“Are you going to open the Vault, or not?” Enrique asked.
Roland and Tsubasa looked at the boy, their enthusiastic conversation halting. Then they looked at each other, and both of them laughed.
“Yes, I suppose we really should venture inside,” Roland said. “And you’ll want to see it. If you’ve never seen a proper symphonic crystal hatchery before, this is a sight you won’t soon forget.”
“We’ve never been in a crystal hatchery of any kind before,” Erika said, gazing hopefully at the Vault door. “Can we go in now?”
“Absolutely!” Tsubasa said, standing over the Vault entrance. She held out her hand, palm down towards the stone seal, and Roland did the same. Together, they united their voices in the soft song inscribed on the stone seal. And right away, Roland felt a connection with this unexpected hero, the self-proclaimed Dawn Rider. They didn’t consult each other before starting on the song, but they both instinctively took the role they were best suited for — Tsubasa the high, bright melody, Roland the warm, supporting harmony. Their voices blended in resonant unity, and when they let the last notes of the song fade, the sigil on the surface of the Vault’s seal pulsed with light.
And the seal rolled back. Stone ground softly on smooth, untarnished rails, revealing a descending staircase of softly glowing blue stone. Up from far below floated the faint song of symphonic crystals, a clear, pristine humming, numerous tones harmonizing with each other in a beautiful, inviting chorus.
“Shall we?” Roland asked, starting down the stairs.
“We shall!” Tsubasa cried with delight, racing down ahead of him with childish joy.
“Let’s not get left behind!” Erika said, pulling her brother along behind her.
“There’s no need to rush,” Roland said, laughing. “Take your time to really enjoy it. There’s a lot to see and hear. And I’ll be glad to answer any questions you have.”
“Spoken like a teacher,” Erika said, beaming up at him.
“You could start with what symphonic crystals… are…” Enrique started, trailing off as he reached the bottom of the stairs, the chamber opened up, and he gazed in awe.
Roland smiled at the twins’ reactions, at their awestruck expressions on their first visit to a symphonic crystal hatchery. It reminded him of his own first visit to the hatchery in the Singing Snowfields of Northern Wonderia when he was six years old, and the song that had filled his heart then, and carried him to today.
If only all childhood dreams lived up to their adult realities.
Even so… I don’t regret my path in life. And I quite enjoy my work, when I’m allowed to do my work, rather than being tossed about by the whims of my superiors.
The first chamber of the hatchery was a grand, spherical space, all curves with no sharp edges. A walkway ran straight through the center, with staircases branching off from it, rising and falling to different circular platforms. The bottom and top of the sphere mirrored each other, housing shallow pools of water, the one on the top of the sphere defying gravity. Up and down from those pools of water grew the crystal branches, beautiful flowering trees crystalline and translucent like azure glass, their countless branches reaching into a dozen different directions, each ending in cocoons which housed symphonic crystals in various stages of growth. The cocoons were spun of translucent silk, so that the crystals within were visible to the eye, each a unique and beautiful work of natural art.
The crystals came in all sorts of shapes and sizes, from as tiny as a sewing needle to as large as a knight’s shield. Some were conical, others spheroid, others ovoid or oblong, some spiraling, some like teardrops. Some were solid all through, while others had tiny veins running through them, and others still were fluted with numerous sound holes. They came in every color of the rainbow, though their colors were muted within their azure cocoons.
Tsubasa was ahead of the group, up on a higher platform, standing beneath a trio of crystal cocoons, head tilted back, eyes closed. “There’s nothing more beautiful in all the realms, is there?” she asked in a dreamy voice.
“Nothing that I’ve ever heard,” Erika said softly, closing her eyes and listening.
Roland strode out to the center of the walkway, stopping where he could hear the full symphony of the crystals as one united song, perfectly balanced. It was a song of a million different voices, young and old, large and small, strong and weak, all resonating together without a hint of discord or dissonance.
“The crystals are grown?” Enrique asked.
“Yes,” Roland said. “They go through a long gestation period, where they develop their unique shape, color, and tone. Once that’s complete, they still continue to grow as crystals as long as they remain in their cocoon.”
“So when do you harvest them?” Erika asked. “Oh but wait, what are they used for to begin with?”
“I’m curious about that as well,” Enrique said. “I understand other types of crystals, the uses for stabilizing crystals or the power of harmonic crystals, but I don’t know much about symphonic crystals.”
