-

The opera house had grown quieter, the distant murmurs of Fontaine's people fading into the background. Yoshika remained on stage, gazing up at the grand chandeliers above, their soft glow casting golden reflections against the polished floors. Furina stood beside her, arms crossed, a contemplative look in her eyes.

Despite everything-the exhaustion, the battles, the looming threat of Celestia-there was an undeniable stillness between them. A pause in time.

Furina was the first to break the silence.

"You know," she mused, "I always imagined my return to Fontaine would be... grander. I thought I'd make an entrance so dramatic, so dazzling, that even the heavens would weep at my brilliance!"

Yoshika raised an eyebrow. "I hate to break it to you, but no one's weeping."

Furina gasped, placing a hand over her chest in mock offense. "Excuse me! You dare mock Fontaine's biggest celebrity?"

A smirk tugged at the corner of Yoshika's lips. "You're the one who said that title was meaningless."

Furina huffed. "It's only meaningless when other people say it."

Yoshika shook her head, amused. Even now, with everything happening, Furina still found ways to be dramatic. It was almost comforting.

But then Furina's expression shifted. The teasing, the dramatics-it all faded into something softer.

"...Fontaine felt empty without you," Furina admitted, voice quieter now.

Yoshika stilled.

For a moment, she didn't know how to respond. She was never good at this-at soft, honest conversations.

"You're just saying that," Yoshika muttered, looking away.

"I'm not." Furina stepped closer, her blue eyes searching Yoshika's face. "When you left for Snezhnaya, everything felt different. The city, the people, even me."

Yoshika inhaled sharply. "Furina-"

"I missed you," Furina confessed.

Yoshika's breath caught in her throat.

There it was. The truth they both danced around, now spoken so plainly.

Furina, ever the dramatic one, ever the performer, had no hesitation in saying what Yoshika had been too afraid to acknowledge.

Yoshika clenched her fists, looking down. "...You shouldn't say things like that."

Furina tilted her head. "Why not?"

"Because," Yoshika exhaled, "if you say it, I might start believing it."

Furina smiled then-small, knowing. "Then believe it."

Yoshika hesitated.

Her heart felt too fast, her mind racing in ways it never did in battle.

She could face gods. She could fight impossible fights. But standing here, with Furina looking at her like this-like she mattered-was terrifying.

"...I should check on the preparations," Yoshika said suddenly, turning away.

Furina blinked, but she didn't stop her. "Yoshika."

Yoshika paused, her back still turned.

Furina's voice was quieter now. "Don't run from me."

Yoshika didn't respond.

She just walked away.

And Furina, despite everything, smiled softly.

Because Yoshika was running.

But Furina would catch her.

---
𝖠𝖭 𝖭𝖮𝖳𝖤: 𝗂𝗍 𝖻𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝗌𝗈 𝗅𝗈𝗇𝗀 𝗌𝗂𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝗂 𝗅𝖺𝗌𝗍 𝗎𝗉𝖽𝖺𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝖻𝗈𝗈𝗄 𝗂 𝗐𝖺𝗌 𝖿𝗈𝖼𝗎𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝗈𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝗇𝖾 𝗆𝖻 𝗀𝖺𝗇𝗀🙏🙏