Update: 5/20:

A guest reviewer pointed out to me that I had updated this story with the wrong chapter. I had accidentally posted the last chapter of my story Renaissance instead of this. That was so incredibly stupid of me :'). That's what happens when it's 12:30 AM when you update.

But this is the actual thing! I promise!

Thank you so much to guest reviewer M.I. ! You're the bomb! I can't believe I messed that up. Anyhow...

...

Um... well, I don't know if anyone is reading this story anymore. Or even remotely cares about this. It's been two and a half years... and I honestly have nothing to say in my defense. Junior year was hectic, senior year was hectic, my freshman year of college is hectic, I've been working on other stories, watching new TV shows, playing new video games...basically doing everything that wasn't working on this story. For that, I am so truly sorry. Alluring Nightmare is a story I am truly proud of, and to leave it abandoned- let alone on a cliffhanger- for two and a half years is devastating. But I'm back! And I promise, I'm going to continue writing this for now. I honestly didn't think I'd come back to this story, but here I am. I really hope that you guys are still reading this. I promise I will not leave you on as long of a break as I previously did. Fun fact: I had like more than half of this chapter already written, but I just was never fully content with it, and I didn't look at it for a while. But here it all is yay! And it's a long one too because you deserve that.

So, you probably forgot like everything that happened in this story. You could go back and reread older chapters for your entertainment's sake (particularly chapters 14-15 and 20), but I'm going to put some summary information here because, you know, two and a half years. That's a really freaking long time. For anyone still out there (or new fans!), I promise that I will continue working on this story. I really enjoy writing this, and since my semester is almost over, I'll have some time this summer to write! Please enjoy!

Previously on Alluring Nightmare...

Amu Hinamori moves to Seiyo and attends Seiyo High (middle of sophomore year).

She meets Ikuto Tsukiyomi, who gives her a mysterious lock, and she later discovers that he's a werewolf.

She meets the guardians (Tadase, Nadeshiko, Kukai, Yaya) and joins them.

She dates Kukai for a bit, but he breaks up with her because he had past chemistry with Utau, who is a vampire.

In the past, Tadase's grandmother was believed to have been murdered by Ikuto, but it was actually the day Utau became a vampire, prompting her to lose control and kill Tadase's grandmother. She had also broken up with Kukai that day. Finally, a year and a half later, the guardians know the truth about that day.

Amu is a part of a prophecy that says she can destroy the world and has mysterious dreams. Eventually, she is discovered to be a medium and has powers to see and communicate with spirits, but has no idea how to control them.

Nadeshiko is actually discovered to be Nagihiko, and he is a half-shifter demon who faked his gender for everybody—except Tadase. He still has to pretend for everyone in school though.

Tadase is a witch who experimented (past tense?) with dark magic, which is dangerous and against all magic laws.

A new prophecy recently stated that there will be two guardians.y. Rima Mashiro is a new student who seems to be cold and rude, but apparently a new student is supposed to join and help the guardians find spirits in a new place? Kairi Sanjou—a boy they already met—is a freshman and a likely candidate for another guardian. The prophecy also stated something about the course not running smoothly.

That morning, Amu had a spirit dream in which she saw a spirit named Dia who had something to tell her in reality.

We left off where the guardians were fighting a demon, and Rima and Kairi saw them. What will happen now?

"So, you fight demons."

As I stared at Rima, I saw no hint of bemusement or shock in her eyes. In fact, she appeared awfully nonchalant, despite the fact that there was a motionless demon lying on the ground with green blood pouring out of it. Her hazel eyes fixated on the demon, focusing on them with the same regard she had been for the six hours I knew her: with boredom.

"Ah, Mashiro-San," Tadase greeted, his voice flat. "It's, um, good to see you." Rima gave him a skeptical glance, before turning to me. I gulped, feeling very self-conscious under her stern gaze.

"How do you know about demons?" Nagihiko wondered. His voice was feminine once again, acting as if he had been a female the whole time.

"Are you stupid?" It struck me as particularly odd for anyone to accuse Nagihiko of being stupid. "There are demons everywhere; one would be blind to not know of their existence."