“Crystals can be harvested any time after gestation is complete!” Tsubasa said, skipping down the steps to join them. “That goes for all types, not just symphonic crystals. There’s value to crystals at every size, so they get harvested at all different stages depending on what people need them for.” She had one of her tonfas in her hand and was spinning it back and forth as she talked. “As for symphonic crystals, well, I don’t want to steal the Second Level Tuning Assistant’s thunder.” She beamed at Roland.
“All right, then,” Roland said, perfectly happy to field this topic of inquiry. It brought him back to his time as a student, and to the passion that set him down this path in the first place. “Symphonic crystals are the most precious, powerful, and versatile family of crystals in the realms. They have, in the past, been used for weaponry — and the Masks do that today with their gauntlets. But their use as a power source is more versatile than that. Power isn’t just for destruction, after all. Symphonic crystals are especially valuable for the use of medical technologies, each crystal serving as an endless conductor and conduit to not only power devices, but also direct their purpose to greater effect. Medical imaging technologies are only possible thanks to symphonic crystals and applying their resonance to scan our bodies without any harmful side-effects. Also for —” Roland paused, then, even though he had a rapt audience, and chuckled. “Sorry. We could go on for hours about the various specific uses for symphonic crystals. The main point is that their power comes through resonance, as you can hear in their tones right now. Every symphonic crystal has its own tone, its own unique resonance — but despite each one being unique, they can apply themselves towards the same purposes as other symphonic crystals. Symphonic resonance makes medical imaging possible, as I already stated, but are also potently applied towards enhancing building and construction technologies, topographical scans for archaeological, architectural, or surveying purposes, amplifying existing resonances from instruments, voices, or other crystals, and, of course, serving as power sources for the many generators and other technologies we use in daily life.”
“They can do anything?” Erika asked, gazing up and around at the crystal branches and their many cocoons.
“Close enough to anything,” Tsubasa said with a smile. “And while we’ve been able to create new symphonic hatcheries in the modern world, it’s these symphonic vaults, housing pre-Fracture hatcheries, that bear the most potent crystals. We still don’t know exactly what separates pre-Fracture hatcheries and crystals from their post-Fracture equivalents.”
“Pre-Fracture?” Erika asked. “Post-Fracture?”
“You saw evidence of the Fracture in the ruins we explored,” Roland said. “The Fracture is what we call the mysterious, cataclysmic event that saw the realms transformed, altered, broken — and Elysia lost, never to be found since.”
“A horrible calamity…” Erika murmured. “But what caused it?”
“There are numerous theories,” Roland said. Tsubasa, endlessly energetic, skipped across a walkway to a different platform, so Roland decided to follow her, and the twins followed him. He felt more natural talking while walking, anyway.
“Albia, Wonderia, and Elysia all once lived in harmony with each other,” he said, “that much we know. What happened to break that harmony is unclear. There are three prevailing theories. The first is that there was a great war between the three realms. Perhaps Albia and Wonderia coveted Elysia’s wish-granting powers and greater technologies and fought to claim them for their own, or perhaps Elysia was actually an awful oppressor. Either way, the war is believed to have been ended when Elysia fielded a new weapon of devastating power — power that broke the world irreparably. Then the Elysians closed off their realm, vanishing from this world, to prevent retaliation.” Roland sighed, gazing up at the spherical chamber’s ceiling-pool. Speaking of war in such a peaceful place as this made it seem like such a distant, fictional thing. If only that were true.
“The second theory,” he continued, “contends that the harmony of the three realms was broken by a song. ‘The Songbird sang the Hymn of Discord, Fracturing the world forevermore.’ We see references to three Divine Songbirds in the Book of the Promise, but which of these Songbirds sang the Hymn of Discord is unclear — as is what happened to her, and the other two Songbirds. Many believe that, after Fracturing the world, she flew away, carrying Elysia with her, removing its wish-granting power from the world.” He paused, walking around the edge of the platform and then back inward, to stop at the crystal branch in its pool. He placed a hand against the branch, feeling the hum of resonance from its crystals. Music was such a beautiful thing — and powerful. If a song was sung that broke the world… there was something more tragic about that, Roland thought, than the other theories.
