(GS3) Home Field: Espoir Mansion

[Cherry]

"Simple. Become a Vanguard Unit and obtain godhood", he spoke in a casual, sarcastic tone. Taking a sip of his coffee as the doors opened for him to go inside.

[Beryl]

"And one would do that how?" Satoshi followed him. There was a reason he was pestering the old man about this, and it had everything to do with his daughters. He hoped he realized this.

[Cherry]

"If it was as simple as telling you how to do it, I wouldn't have responded with sarcasm", the man answered, ordering servants to prepare a meal for himself and his guest. Handing the empty mug to a butler, the lion turned to Satoshi with a questioning, yet still stern look. The farm boy's insanity would be admired of this was something that was less of an impossible feat. Asking how to become a celestial being for another planet was like asking how to survive being on fire for the rest of your life.

"There's no actual details on how to become a being of Cray, let alone obtaining divine prowess there. The closest people would be my daughters. Hana can transfer her image over to Cray to communicate and reside with the residents. Yukino is a Blaster, but her power was only for a few moments."

[Beryl]

Satoshi nodded, sitting at the table across from Mr. Espoir. "I apologize if I'm asking something impossible, sir. I'm honestly in a bit of dire straits to try and help your daughters any way I can."

He stared at the Lion's figure with his calm, green eyes, still unchanged from his fight with Noah. "It may be stupid of me, but as Yukino's Royal Guard, I want to be able to do something for her, and Hana, even if it involves pushing myself past my normal limits. Haruka, too." He gave a slight smile. "They're all my companions, people who've gotten me to realize why I play Vanguard and fight to unseal the clans. If I could...I'd turn myself ethereal and go to the Realm of the Gods and stay there, just so they could have a chance to smile and fulfill their destinies again."

He took a sip of a mug the butler placed down for him. Oh, hey, this was that coffee Haruka enjoyed so much. Apparently it was a shared favorite amongst the gents of the Espoir manor.

[Cherry]

"I already knew that was your reason. However, if one of us could become God, I'd have done it myself."

In this situation and the ordeal of two months' past, Father Espoir stayed out of affairs. At least, he stayed out of the way in their battles. However, he was still their loving parent, and this statement proved that. If this man could become a deity in order to ensure his daughters and wife happiness, he would've done so long ago.

[Beryl]

"I understand..." Satoshi stared at his mug. "Even so...is there really nothing that can be done?"

[Cherry]

"The only thing to do is end this war as fast as it started", Dad Espoir walked into a small, cozy living room-like area. Taking a seat in his favorite chair, second to his office chair, he continued. "Yukino and Hana lost their happiness when they lost their clans. They can bond with Gold Paladin and Angel Feather, but they were never meant to be replacements. This empty hole for the both of them resulted in a downward spiral that split them apart from each other and Vanguard as a whole."

Despite explaining his own children's suffering, his tone remained calm. Each time he gave a sigh to transition the next topic of their conversations, a hint of his impatience unmasked itself briefly. He believed in them to break out of karma's cycle - freeing themselves from their own misery. Yet, at the same time, he couldn't stand it himself. He missed the livelihood of the Espoir Manor. These brats who kept coming over, hearing the girls giggle, seeing them smile again...

Life is rough for the lion too.

[Beryl]

End the war as fast as it started...

"How do you propose we do that?" Satoshi sipped some coffee. "Every time I think I have an answer to Neu Edelweiss' approach to Vanguard, I'm mistaken."

[Cherry]

"Her Vanguard isn't what you should be challenging", the lion spoke. "The just idealism of breaking the shackles of the strong, leaning more toward the entertainment of the game, the sacrifice of few for the many... Morally, this is how everyone's Vanguard should be. It's a game where people are happy, and shouldn't be oppressed by people who just happen to be better."

However, he wasn't finished yet.

"The will of the few is the answer. This war isn't for anyone else but for those we've lost. At least, that's how Cray's going about it while others like Amon and Megacolony's criminal base focus on themselves. You all simply need to uplift your Vanguard to get back what you lost."

[Beryl]

"The will of the few..." Satoshi closed his eyes and thought this over. The four clans that were sealed...all of them would want Vanguard to be as happy as Neu had described. But sealing them away had been anything but. Even so...

"So what you're saying is that the War of Liberation...is to free those friends, because those friends would also want the world to be happy playing Vanguard?"

[Cherry]

"I can't tell you what your own collective will is", he spoke as the butler came in with two seafood dishes for the host and guest. "You all have to tell each other."

[Beryl]

"Tell each other..."

Now it sort of made sense. Since Satoshi had recently understood what Vanguard meant to him and why he kept at it...that sort of will needed to come out of the rest of the Triad. Perhaps even Hana, too. And that would be quite the challenge.

He took a bite of what he guessed correctly to be swordfish. A culinary gift, but a surprisingly generous one of the Lion, considering who he was sharing a meal with tonight. Or maybe he ate this sort of thing all the time and it was commonplace. He didn't really have the guts to poke at Mr. Espoir's daily routine, despite his renewed interest in the old man.

He wanted to help his daughters too, even if he couldn't do so directly in the manner he would have liked. The farmboy smiled. He was a good father.

"Sir, leave it to me. I know I'm not exactly your level of strength, but acting for you, to help your daughters...I'd like to do that if I can."

[Crystalia]

She'd ended up making it to the Espoir Mansion before almost collapsing. Her house was still a bit of a walk away, so she decided to try and sleep in the Mansion. Thankfully the workers let her in without a word, and guided her to a room. She wasn't sure if she was tired, but she did need to lie down in a warm room.

She then recieved a text. She quickly opened it, and read it. "Hey Mi-hime, how have you been? Sorry for leaving in such a short notice. ~ <3 BELLA". She just stared at it for a second, unsure of how to reply. The guilt rose up in her once again, and she couldn't keep it down. Still attempting to hold back tears, she slowly replied.

'I've been alright? Did something happen to cause you to leave? Sorry.' She wanted to say more, but that was all she managed. 'I can't worry Hana' she thought. 'I failed her in the first place, worrying her now would be even worse'. Shivering still slightly, she replied.

[Hope]

"About what happened, it was bad, but I'll try to move on from it. Yeah! I hope you don't feel to bad. I actually really miss you because we already haven't seen each other in awhile even before I left. We should go on that date when I come back!  ~ <3 BELLA"

[Crystalia]

She couldn't keep them back anymore. Despite her wishes, tears rolled down her face. She wasn't even fully sure why, just upon reading Hana's text, she had burst into tears. All the collective worry, guilt, fear, and other emotions just exploded at the same time. Relief that Hana was possibly alright and contacting her, guilt, loss, everything just hit at once. With shaking hands, she tried to respond to Hana's text.

'Alright, I hope you are okay! I'll be fine in a bit, don't worry. Come back soon! And of course we can go on that date, just let me know when.'

Again she couldn't fully express how she was feeling, but it was fine. She wasn't sure she wanted anyone to see her in this state anyway. Hana's words had an effect on her however, at least when she read them her guilt was forgotten, if only for a bit. With the message sent she continued to cry, muffling her sobs into the pillow. 'The last few days were really too much I guess'.