I had spent the last few months running scared from the Empire. To say the least, it wasn't comforting that we were being coerced into working with them. With a churning gut and Locke at my side, I followed our small Imperial escort to the docks of Albrook. There, a clean-cut officer awaited us. "Welcome, Mister Cole, Miss Branford," the man greeted with a polite bow. "I am General Leo Cristophe. I hope to make this journey run as smoothly as possible." Locke shrugged, unimpressed. "So you're the one in charge, eh?" The corner of Leo's mouth twitched upward. "As it were, I am accompanied by a fellow general. An officer you are quite familiar with, if I am not mistaken." It was then I noticed her approach from behind Leo, in all her Imperial glory. I don't think I realized my jaw had dropped until I saw the same look on Locke. I also wasn't sure if Celes co-commanding our little mission was more comforting or less. The question of trust was not exactly a simple one, and it didn't help that she refused eye contact with either of us. She barely spoke a word and even then, it was to Leo. The lady general's older counterpart seemed like a honorable man, but like with Celes, the Imperial uniform weighed heavily on my fear. I vaguely remembered Leo, another rarity that treated me decently. It came as no surprise that he and Celes had been (and probably still were) close. For the briefest moment, I found myself wondering if the two had ever been involved... The ship set sail, and the day slowly passed. I noted with some sadness that Celes had only made an appearance in the common room of the lower deck to retrieve her dinner. The rest of the day, she remained in her private cabin. It wasn't until the following afternoon that she actually sat down at the table Leo occupied. Finally, I walked over to her. "Hi, Celes." She didn't look up from her book. "Terra." "How have you been?" Celes raised a brow but neither met my gaze nor answered the question. I lowered my head, a bit discouraged. "I heard what happened..." Receiving a wary look, I cringed before continuing. "The others figured you dead." "As you can see, I'm not," came her cold reply. I held back a sigh and tried one last time. "I'm glad you're okay." I was met with silence. It seemed the very idea of friendly intentions turned to ice and shattered on the ground before the general. Tears stinging my eyes and blurring my vision, I retreated up the stairs to the upper deck. I clutched the rail as I stared into the waves below, letting the wind dry my cheeks. I think a full minute passed before the cabin door opened again. She came up behind me, standing so close I could feel her breath on my hair. "I'm sorry." The whisper sent shivers down my spine. Without a word, I turned and flung my arms around her neck, burying my face in the crook of her neck. I held her tight, but when she didn't return the embrace, I pulled back just enough to search her ice-blue eyes. So cold, and I didn't understand why. "What happened to you?" Her only response was to break from my gaze, but I could still see her struggling to hide her pain. I was starting to realize it would take more than I possessed to thaw her armor.
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