Narrator's Pov
"Ryan, I see you've made a choice"
Bronya smiled softly as she looked at both Ryan and Cocolia who stood in front of her desk in her office, the blonde woman looked at the floor, clearly not wanting to look at her daughter in the eyes.
"I have, she'll serve me now, which means her execution won't be happening, right?" He asked looking towards the Supreme Guardian.
"That's right, even if some of the architects won't accept the outcome, it was a choice taken by an Aeon...it goes beyond us" Bronya's smile didn't dissapear as she walked around her desk and close to them.
"I'll...stay out of the room for a while, I'll let you two talk" the white-haired boy slowly walked out of the office.
Cocolia looked towards Ryan as he closed the door behind him, her eyes showing some anxiety, after the doors finally closed she let out a heavy sigh, looking towards Bronya who now stood in front of her.
Cocolia inhaled and then exhaled before talking. "Bronya, I-"
She was immediately cut off as the girl wrapped her arms around her, tightly holding the woman in a warm embrace, Cocolia stood completely paralyzed for a few seconds before she hesitantly wrapped her only arm around her daughter, returning the hug.
...
"Ugh! Is this all?" Stelle let out a short grunt.
"Yeah, this is all..."
Serval and Stelle looked down at the luggages that they had stacked, they weren't a lot...but they seemed rather heavy, Stelle drove two hands to her back, rubbing it softly.
"I think I'm getting old"
"Heh~ all the young ones say that" Serval chuckled gently. "Do you think is too much? I could leave some stuff behind if it's a bother"
"I think it's fine~ I actually thought you had more stuff"
"I do, but It's nothing essential or stuff I'm incredibly attached to, they can stay here, I've already arranged someone to take care of the business while I'm gone" the blonde woman sighed softly. "Where are the others?"
"Well, Dan Heng went back to the express to properly explain your situation to Himeko, March is strolling around taking some pictures and I think that Mr.Yang is with her" she explained and Serval slowly burrowed her brows.
"And Ryan...do you think he'll let Cocolia serve him?" She asked towards the other girl who sighed.
"Honestly? I hope not...but if he does, then there's nothing I can do"
"Ryan will be travelling with us right? Do you know for how long?"
"Not really...I suppose that he'll be coming with us until he feels comfortable enough to do it alone...are you worried about Cocolia?"
"Yes, I've...not properly talked to her in a long time, we basically fought to death and now, out of nowhere, I'll be seeing her a lot, it's...a lot to take in" the woman let out a heavy sigh and drove a hand to her forehead.
"I know...I suppose you're not even considering you two being friends again?" Stelle crossed her arms across her chest.
"Ugh...I'm not sure, a lot of things happened between us..." Serval slowly looked down at her luggages. "But I'm not letting her stop me from my new journey"
The door of the Workshop opened making both Stelle and Serval look, Dan Heng entered slowly closing the door behind him.
"I see you're done packing" He spoke looking at the luggages.
"Yep! Is it too much? I'm not sure if it is..."
"That's okay, don't sweat it too much, besides, you and Stelle will be sharing room after all" Dan Heng's words made the other two slightly widen her eyes.
"Wait, for real for real?" Stelle looked a bit excited.
"Yes, while we were gone, Miss Himeko and Mr.Yang were preparing your room, you have the biggest one, it's almost as big as an entire wagon so when she got notice of Serval joining us, she planned you two to share room" his explanation made Serval nod her head softly.
"I see... we'll be roommates then~" she smiled and hugged Stelle's shoulder.
"Yep~ hope you don't mind if I bring along a few trashcans" the raccoon girl smiled at the woman who quickly gave a few steps away.
"Stelle you can't just-"
Dan Heng's words were cut off as the door of the workshop opened, letting Welt and March enter through it, the adult man smiled a bit seeing the group and cleared his throat slightly.
"Good to see you all here, the Express is ready to leave, Serval, are you done packing?" He asked towards the blonde woman who nodded her head.
"Yep! Everything I need is right here!" She smiled gently patting her luggages. "Though, is it okay if we wait a bit more? I'd like to say goodbye to my siblings"
"Then there's no problem, family is important, the same to the rest of you, feel free to take your time to say farewell to everyone you've met in here" Welt responded also looking at the other trailblazers. "I'll ask Ryan if he's ready, then I'll go back to the express"
"Thank you, Mr.Yang, I'll make sure to let you know once I'm done" Serval smiled at the man who nodded towards her.
