho says, giving a minimal pull at his ear, and he nods slowly.

"Okay… So where are we going?"

"To the shops. We need to buy groceries and a few other things."

"Oh, does that mean Dad is coming home soon?!" he asks, eyes more shiny than the reflected sunlight off the windows.

"Maybe, depends on the trains," she says, slowly petting his head, staring in silence. "So be good and don't run off on your own today, okay?"

"Yeah!" he cheers, punching the air, grabbing Miho's hand and proceeding to dash forth.

She can only chuckle at him, following along the excited dash for a few streets, then pulling to have him decelerate once they do reach the shops.

"Takeru, let your elders pass first," she reminds, pulling softly back and giving a small bow.

Cheeks puff, but he still hands the small cart over. And then little Takeru groans as his head gets a rough pat from the old lady complimenting his kindness, messing his rebel hair even more. And yet, the eyes dart up to the threads of sunshine framing the slightly pale but smiling face he knew well, his mother giggling a bit. So he remains calm, for now, despite dusting off his hair as he takes another cart. No appeasing words could dispel his pout, not until food was brought up as they walk further in.

Together they look at the shelves, Miho checking a small memo she's carrying while comparing prices and ranges as a finger taps at her chin. Scuttling through the rows and people, Takeru finds items and groceries used regularly, tiny hands struggling to keep it all in place, aided by his chin clamping down on all the stuff while going back to the cart.

Despite the strain it puts on his back and legs to prevent anything from falling, the grateful smile is enough of a reward, spurring one in him as well as his messy hair is disorganized further.

"Come on, now… You shouldn't force yourself so much," she says, taking the things from his shaky hands slowly then resting them into the cart. "Also… Hmm, the value isn't that good for this brand, Takeru."

"Why? But it's cheaper," he says, pointing back to the stand with the small pack of beans in question.

"Yes, but the ones below have more, so the price per kilo is better. You need to look out for this when buying food Takeru, not just buy whatever's the cheapest."

"…Why? I don't get it."

"Because you get more for the same price," she smiles down, leaving the packs he had brought and pointing to the others, explaining in simply math what she meant. Receiving only furrowing brows and more groans in protest. "Sigh… Don't worry, when you start learning math you'll see what I mean."

"Mmgh… So I gotta grab the bigger packs then?" he asks, already moving to another row.

Stopped softly, Miho grabbing his hand and pulling in. "Let's go together, and then I can teach you what I mean. We're in no rush, silly."

"But Dad may come back today! What if he finds no one home?"

"Well, I guess you're gonna have to explain why your room is a mess again? Dad might get mad, you know?" she teases, wiggling her brows.

Causing eyes to widen before cheeks puff again, giving light slaps at the chuckling Miho. "I-I didn't left any toys on the ground today!"

"Really now?"

"Yeah! And I put all the books back in the shelf!"

"Did you remember to tidy your bed too?"

"…Ah. T-Then, we gotta get home faster!"

"Wait, Takeru, no- Come here, don't run off! I was joking, Kage won't scold you, you silly."

"…You promise?"

"Yes. Come on, you stay close where I can see you. Let's buy the rest of the memo together, yes?" she says, offering the little paper to Takeru who takes it and nods, despite not fully remembering some of the katakana in it. "And no sneaking muffins again while Mom is busy," she reminds, poking his nose.

"Aww… Can't we buy some? Just one?"

"Hmm… Will you tidy your bed?" she asks, he nods twice, she chuckles and messes with his hair. "Alright then, you can get one pack. But only one, okay?"

Strolling along, finding more food, or detergents, or what have you. Struggling on some letters, remembering others, simply strolling along the distant perfume of vanilla and offering a hand besides reading the list, being dragged away from the sweets corner, or sharing a small pleading session on why buying the rice packs that come with supposedly free utensils is better and having one of the clerks lower one of said packs from the uppermost shelf.

"What do we say now, Takeru?"

"…Thank you very much," the little one puffs a cheek, hurriedly looking down and away, earning more laughs from both women.

Flowing easy like the gust and a few petals or leaves alongside it, like a cloud lazily moving on its own terms up above. Once done with the paying, Miho takes the muffins off his hands, about to snap the package open despite his pleas for at least one sweet. She eventually acquiesces, sharing half and half, chuckling again when little Takeru takes her words to help more in exchange of the sweet by trying to lift many bags on his own, insisting on taking half of the groceries. And failing to even get them off the ground, his ballooning cheeks then almost getting him to take off.

Eventually they make it home with the slowness of the clouds above, taking in the fair weather. Yet another humble house in the many simple dirt roads of the town awaits, they find no one there which makes little Takeru sigh, a bit too exaggeratedly.

Miho again stops him from going for the muffins, reminding him to tidy his room first. For once, he didn't feel like complaining. She turns on the television, the idle news as a backdrop while she begins sorting through the bags as he goes and puts the pillow under the blankets, putting them back to proper form and away from the tempestuous sea they resembled before. Watching TV as she organized everything and put their coming lunch to be made, handing him a small notebook for little Takeru to resume his writing practice, which starts when a muffin placates the complains, promised free time if his father were to return. Simply there, sharing the peak of noon as both laugh at Chop-kun's new chapter, as the breeze and sunshine rolls in gently, no other worries or concerns in the tattered house.

And in such steady calmness the day passes, as it was usual, as it always had been.

Eventually, a small rustle of voices picks Takeru's attention away from Chop-kun's antics to try and fly off a skyscraper, before looking to a side, finding a tall man garbed in a formal dress of black and orange with a slim beard and trimmed, military cut. His small eyes widens to watermelons before he raises into a rush approach, that the man welcomes with a smile as he kneels, tanks the dive while wrapping up and lifting the little boy into a hug.

"Dad! Welcome home!"

"Hey, Takeru. Look how long's your hair now…" Kageyuki says, toying with the curly, knotted strands.

Miho sighs nearby. "I've been trying to get him to cut it but-"

"No, I like it long," little Takeru protests from his father's shoulder, pouting at Miho who shrugs and sighs again. Takeru then looks back at his dad, running his hand over the sharp arcs of the uppercoat. "Why is your uniform different now? It looks like the one the samurai rangers use."

Kageyuki gulps, slowly setting Takeru back on the ground, ruffling his hair. "…You see Takeru, Dad was working in a new place lately, and I may… end joining the samurai soon."

"Really?! Dad, that's so wicked!"

"…What?"

"You know, cool?"

"…I don't think joining the Guard is evil or cold. Miho, what are you teaching him?" he wonders, blinking oddly.

"I did nothing!" she fumes from the kitchen, more than the released steam for the pots. "He's always coming up with those random words to describe stuff on his own!"

"Hahaha… I assume you mean to say it's impressive, Takeru?" Kageyuki asks, going to sit down.

"Yeah?" he furrows his brows, still looking and pulling at the dark dress as they get to the table. "But why is it black?"

"It's sort of a show of one's rank," Kageyuki says, slowly filling himself a glass of water.

"What's a rank?"

"It's what tells how important someone is in the job. Normal people like me wear black and orange. It'd be off-putting if the leaders wore the same uniform as us peasants, yeah?" he nods up, taking his time to drink.

"…I don't get it, but it looks cool on you!" Takeru says with a nod, eyes sparking away as he runs his hands over the sleeves. "Are you gonna be helping some of the blue samurais, Dad?" he asks in cheer, it almost makes Kageyuki choke on the water.

…Sometimes, I don't know if you're just good at guessing or if you can see through me. Kids can be rather sharp when you least expect them to… "Sort of, yes. I will be assigned under a blue samurai, if my induction is approved," he says, petting the boy's head while looking at the kitchen, finding Miho returning the concerned gaze.

"That's awesome, Dad!" and yet both find themselves dispelling it in front of the sheer cheer of the little one. "Are you gonna pilot a flying robot too?"

"…Yeah, probably," he admits, resting the glass in slow motion.

Little Takeru is the opposite, bouncing upon himself in more joy than the clear blue sky outside. "Really?! What special moves will you use?"

"Haha, Takeru, TSFs don't have special moves like in the TV Mangas."

"Huh?! B-But… But what if you have to fight a King T-Rex like Gettezinger? You can do backflips and jumps, right?"

"Jumps, yeah. Backflips are, uh, a bit out of our reach for now…"

"Why? You don't have a Gettezinger Wing on your robot?"

"No, it's not that, we can fly for a while, yeah."

"Then, why can't you do backflips and bounces?" he pushes, cheeks puffing and waving his arms about, flickering the overly big blue shirt he had on.

"Well, I… don't know? I never tried to do that, to be honest…" I don't need further scolding over my reckless form. Col Tsukuyomi is fearsome enough as is.

"Why not? It looks so wicked when Gettezinger does it!" he says, waving both elbows back and slicing the air as if wielding a scythe, making explosion noises. "And then you can cut the Phantom Spinosaurus too! Reverse Gettezin-Cutter!"

"If only we were fighting fossils, if only. Humanity may stand a chance then…" he laments, petting the boy's jungle for hair and not being able to suppress a chuckle at the shiny eyes. "Well, I'll see if I can learn some special moves when I train. I'll tell you how it goes next time I come back. So you gotta study hard too, yeah?"

"Urgh… Fine, I'll try. But are the samurai strong? If you can't even jump, how are you gonna beat the Dino Empire? Do we have a Brilliant Sparker?"

"…A what?"

"Uh… You know, the super duper laser cannon-thingy from the Gettezinger Drake. The samurai rangers don't have one?"

"No, not yet… But don't worry, Takeru. We're not gonna lose so easily."

"Then, then! What robot do you use? Does it have a name?"

"Oh, I think you must have seen it in the news already. I always used a Gekishin, but lately I piloted a black model of a Zuikaku, for the time being. Nothing special, to be honest…" he says, finishing his glass of water slowly.

"…Wait, watermelons can fly? This Watermelon-kun has to be special, right?"

"No, not 'suika-kun', 'zuika', Zuikaku. It's a nickname of its head, that looks like a crane."

"…Huh. Zu- Zhu- Su… Suikaku… It still sounds like a watermelon to me," he protests, again puffing his cheeks to blimps.

"I guess you're too small to pronounce it fluently just yet…" Kageyuki chuckles, messing with Takeru's hair, simply watching the coming commercials on the TV for a moment. "Anyways, enough about me. How have you been? Made any new friends?"

"…No, everyone's so boring here," he says, slumping onto the table.

"I see… You haven't gotten into any fights, have you?"

"…No, but all the kids don't wanna play with me. It's not my fault they can't get their game on…" he protests, bitterly so.

"So you fight because of games?"

"He means that they can't beat him," Miho sneaks in from the kitchen, glancing back and shrugging. "Even I can't beat him, except in shogi. If there's the tiniest luck factor involved, you can bet Takeru's going to win. It's like he has a lucky star watching over him. But I think he's cheating somehow…" she says, giving a small, small smirk at the little one.

Who erupts in pout. "I'm not cheating! Everybody's salty they can't win!"

"…Salty?"

"He means that they're upset," Miho chuckles, still smirking at the still sour Takeru.

Kageyuki shakes his head at the minute sparks flying about and the tiny groans his son keeps making. "Siiigh… Takeru, where did you learn those expressions?"

"What? But they're so salty, they always complain when I win…"

"I know you dislike salty food, but still… Hehe, guess that's your way of poking fun at them. Just don't tease others too much, no need to be mean when they're sad they can't beat you," Kageyuki concludes, upsetting the messy hair further before standing, helping Miho serve the table.

Gently like the wind the day passes for the Shirogane family, simply basking in the sun, their shared time together. Small rounds of cards or juggled dice leave the adults gaping and the little one puffed in pride, only to again pout at teasing jabs of cheating. Some leaves filter in through the windows along threads of sunlight, envious of the tender sharing within the tattered walls, far more warm than that in direct contact with the Sun. Even if tattered and flimsy, the austere furniture was enough, a simple deck of hanafuda cards was enough, some tea and the old rough sofa was enough for the three to shuffle their own issues away and relax under their cocoon.

Simply together, letting time slip away without much pomp or flair. Just playing together or watching movies, ordering shelves or helping the little one with due homework. So simple, yet nothing outside would make any think of stepping out of wrapping warmth where the otherwise worn down clothes they wore, the sparse food and amenities available or all the chores to tackle would sow rifts and discontent.

Eventually, the prized gold time came along and captures the little one's attention fully, his Gettezinger show on air and in his mouth as he chants the opening while making poses along the sharp and clumsy robots combining together on display along background lightning and the climax of the rapid arpeggio of the main verse. Both Kageyuki and Miho remain watching his silly dance and out of tune singing for a moment, embracing each other before sharing a look, fingertips clasping a bit more before walking away.

So entranced he is on the show, shouting and wailing along the pilots holding out against tides of mecha-phantom beasts and Dr. Inferno's ploys to defeat Gettezinger from his grim Skull Lair, that little Takeru does not notice the passage of time, the slow slide of orange away from the sky, now fully blue. Only when the commercials announcing the next show come up does he look away from the screen, finding then nothing around.

Usually, he'd be dragged by his mom to the bath before dinner over scolding of his rebel hair. Usually, he'd find his dad right behind enjoying that odd drink that resembles apple juice as he watches the show as well, willing to play-fight in mimic of the episode's events. Today, however, they were nowhere to be found.

His questions and calls are met with silence, no one's in the kitchen, or in the bath, or taking out the trash. So he sneaks a peek at the hallway leading to the rooms, a muffled voice painfully coming through the almost closed door. Suffocated cries, as if hugging a pillow. That's what it sounds to his very young ears, more so as he slowly steps closer.

Peeking from the small crack in the door, he sees his mother hugging his father's chest, apparently sobbing going by the glitchy hiccups she gives, Kageyuki trying to appease her with slow massages to her back, eyes closed as he rests his chin onto her hairbun.

"…Dad? Mom? Are you alright?" little Takeru asks slowly as he opens to the door to enter.

Both adults flinch away from each other, eyes wide and faces paling as if they had been found eating a muffin without permission, so he thinks despite tilting his head. Takeru wonders why their eyes were damp as they both share passing glances and their lips rustle but emit no word, constricted to mere syllables by the sinkhole in their chests.

Coughing roughly Miho hastily stands, equally hurried hands flatten dress, breaths and heartbeats as she steps to the little one. "Takeru, Mom and Dad are… talking about something important. Could you go back to the living room?"

"But Gettezinger is over and… Mom, are you crying?"

"No, you silly, o-of course not. Come on, you can watch TV until late today…" she tries with a smile, forcing it through as she gently pushes his small back into the hall again.

"But you never let me do that," he insists, planting his heels to resist the pushing, worriedly glancing at her and Kageyuki further in.

It sends a small dart at the heart, his fingers clutching at his knees when making eye contact with his heavy steps and a heavier breath Kageyuki walks to them, expression turning as solemn as what the formal suit hanging from a wall would behoove of him, heart as dark as the threads. The usually cheery Kageyuki looks downright mangled, the once tall and imposing figure of his dad that always had an air of both joy and alertness was gone, reduced to a small little pile of ash staring down and wincing, as if his little eyes were daggers stabbing, rusting at his heart. His mother isn't much better, rubbing her eyes and palming her heart, it reminds Takeru of the time they cut lots of onion for a dish. Only this time what was being cut resides inside, and the sting on eyes and veins is at least double.

Trading glances from one to the other, little Takeru worriedly steps closer. "Are you really okay? Does anything hurt?" he asks of Miho, rubbing her palm with both hands.

With an eye on that formal shackle for a dress, Kageyuki sighs and slowly crouches besides little Takeru, sharing a small nod with his wife before petting their son's head carefully. "Look Takeru, Dad has something really important to tell you."

"…Why are you crying? Did you get hurt fighting?" he softly asks, a small hand reaching out to rub one of his father's cheeks with his tiny hand, wiping the road of dampness away.

That soft, gentle hand paired with his worried look picks at both adults, expanding the desert in their mouths and chests as they share a look before nodding down at their son.

"…You see, Takeru. Dad is going to have to go with… the other samurai rangers to fight some bad guys in the future."

"Really? Are you gonna win?" he asks, leaning closer.

"Y-Yeah, that's the idea. That's why I have this new uniform. But since we need to train a lot, I won't be coming home as often as before."

"Oh… But you will still visit, right?"

Kageyuki hurries a nod, straining a smile. "Yeah, of course… But only every now and then, Dad has to get stronger along the other samurai," he says, ruffling the messy hair before taking in air, taking it hostage inside, letting it burn as he softly grabs both of Takeru's shoulders. "But I want you to know this, I'm going to be always thinking about you. Dad is going to go beat those bad guys someday, and then we will be able to live together without me being away anymore. So… please be a good boy and help Mom while I'm not here, yeah?"

He nods twice in quick succession, gulping hard and trying to look stoic. "Y-Yes, I'll be good. But when are you coming back?" he asks, leaning closer to grab at the blue shirt equal to his own, receiving a kiss on the forehead.

"…I don't know. We might have to go help the other rangers any day, but you don't worry about that, okay? Dad is going to do his best and I'll be back before you know it."

"You promise?"

"Yes, I promise. Because I have the strongest power in the whole squad, you know?" Kageyuki boasts with a small smirk, nodding up.

"What is it? What power?" he asks, scuttling closer as if to share a whispered secret.

Kageyuki simply hugs him, holding Takeru softly and petting the back of his head. "Love, Takeru. Love is the strongest power in the whole world, it's enough to let you endure even the harshest pains to know it's waiting for you," he whispers, looking up at Miho, who was sniffing and covering her mouth, so he nods her way, tightening the hug slightly to steady tone and pulse. "That's why I always give you so many hugs. You and Miho give me the strength to carry on, Takeru."

"So hugs give power?" he asks, slowly returning the gesture.

"Yes, when you give them to the people you like. That's why… give your Mom lots of hugs for me while I'm gone, yeah?"

"Yes, I'll give her a lot of hugs. And lots to you too," he says, nuzzling onto his father's face and chuckling. "Your beard tickles…"

"Oh… Heh, I forgot to shave with all the tasks…" Kageyuki smiles, running a finger over the slight hairs regrowing, before lifting Takeru and nodding at him. "So now that we told you that, how about we go read a book or two while we wait for dinner?"

"Really? Yeah!" he squeals out in joy, swinging arms about.

The honest, innocent gaze heals the parched hearts, both Miho and Kageyuki sharing a small smile at the sheer cheer replenishing the room in sunshine, casting their blue gloom away.

"Even if it's just for today, let's forget about the war. There's so much I want to ask you, so much I want to tell you, Takeru. Whatever the future may hold, let's make sure it's a good one starting now…" Kageyuki decides, nodding and lowering his son to the floor. "So, go find a book you like and wait for me by the table, okay?"

"Yeah!" he says, immediately running off, almost slipping and falling once.

And while the door to his room is opened and the ruckus of the shelves echoes out, Kageyuki walks back to Miho, shielding her sniffs, wrapping his arms again over her shoulders in tight, safekeeping embrace, listening to her heart's beat.

"Please don't cry anymore, Miho."

"…What do you want me to do? It looked like you were saying your goodbyes to him."

"I did say I might be sent to war any day if I am accepted into the IRG, so… I want to give him and you as much as I can while I'm still here. Tomorrow might be too late, after all," he says, playing with her hair.

Calming down her sniffing, she tiptoes then plants a tender kiss on a cheek. "Please be careful, Kage. Promise me to stay out of trouble, even if you don't join the Guard. You don't have to force yourself to make any more money, we're fine as is…" she whispers, falling into his chest and arms.

Catching the fall of fluttering heartbeats, he shelters them tight, intently listening to them. "Don't worry about me, I can take this kind of thing. And I have no intentions of leaving you two behind." Even if to give you what you deserve I gotta end up in the spotlight of the forces and sent to hell… That's the least I can do to repay all the happiness you've gifted me, Miho. If your future is crying it's up to me to make it smile, whatever it takes…"

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In present time. CCSE Island.

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Belated blinks turn slower than the gears of thought, even slower do the muscles awaken. A slow rustle by the nightly gale lets a deep breath leave, taking in the humidity of dusk and the distant stars up above. By now, only a margin of the skyline was framed in distant pinks, the blue hour of twilight setting slowly along a chorus of insects and birds welcoming the end of another day and of the prior rainfall.

