[hider=A long delayed collab, don't worry about it]
[i]Thump, thump, thump[/i]

Fingers drummed on wood, repetitive, like an unending drumbeat upon the wooden cabinet that Alicia sat next to in the lobby of Beacon HQ. It wasn’t like her to be nervous. Ask anyone and they would cite her as the picture of determined action, a caring attitude, and many other platitudes besides. Well, hopefully they did. And yet here she was, increasingly worried about what she had planned to do as the minutes ticked by, 

It had been pretty busy recently. With the White Coin finally out there it felt like Beacon had finally sprung back to life, ready to face the tasks that were in front of it rather than just slapping on damage control. They’d seen a swelling of new recruits, and after some time Alicia had decided that she should spend some time with people other than Penny or Janet and Jenna. 

Alicia could have done this with anyone really (though there were some she was unwilling to spend personal time with, in spite of their apparent newfound devotion to the cause), but in the end she had decided to meet with Serenity. She was probably the most unusual person here aside from certain individuals with Alicia’s ire, whether she liked it or not. After all, Penny being around meant that monster girls had become somewhat familiar, for better or worse. But a girl who had once upon a time been part of a world ending Horror? Now that was unique. 

Though she couldn’t really claim that it was entirely selfless. She was curious and wanted to know more. And perhaps that was in error, but it had worked out with Penny. What were the odds something went wrong here?

So she’d talked with Serenity, and set up a time to meet. A time that was rapidly approaching, as she remained in place to be more easily found. She had no idea if this was going to work out like how she wanted, and the uncertainty was really starting to get to her. Maybe this had been a bad idea after all.

But she wouldn’t have too much longer to be obsessed with her own thoughts as the girl she was meeting with drew near. 

...On the other end of the spectrum, a certain white haired girl was nervously making her way over towards Alicia. Her eyes were seemingly struck looking towards the ground, with minimal looking up save to see where she needed to go...and not run into anyone. Not that she hadn’t been approached by enough as it were in the last while, between questions from people, and the grilling by Beckoners, and the stares of mixed opinion. This was not even to mention the comments she had been hearing, ones about gratefulness to the “Star Seraph” for supposedly purifying her…

...Which frankly the “Star Seraph” hadn’t done, though the maid was a tad afraid to let that bit slip out. Who would even dare to believe her about the true story???

All of this combined had thusly made her prior conversation with said “Star Seraph” about meeting up and hanging out…well, all the more nerve-frying at its core. She’d held up as best as she could, agreed to meet at a certain time. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad? It was hard enough adjusting to her own skin with all of the attention and fear she felt, albeit physically her body felt entirely natural at least. It was at least one little benefit she’d been able to have after all of this. 

[color=6A5ACD]”H-h-hi there...umm...Alicia,”[/color] the maid said, her voice sounding like she felt as she made her final approach towards the finger-tapping magical girl, all whilst decked out in her casual attire and in an (of course) untransformed state, [color=6A5ACD]”S-Sorry for almost being late...umm...people kept...ah…”[/color]

By the Infinite Abyss, or maybe she should be thinking “Beacon’s Light” now, she hoped this day out would be a good thing! Maybe something to soothe her nerves, or at least get her away from the magical girls crowds here at the moment. Er...Alicia seemed like a nice girl, at least!  

[i]Thump, thump, thump-[/i]

Drumming fingers stopped abruptly as Alicia turned to face Serenity, with her agitation dispelled by the arrival of the person that she had been waiting for. There was a silent breath, all concerns and fears laid to the side as she approached this situation. Now they could only see how things worked out. 

[color=aba000]”Hey Serenity,”[/color] she replied with a small nod of her head. [color=aba000]”It’s okay, I’m just glad you made it.”[/color]

Rising to her feet, the Seraph took a moment to brush the accumulated wrinkles out of her shirt before getting to the actual reason they had met. [color=aba000]”Let’s get going. I don’t think either of us wants to stick around here longer than we have to,”[/color] she observed aloud, hands resting comfortable at her sides. She could do without feeding the rumor mill for a bit, if possible. 