"A lot of people don't know they exist," I pointed out.

"Then I suppose they're blind," Rima replied matter-of-factly. I grimaced slightly.

"Well, I suppose your prior knowledge of demons makes our job easier." Tadase smiled gently at Rima. "You see, we are the guardians of Seiyo. To the majority of students, our role exists as a sort of student council. We run the logistics of school events, running events like dances or fundraisers. But, our title of guardians extends much further than that. Our primary role is to defend our school—and I suppose the extent of the world we can reach—from uncanny threats, which include demons, vampires, and other supernatural beings."

"Not that all demons and vampires are evil!" Kukai interjected, winking at Nagihiko. The purple-haired teenager rolled his eyes. Rima appeared oblivious to their exchange.

"Hey guys! This demon as an Easter insignia on it!" Yaya pointed out. She glanced up at Kukai. "Yaya supposes that this means Easter must still be a problem."

"The Tsukiyomi siblings were correct," Tadase mumbled, letting out a sigh.

"Has Easter been a significant hindrance to your affairs?" I had nearly forgotten about Kairi's presence.

"Ever since everything that occurred with Amu last school year, Easter seems to have sought our attention," Nagihiko explained. He turned to Rima. "Amu was a part of a prophecy," He proceeded to explain to her, "Long story short, she activated her powers by joining our world and the spirit world and discovered that she was a medium. Kazuomi seems quite intrigued by this."

"A medium?" Rima wondered, surprised. "I didn't know they actually existed."

"Honestly, I didn't know what a medium was until I was one." I laughed half-heartedly. Rima ignored me, continuing to face Nagihiko.

"Does she control spirits or speak with them?" Rima wondered. I frowned slightly, definitely feeling the blatant ignoring. Nagihiko gave me a look, prompting me to nod slightly.

"Amu sometimes contacts spirits within her dreams," Nagihiko explained, turning to me. "In fact, you said you saw one this morning, didn't you?" I nodded slowly, recalling my dream with that spirit called Dia.

"She wanted me to meet her in real life, which I guess is possible now that the realms, or whatever, are joined."

"We can handle the matter of the spirit later," Tadase suggested. He smiled at me gently, enabling a blush upon my cheeks. "For now, I wanted to pose a question to you two." He turned toward Rima and Kairi. "We received a prophecy from Tsukasa-San—who is an oracle—stating that we would have two new guardians, one of which being a new student. Considering you both are well-versed in demonology already, I formally invite you to become the next two guardians of Seiyo High School."

"I humbly accept your invitation," Kairi replied, bowing his head. "I am honored to become a guardian."

"YAY KAIRI-KUN!" Yaya screeched, tackling him into a huge hug. Kukai burst out into laughter upon seeing Kairi's surprise and annoyance.

"Yuiki-San, it would please me if—"

"IT'S YAYA!" Yaya bellowed. Kairi let out a disgruntled sigh, desperately trying to escape her grasp to no avail.

"Mashiro-San, would you like to join as well?" Tadase wondered, smiling sweetly. If I had been in Rima's shoes, I would not know how to resist Tadase's charms. Then again, I did originally deny joining the guardians. I sighed, watching as Rima emotionlessly watched Tadase. A part of me hoped—despite the prophecy—that she would say no. She was obnoxious and already took a disliking to me for some arbitrary reason. Being with the guardians was like a family; how could I accept Rima as a member of the family?

"I have nothing better to do," Rima muttered. "Sure." Nagihiko and I exchanged incredulous looks.

"YAY RIMA-TAN!" Yaya called, still latched onto Kairi. He futilely tried to escape her grasp, but she held on steadfastly. Rima gave her a cold stare.

"This is going to be so fun!" Kukai announced, grinning ecstatically. "Seven guardians, hell yeah!"

"Every day after school, we report to the Royal Garden to commence our guardian meetings," Tadase explained, gesturing toward the glass greenhouse. "Of course, Kukai often has to leave early because of soccer practices and we all have other club responsibilities, but try to come as often as possible. We will meet on weekends, if necessary." Both Kairi and Rima nodded. "Thank you both immensely for accepting. Our first meeting will be tomorrow after school. Have a good afternoon!"

