Chapter 12: Sightseeing

Three years ago:

"Yuzu," Shuzo said. "Would you be okay if I brought someone back home to live with us?"

"Huh?" Yuzu looked up from the jigsaw puzzle she was doing. "... oh! You finally found me a mum?"

"H-huh? No!" Shuzo seemed… taken aback for a moment, and almost sad. "Just… I met this girl! She's two years older than you! And she doesn't have a dad, or a mum… and she'll only talk to me, so the people in charge were wondering if I could foster her. Would you mind?"

"She doesn't have a dad or mum?" Yuzu said. She pouted. "... that's not fair!"

"Yes, but… if you don't want someone else here, I'll listen to you, sweetheart."

"... I think you're the best dad ever!" Yuzu smiled toothily. "So if she needs a dad, she can come here! Hey, if she lives here, is she my sister?"

Her father looked close to tears—overcome with happiness. "If you want," he said. "You'll be the best sister too, I think."

In the present:

Yuzu watched as Sae carefully coached Ayu through a duel—pointing out plays that she could make instead, ways to use her cards to gain higher attack points. There was something nurturing to the dark-haired girl's expression as she spoke—and Ayu was enthusiastically following along with it.

… she could admit that she was a bit jealous.

When her father had taken Sae in, she was a little surprised by the other girl's demeanour (and of course, the scars), but she had also done her best to make Sae feel welcome. And Sae was kind and sweet and gentle and all those things, but she was also clearly… well. Different from a lot of other people. And very determined to not call Yuzu her sister, or Shuzo her father. Which wasn't really a big deal! But it was just…

… Yuzu knew a lot more now than she did back then.

She knew that once upon a time, her dad had known someone who he'd wanted to marry, but that person had vanished before he'd ever gotten the chance. Yuzu had just appeared at his doorstep one day, and he'd taken her in as his daughter without any hesitation.

She now knew that the reason why Sae had only been willing to talk to her dad back then was because he was the one that had first found the car wreck—that he'd been the one to pull Fuyutsume Sae out of the wreckage, and had, upon realising that there was no one else in the world who she would allow to help her, made the decision to let her into their lives.

Still.

Yuzu still wished she could call the other girl her sister. Sometimes, when she looked at the way that Sae acted around Yuya, around Ayami, heck, even around Ayu, she was a little jealous.

… well. She couldn't really do anything about it anyway. And just because she couldn't call the other girl her sister, it didn't mean that she was going to treat Sae any different!

As Yuzu was lost in thought, she noticed Ayu returning to the stands. She blinked and glanced down towards the Action Field. Ayami's mother was currently talking to Sae, along with… Yuya. Oh. Were they…

"Yuya asked mum how he could get stronger more quickly, and she said that Sae should duel him at full strength so that he'll know the difference," Ayami said, slotting herself into the other seat next to Yuzu. "Here." She pushed a can of soda towards Yuzu. "You like this brand, right?"

"Yeah." Yuzu popped open the can. "Thanks. Geez, Yuya's trying to race ahead, huh."

"What about you?" Ayami said. "You want to duel her?... well, I guess you probably do already duel her pretty often, since you live together and all. When was the last time you dueled her?"

… well…

It wasn't strictly the last time that Yuzu had dueled Sae, but she couldn't help but think back to their first duel, instead of the previous one.

It was a long while ago now, wasn't it?

"Trap Card, Snowman Effect," Sae said, flipping over the card. "A monster I control gains attack points equal to the total original attack points of every other monster I control until the end of the turn, but it can't attack you directly. So my Snow Dragon gains the attack points of Blizzard Dragon and Snowdust Dragon. Even with Elegy and Sonata's effects, Prodigy Mozart doesn't have enough attack points anymore, Yuzu. I win."

Right, it was back then, wasn't it? Before Sae had started using those Nekroz monsters and nothing else. She'd always liked dragons, and always liked snow.

They actually… didn't duel a lot, huh? Yuzu knew there was a gap between them… she just wasn't sure how wide it was.

… maybe she should watch then. Not just today, but tomorrow too—not just the practice matches, but also the official match that had been set up for Sae, her and Yuya.

… if they did well, then everyone would think You Show was stronger, right? And then maybe one day…

Maybe one day, she and Yuya would be able to join that big tournament and prove themselves to other people too. Maybe.