For now, she headed out, leading Serenity past the entrance and into the streets of Penrose. There was no destination in mind yet, merely determination to be somewhere else, where they didn’t have to deal with magical girls and responsibilities. Just two people getting to know each other better.

The new magical girl did her best to keep pace with Alicia, while glancing about at the various signs and storefronts as they were walking by. Clothing, jewelry, restaurants, and more seemed to unfold before her in an ultimately new way when it came to the mortal perspective. If the ‘former’ her had managed to incarnate...what would have really happened then? The expectations of Soth back then, would they have been proven true now or been shaken to their core? Or maybe things wouldn’t have changed at all. 

Mysteries of unknown nature aside, Serenity’s face did light up somewhat as the duo were nearing a seemingly rare sight these days. A front for a large arcade, signs promising things like an in-house eatery, tons of games, crane machines, and more. The glowing lights from inside were even visible from the entrance, and for a minute the maid’s nervousness seemed to drop in favor of a genuine curiosity. She walked over to the door without thinking, glancing inside like a young child in a candy shop. 

She’d seen a good many of these sorts of things in her former self’s conquests. But...well now in this form for the rest of eternity (she supposed) this sort of thing seemed to grab at her attention much more than it ever used to. Which is to say, it never used to at all. 

[color=6A5ACD]”Ah...d-do you like g-games?”[/color] the girl asked, turning back to Alicia and asking her a question as her timid self seemed to come back once more. 

Their wandering took them across a decent chunk of the nearby area, and a bit beyond. While there wasn’t much said at the time, Alicia did have the opportunity to gauge how Serenity reacted to everything, and learn a bit about her in the process. She hadn’t been sure how she would treat everything, given her nature. 

The arcade had not been a conscious decision at first, but remembering that it was nearby had caused the Seraph to swing that way, exactly the sort of reaction that she got. Which was why she wore a smile as she joined Serenity at the front entrance. [color=aba000]“I wouldn’t call myself a pro gamer, but I do enjoy it when I have the time,”[/color] she replied as she glanced through the glass door, before looking over to her companion. [color=aba000]“And….well, you mentioned before that you had Soth’s memories, but you never said how many of those were happy ones. So I figured, why not try and make some?”[/color]

What better way to do that than playing some video games old school style?

Serenity blinked in surprise for a moment, letting Alicia’s words sink in before a small (albeit still a bit nervous) smile came onto her face. 

[color=6A5ACD]”I, um...untold millennia of knowledge acquisition and world devouring since the beginning of time doesn’t usually make many happy memories…”[/color] the girl said, initially hesitating before she made that particular admission in her usual manner, [color=6A5ACD]”B-but...that is in the p-past. L-let’s go in!”[/color]

[color=aba000]”I figured,”[/color] Alicia concurred with a small nod as Serenity gave exactly the sort of answer she had assumed she would find. Horrors not being interested in warm and fuzzy things was hardly a surprise, though she supposed that it was possible she could have been surprised. Who could really predict what a Horror would do?

Still, it wasn’t hard to understand the desire to want to move past that, and she made no effort to dwell on the past. [color=aba000]”Right,”[/color] she agreed, swinging the door open and holding it for Serenity to enter the building. 

Once inside she headed over to the front counter, handing over money to get a healthy number of tokens for the various arcade machines. She’d been spending a lot recently, and quietly she made a note to save up a bit in the future. But for now it should be fine as she passed off half of the tokens to her companion.  [color=aba000]”So, what do you want to try first?”[/color]

The maid magical girl looked about, machines lining the walls, flashing lights, and games galore before her eyes as her timidness temporarily melted again before her excitement. Though in particular, her eyes settled on a more mundane machine...the crane. A fancy version of a crane game at that. Inside its casing were stuffed animals, gift cards of various amounts (some up to 50 dollars even), toys, and the like just staring back at her. Perhaps it was her old self’s habits of collecting bleeding over slightly, but the white-haired girl pointed over to the machine with a gleam in her eyes. 

