We'll Meet Again

"We would like to take your daughter to give her a higher education than she has now. Think of it as an opportunity!" A middle-aged Maiappon man with stubble and long hair, wearing a military uniform yelled, giving his best business smile to two ragged people, one a woman, one a man. He was sitting in front of the man as the woman was leaning on a doorframe, a red-headed little girl hiding behind her leg. "One of the Princes decided this would be a great opportunity to better our society, hitting at the roots with the youth!" The Maiappon man pumps his fist.

The father of the red-headed girl screwed his lips, staring at the Maiappon man with dull eyes, "So...?"

"Well, it's kind of like a summer camp but lasts until they reach High School age and then they are moved into the Dragon Academy."

The father smacked his lips, looking at his wife and daughter before looking back at the Maiappon man, eyes hung low, a dull expression on his face before leaning in, smirking, "Alright... you said," He pointed, "You said that a Prince was backing this?"

The Maiappon man nodded, "Yes, specifically Prince Apollo."

The father nodded, "Alright... how much are you willing to pay?"

"I'm... sorry?"

"I'm saying, how much are you willing to buy my daughter for?"

The Maiappon man's expression grew grim, "Why should...?" He shook his head, putting on a business smile once more, "I'm sorry, I must've misheard! What are you talking about?"

The father sighed, standing up and stopping towards his daughter, grabbing her by the head and dragging her to the couch he was sitting on, "I'm saying... that we don't want 'er, so if YOU, want her... you can have 'er... but..." He sat down, "At a price... can't just be givin' away children without a return, y'know?"

The Maiappon man's expression grew grim once more, a stern expression on his face, glaring at the man in front of him, "So you want to sell your daughter off?"

"We were planning on doing it anyway... this is just the better opportunity."

The Maiappon man closed his eyes, breathing in and out, slowly, periodically, regaining his patience. "Alright... if that's how it's gonna be, how do 200,000 credits sound?"

The father's eyes light up, "Oh~? How about... 300?"

The Maiappon man chuckled, "I'll do you one better," His expression dropped, "One million."

"HAHAHA, you fucking retard! Alright! Ya got a deal!" The father offered his hand with a twisted grin on his face, the Maiappon man writing a check and placing it in the man's hand, "Thanks for yer patronage!"

The Maiappon man shook his head, taking a few steps to the little girl, kneeling down in front of her, "What's your name?"

It took a moment for her to respond, but she spoke in a relatively quiet tone, "Dolores..."

"Alright, Doll... I swear that you'll like it where we're going."

He took her by the hand, walking at her pace towards a bus seated just outside the house, kids collected within, one in the back being the most noticeable due to the massive sword they were holding tightly against their body.

The Maiappon man guided her to her seat before heading to the front of the bus, "Alright everyone! After a few more stops, we'll head straight to the facility and have you all brought to tip-top shape!" He spun around, tapping the driver's seat, "Alright, let's get it."

The bus started up, and off they went, finding more children to add to their repertoire before heading straight to a large building in the middle of a large field, a singular tree situated a few meters away from the building. As multiple buses stop in front of the building, the Maiappon man and multiple other soldiers lead the kids out from the bus.

The Maiappon man yelled, "Check which ones need different treatment compared to others! Some might die from eating solids!"

They separated them into groups and led them into different parts of the building, Dolores, was one who was immediately led into the cafeteria along with a variety of other children. The instant a bowl of soup filled with noodles, chicken, and the like was placed in front of Dolores, she couldn't resist it, immediately tearing into the food with a happy expression on her face.

Her eyes scanned the room, seeing some of the children cautiously approach the food as some, like her, naively consume whatever was placed in front of them, luckily so since there was nothing wrong with the food.

It would be the first time in these children's lives in which they had a decent meal, it would also be the first time in their lives having a decent room to sleep in, each and every one of them given their own individual rooms, courted by maids and workers who just so happened to be there when they arrived.

Dolores brought herself up onto her bed, plopping herself down onto it and letting herself fall into the sheets which covered it, letting it embrace her before quickly falling asleep. Finally relaxing and letting go of all of the stress she had built up in herself already.

The next day, the Maiappon man greeted her, sitting right beside her on the bed, a smile on his face.

"My name is Hiraku Aikawa, just refer to me as Hiraku," He paused, visibly nervous, running his hands across his pants with a cracked smile, "Uh... I'll technically be your Pa from henceforth."

