Footsteps echoed across the concrete pavement, each step more resounding than the last.

Her strawberry blond hair swayed with every shift of her shoulder as Durandal strode forward, her head turning and eyes shifting from side to side, looking for something, or rather, someone.

Where is she?

She thought to herself, her mind churning. That woman, Bronya, just up and left her without any explanation, and by the time she went to chase after her, the girl was nowhere to be found.

As she continued to scour the neighborhood, the memory of their conversation crept back into her mind. But more notably than everything else, was the very end where Bronya suddenly got up and left; a behavior so out of the blue and odd that it completely puzzled her on just what even happened.

Did something in the journal trigger her? Durandal doubted that, as she didn't think someone like her would be perturbed by words of all things. Which means there was only one other explanation…

Whoever that was described inside the journal, likely bear resemblance to someone that Bronya might know of, or at the very look alike.

That was the most logical conclusion she could come up with for the girl's strange shift in behavior, one that would make sense of her reaction to finding it out. But she had no way of knowing if that was true or not.

And it's for that reason that she is actively looking for Bronya now, her eyes darting across the myriad of houses rapidly as she tries to look for this girl.

She was in such a hurried pace that when a group of people was walking towards her, all she could muster to their waves and recognize her with this.

"Move."

She bluntly responds, pushing them out of the way without so much as glancing at them. She doesn't have the time nor patience to think of anything else.

She needed to find Bronya, but that task was seeming more impossible by the moment. The woman left nothing for her to reach out to aside from her phone number, and this irritated her.

Whatever the case may have been, it seemed serious enough that Bronya actively chose not to say anything, to hide that information away from her. That notion irritated her more than anything, her expression grim as her pace became far more forceful and resolute.

The anger she previously felt for Bronya hadn't dissipated, and this was only serving to drag it back up for her. She despised being lied to, all the more so when it comes to this. She had experienced far too many betrayals and deception to even think of having to handle another, not when she has so much more to lose from it.

So she kept going, a burning determination to find where this girl was as she rounded the corner of the neighborhood, before suddenly stopping dead in her tracks as she snapped her head to the alleyway at the end of this street.

It was a dark and gloomy alley, no light present at all as she narrowed her gaze, scanning the area until she set her sight onto someone laying on the floor, their back turned against her.

It was Bronya.

Durandal's eyes widened as she immediately stepped into the alley, approaching the girl with her voice raised.

"What are you doin-!"

She suddenly stops, her face scrunched up as she covers her nose and mouth. A putrid smell invaded her senses, making her wince as she tried to figure out where it was coming from. Noticing the bile that spilled on the floor very close to Bronya, Durandal eyed her with confusion.

But that didn't last long, as almost by instinct, her face softened, all the irritation and anger buried away as she rushes forth to her, worry sweeps over her facial expression as she kneels down next to Bronya, tugging at her shoulders as she helps to get the girl back up on her feet.

"Are you alright?" Durandal immediately asked, taking a glance at her face. All she could see was utter shock on her face, frozen in a single state. She looked way too pale for anyone to be in.

"What happened? Do you need to go to the hospital?" She keeps asking, gripping tighter onto her shoulder to keep the girl steady, as if all the anger she had felt before suddenly dispersed. It was only until Bronya grabbed her wrist as she pulled away, standing on her own two feet did she let go.

"I-I'm fine…"

She responds, her voice raspy and almost shaky, her eyes seeming glazed over as she looks away from Durandal.

"Are you sure?" Durandal didn't quite relent, still eyeing her with great concern.

"Yeah, just…I think I should head home."

Bronya mindlessly spoke, turning her back against Durandal as she slowly walked towards the exit.

"...Wait."

Before she could, Durandal called out to her, making her pause. The blonde's eyes still carried an understanding concern for her health, but it was now mixed with something else, something that gnawed at her.

"When you panicked at the end of our previous conversation, what was it that made you like that?"

"..."

"You must have figured something out, correct? Will you tell me?"

Durandal steps closer.

"I don't know."

"Huh?"

Then she stops, the curt answer stunning her into brief silence.

Without saying another word, Bronya resumed her pace, only to be stopped by the girl quickly snapping out of it as she grabbed onto her wrist.

"Please wait! What do you mean you don't know? Surely you have to have figured something out? What was that reaction if not for that?"

