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Chapter Text

Performa and Sciencia. Two sisters who founded two continents. Performa founded Idola, and she gave them the ability to power their world with the heart of entertainment. Sciencia founded the continent of Technolia, and their power came from diligence to study the inner workings of magic.

Our story starts nineteen years ago, on the continent of Technolia. 

When a bastard heir is born to the queen with the strangest eyes and hair ever seen on the continent. 

“Magic.” They called it. “This child was born because magic caused one of the parents to be forced into the conception of this child.” 

The father was blamed, when he was the victim. Who would believe the queen would force a commoner into her bed through magic? 

And the father took his son and ran far. Everyone assumed the child died. 

But he didn’t. The child had been taken to Idola, where his eyes may have been unique, but his uniqueness was celebrated. 

And the bastard heir of Technolia was named Yashiro. 

And that’s when his father figured out that Idola was where they truly belonged. 

For fourteen years, the boy was taught in the ways of the heart’s magic, and his spirit soared, never being aware of his heritage. 

A pair of girls a couple of years older than him would always hang around, curious about his movements. 

Kiria and Ayaha, their names were. 

And then, one day, Yashiro and his father wrote an opera. An opera that would star the 16 year old Ayaha Oribe.

And that’s when Sciencia realized that the child had not died. 

He was alive. And he was being trained in the ways of her sister. 

And she grew angry. 

At fourteen years of age, Yashiro Tsurugi became an orphan and lost one of his only friends to Sciencia’s wrath. 

Tiki, a divine dragon. Naga-blood. She saved him, Ayaha’s sister, and Kiria. 

Ayaha’s sister was taken to the palace, to be trained as a Pegasus Knight. 

Kiria stuck by him, through all those years. 

And five years later, at 19, Yashiro Tsurugi is still one of the three survivors of the mass disappearance, the right hand to the leader of the rebellion against Idola’s royalty, and myrmidon extraordinaire. 

Five years later, at 21, Kiria Kurono is another of the three, the other second-in-command to the rebellion, and master mage. 

Five years later is where the story of these two connects to the story of another three. 

The story of a Lord, a Cavalier, and a Pegasus Knight. 

Chapter Text

A certain bluenette lord steps out of a carriage, and is immediately greeted by the captain of the Pegasus Knights. 

“Milord, how have you been?” The Captain says, as she bows. 

“Very well, thank you, Captain Minako.”

“Of course.” She says. And then she winks and ruffles his hair.

“That’s more what I was expecting.” 

“Aw, you were waiting for it, Itsuki?”

“Not waiting for, expecting it.”

Itsuki smiled, as Minako snapped her fingers. 

This was Minako Arisato, 24 years old, youngest ever captain of the Pegasus Knights. 

“You know me, Lordling.”

“Please stop calling me that.” 

“No. You may be a lord, but you’re still adorable. Now, how was the trip?”

“It was fine. A lot of stuffy royals and Technolian talk I didn’t understand. I’m glad to be back home, I wasn’t able to train over there.”

“Well, welcome home! We missed ya!” 

Itsuki was quickly reminded of someone. 

“Is Minato back yet?”

“Nah. My little bro’s still stuck in strategy meetings on the other side of the kingdom.”

“I feel like I’m obligated to point out that he’s only 5 minutes younger than you are.” 

“Eh? I thought you were on my side!”

“I mean, you two are twins.” 

“Ha! I’m still older!”

“Stop bullying your brother when he’s not around to defend himself, eh?” A silver-haired man walked over. 

“Aw, Yu! You’re no fun!” Minako said, flicking her ponytail aside. 

Yu Narukami, 22 years old, youngest ever infantry captain. 

“You may be a bad influence on our little Lordling here.”

Itsuki put his head in his hands. 

“Please. I’m begging you. Stop calling me that.”

Yu and Minako smiled and spoke in perfect unison. 

“No.”

Chapter Text

Yu let out a chuckle before pointing out a Pegasus Knight and Cavelier training in the back. 

“Touma and Tsubasa have missed you, maybe you should say hi.” 

Minako smiled. 

“Yeah, they have. Go say hi, we can catch up later!”

Itsuki waved bye and bolted over to his friends. 

“Touma! Tsubasa!”

The pair looked up at their names being called, and two identical smiles formed on their faces. 

“Itsuki! Hey!” Tsubasa yelled, running over and tripping…

...Directly onto Touma. 

Touma looked up from the ground. 

“As you can see, nothing’s changed.” 

Itsuki winced in sympathy and helped the both of them up. 

“Your legs…?”

“Just fine. I think they’re indestructible at this point.” 

Itsuki let out a small chuckle. 

“I missed you two.”

“We missed you too! You’re the only sword user anywhere near our skill level! The others wipe the floor with us in ten seconds flat!” Touma says. 

“Is that really the only reason you missed him?” Tsubasa looked over. 

“...I mean, no, I missed you as a friend, but like, also, training.”

Itsuki smirked. 

“Last time I checked, I still have an unbroken win streak spanning the past month.”

“And I’m about to break it!” Touma said, twirling his lance. Captain Mitsuru says that if I can beat you, I’m ready to move onto basic sword techniques!”

Itsuki grabbed a training sword from the rack beside them and held it out. 

“Hm, not worried about messing up your fancy clothes?” Touma winked. 

“You’ll need the handicap of me being able to move less.” 

“Alright then! If you lose don’t blame me!”

“I won’t be losing.”

“I have the Weapon Triangle advantage.”

“You should know me better by now. I’m not exactly one to rely on the Weapon Triangle.”

Touma lunged, and Itsuki dodged out of the way. 

Touma lost his balance, and the fight was over before it began. 

Legs were kicked out, and the training sword was at Touma’s neck. 

“I believe that’s checkmate.”

“...Have you been practicing?”

“Nope, you just got too excited.”

“I won’t argue with that.” 

Itsuki held his hand out and pulled Touma up. 

“You’ve got a long way to go, Hero.”

“Ha, you’re right.”

Hero. I remember when I started calling you that…

Chapter Text

Three years ago…

The sunrise after a night of training.  

“I’ve always had dreams of being an actor.” Touma said. “I… I want to become a hero on stage.”

“Really? Why?” Itsuki said back. “I mean, you don’t have to tell me. Just because I’m your friend doesn’t mean that I need to know everything about you.”

“Nah, it’s okay. When I was young, my bio parents ran off. I don’t know where they are, they could be in Technolia for all I care. They were in severe debt and… kinda just left me. I was supposed to be adopted by my grandpa, but I ended up getting adopted by a friend of his. They already had four kids, but they took me in. I’m so grateful for them… but that isn’t the point here.” 

Touma closed his eyes and shook his head. 

Itsuki reached over and grabbed Touma’s hand. 

“It’s okay if you’re not able to talk about it. Just relax.”

“No. I’m fine. Just give me a second. It’s a little hard to talk about, but... I want you to know.”

“Take all the time you need, Touma.”

The redhead breathed in and out slowly. 

“I was so so upset when my parents left. I didn’t know whether I even deserved love anymore. Like… aren’t your parents supposed to love you unconditionally?”

“You do, I can promise you that.”

“I… I know that now, but back then I’d lost almost all faith in the world and in myself, and the only thing that pulled me out of it were those weekly hero shows. Every Saturday morning, I’d go with my sister to watch them, and I’d see the hero almost go down. But they always got back up without losing hope, and it made me feel like I could do that too. It’s almost like… it saved me.”

“...And now you want to be the person that saved you for other kids just like you?”

“Exactly.”

“Well, you are a hero already. You’re my hero.”

“...Thanks. I’ll never stop training so that I can do two things. I can become a hero, and I can protect you.” 

“Thank you, Touma. You’ve been by my side for… two years now? You and Tsubasa are my best friends. And I need you both to trust me to protect you. I don’t know what I’d do without either of you.”

“You’re the prince, it’s my job to protect you. And, you’re my friend. I’d die if it meant you would live.”

“Please, don’t say things like that. I’d much rather you stay alive. I’m the leader, if anyone should die for his friends and subjects, it should be me.”

“...How about this? We agree that we’ll protect each other.”

“Deal.”

And Itsuki remembers the sun rising, and the way it illuminated his best friend. That’s when he realized. Touma was like the dawn. Rising like the sun each time. 

He remembers the feather-light touch of rough, calloused hands brushing a strand of hair from his face. 

...And he remembers his heart pounding. 

And that was when the sun rose, and the tender moment was broken. 

Sometimes he doesn’t know if the last part of the morning was just a dream. 

All he knew is that he craved another moment like that, but it never came. They kept an unspoken distance. 

Was there a name for this feeling? Was there a name for the desire to be so much closer to his friend? 

Hell if he knew. 

“Itsuki…” 

He remembers the tone his name was said in, the… the reverence. And not the kind he got from the citizens. The kind that only one perso- 

“Itsuki!” 

Tsubasa’s voice snapped him out of his reverie. 

“Right, Tsubasa. What is it?”

She looked over. 

“You zoned out for a second there.”

A second? I feel like I lived through that hour again…

“Ah, sorry. I was just remembering back when I…” He trailed off. 

No… I want to keep that moment to myself. It’s probably selfish, but that one moment is ours, and no one can take it. 

“Back when you what, Itsuki?”

“It’s nothing.” 

He snuck a glance at his redheaded friend, and he knew the same moment ran through his head. That he also spent nights wishing that it could happen again. 

...And he also knew it couldn’t.

Chapter Text

Tsubasa speaks up as the trio walks into the castle. 

“Well, I’ve been practicing my singing!”

Itsuki smiled. 

“Great job, Tsubasa! It’s been a while since you’ve been able to sing, right?” 

“Yeah… after the… well…”

Itsuki winced at that. 

“Right. The Mass Disappearance.”

“I was one of three survivors. I don’t know why I was spared, but…”

“I’ve heard from the clerics that you have quite a lot of Performa’s strength. Maybe that’s why you were able to defend yourself.”

“Maybe…” 

Touma glanced over and tried to bring the mood back up. 

“Why don’t you try singing something?” He asked, and flashed a smile. 

Tsubasa smiled a bit and opened her mouth. 

But before she could make a sound, another voice echoed through the empty halls. 

Embrace the dark!

Everyone fell into a defensive stance, and more of the song came into their ears. 

You call a home!

The door blew open and a cloaked figure stood in front of it. 

Gaze upon an empty white throne! 

She threw the cloak off, revealing the outfit of a dark mage. 

A legacy of lies, a familiar disguise!

A blue sigil appeared at her feet, and she raised her hand. 

Sing with me a song of conquest and fate!

And out of nowhere, she kicked Touma’s lance out of his hand and froze Tsubasa’s hands together. 

The black pillar cracks beneath its weight!

She snatched Itsuki’s sword from his hands and used the hilt to knock him down. 

Night breaks through the day, hard as a stone, lost in thoughts all alone!

At that last lyric, an ice burst came from her hands and froze all three of them. 

Chapter Text

The girl smirked, and flipped her green hair out of her face. 

“You can come out now, thanks for the backup.”

“Any time, Kiria.” Yashiro muttered, as he escaped from the shadows. 

“Mizu, you still there?” Kiria said.

A girl with long black hair and a purple dancer’s ribbon tied between her hands entered from another room. 

“Of course. I won’t abandon us like that, Kiri.” 

Kiria’s smirk grew into a small chuckle. 

“Wasn’t implying that. Now, how about us flying out of here?” 

“Haru and my Pegasi are outside.” 

“Haru doesn’t have a Pegasus…” Kiria muttered. 

“My sister Haru, not Noir.”

And then Kiria facepalmed. 

“We need to use the nicknames for them, I swear.” 

“We do…”

The three of them dragged the frozen kids onto the waiting Pegasi. 

“Sorry, girls. Sunburst, Moondance, can you still fly?” Mizuki muttered.

The Pegasi gave a whinny of approval and leaped into the air like it was effortless. 

“That’s what I’m talking about! Now, take us back, will ya?”

The Pegasi bolted through the night, almost like shooting stars. 

After a solid landing, the three dragged the frozen trio off of the Pegasi. 

“Mizu, you handle the Cavalier and Pegasus Knight. Yashiro and I will handle the Lordling.” Kiria spoke. 

Yashiro flipped his hair out of his face. 

“Of course. Let us go, Kiria.”

The dancer nodded and spun on her heel, and a purple sigil lit up the night. The three of them vanished into a room, while Kiria and Yashiro tied Itsuki up. 

A red sigil appeared under Yashiro’s feet, as he sang a couple of notes. 

And suddenly the bluenette unfroze and looked up. 

“Where are they?” He said, voice filled with barely-restrained rage. 

“You’re in the hideout of th- wait, they?” Kiria started, before cutting herself off. 

“The Cavalier and the Pegasus Knight! Where are they?!” 

Kiria and Yashiro looked at each other. 

“What?” Yashiro said. 

Itsuki narrowed his eyes. 

“The hell kind of game are you playing?! Tell me where they are!” And electricity sparked from his hands. 

Kiria and Yashiro just looked confused. 

“You… actually care about your guards?” Kiria spoke. 

“Of course I do! They’re my friends!”

Kiria sang a quick note and froze him again. 

“Did we get the right prince…?” She muttered. “This blue-haired Lordling can’t be the heir to this hell of a country.”

“...We’ve only heard rumors, and this may be a front. Kiria, you saw his hands spark. Performa. He’s acting in some way, and that may be it.”

“You know that emotional stress can also cause the sparks. And there’s nothing more stressful than being kidnapped and knowing your friends are in danger.”

Yashiro’s eyes narrowed. 

“I don’t trust him.”

“Neither do I, I’m just playing Grima’s Advocate here.” She breathed. “The Lordling’s first words after finding himself in a strange and unfamiliar place were to ask after his friends. I wouldn’t expect a selfish dastard to do that.” 

“For the love of the Gods, Kiri! You’re too sympathetic! He’s the enemy!” 

Kiria breathed in and out a couple of times. 

“...You’re right. His parents should pay a handsome ransom of all the excess Performa for their heir back. And we can get some info out of him.” 

Still, Kiria frowned. Yashiro stiffly touched her arm. 

“You know what this is for. All the people who lose their strength from the lower levels. The world is powered by Performa, and she’d cry if she knew how the royals were siphoning all her power for the upper city.”

“Right. ...And we need to avenge Ayaha, and there’s not enough strength in the lower cities to do that.”

...What they didn’t know was that Itsuki was still conscious enough to hear. 

...Siphoning power…? Ayaha…?

Yashiro melted Itsuki again and before either of them could talk, Itsuki spoke. 

“What did you mean?”

Kiria looked over confusedly. 

“About… the royals. My parents. About them siphoning power.”

Yashiro uncrossed his arms, and his eyes widened slightly. 

“...He… he doesn’t know…?!”

And then he shook his head. 

“More lies. Tell me, why do you care so much for the Cavalier and the Pegasus Knight? Are they more of your noble friends?”

Itsuki looked up. 

“Tsubasa and Touma? No, they’re both commoners.”

Kiria’s eyes widened. 

“Tsubasa…? And she looks like that…?!” 

Yashiro looked over, his eyes narrowing. 

Kiria just kept speaking. 

“Tsubasa Oribe…?!”

Itsuki’s hands sparked once again. 

“How did you know that? I never said anything about her surname!”

Kiria and Yashiro had matching horrified looks on their faces. 

She was the one person we were supposed to protect!

Chapter Text

Before they could speak again, Mizuki beamed back into the room. 

“The Cavalier and the Pegasus Knight! We tried to question them, but the moment they were unfrozen…”

The sound of gentle singing reached the room. 

In the white light...

A blast of wind filled the hall in front of them. 

A hand reaches through…

The swirling whirlwind blew through the door. 

A double-edged blade cuts your heart in two…

Two blades of wind cut through the ropes around Itsuki, and a third blade came for Mizuki, Kiria, and Yashiro. 

Waking dreams fade away, embrace the brand new day!

Tsubasa appeared through the whirlwind and grabbed Itsuki’s hand. 

Sing with me a song of birthrights and love…

Tsubasa’s delicate voice flew through the air, a sharp contrast from the wind around them. 

The light scatters to the sky above!

The pair of them reach the door, and run into Touma, who had taken the guards out. 

Dawn breaks through the gloom, white as a bone, lost in thoughts all alone...

And the three bolted into the dawn light, running into the forest as fast as they could. 

Chapter Text

The three of them bolted as fast as they could, before ending up in the lower cities. 

Touma shifted his eyes around the city, and immediately grabbed a cloak from a merchant. 

“Here, Itsuki! Put this on!” He whispered, while throwing a small coin pouch onto the Merchant’s table. 

Itsuki did as he was told, while attempting to take in the sights of the lower city. 

“We’ve gotta work twice as hard for half as much down here…” Touma said, narrowing his eyes. “I hope everyone’s okay.”

“Everyone?” Tsubasa asked. 

“My family. I hope they’re okay.”

Itsuki looked over. 

“You’ve got four brothers and one sister, right?”

“Yeah.” 

And then they heard the sound of a twig cracking behind them. 

Tsubasa and Touma drew their lances, before seeing a familiar flash of green hair. 

“Run!” Tsubasa yelled, before the three of them bolted through the streets. 

Touma veered off to the side and motioned for the other two to follow him. 

They ran, and Kiria kept pursuit. 

“Damn, she knows this place…” Touma muttered, before spinning on his heel and doing a backflip. 

A bright red sigil appeared at his feet and a blast of flames knocked Kiria down behind them. 

“Okay, run while she’s stunned!” Touma yelled, as Tsubasa and Itsuki followed him through the streets.

Chapter Text

Touma bolted down the streets of the lower cities as fast as his legs could take him. 

Tsubasa and Itsuki followed him, undeterred by his speed. 

And then Touma skidded to a stop in front of a house. 

“This is where my family lives.” He muttered. “My sister… she’s training to join an acting troupe. If the two of us gain enough status, we can move our family up to the upper city and live better. She’s the only one home right now, the rest of the family went to visit some relatives.”

He knocked on the door, and a blonde girl opened the door. 

“Huh…? Touma?! What are you…?” She said. 

“Ellie. Hey. This is my sister.” Touma said, introducing her. “Ellie, these are my friends, Tsubasa and… Itsuki.”

Ellie’s eyes widened. 

“T-The prince?!” She whisper-screamed. 

“Yes, now quiet down!”

Ellie stepped aside and let the three of them inside. 

“I’m sorry, milord, my brother didn’t let me know you were coming, and we don’t have much.”

“It’s alright. I don’t need anything.” Itsuki replied, pulling his hood off and shaking out his blue hair. 

Ellie looked almost shocked. 

“I… I didn’t know the prince would look so… normal.” She muttered. 

“He’s more down to earth than you know, Ellie.” Touma said, patting her on the head. 

“Stop doing that, Flash Bastard.”

“Says the Diva!”

Tsubasa looked on sadly. 

“Kinda reminds me of Aya…” 

Itsuki gave her a side hug, and everyone took a moment to relax. 

A couple of breaths and a soft moment. 

“It’s more run-down than I expected down here.” Itsuki muttered. “I didn’t know that it was so bad.”

Ellie spoke up. 

“Well maybe if you royals stopped taking all the Performa for yourselves-” 

She immediately slammed a hand over her mouth, and Itsuki raised an eyebrow. 

“Taking all the Performa…? This is the second time I’ve heard something like that, and…”

Touma looked over, a shocked look in his eyes. 

“...You don’t… you don’t know…?!” 

Tsubasa’s eyes flit to the door, before looking back at Itsuki. 

“So you don’t know why they came for you.” She whispered. 

“No, I don’t…”

Touma sighed and breathed slowly. 

“Okay, do you feel the heaviness around here?”

Itsuki hadn’t realized it until now, but there was a heavy feeling around this area. 

“Yeah, actually.”

Tsubasa looked up. 

“That’s the field of energy around here. It siphons Performa from everyone slowly. The longer you’re down here the lower your Performa levels get. And, as you know, Performa powers magic. And magic… powers the world.”

Ellie spat, and spoke up again. 

“And you goddamn highborns put it up!” 

Itsuki’s eyes widened. 

“W-What?! That… that can’t be…!”

Touma shook his head. 

“Believe it, Itsuki. It’s been like this since your parents rose to rule. At least, that’s what I’ve heard. We obviously weren’t alive during your grandparents rule.”

Itsuki just sat there in shock. 

“I… I can’t believe this. I need to talk to my parents.”

“They won’t listen.”

Everyone turned their heads to Ellie after she said that. 

“You’re not what I expected.” 