Dolores didn't respond, just staring at him with dull eyes, barely hidden under her blanket.

"D-do... do you have a problem with that?"

Dolores shook her head, "But you aren't my dad... I can't call you dad."

"S-So...?" He chuckled, "You don't mind me being your guardian?"

She shook her head again.

"But... you won't call me dad?"

"I won't."

He chuckled, "Kinda hurts, but I get it." He paused, looking to the door before standing up, patting his sides, and right before leaving, he turned back towards her, "I wish you good luck, and I want to say this, I love all of you." He shuts the door behind him, and only the sound of his boots hitting the ground could be heard hitting the ground from the inside of the room, only a bit of light peeking through.

She looked to the window, focusing on the curtains, the light reflecting off of it giving a comfortable dim look to the space, perfect for a deeper slumber.

So she slept.

A few days through her stay she met a young woman with auburn-colored hair tinkering with one of the many air conditioners within this facility, sweat dripping from her brow, gloves covered in dust and muck, holding a wrench in one hand, and a screwdriver in her teeth. Her eyes light up as she spots Dolores, stumbling over herself as she attempts to find a good place to put her tools without staining the carpet.

She takes her gloves off and throws them into a bucket before putting one hand out in front of Dolores, "Nice to meet you... uh..." She paused and mumbled to herself, "Is this how you greet kids?"

Dolores took a few steps closer, taking her small and grasping the young woman's hand before nodding.

"What's your name?"

Dolores let go of her hand, "My name is Dolores."

"What a pretty name!"

Dolores nodded attentively, a slight smile creeping across her lips.

"My name is Dimitra, Dimitra Grace."

Dolores pulled back, putting a finger to her chin and doing an exaggerated expression with her movements mimicking someone thinking hard about something before giving a mischievous look to Dimitra, "Dimi... Tra...Dimi, Mitra," She attempted to snap her fingers but only a dull sound came from her attempt, "Trace!" She pointed to Dimitra.

"I'm sorry?"

Dolores pointed to herself, "Doll..." Then pointed to Dimitra, "Trace."

"Is that my nickname? Also, is that YOUR nickname?"

Dolores nodded, "Hiraku called me Doll so..."

"That is a nice nickname," Dimitra chuckled, "Guess I'm Trace now?"

Dolores nodded enthusiastically before bringing her attention to whatever Dimitra was working on, "What are you doing?"

Dimitra looked at the unit she was working on, "I'm working on the ventilation and stuff for the... the thingy that makes the air cool around here. These have inner mechanisms rather than the normal ones which are just these weird large machines placed out-," She shook her head, "You don't know what I'm talking about, sorry."

"It sounded cool."

"Kinda, but not really, it's just air conditioning."

"That's what makes the air cool?"

Dimitra nodded, "Yes, indeed. Makes everything feel nice and right inside this big 'ole building we all reside in."

"So cool..." She seemed oddly intrigued, it wouldn't be unusual though since, after all, she had lived in poverty for most of her waking life. No air conditioning - just left out in the elements in her old family's decrepit little home in the middle of the Fourth District.

"I can show you more later if you want," Dimitra leaned in, "Some stuff that is ACTUALLY cool."

"Really?"

"Yep... where is your room?"

Dolores stood up and lead Dimitra by the hand, showing her which room she lived in. "It's here."

"Alright!" She snapped her fingers, "I'll meet you here in a week and then I'll show you something ACTUALLY cool!"

Dolores nodded attentively before being left where she was, Dimitra going back to what she was doing originally.

Dolores was truly living a new life.

One that'll only bring happiness.

--------

"You've been with Dimitra quite a bit these days." Hikaru prodded, hand rubbing the top of her head, meeting him with a dazed expression.

"Trace has been teaching me about... uhh..." She stopped, looking to the ground, "I dunno what it's called... air...?"

"Technology?"

"Air conditioning?"

Hikaru chuckled, "Only air conditioning?" Dolores shook her head and Hikaru leaned in, "Engineering?"

"Something like that."

"Do you like it?"

Dolores gave a quaint nod and got up, "I have to go."

"Okay, by, Doll."