"I told you, I don't know. I'm sorry."

Once more, Bronya refuses to say any more, only leaving Durandal in deeper shock at her words.

"Please let go of me," Bronya mutters, gently tugging her wrist out of her grasp. For a moment, Durandal's hand falters, before suddenly gripping firmly against the silver-haired girl's wrist again.

"I don't believe that," she states, her eyes narrowing.

"You reacted strangely at the end of our previous conversation, why? Was there something I said or in the journal that got your attention? Did you realize something I didn't?"

"..."

"You know something, don't you? Something must have clicked in your head when you read that journal, and from how you reacted to it, it was much more than just a simple trivia, wasn't it?"

"Listen, I don't know-"

"Cut that out."

Before Bronya could even finish, Durandal shuts her down, an edge to her tone that made even Bronya freeze.

"You do know, and whatever that is, has to be related to this somehow. Something that would make you react like that…do you know someone that looks like that?"

The question made Bronya's entire body tense, her head lifted slightly. That was all that Durandal needed.

"Who is it? Can you tell me your name?"

"I told you I don't know what you're talking about."

"Do not lie to me again, Mrs. Bronya."

What once was firm deduction now turns into clear animosity, Durandal sparing no reason to hide the very fact that she has yet to get over what Bronya had said to deceive her, and now even more so when she is actively denying all chances to open up to her.

"L-let go," Bronya stutters, trying to yank her arm away, only to be pulled further into Durandal as her grip tightens ever so more, her eyes like daggers peering into Bronya's back.

"If you continue to withhold information like this, then I will have no other choice but to consider you as an accomplice to the suspect."

"A-accomplice!?" That seemed to jolt the girl visibly, turning to finally face Durandal. Her eyes widened, her expression still holding a pale complexion, yet now flashed with shock and confusion.

"For covering a potential suspect of an active police investigation. For lying to an officer and intentionally hiding crucial info."

"Listen, you got the wrong idea! They aren't the suspect here!"

"So you admit that you do know someone who bears resemblance to the one described in the journal?"

"I-" Bronya stuttered, unable to hide it anymore. "But they aren't suspects! They don't have anything to do with this!"

"And how do you know that? Based on what factor can you be certain that they are clear of any possibility of being involved in this?"

"I…they're my friend," Bronya finally manages to say it, looking Durandal in the eyes. "I know who they are."

"...A hunch."

Durandal simply states, her head lowered as her gaze grew ever colder.

"You're basing it all on a hunch, a hunch that your "friend" was not responsible for the orchestrated murder of an innocent person."

"Stop it…"

"A hunch that your "friend" was't responsible for the kidnapping of an innocent girl, even after your reaction to the info in the journal. A complete hunt based on nothing more than your own feelings towards someone."

"I said stop it…"

"I will not. My sister is in danger, and I will not tolerate your bias any longer."

"Just stop!"

Suddenly, Bronya raises her other freed hand, aiming at Durandal's arm gripping tightly on her wrist. The woman catches it effortlessly, keeping both her arms captive as she pulls her closer.

"What do you really know about them?"

"...What?"

The question caught Bronya off guard, her eyes frozen in place as she stared at her.

"Do you really think you know your 'friend'? That they aren't actually just tricking you into believing what they want you to believe? That they aren't showing you parts of themselves? Do you really think you actually know them?

"Because all I see is someone too cowardly to acknowledge they know nothing but that 'friend' of theirs, and is willingly choosing to look over the death of an innocent and another person's fate; all because they think they know better. A disgusting action that makes you just as bad as the murderer."

"..."

A brief moment of silence ushered within the room, the two locked into place.

Then, a voice echoed.

"...the hell…"

Durandal's ears perked up by the quietly whispered word, but before she could even pick up on it, her head is suddenly flung violently forward, a knee colliding into her face as it knocks her back completely, her body stumbling to the ground as she slumps onto the wall.

Durandal grunts from the pain, eyes dazed as she turns to her attacker. Bronya stood with her body shaking, her chest heaving as her shoulders rapidly fell.

She grits her teeth, her words coming out like a roar; her eyes peering into Durandal's soul.

"What the hell do you know about Mei, huh?!"

She shouts, her voice exasperated as she glared down at Durandal.

