August 25th, 2047

It has been about a week since Akiri and Fantaisie began to lead the group of Takt, Destiny and Anna on their journey towards Las Vegas, with Lenny and Titan tagging along with them to teach Takt the basics of becoming a Conductor.

Currently, the group is stopped in the middle of a dry desert area with Takt and Destiny being tasked with eliminating a bull-like D2 that is found wondering I'm the area, with the supervision of Lenny.

Takt was out of breath, half of his face was red as he guides Destiny's movement. He was clearly struggling to keep up with its attacks as his Musicart is being pushed back by the monster.

"Tch! Damn it!" The boy shouted as he waves his baton upwards and Destiny mimics the motion as she leapt up into the air and changed her weapon into its gun form before shooting at the charging monster.

Seeing that the newbie Conductor is still struggling, Lenny held up his won baton, deciding that it is time to step in and help them eliminate the threat.

"Titan. It's showtime."

"Okay, Maestro!" Titan shouted as she leapt into action. She began firing off shots towards the monster and it jumps into the air. As it does, she slid under it and with Lenny's precise timing, fires off a shot, taking off one of its legs and it crashes into the ground.

One last bullet to the head finishes off the D2 as it turns into white ashes.

"Victory!" She said with a wink and made the letter 'V' with her fingers.

"Are you alright?" Lenny asked Takt as he held out a hand to help him up, which he rejected.

"If I look alright to you, you should see an eye doctor when we get to the next town." Said Takt.

"Well, if you still got that mouth on you, you'll be just fine."

"You're the one who asked Lenny to show you the ropes." Anna scolded the boy with her hands on her hips.

"I'm a musician." Takt replied. "It'd be weirder if I could pull all this off after a week."

"Akiri and Fantaisie only needed a few days to get it all down. He used to be a musician as well." Lenny said.

"Used to? Why did he stop playing?"

"That, you'll have to ask him yourself." Replied Lenny. "Anyhow, it's something you'll need to deal with soon." He then looked towards Destiny, who is practising with her gun with Titan. "Her instincts as a Musicart are very strong, so she can't help to fight D2s when she sees them, regardless of how you feel about it." He explained. "Try to feel the harmony."

"Harmony?" Said Takt.

"The harmony between you and the tone that resonates with them." He explained to him further. A few distances off to the side, Akiri rolled his eyes, having heard him talking about this topic many times before when he was being taught.

"Could a musician ask for anything more than being to converse with the music you play?" Lenny said as they looked at Destiny, who is practising her movements with her sword. "We Conductors serve music. We guide the tones known as Musicarts and turn them into the melodies we want."

"Talk about some violent music, considering they're swinging guns and swords." Takt said as he got up on his feet.

"But that's what makes the challenges exciting." Lenny replied. "And what I said applies to you too, Akiri." He said, turning towards Akiri. "You still need to improve on your harmony with Fantaisie."

The boy scoffs. "I could lead Fantaisie just fine the way it is."

"Yes. But I believe that there are improvements you could make. Fantaisie has a lot of potential. Potential that needed to be unlocked."

"I don't need to improve. As long as I can reach New York, I'm fine with things going just the way it is now."

Lenny frowned at his stubbornness before letting out a sigh and he lets go of the matter.

"We've been on the road for quite a while." Lenny said. "Why don't we take a break here?"

"Sounds good to me." Akiri replied, stretching out his arms as he walks over to where he parked his car.

(Timeskip)

Currently, everyone is taking a break, having drinks and eating some snacks they have stocked up.

Akiri is sitting alone on the hood of his car, drinking a can of his favourite soda, Coca-Cola.

"Fantaisie-tan, is there something wrong?" Titan asks as she noticed Fantaisie being quieter than usual.

"Titan... Do you think... Maestro hate me?" She asked with her voice almost to a whisper while still keeping her gaze to the ground.

"Who? Akiri-tan?"

Fantaisie nodded.

"I can't help but think that I've done something wrong..."

"What makes you think that?"

"I tried my best to look after him, to take care of him and eliminating D2s to help him in our journey..." She said and she looked over to Akiri, who is quietly looking out towards the sky.

"...But that seems to have the opposite effect to what I was expecting. He never shows any signs of gratitude or appreciation." She continued. "I must've been doing something wrong, but what?"

Titan took a moment to consider her answer. "Hmm... I don't think he hates you."

"How do you know?"

