"So that's why you asked."

"Yeah..." After making sure her door was locked, Kimiko collapsed on her bed, her phone on speakers next to her. "My parents' overprotectiveness got even worse after what I pulled during Holy Road too."

"But do they believe you about the time-traveling thing?"

"It's kind of hard to tell. Masato-nii does, though. He probably heard everything from Shuuya-nii." She sighed. "What about you, Kyou? Did Yuuichi-san believe you?"

"... Yeah..."

She blinked. "That's good then, isn't it? Why do you sound so down?"

"The reason he believed me... It's..."

"It's...?" She repeated.

"... No, forget it. I'll tell you some other time."

Well, if that's what he said he'll do, then... "Okay. Then, what about your parents? Have you told them yet?"

"They're out of town. They'll be back by the end of the month."

"Wha―?!" She immediately sat up. "Doesn't that mean you'll be alone at home the whole time?!"

"Yeah? Why?"

She lowered her voice to a whisper as she disabled the speaker function. "Let me sleepover. Please let me sleepover!"

"And let myself get in trouble with your parents?"

"They won't know! I never told them where you live, and I'll tell them I'm staying with Shuuya-nii!"

"And get Gouenji-san in trouble?"

"I'll work something out with him! Besides, Shuuya-nii owes me one. Kyousuke, please! Teleportation can only get me so far!"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"It means that I can't sneak in and out from home to school immediately!"

"Then use that ability a block away from home."

"I can't do that! Someone might see me!"

"... Fine. But if anyone finds out and gets mad, I'm throwing you under the bus."

