The light flickered in the shabby little apartment. The fixture swinging as a train shook the house. I stood back against the cupboards, the faded, yellowish wallpaper peeling. The glare danced off Luca's eyes. He pulled out a chair. I wasn't sure where else to bring him. This was the closest thing I had to home.

My hands shook slightly, my heart beat still sporadic. What do you say after five years? I didn't even know if I really even knew him anymore. I gave a nervous twitch, my eyes falling to the wrinkles on his shirt. "How long have you been here?" I asked.

He slouched in his chair. "Five or six days?" He looked down at his shirt, trying to smooth it out. "If I smell at all, I'm sorry."

I gawked at him. "You've been here for that long? Gosh, Luca, have been sleeping outside?" He pursed his lips, looking away. He has. I hung my shoulders. Wow, six days. "Are you hungry?" I stepped back, scanning the drawers, "I don't know what I have, but I'm guessing there's something."

He opened his mouth, shutting it. He smiled. "Only if you have something."

I nodded my head. "There's gotta be something edible here," I hummed, moving to the pantry. "I know Drake picked up some groceries, Drake's my old boss, friend, what have you." I shuffled through the dark closet. "I only just moved in here." I pulled a cereal box off the top shelf, stepping out. I shook the box. "Do you want to try cereal?"

"Sure." He rested his hand on the table. "But any food sounds good right about now."

I grabbed a bowl out of the cupboard. "It's hard to live here without money, people aren't particularly generous, most can't afford to be." I walked back with the bowl and the cereal box, setting them down.

He took my hand. "But I wasn't fifteen." His eyes intense, guilt behind his gaze. He slipped his hand away. "I can't imagine, Phyn."

I shrugged my shoulders. "I survived...I'm good at that." I turned towards the fridge. "Honestly, the whole first year was blurr, after that things got better." I walked over to the fridges, grabbing the milk out.

He met my eyes. "From what I can tell you've done more than just survive." He leaned on his arm. "Or is this Angel of Fortitude I keep hearing about someone else?"

My face went red, I gave a laugh, "Well it's being blown out of proportion-"

"I disagree." He raised his eyebrows. "I watched the world come alive in a matter of days. You can't pretend you're not a part of that."

I set down the milk jug, clenching my jaw. I broke open the cereal box. "Part, is the key word."

He pushed the box out of the way. "I heard your speech, the one to Vitriol."

"Oh, that." I rolled my eyes. "I don't even remember what I said." I picked up the box, pouring the flakes of corn into a bowl. "It was a last stitch effort."

"Exactly." Luca snapped his fingers. "If you can improvise a speech like that, imagine what you could be capable of…" His shoulders dropped. "You could rally an army."

An army? I blinked at him, setting down the box. "Do you need an army?"

Luca gritted his teeth. "Not exactly...I don't know what we need." His eyes drifting to a lost hopelessness, I swallowed my spit. What happened?

I poured the milk into the bowl, sliding it to him. "So Tetrad after I left…"

"Merle is still a problem, he's destroyed all the capitals, and Arcane. He's been targeting the Remedy and mobility. We've survived alright by hiding, but the future doesn't look good." He took a spoon of his cereal.

I slid into one of the chairs. "The future, future? Or is this just a bad feeling?"

Luca's eyes wavered. "It's hard to explain...I thought the catastrophe was the fall of Tetrad, but I'm not sure now." He took a breath. "Something has changed."

I frowned. "Changed how?"

"I've been locked in tunnel vision, trying to find you, fighting to stop Merle." He met my eyes, a sliver of fear creeping out. "A portion of the future, it's gone."

I squinted. "Gone? What do you mean by gone?"

He rubbed his eyes. "It's not like I can see everything in the future, but I do have a sense, like an indiscernible blurr of the timeline." He shook his head. "But now there's a void, something ripped right from it. It's just dark."

I bit my lip. If it lines up with the hundred year gap Ingrid found… "Where on the timeline?"

Luca stirred his bowl. "That's the thing, this is still ahead of both of us."

I shivered. It can't be the hundred years. "I don't understand…"

He put his spoon down. "I don't either. Maybe it has something to do with jumping through time, but then it would've happened before, when you left. Something else must have changed."

"Are you saying there's something worse on the horizon?"

Luca shook his head. "I don't know, and that's what's terrifying." His eyes flickered, he cleared his throat. "But it's more than that, I was wrong about your fight in the cursed city, our whole fight with Merle. I think the timeline has altered, and that means whatever I see…"

"Could be wrong…" I covered my mouth. "Are you sure that's even possible-"

"I saw you kill Merle and you didn't."