There was nothing around save the gentle whistle of nature, besides the numbness preventing any movement or thoughts for some moments as he simply watches some clouds come and go, some stars twinkling into view. As thoughts weave back to normal with the slowness of a snail and figments of words and images return, his muscles burn at the mere movement, embers stabbing lanes of deep friction into his backside.

So again, Takeru can do nothing but simply lay onto the cold steel, gasping as his limbs awaken fully while taking in his surroundings and struggling a hand upwards to massage the swollen pain on his head. Better to simply lay down and rest, after such violent encounters. Let your battered wings still, even if heart's strings tense to try and march on again.

"Good luck!"

Some sort of… whisper echoes close by, but nobody is near. He stiffly lifts his torso to look about to no results more than to strain his neck. Sitting up causes a stab at the lungs which pierces, indicating Takeru would be better served in coating his moves in slow motion perhaps. Wailing wrists and shoulders seem to agree as he rolls them, gasping into the thick humidity. The blood had stopped, much as the stream below the steel bridge he found himself in. The cut in his chest still hurts, however. His head also hurts, banging and smacking repeatedly from inside.

A gust rolls over the treetops and scatters leaves, and what embers of warmth remain in him. Slowly, his arms wrap around himself, as if trying to invigorate his heart back to proper form in self-hug, to rein in whatever light there still remained.

But sadly it was already dusk, inside and outside. And the passage of time he notices when looking at the half-moon, his heart torn in equal fashion.

"Again… Fuck, not again… Shit!" Takeru rasps a scream, hitting the bridge over and over. Shivers and quivers take his body hostage in the cold cage of dusk, a meager caress compared to the curses he keeps lashing out at another failure, despite the valiant efforts not reaching fruition.

The rain had stopped, and yet ripples resurface on the puddles left in the bridge. Another rain had started, slower, deeper. More confusing to the one shedding it since no further tears were meant to remain, and it does not stop either.

A hand slips when trying to use the railings to stand, making the process slower and more careful since his slow shaking won't stop. Like the cold hands roving his spine up and down, like the stabbing at his heart that does not come from the burning injuries, signaling Takeru would perhaps be better served marching into the forestry and lightning up a fire to shelter himself, since nothing and no one else shall grant him sanctuary.

And yet he frowns and hits a fist to the railings, cursing all over again amidst gasps. Despite mild aching not much pain is felt on his body when checking himself, even if the cracks of the joints as he moves them would beg to differ.

Slow as a butterfly's flaps he massages his chest while gazing at the foliage, his swollen and reddening hands, the stains on the bridge, the dusk and its diluted shine reigning over all the silence of the night.

The general, expansive stillness and its apathy to the situation is chilling indeed, isn't it. A tree can fall down but if no one is there to hear it, wouldn't it be the same as if it had never been there to begin with? No one will be none the wiser to its existence. And the same can be said for the aggressions which happened not too long ago, contrasting with the placid pace of dusk at the moment.

Nothing but silence is around the steel bridge, except the stain of coagulated blood below Takeru and a knife some distance away, a shredded cloth which once was his tanktop laid drenched some steps behind him too. Otherwise, the place was deserted and indeed proper for an island such as this, lost in the wilderness and its nightly chirps. That same stillness makes nest in Takeru, who covers an eye as he staggers softly, tasting iron on his hurting lips when trying to step away from the railing's support.

Rummaging through his belt, finding supplies and the bottle with fuel, he sits again and begins eating in slow bites as he looks up, taking in on what he recalls before darkness claimed his consciousness. But there is nothing to be done, nothing to regret. You rolled your best dice against tough odds, and sometimes Fate glares snake-eyes your way and turns away. Rather than welcoming the comfort of the shadows his bites turn to chomps, teeth gritting at the implication of yet another failure.

"You can do it!"

And again that, whisper, distant echo resembling a voice wafts into hearing. It stalls Takeru's checks for injuries. But… nothing is close by when he turns and looks about yet again.

"I must be going insane, huh…" he concludes shaking his head languidly before running his hands over his face.

Takeru then briefly wonders why is he here rather than captured or dead, pulling his cheek to ensure he isn't here as mere thoughts as he was during certain experiments the Vice Commander did in a prior world. It only causes him to spit some blood stuck inside, an edge of his lips hurting a bit.

So he simply looks up, taking in on the buzz of nature. And that odd whisper that keeps popping up despite nothing being close for whatever reason.

The gust rolls and punches around him, making him shiver in place as if ice were ingrained into the exposed flesh just as the soaked boots and socks were around his toes. Dusk has just begun, and he'd be wise to find a place to camp in.

Standing shakily, he recalls something and looks for the GPS unit he had used to stalk the moves of the aggressors, but finds nothing nearby. Taking the knife and heaving a sigh, Takeru wipes his face with the mangled cloth, gazes at how mangled indeed it is, throws it back to the bridge then decides to step back into the forest as the rolling air truly pierced into the numbing shackles over the aggressive, dark pink stains littering his limbs.

Yet rather than look for a clearing he remains trudging through the foliage, through the stiff burns in his aching limbs, the haggard state of his pace. Attempts to make haste, fueled by distant burning windows or melting flowers, only cause him to stumble and almost cake himself in mud. Every movement arduous, labored, making his breathing turn so, limiting his output. Making Takeru aware of how insufficient he was, unable to reach those he should have helped as they did when, one day, in a similar state he found himself, in this very island. And rather than abandon they lent a shoulder.

The memory causes him to punch a tree as he almost slips when trying to jog, and gazing at the misty bog only makes Takeru spit more blood and curses at everything in general, rather than take the much needed rest his body requires.

And yet some leaves are rustled by slow steps, the moonlight curiously peeks through shaky treetops to stroll along him. Careful steps skirt the dirt in search of traps, his body whole burns and freezes more with each sting after each step into dark and dense foliage, then-

"Do your best!"

…that, voice again snuggles into his ears. Takeru keeps glancing behind and around, wondering when the auditory hallucination would stop following him yet sighing soft and easy whenever he hears that distant yet close voice he cannot recognize. Marching on and on he remains for who knows how long, through thick green walls and glaring nothings in the dark, soles flaring and wilting him down to a stroll, a crawl. A literal one as his legs finally give up and send him tumbling into the coldness of entangled roots and vines.

Perhaps it is time to call it quits, for tonight at least. Trembling hands brush mud away as he gasps and leans onto a tree to stand, stubborn as a mule. Despite the alertness he'd wish to raise Takeru soon finds his eyelids fluttering close again, blurriness losing the threads of moonlight from sight as a small tingle runs down his spine. Stomach and back growing heavy, the whispers of the night echoing from such distant depths to his ear, it would seem, as his head plops down onto a hand when sitting down, curling against a small nook of roots.

With the guarding veil of humidity and a glint of moon shining down on him, sleep once more shelters Takeru's tired mind from the pain, numbness spreading as he finally yawns and the static-like current of tickles surround his whole body, driving a sliver of the cold away to allow proper rest.

Simply laying there, hugging himself, drifting off to dreamland…

"See you later!"

…along that echo, that just won't stop. Even as everything else blurs back into silence…

---

At the same time, in an office building not too far away…

---

Slowly, carefully, folders are put into boxes, their titles removed or erased, then pushed the boxes end shoved to the matte walls littered with humidity.

Slowly, tenderly, a window is opened to allow the night breeze to cleanse the stagnant air for only a moment as too much dust came out of disordered shelves, becoming visible for lingering seconds.

Slowly, feebly, the one lying on a sofa stirs and groans, blinking and gazing around before coughing, blurry sight then finding the dutiful and dainty march of both Tsukuyomi cousins giving order to what seems to be an old, abandoned lounge illuminated by a yellow overhead light.

"…Hm? Oh, you've awoken," Mion notes when passing by, slowly resting a box which makes soft clinks then walking closer to the sofa. "How are you feeling, Kurama?"

"Where… am I?" she can barely manage, sight again going blurry and swirly when trying to sit.

"In our target for clearing. We found you collapsed on the bridge when we went there," Mion says, going to fetch a glass of water, offering it to the slowly raising fellow, a hand supporting Kurama's back as she raises. "What happened to you?"

Drinking slowly, words and images slur off her ears, Kotori can only stare at the half-empty glass as her face slightly burns. "…I can't remember."

"Where you ambushed, then?"

"No, I don't- Ugh…" she places a hand on her eyes, slightly swollen, stinging, which sends a shiver of pain through the rest of her body, giving a small involuntary spasm.

"Do not force yourself," Mion says, softly pushing a shoulder down and retrieving the glass from shaky hands. "You probably were struck from behind and then beaten unconscious, and that's why your head is dizzy."

"I see… You found me, alone?" she asks when laying back onto the sofa, tilting her head as she taps her lips. It makes her heart flutter as pain flares quietly, tasting iron.

"Indeed, there was no one else. You said the cadets split, so we assumed they had broken through. Apologies for our tardiness," Mion says with a bow.

Shion simply scoffs as she walks into the lounge, carrying a box to the far end, saying nothing nor making eye contact with Kurama.

"Shion carried you here, and we treated some of the injuries you had," Mion says, slightly louder as she moves away to stand closer to a wall.

Head stuck in a fog, neck stuck but in stiffness, Kurama can only offer a mimic of a bow while rubbing her temple. "Thank you, Shion…"

She scoffs again, rolling her narrowed eyes. "Bah… Expected more of you, frankly. Bested by meager cadets… Also, it is Tsukuyomi to you, Horn."

"Shion, come on," Mion pleads.

Receiving only daggers for eyes. "Keep the platitudes for yourself, Mion," she simply says, turning sharply to resume her duties.

Mion sighs, giving a small bow to Kurama. "Apologies, you know how she is."

"Ah, no, it's nothing…" she says as she slowly sits, accepting and finishing her water cup, eyeing the ceiling through the faint burning of her features. The back of her eyes and mind burns too when trying to remember. "She said I was bested. So I was… fighting?" she blinks oddly, tip of a finger slipping into her mouth, she sucks on it idly as she looks up at nowhere, head as fuzzy as the swirling clouds covering the sky she can recall near a bridge.

"Yes. You had called us for reinforcements, did you not? To halt some of the cadets by the southern bridge?"

"Wh-What? I did? I… can't recall all that clearly but…" but something inside pikes and caresses, thorns or roses, she could not tell. It made the rough and rocky sofa seem pleasing, enough to have Kotori curl on it while continue suckling on a finger, easing her breaths despite the static lingering by her neck, softly pressing onto it.

Mion gives Kurama an appraising gaze, the usual dark grin or bored glint in her eyes gone, leaving an almost apprehensive complexion on her. Shion simply scoffs again when dropping yet another box by the wall, giving not another second of attention to the wounded one and positively glaring at her cousin upon a gaze requesting something.

Shortly before any of the three could puzzle out another sentence, a small beep comes through one of their comms.

"Raven One- Cough! Raven One to all, does anyone copy?" a weary voice calls through the mild static, its owner limply laying against a tree for support, gasping in raw humidity and evading the kicks sent by the other one close by.

"Eleven here, receiving you loud and clear," Mion firmly replies, taking on a firm posture, Shion much the same as she turns on her comms.

"Oh… Thank the Emperor you picked up," Nanase whispers, a hand supporting and rubbing his dirty, aching face. "Tsukuyomi, listen to me well… Cough…" he stops, stepping on a foot and glaring at the one he was trading punches with until not too long ago.

"Of course, Captain. We were awaiting your orders. Three had said you were knocked out before. Would you be in need of reinforcements?"

"Huh? D-Did Three speak to you already?" he asks, making Shinohara stop his attempts at breaking free from his entanglement.

"Yes, she requested our aid to halt the cadets, that had split up. We found her unconscious by the southern bridge with mild injuries, she's just woken up. Do you need us to rendezvous with you?" she asks, bowing her head on instinct.

"No, that's… Eleven, hear me well and remain calm as I speak," Nanase pleads, taking in air and licking his dried and swollen lips.

"Hey, hold up!" Shinohara yells and gasps, squirming as the arm bound by cuffs to a root cracks, muscles twisting hurtfully. "Think it well, Captain! My fellows, they won't sit still if you cross me… Think of your sister, Nanase!"

"Hm? Captain, was that Two's voice nearby?" Mion asks, features tightening as if suddenly smelling decay, Shion mirrors the gesture but much worse.

Nanase sighs, shaking his head at Shinohara. "Yeah, he and I were having a small… scuffle, you could say. I don't expect my neck to go scot free regardless, but," the least I can do is own up to my mistakes, for Rin's sake. "I ask you to listen closely, Eleven, until I'm finished."

"As you say, Captain," Mion says, standing stiff as an arrow upon the command.

Despite the intel given and its impact, and some rough queries forwarded by both cousins, Nanase could finish his confession to the last detail with both Tsukuyomi hearing him out, as ordered.

"…And then, he rushed at us while we were arguing and bested me and Two both. No, if not for having the rifles, we would not have stood a chance to begin with… I assume, Three must have had a run-in with this Shirogane, going from what you told me before."

"…Anything to say on the matter, Kurama?" Shion asks, frowning as she sits atop the Raven's legs.

Kotori simply bobs her head, lips flapping but unable to pronounce words as she tries and sit on the sofa. An eye closes and burns, not more than the back of her head. "…I can't remember."

"How convenient, isn't it, Mion?" she grins, glowering and elbowing on purpose. "You just happen to not recall if you committed treason or not…"

"No, that's not it," Kotori counters, expression tightening as she hugs her forearms, throat sore all over again. "I do admit to have followed Shinohara's orders, to an extent," she says, giving a deep bow, wilting a truly sorrowful wince. "The captain did try to stop us, but Two insisted and the rest followed, me included. However, when I get to the bridge, I… What did I- Wh-Who was there? I…" she holds her reddened face as only lakes and white noise remain in her head.

"One, Three seems to not be able to recall her skirmish with this… Shirogane, was it?" she asks, gulping minimal excess saliva. "But she has confirmed your words. Also, Shion, could you stop elbowing her?"

"Hmph… Fine."

"I see… So the kid broke through her, huh…" he smiles, chuckling as he winces in salutation to the rebellious cadet. "Shinohara had offered double pay to the others as an incentive to, well, punish the cadets-"

"Shut up, you traitor!" the bound one by the tree's roots shouts, thrashing against the cuffs restraining him into muck, pulchritude gone from his veneer, or a mirror to the inner one. "You'll see once we're back home. Say goodbye to your position, you baseborn!"

"Captain, could you kindly kick at the dastard in my stead?" Shion asks, crossing her legs and glaring at Kurama when she tries to release her own legs from under the weight.

"Shion, let us not," Mion scolds, shaking her head. "Apologies, Captain. You were saying?"

"Ahem… Well, I, you should see where this is going… There's a chance the Mitsurugi girl or that Sakaki are being, uh, punished as we speak." That, or the kid is beating up the rest to death. I don't know which one is worse.

"Kurama, would you cast some light to the situation, if you could?" Shion asks, glaring.

She bows in deep contrition, downcast and drowned like a flower out in the prior storm, shaking subtly. "They should be safe at the moment."

"How do you know this?" Shion presses, leaning a bit closer to glare at point-blank.

"I limited myself against Mitsurugi-sama, allowed her to face the others," Kotori says, gasping as unseen thorns strike at her face, wide blood-starvation lunging at her before vanishing as quickly as it flashed through her mind, leaving only a void and more coughs. "I… I heard her overpowering them through the comms, rescuing her squadmates as I was reaching the bridge…"

"You did not restrain her then?" Nanase asks from his position, shocked at the slightly distant words even more than Shinohara's scorching insults.

Kotori shakes her head, heaving a sigh and again poking at her lips. "No, I merely tested her resolve and battle prowess. Then, I…" she blinks, trying to recall why she had sent audio to another comm, wondering if she had at all, ending clutching her head in pain once more. "Urgh… I suppose, I assumed that… Shirogane was too much of a threat? I released Mitsurugi-sama, and I departed for the bridge. All I did was to test her skills, and her mental fortitude by using the situation against her."

Shion again elbows Kotori when leaning over, closer as she leaves the mic away, to whisper at point-blank. "Why did you obey, Horn? Surely you do realize the consequences that will follow, don't you?"

And yet, Kotori regains a modicum of blaze to send back at Shion, straightening her slouched posture, expression almost offended. "You should remember, for we once were fellows. I imparted onto her the same teaching we were apprehended by in Shura's Dance's closing moments," she whispers back, both cousins flinch and dry their lips, finding not a desert but a wasteland of sulfur taste-through into them, just like Kurama. "I simply taught her to despair not 'till she perishes and never to lower her guard. I shall bear any punishment you deem fitting for my actions," she finishes with another, deeper bow to placate the Tsukuyomi.

Kotori's throat feels sore, choked, yet not due to pain does her eyes begin to softly water. Not physical one at least, the figments of static kicking at her nape would say, figments of hoarse shouts drilling further into Kotori's mind, barely out of hearing range but just close enough to be detected by her inner retelling. Again, tasting iron. Again, hearing hurting in front of those livid shouts. Again, heartbeats shrinking as she keeps bowing, eyes moist when shivering as if out in the humid, chilly night.

And even if for a moment, the cousins share the sensation, Mion wincing and wiping her mouth.

"…Hmm, she's telling the truth," Shion notes grimly as she gulps the acid taste, standing and giving a sideglance at the one apologizing before bringing her comms closer again. "Kurama, do you know why this Shirogane was made into a target?"

"Huh? No, I- I don't know… Shinohara simply informed me of our new orders, and nothing else. I… Urgh," she staggers, softly falling back to the sofa, to the hug of the static which pierces and hurts, but for some reason tickles the roses as well.

Shion simply narrows her eyes, scoffing again and the same flares coating her faster tone. "Captain, would you possess any more intel on these ploys? Kurama seems dizzy, conveniently so," she fumes, to Mion's facepalming.

"Oh, no, me and Kurama were given the report at the same time, actually," he rasps, breathing through an open mouth, glancing at the moon. "Whoever sent the request didn't want the kid interfering with the pigeons, is all. Shinohara is the one who wants him dead, and he doesn't want to speak on the matter."

"I'll make you rue this day, Nanase! Your sister is gonna be such a good comfo- U-Uughh, mmphhh!"

"Thank you, Captain," Shion smirks at the rough smacking sounds coming through the comms.

Mion rolls her eyes, closing one and rubbing her forehead as Nanase apologizes. "No need to go further, sir. So, what would your orders be, Captain?"

"Huh? Oh, ahem… I think we should contact the cadet's Instructor, post-haste. I don't expect any mercy, but the sooner we make the UN aware of this, the sooner and the quieter we can resolve this."

"Of course, Captain, as you say," Mion nods, saluting the air.

"May I ask what do you have in mind, sir?" Shion asks, bobbing her head.

Nanase blinks, taken aback by the deference and the calmness in their tones. "I… was expecting you two to take charge, since, well, you're Imperial Guard officers…"

"Yet we are to follow your orders," Mion reassures, turning around and handing another water cup to the still dizzy Kurama. "Your gesture shan't go unrewarded, Captain. I assume, the rest of the Ravens will lose their motivation to further shame themselves once this is reported and they're made aware of the consequences."

"I see…" Nanase says, sighing hard as one leg shuts off and he leans onto a tree for support. "Thanks."

"No need, sir," Shion shakes her head, glancing out the window. "We can devise a way forward together once we're all here, at large. Stay where you are, we shall go to you, Captain."

"Siiigh… Yeah, so I'll do. Thanks again, you two. I… truly did not expect you to let this, well, treason slide."

"You spoke despite the incentives against it, sir," Mion nods, already moving to the exit and checking her gear. "This is ample proof that, unlike Shinohara, you are deserving of our respect."

"Oh? I thought you Imperials were all fellows?"

"Bah, that is comedy," Shion spits, strongly pushing Kurama's standing motions back to the sofa and waving a no along a glare, then hastily following Mion in grabbing her gear. "We are not fellows of him, or those he represents."

"Is that so…" Better to shut my mouth about it, then, he concludes, resting against the bark.

"In any case, please do stay put, sir, we shall be there shortly," Mion nods, cutting the connection and taking out a small flashlight. "Shion, are you ready?"

"Yes, give me a moment… And you," she glares at Kotori, who tries to sit again, "there better be a good justification for this treason."

"…I had ample motives, that I thought you'd share," she whispers, rubbing her aching head.

Shion scoffs, fastening her belt. "Oh, humor me."