"Just what the hell do you know about her?! Nothing! You know nothing about her! I do! She would never do this! She would never do any of this! She is not that kind of person, I know she isn't! She could never-Mei would never-!"

She continued, her voice growing frantic and erratic, not even seeming like she was talking to her, but rather just to convince herself now. Her ears ring and her headaches, yet Durandal still had enough mental fortitude to ask her.

"Who's…Mei?"

Bronya's pupils dilate, almost as if she just registered Durandal's presence again after all this time. She glanced at her, those eyes shaking with conflicted emotions before she grits her teeth, snapping her head away as she once again stormed off, leaving Durandal alone in the dark and alley.

Durandal clumsily stood back up, her arm outreached in futility as she watched her disappear from her sight. Her lips thinned, no noise echoed out of her mouth as she gently cupped the fresh mark on her cheek, feeling the burn seeping through her skin. She flinches, pain seeping through her senses more clearly now than ever, her head spinning a bit as she could barely keep herself upright.

She looked towards the alley exit, the girl long since vanished from sight. Regardless, she got the suspect's name at least, she can deliver that to Rita and the others and quickly locate them.

But…

"...damnit."

She quietly mutters to herself, planting her palm against her face as she bites her lips.

She twists the knob, an audible clank reverberating on the other side of the doorway.

An awkward smile plastered across Kiana's lips, rubbing her cheeks in exasperation.

Well, it didn't hurt to try.

After lockpicking the door opened, the Kaslana spent all her time scouring every room she could in this house, trying to search for any possible exit beyond the front door. Alas, the result of her efforts were less than fruitful.

For one, she had come to realize that the only proper exit in this house was the front door of which she just now confirmed is securely locked on the other side. Two, there was no visible window that she could climb out from, only reinforcing the fact that not a single soul outside this place would even know she exists here. And third most obvious yet still notable point, there were no electronic or cellular devices she could use to contact for outside help.

For all intents and purposes, Kiana was like an animal trapped in a cage, a large curtain covering it just to rub it in a little more. There was essentially no way out of it.

Well, almost no way out.

Her second point wasn't completely accurate, as there was in fact one singular window inside this entire place, and it's one located right where she was originally kept in before that woman moved her to a more proper bedroom.

It was an empty room saved for a small mattress and an old tv, with the window being situated at the top of one of the walls. However, there were certain caveats to this that made the option of escaping through it difficult. The first being that it was way too high for her to reach normally, thus needing some kind of leverage to keep her supported. And the second being it's incredibly small frame, barely able to fit even a child through it, let alone a grown person like her.

But even so, it was her best bet.

Kiana fell into deep thought, resting her chin on her hand as she closed her eyes to focus.

If she was going to escape through that window, she would need to find something to help support her high enough to reach it. Not only that, she will also need to break the window, scraping off all the shards just enough to give her a safe enough space to crawl through without seriously injuring herself.

For the first point, she had tried to find anything that might fit for the job. However, most furniture, however few there are around here, was either way too short to work, or way too high and heavy to move.

She has no clue on how she was going to solve the second point, with how barren this house is, save for the few utensils and bowls left for her back in the bedroom. She never quite noticed it until now, but this place was seriously lacking in so many things besides the very bare minimum that she wonders if that woman had only just moved here.

Nevertheless, there was also the factor of time as well. Kiana had no clue on the time in which the woman returns, making it so that even if she manages to figure out the first two points, it wouldn't matter in the end if she ends up being caught during the act.

With that, the girl sighs, a long and drawn out one as her shoulders slump in defeat. There were too many variables to consider, and she was neither smart or clever enough to find a solution for each one.

"...hmm."

This feels familiar.

Somehow, the girl felt an odd sense of deja vu, as if she had been in a similar situation as this. The girl quickly shook the feeling off however, returning her focus on the task at hand.

For now, whether she can find a way to fulfill the first two points is not important, what is important is finding the time in which she has free reign to move about without being restricted.

That would mean figuring out when that woman leaves the house, and when she returns. If Kiana can at least get that timing down, then it would reassure her enough to freely move about without constantly being wary.

That said, even that is going to be difficult without some kind of device to tell the time. She can always keep a mental note of it, but she would rather have something more reliable to work with.

