Mia awoke in the infirmary with someone over her, filling a glass of water. Her vision was in a mist, and she felt nauseated & weak.

"Hirogane?" said Saya's outline. Mia closed her eyes until she heard him come over. "She appears to be awake."

"Mia?" said Hirogane at the end of her hearing.

"…y-ssh…"

"Check her for brain damage."

"Please stay still." whispered Saya at the start of her hearing. Streams of fog flew in to Mia's ears. "She does not appear to have any lasting brain damage."

"…yessh…" Mia's eyes peeled open one dust of light.

"Good enough to question." yawned Hirogane, sitting down beside. "What's your name?"

"...Mffia… Cultz…"

"Close enough."

Mia turned over to Saya, hoping the fogwoman had better manner for her fogged brain.

"Do you know where you are?" said Saya, crouching down.

"Uffarias… infirmary…"

"Urasaria?" said Saya, and Mia's head weakly nodded. "Good. You have been in a coma for a small amount of time - but nothing worrisome. Only a week. Would you like something to drink?"

"…all… right." murmured Mia, barely leaning her head up. She let Saya drink water to her.

"Good?" said Saya, pulling the glass back.

"…w-where's Aimee?"

"She's alright." said Hirogane. "Figured you'd ask. Still in a coma, but she's stable."

"W-What?"

"She's here." said Saya, pointing to one bed Mia still couldn't see. "I'm certain she will be alright, Ms. Schultz."

Mia's spirit sank in to the sheets. Aimee was normally a text or one call away, and Worldwide's colony couldn't suppress that as she heard Saya say they should leave her alone and they closed a curtain on her sobbing. Marisa would support her, but what could she say to help her? She didn't know how long it could be before Aimee could wake up, and she felt guilty over not going home with her that night, until Saya peeked back and her crying plugged up.

"…s-sorry." murmured Mia, eyes dripping.

"I wanted to give you some tissues." Saya smiled as she sat down and took Mia's glass of water. Streams of fog dissolved the liquid, then filled it with tissues.

"T-Thank you."

"It's alright." said Saya. "I promise you - having seen her many times before - she's very strong."

"…k-keep talking. P-Please."

"About Aimee, or something else?"

"A-Anything."

"Would you like to hear how I first became Hirogane's assistant?" (Mia nodded.) "Initially, I did not want to work in the infirmary. I actually wanted to work in the cafeteria." She laughed a little. "Refilling various vending machines, and the likes. Blackburn activated when I was a teenager, but… well, then, I thought the only positions at Urasaria were… violent work. I am still desensitized, but I've never enjoyed… The - the moment it happens." Her head shook. "I'm sorry - I should speak about something else."

"I-It's alright."

Saya nodded. "But, I kept it secret. I had already used Blackburn privately for minor cuts and scrapes, and before I met Luna, well… I had very clean hands for a chef. I was working at a restaurant. Close enough that students would come in. It was an Italian restaurant, of course, and the owner never caught on why the olive oil never seemed to run out." She laughed. "It was selfish of me, admittedly. And very risky. Revenants like Blackburn - creation Revenants - it's illegal to sell anything created by them."

"Y-Yes." Mia sat up.

"But, there was a fight near the restaurant. It spread inside, and these two students had dealt with this other man, but they were very, very injured. They were calling someone to pick them up and transport them to the infirmary."

"You healed them?"

Saya nodded. "I asked them to please not mention me, but - a few people had already seen me. Particularly the owner. I went home that night, and found out that he had given Urasaria my address. Two students arrested me, but healing Revenants are rare enough that..." She laughed. "I-I mentioned I could fill, but - I was still trying for a cafeteria position. Maybe because it wouldn't be so drastic of a change."

"Maybe." Mia smiled.

"But, the infirmary is more important." She smiled. "And I did meet Luna through here. Sometimes I think I constrict her too much. I still cook her meals for her, even if … even if she does not need it. I enjoy seeing how she smiles with a good meal."

Mia nodded. "Thank you, Saya."

"Are you feeling better?"

"I am."

"Good. I am sure she will be alright." Saya paused. "But - not about Aimee - I did wish to let you know. The staff did ask to question you, but Hirogane and I will delay telling them you're awake until you are ready. The other four at the hospital wanted to see you, as well. Symphony mentioned wishing to speak with you privately beforehand."

"Makoto?" Mia frowned: her day was poor enough. "Why?"

"She did not say, unfortunately. Would you like me to call her?"

Mia nodded. "Er, can you also let Marisa know I'm alright?"

Saya nodded and went out the curtain. Eventually Makoto stepped inside, her eyes the same color as Mia's.

"Guess you heard about Aimee." muttered Makoto, sitting down. "Uh. Finally gets a girlfriend and falls in to a coma right after. Some things aren't meant to be."

Mia didn't like that one.

Makoto looked up at her. "What … happened, anyway?"

With some difficulty, Mia relayed her side of it. "...and then, I fell unconscious."

"…yep. That's, uh - saw that. Yeah." Makoto sighed. "So, me on the first-floor. I guess Aimee probably saw you get thrown out of the window or some shit. I heard her screaming, went outside, and… fuck." She winced. Seeing Mia's expression: "If - if you fucking saw it, you'd shit your pants too. Seriously. No one has even been able to *touch* Aimee like that."

Mia blinked, having not made any expression.

"So, I went up to the window, and saw that with Aimee, and then he just - that dreadnought or whatever - just looked at it like, you know, no way. I guess you were unconscious by then, and he just fucking shoved his hands inside his chest and ripped it open. I saw - he fucking took one of his hearts out and shoved it down your throat. I'm not shitting you, he turned back to me and - five or six fucking hearts in his chest - and he disappeared."

