"Miss Ayame," Maldie said as she entered the room, "Prince Shion asked me to take care of you today."
The room was dim and stifling. Dust floated in the air, visible through the narrow beams of light that managed to seep in.
Maldie drew back the curtain. Ayame didn't react at all.
"Miss Ayame, are you really okay?" noticing the dark circles under her eyes.
"Oh, yes, don't worry…" Ayame replied, her tone as if she had just returned from another world to reality. "Could you do something for me?"
"Of course."
"Bring Haru here. I want to talk to him."
"All right. Just don't move anywhere…"
"Like I wanted to in the first place, heh," Ayame said with a bitter smile.
After a few minutes, Maldie brought Haru, who had quickly thrown on whatever he could find. This time, it was a loud pink kimono with white flowers on it.
"What's going on?" he asked, looking worried.
"How are you feeling?" Ayame replied with a question for a question.
"Thanks for asking. I'm fine now, all thanks to Maldie," he said with a smile.
"Oh, stop it, or your old Maldie will blush," the maid joked.
"Haru, give me your hand," Ayame said, her voice weak.
"O-okay," Haru replied hesitantly. "Sorry if this sounds mean, but… what do you need it for?"
"No, I get it. I tried to dive into Shion's dreams. I almost uncovered the truth, but I had to escape. Something… was watching me. I couldn't shake it; I felt like I was being followed. And as if that wasn't enough, I had the feeling something truly horrible was right on my heels, ugh…"
"I'm sorry, Ayame. But can my hand really help?" Haru asked, still confused.
"You have no idea. Your energy is my lifeline. Like I told you before, I can see the future. I know the key, you, has a power that needs to awaken. But I don't know when or how it will happen. For now, your energy works as a cure for Shion's pain and… a protective charm against the evil in my dreams. No matter what happens, don't let go of my hand while I sleep, got it?"
"All right," Haru said with determination.
If I can help even like this… if it means Shion gets that memory back…
… then I could sit here until the end of the world.
"Now that everything is settled… goodnight," she said, closing her eyes.
"Huh? You're going to sleep in the middle of the day, milady?" Maldie asked, surprised.
Ayame's only answer was a soft, half-asleep breath. The maid sighed.
"I'll bring some food. She should eat something; she's been in bed since morning. Keep an eye on her, Haru."
"Sure," he said, nodding.
Once Maldie left, Haru looked at Ayame's face, wondering what she was dreaming about.
Ayame found herself in Shion's lost memories. She was in the middle of the scene where Shion saves Haru.
The Wind God, in the form of a swan, glared at her with anger and suspicion, as if he was aware of her presence.
When Shion killed the goddess who almost suffocated Haru and fell into the abyss, Ayame spoke to the Wind God:
"Leave!" she shouted with fury. "You've already brought us enough pain. The Exchange for the Flame of Eternal Love?! Don't make me laugh. We both know such a flame doesn't exist, and curses can't be harvested from someone's soul at the cost of their life. You awful liar! I can't believe Shion trusted you!"
As she spoke, she thrust her hand forward. It shone with golden light and drove the Wind God away, blinding him.
In a cruel twist, the Wind God could not control his flight because of Ayame's light. The winds tore him apart.
On a day that never existed, two gods died.
Ayame turned to Shion and Haru. When Haru kissed him, Ayame looked at Shion's hand.
She exhaled with relief – the mark had disappeared.
But something was off.
Right after the kiss, Haru vanished, as if dissolving into the air. The horizon and sky slowly turned a hellish red.
"So, we meet again," Shion said, not in his own voice, smiling demonically. His eyes turned pitch black and started to bleed.
Ayame's whole body shook in fear.
"W-who a-are y-you?" she asked, terrified.
Whatever had taken over Shion began to laugh. Her brother melted into red clouds.
Then the mountain Ayame was standing on cracked, shattering into a million pieces.
Ayame looked down. There were no clouds… only a million teeth. An open maw larger than the sky.
The monster stared at her with enormous, bulging eyes, scattered chaotically across its slimy, strangely-limbed body.
Ayame felt as if it snapped its jaws behind her and swallowed her, then looked at her mockingly and with superiority.
Ayame's dream ended with a loud gnaw – the monster's jaw closing.
And then there was only emptiness.
A black void with nothing and no one, not even herself.
Ayame slowly felt a pale-golden, pulsating light of the Key gently drawing near…
*
Ayame shot up, screaming in fear. She gasped heavily, her eyes reflecting agony and terror, staring into the distance.
She moved so violently that she scared Haru, who nearly fell off the chair next to her, startled by the sudden scream.
"What happened?!" he asked, worried and terrified. "Are you okay? Ayame, can you hear me? Ayame!"
Returning to reality, Shion's sister slowly turned her gaze toward Haru. Fear hadn't left her face, which made Haru even more scared.
"I… I'm sorry… that being… I tried… only… but now…"
Calm down! Remember what you learned. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale… damn it I sounded like a total lunatic. Get it together. Haru has to know.
Haru held her hand tighter.
"W-what happened? You didn't recover Shion's memories?" he asked in a trembling voice.
Ayame let go of his hand and then placed it on the bed. She turned her head away, looking at the blanket with a sad, gloomy gaze.
"I broke the Wind God's seal. Shion killed the goddess who tried to kill you, and I killed that mischievous bastard… but suddenly something appeared that I can't describe. Something… follows me in my dreams and visions, and I have a feeling it's somehow tied to the curse. I wished I didn't know, and now that I know what hunts me, I definitely won't be able to sleep without fear…" she said, shivering. "Haru," she spoke sorrowfully, as if apologizing. "I… I failed. That day was deleted from existence forever, along with those two gods, which means, for now, you're safe, but…"
"…that memory won't come back to Shion," Haru finished in a voice shaking with emotions. "H-he's lost it forever."