“So you don’t remember?” Jade asked with what seemed to be a tinge of relief in her voice. Sitting on a chair beside Nina’s bed, she placed her hands on her knees as she leaned forward with a look of contemplation. “Maybe it’s for the best.”

After waking up, Nina had laid in bed while hardly moving for an hour or so before finally falling asleep once more. It was frustrating as she felt lethargic due to her lack of strength, but at the same time the pain kept her in a state of semi-alertness. Jade and Aline had stayed with her until she fell asleep, but once she had woken up a short while later she found that only Jade remained.

After Jade brought Saela downstairs, something that Nina had initially been surprised by, the pair of them had talked her through the series of events that had taken place between her abduction and when she had woken up. Nina had already learned beforehand that she had been unconscious for days, but what scared her most was when they told her about her initial condition in the lab. Apparently she had been responsive to a certain extent until they had crossed the wall, so was she awake at the time? If she had been conscious, there was a chance that the memories might return to her eventually, although maybe she didn’t want them to return in the first place.

Memories of her escape with Jade and Saela would be welcome additions so that she could see exactly what they had to go through to rescue her, but memories from before they had found her strapped in the chair were not.

What she could remember was already more than enough to have a profound impact on the rest of her life. Reina and the rest of the team had already profusely apologized for leaving her alone while Rucille abducted her, but deep down she knew that if anyone was to blame it was herself. She had known that leaving the district was against Reina’s instructions, and she had also known that the prince’s appearance was strange. Ignoring the warning signs, she had put her faith in two people who she hardly knew and as a result she had paid an exorbitant price.

Saela’s role in the rescue mission fascinated her. By the time Jade finished narrating their daring escape which Saela had singlehandedly orchestrated, Nina was already seeing her in a different light. It was difficult to look past the oversized hoodie, the confrontational attitude, and her bitter expression, but maybe she had given Saela less credit than she deserved. She certainly hadn’t forgotten about the time when she had threatened her in the office courtyard, however, so her final verdict on their relationship would have to wait. It was a step in the right direction, sure, but it wasn’t enough to paper over all the cracks just yet.

After her mind wandered back to the present, Nina finally shook her head in response to Jade’s question although she felt like it was cheating. To just forget what had happened while everyone around her had launched a rescue effort to pull her out of a situation that she was responsible for wasn’t something that sat well with her, but there wasn’t much else that she could do. Right now she had to focus on things that she could do, so her current goals were to rest up, get out of bed, and tell the group about what Rucille was planning. It probably wouldn’t end up being in that order, but as long as she could somehow check off all three boxes then she would at least feel like she was making progress.

The pain subsiding would be a nice way to start things off, although it seemed like she was asking for a little too much. Her chest felt as tight as it did when she had first woken up while her head still throbbed steadily, but apparently among all the pain there was some good news. A doctor, which Nina had no recollection of, had drawn some marks on her chest around the sickly splotch that was there and apparently it had started to contract. A sign of recovery, Jade had said it was, although Jade had been doing so much talking during the past hour Nina was beginning to forget parts of it. Saela had been relatively silent during their session, while Nina herself couldn’t talk. Jade didn’t seem to have an issue with it though, although Nina was surprised that Saela hadn’t walked out. Maybe she felt obligated to stay.

“Reina said that the doctor will be around as soon as possible,” Jade continued as she leaned back in the chair and stared at the ceiling above her. Maybe it was her way of subconsciously connecting with Nina on another level where they were both looking at the same thing, or maybe her neck was just sore from staring at her for so long. Nina’s surroundings had certainly been bland since she had woken up, although the drab brown of the ceiling was a lot better than either the white of the lab or the reddish-black from the inside of her eyelids.

“Do you think we could sit her up?” Jade asked Saela with a contemplating expression. “We could get Svan… I mean Trim to prop her up against the bedhead. At least she would be able to look around a little bit more.”

“Don’t try anything until the doctor has seen her,” Saela said as she dismissed the idea before standing up. “I’m going to go and get some fresh air, see you soon.”

Nina heard the door open and close before a low snort came from where Jade was sitting. Even if Jade was displeased, Nina didn’t have any complaints and she was surprised that Saela had managed to stay with them for so long. She would have to properly thank her once she was able to, but it wasn’t something that she was looking forward to either. Just the thought of the two of them sitting down together to have a conversation left her feeling anxious, but that was just another hurdle that she would need to overcome. If anything, it was a chance to build a relationship with Saela and furthermore it would probably be her one shot at it. If she didn’t thank her now, Saela would surely see her as unappreciative and withdraw even further.

“I tried,” Jade said with a wry smile as she leaned back in her chair, rocking the front two legs off the ground. “If you managed to survive a high dive from the district wall and the subsequent swim, I don’t see what sitting up is going to do.”

A smile cracked Nina’s lips. It was very welcome right now as they had been in short supply, but laughing was something she’d rather avoid. Thankfully Jade hadn’t tried to crack any jokes, which was uncharacteristic, but then again Reina had probably told them not to.

“And if that that wasn’t enough of a high dive, I could also mention the real dive. The drop to Areinis, that is.”

Nina hadn’t heard much about Areinis from the discussions that happened in her room, but she had picked up a few titbits. The warm weather was something noticeable due to both her thin blanket and the clothing that everyone else wore, but she hadn’t been able to see outside yet. Would it match up to the pictures from the book she had back on Luem? The scent of the ocean also hung in the room, but while she occasionally heard the sounds of birds she couldn’t hear the crashing of waves below them. Were they far from the beach? Was there even a beach in the first place? Her list of questions was beginning to rival the amount that she had when she first met The Cloud Orchestra, and that wasn’t something she was looking forward to checking off. Some of the questions she had back then hadn’t even been answered yet.

“An unconscious skydive,” Jade mused. “At least it will make for a good story.”

The pair sat in silence for a moment as Jade thought. Saela wasn’t around to at least provide curt responses anymore, and Nina wasn’t exactly the best partner for a conversation. The fact that Jade had managed to keep going for so long already deserved credit, but as Nina was unable to steer the conversation it was difficult. Jade had to second guess what she wanted to know about, and while she had done a pretty good job so far it seemed like she had run out of steam.

She was finally saved as the door opened to reveal a rather tired-looking Trim. Nina had learned that she was asleep when she had initially woken up which explained her absence at the time and judging by the discussion from before she couldn’t have slept for more than a few hours. She was awake now though, and it seemed like Nina’s room had been her first destination.

Nina expected words, but none came as Trim simply pulled over the chair that Saela had been using before sitting down next to Jade at the bedside. When her face finally entered Nina’s vision she immediately saw the bags under her eyes and the tired expression, although currently a light smile played at the corner of her lips.

“Welcome back,” she said quietly after pausing for a moment as she placed a hand on the blanket above Nina’s shoulder. “I’m glad you’re still with us.”

As though Jade could sense that she had been cut out of the moment, she stood up and stretched with a yawn before stepping in the direction of the door. After opening it, however, both her and Trim looked over to see that standing on the other side was Reina, her hand still outstretched for the door handle which was no longer there. Straightening herself up with a wry smile on her face, she looked over to Nina. Not that she would know that.

“I managed to get through to the doctors,” she said. “They’ll be here in half an hour.”