Foxes always landed on their feet.

Whoever said that fucking lied. I planted my face on the floor. It was a miracle that nothing broke, and that the floor wasn’t covered in some kind of filthy substance.

As expected of something buried deep underground, everything was dark. Before I could light a fire to find my way out of here, I heard a voice.

“Huh? Did someone fall down?”

It was clearly a girl’s voice.

“I don’t know. But we should find them just in case. Maybe they can help us.” This time, it was a man’s voice.

“As expected of Onii-san!”

A shudder ran through my body. I could stay silent and ambush them, or….

Fuck it. I’ll just kil— knock them out if they're hostile.

“Anybody there?”

After a few moments of silence, the man spoke up.

“Did you just fall into here?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, you’re like us, then.”

I sniffed the air around me. It was full of the stench of Leghuggers; dastardly creatures that would swarm their prey and eat them alive.

This must be the nest. How….

“Did you kill the Leghuggers?”

“Is that what they’re called? Don’t worry, we already wiped them out.”

“Is that so?” I lit a fire a few feet away from me. “Okay. Do you see the fire?”

“Yes.”

“Slowly approach it. I’ll wait for you there.”

I stood still and placed my hand on Requiem’s handle; ready to strike if they proved to be some kind of creature mimicking human voice.

Luckily, they weren’t. The first to step inside the light was a girl with…. W-What?

“Violette….? Is that you!?”

The girl, definitely Violette, turned toward my voice and tilted her head in confusion.

“How do you know my name?”

Immediately after, the other person also stepped into the light. Edward….

I wanted to just rush toward them right away. However, the timing of this was very fishy. N-No, just a bit more.

“It’s me. Est— I mean Nova.”

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Violette’s eyes widened. “Is it really you?”

“Well, I go by ‘Esther’ nowadays. But before that, tell me something only you would know!”

“The day Fenris died, Nowa….”

“That’s enough.” I interrupted her. It was the little secret that only I, Violette, and Nowa knew. She was really the Violette I knew.

Barely able to contain my smile, I stepped into the light and kept my arms open.

Violette immediately rushed toward me and hugged me tight.

“It’s really you!”

“What did ya expect?” I chuckled. “Are you doing well?”

She nodded. “Of course! Things have been rough ever since… that day, Mistress. But onii-san has been taking care of me.”

I was a bit confused by her manner of speaking, but it was fine. I hadn’t seen her for years, so I had no right to judge.

“You don’t have to call me like that anymore.”

The reason was obvious, and Violette knew it. However, she refused. “Old habits die hard, I guess. Mistress, I feel more comfortable speaking this way. You’d allow it, won’t you?”

“Well, if you don’t mind.”

I then looked at Edward. We were always a bit distanced from each other, so it was probably unfit for us to hug as a gesture of reunion. Still, it was a bit strange seeing him scratching his chin in thought.

“What are ya thinking about?”

“Huh? Nothing.” Edward flustered and cleared his throat.

Smiling, I held out my fist. “Come on.”

Edward looked unsure. He lightly bumped it and retracted his hand.

I furrowed my brow. Did he forget? We were supposed to shake hands and give each other a high-five after that. But well, maybe he had more things to worry about in those years than remember a silly little greeting I forced him to make.

But then I noticed something strange. Sheathed on his waist was a curved sword. A katana.

“Hey, didn’t you use spears?”

Edward widened his eyes. Shifting his sword ever so slightly that I wouldn’t see it, he coughed. “W-Well, I just found the katana to be better.”

“...But you hated katana….”

“Hey! People can change, alright? What’s with the questions!?”

He snapped at me. I didn’t think he raised his voice at me once until now. I looked at Violette for support, only to find her shaking her head at me.

“Onii-san’s right. His change was pretty sudden, even for me. It’s like he changed overnight. But I learned to accept him for who he is now.”

Edward chuckled nervously.

…Maybe I’m wrong. But it just didn’t make any sense. Edward always rambled on and on about how much better spears were than swords to the point that I had to stop Nira from killing him in his sleep.

He especially hated katanas for their fragileness. And here he was, exploring the ruins with nothing but a katana.

B-But if I can use spells, maybe Edward changing to swords isn’t so strange….

And maybe I wasn’t as close to the siblings as I thought.

“I’m sorry…. But it’s still good seeing you guys again.”

Violette smiled and hugged me once more. “I’m glad to see you too, Mistress. Oh, and onii-san don’t go by his old name anymore.”

Welp, another change. But I also changed my name, so I had no right to complain.

“What do I call him now?”

“Takuto.” Violette let go of me and stood by Edward’s side. Ah, Takuto’s side, I guessed. She tip-toed to reach his height and planted a deep kiss on his lips. “Takuto Kageyama. My dear onii-chan….”

Edward smiled and kissed her back even more passionately.

My eyes turned sharp. My fingers twitched as I reflexively placed my hand on the sheath, but I managed to control myself.

No, I was right.

That’s not fucking Edward.

Violette is still Violette, but she’s not really herself.

After all….

You wanted to fuck my Mom and Ria, Edward. You liked older women. The you I know would never treat Violette like that.

And, upon closer inspection of the way he stared at me, I was even more sure of my conclusion.

The you I know wouldn’t look at me like that. Those fucking lusty eyes aren’t Edward’s.