Dolores went on her way, watching as other kids passed by her in the hallway. She has no friends, but she didn't mind. She had Dimitra after all. Dimitra taught her all kinds of things, mostly relating to technology, showing her how the mechanisms within an air conditioner worked, or even small projects Dimitra had been working on, one of them being a small mechanical spider she had been tinkering with.

"You're like a doll..." A boy spoke, one with discolored blonde hair and heterochromia hugging an oversized sword. Dolores looked at the boy with curious eyes. "I... I am Noah."

"I am Dolores..."

"I heard... you are called Doll..."

"Hikaru calls me that."

"Can I...?" He pointed to himself, cocking his head to the side.

Dolores nodded, running off to go and find Dimitra. Noah seemed to relax as she left, mumbling to himself, "Doll... Doll..."

Dolores ran off the property over to a secluded warehouse not too far away, pushing the door open, Dimitra being alerted by the small girl's presence by the small patting over her feet on the smooth stone ground. Dimitra quickly crossed over to Dolores, picked her up, and carried her on her shoulder. "You shouldn't go around barefoot."

"No shoes." Dolores pointed to her feet.

"You'll get them soon, you have to wait first."

Dolores shook her head and then pointed to another machine that Dimitra had been working on, "What is that Trace?"

Dimitra let out a small sigh, exhaling through her nose, her expression becoming softer, smirking before approaching the machine, "A companion. I'm trying to mimic the Doctor."

"Who?"

"He's the man who opted to create this Academy... more like an orphanage though," She chuckled before swallowing her own saliva, "But, uh... He made an awe-inspiring creation and I want to mimic it... to see if I have reached my limit and or... maybe see if I can catch up with him."

"What does he look like?"

"He's a bit intimidating. He's a Faurna, well... part Faurna. He wasn't born with the Faurnalites."

"What's a Faurna?"

"Beast People. He has what is called, a 'Dragon's tail'. White fur, scales, et cetera, and he's exceptionally large. Wears a mask, I think it's also mechanical," She paused, "The kids probably won't like him."

"Is he scary?"

"He looks scary. Probably why he hasn't shown himself yet," Dimitra placed Dolores on a table, still looking at the machine she was working on, "The reason he made this orphanage... he says that it was because he could relate to the plights of the many children here. He wanted to give them a place of refuge, where they could get a proper opportunity," Dimitra turned around, looking at Dolores, "I admire him."

"Hm..." Dolores pressed her lips together, "Do you know, Hikaru?"

"I do, we've... we haven't exactly talked but we had interacted before," She gave Dolores a wide smile, "I'm kinda scared of him."

*

A lot of the children who seemed to be more ill than the others have recovered by now. Running and playing with the rest of the children, the older ones making sure that they don't stray too far into more dangerous territory surrounding the Academy. Adults watched from afar, Hikaru, in particular, noticing Dolores, reading a book.

Hikaru crossed over to her, looking at what she might be reading, "What is that?"

Dolores looked up at Hikaru, "Book."

"No, I meant what type of book," He chuckled, crouching next to her.

"I don't really understand it, yet..." Dolores looked back to the book.

"Do you want some help?"

She nodded attentively, bringing both of her arms out, accidentally dropping the book. She panicked, grabbing the book while putting one arm out this time. Hikaru couldn't help but smile, picking her up and keeping her close to his chest. Dolores pointed to the Academy and he followed her directions, telling the other personnel of the Academy that he was leaving with Dolores.

He entered the library of the Academy, placing Dolores down on a table and she placed down her book, opening to the beginning. She crawled her way to one of the various chairs surrounding the table, plopping herself down on the seat, and dragging the book to her before beginning to read aloud.

Before she could continue, Hikaru cut her off, "You can read?" Asking it as of coming to a realization.

"I liked looking at pictures and words... I also liked hearing people talk."

Only those two things? Hikaru asked himself, sitting next to her, "Okay, just tell me if you have any difficulty with anything."

She nodded, continuing to read, "...D-Dungeons, t-they're a topic of d-discuss..."

"Discussion."

"Discussion... among many. Be it researc-- researchers and..." Dolores paused, "What does 'researchers' mean?"

"People who search through things, trying to find out what something contains. Doesn't exactly matter what it is."

"Hm..." Dolores pursed her lips, "Researchers and... researchers and the general populace alike. Dungeons contai-"

*

A young man, a soldier like Hikaru, approached Noah, crouching beside him, inspecting the sword. "Isn't it heavy?" The young man asked, rubbing his thumb on the grip of the nodachi.