"He - I swallowed - what?"

"I don't know. Dude, I just…"

"…swallowed a heart." muttered Mia. "Hirogane didn't mention anything about it."

"They would've noticed you shitting it out, probably. Or whatever you do when you're in a coma." said Makoto. "Staff doesn't know, either. I'm not - I'm not gonna say shit. Fuck those cucks."

Mia winced. "C-Could it have been another Revenant?"

"Uh, pretty sure it was still beating, but - fuck, dude."

"…Worldwide." she said, and in the next instant -

- an orange flame appeared before her eyes. "…er. The same color, at least. I-I don't feel anything new, either."

She tried to mentally extinguish it, and nothing happened.

"It's gotta be something." winced Makoto. "Maybe wait a few days or something." She looked away and pinched her eyes. "…g-god, this shit sucks."

++++++

Mia stayed in the infirmary for the next week, and she felt guilty whenever she looked over at Aimee's bed. She had her's moved next to her girlfriend's, waking up early to check if she'd woken up & staying up late to see if she would. Marisa came in daily to see her, but Mia didn't speak much to anyone that week. Talk-shy, she would let Marisa or Saya lead their conversations.

After moving back in with Marisa, she had a nightmare one night, and went out to the living room to sit on the couch.

'…m-maybe she'll wake up soon.' thought Mia, wiping her eyes. She heard Marisa's door open and felt her sit down.

"Hey, Mia-Mia." said Marisa, her hand following on Mia's shoulder. "Everything alright?"

"…n-no. I-I had another nightmare." mumbled Mia. "I just w-want Aimee to wake u-up."

"She will." Marisa smiled, her other hand ripping fabric from her pajamas, hole regenerating as she gave Mia a Boudoirchef. "She's your first girlfriend, right?"

"S-She is. I-I just w-wish - I-I want her to wake u-up, a-and k-kiss her or, or - I don't k-know."

"Yeah." said Marisa, hugging Mia. "It's going to be okay. I promise. Like, she's rank one, and Hirogane says she's gonna be fine. You two are gonna be a really cute couple, too."

Mia laughed. "T-Thank you."

"Plus, you're both…" Marisa pulled back and smiled. "Just make sure you try to like, stay level-headed, right? Like, it's gonna be fun. Just don't try to build her up too much."

"Y-You sound like you have experience."

Marisa laughed and sat back. "Kinda. I mean, I don't really have any issues getting a first date, but after that… I dunno. A lot of times it's with women that get way too intense, and I think they, like, they just expect more than I can give them."

Mia nodded as she sat up.

"I'm still glad I'm a lesbian, though." Marisa glanced over to a stack of magazines & manga she kept by the couch. "Like, I'm basically the only person who even buys these anymore." She handed a few to Mia, with names like 'SHE', 'HER', and 'DYKE'.

"They're not very creative." frowned Mia.

Marisa nodded, shuffling one of the dirtier mangas lower down the stack. "Yeah. Like, a lot of these are all corporate now or whatever, but I still want to support it, you know? I mean, we didn't even used to - like, it was illegal for us to have sex until 2003 in some states." Marisa paused. "Uh, not you and me. Maybe you and Aimee."

Mia laughed. She checked her phone for any messages, then let Marisa know she was going back to bed.

In the last quarter of that night, something in her room screeched -

"WORLDWIDE!"

- she woke up screaming -

- and Marisa knocked at the door -

" - I - second - second!" panted Mia, no figures around, Worldwide's scarabs lighting the room.

"Everything okay?" said Marisa, and Mia nodded rapidly as she checked the time, then paused.

"…that wasn't a nightmare." she muttered, then said: "Marisa? Can you - can you come in?"

The door opened and in stepped Marisa. "What's up?"

"…Marisa, er, can you hear your Revenant's name twice?"

"Uh, what happened?" said Marisa, sitting down as Mia sat up.

"I heard Worldwide screaming again, but I-I don't know if it was a nightmare, or -"

" - oh." winced Marisa. "Um, I don't think so, but, like, do you feel any different?" Mia paused - " - wait, wait - let's go to Hirogane before you do anything, right?"

"Alright."

The two got dressed and went to the infirmary. Mia relayed it to Hirogane as Pulse's tendril touched her heart.

"Doesn't feel different." muttered Hirogane. "Go ahead and summon it."

Mia drowsily nodded, and Worldwide's scarabs appeared on her wrist, golden with red lines -

- and another half with blue lines. "...that's new."

Hirogane remembered Worldwide's previous host again. "Definitely is. Try it."

Worldwide's blue scarab exploded ahead of her face -

- and she smiled as a cube of ice appeared & fell - " - it's ice?"

" - wait, you got a new ability?"

"Must have to do with Dreadnought." muttered Hirogane, obviously.

"Is - is it alright if I test it more?" said Mia, excitement pushing out her curiosity.

"Go ahead."

She put her hands together. Left hand burning orange, ice covered her right hand -

- and extinguished her flames in a cloud of steam. "It can put out my fire." She grinned.

"That's good." chimed Marisa. "…uh, but why do you have it now?"

Mia sat up. "I don't know, but… I-I have control over it, and…" She yawned, still drowsy.

"Better to get some rest." yawned Hirogane. "Come back tomorrow - I'll check it again."

"Isn't it his Revenant, though?" said Marisa. "Uh, let's - I guess we'll talk about it tomorrow, yeah."

Mia nodded. Once they were back home, the two went to bed, though her excitement over her new ice kept her up. Now, she had water, steam, a way to extinguish her flames, and something to distract her from Aimee.