"Shion, now is not the time to-"

"It is alright," Kotori says, bobbing her head slowly, coughing again, shivering as her neck constricts, flashes of pure poison in her mind. "If Mitsurugi-sama is to be a shadow as we were, then she needs to know what she will be up against. If she could not break through me, it tells she is not yet ready for the final test of her style much less to join the shadows."

"And how is that equal to allowing her and her squadmates to suffer such abuse?" Shion asks, cracking her knuckles. This time Mion says nothing, observing Kotori in calm but piercing manner.

Yet the Raven does not cackle when returning their stares, no offers of punishments or the like, simply another contrite bow she offers, wincing as she rubs her neck again and again. "She hesitated, when she could have struck my vitals she hesitated. She bested all of my squadmates when letting loose, which proves my point. If she is who will illuminate the darkness of the Sun in protection, Mitsurugi-sama must be made aware of what shall befall her and be willing to unsheathe her sword when it is necessary. That is why we Imperial Guards exist, to carve meaning out of the bloodshed. To ensure that despite… the grim, setbacks…" Kotori's expression grows slack, tone slows down to a drawl, the final words not fully formed.

"…Despite what?" Shion presses.

Kotori bobs her head, again sliding a finger into her mouth, sucking on it as the nail pinches the hurting spots. "Despite the cruelty, is it not our… obligation to ensure the future is gifted a smile?" she asks and tilts her head, blinking erratically as if truly lost.

"I suppose, that- that is an apt way to frame our endeavors of days past," Mion concedes, looking away and messing with her frail curtain of hair coming from the ponytail.

Shion simply fumbles words for a moment, then folds her arms sharply and is crowned with a grand frown. "Excuses! It makes no sense, what you say! To make the future smile, that is… naive, too naive a goal for us. Even if so," she coughs, hand to chin in cooling, pensive gesture, "that does not change the fact you followed the orders of a Horn, does it?"

Kotori nods again, shoulders slumping and the coating of the finger in saliva worsening to the point her lips flare a bit in pain. "I- Cough! I… thought to collude with Shinohara, earn his good graces to slip in easily back to Kitanomaru, awaiting a chance like this to continue serving as I must. That is all… I can afford on my own to fulfill my commands…"

"…So you plan to genuflect to the Horns?" Mion asks, withering into a frown, placing a hand on Shion's shoulder to prevent any aggression.

Kotori shakes her head, sighing hard. "If I speak out, all I'll manage is to be secluded from the mission. And without concise proof, we cannot make a case against Shinohara. I expected shadows such as you would comprehend my motives, even if my methods differ from yours. Cough… but I am- I am no dog of no pigs, I am given hands that I may break foul blades," she frowns, the mending hand over her neck doing nothing against the lingering soreness.

"Wait, you were- Why did you say nothing then?" Shion asks, wringing hands.

"Shinohara is very perceptive, despite what his usual veneer would indicate. He would have noticed any changes in your actions were you aware of the smallest detail. That's why I didn't tell you of the intel gap you had regarding the cadets or… or… Huh…" she sways a bit, eyes closing strongly.

"What is it?" Mion comes closer, supporting the struggling weight softly.

"I… I think Shinohara had a reason to go after Shirogane, and I- I mean, we spoke of… Uuhhhh… Why did I not tell you about him, actually?" she wonders, laying back onto the sofa. "Urgh… M-My head is killing me…"

"Kurama," Shion says, walking into her view, arms folded tight, "you swear to not have done nothing against your oath?"

"…I may have attempted too cruel methods against Mitsurugi-sama and her fellows, but that is all I am guilty of. Words alone are insufficient against Shinohara's commands since he has my Lord Brother's blessings over myself, and my dissidence would serve only to make him grow ever more cautious. Simple scars can be attributed to a mere skirmish, no?" she asks, rubbing her head and recalling one of the many outcomes she daydreamed about when devising a modus operandi for this task.

Both cousins share a slow look, pondering the words, the possible outcomes, the weight of the cadets in the board of political favors, the veil their young lady must live under. Such a dire conclusion would not be out of the realm of possibility, they reason. There may just be a world out there where Kotori did fall to such carelessness, the cadets then merely beaten down, giving no conclusive proof for them to strike at what now lingers in the darkness of the Empire, unopposed. Even puppies will reach out and snatch the ball away, eventually.

Sensing their glares softening, Kotori nods slightly. "My actions were not too dissimilar to those of our squadron, when we were under Amato-sama, no?"

Both cousins flinch, compacting their already tight postures. One fumes and turns away, going to the exit, the other sighs and shivers as cold hands run over her spine.

"…We no longer enjoy such freedoms, Kurama," Mion says, turning to follow after Shion. "I truly hope you're aware that there will be consequences."

"That is alright, I shall bear what punishment you deem fit. We despair not 'til we perish, come what may. That is… the order I shall never break," she whispers, eyes closing softly as she lets the tickling static on the back of her head lull her back to slumber.

For a moment, Mion and Shion share tense looks and tighter conclusions. Going outside into the humid night, they turn their flashlights on and ready their Pleiades. Recalling Nanase's request for haste, both cousins take the command to heart, immediately sprinting into a jog. Along the chirps and buzz of dusk both march steady, each stomp leaving a crunchy and mushy sensation below, splashing some mud at times. Despite the lingering humidity sticking to them gradually in their rush, both cousins do not wane the march upon ticklish, salty sweat coursing through their faces, which remain immovable while breathing through their noses. Their expressions masked yet in a new moon, despite the news and the cold, humid air hanging around them.

"…Do you truly think Kurama was telling the truth?" Mion asks, huffing softly.

Shion nods, sighing small from her nose to not disturb her breathing tempo or quick jog. "She usually masks her emotions well. To see her openly showing contrition is enough. If she had actually harmed Meiya-sama, she'd have framed it as all her offers to whip our backs on the way here. This time her 'punishment' offer was truly a repentant one, no?"

"I suppose you're right… However, you speak as if you were close fellows with her."

"Well, I suppose we are… acquaintances? But now that you mention it," Shion grimaces, frowning deep, steps harsher. "No Horns are fellows of mine…"

"Yes, they are not- But she did free Meiya-sama it seems, rather than abuse her or force her to surrender… to teach her to despair after she perishes…" she whispers, slowing down to a mere stroll, kicking small branches rather than stepping on them.

Shion much the same, eyes lost on the treetops. "Yes, that is… a useful teaching to apprehend, I agree. N-No, she must have feared the repercussions, is all. That's why Kurama followed the orders in the first place, to force our hands to defend Meiya-sama."

"…Even if we cannot openly defend Meiya-sama? Her existence, well, she is tasked with being a shadow. Letting this spiral out of control could be a grave issue."

"I don't disagree, Mion. Then, why did she do such a thing? She supposedly 'punished' Meiya-sama, however slightly. Even if to instill that teaching and expose Shinohara's true colors, it's-"

"-not too different to our prior squadron's methods?" Mion asks through a shallow throat, making Shion stumble and almost fall.

"Even if that is the case, there are lines that cannot be crossed," she fumes, steps turning to stomps. "Also, I truly do not recall Raiko-sama ever acting in such cutthroat a manner?"

"Neither do I, yet it seems fitting, no? But we cannot deny it is thanks to Kurama's, leniency, let's say, that we now have proof to use against Shinohara, do we not?" Mion reasons, gasping as Shion fumes from her nose. "I assume she has a point, mild scars would not be enough to accuse the rest of the Ravens of deliberate lethal aggression."

"…And the UN Farces would wish to hide the matter at all cost if that were the case, to prevent Meiya-sama and her comrades from becoming commissioned," Shion counters.

To which Mion nods, slouching a bit. "You said Kurama seemed repentant, did she not?" she asks, looking up at frail threads of moonlight filtering through the treetops along, flickering along their dampness.

"I guess, yes."

"So her offer to be punished however we deem fit is also honest? If so, she will do as we say, no? Yuuhi-sama did hold doubts on the test and that's why we're here, after all," she concludes, hopping over roots and puddles.

Shion nods, frowning, stomping harder through the foliage, cracking small branches or the like. "Just like last time when we could not even open a query over her injuries from the sonic mines she stepped on. We were lucky she was relatively unharmed, but…"

"…But back then there was no indication such a setback was deliberate, and it could have had far worse repercussions if not for the reflexes of that Ayamine, if I recall," Mion nods, looking up, sensing the cold humidity permeating her, slowing down her steps as the wind freezes her face but grants clarity to her thoughts, refreshing. "Now, on the other hand, we probably will gain undeniable proof with Kurama's account, even if any physical bruises could be taken as part of a struggle by the UN Far- Forces. The accounts of the cadets will sway the Instructor to action this time, unless she's also rotten to the core," she asserts, wincing while rubbing an ear.

"Siiigh… In any case, we can debate this at a latter time once we see Nanase's stance on all this. We should- Oh," Shion decelerates when seeing a clearing, an abundance of muddy soil.

Along Mion both break into view, into the half-moon decorating the sky and its tender light cloaking the out of place steel bridge uniting both sides of the ravine. A slight mist sets on the air, caused by the excess moistness in the area, making the steel shimmer upon the watch of the moon.

Slow are the steps both cousins take, furtive glances open and alert before noticing there is no danger nearby. Mion simply admires the visage, the brushes of the foliage by the salty evening breeze along the clearing above after the storm. She takes in air, fully refreshed and daring a smile as the chilly but damp breath clings to her nostrils, making her shiver slightly. When wiping her face and turning around, however, she finds her cousin had not followed and instead was standing by the middle of the bridge, completely still and with her back turned to her.

"…Shion, what are you doing? The Captain ordered us to make haste, did he not?"

"Oh, yes," she flinches back to attention as if static kicked at her nape, yet her eyes again dart down. "What- What do you think this is, Mion?"

She cocks her head at the query, going closer. Then her lips part midway, seeing a mangled piece of cloth near a large stain of dried blood. "…Seems to be a torn standard shirt to me. Was this here when we retrieved Kurama?"

"I don't… remember?"

"What do you mean?"

"What? Don't you remember? I was the one who carried Kurama back, right? Didn't you see anything back then?" Shion asks, eyes again going back to the cloth and the stain, features tightening. A lane of coldness surfaces in her when taking a deep breath, suddenly aware of every little drop of warm sweat clinging to her body, contrasting the night's cloak.

Mion gulps, shivering in the same manner, feeling static tickling at her feet. "No? We simply found Kurama… we found no one else…"

"No one else, yes. We didn't… find anyone? Huh… Then, what is this?" Shion furrows her brows, eyes closing. Twisters of earthy colors, carousels of whispered sounds tickle and spin away in her mind, and behind they leave her clenching her teeth and kicking at the railings.

"H-Hey! Shion, what was that for?"

"I don't know… but I am upset. No, livid. Even more than at that damned Shinohara or that traitorous Kurama…"

"Come on, now… Do you think this belongs to that Shirogane? Kurama might have fought him here, after all."

"…Why does she not remember anything, then?"

"Hmm… She may have hit her head on the bridge? Anyways," she shivers, stepping away in haste to dispel the cold pokes, sensing her hands damp and sticky, "we have orders to follow, Shion."

"I know, didn't say anything about disobeying," she shakes her head, giving one last kick at the bridge, glaring at the cloth. A leg moves to follow her cousin, it stops and twitches, her eyes too. Shion crouches, inhaling into the night breeze before taking the mangled cloth with her, then going after Mion. And raising a brow at the curious stare she earns. "What? It might be a useful clue."

"Sigh… I suppose. On that regard… What should we do about that Shirogane?" she asks as they leave the bridge, walking besides the ravine, the exposed roots and grass glistening under the moonlight, the earthy odor pungent and apparent.

"I don't know… He tried to protect Meiya-sama, did he not? But he was not supposed to be part of the squad, according to the last report from Mana-nee there were no last minute additions."

"Indeed. His presence is curious, at minimum. All members of this cadet squadron have strained backgrounds, and I doubt he'd be any different if allowed to join Meiya-sama and the rest. Shinohara may possess more intel on this Shirogane, which we… could make use of."

"Kurama may also know something else," Shion notes, angling her flashlight down as she grounds to a halt and finding steps marked on the mud. "See, even if distorted through the rain, these are footprints of this guy…"

"So he did pass by here before we did, and ran into Kurama then they fought… to the point of leaving her completely unconscious- No, we should rendezvous with Nanase first, orders are orders," Mion shakes the fuzzy and tickle fog off her nape, walking on but staring at the markings below. "Once we gain Kurama's and Shinohara's intel, we can decide what to do about this Shirogane."

"Yes, you're right," Shion nods, returning the gesture and, after a soft kick to a tree, both resume their modest jog. "The sooner we assess the situation, the better. Meiya-sama might be safe for now, but we cannot take any more chances…"

"Indeed. Just promise me you won't beat up Shinohara during our interrogation. He may use it against us, somehow."

"Bah… He should be thankful it's us and not Maya-nee finding out. Maybe we should have Kurama whip at his back as a show of loyalty, to let him have a taste of a real punishment, son of an eldritch bitch…"

Mion groans, softly smacking the back of a hand against her cousin's shoulder. "Come now, Shion. Don't let your feelings stray you from proper form. You must chill."

"…What?"

"Hm? What's that face for?"

"That's my line. What is it with that dorky phrase?" she asks in sobriety, despite and edge of her lips curling to restrain a chuckle.

"I- W-Well, it seemed appropriate, since you never calm down on your own…" It is odd, why did I word it in such an eccentric way?

"Pfft! Thanks for trying to distract me from this all," Shion nods, palming her cousin's arm as Mion remains tilting for a second. "You're right, we should approach this carefully as the eyes and ears of Her Highness. So stop looking like a penguin in a desert and let's get going," she says, resuming her prior steady jogging, rushing through puddles and damp forestry.

"Yes, of course… but what in blazes is a penguin in a desert?" Mion wonders, following after and dodging the pooling water or greenery in graceful moves.

"Hm? I… guess something that's very out of place and confused?" Shion cocks her head, again frowning for some reason as her lips whir inwards, as Mion's do too. "Did we drink something odd?"

"No? Well, unless something from those projects was left in the water of the offices…"

"Siiigh… Does your head hurt a bit?"

"Not my head, but a bit below my ears, yes…"

"Urgh… It's as if I had static running through me," Shion fumes, a hand swiftly rummaging through her moist hair, rearranging her hairbuns, Mion doing the same with her ponytail in slower and tender gestures. "Let's just focus on what we can do at the moment."

Mion nods with an eye closed as she massages an ear, dispelling cold touches away. "Indeed, there's much riding on our shoulders at the moment."

"Oh then, we should ready a report for Maya-nee as well, shouldn't we?" Shion proposes, pointing a finger up.

"Right, we should… Let us wait until we've spoken with Instructor Jinguuji, to hear her posture on this whole issue. Then we report the happenings to HQ," Mion offers, gaining a nod.

"Sounds good to me… It is late already," Shion notes, looking up at the sky and the half-moon. The chilly, salty wind and the veil of humidity surrounding the moon in a slight halo, expanding its luster in amorphous arms makes her wince, steps waning. "But it's up to us to see this through, even if the situation whole is quite vexing," Shion nods, inhaling sharply, shivering in cold, frowning for some reason then giving another harsh kick at a nearby tree, bathing both cousins in more dew and leaves.

"…I'd admonish you again, but you're right. Let's keep going," Mion says while shaking her head, taking out her Pleiades GPS and noting the one signal nearby before both march out steadily once more. "It did get quite late, however…"

"It sure did. How long were we cleaning that building? I did not even notice the hours pass me by."

"Indeed. I hope Meiya-sama can find some rest tonight…"

"I doubt it, but may she spend it in peace," Shion says, again slowing down to look at the moon. "I suppose, may that Shirogane also be safe…"

"Why- Why are you praying for that guy too?" Mion asks, flinching and stepping hard onto a puddle.

"Well, he tried to protect Meiya-sama, did he not? We should thank his goodwill, at the very least? Furthermore, he's injured and without clothes?" she notes, pointing to the mangled tanktop she was carrying, before her stomach turns and tosses as the cloth in question. "Should I… not offer some sympathy?"

"No, of course we should, but… perhaps, we should stay away from him? If he's a target of Shinohara, it equals someone wants him removed from the test," Mion reasons, frowning blaze before they darken as she bears her teeth at the air. "Furthermore, it is odd that an extra cadet was added to Meiya-sama's squadron this late into the year… The same can be said for Kurama not recalling her encounter with him despite the amount of blood left in the bridge and the injuries she had in her face."

"I suppose you're right, this is curious to say the least," Shion nods, mirroring the blazing complexion and matching Mion's pace again. "Until proven otherwise, he's under suspicion. We should ask Maya-nee for her opinion on the- Oh wait, Mana-nee could tell us about him when we report, no?"

"Oh, right. Yes, she should be able to clarify if he is an enemy or not. Still, we should mind our distance for the time- Ah, there's the Captain!"

"You're right… Let's leave this talk for when we're back at the building," Shion asks, and receives a nod and a mirror of the sharp stare.

The limping Nanase bows and offers modest thanks, while the bound Shinohara curses and throws snark their way along some mud, until Shion kicks all air out of his lungs despite Mion's protests for moderation. Slugging his struggling weight onto her shoulder, threatening with throwing him off the ravine if he again mocks her short height, Shion leads the way back in quite the strong stomps, plowing through the foliage and again feeling lukewarm sweat lingering, clinging to her clothes.

Mion trails slightly behind bandaging a wounded arm. "Apologies for the delay, Captain."

"No, thanks for the gesture… It's the first time a Royal Guard treats me like an equal, to be honest…"

"Oh, truly?" she says, shoulders sagging as she slowly ties the bandage. "I suppose, most of us do not leave a good first impression, being obliged to impose our status on-duty…"

"Nah, it's fine. I'm used to it… Thanks, truly," he nods, coughing a bit through the heaviness permeating his whole sore body and drenched clothes.

"No need, sir," she says, offering a shoulder that is waved away, then remaining walking close. "By the by, were you able to contact the rest?"

"No, they must be out cold because no one answered nor reached out while I waited, their signals have not moved an inch. So, uh, you guys didn't run into that kid?"

"Who? Oh, that Shirogane," Mion says, slowly looking down, remaining downcast as she shakes her head. "No, we found a torn cloth and remnants of blood by the bridge. I assume he fought against Kurama and then ventured forth into the wilderness."

"I see…"

"…May I ask why you seem interested, sir?" she asks, sideglancing but staring.

"Heh, just saw my old self in his eyes for a moment. Back when I thought I could take on the world by myself, even if I was all by myself…" he chuckles dryly, it cracks at the end into a soft cough.

Mion simply watches Nanase, matching his slow pace. "Hmm… Do you know anything on his situation, why is he a target?"

"No, not much. The guy seems to have been a last minute addition to the cadet team, and someone didn't like that. We were tasked with limiting his actions, but without harming him severely."

"And Shinohara was against this?"

"He thinks he can do as he pleases due to his rank…" Nanase rolls his eyes, spitting to the ravine. "It isn't as if flashing your surname can't get you places most of the time. I'm sure you've seen worse in your duties?"

Mion shrugs, sighing heavy. "Perhaps."

"Well, that's that. I offered the kid a truce but he refused it. Looked about to murder me then, don't know why he held back…"

"…For the same reasons you have, probably."

Nanase looks up and back, at the moon calmly shining up above. The luster only widens the dryness on his features, Mion thinks as he heaves a sighs. "Just who the hell is after his head?"

Mion stares, arms folding as Shion grumbles and strikes Shinohara against a tree, before sighing herself. "Do you not know anything on who asked for this, then?"

"No, nothing. You should know the Imperial Guard's officers have a status of their own within IJA bases, the Royal Guard does stand above us in the totem pole. I received the update from my CO along Shinohara, after all," he languidly shrugs, resuming the walk back. "I can get them not wanting to let the pigeons fly, but no idea why Shirogane is a target too. I just hope the Takeshi kid can make it out of here in one piece, the world doesn't need more scarred soldiers dying in vain…"

"…Takeshi," Mion repeats, eyelids lowering as do her waning steps. "That is his name?"

"What?" Nanase blinks, tilting his head at the sudden, almost drowsy query from the otherwise pleasant and polite of the duo of cousins.

"Shirogane Takeshi, that's the name of this cadet? Is that what you were told, Captain?" Mion presses, stepping closer, suddenly feeling static tickling all over her.