Noah pulled away, showing a look of concern, "Mmm..." Noah groaned, "No... not really."

"Really?"

"It was heavy at first but... now it's fine."

"What's your name?"

Noah hesitated, "...N-Noah..."

"I'm La Wu-Rong. You can just call me La."

"L-La...?"

"Yep," Wu-Rong paused, "Why do you carry it around?"

Noah sighed, relaxing in a little corner of an open room with Wu-Rong waiting patiently for a response, "I... It's comfortable..." Noah looked up to the hilt of the weapon, "I... I think it was... I don't know who it was... I think it was one of my parents. I think one of them owned this," Noah paused, "Now, it's mine."

--------

A new friend arrived, one of high status, a Prince. They looked like a girl-- long silver hair that reached their shoulders wearing a completely white outfit, contrasting with the other children here who wore clothing that was either mismatched or casual. This child, this Prince, became friends with Noah and Dolores. They didn't get along too well with the other children, bullying them with snide jabs because they looked like a girl but they claimed incessantly that they were a man. Noah and Dolores defended the young man.

They play often, whether it be "hide and seek", or games that are rough like sword fighting and the like. Hikaru would often give them tips and tricks as to how to properly use a sword, so this play fighting at some could only be regarded as nothing but a spar.

Dolores's knowledge of mechanisms and technology expanded through the help of Dimitra and at some point, the young woman began seeing the little girl as her daughter, though at the time Dolores only referred to her as "Aunty."

Hikaru began conversations with Dimitra about Dolores, often taking care of her together. Hikaru couldn't help but be overjoyed to see this red-headed young girl happy and content with the environment she was in, seeing as how only a year ago she had been living in squalor, clearly malnourished and practically ignored by their own family, but it didn't discourage her then... she is truly strong. Hikaru thought to himself, letting her sit upon his leg, smiling as they both gazed out to the massive field before them, the black silhouettes of children dancing about as the sun sunk below the ocean of green.

One day they had to say goodbye to one of the children as they were heading off to, well, greener pastures, adopted by a noble family. They were kind people and the children who knew them couldn't help but weep as they left, some seemed disconnected from the ordeal but they could empathize with them.

Some children were discontent with their living situation, Prince Apollo, and Dr. Marvello, decided to try and better their situation in various ways, so they were also sent off somewhere else, though no one else knew where at this moment and time. This would be the first time they'd see Dr. Marvello-- a massive Faurna Hybrid-- sometimes he wore a coat, sometimes he wore casual clothes, but when he did it would reveal the scars and damage that could only have been gained through a painful life. He wore a mask as well, functioning like a mantis's mandibles, two slots on the of this mask being possible to open and retract, though no one has seen this happen. A massive bushy tail, shaped like a reptile's tail, even had scales underneath all of the fur. Children, after becoming used to his significant presence, would hop onto his tail, being able to carry multiple at once, often lifting them like dumbells. His scarred hands showed a transition between human skin and a claw, one arm being completely missing, a mechanical arm to be exact. His feet seemed to be similar to something like dinosaurs as well.

Dolores inspected the man, just like this, often writing in a journal of hers, quickly getting the hang of writing and language despite never learning a language for most of her life. She still wrote like a child though, only writing like a scientist taking notes out of inspiration, no, admiration of Dimitra.

When Hikaru and Dolores are alone she often sings Dimitra's praises, Hikaru looking down at her, quietly listening to her ramblings with a kind smile on his face, hearing how she, "Wants to be like Aunty," and the sort. Hikaru at some point wanted to help Dolores in her engineering endeavors, but it was a vain effort as he knew nothing of what engineering entailed. What he could do was teach her how to fight, which he did. Even if she was small, and probably wouldn't be able to use such knowledge until she was older... he still felt it worthwhile. He would do the same for the Young Prince and Noah as well, teaching them how to fight.

After a month of the Young Prince being there though, they all realized that they didn't know their name. He introduced himself, Ambrogaia, also referred to as, Am.

At a point, the young boy, Noah, began catching feelings for Dolores, often challenging her and losing, attempting to gain her favor through said fights whilst Am watched, entertained by the squabbles they'd have, Dolores, meeting him with cold optimism.