She grabbed a bow off the table and drew it. 

“I’m sorry about this, but this is for so many people. Kiria!”

The familiar green-haired girl leaped through an open window and sang into her mic stand. Before anyone could react... they were all frozen. 

Chapter Text

The next thing Itsuki felt was a knife at his neck and a pair of hands tied to his own. 

A black-haired boy with piercing gray eyes obscured by glasses was the one holding said knife to his neck. 

“Try singing again, Pegasus Knight. If you do… the Lordling gets it.”

“Don’t call me that.” Itsuki muttered, on pure instinct. 

Tsubasa stayed silent, while Touma looked shocked. 

“Ellie… how could you…?!”

The three of them were exhausted and tired. Tsubasa couldn’t sing if she tried. 

Kiria threw the door open, and walked in with Ellie and Yashiro. 

“Tsk, tsk… leaving before the party’s over? So rude!” Kiria mocked. 

Ellie looked at Touma. 

“I’m sorry, Touma. This is… for the greater good.”

Touma looked over with rage. 

“The guard isn’t loyal to them! We’re loyal to our only hope for the future, Ellie! That’s Itsuki! He’s a good person, we know that!”

“And?! We need change now, and the only way to do that is to threaten the royals with the only thing they care about! Their heir!”

Itsuki looked up at the black-haired boy still holding the knife to his neck. 

He doesn’t want to kill anyone. None of them do. They want to protect themselves… and I can’t blame them for that. 

Yashiro finally spoke up. 

“Ignore them. Our leader would like to speak to the Lordling.”

...Come on, why does everyone call me that?

Ellie stepped back, while Kiria’s eyes glittered. 

“Maiko?” She said. 

A woman stepped out of the shadows at that. A woman in the garb of a thief. 

“That’s right.” Maiko spoke up. “Now, Lordling… I have a few questions.” 

Chapter Text

“...Maiko Shimazaki…?!” Itsuki muttered. “Well, if that’s you, then…”

Everything suddenly clicked into place in his head. 

“Kiria Kurono and Yashiro Tsurugi. The dancer must have been Mizuki Shima… and…” Itsuki looked up at the boy holding a knife to his neck. “Ren Amamiya, right? Former singers, dancers, models, and actors that all fell from grace after the Mass Disappearance.”

“Finally figured it out, eh?” Ren muttered. “That’s right. We were all disposable. We used to be adored, but they left us without a second thought.”

Itsuki slowly remembered. 

Almost every rebel in this room spoke out in support of their friends. 

...And one by one, they had career-ending scandals. 

Yashiro fell first, being blamed for the Mass Disappearance. 

Kiria fell next, having spoken out against the hate for her friend, and then suddenly having allegations of an illicit relationship with one of her producers staining her record. 

Then came Mizuki. She danced in support of Kiria and Yashiro… and had her stained criminal record brought up. She had killed someone in self-defense, and when that came out? Career suicide. 

And then there was Ren. The model was incredibly outspoken in his support of the common people, and of his fallen friends. And then he was put on probation for assaulting a noble. 

Lastly came Maiko. The model-turned-president was practically a mother to those she employed at her agency, and she didn’t take it well when they were all forced to the ground. She quit almost immediately when they fell, and moved directly to the lower cities with Kiria and Yashiro. 

“How did I never notice it before…? None of it was true, was it?” Itsuki muttered. 

“No.” Kiria said, leaning against the wall. “But, we’re not here for that. Mo-” 

She cut herself off. 

“Maiko?” 

Maiko drew her swords and smirked. 

“So, Lordling… when’s the next ‘talent scouting’ event?”

“I’m not sure.” Itsuki muttered. “Also, please, don’t call me that.”

Ren pressed his knife into Itsuki’s neck, and a small trickle of blood began to fall. 

“Are you sure about that?” 

Itsuki thought for a second. 

Okay, so I can tell them it’s set to be in the upper city’s lowest ring, near the gate… or I can tell them that I don’t know. 

Itsuki looked into the black-haired boy’s eyes. 

He has a master poker face, but his eyes reveal everything. That must be why he wears the glasses…

The knife dug deeper into his skin, and he felt more blood spill. 

“Upper city. Lowest ring. Near the gate. Now, please… at least let them go.” Itsuki motioned to Touma and Tsubasa. 

Maiko’s eyes widened slightly, before she regained her composure. 

“Let them go, eh?” She muttered. 

Touma’s eyes narrowed. 

“I’m not leaving without him.”

Tsubasa spoke up. 

“Neither am I.” 

Maiko had a guarded look in her eyes. 

“Ellie. The redhead is your brother, right?” 

The blonde looked up. 

“Yeah.”

“...It’s your decision then. You’re the one closest to this situation, do whatever you think is best.”

Ellie didn’t even try to hide her shock. 

“But, Maiko-”

“It’s your choice.”

Kiria knew what this meant. 

She wants to let them go… but she doesn’t want to show weakness. 

Ellie began to weigh her options. 

He’s my brother, and I screwed him over. As much as I argue with him… I still love him. And the Pegasus Knight… she didn’t do anything wrong. She’s just trying to protect someone she cares about. 

...There’s only really one option here. 

“Let them go. We have the information we need. Holding them any longer will just draw attention. When the guard finds out that we’ve been holding the prince, we’re done for.”

Yashiro’s eyes flashed. 

“What the hell, Yumizuru?! They’re traitors, all of them!” 

He drew his sword, but Maiko quickly put the both of hers to his neck. 

“Yashiro. I gave her the choice. She made it. Understand?” 

Yashiro bit his lip, while Kiria put a hand on his arm. 

“Relax. She’s right, after this we’ll need to move to another location. Come on, Yashiro.”

The boy shook her hand off and sheathed his sword, and Maiko retracted her own. 

Yashiro then disappeared into the shadows, the angry look remaining on his face. 

Kiria disappeared into the shadows after him, while Ellie and Ren untied the three of them. 

Ren slashed at the ropes with his knives, and looked at Itsuki straight in the eye. 

“Don’t think this means you’ve won, Lordling. I don’t trust you, and I don’t think anyone here will.”

Ellie rushed to untie Touma, with an apologetic look in her eyes.

He shoved her aside. 

“Ellie. That’s it. You’ve chosen your side, and I’ve chosen mine.” Anger flashed in his eyes. “I thought I could trust you.” And he grabbed Itsuki and Tsubasa by their hands and stalked away. 

Ellie watched them walk away, and she felt her resolve strengthen.

“This is the last time. After this... we’ll be able to save everyone down in the lower cities. And then... well...”

She looked down at her feet. 

“Touma, why can’t you see?! This is for the good of everyone!”

Ellie’s blue eyes flashed with Performa.

“I’ll show you myself. He might be nice now... but they’ll all end up the same. Power is all they care about, and the Lordling will be no different! You’ll see someday!”

Her hair crackled with static. 

“You’ll regret it all when he rises to the throne and becomes just as bad as his parents!”

Chapter Text

“I didn’t think she would do that. I guess we’re not safe anywhere.” Touma muttered. “I’m so sorry…”

Itsuki placed his hand on Touma’s arm. 

“It’s alright. She’s your sister, you thought you could trust her. I would have done the same.”

Tsubasa looked up. 

“I used to trust Aya with my life. She and I used to argue sometimes… but we really cared about each other. So I get that you trusted your sister. Let’s just move on.” 

Touma leaned against an alley wall and tilted his head down. 

“Yeah. It’s hard, knowing that someone I trusted with my life betrayed me like that. But, then again, it’s happened before. Why wouldn’t it happen again?” 

Touma shook his head and plastered on his best smile. 

“Anyway, sorry for bringing the mood down! We should probably head back to the castle before they change their minds, right?” 

Tsubasa and Itsuki nodded their heads and paced their way to the upper city, sneaking in through a crack in the wall. 

Meanwhile, the rebellion was having a strategy meeting. 

Maiko sat at the head of the table. 

“They know who we are. We’ll have to move on the king and queen soon.” 

Kiria pointed at the map they had out on the table. 

“If we can trust the Lordling… they’ll be right here. At the next scouting event. Where they have people compete for the right to live in the inner city, away from the field. Makoto, take over?” 

Makoto nodded and began to speak. 

“We all know it’s a trick. In reality, they’re looking for people with incredibly strong Performa to kidnap and force them to fight in gladiatorial contests. It’s sickening.”

Mizuki looked up. 

“So, what’s the plan?” She muttered. “My disguise abilities might help me sneak into the event.”

“Mizuki, please reconsider asking your sister to help. We need as many people as we can.” Kiria spoke. 

“No. I’ve said it multiple times. Haru Shima is not entering this rebellion. The most I will do is take her pegasus out at night. Anything more is far too dangerous, understood?” 

Kiria bit her lip. 

“Alright. I understand.”

“Good.”

Yashiro changed the subject. 

“However, you were right on one front, Mizuki. We want you to become a mysterious dancer.”  

The girl smirked. 

“So, who’s my cover?”

Ren looked up. 

“We decided on the name Lucid. We want you to be very unrecognizable as yourself, but otherwise, go wild. Be whatever you want, Mizu.” 

The girl smirked. 

“Alright then.” 

A purple sigil appeared at her feet as she spun on her heel, and then her hair began to change. The midnight black turned into a sandy brown. It suddenly shortened, and her purple eyes turned brown. The ribbon between her hands disappeared. Her dancer’s dress turned into a gray uniform. 

“What do you think?” She asked. 

“Isn’t that the Kishimai High uniform?” Ren asked. 

“Oh, you caught it. Thought it would make me look less suspicious if I looked like a schoolgirl.”

“Half of us here are leading double lives as school kids and rebellion masters.” 

“That’s true, and that’s why no one suspects us!” 

Ren and Kiria let out soft chuckles at that. 

Yashiro rolled his eyes and brought everyone back to the task at hand. 

“Thieves, you come in next. When Mizuki knocks them dead with her ability, she’ll obviously be their next target. Your job is to keep tabs on her and stop them before that happens.”

Ren’s eyes glittered. 

“Makoto, Ann, and Ryuji. And Futaba, of course.”

Yashiro let out a rare smile. 

“You’ve got a whole plan arranged right now, don’t you?”

“Have you met me? Of course I do.” 

The plan was set. Ren and his Phantom Thieves planned for as many contingencies as they could. Mizuki and her Ostinato Musicians worked to get her Performa levels up. 

And Kiria and Yashiro? They reported all the details to Maiko. 

And afterwards, they dove into the forest, searching high and low for the best places to hide. 

Chapter Text

Itsuki, Tsubasa, and Touma reentered the palace and garnered the attention of a couple of people. 

“Where the hell have you three been?!” Minako said, bolting over to them. 

Another redhead narrowed her eyes. 

“Akagi, you know that you can’t slack off.”

Touma snapped back. 

“I wasn’t slacking off, Captain Kirijo!”

Tsubasa lowered her voice and whispered only to the two women in front of them. 

“The rebellion kidnapped us… but they let us go for some weird reason.” 

“H-Huh?! Are you three alright?! I can’t believe I didn’t notice the rope burns and cuts…” Minako almost yelled. She sang a couple of notes and healed the kids up. 

Mitsuru’s face revealed a guarded concern, unlike the intense concern on her companion’s face. 

“Minako, they might be…” 

Minako looked at the trio in front of her. 

“What’s something that only the real three of you would know?”

Tsubasa, Touma, and Itsuki looked at each other and winced. 

Tsubasa spoke up. 

“Stop Touma Abuse started when I fell off Maho. Directly onto Touma. Who was trying to do a backflip. That… didn’t end well.” 

And then Touma picked up where she left off 

“I ended up breaking both my legs and an arm and cracked three ribs.”

Minako breathed slowly. 

“Okay. It’s the real you. I’ll accept that. Now, tell us everything.”

Itsuki spoke up. 

“I don’t know. We were unconscious the whole time. Next thing I knew, I was in the forest.”

Touma and Tsubasa locked eyes and barely suppressed quizzical looks. 

“R-Right…” Tsubasa said. 

Touma just nodded. 

Minako and Mitsuru both raised eyebrows at that. 

“...Okay…” 

And the pair walked away. 

“So they’re lying?” Mitsuru muttered.

Minako nodded, but kept dragging her along. 

“They have a good reason. You and I both know that our last hope lies with the little Lordling over there. He’s one of the very few sane nobles, like you.”

“Our job as nobility is to provide for those under us. Some people don’t understand that.”

“That’s right… Mitzi.” Minako smirked. 

“Don’t-”

Minako began to laugh. 

“This is how commoner friendships work. Annoying nicknames galore.” 

Mitsuru cracked a smile and lightly pushed her companion. 

“Ha! Ice queen is smiling!” Minako cackled. 

Meanwhile, our trio was incredibly confused. 

“Itsuki… what was that?” Tsubasa muttered. 

“I need to confront my parents, and right now I can’t afford them to be tipped off about what the rebellion might be planning. I can warn them after I get my answers.” The bluenette muttered, shaking his hair out. 

Touma’s eyes widened, and he lowered his voice. 

“Okay, I dislike your parents as much as the regular commoner, but are you sure you want to make an enemy of them?”

Itsuki’s eyes narrowed. 

“...If what you’ve been saying is true, then they’re the enemy of you two. And any enemy of yours is an enemy of mine.”

“Aww!” Touma and Tsubasa said in unison. 

Itsuki cracked a small smile. 

“I don’t know what this feeling is, but it gives me strength.”

And… it was barely noticeable, but his hair changed for a split second. Frosted tips grew from his short, blue, hair. 

And he walked off towards the throne room. 

Chapter Text

The throne room was decidedly elegant. 

…Itsuki had never liked it. It always felt cold and unapproachable. 

But he had a mission. A resolve. 

“Mother?” He said, his voice dropping into the monotone voice he reserved for dry company. 

“Yes, Itsuki?” Queen Marie spoke up. 

“...I heard about the field around the lower cities. What the hell is going on?”

The queen’s eyes shifted back to Itsuki. 

“My son… how did you learn this?”

“How I learned it doesn’t matter. I want to know why.”

“...Darling. You have to accept that we’re a different class from those under us. We are above them. That Cavelier and Pegasus Knight you’re so fond of… they’re less than us. It’s not okay to entertain them as much as you have.”

Itsuki’s hands sparked, and his voice rose. 

“They’re still people! Mother, how could you?! You know that the more Performa is drained, the worse your mental state gets! And I care about my friends!”

Queen Marie poured a cup of tea and sat on her throne. 

“Let’s take an example here. Kirijo’s skills are unmatched… but her values are off. She doesn’t realize that we are just different levels of humanity. I don’t understand her and how she could give someone like Takeba the time of day, much less marry her. She is wrong. Just like you are.”

The electricity in Itsuki’s palms began to grow. 

“Maybe she likes Yukari for her personality! That’s exactly why I’m friends with Touma and Tsubasa! They’re… they’re good to me!”

Queen Marie sighed and rolled her eyes. 

“Go to your room. It’s pretty obvious that you’ve been corrupted by some members of the guard. Your father will be back in a couple of hours, and we’ll decide on punishments then.”

Itsuki’s eyes widened, and the electricity from his hands abruptly stopped. 

“I-!”

“Don’t say a word. The talent-scouting event is tomorrow, and we’ll be finding a new fighter.”

Itsuki opened his mouth to question…

And then a crack sounded and Itsuki felt himself wince in pain. 

Wha…?! Did I just get slapped?!

The look on his mother’s face confirmed it. 

“Not another word. To your room, now!”

Itsuki nodded and left quietly, before entering his room. 

...Fighter…?

The next morning was when a plan would be set into motion. The next morning was when Lucid would make her debut. 

And Itsuki saw the petals of a Torch Ginger fly by his window. 

Chapter Text

Mizuki fiddled with her short brown hair. 

“It’s almost my turn. Sweet-P?” She muttered. 

“Here I am! Mizuki-chan, it’ll be tricky to make your Performa emit a unique shine.” Sweet-P said. “That’s where Aria and μ come in! Some magic was able to shrink them to pocket size, and now they’ll be able to use their Manakete skills to help you from right under their noses!” 

Mizuki smirked. 

“Good. I can’t have someone recognize my unique light.” 

Uniqueness. Each person’s Performa is slightly different. And now I need to make sure that no one notices that it’s me. 

Aria flew over in her small size, and sat on Mizuki’s shoulder. 

“Hey, you! Good luck! You’re the best dancer here!”

Mizuki chuckled. 

“Thanks, Aria. Where’s μ?”

“She’s coming!” 

And as she said that, μ flew into the room. 

She sat on Mizuki’s other shoulder, and smiled. 

“Let’s go!” 

Mizuki got up, and Aria and μ flew into her pockets. 

“Let’s get this show on the road.” She said, and she grabbed a Torch Ginger from the vase in front of her. 

She weaved it into her hair and smirked. 

“...Reincarnation. That’s the song I’ll be dancing to. Let’s go!”

Mizuki stepped out when the name Lucid was called, and the plan was put into motion. 

I’m breaking down! All the walls that I’ve built around my lonely heart now! 

Twists and turns, steps and leaps, all on a stage. 

“This is what I was made for!” Mizuki says to herself. 

The ending came far too soon for Mizuki. 

But she loved the applause. 

And she bolted off the stage, meeting a couple of people when she stopped running. 

“Great job, Mizu.” Kiria said, smirking. “Let’s go.”

Yashiro’s eyes flickered. 

“...Acceptable.”

Mizuki put a hand on her hip. 

“Shut it, Tsurugi. I still haven’t forgiven you for passing up my training back when we were running the show.”

“...”

“...Fine! Fine. Let’s just go.” 

Kiria rolled her eyes. 

“Please, can you two just get along?” She muttered. 

“Never.” They said in unison.

They waited in the middle of the city. 

And then night fell. 

It was a tense night. Kiria and Yashiro had fallen into the shadows, while Mizuki read a tome. 

She could feel the eyes of the Thieves on her. 

And then she heard the sound of someone running. 

There they are. 

Mizuki drew her sword and smirked. 

“Show yourself!” She yelled, and they did. 

Three people. 

“Just come quietly, girlie!” One of them said. 

Mizuki ran over to a wall and flipped off it 

She sent a blast of ice over to them, and it froze them for a second. 

But a blast of fire came for her, out of nowhere. 

And she notices a fourth person. 

“...Who…?!” 

The woman stepped out of the shadows. 

“Surprise, ‘Lucid’!” She said. 

“S-Sora?! But you were…!” 

“Not anymore! Mizuki Shima, you’re coming with me! I’m a member of the queen’s elite guard now!”

Mizuki’s eyes grew cold, and an icy wind began to spin around them. 

“What did you do to the thieves?!”

“Oh, I just knocked ‘em out. Their Performa levels were already low. They’re not coming.” Sora’s piercing blue eyes gave off an aura of malice. 

Mizuki stepped back. 

“...You… I hate you! Sora, you’re dead to me!” 

And she spun her sword and chucked a blast of ice at Sora. 

Mizuki began to run. Fast. 

But before she knew it, a blast of fire knocked her over. 

Ugh… no! This wasn’t the plan!

And then Mizuki fell unconscious. 

The next morning, the thieves awoke and realized that they had lost. She was gone. 

Futaba tried to detect Mizuki’s signal. 

“Ugh… at least this field doesn’t drain Sciencia. I’d be dead by now.” Futaba muttered. 

Ren’s eyes widened at that. 

“Don’t say that around here, Oracle! People might hear. You know how Idola treats Technolians after the Mass Disappearance. There might still be some of the Royal Guard around.”

Ann whipped the ground beneath her. 

“Damn it… we didn’t save her…! The last thing I remember is that… Sora! It was her!”

Ryuji looked up. 

“Fuckin’ hell… I didn’t think she’d betray us.”

Makoto shook her head. 

“Guys, we don’t have time for this! We’ve got to report back!” 

Everyone quieted down at that. 

Futaba kept looking at the screens around her. 

“...Mizuki… I’m sorry…”

Only one thing was left behind from the girl. A lonely Torch Ginger. 

Chapter Text

The next morning came around, and Itsuki heard  familiar voices from the dungeon. 

“Unhand me!” 

“Hey, let her go!”

Mitsuru? Minako? 

Itsuki heard people walking up and hid behind a pillar. 

He then snuck into the dungeon, and ran towards the source of Mitsuru and Minako’s voices. 

What he saw there shocked him. 

“H-Huh?!” 

Mitsuru, in a cell. Minako, talking to her from outside. 

“Itsuki! Quiet down!” Minako whisper-screamed. 