...Maybe I could try to…

The idea made her sweat a little, finding it way too bold even if it is just a simple request. Still, if she really wanted to accurately tell the time, then this was the best choice she's got. She would need to muster up quite the courage for it though.

She gazes at her hand, a slight tremor visible through her joints. She takes in a deep breath, shutting her eyes for just a moment before reopening them, those bright blue eyes gleaming with conviction as she balls up her palm tightly.

It didn't matter how risky things would get for her, Kiana had made up her mind. She won't be a sitting duck waiting for someone to come save her, not anymore. It was her life, and she was willing to go all the way to take it all back; for herself, and for those that still care for her.

The girl lifts up her gaze, now facing forward both figuratively and literally. She will keep facing forward, unwilling to let herself falter again, because she now knows, no, realizes, that there are those waiting for her at the end of this long and drawn out path, waiting for when she will finally reach up to them, and to thank them for sticking by her side all this time. That was her promise, her conviction, and she'll be damned to let something like this hold her back once more.

"...Hmm?"

Her eyes suddenly darted towards the corner of the spacious living room, a glimmer of curiosity flicker behind those blue orbs of hers. She was staring at the kitchen, the same one that the woman had sat her down yesterday as they ate; she never paid any attention to it back then.

Now looking at it, she sees that it is actually quite modern and well put together, with a heat stove joining in the middle of a long counter. Opposite of it was where she had sat yesterday, with simple chairs lining against the dinner counter connected with the one with the stove through a smaller side counter that bent into a curve between them.

Her eyes set onto that very counter, narrowing her gaze as she inspected it from afar. A moment passed as she began to walk towards it, her focus never once breaking away from it, until eventually she noticed something odd.

There was a very thin line running through both ends of that counter, completely unnoticeable unless you were close to it. Even then, most people won't think much of it even if they did notice, as there wasn't anything noteworthy to warrant their attention.

But Kiana's situation was frankly much different and anything but ordinary, and perhaps because of that, a thought surfaced in her head, a curiosity that burned in her mind as she made her way to the counter, setting her hand onto its surface.

Following that thought pattern, Kiana grips the underside of the counter, making sure she properly holds it as her gaze remains completely fixated on the object, her breath nervously held in.

Then, just as sudden as the thought that entered her mind, Kiana lifts her shoulders, using all her strength as she pulls the counter backwards.

Click

And like a miracle, the counter budged, moving just a little back with her. She stops, letting out a gasp as she inspects the counter. There was no mistaking it, this was a detachable piece of the kitchen counter, and just the right height she needed to holster her up towards that window.

However, it didn't come without massive risks. Even with all her strength, Kiana could barely manage to make it budge, meaning that it would take her a significant amount of time to not only detach this, but to also move it over to the room with the window. Not to mention the fact that once she does that, there was no chance in hell she could put this back in time and make it seem like nothing has moved, what with how she would be sliding this across the floor the entire way through.

In other words, this was a one time plan, where failure means the loss of everything.

If she does this, she won't get another chance to redo, and even worse, the woman would catch her, and likely never let her out of her restraints again. An all or nothing move that will either grant her freedom, or further captivity.

The chances of success were so incredibly low, and the risk was just as high that it made Kiana shiver from just the thought of going through with it. It was a death sentence, but instead of it being her life, it was her most basic freedom to move about with her own limbs at all; a thought that frankly terrified her to no end.

And yet…

"...Heh."

Kiana was grinning.

No.

She was laughing.

Her voice echoed across the living room, with the girl struggling to contain the laughter within her. For she wasn't laughing at how terrible of a situation she had gotten herself in and was planning on doing, but rather…

Now I remember. This happened before.

The memories came flooding back to her like a tidal wave, a memory that she felt shocked she had forgotten about until now. She would have felt really guilty if not for the amusement and genuine joy that the memory brought her.

It was a memory of a time she spent with Lilya, the two alone together, and the first time she truly felt like she really bonded with someone in so long.

It was only a few years ago, she and Lilya were given the responsibility to put away all the PE equipment during one of their school periods. They took their time with it until the sun was beginning to set, moving it all into the storage room.

But they were so busy with sorting things inside the room that they failed to notify or even notice one of the teachers was at the door, closing and locking it shut. By the time they figured that out, no one was there to open the lock for them.