Without thinking she grabbed Alicia’s hand with her own free hand, and drug the other girl over. Serenity then plunked in a couple of tokens, a satisfying clunk ringing in her ears as the tokens landed inside, before getting hard to work. She grabbed the single joystick before her, equations and eldritch knowledge racing about in her head, until-

[center][b]***DING DING DING, WE HAVE A WINNER!!!***[/b][/center]

-...what? A small, white stuffed teddy bear with angel wings and tiny halo fell out of the bottom where prizes were supposed to go. The maid seemed to be elated, though...had she done this before? She’d just beaten a crane game on the first go. 

Not much thinking about it, however, Serenity grabbed the bear up, gave it a hug, and then offered it to Alicia. Though as she came a bit back down to earth in the process, the maid magical girl tried to avoid direct eye contact, but kept out the offered bear with a small blush on her face. 

Rather than being directly answered, Alicia found herself being dragged away from the counter towards one part of the arcade, her gaze slipping over the machines to figure out where they would end up. [color=aba000]”Crane game, huh? I’ve never been too good at these,”[/color] Alicia observed as she took a position next to Serenity.

Watching her at work was almost surreal, and the Seraph could only watch with surprise as the very first go at the machine ended up with a win. [color=aba000]”Not bad,”[/color] she congratulated Serenity, patting her on the shoulder. She wasn’t sure if it was just luck or not, but still. Figuring it out on the first go like that was impressive. 

Gesturing to the toy that had been selected, she couldn’t help but add to her previous comment. [color=aba000]”That definitely fits with where you are now,”[/color] she noted as it was offered to her. That caused her to shake her head, giving it a gentle push back towards Serenity. [color=aba000]”You keep it. It can be a reminder of the fun we had here.”[/color] She needed that sort of thing more than the Seraph did. Alicia could always get a prize later. They had barely started after all. 

[color=6A5ACD]”U-umm...t-t-thank you, I-I know lots of things...s-so this game to me is rather s-s-simple,”[/color] Serenity said, hesitantly pulling the bear back into a tight hug against her chest. The fur felt so soft, so nice...so gentle. She hadn’t felt anything like that before, really, albeit she had wanted to give Alicia some kind of gift for just being nice to her in general. Taking her out to hang out, no one had done that before, and she’d been too busy trying to explain things for the last long while and avoid getting locked up (at least in her mind) to visit the pirate that had appeared with her. 

[color=6A5ACD]”W-Would you like to do s-something else?”[/color]

She wanted to be nice, ah, or at least was afraid to ask to stay here and drain this machine dry. That would sound so...mean. Even if it was ultimately possible for her personally. 

The explanation provided was one that Alicia hadn’t really considered. Sure, she knew that Serenity knew a lot of stuff, but she had assumed it had more to do with magic and psychology and stuff like that. Not the complex physics of a crane game. But it seemed to have worked to their benefit in the end.  [color=aba000]”You’re welcome.”[/color]

She didn’t dwell on it for too long, instead surveying the arcade to see what games were near them. Something for multiple people, so they could play at the same time…..!

Taking Serenity’s hand, this time Alicia was the one to pull her along as she guided them through rows of machines to the one that she had in mind. Specifically, Dance Evolution.. Getting on the left pad, she would guide Serenity to the other before moving to set them up. [color=aba000]“So basically there’s going to be a song that plays, and on that screen in front of us there’s going to be four directional arrows and a bar on the top. You see those arrows on the pad? When the arrow reaches the top, you’re going to step on that arrow with your foot. If it’s stretched, then you’re going to hold it there until it ends. Make sense?”[/color] Finished with her explanation, she watched Serenity expectantly before she began. It might be a bit difficult at first, but she was confident that her friend would catch on quick.