“What…?! Why are you…?!” 

Minako cast a silence spell on the boy, and quickly explained. 

“Okay, long story short, this is Mitzi’s ‘Punishment’ for ‘corrupting’ you. Touma and Tsubasa might be getting the same punishment… if the Guard can find them.”

And then she winked. 

“Any questions, Lordling?”

Itsuki just pointed to his mouth. 

“Oh. Right. Silence. Let’s fix that.” 

She quickly reverses the spell and Itsuki immediately starts questioning the redhead. 

“Where are the-?!”

Minako cuts him off with a raise of her hand and slips a piece of paper into his hand. 

“Minato and Yu have a strategy meeting over in the lower cities. Along with their new apprentices, Red and Wings.” 

Itsuki looks at the paper. An address. 

“Thanks…”

And he turns to leave, but then something clicks in him. 

“I’m not leaving without you two.” He smirked. 

And Itsuki stares at the door. 

He raises his hand. 

And he tapped the lock. 

It unlocked immediately. 

“Locktouch.” He smirked. “I don’t even need the keys!”

Mitsuru bolted out, and Minako smiled. 

“Let’s get out of here.” Minako said. 

A girl looked over from the cell behind them. 

“Hey, Lordling. Remember me?” She muttered. 

Itsuki looked over. 

“...I’m sorry?”

The girl rolled her eyes. 

“These cuffs block Performa. I can’t switch back. It’s me, Mizuki Shima.”

Itsuki’s eyes widened. 

“What are you doing here?”

She frowned. 

“I was the winner of the last talent scouting event. I’m joining the fights tomorrow.”

“The fights?”

Mizuki’s eyes flashed. 

“Do you know anything?! The fights that they force the winners into. Fights to the death. They need a ton of fresh blood because… well, death. I guess you’ll enjoy seeing me die in the arena.”

Mitsuru’s arms fell into a crossed position. 

“It’s disgusting. Do you know her?” She asked. 

“...She’s a member of the rebellion.” Itsuki muttered. 

Minako’s eyes looked sympathetic. 

“Hey, Lordling… rebellion or not she’s going to die at some point, whether from malnutrition or from being killed in the arena. She’s a person, and I think you’ve learned the truth about your parents at this point. It’s a choice now, and most of the guard will stand with you. The royals or the people?”

Itsuki looked up. 

And he thought. 

There isn’t even a choice. She’s a human, just like the rest of us.

Itsuki quickly tapped the lock on her cell and her cuffs. 

“Come with us, we’ll get you out of here. Somehow.”

Mizuki looked shocked. 

“Huh…? What’s your game, Lordling?!”

Itsuki rolled his eyes. 

“Please. Can everyone just stop calling me that?”

Mizuki and Minako spoke in perfect unison. 

“No.”

They then looked at each other. 

“Wow… did we just…” 

“...Agree on something?”

They looked at each other, and once again spoke in perfect unison. 

“...Oh no.” 

Itsuki looked up. 

“Okay, how are we getting out of here?” He muttered. 

Minako smirked. 

“There’s a secret passage down here. Follow me.”

She and Mitsuru walked through the twisting and turning passages in the dungeon, and then they finally stopped. 

“Here. Just push on this wall, and…” 

Minako’s hand sunk into a brick, and a small door opened. 

“Here we go! Remember how we discovered this thing, Mitzi?” 

Mitsuru rolled her eyes. 

“We didn’t discover it, you threw your brother into it and he hit the brick with his foot.”

“Details, Details!” Minako said, a smirk on her face. “And don’t act like you’re not the same with Aki and Shinji.”

“...Got me there. Either way, let’s get out of here. Most of the guard is loyal to you and us, rather than the King and Queen. We just have to avoid The Seven.”

Itsuki quickly remembered just how dangerous The Seven were. 

The Seven. Seven people that answer to the king and queen and no one else. Sora Suzuki, Takaya Saiki, Yatsafusa Hatanaka, Jin Shirato, Shuji Ikutsuki, Tohru Adachi, and Eiji Biwasaka. 

...They’ll do anything it takes to get ahead. No one is even sure if they’re truly loyal to the king and queen. 

And they’d kill us with zero hesitation if they found us out. 

Itsuki suppressed a shudder. 

And they ran outside, four fugitives leaving the upper city. 

Chapter Text

Minako bolted through the streets with as much sureness as Touma. They quickly reached a house. 

...And the sound of yelling quickly reached their ears. 

The four quickly drew weapons and ran into the room. 

Kiria, Yashiro, Ren, and Ellie were facing off against Minato, Yu, Touma, and Tsubasa. 

“Listen, we don’t want to hurt anyone, we just want to know where Mizuki is!” Kiria spoke, her voice growing. 

“And I’m telling you, I don’t know!” Minato yelled. “We have a common enemy at this point, listen to me!”

“Guys! Calm down, I’m here!” Mizuki yelled, and it drew everyone’s attention. 

Kiria dropped her mic stand and practically tackled Mizuki in a hug. 

“How did you get out?!” She said. 

Mizuki’s eyes shifted back to the trio behind her. 

“The Lordling… he let me out.” 

Everyone’s eyes widened at that. 

“Itsuki… you let her out?” Touma asked. 

Tsubasa shook her head, almost as if she couldn’t believe it. 

Itsuki opened his eyes. 

“Yes. I did. She was going to be forced into an arena, and I couldn’t let her die.” 

Kiria and Yashiro exchanged quizzical glances. 

“You let out your enemy… because you didn’t want her to die…?” Yashiro muttered. 

“Yes. I’ve finally realized what my parents are doing, and it’s absolutely insane.” Itsuki said. “I don’t want to support them anymore. I know I’m young, but I’m technically old enough to rule. And if you were to overthrow my parents, I can promise you that my first act as King would be to take the field down.” And he placed a closed fist on his chest. 

“What are you saying, Lordling?” Ren muttered. 

“...I…I’m on your side. I’m with the rebellion. We have a common goal here, and that’s protecting the people. First things first, field goes down. Next, the fights stop, that’s barbaric. Fighting should be reserved for those who wish to do so, for their country. Then, we focus on using our strength and gold to develop the lower cities. I don’t want anyone to ever go hungry.”

Ellie’s eyes narrowed. 

“You’re not planning to cause some chaos or take even more from us?” 

Itsuki looked over with a questioning look. 

“Why would I do that? My family has more gold than we could use in 20 generations! It’s better to use it to invest in our people.”

Mitsuru placed a hand on her chest.  

“You’re going to restore your family name. I will do the same, and I pledge my loyalty to your cause, Prince Itsuki.”

Itsuki’s eyes gained a bit of their characteristic playful glimmer. 

“Mitsuru, when have you ever needed to call me Prince Itsuki?”

Mitsuru smiled. 

“Right, Itsuki.” 

Minako put her hand on her hip. 

“You know I’m with you, Lordling!” 

Touma and Tsubasa looked over resolutely. 

“When have we ever gone against you?”

“We’re in.”

Minato practically mirrored his sister when he put his hand on his hip, and his resolute nod said it all. 

Yu smiled. 

“Well, looks like all of us are in. It’s been a while since I felt like myself.” 

And he pulled a pair of glasses out of his pocket and put them on.

Itsuki looked over to the members of the rebellion near them. 

“I understand if you can’t join me. My family has done so much harm. But… if you can, I would appreciate it.”

Kiria opened her mouth, but before she could speak… the door burst open, and a young girl ran in. 

“Kiri, Yashi! The Seven tracked us down, and they’ve got Mom, the Thieves, and the Ostinatos!”

Kiria exchanged a look with Yashiro. 

“No!” Kiria said, looking at the girl. “Mamori, how did you escape?! Maybe we can use the same way to get back in!”

Mamori shook her head. 

“They let me go! They told me to say that they wanted to fight the two of you, and if you won, they’d let them go!”

Yashiro narrowed his eyes. 

“There’s no way in hell they’re giving us a fair fight. Especially not after Sora betrayed us. We need a plan.”

Itsuki looked up. 

“...I know their identities. All seven. I’ll give you the info right now, if you want. I’ll even help you take them on. 

Kiria and Yashiro looked up. 

“...It looks like we don’t have a choice here. We need to trust the Lordling if we want to save everyone.” Kiria muttered. 

Yashiro thought for a second. 

...Damn it, there’s no other choice!

He nodded and Itsuki began to explain. 

“Sora Suzuki’s the most dangerous. She’s able to drain your Performa with a single touch. Don’t let her touch you on any exposed skin and you’ll be fine. Tohru Adachi is strong but he gets bored pretty easily. He’s crazy, but focus on the others. He’ll only fight if it’s necessary. Eiji Biwasaka has no qualms about killing you, he’ll burn you alive if he can. He once killed a family because they discovered his embezzlement. Jin Shirato and Takaya Saiki are always together, they’re incredibly strong when they team up on you. Don’t underestimate them. Shuji Ikutsuki… he’s got a savior complex. He thinks Death is the way to save everyone. He’ll probably freak you out. And Yatsafusa Hatanaka… his Performa is incredibly strong. He can and will obliterate you given the chance.”

Kiria put her head on top of a closed fist. 

“Long story short, they’re dangerous.”

“Yes. Incredibly. Not even I can control them.”

Mamori looked up. 

“I know you can do this! I’ll be right here, supporting you!” And she pulled an axe out of nowhere. 

“...How is a child handling an axe twice her size…” Minako spoke up. 

Kiria smiled. 

“That’s Mamori’s secret. She’s been training for a while now. She wants to become a Knight, but that’s not going to happen for a while. However, she can definitely handle an axe. We’ve been working on some special armor that she can handle at her age.” 

Itsuki looked up. 

“So… is she Maiko’s daughter?”

“Adoptive daughter, but yes. We didn’t want to involve her in this, but she got dragged in anyway.” 

“I’m afraid to ask, but how did she get dragged in…?”

Kiria’s smile fell. 

“She won the talent scouting competition.”

Mitsuru’s eyes widened. 

“What the hell?! She’s eleven!”

“I know. They were planning to force a child into the arena. It’s absolutely disgusting! But after she found out, she insisted on helping us. And… well, here we are.” Kiria finished. “Okay, so we’ve got someone with fire, right? That’s bad news for me, I’m attuned to ice.”

Yashiro looked up. 

“I can try to take as many of those hits as possible. Fire attuned, so it’s not going to hurt me too badly.”

“If we’re doing this, I can try to tank some hits too.” Touma muttered. 

“Ooh, and I can blow some of them out with my wind!” Tsubasa yelled. 

Minato and Minako looked at each other. 

“She, Yu, and I are Elementals. We can take some hits too.” Minato spoke up. 

Everyone widened their eyes at that. 

“There are other Elementals?!” Ren yelled. “I’m one too! I thought Goro and I were the only ones!”

Minato smirked. 

“I should have known. You give off the aura. That makes five Elementals, and five more people to take fire hits. If we can grab Junpei and Yukiko, that’s seven. With Touma and Yashiro, we’ve got nine. You might think that’s overkill, but the bastard’s strong.”

“Ten, actually. Ann.” Ren added.

Minako nodded. 

“I’ve only met Biwasaka once… he’s very violent. He seems pleasant, but you can tell it’s all an act.” 

Itsuki raised his hand, and everyone fell silent. 

“You can’t just focus on him. You can’t do much about Suzuki, she’s Light Attuned.”

“Once again. Elemental. And I’m primarily Dark.” Ren said, with a smirk. 

“But doesn’t that make you weak to her?”

“Yes, but I’m fast. I’ll strike before she has a chance to react!”

And the black-haired boy spun his knife. 

Itsuki put his hand on his desk, and everyone pounded out a plan. 

“This is it. Come on, Lordling. Let’s see if we can really trust you.” Kiria muttered. 

Ellie fell into step beside Touma and Tsubasa. 

Touma narrowed his eyes, but didn’t speed up. 

Itsuki threw a cloak over his body, and smiled. 

“Let’s go save your friends.”

Chapter Text

Kiria and Yashiro walked ahead of the rest of the team. 

Kiria took a deep breath. 

“Yashiro. We’re getting to the end. I want you to know that…” 

“What?” The purple-haired boy replied. 

“...I…”

“Spit it out, Kiri. We’ve been friends for years, you can tell me anything.”

“I’m in love with you.”

Yashiro stopped in his tracks at that statement. 

“W-What?”

“I know, the timing’s off, and we’ve been friends for so long that it might make things weird, but there isn’t another time to say this. We might die in a few minutes. I want to die with no regrets.”

Yashiro practically froze.

“Kiri. Listen to me. There is no way in hell I’d let this affect our friendship.”

“But?”

“...You know how we both are. Neither of us are in a position to start a relationship. Not when we’re so close to ending this.”

“...Of course.”

“...But that doesn’t mean we can’t think about it once we’ve finished this.” 

Kiria’s eyes widened. 

“...That sounds good. We’re both surviving this. I’m not dying before we can figure this out.”

“Same here. We’ll figure it all out… once we’ve brought sanity back to this country.”

The pair locked eyes and nodded. 

Let’s end this. 

Chapter Text

Ellie and Tsubasa fell into step beside each other. 

“So… you’re Touma’s sister, right?” Tsubasa said, breaking the silence between them. 

“I am.” Ellie said, her tone curt.

“Uh, o-okay! So… let’s try to get to know each other! What’s your favorite color? Mine’s pink!”

Ellie rolled her eyes. 

“Okay, look, Tsubasa? I am not in the mood to talk to one of the prince’s lapdogs. I know that the Lordling is going to turn out just as bad as his parents, and that we’re going to do this all over again. He’s young and idealistic, but once those nobles get into his head, there’s no going back. Kiria’s too soft, she’ll believe his sob story. Yashiro’s smart, he knows not to trust that blue-haired dastard.”

Tsubasa’s eyes grew dark. 

“Alright, Ellie, you’re going to listen to me. I’m loyal to Itsuki because I know he’s a good person. I’m no one’s lapdog, I’m his friend. I was raised in the upper city off of my sister’s fame. He was the only one who treated me like I was a person! I saw her vanish before my eyes! I don’t know what Sciencia did to her, but she’s gone, and I’ve been feeling that loss ever since! And I know damn well that Itsuki was there for me, even though he was a prince! He’s one of the best people I know! So…” Tsubasa clenched a fist. “So you can just fuck right off!”

She raised her fist, and was about to strike, but…

“Tsubasa! What are you doing?!” Itsuki yelled. 

The blue-haired girl turned around, and Itsuki grabbed her hand. 

“We’re on the same side. Leave her be.” 

Tsubasa’s eyes widened. 

“But, Itsuki! She insulted you!”

“No buts! Whatever she said, that doesn’t justify hitting her!”

Touma bolted over. 

“Ellie, I get it, we’re enemies now, but can you please not do this when we’re trying to save your friends?!” 

Ellie’s eyes narrowed. 

“...Fine. But that doesn’t mean I’ll talk to you or your ‘friends’.”

Touma had a heartbroken look on his face. 

“A-Alright…”

Kiria ducked under a tree and announced herself to the team. 

“We’re here…”

Minako glanced through a window, and saw the situation inside. 

“Suddenly, I’m very glad that we grabbed some of our teams…”

Mitsuru, Yukari Takeba, Akihiko Sanada, Junpei Iori, Fuuka Yamagishi, Shinjiro Aragaki, and Ken Amada stood behind Minako and Minato. 

Yosuke Hanamura, Chie Satonaka, Rise Kujikawa, and Yukiko Amagi stood behind Yu.

Tsubasa and Touma grabbed their lances, and Itsuki drew his sword. 

Kiria spun her staff, Ellie drew her bow, and Yashiro and Mizuki solidified their grips on their blades. 

“This is it.” Itsuki muttered. “Kiria, Yashiro? You two know the workings of this place better than anyone. Where do the rest of us go?” 

Yashiro bit his lip, while Kiria quickly spoke. 

“There’s a secret entrance in the back. It's a false panel. Ellie, show them where. Go in when I give the signal.”

Ellie crossed her arms, but nodded. 

“Follow me.” She said, and everyone did as she said. 

Kiria and Yashiro looked at each other, and popped the door open slightly. 

The spirit of the Destroyer and the heart of the Vanguard quickly solidified within them. 

Nothing would stop them from protecting those that are dear. 

Chapter Text

Kiria pushed the door open and felt an oppressive heat within. She glanced over and noticed a bluenette, Yusuke, and a girl with a voice-changing mask on, Kuchinashi, suffering from being constantly exposed to their weakness. 

I might be Ice… but I’m glad I have a unique weakness right about now. It’s too hot, but I’m not close to death. 

Yashiro tapped her on the shoulder and motioned to the source of the heat. Eiji Biwasaka, with short brown hair and a red glyph under his feet. 

“Biwasaka! Stop it, you’re hurting them!” She yelled, spinning her mic stand. 

“Ah, you’re here.” He said, turning on his heel. “I knew you’d come. You know our terms, I assume?”

Yashiro nodded silently. 

Sora laughed and spoke up. 

“So, where’s the girl? With that ambush you have planned?”

Kiria’s eyes widened slightly, but she quickly evened her voice out. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. There’s no ambush. It’s just us two. We left Mamori in a safe location.”

Sora smirked. 

“I don’t think you’d be that stupid.”

“We’re honorable, not stupid.”

Eiji’s eyes had a maniacal look, as he cracked his whip and smirked. 

“Well, you’ll be dead soon enough. Dying honorably doesn’t mean much.”

And he lunged. 

Kiria flipped out of the way and sung a note. A bolt of ice flew from her hands and barely grazed him. Sora grabbed her staff and called for the other five. 

“Give it up. We’re just a higher caliber of human.” Sora whispered. 

Kiria took a deep breath and yelled as loud as she could into her microphone. 

“NOW!” 

And the secret entrance bursts open and the room is flooded with people. 

“I told you! They obviously had an ambush planned!” Sora yelled, to no one in particular. 

Everyone else sighed and rolled their eyes, while the Thieves and the Musicians smiled. 

Mizuki smirked, and a pair of black guns appeared from her hands. Technolian magic. Their weapons looked quite different from the Idolian Carnages they knew so well. The Catharsis Effect, born from deep emotions and understanding of oneself. Learning about the mysteries of the world makes them stronger. 

“How I miss Miyabi sometimes. But, guess who I found!” 

A few people that Kiria didn’t recognize appeared behind Mizuki. A girl with a lance, a boy with a claymore, and another boy with a pair of gauntlets. 

“Suzuna, Kensuke, Kotaro? Let’s move!” 

Yu and his team were on the frontlines, while the Arisato Twins and their team bolted to the other side, attempting to mount a sneak attack. Mizuki and her team quickly began releasing the cuffs around each of the Thieves and Musicians’ wrists. 

“Hell yeah! It’s never too hot for me!” Ann yelled, leaping up the moment the cuffs left her wrists.

She summoned her whip and quickly threw a strike.

Spells flying everywhere. Attack after attack. Pushing The Seven back as fast as they could. Noble and commoner. Fire and Ice. Electricity and Wind. So much power flying through each person’s hands. 

And a song starts coming from Kiria and Tsubasa. 

A burdened heart…

Ice and wind fly toward The Seven

Sinks into the ground…

Tsubasa’s hair begins to rise slightly, and her body starts to glow pink. 

A veil falls away without a sound…

The same thing happens to Kiria, except it’s a purple glow. 

Not day nor night…

Wrong nor right…

For truth and peace you fight!

The glow begins to overtake their bodies. 

Sing with me a song of silence and blood!

The rain falls but can’t wash away the mud!

Within my ancient heart dwells madness and pride,

Can no one hear my cry?!

You are the ocean’s gray waves, destined to seek life beyond the shore just out of reach! Yet, the waters ever change, flowing like time, the path is yours to climb!

Suddenly, their hair began to grow longer. Their outfits changed. 

You are the ocean’s gray waves...

Their eyes opened, and they began to attack with everything they had. 

Itsuki looks over at them with shock. 

“A Carnage Form...” he whispered in awe. “Only the best of the best can achieve one…”

The Seven are blown out of the hideout by Tsubasa, and she turns around. 

“I… I never knew that a Carnage Form could be this powerful…!” She said. 

Kiria spun her mic stand. 

“This is really weird, but it’s pretty damn powerful.”

Itsuki’s eyes widened. 

“I can’t believe you were able to do it! Barely anyone can! I’ve never even met someone who’s unlocked one!”

Tsubasa looked at herself in one of the ice crystals that was left behind. 

“This… this is me…! My Carnage Form! I can’t believe it!! I did it!!!”