For now though, they'd just have to learn!

"... is Yuya really getting beaten to a paste by just Unicore and nothing else?" Ayami said, raising an eyebrow as she watched the duel.

"Don't say it like that!"

… though maybe they had a long way to go!

International calls were always a bit of a bother—Shiori's phone was a very old model, after all. While most phones had no problem with that kind of stuff, her phone's battery drained so quickly that it was more practical to just go to a payphone. Still, she plugged it in and waited for the call to connect.

When it did, Manami was waving at her cheerfully from the gritty screen. "Hey! How are you?"

"I'm fine," Shiori said. She could somewhat make out the background behind Manami—the other girl was clearly in their apartment, sitting on the ground, the bonsai tree behind her. "You asked me to call you. So I did."

"So you did!" Manami looked absolutely overjoyed—at that moment, Risu peeked over Shiori's shoulder and Manami's smile widened more, somehow. Shiori would have to take lessons in that regard. "I wasn't sure that you would, but I'm so glad you did! How has it been?"

"... fine enough." Shiori paused. Carefully, she formed a smile on her face as she looked at the camera. "I passed my exam. I need to go back to the university tonight to complete the second part of the application process—it's still processing right now. But we have some free time."

"So you're sleeping in? Oh, you should go sightseeing! I heard that they have some great museums there, right?"

"There's supposedly a museum nearby that stores old ships," Shiori said. She glanced over at Risu, before turning over slightly on the mattress. "... I suppose we'll go."

It was a small thing, after all, and she didn't have a reason to disagree with Sakaki Manami. (She rarely did.)

"You have to! Take a few photos for me, okay—" Then, Manami seemed to remember the camera quality of Shiori's phone. "Well, have fun!"

Shiori nodded. They chatted for a while longer, before Shiori finally hung up.

… it felt like the world had adjusted back on the right axis. Shiori was no stranger to entering unfamiliar situations—one could argue that she'd gotten to this point in her life precisely because she'd stepped out of the only situation she'd ever known. Still, there was something about speaking to Reiji the night before and speaking to Manami now that had settled things properly—made everything feel far less foreign.

"Can we go?" Risu asked, peering up at her.

Shiori squeezed her hand. "Of course," she said. "Let me look up a map."

The museum was about two hours away from the university by car, from what Shiori could find online. In the end, she decided to buy two bus tickets instead of calling a cab. So they sat together on the bus as it travelled along the cold roads. Risu was excited, as it turned out. She was clutching onto a brochure that did show a few different places in Arctus, and by extension, the wider region of Skanör, along with some 'fun facts' about the area. She'd clearly picked it up from the airport, the day that they'd gotten here.

As the bus moved through less dense parts of the city, Risu pointed out different things that they could see through the window. Seagulls with wings darker than the usual ones that they saw in Maiami, and far larger—though Shiori could've sworn that she'd seen one before. For all that the winter chill still chafed at them, some flowers still managed to peek through the snow. Water lilies drifted on a lake that they saw in the distance, powdered snow on their leaves and petals, like clouds floating alongside the thinner sheets of ice that had broken off from each other.

("What are they called here?")

("Stor nøkkerose," Shiori pronounced slowly—it was rather clumsy. Risu repeated it carefully—their parents had never gotten her to learn Norwegian, unlike Shiori.)

Either way, once Risu finally tired herself out with questions and leaned over to doze on Shiori's shoulder, Shiori looked over at her.

It was…

It was a kind of childish wonder, wasn't it? (The kind that she'd never had?)

… Shiori settled back. Her lips twitched—a brief flash of satisfaction.

… that seemed right.

That was exactly how Risu should be.

They spent a whole afternoon at the museum, wandering around and looking at everything that had been retrieved from the ocean. Obviously, they did not have much money, but Shiori could not begrudge Risu a souvenir—a little necklace with a pendant on it, the pendant in the shape of a bright green treasure chest. Instead of actually wearing it though, Risu slung it around the neck of the stuffed bear that she was holding onto. The two of them left the museum hand in hand.

The bus would only be coming in an hour, and they'd already eaten lunch, so they walked to the park by the bus stop, where Shiori bought a scoop of ice cream for Risu. They sat under a tree nearby, resting in the shade, enjoying the wind.

That was, until…

The voice that she heard was thickly Norwegian in its accent, though the person was speaking in the more common language used internationally. "Excuse me. Are you Fujishiro Shiori?"

