The rooftop was still warm with the echoes of Kuro's return. The mirror shimmered faintly, basking in the golden afternoon light. Something about it felt quieter now—less haunted, more peaceful.
But as Renji and Kuro spoke quietly nearby, Aoi stood apart, her eyes fixed not on the mirror… but on the horizon.
She was smiling.
But her hands trembled.
She had made peace with the Spiral.
But she had never made peace with herself.
And soon… she'd have to.
---
The Past She Locked Away
That night, Aoi couldn't sleep.
She sat by her bedroom window, the moon casting soft shadows across her desk. On it sat an unopened letter. The seal was cracked, the paper yellowed with time.
It was from her older sister, Hinako—the one who disappeared before everything began.
Not taken by the Spiral.
Not dead.
She left.
And she never came back.
Aoi finally opened the letter.
> "Aoi… I'm sorry I left like that.
I had to. The town… the house… the secrets.
They were eating me alive.
I hope someday you'll understand why I couldn't stay.
I hope you'll be brave enough to leave too.
—Hina"
Aoi's hands shook.
She'd always believed Hinako abandoned her.
But maybe… she'd been trying to survive too.
---
A Confession Beneath the Stars
The next day, Aoi met Renji and Kuro at the shrine steps, beneath a canopy of stars.
"I need to tell you both something," she said. "Before this feeling disappears again."
They listened, silent, as she told them everything.
About Hinako. The letter. The guilt. The shame.
About how she'd always smiled to keep from screaming.
"I thought… if I could help you both heal, I wouldn't have to face myself," she admitted.
Kuro gave a small nod. "We all do that, Aoi. You're not the only one."
Renji stepped closer. "So what do you want now?"
Aoi stared up at the stars.
"I want to stop running. I want to find my sister. Even if it means leaving Yukihama again."
---
An Unexpected Decision
The next morning, she told her mother.
Tears fell. Arguments came. But eventually, silence settled in again—the peaceful kind.
Her mother handed her a faded photo.
Hinako at the station, backpack slung over one shoulder, smiling like she was finally free.
"She loved you," her mother whispered. "More than anything. Don't let that love stay lost."
Aoi hugged her mother tighter than she had in years.
---
A Promise Made
That evening, the trio stood on the rooftop once more.
Aoi faced the mirror. Her reflection stared back—strong, determined, finally ready.
"I'm going to find her," she said. "Not just for me. For her. For everything we lost and everything we've still got."
Renji smiled softly. "Then we'll wait. Just like you waited for us."
Kuro bumped her shoulder. "But if you don't come back, I'm hunting you down."
She laughed, tears in her eyes. "I'll come back. That's my promise."
And when she turned to leave, the wind caught her hair, the stars shimmered overhead, and the mirror stood still.
Not a portal.
Not a prison.
Just a memory.
Of the girl who chose to go forward.
---
End of Chapter 66
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To Be Continue