Yashiro gave a proud nod, while Touma and Ellie’s eyes almost popped out of their heads. 

Tsubasa’s thoughts ran wild.

With this power… maybe I can find out what happened to Aya! 

Chapter Text

Everyone’s free, and somehow things are alright. 

“Two Carnage Forms at once… I never thought I’d even see one!” Ellie yelled. “I mean, I was born in Technolia, so I always thought I’d just see a Catharsis Effect, but not only have I seen Carnages, I’ve seen the ultimate power of Idola!”

Tsubasa fell out of her carnage form and smiled. 

“I can’t believe I did it…! My heart took shape! This is the result of my song!”

Kiria also fell out of her carnage form. 

“Hmph… well, thanks for your help, Lordling. I guess we can trust you guys.”

Yashiro’s eyes narrowed slightly. 

“...The Seven fought with everything they had, and so did you. I don’t know why you’d support us… but we’ll take everything we can.”

Maiko leaped up from the corner after she was freed. 

“You’re all alright! Oh, I was so worried!” She said, quickly hugging Yashiro, Kiria, Ellie, Mizuki,  and Mamori. 

“We’re glad you’re okay too, mo-Maiko!” Kiria said, throwing a glance back at Itsuki’s team. 

The atmosphere around the hideout stayed relaxed, everyone was just grateful that there were no casualties. 

Exhaustion quickly took hold of everyone, and practically everyone collapsed after a short while.

The only ones left awake were Tsubasa and Ellie. 

“Hey. You can sleep, I’ll keep watch.” Ellie whispered, trying not to disturb anyone else.

“...It’s fine. I’ll keep watch.”

“I’ve heard how exhausting it is to unlock a carnage form. It’s okay, just sleep.”

“Why are you being so nice to me? You hate me, don’t you?”

“...Well, we’re a team now.”

“So you can call me the prince’s lapdog, you can betray and kidnap me, but suddenly you’re fine with me? I don’t trust you in the slightest.”

Ellie sighed. 

“Look, I’m sorry about that.”

“Sorry? You can’t just be sorry about something like that.”

Ellie sighed, while Tsubasa looked straight ahead. 

“I just don’t get how you could betray your brother like that.” Tsubasa said, shifting her gaze to Ellie. 

“...I didn’t want to. I thought it was for the good of everyone. I spent so long with the rebellion, it’s like they’re my family. You get it, don’t you? You see Touma and Itsuki as your family.”

“I do, but I’d never betray…” 

She shook her head.

“All this to say, I don’t trust you. Touma said so many nice things about you, and he never once thought you’d hurt him like that. I can’t trust someone who would betray their sibling so readily.”

“...Alright then. But please, rest. I’ll keep watch. Or I’ll wake someone else to do so, if that’d make you more comfortable.”

“...I’ll rest, but I’m a light sleeper. If you try anything…”

“I won’t. Trust me on this, at least.”

“...”

Tsubasa laid down and fell asleep almost immediately. 

Ellie looked out at the sunset, and kept thinking about their conversation. 

...Maybe I made a mistake. We’re a team now… and I don’t know what to do.

She looked back at Tsubasa, and looked over at her exhausted teammates. 

Her family. 

And she just didn’t know what to do. 

Chapter Text

By daybreak, everyone was awake, and Ellie was exhausted. 

Maiko looked up. 

“Ellie, did you keep watch all night? Thank you. Now, your orders are to go to sleep.”

“But-”

“No buts. Go to sleep. Now. We’ll wake you if something happens.” 

“...Can I at least talk to someone first?”

“Fine. But sleep immediately afterwards, okay?”

“Okay.”

Ellie weaved through the discussing crowds, and attempted to find Touma. 

She found him near the back, talking Yashiro’s ear off. 

“Yashiro, tag out. I need to talk to him.”

Yashiro rolled his eyes, and left the conversation with a wave. 

He gave a look at Ellie before he left. 

Good luck. He seemed to be saying. You’re going to need it. 

Ellie took a deep breath, and walked over to her brother. 

Touma averted his gaze. 

“Is there something you need?”

“...I’m sorry.”

Touma’s grip on his sleeve seemed to solidify, and he glanced back over at her. 

“I shouldn’t have done that. I didn’t have all the facts, and I know now that I was wrong. That’s not an excuse, I didn’t believe he was a good person at first, but I’m… starting to reconsider that.”

“Ellie. Stop.”

“...Right. Sorry. I’ll go.”

“Wait, no, that’s not what I meant. I meant stop apologizing.”

“What?”

“You did what you believed in. I did what I believed in. We both thought we were being heroes, and neither of us had all the facts. Now that we know, we’re on the same side. And you know I can’t stay mad at you.”

“...Touma, for the love of Performa, I kidnapped you and your friends.”

“Water under the bridge.”

“You are too damn trusting.”

“And? I missed my sister.”

“...That’s your biggest strength and your biggest weakness. You just can’t hate someone.”

“That’s wrong. I can hate people that aren’t sorry. But you are, and that’s why I forgive you.”

“Idiot.”

“Love you too, sis!”

Ellie felt her heart solidify. She’s no longer torn. She’s found her truth, and her place to belong. 

And for just a moment, her hair flickers to a bright silver. 

...Of course, then the exhaustion catches up with her, and she collapses. 

“Whoa! Ellie! Are you…?!”

Maiko walked over. 

“Oh dear, I told her to sleep. She stayed up all night to do the watch.”

“What?! Why didn’t she wake someone else up…? Damn it, Ellie!” 

And then Touma proceeds to drag her to a nearby cot.

Chapter Text

But do I truly forgive her?

That’s the thought that ran through Touma’s head as he laid her onto the cot. 

...I want to. I really want to. I love her. She’s really sorry. 

Is forgiving someone so easily a weakness, or is it a strength?

...I don’t know. I just don’t. 

Touma sat back on a chair, as everyone moved through the hideout. 

We’ll have to move soon. We can’t stay knowing that we’ve been compromised. 

He was snapped out of his thoughts by Yashiro sitting on the chair next to him. 

“Hm?” 

Yashiro looked over at the redhead. 

“I was quite enjoying our conversation before Ellie interrupted us.”

“Oh, right! Sorry, I completely forgot!”

“It’s alright. So, a fellow actor, hm? We’ve got more models and singers in this company.”

“Yeah… Ellie and I always wanted to be actors. Though for different reasons.”

“She’s half Technolian and she wanted to be accepted. I know her story. Pardon my curiosity, but I want to know yours. She rarely spoke of you, said she cared about you but that she thought you were wrong.”

Did she really care about me?

“Your eyes give your feelings away, you know that? They’re a window to the soul. You’re not sure if you actually forgive her. ...No, that’s not right. You’re not sure if she was actually sorry.”

Touma let out a nervous laugh. 

“Got it in one.”

Yashiro raised an eyebrow. 

“I have a feeling that this has to do with your story.”

Touma took a deep breath. 

“I was abandoned by my parents when I was eight.”

Yashiro’s eyes widened. 

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. But, the truth is, she’s not my biological sister. Her family adopted me.”

“I see.”

“I didn’t trust her at first. I was just waiting for her to abandon me. But we bonded over hero shows. When I saw them on stage, I wanted to be just like them. I wanted to get up every time life put me down. And she promised to be there for me, and I promised to be there for her. And well, after this, I don’t know if she meant all of that.”

“Well, I don’t know if you’ll believe someone you just met, but I can tell you that she’s incredibly sorry. And you’re a pretty strong person for even considering forgiving her after such a betrayal. I know I couldn’t do the same.”

Touma looked up. 

“Strong…?”

“It takes strength of heart to be able to forgive someone. Forgiveness is… very hard.”

“...You have someone in your past that you can’t forgive?”

“That’s a story for another day, I’m afraid. I haven’t even put all the pieces together myself.”

“Oh, alright then.”

“...I thought you would have pushed back. I pried into your history, and you’re just going to accept that I’m not going to speak of mine?”

“Yeah…? If you’re not ready to talk about it, then it’s fine. Just because I told you my traumas doesn’t mean I need to know yours.”

“You’re too good of a person. Now I have to say it.”

“No, you don’t!”

“My honor’s on the line here, I’ve got to tell you!”

“Listen, tell me if you want, but don’t think I’m pressuring you!”

“I’m always under pressure!”

Touma just shut his mouth and let Yashiro speak. 

“So I assume you know of the mass disappearance?”

“Yeah. Your father, he…”

“He died. And I don’t know why. I don’t know why Sciencia chose that day. That performance. I don’t know why she chose to take him and Ayaha.”

“...So you’re desperate to know why.”

“Exactly. I… I don’t know what was so special about us.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I don’t need pity. I need answers.”

“I’m just trying to be nice here.”

Yashiro closed his eyes and sighed. 

“Yes. You are. My apologies. I didn’t mean to snap like that.”

“It’s alright. And… hey, after all this is over, maybe I can help you find those answers.”

“Heh…”

“What’s so funny?”

“I’ve kidnapped you twice, hurt your best friends, and you not only forgive me, you plan to help me find my answers?”

“...I guess I do.”

“You’re too good of a person, you know that? And I think you know your answer as to whether or not you forgive your sister.”

Touma’s face had a small smile. 

“You’re right about that. I do forgive her.”

And, just for a split second, Touma’s hair changed. It seemed to grow just a bit longer.

And that didn’t go unnoticed by Yashiro. 

Was that...?

Chapter Text

Prince Itsuki Aoi stood in front of his parents, 

His voice lowered, and he spoke. 

“I’ve realized the error of my ways. I’d like to return to the palace.”

Two days earlier...

Itsuki stood on one of the chairs left in the hideout, and raised his voice. 

“So, all of the important stuff has been teleported to the new hideout. I’d like to say thank you for trusting me and my guards to help your cause. And… I believe I have an opening for us.”

Kiria looked up. 

“What opening, Lordling?”

Itsuki closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. 

“I return to the palace, and pretend that I’ve come around to their way of thinking.”

The entire place went into an uproar. 

“What the hell?!”

“Itsuki, you can’t just do that!”

“It’s way too dangerous, what if you’re caught?!”

A sharp whistle silenced everyone, and they looked over at the source. 

Ellie’s sharp blue eyes stared down the crowd, and she quickly began to speak. 

“Okay, everyone shut up and listen to him! This might be the best shot we’ve had in years!”

Everyone did quiet down, and Itsuki looked gratefully over at her. 

“Thank you, Eleonora.”

“Call me Ellie, no one calls me Eleonora.”

“Alright then, Ellie.” And Itsuki turned his face to the crowd. “I know that it’s dangerous, but it’s the best chance we have. I’m the prince, after all. They’re going to believe me, at least for a bit.”

“...We need a plan before we can do anything.” Maiko said. “And I have a feeling one of our lovely musicians might have an idea.”

Mizuki raised an eyebrow, and glanced back at her team. 

“I think I’ve got one. I’ll pretend to be a guard, and follow the Lordling in. I’ll sneak a couple of my fellow musicians in, and maybe a few more old friends if I can get in touch with them. Shadow Knife, you’ll be with me.”

A boy with white hair who wore a mask nodded at that. He must be Shadow Knife. 

“Wicked, worst case scenario, blow something up and make the biggest distraction you can think of.”

A brown haired girl smirked. Wicked. 

“Sweet-P, I’m going to need your help with my disguise.”

A girl with pink hair smiled, and patted Mizuki on the head. Sweet-P. 

“Anything for you, Lucid-chan!”

“And… if they can get here in time, then hopefully we can get Izuru and Kotono with us.”

Yashiro looked up. 

“You’ve always got a plan. Now, the problem here is how you’re going to get your team inside.”

Ren looked up, a small smirk on his face.

“And that’s where I come in! I’ve cased the palace for heists before, I know exactly where to go to let the rest of Mizuki’s team and my thieves in!”

“Better, but how are you going to defeat them with a party that small? We barely fought off The Seven with everyone in here.”

“There are plenty of hiding spots in a castle like that. I’m sure we could sneak you and Kiria in as well, and maybe the Lordling’s knights. Ellie and Mamori might work too, they’re tiny.”

“...Both carnage form users might work. This is probably the stupidest plan we’ve ever come up with, but it’s our best shot. Don’t die, Lordling. And do not get caught .”

Itsuki looked down from the chair. 

“Why do I feel like you place me not getting caught over me not dying?”

“That’s because I do. Now, it shouldn’t take long for all of us to get inside. We need a signal so we can tell you that we’re close.”

“Yashiro, don’t be like that.” Kiria said. “And shouldn’t the signal be the same as always? A special flower hidden in a bouquet.”

“You’re right. If Mizuki is disguising herself as a guard, she can bring it into the room.”

Itsuki chimed back in. 

“What is this… special flower?”

“It’s unique for each person. Usually the bouquet is all of one flower, usually the flower of the messenger, with one of your own flower hidden in the center.”

“Then I assume I don’t have one?”

“Well, we did call you the blue rose when we didn’t want it to be obvious who we were talking about.”

“Well, if you’d like that to be my flower, then it’s my flower. I don’t mind anything.”

Mizuki looked up. 

“Hm… that’ll work. I’m a Torch Ginger, myself. Gorgeous flowers, aren’t they?”

“Yes, but how did you even come up with this system?”

“Back in Miyabi, the Catharsis Effect reins supreme. You saw that spike that went through our chests? It’s surrounded by flowers. The flower means a lot to us there. Specifically that flower that sprouts from your Catharsis. Most of Technolia learns their flower and the meaning, but they don’t put as much meaning on it as we did in Miyabi. Miyabi wasn’t real, but that’s a story for another day.”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Well, if you insist on knowing, μ and Aria decided that the world was too fucked up and used their abilities as manaketes of dreams and music to create Miyabi… or as it was actually called, Mobius. There’s a reason why I don’t call Suzuna, Kensuke, and Kotaro by musician names. And that’s because they’re not musicians. They’re my fellow members of the Go-Home club. We escaped Mobius together. However… I was a bit of a traitor and decided to play both sides.”

“We still haven’t forgiven you for that!” Someone screamed from the back. 

“Aw, come on, Dolly. It’s been a while now, and we’re friends! Either way, I convinced most of the musicians to come home with me, and we convinced μ to let us all make our own ways in reality. ...After she went insane and tried to kill us all, especially me, though.”

“I’m sorry!” A small voice yelled from her pocket. “I’m really sorry about that!!”

“It’s fine. Water under the bridge. And long story short, us Go-Home club members had an easier time unlocking and mastering the Catharsis and we made a much bigger deal about the flowers because it was a way to bond.”

“A-And I feel like we should show them what we actually look like now!” The brown haired girl next to her… Suzuna? Muttered. 

“Ah, right. Since we all unlocked our Catharsis in Mobius, whenever we use them, we look like we did back in Mobius.”

“Huh?”

“Guys, let’s show them.”

The most drastic change was Kotaro. He went from a stocky high schooler to a small kid, looking like he was in middle school. 

Suzuna barely changed, she just seemed to look about a year older.

Kensuke didn’t change much either, but he gained a couple more years. He seemed to have changed from a high schooler to a young college student, about Mizuki and Yashiro’s age. 

“Haha, Mobius, letting you repeat the easiest high school ever until you escape or die.”

“...This is so confusing.”

“Kotaro’s 14, Suzuna’s 16, Kensuke’s 19. We just looked like high schoolers. Ever heard the song ‘Suicide Prototype’?”

“...Once or twice, I believe.”

“I wrote it. I’m that Lucid. And Kensuke wrote Peter Pan Syndrome, Sweet-P wrote Tokimeki Reverie, Stork wrote Love Scope, etc.” 

“...Wait, wasn’t Peter Pan Syndrome written by Kagi-P?”

Kensuke spoke up, pushing his glasses up as he did. 

“I am Kagi-P. Or, well, I was. I haven’t composed in a while, though I do want to make a song for Aria.” 

“Still confused but I won’t go any further.” 

Mizuki stared back at Itsuki. 

“Understandable. I’ll explain more at a later date. So you’d better survive so I can tell you!”

“I-I will…”

And that’s how Itsuki found himself standing in front of his parents, lying to the king and queen of Idola. 

“I knew you’d come to your senses, Itsuki. Return to your room. We’ll assign you new retainers, since your old ones are… gone.”

“Of course.”

Oh, if only you knew how close they were.

Itsuki clicked his tongue as he returned to his room, and noticed a group of guards outside his room. 

And once he entered… a bouquet of Torch Gingers rested on the table. With a blue rose in the center. 

Mizuki…

I see you. 

Itsuki grabbed the blue rose, and reached into his pocket. 

“Is that the signal?” A voice whispered. 

“Yes, it is. μ, you know what to do.” Itsuki whispered back. 

The white-haired manakete in her small form flew out of Itsuki’s pocket, and flew out of the door. 

The cells in my body suddenly changed with no sense of stability

“Escape” is the only thought on my mind OH-OH-OH-OH-OH

Weakness quickly took hold of me, the foolish and blamed enemy. 

I can’t take it anymore! OH-OH-OH-OH-OH

Run away, Run away, Run away…

I want to undergo a big reconstruction, this mechanism and ego. 

I’d even abandon my own damaged parts that I know 

After my great escape, I wonder where I shall go?

I don’t know, I have nothing, since I have no purpose or value.

Itsuki listened through the door, the groans of the guards and μ’s brilliant singing charming everyone else. 

This is… Mizuki’s song. Is this how her heart truly feels?

A laugh came from the other side of the door, and it popped open. 

A small, silver-haired guard looked over from the other side. 

“Who…?!”

“Relax! He’s with me, Lordling! This is Izuru.” A red-headed guard almost yelled. 

“...Mizuki…?”

“Got it in one!” 

The silver-haired boy sighed, and Itsuki’s eyes were drawn to a small scar on his face.

“President, the mission?”

“I didn’t forget, Izuru.” Mizuki’s illusion broke, and her face quickly dropped into a serious expression. “Come on, we’ve got to go. Everyone’s waiting for us. Aria, Shadow Knife, with me. μ, stay with him. Just in case.”

Shadow Knife dropped from the ceiling, and summoned his Catharsis Effect. 

Aria sat on Mizuki’s shoulder, while μ sat on Itsuki’s. Izuru and Shadow Knife both held their swords as they stood in front of Mizuki. 

And eventually, the rest of the rebellion members that Mizuki had brought along were found. 

Ren and a few of his thieves (Sumire, Ann, and Yusuke, if he remembered correctly), quickly falling into step beside him. 

Touma and Tsubasa, both smiling in relief. 

Kiria, Ellie, and Yashiro, nodding approvingly. 

Itsuki took a deep breath… 

And they walked right into the throne room.

Chapter Text

A soft dawn light filtered through the windows, as the confrontation began. 

Tsubasa’s heart pounded in her ears, as she pointed her spear at the king and queen. 

“We’re sorry, but this is for everyone.”

“You’ll regret this, Oribe.” Queen Marie said. 

“...C-Carnage Form.”

Tsubasa’s body was quickly overtaken by the pink light, and she stared down the queen clad in the power of her song. 

“...H-How…?!”

“This is my power. My heart. My song.”

“A commoner girl unlocking the secret power of Idola?! It’s unheard of!”

Kiria stalked over, also in her own carnage form. 

“It is, isn’t it? I’ve heard the stories. Not even you two have unlocked it.”

“How dare you. Of course we have!” The king bellowed, next to her. 

“Then prove it. If you’ve unlocked your carnage forms, then it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“We don’t answer to you!”

“That’s pretty much an admission. Don’t worry, Carnage Forms are hard! Tsubasa and I only just unlocked ours when you sent The Seven after us!”

Kiria’s smirk only grew wider when the king and queen realized that they had been directly responsible for her Carnage Form. 

“No more talk. Let’s fight.” Queen Marie said, summoning her carnage. 

The king did the same, and a battle began. 

The sword-style of a royal is easy to counter if you know how they fight.

And luckily they all did. 

Thanks to a certain Lordling, of course. 

The battle was short. Carnage Forms are incredibly tough to counter without one of your own. 

There was nothing more to do, the rest of the resistance began to take them to the dungeons while the guards only put up token resistance. 

This was the end… right?

That’s what they thought. 

Right up until Yashiro and Touma both ended up with blades in their stomachs. 

It was clear they wanted to aim for Kiria and Tsubasa. 

But the queen’s psychic powers were weak from the battle. 

So she went for the closer targets. 

And the pair collapsed to the ground right then and there. 

Chapter Text

Red. 

All Itsuki could see was red. 

