View source for 3636/New Puella, old problems

{{Log Header
|Date of Scene=2019/01/18
|Location=Plot Room #1
|Synopsis=Erato meets with two(heavily weakened) defenders of light! And discuss many important things... Also, pranks are fun.
|Cast of Characters=239,237,222
|pretty=yes
}}
{{Poses
|Poses=:'''{{#var:239|Erato Ishin| (239)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Erato Ishin was humming happily, as the witch's labyrinth disappeared around her and she landed, lightly, on her feet. Her whip swirling around her , before coiling up around her right hand. She had Kyubey in her arms, and well... When the humming stopped, the words began.<br /><br />Also, Kyubey was in a tiny baseball pitcher outfit. With smol mitt.<br /><br />She went into full gush. "Oh my gosh, that was so COOL! did you see that? It was all 'Mwa ha ha ha! I'm a witch!' and then I was like 'SNEAK ATTACK!' and it was like 'NOOOO! My arm!' and I was like 'MWA HA HA HA! Now face my whip, curr! And then I was like, BAM! Shazam, cut, and then I threw the thing at its face and it exploded and then I cut it up and I was awesome!"<br /><br />"That's not at all how it happened," Kyubey said. "There was a lot more screaming."<br /><br />"Okay, fine. It was scary. But I STILL kicked its butt! AND I didn't get hurt this time! I'm getting better! I bet Kyouko-sempai would think I was totally awesome after that... Eeeeee... She might even let me ride on her motorcycle with her. She's so coooool..." she whispered, hugging Kyubey enough to break his neck if he wa sa normal animal.

:'''{{#var:237|Millie White| (237)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>It would figure that, given Millie and Akari's current predicament, NOW would be the time that the Cure's mana scent ability kicked back in. Millie had been escorting Akari where she wanted to go on account of her linker core not being in the best of shape, but when that unfamiliar familiar scent hit her, Millie's emerald eyes had flown wide open. She definitely knew this scent, even if it was... different, somehow, like a different brand. <br /><br /> "...Akari-san, I can smell dark magic." Not only that, but it was close. Millie didn't even hesitate; after their run in with the Wolkenritter, the Canuck was on high alert in order to protect Akari. The Change Mirror was unclipped from her belt and the cards inserted before she slammed down on the activator. This time... this time she felt the connection and there was a burst of green light. When it faded, Cure Shield stood where Millie had once been, at long last. She could tell right away that the henshin wasn't at full power, but it was THERE. <br /><br /> "Stay close, Akari-san." Millie said in a low tone before she quickly bolted the remaining blocks towards where the scent was coming from. Running when whatever dark creature was so close would be useless, the Cure had learned that first hand. Cure Shield skidded around the last corner to find... <br /><br /> "...Eh?" There was a girl there with what appeared to be a cat. Wait... no that definitely was not a cat, and not because it was wearing a tiny baseball uniform either. The scent of dark magic was beginning to fade...

:'''{{#var:222|Akari Hayabusa| (222)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Akari is ... recovering. That's really the best you can say about her current situation right now. Between the encounter with St. George and the one with Signum, she's a bit jumpy and very exhausted. (The bright side is that after another visit to get purified by Princess Runealy, she's no longer feeling light Nightbell.) Still, she's grateful enough that Millie can now simply return the favor, after Akari did her best to take care of her while ''she'' couldn't transform.<br /><br />She still has Rubindorn hanging around in her pendant form, ''just in case''. Akari lets out a soft exhale of relief as Millie transforms. "Right," she says softly. She stays behind Cure Shield, close enough that Millie can cover her, while still being just far enough that she won't get in the way.<br /><br />And she blinks as Millie lets out a noise of surprise. "What is it?" she says warily. That didn't seem like a reaction of worry, but ...

:'''{{#var:239|Erato Ishin| (239)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Erato Ishin whipped around, the whip uncoiling in a flash as she turned and began to sing. Kyubey, helpfully, jumped onto her shoulders. "You're not gonna--" And then, like a broken record, the music stopped.<br /><br />"You are not a familiar," she said matter of factly. Then her eyes were drawn to the shield and... "Okay, YOU must be a puella magi then, right?"<br /><br />"Nope," Kyubey offered helpfully.<br /><br />"REALLY?! OH COME ON! Am I the only Puella Magi here?" she said. "No, don't answer that, Kyubey!" she said, giving a small smile and then walking towards them.<br /><br />And then stopping a few feet from them and bowing her head respectfully. "Hi! I'm Puella Magi Erato! How do you do?"<br /><br />Oh my gosh she was a child. Worse, she was a respectful child. Definitely something dark and eviiiil. Must be feared.