March excitedly walked to Serval with a smile. "It'll be so fun having you around! Another member for our photos!"
As the group started to talk, Welt smiled softly and walked out of the workshop, pulling his phone out of his pocket he went into his messages and sent one to Ryan.
________________________________________
[Welt]
"Ryan, where are you?"
[Ryan]
"I'm at Qlipoth Fort, did something happen?"
[Welt]
"No, I just wanted to let you know that the Express is ready to leave"
[Ryan]
"I understand"
[Welt]
"Also, I have a question"
"Have you already thought about Cocolia?"
[Ryan]
"Yes, Mr.Yang"
"I've allowed her to serve me, I hope it's not a problem if she travels with us, I'll take full responsibility of her"
[Welt]
"We'll have to explain it to Himeko, but there shouldn't be a problem, I trust your judgement Ryan, if you think she won't do anything, I believe you"
[Ryan]
"Thank you Mr.Yang, I'll have to think of something to tell the others, I'm sure they won't be fully comfortable"
[Welt]
"They'll understand eventually, give them some time"
________________________________________
On the other side of the conversation, Ryan let out a short sigh, he'd probably have some trouble explaining his decision about Cocolia, but he could use that as an excuse to open himself to them like how he did with Bronya.
The doors of the Supreme Guardian's office opened slowly, Cocolia walked out of the office with a neutral expression, though her eyes clearly showed a mix of happiness and sadness.
"Bronya wants to talk with you" The woman said making Ryan rise his brows slightly.
"Okay, I'll go in, you...wait here"
Cocolia simply nodded silently at Ryan's order, the white-haired boy sighed slightly and then opened the doors of Bronya's office, walking inside letting the doors slowly close behind him, Ryan looked at the Supreme Guardian who stood in front of the window that led out to the exterior, he slowly walked to her side and looked through the window, seeing Belobog.
"Thank you, Ryan...for what you did for Mother" she smiled, her eyes still glued to the city beyond the glass.
"I didn't do much..."
"No need to be humble, if you hadn't talked to her before her trial, it's very possible that she'd be dead by now..." She closed her eyes momentarily before looking towards him. "Thanks to you, she now has a chance to redeem herself"
"Those who know what she did might never forgive her, but will you?" He asked returning the gaze.
"It...will take time, I can't deny that what she did was bad, so many people died because of her and her actions...we spoke for a while, she told me that...she didn't think she deserved to be forgiven, neither by me, Serval, the architects, and not even from Qlipoth"
"...the man who raised me, Teo, once told me that forgiveness is something that you have to gain on your own...it doesn't come from nothing, people will not forgive you just because you ask for it, they'll do it once you're worthy of it, Cocolia will do her best to try and gain it, I'm sure of it..."
"Ryan...are you also trying to gain forgiveness?" She asked looking directly at his eyes.
"...I am"
With a soft smile, Bronya slowly held Ryan's hand. "Then I'm sure both you and mother will gain it, I...have hope in both of you"
"....Thank you, Bronya" Ryan spoke in a soft whisper while the girl slowly let his hand go.
"Belobog will always have a place for you, Ryan, Aeon or not, we'll always welcome you with open arms"
"I'll try to remember that" he slowly smiled towards Bronya.
With a soft sigh Bronya hugged him, her head resting on his shoulder, he looked a bit awkward and clearly taken with his guard completely down, he stood paralyzed for a second before he awkwardly drove a hand to the top of her head, softly patting Bronya's head.
"Again...Thank you for not giving up on her" her words silently came out as she tightly held him.
"You're...welcome, Bronya, if I did, It'd mean I'd have to give up on myself too"
In silence, Bronya separated from the hug, clearly looking a bit embarrassed before she cleared her throat and walked to her desk, slowly sitting on her chair.
"I have some work to do now..." She spoke while slowly grabbing a few papers.
"I'll leave you to it then, we'll probably leave today, the others might come to say goodbye" he walked around the desk and towards the door.
"Ryan! One last thing..." She rose her voice slightly as Ryan stood in front of the door but turned around to look at her. "Please...take care of my mother...and yourself"
Ryan closed his eyes for a second before nodding silently, opening the doors he left the room, allowing Bronya to let out a short sigh, she drove a hand to her chest before quickly shaking her head and then she started to read the various documents on her desk.
"Are you ready to leave, Cocolia?" Ryan asked as the doors closed behind him.