This was supposed to be their victory. 

And yet two of his friends were on the floor, bleeding out. 

The carnages quickly vanished from their stomachs. Blood began pouring out of the wounds. 

“Th-They’re bleeding too much! I-I can’t stop it!”

Tsubasa’s healing magic was strong. Incredibly strong. 

But not even she could save a fatal wound. 

They all knew it. They were gone. 

Tsubasa’s frantic singing was replaced by a ringing in his ears. 

It wasn’t just in his head, it was radiating from their bodies. 

Yashiro’s eyes snapped open, his eye color having changed to an iridescent yellow. 

Touma’s did the same. 

Tsubasa looked over at them, her eyes wide 

“…No way. Are they… achieving their Carnage Forms?!”

Her suspicions were quickly proven right when a bright red and deep purple glow began to overtake their bodies. 

An echo of their voices filled the hall

Reach for my hand,

I'll soar away

Their mouths weren’t moving, but they were singing. Their hearts were singing. 

Into the dawn,

Oh, I wish I could stay

The excess of magical energy seemed to heal their wounds 

Here in cherished halls,

In peaceful days

The air suddenly got much warmer. The glow completely took over their bodies. 

I fear the edge of dawn,

Knowing time betrays…

The crackle of a fire, and everything exploded. Literally. 

Flames everywhere. A newly carnage-formed duo. 

This day would not be painted with their blood. 

~

Some would come to say that a demon descended on the palace. 

But in reality, it was a pair of terrified, barely alive teenagers. 

Performa is powerful. 

Performa is emotional. 

And when you lose control of your emotions, Perfoma is dangerous. 

The fire only kept growing, and you could hear the screams of the people in the palace, friend and foe alike. 

An uncontrolled blaze is only made worse when it’s twice as strong. 

The energy needed somewhere to go, and it swirled around them in a blaze of rage. 

No. 

That’s not right. 

It was a blaze of pain. 

All the pain they kept locked away in their hearts now created a huge blaze. 

It just needed a way out. 

And a stabbing and the fear of death is the perfect way to release that. 

Tsubasa attempted to put it out as much as she could, but she couldn’t completely kill the blaze. 

…But she could get some people out. 

“Captain! We can use the Pegasi to get as many people out of here as possible!” She yelled, and it seemed as if Minako had the same idea. 

She bolted to the window and let out a sharp whistle, and Pegasus after Pegasus began flying towards the window. 

“Everyone on! Let’s get out of here!” 

One by one, people got on Pegasi and were flown down to safety. 

Until it was just seven. 

Four Carnage Form users. 

And an Archer, a Knight, and a Lord. 

With every second that passed, the blaze grew. 

The five still in control attempted to reach the center of the blaze. 

It parted for them. 

Those who knew their pain. 

Hands on their shoulders. The physical touch snapping them out of the flaming reverie. 

The blaze died down, slowly. The pain returned to their bodies. Lighter, but still there. 

The yellow drained from their eyes, and the carnage forms dissipated as they slumped to the ground. 

The last remnants were put out by Tsubasa and Kiria. 

It was all over. This was truly the end. 

…Or was it?

Chapter Text

The Carnage Forn transformations and the stabbing left Touma and Yashiro unconscious for a full month. They had no idea what they’d wake up to. 

The king and queen had been overthrown. Prince Itsuki was now King Itsuki. 

But the biggest surprise to the both of them was that he seemed to have begun a courtship with the Princess of Technolia.  

Purely political reasons, he told them. 

It still didn’t sit right with the pair, but for completely different reasons. 

Yashiro was slightly bitter because he knew that Technolia was currently no better than Idola was only a month ago. They had so much to work on with Idola, and now he wanted to reform Technolia as well?

Touma… Touma was jealous. He’d admit it to himself. He was incredibly jealous. He’d fallen in love with someone he couldn’t have and now he’s paying the price for it. 

But they sat through it. Because they cared about Itsuki. And they had faith that he knew what he was doing. They believed in his truth.

Chapter Text

It’s been two years since the siege.

Two years since Itsuki became king of Idola. 

And in two years he managed to become a ruler that would go down in history books for his generosity and benevolence. 

He was truly a lord. 

And now he would have a queen. 

A beautiful queen always by his side.

One that he truly loved. 

The Technolian Princess, Alice. 

She took to Idola very well. It was as if she had always belonged here. A beloved performer as well as a ruler. 

He’d do anything for her. 

~

“I think I’ve finally made peace with the fact that he doesn’t see me the way I see him.” Touma said, as he placed his horse into the stable. 

“That’s great! That’s step one of moving on!”

“What, is that how you did it?”

“Pretty much. We all liked him a lot at some point. He just has this aura about him.”

“He does. But, he’s happy, and so I’ll try my hardest to be happy for him.”

“Good for you! But, onto other things… how’s Ellie doing? I haven’t seen her since Kiria and Yashiro’s wedding!”

“She’s doing great, acting keeps her busy.”

“I still can’t believe she was able to put together a troupe with the former members of the resistance and get so famous in such a short amount of time.”

“She’s miraculous, after all.”

“Yeah, she really is. I hated her at first, but honestly? I’m starting to like her.”

“I am so glad about that, I really don’t want one of my best friends and my sister fighting.”

Tsubasa’s giggled before she changed the subject. 

“So, we’ve gotta finish the preparations. The wedding’s in a week. Let’s make this as amazing as possible for him, okay?” 

“Okay!”

Chapter Text

A week later, the wedding began. 

Touma and Tsubasa were to make sure that no one would interrupt the wedding. 

The ceremony was happening. 

Everything was going according to plan. 

That is, until Tsubasa noticed a mysterious sorcerer out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head to see a second one right next to them. 

The shorter one was chanting something. 

A rain spell. 

And it worked. They bolted out to the balcony and began to collect some droplets with a flask. 

The second sorcerer fought off the guard with a Catharsis Effect. That narrowed their origins slightly. They’re Technolian. 

The first sorcerer locked the balcony from her side and began singing something. 

Tsubasa could only make out a few words…

But they were distinctive. She knew what song it was just from those few words. 

Veritas! How dare they use one of Aria’s songs for their own nefarious purposes!

The sorcerer plucked a few petals from a blue rose and shoved them into the flask, and bolted back into the hall. 

“Itsuki! Listen to me, if you’re not charmed, then tell me what this is!” The sorcerer yelled, pulling out a Torch Ginger. 

Itsuki didn’t respond. 

The sorcerer then weaved through the guard and attempted to get to him. 

She was too slow for Tsubasa, though. 

Tsubasa pulled the hood off this sorcerer’s head, and who looked up was a familiar brunette. 

“…Mizuki…?”

Mizuki whispered back. 

“Do you trust me? If you do, stagger back. Pretend I hit you.”

Tsubasa did so. 

Mizuki took that opportunity to put her arm around Itsuki’s neck and shove the newly-made potion down his throat.

Itsuki suddenly seemed to lose strength in his legs, but Mizuki kept propping him up. 

“Come on, Lordling. Come on.”

Pure Performa exploded from Itsuki, throwing Mizuki back. 

The second sorcerer disappeared along with Mizuki while everyone’s attention was focused on the beauty of the deep blue Performa. 

An arrow was quickly fired into the Performa, and it stopped. Itsuki collapsed, the arrow in his leg seeming to have brought back some of his sanity. 

Tsubasa’s eyes were drawn to the source of the arrow. A certain blonde-haired archer. 

Something in her eyes seemed like she knew this was going to happen. 

Ellie looked up, nocked another arrow, and pointed it at Alice. 

The green-haired princess stepped back, before summoning her Carnage. A deep pink staff with a bunny on top. 

Ellie’s longbow didn’t waver for a second. 

She yelled over the rain, “I know what you’ve done, Alice. You traded your Catharsis Effect for the power to steal Desires.” 

Her voice was clear and calm over the downpour outside. 

“You stole his desire. That was a temporary counter potion. Give it back.”

Alice looked up, and a shocked expression overtook her face. 

“N-No! I didn’t!”

“Don’t lie to me! You wanted power over both kingdoms, and you made a deal with one of the Manaketes hanging around Technolia for it!”

Alice spun her staff and sighed. 

“Fine. You caught me. But, do you want to know something? Everyone in this room except you has had their desires stolen. Carnage Form.”

Alice’s body was coated in a pink light before she changed into a new outfit. Pink hair. Yellow eyes.

“Guards, get her.”

All of the guards surrounding Touma and Tsubasa rushed Ellie, but she fired a bunch of arrows in the air and destroyed them in a single strike. 

She stepped over their bodies as she breathed heavily. An SP art. And she’s still got one bar left. 

“This is your final hour, Alice.”

Chapter Text

Alice’s staff kept twirling over and over.

“I have your prince completely under my control. I could make him throw himself off that balcony if I wanted. I bet you’d go to save him, if I did.”

“I have backup, Alice. They’d save him. I’d kill you.”

“Oh? You mean this backup?”

Kiria and Yashiro were marched into the room by the guards. 

“…Fuck.”

“The pair of sorcerers that temporarily countered my spell. Sciencia was right about you, Yashiro.”

“What?” He said, his eyes widening. 

“You had so much potential. Too bad your bastard of a father ran away.”

“Don’t talk about my father like that-!”

“You don’t even know, do you? Ever heard the legend of the missing heir of Technolia?”

“Of course. Everyone has.” 

“The man who raped the queen, and killed the son that was born from their union. He’s a horrible legend. But some rumors say the heir survived. And Sciencia found out that they were right.”

“…So, you know who this missing heir is?”

“Don’t you know? Looked in a mirror lately? The heir was said to have had mismatched eyes and purple hair. The hair is incredibly common here in Idola, but the eyes? That’s the proof. You’re the missing heir.”

“Ha. Very funny. My father and I are Idolan, through and through.”

“Really? Because the man’s name is not widely known, but my mother told it to me. Chikaomi Tsurugi. And Sciencia found the two of you here. He incurred her wrath by harming one of her children. This is why the Mass Disappearance happened. It was all your father’s fault. She would have killed you too, if not for that Naga-blooded Manakete.”

“…N-No. You’re lying. You have to be.”

“You want proof? Here.”

Alice threw a photo tome at him. 

“Look at the third page. This was automatically taken when they walked by. My mother was under his control. You can see it right here.”

The third page showed a photo of Chikaomi, with his arm around the queen’s waist, as they walked towards her chambers. 

Yashiro dropped the tome to the ground. The shock in every muscle in his body was clear. 

He barely had enough strength to avoid burning the palace down again. 

His hands began to shake.

And eventually, he collapsed to the ground. 

Everyone in the room was stunned.  

Except Ellie, who took her shot. 

She knocked Alice to the ground. 

And no one knew what to do next. 

Chapter Text

Ellie took Alice’s staff and cracked it in half over her knee, and a bright mist flew out of it, quickly solidifying into gemstones that fell into the chest of everyone that had been under her spell. 

“Monarchs. That’s what the thieves call people like Alice. We’ve been after her for months. Sorry we didn’t tell you, we couldn’t take the risk, in case you two had your desires stolen.”

Itsuki’s eyes fluttered open when his desire entered his chest. 

“…Ugh… where am I…?” 

Tsubasa rushed over, while Touma kept a distance back. 

Everything was quickly explained, and Itsuki seemed to become progressively more horrified. 

“I always wanted to marry for love, I don’t even remember accepting a political marriage!”

“Itsuki…? What’s the last thing you remember?”

“Uhm… Touma and Yashiro setting the palace on fire when they got stabbed. Wait, are they-?!”

Yashiro cut him off by walking into his field of vision.  

“We’re alright. But, Itsuki… that was two years ago.”

Itsuki seemed to get even more shocked. 

“Are you telling me that I’ve been under the control of Alice… for two years?”

“Yes. I’m sorry, we didn’t realize it until recently, when we met her at my wedding.”

“Wedding?! How much did I miss?!”

“Kiria and I are married, Ellie and Tsubasa don’t hate each other anymore, Touma and Tsubasa have been promoted to second in command of their respective regiments, the field has been down and satisfaction with your reign has been at an all time high.”

“Holy shit…”

“Yeah, a lot has happened.”

Itsuki seemed to have a million more questions, but quickly fell to his knees. 

Yashiro quickly caught him. 

Tsubasa kneeled next to them to quickly examine. 

“It’s just exhaustion. He should be fine.”

Yashiro scooped him up and began walking to Itsuki’s room. 

“What are you all waiting for? Let’s go.”

Tsubasa looked up. 

“Well, I actually had one question. You two weren’t the sorcerers. They were Technolian, and when I pulled the hood off one of them, it was Mizuki! So, where did she and the other sorcerer go?”

Kiria’s eyes widened.

“Sorry, we forgot to tell you about them. That was Mizuki and her older brother, Ritsu. They ran back to base during all the chaos. They’re fine, we got word.”

Tsubasa nodded, clearly having many more questions, but saving them for later. 

Yashiro bolted away, and Touma vanished.

Chapter Text

Itsuki jolted up, noticing a familiar figure standing in the corner of the room, with his arms crossed and his back against the wall. 

“Touma…?”

“Oh… you’re awake…”

“What are you doing here?”

“I’m still your retainer. I was assigned to protect you.”

“Did something happen, over those two years? You’re acting differently…”

“…People change in two years.”  

The crack in Touma’s voice was evident. 

“Tell me what happened. Please.”

Touma turned his face towards Itsuki, and the bluenette noticed his eyes glittering with unshed tears.

“It wasn’t you. It wasn’t your fault. And I know if I tell you, you’re just going to blame yourself, and I couldn’t live with myself if I made you upset.”

Itsuki got out of bed, and quickly walked over to the redhead. 

“I hurt you while I was under Alice’s control. Is that it?”

The redhead nodded. 

Itsuki reached his hand up to the taller boy’s face, but he slapped it away. 

“Don’t… don’t do this to me. Not now. Please.”

“Don’t do what?”

“Don’t make me keep loving you. I was trying to kill my feelings for you, after what you did, but… No one knew, I didn’t want anyone else to know. But, now, I know… it wasn’t you. I knew that at the time. That wasn’t the person I fell in love with. And yet, my heart still went insane whenever I was near you. Hell, it’s beating like lightning right now. I can’t stop loving you.”

“…Touma, please, I need to know. What did I do? I can’t apologize until I know what happened.”

Touma’s hand reached up to his face. 

“I… I came to see you. I could never resist you for long. I told you everything. I told you how much I loved you, and how sometimes I had nightmares about losing you… and then I don’t know what happened. You slapped me, yelled at me, and threw me in a dark closet. You locked me in, and I just… froze. You know how much I hate dark, confined spaces. You know that my parents used to do that to me when they had company over, and then you did it to me, and god, I felt like you betrayed my trust and did something that hurt me so much, when a couple years before you promised me that we’d protect each other!”

Touma practically yelled that last part. His face was streaked with tears. 

“But… but now I know that it wasn’t you, and god, I love you so much, but it hurts…”

“Touma…”

He let out a bitter laugh. 

“I was getting over you. It was working. But now we’re here, and you say my name like that again, and I’m back to where I started. Worst mistake of my life was falling in love with you. Second worst was telling you that day. I thought you didn't love her, I thought that maybe, just maybe, you felt the same way I did. And… and I can’t do this anymore. I’ll see you later.”

Touma started walking to the door, but was stopped by Itsuki’s hand on his shoulder.  

“I’m so sorry. I know that it’s nothing compared to what I did to you, but I…”

“That’s the problem, Itsuki. It wasn’t you. It was her. And… and god, I know it wasn’t you. But every time you touch me it feels like you’re going to hit me again. And I know we both wish things could just go back to the way they were, back to that morning that felt like a dream, back to being too close to each other than a retainer and his lord should be, but…”

More tears ran down his face, and he shook Itsuki’s hand off his shoulder. 

“People say a broken heart is the worst feeling in the world. But it’s not. It’s when you love someone who hurt you so much, and you just can’t stop loving them. And now I… I’ve been feeling the same way I did back when my parents first left. Like I don’t deserve love.” 

“You do, I can promise you that.”

“…That’s the exact same thing you said to me, all those years ago. I almost kissed you, that day. If the sunrise had lasted just a little longer, who knows where we’d be…God, help me, I-I can’t stop crying… I can’t stay here anymore, I’ll resign, I’ll move to Technolia, I just can’t see that look on your face anymore.”

“…I have no right to ask you this, but… I’m begging you, please stay. Not for me, I don’t deserve you, but stay for everyone else. Ellie, Yashiro, Kiria, Tsubasa, Mamori, your siblings, and even the thieves and musicians. They’d all be heartbroken if you left.”

“God… why did I have to fall in love with someone so dangerous? You were pretty dense, all those years ago, and I thought the frustration I felt when I couldn’t get it through your head that I loved you was the worst I could feel when it came to you. But it’s worse now that you know. It’s worse now that you’re back. Because I’m at war with two parts of myself. Should I run away, or come closer? Quit and leave, or try to kiss you? And I’m terrified, because whichever one comes out on top, things will never be the same. You’re bad for my heart.”

“…I… I don’t know what to say.”

“…But I do. I can’t do this right now. I… I just need some time. To recover. To not flinch whenever you come near me. To try to remember that it was all her, and that you’re innocent in all this. Y’know, the thieves convinced her that she was wrong. She wanted to apologize, but I can’t forgive her. I can’t forgive you, how can I forgive her?” 

“I’ve never known you to be unable to forgive someone…”

“People always say that I’ll be taken advantage of because I love too much. I’ve known that for so long. It happens too much. And yet, I’ve always been able to forgive people who are sorry, but what happened reminded me of two people who weren’t sorry for what they did, and I just can’t imagine that someone is sorry for that, because no one ever has been. Not to me. And why would they? I’m worthless.”

“Don’t say that… you’re not.”

“And yet, that same voice screamed the exact opposite at me just a few months ago. I can’t. I can’t right now. Please, if we’re going to stay here, can we just be quiet and do something else? Or just… let me go.”

“…I don’t know what you’re implying…”

“Hah… I guess I was a little vague. Right now, all I want to do is either kiss you or get out of here. It’s your choice, because I can’t keep talking about this.”

“Y-You don’t know what you’re saying. You’re really upset right now, and-”

Itsuki’s voice died in his throat when he saw the look on Touma’s face. He was desperate for someone else to make the choice for him. He couldn’t keep doing this. 

Itsuki leaned in.

Touma’s breath quickened, and Itsuki could feel the redhead’s heart as he put his hand on his chest.

This was it. This was perfection, and…

…And this wasn’t right. 

Not now, not in this state. 

They know it, if they do this, they’ll hate each other when they’re done. 

“…I’ll call Tsubasa.”

Touma pulled his face back and nodded, his voice seeming to have died in his throat. 

And he walked out of the room. 

Chapter Text

Once Yashiro left Itsuki to Touma, he ran off. 

Ran as far as he could through the palace, before crashing into Kiria. 

“Oh, Yashiro. I was looking for you.” She said, before dragging him into a small alcove behind a tapestry. 

She lowered her voice, and spoke softly. 

“Are you okay? I know you kinda snapped back to normal after Itsuki collapsed, but…”

“I’m fine. Thanks for being worried.”

“Hey, listen, we got married fast because if they’re talking about our marriage they’re not talking about why we left the industry, but I’m still going to attempt to be a good significant other.”

“You and I are best friends, and we were planning on going out anyway.”

“Still. So, tell me the truth. I’ve known you since we were kids, you can’t lie to me. That was rough. Finding out that you’re the missing heir to Technolia?”

“There has to be something wrong. I… I can’t believe that my father would…”

“You once told me that your father only cared about two things, you and his acting.”

“He told me something changed him, and that he’d tell me when I was old enough… was it this? Did he…?!”

“You know your father better than I. I think this is something you’ll need to figure out on your own. And, uh… I guess that means Alice is your half-sister.”

“Oh god, that’s going to be an awkward family reunion.”

The pair of them laughed. 

“Hey, Kiria? Thanks.”

“Any time, babe. Any time. And, hey, if you need any help figuring it out, we’re all here!”

“Yeah. Thanks. I’ve spent this long believing in my father, I’m not going to stop now!”

“That’s the spirit! And the dork that I know!”

“Hey!”

Kiria laughed, before walking out of the alcove. 

Yashiro took a breath, feeling a bit lighter, before walking out as well. 

Chapter Text

A week later, a plan was formed. 

Itsuki had to head to Technolia to explain what happened with Alice, and Kiria, Yashiro, Ellie, Tsubasa, Mamori, and Touma would come along with him. They’d meet Minato over there, while the rest of the captains would stay behind and handle the day-to-day. 