:'''{{#var:237|Millie White| (237)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>The flash of the younger girl's weapon instantly had Cure Shield recovering from her surprise and adopting a defensive stance, planted firmly in front of Akari with her shield raised. The Cure only had time to faintly realize the girl with the strange cat was singing, but it stopped abruptly. Familiar... that was a term she had heard before, and the child was correct: Cure Shield was no familiar. Nor was she a Puella Magi. Her shield remained raised, just in case, as the girl approached them. Perhaps she was being a bit over cautious... but she would rather be safe than sorry. Cure Shield didn't quite know how to take the sudden outburst, and her gaze flickered back towards Akari. <br /><br /> "A Puella, I reckon." Cure Shield muttered to her friend to answer her question, but the answer was already out in the open. Not only was she a Puella, but she was a polite Puella... which was strange because the only technical Puella she had met was Kyouko, and while she wasn't saying Kyouko was rude... She shook her head, returning her thoughts to the conversation at hand. <br /><br /> "Er, no... not a Puella." She confirmed, slowly lowering the shield a little bit. "I'm Cure Shield. It's a pleasure to meet you." The Cure said carefully, her gaze once again flashing back to Akari questioningly.

:'''{{#var:222|Akari Hayabusa| (222)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Akari steps forward around the corner. ... Yeah, it's ''ridiculously'' obvious to anyone with a pair of eyes that she's stone cold exhausted. (Of course, she's still better than she was a week ago, or two weeks ago ...) "Oh, yeah," she says, with a touch awkwardness. "And I'm Akari Hayabusa. Pleased to meet you." She hesitates, then grasps her pendand. "A-and this is Rubindorn."<br /><br />The gem on her pendant flickers, and a tinny voice which sounds like a more cutesy version of Akari's quietly says, <span class="fg_162">&lt;&lt;HALLO ...&gt;&gt;</span> (It's only just noticeably louder than it was immediately after Akari was drained.)<br /><br />Akari's gaze shifts to the catlike creature in Erato's arms. "And you must be Kyubey," she says, somewhat guardedly. Her next thought, of course, is to wonder exactly what Kyubey must think of her: a human-shaped magical construct, with an artificial Linker Core which was destroyed and has now only had nine days' time to grow back ...

:'''{{#var:239|Erato Ishin| (239)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Erato Ishin nodded, grinning up at the girl. "Hi! Cure Shield, huh?" she said with a grin and waved her hands and... then Akari. She stared at the other girl and... "Oh my gosh, are you okay? I'm so, so sorry. Did the witch's kiss get you?" she asked. "I-I thought... Wait. You're magical. Aren't magical girls immune?" she asked.<br /><br />"And yes, this is Kyubey! Also, oh my gosh, your weapon is so cute!" she said with a little giggle of excitement. "Oh! Right!" She flicked her wrist and the whip flew up and coiled around her arm and...<br /><br />At the end, she misjudged and shrieked, the tip of it coiling back to cut a gash across her forehead. "OW!" she hissed out, shivering and lifting a hand out to hold the bleeding cut on her forehead. "Ow ow ow ow ow.... T-this is why I need to sing when I do that... owie..." she hissed, whimpering. She'd have to expend magic now to heal it... At least it wqsn't deep....

:'''{{#var:237|Millie White| (237)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>It was really that obvious that Akari wasn't at one hundred percent. At the questioning of her friend, the Cure couldn't help but take a protective half step closer to Akari, if only as a show of support. Cure Shield knew that Akari could answer the questions for herself, and so she left her to it, but that didn't stop the sequence of events that unfolded next. <br /><br /> "W-Whoa, careful!" She blurted out as the whip coiled too quickly around Erato's arm before-- too late. The tip lashed across the poor girl's forehead and the green knight winced. That definitely looked like it hurt, and judging from the poor Puella's reaction, it most certainly did. <br /><br /> "Hey now, lemme see..." She murmured softly before leaning down to the younger girl's height. Her right hand reached out and gently swiped a bit of the blood away before it could drip annoyingly into Erato's eyes. Cure Shield's fingertips were calloused yet surprisingly gentle as she instinctively tended to the young girl. "... Do you have healing abilities?" She didn't know much about Puella, but it was a valid question. If not, she had a handkerchief in her pocket she could use to apply pressure. Typical Millie, fretting over others.

