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Hitomi panted as she ran. Her pace quickened as she pushed herself to the limit. She had to concentrate; she considered each step of her feet, each swing of her arms, so she could forget.“I’m partly to blame for what happened to the city.”She grimaced as her mind continued to playback everything that’d happened. If possible, her feet picked up the pace again, matching the frequency of words and pictures that flashed inside her head. One after the other, those images invaded every nook and cranny of her thoughts until she could no longer differentiate one from another.“Are you trying to pick a fight?”Hitomi felt the need to run to the end of Gaia, wherever that may be on this planet, and rush against time. The wind pushed back as she raced headlong into it. The slick grass made her mental faculties peak as she was forced to pace herself. The scenery blurred around her.Even then, she couldn’t escape the bombardment in her mind.“That is none of your business!” The sob that wracked her body couldn’t be stifled. It was barely perceptible at first – lost in the quick intakes of breath. Such a sound of despair urged Hitomi to focus harder, going through the motions instilled in her by her track coach.“Don’t hide anything from me, all right?” With her eyes trained to the area ahead of her, she spotted the castle as it crested the hill. Initially, it appeared like a toy play set, as if she could pick it up and carry it wherever she wanted. As Hitomi maintained her frantic pace, however, the landmark quickly increased in size until she reached the iron gates. The castle no longer resembled a kid’s plaything, but an intimidating fortress.“I’ll go back to the castle later. By myself.”Hitomi shook her head and bypassed the entrance. Inside, she ran circles around the courtyard – to the point her thighs began to throb and feet burned. Their protests weren’t what stopped her, though. A fleeting glance above gave her pause, her musings now fixated on the largest presence in the sky.Once she stopped, then her body’s complaints caught up to Hitomi. She winced and bent over to rest both hands on her knees. Slowing her heartbeat was difficult, but she took advantage of the chance to distract herself. She dedicated her mind to the task, commanding her lungs to inhale in precise amounts of air before slowly releasing it. The pattern repeated itself until her breathing returned to normal.Gradually, as if afraid of what she might witness, Hitomi straightened in place and tilted her head back. Her arms were lax at her sides. She gazed up at the Phantom Moon – her home . Hitomi’s eyes softened as she watched Earth against the starry backdrop, no bigger than a beach ball she could wrap her arms around.“Do you miss it? Your homeland?”She jolted, startled out of her wits as someone spoke up behind her. Hitomi whirled around to face the newcomer, although she already had a guess who it might be just by the sounds of their voice. Despite that, she couldn’t resist showing some of her surprise at their unexpected presence, having assumed them off working on something or other.“Folken?” she asked.He nodded in confirmation. Her body relaxed minutely in his presence, now that she knew it wasn’t some stranger. A silence spanned between them for a moment, before she remembered that he’d asked her a question.“Oh, uh. Sometimes I do. Well, maybe a lot of times,” Hitomi answered honestly. Her stare trailed over to the ‘moon’ hanging up above.Folken hummed in acknowledgment of her reply and followed her sights. The two of them quietly observed the night. Hitomi found herself appreciating the moment of respite with him, it allowing her to decompress even more from her run. It was easy to loosen up around Folken. His collected nature washed over her in waves and was contagious.Furthermore, she felt like she could say anything in front of him. She could probably confess that she sometimes talked in her sleep or was afraid of moths, and not feel embarrassed by the admissions. Hitomi grinned at such a notion, wondering how Folken would react if she opened up about such things to him all of a sudden.“Can I ask you something?” she blurted, forgetting to consider what she might say, and immediately wishing she could take it back. Just because you feel like you can say anything doesn’t mean you have to, she mentally scolded herself. Her eyes flicked in Folken’s direction as she waited for his response.He inclined his head in a slight bow to show that he was listening. Without words, it was her understanding that she could speak about anything that was bothering her without worry. Hitomi was admittedly surprised at herself for knowing such a detail, and was hesitant to act on it.