[color=6A5ACD]”M-makes sense!”[/color] Serenity said with a little confidence this time, her bear held close after listening intently to her soon-to-be dancing partner explain the game, [color=6A5ACD]”Um...r-ready?”[/color]

With a nod, Alicia inserted the required tokens into the machine. She frowned intently, scrolling through the song list and selecting an easier difficulty for Serenity’s sake. But she soon found one that sounded like it would be good, and confirmed her choice before stepping back to the center of the pad. [color=aba000]”And here we go.”[/color]

[center][url]https://youtu.be/8wAFdldgrWo[/url][/center]

The song began, and Alicia’s knees bobbed with the beat as the arrows appeared onscreen. Soon enough she was moving, nailing most of them. It wasn’t the hardest that she could have done, but she was a bit rusty. It had been a while since she went to the arcade. Hopefully Serenity was doing alright. 

Initially the hesitant maid attempted to stamp on the right arrows around her, and initially it seemed as if her panic was going to get the best of her. Her movements were initially sloppy, and her eyes seemed to hurriedly scan over her feet, Alicia, and the arrows on the screen in a nervous flutter. Yet as the song went on, Serenity’s focus seemed to be pulled steadily towards the screen, and despite her initial fumbling she began to hit the arrows more consistently as she continued on. Eventually even the look of panic faded into a look of laser-focused attention on Serenity’s face, and her body seemed to bob more and more in-line with the rhythm of the game...until eventually she was moving and stomping to the beat to a ‘T’ on the pad below her. 

The song soon came to an end after several minutes, leaving the Seraph breathing deeply from the exercise as she compared their scores. It was much closer than she would have expected, at least from her first glance. [color=aba000]”Not bad,”[/color] she said to her companion. [color=aba000]”What do you think? Fun enough for another round, or should we try something else?”[/color]

The magical girl felt herself breathing heavily as well, though as she came out of her tunnel-vision led focus on the game she looked at her score. Eyes shot open wide at the closeness of her own score and Alicia’s, and a nervous pang shot up the girl’s spine as the worries hit her mind. Had she done too good??? She didn’t want to look like she was trying to one-up Alicia, heavens no! But after looking to the Seraph, as Alicia’s words reached her ears, Serenity felt the tension in her body slightly release. S-She had done good? It was ok? No “hey you have untold knowledge, that’s cheating”, or the like? 

The news for a moment brought a face of elation to the surface, and with a smile she didn’t realize she had on Serenity nodded her head vehemently in the energy of the moment. 

[color=6A5ACD]”W-We can do another round if you’d like!”[/color] the maid felt herself blurt out loudly, before realization came and she clasped her hands over her mouth...albeit still garnering a few eyebrow-raising stares from nearby people in the arcade in the process. Then as further realization set in about her word choice, poor or not, the maid’s face began to rapidly turn beet red. 
O-Oh no....

Taking things at face value, Alicia was more than willing to go for a second round. [color=aba000]”Alright then. Let’s see what we can come up with.”[/color] Obviously it would have to be a bit harder this time, now that Serenity knew what she was doing. 

Settling on another song, she confirmed the choice before stepping back to begin. [color=aba000]“I hope you’re ready,”[/color] she said with a glance over to the side. [color=aba000]”I’m not going to go so easy on you this time.[/color] She was clearly being a bit more competitive this time around

[center][url]https://youtu.be/9Xz4NV0zsbY[/url][/center]

The sound began in earnest, and with the pounding of the guitar and drums she began moving along to the music once again. This time she moved just a bit quicker, a bit more accurate. All to keep up with Serenity’s improved skill. Now this was a real battle. 

Serenity, upon seeing her dancing opponent get serious, did her best to put on a serious face in response. She was being taken...seriously! Not in a bad way, but something inside of her seemed to burn bright as she heard Alicia’s words was all. Something inside seemed to...not want to give in! Not in the face of this challenge!

As the new and much harder song began, Serenity began to try to get back into that “focused” state she had been in with the last song. The introduction began seemingly at a decent pace, albeit notably faster than the prior song, and the maid did her best to get into the proper rhythm with the beat of the song. The struggle to get into the proper movements, and a more noticeable trailing behind Alicia, were rather apparent though. 

Yet as the words began to ring out she felt a sharp pang recoil through her body, as if stoked by the lyrics themselves. Her focus seemed to wane, and Alicia’s lead would continue to grow as the words and arrows passed on by.

[center][i]“Ever on and on,

I continue circling,

With nothing but my hate,

In a carousel of agony.