Nanase scratches his head, the numbness and mud peeling off it. "…To be honest, I was just handed a very slim profile on him. Read his name and assumed that's what it was, usually that kanji of soldier is read as 'Takeshi', right?" he asks, drawing the brushes in the air with a finger.

"The kanji of- Yes, I see," Mion nods, before she cocks her head and blinks a bit, pace not back to the usual march and expression pensive, lost. "So that's his name…"

"Uh, do you two have a history with the kid?" Nanase asks, taken aback by Mion's shuffling confusion.

"Oh? No, that's… Ahem. I'm merely curious, is all. It seems Three also thought him dangerous enough to face on her own, she had called for our aid when she was moving to intercept him by the bridge."

"Wait, she did? What happened to her?"

"I know not. Shion and I were actually hoping to interrogate her and Shinohara, if you would allow it?" she requests, turning halfway away. Wincing as she sees Shion coiling his neck around an arm, his face paling bluer.

Nanase pinches his nose, but nods regardless. "Siiigh… Honestly, he's got it coming to him. Act freely, so long as you don't harm him. I suppose I don't need to remind you Imperials of that."

"Of course, Captain, as you will," Mion nods, giving a modest bow with a small smile as the breeze rolls around them.

Their small talk is breached by shouts, Shion bending one of Shinohara's arms beyond proper position, shoving him against a tree to divest herself of the inner rage blistering through her heart at the teases regarding her queries on 'Takeshi's' situation and why Shinohara had chased after him.

Much like the moon above, one half shining, the other fully dark, both equally shrouded in light mist. As such the Tsukuyomi cousins resume their walk back to the office building once Shion is pacified, and Shinohara doubly so by the confirmation of the incoming interrogation. And yet, both cousins share a glance as they cross the bridge, as they find the stains of blood again.

Dry and hardening, the blood on the bridge, the blood in their veins. One half darkening, taking over the moon, back to the full darkness of a new one. Not in poker mask, but simply lost and empty inside. As empty as the night is, when no tender light showers some company to the shadows and those toiling within them.

As they roll their lips dry when staring at those motes of hardened red, tasting salt all of a sudden. A taste that does not disappear during the remainder of their nightly duties, not even when exhaustion sends them to sleep.

---

In the starting days of January, 1989. Reversal Timeline.

---

A chilly gust circles about the street, flimsy peeks of sunshine filter through the clouds down to the quiet neighborhood enjoying a pleasant afternoon. Teapots warming up for those waiting by the table, or hoarding the kotatsu, the radio or the TV compliments the monotony of everyday life grateful for the snow to no longer be a concern.

And due to that, two small shapes shout and stir birds and old fellows from their quizzes and puzzles along the midday's shows. Uncaring to the overall coldness still present, little Takeru sends small beanbags up and up, a cheeky smile growing as the repeated motions score more and more numbers, that he counts out loud.

Catching the last one with unrequired drama, he strikes a flashy pose and smirks wide. "Take that, thirty times! See? It's not that hard."

The girl besides him slumps down, more blue than his attire as her otherwise red hair shrivels and curls dry as if about to wither. "B-But I can never do it right… I can't even make it to twenty," small Sumika puffs her cheeks as much as she could, sniffing as the wind smacks her with chill.

"Hehe, then you just gotta practice. Come on, now's your turn," he insists, handing her the beanbags.

Nodding and smiling at her when Sumika hesitates, Takeru punches the air once as if to propel her to action. Still shivering, not due to the cold, small Sumika nods and straightens up, even her hair stands firm and in attention as she rolls up and sends the tiny toys to the air. She makes it to twelve before one falls off, smacking her in the face and causing a mini squeak, that is repeated as the rest also fall on her head. Shaky shoulders falls off along some sniffs, her until then sharp hair growing mushy and whirly.

"It's too hard! I can't do i-i-it!" she cries out in pout, flailing arms about as if drowning.

"Does that mean that you give up on the candies?" Takeru teases, lifting the small plastic bag they were given before.

"Ah… Don't be mean, Takeru-chan. I can't do this, give me some candies," Sumika says, lunging for the thing.

Takeru sidesteps and clicks his lips, waving a finger at her. "Tsk tsk tsk… Yes, you can Sumika. You just gotta try harder!"

"But I failed to get to twenty."

"Then you try again until you get better. Don't you always tell me that every time you help me with my math homework?"

"Takeru-chan, this is different, there's not an answer to find here…" she pleas, looking at the candy bag as one lone hair of hers tumbled down, all swirly like her eyes, resembling a poor, lost puppy.

It makes Takeru grumble, petting her head slowly and softly. "Come on, Sumika. Don't be like that… Give it another spin."

"B-But what if I fail again?"

"You try one more time?"

"But what if I send the beanbags too high and hit a dove or something?"

"…Free chicken for dinner?"

"Come on, Takeru-chan! I threw them sooo high last time, even a star may fall!"

"The only thing you send to space is me when you punch me, you dummy. And shooting stars end up falling anyways, who cares?"

"That's awful, stars are always shining for us at night when it's all dark… Apologize to the stars, Takeru-chan!"

"…Sumika, if I don't hit the stars when you Drill Milky me into space, the beanbags won't hit them either, you silly."

"W-Well, yeah… But, But! The beanbags really hurt a lot when they hit me. What if I smack my face really really hard and pass out?"

"Then, shucks! I eat all the candies."

"Nooo-o-o-o! Don't be so meaaan!"

"H-Hey, don't pull my hair, dummy! I'm kidding!"

"Sniff…Really?"

"Yeah, for real. Come on, chill out already, dude…"

"…But I don't like being cold. And I told you I'm a girl! Stop calling me 'dude', Takeru-chan!"

"You're so noisy… I'm telling you to calm down, and just try juggling again," he says, rubbing his head and the spiky mess Sumika made when pulling his knotted hair.

"Fine, I'll try… But you better not eat the candies by yourself, okay?" she protests in bitter pout when walking into position, earning a sigh and a nod as he places both hands behind his head.

With a small countdown and along a gentle raise in jazz from a nearby radio, Sumika sends the beanbags to the air, her slow moves almost in sync with the arpeggio, each breath casting a shiver along the tremolo-like echo of the strings of the song. And as the melody ends, so does her juggling when fingertips miss their target, the beanbags fall and bounce in the ground.

"Hey, see? You lasted a lot longer," he praises with a nod.

She crouches to pick up the toys in slow motion, sniffing. "But I still didn't made it to twenty."

"Oh, come on! Stop being so down already, Sumika. A small pebble will eventually cause a rock slide with enough impulse down a hill," he recites, puffing his chest.

"There you go again, with those weird phrases…" Sumika plucks her lips, clutching the toys.

"What? It's true, it's called snowda… snowballing. Things growing bigger suddenly or something."

"You're reading that poetry book too much. You're speaking really weird now, Takeru-chan. Even more than usual."

"You're the weird one. I speak completely normal!"

"Nuh-uh! You always shorten everything, and say random odd words all the time, and you keep calling me 'dude' too!"

"Shut up, you silly dummy, or I don't give you any candies!" he threatens, waving the little bag about and taking some steps backwards.

"Ah… Don't be mean, come on, gimme some!" she protests, throwing herself into a grapple at the blue shirt and brown jungle.

Which he returns onto her cheeks and yellow scarf, stepping back and trying not to fall. "Hey, s-stop it! Not my hair again!"

"Then gimme! You promised!"

"No candies for meanies!"

"You're the mean one!"

"Not when you're the one punching me into the moon everyday!"

"T-That's because you make fun of me…"

"I mean, it's not my fault your weird antenna changes shapes so much, that is really weird, for real. What's up with your hair, anyways?" he asks, flicking a finger and hitting the sparky and firm red.

It bounces back as if upset, like Sumika's cheeks. "My hair is not an antenna! D-Don't make me use my Drill Milky Punch again!"

"See?! You're the evil one here! I bet you're the lost grandchild of Professor Inferno…"

"I-I'm not a robobeast! I'm a friend of Gettezinger!"

"And who's the one pulling the other's hair now?!"

"B-But you won't share any candy with me…" she deflates, letting go and falling to her knees, again giving him a stray puppy look along tiny, squeaky wails.

He sighs and rubs her head, messing with the antenna as it changes shapes from sparky anger to shriveling sadness. "It's your fault for calling me weird."

"But you called my hair weird before, like all the bullies at school do…"

"Siiigh… Fine, fine. My B, I'm sorry."

"…Your what? See, there you go again with the weird phrases."

"Shut up and have some candy, dummy," he rolls his eyes, opening the tiny knot and sharing half of the candies with her, overflowing the small hands in sweets to the point small Sumika coos and gasps at the treat. Takeru smiles at large, petting her head and chuckling. "Now stop bawling, okay?"

"Wh- I-I'm not bawling!"

"Yes, you are."

"A-Am not!"

"Oh, rea-a-allyyy? Look, what's that? There's some snot in your-"

"Takeru-chan, you dummy!"

WHACK!

Sent flying far faster than full boost, for a moment Takeru's scream is silenced along the centrifugal force jettisoning him past the clouds which part suddenly along the gust of the little galaxy spin released from small Sumika's strike. Basking in the nice warmth past the clouds, he just shouts since there's nothing else he can do, besides checking out the satellites and planes, an HSST or two before the eventual reentry fall begins and the then-close starry expanse of space again grows distant, silent.

What isn't silent at all are Sumika's pleas for forgiveness after he lands and, immediately, begins chasing after her in demands of retribution, almost as if they were in a play of Crimson Raiding Hood.

Only this time there was no lumberjack jumping in to stop them, and the kids keep quarreling for a moment over the sweets and jabs each throw at the other, among other physical objects they throw at each other. Despite the abundant noise, the company sends the chill of the afternoon away even as the sun begins to set early, cerulean diluting up above before they run out of steam.

"…It's getting really late," Sumika says, laying on the ground and eating her last candy.

"Yeah," Takeru nods, sitting up and picking up the small covers of the candies he had eaten. "Mom must be done with the cooking by now, right?"

"I think? My Mom should be coming back from work soon… Brr. It's so cold," she says, hugging herself as the wind circles and pokes.

"Yeah, let's go back inside," he says, standing and going to the door, her following right behind with the beanbags. "Wanna play cards while we wait for dinner?"

"No, you always win at Koi-Koi!"

"Then, the spinning tops-"

"You always throw them super fast and I lose!"

"…Shogi?"

"U-Uhhhh… You know I'm not that good at that," she whines, puffing her cheeks to the point of almost plopping up the air like a balloon. "Let's watch some TV Mangas."

"Fine…" he pouts as he opens the door. "Ruin my fun, you dummy…"

"Come on, Takeru-chan, stop complaining…"

Both children find the inside of his house completely quiet, undisturbed. The lights were not turned on and the windows remained half open, but with the dwindling daylight the Shirogane residence was cast into an early dusk, everything too big and shadowy for the kids as they step into the living room, seeing only masked silhouettes.

Trying to reach the switch and failing with each hop, Takeru gives up and peeks in. "Mom? Are you there?"

And then, silence.

"Maybe she went somewhere?" Sumika says, walking closely behind him.

"Hmm… But she would have called us. Mom would never leave us alone in the house," he counters.

"Then, where is she?"

"I dunno, maybe in her room?" he wonders, looking at the stairs.

But there's no sound besides their small steps walking towards the table, looking for a memo or something indicating where Miho was.

As they find nothing, Sumika goes to the stairs as he walks to the other end of the table. And then Takeru suddenly stops, gasping.

On the floor, just in the corner where the small division to the kitchen starts, there was a pot, just lying there along a puddle of water that, assumably, fell off from it.

And only a bit beyond, there was a hand.

Breaths slow, Takeru slowly walks and edges closer to the kitchen, hearing his own breath and the crackle of the fire of the kitchen being on. As Sumika calls out that there's no one in the second floor, she finds him crouching on the ground, visibly shaking.

"…Mom? Why are you sleeping on the floor?" he asks, shaking her shoulders over and over to no visible effect.

On the inside of the house, it was really warm. Outside was where it was cold. And yet, Miho felt truly cold to the touch. Silent and stiff. Hard to move as if made of stone.

"…Takeru-chan, what's wrong?"

"N-Nothing's wrong," he frowns, gripping and putting more force to the shaking. Finding no fruit for his efforts, at all. "Mom! Wake up! You can't sleep here!" Why? Why won't she wake up?

"Takeru-chan, hey," Sumika gently pulls at his shoulder, wincing at his expression. "Let's call my Mom."

"Why? Mom… Mom is just sleeping. Nothing's wrong!"

"B-But she fell off, right? Maybe we should call a doctor-"

"Nothing is wrong! She doesn't need to stay in the hospital again, Mom is alright!"

"Ah… S-Sorry…" Sumika takes a few steps back, looking down as if about to cry.

It makes Takeru stand slowly, heavy all of a sudden. "Sorry Sumika… Um… So let's call Haruna-san. She might know how to wake Mom up," he says, looking down at Miho's unmoving body.

"Y-Yeah. But can't you call your dad? She really might need a doctor…"

"I… I don't know the number of Dad's work… Mom said it's for emergencies since the samurai are busy…"

"Oh… W-Well, don't worry," she steps in, grabbing his hands, tightly. "Mom will know what to do. Come on," she says, pulling him towards the phone.

And despite everything, he still cannot tear his eyes from the fully frozen body, reminded of the sterile scent of the hospital. So he licks his lips as Sumika dials the number, to try and get the cold shivers to halt.

It tastes of salt, for some reason.

---

Back at present time. On the following dawn.

---

Darkness, all she could discern.

"I know."

Soreness, what comes second.

"I know."

There was something preventing movement, her own body's stiff, almost numb, state or an external factor she could not fully tell.

"Oi, I said before, didn't I? I was on board with it. Plus, I entrusted you with my life already."

Hands slowly depart from their curled comfort. But they find nothing concrete, only damp ground and the tickle of grass blades, a slug friendly greeting the morning dew as well.

Mumbled, muffled, the voice echoing in the back of her head fades and fades, ever more distant the more she struggles to catch onto it. Legs spread, hit something firm, a root. A thorough gasp fill her in refreshing, if a bit too humid air and, opening her eyes, a refraction of light showers upon Meiya's slack expressions from beyond the treetops from one side only, the rest of the sky painted in dawn's breaking cerulean and yellow.

For a moment, or two, maybe three, Meiya remains laying belly up on the ground without moving an inch, not even to fix her misaligned fringe, as she remains watching the sky with the same slack expression she had while napping, drooling a bit.

A distant, or near, she couldn't tell, sound shuffles about. Moments later, a shadow obstructs the light, staring down at her in apathetic blinks.

"…Hey," Ayamine greets, waving.

Receiving only a head tilt, a muffled groan in numbness as Meiya stretches her back and feels jolts coursing through it.

"You okay, Mitsurugi?"

"Guh? Ah… Ye-Yes?" she slurs, blinking slowly when trying to propel herself off the ground. Everything spins for a moment, she rubs her eyes and yawns wildly, quickly veiling it with a hand. "Apologies…"

"No, you took the first watch even," Ayamine reassures, walking away, half-limping truly, to grab some mushrooms, offering them to Meiya. "Here, roasted them not too long ago."

The scent wakes Meiya fully, saliva forming a pool under her tongue. She nods and thanks Kei, grabbing and softly nibbling at the wildfood, content for a moment to simply eat in silence.

Before the food and its crunchy texture reminds her of the prior day, the breakfast shared, the familiar taste, the march to the ravine.

Then everything else sends the mushroom, what was left, unimpeded down her throat. Meiya has to smack herself to prevent an accident, slipping some of the precious water they're in short supply of. Waving away Kei's attempts to help, Meiya simply coughs then dismisses the issue, unable to cleanse the rotting taste of the memories.

"Ahem… So anything to report?" she asks, glancing at her watch, seeing it is close to 600 hours of the fourth day in the CCSE.

Kei shakes her head, extending a hand to the small fire flickering to the morning gust. "No, nothing happened. Thankfully my, uh, injuries seem to have healed," she says, softly placing a hand over her eye, still rather swollen.

"I see… Are you certain you're fine, Ayamine?" Meiya asks, staring.

Kei mechanically bobs her head, eyes focused on the crackling fire as she closes her legs. "Don't worry, I told you these injuries are not anything special for me… I can keep marching, no problem. I'm not the same as back then." I am no longer a starry-eyed rookie, nor am I alone. Things are different now… they have to be, I'll make it so.

Meiya simply nods, not wishing to intrude further then glancing about at the small clearing they had taken shelter in between some tall trees and dense bushes, now framed by a curtain of early shine on a side.

Mikoto was shivering slightly, giving little jolts every now and then as she rested along a tree, not fully asleep and more collapsed due to fearful insomnia running her mind dry.

Chizuru was the opposite, limply laying on the ground to the point that, if not for her belated breathing, one could think her dead. Her exhaustion very well may drive her so, at least in slumber.

Miki was huddled not so far away from Kei, atop a leaf bed. Curled into a tiny, tight ball, clamping onto herself with an even more compressed expression.

The wind sends leaves to the air, flickers the fire down to but an ember, has some dew merge into droplets falling down the curves of a leaf or two, down into their heads and faces.

Something else falls down, further away, but out of their hearing range.

Twisters of colors swim in Chizuru's mind, as well as stagnant gray framed by tall shadows. She tenses her back, hears it crack and opens her eyes, seeing Mitsurugi tilting her head in salutation.

Mikoto is much the same but far slower, the salty breeze reminding her of tuna, large, before the same lunging gazes skirting her shadows when meeting with her father return to her mind, as starved as those assaulting her yesterday. A minimal twitch as she regains full consciousness by a shake, hurriedly she inhales and braces but then sighs and snails a nod at Kei's greetings.

Minimal talk the four share, brushing off injuries, deciding not to speak on the taste still lingering somehow on their lips, the poignant, pungent odor of those things which defiled still present in the back of their minds. For the moment, Chizuru coughs and asks for her mushroom, for the others' willingness to march out at 600 sharp.

Nods are the only answer so, as Meiya hands Mikoto her breakfast, Kei crawls back to try and wake Miki.

The small ball was cold to the touch. The touch which stirs Miki more and more, folding on herself, mumbling something below her breath, clutching her forearms for dear life. Kei insists softly, undoing the hold, trying to lift her chin and wake Miki with one good shake.

It's enough to shatter the slumbering sarcophagus shielded the outside world from what in her mind ravaged.

"No! No! Don't touch me!"

The whispers raise when forcefully awoken, suddenly releasing the pin keeping the stillwaters in check, now throwing punches and kicks wildly and without any restrain.

"Don't bite me, stoooop! It hurts!"

No reassurances from Kei or concern from the other douses the pyre, the dampness in her eyes, what breaths cannot restore to her haggard, jagged shrieks.

"I don't wanna be eaten! Help me-e-e-eee…. A-Ahhh…" she hiccups, into Kei's embrace as she's kept firmly in place.

"T-Tamase, it's alright… We're safe, come on," Kei whispers, enduring the final, dying embers of punches.

Blinking away from blistering mist of dark, coughing away its salty, sulfuric corruption, Miki looks up amidst her dampened sight. There was no tall, mangled shadows of red revealing wiggly teeth and a thick, suffocating stench flooding her nostrils deaf. Her hands were still intact, albeit reddish, and she could still feel and move them indeed. She was sore, pained at angles when falling back, yet no impossible limitations nor flaring pain appears in her body. She could still breathe cleanly, even if her heart was knocking, no, downright slamming itself against her throat and ribs, the air was clear with no overpowering toxins suffocating each and every inhalation.

And the jungle was mostly silent, save for some cute chirps and coos and the rustle of the branches, save for the queries her comrades offered upon the large silence she offered. There were no other equally maniacal, dreadful shouts begging for the mercy of death nor smirking monsters wanting to devour her.

Miki simply remains still, hiccuping in short convulsion. She can't even shed tears, there were none left as she's fully encased in ice, bowing down in apologies to the rest as the remnants of the nightmare fade and all she's left with is a void within, along a strong desire to vomit.

Shared glances, wordless nods, idle nibblings and their innards losing what filling remained, restored by the rest during night. Chizuru asks to check of Miki's injuries, but the small one shakes her head over and over so the others decide to simply let this rest and give her the only thing they could afford.

It was closer to 700 hours when they finally departed their resting place, along plentiful apologizes from the smallest one, insisting on taking on a piece of the anti-materiel rifle.