“The third theory,” he continued, “claims that Elysia abused its wish-granting powers. In their lust for power and dominance, the ancient Elysians made a terrible wish, one that created a conflict in causality that could not be resolved. The wish could not be fulfilled, but in attempting to be fulfilled, it rent the world in three parts, severing the bonds between Albia, Wonderia, and Elysia, the last most of all, removing it from our world. Divine retribution, some call it. Because of their misuse of the greatest power, Elysia was punished worst of all.”
“But what do you think happened?” Erika asked.
“I haven’t seen enough compelling evidence for one theory over the others,” Roland said with a patient smile. “I want to know the truth, so I continue to research and ponder. I’m sure that the answers will reveal themselves, one day. I hope I can help to find those answers.”
“People like blaming the ancient Elysians, don’t they?” Erika asked.
“It’s compelling to blame those who aren’t here to defend themselves,” Enrique said, beating Roland to the punch.
Roland smiled. “That’s exactly right. I don’t think Elysia was at fault, though. The Book of the Promise makes it clear that Elysia was a force for good. Though that only muddies the waters further.”
“What do you believe, Tsubasa?” Erika asked.
“I love to listen to my Grand-da tell the Tale of the Divine Dragons,” Tsubasa said with a wistful smile. “Each of the three realms — Albia, Wonderia, and Elysia — were once governed by the three Divine Dragons, one to each realm. They ruled the realms with songs and wishes, preserving harmony among the peoples through their careful harmony with one another. But after a time, one of the Dragons grew greedy. She broke away from the harmony, wanting to create her own song. But her creative desire wasn’t pure. She wanted to create as a way to prove her worth, her value, her superiority, to rise above her fellow Divine Dragons and rule them, rather than govern the realms equally with them. One of the other Divine Dragons fought to end that evil song, strove to find a powerful song of goodness to counter it. But the third Divine Dragon, she saw the realms breaking, and realized that this conflict could not be solved by force. She sang the Hymn of Sacrifice, giving up her life to end the struggle.”
“She killed herself?” Erika asked, mortified. “How did that solve anything?”
“Her selfless sacrifice saved the realms,” Tsubasa said in reverent tones. “The Hymn of Sacrifice drew on the power of her selfless love, creating a seal to imprison the Divine Dragon who had started the conflict, trapping her in an endless slumber. The world was not healed. But it was saved from annihilation. The sealed Dragon slumbers still, and the enduring love of the Dragon who sang the Hymn of Sacrifice works within her, forever believing that her sister can return to the harmony she once sang.”
“That’s… so beautiful,” Erika said, tears shining in her eyes.
“But there are no such thing as Dragons,” Enrique said with complete confidence.
Tsubasa’s eyes flashed, but it was Roland who spoke first. “The world is stranger and more wonderful than we realize,” he said. “The Kisetsuryuu-En — the seasonal lands of Haruo, Natsuo, Akiyo, and Fuyuo — hold secrets and wonders that those who haven’t visited would find incredibly hard to believe. Don’t speak too quickly in doubt or dismissal. The world delights in surprising us.” He smiled, a wonderful memory making his heart soar. “I’ve seen some of the lesser dragons myself. They are quite real.”
Tsubasa’s whole demeanor brightened. “The Kisetsuryuu-En are governed by the Four Dragon Devas,” she said, “maintaining a harmony similar to what once existed among the Divine Dragons and the three realms of Albia, Wonderia, and Elysia. And there are dozens of lesser dragons of all types, especially tied to water — rivers and lakes, the ocean, snow and ice, the rain. Dragons are a part of life.”
“Are you from the…” Erika paused a moment, “the Kisets…”
“Kisetsuryuu-En,” Tsubasa said, smiling, and then nodding encouragingly when Erika tried again and pronounced it correctly. “My grandparents, and every generation before them, were born and raised in Fuyuo, the land of always-winter. My Grand-da and Granny on my father’s side relocated to the Cyril Republic when they were young adults, to a lovely city called Gardenia, and have raised their family there ever since. We still visit Fuyuo and our family’s ancestral home once a year, and my brothers and I try to make one or two extra visits throughout each year, to stay connected to our roots. We’re all fluent in both Standard Albian and Kisetsugo.”
“And now you’re in Wonderia,” Erika said. “You travel so much!”
“I can’t help myself,” Tsubasa said, laughing.
“Which Divine Dragon governed which realm?” Enrique asked. “Which one was the evil Dragon?”
“We hesitate to call her evil,” Tsubasa said, shaking her head. “She lost her way. Her actions were evil, but was it her own nature? Or was it something evil that took hold of her? She’s a Divine Dragon, so she can’t be wholly evil.”
