In the hush of the evening, the world seemed to breathe with them. Curled beneath a single blanket, Kara, Jayu, and Hoshi lay together in the soft glow of the moonlight slipping through the curtains. The room was still. Safe. Almost unreal.
Yet even as the universe held its breath, Hoshi's mind stirred restlessly beneath the calm.
If she left... what awaited her? And if she stayed... how much longer could she endure this waiting?
The questions circled endlessly, like faint ripples on a still pond.
Her eyes opened, slowly adjusting to the pale light. A deep breath filled her chest as her gaze drifted to Kara and Jayu, their faces peaceful in sleep. With careful hands, she slipped free from the warmth of the blanket.
"So... warm"
She whispered, almost as if speaking to herself would keep her grounded.
For a brief moment, she stared at her open hands, as if expecting answers to appear in her empty palms. But none came.
Her bare feet touched the cool floor as she rose. The quiet creak of the bed was the only sound. Gently, she drew the blanket back up to Jayu's chin, tucking it like a fragile promise.
She lingered there, watching the soft rise and fall of the child's breath.
A faint smile touched her lips, bitter and sweet. With a soft pat on Jayu's head, she exhaled—a sigh that barely disturbed the stillness.
Turning to the door, she moved like a shadow. The faint creak as it opened was almost lost to the vast silence.
She paused, glancing back one last time—at what she was afraid to lose, at what might never be again.
The door clicked shut behind her.
In the dim hallway, bathed in a thin sliver of cold light, she pulled her hood up over her head. The world outside the room felt heavier.
She leaned back against the door, eyes closing briefly, as if gathering her resolve before the quiet night carried her thoughts away once more.
"What should I do...?"
She whispered again, her voice barely audible, lost to the vast stillness around her.
Another breath filled her lungs, steady but heavy. She slipped her hands into the hoodie's side pockets, pressing them deep, as though trying to hold herself together. Then, slowly, she straightened her back, forcing her body upright even as her mind remained clouded.
The hallway stretched before her like a long, narrow tunnel. The soft scuff of her slippers echoed faintly against the cold walls, each step amplifying the loneliness that followed in her wake. The pale overhead lights buzzed gently, their dull glow painting long shadows that seemed to stretch and shrink as she moved.
Her gaze remained low, eyes tracing the floor beneath her feet, as though unable—or unwilling—to meet the silence ahead.
She finally reached the ground floor, stepping out into the quiet openness of the apartment's front lot. The dim orange glow of distant streetlights mixed with the pale silver of the moon, bathing the empty parking area in a soft, muted glow.
The cold air bit gently at her skin, her breath blooming into the night as faint wisps of mist. She lifted her head for the first time in a while, her eyes drawn upwards.
Above her, the sky stretched wide — a sea of stars scattered across the vast, black canvas. The world felt distant under that endless sky, as though her troubles had grown small in comparison.
Her sunset-hued eyes shimmered, reflecting the starlight like tiny mirrors.
"Pre...ty," she whispered softly, the word slipping out like a breathless thought.
With a slow breath, she moved toward one of the benches near the edge of the lot. Sitting down, she pulled her hood a little tighter around her head, hands still deep in her pockets.
The bench felt cold beneath her, but the silence wrapped around her like a blanket, offering a strange kind of comfort.
For a while, she simply stared upward, lost in the sky.
Then—
Soft footsteps echoed from behind. Light, unhurried. The creaking sound of the stairwell door opening and closing behind him.
She didn't turn, but she heard him approaching.
Ayro walked down the steps, his hands resting casually behind his head.
He spotted her sitting there, but instead of calling out, he simply walked up beside the bench and paused, gazing at the same stars she had been watching.
The silence lingered until he spoke.
"What are you looking at?"
He asked calmly, eyes still fixed on the sky.
Hoshi exhaled a visible breath.
"What the hell... are you doing out here?"
She muttered, her voice soft but carrying a hint of surprise.
"Stargazing,"
He replied simply.
She clicked her tongue, still not looking at him.
"Eh... didn't know you're into that kind of thing... Same here, actually."