"I-I can carry this, Sakaki-san, don't worry," she nods, trying to stand upright too much, pushing her chest too much instead. "I am able to contribute, you can leave this to me," she asserts, it comes as a wail for a plea, with puppy eyes and everything.

"Sigh… Understood. You stay in the back of the formation, then. Yoroi, you're with me dispatching traps. Mitsurugi, Ayamine, you guard our flanks," Chizuru arranges, receiving nods as all stand and dust themselves off.

Their stamina would have allowed the five of them to cover far more ground than expected, yet constant glances back, repeated phantom sounds behind their napes stall their progress. The cloak of buzzing mosquitoes take no pity on them, seeming to imitate the Ravens in their starved pecks.

Slapping at the bugs for a moment makes Kei stumble, catching a wire, inhaling sharply when ducking, avoiding a slingshot and making everyone crouch in silence for a second, bracing for any traps or other odd sounds.

"Hey, be more careful," Chizuru admonishes, casting glances around the maze-like forestry as she raises.

Kei clicks her tongue. "I'm trying, alright? I didn't see the wire."

"Then watch where you're going," tapping her glasses she turns forward again, brushing plants and carefully advancing.

Kei grumbles beneath her teeth, softly rubbing the swollen eye blinding half her vision as the others raise not a word, leave them all equally isolated to the distant chirps and raiding buzz.

However, their small scuffle ends as a net suddenly falls off, a machinegun with rubber bullets starting a small party against a nearby tree. They duck down, Miki basically burying herself into the dirt, bracing as she feels some bullets passing above her. They all share unblinking and paling gazes as the barrages do not recede, leaving them pinned to avoid an injury. Eventually, the shooting stops but they remain with their chin almost poking the moisty grass and bugs. Glancing around for any odd shadows, any rustle of grass, any voices coming closer.

"Guys? You there?" a slow Mikoto calls, coughing.

When the other four regain the guts to stand from their hiding, they see Mikoto had tumbled into the net, wincing as her back couldn't strain to let her slip away from the odd position she now found herself in.

Chizuru slowly crawls closer, manic glances around as she crouches and whispers. "What happened? Did you see someone?"

"Oh, no, it's…" her head bobs sluggishly, as her eyelids when closing. "My hand slipped and I didn't cut the wire, ended up tensing it instead. When I, uh, let it go, well…" she bends an elbow as the threads soften when Chizuru unties the net. Curling legs away and sitting, but not standing nor looking up, Mikoto takes a deep breath, hunching forward. "I then tried to roll away but hit another thread and that set off the gun, I think… Sorry."

"Yoroi, this is not the time to lose focus so," Chizuru shakes her head as she stands, a finger accusingly doing rounds in the air. "Your best efforts are required now, and if we had been ambushed this lapse could have cost us dearly."

"I-I know, I'm sorry, I'm doing my best," Mikoto whispers haggardly, shaky legs standing, head fuzzy as she closes her eyes tight, the back of both burning as red as her exerted face.

"Then this 'best' isn't enough. You had not even paid attention to Ayamine setting off a trap before," she sighs, both hands pushing some hair off her face and a bug or two. Chizuru remains frowning, again with a finger circling the air. "Ensure to remain alert at all time, we cannot fail here. And your trap disabling skills are very much needed now."

Mikoto simply nods, hunching a bit more. "I'm sorry, I'll try harder…"

"Sakaki, perhaps we should let this go already?" Meiya proposes softly.

Gaining a flaring gaze and an exaggerated shrug. "Fine. Just make sure you're all watching your steps and our surroundings at all times. I… Gulp… have no plans other than escaping if we do run into more hostiles. Please, stay focused," she languidly turns away, patting Mikoto's shoulder and taking point in the trap disabling.

All the rest share a momentary gaze, downcast, before they join in the efforts, examining flanks, the nearby trees and bushes, or sliding their boots to clear off their tracks.

Showering incessantly, the heat clings to their backs and begins molding their clothing to it, into their sweat mixed with the humidity. What scarce water they still have does not exactly aid much to refresh their breaths or bodies, their dampness seeming to reach boiling point as noon reaches its crescendo of warm, scorching to them, illumination.

Sadly, the shade cast by the tall verdant walls of the sanctuary seems to flicker for Meiya as she walks on, one eye closing as she breathes in shallowly from an open mouth. Hand to forehead she slows down to try and regain focus, only to catch her feet onto a root, trip momentarily and have her seeking support from the bark.

She doesn't fall nor trigger any traps, but no thanks nor respite she finds as her left foot numbs her entire body, suddenly burning more than the glare of sunshine on her nape, the heat raising through and almost breaking her balance. Already dizzy head spins further, she tastes her sweat when rubbing her throbbing leg, lips sealed tight not to let it out, to not upset the rest and remain marching.

When she regains her focus and looks up, only distant silhouettes she sees through the thick foliage, the others unaware of her predicament and leaving a considerable gap between their positions. Meiya tries to speed up, limping for a moment before overloading her right leg into small hops, calling for the rest.

Managing only to make Miki cower at the hasty rustle of leaves, frozen in paleness at the intrusion, stepping back in haste, triggering a net that almost catches her but alarms the rest into sharp posture again, hearts halting for a second.

"C-Calm down, Tamase. It is I, nothing is wrong," Meiya reassures as she raises both hands, but winces again as she steps on a branch broken during the storm, with her left leg. Which twists her ankle, and this time she cannot suppress the cry bending her back forward, burning into her spine.

Miki quickly shuffles from fear to concern, scuttling closer and calling for the others despite Meiya's attempts to wave off the offer to rest.

"B-But you're hurt, Mitsurugi-san. Even if only a moment-"

"I said I am alright, worry not. Such an insignificant thing shan't stop me," she tries to brave a smile, trying to stand straight again.

"Mitsurugi, show me your leg," Chizuru orders when coming closer and slapping the sheet of bugs off them. "Tamase, watch the perimeter. Yoroi, give me a hand."

Meiya sighs and tries to move past Miki, softly so. "I said I am faring well and- Au!" and wincing again, a hand reaching out on instinct to her left leg.

"You can't even step properly," Mikoto observes, crouching then carefully brushing the back of her fingers over the leg and down, a delicate flinching and shivers of pain appears which Meiya tries to ignore. Until Mikoto grabs the foot proper to tilt it and check close, making the samurai grit her teeth but not drown the yelp.

"…Take off her boot, Yoroi," Chizuru orders, slipping a hand over Meiya's waist to grant support.

"Wait, Sakaki, I said-"

"Silence, this is an order. Why did you not notify us you were in such pain? We could have left you behind if your injury worsened!"

"I- I am truly fine, this is no impediment to- Au! I-I can march on, worry not. It is only some mild pain on my ankle and-"

"Stop ignoring the problem!" Chizuru shouts, eyes going wide yet twitching, her grip on Meiya tightening. "Mitsurugi, hiding your injury works only to our detriment!"

"I am… I am sorry, I did not think it important enough to slow us down when I can endure this kind of pain."

"That is not for you to decide! You can't even walk now!"

"…Oi, Squad Leader," Kei chimes in, turning more than usual to stare with her good eye, "maybe leave the bitching for when we're making camp?"

Chizuru opens her mouth, before catching a glimpse of Miki shivering in the ground. Giving a downcast nod to Kei, she then shakes her head and runs a hand through her damp hair. "Just don't try and work through such pain, any of you," she rasps, suddenly out of air as Meiya gives an apologetic bow.

And another wail as Chizuru crouches to again support her weight while Mikoto begins slipping off her boot until it's is finally removed, the sock following shortly after.

"Yoroi, how is her- Oh my…" Chizuru's eyes widen, the others as well, upon the large spot of dark pink in Meiya's foot.

"Meiya-san, how did you even march on with such a sprain? We have to bandage this, right now!" Mikoto scolds, taking out her spray, leaning up to take Meiya's bandage roll from her belt.

She hands it over faster, narrowing her shoulders. "It truly isn't such an impediment, stop blowing this out of proportion. I am- Ahh! It burns more than last time…"

"…Last time?" Chizuru asks, low, one brow twitching as she glares up.

Meiya flinches, looking away. "It is nothing of import, truly. Au! Not so tight, Yoroi…"

"No, I know it must hurt, but otherwise your ankle may get worse… There, let me slip in the boot again," Mikoto slowly says as an eye closes.

The heat massages dizziness into her head, fingers and wrists numbing. Sighing shallow and wiping her forehead, Mikoto readjusts a kinder grasp on the heel before resuming slow wrapping motions on the ankle, then gradually setting the foot back into the boot as if handling a vase. Everyone shares a sigh as Meiya rests her left leg and doesn't wince, not too much at the least.

"Thank you, and apologies. I did not intend to cause such a setback," she says, bowing down.

Chizuru again wipes her face, turning to lead the march again. "Take watch on the back along Tamase, do not tax yourself further."

An already slow and paranoid march dwindles to a crawl, almost literally when searching for traps, avoiding pitfalls and sinkholes, or simply whacking at the entanglement of vines and flowers above and around. The ground, covered in wildlife too, masked their trail well and left no clue as to where they had come from.

Using the map to try and guess their current heading along the position of the sun gives them some comfort, a sense of progress undisturbed through hallways of impregnable greenery.

But none could truly tell how many klicks they had walked under the everpresent watch of the heat and the bugs. Much less with the sidesteps taken, the glances back, birds flying through the trees or snakes constricting over a branch enough to jolt their hearts to full alert, past the 'Fight' option and right into berserk panic, the wildlife seeming to encase and grow closer and closer with every step they take.

Until the departure of daylight becomes apparent up above and they double their march, knowing that only their best efforts could get them out. Assuming their current best to be enough is, of course, bold to say the least, and the constant gazes back and manic checks for traps seem to agree, same for the cold shivers running down their spines despite the weather not receding an inch.

By the time they locate something that is not an extension of the foliage in the distance, they resembled living waterfalls. The salty sea breeze freely welcomes them when they reach their target, twilight framing the distant horizon in orange brushes, some thicker, others milder among carpets of fluffy clouds in deeper colors shifting in and out like a kaleidoscope through the shades of twilight. Through the shrouded bits, a small but constant trail of azure the five can see, a shooting star winking their way on its brief stay in the sky.

Another, had fallen and was burning away.

Sprawled some distance into the clearing, there is a body naked from the waist and up simply laying there, unmoving on the rocky cliff near the sea.

"…What do you think is that?" Kei asks in a whisper while hiding behind a tree, narrowing her only working eye, the other lifting painfully into a blurry, teary mess.

"Someone is collapsed on the ground, I assume," Meiya says, her initial step forward stopped by Chizuru's hand upon her arm.

"This might be a trap," she whispers, taking a moment to look at the rest, further back into the greenery. "The chasers might be lying in wait beyond that small cliff area," she says, pointing with her jaw at the coastline beyond the helipad visible from their hiding spot.

Miki gulps, audibly, breathing in moisty mushy leaf as she huddles into nature. "What should we do? That is our target, right?"

"Well, we have to move out eventually, right? Why not just go now?" Mikoto asks, scratching her head, the lumps the mosquitoes sowed all over it.

"Think well," Chizuru shakes her head softly, whispering back, "this is the best spot to ambush us."

"…But that someone isn't even moving?" Mikoto notes, observing the collapsed one.

"These are trained soldiers, Yoroi. We should prepare a counter-ambush for them. Yoroi, scout the nearby area for any traps," she orders, Mikoto flinches a bit. "What? We've no choice but to face them this time, and we cannot take any further risks! Come on, let us get to it," she nods, taking in a deep breath to calm her shaking knees.

Meiya slowly steps closer, tapping a shoulder to stop Chizuru. "Sakaki, perhaps we could scout the cliff side first? We have cover on our side now."

"No, we cannot grow lenient," Chizuru insists, shaking her head then rubbing her throbbing temple, tensing her lower back to stop the dizziness. "Complacency will lead us to failure, we must be decisive and… take the first strike while they may not expect it. I can act as the bait, I won't fail- won't let you down again," she rasps through clenching teeth.

"However, they do not yet know we are here," Meiya whispers, lower for effect, giving a mini bow from her hiding spot. "We do not know if they are, or how many of them there are. Let us lay low and observe the area for the time being. We all could use a breather as well," she proposes, glancing at the others.

Chizuru looks their way too, sighing at Mikoto and Miki's flushed complexions and Kei's uneven breathing. She finally lets her the knot in her lungs go, nodding down. "If you're all in agreement, I suppose we could remain hidden and watch if anything happens first," she says, receiving mild nods from the others that welcome the chance to rest for a spell.

However, the only change is that of the sky which loses its yellow luster to the waves of darker and darker blue, gradually like the splashing waves on the rocks. Its rhythmic echoes softly lull the five of them to some hybrid state of alertness and pleasant relaxation, a gentle breeze finally countering the heat they had been made to carry all day long.

But nothing else happens, only the clouds move, only the sea whispers and rolls. There is no shouts or mechanical clicks, no distant voices, no movement from the collapsed person in the middle of the way from the end of the greenery to the helipad.

Eventually, Chizuru recedes from her position and agrees to approach their target. Hesitant at first to depart from the hidden spots, Kei is given the task to let the others with ample vision react to any possible threats. She simply nods along a thumbs up then carefully hops over the bushes and gets closer quickly to the body.

She asks openly if there's a problem, the body doesn't move.

She slides closer, eye and ears sharpening, glancing about, but the body doesn't move and nothing else does, save for the sea.

She takes some final steps closer, her lungs shrink and halt for a second as she recognizes the face, then slowly kicks his side. Finding no resistance nor acknowledgment, finding only stiffness and coldness from the muddied, bloody body.

Then she crouches, carefully touching a hand to Takeru's forehead. But, as mentioned before, he's burning away. Kei hurries the others to get closer, setting Takeru belly up and wincing, breathless at the deep gash carved over his chest, the dry drooling of crimson waterfalls.

"W-What the… hell is this…" Kei begins to shake, eyes unable to look away from the ravished visage.

"Ayamine, who is- Oh my Lord!" Chizuru stalls moves, simply gaping.

"Sh-Shirogane-san? He isn't… d-dead, is he?" Miki asks, gulping ice.

"No, he is breathing," Meiya reassures, slowly crouching, touching a finger to his chest. "My, what did this to him?"

"He must've ran into the chasers," Kei assures, frowning as she sets his head on her lap. "One of them took out a knife on me too, remember?" she spits, showing the rest the slight injury on her palm. "But even the scars on his back seem to have been bleeding. Yoroi, can you do something?"

Mikoto twitches as everyone looks at her, tilting before she nods hastily, in equal hurry she wobbles to the other flank to appraise their comrade. All the dizzy, flaky sensations in her solidify into stalactites piercing her veins when getting a good look at Takeru.

"…He seems to have fainted from severe exhaustion, not from fighting," she says.

Mikoto gulps when observing hints of dehydration on his face, rugged skin despite the veil of sweat on him, despite the reddened state before hesitating to place a hand on him. He's got temperature on contact, but there is no smoothness to his skin, his slightly parted lips are desert dry as well. Dry just as the littering spots of blood coming from the many mounds and hills of strong pink surging all over, some still leaking a bit of some translucent liquid, others already sealed in scab. Despite it, she can't help but to notice the small line of dampness coming down his eyes, as if he had been weeping before or during his time unconscious.

"But all his injuries seem swollen as if reopened again, he must have been in quite intense pain for him to shed tears," Mikoto reasons, fingers coursing through his jaw line and neck. "The amount of bug bites is just- and the blood he must have lost too," she winces, the toned abdomen and sides she once joked over now filled with more scarred lines. Mikoto then gulps hard, looking at the rest, finding not a good thing to say. "…And he's more muddy than us, too."

The completely soiled pants and boots, splashed many times over, the same for his arms, even his head has twigs and leaves tangled in the rebel hair as proof of the rush he had enforced onto himself, if his shivering complexion was not an indicator, that is. Mikoto takes out her canteen, shakes it and winces at the minimal sound it makes. She then looks at Chizuru for approval, the nod is instantaneous, so she feeds Takeru some threads of water, noticing his lips were cracked, red.

"Did… something happen to his mouth?" she asks, gently pulling to see better.

The tiny, crimson dots in his bottom lips reminds them of the similar injuries on their own, the implication stalling their breaths of the five.

"…Even Shirogane-san?" Miki asks in rhetoric, wrapping hands over her mouth and not wanting to hear details.

"I suppose, those soldiers were… thorough, if anything," Meiya winces, pinching her nose, recalling the snickers of the one she fought against, revolting her stomach when observing Takeru's condition with that in mind.

"Fighting them off by himself is impressive enough but… How did he get here before us, in this state?" Kei asks, a hand idly ruffling his hair on its own accord.

"He may have tried to rush to our help, if I had to guess," Meiya says, looking to a side, to a small trail leading from the other side of the clearing. "Shirogane seems to have been limping, coming from the southern end when he made it here before collapsing. To have arrived before us…" so he bested that woman, despite being ambushed before… To exert yourself so, in this condition…

"At what hour, is the question," Chizuru grimly notes, tapping her glasses and drying her lips, to puzzled questions in the eyes of the others. "Think about it, if he arrived not too long ago it isn't that much of an issue, nothing some rest by a fire cannot mend since we still got the tarp with us. But if he has been unconscious in this manner, with these injuries and the strain, under the sun for hours… w-well… Yoroi, how is he?" she barely asks, hanging her head and regretting her own trail of thought.

"Um… His pulse is… normal?" she says, tilting her head as the calm beat of the heart does not correlate with the rest of his body's current state. "He may need to be refreshed and get plentiful rest, I can use my spray to treat his injuries but… those scars are quite swollen, and Takeru may have lost much blood," she notes, softly poking the underside of his eyes, the darkening bags spreading closer to his nose.

"I have some bandages left," Meiya nods, already toying with her belt. "But we should first end this test, it is a blessing Shirogane is here with us," she says, glancing about and sighing at the monotony of the sea.

"Exactly," Chizuru sighs, looking at the helipad standing out in the rocks. "Tamase, you stay on the lookout. Ayamine, assist Yoroi in treating Shirogane's injuries. Mitsurugi, let's check this place for traps."

All of them get to their tasks, Kei's breaths falling when touching the rough spots of dry blood on Takeru, hearing a flatline before she shakes her head to lift him, allowing Mikoto to apply the spray on his unconscious body, that still does not react even as they wrap bandages over his chest. Miki watches the darkening foliage, stance ready to bolt at the minimal oddity, yet throwing glances and wilting them when catching sight of Takeru. Meanwhile, Chizuru and Meiya find no traps nearby but do locate some flares in a small box hidden among rocks.

Notifying the others of this Chizuru then steps into the H inside the circle, taking a second to gaze about. At the silence of the dark blue rippling in the sea, as if no one else were to exist beyond the azure waves. Rippling was the twilight above, a thin pink line dividing the equally dark blue of a starry sea from the slight blush on an edge of the canvas. The high elevation of the other island close by seem all the more dark today at this moment when a slight mist falls around, encasing it all in thickets of shadows, to the point she doubts anything will stir to life as she lights the flares and waves them.

And waves them, over and over her head.

As the sky fades to the blue hour, stars appearing up above to twinkle about.

As the waves splash against the cliffs, sprinkling her with a bit of sea.

As the gust circles on her, amorphous threads made of the smoke released by the flares with the playful breeze.

After a moment of nothingness which lasts too long, a mechanical howl makes itself present to disturb Mother Nature's domain. A helicopter appears from the shadowy vantage point of the landmass nearby and begins to approach their location, slowly, too slowly.

Unlike the sudden strikes that shatter the helipad, raining down on Chizuru.

Glasses almost drop as she hastily steps away in shrieks of the incoming gun parade, her comrades shouting directions, casting glances about but finding nothing. Parade blooms to a carnival as the bullets splinter rocks, some which tickle Chizuru's head as she runs away, dropping the flares, the pretenses, everything. Her heels burn with the ever stalking glare of gunfire, until she throws herself into a roll behind a rock, which shakes a bit as some shots impact, making Chizuru crawl away.

Gasping as the shouts of aggression stop gradually, she looks back at a completely demolished helipad, pillars of smoke standing where she had been, and the chopper departing away back into the distant mist as the moon peeks over the horizon.

