With a cry that she really knows well, a cry that chills her to the bones every time she hears it, Tomoe crosses the elevated bridge at the other side of the gateway. From here, almost all of the citadel can be seen, how it elevates to form a large acropolis, with the Grand Castle at the top. Surrounding the elevated bridge, the structure of an abandoned city can be seen.

Many houses are circular instead of being squares, and many, many of them, between one or two floors. The buildings that have corners seem to be few, but those few are larger than the rest. Every window is circular, in an oval shape, even in those large buildings that have corners. Each building seems to be a continuous surface from the outside, much like a bowl upside down. A really deep bowl at that.

Even when the citadel has few roads, every street is pebbled, almost to perfection, and there are only a few holes here and there, where pebbles previously were and now they aren’t anymore, dirt blades of grass now occupying their place.

Looking over the citadel, Tomoe can see it lighted up. From various houses, a light comes out of the windows, and from at the main plaza of the citadel, a gathering of lights is happening, of lights that are moving from one side to the other. Tomoe knew very well this view and what these lights were, as a tear starts rolling on her cheeks.

Getting to street level, she can see how many, many Aquamarines and Beheaders are present in the citadel streets. As Tomoe is walking down the street going to the main plaza, a sense of relief runs through her body, so much that she can see her shoulders getting loose. Stopping a bit to take in the view, she sees Aquamarines and Beheaders alike, running and walking up and down the street. To her right, she can catch a group of Aquamarines with two Beheaders, moving one survivor down the street, on a mat, and before reaching the main plaza, they enter the building on their right. To her left, a Beheader is on the floor, with clear symptoms of Aura depletion, and two little kids are trying to incorporate him into a sitting position towards the house behind him. Further down the street, she can catch two Aquamarines with a Beheader, talking about something. The Beheader stops for a moment, and putting a hand to the woman’s shoulder, lowering his head, he speaks again. The woman falls into the ground, while her husband tries to catch her, as the woman starts to hyperventilate, grabbing and tugging her own clothes.

Starting to walk again, she gets to the main plaza, a circular one like all the other small buildings, even the corners are curves instead of the pointed edges of a square. As she gets there, two figures she knows very well see her from the distance, and start moving towards her. Her heart starts pounding fast, her mind goes blank, as Priscilla and Oscar get to where she is standing, Priscilla giving her a strong hug.

“Now we are out of danger” Priscilla says, as she gives a hug for far longer than she is used to. For some reason, Tomoe isn’t bothered by this, not like other times.

“Good job of keeping yourself alive” Oscar says, as he stands behind Priscilla.

Tomoe catches her breath. This breath though, different from others as if she hasn’t truly breathed in a long time, with the air filling her lungs to the max capacity.

“Did everyone made it?”

Pulling back, Priscilla smiles and slowly nods “Everyone is here… at least of our group, that is.”

Another deep breath, and now Tomoe gives the hug back, taking Priscilla by surprise.

Pulling back, she starts looking to the sides, and let's escape “There’s something nice, seeing everyone helping each other.”

“That is the nature of society” Oscar replies while walking forward and putting a hand to her shoulder “look closer: what someone can’t do alone, together with others it becomes possible.” At these words, Tomoe opens her eyes, widely.

“Wonder if this fact entered finally in that tough head of yours” Oscar adds, with a smug on his face “come, follow us. Everyone is in the town hall… or at least that is what we think that building is.”

Turning, they start walking around the plaza, taking the street that moves upwards in the acropolis. They pass more bowl-like houses, with lights coming off from many of them, through the windows. Tomoe noticed that, unlike the city, these houses, its windows don’t have any kind of glass, they are just holes, likely carved directly into the structure.

As they pass one of the houses were the light of Auras is more concentrated, Lorelei comes out of the said house.

“Hey!” says Priscilla, waving her hand to Lorelei. Catching her waving, Lorelei comes closer to them, and Priscilla says “did you dropped the boy here?”

“Yes…” says Lorelei, almost whispering.

“Anything wrong?”

“That boy…” Lorelei continues to whisper “I’m sorry… it is just that, I know a bit too well what he is going through… what he will go through.”

