"Take it back!" Lumi puffed out her cheeks.
She took a step forward with balled fists, but Yuma grabbed her arm. "She is just trying to get a rise out of you."
"Well, it's working!" The smallest Song sister scowled.
Across from them, a green-eyed sleeper with thick braids shrugged. "I don't understand why you are upset. It was a genuine question. I just want to find out the truth, and who better to come to than the source?"
Behind the speaker, five other Sleepers stood in solidarity. Many others who had remained after the class were hanging back, unsure how or even if to intervene.
"Your question was 'Why did Silent Stalker try to kill Lady Nephis?' That hardly seems like you are looking for genuine answers." Mei's hands were buried deep in the folds of her wide-legged robe.
"How would you feel if someone accused your sister like that?!" Lumi pursed her lips.
"If my sister did it, then I certainly wouldn't defend her. Unless I had something to hide, of course…" the girl flipped back her hair and smirked over her shoulder.
"Let me at her!" Lumi jumped with outstretched arms, ready to strangle the accuser where she stood. This time, Yuma caught her around the waist.
Mei summoned her daggers, and soon the sparks of light manifested into deadly blades.
"Mei…" the willowy, tallest sister could not keep both her siblings away from a fight if they were determined. "Don't let her bait you."
"Bait?" The girl wearing braids placed her hand on her mouth. "I would never!"
"Remain calm," Yuma reminded herself as much as the two with her.
"But she blamed our sister for something she didn't do! Silent Stalker is innocent!" Lumi protested.
"Innocent? Then why won't she come forward to prove it?"
This time, the girls had no answer for the taunt. Stalker had been on a mission at the time, but not even they knew exactly what it was. All they knew was that she was far away from the NQSC and was innocent of the crime.
Mei gripped her daggers. "Can't I just cut out her tongue? It will at least stop her nonsense so we can get on our way…"
"What's that? You want to do what to me?" The girl's voice was overly loud. "Oh my! It seems at least one of these daughters is taking up the family business. It seems Changing Star won't be the only one needlessly harmed by Clan Song."
"We should head back inside. She's just looking for a fight." Yuma narrowed her gaze. "Don't let her have it."
"A fight? No. I'm looking for justice. Justice for Changing Star." The girl raised one arm in the air. "Justice for Lady Nephis!"
Calling on the name of the princess of Valor had a galvanizing effect on those on the lawn. All of them viewed Lady Changing Star as a hero. To not defend her name seemed insulting.
"Justice for Changing Star!" Someone behind the girl cheered.
Others who had only been watching now echoed the cry. What had once been a disjointed group of individuals suddenly rallied behind a common cause.
"Justice for Changing Star!"
Before anyone knew it, a mob had formed. What it wanted was clear, but who would give it to them and how remained to be seen. There were only three in the vicinity not caught up in the fervor of the moment, and they quickly became the target of the mob's passion.
Yuma grabbed her sisters' arms and pulled them back toward the building, but it was already too late.
Before she could get them inside, the mob swarmed, cutting off their exit. The girls were surrounded.
"Justice for Changing Star!" The chant had become a battle cry.
"We didn't do it!" Lumi shouted, but her voice was drowned out by the crowd.
"Yuma!" Mei pushed on her sister's shoulder. The elder sister ducked just in time.
A bottle came flying through the air, barely missing the tallest princess's head. It slammed into someone in the crowd, breaking on his forehead. The glass did not break the skin, but that did not stop the student from grabbing his head.
"I've been hit!" He cried. "Get them!"
The students didn't question what had happened. They moved as one to capture the daughters of Clan Song. The circle around the three girls tightened.
"We have to fight back," Lumi protested. "It's the only way!"
"We can't. We shouldn't!" Yuma reminded her.
Mei brandished her dagger, trying to deter anyone from coming closer, but the pressure from those behind the inner ring was too great, and even those who would have liked to avoid Mei's blade had little choice but to draw closer.
More sparks appeared, though whether they were being called in an offensive or defensive capacity was unclear.
The chaos allowed little time for thought as weapons appeared to be used by their masters against their fellow Sleepers.
A gust of wind tore through them, picking up snow and flinging it at those closest to the sisters of Song.
The chanting halted as those closest to Yuma were pushed back, and the ones behind were tripped or pushed to the ground.
But the setback was only temporary. Soon enough, the students had regained their footing and prepared for another surge forward. This time, they were more frenzied than before.
Yuma called on a katana, and little Lumi summoned a long, thin blade that looked made of bronze. The three sisters stood back to back, ready to defend themselves against the onslaught.
The crowd's chant resumed. They wanted justice.
They rushed forward with the intent of spilling blood in Changing Star's name. They longed to avenge the woman who had done so much for humanity. If this would make the attack on her avenged, then they would do it in a heartbeat.
The first Sleeper to reach the trio raised her steel sword. The blade reflected in Lumi's defiant eyes. The princess lifted her bronze Memory to meet it, knowing the second strike from the person beside the first would land no matter what she did.
The steel edge made a downward swing, but it never landed. The moment it should have clashed with Lumi, it suddenly moved in the opposite direction. Not only the blade, but the combatant went flying back as well.
Lumi adjusted her sword to intercept the second attack, but it, too, did not land. None of the people who wanted to lay their hands on the princesses ever got the chance. Neither were the daughters of Song able to strike out against their oppressors.
As the crowd closed in, they were repelled by an unseen force. Cries rang out as dozens of people were lifted into the air. Weapons were separated from their owners, creating a strange mobile of humans and weaponry hanging over the princess's head.
An oppressive presence settled over the lawn.
"Enough!" the voice rang out, silencing the crowd and causing many to cover their ears.
Below the dangling legs of the helpless Sleepers, a single figure strode forward to the center of the action. Her eyes swirled with indignation.
It was time for a reckoning.