“You think there’s hope that she can be redeemed,” Enrique said.
Tsubasa nodded. “Absolutely!” she said. “But as for which Divine Dragon was which, it’s almost universally accepted by Kisetsuryuu-En scholars of Elysian history and Dragon lore that the one to sing the Hymn of Sacrifice, to sacrifice herself to end the conflict, was the Elysian Dragon. The other two, however, we aren’t sure about. There are compelling arguments for either the Albian or Wonderian Dragon being the one to start the conflict, and the one to fight against it. And of course people from each realm want theirs to be the ‘good’ Dragon.”
“Of course,” Roland said, chuckling, “we can’t expect anyone to agree on that topic.”
“So they think the nature of their Divine Dragon reflects upon themselves,” Enrique said. “No one wants to believe they’re capable of the same greed and destruction as the Divine Dragon who lost her way.”
“That’s exactly the struggle,” Tsubasa said.
“Well, what’s your opinion?” Erika asked.
“You’re not going to let it go, are you?” Tsubasa asked, laughing. She patted Erika on the head, making the girl smile. Enrique watched with a protective glare. “I like to think the Wonderian Dragon was the good one. There are a lot of evils in Wonderia, as there are everywhere, but one sin that seems profoundly rare in Wonderia is greed. There isn’t much of a lust for power or supremacy in this realm.”
“And Albians are particularly prone to greed and the desire for control,” Roland said with a sigh. He’d seen enough evidence of that in the rampant politicking inside the Academy and the Tower, to say nothing of governmental conflicts throughout the land.
“That’s all well and good, but the Fracture happened eons ago,” Enrique said. “Albians and Wonderians have both changed so much. Extrapolating on what you see of people today, thinking that they were the same millennia ago, just proves your point. There isn’t enough compelling evidence to sort out the full story.”
“Right again,” Roland said, smiling. “Societies change and shift over time, and our societies and cultures were radically different before the Fracture. Much scholarship and research continues into deciphering just what our world was like before the Fracture, but what we know presents a stunningly different picture from the world we know today.”
“But if there’s that story told in different ways,” Enrique said, “about the Divine Songbirds, and the Divine Dragons, it sort of makes it seem like that’s how the Fracture happened. Doesn’t it?”
“It seems probable,” Roland said, nodding. “But even if it is true, there’s still the possibility that the other theories hold elements of truth to them, as well. The real story is one that we still know too little to be confident in.”
“Hold on, what’s that new tone?” Tsubasa asked, cocking her head to the side. She closed her eyes, listening, and Roland did the same. He heard it now, though extremely faint, and only because he was listening for it — Tsubasa had incredibly sharp hearing to notice it so naturally — and was as puzzled as she was.
“Shall we investigate?” Erika asked, practically bouncing with anticipation.
“We shall!” Tsubasa cheered, racing ahead. Erika followed at a run, which only made Enrique cry out after her and run as well. Roland, hesitating for a moment, broke into a smile and ran as well. He felt a familiar tightness in his chest after just a few steps, but it didn’t make him slow.
This is what I live with. And despite how it feels, the exercise is good for me.
They ran from the entrance chamber across the walkway, through a circular doorway, into the next spherical chamber. It was much the same as the entrance, with water in a pool at the bottom floor and up at the highest ceiling, and numerous walkways leading to different pools sprouting different crystal branches, each bearing dozens of gestating symphonic crystals.
But there was one key difference. While walkways led to different chambers to the left and right, the walkway running straight ahead ended at an empty platform. There was no pool of water here, no crystal branches sprouting.
But lying in the center of that platform, glowing a soft, glittering gold, were a pair of crystals. Not in cocoons, not gestating, no. Here were two symphonic crystals out in the open, lying side-by-side, humming with their own unique resonance, louder and clearer than that of the hundreds of crystals still within their cocoons.
“What’s this?” Roland asked, standing over them, catching his breath. He knelt, and taking a knee here was a sharp relief after the toll the short run had taken on him.
“They’re beautiful,” Erika breathed, gazing wide-eyed.
The pair of golden crystals were nearly identical. Each was only three inches long, flattened and curved slightly, with delicate branches stretching out to either side. Roland puzzled over their shape — they looked so familiar, but he couldn’t place it.