I immediately left the Royal Garden with Nagihiko, bidding farewell to the others. Once we were far enough, Nagihiko immediately shifted back to himself, his hair falling down to his waist again. A sigh escaped his mouth.

"Long day?" I wondered, watching my friend.

"I guess… You know? I did not expect for Mashiro-San to join that easily," Nagihiko murmured. "But really? She has 'nothing better to do'?"

"I kind of wanted her to say no…" Nagihiko looked at me, his eyes softening. "I mean, I know we need her, but…" I let out a sigh. "It's just… I got so used to it being just the five of us. We were all so close and I trust you guys. I'm sure Kairi will be fine, but Rima? She seems to already hate me… I just don't know why!"

"It's not just you," Nagihiko tried to reassure, laughing slightly. "I think she hates all of us, besides Sanjou-Kun."

"She was deliberately ignoring me though when talking to you!" I pointed out.

"Maybe we just have to get to know her?" Nagihiko thought aloud. "Maybe she is a very different person on the inside. I know what you mean though; it is hard to have new people join, especially…" I watched Nagihiko, cocking my head to the side. "I guess I have to get back used to being Nadeshiko inside the Royal Garden again." His eyes darkened.

"I'm sorry Nagi," I mumbled, pity in my eyes. "I'm sure you'll tell them eventually, if we get close to them." I bit my lip, wondering how it was possible anyone could get close to Rima.

"I suppose so…" He looked straight ahead. "I shouldn't be so negative. You joined us last year and fit perfectly with us. Maybe the two of them will join us perfectly as well. Yaya has certainly taken a liking to Sanjou-Kun." I laughed.

"Poor Kairi," I mumbled. "Yaya has been harassing the poor boy."

"Yaya-Chan is always very emphatic," Nagihiko pointed out, chuckling lightly. I laughed concurrently.

Upon arriving at my house and bidding Nagihiko farewell, I was immediately greeted with Ami's loud blabbering to my parents about her first day at middle school. While I was happy that it seemed to go well for her, I did not have a desire to hear about her wonderful day juxtaposed to my less than average one. My parents seemed to briefly notice my existence, before they proceeded to continue pestering Ami about her life at Seiyo Middle School. I walked past them, heading into my room. I plopped onto my bed, letting out a dramatic sigh. Why was Rima so difficult? I hadn't done anything wrong; I was just trying to be her friend! So why was she so rude to me?

"Hard day at school?" I didn't even need to look up at this point to recognize Ikuto; after all, who else would sneak into an almost sixteen-year-old's bedroom?

"I guess…" I watched as Ikuto sat beside me, eying me curiously. "We have new guardians."

"Why is that a bad thing?" Ikuto wondered, leaning onto his elbow. My cheeks reddened involuntarily.

"It's not, I-I mean it shouldn't be anyway. But this new girl, she's so…ugh." I let out a sigh. "She just keeps saying snide things to me. I kept trying to talk to her all day and befriend her, but she just went out of her way to insult me." Tears of frustration formed in my eyes. "I don't want her to join the guardians. It's too late now, but I wish she would just leave! Everything was so right before; I trusted everyone—Tadase, Nagi, Yaya, Kukai. We were like a family, and it worked well with you and Utau too. But now, there are these strangers. I mean, Kairi's nice, but…"

"Hey, don't worry so much." Ikuto scooted closer to me. Upon sniffling, I realized tears were coming on full-fledged. I felt ridiculous. I had only cried in front of Ikuto once and that was during my "unlock" dreams.

"It's not fair," I mumbled childishly. I rested my head on Ikuto's shoulder. I could feel his body tense up, obviously not expecting that sudden movement. I quickly picked my head up, quite flustered. My cheeks were heating up. "I-I-I'm sorry! I-I just…" Before I could finish speaking, Ikuto wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into his warm body. It occurred to me I was slightly cuddling into Ikuto on my bed-which could be deemed fairly inappropriate-but I was not about to move.