The Ostinatos and Thieves also headed over as backup. 

With a quick teleportation spell, Yashiro, Kiria, Ellie, and Mamori split off to do some research on Yashiro’s father, while Touma, Tsubasa, and Itsuki headed to the palace. 

And one of them had to find a place to stay for the night. 

Touma volunteered to go find the rooms, and said he’d catch up with them later. He disappeared with a smile and a wave. 

And Itsuki found himself releasing a breath he didn’t know he was holding. 

Tsubasa noticed, but she didn’t comment on it. Not the best time right now. 

And neither side had a good time.

After finding out that one of Itsuki’s closest friends was the bastard heir of Technolia, the queen banished them from the palace, closing the door on any negotiations for the time being. 

However, they did run into Alice, who seemed genuinely apologetic. Turns out, she was a secret, and was bullied because no one knew she was royalty. It twisted and hurt her from the inside, and while she knew it didn’t excuse her actions, she hoped that she could at least apologize. And, while Itsuki couldn’t forgive her, she did so much, he was willing to give her a second chance in Idola. 

Alice bolted over to Ann, who smiled at Itsuki when she saw him. 

“Thank you” she mouthed. 

Meanwhile, any mention of Yashiro’s father was met with suspicion. Whether by name or by talk of the missing heir, no one would speak to the clearly Idolan folks. 

At the end of the day, they all met up at the place Touma found for them to stay, so that they could rest before meeting up with Minato and Ellie’s relatives tomorrow. 

“I was able to swing four rooms. So, Kiria and Yashiro, Tsubasa and Mamori, Ellie and I, and then Itsuki gets his own room?”

Kiria shook her head. 

“No offense, but I’m kinda tired of sharing a room with Yashiro.”

“I’m your husband!”

“We married out of convenience. Yes, I love you, but also we should mix it up.”

“…Can’t argue with that.”

“Also, you snore.”

“I DO NOT-”

Kiria laughed, and then suggested a new arrangement. 

“What about Ellie and Tsubasa, Me and Mamori, and Yashiro and Touma? Itsuki still stays solo.”

Everyone agreed to that, and Touma was relieved that no one had suggested that he share with Itsuki. 

And they all headed up to their rooms. 

Chapter Text

Touma and Yashiro sat in their room, talking. 

“Hey, Flash Bastard, can I ask you a personal question?” Yashiro said, out of the blue. 

“Hm? Yeah, sure. What’s up?”

“Is something going on between you and Itsuki?”

Touma froze. 

“Nothing’s going on, why would you ask that?”

“Tsubasa told me that you seemed to look for every opportunity to leave, and Itsuki seemed to release a breath when you left.”

“…Oh god, this was a trap.”

“Yep.”

Touma sighed, before beginning to speak. 

“Okay. I’ll tell you under the condition that this doesn’t leave the seven of us. Deal?”

“Why would you even need to make that a condition? Who else would we tell it to? Deal, of course.”

Touma walked over, grabbed a bottle of sake from the side of the room, and took a couple of sips. 

“Sorry, I don’t normally drink, it’s just that I need it to talk about this after what happened.”

“Holy shit, what happened?”

“So, I assume you know about my incredibly obvious crush on Itsuki?”

“Everyone knows, Touma. Everyone. Even Mamori. She’s 13.”

“Yeah, that checks out. So, while Itsuki was under Alice’s control… something happened. Something that I didn’t tell a soul about.”

Yashiro didn’t respond, but he looked attentively at the redhead as he paced around the room.

“So… remember how I told you about my parents?”

“I remember thinking about how if I ever met them, I would deck them, so yes.”

“I never told you about this other thing. When they had company over, they’d lock me in a closet.”

“Scratch that, I’m tracking your parents down to deck them.”

“Please don’t. But, anyway, the only person besides Ellie I had told that to at the time was Itsuki. I trusted him with everything. And I did something stupid. I told him I loved him.”

Yashiro’s eyes widened. 

“He was engaged… and you told him you loved him?”

“Yeah, I know, it was stupid. But I thought that since it was only for political reasons, maybe we could figure something out.”

Touma reached his hand up to his face, clearly remembering what happened. 

“And then he slapped me.”

“He what?!”

Touma took another sip, and his face began to flush. 

“Slapped me, screamed at me, called me worthless and disgusting, and then he locked me in a closet.”

“…I’m going to kill him.”

“Don’t! It was Alice, remember? It… it wasn’t his fault.”

Yashiro sighed. 

“I know. But it feels so… weird.”

“And then we had a conversation when you left him in his room.”

“Let me guess, didn’t go well?”

“Nope. He begged me to tell him what was wrong, I started crying and spilled it all out, I said whenever he touched me I was scared that he’d hit me, and then at the end I basically said that I couldn’t talk anymore and that I couldn’t take the decision and that he should either kiss me or kick me out.”

“He kicked you out?”

“Yep. And I mean, I know he made the right choice, and I’m really grateful for that because we’d definitely have ended up in a worse situation, but there was a moment there where he leaned in and put his hand on my chest and fuck I was both really into it and really terrified that he’d grab me and shove me into a closet.”

Yashiro closed his eyes and thought. 

“Okay, first thing’s first, you’ve had like half that bottle already and we have stuff to do tomorrow.”

Touma nodded and handed the bottle to Yashiro, who placed it back on the counter.  

“So, what I’m hearing is that you love him, but you're also incredibly terrified of him?”

“Yeah.”

“Emotions are weird.”

“You’re damn right about that.”

“And while you’re aware that it was Alice, there’s lingering doubt in your mind because how would she know about that, you only told Itsuki and Ellie?” 

“Yep.”

“Have you considered that she manipulated Itsuki into telling her, and then she told him to do that to you so that you’d back off?”

“Of course I have. The problem is there’s still that lingering doubt, no matter how much my rational brain tries to say that he’d never do that.”

“I can understand that.”

“Ugh, I really have the urge to go to his room.”

“Oh, hell no. That’s the alcohol talking. You’re not going over there while you’re drunk.”

Touma randomly started laughing, and Yashiro rolled his eyes as he picked the redhead up and put him in his bed. 

Chapter Text

The next morning, the redhead woke up with a pounding headache and a cup of coffee next to his bed. 

“Morning.” Yashiro said, sipping his own cup. 

“…G’morning…”

“Do you remember anything about last night?”

“Yeah, I told you everything, and… oh god, thank you so much.”

“No problem. Drink your coffee, I’ll hide the fact that you got drunk from everyone, and I’ll explain it to everyone once we can get away from Itsuki.”

“You’re a fucking saint, Yashiro.”

“No I’m not, I’ve literally kidnapped you before.”

“That was forever ago though.”

“How can you forgive me for literally kidnapping you?”

“Because I’m 100% sure that you’re really sorry!”

“Oh my god, you’re so sweet that you sicken me.”

“You know you love me!”

“Ew, no, I don’t.”

“You stopped me from going to see my crush drunkenly. You definitely love me.”

“You irritate me. If you went over there you’d be crying to me again.”

“And what was the coffee for?”

“…”

“Gotcha!”

“Okay, fine, I may… somewhat care about you.”

“Yes! We’re besties!”

“We are not-”

“We are!”

The debate was interrupted by a knock on the door. 

“Touma, Yashiro, are you awake?” 

“Shit.” Touma said, recognizing the voice. “Yeah, Itsuki, we’re awake!”

“Okay, great. We’re all meeting up in the lobby, come down when you’re ready.”

His footsteps quickly faded, and Touma let out a sigh of relief. 

“Mind if I join your team today? I’m sure Mamori or Ellie wouldn’t mind swapping to hang out with Itsuki.”

“Yeah, sure, don’t worry about it. And Kiria’s better at the social thing than I am, so she’ll probably be able to help.”

“Thank you so much.”

Luckily, it seems that Itsuki had the same idea. Ellie would swap with Touma, because her Technolian heritage might help with the queen, and Touma would swap over to Yashiro’s team because he was clearly the one with the best social skills here.

And so the plan was set. 

And unfortunately, it didn’t go much better than the day before. 

Alice vouching for them and Ellie’s Technolian heritage was very useful, especially after they met up with Minato and he talked to the queen, but unfortunately, the queen asked what their relationship to Yashiro was, and after answering that he was one of their most trusted friends, they were kicked out again. 

And once again, even when they met up with the Technolia-born Mizuki, no one was willing to speak to them. 

…Except one person. 

A woman. They didn’t know her name, but she was their only lead. They were to meet her that night, for the information. 

And so, they left Mamori at the hotel, and walked to the designated location. 

“…Hello?”

The woman appeared in front of them. A teleportation spell. 

“I heard you guys were looking for information about Chikaomi?”

“Yes, do you know him?” Yashiro said, his eyes gleaming. 

“More than know him. I’m his sister. Why are you so interested in him?”

Yashiro took a deep breath before speaking

“Well, I suppose I should introduce myself. I’m Yashiro Tsurugi… and I think I’m your nephew.”

The woman’s eyes gleamed. 

“There were so many rumors, but I didn’t dare hope that my brother's son had survived! I should have known, your eyes are two different colors. Come on, come on. Let’s head to my house. I’m Anka Tsurugi, but if you’re friends of my nephew, then you can just call me auntie!”

They followed Anka to her house, and she insisted they sit down. 

“Okay, what do you want to know? I know Chikaomi died during the Mass Disappearance seven years ago, so you’d have been… fourteen at the time?”

“Yes. But I’m really only here for answers. What was the truth behind my birth? Was it true that my father… raped the queen of Technolia…?”

Anka’s eyes grew steely and angry when she heard Yashiro say that. 

“Other way around, sweetheart. The queen raped your father. He was a good man, but always so obsessed with his work. I guess she saw him as a challenge and charmed him.”

Yashiro’s eyes widened. 

“I… that’s not the father I knew… he loved acting, but he loved me too…”

“Darling, that was before you were born. Everything that happened probably changed him, when he ran off to try to give you a better life. I think that if Chikaomi had kids normally, you probably wouldn’t know how to eat. But… this whole thing, it changed him. For the better. All he thought of was you. So he burned the place down and took you away to a place you could both be happy.”

Yashiro’s hands fastened around the hilt of his katana. 

“So, all this time, they’ve been lying. My father… he was a good man, I knew that all along.”

And Yashiro thought something that would immediately get him killed if he said it aloud. 

I'm going to kill her.

Chapter Text

The next morning, Yashiro woke up in an unfamiliar place. 

Right. I met my aunt. And… what happened after that…?

He looked up to see a familiar white-haired manakete looking down at him. 

“Oh! You’re awake!” She yelled, before helping him up. 

μ… what was she doing here…?

She gave him a sad smile before speaking. 

“I think you deserve an explanation. First things first, welcome to Mobius! Now, why are you here? Well, that’s because you’re actually in captivity right now.”

“Huh…?”

“I used my song to draw your soul here. I know I told everyone that Mobius collapsed, but I couldn’t bear to let all my hard work go to waste.”

“Wait, wait, go back. What do you mean I’m in captivity?”

μ sighed. 

“Okay. So, you had a thought about killing the queen. That’s a crime here in Technolia.”

“What?”

“Technolia thrives on solving the mysteries of the world around them. One of the mysteries they solved was how to read thoughts.”

“…That… sounds completely unethical.”

“Most people did. Almost all of them were either captured or killed.”

“…Wow, Technolia’s even more fucked up than I thought.”

“I definitely agree with you there.”

“Wait, isn’t it dangerous to be speaking like this, then?”

“I’m a manakete of song and of dreams. My song brought you here, to a place no one could find you. A dream. Unfortunately, your body's still in trouble. And it’s a lot harder than when Itsuki broke Lucid out of the Idolan dungeons.”

“Then… what can I do?”

“…Fight. That’s all I can tell you to do. The worst punishment here isn’t an arena, it isn’t death… it’s how they rewrite your mind and thoughts so that you never have another moment of rebellion. I’ll protect you as long as I can, but I have limits.”

“And… what about everyone else?”

“They got back to Idola after you were captured. Aria’s with them, she says they’re formulating a plan to get you out of here.”

“Ugh… damn it, this is why I don’t like people getting attached to me. They should just leave me and run.”

“They’re not doing that, Yashiro. They never will. And I don’t think you’d leave any of them behind either.”

“…Yeah. You’re right. I wouldn’t.”

“You have to hang on! My spell’s being broken, they’re pulling you out!”

μ’s voice dimmed as Yashiro’s consciousness faded. 

A flash of pink overtook his vision before he awoke in a cell. 

Of course… damn it.

A woman in a lab coat stood in front of his cell. 

“Welcome to the re-education program. Step one is forgetting your name. You are now Yashiro Ito. I expect that you know that your former last name is banned in the country.”

“Well, I believe I can see why.”

“Also, your father never had any siblings.”

“So, she was a trap?”

“I didn’t say that. I said your father didn’t have any siblings. Those who can change the past can change the future.”

She’s speaking in riddles. Alice’s shows were less confusing.

The lady gave a cold smile. 

“Princess Alice.”

“Hm?”

“You didn’t use Princess Alice’s proper title in your head.”

“Ah, of course. My apologies.”

“Don’t make that mistake again.”

“I won’t.”

Princess Alice, hm? Back when she and Itsuki were engaged, she said to simply call her by her name. Perhaps this…

Yashiro’s thoughts stopped abruptly. 

The woman knew everything he was thinking. He knew it. His mind was no longer his own.

Then, miss, shall we dance? A dance to see who will come out alive in the end?

The woman smiled at his challenge. 

“Oh, you’ll come out alive. But you’ll come out as Yashiro Ito, not Yashiro…” she spat before she said his last name. “Tsurugi.”

We’ll see. 

“They all start out the same as you. I can’t wait to see those eyes of yours drain of that rebellious spark.”

Have you ever tried to defeat an Idolan before?

“No, but you’re not Idolan. You’re Technolian, through and through.”

Hmph. Just because my father was from here, doesn’t mean that either of us are Idolan. 

“You are Technolian. No matter how much you want to believe that you aren’t. You’re just like me. And trust me, you’ll be begging to be in the same class as me once I’m done with you. Because you’re a bastard heir. Lower than the lowest.”

You know, for someone trying to manipulate me, you’re certainly chatty. You’re practically explaining everything you’re going to do to me. 

She smiled. 

“Am I, Yashi?”

How did you-?!

“You ask that, even as you’re speaking to me through your mind? I can see everything. Every memory. Your memories of all of them, especially her, will need to be suppressed. Don’t you feel it? The vines climbing up your throat? The ultimate punishment. Hanahaki. Flowers that grow the more you love. Once it’s in full bloom, we cut them out. And then, you simply forget them all. Easy. You should be honored, we normally only turn people into digiheads.”

…So this is what she meant. 

The woman’s smile stayed on her face. 

“μ can’t save you now. No one can. It’s your choice. Die with your love, or survive by letting me remove those flowers. I’ll see you later.”

Yashiro coughed a flower into his hand. 

A lily. How fitting. Revenge. 

Chapter Text

“So, to recap, Aria lost contact with μ after Yashiro got pulled out of Mobius, and now we have no idea where he is or what they’re doing to him.” Itsuki said, frowning. 

“Yep.” Mizuki said, putting her head in her hands. “Technolia’s secret prisons are impossible to find. Everyone's aware of them, though they only started popping up seven or so years ago. When the breakthrough in mind-reading Seiðjárn happened. Made Catharsis Effects stronger, but also was the push for μ and Aria to create Mobius because reality began to suck. A lot.”

“Great. Just great. How the hell are we supposed to help him if we can’t even find μ?!”

The doors to the council room opened, and Itsuki turned his head to snap at whoever interrupted them. 

However, his words quickly died in his throat when they saw who opened the doors. 

It was Yashiro, supporting himself on his sword, with a devil-may-care smirk on his face that was rarely seen.

“Missed me?”

“Yes, we did, you idiot! Now sit down, you look like a mess!” Kiria said, a smile on her face. 

The moment Yashiro sat in his chair, Touma and Tsubasa practically tackled him in hugs. 

Itsuki waited until the pair were back across the room before walking over and hugging him along with Ellie.

Mamori hugged him from the side, and Kiria placed a small kiss on his cheek. 

Mizuki simply gave a wink and a thumbs up, while Ren, who hadn’t spoken up until now, ruffled his hair. 

Yashiro laughed, another rare occurrence, before beginning to explain the details of his escape. 

~

Meanwhile, in a cell in Technolia, μ was attempting to wake up the real Yashiro. 

“Yashiro…! Please! Get up!”

“Ngh… μ? Am I back in Mobius?”

“No, you’re not. I’m masking my presence and shielding your thoughts of me. It’s a long story, but they sent a fake Yashiro in your place! A spy!”

“What?!”

“I had to hide from Aria too, or the fake Yashiro would know that I was with you. We’ve got to get out of here!”

“I’ve already been afflicted with the Hanahaki. I don’t suppose there’s anything you can do about it?”

“I’m not sure, but unfortunately, we’re going to have to worry about that after we’ve escaped!”

The pixie-sized Manakete flew out of the cell and picked up a key from the desk. 

“Let’s get out of here, Yashiro!”

She unlocked the door, grew to her full size, grabbed Yashiro’s hand, and began running. 

Alarms began blaring. Guards chasing them. 

But μ’s song overpowered them. 

I stand here with a bomb, unconcerned I was silent.

This unfortunate malignant tumor has gradually expanded.

Minus wisdom thoughts and images spreading the wounds.

A tool to destroy this absurd reality.

Fleeting, fleeting, fleeting, fleeting, fleeting, shackles of life!

Engrave this sorrow with both hands together!

I don't need, I don't need, I don't need, I don't need, I don't need that excuse!

A cry gouging internal organs crawling with ugly emotions!

And μ’s song suddenly exploded with a powerful scream and a burst of ice.

The worst suggestion for a Life!

I had a dream where I was laughing together with you a few years ago…

I want to reveal this treasure to all the world! Ah!

I was without any hope and miserable.

Worn-out, I lost my voice…

The guards all around them got lost in the performa-fueled snow storm, and when it cleared, Yashiro and μ had vanished. 

They managed to find an exit, and μ tried to activate a warp point, but they were all blocking her. 

“It’s no use, μ. We’ve got to keep moving. Do you know this area?” Yashiro said, grabbing his chest. 

“Y-Yes! I do! I can get us to the border, but will it let us through?”

“You’re forgetting, the border on this side is controlled by Idola. I’m one of the king’s most trusted allies. It’ll let us through.”

“Okay! I don’t have my dragonstone, so I can’t transform, but you know what I can do?”

Yashiro smirked. 

“Fly?”

“Exactly! Hang on tight!”

μ lifted him up, and began flying towards the edge of the border. 

~

Back at the palace, Yashiro was still regaling everyone with tales of his escape, while Aria stayed back. 

“Hey! You!” Aria said, landing on Mizuki’s shoulder. “Is it just me, or does Yashiro seem… off?”

“…It’s not just you. Maybe he’s drunk off the escape, but I’ve never seen him this… smiley.”

“Plus… shouldn’t μ be with him? She was tracking him down. I hope nothing’s happened to her…”

Mizuki took a sip from the glass of water she was holding. 

“I hope so too, Aria.”

~

At sunset, μ landed right in front of the border. 

“Now, we just have to-Ah!” 

She was cut off by an arrow whizzing past her ear and hitting the barrier. 

A group of mercenaries, armed with Wyrmslayers. 

Metal weapons were rarely used in either country, but when they were… they were dangerous. Usually slayers. 

And μ was still a Manakete, even without her dragonstone. 

Yashiro summoned his carnage, and placed himself between the mercenaries and her. 

“Carnage form.”

~

“Itsuki, either I’m paranoid, or there’s something wrong with Yashiro.”

“What? He’s just happy because he escaped.”

“I don’t think so.”

“Come on, Mizuki. Relax.”

~

Yashiro countered as much as he could. He had to play defensively. Once the arrow struck the barrier, it locked it until someone authorized could unlock it. Yes, he was authorized, but if he went now, they’d be able to follow him. 

μ started singing that song again. Onboro. Kuchinashi’s tattered heart of electricity and ice. 

She screamed, and ice crystals flew everywhere, in a flurry. 

She froze all but one of them. The leader. 

They were wrong. They weren’t mercenaries. 

The same woman who looked into Yashiro’s mind was leading the secret police. To the layman it looked like a simple scuffle. But it was much more dangerous than that. 

