[The bruises and cuts and scrapes are bad--worse than last time. Way worse. Still, Ed refuses to give up.]
--but in the end, Ichirou beat her up and she barely got away with her life. That's the only time she's ever really lost. Even when three of us wound up fighting her at once she was strong enough to--
[His thought was interrupted by a picture of a large school.] That's Momijigaoka Academy, remember? I said earlier that sis was the one who destroyed it, so you don't have to-- [Ed's thoughts were interrupted by a crushing pressure bearing down on him from behind.] What the..?!
['Saa... Edward.' Oh no. Oh no. The pressure got worse, and with it came a familiar panic. A breath over his ear.] OF ALL THE THINGS ON EARTH WHY ARE YOU BRINGING THIS UP?! NO! NO I AM NOT ANSWERING THIS ONE!
[The weight grows heavier, less bearable. He can feel a wind blow over his ear and the old terror that is dealing with Lily came straight to mind. Something was whispered in his ear, and when it was his eyes shot huge.] OKAY FINE I'LL TALK JUST STOP! L-L-L-Lily Sakuma! That's her name! She asked me out once, I turned her down, a-a-and she decided to be my friend and do all sorts of weird stuff like that! It was really awkward and sh-she said she did it because she ate energy and I always freaked out! Like this! Okay?! Okay! [The thought was interrupted by the feeling of teeth sinking into his ear. This was enough to make him sigh with relief, even as it felt like the teeth were trying to rip his ear off.] Oh thank god you're moving on. [It was weird, but it was much easier to just deal with the trauma than it was dealing with her. I mean, seriously!]
Anyways, she's a really good friend and I really wish her well but she's--[The town, standing after the fight with the Beemon from before. The memory of a friend who was around then, who he was supposed to have owed lunch because she protected it all. But she'd vanished, hadn't she? Everything here could vanish in a moment's notice and there wasn't any way to protect them... why protect anything at all, then?] H-hey now... that's not right either. You know, you don't need a reason to protect people. Even if you can't find one, you should do it. Because that's how people work! [The city itself exploded, engulfing him in a fireball and burning him.]
[The images shifted again to a familiar face, pointing a gun at him.] Oh, her? Th-that's Cass... erm, CD to you I guess. We can just move on... there's nothing you can do to me that she hasn't already--[BANG! BANG!]
[There were suddenly two shots that went through his gut, making him fall over for a moment before he staggered back to his feet.] Y-yeah. That. That's about how things g-HURGHF! [He's yanked forward onto the ground, and felt a boot in his back. He heard more gunfire as new wounds cascade over his back. Still, he crawls on.]
Th-that one kind of hurt... But it's okay. In the end she always says good job, and she'll come through for everyone. That's the kind of person she is--she's reliable and cool. [The image again chances to CD standing aside Lila, talking causally with her over his dead body. The implications are clear, and Ed takes immediate offense.] Oh come on, that won't happen at all... she promised she was going to stay neutral..!
[He feels something flick against his forehead. He sees a stone disk drop to the ground in front of them... the one he gave to her. "Of course I'd want it... The boss was right. You really are a naive idiot."]
Dark Zone, that was really rude and I'm starting to think you don't really want to be left alone after all.
[He crawls onward, forcing himself to stay focused.] It's one thing if you insult me, but don't insult my friends. They're good people.
[BANG! Another fresh wound opens up on his leg this time.] And that only happened the one time..!
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--but in the end, Ichirou beat her up and she barely got away with her life. That's the only time she's ever really lost. Even when three of us wound up fighting her at once she was strong enough to--
[His thought was interrupted by a picture of a large school.] That's Momijigaoka Academy, remember? I said earlier that sis was the one who destroyed it, so you don't have to-- [Ed's thoughts were interrupted by a crushing pressure bearing down on him from behind.] What the..?!
['Saa... Edward.' Oh no. Oh no. The pressure got worse, and with it came a familiar panic. A breath over his ear.] OF ALL THE THINGS ON EARTH WHY ARE YOU BRINGING THIS UP?! NO! NO I AM NOT ANSWERING THIS ONE!
[The weight grows heavier, less bearable. He can feel a wind blow over his ear and the old terror that is dealing with Lily came straight to mind. Something was whispered in his ear, and when it was his eyes shot huge.] OKAY FINE I'LL TALK JUST STOP! L-L-L-Lily Sakuma! That's her name! She asked me out once, I turned her down, a-a-and she decided to be my friend and do all sorts of weird stuff like that! It was really awkward and sh-she said she did it because she ate energy and I always freaked out! Like this! Okay?! Okay! [The thought was interrupted by the feeling of teeth sinking into his ear. This was enough to make him sigh with relief, even as it felt like the teeth were trying to rip his ear off.] Oh thank god you're moving on. [It was weird, but it was much easier to just deal with the trauma than it was dealing with her. I mean, seriously!]
Anyways, she's a really good friend and I really wish her well but she's--[The town, standing after the fight with the Beemon from before. The memory of a friend who was around then, who he was supposed to have owed lunch because she protected it all. But she'd vanished, hadn't she? Everything here could vanish in a moment's notice and there wasn't any way to protect them... why protect anything at all, then?] H-hey now... that's not right either. You know, you don't need a reason to protect people. Even if you can't find one, you should do it. Because that's how people work! [The city itself exploded, engulfing him in a fireball and burning him.]
[The images shifted again to a familiar face, pointing a gun at him.] Oh, her? Th-that's Cass... erm, CD to you I guess. We can just move on... there's nothing you can do to me that she hasn't already--[BANG! BANG!]
[There were suddenly two shots that went through his gut, making him fall over for a moment before he staggered back to his feet.] Y-yeah. That. That's about how things g-HURGHF! [He's yanked forward onto the ground, and felt a boot in his back. He heard more gunfire as new wounds cascade over his back. Still, he crawls on.]
Th-that one kind of hurt... But it's okay. In the end she always says good job, and she'll come through for everyone. That's the kind of person she is--she's reliable and cool. [The image again chances to CD standing aside Lila, talking causally with her over his dead body. The implications are clear, and Ed takes immediate offense.] Oh come on, that won't happen at all... she promised she was going to stay neutral..!
[He feels something flick against his forehead. He sees a stone disk drop to the ground in front of them... the one he gave to her. "Of course I'd want it... The boss was right. You really are a naive idiot."]
Dark Zone, that was really rude and I'm starting to think you don't really want to be left alone after all.
[He crawls onward, forcing himself to stay focused.] It's one thing if you insult me, but don't insult my friends. They're good people.
[BANG! Another fresh wound opens up on his leg this time.] And that only happened the one time..!