Soon, the older children began getting picked one by one, and somber goodbyes and joyish times proceeded.

After some talking between Hikaru and Dimitra, they finally got together with the prospect of marriage on their mind, fully making Dolores Dimitra's daughter, and the title of "Aunt", changed to, "Mom." As times kept moving Dolores continuously showed her intellectual prowess, a prodigy in most things she took part in.

Dolores also found herself becoming quite close with the Doctor, Marvello often teaching her about the sciences and the many wonders of the world, one point is the concept of another land, another continent that may exist in the world, the only proof being from that of the many Dungeons and Towers that are littered across the world.

"What are Dungeons?"

When the topic was first introduced to Dolores, she asked this question, Marvello looking over to her, clearly optimistic about the topic as he excitedly swiveled around to look at her, sitting at his desk.

"Dungeons or Towers are what we suspect to be little pockets of dimensional tears that lead to a different continent that exists in our world that *we* can't typically reach," He leaned forward, "This world is *very* dangerous, yet *very* prosperous for our, and everyone's futures. You know of Father Wolf in the Faurnalites?"

Dolores nodded attentively, "Yeah."

"Where do you think he came from? He came from this continent, the same with the Sufi, whatever they found most likely came from the Dungeons, or... from the continent itself. Whenever I get there, no matter how many years it takes, I want my goal to be to find the continent, not from the Dungeon, but to finally sail to it physically."

This would be frequent, Marvello regaling Dolores with tales of the Dungeon, experiments he had made, and the technology he had worked on along with Dimitra. A constant flood of knowledge that she somehow understood, questioning only what needed to be questioned.

Soon Dimitra bore Hikaru's child, Dolores being everything but disappointed, excited to have what was said to be, and what would be, her younger brother.

Not too long after this discovery Noah had seemingly vowed to Am to become their guard, Noah's last interaction with Dolores being a declaration of both love and a general declaration that he would finally win a duel against her when they met again. Everyone was excited by the declaration as a whole, hitting Dolores on the back and blushing from ear to ear while Dolores remained calm, it was a disappointing reaction but the declaration was still there, and Dolores agreed to a future duel.

When they left, Dolores gave them a tearful farewell, and everything turned back to as it should, the same everyday life which was mentioned previously continuing as if nothing had happened at all.

*

And another year passed, Hikaru and Dimitra had gotten married and Fenrir was born, making Dolores his Older Sister. Dolores was overjoyed to have a younger brother, often visiting him as a way to help him remember her face, and, this was also the time when she began wearing glasses-- people who worked at the Academy often saw Dolores hopping about, those square oversized glasses bouncing on her nose, somehow not falling off, people could help but find her cute and chuckle at the young one's appearance. Dolores needed the glasses but in general, wore them for style since she knew they made her look cute.

At some point, some of the newer children that were brought there began looking at Dolores as an older sister figure, as the children and she as well did to the older kids that were there before her, and just like those older kids, she had to leave eventually, and that time was now. Marvello, so impressed by her accomplishments, and due to their close relationship chose her to help him with a project he was working on.

It was said that the endeavor would not be long and Dolores excitedly hopped onto the opportunity. Dimitra was happy to hear about the news, putting her trust in Marvello and Hikaru, who both encouraged the decision.

Marvello often talked about how she was a stupendous talent and how he wouldn't want her to go to waste, and in full transparency:

"I think that this would be a great opportunity, now that she is 8 years old, to look into how she can be as intelligent as she is, where all that thirst for knowledge comes from, yeah?"

Dimitra chuckled, "I get it-- I don't mind, alright. Just make sure she doesn't get hurt."

Hikaru looked nervous, "She'll be fine, she has one of the strongest Princes backing her here."

Dimitra sighed, "Yeah, yeah..." She nodded, looking to Dolores, hand on her head, "It's fine, not like she'll be gone long, yeah?"

Marvello chuckled, "Of course."

With this, it was confirmed that she was going with Marvello, and, as they promised, they went two weeks later, Marvello taking the young girl by the hand into a van he had stationed outside, Dolores waving at her family, Dimitra holding Fenrir, Hikaru holding Dimitra, waving back at Dolores.

Dolores excitedly hopped into the seat just across from Marvello, who closed the door to the Van behind them, still able to see what was outside the window-- Dolores pointed, "They don't look like windows outside."