A momentary gaze with her comrades spawns a hole of nothingness and defeat in her chest, a demoralizing blow making her feel faint and almost bringing Chizuru to her knees. If not for the crackle of their comms, making all five gulp their lungs and stand straight in attention at the static-riddled voice coming through.

"Cadets, do you copy? Jinguuji here, over."

"W-We receive you loud and clear, Instructor," Chizuru rasps, strolling and stumbling to her comrades, an eye locked on the distant reef. All huddle in a circle, the unconscious Takeru laying close by. "Ma'am, we had reached our final target, I was using the flares provided. B-But then-"

"Sakaki, allow me to give an update to your mission," the Reaper tells, immovable, not sparing a second. "The complex you're attempting to escape from has moved into DEFCON1. Due to this, one turret has activated upon the flares' heat signature. To be extracted from the place, you must reach the following coordinates," she says, continuing in the same monotone, diverting them exactly behind the turret that had almost blasted Chizuru in half. "The patrols have redoubled their intensity, so act accordingly in your approach."

"R-Roger… However, ma'am, there is something we must-"

"One last thing. I heard you had split up before?"

"Oh, yes. Actually, about that, we rendezvoused with Shirogane not too long ago, but he is gravely wounded. Some soldiers-"

"If he is in need of medical care, fire the flares to signal his withdrawal from the test and leave him in your current location. I shall see that he is dealt with," she simply says, cold.

"Ah… Ma'am, the aggressors," Chizuru insists, closing her eyes, taking in a deep breath, "they went too far when we-"

"If there is nothing else pertaining to the test, I shall be hanging up."

"Instructor, please! You must hear me out, I beg of you! T-They touched us, they torned our clothes off and-"

"Sakaki, as an arbiter, taking actions that could favor any test takers is forbidden. I am being made aware of all the happenings on the test, thus I repeat, exercise the utmost caution," she says in the same monotonous frost, hearing a cracking weeping from further behind the other line. She finally allows a sigh, heavy, to hunch her over. Marimo deflates while nibbling her lips, glaring at the green-haired imperials nearby. "Focus on what's at arms reach, do what you can… And carry on, fulfill your mission, soldiers, lest all your efforts turn to wasted time. Jinguuji, over and out," she wrings out, ticking the comms off.

Throwing them to the wall of the small, narrow office room upon platitudes incoming from the Royal Guards.

"…You are certain that the rest of the Ravens are not laying down their arms?" she asks as one eye twitches, blazing back at the cousins as she goes to pick up the now-broken device.

Shion minutely narrows her eyes, nodding. "Indeed. Upon our call, Shinohara told them to 'reassess their priorities'. I assume, the Ravens were given… other incentives besides monetary ones in case they were to fail their mission. Would you possess any intel to share, Sergeant?" she asks, giving a small bow, a smaller smile, the smallest grain of amicability possible.

Marimo scoffs again, tapping her temple. "I told you already, I know nothing of this 'ploy', whatever its goal is. None of us from Yokohama want such brutality to befall our cadets."

"If so then, if I can ask;" Mion slowly starts, idling a hand on her hair as she walks over to the window, glancing at the distant sea, "why did you not heed the cadets' warning words, ma'am?"

"Siiigh… We cannot show favoritism, and there is not yet proof of what you speak of. And…"

"My words stand, Sergeant. Do not interfere with the test, no matter what unfolds. The only exception is to extract cadet Shirogane from the island when the opportunity appears, without raising suspicion. Also… be on your guard around the Royal Guards, at all times."

Marimo sighs from her nose, returning to her desk, sitting again and straightening her papers. "…my hands are tied, the test must proceed discreetly for reasons I am certain you understand. However," she twirls a pen, noting something down on the docs, "I will take your accounts and file them once this is all done. I ask for your cooperation to ensure there are no further 'accidents' on this island."

Shion takes a step closer to the desk, Mion quickly moves to intercept, shaking her head and taking point. "Unfortunate, but we understand. Would you welcome us moving out or-"

"We have mics spread on the island, there is no need. If we detect anything, you'll be the first to hear after the crew of the chopper."

"…Your cooperation is appreciated, Sergeant," Mion gives a minute bow, elbowing Shion to follow. When raising however, Mion coughs and takes one step forward, staking a glance over the Instructor. "However, regarding the other matter we discussed…"

Marimo observes both cousins in silence while dealing with the papers and reports, standing and going to the fax, connecting to Yokohama's satellite line. "Considering what you've said, I am more concerned over Shirogane's safety. He is a rather calm person, I assure you he is not the monster you fear him to be. Your… fellow must have done something to elicit such a reaction from him," she says, turning around as the scanning begins, and her own starts on the cousins.

Shion frowns, folding her arms and looking away. "The amount of blood we found would say otherwise, furthermore his… situation is a curious one as well. We were not notified a sixth cadet was added to the squadron partaking in the test. Odd, you'd certainly agree, ma'am," she smirks, to Mion's coughs in warning. "Furthermore, we are here as stands-in of the Koubuin fellowship," Shion notes, poignant fingers to the insignia of the House laying by her neck. "We would welcome your cooperation with all unknown factors in this debacle."

Laying down the royalty may work on lower officers, but it is not something that'll work on me, Marimo shakes her head, the beeping having her remove the pages from the fax before she sits again. "The only matter to tackle is the breach of conduct of the Ravens. What exactly has your sights set on Shirogane?"

Mion coughs, softer as she again glances at Shion before standing in attention. "Only the injuries one of us incurred, nothing else. Would it be agreeable for us to share some words with the cadet if the opportunity presents itself, ma'am?"

"…I'll take it into account, and we have to inquire on his telling of the events. You may participate if you're interested. Now then, I believe there is nothing else to discuss at the moment?" she says, glancing at the stack of papers and discussions she has yet to ship, the confessions of Nanase and the rest, half-empty of truth which Marimo, sharply, intuits as well.

Both cousins simply shake their heads, Mion then coughs. "Would you wish to accompany us to resume our… interrogation on Shinohara? For appearances sakes, I'd favor your presence over any other UN officer, ma'am," she insists, giving a mild bow which Shion follows after a second.

"Give me a moment, I'll file the reports you presented first as it is vital intel," she says with a nod.

The Tsukuyomi then stand firm, scanning Marimo's expression for a moment before saluting stoically then turning tail and exiting the small office. Marimo finally heaves a sigh, hand to throbbing forehead as the pen spills from her grip. She again walks to the window, sighing and clouding it, finally returning a true reflection of her inner feelings.

"Nanase's admission was far too fast, by himself even. Didn't have to threaten call on Yuuko for anything thus far…"

Fingers touch the glass, staring at the sky, extending a frail prayer much like the starlight she can see from her vantage point.

"Just when I have a squad that truly might make a difference, these ploys have to happen. And again, all I can do is watch… Just do what I can, what's within my hands…"

"Sergeant Jinguuji, allow me to remind, there are many eyes lingering on the CCSE. Maintaining etiquette and appearances is paramount to not upset some of our patrons, you'd understand. I am not saying you cannot act, but be subtle about it…"

A tense fight hits the wall, over and over, softly and softer with each repetition until her forehead joins in the feeble hits.

"What do you even want me to do, Yuuko? I've done all I can for them in their trainings, I've let go of my ideals to be the Reaper again… And all I can do is wait and pray, all over again."

The stabbing pain she feels piking at her head, enough to make her mess with the med kit for some pill to alleviate the stress, is almost a mirror to the thorns choking her heart, the repetition playing in her mind.

For years, the poor Instructor was the overseer of many squads of cadets trained to be the elite of the elite, the sword of the Fourth, back when she worked in the old Hakuryo Base as she returned from the frontlines with only the stench of gunpowder and many, many dog tags saved in a small box.

The box had to be upgraded, and to this day it still keeps overflowing.

Time and again, the outlines of the hands were erased from the walls. Time and again, the only one returning from the frontlines was her. Time and again, the frail, foolish hope of Marimo to instill noble teachings was trampled by reality.

Such is why she pushed the cadets as harshly as she could, embracing the rumors of the Reaper to drive them to their limits. Aided by the arrival of a surprise cadet that could match her expectations over and over again, small droplets watered that hope. To see her cadets survive more than the third mission, to not end up as blood-starved killing machines or overreliant on hypnotherapy or other vices to function.

So during these last days Marimo happily scuttled all over the small dock facilities yet available on the island. Lending a direct hand to the rest of the UN crew in assessing the state of the remaining facilities, tidying up the barracks, fixing some small issues with the satellite connection, taking charge of the kitchen a few times to surprises and thanks, even beginning to mentally prepare the feast of victory would get when they'd crossed the finish line. Marimo was pleasantly surprised to find some toys and beach sport gear to reward her star cadets with, if only to give them a speck of joy. Something they could cherish, that they could funnel as drive to survive and share with those who after them will walk.

The warm weather seemed to ignite the cheer, the sparkling sea as well seemed to indicate a favorable roll for once. That is until it rained, everything returning to the graying gloom. With its whimsical mood Fate resolved to turn its back on Marimo on the island at large, and just like that the firmament fell on her head with the weight of fifteen tons of raw steel.

"…And they still made it out, all of them," Marimo whispers as she fills a glass with water, plopping the pill on her tongue, swallowing it swiftly. Finishing the glass, but not immediately drinking the excess water, leaving the rim in contact with her lips. "Perhaps Yuuko has been correct all along, maybe we don't need a gentle Marimo… If I had ensured to prepare them against such scum they would have been spared so much pain. I forget that some ex-convicts are still part of the IJA, to ensure they remain caged some high above would spare no expense. The blame falls on the UN at the end of the day. Yuuko should have seen this coming, however. Just what countermeasures did she plan for? Siiigh… But as always…"

She rests the glass, not bothering to wipe her mouth or the trail of dampness that falls off her chin. Snailing to the desk, collapsing onto the chair and staking elbows on the wood, both hands massaging her temple, eyes closed yet still flashing through wastelands of sulfur and smoke.

"Always only doing what I can, never enough to make a difference… Every time the same, whenever someone needs me to be there I disappoint them in the worst way imaginable. I-I'm sorry, you all. I'm so sorry…" she whispers, all of it sinking into the desk as she claws at her scalp.

Not too far away and walking down the hallway, both cousins silently curse at the night and imitate the emotions and posture of the poor Instructor. Stopping further in at a juncture, both simply stare off at the half-moon shining down gently onto the distant sea from a window.

"…She was more cooperative than I thought," Shion notes, resting onto the wall.

"That's why you were expecting the worst, and almost ruined the talks a few times," Mion taps her temple, sighing.

"Bah… How convenient, that the 'mics they have all over the island' did not record a thing of the abuse…"

"I said it before, did I not? The equipment here has been left to rot out in the wild, the storm barely allowed our comms to function," Mion reminds, shaking her head. "I do not find it farfetched, it does not equal we mustn't remain vigilant."

"Exactly my point. What could compel her to disregard the accounts of the cadets, anyways?" Shion seethes, taking some steps away.

Mion sighs again and leans onto the glass, lost staring at the horizon. "The UN is in charge of the CCSE. Any accidents happening here will be attributed to them, one way or the other," she then turns to face her cousin, lowering her chin and tone. "And we were told there could be… incentives for Meiya-sama and her comrades to be denied their fair passage. Yuuhi-sama dreaded such and is why we are here, after all."

Shion grits her teeth, whispering but still seething as she kicks at the wall. "I know, but this only tells the UN is truly rotten as is if they favor safeguarding their pacts over the safety of Meiya-sama, or even the young Sakaki. I swear, this is-" Shion halts her aggravations, verbal and physical, as the screech in dire need of oil rebounds off the hallway.

Shortly after Marimo reaches their position, brushing some hair behind an ear and nodding. "Well, should we be off?" she asks, receiving belated nods.

In a modest pace through the vacant and silent building, the three shortly arrive at the first basement, all of its lights, those that were working, flickering a bit. Some of the UN staff coming with the submarine is standing close by, one corporal in formal dress approaches Marimo, eyeing the cousins, who take the hint and some few steps back. The man then edges closer, hand covering his mouth as he whispers.

"Sergeant, the deputy officer from the IJA has requested of us to free 2nd Lt Shinohara. We've restricted their movements to the vessel they came in, but they have threatened with contacting their fellows and taking actions on charges of defamation."

"…What did we hear from HQ?"

"Nothing else but orders to carry on discreetly. How should we proceed?"

"Allow them to disembark, but 'recommend' that they stay within the vessel and tell them I only wish to hear Shinohara's account on the events. This isn't an interrogation, not officially at the least. I doubt the others would testify against a high Fudai. Remain in DEFCON2, also is the firewall active?"

"We're on it, ma'am."

"Make that a priority, and activate the jammer just in case," she says, sending a small gaze back. "Notify me immediately if you detect a signal that isn't our own."

"Yes, ma'am! Also, would you favor dinner after this?"

"Siiigh… Yes, please. And some coffee."

"Heh, seems like the Vice Commander has rubbed off on you, ma'am."

"Desperate times call for desperate measures… These will be quite the long nights. Have the others operate in teams of two in night duty, for the time being," she orders with a salute, which the corporal returns and then marches off to his duty, not making eye contact with the cousins. Marimo then coughs, turning to gesture both to follow her. "It seems some of the other officers are requesting for Shinohara to be released."

One of Shion's brows twitches, she inhales deep. "Is that so? Will you heed their plea?"

"We cannot detain him, not without proof. Thus, this talk won't be an interrogation. I ask of you to remain aware of this fact," she stops on a door guarded by two MP in helmet and vest, that salute back at her. Marimo then looks back at the cousins, who were also stiff in salutation. "Interferring with this will have repercussions for you as well."

Mion bows, subtly elbowing Shion who then does the same. The silence is plentiful an answer, so Marimo asks the door be opened. In the narrow room, some of its paint peeling off, there were three persons. Two restrained on gurneys, one hunched over in a chair. The tile floor echoes the steps of the three entering, causing the others to look their way. With a loud click the door is shut again, the overhand small lamp masking most of the room in dim shade.

"…It seems we have quite the mess in our hands," Marimo softly starts, walking closer to the gurneys. Observing the defiant scowl in the man, the downcast apathy of the woman as she paces. "Shinohara and Kurama, I believe? You're Imperial Officers assigned to the Raven squadron, no?"

"Indeed," answers Nanase from his sitting position, remaining crestfallen.

Marimo nods, not lifting her eyes from the two restrained. "I believe our debriefing was clear in its intent, no? You were free to employ what ambushes you could devise, so long as no actual harm came to either the cadets or your squadmates. What happened to cause such injuries?" she asks, a finger coursing through a rind in Shinohara's arm, who struggles to shake her off.

"…Your cadet did this, that Shirogane. He lashed out when we requested him to lay down his arms, he was the one who wounded my fellow so. Yet we are taken for an interrogation?" he asks, lifting his nose and furthering the scowl.

"We are not interrogating you, I am merely hearing your account on the events," she says, gently but firmly pressing a nail onto the injury, causing Shinohara to wring his lips. "Now then, according to Nanase's account, you had given… incentives for the cadets to be punished, and that seems to be why Shirogane acted as he did?"

"Bah… We are only following our orders, is all."

"You do not deny to have instigated a pursuit for the cadets, then?"

"No, I am only stating a simple fact. That we acted as we were ordered to in our debriefing, which you can confirm with the other offices in our vessel or the authorities in our base. If the Captain has other views on our actions then, perhaps time has eroded his mental fortitude," Shinohara cocks his head to smirk at the wincing Nanase. "Perhaps it is time for him to either take a long leave or submit himself for a thorough hypnotherapy session. Would you not agree, Sergeant, ma'am?"

"…Perhaps," Marimo says, pacing again.

Shion tries and take a step forward, Mion grabs an arm and shakes a no, motioning for both to remain silent and merely watch.

"So you claim that you fulfilled your orders, without causing any actions that would break the pact of your loan?"

"Of course, ma'am. I comprehend your reticence, having to deal with UN staff for underlings… But us of the Imperial Guard are thorough and capable in our tasks. I am afraid that, perhaps, rivals from another fellowship may be attempting to use you for their own gain," he again scowls, now at the cousins, one returning the flames while the other remains as frozen as the pole.

Not as much as Marimo, who eyes the almost cocky grin of Shinohara. Then she watches the immutable, dejected state of Nanase and Kurama. Stopping her wandering, she undoes the bindings on the man, to the shock of the rest, then steps aside and gives a minimal bow.

"Apologies for the misunderstanding, 2nd Lieutenant. We shall remain in contact to ensure this 'incident' is not blown out of proportion," she recites in monotone, saluting sharply.

Shinohara does not return the gesture, scoffing as he gyrates a wrist. "I expect as much. Such a shame it'd be, to force my fellows to raise queries your way," he smirks, brushing his stiff neck in too much drama, flashing the insignia pertaining to his honors.

"Again, I reiterate my apologies for any misunderstandings. Do feel free to contact me if anything comes up on your end," she says, remaining still in place like a statue.

Shinohara simply nods, looking at Nanase and smirking as he strolls out in grand steps, puffing his chest and not deigning a glance at the cousins.

Some moments pass after the door is closed, Shion wringing her arms, Nanase clutching his head with both hands, Mion simply watching Marimo's pacing. As she stops, she looks down at the one who had not moved an inch nor shown any emotion break through her complexion.

"…You seem to have faced one of cadets, Kurama, was it?" Marimo softly asks, staring down.

Yet the expected defiance does not appear, nor does the small glint and smile she received in their initial briefing from the young woman. Kotori simply blinks up, sighing as she nibbles on an edge of her lips.

"I suppose that would be correct."

"…You suppose? I believe, from the accounts I've gathered, that you had to fight against Shirogane. Frankly, while he's capable, I don't see him…" Marimo blinks, drying her cheeks at the injuries on Kotori's face but, most importantly, on her lips as well. "-doing anything of the sort. May I ask you to retell the encounter?"

"I cannot."

"…Hmm, I see. Why do you refuse?"

"I am not refusing. I simply cannot tell what I don't know."

"What? You don't remember?" Marimo blinks, turning to look at the others.

Mion coughs, taking one step forward. "It seems Kurama has lost her memories of her encounter with Shirogane. We found her collapsed on the bridge as we told you, but even now she cannot recall what transpired, it seems. Everything else, however, she should be able to detail," Mion accentuates, remaining staring at Marimo to gauge intent.

Slow steps the Instructor takes around the gurney, nodding down. "Then tell me what happened before, if you know how the cadets were… ambushed. You may speak freely, there are no bugs in this room," she confirms, nodding not only to Kurama but to the rest, who flinch at the mention.

Shion and Nanase share a look, dispelling their tension or lack thereof, while Mion sighs long from her nose, returning to her cousin's side and giving a minute nod.

Kotori, however, shakes her head and drops her chin into sorrow. For a moment, she contemplated deflecting the question mirroring Shinohara's prior words, if the cousins failed to gain footing as she had expected. To safeguard the road forward to remain serving actively, much like water to flow ever onwards over the cracks and rifts in their ranks.

But the pain in her neck as she moves it minusculy, the general strain on her whole body, through the crack of her waist down to the petrification by her ankles, and up to the knotting gears in her shoulder blades which crack audibly when she squirms, it all makes her lips continue to whir about.

The more they move, the more the wounds reopen. The more iron she tastes, lapping it all up. And yet she soon also tastes salt, but it makes her stomach drop like an orbital diver onto laser fire. Spikes pinch her face, again, as well as her neck.

"…I am not a dog of his," Kotori whispers, lightly beginning to frown as she bites proper and causes a sliver of blood to spill from her lip. "Despair after I perish… that is what I must do."

"Pardon?" Marimo asks, not having heard clearly and frozen by the expression.

Cleaning her mouth with a slow sweep of her tongue, Kotori takes in a deep breath to try and clear her mind from the painful lakes flooding it. Soon enough, the rest are assaulted by a similar pain, their ears ringing in flatline as if pushed underwater and suffocating. Suffocation, is what Marimo would have desired to give a taste of to Kurama as she goes into minute detail of the assault onto the cadets, yet her stomach falls deep when the Imperial Guard tells that was the beginning with what would more resemble a bow from her restrained posture.

However, the door is then knocked on. The corporal from before peeks in, Marimo approaches and is notified of the presence of the officer that came along the Ravens, catching a glimpse of the wrinkled face and graying hair glaring at her beyond into the hall.

