“Hey…”

“Mm…”

“Hey, are ‘ya up?”

“Mm, who is it?”

“Ah, she’s alive! Oi, wake up!”

“Eh?!” Nana got up suddenly as she heard someone call to her. She looked around and found herself in a forest, almost as if from a fantasy world.

“You okay?” A voice said to her.

She looked and saw a young woman standing in front of her, wearing a white dress. She had dark hair and black eyes and was very beautiful.

“Ah, yes.” Nana said before getting up and bowing before her. “Um, who are you?”

“I’m Yuka. And you are?”

“Nana. Okada Nana. I’m here to pick up my friend, Sae.”

“Eh? Sae-chan’s here?!”

“You know Sae?”

“Yea. Me and ‘er were real good friends.”

“An Osaka dialect…” Nana had noticed the girl’s speaking.

“Do you know where she may be?”

“Mm~ there may be one place. I can show ya if ya want.”

“Yes, please!”

“Good. Jyaa, follow me.”

…..

I have to know the truth.

While the others were talking to Umechan and Mariya, I met up with Miichan in her office. I need to talk to her about what was going on with me.

“Miichan…”

“Hm? What’s wrong?”

“We need to talk.” I said, sitting down. “I’ve been thinking about what you were telling us. About the Awakening…”

“What about it?”

“I feel like you’ve been hiding something from me.”

She suddenly froze up. I knew it, she is hiding something.

“Did someone erase my memory?”

“Mako…”

“You need to tell me. Is there something you’re hiding that I’m not supposed to know? Did the Senate do something to me without me knowing?!”

“That’s not true.”

“Miichan!”

“Listen, you’re probably just stressed. Don’t worry.”

“It’s not stress! There’s something going on and you aren’t telling me. Please, just tell me and—”

Suddenly, she held her hand in front of me and my world went black. I felt this pain in my head, like something was trying to invade my mind.

Then, I heard the voice of Miichan.

“I must… stay true to my word… I.. I am a member of the Senate… I…”

Eh? Miichan is a member of the Senate? Does that mean… she’s trying to erase my memory right now?

Her voice broke and I heard her crying. “I’m sorry, Mako… I’m so sorry..! It’s just… too early.”

What?

“Mako!” That voice, Hoshina! “Mako, are you okay? Can you hear me?”

Y-yes.

“Listen, the charm that Mariko gave you, it’s what’s preventing Miichan from erasing your memory.”

The charm? But, why would she do this?

“This isn’t the first time the Senate has erased your memory.”

Eh?

“They’ve been watching over you for a long time. Ever since you were a child, you held strong potential. They only did all this to protect you.”

Why? Why so far, though?

“I know all of this is confusing for you, but it will all be explained soon. For now, I want you to pretend as if Miichan did erase your memory of what happened. Trust me, it’ll all be clear.”

Okay… Thank you, Hoshina.

As my vision came back, I was still sitting in front of Miichan, but she wasn’t crying anymore. I pretended to act confused, just as Hoshina told me.

“Uh, what were we talking about?”

“Oh, you were talking about Sae.”

“Oh, yes. Is she going to be okay?”

“Don’t worry. I trust Nana will find her. Besides, there is one other person there…”

“Eh?”

Wait, she did mention that this happened before…

“Is there someone else who was trapped in the Spirit Realm?”

“Yes… Unfortunately, her physical body couldn’t be saved and she died. Her soul is still in the Spirit world.”

“Who was she?”

“Her name was Masuda Yuka. She was the offspring of a fairy known as the *Utahime and was sent to Earth after her mother’s death.”

“Utahime?”

“The Utahime is known for holding a beautiful singing voice. And Yuka herself did. She loved singing and would do so almost every day, so she was a treasured singer in the agency.”

“How did she become trapped?”

“She was a part of DIVA along with Sae, Umechan, and Sayaka. The three were able to make it back, but Yuka…”

She sighed before continuing. It must’ve been hard.

“She stayed to fight so that the Spirit Realm could be protected… She never came back.”

“I’m so sorry…”

“It’s okay. We’ve had to cope with losses before.”

I nodded.

But, in the back of my mind, I was still a bit worried. Now that I know that the Senate has been erasing my memory, I need to figure out why.

And, more importantly, just how much was erased.

“Mako! Miichan!” Rina suddenly ran in and interrupted our conversation. “You gotta come see this! There’s this huge wolf on the roof!”

“A wolf?!”

“Masaka… the ookami!”

…..

“So, Yuka…” Nana said as the older girl guided her through the forest. “Why are you here? You said that you and Sae were friends.”

“Ah, that. Yea, I used to live on Earth before I came ‘ere.”

“So, you were… trapped?”

“Hey, I’m not sad about it. I had to do what I needed to, and now I protect this place.”

“But don’t you miss the others?”

“Of course! But, I’m never lonely here.”

“But…”

Yuka stopped walking and turned to face Nana.

“Look, ya wanna know the truth? I never expected any of this. I didn’t know who or.. what I was, but when I did, I saw just how much I was capable of. Haven’t you ever felt like that?”

Nana didn’t exactly know if she did herself, but she felt the same way about Mako. She felt that there was something incredibly special about her sleeping inside, waiting to be woken up.

“Yes, I understand.”

Yuka nodded and smiled. She stretched out before taking in a deep breath.

Stargazer
Maware! Maware!! Chikyuu
Koko de umareta inochi
Tsuyoku ikite hanachitai HIKARI

Nana was blown away by the girl’s voice. She never heard one so powerful as well as beautiful.

