"a carnival?"

i murmur, staring at the paper

in confusion.

she flattens the paper out on her lap,

like pressing a flower,

before turning to grin at me.

"yep!"

"but... that's... such a strange thing."

"yep!"

"why?" i raise an eyebrow.

she throws back her head and laughs.

"because you need to have fun, for once!

honestly, the company stole some of the best years of your life, for nothing!"

i close my eyes, fighting back a crushing wave of pain.

"what does that have to with this?"

"they stole them. i'm going to give them back."

yuzuki wraps an arm around me, pushing the flyer into my hands.

"c'mon. it opens in fifteen minutes!"

and before i know what's happening,

she has whisked me away from

the dreary streets and

into a wind-whipped

cotton-candy dream.