"The guardians cycle through people constantly," Ikuto pointed out. I picked up my head slightly, looking at him surprised. "Sure, Tadase, Nad, err, Nagihiko, Kukai, and Yaya have always helped out, but it hasn't always just been them. Obviously, Utau and I had our runs as guardians. Throughout my time—as a guardian and helping out afterward—I've seen the guardians go through several bad members. For example, there was this girl who joined the guardians two years ago briefly, when Tadase was a freshman."

"I think Nagi and Tadase have both mentioned her," I pointed out.

"Her name was Ursula," Ikuto explained. "She was a mage, but a very ungifted one. She joined the guardians primarily to flirt with Kukai. You can only imagine how pissed my sister was." I laughed slightly.

"Flirting a little bit isn't that bad," I mumbled. "Why are the guardians so bothered by this Ursula now?"

"Well, she did try to sexually assault him." My eyes widened.

"Wait, what?!" Ikuto chuckled.

"They were having a guardian meeting. I was there, since I always visited them. Tadase was droning on about some school function, when suddenly, Kukai shrieked loudly. It turned out Ursula had, well, stuck her hand down Kukai's pants." My mouth dropped wide open. Ikuto chuckled again at my reaction. "After that, Ursula was suspended."

"Kukai never told me about that!" I exclaimed.

"He was scarred by the experience. I'm sure he tries his hardest to forget that ever happened."

"I can't blame him…" I shuddered. "How did Utau react to that? They were dating then, I presume?" Ikuto nodded slowly.

"I don't know exactly what she did, but all I know is that Utau found Ursula during her suspension, and somehow, Ursula never showed up again." Seeing my appalled expression prompted Ikuto to smirk. "Don't worry, my sister would never voluntarily kill anyone." His eyes darkened slightly.

"Amu! Dinner's ready!" My father called. I turned to Ikuto.

"Thanks for coming, Ikuto," I whispered. "You're right; I guess it really can get worse than Rima." Ikuto let go of me, and immediately I felt the coldness of his vacancy.

"You just wanted me to cuddle with you," He teased, his signature smirk intact. My face heated up.

"Don't be ridiculous, Tsukiyomi!" I spat at him, ignoring my blush. "You were warm and I was cold! Besides, I would much prefer to cuddle with Tadase!" Suddenly, Ikuto's smirk vanished entirely. I cocked an eyebrow, watching as he simply turned around and hopped off of balcony without another word. I rolled my eyes. Ikuto could certainly be odd. I ran my fingers through my hair and headed downstairs to my family.

"Amu, how was your first day?" My mother asked me.

"Fine," I bluntly replied, feeling no need to elaborate. "Just another day of high school."

"Oh Sissy! I met that guy, Tsubasa Yuiki!" I turned to Ami, quite surprised.

"How was he?!" I wondered. I remember how excited Yaya was to set them up. While I had only seen Tsubasa once, he did look cute. How cool would it be to have my sister dating Yaya's brother?

"He's such a dork!" I gaped at her.

"Ami! That's not nice!" I exclaimed.

"Okay, but it was totally true. Like, he was going to join the Chess Team. What sane person joins the Chess Team?"

"There's nothing wrong with joining something you're interested in," I pointed out. "Right Mom? Dad?"

"Well, the Chess Team is basically social suicide," My mother pointed out.

"Mom!" I exclaimed.

"My little girl said she was going to join the cheerleading squad! Just like her big sister did!" My father chorused.

"Don't do that to yourself," I muttered, shuddering as I recalled my days as a cheerleader at my middle school.

"It'll be so much fun!" Ami exclaimed. I rolled my eyes, starting to tune my sister out. I found myself focusing on the television ahead. Sure enough, after a commercial break about some dog food product, none other than Nobuko Saeki appeared on my screen. I groaned. What would she prophesize about me today?

"Hey you!" She pointed seemingly at me—which, now that I knew she was an oracle, I knew it was directly at me—and smiled creepily. "If you are a Libra and watching this, you are about to face grave dangers!" Awesome. "You may have embraced who you are, but you still do not understand the full extent of your abilities. You must learn to seize control of your inner abilities. After all, that could help solve the greatest mystery." Greatest mystery? What did that mean?