It was the first time Kiana had seen Lilya genuinely paranoid and nervous, well, as much as someone like Lilya was willing to show outwardly at least. She had never seen the girl so anxious and scared, her small body constantly fidgeting about uncharacteristically as she tried and failed to calm herself down.

Kiana remembered that she hated seeing the girl look like that. She hated seeing her friend look so worked up.

So she did the most obvious thing to do for her; being a complete buffoon.

Kiana would cheer the girl up by making an absolute fool of herself, asking her questions that most would never ask purely because of how nonsensical and dumb they would be when muttered out loud. It helped that she was quite genuine in her curiosity when asking, as Lilya's face of utter confusion and repulsion of how dumb those questions were was priceless.

Kiana remembered gesturing towards a window on the side of the storage room, suggesting that if they can break it open, one of them can crawl outside and call for the guards to help open the door for the other. Of course, there was hardly anything they could use to break down the window, and it was also too high for them to reach up normally.

But even so, Kiana didn't give up, instead she simply grabbed a basketball in one of the baskets and flung it towards the window, much to Lilya's objected horror.

The window didn't break of course, but it shook it quite well. And with that, the two then spent god knows how long inside that storage room, throwing basketball after volleyballs at the window, hoping that one of them would have enough force to break the window, or at least the constant impact from so many balls hitting it would cause the window to break eventually.

It was exhausting, and yet, she did not recall the memory as one filled with tiredness and anxiety. Rather, all she could recall was the sweaty and tired smile plastered on Lilya's face, as the two of them competed with one another in the dumbest competition the two ever had, with the win result being the exact same regardless of who won.

It was the first time Kiana had ever truly let herself act so carefree and joyful around Lilya, and it was the first time the girl had let down her guard and basked in the moment with Kiana. Somehow, just for that moment instilled forever in her memory, the world itself didn't matter, and time meant nothing; for the two had each other, and that was enough.

Kiana's laughter subside, yet a warm smile still spreads across her lips, her eyes softened as she cherishes every bit of that memory.

Although, they did get into trouble at the end, with Kiana climbing out of the broken window all scratched up and injured, making Lilya worried sick for her the next day. She even had to make a promise to her that she would take Lilya to a sushi restaurant later when she recovers, just so the girl wouldn't berate her for being so careless with herself.

Oh right, come to think of it, she never did fulfill that promise to her.

Then…that's the first thing that I'll do once I get out of here.

Kiana thought to herself, her face full of confidence and eagerness. For once, she felt the weight of a promise made and not buckled under the pressure, instead, filled with the excitement to fulfill it to the end. She turned to the hallway, striding forward as she set her plan into motion.

Wait for me, Lilya, I'm coming home soon. And once I do, I'll let you have as much sushi as you want, my treat!

Mei's footsteps lightly echo across the concrete pavement, her expression unreadable to anyone looking from the outside. Her eyes lingered on nothing, opting to stare towards the ground as the woman walked in contemplation, gently stroking her chin.

"Odd…"

The word came out of her as a whisper, a fitting one at that.

For the woman was currently thinking about her friend, Bronya, or more specifically, the lack of her during today's work.

When she went to check on her, the girl wasn't anywhere in her office, Mei only finding out that the girl had taken an unnotified absence from work from one of the people working in the same department as her.

Everyone seemed to treat the news as casually as one normally does, but to Mei, this was an incredibly strange event.

For Bronya was not someone who would ever take a break off work without prior notice, and even more so at the start of the week. She knew the girl more than long enough to understand this part of her.

So why? And why now all of a sudden?

She had tried calling her later during the day, but there was no response, with the call being forwarded into voice mail. She tried texting her, and even that went nowhere. This only added into the list of oddities, making Mei fixate on it far more.

For she had come to know Bronya enough to understand that she isn't someone who would just ignore another person's attempt to reach them, even if they were strangers. She knew the girl was not someone to forsake her position and responsibility just to go do something else, and she more than knows that the girl won't ever ignore her for anything.

So why? What could have possibly happened that would lead to her acting so strange? What could have possibly led to her disappearing so suddenly like this?

What was Bronya doing?

...could she…

As soon as the thought crept into her consciousness, Mei immediately banged her forehead with her palm, forcing the thought to dissipate. It was a horrible thing to think about, one that she couldn't believe she would ever think about now after so long.