"Deal! Thank you! See you tomorrow!"

~~~~~

The next day, after school, they agreed to split up to find clues on any artifacts they could use. Fei and Wondeba used their own technology in the TM Caravan while Aoi, Shinsuke and Tenma headed for the school library. Shindou, Nishiki and Tsurugi were going to their ex-captain's house to do their own research, and they were joined by Kimiko along the way.

"You're going to be the death of me, you know that?"

The blonde girl smiled at her best friend. "Hey, at least you'll go to heaven."

He rolled his eyes. "How nice."

"What's with all the bags?" Nishiki asked.

"Oh, these are all the souvenirs you guys wanted me to buy. But I won't hand them over until everyone's back."

"And the duffel bag?"

"I'll be staying over at Kyou's place until the day before his parents come home." She explained with a thumbs up. "But uh... Don't breathe a word of this to anyone else, alright? I'm supposed to be staying with Shuuya-nii."

Shindou blinked at her. "And Gouenji-san is alright with this?"

"He did warn me about staying alone with a boy at his house for that long of a time, but then I remind him that I have powers." She shrugged. "The conversation ended there."

"How nice."

"Oh, don't be like that. I only said that because he wouldn't get off my back. I know you're an angel at heart, Kyou."

He shot her a look before sighing. "Whatever. Since you're staying that long, you're doing the chores with me."

"Roger!"

As soon as they arrived, they headed for Shindou's room. They spent a few hours studying up on Oda Nobunaga's history, but found no clues as to what they could use as an artifact. They did find an advertisement about his swords being displayed in Inazuma Town, but they knew that the staff wouldn't lend it to them. They planned to inform the others about it the next day, and so, after Shindou insisted they have dinner with him, his parents being away for a few days, the other three headed home.

"I'm home!" She called as soon as the blue haired boy let her in.

"You are not." He shot back, locking the front door.

"Meanie!"

"Stupid." He rolled his eyes. "Alright, enough. Let's head upstairs. You can unpack your stuff and take out the futon. I'll shower first."

"Kay."

The two managed to finish all they were meant to do in an hour before going to their respective mattresses. The boy had his own bed, while she was snuggled in the futon beside it.

"Going to sleep already?" He asked with an eyebrow raised. "I thought you're an owl."

"I'm just getting in." She laid down and placed both her hands behind her head. "What about you? Got homework?"

"No, but I'm going to write down what I remember from the meeting earlier." He sat by his desk before taking out a notebook and pen.

She smiled slightly. "You're as studious as ever. Still thinking about scholarships?"

"Well, why not?" He split his focus between talking and writing. "I've been at it for so long, it feels like a waste if I let my grades drop now just because nii-san's got his surgery."

"That's true. Who knows? Maybe you might even get to study abroad."

"... Yeah."

"...Kyou?" When he didn't reply, she sat up to face him. "Kyou, you've been acting weird since God Eden. Did something happen?"

No reply again.

"Does it have anything to do with Tenma or Fei?"

He only continued to write.

"Hey, you're kinda worrying me here―"

She was cut off with the sound of the book closing and his sigh. Putting it away, he tidied his desk and turned off the lights before heading over to his bed, shoving her temple while at it.

"Hey!"

"It's a long story, so I'd rather not talk about it now." He said, laying down with his back facing her.

She frowned. "Well, alright, but you didn't have to do that." She placed her back down on the futon again. "How are your memories by the way?"

"I remember you coming to my house crying last year after that training you did in Teikoku. You wanted to quit soccer but I didn't let you. And then, a week later, you got all this information on Fifth Sector and how they could help me, and so on."

She nodded. "Yeah, that's about right."

"But I also..."

"Hm?"

"I still remember the timeline where you hated soccer."

"Oh, that. Do you want me to erase them?" He turned around with a glare and she put both her hands up in defense. "Sorry, I thought... You sounded like you didn't want those memories."

"It's not that I don't want them." He sighed. "I know which one's real and which one's not, it's only..."

"Only...?"

"...You took the punishment from Fifth in my place, right?"

"Yeah?"

"And yet, in the other timeline, you had nothing to do with Fifth, but I didn't get punished for betraying them either. How come?"

"Hm... Maybe Shuuya-nii protected you? Like, he knows you're my friend, so he probably told them not to waste time on you and that they'll just crush you along with the rest of Raimon like a two birds with one stone kind of thing?"

"... If he could've done that, then why did you have to get hurt in this timeline?"

Her mouth shut.

"Why didn't you just call in your favor with him then and spare yourself all those weeks on God Eden? If you did that, then maybe Senguuji Daigo wouldn't have gotten to you either, and... you wouldn't have to..."

Suffer.

"I... didn't think of it at the time." She muttered, looking away. "I was... I think I was pissed? At myself mostly, for dragging you into it. Seeing them beat and break you over and over on God Eden the first time was... terrifying. I knew I had to cut your connections to them as soon as possible, but I also knew if you betrayed them, then you'd just get hurt more... All I could think of back then was making sure that didn't happen."

"..."

"And well, if I'm being honest... The thing with Senguuji Daigo..." She shuddered at the memory and took a deep breath. "While the whole thing was inhumane, I... I couldn't help but see it like my training at Teikoku. I was hesitant at first, but over time I grew curious about my abilities and... I started thinking that, if all the pain could lead to me finally finding my limit and understanding how to control it, then... maybe it's worth it...?"

"Working hard until you shed blood, sweat, and tears is one thing, but what you went through..." He hardened his glare, remembering all the wounds he had seen on her when she was still hospitalized. "That wasn't 'working hard', that was just plain abuse."

"I know that, I just... I'm just telling you how I saw it." She sighed, lifting a hand above her face, staring at it. It was shaking. "Or well, how I want to see it."

Unexpectedly, his hand reached out and held hers, stopping the shaking. They stayed that way for a while before he broke the silence.

"It wasn't soccer training with him, was it?"

She gave a bitter smile. "No... It wasn't."

An image flashed through her mind. Staring at her wrists, she could clearly remember the cuffs that were on her, keeping her in place. The darkness that engulfed her after should've made it easier for her to imagine a place to teleport to, but before she could, something struck her on multiple sides. It made her panic as she unleashed her other abilities instead. And that was only one of the 'regiments' she had to do.

"It wasn't any kind of training actually. Just... Just pure agony."

He was silent for a while before, "Promise me you won't do anything that could possibly get yourself killed." He gave her hand a squeeze.

She did the same in return. "I promise." She smiled a little. "After all, I can't bother you if I'm dead."

He rolled his eyes. "We're having a moment here. If you're gonna ruin it, I'm letting go."

"Ah! No!" She laughed as she held on to his hand tighter, preventing him from releasing. "We're sleeping like this tonight."

"My arm's not gonna last the whole night dangling like this."

"Sucks to be you then."

He slammed their locked hands to her forehead.

"Ow! Stop hitting me for every little thing, you bully!"

"I'll consider it when you stop being stupid. Now, go to sleep. We have to be up in six hours." He said, eying the digital clock on his desk.

She pouted. "Fine, but we're still holding hands."

"Yeah, yeah."

~~~~~~~~~~

Quadruple update because I felt like it :)