"…Understood, we were finishing anyways. Buy me a moment," she tells, nodding and closing the door, ignoring the indignant boom of a voice on the other side. "We're short on time. Nanase, I assume you wish to collaborate with us to stop your squadmates?" she asks in a low voice as she mvoes to release Kurama.

The captain sighs heavy but nods all the same, glancing at the cousins who return the gesture firmly.

Marimo then takes a step back, eyes on Kurama's still apathetic expression. "…What of you? Will you heed Shinohara's orders?"

"Outwardly, I must."

"…Even against Mitsurugi?"

"There is no choice for me," Kotori says, pointing to the insignia by her neck. "Shinohara has my Lord Brother's blessing, disobeying my fiance would equal being disowned."

"Wh- What?!" Shion gapes, expression glitching and twitching as Kotori simply nods.

"Why the surprise? He never truly had a use for me… I am but part of an offer, nothing else," she shakes her head, standing and moving to the door.

Marimo blocks her partway to it, the shouts barely outside seeming to raise slightly. Holding the nothingness with a gorgon, the lack of any reaction cracks at her. "Only outwardly. You still spoke up on these… indignities," she says, flinching as the corporal has to raise his voice, undertones of a small physical scuffle coming through the wood. Marimo sighs but nods down at Kurama, "Would you be willing to cooperate with us?"

"…Within my boundaries, if my orders so allow."

"I see… I won't keep any of you any longer. You may leave. Oh, and you are free to visit the medbay," Marimo offers to Kurama as she steps away from the door, nodding with a wince. "Allow me to apologize in Shirogane's stead as his Instructor, the UN meant no offense at you, 2nd Lt Kurama," she tells in formal speech, giving a salute.

Kurama returns it, tiredly and silently. "So I shall. Are you coming with, Captain?" she asks.

Nanase runs a hand through his hair, standing and nodding. "It's for the best that we leave together and align our words. Sergeant," he salutes, Marimo nods back, Nanase then nods down and whispers further below, "I hope we can find a solution to this soon, and keep an eye on the comms. Shinohara was intent on getting rid of Shirogane Takeshi, for whatever reason," he says.

Kurama nods, folding her arms slowly behind her back. "His sudden appearance was a concern, after all. Unknown factors are disliked in the IRG," she tells in monotone, sighing at the end.

Marimo nods yet blinks oddly, folding her arms. "I see… Yes, I concede his situation is peculiar. However, are you sure you got the right guy on your sights?"

"Hm? Why do you ask?" Nanase asks, the other women also tilt their heads in puzzle.

Marimo furrows her brow as a knock comes onto the door, she sighs and rubs her temple. "Well, our Shirogane isn't called Takeshi."

"Pardon?" Mion also blinks oddly, asking if the kanji they had spoken of before was indeed his name.

Marimo nods, shrugging. "That is his name, but it is not read as Takeshi. He's Shirogane Takeru. Have you been misreading his profile, perhaps?" And if they received a profile, this means there was an order to deal with him… Yuuko's order to extract him discreetly now sounds more ominous.

"Takeru… Shirogane Takeru," Kotori repeats, bobbing her head as numbness spreads on it and she curls her lips, softly.

The cousins share the sensation for a second, before knocking hits the door once more. Marimo coughs and opens it, leaving first and engaging the officer in apologies and pleasanties, thanking them for their willingless to hold talks so deep into the night, Nanase jumping in to quell the disquiet raising in the old man.

Kurama shares a momentary look with the cousins, all three seeming equally lost in tight expressions, before a call from the officer has Kotori quickly leaving the room and extending empty platitudes and explanations, asking to be taken to medbay soon.

In the hallway of flickering lights the two Ravens match the other's telling, masking the other's breach of trust, Kotori's impassible facade giving some credit to the words and having the officer stop its pressure.

Some steps behind, Marimo and the rest of the UN crew arrange shifts and patrols, a perimeter to watch the vessel of the Ravens and possible connections they may attempt to employ, quickly marching off to their orders.

Both cousins, the last to leave the room, simply return a small salute to Marimo who, without a second to spare, tells them to reach out if anything were to occur, and that she'll reach out when she learns of anything. Agreeing to put some distance to mask their makeshift pact, the cousins return before her to the upper floors and, rather than remain in alert along the UN or go to the other Imperial officers, they march down away from the building, from the docks, directing themselves to the beach nearby.

Descending a small hill tickled by the seabreeze and its salty sheet, some puffs of clouds masking yet allowing the filtering of moonlight to shower down, by its grace Mion and Shion can appraise the grand visage of the sea, its sameness of dark blue stretching calmly along the gentle, constant rustle of the waves. Even ground gives up to firm but shifty sand, a pathway marked on it which they follow.

Simply standing there, near the shoreline, both take in air and let loose their breath and extend an arm or their necks, admiring the many stars visible on the dusk.

"I can't believe he truly would be given leave," Shion protests, pinching her nose.

Mion sighs and lets her ponytail come unformed, the singular thread expanding along the breeze into a wider curtain as she raises her chin into the soothing wind. "One of the perks of the IRG being above the rest of the domestic forces. To decry one of us is to decry one's fellowship. If the UN formally takes custody or interrogates one of us, it is obvious a formal counter would arrive. And considering who she must look after, I believe the Instructor conducted herself appropriately."

"Honestly, I thought she was going to simply bow down to Shinohara like the other officers of the UN Farces," Shion repines, also untying the knot of her hairbuns, massaging her head from the top and down, tilting her neck and sensing knots of pressure down below. "Ugh… Considering Kurama was not willing to speak freely after his threats of taking this to her brother, I fear the web of colluding may spread farther than we think. Honestly, I can't believe I pity her… What kind of brother would sell her sister's hand to such a lowlife," she hangs her head, raking her forearms as the cackling, confident retorts of Shinohara worm back into her skull.

Mion steps closer to the water, crouching to run a hand into the sheet of cold dampness to try and forget the smacking sounds of the whip. "All to safeguard the honor and glory of the Empire even if the sakura are tainted red, huh… How misguided can someone be, to think peace can come to be in our time by watering it in blood."

Shion remains standing, frozen, enjoying the breeze and the glistening ellipses of moonlight on the waves. "…We could have ended up like Shinohara, if not for Shura's Dance. Many still harbor deep-seated hatred for the UN and the US not only for Lucifer but for all of the invasion. Carving meaning from the bloodshed may… have left us in that same state, if not for Raiko-sama taking us under her wing," Shion admits, sighing with a slack expression.

"I loathe to admit that I do share part of his views, for us to not sell Meiya-sama to the UN nor risk her being used as a hostage against the Shogunate… but I doubt he hold such noble intentions for not even during the invasion did we fell to so revolting methods," Mion nods in constant wince, brushing circles on the chilly sea.

"Kurama's actions are not justified, even if she received a fair retribution from that Shirogane, but in her circumstances there's little else she could have done… To think returning to the shadows is more enticing a prospect than remaining serving her own House," Shion pinches her nose, knowing what it means for Kotori to have spoken freely as she did.

"She seems oddly intent on not letting despair afflict her, all to 'gift a smile to the future from the shadows'," Mion sighs, the coldness of the sea crawling up her arm, unchallenged and instead welcomed. "It is no wonder Kurama took such drastic choices and became so cynical, when her own family sold her off so. Still," she stands, shaking her hand and touching it to her forehead, "Shinohara was incited and allowed to act as such by one of ours, someone who Kurama's Lord Brother, a high Fudai, is in league with, and the UN expected this turn of events, it would seem. The Sergeant remained unfazed, even if repulsed, adusted all throughout our report and Kurama's. I fear Yokohama may have prepared legal actions in advance."

"…Perhaps the Reaper is part of this colluding, and the UN is actually behind it all."

"Shion, come on. Not now. And we have our fair share of overzealous fellows. Must I remind you our arguments with the IJA patrols in our scavenging of Niigata or when returning to Tokyo?"

"Sigh… No, every time Makabe or Sagiri open their mouths I want to shove a fist in them," Shion remains fuming, walking into the tide, up to her ankles. "However, that has nothing to do with the matter at hand. She's THE Major Jinguuji, the solitary and infamous Reaper of the IJA, one of the commanders in charge of Shura's Dance. Someone the likes of her, allowing Shinohara a free roam pass? We should be taking immediate action to retrieve the cadets, but rather than requesting our formal aid she tries and parley, for some reason," she says, nibbling at her lips and stomping at the incoming tide. Her heel catches onto something solid, she crouches and unearth a small seashell. Almost cradling it, she lifts it onto her ear.

Mion, eyes closed, rubs her temple as she walks closer and lets the tide sweep in to calm them both, boots be damned. "Let us not, Shion, this is her job as an Instructor and the one in charge of this CCSE in the UN's stead. That is telling enough, considering her current rank. I only hope Meiya-sama is not led astray by that man and can avoid the Ravens. We should take turns sleeping to ensure we're not left out- Shion, what are you doing?" she wonders as she turns, raising a brow and dispelling her tension.

Shion twitches, quickly lowering the shell. "Nothing, just hearing the sea."

"…Pfft. That is so silly of you. Remember when we collected seashells when we were little?" she asks, staring out into the sea.

Shion nods, lifting half a smile. "Yeah, those days were fun… Why did we start collecting these things, again?" she wonders, again bringing the thing to her ear and getting lost in its slow inner echo.

"Weren't we wanting to hear the sea inside them? I mean, you're still doing that. And you have the shells we got back then."

"You still have them too," Shion counters.

"Yes, of course, they're a present from…" she blinks, cocking her head. "Who did we visit the beach with back then? …Maya-nee?"

"I think, yes. Siiigh… Do you think we could give Meiya-sama this as a present?" she asks, cradling the seashell on both hands.

"Perhaps another time, Shion. It will be attached to all the ill memories of this place," Mion reasons, turning away. "In any case, let us use the facilities to our advantage. We have a report to craft, even if not a satisfactory one. Maya- No, Lieutenant Tsukuyomi must be informed on the happenings for our new directives and for our fellows to formally inquire on all the threads tied to this matter," she says, beginning to walk back to the dim lights in the distance uphill, framed by the foliage.

Shion follows suit, stashing the seashell in a pocket. "I am loath to admit, this shan't be an easy task if the other Horns do decide to shield Shinohara to avoid repercussions. I can clearly see the UN Farces backing down from pressing charges over threats of 'defamation of the noble Imperial Guard'," she folds her arms, brows furrowing. "Still, with some luck we may get Mana-nee to spare some time and confirm if this Shirogane is an enemy or not. How did he manage to join with the rest, anyways? I imagined the distance to cover would be too much, if Nanase and Kurama aren't lying."

"Running non-stop, perhaps? If he was indeed concerned over his squadmates… No, what am I saying? He was probably running away from possible chasers. Yes, of course… that has to be it," Mion nods, sighing hard as she strolls over the hill.

"This trap is so obvious it infuriates me," Shion seethes, saltier than the ocean, overtaking the still pensive Mion. "What could compel that guy to such extremes, if not an ulterior motive?"

"But he had shielded the rest by staying back against Nanase and Shinohara, who made quite the curious expression when we inquired on the matter… Then Shirogane Takeru cannot be our enemy, no?" Mion softly asks, rubbing her head.

Shion scoffs again, running a finger over the curves of the seashell. "I still believe his situation to be quite abnormal. Down to his name being misread, somehow… Shirogane Takeru, a cadet even the fabled Reaper protects, huh…"

"It's quite curious, no? Kurama seemed to think the same of this Shirogane. Do you think this could actually be a mistake, them targetting the wrong person?"

"Perhaps they simply confused his name, is all. We… should stay away from him, we have enough to deal with at the moment, Mion. Let's focus on safeguarding Meiya-sama, as it is what Her Highness sent us here for."

"Yes, you're right. It's no use, overthinking this. Let us go and try to connect with our HQ. But, who knows? Maya-nee could have heard something from Mana-nee about that Shirogane with some luck."

"Fine, we can inquire on this Takeru's situation… Siiigh."

"Are you feeling well, Shion?"

"Yes, just… I don't know, I'm," she fumes from her nose, folding her arms tight again, "upset at everything, I suppose."

"Come on, now… Why don't we have some tea beforehand? We may catch Kurama on the halls, we could ask her if the name jogged her memory."

"Yeah, let's get some dinner. I don't think I can write a proper report as I am now," she admits, rubbing the back of her head.

"More so now that it has to contain more than three pages."

"Don't you get cocky on me, you dumb pickle."

"Wh- Shion, what did Maya-nee said about calling me a pickle?"

"Serves you right for being so salty all of a sudden."

"I haven't called you that in… years. Actually, why- when did you start calling me that way?" Mion asks, steps almost faltering to the sand below.

Shion blinks back, lips opening but weaving no words as she steps back, also almost falling to uneven sand. "I suppose, when we were little, no? You and I did not get along that well before, and I must have tried to get to you when you criticized me, as you did now with such salt."

"I see…" Mion palms her forehead, lost in the stars above. "Why salt?"

"Huh?"

"Why use salt as a negative adjective?"

"I… don't know? We were really little back then, I may have been in an ill mood."

"So it was just another Monday for you, huh…" Mion reasons as she runs a hand into her swaying hair, making Shion grumble and tighten a fist. "But yes, we always bickered much… Hehe, the more things change the more they stay the same."

"Siiigh… Yeah, I guess," she shrugs, placing both hands behind her head. Staring out into the sky for a moment, reminiscing on those so distant days, yet cocking her head as she cannot recall when, or why, she had begun calling her cousin in such a way. "Well, we've lingered enough. Come on, let's have something to eat. Shinohara won't be staying quiet tonight."

"Indeed, I do not expect him to catch a wink of sleep after his answers when we tried interrogating him. Plus, we may be able to give the Sergeant an update if Maya-nee gives us new directives."

Both nod at each other, taking a moment to pray for Meiya to find sanctuary during the night, away from any dangers before returning to poker when marching into the small building, Shion again lost listening to the whispers of the seashell, to the point she catches Mion's sour, salty gaze and lends it to her despite mild attempts at deflecting the matter.

At least finding some solace in these chaotic days.

---

In the closing days of January, 1989.

---

An orange tint showers the room from the window, thickets of clouds flaring in spreading of the same shades and almost making it possible to stare at the gentle sun of twilight.

Yet in that room where only sterile odors reside along its apathetic, usually blank walls and sheets. Monotonous and empty of meaning, save for the small beeping of a machine drawing arcs in its tiny monitor. Connected to it, to its patient are a few wires, an IV. Also a small, steadfast lock that won't part open, fearful that everything will fade away if he lets go. Much like the incoming promise of dusk vanishing light.

"Come on, Takeru," Miho says, a sliver of the usual, ruffling his hair in lethargic motions. "I told you, I am truly okay."

He sniffs, hugging her arm tighter despite the aching of his knees to remain close near the hospital bed without being a burden to her. "Liar… You said the same last time, but you're back here."

"It's… because it's getting cold again, you silly," she appeases, toying with his fringe. "Mom only needs some good rest here, that's all."

"Then, when will you come back home?" he asks, moist eyes looking up unblinking.

Making Miho's lips shift, to not fall to the stillness spreading inside despite the aching that stare stabs into. "…Mom has to be careful. I don't want to end up sick again. So you be a good boy and behave well while I'm gone, yes?"

"Yes, I know. But when are coming back?" he insists, hugging tighter.

"I… may spend a few days more here," she sighs, unable to truly replenish the breaths departed fully.

She brings her other arm slowly, to not strain the connections tied into it, to properly hug him. And for who knows how long they remain as such, as if to plea time to grow still. Her hands feeling faint, distant on each gentle tide brushed up and down his nape. Faint and flickering, much as the remnants of sunshine now skirting the horizon.

"…Takeru, come on," she pushes him to look up, nodding. "You have to go back home, don't you?"

"No, I'm staying with you until you get better," he resolves, clinging harder.

"You have to go to school and study. You promised me you'd do well in school, remember?"

"Uuh… But-"

"Now, now…" she places a finger on his lips, smiling and trying to giggle back. "Mom might have to stay in the hospital for a while longer… but you have to do your best even while I'm gone, yes?" she asks, unwilling to explain the coming dusk, wanting to safeguard the gentle twinkle yet residing in those small eyes. "Takeru, promise me you'll be good and that you'll study much, okay?"

"…Yes. I'll get lots of good grades, then. And we'll go eat sushi to celebrate when you come back," he nods up, as if collecting all threads of light unto himself before hugging Miho again, softer. "So you promise to rest well, Mom."

"…You don't worry about me, just focus on studying much," she asks, again bringing him for a soft hug, to linger on that tiny warmth. "I know he isn't that smart, but still, I can't help but to hope he somehow manages to be spared from this awful war."

Simply remaining as such, the labored breaths finally ease up and relax. As if floating in pleasant waters, simply resting. Not noticing the automatic lightning up of the overhead cold lamps, the sinking of the sun. Ruffling the always-rebelling hair and the puffy, reddened eyes below, Miho hums a gentle song and stares at him, as if to capture this moment for eternity. Even if this is but a mirage in the sky, the unblinking staring eventually rewarded with a star. Even if their time together was brief and now coming to an end, the star must resume its trail.

So she kisses his forehead, softly whispering. "Promise Mom you'll stay smiling, okay Takeru?"

"Yes, I will. But when are you coming home?"

"…You don't worry about that. You study hard and do your best. Keep being a good boy and getting along with your friends, yes? And no more fighting. Don't give Dad any more trouble while I'm gone."

"But the other boys are-"

"If you're bad, I will get really angry when I go back home," she fakes a pout, pulling one of his cheeks softly. "So be nice from now on even to those you don't like too much. The samurai don't like people that are mean, you know."

"So if I'm good you'll come back faster?" he asks in smallest voice, hands clutching a bit more the hospital garb.

"…Maybe. So no being naughty, okay?"

"Yeah… but I'll keep visiting until you get better, then we can go home together," he insists.

"Siiigh… You truly do dislike hospitals," she giggles softly, feeling her throat growing sore.

More so as he pouts wild and makes her laugh again. "But nothing good ever happens here. I don't like this place… and those beeps are creepy," he gulps down ice, staring daggers at the arcs signaling Miho's heartbeats.

Noticing his shivering, Miho again shifts Takeru to look into his eyes, firmly. "You don't worry about that, you silly. I will be fine… You focus on being good and studying much, and not making trouble for the people that help you," she says, he belatedly nods. "And what do you have to say when someone is nice to you?"

"…Thank you very much." He says, puffing his cheeks.

Miho smiles, thankful that the small polite gesture has not been forgotten. "Yes, that's right. So, remember to show thankfulness when you receive help, okay?"

"But can't I give hugs to the people I like when I'm thankful?" He asks, tilting his head.

"Hmm… You can, but only to those you really like," she warns, poking his nose. "I never thought Kageyuki's words would make him start giving hugs so often. I only hope he realizes he doesn't have to do that all the time. It was surprising enough when he hugged Sumika-chan out of the blue when they first met…"

"Okay, I get it…" he says, resting onto her arm again.

"That's good to hear. And you also should cut your hair properly," she says, curling the long threads over a finger slowly. He pouts but raises no counter, leaning up into the further spinning of his hair.

For a moment, one last time, they remain so in silence. One breathing slow and groaning, huddling further onto the usual kindness. Another moderated yet growing shallow, aware of the tide pulling back, the tickling of the clock in the corner of vision. Their hands cling harder when the door opens, small footsteps growing closer.

With an expression darker than his formal attire, Kageyuki drags his feet to the bedside staring for a moment before a hand reaches out to the small back, whisper. "Takeru, it's time. Mom has to go for another checkup."

"What? But…" he winces, looking back at Miho.

She gives one final rub to his head, nodding down. "Don't worry about me, Takeru. It's getting late, you have to go to school tomorrow, right? What did you promise me?"

"…I know," he dejectedly lets go, getting down from the bed yet leaning closer, planting a slow kiss on a cheek and hugging again for only a few seconds. "Get well soon, Mom."

A hand caresses the back of his head as she nuzzles her cheek onto him, returning the gesture to his forehead, lingering for a few full seconds. "Yes… Goodbye, Takeru."

"It's not 'Goodbye', it's 'See you later'," he scolds, puffing a cheek.

"Yes, that's right…"

Miho licks dry lips, sharing a look with Kageyuki and wincing. A tremor spreads on her chest, down to her legs and not due to the quakes usually troubling her breathing. Inhaling slowly, to prevent petals to scatter, she smiles down and rubs a cheek of his tenderly, to lift that tiny flower and get one final, good look.