Shiori turned her head to the side. At a respectful distance away, a young man with pale red hair was smiling politely at her. He was dressed in a thick woollen sweater—white, with pink stripes. Blue earmuffs hung around his neck—he'd clearly just taken them off, but his ears were already going a little pink. Next to him, a short girl with red hair was clinging to his side and sulking.

"... I am," Shiori said. That was… not a very appealing-looking sweater. "How do you know my name?"

"My sister and I watched the… ah. Maiami Championship." The boy stumbled over the name of the tournament, his accent briefly thickening. "You were the winner, yes?"

"I was," Shiori said. Mentally, she wondered if she could fly back to Maiami and give Reiji Akaba an earful. She hadn't been aware that the Maiami Championship had been internationally broadcasted—she might have been more aware of how she portrayed herself, if that was the case. "And, you are…?"

"Ah." He offered her an honest smile, pressing a fist to his chest. "Lars Johanson. This is, ah, my sister. Olga Johansdotter. She enjoyed your duels very much."

"Brother!" The short girl, Olga, elbowed her brother with an embarrassed look on her face.

"We heard that the leader of the, what is it, Leo Corporation, is setting up a branch here soon. My sister's hoping to join that school." Lars smiled. "I'm already in another Duel School, but I must admit that I am intrigued… duelists from another country are always interesting. I didn't expect to bump into you and your sister so close to home…"

"We're on a trip," Shiori said. She didn't elaborate any more on the reason they were in Skanör—she still did not know what this boy wanted from her.

"I see."

There was a lull in the conversation, before Lars spoke up again. "You see, ah… Miss Shiori?" He'd switched back to Norwegian, clearly more comfortable with it.

"Fujishiro," Shiori said, cutting him off swiftly.

"Miss Fujishiro—ah, Fujishiro-san, you seemed like a strong duelist. My sister wanted a duel?"

Shiori looked at the girl, who was currently hiding behind her brother and shooting him a glare. She checked her phone. Forty minutes…

Risu tugged at her sleeve. Shiori turned to her, and she nodded.

… that was a sign that Risu was fine with it, then. That she wanted Shiori to duel… for what reason, Shiori herself didn't even know. But if Risu wanted it…

Shiori nodded as well, and she stood up. "I'll duel you," she said calmly.

… she would have to make this quick though.

[DUEL!]

Fujishiro Shiori: 4000LP

Olga Johansdotter: 4000LP

[Turn 1: Shiori] [H:5]

… interesting hand.

"Quickplay Spell, El Shaddoll Fusion," she said. "I'll fuse Shaddoll Beast and Reeshaddoll Wendi in my hand."

She used this one… slightly less. After all, defending was rarely on the table for her. Still, if this person had watched her matches in the Maiami Championship, she'd be more prepared for Shiori's more commonly used monsters. So she'd test things out like this.

"Winds blow, skies darken. Oracle's eye that pierces the void, let the shadows dull your reflection, and grant us clairvoyance. Fusion Summon—El Shaddoll Wendigo!"

A large purple dolphin appeared, letting a sharp, raspy cackle. Golden and blue armour covered its head, fins and underbelly. A girl stood next to it—her eyes were soulless, and the purple threads wrapped tightly around her. She was dressed in similar clothing to Shiori's Winda and Construct. In front of her, she held onto a dark staff that was surrounded by a sinister aura.

[El Shaddoll Wendigo (6*/200/2800/WIND/Psychic/Fusion/Effect)

"So that's a Fusion Summon," Olga said, eyes widening. "That's… cool."

Shiori shrugged. No one really Fusion Summoned as much as her—not when she and that summoning method had become near inseparable in the minds of people in Maiami City. If it was what the girl had wanted, she'd gotten it.

"Since they were sent to the graveyard by a card effect, Shaddoll Beast and Reeshaddoll Wendi's effects activate. Beast lets me draw a card. Wendi lets me Special Summon a "Shaddoll" monster from my deck facedown." She put the card on her field.

… she could see what Olga's strategy was before she finished the other girl off. Or she could go for the jugular immediately.

… Shiori was not the kind of person who would slowly guide another person through a duel. It was less that she lacked the patience, and more that it was a kind of effort that she would likely never go through for someone that was not Risu.