Till’ slowly i forget, 

and my heart starts

Va-nish-ing”[/i][/center]

It was like the song had been chosen to hit home for her….or what she had been. Something that had brought about a cycle of tragedy over and over again, and had not the heart to understand those it affected or hurt or manipulated. Nor had “she” cared back then, nor was she free to do otherwise even if she had attempted to ponder such. Even as an extension of Soth, drawing from the seemingly endless main mass, her will had been the Greater Horror’s own naturally. She had done vile acts in the name of amusement, twisted innocents, had corpses stolen….

...and ruined the lives of two people who had come to love each other, genuinely. 

[center][i]“I’m slipping through the cracks of a dark e-tern-i-ty,

With nothing but my pain,

And the paralyzing agony,

To tell me who I am-

Who i was,”[/i][/center]

Before the despair could grab more of a hold on her heart, the tightness in her chest becoming worse and worse, something seemed to suddenly rise up inside of her. Like a small, flickering light or candle held aloft in an unlit room. A ‘spark’ of knowledge, one could perhaps say, that led to words bubbling up within her mind. 

Why had the Beacon even chosen to spare her? Why had that light chosen to free her from those shackles, and grant her former self’s dream despite her crimes rather than smite her away? Why had Alicia come out with her, rather than toss her to the side or smite her into dust?

[center][i]“Maybe it's a dream,

Maybe nothing else is real,

But it wouldn’t mean a thing,

If I told you how I feel.”[/i][/center]


This was a second chance at life, a dream beyond a dream! After all, there was someone who wanted to be around her at all. Alicia. The Star Seraph herself, who regardless of her position and everything had wanted to spend time with her despite it all. That meant something, genuinely and sincerely. It was like a new chance...a brilliant light to help her move forward! She wasn’t walking alone in the darkness anymore, because someone was by her side! Such a seemingly dull thing to her old self, but...now it was something she felt proud of. 

Perhaps it was an overly emotional line of thought to have, but the hope it brought was more than worth it! She couldn’t turn back now! She could change, and be something more!

[center][i]“If I step into the light,

Then I’ll never be the same,

and it all will fade to white-”[/i][/center]

As the song neared its inevitable conclusion, Serenity seemed to steel herself visibly. Her steps became more deliberate, her focus renewed as the lyrics rang clearly in her ears. That pained look of hers eventually shifted to something of a renewed “resolve”, for lack of a better word. Though her score was stuck most woefully behind Alicia, however, the maid seemed to finally put her all into the game. Stomp. Turn. Stomp. Focus. Get into the beat. Feel the rhythm, and let it flow into the moves. 

Unaware of what she had unintentionally brought on or the emotional realization that Serenity had made, Alicia was still focused on the game. Yet the divide in scores had not escaped her, and as the song came to a conclusion she could only draw one path forwards. 

Another sigh escaped, the Seraph stretching a bit before she nodded. [color=aba000]”Hm, maybe we should take a break from that for a bit,”[/color] she observed aloud. She’d go for another round but it seemed like Serenity could use a bit of a breather from this.

Hands resting on her hips, she turned to survey the other available machines. “[color=aba000]”Looks like we’ve got some shooting games, basketball, air hockey, a racing game...that one could be fun.”[/color] She wasn’t sure which one to go with, but it wouldn’t be a hard decision. 

Feeling like her heart was going to erupt out of her chest from the exertion, Serenity looked over at Alicia as she leaned on the guard rail next to her dance pad. Some beads of sweat ran down her forehead, but at the same time she weakly nodded to Alicia. Something...more casual, perhaps, would be good after this workout. And emotions. Both those things were rather draining to the mind and flesh for humans like herself, as it turned out.

[color=6A5ACD]“Maybe...basketball...would be nice...for something less intensive?”[/color] the white-haired magical girl managed to breathe out as she caught her breath, eventually moving back off of the guard rail and letting out a small sigh of relief at not having keeled over. 


[color=aba000]”Sure, we can do that. Come on.”[/color] Taking heed of Serenity’s state, Alicia led her over to the basketball game. Time for them to do something a bit less stressful for a bit.