:'''{{#var:222|Akari Hayabusa| (222)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Akari shakes her head, and in spite of herself, she manages a faint smile. "No Witch's Kiss, I've just had the ''worst'' couple of months ''ever''," she says dryly. No need to give her entire life's story. "Rubindorn's my Intelligent Device. But, uh ..."<br /><br />And then she blinks in surprise at Erato's self-inflicted injury. "Oh! Hey!" she exclaims, taking a hesitant step forward. "Are you all right?" Worry and concern manages to punch through her caution and exhaustion at the moment. She glances at Cure Shield. "I ... ''think'' Puella can heal themselves, but my mind is drawing a blank."<br /><br />Rubindorn murmurs, <span class="fg_162">&lt;&lt;JA.&gt;&gt;</span> ''Yes.''<br /><br />Akari nods. "Oh, right, yes, they do," she says.

:'''{{#var:239|Erato Ishin| (239)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Erato Ishin had managed to look relieved when the other girl WASN'T suffering from a witch's kiss. Yay! <br /><br />Except, now she was focused on OW FACE! She sniffled, little tears in her face as the other girl moved to tend to her. She took the padding of the napkin with a nod. "Y-yeah. I heal fast. A-and it happens a lot. I'm not really g-good with the whip unless I'm singing. T-then it follows my voice around a-and usually works how I w-want it to. I should have s-sung when I did that, b-but I thought it would l-look cooler if I d-didn't and and you'd be more *sniffle* impressed..." she mumbled, staring up at the other girl.<br /><br />"I-instead I just look s-stupid..." she said sadly...

:'''{{#var:237|Millie White| (237)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>For someone who was an only child, Cure Shield displayed top-notch older sister instincts. When the little tears began to prick at Erato's eyes, her brow furrowed softly and she placed a gentle hand on top of the young girl's head. <br /><br /> "I think it looked plenty cool. When you've practiced it and gotten better at it, it will look even cooler, singing or not." Cure Shield said in a low yet warm tone. The green knight held the handkerchief there until she was sure the bleeding had stopped from Erato's quick healing. Once it had stopped, she used the handkerchief to wipe away any blood that was still on the Puella's face. Cure Shield straightened with a warm smile. <br /><br /> "There we go, no trace it ever happened. I won't tell anyone if you don't."

:'''{{#var:222|Akari Hayabusa| (222)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Akari has a hundred different pieces of advice regarding what Erato was trying to do, and none of them are coming together in a coherent way that won't sound blunt or cold. Eventually, she just gives up.<br /><br />"I won't tell anyone either," she says gently, when Millie speaks up. She takes a deep breath and adds, "You're, um. You're doing fine! Like M-- uh, like Shield-chan said, it just takes practice." She manages a weak smile there.<br /><br />Rubindorn's gem flickers faintly, but she doesn't speak up and Akari doesn't seem to notice.

:'''{{#var:239|Erato Ishin| (239)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Erato Ishin perked up, her eyes lighting when Cure Shield said it looked cool. "It did? It will? Yes! I was working on it for the last few days! I can't wait to show Kyouko-sempai, I've been practicing a lot of different moves and techniques and stuff to not just be good but look cool! Like her! Did you know she rides a motorcycle? She's so cool..." she said in awe.<br /><br />Welp. Someone admired someone. "And I'm gonna keep practicing, lots and lots! I'm gonna be the best magical girl EVER!" she said proudly, a wide grin on her face and then... "So, are you two a couple too?" GEEZ! She sees one possible couple and suddenly everyone is...