"Yep, it's a pretty clever technology but..." He leaned toward the windows, "They're completely transparent."

"I haven't been in many cars..." Dolores commented, scanning the inside of the van.

"You know..."

"Hm?"

"I can't wait to see what comes from this... I hope you're excited."

"I am!" Dolores suddenly felt herself nodding off to sleep, "Hm... I'm tired...?"

"Must be all that built-up excitement, yeah?"

"P-Probably but..." She paused, cocking her head to the side, "This feels... sudden?"

Marvello stretched, "Well, I'm tired all the time, so maybe for a kid it feels sudden?"

"I dunno... no..." Dolores became more and more confused, "This feels different, not..." She snapped her fingers before feeling her lips, the snap itself being soft and weak. She began clearing her throat, growing more and more lethargic, "This..." She began shaking her head, "This is gas..."

The last thing she saw was Marvello becoming visibly excited... then black. The smell persisted...

When she woke up again, her hearing was impaired, the environment around her blurred, and a small pain in both of her arms. The smell of iron permeated her nostrils as she tried focusing on the environment around her with whatever senses she had currently. When she began attempting to lift herself from the ground a pain surged in her arms causing her to drop from the floor once more. Confusion and panic started to set in, her sense of touch almost completely returning to her, feeling it in her legs. Dolores groaned, picking herself up from the ground with her legs, sitting on her knees, and swiveling around to look at the rest of the room, only seeing the vague silhouettes of something writhing in front of her.

Soon, a rush of pain came through to her arms, screaming at the top of her lungs as they both came into view, arms covered in fur, hands blackened like obsidian. The pain was unbearable, and her panic only became worse as she regained her hearing, the following screams coming from the many others who surrounded her in the same room she was in.

Children just like her writhing in pain or desperately slamming at the window in front of them all, begging for them to return to where they were, to return them to their parents and the like. Other children looked to have similar malformations and deformations as if someone were attempting to artificially create a Faurna, one child of note is one in the corner, a mass of flesh and hair whose only sounds that could be made were gurgling and pops as it attempted to move, a subsequent screech following, visibly wincing from the pain.

The pain in her arms began to become unbearable, feeling as if multiple needles were being stabbed through her nerves and veins along with the crushing feeling in her bones due to the adverse size of the muscles that were in her newly acquired ape-like arms. Tears ran down her face, gritting her teeth as hard as she could causing blood to run out from her mouth. She began gnawing at her arms, attempting to rip them off at the socket. She kept biting, and biting, and biting, blood filling her mouth, shooting out from her nostrils, the adrenaline numbed the pain, and instinctually, all she wanted to do was remove these wretched arms from her body.

She began gagging and vomiting as she continued, tearing away as much flesh as she could, chips of her teeth coming out from her violent efforts making the pain in her mouth run to her ears, a faint whimpering being heard as all of these fluids and pain, and many other factors piled on top of each other.

After an hour, both of her arms were torn off, a horrific scene sitting before the other children as they watched what Dolores had done to herself. One of the many children vomited, not being able to hold anything back anymore, violently shaking, retreating to a corner of the room.

Many men were covered from head to toe with uniform clothing, faces obscured by gas masks, ran inside, grabbed Dolores, and dragged or out of the room, attempting to save her life through a last-minute surgery.

Apollo sighed as the surgery reached its conclusion, looking to the men that surrounded him, "Well... we'll need to go Black."

"Are you sure? You mig-" One of his workers was cut off mid-sentence, covering their mouth.

"Don't underestimate him..." Apollo sighed, looking at the unconscious Dolores, "Such a shame, she had potential."

"Like the others?" Another worker asked, "Where to?"

"Roxal, I have a coordinate," Apollo crossed over to them, handing over a tablet in his hand. "I want to see where this goes, don't you?"

The worker sighed, "*Okay*." He shrugged.

Apollo nodded, "Carry her off, you're transporting her now," A few more workers of his grabbed Dolores, carrying her out of the room. "Okay... well, I'll call him."

Dimitra was sleeping in bed, Hikaru on the phone, looking at Fenrir sleeping in his crib, listening along to someone on the other side of the phone. He nodded along to what they said with a pained expression on his face, clearing his throat midway through just before letting out a long sigh and biting his lower lip.

Dimitra woke up, rubbing her eyes, "Hikaru... who is it?"