"Actually...there's something I'd like to get from here before we leave, is that okay?" The woman asked as Ryan slowly nodded her head. "Thank you, please follow me..."
....
"Ah~ how I missed the warmth of home~"
March let herself fall on one of the various sofas of the express, her face landing directly on a cushion, behind her, Stelle and Dan Heng stared at her.
"It wasn't that cold in Belobog you know?" Stelle rose an eyebrow.
"It's an expression Stelle~ like when you try a food that reminds you of what your mother used to cook for you" she sat on the sofa looking up at the raccoon girl.
"Woah~ this place is so cool"
The three trailblazers looked at the entrance of the express, Serval looked around the wagon with a smile, her eyes looking at every single thing like if she was an excited child.
"I knew you'd like it!" March smiled and excitedly approached the woman.
"I don't think anyone could NOT like it" Serval smiled back at her.
"Hehe~ you're right~ I'll go bring Ms.Himeko now! You can wait here and then we'll help you take your stuff to your room!" March didn't waste a second and immediately ran off.
"Did you say goodbye to your family, Serval?" Dan Heng asked as he approached alongside Stelle.
"Mhm~ it was a bit emotional...specially for my little sister, but it's not like if I would never come back, besides, if I miss them, I can always annoy them through text, am I right?" She smirked lightly looking at the other two trailblazers.
"I have a few memes you can send them" Stelle slowly rose her hand.
"I'd appreciate those" Serval's smile widened slightly.
"Serval, it's good to see you've arrived" Welt's voice caught the attention of the other three who saw him approaching.
"Mr.Yang! Yep, I brought everything I needed, by the way do I have to say a creed or something?" The blonde woman took a hand to her chin.
"You're making it sound like if we were a cult" Stelle smiled nervously.
"Heh, there's no need for that Serval, once Himeko arrives, we'll officially welcome you to the Astral Express" the adult man let out a short chuckle.
Serval nodded a few times with understanding. "So...where are we going next?" She asked with a smile.
"Well, we'll be going to Herta's Space Station, the owner called for us, or more specifically, for Ryan" He explained making the blonde woman rise her brows.
"The owner called for Ryan?"
"Yes, Madam Herta, the owner of that station, is investigating and recording Ryan's development as an Aeon, after learning of his newfound abilities, Himeko and I received texts asking for us to go"
"I see...and how is this Space Station?" She asked again making Welt chuckle slightly.
"I will not spoil you, you'll see it with your very own eyes" the Adult smiled.
"We're back~!"
March excitedly approached the group with Himeko behind her, the red-headed woman smiled looking at Serval from top to bottom.
"You must be Serval, it's a pleasure to finally meet face to face" Himeko smiled and the blonde woman returned the smile.
"A pleasure to meet you too, it's an honor to join the Astral Express"
"The honor is ours, it'll be good to have a mechanic with us" Himeko smiled with some interest. "But enough formalities"
Himeko slowly opened her hand towards Serval, letting her see the Golden ticket-shaped medal, Serval slowly grabbed the medal inspecting it a bit curious.
"That'll officially make you part of the Astral Express, it's what represents us, Trailblazers, you can use it wherever you wish to, it'll help people recognize you as one of us" Himeko explained.
The blonde woman slowly smiled and after looking at her own clothes for a few seconds she decided to put the medal on her belt, she then slowly smoothed said belt and smirked at the group.
"Ready~"
"Yay~!" March was the first one to talk as she hugged Serval.
"I'm your senior, so you'll do anything I say" Stelle grabbed the woman's shoulder with a smile.
"You've been a Trailblazer barely for a week, you don't qualify as senior" Dan Heng spoke holding a little smile.
As the three trailblazers started to talk with the new member, Welt and Himeko slowly walked to one of the couches, sitting down on it.
"It looks like the family gets bigger and bigger" Welt smiled making the red-headed woman chuckle.
"You're right, Pom-pom and I will have to start remodeling some wagons to add more rooms if people keep joining" she joked slightly.
"I will not help in that regard" Welt joked in return.
The entire wagon suddenly grew silent as two more people entered, Ryan was the first one, casually walking into the wagon while Cocolia slowly entered behind him, the woman now had a short cape that reached her waist and was angled in a way that covered what remained of her left arm, she also held around her right shoulder what seemed to be a long case.
"W-what is she doing here?!" March asked clearly nervous and hiding behind Dan Heng.
