Ai's very self resists your pull for a moment. But once your intention registers, she lets you drag her off. The invisible chain holding her is broken, and she arrives in a shower of golden sparks.
Courage and Wrath pay her no mind, too busy staring into each other's eyes.
"There is no place in the world for us, but the one we make," Courage says sadly. "And nothing lasts without proper guidance."
Wrath snorts, dragging her hooved foot. A gurgle reverberates through her throat. "Nothing ever lasts," she growls, spitting flecks of acid into Courage's face. "But as long as we live, we can build anew. And we can't live if we trust in others."
"And what's so wrong about trusting?" Ai interjects pointedly.
Two pairs of burning eyes turn to her, not that she seems to care. Marching forward with determination, Ai reaches into her pocket and shoulders the Servant aside. Or at least she tries that, but Wrath's massive body does not budge an inch.
Ai just rolls her eyes, ignores the warning growl, and steps around the beast. Then she gently wipes the acid off Courage's face, using the tattered remains of her blindfold. She kept it all this time.
"Life's not worth living without others," she tells the magical girl as she works. "It's empty and sad. Nobody deserves that, least of all you. Sure, it's nice to have peace and quiet, but too much of a good thing can become poison."
Courage lowers her gaze, ashamed of her own weakness.
"I'm not like you," she whispers tonelessly. "I can talk and talk and talk, but when the chips are down I freeze up. It took all my will to just keep her contained. Only a few words and a familiar face can shatter all my composure. I don't want to feel this way."
The moment she says it, Wrath shoulder-checks Ai away. She is thrown back and onto her ass, staring dumbly at the towering beast. The Servant interposes herself between Ai and Courage, who looks down at her with empty eyes.
"I'm the one who protects us," Wrath spits. "When our courage fails us and we're betrayed, then I tear our enemies apart."
A beat.
Ai slowly gets back to her feet. The Servant's malveolent aura becomes palpable, trying to press her back down and scare her away. But Ai is undaunted, face impassive.
"So that's what this is. You're a part of each other," she judges, glancing between the two. At first she thought of some alter ego shenanigans, but this is more involved. Courage and Wrath are expressions of the same person.
"Why aren't you attacking me, then?"
Wrath is silent. Courage is silent.
Ai's lips quirk up.
"It's because, deep down, you still want to believe. You're waiting for me to hit you, or to say I don't care, or anything like that. Something you can spin into that betrayal you're waiting for. Now that I can see all of who you are."
Courage twitches. Wrath growls warningly.
Ai steps forward and hugs the Servant, shutting her up instantly. Despite being a two metre tall behemoth of pure muscle, her body is surprisingly soft. The eye across her abdomen widens before snapping shut.
"And you know what? Fuck you, I love you anyway. You're my friend. All of you."
The Servant of Wrath shudders as if struck. She drags her feet and gurgles helplessly, unable to lash out.
"You don't even have hands to hold someone, or hug them back," Ai murmurs sadly. "It shouldn't be like this."
Wrath shudders again, then draws back and thrusts her rump forward. The force of her awkward tackle dislodges Ai, who goes flying again. But rather than get upset or scared, she rises again and comes back.
When she tries to hug Wrath again, the Servant shies away. And in doing so, she lets Ai get at Courage. The magical girl is swept up in her arms, holding onto Ai with bone-creaking force.
"You can do it," Ai whispers to her gently, full of conviction. "I know you can. I believe in you. You're stronger than you know."
Yuki's eyes are blown wide. She shivers in Ai's arms, scrounging up her courage. Her heart is torn in two.
Finally, she nods against Ai. The moment she lets go, Ai releases her and lets her face the Servant again. She understands now, has known for a while. But only at this moment does the reality actually register.
"A life without bonds is meaningless," she says. "We were always too scared to admit it, even though we always knew. Isn't that why we yearn so much for them?"
"We yearn because we're weak," Wrath answers. "One can't miss what they never had! Allowing another into our heart only causes pain when they leave it!"
"A single betrayal shouldn't colour our relationships for the rest of time!" Yuki shouts back. Her defiance grows, with Ai smiling at her back.
The flames around them grow higher and brighter in response. Wrath is cast in stark shadows, roaring back at her.
"You say that, but even now I'm you! I'm all your impulses, all your feelings, and you hate me! How often did you think you want me gone! How often did you repress me!"
"You're right!" Yuki shouts back, revealing a deep voice full of anguish and hope. "I was scared of you, because you're me! But I'm not scared anymore! Come back to me! Now!"
"This isn't how it ends," the Servant hisses, even as she lumbers closer. "We don't just change because we want to. You can't deny me forever."
"But we can change once we realise we must," Yuki answers, opening her arms. "And you're right. I won't deny you. We need to find equilibrium."
She wraps her arms around Wrath's legs. The Servant stops to glare down at her, slowly losing shape. A writhing, angry red mass of energy flows back into Yuki, who stands frozen with her arms out.
All the emptiness in her heart is filled once more. The boundless wrath is near impossible to resist. She wants to scream, tear, break, kill, maim. No matter who, no matter what. Shout her anger at the world, make it bear the consequences of allowing Yuki in it.
Yuki quivers, snarling. Her fingers bend like claws as she grasps her head, digging into her skull. Yuki groans under the mental pressure.
Ai was watching the exchange hawkishly. Seeing her friend bend and buckle now, she swiftly makes to speak up. But a pink-tinged chain emerges from nowhere, wrapping around her throat.
"Enough of that," the Hermit's voice echoes in her ear, only drawing a pained grunt from Yuki. "Begone."
The chain drags Ai out of existence, locking her up so tight even you can not reach her this time. But while the Hermit was busy weaving a tighter prison just for this one intruder, the others are still free.
You reach out again.
[] Kirika, The Longing Quiet
[] Yuma, She Who Yet Lives
[] Homura, The Burning Heart
[] Ai, Midnight Of Purple
[] Kyoko, Hope In Her Heart
[] Mami, Of Unwavering Devotion
[] Nagisa, Herald Of Halcyon Days
[] Madoka, The One Reborn
-Ai's disposition changes from "Friendly" to "Friend"
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfTWgMgknpY[/URL]
"Is this really alright? Your friends are fighting, yet you're stuck here."
"I'm aware of the situation, yes. But this is temporary, I merely need to wait for the right moment."
"What if it doesn't come? You're a smart girl, you know that life isn't always that convenient."
"Of course. Life never gives us an easy out. We need to make it."
"I agree. But how do you want to make your own opportunity in here? You're stuck, Oriko. There's power enough to escape at your fingertips, but you won't grasp it. Why is that?"
"And who are you to address me with such familiarity? I can tell you don't belong to the Hermit of the Azure Forest, she couldn't weave something like you. But that still doesn't tell me your name, or what you want from me."
"Oh, heh, I'm sorry. I should have led with that."
"My name is Carmen."
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