"Maestro and I knew him for a long time. Sure, maybe he's a bit short-tempered, but he's usually so nice to everyone."

"Really? Then, how come he's so... hostile around me?"

"To be honest, I'm not entirely sure. I guess if you really want to know, maybe you should ask him."

"So you're saying that I should talk to him about it..." She muttered before looking at Titan with a small smile. "Thanks, Titan. I'll think about what you said."

"Anytime!" She replied in her usual cheerful manner.

Meanwhile, with Akiri, Lenny had walked over to him and is now standing next to the boy.

"How are you holding up?" The man asked, attempting small talk, to which Akiri decided to ignore.

"You know, I was expecting you to refuse when I suggested them to come along with you on the trip." Lenny said as he glanced over to Anna, Takt and Destiny, who are gathered around Anna's blue car.

"As long as they don't slow me down, I don't mind a few people joining me." He answered as he took a sip of his canned drink. "It would be much more efficient travelling as a group anyway. And also..."

"Also?"

"I'm just taking responsibility."

Lenny raised an eyebrow. "For what?"

"That girl, Cosette..." The boy answered. "I could've prevented it. Everything that happened last week."

"You can't blame yourself on that."

"Why not?"

"It'll only hurt you more. Stop blaming yourself for things you couldn't control."

As he said that, they saw an orange pickup truck pulling up by the side of the road. A man then got out of the truck. "Is that you, Lenny-san?" The man asked with a surprised expression as he walks over towards them.

Lenny seemed to have recognized him as well. "Jonathan? Dearie me. Look at you, all grown up." He said as the two greeted each other.

"It's Jona-tan!" Titan exclaimed as she ran over towards them. "What brings you here?"

"I'm on my way back towards the fields." The man replied. "Oh yeah. That's where I work now." He said as he points towards his truck.

"Las Vegas LR Farm?" Titan reads off the sign.

Jonathan nodded. "Maggie's there, too. I bet she'd be delighted if you'd come by and say hello. Las Vegas is right over there." He said as he pointed down the road. A distance over, they could see a huge city on the horizon.

(Timeskip)

"Welcome to the wonderful Las Vegas?" Anna said, reading off a big sign at the side of the road.

"It's a field." Takt said as the group is currently walking through a massive cornfield.

"I guess it really is a farm."

"After the D2s destroyed the casinos and hotels, the locals started farming." Jonathan explained. "And then people like us who lost our homes gathered here and created this farm that you see today."

Looking around, there were other people scattered around, taking care of the harvests and land, as well as the animals that are kept in their pens.

"Hey, Maggie!" Jonathan called out to someone who is working on some crops.

"Is that Lenny-san, and Titan-san?" The woman seemed to have also recognized the duo as she immediately went towards the group. "How have you been? I didn't expect to see you here."

They then started conversing, while the others just looked on by the side.

"Just how many people does he know...?" Takt said.

"Well, it's to be expected. He travels a lot for a long time." Akiri answered. "He's practically been to every state except for the ones that are completely overrun by D2s."

"I see that we have visitors." They heard a new voice speak out and they saw a man, who is shorter than average, being escorted by two men wearing black suits and dark shades.

"Mr. Lang." Jonathan said, greeting the man. "He's the owner here." He explained to Lenny.

"I apologize for my unannounced visit." Lenny said as he held up a hand. "I'm a Conductor with the New York Symphonica. My name is Leonard."

"And I'm Titan!" She introduced herself as the two men firmly shook hands.

"Welcome, welcome. We're happy to have you here." The man said. He then noticed the others standing at the back. "And who might they be?"

"They are my precious children." Lenny answered with a smile.

"No, we are not."

"We're not."

Both Takt and Akiri said at the same time.

"The two eldest are at their rebellious age." Said Lenny.

The man then asked about their business is, visiting the farm, to which Lenny replied that they were just passing by. The man then offered them to his home for a meal, but Lenny replied, saying that they had already made plans to visit Jonathan's place.

"I see. Well, in that case, why don't you come to my place for a meal?"

"Sorry, we've already made plans."

"I see, I see. I'll leave you to it, then. Feel free to make any requests here."

"Thank you, Mr. Lang."

With that, the man turned around and walked away, with his escorts closely following beside him as he waves towards the other farmers.

(Timeskip)

After being invited to the couple's house, the group is now gathered in the dining room. On the table, we're many kinds of food, all having corn as an ingredient.

"Here's a full course of everything our fields have to offer."