“They look like feathers,” Enrique said. And now Roland saw it, too — two symphonic crystals lying there, looking like two golden feathers that had fallen from some small, beautiful bird, a young phoenix or eagle.
“Why are they here all alone?” Erika asked, craning her neck back to gaze up and up towards the ceiling. “How did they fall here?”
“Ohhh!” Tsubasa cried, eyes wide and sparkling with wonder. “It’s been so long since I’ve seen this phenomenon!”
“You know how this happened?” Roland asked. He stood, with some effort. His legs were sore, but that would pass. And his breathing was coming easier.
“I do!” Tsubasa said. She approached the crystals, knelt before them, but stopped short of touching them. “When one enters a symphonic crystal hatchery, there is a chance that a crystal within will resonate with that soul — what we call a soul resonance. If that happens, the resonating crystal will evacuate its cocoon and fall to an open, empty platform, awaiting the soul to whom it resonates.”
“There are two,” Erika said, her voice hushed. She looked at Tsubasa, eyes wide. “Almost identical. Have they… have they resonated with us?”
“I do believe so,” Tsubasa said, beaming. She reached into one of her belt pouches and pulled out a pair of round glasses, which she put on. Their lenses had a faint rainbow tint to them that shifted with the light. She eyed the crystals, then the twins, then the crystals again, and nodded twice, humming a little tune. Taking off the glasses, she returned them to her pouch and then, from a different pouch, retrieved a small silver tuning fork.
“Hold out your hands, you two,” she said to the twins, who obliged. Tsubasa struck first Erika, then Enrique, lightly on their palms, then held the tuning fork to her ear, closing her eyes. For several moments she bobbed her head back and forth, listening and occasionally humming. Roland listened, but he couldn’t make out a specific tune or tone from the fork — whatever Tsubasa was hearing was either tremendously faint, even to Roland’s well-trained ears, or the fork itself was specially tuned to her hearing alone.
After a moment, Tsubasa returned the tuning fork to her pouch, her eyes snapped open, and she hopped to her feet. “It’s settled, then!” she said, beaming. “Those crystals are indeed resonating with your souls. And you don’t ignore a soul resonance, not ever, no sir.”
“I can’t believe it!” Erika cried, clasping her hands together, eyes glittering with delight.
“But you still don’t understand it,” Enrique said, raising an eyebrow. “Neither do I. What does it mean for a crystal to resonate with our souls? What comes next?”
“Those symphonic crystals are yours,” Tsubasa said, a reverent tone balancing her excitement. “They belong to you, and you alone. Keep them close, listen to their song, and let it sink into your souls. Let it become a part of you. In time, their purpose will be revealed.”
“Their purpose will just be revealed?” Enrique asked. “You don’t know what will happen?”
“No one can, until it happens,” Tsubasa said. She knelt in front of Enrique so she could speak to him at eye level, and rested a hand on his shoulder, eyeing him seriously. “You’re skeptical, cautious, and like to find answers and know what you’re getting into before you take action. You’re exactly the kind of brother your sister needs. But there are things in nature, wonders, miracles, that we don’t have all of the answers to. I can say with absolute certainty two things: one, that soul resonance is exactly as I’ve described. That’s a fact, and I’ve seen soul resonance before, and studied the scholarship on the subject. Two, whatever the purpose these crystals have for you and your sister, it is indisputably a good thing. Symphonic crystals are, at their core, good and pure. It’s only when people like the Masks twist their powers that they can enact evils. Does that help?”
“Perhaps,” Enrique said, clearly taken aback by Tsubasa’s serious turn. He looked up at Roland. “Do you know about this?”
“I’ve only heard about soul resonance, and only briefly,” Roland said. “I’ve never studied it myself, so I didn’t actually know what it was until today. But she’s right about symphonic crystals. As long as you are good and kind, and trust their powers rather than try to twist them to your will, they will never serve an evil or destructive purpose. Whatever the reason they’ve resonated with your souls, you have no need to fear them.”
“Can we pick them up now, can we?” Erika asked, gazing hopefully at her brother.
Enrique turned, looking down at the crystals. He pointed, first to the left one, then the right. “Yours, mine,” he said. “Together?”
“Always!” Erika said, beaming.
Together, the twins knelt, and each touched their feather-like, golden crystal at the same time. A soft flash of golden light burst from each of the crystals at their touch, eliciting quiet gasps from the twins. The light faded, and the twins stood, each holding their crystal.