Even so…

She certainly could have gone for Winda immediately, and it would have been the safest play, even if her opponent knew her effects. Still, if Risu wanted to watch, she wouldn't end the match immediately.

Manami had realised very quickly that attending LDS without Shiori around was just… wildly different. She really didn't know how she'd even managed it beforehand. In the end, after a few days, she did start to skive off occasionally.

It was just… not as fun. Because having Shiori around had soothed her nerves. People had not stopped dropping snippy comments about her, but it had been more bearable to know that she wasn't dealing with it alone. At the same time, it was nice to have someone to eat with, to talk to, someone who just…got her more than anyone else.

So yeah. Shiori around? Good. Shiori not around? Things were just a drag…

That was why she was surprised (but happy) when she overheard two other students talking, early in the morning. (She'd woken up earlier just to call Shiori in the morning, and of course she hadn't minded—she knew that Shiori would do the same, if it was the other way round.)

"Did you see the livestream? Fujishiro—"

That was all she really needed to know. Getting on social media, she searched up Shiori's name. Not finding any results, she quickly swapped over to romaji, 'Fujishiro Shiori' instead of '藤白 思織'. Then, she found it—someone clearly livestreaming it on their phone. The caption was pretty funny too.

"Saw a duel near the museum and came to look—turns out it's like some overseas youth champion?"

Right, the tournament had been televised… everyone knew that, considering that Reiji Akaba had explained it when sign-ups had first begun.

Heh.

It was nice to see that Shiori was doing well right now!

"I'll set another monster and end my turn," Shiori said calmly.

Olga was clearly startled by it, but she nodded and picked up the top card of her deck.

[Turn 2: Olga] [H:6]

"Draw! I'll activate the Spell Card, Unexpected Dai! I'll Special Summon Aqua Madoor from my deck in Defense Position!" In front of her, a blue-haired wizard appeared, wearing a yellow and green robe.

[Aqua Madoor (4*/1200/2000/WATER/Spellcaster)]

"I'll then tribute Aqua Madoor to set a monster facedown!" A single set card appeared on the field. Shiori watched it, slightly curious. "I'll set a card facedown. Over to you."

… a monster with a flip effect then, or high defense points. Maybe both.

Still, stalling against her had never been a good option.

[Turn 3: Shiori] [H:3]

"Draw," Shiori said. "I'll activate the Field Spell, Curse of the Shadow Prison. Then, I will Flip Summon Shaddoll Hedgehog." The monster that she'd searched out with Wendi's effect appeared on the field, threads tied around its thin spikes.

[Shaddoll Hedgehog (3*/800/200/DARK/Spellcaster/Flip/Effect)]

"Hedgehog's effect." Shiori picked up a card from her deck, revealing it. "... I'll add Shaddoll Fusion from my deck to my hand."

This set monster was not Special Summoned, so Construct wouldn't do the trick… though for a single tribute monster, 2500 attack points might be enough anyway. Still, there was no reason to risk it—not when there was a risk-free way to deal with it.

"I'll Flip Summon Shaddoll Falco," Shiori said. The small purple bird appeared next to Hedgehog.

[Shaddoll Falco (2*/600/1400/DARK/Spellcaster/Flip/Tuner/Effect)]

"Falco's effect. I will Special Summon Reeshaddoll Wendi from my graveyard facedown." She now had four monsters on the field, though she couldn't flip Wendi yet. "I will activate the Spell Card, Shaddoll Fusion. I will fuse Reeshaddoll Wendi on the field with Qadshaddoll Keios in my hand."

The vortex appeared behind her, the two monsters turning into streaks within it.

"Figure with a face of stone. With the light that shines within your stolen soul, lead the charge of the souls corrupted by these purple threads. Let the world be washed to a clean slate. Fusion Summon—El Shaddoll Construct!" The inhuman woman appeared on the field, her purple eyes staring forward vacantly.

[El Shaddoll Construct (8*/2800/2500/LIGHT/Fairy/Fusion/Effect)]

"Scary," Olga muttered.

A second passed, where Shiori waited for the usual phrase to drop.