They both knew that in their weakened states, they had no chance against her. 

“I can’t believe you’d run like that. I mean, the flowers are already in you. You’ll die in a week.”

Yashiro stared at her, as his carnage form dissolved in a burst of deep purple. 

“So, this is it, hm? Your way of making me suffer? Either I beg you to remove them, and I forget about everyone I love, or I die in a week?”

Yashiro put his head down, and his voice started rising. 

“God, I detest this place. It hurts me. Knowing that if my father hadn’t run, this would have been my life. And now I’m going to either forget him, or die. I’ll forget Kiria. I’ll even forget Ayaha, who died so long ago to help protect me. It hurts, goddamn it!”

And the woman smirked. 

“Oh, you think Ayaha’s dead? She’s not. Sciencia took her as a vessel for her power. She might as well be dead, but her body is still walking around. She’s here right now.”

She clapped her hands, and a cloaked figure appeared. The figure pulled off her red hood, and Ayaha Oribe stared back at him, her skin gray and her face covered in purple marks. 

“Ayaha? Kill him. That’s clearly what he wants.”

Ayaha’s hands extended into claws, and she lunged. 

Chapter Text

Yashiro rolled out of the way of Ayaha’s claws, and μ tried singing again. 

Unfortunately, all the elemental magic simply bounced off her. 

“She’s a vessel of Sciencia! Performa won’t work on her!” μ yelled.

“Damn! We can’t touch her!” Yashiro yelled, dodging another hit. 

“Okay, Yashiro, do you trust me?” μ said, flying out of the way of an attack. 

“…Yes!”

“Okay!” 

And time seemed to distort around them. Ayaha stopped in midair. The world around them disappeared in a brilliant white. 

“Don’t worry, no one can hear us. I know parts of your pain, but not all of it. Tell me! Please! Just trust me!”

“…My father died in the mass disappearance when I was fourteen. There are things he never told me that constantly haunt me. This isn’t how I wanted to learn it all.”

“That’s not enough! I need to hear more! Everything!”

“After that day, Kiria and I swore to protect Tsubasa, because Ayaha was gone, and there was nothing she loved more than her sister. But… she’s alive…”

“One last thing! What do you want to do about it?!”

“…Kill everyone that hurt me and my friends.”

“That’s it! I’ll accept all your pain! Are you ready?! Gooooo live!”

A burst of pink energy exploded around him, and a new blade appeared in his hands. One handed, a different feeling from his katana, but he instinctively knew how to use it. 

He dodged another attack from Ayaha, and sliced forward. She took the hit, and stumbled back. 

And then a shot hit her shoulder. 

A boy appeared, only a few inches shorter than Yashiro. Messy black hair, and a Catharsis Effect. Two guns. 

Ritsu Shikishima. He was a sage, but not one person could ever convince him to share his research with the queen. 

“Out of the way, Thorn. I thought I was able to convince you to stop this back in Mobius, but clearly not.”

“Ah, Ritsu. One half of Lucid.”

“I haven’t called myself that in years. My sister’s kept the moniker, I haven’t. Listen to me, Thorn.”

“I know what you’re going to say, and just shut up.”

“Okay, fine, don’t talk to me. But let them go. I can’t believe that after all μ did for you, you’d repay her like this.”

“She failed.”

“She gave you so much!”

“And you cast it all away to run back to this hell with the Go-Home Club!”

The woman, Thorn, summoned her Catharsis. A lance. 

“I’m going to make this place as perfect as Mobius was, don’t try to stop me.”

“I’ll stop you again, Thorn. I promise you.”

“What about the rest of your friends?”

“They’re busy in Idola, trying to save him.” Ritsu said, turning his head to Yashiro. “Leave him. He’ll die in a week, won’t he? Let him go.”

“I sent a digihead in his place. If I let him go, the plan falls to pieces.”

“Of course you did. μ, take him and run!”

“Be safe!” She yelled, before the barrier reopened through Ritsu’s magic, and she and Yashiro ran to safety.

“That’s it! We’re okay!”

“What about him?”

“Oh, Ritsu? He’s a master of the Catharsis Effect… and he has a grudge against Thorn. It’s a long story, but don’t worry. He’ll be fine. Let’s go, we’ve got to stop that digihead!”

“Digihead?”

“People that have been brainwashed. It used to be a term only used in Mobius for people that listened to my song and lost all their inhibitions, but now it’s a common term.”

“I see. So, this digihead is pretending to be me?”

“Exactly!” 

“We’d better go. I’m scared of what he might do.”

“You’re pretty low on energy. Maybe we should try to find a soma first…”

“There's no time!”

“Okay, but at least use a Soul Surge!”

“…What?”

“It’s a skill that comes with your new Catharsis Effect! You can recover 300 SP, just like that!”

“…What? SP maxes out at 3.”

“Oh, right, you guys call it EP.”

“Ah, that makes more sense… wait, 300 EP?!”

“It’s only usable with your Catharsis Effect, though. Quickly, do it! We’ll be able to get over there with a fighting chance!”

“…Hm…”

Yashiro glowed, and he suddenly recovered 300 SP. 

“What the hell? This is busted.”

“Catharsis Effects use more SP than Carnages, so we have a built-in healing!”

“Still incredibly busted.”

“Just wait and see how it’s necessary.”

“Okay. Let’s go.”

“Yes, let's!”

Chapter Text

“Hey. You okay? I’ve never seen you so happy. Feels like you’re hiding something.” Kiria muttered, after whisking Yashiro away from the impromptu party. 

“What? I’m fine.”

“Really? Because I’ve known you forever. You’re rarely wrong about me, and I’m rarely wrong about you.”

Kiria reached her hand up and threaded her fingers into his hair. 

“Yashiro. Tell me. Is anything wrong?”

“Nothing, darling.”

“…You’ve never called me darling before. Something's wrong.”

“…Ha, you’re perceptive. It was just… really hard in there. They kept trying to brainwash me, and I almost succumbed a couple times. I can’t believe I was that weak. 

“But, you didn’t. You’re stronger than you think. And now you know what happened. So, we’ll plan things out, and then it’ll be done. I’ve never known someone to keep Yashiro Tsurugi down.”

Yashiro frowned. 

“I think I have to do this myself.”

“Hm? I clearly remember you being the one who asked me to help, but okay.” Kiria quipped, but her eyes were dead serious. “Is there something else?”

“Nothing. I’d tell you if anything else was wrong.”

“…Okay. Later.”

“Ta-ta!”

Kiria walked out of the room, and Yashiro stayed back. 

Mizuki walked up to her. 

“Kiria, you’ve realized it too, right?”

“Yeah. That’s not Yashiro.”

Aria flew out of Mizuki’s pocket, and landed on Kiria’s shoulder. 

“The real question is, who is he? And where are Yashiro and μ?!”

Chapter Text

“Come on, guys! You’re just paranoid! Relax!” Touma yelled, after Mizuki and Kiria stated their theory. 

“He called me ‘darling’ and said ‘Ta-ta!’ when I left.” Kiria said. 

“…Yeah, ignore everything I just said, we’ve got a fake.”

Yashiro walked into the room with a smile, and asked what they were talking about.  

“Nothing!” Tsubasa yelled, and he looked at her suspiciously. 

“Okay, you caught us.” Touma said. “We were planning a real party to celebrate you coming back.”

Yashiro smiled again, and how did they not notice this until now? Definitely not Yashiro. 

He walked out with a wink, and everyone let out a collective breath. 

“Okay, what are we calling him?” Itsuki said. “We can’t just keep calling him Yashiro.”

“Fake Yashiro?” Ellie began. 

“Too basic.”

“Yashiro but sweet?” Tsubasa added.

“Too wordy.”

“Dark Yashiro?” Touma said, almost unconsciously. 

“…Yeah, that’s perfect.” Itsuki said, and the air in the room suddenly got heavy.

“…Mizuki, Ren, Aria? Could you guys leave us for a bit?” Kiria said. 

Mizuki and Ren exchanged a glance, and nodded confusedly before leaving, and Aria followed them. 

“Okay, this is too much. There’s an issue here, a really severe one, but we’re not going to get anything done if any time you two speak in the same conversation everything gets tense. Can you both try to relax around each other?”

“I-I’m trying.” Touma whispered. “I’m really trying, Kiria.”

Kiria sighed. 

“I know you are. And I know we can’t just wave a carnage and rewind time and make it so that what happened between you two never happened. But our current arrangement isn’t working either.”

“…Are you saying that I should leave, Kiria?”

“No! No, no, of course not. I’m just trying to figure out a good solution.”

“This is really the only solution I can see. Things are a mess whenever we speak and… well, that’s not the best quality for a lord and his retainer. Especially when we respond to each other in a meeting.”

“Never mind, I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“No, you did the right thing. I’ll go, and we’ll figure everything out later.”

“W-Wait!” Itsuki said, instinctively reaching out and grabbing Touma’s wrist. “Don’t go. Please.”

Touma seemed to stiffen, and his breathing sped up.

Kiria stood up, making some excuse to leave, and took Ellie and Tsubasa with her. 

And they were alone. 

Chapter Text

Itsuki released Touma’s wrist, but he didn’t move. 

“You don’t know what you do to me. You drive me insane.”

“I-I’m sorry, I panicked.”

They both fell into silence, until Itsuki spoke again. 

“Touma. Look at me.”

The redhead turned around, and locked eyes with Itsuki. 

“Hit me.”

“What?”

“You heard me. Hit me. I won’t fight back. I did something horrible to you, and I’ll do anything to have my best friend back. An eye for an eye, y’know?”

“What- no? I won’t. This is stupid.”

“Then what can I do to fix this? How am I supposed to fix it when I can’t even remember doing it in the first place?!” Itsuki said, his voice desperate. 

“T-This isn’t the time, we’ve gotta figure out what’s going on…”

“It’s like Kiria said. We won’t get anything done if we can’t even talk to each other.”

“That’s why I was leaving, but then you grabbed me.”

“God, I’m so sorry. I can’t apologize enough. It was instinct. Which isn’t an excuse.”

“Why do you keep stopping me?”

“I'm just selfish. I want you here. I said I wanted you here because everyone would miss you, but I really wanted you here because no matter how much my heart hurts right now, it’d kill me if I were to never see you again.”

“…God, this is horrible, I’m terrified of you, but I love you, and we both know it’d be better for me to go, but we just can’t. ”

“We can’t do this anymore, but we can’t stand to be apart. Quite the dilemma on our hands.”

“How do we fix it, though?”

“…”

“I can’t stop shaking, this is pathetic…”

“It’s not. It’s not pathetic. But, whenever I say something like this, you hear something different. An echo of her.”

“Itsuki, how did she know? That’s the doubt. How did she know about something I’ve only ever told three people. You, Ellie, and now Yashiro.”

“…I… I don’t know. I don’t really remember much from when I was under Alice’s control. I-I mean, I was eighteen, just ascending to the throne, and waiting for my friends to wake up, and I blink, and I’m twenty, Kiria and Yashiro are married, you hate me, Tsubasa and Ellie don’t hate each other… it’s so much that I missed, and it hurts me. Every day I try to remember those two years, but they vanish before I can grasp them.”

A knock on the door to the chamber. 

“…It’s me. Alice. I’m sorry, but Kiria told me that you guys were having trouble after the horrible things I did. Can you let me in? I can explain everything.”

Itsuki snapped his fingers, and the doors swung open. 

She walked in, and the door slammed shut behind her. 

“Explain. And I’ve got more questions for you later.”

“Okay. So, I… I had you under my control. And I used the mind-reading Seiðjárn to see everything you knew. A-And when he…” Alice motioned to Touma. “Came up and told you that he was in love with you, and I saw that you loved him too, I… I got really angry. I’d always get so jealous, and I thought this was supposed to be my happy ending after I’d suffered so long. Then I remembered what I saw in your mind, a-and I made you do something horrible. I can’t apologize to the both of you enough. And I definitely understand if you can’t forgive me. But please don’t blame him for something I did.”

Itsuki sighed. 

“I… I can’t forgive you for what you made me do, but I can see you’re making an effort. Like I said, I’ll give you another chance to prove yourself here.”

“That’s much more than what I deserve.”

Touma looked up. 

“Everyone deserves a second chance.” He said, with a smile. 

Alice left the room, and Touma’s smile fell. 

“So… I guess we know what happened.”

“Did that help?”

“…I think it did.”

Touma’s hand shook as he reached out to Itsuki’s face, but he pulled it away at the last second.

“Though, not as much as I’d hoped.”

Itsuki smiled. 

“As long as it helped a little bit.”

“Yeah. I can be sure that it wasn’t you, now.”

“And if I have to, I’ll spend my life proving to you that I’ll never hurt you again.”

“…You don’t have to do that…”

Itsuki reached out, but pulled his hand back at the last second.

“I want to.” He said with a smile. 

And for the first time in months, Touma didn’t feel the urge to run when Itsuki came close.

“Now, back to the meeting? I think we’ll finally be able to figure out something.” Itsuki said. 

“…Well, I do actually have an idea.”

“Hm?”

“Aria can’t find μ, but that’s really weird, right? Why would μ cut contact with Aria, unless she realized that Dark Yashiro existed and she didn’t want us to accidentally tell him that she was with the real Yashiro?”

“…Touma, you’re a genius!”

Itsuki snapped his fingers and opened the door to find everyone else listening. 

“…You’re kidding me, right?”

“…Sorry.” Tsubasa said. 

“Okay, whatever, Alice, are you still here? I don’t suppose you have access to the border reports on your side?”

“Actually, I do. According to the records, an arrow hit the barrier and shut it, but then someone hacked it and opened it again, and two people ran through.”

“That’s… incredibly detailed.”

“If there’s one thing Sciencia prides herself on, it’s the record-keeping system Technolia has. And it can be accessed from anywhere too.” Alice said, retrieving a tome from somewhere. “See? Oh, they were even caught on a photo tom- wait, what? Why is he running? I just saw him outside!”

Alice handed the tome to Itsuki, who saw the photo. 

“They did it. I can’t believe it, they did it.”

Itsuki turned the tome around, and the photo showed Yashiro and μ running through the barrier. 

“Did what?”

“Secret prison. Yashiro got caught and taken to one of them.” Mizuki said, leaning on the table. 

“…What? Why? Only the most severe criminals are put there.”

“He thought of killing your mother.”

“…Oh. That makes sense. Wait, what?!”

“Okay, in his defense, he had just found his aunt and had learned that it was the other way around. According to her, your mother was the one that raped Yashiro’s father.”

“What? No. No way, there’s no way! We saw the photo! He incurred Sciencia’s wrath because of what he did! My mother would never lie!”

Kiria stared at Alice. 

“Listen to me. I don’t know your mother. But I knew Chikaomi Tsurugi. The man was clearly traumatized by something, but he tried his best to never let it affect his son. And y’know, from how he acted, I completely believe what I heard. That once upon a time, he focused on nothing more than work. But he was changed by trauma and then wanted nothing more but to be a good father. Hell, I remember that he’d forget to eat almost daily. He wasn’t perfect, but he tried. And I don't think he’d ever do what you’re saying he did.”

“But… my mother would never…”

“Listen, Alice. I know it’s hard to believe that your parents are terrible people. And you know what, maybe they’re not. We don’t know the truth. And we can figure it out. We just need to wait for the real Yashiro, since they already crossed the border.”

And then they heard clapping. 

“Nice work, darling. ” 

“Oh no.”

Chapter Text

Dark Yashiro appeared, summoning his Catharsis Effect. A katana, similar to Yashiro’s, but also different.

Wait, no, not a Catharsis Effect. There was no tell-tale spike in his chest. 

“A digihead!” Aria yelled. 

Mizuki quickly summoned her Catharsis Effect, and shot at Dark Yashiro. 

He launched out of the way. 

“Damn it. He’s just as fast as the real one.”

“But nowhere near as good.” Another voice said, coming out of the shadows. 

Purple hair and mismatched eyes shone in the light, as an incredibly pissed off Yashiro Tsurugi walked into the room, holding a Catharsis Effect. 

“I’d like my life back, bitch.” He said, and μ ran in behind him. 

“Aria! Toss me my dragonstone!”

Aria grew to her full height and did just that, and μ transformed into a snow-white dragon. 

Aria grabbed her own dragonstone, and transformed as well. A brown and orange dragon.

Dark Yashiro laughed. 

“Is that supposed to scare me? Only the queen matters to me. Plus, come on, you really think you can beat me in that state? You’ve already been afflicted by the Hanahaki. You’ll be dead soon.”

“I don’t think you realize the flaw in your theory.” Yashiro said with a smirk, while pointing at the spike in his chest. “The Hanahaki’s cured. All it needed was a way to escape.”

“W-What?! There should be no way to cure Hanahaki after it’s been afflicted! Not without complete memory loss!”

“I’m just that good. Now, we can fight, or you can get out. Your choice. Thorn won’t come back for you.”

“Thorn told me not to return until I had information.”

“Then let’s fight.”

Yashiro slashed at the digihead in front of him. 

μ attacked him with her breath, before reverting to a humanoid form to sing. 

A parade of forces emotional expressions

It’s the ‘me’ of today as well

Yashiro switched to his Katana and let a blast of fire loose. 

Everybody hold hands together

Let’s resist against fighting, Ha!

It makes me laugh, this is just the dust of the universe

The small particles dance the way dust dances

μ’s voice hit the chorus and flames danced around the room. 

Scatter! Vanish! Until you no longer can be seen!

Come on, you can fight now!

The stage where you all dance is mine…

Yashiro landed the final blow, and Dark Yashiro collapsed to his knees. 

“He’s under Thorn’s spell. Nothing will shake him unless we can snap him out of her control.” μ said. 

“…Th-Thorn’s control?” Mizuki replied, her eyes widening. 

“Yes.”

“Of course. Of course Thorn didn’t give up.”

“Also, we ran into Ritsu!”

“…Oh no.”

“Yeah, he was the one who let us out.”

“ Oh no. ”

“It’s not that bad…”

“μ, Ritsu has never forgiven Thorn for… that incident.”

“I know, but-”

“No. Ritsu’s the most sensible one in my family, but after Thorn betrayed us all, he’s pissed.”

“…It’s that bad?”

“Yep. I’ll be back.”

Mizuki and Aria ran outside, presumably heading to the border.

“I’ll go with her.” Ren said, and followed her out. 

Dark Yashiro was unconscious on the floor, and the clearly real Yashiro was staring back at them. 

“Sorry it took me so long.”

“What was he saying, Yashiro? That you’d die in a week?” Ellie asked, clearly looking concerned. 

“Oh. Right. That. It’s a long story, but ever heard of that romance trope? Hanahaki?”

“Of course I have.”

“Turns out Technolia’s made it a reality. An artificial disease that chokes you to death, and if you have it removed, it kills your love. But, then, I realized something. When μ helped me unlock a Catharsis, the pressure in my chest was all gone. I don’t even feel a tickle. I think the reason Thorn used it on me was because it would work. Flowers burst out of the chest of Technolians daily. So the Catharsis Effect must counter it.”

“What the fuck. Yashiro, what the fuck. This Thorn tried to kill you with Hanahaki?! They made that shit real?!”

“Yep.”

“How are you so calm about this?!”

“Because I’m fine now?”

“Are you sure?!”

μ chimed in. 

“Mizuki-chan will probably be bringing Ritsu here. He’s really smart, I bet he could tell us if it’s fixed!”

“What if she doesn’t?” Tsubasa added.

“Well then I guess we just wait a week to see?”

“μ, for the love of Performa-” Ellie screamed, before being cut off by Mizuki and Ritsu bolting in, Ren a couple of steps behind. 

“No time to talk, this idiot got himself stabbed and heals aren’t working.”

Tsubasa ran over, and placed her hands over the wound. She hit a high note and transformed, and the wound closed up. 

“Looks like nothing can beat a Carnage Form!” She yelled. 

“You’re lucky she didn’t Overdose, idiot.” Mizuki said, pulling her brother up. 

“I’m fine. Did he…?”

Mizuki tilted her head towards Yashiro, and Ritsu glanced over. 

“Mind if I check you out? I think my theory is right, but it’s still a good idea to double-check if the Catharsis Effect really does counter Hanahaki and that’s why it’s rarely used.”

Yashiro nodded, and Ritsu touched the spike on his chest. A green light overtook Yashiro’s body, and Ritsu’s eyes closed. 

“Hm… seems like everything’s normal. You definitely had Hanahaki, but the spike gave it a way to escape. You’ll be fine now.”