“It’s so warm,” Erika said softly, gazing at the crystal in her palm. It looked so much bigger than it had on the floor, resting in her small hand. “It makes my heart flutter.”
“It’s softer than it looked,” Enrique said. “Softer than I thought a crystal could be. And I can hear its song… inside me.”
“You should,” Tsubasa said, smiling. She looked at Roland. “What’s our next destination?”
“You’re going to keep traveling with us?” Erika asked, eyes wide with hope.
“The Masks are after you, and I’m after the Masks,” Tsubasa said. “It only seems right that I travel alongside you. Besides, I’ve found a kindred spirit.” She smiled at Roland.
“We were on the way to Twinkling,” Roland said.
“Perfect!” Tsubasa said, turning to the twins. “There are some excellent artisans there. We’ll find someone to craft pendants for your crystals, so you can always keep them close. Do you have somewhere to store them safely in the meantime?”
“I only have this satchel for my journal, but Enrique doesn’t have anything,” Erika said. But Tsubasa was ahead of her, and before Erika had finished, Tsubasa was holding out two small leather pouches on string.
“You can wear these in the meantime,” she said. “Keep your crystals in there. And you can keep them once we have your crystals made into pendants. It always pays to have pouches. And bags. And my favorite — pockets! You can never have too many pockets.” She gestured with her jacket, showing off the numerous pockets, both inside and out.
“Thank you very much,” Erika said, looping the leather pouch around her neck. But she didn’t put her crystal away just yet, and neither did Enrique. Holding them in their hands, they continued to explore the hatchery with Roland and Tsubasa a while longer. Only when they chose to leave, returning to the surface, did Erika and Enrique place their crystals in their pouches for safety.
“It’s so subtle,” Erika said, back on the grassy hill beneath the graceleaf tree. “But that’s because the resonance is still just beginning, isn’t it? In time, the song will grow stronger and clearer, and the purpose will be made known.”
“That’s correct,” Tsubasa said.
“It’s a… nice feeling,” Enrique said, lightly placing his palm against his chest. Then he suddenly dropped his hand to the side and looked away, his cheeks reddening. “A-anyway. Thank you.”
“Don’t thank us,” Roland said, smiling. “The crystals resonated with you of their own accord.” He looked at Tsubasa. “But I’m glad you were here to help explain things. I should expect no less from the Dawn Rider.”
“Oh, please!” Tsubasa said, waving her hands and laughing nervously. “Just call me Tsubasa! The ‘Dawn Rider’ thing is, I mean, it’s, um… it’s just a thing that I use for people who don’t know me! My friends — they call me Tsubasa.”
“We’re already friends?” Enrique asked, but his quiet skepticism was overruled by Erika beaming and saying happily, “We’re friends!”
“Friends indeed!” Tsubasa said, recovering her confidence. Erika stuck out her hand, and Tsubasa shook it heartily. “And when I make a friend, that’s a friend forever.”
“I’m so glad!” Erika said, beaming.
“That goes for you, too, boys,” Tsubasa said, smiling at Enrique and Roland. “Now, then, friends. Shall we away to Twinkling?” She pulled a compass from her pouch, eyed it for a moment, then spun around to face the opposite direction, pointing dramatically.
“To Twinkling!” Erika cried excitedly, pointing with her.
Roland smiled. “To Twinkling, then,” he said.
And they all stood there for a moment, Tsubasa and Erika holding their poses, Roland smiling at them, Enrique watching on with a raised eyebrow.
The seconds stretched on, until finally Tsubasa looked at Roland. “Um,” she said, nodding towards the path down from the hill. “Lead the way, then.”
“Oh! Me?” Roland asked, eyes widening. “But I thought —”
“Oh, no, I’m not leading!” Tsubasa said, laughing. “You’re the one who saved these kids in the first place, and you’re the one walking the Path of the Eight. You are most definitely the leader. I’m just happy to be here.”
Roland felt a strange sort of flutter in his heart at that assessment. He’d known already, of course, that he wasn’t alone on this quest — the twins were with him, after all. But it was the addition of Tsubasa, and her words, that helped drive that point home. He’d been mentally preparing himself, expecting to return to his quest alone, to find the help he needed and then soldier on by himself.
But it didn’t have to be that way. And it wasn’t, not now.
The unexpected finds me at every turn. And so far, the unexpected has been most welcome.