"That is my reading of the day. I could be wrong; only you can know. Nobuko Saeki out!"

"Hey Sissy, you're a Libra, right?" Ami wondered.

"Yeah, but those fortunes are bullshit," I lied, gritting my teeth. Despite the amount of lies I have told my family, it never got any easier. Little did any of them know, I lived a completely different life than they could ever imagine.

"Amu!" My father exclaimed. "Don't taint your sister's precious little ears! I don't want my girls to know such foul language." I rolled my eyes.

"I'm going to my room," I mumbled.

"We need to do more Sweet Sixteen planning this weekend!" My mother told me. "Your party is in two weeks!" I groaned, before heading to my bedroom. I didn't know why I was having that stupid party anyway. I hated large occasions like that; it was only because of my annoying parents. But at least I would see Tadase in a cute suit…

Stop that. I thought to myself, blushing furiously. I changed into my pajamas and climbed into bed. Even though it was only eight o'clock, I found myself drifting to sleep.

"Amu Hinamori." I turned around rapidly to no avail. All I could see was perpetual darkness. I wondered where exactly I was; my previous spirit dreams had been in a pure white room, so why was it all black now? Were these both the spirit realms?

"Dia?" I whispered hesitantly. "Is…is that you?" To my dismay, a flash of yellow appeared in front of me. The ghost-like projection shone in front of me, similarly to what I saw yesterday.

"You are not a fully realized medium yet," She whispered.

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"You are capable of so much more than you can possibly fathom." I grimaced, recalling the parallel words of Nobuko Saeki. "But your time is limited. You must extend yourself before he comes."

"Before…before who comes?"

"Before the Fatal Insurgent rises."

I woke with a start, sweat pouring down my skin. I could feel my body trembling as I recalled the chilling voice of the spirit.

"The Fatal Insurgent?" I whispered, puzzled. Feeling for my phone next to my bed, I immediately unlocked it and searched through my contacts. Upon finding the name N, I quickly hit send, my heart racing in my chest.

"Amu?" Nagihiko inquired after a few rings. Is everything alright?"

"Nagi, I… a spirit dream…" I explained to him what Dia had told me.

"That sounds concerning…"

"Should we call the others?" I wondered. "Perhaps we should meet up now."

"Yeah, I think that's a good idea. I just finished getting dressed. I'll tell the others to meet at the Royal Garden in an hour." I glanced at the clock, seeing as it read six.

"Do you think they're awake?" I wondered. "I'm sorry I called so early; I was just—"

"No, no it's fine! We need to discuss this with everyone; I think they can afford waking up a few minutes early. Are you going to be able to get to the Royal Garden by then?"

"Yeah, no problem. I'll see you soon, Nagi."

"What the hell is a 'Fatal Insurgent'?" Kukai inquired, after I finished explaining my latest spirit dream. I shrugged wearily.

"It doesn't sound good," I mumbled. "What Dia was saying to me though sounded like I really need to activate my powers or something soon." I groaned. "I just… I don't understand how to do that."

"If only we could guarantee contact with these spirits…" Tadase thought aloud. "It seems to be only available when you go to sleep."

"But now that Amu opened the spirit gate, it should be easier to contact them," Nagihiko pointed out. "Amu, didn't you mention that Dia had previously told you that you would connect in reality?" I nodded slowly.

"But how?" I inquired. "I don't know how to use these powers. Every time I had activated spirit powers previously, I had entered some weird dream-like state in which I wasn't conscious of what I was doing."

"Maybe you've just got to believe!" Yaya offered. All four of us stared at her blankly. "What? Yaya was trying to say something helpful…"

"We need to gather more intelligence on this," Tadase persisted. "Nagi, you know the database better than anyone. Do you mind searching to see what you can gather?"

"Of course."

"I'll speak with Amakawa-San, and see what he has in his library." Tadase turned to Yaya and Kukai. "You two can do some research as well."

"What about me?" I offered. Tadase turned to me.