A small pause, then she glanced sideways at him.
"And oi! At least look at the person you're talking to. That's rude!"
Ayro let out a faint chuckle, finally shifting his gaze toward her, his tone light.
"Didn't expect you to be out here either, you know."
Hoshi scoffed softly, a faint smirk tugging at her lips.
"Pfft... I already know those disgusting dendrils you have can detect Elemental Gifts. Don't act dumb, Ayro-san."
Ayro closed his eyes for a moment, exhaling quietly as he lowered his head. Then finally, he turned fully toward her, his gaze falling gently on her seated figure beneath the stars.
Hoshi glanced up at him, her voice lowering into a mutter.
"You finally looked here."
She forced a faint smile, almost playful but still weighed by something underneath. With one hand still in her pocket, she lifted the other, patting the empty space beside her on the bench—twice, firm but quiet, signaling him.
Ayro paused, briefly watching her hand, then her eyes. The night air carried their silence for a moment longer before he stepped closer.
Ayro stepped forward and sat down beside her, his movements calm and deliberate. He leaned back slightly, resting one arm along the back of the bench, eyes lifted to the stars once more.
The silence lingered.
"You always wander around like this?"
He asked flatly, voice low and steady, lacking any particular warmth.
Hoshi shrugged lightly, glancing forward.
"Only when I can't sleep."
Ayro said nothing for a moment, his gaze never leaving the sky. The cold air hung between them.
"Didn't think you'd be so restless," he finally muttered, his tone unreadable.
Hoshi tilted her head, glancing at him.
"Didn't think you'd be out here either. You don't strike me as someone who enjoys looking at stars."
Ayro's lips barely moved.
"I don't."
Another pause.
"But it's quiet."
The wind brushed past again, carrying their breaths into the night as faint wisps. They sat in silence for a while—distant but not uncomfortable.
Eventually, Ayro spoke once more, voice calm but cold, as though speaking more to the sky than to her.
"The stars aren't much different than we are. Light that took forever to get here. Some of them are already dead. You're just staring at ghosts."
Hoshi blinked, briefly surprised by the tone of his words. She gave a soft scoff, trying to lighten it.
"That's one way to ruin the mood."
Ayro didn't respond.
Hoshi was baffled by Ayro's immense silence. After a moment, she shifted slightly away from him—not out of distrust or discomfort, but more teasingly, as if daring him to respond.
"Dude... sometimes you're so hard to read..." she muttered, voice low but amused.
Ayro's eyes flicked toward her, cool and unbothered.
"Eh?.. Why are you trying to read me?"
Without missing a beat, Hoshi straightened up, hands suddenly pointed at him like she was launching a mini rant.
"I want to make a mood, of course! Do you know the word 'socializing'?!"
Before Ayro could answer, a sharp, angry shout ripped through the quiet evening air.
"SHUT UP!"
Startled, Hoshi immediately bowed her head in apology, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment.
After a tense beat, she muttered again—quieter this time—almost to herself.
"Do you know about the word 'socializing'...?"
"I do,"
Ayro replied quietly.
Hoshi crossed her arms, one brow raised skeptically.
"Then why don't you use it?"
He glanced away, voice low and flat.
"If I show who I am to strangers..."
He paused, a short scoff escaping.
"They're too lucky."
Hoshi blinked twice, then facepalmed, letting out a deep sigh.
"Jeez... after all we've been through, I'm not considered a friend?.."
Without another word, she lowered herself back down beside him on the bench with a heavy thud.
"Man... you're a pain in the ass," she muttered.
Ayro's voice was calm, almost dry.
"That's the first time I ever took that as a compliment."
The two of them sat in silence.
Minutes passed.
The cold night air wrapped around them like a shroud, and the distant city noises faded into a
soft hum.
Their breaths mingled with the quiet, visible in the cool air—two solitary figures sharing the vastness of the night without the need for words.
Ayro finally broke the silence.
"So... What are you gonna do now?"
There was a long pause as Hoshi struggled to gather her thoughts.
"I... I don't know..."
