Shortly after school, Seia trains with an unusual setup alone at New Eden gym. She has strewn cardboard boxes and water bottles at random all over the gym, together with the exercise machines forming a dense field of obstacles. Using the shadowy hands in her Puella form, Seia practices moving among them without bumping into anything. Here and there are punching bags, which she practices her striking technique on when she comes to them, both with her staff and with her fists. It seems she’s practiced this quite a bit, as her speed moving through the “obstacle course” has improved. To anyone else, someone arriving in the makeshift ‘storage’ area would be classified as ‘unbeknownst’. But Hanako was as subtle as a brick on the best of days, let alone to Seia’s sharpened other senses.

Seia: (She raises her hand and calls out before Hanako can announce her presence) Let me guess who it is! Hanako-san, right? 

Hanako: (She jumps a bit) Th… that’s amazing, Yamano-san! H-How did you know…?

Seia: No powers needed this time. There’s something on your bag that jingles while you walk. Cute charm? Maybe just a zipper? 

Hanako: O-Oh, um… y-yeah, I have a charm. It’s, erm… from my favorite video game, ehe… But then, how are you, um… navigating this training course? Did Yui put this together…?

Seia: No, this was me. (She mimes throwing a cardboard box) Getting around is still the biggest problem, after all. 

Hanako: I… but… f-forgive me for asking, but how did you put all this together? By yourself, no less?

Seia: Hmhm, it isn’t so hard to get around enough to cause a mess. Especially with these to show me around. (She makes a fox hand gesture, and all her shadow-hands do the same, bouncing around like they’re putting on a shadow puppet show) 

Hanako: Whoa… I-I guess that would come in handy! So then, this is how you’ve been training, outside of the… usual training days?

Seia: Mm-hmm. I did it at home a couple times but then my fam killed me for making a mess. 

Hanako: I can only assume that… not only does Yui know about this, she approved of it. Thank goodness no one seems to come back here…

Seia: (she expertly steps between two water bottles in front of her feet) Aoi comes in sometimes to help me clean up. When she’s got the energy.

Hanako: S-So on top of the training you go through on Sundays, you built yourself an obstacle course to train on in between… That’s… intense.

Seia: Of course I’m taking it seriously. While I was holed up in that cabin waiting out the Balancers, I thought to myself… “self: if those Balancers were to come in here right now, you wouldn’t be able to defend your baby sister or your parents or nice Monsieur Colère either.” … Well, anyway, I didn’t want to keep being that way.

Hanako: I-I see… then… from your perspective, Yui’s training style isn’t on the extreme side, like I had heard… 

Seia: (She shakes her head) Well, honestly, it might be. I’m just a strong cookie. And I think I just have two little problems– (she taps her face just beneath her eyes) So even Yui-san never feels like going all out on me.

Hanako: Hm? Do you… think Yui is going easier on you than the other girls she trains?

Seia: Maybe. Hard to tell. The ones who bragged on their admission form have it worst. 

Hanako: I… I see. That… that makes sense, actually. Yui was never one to put up with arrogance. Still, though… I have to wonder how bad this training of hers actually is. I-I guess… that subconsciously drove me to come down here. The other reason, anyway.

Seia: Huh, what’s the other reason? 

Hanako: I… (she sighs) … I wanted to talk to Yui. We haven’t since she, um, yelled at me a few weeks ago.

Seia: Well, I’m sorry to say since you worked up your courage to come, but I don’t think she’s here. 

Hanako: …I-I see. Well, in that case, I suppose I’ll—

Aoi comes in, stopping abruptly upon seeing Hanako.

Aoi: Oh, I thought you were done and ready to clean up. Sorry. 

Hanako: (She’s frozen in place for a moment, before quickly shaking her head) U-Um… hello, Aoi. … I-I… I hope you’ve been well.

Aoi: (She glances over at Hanako) Oh, fine. Nothing much going on for me. You? 

Hanako: …Nothing too far out of the ordinary. Wh-which isn’t true, if you, um… have been keeping up with the news, but…

Aoi: That murderer? (She shrugs) Has to be a leftover Balancer who quit before they saw us. That’s my pointless bet, I guess. 

Hanako: Ah, um… w-well, we’re looking into it. The Newspaper Club, I mean. We, um… (She pauses, shaking her head again) …Aoi, um… I-I mean… I’m sorry, again. F-For everything, I mean.

Aoi: (She shakes her head) Sorry for what? Did you apologize to those Balancers when you beat them too? 

Hanako: Th… They weren’t my friends! I… 

Aoi: You made your decision on what to do. I did too. Those little rascals stuck to me told me what happened after I passed out, assuming they weren’t just clowning around. 

Hanako: (She’s quiet for a long moment before speaking quietly) …I have more control over myself now. I… regret what almost happened. And what did happen. Aoi, I…

Aoi: … Don’t start acting like you would’ve been okay with me still up there blasting away. Yui will get mad at you. 

Hanako: …Yui isn’t here right now. I can… I can still feel bad for how I treated you. Then, and afterward. I… used you as a scapegoat to run from my own problems. I-I still don’t know why I… spoke to you the way I did before. But… I’d like it if, maybe… we could be friends again. 

Aoi: (She looks away at a corner of the ceiling, then back to Hanako, waving her hand dismissively and answering unemotionally) Was there a time when we weren’t friends? Don’t make a big deal out of it. 

Hanako: (She’s frozen for what feels like eternity, the silence especially deafening to Seia. Eventually, Hanako nods with the most subdued sound imaginable) …Yamano-san, tell Yui I came by… okay? 

Seia: O-oh, sure. I’ll tell her next time we meet. Be safe out there. 

Hanako’s footsteps are light, practically inaudible before they fade into the distance.