"It's a corn party!" Said Titan, holding up her fork and spoon excitedly.

"It is. It looks delicious!" Lenny exclaimed.

"When life gives you corns, I guess..." Akiri mumbled.

"I'm sorry we ended up coming over for dinner, too." Anna apologized as she took her seat next to the two Musicarts, Destiny and Fantaisie, who were eating their meal with the latter being quieter than usual.

"Oh, it's no problem at all." Replied Jonathan. "We'd love to hear more from Lenny's kids.

"Seriously, we're not his kids." Takt said.

"I doubt he's even married..." Akiri said, and the couple looked genuinely surprised.

"I call them my children, but they're more my students." Lenny explained. "They're trying to get to New York, so I'm going with them partway."

"Lenny does take great care of people." Jonathan commented.

"He's just a busybody." Takt said.

"The guy kept sticking his nose in where he doesn't belong." Akiri murmured.

"Well, Lenny helped us out a lot too." Maggie added. "It was him who helped us when D2s attacked the town a while ago."

"Is Symphonica short-handed or something?" Akiri asked, looking at Lenny specifically. "It seems that they aren't sending enough people to deal with the D2s that is getting rampant.

"Getting rampant?" The couple looked at Akiri.

The boy nodded. "Every week, there are reports of D2 sightings all over, yet Symphonica doesn't seem to be mobilizing their forces. It's almost like they're-"

"Oh, it's nothing to be worried about." Lenny cuts in and shifts the attention to him. "So, why did you move here?" He asked the couple with a smile, changing the subject. Akiri and Takt turned their heads at each other with a knowing look.

"The people who reclaimed the farmland came to our refugee camp and said that they needed manpower to help cultivate it." Jonathan explained.

"And some people from Symphonica recommended it as well." Added Maggie. "So we just went for it."

"It must be been rough being away from home and going to a new place." Said Anna.

"We got used to it faster than I expected." Jonathan replied. "And once the D2s stopped appearing because of Symphonica, we got to expand our fields even more."

Maggie nodded. "Our life is just getting started. Peace had finally been restored." She said with a smile. "We have to take back everything we've lost because of the D2."

"Take back what we've lost, huh...?" Akiri quietly murmured as the others continued to eat their dinner.

(Timeskip)

Lenny is currently outside on the porch alone, sitting on the steps while staring out towards the fields. The door suddenly opens and he saw that it was Akiri and Takt walking up to him.

"The people here don't know, do they?" Akiri asked, crossing his arms. "They have no idea what's happening out there."

"And even about the D2s earlier today." Takt added.

"They were just outside city limits. Any closer, and they could've attacked the town." Akiri said, narrowing his eyes at Lenny. "Why didn't you tell them?"

"Telling them would only make it worse." Lenny replied, gazing out to the massive cornfield, with the sight of ruined buildings in the distance. "Fear steals away hopes and dreams from people. This world is finally taking its first steps toward the future again. We can't let it fall back into that chaos ever again."

"So that's why you're hiding it?" Said Takt. "I guess they can't do anything about it even if they do find out. Since only Symphonica can deal with the D2s."

"Which they are doing a terrible job at." Akiri remarked as he went over to look outside.

"Say, you two." Lenny said. "Why do you think music exists?"

"Where did that come from?" Takt asked.

Akiri scoffs as he leaned against the wall. "He's trying to change the subject. Like he always does."

"You see, I believe music is something that will bring happiness to everyone." Stated Lenny, and Akiri rolled his eyes, hearing that. "It brings hearts together, softens pain, gives us courage, and connects us to tomorrow." He looked at Akiri, who is staring out towards the night sky.

"Music is the light that shines down on people, isn't it?" Lenny continued. "The suffering of a composer when bringing a song to life, and the tragic history leading up to the creation of music... That's something you find out later. You don't need to know about it right now. All that's necessary is the music itself, and a world where it gets to continue." Lenny said as he got up. "That's the only light that we Conductors should protect. That is Symphonica's mission."

"Though no one is allowed to play or listen to music right now." Takt said as he went to the door and reaches for the doorknob, until Lenny started to ask him a question.

"Takt, are you a musician?" He asked, and the boy's hand stopped halfway. "Or do you want to continue being part of the audience?" Takt just stayed silent. "You should get to bed. If you can't, I'm free to keep you company." He joked with a wink.

"No need." Said Takt. "I'm not a little kid. Like I could go to sleep this early." With that, he walked inside.