"She's my follower now, March" Ryan replied bluntly, making the group slightly rise their brows with some shock.
"You...let her serve you?" Dan Heng spoke slightly wary.
"Yes, I did, Cocolia will travel with me for the time being...which means she'll be travelling with all of us, I'm sorry if you don't feel comfortable" Ryan crossed his arms across his chest.
"Of course we don't feel comfortable at all, she did try to kill us" Stelle frowned lightly.
"This was Ryan's choice" Welt decided to join in, walking towards the group getting the glances of the group. "And I respect and understand what led him to take said choice"
"I can't expect all of you to understand " Ryan slowly sighed. "But I can assure you all, Cocolia will not try anything against any of you"
"But what if she does?" March asked slightly nervous.
"...then I'll kill her on the spot" Ryan replied before looking at Cocolia. "She understands that perfectly"
"I won't ask any of you to forgive me" Cocolia started to speak. "I can't ask respect or kindness from any of you either...specially you, Serval" she looked at the other blonde woman who slowly looked away.
"Ryan, do you really trust her?" Stelle asked with some worry on her voice.
"I do, I can't expect you to do the same, but can you trust me?" He asked back towards the group.
The first to give an answer was Dan Heng, who let out a sigh. "I do...if Mr.Yang respects your choice, then so will I, I might not understand it yet, but I'll respect it."
"I'm...not sure yet" March nervously scratched the back of her head. "But...if you promise to keep an eye on her...I'll be fine, I think"
"If she tries anything, I'll be the first one to punch her" Stelle crossed her arms across her chest. "It was your choice, I trust you, Ryan."
"Thanks..." He slowly nodded before looking at Serval. "I know you have it the hardest, Serval, and that we haven't met for that long yet, but-"
"I'm fine with it..." She replied making both Ryan and Cocolia widen their eyes.
"You...are?" The white-haired boy looked caught with his guard down at her sudden response.
"Yes, I decided to join the Trailblazers to follow my heart, to explore all the universe and see what has not been seen yet, to see the marvels of our universe...I'm not letting something like this ruin my journey" Serval spoke seriously. "I accept your choice...but this doesn't make us friends." She directed the last words towards Cocolia who silently nodded her head.
"Thank you, Serval..." Ryan nodded with his head.
"It's nothing... Ms.Himeko, is it okay if I go to my room? I would like to start setting up my stuff..." Serval quickly looked at the woman who nodded.
"Of course, you should also start cleaning the room, it's a bit dirty" she smiled softly and started to walk.
"How dirty could it be?" Serval quickly followed the woman out of the wagon.
A slightly awkward silence filled the wagon after Serval and Himeko left, March silently walked out of the wagon, probably to go to her room, Dan Heng sat on a chair and pulled out his phone, Stelle walked to a couch sitting on it, and Ryan and Cocolia simply stood still.
"I'll go tell Pom-pom to get the Express out of Jarilo-VI, then we'll prepare for the Jump" Welt announced gaining a nod from the rest, he then walked out of the wagon.
"This place is...warm" Cocolia spoke softly gaining a nod from Ryan.
"It is, different from anything in Belobog, right?" He walked to a couch sitting down on it.
"Vastly different..." The woman sat beside Ryan looking through the windows.
After a few minutes, the Express seemed to move, through the window, the group in the wagon were able to see how the Express rose up going through the clouds in a few seconds and then, all of Jarilo-VI was seen through the windows, Cocolia slowly stood up and approached one of the windows, looking at the planet through it.
"Is that... Jarilo-VI?" She looked a bit amazed, but also slightly dissapointed. "I thought...it'd be bigger."
"That's what she said" Stelle immediately spoke out of pure reflex.
Another moment of silence filled the wagon, both, Dan Heng and Ryan looked directly at Stelle, who seemed completely unfazed by her own comment, as if she were working on auto-pilot,but she soon jerked her head up when a small chuckle echoed in the wagon.
The small group looked directly towards Cocolia, who had silently covered her mouth and also looked away from them, from the three of them, Ryan was the only one who decided to speak.
"I'm starting to regret letting her follow me"
★ ★ ★
A/N: Yay~ another chapter, there isn't really a lot to say right now, so I'm going to sleep.
And yes, Cocolia will indeed laugh at Stelle's horrible jokes, I thought it'd be something funny to do, and I'm not stopping, anyways.
Hope you all enjoyed!