Nobu and Shion led us up the hallway in silence.

She'd lit another match and they'd stared at each other in the bathroom. Tetsu had greeted her, and she'd warmly introduced herself. She said she was so glad to finally meet him, having been following his blog. This surprised me, but I didn't say anything.

Now as we went back up the hallway, I knew I only had a short time to process this. Watching her tall form, taller now than Nobu with her punk platform boots on. We hadn't seen her in three years, hadn't heard a word. No one from Hexen had contacted us. I was happy with that. It took a lot off of me, not having to talk to them. But now. And to find out she'd been following Tetsu's blog, reading about me? All those details? Why in the world would she do that?

I thought everyone in Hexen hated us. Annie's death was caused directly by her knowing us. By her knowing me...

But, in a few moments, we'd be back in the break room. The rest of Lyra would see her. Know she's here. And why was she here? It didn't make any sense to me. She was suddenly here, in this building. Why would she-

As soon as we entered the doorway, the answer hit me. I got my confirmation just as suddenly.

"Shion!" Keitaro gasped. "What are you doing here?! Oh, I'm so glad you found us! Is the rest of Kugeln in the building? Were you practicing? I know you like to practice late into the evening. Did you all get caught up in this, too? Let's get them here so we can all be together!" He ran to her, ushering her to our table and crowded chairs. His hands went around her shoulders, the height difference total and awkward, as it always was with her with everyone but Nobu.

My eyes were as wide as everyone else's from Lyra. They were frozen in their seats, observing her form. They were seeing a ghost, just like Nobu and I had.

Davy came over to her, meeting them in the middle of the room. He drew a chair out for her, helping her over to us. They knew her completely. They were her friends.

Kugeln. Was that her band now? Had Hexen broken up, and now Shion was in a band that was signed to Fleeting World? Were we being thrust together, possibly by fate?

As I joined the table, next to Masaki, my hand went to my chest. My eyes bugged, realizing that my body was answering me. My breathing was quickening, my heart pounding. What a terrible time for this to happen now. Masaki was staring at Shion, who sat opposite him. And Nobu... He was standing in the doorway, not moving.

"Did you have something to eat? Are you hungry?" Keitaro asked. "Did you try to leave and find out that downstairs is flooded?"

"What, downstairs is flooded? Oh no-o," Shion sighed, her hand going to her forehead. She was acting a lot more casual than she should have. But, then I remembered. That was just her nature. Acting like everything was okay, no matter what. Trying to make others feel better, by keeping a calm head. Not saying much, quieter than the rest of us. Memories were flooding back.

"Where were you?" Davy asked. "Let's call Kugeln. We'll get them up here."

Shion shook her head. "I'm the only one. I came here after work to practice. You know my apartment building. They get so mad when I practice late at night. This is the only place where I can practice in peace. I just got finished. I came up here to grab a snack and look who I bumped into."

So casual. Even knowing her nature, how could she be so calm?

Tetsu sat next to me, just as curious as Keitaro and Davy. It was all over his face. He grabbed my hand, but looked at me in alarm. I squeezed his hand to assure him, but he reacted before my intent could spread to him.

"Sana, are you okay?" He asked quickly, breathless. "You're holding your chest- are you..." He took my hand down from my chest and flicked my wrist, revealing my watch face. My heart rate was elevated too much. He noticed my breathing at the same time. He let out Japanese noises of worry. "Ara, ara..." He gasped. "Sana, are you okay?"

"Let's lay him down on the couch in the meeting room. We were going to before," Nobu said, jumping into action. He moved from the doorway toward us, seeming to come back to himself. His expression before had been somewhere in space.

"I'm okay," I tried to assure Tetsu. He didn't need to be worried right now. "I'm just excited to see Shion. I haven't seen her in so long." I tried to smile, but... Thinking about our circumstance. We both knew she hadn't contacted us in three years, almost four. The awkwardness of this situation was overwhelming.

She jumped up. "Then, I'm going to help you to the couch," she said, smiling. It made me clench Tetsu's hand involuntarily.

He noticed this, and his eyes went wider. Everything was happening so fast. He got up and wheeled me away. No one else in Lyra had said a word during the exchange. Too in shock, just like me. We went up the hallway, Nobu leading us along with Shion.

Something deep inside of me didn't want her to be here. Some childish side, refusing. Being faced with this now. How could it happen? But I didn't have to wait long for an answer.

"So, Kugeln is signed to Fleeting World?" Nobu asked as we went up the hallway. It sounded almost accusatory.

"And Lyra is now, too?" Shion retorted.