:'''{{#var:237|Millie White| (237)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Cure Shield flashed Akari a grateful smile when she spoke up in support of Erato as well. Even so, there was an undercurrent of worry that was now coursing through her veins. Erato was so young... young and impressionable. The Cure had met and trusted Kyouko, but the fact that Erato was running around by herself slaying witches and hunting familiars... it worried her. What if something happened? What if she got hurt and no one was around to help? Her next smile was soft yet concerned. <br /><br /> "Kyouko is definitely cool, but y'know who else is cool? Puella Magi Erato. And if Puella Magi Erato keeps training and practicing, she'll only get WAY cooler." Cure Shield said, but her voice was hesitant. "But teamwork is also super cool, so here." She pulled out her Cure Line and proceeded to give Erato the details necessary to be able to contact her. Her concern about Erato almost made her miss that last question, but when it registered, she blinked. <br /><br /> "Are we a...?" The tips of Cure Shield's ears IMMEDIATELY flared red in embarrassment, her eyes widening. "Oh...Oh n-no, no we're not--" The Cure cleared her throat awkwardly. "Akari-san is my best friend. She's saved me multiple times now and I owe her a lot." The Cure finished, trying to get her blush in check.

:'''{{#var:222|Akari Hayabusa| (222)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>So Erato knows Kyouko. She isn't entirely sure which type of magical girl Kyouko is, but it's ... probably not too bad that they know each other. "What model of motorcycle was it?" asks Akari. There's always a chance that it's actually a Hayabusa ...<br /><br />She smiles and nods along with Erato's self-encouragement, and nods to Millie as she gives out the spiel about teamwork. And then Erato asks ''that question''.<br /><br />Akari sputters, going red as well. "W-what!? N-no, we're ..." Okay, Millie just gave a perfectly good answer herself. "A-and now she's returning the favor while I can't use my magic."<br /><br />She sighs, and leans against the wall of the building. with her arms crossed. "... I just realized that I was deliberately not thinking about romance, in order to give myself time to get over my ex," she says flatly, "but that now I have a completely ''different'' reason to put that sort of thing on hold." In her current state, she has fewer filters. She looks over at Millie. "Unl ..." A small part of her nopes out, though, and she just sighs softly and looks away, still red-faced.

:'''{{#var:239|Erato Ishin| (239)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Erato Ishin nodded and chuckled. "Yeah, I'm pretty cool, too. Huh? Oh, I know. Kyouko-sempai was allllll about that. Told me if I ever found anything I couldn't handle, or was scared, or was low on grief seeds, or any of that stuff, to give her a call. But I haven't run into anything I couldn't handle yet! She also gave me a business card and stuff I could go to if I ever needed her or anyone else... She's so cool..." she mumbled. "She has a motorcycle, you know? And umm.... it... was.... a motorcycle? It had wheels!" ... Oh my gosh she had no idea. It was just a motorcycle to her!<br /><br />She nodded. "Ohhhh... what happened? Did... did you run out of grief seeds? Ummmm... I just got one. Here!" She held out her hand, her new grief seed forming in her hand.

:'''{{#var:237|Millie White| (237)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Despite the awkwardness of the situation, Cure Shield nodded at Akari's statement; she was determined to return the favour. She would protect Akari like Akari had protected her, there was no doubt about that. One brow however raised curiously... that term had come up multiple times now. Grief Seeds. It was probably some Puella thing, but what did they do exactly and why was she offering Akari one? The Cure took an experimental sniff, and was surprised to find that the seed smelled of the rankness of darkness. <br /><br /> Before she could stop herself, a low grunt rumbled from her chest and she moved closer to Akari almost protectively. She knew her friend was more susceptible to dark magic, and she had only JUST been purified. Again. Cure Shield got her slight alarm under control and spoke up in what she hoped was a soft voice. <br /><br /> "What are grief seeds?" The alarm of the sudden dark mana scent had distracted the Cure enough that she unfortunately missed the look that Akari had given her.

:'''{{#var:222|Akari Hayabusa| (222)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Akari takes a deep breath to steady herself. She quickly shakes her head. "No, no, Puella are the only ones who need Grief Seeds," she says. "My problem's ... a bit more personal. Rather not talk about it right now." Just saying that much seems to have lowered her mood.<br /><br />Nevertheless, she rallies, and looks at Millie. "Grief Seeds are dropped by these monstrosities called Witches when you beat them, they're the ones who Puella fight," she says. "They ..." She looks back to Erato. "... restore your Soul Gem, right?" She shrugs. "Anyway, uh ... if I recall correctly, it's not the kind of darkness that purification works against, Witch-energy is ''very'' different."<br /><br />She pauses. "... I'd still rather not have a Grief Seed shoved up against my Linker Core, though," she adds, trying to lighten the mood.