I slouched my shoulders. "But I still could...." I drifted my gaze to the window. "If you can get here, then it's possible to go back, and I can finish what we started. That's why you're here, isn't it?"

Luca's eyes went wide. "No, that's not-" he shook his head. "I'm not here for that. It was my fault you ended up here, how on earth was I going to abandon you?"

I pursed my lips. "It's entered your mind though, right? If I'm still alive, I can still kill Merle."

"But, it's not your responsibility," Luca said. "You've made a life here, you don't even have to come back if you don't want to."

I lifted my chin. "But what will happen if I don't?"

Luca winced. "That's not important...I convinced you to fight him last time, and look what happened-"

"I decided to face him alone, I deviated from the plan. This is my fault."

"No, this is Merle's fault." Luca threw a fist on the table. "He's the one burning cities, and killing people. He hurt you."

"He did…" I brushed a strand of hair back, my fingers resting on the scar. "But he hurt you too and he will hurt more people," I mumbled, getting up from the chair. I stepped towards the window. Dirt smudged across the glass, a blurry city street outside, just a corner of this lonely world. I tapped my fingers on the glass. "I'm no longer afraid of him." I gritted my teeth at my own reflection, Kendall's dead eyes laughing at me. I'm not invulnerable in any world. I shivered.

Luca turned. "You don't have to decide right now."

I shook my head. I held my breath, stepping back from the window frame. I'm going back, I have too. I turned around, letting the breath out. "You never told me how you got here?"

Luca took another bite of cereal, pausing. "You left your bag by the fire." He wiped his mouth. "There was a bandana with a couple of your hairs caught in it-"

"You used my hair?" I scrunched up my face.

He laughed, "Ya, I needed a way to create a reaction between your powers and Merle's. I started with those hairs, and some of Merle's blood, trying to figure out how to spark a reaction. Then there was the challenge of how to even control where it would take me, or how to get back."

I blinked at him. "How did you get Merle's blood?"

Luca raised an eyebrow. "Ha, well that is a long story, involving a rather complicated ambush."

"And no small risk?" I smirked at him.

Luca rolled his eyes, leaning back in his chair. "This whole thing was a risk." His eyes met mine. "But it paid off."

I nodded my head, resting my hands on the other chair. We have no choice but to take risks. I cleared my head. "I need a day...then I'm ready to go back."

"Phyn…"

"What do you expect me to say? This world will move on without me." I raised my chin. "I belong in the past. I never finished that fight."

"But you have a choice," Luca growled. "You're still giving something up here."

Either way I say goodbye to something. I took a breath. "I'm going to my friend's funeral tomorrow, then I'm saying goodbye to my friends, and after that I'll be ready to go."

Luca's face dropped. "You can have more than a day-"

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"I've had five years," my voice broke. I tightened my fists, resting them on the table. I want redemption...real redemption. I will not pretend. I lifted my head. "I'm ready to face this." I'm ready to face my failure.

Luca's eyes wavered, his mouth stuck. "Okay…" he whispered, searching my eyes again. "If you're sure."

I nodded my head. "I am."

He slid his chair back, his eyes flickered back on mine. "What they said in the papers...it was worse than they know...?"

My chest grew tight, I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't really know what they've said," I mumbled. I slipped back from the table. "They wanted me for my ability, to use me." I took the empty bowl to the sink. Greedy fingers clawing for power. Running with water, I checked the temperature. I moved a stack of plates in the sink. "This place is a mess, I'm sorry," I mumbled, grabbing a sponge.

"It's fine, " Luca said over my shoulder. Was it worse than they knew? I picked up a plate, scrubbing it with the sponge. A spot caked on, I chipped away at it. A red splotch, almost like...blood. Victor's smirk reflected off the plate. I nearly dropped it, my own face staring back. It's fine, I'm fine.

I scrubbed with more fever, trying to erase the red. Gwen's hollow eyes embedded in my mind. Not many how much I scrubbed they remained. A hazy scene replayed, the bullet ringing out. Lewis crumpled to the floor.

Murray standing over him, he turned his gun on me. He hissed, "Murderer." His voice was missing the emotion.

Blood splatter across my fingers, the gun was now in my hands. When did I get this? Blood dripped from Murray's mouth, his face turning to Victor's. Eyes without light, locked in terror. I had to do it, I had to…

If I won, why do I feel like this?

"Phyn, are you alright?" A cloudy voice echoed behind me, hand grabbing hold of my elbow. I shoved it back, the plate slipping from my grasp. It shattered across the floor. My heart stopped.

Luca stumbled back, his eyes going wide. I stepped back, hitting the counter. "...I'm sorry...I'm so sorry..."