"She looks a lot like you…"

There it was. Shiori shrugged again. She did not smile. "Reeshaddoll Wendi will Special Summon another monster from my deck facedown. And Qadshaddoll Keios's effect. I will send Nehshaddoll Genius from my hand to the graveyard. For the rest of this turn, all monsters I control gain 100 attack and defense points for each of Genius's Levels. Finally, El Shaddoll Construct's effect," she said. "I will send a "Shaddoll" card from my deck to the graveyard. I'll send Shaddoll Hound to the graveyard."

She gestured forward.

"Genius and Hound's effects activate in that order when sent to the graveyard. When Shaddoll Hound is sent to the graveyard, I can target a monster on the field and change its battle position," she said. "I'll choose your set monster."

Olga's eyes widened—and then her monster flipped up, revealing a version of Aqua Madoor that was far more… majestic, with ice crystals floating around him.

[Glacier Aqua Madoor (6*/1200/3000/WATER/Spellcaster/Effect)]

Yup. 3000 defense points would have walled all her monsters.

"If that monster has any effects when flipped face-up, those don't activate," Shiori elaborated.

And then, for the final thing—the final part of her strategy to ensure that Olga couldn't do anything with her monster.

"Nehshaddoll Genius's effect," she said. "When sent to the graveyard by a card effect, I will target an Effect Monster on the field, and neither player can activate its effects this turn. I will target Glacier Aqua Madoor."

Olga's eyes widened—surprised at how swiftly Shiori had disarmed her monster.

"So, Falco, Wendigo, Hedgehog and Construct gain 400 attack and defense points," Shiori said. Her four face-up monsters were surrounded by an ominous glow, as well as her facedown card, though there were no visible changes for the last monster (for obvious reasons).

[Shaddoll Falco: 600 + 100 x 4 = 1000ATK; 1200 + 100 x 4 = 1600DEF]

[El Shaddoll Wendigo: 200 + 100 x 4 = 600ATK; 2800 + 100 x 4 = 3200DEF]

[El Shaddoll Construct: 2800 + 100 x 4 = 3200ATK; 2500 + 100 x 4 = 2900DEF]

[Shaddoll Hedgehog: 800 + 100 x 4 = 1200ATK; 200 + 100 x 4 = 600DEF]

"El Shaddoll Construct attacks Glacier Aqua Madoor." And since the monster was Normal Set, Construct's effect wouldn't destroy it, and her opponent would take battle damage for once.

Olga winced as her monster was tied up in the purple threads—and then, she took a step back as it was shredded. "That's… so brutal."

"It's what my monsters do," Shiori said neutrally.

Olga: 4000 - 2000 = 2000LP

"B-but you won't get through me that easily! Trap Card, Torrential Reborn! I'll Special Summon my destroyed Glacier Aqua Madoor to my field!" The spellcaster reappeared on the field, having been resurrected by the card's effect. "Then, you take 500 damage!"

An ice spike shot past Shiori's face, but she didn't respond. "Alright," she said. "... I will end my turn."

[Turn 3: Olga] [H:4]

"Draw. I'll activate the Spell Card, Fury of Kairyu-Shin! I'll add Torrential Tribute to my hand and set it facedown!"

Torrential Tribute? Alright.

"I'll then end my turn!"

… that was less understandable. How much confidence did she have in her monster to defend her?

After all, Glacier Aqua Madoor had already lost its strongest defence because of one reason alone—it had become a Special Summoned monster.

And there was no need to explain what her deck did to Special Summoned monsters.

[Turn 4: Shiori] [H:1]

"Draw." Shiori glanced at the card in her hand, before she gestured forward. "I'll Flip Summon Shaddoll Beast." Another copy of the monster appeared on the field, its claws digging into the ground.

[Shaddoll Beast (5*/2200/1700/DARK/Spellcaster/Effect)]

"Beast's effect. I draw two cards and discard one." Shiori watched Olga struggle with the decision of whether to use her Trap or not. Eventually, she gave in and flipped up her set card.

"Trap Card, Torrential Tribute! I'll destroy all monsters on the field! And by banishing Fury of Kairyu-Shin from the graveyard, I'll negate my monster's destruction!"

A large wave washed over her field, destroying all of her monsters. But—

"You just sent all of my monsters to the graveyard," Shiori pointed out mildly, "by card effects."

Olga froze.

"I can't use Beast's effect." She couldn't use both effects of her Shaddolls in a single turn. "But… Falco's effect. I'll Special Summon him to my field in facedown Defense Position. Hedgehog's effect. I will add a "Shaddoll" monster from my deck to my hand. And with the effects of both my Fusion Monsters, I will add both of my Fusion Spells from my graveyard to my hand."