Ayro said nothing, simply waiting. The quiet stretched on long enough that Hoshi grew impatient.
"Aren't you gonna say anything else?" she asked, voice edged with frustration.
He turned to look at her, calm and unreadable.
"I thought you were gonna talk more... I was gonna listen."
Hoshi let out a deep sigh, the tension in her shoulders softening just a little.
"Ah..."
"I've made up my mind..."
She said, voice steady but quiet.
"I will follow that man to the port... Wherever city it may be, region, or country... I will follow him until I get to U.K.F."
Ayro's eyes flicked toward her, his expression unreadable beneath the stars.
"It's another stupid decision I'm willing to do... but then again... I've got nothing to lose, right?" she said, voice raw but firm.
For a moment, Ayro's hand twitched, almost reaching toward her. Then he hesitated, stopping himself as if afraid to see her face. His eyes widened slightly, shocked by the unexpected urge.
"W-what the hell?.." he muttered quietly to himself.
Hoshi looked up at the stars again, her voice softer now.
"I don't know if I'll survive... but my onee-san could still be alive... out there..."
"But then I wonder... if she still thinks of me... Do I still matter to her life?"
She exclaimed, voice trembling just a little.
She hesitated, words catching in her throat.
"What if..."
She stopped herself, biting her lip as if afraid to say more.
"Nah... there's no way... Onee-san is not like that.."
Hoshi stood up from the bench once again. Ayro's eyes locked onto her, steady and unreadable.
"There's no use thinking about this now... I guess..." she said softly. "Besides... I don't want Kara-san to get upset with me."
She turned to Ayro, a small, bittersweet smile playing on her lips as tears slipped silently down her cheeks.
Ayro saw it all — the universe behind Hoshi. Her soft fangs, the tears reflecting the galaxy like tiny stars.
Only one word crossed his mind as he watched her: Warm.
~~~July 2, 2169~~~
The first light of dawn barely pierced the window when Itoshi's voice cracked through the silence like a whip.
"Get up, you idiots! It's already morning! Move your butts!"
The boys groaned, stretching and rubbing sleep from their eyes, but Itoshi's booming shout left no room for laziness.
"No slacking today! We've got a long way to go!"
Ayro sat up sharply, already alert, while Kirashi rolled over, begrudgingly leaving the warmth of his bed.
The day had begun — and with Itoshi's yelling, there was no turning back.
Aldrin yawned, stretching his arms as he yapped with his usual teasing tone.
"Ehh?.. Energetic, are we? Itoshi-san... your hair is still a mess, you know."
"Ignore it! What's important is we get prepped!"
Itoshi barked back, too fired up to care about his bed hair.
Ryujin stepped out of the bathroom, already dressed and ready. As he walked into the room, Ayro quietly approached him.
"Quite lively, aren't they?"
Ryujin said with a small smirk.
Ayro closed his eyes and gave a soft nod.
"I'll be going now."
"Ok. Take care."
Ryujin replied.
Ayro turned and left, the heavy sound of the door slamming behind him cutting through the morning noise.
The others exchanged brief glances. It was unusual for Ayro to leave this early. But none of them questioned it — they knew he had his reasons.
Ryujin cleared his throat firmly.
"Mhm... listen up," he said, preparing to speak.
Just then, Kara and Jayu entered the room, blinking at the sudden attention.
"Ah, perfect timing." Ryujin nodded.
The squad gathered once again, forming their usual loose circle around Ryujin, with Ayro's absence quietly hanging in the air.
"So... go enjoy your time out here,"
Ryujin announced, his voice calm but final.
"This is our final week in Nagasaki."
A low murmur spread through the group at his words, everyone exchanging glances.
"I just received orders from the higher-ups..."
Ryujin continued, his gaze scanning each of them.
"We'll be moving to the next city—Fukuoka."
The room fell silent.
The weight of the next move pressed on all of them. New city. New battles. New unknowns.
Somewhere outside, the wind picked up ever so slightly, brushing against the glass.
The transition was beginning.
And for some of them... it might change everything.
~~~To be Continued~~~