He raised his hands, standing back. "Phyn…" he murmured. What's wrong with me?

A tear slipped down my cheek, followed by another, and another. Splashing onto my shirt, I squeezed my eyes shut. Stop it, stop crying. I trembled, trying to stand stiff, trying to push the feeling away.

He lowered his hands, inching closer. "You're okay, Phyn...it's okay," his voice wavered, as he took my hand "Just step away from the glass." The room blurring through tears, I followed his pull.

I wiped my face, avoiding his eyes. "I'm just a little jumpy, that's all," I whispered. Luca nodded his head as we walked away into the other room.

He gave me a weak smile. "Of course." He sat me down on the couch, kneeling beside me. "You don't have to apologize." The dim light shone off his eyes, he slipped his hand away. "I shouldn't have grabbed your arm."

I hunched my shoulders. "No, I...I don't know," I muttered. "I won't do that again."

He squeezed my hand. "You're safe, Phyn. No one's going to hurt you," he lowered his voice. "I will chase all the monsters away." He stared at me through his lashes. "And when you're ready to save the world...I will clear your way."

I blinked back at the instenity in his gaze, the same desperation as that last day. I held his hand tighter. "Okay...but the same goes for you, alright?" I sniffled.

His smirk slipped out. He brushed away my tears. "You're going to protect me too?"

I took a shaky breath. "That's why I'm coming back, isn't it?...I can't let you run yourself into the ground, face this alone."

"Good." He tilted his head, keeping a little smile. "I need an ally like that. I still have a knack for ticking people off."

"We both do," I gave a weak laugh.

A twinkle in his eye, he whispered, "Then it's us against the world." He stood up, slipping his hand from mine. He looked back once. "I'm going to take care of the plate," he said, walking into the other room. Luca's the same. I snuggled into the armrest, resting my head down. Everything good and wonderful in this world. I shut my eyes, drifting away. I slipped out of consciousness.

----------------------------------------

The gentle hum of voices, I twitched. Turning over, my body ached. Stiff as I lifted my head. I rubbed my eyes. I must've dozed off. I untangled myself from a blanket, sitting up on the couch. The quiet voices, picking up. Raine boomed from the other room, "Who even are you anyway?"

Great. I sighed, slipping my feet down. A cup of tea sat on the edge table. I turned the mug lukewarm, taking it in my hand. A little sketch was etched on the tag, a sun peeking out from behind the clouds. I twirled it between my fingers. Luca's here.

"You're the one who broke in," Luca hissed. "If you're so curious you can ask her when she gets up."

"Do you have a reason to hide your identity?" she huffed.

"No, do you?"

I got off the couch, taking a sip of the cold tea. Raine grumbled, "How do I know you aren't here to hurt her?"

Luca snorted, "Don't you think Phyn would've just teleported, if she saw me as a danger."

Raine slammed her hand on the table. "Not if you have the serum."

"What...serum?" he asked. I walked around the couch.

Raine took a breath. "I won't let it happen again. She just got out of a fight without her ability, she's not getting in another one."

Luca hesitated, "You're saying they took away her powers? That's possible?"

I leaned in the doorway. Raine crossed her arms. "I'm not saying anything." She gritted her teeth.

I cleared my throat, "They can temporarily suppress my powers, yes." They both turned their heads. I straightened my shoulders. "But only if they can get that stuff in my bloodstream."

Luca blinked at me. "And they did that?" he said.

I nodded my head, stepping into the room. "I walked right onto a trap."

Raine darted her head. "That didn't stop you though, you still took him down."

"I guess, I did." Even if I ended up a killer.

Luca's eyes were steady. "I see."

I shrugged my shoulders. "Powers or not I pulled through...and I could do it again." I lifted my chin. I promise, I'll beat him this time.

He leaned back in his chair. "You don't have to convince me of that. I know you well enough."

I pulled up my own chair. Raine narrowed her eye, drumming her fingers on the table. "So...is he your boyfriend or something?"

My face turned bright red, I gawked at her. "Not...exactly, I-"

"We're old friends." Luca leaned in. Raine scrunched up her nose, darting her gaze between us.

She widened her smirk. "What do you mean old friends? You're going to need to spell it out for me." Her face switched, twisting up. "Wait, do you mean?"

I nodded my head. "Luca's from the past too."

Raine's face went blank "No way…" she crossed her arms. "That's insane! We aren't going to see past-people popping up all over the place, now are we?"

Luca scratched his chin. "It's possible someone could, but it's not likely. With Phyn and Merle a part, I doubt someone could follow me. There's a lot of things that have to line up to make time travel even possible."

"That's disappointing," Raine yawned. "It would make things more interesting." She flopped back in her chair.