"Oh, it's just military stuff, y'know, there's a war goin' on."

"Oh...? The Civil War?"

"Yeah, it's just an update."

"How's it going?"

Hikaru pressed the phone against his chest, "You wouldn't like what I'd have to say."

Dimitra sighed, "I already know how you guys work, it's fine."

"Well, it stemmed from a protest, yeah? So it's relatively the same, the Royalty is winning."

"Hey..."

"What's up?"

"Can't the King take what they say into consideration at the very least?"

"If only," Hikaru chuckled, "Um... hey, hun."

"Hm?"

"Hold on," Hikaru turned away from her, speaking into the phone before hanging up, "I have to powder my nose real quick, be right back."

"Okay."

Hikaru left their room, walking over to the restroom which was a few meters away down the hall. Hikaru entered the restroom, sighing, turning toward the sink, and gripping the sides of it with both hands before looking at himself in the mirror. The sighing continued, hanging his head low before looking back up at the mirror before him, eyes glossy.

Pacing the restroom, frequent gagging, sitting down on the bathtub, contemplating, standing up, back at the sink again, shaking the sink violently. "FUCK!" He yelled out, his voice cracking from the strain before leaving the restroom, going back to Dimitra, who was now standing, wrapping herself with their blankets.

"What's up, you were gone for a while?" Dimitra asked, looking Hikaru in the eyes.

"Sorry... hey, Trace."

"Hm?"

"I love you, and... I'll make sure that Fenrir will grow strong-- g-grow... grow into a strong man."

"Hi-" Before she could get his name out of her mouth, she stopped, suddenly unable to breathe, a burning sensation in her chest. A small hole going from her chest out her back could be seen, piercing her heart. She collapsed to the floor, Hikaru catching her before her head hit the ground, watching as life left her eyes. "Hi-Hikaru... wh-?" She could barely gasp for air, blood bubbling around her lips.

"I'm... I'm sorry," Tears streamed down Hikaru's face, cradling the dying woman in his arms, "I... I-I can't, I... God..." His voice cracked, holding her head close to his chest, tears staining the blanket she wore around herself. Hikaru took a deep breath after, standing up, placing her on their bad, blood-staining her breasts now, covering the tears that once rained over her. Hikaru grabbed his phone, took a picture of her corpse on the bed, and sent it to someone. Hikaru dropped the phone, looking up at his ceiling before looking over to his son, "I'll make him strong."

Somewhere else, after an undisclosed amount of time had passed: Dolores laying down in a vehicle going over rocky terrain, the only words Dolores was able to get out being, "Mom," as her senses slowly returned.

A man sitting in front of her sighed, slowly growing annoyed by her constantly repeating the word, eventually kneeling down to her as the car came to a stop, placing a phone with a picture in front of her. "Look." He said, tapping the phone.

Dolores slowly woke up completely, pressing her back against the wall of the car behind her, startled by the stranger in front of her.

"Look..." The man tapped the phone again, chuckling, "Your mom."

Dolores looked at the phone, and with a shakey voice, she murmured, "M-Mom...?"

On the phone was a picture of her mom, dead. "You don't have a mom anymore, your family is dead to you now-- you don't have a family. Now... we're going to drop you out into this forest here, have fun surviving without arms." He chuckled, tears running down Dolores's face, her eyes obscured by her dirtied red hair, the man grabbing her by her shoulder, and throwing her out of the van.

"W-WAIT!" As she screamed the van drove off, leaving her in the middle of this forest, abandoned.

Any attempt at using her arms was for naught, slipping and falling on the ground, barely able to keep her balance, tears in her eyes, gagging, violently thrashing about as she screamed in pain. She ran out of energy eventually, lifelessly laying on the ground, whimpering, mumbling her Mom's name over and over again, begging for Hikaru to help her, begging to see Fenrir again.

Eventually, she gave up, waiting for anything to come and kill her, fully expecting a Wolf or maybe a bear to swallow her whole, to end her misery.

"Who are you?"

The voice of someone made her ears perk up, limply, slid against the ground to look at where the voice came from, pushing herself off the ground with her knees. She met with a young boy's eyes, a young man with black hair, and bright yellow eyes, peering down at her. He looked to be the same age as her.

"Are you...?" He was going to ask her another question, but before he could, she collapsed, passing out.