Seeing Lorelei’s expression, hearing the tone of her voice, Tomoe moves almost without thinking, grabbing her hand.

Lorelei is taken aback a bit for this “W-what?”

Tomoe tries to think, keeping silence, but nothing comes to her mind “I… I don’t know. I just moved without thinking” while she lets go Lorelei’s hand.

Raising her eyebrows, Lorelei giggles, and says “Now what has gotten into you?” and now she grabbing Tomoe’s hand, she adds “There was no need, but, you know, thanks.”

“We are getting our assess towards the town hall. Wanna come along? The strategic meeting should start soon” Oscar says. Lorelei just nods, and then they get underway.

Taking a turn, they get to the largest building in the city. There, almost no civilians can be seen, only Beheaders. The lights that come off the town hall, a rectangle-shaped building with two floors, isn’t from Auras. From the outside, many shadowy figures can be seen, of the light shadowing them from the inside.

Tomoe stops for a moment and looks around her. A warm feeling embraces her as she looks again at everyone around her. They smile, laugh, pock fun at each other, and embrace each other. Heck, she herself did it, even when she isn’t as accustomed to that physical level of interaction and proximity… No, that’s a lie. Once she was in the past, but after facing the Hydra she retracted herself, putting a veil around her, a limit that no one else but the ones that are already closest to her could cross.

Looking at herself, she felt flustered at the realization that now, she can’t get out of that veil, she can’t cross that wall. Why does she finds it so hard, if once she was clearly comfortable being around everyone just like that, just like they are right now with each other?

She couldn’t avoid it, the realization that she felt strange around them right now. Like if she was physically close, yet the distance was so far.

Still, looking at them, even these feelings couldn’t deny the warm that was flowing through her chest.

I’m still missing some. Hope nothing bad has happened.

As Tomoe starts to walk again, she sees how a figure comes out of a building in front of her, and starts walking in direction of the Townhall. Even in the shadows of the night, Tomoe can recognize that silhouette everywhere. Someone that no matter what, she would recognize from miles away.

Leaving the group behind, Tomoe runs towards Amelia “Lia!” she calls to her. At hearing this, Amelia flinches, stopping and turning back.

Within arms distance, Tomoe stops. Amelia starts rubbing her eyes, as tears start rolling on her cheeks too. Then, jumping forward, Amelia hugs Tomoe, putting her arms around her neck, as she starts to cry, something at which Tomoe follows suit, giving a hug back.

Having come closer, Lorelei snorts at the scene “Look at our most powerful” pointing towards the scene “right now, she isn’t different from a little girl” she adds, smiling a little bit.

“Ah? Why is your v-voice breaking?” Priscilla takes a deep breath, teasing “Are you about to cry too?”

“Look who is talking about being about to cry!” Lorelei laughs, as she points back at Priscilla.

“Come on girls!” Oscar interrupts “Let's get into the town hall” he says, as he starts walking forward again. “Tomoe, Amelia” he says, stopping for a moment “the strategy reunion is about to start, don’t stay here for too long” then, he continues walking, followed by Priscilla and Lorelei.

Sitting on a tree trunk that is on the floor, by the side, both girls have finally stopped crying.

“Sorry about that” Amelia says while wiping the last remaining tears from her eyes “It is just that… since this morning- and I realize your managed to enter the citadel on time, but yet-”

“Lia” Tomoe says, interrupting and surprising Amelia a bit, again “I understand.”

Snorting, Amelia lets a smile escape, while she says “Now that is surprising.”

“Uh? What is it?”

“You’re calling me Lia, out of the blue” Amelia says, while putting both of her hands, together, over her legs.

Tomoe raises her eyebrows “It is true…”

Amelia grins “Don’t you dare stop now. It’s been so long…”

Tomoe snorts, at which Amelia gives a slight push.

“So mean” Amelia chuckles “You know… it is like… I finally see my best friend, face to face, after many years.”

Sitting besides Amelia, Tomoe finally felt that she could take a good, deep breath. As she started to lose the tension in her body, a rush of emotions burst through her whole body… She almost died. Back at the Red District, she almost died. Darkness surrounded her, the rain, like piercing thorns in her skin, and again, multiple glaring animal eyes. But something was different. For the many times, she was in this dark street, under the rain, formless silhouettes walked right and down beside her, but here, at that moment, a new understanding reached her: She was completely alone.