“Um, well, it’s kind of silly.” She laughed nervously, feeling just as silly as the line of her thoughts.“You may tell me. I won’t think it’s silly,” Folken said, his voice conveying sincerity.Hitomi shifted from foot-to-foot as she debated. In the end, she decided to be out with it. Her mother always said she needed to be more forthcoming, after all. She asked, “Do you think that I’m…not being helpful?”There, I did it! I shared my concern out loud. I feel less weighed down already, she thought in triumph, as if she’d beaten a new sports record. Hitomi looked tot her companion, worried that during her internal monologue she might have missed his reply, but all she received was a blank stare. A blush spread across her cheeks. Had she said the wrong thing?“It’s just, lately I feel…like I’m not contributing enough? Or I’m bothering everyone and making them needlessly worry. I don’t mean to, I really don’t, but every time I try to do something good or say the right thing it goes wrong. Maybe I should—”“No.”For a second time in a short span, Hitomi was shocked. She blinked curiously up at him, confused by the firm interruption. Disrupting other people didn’t strike her as a very Folken-thing for him to do, which left her bewildered at the cutoff.Folken laid his flesh and bone hand on her shoulder, waiting for her body to relax. His tone was gentler when he said, “No, you’ve been obliging to everyone. Why would you think otherwise?”She licked her suddenly dry lips and glanced around, before spotting the fountain nearby and taking a seat. “Like I mentioned before, lately it just seems like I’m a burden. I guess, deep down, I know I’m not, but… Earlier, I said something to Van I probably shouldn’t have. He’s been so withdrawn and I felt compelled to say…”He nodded along, the motion reassuring. For once, having someone else listening to her problems lifted a considerable pressure from Hitomi’s back. Folken reminded her that she hadn’t finished her trail of thought by prompting, “To say what, exactly?”Hitomi ducked her head, hoping he wouldn’t take it the same negative way that Van had, and said, “I asked him what kind of games you two played when he was little.”“Ah. I see.”“I wanted to straighten things out between the both of you, that’s all,” Hitomi blurted, not sure that’s exactly what she wanted to convey, but it seemed the correct thing to say.To her relief and delight, it seemed to have a positive effect. Folken hinted at a smile. His eyes drifted shut as he said, “Van never changes, does he?”Hitomi wanted to share in his amusement, but instead whispered, “Why can’t I get through to him?”The question had plagued her for awhile now. Another momentary silence spanned between them. She absently wrung her hands together in her lap as she eyed her dirty fingernails.“You are not afraid of me?” The non sequitur had her reeling. Folken seemed to read the expression she wore, and clarified, “I am the man who used the Intensified Luck Soldiers to try and kidnap you.”She pursed her lips and considered the question. Not that she had to think too long or hard about it, since the answer came quick. “I can’t say I’m okay with it. But…” Hitomi trailed off, not sure how to phrase everything.“But?”“If I was scared of you, you’d be on guard, right?” She didn’t pause this round, even as a peculiar expression crossed Folken’s features. “I don’t want that. If you don’t trust people, they don’t trust you.”Although she’d put every bit of truth she possessed into that statement, Folken still seemed unconvinced. “My seeking refuge here may be part of a plan, you know.”It was one possibility. All of Folken’s hard work could be a ploy to get them to fail, however, she couldn’t bring herself to believe that. Blame it on her powers of insight, but she felt in her heart that he wouldn’t resort to such tactics. Not anymore, not ever again.“Even if it were, I think you’d return that trust. It might not come across clearly, though,” Hitomi said with conviction. Then something occurred that Hitomi never dreamed would happen. She almost didn’t believe her vision, and was tempted to raise her fists and rub both eyes to be certain she wasn’t hallucinating.But it was real; Folken was smiling at her. Not a small one, but an honest to goodness grin. A bubbly feeling similar to that time she accidentally drank too much wine in Asturia originated in her gut as she watched him. No, it’s much nicer than that. This feeling is so much better, she thought tenderly.That’s when she smiled back at him.