Night had come to Shokushu once more, covering the dorms in darkness and the illusion of peace. The halls were silent and mostly empty; the lucky among the student body were already fast asleep, unmolested in their beds. The unlucky were providing the odd creature or three no end of entertainment, sustenance, or both.

No matter their fate, blissful sleep or terrifying rape, no one in these rooms noticed the soft rapping at their doors as pair of petite hands knocked on them. Those hands belong to an equally petite girl, whom was walking down the hallway silent on bare feet. Her expression was one of blank confusion, here light brown eyes wide but unseeing. Her honey-blond hair was combed neatly to the sides of her head, looking faintly wet, though the rest of her body was dry. She wore only a white shirt that clung to her body and fell only to her hips. Her name was Zoe, but if she even knew that was anyone's guess.

She continued padding silently down the hall, not so much as a spark of recognition on her face, stopping at each door to knock twice, very softly. When no answer was forthcoming, she continued to the next door. It was slow going, but she eventually reached the end of the hall, and the common area. The TV was ignored, Zoe simply sank down into one of the chairs, knees pressed together awkwardly, shoulders slumped, feet apart on the carpet. One there, she sat, blinking mechanically every few seconds, but otherwise mentally absent from her surroundings.

Ami was restless. She couldn't sleep. She didn't know why. She needed to get to sleep. That was definitely true. Sleep was best. It was late. She shouldn't be out. But... she couldn't go to sleep. Ami sighed, getting up. She was going for a walk around. A walk around the building would be safe. And it would help her get to sleep. She wanted to think. She got up, and left the silent room, shutting the door behind her carefully. She didn't want to wake any of her neighbors up.

She sighed, her feet padding silently along. She hadn't been around the dorms yet, still being fairly new. She entered the lounge looking about the room carefully. She didn't even notice the other girl there until the second time around. Slumped forward, quiet, and completely motionless in the chairhallway, she wasn't exactly obvious. Ami looked about trying to see what she was staring at. Failing that, she walked over silently. Ordinarily, she was more polite, but it was late, and she wasn't in the best of states. And if someone was acting strangely in this place, it might be cause for concern, though Ami's mind skittered away from what that thought held. She waved her hand in front of the other girl's face, and beamed, trying to get her attention.

"Excuse me? What are you looking at?"

Ami's voice wasn't more then a whisper, but in the silence of the hall that whisper was more then enough.

Ami?

I could see her a ways in front of mr as I glided through the hall tiredly, looking for a cuddle-buddy. Ami and I were close, that was for sure. I was her first friend, her first kiss, and her first fuck. But then, I saw a sight that made me stand still, frozen. I was dimly lit and frowned a little at myself. I should have called... It was a very silly response, and I actually was fairly sure that this would end as a good thing, but Zoe, my songbird, had not seen me in too long for my taste.

I wondered if she even saw me now.

Zoe didn't react to the hand in front of her face, at least not initially. A full five seconds after Ami took her hand back, Zoe blinked, shook her head slightly, then turned it it to look at her. Her pupils were much wider than they had any business being, even in the low lights of the common room at night. It seemed to take her a long time to focus on the girl in front of her.

Her lips moved, but no sound game out. This caused her to blink again, her brow knotting in confusion. Her lips closed. The soft sound of her clearing her throat filled the room. Her lips parted again.

"Miracle," she whispered. Her voice was as musical as ever, but the hoarseness in it made it sound slightly off-key. "I cant find Miracle. She's at home, but I cant find home. Do you know where home is? Poor Miracle, she must be scared... and I'm so tired."

Zoe reached out slowly, grasping a hold of Ami's wrist. The grip was desperate, but weak. "Can you take me home? I need to be at home now, but I cant find home." Her eyes were beginning to water. "I lost my way. I made a mistake. Never should have come." Her tears began to roll down her face. "My fault. All my fault."

She looked away from Ami, titling her heads to one side as if she was listening to something. "I can hear her crying..." she whispered.

Slowly, I began to walk in to the room, and I was singing, softly. Something I hadn't done much of since I last saw Zoe.

"When you try your best but you don't succeed
When you get what you want but not what you need
When you feel so tired but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse.

And the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can't replace
When you love someone but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you"

There was no going home from here, no... Dawn had tried. I knew it was impossible. As I stood in the dimly lit room, "Fix You" by Coldplay on my mind, and the dull light playing across my pale blue nightgown, I looked at her face and gave a warm, sad smile. Tears tugged at my eyes too, and I skipped a verse or two.

"Tears stream, down on your face
I promise you I will learn from my mistakes
Tears stream down your face and I...

Tears stream, down on your face
I promise you I will learn from my mistakes
Tears stream down your face and I...

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you."

Ami was confused by the small girl. She was looking for a Miracle? She wasn't alone in that, most likely, but how did staring at the wall. As she continued, Ami got the feeling that she had been wrong. The girl wasn't looking for a Miracle, but rather, someone named Miracle. Which made her words make a little more sense. But... still, why was she acting like this. Her grip at Ami's wrist didn't bother her. Ami could break it if she felt the need, and maybe it would help. The crying concerned her more.

Then a voice spoke up from behind her, one that she recognized. Linnis was... singing. As Ami turned around, it looked like she was about to cry to. Ami was completely at a loss of what to do, honestly. She sighed. She had no idea of what to say, or what to do. But she wasn't going to stand there.

"...I don't know. I just got here. I'm Ami. This is Linnis."

Ami had no idea if the girl knew Linnis or not, but she needed something to say. That sounded better then just standing there.

"But I'll help you if I can. Anything in my power."

Ami said the words again, not realizing their echoes with what she had said to Linnis not to long ago. But she couldn't help herself. Faced with this, Ami couldn't just walk away.