What has she been doing these last years? What was it she fought so hard for? When the situation called for giving her best, it didn’t amount to much.

Have I always be this… weak?

Tomoe looks around, remembering all the Aquamarines that we're able to be saved by the Beheaders working together.

I couldn’t even save a single-family… only one boy and I couldn’t even do it myself… What was I searching for before?

She felt so small. Her world was once again upside down. That there’s a distance between her and everyone else. The difference between them burned her face, as if she was until now living in shadows and now for the first time in a long time she has taken a step out to the light of the sun. Reality burned her skin even when the night is well underway, making her feel thirst like she has never felt before. The glaring animal eyes were still there, but now they were even closer: Like the star-filled sky falling towards her, an even bigger fear sprouted forth.

I… don’t want to be alone.

Casting her eyes down, Tomoe finally speaks “I… I have been really dumb all these years, haven’t I?”

“Uh?”

“I’ve been really stubborn… Amelia…” Tomoe takes a deep breath “I… for all these years, I…” Tomoe puts her hands over her face and raises her face towards the starry sky. Slowly, she retires her hands, letting her see the vastness of the sky, how many stars are there “I don’t even know where to start…” A tight tie form in her throat “I’m… for everything, Lia, I… I’m so sorry” as tears start rolling on her face.

Tomoe then feels a hand on her right shoulder. Wiping away her tears, she turns to see Amelia, smiling with her teeth. Tomoe could only answer with casting her eyes down.

“No, don’t you dare to turn this into a sad moment!” Amelia says, tugging Tomoe by the sleeves, picking Tomoe’s cheeks with her right hand and raising her face “I’m really happy!”

Tomoe raises her eyebrows again, adding a smile to her face. Joining her hands together, Tomoe says “Lia… for all these years… I don’t even know what to say… only that I’m sorry.”

Amelia puts a hand to Tomoe’s shoulder “You took you sweet time let me tell you!” she spouts, surprising Tomoe a bit, but then adding “say nothing more Cotton. I’m… I’m just glad… to have you back.”

“Lia…”

“If only you came back earlier though” Amelia murmurs, incorporating back again into her sitting position.

“Uh? What do you mean?”

“Ehm… Well, you have always been pretty obstinate Cotton, but I would have never guessed that an invasion is what would be needed to make you come back! And you called me knucklehead before, you now got the beat in that regard, you knucklehead!”

Tomoe chuckles “I’m guilty as charged” she says, putting her hands up.

Amelia snorts “Oh really?” a smug appears on her face “then I condemn you to a practice match with me, right here, right now.”

“Eh?!” Tomoe reacts, standing and starting to put distance between them “right now?!” her body becoming tense once more remembering all those practice matches that she had with Amelia through many years.

A grin appears on Amelia’s face “Right now!” as she stands too. She then starts pursuing Tomoe while she tries to escape. Laughs can be heard in the night, with the two girls playing like they used to, so long ago.

Amelia manages to catch Tomoe’s sleeve, only for Tomoe to move aside, and Amelia ends up falling into the ground.

“Hey, are you alright?… It is rare to see you trip just like that.”

“Yeah…” Amelia says while rubbing her nose “I guess I’m just a bit tired mentally, can’t focus much right now.”

“See you are having fun” a voice reach both girls. They turn, only to see Bran, in front of them, still standing. His body was marked with many scars that weren’t there before, two marks of being heavily burnt too, and this was only what was visible to them.

“Hey, good to see you being ok” Tomoe says.

“I’m far from being ok, thank you.”

“Uh?-” Tomoe was about to reply, but Amelia holds her arm, signaling her to not ask anymore by shaking her head.

“If you are here, this means-” Amelia starts saying.

“Yes. I was told that the strategy meeting is about to start and that I should go” Bran says, and starts walking towards the town hall.

Turning to Amelia, Tomoe asks “What happened to him?”

Pulling Tomoe lower, so she can whisper to her ear, Amelia says “Let’s get to the meeting. I don’t know much but I will tell you on the way.”