"See you later, Takeru," she whispers, unable to smile this time when languidly letting her hand fall from his face.

And flinching when he suddenly hugs her again, sniffing. "See you later. You promised to get well so be good too," he insists, roots unwilling to depart from the nest, shaking as if aware of the dusk awaiting below.

By a slow massage to his hair little Takeru regains his usual cheer, Miho poking his nose and again teasing to not get him mackerel or natto rolls when she gets out which gets him pouting again. For at least one last time, she basks in the shine of that stare, of all the past days shared since then. Her heart quivers, stabbing, hands cling to the flower. Too soon it is to leave the nest empty, a breath too early to send little Takeru to fly on his own day-to-day. But as she looks at Kageyuki, Miho nods and kisses Takeru's forehead again, nuzzling her cheek on his strongly, as much as she could at the time, before turning him to the door and waving away his departing words silently.

After their son leaves the room, pointed to a nurse for the moment, Kageyuki sits down near the bed. No longer having to keep a mask on, he grimaces and lets his shoulders fall off like a rock slide.

"…Why do you not want to tell him, Miho?" he frailly asks, as if he were the one under treatment.

"Can you allow me one last selfish wish? I don't think it will do Takeru good to learn of death now of all times. Once he grows up, I'm sure he'll understand."

"He isn't a little kid anymore."

"But I don't want to have him hurting because of this. Takeru is too attached to me, and you have to stay in the Guard. He's far more frail than you think, Kage," she sighs, despite smiling at the bittersweet memories.

He takes some breaths, running a hand over his face. Kageyuki simply rests his arms on his knees, heaving yet another sigh and bobbing his head. "If that's what you want, I'll keep it from him for a while. Though, I still think I should quit the Guard. Takeru needs me by his side now…"

"The laws say you have to keep serving, so even if you somehow managed to find a job at Hakuryo Base you will end up being scorned as a traitor. No more of this, Kage. You have to-"

"Sorry… If only I had taken you to Yokohama sooner…" His gaze sinks, jaw tightening to prevent any wails to leave.

"Kage… Kage, please…" she reaches out, he gently grasps her hand with both of his, moving his chair closer.

No longer hiding the veil of dampness in his scarred eyes, Kageyuki brings my hand to his face and gives it soft kisses. "Sorry… Sorry…"

Miho leans closer, their hands interlocked as she gradually rests onto his shoulder. "There's nothing to apologize for, Kageyuki. You always did all you could for me, even when I never had anything to properly repay you."

"Don't be stupid… I love you, and I don't regret anything I've done," he scolds, kissing softly, massing her lips in slow motion. "You and Takeru are my happiness, I wouldn't trade you two for anything in this world. I don't care if I could have been spared from the war of if I would have gotten rich if I had accepted that arranged marriage. I don't regret anything. Expect for not having a helper in the house, or moving to Hiiragi faster…"

"Then don't apologize. Let us say goodbye with a smile on our faces, Kage."

"…I d-don't think I can do that, Miho."

She edges a bit closer, enough to put an arm around his wide back. Letting the veil of vanilla perfume fill her nose, letting the firm yet silky texture of the dress return the kindness of her nuzzling as his gloved hand gently presses circular rubs on her head, the other carefully embracing her, as if expecting her to fade away in his hold. Each breath of hers tickles his ear, stabs his heart. Each sniff and quiver of his do so to hers, yet it allows the final petals to bloom in her rose, planting kisses on the side of his neck, discovering it all over again.

"…Kage, the doctors said it will happen soon. I can feel it too, it's getting harder to breathe every day, the pain is becoming too much when it appears. There will be no miracle."

"I know… I know…" his hands slip under her arms to support, grasping her with care as if treating an injured pigeon.

Despite the contrast of her white garb with his dark dress, of her lithe body with his now toned build, both hearts were almost in sinking sync, their hands grasping with equal tenderness at the other.

It shows in how the firm expression leaves but a sliver of a whisper, sinking on her hair. "How will I take care of Takeru now? How can I keep fighting with all I've got if you're not there for him, waiting for me to come back?" he asks, creaking by the coldness of the incoming dusk. Almost as if the windows were open in the room.

"…Can't you talk with your parents again?"

"You know how they are. Last time we talked they screamed at me as soon as I mentioned having them visit you. And… you know what they think already,"and I ain't abandoning Takeru to an orphanage, no matter how much they insist on that marriage pact.

Noticing the flaring behind the wincing expression, Miho leaves his shoulder to run a hand through his trimmed hair in comfort. "I see… Can't you ask anyone to look after him, even if you're sent to war?"

"I… don't know. I can't bother Koetsu with all he's dealing with now, and I don't know if he'll be in a position to take care of a kid when I'm called to fight. And adoption is arduous as is under normal circumstances… I doubt anyone would truly look after a peasant child," he admits, hunching over and closing his eyes tightly.

Yet Miho keeps giving reassuring rubs, kissing his cheek again. "Come on, Kage… Last time you said something about Koubuin-sama offering some aid to you. What happened with that?"

"Oh, right…" Kageyuki shrugs, remaining crestfallen and leaning softly onto her arms as he toys with the insignia attached to the neck of his dress. "Kouyou-sama again insisted that he would offer his fellowship's hand to Takeru if I were to die, but frankly I doubt he's being serious."

"Is he someone that tends to lie often?"

"No, all the contrary. I just don't see why a Regent would go so far over a baseborn. He only wants my head focused on these trials to come."

"Kage, stop being so negative. Takeru sometimes gets like this too. Why can't you accept that he might value you much? Didn't you say he insisted on having you in his own squad?"

"I mean, yeah… But I just… Considering how both Tsukuyomi brothers think, how much they value their honor, standing and image, I doubt anyone would truly lend a hand to Takeru. He isn't anything special, and the rest of the nobility wouldn't let this slide either. Even my fellows treat me harshly from time to time…"

"Sigh… But they said they would help him, right?" Miho grabs his chin, fingers roving to his ears to lift and force those reddened and quivering eyes to look into hers.

Eventually, Kageyuki returns a nod, weakly. "At least, I don't think they'll save him from the orphanage. But yeah, Kouyou-sama did say he would offer a hand," he then rolls his eyes, bitterly frowning, "in reward for my stellar performance as an inductee. I haven't the faintest what he intends to do, I am merely a useful pilot…" and that's being generous on me, to be honest.

Again softly massaging the crestfallen flower, noticing the usual apprehension and expecting the worst when in an ill mood, Miho can't help but to smile and again lean onto Kageyuki. "…Then, that's enough for me." You did it, Kage. You showed them how amazing you truly are… A noble wouldn't waste time saying such a thing for a commoner like us, after all.

Catching the frail weight, hearing heartbeats grow slow as do the breaths, Kageyuki straightens hurriedly. "Are you okay, Miho?"

"Yes… I'm fine now. Don't worry, Kage, just… enjoying this," she slurs, letting herself spill onto his firm hold.

"Siiigh… So… You think it'll happen soon?"

"Yes, I can feel it. Kage, don't look so sad please…" she protests as Kageyuki rests her back on the bed, she then tries to raise but finds that impossible. Only able to move her arms, Kageyuki leans closer, allowing her to cup his face. "All these years, I've been very happy. Even if we were apart most of the time, I am truly grateful for all you've given me. So, please be strong. You still have your job, you only need to find someone who will look after Takeru while you remain serving for a few years more."

"…It's not going to be the same and you know it," he grasps her hand, lips shaking. Like all of him, unlike the shackling dress stuck in formal pulchritude..

"Remember when you had to leave for the Eishi Training Program and I had to stay behind? You told me everything was going to be fine so long as I remained strong," she asks, a finger rubbing the underside of an eye of his, which shrinks and, finally, lets one single tear to run away. "This time, you'll be the one that has to remain behind. You'll be the one looking after our Takeru, so you have to do my share too."

"…I will. I swear I'll be there for him when he needs me, even if I have to leave my post in a hurry."

"Hehe, you'll get in trouble for that. You and Takeru really can't follow the rules."

"Hahaha… It can't be helped, I guess."

"…All I ask is for you to keep your promise. Be careful out there, my love."

"Yeah… I'll do my best to return alive," he nods, edging closer to lift her into another hug, resting onto her hairbun. "…You have no idea how much I'll miss you, do you?"

"As much as I've missed you when you were away," she whispers, nuzzling up onto him. As he pulls away, she moves in and kisses his chin, smiling. "Thanks Kage, for looking at me, for choosing me when I had almost nothing to my name, for always coming back home."

"…No, thank you. Thank you for seeing more than just the son of a wealthy family in me, for being there when I had nothing."

Again, they share a warm kiss, indulging in each other's company, driving dusk away. Carving their mark on the other, one last time, even if time will erode all. There were no petals left to shed, winter is already here, snow perhaps about to fall. One of them did not wish to depart the nest of shared kindness, knowing it would never again be, one half forever lost.

"Takeru is waiting."

"I know."

"Come on, Kage… You'll be fine, I know it."

"…I'll still miss you."

Sniffing when breaking the embrace, he leans in for one final, tender kiss as a hand runs over her hair, staring into her eyes. When Miho noticed he wasn't able to move away, she clasped both sides of his face and, driving the rusted edge fully into her heart, pulls his face away from her. Smiling as she instead leans to kiss his cheek, she then whispers.

"Goodbye, Kageyuki. Thank you darling, for everything."

Unable to say his goodbyes, Kageyuki cries on her shoulder for close to a minute until he could regain some composure to leave. Between sobs, apologies and promises, he could never pronounce those words. Grabbing her slim hands, rather cold, he plants a kiss to each, nodding back into the smile before slouching his way out.

Her hand remains waving even as the door closes, then Miho's breaths turn shallow, hard. Clutching at her chest, another hand on her eyes, she coughs and dries her eyes, softly then dropping to the bed.

Looking out the window with the beeping of her heart in the machine as her sole companion, a few stars were visible in the sky from her position. That light of other days is always there, even in the darkest moments of the night. She believes, prays that her memories turn to such glimmers for those two.

Knowing Kageyuki would now be left without a pillar of support, no one to truly open up to. Much the same for Takeru, who is but a child yet. So Miho prays for their safety as she closes her heavy eyelids, aware of her heartbeats now gently hopping as she calmly takes a deep breath.

"I know you'll be fine, Kage. You really are stronger than you think. And knowing Takeru will be in good hands even if something happens to you… Cough… Means that I can now finally stop worrying. I can leave to Mom's side without fear."

---

A/N: Why is it that every, single, time I like how a chapter turns out I end up realizing it also is super long? Always happens. Can't write conscise scenes to save my life…

So you see, I had a lot of small drafts of around 3k words for the flashbacks I put here and others that would come later. That's why I put the prior chapters separated, since I didn't think this would happen again with one stitched chapter ending as large as my old behemots.

I actually split this in half from the original draft, the other half being the initial start of next chapter. I wanted to tackle all the reactions of background characters before the resolution of the CCSE, but folding so many scenes scattered would bloat this chapter and make it harder to follow, and I guess that spacing the events helps the reading experience. I don't know if anyone wants a 60k words chapter, tbh

But here we are and while maybe not needed, I wanna talk this out more for myself than perhaps for you readers.

Incoming Wall of Text of Ramblings before Uploading

One thing I've come to notice, and become painfully aware of, is that as of late most of my drafts and scenes are just dialogue. Not even kidding, charas are just yapping at each other for lines and lines. And while I do like this and all the hints and small stuff they convey through the words, I've realized that's all that happens.

There's no motion, no action, no advancement of a plot. You may recall a prior scene where Takeru and Yuuko go to the underground causality machine, and that was done ad lib in one sitting as it was when I realized Takeru and Yuuko were, AGAIN, simply talking in her office with nothing happening at all in the background, they're just yapping for around 1k words in exposition dumping.

So there's a lot of that in here, lots of micro editing and frustrations spent on if I should put actions to slowly hint at moods or prevent the Talking Heads dilemma. Add that to my flashback bits and how much wordcount they add, and this was a mess which was about to get me into another perfectionist edit run.

Which is why it's coming out earlier, maybe a bit crude out the oven but I prefer decent-ish over perfect since that is an unreachable goal to aim for. This time the metaphors or descriptions didn't wanna click so that's why some scenes are more barebones than usual as I rolled with what I thought was either fitting, funny or both.

I was on the fence on whether or not to properly show more of the flashbacks or to try my hand at slowly making the separate stories into their own fics, but ultimately decided not to overburden myself. Legacy still has the older and expanded versions of the flashbacks if anyone wants the slightly longer telling of Takeru's family so I chose to focus on his viewpoint for the scenes here.

Originally, it was just gonna be the OG scenes spliced in. Then I thought it'd work better as an actual dream, but there was too much purple prose and abstract metaphors that made it confusing, then I revised the OG scripts for the intended viewpoint of Kageyuki, and then finally decided to change it to mainly Smolkeru's view to slightly cut down the fat. The rest of the all flashbck were done in a single run so they may have either a lighter or darker tone to them depending on the scene and if I got the spark then.

However, as I edited and spliced the separated scenes together into a chapter proper I noticed the wordcount had shot way past my usual. Which almost made me start editing fat down from the doc. But it's late and these scenes have taken far more time, nights and liquor than I thought they would, and the thought of revising this again makes me wanna curl under a blanket.

The original intent for this hapter was to serve as a small respite from all the non-stop action and darkness of the prior chaps while building up to the closing of the CCSE. Until the flashbacks, that is.

Going into tangents on background relationships after the events of the prior chapters may seem jarring, more so when there's no payoff to upset the dark shit that went down before, but since there's some days before the CCSE ends, from a mechanical standpoint as everyone gets to the finish line,it's the best place to slip in these flashbacks without commiting to a chapter whole of them. I know they were disliked before, but I already have people understandably going 'Fuck this Shit I'm Out' after chapter 18 so sticking to my guns became an easier choice despite my doubts on handling it in this spliced way.

It's a decent answer without actually outright shoutingThe Plot™through exposition dumps, and have the dialogue be more about hints than forcing charas to explain shit time and again. To put motion to the scenes is something I'm aware I'm lacking, so even if it were small things like drinking water or writing documents or carrying folders or more sensory descriptions I added little details that, on the whole, may bloat the wordcount a bit buthelps with that staleness I keep finding on my drafts.

Or maybe that's just a me problem and this reads fine, I dunno. Maybe I do need to stop drinking before writing. Alas drunk and sleep-deprived Zuoriel is the most prolific version of myself, for some fucking reason.

On that note, and considering the last few comments and pms I got, I want to answer a few questions.

First, yes, I am okay, and if that question was rhetorical then, no, nothing's wrong in my head. I think. Maybe. If there is I blame the liquor and my work's night shifts.

Second, I get how the resolution of Takeru's fight with Kurama may seem lacking considering what came before, but hopefully this chapter did enough buildup for the coming final clash of the CCSE. To be completely honest, the battle with Kotori was meant to take on a darker tone in my original draft. But then I caught myself with how 'our' Takeru wouldn't step down to harm her more, he should be focused on gaining intel to save his loved ones, and Kotori's reactions to his punishment, the less said of that, the better

And while I insist that the story won't be solely dark content and it is a weird flex to do, but chapter 18, or 19 counting the prologue, is actually the best chapter I've made for this new starting arc. Let me explain myself.

As the comments and the few flaming PMs I got show and I expected to, this chapter is brutal and sick. It is teeming with malice by design, it's meant to get to you, to make you, the reader, struggle along the characters. Not only with the girls, but all throughout the chapter you probably were waiting for Takeru to get there and start kicking ass and heads.It is by design supposed to be the 'chomp' of the first arc, to put an example. It's supposed to also submerge you into darkness, and make you want someone, probably Keru, to jump in and start slicing people in half, only literally.

But while the sexual assault is a reversal of the honorable showings of military we have in canon by instead having soldiers be nothing but mercs with ranks breaking any formal vows their position requires of them, that angle's purpose is two-fold.

The first one I already explained, to get to you and show you what darkness lies in this fic. I noticed I hadn't built up much of what made certain factions or characters dangerous in my prior versions so this is a showing of why stuff is more fucked in this timeline. As an example, I don't want the future issues come out of left field as the terrorist attack does in TE, at least as it does the anime since I've not read the VN. That's why I sucker punched myself through the assault scenes, writing what I knew would hurt me the most to read for it to have that same effect when being read.

Some preliminary research confirmed that indeed some cases of cruel abuse have happened in the military, and if you're also willing to lose an evening go and google how the UN in real life has conducted itself on some places. Of course, this is not meant to say all soldiers act like this, which is why Nanase hesitates and thinks as he does during the end of chapter 17.

The Ravens as a whole are supposed to be a small reference to Armored Core, with those games main characters, part of the Raven's Nest or a similar thing, are somehow meant to be the villain of their games in that they're simply mercs doing missions for the highest bidder, morals be damned, as it's their only way to make money in the mech economy of those dystopian settings. Not all of them are like that, and in fact the games in which they're not like that entirely are my faves thus far, the third and fourth gens. After getting to the ending on ACV I had a small idea to make a crossover between AC and muvluv to practice my mecha fights choreography to stop my usual 'dodge this, then shoots and explode, wowzers' style, and mayyyyybe the antagonistic faction I devised for that story leaked into my final drafting of chapter 18. I blame the Zodiacs.

Anyways as I said before the Ravens are a sample of the worst and work for the first goal of chapter 18, which is to instill you with dread since there is no talking with the enemy, the girls can't overcome them due to their failings as an unstable team and not listening to Keru's offers for help, which was a small subplot in that chapter to show their shortcomings.

The second reason why the SA was present is to have the abuse take the focus completely on purpose, to hide the real malice of the chapter.

You probably were disgusted as you read through the scenes, assuming you actually did and weren't skipping through, which I would have if I were a reader. The abuse on sight took over and that's what you focused on, besides maybe waiting for Takeru to appear or whatever. But with the context given on the next chaps, I trust most readers will realize the true cruelty that is perpetrated before and during the SA scenes. And as I said before, the hints are more than obvious. I repeated certain wordings and phrases on purpose over and over and over all throughout the first arc to ensure this plotpoint would land so I won't insult your intelligence further.

As for the reason why this was 'necessary', let me tell you a small tale. A few months ago I was cleaning up since I was moving out. Then I found my old HDD. And lo and behold, my old fanfics were in it! The ones I posted on my first account on FFN before I made this one. I used to write for Yugioh back in the day, you see.

Specifically, I was doing a long form fic on GX Season 3. If you would check, I've used part of their soundtrack on the fic at times, that of the character Yubel. Rereading that fic gave me both awe and cringe, so I rewatched GX season 3, and went into a small dive for what new content this had gotten over the years, the Duel Links events and such.

On that is what this 'malice' is based on, which is why I think chapter 18 is the best crafted chapter yet since it so easily flows with all the hints slotting in nicely without me trying too hard to present it. We can debate whether the details on Tama getting abused are required or not, at the moment of posting I thought crossing the line was needed to hammer home the despair, drop the plotarmor and not make any abstract descriptions fail at conveying the gravity of the situation. Also it's Tama she's adorable and memetic of course this was gonna be disgusting even without the details. But even if some of you are right and the details should be cut, the fact that the depravity happens is enough to divert your attention at first time.

Well, either that or people did catch the cross but don't care about it because of the rape going too far.

And that's something that didn't happen for this one, the easy flow of drafting I mean, because part of me is still undecided on how hard to go on the angst after the initial response these chapters have had, or on how much I gotta clarify certain intents or plot elements to ensure the story comes across nicely due to character bloat on my end.

Not gonna lie, part of me wants to go completely silent and write for myself until I finish then upload everything all at once and then disappear of the face of the fandom. The other is the one that's trying to ease up the despair back to angst and into more manageable content to digest despite the dark flavor of the fic.

So that's kind of why I dumped so much onto this one chapter. To see if I could decide how I want to get to the ending, if I could find some balance between all the issues in my current writing as of now, and what answers I get from you readers after this chap even if I expect either deafening silence or more flames. Honestly, can't say I don't deserve some of either option after chap 18.

Even so I had fun with this one, despite having to redo some parts a few tiems too many. Each scene had a nice hint or two that made it worth taclking despite the length of the end result.

Anyways, this is enough rambling iguess I need to go sleep. Thanks for reading thus far, and again, sorry if the last chaps affected you negatively.

Stay safe

zuoriel