I leaned on the table, blinking at her. "Did you come here for a reason, Raine, or just to visit?

She rubbed her face. "Oliver's losing his mind, cause you just disappeared. Wanted me to check if you were here."

I covered my eyes. "Shoot, I forgot about that."

She waved her hand. "I already messaged him, said you were fine. He's just being Oliver."

I shook my head. "I'm sorry."

Raine snickered, "Oh, I wasn't worried, knew you were itching for freedom-" Her face went blank. "Oh! And I brought your maps." She lifted up her backup. Unzipping the bag, Raine pulled a stack of books out, slamming them on the table.

Luca sat up, sifting through them. He muttered, "This is …"

"A map of Tetrad I drew from memory, overlaid with the current boundaries." I smoothed the pieces out, lining them up. I stitched together the country, the map stretching out to the edges of the table.

Raine traced her hand over the red marker on the Avarice layer, circling the capitals, the cursed city and Arcane. She frowned. "Sorry about marking it up."

Luca pointed at the same spots. "Wait, why did you circle these spots?"

Raine shrugged her shoulders. "There's ruins there, I already told Phyn about it, but they've been left untouched."

I nodded. "And it's not like they haven't rebuilt other cities, Lattice for example." I pursed my lips. "I thought these gaps in history were a problem of my sources...but now with this hundred years. There's something sinister here and maybe it involves the Remedy."

Luca lifted his head. "Wait, back up?"

"Ya, Phyn." Raine raised her eyebrows. "What's this about a hundred years?"

I bit my lip."Ingrid only told me today, just before the founding of Avarice there's a hundred year gap in the historical archive. Everything we know about how Tetrad became Avarice is a blurr, not to mention other things they've hid, like the Tetrad-alliance war, and Merle." I shuffled through the books.

Luca darted his eyes. "They hid Merle?"

I looked up. "Merle and any clear idea of the Remedy." I straightened the leftover stack. "Although they call this country's founding, Redemption day."

Luca's eyes grew wide, he sat back down. "So they still exist..."

"I'm not sure if it's them, or just people who like their ideas."

Luca shook his head. "They are their ideas. If any trace of them survived...Merle destroyed the world for nothing."

I bit my cheek. "We need to understand how this happened."

Raine checked her watch, giving a nod. "Alright, well with Kendall dead that gives us time." Raine lifted her bag, stepping up from the chair. Time...I'm leaving soon. "I promised Mum, I'd be home for supper." She slipped out a black envelope, fidgeting. "You left this at the hospital, it's your invite for Gwen's funeral."

I shut my mouth, my stomach knotting up. Oh. Raine fumbled with the envelope, setting it in my palm. The inky paper held a weight of its own. My hands trembled. "Thanks…"

She zipped up her bag, throwing it over her shoulders. "Well I'll see ya, tomorrow. Don't do too much sleuthing without me." She walked backwards, pointing at us. "You two should spend more time catching up." She smirked.

I rolled my eyes, waving back at her. "Now that's enough." I shooed her, keeping my eyes away from Luca. What am I supposed to say? She laughed at me, continuing to the door. I shuffled the papers back into a pile, the door slamming shut.

"We can spend more time on this later," I muttered.

Helping me gather the pieces, his fingers brushed mine. "Of course."

I looked past, towards the door. "I'll tell her tomorrow that I'm leaving." I pushed my hair back. "I still haven't figured out what to say."

"Sure," he hummed, handing me the other half of the stack.

I reluctantly met his eyes. "Luca, about what Raine said, about us-"

"Don't worry about it." He waved his hands. "It doesn't bother me."

"I know, but...I don't know." I blinked at his brown eyes.

He averted his gaze. "I'm not holding you to a teenage promise of love," he chuckled. "You don't owe me anything."

My heart fell to my stomach. I know that, but... I set the stack neatly on the table. "After five years I guess it would be silly."

His eyes flickered, fractured for a split second. I held my breath, walking past him. Maybe I shouldn't have said that. I turned back, my heart pounding. He rubbed his palms together. I bit my cheek. "It's still us against the world though, we face this together," I said.

Luca cleared his throat, his voice painfully formal, "Exactly, it doesn't change anything. It just leaves things clear."

Clear how? I forced a smile, folding my hands. "Good...understood." But I don't understand. He blinked at me, both of our tongues tied. The gleam faded from his eyes. Maybe we're both still in love with a dream...maybe he's moved on...

I clenched my jaw, another train rattling the house. But it doesn't matter. I don't need him to love me, I need him beside me. I forced myself to look him in the eye. "We have a clear path forward." I raised my chin. "This time we will save the world."