Her heart was pounding as she listened. She felt the passion within the sound and it made her chest feel light.

Atsuku kokoro tsunagu kizuna
Tomo ni tatakau kimi to

Hitomi ni mau honoo
Towa ni hibiku kodou
Kyoumei e ku kanjou
JIRIJIRI mezameru CHIKARA
Kagayake Destination!

“Wow…”

“Alright! Now I’m pumped! C’mon, this way!”

Yuka grabbed Nana’s hand again and was now running, dragging her down a path within the deepest part of the forest.

When they finally reached the end, Nana saw a pond of crystal clear water shining under the moon’s light, white lily flowers surrounding it. In the water, she could see Sae sleeping in the pond, a peaceful look on her face.

But, what caught her attention the most was a beautiful young woman knelt down in front of the pond, watching over the genki girl.

“Yaa, Sayaka,” Yuka said.

Sayaka turned and when she saw Yuka, she gave a soft smile.

“Hi.”

“Just ‘hi’?! It’s been too long!” Yuka laughed and hugged the Moon fairy.

Sayaka broke the hug and walked towards the younger girl, who was staring in awe at her beauty.

“Could it be you’re here for Sae?”

“Y-yes… You’re Sayaka-san. I’ve heard many stories about you.”

“Have you? That’s good. I’m glad Sae didn’t forget about me.”

“Of course not! I’ve seen how much she loves you. Sae-san… surely did keep her promise.”

Sayaka smiled. She looked up at the full moon shining over the garden. This place was somewhat peaceful, easing the girls’ hearts.

Then, Nana started singing…

Ore wa hitori de
Hageshi ame no naka
Tsubunure utarete takatta

Sayaka’s head turned to face the girl. “That song. How do you..?”

“I’m not sure… It just came to me in a dream.”

Yogoreta karada to minikui kokoro wo
Arainagasou to etanda

Then, Sayaka added her voice in.

Konna jidai ni nani wo shinjite
Ikite itara ii no darou
Toikakete mo
Kotae wa denai

Kizutsuku koto wo
Osorete wa inai
Donna ni kitsu michinori mo
Chippoke na chippoke na ore wa
Mae no meri ni
Tatta ippiki no mushi ni naru

Sayaka took the hand where Nana’s ring was and kissed it.

“Now, I will always be a part of you.”

Nana blushed a bit, entranced by the fairy’s beauty. She simply nodded and went over to the pond where Sae was still deep asleep.

“She was healing.”

“I had to keep her here so that she would die if she came back.”

“Thank you, both of you. I will gladly bring her home now,” Nana said, bowing before the two.

She then proceeded to pick Sae up and place her outside of the pond, setting her on the soft grass.

“How do I bring her back?”

“Hold her hand and let both of your spirits be guided by the moon.”

“Understood. Goodbye.”

Nana held the girl’s hand and closed her eyes, slowly feeling her soul being pulled back to her world.

…..

We made it to the roof and saw Kaiba’s ookami was already attacking the others. But, this time, Kaiba’s not there.

“Did it finally lose it?”

“We’d better stop it before it rampages on the city.”

“On it!” I kissed my ring and transformed, summoning my sword.

I slashed the wolf’s claw, but it only became angered and tried to grab me. Nagisa stepped in front with her shield and protected me.

“Mako, go up top!”

“Alright!”

I jumped up along with Mio as she started throwing her throwing stars and tried to cut the wolf. I jumped on top of its back and jumped down before grabbing onto its tail. It roared and threw me back, making me hit the wall.

“Ow..!”

“Mako!”

The wolf was about to attack, but then I screamed out and a figure stepped in front of me. I saw a long spear slash the wolf and push it back.

Could it be..?

I looked at the figure and saw a pair of familiar eyes.

“Nana!”

The wolf was about to slash her again, but then Nana held out her hand and stopped it. I heard her sing a note and the wolf had calmed down, the red glow in its eyes disappearing.

“Wha..?”

The ookami had become calm and obedient. It knelt down so Nana could pet it and shrunk to the size of a small dog, turning into a white puppy.

“Sugoi~”

“Nana, how did you do that?”

“A fairy from the Spirit Realm taught me.”

I watched as the others were fawning over the new puppy. Now, we have a new addition to our agency.

Then, I realized…

If Nana’s here, then that means..!

“Sae!”

…..

“Sae, wake up! Sae!” Umechan shook the short haired girl.

Sae’s eyes slowly opened as she weakly smiled in front of the shorter girl.

“Hey, Umechan…”

“Sae!” Umechan cried as she hugged her friend. “Thank God…”

“Mou, quit crying. I’m fine, see? Never been better.”

“But… I almost lost you.”

“Sorry… but, someone needed me over there.” She held her chest, smiling as her cheeks blushed.

I smiled and looked back at Miichan, who sighed as she leaned against the wall. The small white puppy was sleeping next to her feet.

I still remember Hoshina’s words.

“This isn’t the first time the Senate has erased your memory.”

I took Mariko’s charm out of my pocket. How could she have possibly known that the Senate was erasing my memory? Was it a hunch, or…?

“Yo!” Just then, a loud voice boomed in the room.

It was none other than Sashihara Rino.

“Sasshi, what are you-?”

“Tomonaga!” she said, pointing at Mio. “I’m here for you!”

“Eh?”

================================

Footnotes

*1. Utahime – A fairy known for holding a beautiful singing voice. It is said that an Utahime’s song held healing qualities. The first Utahime, Ange, created the first Holy Lyric.