With them now alone, Lenny then turned towards Akiri. But before he could open his mouth, Akiri had beat him to it, already knowing what he was about to say.

"Let me guess, you're still trying to convince me to become a Conductor."

"Well, I wanted to ask if you had at least considered it." Said Lenny.

Akiri then released a sigh. "Nothing you say can change my mind, Lenny. After we reach New York, I'm severing the contract between me and Fantaisie. I don't ever want to see her again." He said as he began walking over towards the door and he reached over to the doorknob.

"Regardless of what you think of her, she's still a normal person inside." Lenny said, making him pause. "She has feelings too, you know."

Akiri stood still for a moment before opening the door and going back inside, leaving Lenny alone outside and releasing a sigh.

(Timeskip)

After taking a shower, Akiri is now putting on his plain black t-shirt, in the room provided by the couple. It is a small room, although it's enough to fit a queen-sized bed.

The door then opens and Fantaisie entered the room.

"There's only one bed here, so we're going to have to share." He said to her. "You okay with that?" He asked and Fantaisie just nodded.

"Maestro. Do you have a moment?" She then asked as she turns towards the boy.

"What is it?"

"I want to know what I'm doing wrong."

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"I believe that you bear feelings of resentment towards me. So I want to make things right between us."

"There's nothing wrong between us." He said as he went to lay down a blanket on top of the bed. "We should get some rest while we still-"

"All this time travelling with you, I've tried my best to be the best partner I can to you." She cuts him off. "Yet you refuse to show any kind of appreciation towards me. I think that I'm being unfairly treated."

"...Go to sleep, Fantaisie." He ordered. However, she kept going.

"No. I want to know why you dislike me so much. I want to know what I'm doing wrong, so I can improve on it."

"I told you. You're not doing anything wrong."

"Then why...?" She asked again. "I want to know, Maestro."

The two of them stood still, facing towards each other and the room stayed silent for a while, as neither of them dared to speak another word.

"...I don't hate you..." Akiri finally spoke out, looking into her eyes.

"Then... Why do you...?"

"That body you're using..." He then turns away, his gaze shifting to the wall. "It was Selene's."

"What...?" Fantaisie muttered, seemingly in disbelief.

Akiri let out a sigh as he reaches into his pocket and pulled out a tiny box he's been keeping in his jacket pocket. "When she died that day, is when you awakened, using her body as a vessel. I don't know the details, but Lenny said that this, was what allowed it to happen." He explained as he opened the box to reveal a piece of yellow gemstone, seemingly split into two, with its other half missing.

He then closed the box and puts it back into his pocket. "...Your face, your hair, your voice... Even your love for spicy things..." He said in a quiet voice, just enough for Fantaisie to hear, as his eyes started to water. "Everything about you is so similar to her. But I know that you're not her..."

He then pauses to take a deep breath, calming himself down. "If things were different... maybe we could've gotten along."

"Who is this, Selene, to you?" She asked.

"She meant everything to me..." He muttered, his voice almost to a whisper. His voice had a mix of pain and sadness to it, and the girl notices it.

She saw a single tear flowing down his cheek. Seeing him being sad, seeing him in pain, it pains her as well. She started to feel bad for him. After all, she was the one who insisted and brought up the matter.

Did she do the right thing? Maybe it would be better if she had stayed quiet? Perhaps they would be better off the way they were. Those were some of the thoughts that were running through the girl's mind.

A few moments of silence passed. Just as Fantaisie was about to open her mouth, they heard a loud sound from the room next to them. A few moments later, the door then suddenly opens.

Takt enters the room. "We have a situation."

"Where's Lenny? I can't find him anywhere." Anna said, peeking through the door.

"He was just outside. Why?" Akiri replied just after he had quickly wiped the tears off his face.

"Cosette just smashed through the wall. She said she was hearing some kind of vibration."

Akiri then looked at Fantaisie. "What about you?" He asked.

She closed her eyes for a moment. "It's faint, but I think I can sense something."

(Timeskip)

After catching up with Destiny, the group is now walking outside through the ruins of the city.

Fantaisie just stayed quiet all through the walk, not wanting to mention the talk that she and her Maestro had a few minutes ago.

"It's pretty clear we're not supposed to come in here, right?" Anna said as they carefully walked past a hole in the barbed wire fence.

"Judging by the metal fences and the 'keep out' signs; no." Said Akiri as he and Fantasie was the last one to go through the fence and they kept walking to wherever Destiny is leading them.

