Levin

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"You...You knew Mama before..." I said in disbelief. "Mama was your...your friend?"

Ian nodded. "Your mother was a very good friend of ours. A sweet woman with a big heart."

"Please," I said slowly, then stumbled over to him and grasped his shoulder. "Please, if you know where she is, bring her back. I want mama back, please..."

"Levin, we don't know where she is," Markus said. "We thought she was at Phoenix Drop. So, if she isn't here, then...Where is she?"

I fell to my knees and began to cry. These people couldn't help me find Mama. They didn't even know she was missing.

"Levin, where is she!?"

"SHE'S BEEN MISSING FOR 15 YEARS!" I cried. "SHE'S NEVER COMING HOME! SHE'S PROBABLY DEAD!"

"Levin!" There was a shout at the door. "L-Levin, please, open up! Cadenza i-is here with n-news!"

Ian glanced at me. "I'll get it for you," he offered, then ran to the door.

I heard the door squeak open.

"Levin," Markus said gently. "Why do you think your mother is dead?"

"She h-hasn't come home," I sniffled. "She w-would've c-come home by now, wouldn't she?"

Markus sighed. "Levin, your mother is something I like to call a 'Special Snowflake'," he said. "She is an incredible human being. And a human who has suffered through ten lifetimes of pain and horror. She's probably a stronger person because of it. And I know she absolutely adores you."

Ian soon came through the doorway followed by Garroth. Tears streamed down his face.

"L-Levin, your mother..." Garroth sputtered. "She..."

"She's dead."

I that moment, I knew only grief.

Nothing else could register in my head except for those two words.

She's dead. She's gone. She's never coming home because she's dead.

Mama's dead.

Markus and Ian ran out of the house, leaving Jazabelle with Aaron. The two of them stared at me.

"Levin," Aaron said calmly. "I'm assuming that they brought her along. Do you want to see her?"

I nodded, still crying.

He led me out of the house, Jazabelle in his arms. Her head was against his chest, staring with wide eyes at me. She was completely silent.

Cadenza was standing near a crude wooden wagon, the kind meant for hayrides or for taking goods to a market to be sold. Her faces was crumpled and tear-streaked. There were four men in the back of the wagon. They sat solemnly and stared at each other.

"C-Cadenza," I managed to say. "W-Where is she?"

Cadenza gave me a tight hug, then gestured to the back of the wagon.

The four men spotted me and nodded. I saw that all of them were crying. One of them, a younger-looking guy with a pair of glasses, sniffled and bowed his head.

"Guys," one of the other men said in a rough voice. "...How are we going to tell Jason?"

Another man with a beard buried his face in his hands and cried silently. "Gods, I don't want to have to do this anymore," he whimpered. "She was one of my best friends..."

"H-Hello?" I said. They all looked at me.

"Who are you?" one of them said.

"I-I'm Levin," I said. "A-Aphmau's adopted s-son."

They all glanced at each other, then looked back at me.

"Kid," the rough-voiced man said quietly. "We're sorry about your mom."

"What happened?" I asked. "How did she..."
"There was this one black-haired guy who Jess thought was bad and she started beating the crap out of him," the bearded man said. "Like, with a sword instead of her fists. She was glowing practically, and she lifted off the ground. She said something about 'Judgement', and he turned into dust and swept away. She fell to the ground, and..."

He sniffed.

"She's right here, if you want to see her," the rough-voiced man said.

"Thanks," I said. "What are your names?"

"I'm Barney," the rough voiced man said.

"I'm Jin," the black-haired man said.

"I'm Ross," the man with the glasses said.

"And I'm Adam," the bearded man said. "We were all good friends of your mother."

I nodded, then climbed into the back of the wagon.

Mama was laid on her back, her eyes closed. She was covered by a blue blanket.

She looked exactly the same as she did in all of the photos that I had ever seen of her.

I kneeled next to her and kissed her forehead gently.

"I don't know what the Aether was like before you got there," I whispered. "But I bet it's even more beautiful."

I took a small amulet off from around my neck and clasped it around hers.

She was still warm. Like a gentle fire in a fireplace.

She stirred very suddenly.

Her eyes shot open, and she took a great gasping breath. She quickly sat up and looked around.

"What in Irene's name-" she began, but I began to hug her tightly.

"M-MAMA!" I cried. "Y-You're okay!"

Her arms wrapped around me in an instant.

"Levin..." she whispered. "Gods, you're so grown up..."

"Aph!" the guys said. Suddenly, I was being crushed by the guys as they hugged Mama.

"Adam, Jin, Barney, Ross, you're crushing Levin!" Mama laughed. They (thankfully) scrambled off of me. I gasped for breath.

I released her, and not a moment later Markus and Ian scrambled into the back of the wagon.

Mama stared at them in disbelief.

"Markus and Ian...You guys are..."

She was quickly embraced by the two of them, who began to bawl their eyes out immediately after.

"W-We were so worried!" Markus sobbed. "We couldn't find you anywhere!"

"Wait-"

"You need to meet Jazabelle! You'll absolutely adore her!" Ian said happily.

"Guys!" Mama said. "I can't do anything, because you two have my legs pinned down!"

The two quickly got off of her legs. Markus hopped down to the ground and helped the guys get out of the wagon.

Ian helped Mama up and guided her over to Markus, where he helped her reach solid earth again.

Garroth spotted us and let out a cry of dismay.

"APHMAU!"

She shoved Ian and Markus away and sprinted towards Garroth, where she met him in a tight hug.

Garroth

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I could only watch as she ran toward me.

There was nothing else I could do.

She reached me and wrapped her arms around me. She started crying into my chest.

"Garroth, I'm so sorry," she said. "I never meant to hurt you..."

All I could do was hug her back.