"But you… don't have a monster with enough attack points to win against Aqua Madoor!"

"... each time that a "Shaddoll" monster was sent to the graveyard by a card effect while Curse of the Shadow Prison was face-up on the field, a Spellstone Counter was placed on it," Shiori said.

[Curse of the Shadow Prison: Spellstone Counter(s): 10]

"Spell Card, Shaddoll Fusion," Shiori continued. "By removing three Spellstone Counters, I can use one of your monsters as material. I will fuse Naelshaddoll Ariel in my hand with your Glacier Aqua Madoor."

"What? My monster…"

[Curse of the Shadow Prison: Spellstone Counter(s): 7]

"Water flows in the timeless nature of the void. Rise now, she who cuts off the march of time. Fusion Summon—El Shaddoll Anoyatyllis!" The version of Construct with pink threads looping around her body appeared on the field, having the same… vacantness to her expression as Construct.

[El Shaddoll Anoyatyllis (9*/2700/2000/WATER/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)]

"Ariel's effect. I'll banish Torrential Tribute, Aqua Madoor and Glacier Aqua Madoor from your graveyard." Still, the duel was done. "Anoyatyllis attacks directly." The threads shot out—though they seemed far less threatening from before.

Olga: 2000 - 2700 = 0LP

Winner: Fujishiro Shiori!

Shiori brushed back her hair. She watched Olga get up, the younger girl pouting. "... I'm going to beat you," she said, her accent heavy.

… huh.

"We're not going to meet again," Shiori said, pointing out the obvious. They lived continents apart, after all.

"I'm going to join LDS!" The girl bit out. "Just to beat you! So—just you wait!"

Hmm.

"Whatever you say," Shiori said. It was about time to start queuing up for the bus. She reached out and took Risu's hand, without acknowledging her opponent any more than necessary—after all, she hadn't come here today to duel. She had come to spend time with her sister… and, she supposed, to see the things that Manami had mentioned.

She was ready to go.

On the bus back, Risu turned to her. "Shiori," she said tentatively.

"Yes?" Shiori glanced up. "Is it too cold?"

"... why did you duel?" Risu asked.

Wasn't it obvious? "Because you asked me to," Shiori said.

"So you didn't want to?"

"I didn't feel like it," Shiori said bluntly.

"But you did it because I wanted you to," Risu said, with the simplistic bluntness of a child. Her dark eyes were serious. "Right, nee-san?"

"... yes." Shiori met her gaze. "... I don't understand what you're asking me, Risu."

"You already answered," Risu said, making the situation even more confusing. "... I love you, Shiori."

Shiori furrowed her brow. She raised her hand, patting Risu on the head. "Alright," she said, offering her a smile. "You know I love you too."

With a swift click, Reiji paused the video. He stared at the girl on the screen for a moment.

He was right, wasn't he? Someone like him could never have done it—he was thought to have come from a position of privilege, after all. But this girl, the everyman (or at least, people thought that she was, even if he knew better), had managed to garner attention even outside of Maiami City.

… this could only be promising.

… for a brief moment, he let his gaze linger on her.

Something about her seemed far less… heavy.

(A kinder man would remember that. Reiji Akaba took those thoughts and firmly buried them.)

(If she's happy, he thought, there's no need for me to acknowledge it.)

End Notes:

While it's not plot-relevant, the museum that Shiori and Risu visit in the chapter is based on the real life Viking Ship Museum of Oslo :) Skanör is just the equivalent of the Scandinavian region here.

I didn't realise it when I was outlining the fic, but Shiori really is just collecting all the LDS female characters, huh… even the minor characters. There are like three Glacial Beasts proper, so I'm choosing to assume that Olga's deck was super bad when she started out, and that she got the Glacial Beasts once she joined LDS. So, what did I give her?... just a lot of defensive walls, since Glacial Beasts are a battle-based deck.

'Johanson' and 'Johandotter' are essentially the same last name, but they're patronymic—that is, they literally mean 'son of X' and 'daughter of X'.

The chapter is a bit shorter—sorry about that, it's just how it was in my outline. I can't promise to update this that frequently—my main focus is on my other fic right now, after all. But I'll at least try not to make it four months again :3 Thank you for your support!