Dimensional Descent

Savahn sat to Aina's side, silently slipping her hand into her friend's. She didn't say anything for a long time, just keeping Aina company.

The small home they had rented had quite beautiful scenery around it. The air was fresh and the view from the mountain was gorgeous. Whether it was cloud, bird or sunset watching, it was perfect for them all.

The two women sat on a terrace taking in these sights.

Savahn had already made Miel promise to keep Yuri away. Maybe it was because it was the first time Savahn had shown the smallest hint of a temper, but Miel only looked at her deeply before agreeing.

As far as Savahn was concerned, Yuri was the worst possible influence for Aina right now. In truth, Savahn wasn't sure if she'd be a good influence either, because she was very, very angry with Leonel as well. But, she still felt that it was better than whatever Yuri would have done.

Just the same way Miel had wanted to kill Leonel, Yuri definitely had wanted to do the same, it was just that she was a step slow and she couldn't have possibly broken through the barrier without revealing her true strength, something her adoptive father always drilled into her not to do.

"Thank you, Savahn." Aina said lightly.

Savahn blinked. "For what?"

"For always being there for me. I don't know how I can repay you, but I definitely will. As much as I owed him, I owe you just the same. I'm sorry for waiting so long to tell you that."

Savahn's gaze misted over, her tears threatening to fall. But, she quickly wiped them away with her free forearm.

"You are the closest thing I have to family left." Savahn said softly. "You don't need to apologize to me, you're my sister."

The two women tightly held onto one another.

"Are you doing okay?" Savahn broke the silence.

Aina smiled a bittersweet smile. "I'll be fine. I hurt him and he hurt me, now we're even."

Savahn frowned. She didn't like hearing things put like that. A bit of the anger she had built up for Leonel almost spilled over but she managed to control herself. In the end, she sighed.

"Even if you made a mistake, that doesn't mean you have to become a punching bag."

Aina's expression softened, her smile becoming small.

"I was thinking about how hard it was for him all these years. There's only so much I can remember by thinking back, I don't have his memory. The stuff I spoke about only scratched the surface. I don't think I was worth all the effort he put in, but I still made him wade through hell and high water when I could have solved it all just by opening my mouth."

Savahn's gaze flickered, her expression changing from time to time before she finally asked the question.

"You still want to be with him, right?"

"I do."

Savahn hadn't expected Aina to answer so quickly.

It was weird. Savahn had actually come with the intentions of talking Aina down. Though she was angry with Leonel, she still felt like the two were a match made in Heaven. She didn't want to see them crumble because of a single heated exchange.

But, at the same time, she didn't want Aina to take this matter too casually either, which was why she had responded like she had. Aina had seen her faults and apologized for them, if Leonel wasn't able to forgive and forget, then there was no point in them moving forward at all.

If one partner held onto something and refused to let go, there was simply no hope for a relationship at all. She didn't want to see Aina spend a lifetime making up for mistakes she had made as a naïve teenage girl who didn't know how to approach her first love.

Now, though, it seemed like this second worry was going in full force.

"Then what do you want to do about it....?" Savahn asked.

"I…" Aina's gaze turned misty. "… I don't know… I don't know what to do…"

At that moment, a flash of light appeared before the two women. Both Savahn and Aina looked up somewhat stunned, finding it hard to believe what they were seeing before them.

Savahn never thought she would see a woman more beautiful than Aina. Of course, this was less about their raw features, and more about a mature air and confidence that Aina just hadn't quite yet grasped. But, it was a shocking realization nonetheless.

As for Aina, she found herself suddenly feeling overwhelmingly self conscious. She didn't know where to put her hands and her gaze flickered several times as though she couldn't decide whether she should be looking down or meeting the gaze of the woman before her.

Alienor smiled, her visage seeming no different from an angel's to the two young girls. They suddenly felt as though they were looking upon an idol they could look up to for a lifetime.

Alienor crossed her legs, sitting on the ground across from the two women. But, if you looked closely, she was actually hovering a half inch above it.

"My son gets his airheaded side from his father." Alienor said with a light laugh. "He wanted to apologize but it seems he doesn't realize that he should do these kind of things in person. I'm sorry to say that my son also wanted to make it clear that this is just an apology, but…"

Alienor's words took Aina through a roller coaster of emotions. From figuring out that this was indeed Leonel's mother, to hearing that she was here to apologize… To understanding that it was 'just' an apology… Her mind felt like it was being punched from all sides.

"… Here."

An Amethyst Token appeared in Alienor's palm. She grabbed Aina's hand and slipped it in, pressing down the latter's fingers over the Token.

Aina subconsciously squeezed it tight. By the time she realized what had happened, Alienor had already helped her deal with loose strands of her hair and even straightened out her clothing before vanishing into thin air, leaving her in a daze.

In the skies above, Alienor watched on with a complicated expression. She remembered that just a day ago, she had really hated this little girl. But, Aina's words today and her willingness to bare her heart for all to see had changed Alienor's thoughts of her entirely.

As many would say, winning over a mother-in-law was about as good as winning over a son.

'I've given you a key. You just have to figure out how to open the lock...' She thought to herself.

**

On Planet Luxnix, a scene one would have never expected to see was taking place. If the Luxnix were aware of what was happening, it was hard to guess how many mouthfuls of blood they would cough up.

While many of the Luxnix family's upper echelon was away at the second day of the Selection, a boy stricken from their family records was standing in a vault that held their greatest treasures.

Leonel couldn't help but shake his head and laugh. He couldn't decide whether his mother was a Saint or a common thug.