The game was a fairly traditional setup that you would see at a place like this. There were basketballs lined up in a chute, and two individuals could stand side by side to compete against each other. The person who was able to shoot the most baskets would be declared the winner. 

Taking up position on the left, Alicia fed in the tokens that would get them set up to play. [color=aba000]”This one is pretty easy. Just get as many basketballs through the hoop as you can,”[/color] she told the other girl before picking up her first basketball to do just that. It wasn’t that complicated, unless you had particularly bad hand eye coordination.

She would take the first shot, then allow Serenity to do the same so she could get a feel of what they would be doing before she spoke up. [color=aba000]”So how have things been going since….you know,”[/color] she asked, giving a general wave towards the girl. [color=aba000]”I imagine there’s a lot to get used to.”[/color]

As Serenity tossed another basketball, listening to Alicia’s questions and looking at her out of the corner of her eye, she let out a small but audible sigh. The basketball seemed to bounce off of the rim of the basket as the maid seemed to think for a moment, before another basketball rolled out in front of her. 

[color=6A5ACD]“I-It’s…been interesting, to say the least. New body, new me, and...I just can’t help but feel guilty about all of it somehow. And...scared, honestly,”[/color] she said, looking to Alicia for a moment before picking up her next basketball, [color=6A5ACD]“Scared everyone is going to up and kill me one day, that this...whatever this second chance that your patron decided to give me will be wasted…don’t even know why it gave me a chance at all….”[/color]

Doing her best to line up another shot, Serenity tossed the ball at the hope once more. Swish. Nothing but net that time, at least. 

Alicia frowned, and though she could not picture the exact situation she liked to think that she at least had a grasp on some of Serenity’s concerns. This was a unique situation for everyone, she was pretty sure. 

[color=aba000]”Well, you’ve still got the Spark inside of you,”[/color] she noted, idly holding her next basketball in her hands. [color=aba000]”By the rules of the organization, anyone who did that would themselves be forfeit from Beacon. Though I’m not sure how much of a reassurance that is.”[/color]

She let out a small chuckle before tossing her next basketball. This one solidly hit the backboard without coming close to the net. [color=aba000]”I can’t speak for why the Beckoners did this, but they must have their reason for it.”[/color] Her confidence in those leading Beacon did not waver, when there was no reason that it might. 

[color=6A5ACD]“...From you, those words are of some comfort, genuinely. In fact, you are the one who has been the nicest to me, and perhaps put me most at ease at this point, since I arrived at Beacon,”[/color] the white-haired magical girl said, distinctly happy in her tone for a moment before grabbing up another basketball, [color=6A5ACD]”And today...has been the most at ease I have felt yet...it means a lot, truly. I wish I could be here with you and make this time last...forever, perhaps.”[/color]

Serenity tossed the basketball, after shifting it somewhat nervously in the grasp of her two hands, this time with the ball hitting the left side of the backboard before bouncing off and rolling back down. A light grimace then flashed briefly to the girl’s face.

[color=6A5ACD]”Yet...many of the girls still regard me like pet or some novelty, and just claim that you ‘purified me’ and enslaved ‘the wretched monster’. That’s not the most of what’s happened...but it’s not like I can blame them either after all I did before,”[/color] the maid said, the words lingering on her lips as she glanced briefly over to her companion for the day, a somewhat melancholy look in her eyes. 

Pleased to hear that she felt that way, Alicia couldn’t help but grimace as Serenity amended her appreciation with how she had been treated by the others. It was the sort of thing that she did not want to hear, and it served to exacerbate her frustration. 

[color=aba000]”Seriously?”[/color] She grumbled aloud, sighing, as her palm came to rest against her forehead. She would have hit something, were she in the place to do so. But right now all she could do was express her annoyance. [color=aba000]”I’ve told them to stop doing that sort of thing, but nobody seems to listen.”[/color]

After a moment she shot Serenity a weak smile. [color=aba000]”I’ll talk to them about it. They keep crediting me for things I didn’t do.”[/color] And trying to correct them never seemed to work out, for whatever reason.