Ritsu removed his finger, and the light vanished. 

“I think I should probably introduce myself now. Ritsu Shikishima, Technolian Sage, Mobius escapee, former member of the Ostinato Musicians, and the older half-brother of Mizuki and Haru Shima.”

Mizuki summoned her carnage and flicked it around. 

“Back to Dark Yashiro, I wonder… if he’s under Thorn’s control, I wonder if he’ll respect the other Ostinatos?”

“Probably not. She hates us all now.”

“Wicked, Mirei, and Kuchinashi sided with her in the end.”

“Kuchinashi has been on your side for a while, Toshizo respects you so Mirei tolerates you, and Wicked is insane. There’s no way.”

“You don’t know that!”

“Yes. I do.”

“Well we can at least try…”

“Lucid-chan, he didn’t even listen to me!” μ added. 

“Oh. Right. Yeah, never mind. He’s not listening to us unless we shoot him repeatedly.”

“He’s an Egohead, I don’t think even that would work.” Ritsu said. 

“God damn it, Thorn. So, what do we do now?”

“Isn’t it obvious? We fight her.” 

“Must we?”

“She’s insane, Mizu. We thought she changed at the end, but she didn’t.”

“…You’re right. She’s not the Thorn we know. She’s fully become… her, or whatever she believes her to be.”

Ritsu looked over to the rest of the team. 

“So, who’s ready to finally find the truth behind Technolia’s missing heir?”

Everyone nodded. 

Chapter Text

Kaede’s horse ran wildly. This was it, she was almost there! Technolia’s second heir was within her grasp! She’d save her from the evil witch, and bring her home! 

She activated her Catharsis Effect as she approached the tower. 

She just needs to find this princess, and then she can go home and find her partner and friends. 

Redo was hell, but she only needed to find the Princess, and then the queen would help her find the Go-Home Club. 

The tower was here. She climbed up a tree to the side and leaped into the open window. 

“Princess Shiika! I’m here to save you!” She yelled, as she landed. 

Whatever she was expecting, it certainly wasn’t to stare into the eyes of her partner as he looked at her with nervousness. 

“…Shit. Partner.”

“Gin?! Where’s the princes- oh. Oh. Oh no. You’re the princess I was hoping to save.”

“Yeah, this may have been staged.”

“Staged?!”

“Kiriko, come out.”

Kiriko came out of the closet and rolled her eyes. 

“Hey, prez. Meet the evil Idolan witch who kidnapped the princess.”

“…I don’t know what to do here.”

“Pretend this never happened?”

“No, you don’t understand. The queen promised to help me find you guys if I brought Gin home. And everyone knows that you don’t mess with the Technolian queen.”

“Partner, you fucking idiot. Why would you trust my mother? Hell, I even told you that my deadname was Shiika!” 

“Maybe next time you tell me that you’re a fucking heir to Technolia?!”

A blast of fire came from Kiriko’s hands. 

“Can the lovers’ spat wait? We need a plan.”

“You’re right. Is χ with you?”

“Right over here, Soul Partner!” She yelled. 

Kaede shook her head. 

“I have a horrible idea. We fake our own deaths and run to Idola.”

“You’re right. That is a horrible idea.” Kiriko said. 

“Do you have a better plan?”

“…Nope. But how are we even going to get to Idola? The border’s in the middle of the city where the mind-reading is strongest, and even then we won’t be able to get through.”

“Mom and Aria are over there!” χ said. “I think we can meet up with her if we can get to the border!” 

“Okay, that’s how we get through. How do we get there in the first place?”

“Meet up with the rest of the club?” Gin said. “We know how to get in contact with them. Honestly, the only one we were missing was you, partner.”

“I’ve been looking for all of you since Redo collapsed. Maybe if I had known that you were royalty, I might have been able to find you faster.”

“Oh, we’re seriously coming back to this now?!”

“The lovers’ spat can wait, you idiots!”

~

Itsuki paced through the palace halls with Ren at his left and Mizuki at his right. 

“This is chaos. When do you think Ritsu will be back?” Itsuki asked. 

“Soon. He needs something from his lab.” Mizuki replied. 

“Damn, I don’t like this.” Ren said. “I have a horrible sinking feeling. Alice’s sister is still missing, right?”

“Yeah. Immediately after waking up from Astral Syndrome, right? Wicked refuses to tell me anything about her.”

Itsuki shook his head. 

“…I don’t suppose either of you know where Touma is?” 

“Hm? I think he’s with Ryuji.” Ren said. “They went out for something.”

“I see. Thanks. I have something to give him, so when Ryuji comes back, could you tell me?”

“Got it, Lordling. Don’t worry about it.”

Tsubasa ran through the halls towards them. 

“Itsuki!”

“Tsubasa! What’s wrong?!”

“It’s… the border! It looks like a group of people are trying to get through!”

“What?!”

“The weird thing is that they’re with another Manakete! Here’s the photo from Alice’s tome!”

Tsubasa handed it to Itsuki, but Mizuki snatched it away. 

“…They’re with χ. They must have been in Redo. Let them through.”

“χ?” Itsuki asked. 

“μ’s daughter.”

“μ has a daughter?”

“It’s a long story. Let them through, quickly!”

Itsuki snapped his fingers, and a magical force emanated from his hand. 

“On my authority as king of Idola, open the gate for χ and her friends!”

The photo tome showed them enter, and the barrier sealed again behind them. 

“I’ll go meet them with μ. Too bad that Aria’s with Ritsu. I’ll bring them up, okay?”

Mizuki ran downstairs and called for μ, who flew to her side, while Tsubasa took her place at Itsuki’s right. 

“Hey, Itsuki, are you ready for this? Because there’s a lot happening. We’re gonna end this with Yashiro soon. Alice is good to have on our side, but she’s still going insane because of her sister’s disappearance.”

“Yeah. I’m ready. Don’t worry about me, Tsubasa.”

“I’m your retainer and your friend. It’s my job to worry about you.”

“Haha, fair enough.”

They walked down the stairs together, and ran into Ryuji. 

“Juji! Hey!”

“Hey, Renren!”

Ren walked over to the blonde, and broke out into a smile. 

Itsuki smiled at Ryuji, and asked him where Touma was. 

“He was actually looking for you. He’s somewhere over there.” Ryuji said, and motioned towards the entrance. 

“Alright, thanks!”

Itsuki ran his fingers through his hair before running to the palace entrance. 

And he found Touma there. 

“Hey! Touma!”

“Hey, Itsuki.”

“Uh, sorry, I had something for you but I remembered that things are still kinda weird with us.”

“It’s cool. They’re better than they’ve been for the past two years, so I think we’re getting on the way to getting back to normal.”

“I’m glad. It feels… wrong. Not having you smiling at me constantly, I mean.”

“Hah. This knot in my stomach feels wrong too. But every day it’s getting a little looser. I actually want to see you again.”

“I’m glad. Can I touch you? Just to hand this to you.”

“Sure.”

Itsuki grabbed Touma’s hand and placed a necklace with a horseshoe-shaped pendant in his palm. 

“Guess what I found?”

“Wait, seriously?! I lost this… I don’t know how long ago. I’ve been missing it. Where’d you find it?”

“Found it with Maho. Sneaky girl’s been hiding it in her stall.”

“Hah! I must have dropped it when I was riding with Tsubasa!”

“Probably what happened. I’m glad I found this. You don’t seem right without it.”

Touma slipped the necklace around his neck and fiddled with the pendant. 

“I just can’t believe it. You really complete me, Itsuki.”

“Haha, you shouldn’t say things like that. Not right now.”

“Yeah. Things are getting less weird by the day. But it’s still too…”

“Still too weird to think about anything other than becoming best friends again?”

“Exactly. So let’s start there and figure everything else out later.”

“That sounds perfect. I miss my best friend.”

“And I miss mine.”

They smiled at each other before Itsuki turned to walk away.

Chapter Text

Mizuki laughed incredulously. She almost couldn’t believe it. 

The second heir to Technolia was non-binary and had faked his own kidnapping. 

“I have to respect it, Gin. Being so scared to come out that you ask your friend, who is Momona Kurahashi, to pretend to kidnap you and lock you in a tower.”

“I didn’t know what else to do. You know how behind Technolia is with literally everything except magic.”

“Don’t worry about it. Now, come with me. Let’s head to the palace. I assume you’re fine with us overthrowing your mother?”

“…Yeah.”

“That was fast.”

“Alice always had a much better relationship with her than I did. I just learned to never tell her anything that would upset her, and being trans would definitely do that.”

“Well… you do realize that if we get over there, we do have to tell your sister about this?”

“…Oh no.”

“I mean, your sister is on our side now. I’m sure she’ll be fine with it.”

“I’m not.”

“She’s okay with Sweet-P.”

“I’m her sibling, it’s just different.”

Kaede put her hand on Gin’s shoulder and whispered something to him Mizuki couldn’t hear, and Gin suddenly agreed. 

χ suddenly appeared and called him a simp, and Mizuki was blown away. 

“Okay then. I don’t know what to say to that, but I’m glad you’re on our side now. Let’s head to the castle and finish this.”

Mizuki gave the team a rundown as she took them all to the castle. She quickly entered and reached Itsuki in the foyer. 

“Lordling! Hey! So, guess who just found the second heir to Technolia and found out that he was non-binary and staged his own kidnapping?”

Itsuki’s pinched the bridge of his nose. 

“You know what, I’m not going to ask. So the second heir uses he/him pronouns?”

“Yep. His name is Gin.”

“Cool. Nice to meet you, Gin. And the rest of the second Go-Home Club, I assume?”

Kaede nodded, clearly looking concerned. 

“And you must be the president.”

Mizuki let out a small laugh as Kaede looked stunned. 

“They orbit around you like planets around the sun. Tell-tale sign of a leader.”

“I see…” Kaede replied. 

Itsuki shook his head before starting to speak. 

“Make yourselves at home, we’ll introduce everyone to you later. Mizuki, we’ve got a bit of a problem.”

Mizuki’s face contorted into concern. 

“Let’s go.”

Mizuki and Itsuki walked through the halls as they spoke. 

“So, what’s wrong?”

“Ritsu has returned. His lab was ransacked.”

“…Oh no.”

“He figured out that Thorn wasn’t Thorn as well.”

“Yeah, I got that from the Redo GHC. He goes by Bluffman.”

“Okay, so they have info. Good. We’re going to need that. They didn’t take what Ritsu really needed, though.”

“Which was?”

“A dragonstone. Apparently belonging to the last of the divine dragons.”

“…He has her dragonstone?”

“Yes.”

“I wish he had told me.”

“So do I, but we have it now. Apparently we might be able to summon her if we use it. With her power we can awaken Performa and end it all.”

“Let’s pray that we can summon her, then.”

“Yeah, let’s. I’ll send Ritsu to the Redo Go-Home Club, we’ll see if they can help.”

“Send Alice too, I think she wants to see her little sibling.”

“Okay then. Get some sleep, we’ll see what happens tomorrow.”

And as Itsuki retreated, Mizuki sighed. 

“Ritsu, how the hell did you get Tiki’s dragonstone?

~

Itsuki was alone in a dark room.

This is our only chance. 

But we need to return to a few hours earlier to see why he’s here. 

Ritsu held Tiki’s dragonstone in his hand as everyone looked over it. 

“Damn… how’d you get this?” Yashiro muttered. 

“I found it after we left Mobius. I don’t know where it came from, but I woke up in my lab and this was in my hand. Maybe it was because I was the only one that could keep her safe until this moment.”

Kiria shook her head and laughed, while Kaede took a sip from her drink. 

“This is a lot. I feel a bit overwhelmed.”

“That’s normal. A lot has happened. You guys will help us finish this up.” Mizuki said. “You’ll need to explain a lot to your team, though.”

“I will. I know. But we’re willing to help. Things are hell in Technolia and… I’m kinda a wanted woman. I promised that I would bring the second heir home in exchange for help finding my team, but…”

“…Then you found out the second heir was your beloved partner and you took him and ran?”

“Exactly. Kiriko’s magic couldn’t shield us all for long in the center of the city, so now they’re all after us. We have no reason to return.”

“Okay then. Might I ask what you said to get Gin to agree? Because he turned on a dime when you spoke to him.”

“I just told him that if we didn’t do this, I’d probably be arrested and killed. Which is the truth. I basically begged him to help me out.”

“I guess that’s true love. Becoming a wanted fugitive with your partner.”

“I guess it is.”

“Now, moving on, how do we summon her?” 

“Only a true lord can access her strength, sis. So… Itsuki. We need you to do this.” Ritsu said. 

Itsuki’s eyes widened. 

“…Me? Me?! I’m not a true lord, I was possessed for two damn years! I haven’t done anything worthy of that!”

“Yes, you have! You’ve suffered, but that made you stronger!” Ellie yelled. “Itsuki, this is something only you can do!” 

“I…”

“She’s right, Itsuki.” Tsubasa added. “You’re our only hope.”

“You two agreeing? That’s a first.”

Ellie and Tsubasa locked eyes and laughed. 

“Yeah. Two years is a long time.” Tsubasa said. 

“It is. I mean, there’s a lot of time for feelings to grow and change.” Ellie added. 

They stared at each other, and Itsuki noticed something was definitely different. No time to figure that out, though. 

“…You’re right. I guess I have to do this.”

And that’s how we ended up here. In a dark room. With Itsuki, alone, holding a dragonstone. 

“Tiki, last of the divine dragons… please, I beg of you, lend me your wisdom. Come to the realm of Catharsis and Carnage. Of reality and fantasy. Of song and knowledge.”

The stone didn’t react, and Itsuki was close to giving up, but then he started thinking.

He thought about how this was their last hope, and how this had to work. 

There was no way to give up. It was either this or die. 

The stone resonated. It was overtaken by a blue light. 

And within moments, the room lit up and a woman stood in front of him. 

It was her. Tiki. 

She rubbed her eyes and yawned. 

“…Hello…?”

“Tiki! I should properly introduce myself, I’m…”

“You're Itsuki.”

“H-Huh…?”

“You’re the king of Idola, Itsuki. I’ve been keeping my eye on your realm since the disappearance. You need my help, don’t you?”

“Yes. How did you know?”

“It’s in your eyes. Give me your hand.”

Itsuki stretched his hand out, and Tiki smiled. 

“Itsuki, king of Idola, I believe that you need this.”

A sword outstretched from his palm, looking identical to his own carnage but feeling… different somehow. 

“I’ve powered up your Falchion. It’s a true dragonslayer now. Come with me. Let’s wake up Performa and ask for her help in defeating her sister’s champion.”

Tiki had a sad look in her eyes. She walked past the cellars and the scrolls, she knew her way around this world. 

Itsuki didn’t know how, but she somehow seemed… familiar. As if they'd met sometime before. In another life. 

“Here we are.” Tiki said, once they were in the center of the castle. They stood over a glyph. “Your blood’s power comes from a dragon who was sealed away by Sciencia long ago. Releasing her will come with a price. A blood price. Two bloods are needed. Blood of the fallen sister, and blood of the sister who sealed her away. This is how Sciencia knew Performa would never be released. She’d never let her heirs here. And now? Now you have three. Princess Alice, Prince Gin, and our bastard heir, Yashiro.”

“…Yes. We do.”

“Choose wisely. One of their bloods will strengthen the seal, one will do nothing, and one will shatter it to pieces.”

“Wait, what?”

“I do not know, but Sciencia’s power has only grown stronger. You need to find whichever Heir she has affected the least. Princess Alice, who traded away her Catharsis Effect for her power to steal desires? Prince Gin, who has left his name and his status behind to run away with a knight and live his truth? Or Yashiro, who has managed to be one of the few to combine the arts and sciences to create something unique?”

Itsuki took a second to think.  

Yashiro’s life was changed course by Sciencia, while the other two lived under her oppressive rule and ran to his side. 

But, there wasn’t even a choice here. 

Out of the three, he’d met one literally an hour ago, and the other one had brainwashed him for two years. Yashiro was clearly the one to go with. Even if it was wrong, he was the only one he could trust. 

So he took a breath. 

Tiki smiled. 

“Good choice. I knew you’d pick him from the start.”

Yashiro appeared seconds afterward. Tiki must have called him here. 

“My lady, I wish to thank you.” 

Tiki raised her hand, and smiled. 

“How could I do anything less?”

Yashiro’s carnage appeared in his hands, and he somehow instinctively knew what to do. 

A quick slice, and his blood was flowing into the glyph. Only a few drops, but it lit in a deep purple. 

Now Itsuki’s turn. 

Another quick slice, and the other end of the glyph had turned blue. 

The both of them collapsed to their knees. Such a vivid pain… What was this?! 

Tiki took a step back, and a woman appeared in her place. 

A beautiful woman, dressed as a dancer. 

Tell-tale pointed ears. This was Lady Performa. 

My dears, thank you.

Strange. Lady Performa hadn’t opened her mouth, but she was clearly heard in all of their heads. 

I am so sorry for my sister. She has been driven mad by jealousy. But, I’m here now. It’s time to find her, and end this!

The woman extended herself to her full height, her green hair cascading behind her. 

A pair of white wings sprouted from her back, and she sighed. 

It’s been so long since I’ve done this!

Performa waved her hands, and suddenly they were in the Technolian Royal Palace. Lady Sciencia’s throne sat in front of them.  

Kiria, Mamori, Ellie, Tsubasa, and Touma appeared near him. The wounds on their arms had been replaced with bright green marks, which Itsuki only noticed as he drew his Falchion out. 

Everyone appeared in their Carnage Forms except for Itsuki. Hm… he didn’t remember Ellie or Mamori getting them. It must have happened in those two years…

The ground beneath them began to rumble, and all the playfulness left Lady Performa’s voice. 

Sister. 

A voice boomed within all their heads. 

Performa! I knew I felt my seal being broken!

Lady Sciencia. 

She appeared on her throne, a long purple braid cascading down her back. Pointed ears as well. 

She was a cold, calculating beauty. That’s how all the stories described her, and they couldn’t be more right. 

The two sisters couldn’t possibly be more different. But here they were. 

Apparently, once upon a time, they had cared for each other. 

But that time had long passed. 

Itsuki felt his resolve solidify, and a pain went through his body. 

But this pain was something that should not have been so bad. 

A Carnage Form.

Itsuki felt it overtake his body, and his Performa was protecting him. 

Lady Performa had blessed him. 

Sciencia. We’ve done enough. We’ve messed up both these countries to a point where only humans can fix them. Let us go. 

Never! I’ll never give up my throne to these pitiful humans. 

Itsuki’s sword practically moved on its own. It sliced through Sciencia like it was paper. 

Her braid was floating in the air as she fell back. 

One more chance, sister! Please! 

You’ve always been an emotional fool. 

I don’t want to have to finish you! Let us leave this place, and never interfere with these humans again!

Sciencia’s eyes narrowed, and black wings appeared from her back. 

The queen refused to give up her throne. 

And so that was the end. Itsuki felt his sword pierce flesh, and it was the last thing he knew. The last thing he had to do. 

Now came the hard part. 

Five years later…

Tsubasa’s sister was released from the curse the moment Sciencia fell. They worked together to rebuild, and to become idols that brought hope to the people. She married Ellie in those five years. Everyone was betting on when it would happen. Ellie was by her side every second of the day, until their lives ended. 

Kiria and Yashiro were never a typical couple. After Sciencia fell, they travelled around the new realm, giving all they could to the world around them. However, they knew they always had a place to return to in the capital. 

Mamori and Riku grew up and used her strength to help train young orphans to protect themselves. Neither of them ever married, but their friendship was enough to sustain them for all eternity. 

Legends say that King Itsuki was always in love with a Cavalier of his, a man of vivid red. Touma and Itsuki never got married, but everyone knew they loved each other more than words could express. 

…And that’s the end of our tale. 

The children around me sighed, but I threw my hair back and smiled at them. 

“But what happened to Lady Performa?” They asked me. 

“Lady Performa? Well, she still walks the earth.”

I turned my eyes to my sister, who’s long purple braid just barely hovered over the ground. 

Sci, we should go. 

Why do you always kill me at the end? I took your deal!

It’s more fun for the kids that way. My evil sister gets her just dues~

Ugh. Whatever. 

I grabbed my sister’s braid, and dragged her back to the desert we called home. 

I swear, most of what you heard was true. I just… embellished some things near the end. 

I hope you enjoyed my tale of Prince Itsuki and his loyal band of friends. Perhaps you’ll meet him again someday, in another life. After all, Tiki’s met him twice already. 

Signed, Performa.