"We didn't even tell Lenny and the others." Anna said.

"Worst case scenario, if a D2 comes out, we'll have to fight it." Takt told her.

"That'd be awful."

"We're capable of dealing with them." Akiri said. "You shouldn't worry too much."

"Maestro. I'm beginning to detect sources of noise." Fantaisie informed and Akiri nodded.

"There are lights." Destiny said as she and the others looked ahead to see a building illuminated with bright lights.

As they arrived at the location, they peeked inside to see that it was a vacation resort of some kind.

Many people were scattered around, relaxing, having drinks and enjoying themselves.

"What in the...?" Muttered Akiri, confused at the sight.

"What is this place?" Takt said.

"No clue..." Akiri said as he then saw that there were men wearing black suits guarding what seems to be the entrance.

"We should try to find a back entrance-" He was cut off as he saw Destiny walking in without a care.

"Cosette, no!" Anna exclaimed as she went after her with Takt following.

"-Or we could just do that then..." Akiri muttered with a sigh as he and Fantaisie followed the three inside.

Takt doesn't seem to care while Anna desperately tried to drag Destiny back, but the girl doesn't budge as she approaches the guards.

"Hey, where did you come from?" One of the men asked as he approaches them and Anna panicked and puts her hands up in the air.

Akiri was about to step in, but Destiny had already smacked the guy aside and she rushes towards the other one, who is drawing his gun.

"What the?!" He exclaimed as Destiny is already in front of him and she grabbed his weapon before crushing it with her hand and she knocked him out at the same time.

"Let's go." The Musicart said as she walked through the door.

As they entered the building, their eyes widened in shock as they saw that it is a casino, complete with many kinds of gambling machines and games.

"This is a casino, right? This is definitely a casino." Anna asked in a low voice.

"Well, we are in Las Vegas..." Takt said as they all sneaked around the area, going through the many slot machines lined up.

"I guess Vegas will always be Vegas." Said Akiri as he looks around.

"I wonder if the people back at the farm know about this?" Said Anna.

"I don't think so." Takt replied.

"Yeah. This is probably done behind their backs..." Akiri added.

They then saw Destiny putting her ear against the floor, closely listening.

"Maestro. There is definitely something wrong here." She said.

"I found them." They turned around and saw another guard looking at them. He seems to be speaking through an earpiece.

Destiny immediately smashes through one of the slot machines and they quickly follow her.

"Takt, you should really get her under control before she kills someone!" Akiri said as Destiny threw one of the slot machines towards the pursuing guards.

"She won't listen to me anyway." Takt replied.

They then stopped in their tracks as they saw that they are completely surrounded by the guards, all training their guns towards them.

"Maestro... There're-" Fantaisie said

"D2s." Destiny completed and as if on cue, the ground started to tremble and they saw the floor begin to crack as multiple D2s shot out from the ground.

The monsters started to go on a rampage, attacking everything and everyone in sight. Panicked screams are heard as everyone started to run away, heading towards the exit.

"Anna, stay behind us." Akiri said, and the girl just nodded. He then looked at his Musicart. "Fantaisie."

She only nodded before transforming into her armoured mode and Destiny did the same, the two Musicarts threw their batons to their Conductors.

"There's more than one. How troublesome." Takt said, counting each of the attacking D2s.

"I'll take care of them all at once." Said Destiny.

"Don't. If you go blasting that thing right now, you'll kill everyone in here."

"Including us." Akiri said.

"Then, do you have another suggestion?" Destiny asked, and as she does, one of the D2s came pouncing towards them.

Akiri reacted accordingly and thrusts his baton forwards and Fantaisie leapt towards the attacking monster before slicing it in half with her scythe and she landed on the ground.

"If you can't control your power output, it's safer to just use your sword." Akiri said.

"No." Said a different voice, and they turned to see Lenny and Titan walking towards them. "I have a better idea."

"What are you thinking?" Akiri asked.

"Instructor Lenny is going to teach Takt a lesson." He answered. "Can you help keep the rest of them away?"

"Really? Now?" The boy asked before letting out a sigh. "Fine. Just make it quick."

With that, he ordered Fantaisie to deal with the other D2s in the area, leaving some for Takt and Destiny to deal with.

"Takt, Destiny. Are you ready? I'm sure you'll encounter more D2s during your travels. And Akiri can't be there to help you all the time. So you'll need to become one, beautiful, efficient harmony that wastes nothing."