"You have the most important job of all; you're the one that actually has to go through with this." He smiled brightly, prompting my cheeks to consequently redden. "Leave the research to us. If you can focus on the dreams you have and keep track of what happens, we can work with that." I nodded slowly. I was mildly relieved; after all, I had no idea how to work whatever databases Tadase was referring to. But there was still something bothering me.

"What about Ikuto and Utau?" I inquired. "They said that Easter had new plans, right? They might know." Tadase looked slightly uncomfortable.

"I don't know…" Kukai's expression was indecipherable.

"Amu-Chi is right, you know," Yaya pointed out. "They know a lot about this stuff."

"Yeah, but… they could get hurt helping us out too much. Kazuomi already mistreats them, and I don't want them getting hurt more." Nagihiko smiled slightly at Kukai.

"Well—"

"You didn't say that there were before school meetings too." All five of us glanced up, facing the two newest guardians. Like usual, Rima looked completely stoic. Although her words had a sharpness to them, she didn't seem to be devastated that she wasn't included. Kairi, too, seemed emotionless upon standing next to the shorter girl.

"We apologize immensely for not telling you about this brief meeting." Nagihiko's voice rose an octave as he transformed quickly. "An urgent matter arose, and we needed to handle it immediately."

"What has occurred?" Kairi inquired, his gaze focusing. Tadase gave me a curt glance, of which I returned with a smile. He turned back to Rima and Kairi, filling them in on my recent dream.

"How regular is your communication period with these spirits?" Kairi inquired, turning to me.

"Last year, my dreams were daily," I proceeded to explain. "Before I unlocked the gate to the spirit world, I would have these dreams that kept urging me to 'unlock,' and sometimes, they would take place during the day as well. After I unlocked it, my dreams have definitely died down slightly, but every so often, I will hear spirit voices. But my spirit dream these past two nights were the first in a while." Kairi looked pensive for a moment.

"Well, isn't it obvious what we have to do?" Rima wondered monotonously. Everyone looked at her. "You just have to talk to them again."

"Well… yeah, but I'm not really sure how to do that," I admitted.

"Why not?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"Aren't you a medium? Isn't it your role to talk to spirits?"

"I, um… I guess so, but I don't really know how to," I admitted.

"Well, that's problematic." I sighed glumly.

"Perhaps it is much simpler than you believe," Kairi suggested. "If you are truly a medium, then you should be able to forge a connection as you desire. This should be facilitated immensely upon the opening of the gate." I shifted uncomfortably.

"Well, the four of us were planning on conducting some research to get some more ideas," Tadase explained. "Perhaps you could start considering it as well."

"Mediums are simply a legend," Rima pointed out. "I highly doubt we'll find anything."

"It's worth a look, right?" Nagihiko offered. Rima frowned.

"Well, I think Hinamori should try a little harder to actually make a connection. Have you even tried it during the day?" I opened my mouth to speak, but closed it quickly. She was right; I never had actively tried to talk to the spirits during the day. But something about the way Rima spoke made me extremely self-conscious; how was it possible that I could just meet this girl, and yet she could make me feel awful?

"I have some books regarding demonology," Kairi pointed out, pushing up his glasses. "I will run a thorough investigation, though I do believe that Hinamori-San should have an innate ability to communicate with spirits instinctually." I bit my lip.

"Yay Kairi-Kun!" Yaya chorused, prompting the green-haired boy to sigh.

"We will meet again after school," Tadase suggested, after checking his watch. "Amu-Chan, Mashiro-San, shall we head to first period?" I nodded slowly, looking anywhere except the petite blonde. I made brief eye contact with Nagihiko, who gave me a sad smile.

As the rest of the day proceeded, I thought back to Rima and Kairi's words. Why couldn't I just do it? Why was this whole demon connection thing so difficult for me?

"Hey Nade?" I inquired, as we got to our lunch period. The purple-haired teenager turned to me, his purple hair falling to his back. "How do you shift forms?"

"Hm?" He raised an eyebrow.

"I-I mean, like, how do you, like, change from a boy to a girl? Do you think about being someone new? Do you have a magic process or something?"