:'''{{#var:239|Erato Ishin| (239)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Erato Ishin nodded a few times. "Purifying energy? And... well, yeah, they do that. Here, let me show you. I've almost finished one, actually." A grief seed appeared in her right hand and the one gem disappeared... And a new one, very darkm aoppeared. Her soul gem was darkened, however.<br /><br />"Whenever I use magic, my gem darkens. I guess it's... like an HP bar. If it goes completely dark, I die," she said mattr of factly. Then, pushed the darkened gem against it. It absorbed the darkness and.... "Okay, Kyubey, this one is good!" She tossed it to Kyubey who.... ate it? "Once the seeds drain all the energy they can, Kyubey takes them and disposes of them safely so another witch doesn't appear," she said with a smile.<br /><br />"And don't worry. I wouldn't use a grief seed on anyone else unless they wanted it. I finally got up to having two, I don't wanna lose one so soon unless I have to. What's a linker core?"

:'''{{#var:237|Millie White| (237)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Cure Shield listened carefully to both Akari and Erato. This stuff wasn't necessary knowledge to be a Cure, but it was necessary knowledge for a Cure who wanted to keep her Puella friends safe. Grief Seed were dropped by slain witches, and used to purify the soul gems of Puella who...if their soul gem goes completely dark, they die. The Cure's eyes flew wide in concern. <br /><br /> "W-What do you mean, you die? Why would using magic do that?" The Canuck asked quietly as she watched the Grief Seed to its thing. As Erato's Soul Gem became clear once more, The Cure winced ever so slightly. Subconsciously, her right hand moved to lay atop the left side of her own ribs. It was becoming increasingly apparent to the Cure that, while her Henshin helped with pain management, it likely wouldn't last much longer. Her gaze was fixed on Erato now, however, the worry clear as day in her eyes.

:'''{{#var:222|Akari Hayabusa| (222)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Akari shrugs uncertainly. She's not the right one to answer questions about the finer points of Puella.<br /><br />But then Millie's change in posture is a more concerning reaction. "Shield-chan, are you all right?" she says worriedly. "Do you need to take a break from being in henshin?" She knows that it's only been a week and a half since Millie's Linker Core was partially drained, and while there's considerably less damage than what happened to herself, it's clearly not ''quite'' long enough.

:'''{{#var:239|Erato Ishin| (239)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Erato Ishin smiled up at her and shrugged. "I... well, I guess I just die," she said with a shrug. "Part of the danger of being a Puella Magi, you know? I mean... All the things I fight are TRYING their hardest to kill me, too. So it's not like I don't know it's possible And I've only come close to my soul gem going black once. And I've been doing this for about half a year now!" she said proudly.<br /><br />"But I think my magic just uses my life or something, I don't know. So it burns away at that until I have no life left, or something," she said with a shrug. "And now I have people who can help me if I need it. So... it'll be easy enough," she said with a shrug. Then reached up, the wound on her forehead had... was doing very well. No blood. Already closing. "Ah, better. Here!" And then she unhenshined and...<br /><br />Was a young girl? Who... depending on their love of idols, they might know. She was wearing a big puffy pink rain coat, with a fluffy white rim. And the hood was up! With white leggings and a knee length skirt. "If you need to go, you can. I don't think there are any more witches near here, so there's nothing I need to do."

:'''{{#var:237|Millie White| (237)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>The Cure's gaze softened slightly at Akari's question, but she shook her head. It was true that her linker core hadn't fully recovered, but she wasn't in as bad of shape as Akari, and she could finally Henshin again. There was no way she was going to sit still and hope for a speedy recovery, not when Akari needed her. <br /><br /> "Don't worry, I'm alright." She reassured her friend with a slight grin. Though, she would likely end up having to take Akari's advice and dehenshin for a bit, before she used up her remaining magic for... well, nothing, since they hadn't even fought anything. The Cure listened to Erato's explanation about her powers. Technically it made sense... but it was worrisome. Erato's comment about having people to help eased her worry only slightly. <br /><br /> Erato herself dehenshined and... Cure Shield had no idea who this was. Dehenshined, Erato was just as young and perhaps even more adorable what with her large pink raincoat. The Cure's brow furrowed gently and she knew she had reached her limit. Her form was suddenly engulfed in a soft green light and when it faded, Cure Shield was replaced by Millie. <br /><br /> "I'm Millie White. It's a pleasure to meet you. Again." She offered in an amused tone, her Japanese low and slower than a native speaker. "We should likely get going, but..." Millie looked back at Akari with a strange expression. They should... probably warn Erato about the Wolkenritter running around targeting people, if she didn't know already.