For Bronya had made a promise to her, a promise to keep herself safe, and to prioritize herself above anything else. It was a promise Mei had tried her very best to get her to agree to, to get her to finally embrace it; to think that somehow the girl would decidedly break that promise was a terrible thing for Mei to think of.

And yet, she was now worried, paranoid about her dear friend's well-being.

She wants to check on her, to see if the girl is alright. It was okay for her to do so, right?

No, she still needs to take care of Kiana as well. She didn't have time to do both.

That realization only made her feel worse, her head aching as she tried to make up her mind on what to do.

Meit wants to trust her friend. She wants to believe that the girl wouldn't forsake herself for something she once dedicated her entire life on, and nearly died for it. She couldn't bear the thought of losing her; she couldn't bear it when she nearly lost her back then.

And yet that nagging feeling that something was wrong kept eating away at her, a feeling that only served to send her into a fit of anxiety and fear for her best friend's current state, and her whereabouts.

She doesn't want to be right, not for this. She wishes she could see her right now.

And yet she can't, for she had other things and someone else to think about more than ever, and that thought made her feel a great deal of shame and guilt.

God, why can't it just be easy?

Mei sighs, her shoulders slumped as she tries to push down all her fears and anxiety, letting herself steady her breathing. As much as Mei wanted to run over to Bronya's house and slam her door open, she needed to tend to Kiana; that much was a fact.

She couldn't be a nervous wreck around the girl, for that would only complicate things. So for now, Mei can only shake her head, resolving to meet Bronya person to person tomorrow earliest. Before that, she'll pray for her safety.

"Mrs. Raiden Mei?"

A voice suddenly called out her full name, stopping her in her tracks. It was not Bronya, and it certainly wasn't any voice she was familiar with. Who was this?

"...yes?"

She turned, taking a good look at the person that called out to her from behind. It was a police officer, her uniform looking slightly different from ones she had seen on the streets from time to time, still bearing the same medal badge as the others.

But what really caught her eyes was the vibrant yellow hair that flowed freely against the soft wind of the evening breeze, the last few rays of light only helped to illuminate the woman's form all the more to Mei. It was unexpectedly beautiful, causing her to gaze with a wide-eyed expression.

"Are you Raiden Mei?" The woman asked again, snapping Mei out of her light trance.

"Ah, yes, that is me. What seems to be the problem, Mrs. officer?"

The police woman gently bowed her head towards Mei, placing a hand on her chest as her eyes narrowed ever so slightly towards her.

"I am Durandal Kaslana, a police officer from Nagazora Police Force. I'm currently investigating a missing person's case, and I would like to talk to you about it."

"..."

Mei said nothing in response, the wind picking up as her long violet hair fluttered along the wind. The two women stared at one another, the other bearing a sharp and determined gaze, while Mei simply looked at her, an unreadable expression etched across her face.

The only thought that echoed through Mei's mind beyond everything else, was a simple question, one directed at nobody.

...Huh?

AN: Hey, it's been a while.

A lot happened during this chapter and the previous one. Originally, this one was supposed to come out a long time ago, but one thing happened next to another, and I just sorta got snuffed out of my passion to write anything.

It lasted for a long while, but I'm happy to say that it's gotten better now. In fact, it's been a while since I ever sat down and properly wrote something in full again, so this was quite meaningful to me.

I hope you all find this long anticipated chapter worth it. I actually have a draft of this one from long ago, but never got around to finalizing it, and since my style has changed somewhat(I think), I decided to just write a new version. Hopefully it doesn't feel too jarring, and that I still got the hang of these characters.

I can't guarantee when the next chapter will be out. It's hard to know these days. But I can assure you that the plans I have for this story are still here, very much alive, and I genuinely have reignited my passion to put those plans into the page, as best as I can, so uh, hope you will look forward to that.

In any case, that's really all from me. Until the next chapter, I'll see you all!

P.S: As a little something for my return, I'll give some info about certain characters in this AU that I normally won't be able to fit in anywhere else. If you find this to be interesting, then be sure to tell me, I might just keep doing it. Anyways…

Question: What does Veliona think of herself?

-If one were to ask her that, then the likely answer they will get would be nothing, for the girl never thinks about herself.