"Lesson one." Lenny started. "Take down the one on the right with only two shots. Make sure you hold back on the output."

As Takt and Destiny went to work on killing their assigned target, Fantaisie and Titan were killing off the rest of D2s, keeping the learning Conductor from being overwhelmed.

Akiri then looked back towards Takt and Destiny to see that they had successfully taken out a D2 by themselves.

"They did it!" Anna exclaimed.

"Lesson two." Lenny continued. "This time, use only your sword."

Destiny changed her weapon into sword mode and charged towards her target as she swings her sword with all her strength, but she couldn't even make a scratch against the monster's hard armour.

Takt then saw a weak spot between the armour plates, a soft fleshy part of its skin is showing through. With a wave of his baton, Destiny went low and trips the D2s legs and it falls over and she jumps above the creature and impales its weak spot, killing it instantly as it lets out a cry.

A smile grew on Lenny's face, seeing them starting to improve. "Lesson three. Use everything you've learned to play beautifully and freely. Let us hear your harmony!"

As he said that, he then looked at Akiri and the boy got the message as he nodded.

"Fantaisie, we're backing out." He ordered and Fantaisie gave a nod before doing as she told. As Fantaisie jumps back, one last D2 smashes through the wall. Although the creature in front of them seems bigger and much stronger than the rest.

With a look of confidence on his face, Takt waves his baton forward. "Performance begin!" He shouted as a red spot began spreading on the right side of his face and Destiny started running towards the D2.

This time, all of her attacks pushes the creature back, successfully injuring it with every swing.

Closing his eyes to focus, he lifts his baton upwards and Destiny cuts off one of its limbs as she leapt up above and change her weapon into gun form and she aims down towards the monster, charging her gun.

With her Maestro's timing, she pulled the trigger, releasing a beam of pure red-coloured energy straight down.

Her shot went straight through the D2, executing the monster with perfection, and not a single energy of the attack was wasted.

"Bravo." Lenny said. "I think you'll become a wonderful Maestro who can please the crowd."

"Nice work." Akiri said.

"Thanks." Replied Takt.

(Timeskip)

The next morning, it is time for the group to depart as they are now outside, and are receiving farewell gifts from Jonathan and Maggie.

"If you can fight that well, and with Akiri's help, you'll probably have no problem making it to New York." Lenny said to Takt, who was sitting inside Anna's car with the door open.

"We're going our separate ways here, right?"

"I've got other things I need to do. We'll be splitting up here. Will you miss me?"

"As if."

"If you ever want to officially become my student, contact me anytime. I'll teach you everything I know."

"There's no need for that." Replied Takt, getting up from the seat. "You've taught me the basics, so I'll learn the rest on my own."

"Well, I guess I'd expect that from you." Lenny said as he went and held out a hand and the two of them shook hands.

"Hey! You guys ready? We're moving out." They heard Akiri shout from his car.

"Yeah. We're all set!" Anna answered and Akiri nodded before getting into his car and closing the door. As he does, he saw Lenny walking up to the window.

"This is goodbye for now, Akiri." Lenny said as he extends a hand and Akiri gave it a firm shake.

"Yeah, but knowing you, it wouldn't be for too long until I see your stupid face again." Akiri said, earning a chuckle from Lenny

"Just remember what I said yesterday." Lenny said quietly as he motions towards Fantaisie with his eyes. "Good luck." With that, he walked away towards his motorcycle, where Titan is waiting for him.

As Akiri started up his car, he glanced over to the seat next to him and saw that Fantaisie is still staying silent ever since the night before, not saying a word. Not one of them brings up what had transpired yesterday.

As he think about yesterday's talk, he began having thoughts in his head. Was he treating her unfairly? Does she deserve to be treated the way she do, just because she reminded the boy of someone precious to him?

He took a moment, thinking about what Lenny said to him last night, and he lets out a sigh as he puts the thought aside for the moment before driving off, leading the group towards their next destination.

--------------------

(A/N: Wow. Over 5000 words long. This is probably the longest chapter I've written so far. However, that said, don't expect the upcoming chapters will be this long as well. I'll probably return to my regular 2500+ words per chapter.

Anyway, I just wanted to say sorry for the late updates. I don't want my works to feel rushed or incomplete, so I took my time to make sure that I'm satisfied with what I wrote. I hope you all understand. That is all, thanks for reading.)