[color=6A5ACD]”I...I am sorry...I shouldn’t have said anything about this, and left you to be so frustrated. This...is supposed to be a happy day. Yet even the thought of lying to you didn’t feel right either...not after all you have done for me already,”[/color] Serenity said, light panic bubbling up again in the back of her mind, before reaching over and grabbing another basketball and making a half-hearted shot that missed the hoop altogether. 

Pausing for a moment after, the white-haired girl then let out a long sigh. With one of her hands reached over to grab the hand Alicia had used to hit herself with, gently holding it between her fingers for a moment, [color=6A5ACD]”You have stood by me so far, even, despite how little I have been around. I want to be able to help you as well...it doesn’t take millenia of knowledge to see how stressed you have been about things. My own slip of the tongue has somewhat confirmed my own fears at that...but please, let me help you in turn as best as I can from now on. As selfish as that is to ask, that is...”[/color]

Serenity let go of Alicia’s hand as gently as she had grabbed it, before placing her own hand back down on the new basketball in front of her, a small and genuine smile coming to her face, [color=6A5ACD]”Yet I will work to prove myself to the other girls, and to you, even if it takes a few decades. That I promise. Then perhaps they will see reason one day, and will listen to your words.”[/color] 

For the moment, the maid didn’t care how...emotional, potentially poetic, and unhesitant she was being. She had to ride out the high from this emotional realization of hers, because the high (at least) wouldn’t last forever. She hoped the lessons from it would stick, however, though she’d have to work on that part. While she could be so bold as she was being right now...she treasured it regardless, along with this day spent out with Alicia. 

Alicia was quick to shake her head, lest Serenity think that there was blame being put in either direction at this point. [color=aba000]”It’s fine. No harm, no foul,”[/color] she assured her companion. 

Yet in spite of that there was no effort made to stop heras they held hands for a moment. It was strange to hear such concern and appreciation from what she knew had once been a horror, even if it was a bit rude to think in such a manner. After all Serenity was no less human than she was now, even if she had a lot more memories to sift through. 

[color=aba000]”Part of it is just the circumstances too,”[/color] the Seraph admitted. Picking up her basketball, she would do a one handed shot that bounced off the rim before swishing in with a very satisfying feeling to accompany it. [color=aba000]”After what happened with Victoria and the Justine business, there isn’t a lot of trust from the outside. And we took a lot of hits. People are nervous, and looking for something to cling to for hope.”[/color]

She gestured behind herself to where her wings would sprout from her back. They weren’t there right now, if only because they were at an arcade in public, but she could imagine their presence nonetheless. [color=aba000]”They gave me these wings and made me a Seraph because of the assault on Justine’s castle, but to be honest I didn’t actually do anything there. I never even saw Justine herself.”[/color]

It was something she regretted, but there was nothing that could be done about it now. At the very least it was a lesson about not overspending your magic on worthless targets. [color=aba000]”Because of that being made a Seraph and having all this praise just feels a bit hollow to me. That fight at the graveyard was the first time I actually felt like I deserved to be where I am.”[/color] Her smile widened, even as she looked over at Serenity. [color=aba000]”As long as you keep trying, with time I’m sure they’ll accept you. It might not even take a few decades to do it either.”[/color]

[color=6A5ACD]”Heh...I will trust you on that as well! Though I will also say I believe you are most worthy of those wings of yours, and do not let yourself tell you otherwise. If there is one thing these old memories can tell me now...it is that growing into a position is part of the job,”[/color] the maid said, smiling somewhat wider in return as she looked back to Alicia, eyes almost beaming, [color=6A5ACD]”Yet hope...trust...distrust...regrets...joy...being human truly ‘riding the emotional rollercoaster’, isn’t it? Though I would not have it any other way.”[/color] 

It was touching to hear someone with such faith in her. Especially someone with so many centuries of experience to theoretically draw on. Differentiating between was a bit tricky, but she made sure that Serenity knew it. [color=aba000]”That’s the hope,”[/color] she assured her. [color=aba000]”It just feels weird getting all this praise for being at an event even if I didn’t affect how it ended.”[/color]

Reaching over, she patted Serenity on the shoulder. [color=aba000]”And that’s good to hear. I’m supposed to make you run laps around the base if we think you’re going back to that ‘destroy the world’ thing.”[/color] Of course, the grin she wore indicated she was joking. Mostly.