"When were you going to tell me that?" He asked, ignoring her. "When were you going to talk to me at all? Didn't you care?" He asked, clearly irritated. "You said you've been following along with Tetsu's blog. You knew about all of this, but you didn't call me? How heartless can you be?"

She didn't talk after that. We made our way into the meeting room, with her holding the door open for us. Nobu had let the door slam in her face, but she didn't react. We went over to the couch, and they helped me out of my chair. I sat on the couch, and Shion arranged my legs comfortably, helping me get in a laid position, as Tetsu eased me down and arranged a throw pillow behind my head. So kindly, Shion took off her warm looking knitted punk poncho sweater and laid it over me, almost like a blanket. It was warm with her body heat.

All of this, her actions, were confusing me. She was so kind to me. But, she hadn't spoken to me in almost four years... Wasn't she mad at me? At us? I didn't know how to react. At the same time, Tetsu was taking this in stride. He didn't know who she was. He was acting calm, too, or trying to. He knelt down beside me on the floor, arranging my hair just like every day. The light went out, and I realized Shion's match must have gone out.

Just as quickly, the sound of immolation, and we had light again. She strode forward, leaning over to see Tetsu better. She was smiling. So strange. I didn't remember her smiling so much when I knew her. She always acted so cool, above it all almost. I knew there was a kindness there, but it was never overt.

"Hello, I'm Shion," she said, formally introducing herself. "I play the drums with the band Kugeln. We've been with Fleeting World for two years. I'm so glad to finally meet you." She thrust her hand toward him. He blinked several times, clearly taken aback. He let her take his hand, and they shook them together.

"I'm Tetsu," he said back. "You said you follow my blog? You know I'm Aurelia?" Ah, there was the confusion. It was all over his face.

"Oh, yes. Keitaro talks about you all the time. I'm sorry, if I shouldn't know that. I saw on your blog that you don't advertise your real identity. I respect that. Onnagata don't often show themselves, do they? I respect that highly." She bowed a little in respect.

"Thank you. I'm glad that you and Keitaro are friends. He can be a little forward, I know."

"Oh, that I know." She laughed a little. Tetsu followed her laugh, chuckling with her. But, his eyes didn't join in, there weren't any crinkles at their edges. He wasn't enjoying this.

Of course he wasn't. I'd told him about her. How she and the rest of Hexen hadn't spoken to us after what happened. In that way, I'd colored his opinion of her before they met. And they weren't supposed to meet. None of this should have been happening. I felt my heartbeat going quicker. It wasn't good. Weakness was settling in, and if I didn't get it under control...

"He's a mentor of sorts to me," she went on. "I know he's a mentor of yours, too. He told me so. I'm glad we can share in that. I want to get know you more."

Tetsu's mouth opened to respond, but I couldn't let them keep going. I needed him, and that something inside, the childish something, was pulling at me. Wanting her to leave. It was becoming more obvious to me why.

I didn't want to face her. Seeing Nobu standing awkwardly next to the meeting table, pretending like he wasn't here, staring at his hands like he had something stuck under his nail. He didn't want to see her either. Avoiding the situation like that.

I knew they'd been closer than any of us back then. They were always stuck together like glue, gravitating towards each other. I wouldn't say they were best friends, but it really was like a gravitational pull. Something pulling them together, impossible to get away from each other. They were drawn to each other, and everyone could see that. Annie always said that she thought there was something between them, and I had to agree. But, Shion hadn't spoken to him in almost four years...

At the same time that I clenched Tetsu's hand and opened my mouth, Nobu sprang into action and robbed those words out of my head.

"Come on, Shion, I have to talk to you," he said, his voice highly irritated just like before. He grabbed her arm and wrenched her away. She was about to speak, but left the room with him before she could say more.

"Oh, uh-" Tetsu gasped, almost in a protest, in a flurry. His head whipped around. "It was nice to meet you!" He called out to her. She didn't respond. Her light was disappearing down the hallway beyond the glass, stumbling.

I tried to breathe, trying to steady myself. "Tetsu, do you know who that was?" I asked, my hand going over my heart. It was racing. I had to get myself under control. "That was Shion, from Hexenpunk. Annie's band. She's with Fleeting World now? How? Why? Why is she here?" My hand went over my face, trying to come to grips.

"It's okay," he said, more calm in voice than he'd looked under her fire light. "We can talk about it, but I need to get you relaxed first. That was a lot to take in. It's okay, baby."

His hand appeared on my chest, finding mine. It laced between my fingers, softly holding there, over my too quickly beating heart.