:'''{{#var:222|Akari Hayabusa| (222)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Akari basically doesn't pay any attention to idols at all, so Erato's appearance doesn't surprise her. The talk of what happens if she loses her magic, however, is ''very'' concerning. She meets Millie's gaze, puts a hand on her friend's shoulder, and nods. It's ''really'' obvious what Millie's worried about; the way Erato's talking, a Puella would get much worse than just glitching out.<br /><br />"Well," she says, "the reason I can't use magic right now and Millie-chan's is weaker than usual is because we got attacked by a group of magic-users in the city running around, called the Wolkenritter. They're Device-users like me, and they have this book which they use to drain peoples' magic down to nothing." She frowns. "They steal your Linker Core ... which, sorry, is the part of you that produces magic. Which ..." She looks Erato over. "... I think the way Puella work is that they have their Linker Cores moved into their Soul Gems? Or something? Sort of?"<br /><br />She shrugs. "Anyway, the Wolkenritter look human, but they're artificial beings made out of magic." She hesitates. "... ''Also'' like me."

:'''{{#var:239|Erato Ishin| (239)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Erato Ishin nodded. "Erato Ishin! And it's great to meet you too, White-sempai! Hayabusa-sempai!" she said happily, grinning up at them.<br /><br />Then they told her... That. "They... steal your linker core? Oh... what's that?" she asked, glancing to Kyubey. "Do I have one?"<br /><br />"Your soul gem," Kyubey said. "Try not to lose it. If you did, you'd die."<br /><br />Erato gulped and nodded. "R-right. I... I see. I ummmm.... I'll... not... do that then. They're not witches, right? So uhhh... if I see any of them, I'll call for help," she said, looking just a tad nervous at that... thought. She then nodded and... "It was great meeting you two!" she said, and then gave them both a really, really big hug before running off. "Bye bye!"<br /><br />It... might take them a little bit to realize... She'd stuck little signs to their backs. 'Tickle me' to Akari's. And 'Hug me.' to Millie's... Kids...

:'''{{#var:237|Millie White| (237)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Millie was relieved that her best friend seemed to know exactly what she was worried about. As the warning came out, the Canuck nodded as if her agreement cemented the threat that these Cloud Knights posed. <br /><br /> "Be on the lookout for a pink haired woman with a sword, and a white haired guy with dog ears and a shield. Their names are Signum and Zafira respectively. If you see them, run. If you can't run, call for help." Her tone was far more serious than it had been during the whole interaction, even if it was just confirming what Erato had just said. After a few moments, her expression softened. <br /><br /> "It was good meeting you too, Ishin-san. Please take care." Millie tried REALLY hard not to flinch or wheeze when the young girl gave both of them a big hug, but a soft pained breath managed to escape her. She made sure to keep smiling until Erato had run off. A few beats passed and the smile dropped slowly from her face as she turned a tired expression to Akari. <br /><br /> "We should get you home, Akari-san."

:'''{{#var:222|Akari Hayabusa| (222)}} has posed:'''<br><span></span>Akari almost jumps slightly at the sudden hug, but she returns it somewhat gently and carefully. "Okay!" she says. "Goodbye!" She's gotten a little bit more taciturn by comparison to the way she was before ... well, all this happened. But there's just a little bit of her old enthusiasm there.<br /><br />She sighs softly as Erato hurries off. "Excitable girl," she murmurs. She nods to Millie's comment. "Right, yeah," she says, fighting a sudden loneliness. "You lead the way, then ..."<br /><br />... which leads directly to catching sight of the sign Erato put on Millie's back. She groans and immediately tears it off, then feels around for a sign on her own back ...
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