Serenity’s face dropped from its positive beaming, right down into the depths of a truly panicked expression that seemed like all the warmth in the world had up and vanished. The entire nature of it was far more comical than anything, however, though before the Seraph could speak more a sound quickly escaped Serenity’s lips. The sound was itself something akin to a dying llama or scared goat. 

[color=6A5ACD]”AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!! Anything but the laps!”[/color]

THe reaction was very overdramatic, and very hard to take seriously. As such, Alicia couldn’t help  but burst out into a fit of giggling that interrupted her basketball throwing. [color=aba000]”Relax, I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about. And I’ll be here to help if anything happens.”[/color]

Serenity seemed to calm back down a bit as Alicia reassured her, though regardless she puffed her reddening cheeks out a bit in response to the giggling of her companion, [color=6A5ACD]”M-M-Meanie….b-but it's good to know you’ll b-be there for me…”[/color]

Serenity tossed the ball, without much looking ahead of her as she threw it, though a light “ding” drew her attention suddenly over to the game. Hey, she’d managed to score a point! Nice. 

With Serenity’s focus returning to the same, Alicia did so as well. Not that either of them had been trying particularly hard up to this point. But now it at least had their attention again.  [color=aba000]”Looks like we’re almost out of time,”[/color] she noted, glancing at the clock that was counting down with big red numbers.  [color=aba000]”We’ll finish this up, and then see what else there is to try. Sound good?”[/color]

[color=6A5ACD]”S-Sounds good!”[/color] Serenity said, snapping out of the distraction of the game and looking back over at the other girl. A small smile began to form again on her face to boot.  

With the agreement made, Alicia turned back to the game. The two of them made for an odd pair, especially to those who knew what they were. Nonetheless, it had been a fun afternoon, and Alicia did not regret the time she had spent with Serenity today. 

[/hider]

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The first thing that Alicia had noticed upon returning was the cold. It struck sharp and quickly, digging at her bones and causing her to curl up in bed. When one had just come from a comfortable tropical paradise, not being prepared for the dead of winter was understandable. It had taken her a bit to get used to that.

Much like many other girls across the city, what followed was to be expected. She had met with worried parents to console them that she was alright. An explanation was hard to come by, especially for those who did not know about her magical girl life. At least they had remained safe from everything that had happened. Then she had spent some time trying to catch up on what was going on, what had happened. It took enough of her attention that she had not really worried about anyone else. 

At least, not until her phone rang. Hurrying over to it, she was quick to pick up. [color=aba000]"Hello?"[/color] Her grip tightened on her phone as Sylvia spoke on the other end. She seemed worried, and her mention of the Ascendancy sent another chill down the Seraph's spine. She knew what they were, what this meant. They only went in when things looked desperate and local branches couldn't keep control.

And now they wanted Sylvia? Did they think that they had disappeared voluntarily? Surely there was some way to resolve this before anything got out of hand.

She was hardly going to argue in a situation like this. [color=aba000]"I'll be there,"[/color] she agreed swiftly. At the very least it seemed like a wiser option than sitting around and waiting for the Ascendancy to roll up on her too. She wasn't even sure if they would, but if they were after Sylvia it stood to reason that they would be after her sooner or later too.

Hanging up the phone, she turned to depart. [color=aba000]"Mom, I'm going to go check on some friends,"[/color] she called, quickly making her way downstairs. Once out the door she would take off at a brisk jog, headed towards the ice rink for the meeting, The message on Glimmr was ignored for now. She had bigger things to worry about, and Sylvia or the Ascendancy would not wait for her. 

The following phone call from Serenity, however, would not. [color=aba000]"Alicia speaking,"[/color] she said. [color=aba000]"Serenity, are you alright?"[/color]