"Well, I guess it's kind of like asking how do you sleep or eat," He explained. "I just sort of do it. It's instinct, I guess." Instinct. I thought back to what Kairi said. Why can't I just talk to spirits or do anything with them normally?

"But if you don't know what you're trying to do, it's difficult," He quickly added. "Don't let what Rima and Kairi said get to you; they don't know what it's like to be a medium. None of us do." A part of me wanted to smile, knowing that Nagihiko knew exactly what I was thinking.

"But…they're right," I pressed. "Why…why can't I do it? Why can't I do anything right?"

"Amu—"

"I'll meet you at lunch, okay?" I grabbed my food from my locker quickly and jogged off, feeling tears form in my eyes. I ran into the girls' bathroom and closed the door of the stall, before letting tears fall freely.

"Why am I so pathetic?" I murmured. I couldn't do anything right; I couldn't do what I was supposed to do. I could feel the high pitched and gentle-sounding, yet harsh, voice of Rima repeatedly, tantalizing me. Have you even tried?

I closed my eyes suddenly and focused on the spirit realm. Maybe I could do it, if I tried...

"Enter… enter…" I mumbled. Rima was right; I could do it if I tried it. I can enter the spirit realm during the day if I so desired, right? It was instinctual, as Kairi had insinuated.

You aren't strong enough.

I turned around rapidly.

"What…?!"

You do not believe in yourself. I saw a flash of yellow in front of me.

"Dia—"

You must accept your inner light to extinguish the darkness. To my horror, the yellow figure in front of me suddenly turned black. A white X symbol formed on Dia, before it suddenly vanished. My eyes widened.

"It's all my fault…" I whispered. "Of course I screw something up!" Wiping away my tears, I quickly exited the bathroom, heading rapidly to the lunch room.

"Amu-Chi!" Yaya called excitedly, prompting me to form a rapid smile, and sit beside them. As I got closer to the table, I could see Rima sitting there as well. She looked at me blankly, prompting me to quickly avert eye contact and sit down across from her and beside Nagihiko. He looked at me concernedly, but I quickly smiled reassuringly back.

"Is everything alright?" Tadase wondered, looking at me worriedly. I thought back to my encounter with Dia. Why had she turned completely black? What was that X? My inner light? What could that mean?

I turned to Tadase. Upon seeing Rima's stoic expression out of the corner of my eye, I forced a smile. "I'm fine!"

"It's almost ready for debut," Yukari stated. "I'm really glad your brother decided to help out. I'm not so sure it would have been such a hit without his contribution." Utau nodded slowly. "I think Black Diamond is going to do really well, possibly better than even Meikyuu Butterfly. You're about to get what you always wanted, Utau: fame."

"Right…" She sighed. She looked at the CD that Yukari was holding. She wore a big black cap on her head as she stood with her head tilted downward, no emotion present. "Can I go now?"

"Yeah, yeah. But make sure to report back here tomorrow early. Your stepfather wants us to do a final run through before the big performance." Utau nodded slowly, before exiting the studio. Her hands were dug into her pockets as she exited the Easter Headquarters, cringing as she stepped into the sun. She ran faster than an average human could, making her way to the nearest shade. Stopping momentarily to pant, she saw a bright round object. Opening her eyes, she could see a black egg object lying motionlessly on the ground. It had a bright white X on it, shining ceaselessly. Curious, she bent down to pick it up, feeling its coldness against her unnaturally cool skin.

"What the hell is this?" She wondered. Shrugging, she stuffed the egg into her pocket, before continuing to head back to her home.

Wow, it's almost like the anime or something. What a crazy coincidence.

I promise that I will next update in less than two years! In fact, it will probably be this summer. I can pretty much guarantee that. Thank you all so much for sticking with this story despite the fact I have taken so long to update. You guys mean the world to me,. I've been on FFN for so long now, and I'm so incredibly thankful for this fandom and you all. If you love me too, please review ;)

Just kidding I'm not that obnoxious... okay I totally am.

Also wish me luck as I hopefully try to survive my last final. I just want to go home and have unlimited free time, but alas, college.

But once I'm free, chapter 22 will come soon! Yay! I'm back, friends!