[Name] sighed as he looked at the several figures in front of him. As he looked around, he once again felt that all too familiar emptiness inside of him. Most of these people were friends he had known and cared about for a long portion of his life. However, being here like this something just felt off about all of it. "Hey, zero can I talk to you for a minute?" [Name] asked as he looked at the male in front of him.

The male was currently trying to explain to the twins where they should be moving a rather large pipe. However, as soon as he heard [Name]'s voice. "Uh, yeah sure," Zero said as he turned to look at the twins. "Once you two get that in place, find a way to entertain yourselves, just don't break anything," Zero said as he turned around and began to walk towards [Name]. Ragyo had said something the other said about [Name] starting to act a little strange and ordered him to keep a close eye on [Name].

Zero of course thought she was just being a little paranoid at first not wanting her plan to be ruined once again. However, an order was an order and he planned to follow it to the best of his ability. "So, what's up?" Zero asked as he looked at the male in front of him.

"How do you ask out a girl?" [Name] asked as he looked at the male in front of him. To say Zero was shocked hearing this would have been an understatement.

'Maybe Ragyo was right after all,' Zero thought to himself before thinking about the answer. "I'm not sure, I've not thought about things like that before. I usually just focus on my work most of the time," Zero said as he looked up as if he was seriously trying to consider the question. "I would imagine there's probably a lot that goes into it. Reading body language, picking up on some of the clues that they send out. Why do you ask?" Zero asked as he looked at the male in front of him.

"I don't know," [Name] said as he looked at the male in front of him. "I've just been having some weird dreams lately and thought they might be connected to something. And I thought that if I talked to you, then you could help me figure it out. You are like the smartest person that I know," [Name] said as he looked at the figure in front of him.

"I see, after I've had some time to think it over maybe I'll have a better answer for you," Zero said before he cleared his throat and looked at [Name]. "However, I believe you'd be wise to remember that they are the enemy. I can't guarantee these feelings you have are genuine, nor can I say for certain that this isn't a ploy being used by them. Lady Ragyo has already warned you what they're capable of. I suggest, treading with caution. If Ragyo were to find out about these thoughts . . . well I can't imagine she'd be pleased by them," Zero said as he looked at [Name].

"Thanks," [Name] said with a slight nod as he began to walk towards the exit of the building. As he did Zero stared at the area before leaving himself. As he did, he made his way down a secret staircase where he saw Ragyo in front of a giant cocoon of life fibers. As he did, he knelt in front of Ragyo before he began to speak.

"It appears as if you were correct in your assumption. It seems as if he was indeed the most vulnerable of us and was able to be manipulated by them," Zero said causing Ragyo to turn and look at him.

"I see, well that is most unfortunate. We'll have to deal with him properly when he returns. For now, I suggest you gather the others and begin to make preparations for what's to come," Ragyo said as she looked at the male.

"Of course, my lady," Zero said as he stood up and began to walk out of the room. 'It seems even I underestimated their powers of manipulation. I thought for sure [Name] would be the last of us to fall victim to their cunning lies. And yet it seems as if he were the first to fall. We will all need to be on guard from now on. The last thing we need is the twins falling for them, or worse yet myself. Once we've broken [Name] free from his prison, he'll understand none of them are real and that he's just been lied to this entire time,' Zero thought to himself determined to help his friend out of the situation he's now found himself in.

However, unknown to the male [Name] was walking down the streets looking around him. 'He's right . . . he's always right . . . and yet . . . I can't help but feel like . . . just this once he's wrong,' [Name] thought to himself as he continued down the streets paying little attention to his surroundings as he continued to let his mind wander as he searched through his own feelings.

'But why do I feel that way? Ragyo has never lied to me before, and I've known Zero for years. And yet I still feel this way . . . what's wrong with me? And then there's that man who appears in my dreams,' [Name] thought to himself, however as he did, he felt a sharp stabbing pain in his head. 'Something . . . something's not right,' [Name] said as his mind began to race.

'Why do these pain-splitting headaches only happen when I think about this? Why do they only come when I think about her?' [Name] thought as the pain increased causing him to fall to his knees clutching his head. 'Why does my heart race when I'm near her, I feel so at ease and relaxed. And yet any time I think about it-' [Name] began as the pain continued to rise.

'Why? Why? WHY?WHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHY? Why are my mind and heart at war with each other?' [Name] Thought as the pressure inside his head continued to build. It felt as if his head could pop at any given moment. 'Pl-please someone just tell me! No lies! No tricks! No half-truths or cryptic answers! Just tell me what to do,' [Name] thought as the life fibers within his body continued to fight over control.

"Oh my god!" He heard a familiar voice cry out to him. As he did, he looked up and saw Ryuko rushing towards him. At first, he was on edge and ready to fight, but he could see the look of concern on her face. The female stopped in front of him sliding to her knees as she did. "Are you alright? What's going on? You're not hurt, are you? Hey, can you hear me? Answer me damnit!" Ryuko said as she looked at the male.

'Even now she looks at me with such concern and compassion. She could easily end me and yet . . . I can't sense a single ounce of malice coming from her,' [Name] thought as he looked at the female slowly leaning forward. As he did Ryuko blushed slightly and began to lean towards him as well mirroring his actions. As their lips touched [Name] felt a rush of emotions surging through him.

And before long the pain he had been feeling building up in his head all this time suddenly and without warning stopped. As if something had snapped within him, all his worries and fears melted away as he enjoyed this moment. All his memories slowly returned to him as if he were looking through an old album. And when the two stopped [Name] looked at her.

"R-Ryuko," [Name] began before suddenly leaning forward and pulling her into a hug. "Thank you! Thank you so much! Thank you for not giving up on me! For still loving me even after I . . . thank you!" [Name] said as he began to hug her and hold her close. He couldn't even begin to express how grateful he was to her. When he said this Ryuko's eyes began to water as she realized what was happening.

She finally after all this time, had the love of her life back. "Of course, I couldn't you leave . . . dumbass," Ryuko said as they continued to hug each other. The two stayed like this for several moments merely enjoying the presence of the other before Ryuko slowly stood up and offered her hand to [Name]. "The others are waiting for you. So come on, let's go home," Ryuko said with a bright smile as she looked at the male in front of her.

[Name] smiled hearing this and nodded as he grabbed her hand ready to return to the others.