Yui's sobs slowly turned into shaky breaths, the kind where you can feel someone trying hard to hold the rest of it in. Her fists loosened until her hands just stayed there, resting like she didn't have the strength to pull away yet.
Haru didn't move. He didn't say anything else either, because she didn't need words right now—just something solid to hold onto before she drowned in it all again.
When she finally stepped back, wiping at her face with her hand
"…Sorry," she mumbled, voice hoarse.
"Don't," Haru said immediately, softer than before. "You don't have anything to be sorry for."
Daichi's voice cut through the heavy quiet. "We don't have time. We need to keep moving and find the Jester. That's our only shot."
Haru gave Yui's hand a reassuring squeeze and nodded. "Let's go."
The three of them started moving again, slow steps at first, careful not to make noise, but the urgency in Daichi's tone pushed them forward.
The Limbo around them continued its twisted shifting: cracked streets blending into endless hallways, broken signs swinging in ways that defied gravity. Every corner felt like it might swallow them whole.
Yui's stomach twisted, a sudden heat that had nothing to do with fear. She froze mid-step, pressing a hand lightly to her abdomen. A new, strange ache filled her lower body. She blinked down, realizing what was happening.
A flush of embarrassment and panic shot through her. She remembered how Ayumi had gotten her period a year ago, how nervous she'd been, how she'd whispered things to Yui in their secret little conversations.
Yui's lips pressed into a thin line as tears threatened again. Haru and Daichi didn't notice, they were focused ahead, scanning every shift in the Limbo.
Yui pressed a hand over her stomach, trying to calm herself, she didn't understand how this could happen in her transformation.
Supplies… there were none. Nothing. The Limbo didn't provide for them unless you got lucky.
She had nothing to manage this, and the thought made her feel even smaller.
Yui's steps slowed, her stomach twisting in a way that had nothing to do with hunger or fear. She pressed a hand against her abdomen, trying to will the heat and discomfort away, but it was no use.
"…I—I have to… go," she stammered suddenly, voice high and panicked. Her cheeks burned hot as she avoided Haru and Daichi's eyes.
Haru glanced at her, concern knitting his brow. "That's okay, just be careful."
Daichi, still scanning the warped Limbo path, frowned. "If you need to, fine. Just hurry."
Yui nodded quickly, biting her lip. "Yeah… just… behind that."
She pointed vaguely to a chunk of broken wall and scattered debris a few feet off the path.
The boys stepped aside, giving her some space. Yui's heart pounded in her ears as she ducked behind the rubble.
Once she was out of sight, she exhaled sharply, then carefully pulled at the lining of her knight skirt. The pleated, armored fabric didn't tear easily, but with a sharp tug, a small strip came loose.
She held it in her hands, cheeks flaming. This wouldn't have been this embarrassing in any other situation. But here, in the twisting, dangerous Limbo, she had no choice.
After a long, shaky breath, she twisted the torn fabric into a makeshift pad and tucked it as best as she could, securing it as inconspicuously as the armor allowed.
When she finished, she straightened up, smoothing her skirt awkwardly, and muttered to herself, "…Okay… don't die, Yui. Just… keep moving."
A few seconds later, Haru's voice came from the path. "You done?"
Yui's voice was tight but firm. "Y-Yeah… I'm good now."
Daichi's eyes flicked toward her briefly. "Alright. Let's keep going. The Jester won't wait for us."
The path grew darker, the Limbo air thick and heavy. Broken streets twisted into alleys lined with peeling posters, painted in bright, garish colors that seemed almost alive.
Clowns with jagged smiles leered from crumpled paper, balloons twisted into impossible shapes, and circus tents shimmered in the distance, though the air smelled faintly of smoke and decay.
Yui's hands clenched into fists at her sides, her thoughts chaotic. Every poster, every crooked sign seemed to be leading them somewhere. Finally, at the center of it all, a massive tent loomed, striped in deep crimson and gold.
Inside, the space seemed impossibly large, stretching further than the exterior suggested.
And there, perched atop a platform with a deck of floating cards circling him like satellites, sat the Jester. His grin was wide and knowing, the eyes glinting with amusement and something darker.
Yui stepped forward, voice trembling but urgent. "Please! You have to help us! The Watcher—he's destroying everything! He's taken everyone! He's—"
Her words tumbled over themselves, frantic. "We can't stop him without you!"
The Jester tilted his head, chuckling softly. "Oh, I know." He flicked a card through the air; it spun lazily, slicing shadows across the floor.
"Some of your companions didn't make it this far. Haruka, Airi, Kaito… Ayumi. Seems fate's grip was faster than your legs."
Haru's jaw tightened.
"We need you. You can reverse The Watcher's time. You can stop him, or at least weaken him!"
The Jester's grin widened, amusement in every line of his face.
"I'll be honest, I don't really care. This was going to happen at some point, and now it's happening. I accept my fate and whatever will happen to me, and so should you."
Yui's hands shot forward, trembling, grabbing for The Jesters golden clock, if he wasn't going to reverse time himself she'd do it.
"Yui, no!" Haru yelled, holding on with all his strength. She tried to pull it higher, the clock humming with energy, and in an instant, the world around them fractured.
Daichi's shout echoed behind them, distant and panicked. "Yui! Haru! No!"
But it was too late. The timeline split. Yui and Haru were pulled along with the clock's power, tethered to each other by fate and force.
The air around Daichi shimmered, warping, and before he could reach them, the world twisted him elsewhere