[[Day 15, Month --2]]<br/>“Master Lethe! Master Lethe!”<br/><br/>Not even three steps into the Cathedral and someone was shouting her name.  She guiltily swiped the last crumbs from her face and turned to smile at the approaching Hyuga.  At least he sounded happy; it was good to see he was in high spirits.  The black-haired man came to a halt in front of her, breath just the slightest bit uneven.  She’d have to make sure he worked on his stamina.  Instinctively, her head turned to her left before remembering Adair wasn’t with her.   Hyuga, however, had already started speaking.<br/><br/>“I just had a breakthrough regarding the crystals! Look!”  A crystal was shoved in her face and she stepped back so it wouldn’t hit her.  It seemed that his enthusiasm over his discovery had made him lose his normal awkwardness and overly polite demeanor.  “Its color, already paler than the Holy Powder from normal, is even lighter now!  In fact, as you hold it over a solid color,” His hand mimicked his words and the plant was positioned over a fistful of his black cloak, “you can see that it appears slightly transparent!  This is an exciting find!  The original Sin-filled crystals and the crystal that I used for my Holy Powder didn’t have this see-through quality.  I checked against the second crystal that you provided to me, in case this was a side effect of the unknown magic that cleansed these two crystals, and the other one was similarly opaque!”  Lethe subtly guided the still speaking Hyuga towards the workroom he had settled in the past few days.  Her squad quarters were still overrun by paperwork and thus uninhabitable.<br/><br/>“So I was trying to figure out what might be causing the difference in transparency when I realized that the magical potency..”  Now back in his workroom, Hyuga rushed over to grab the second crystal that Master Lethe had provided him, now released from its containment.  “And I realized that somehow the magic had been drained from this first crystal, so I set up some containment seals and then tried drawing upon the first crystal and I felt a sudden surge of pure magic!  And, again, this first crystal became more transparent!  I have reason to believe that these crystals could be used as magical storage units of some sort!  We could charge them with holy energy and then use them to recharge at a later time.  For example, one of the major complications with setting up highly complex seals is the sheer amount of magical power needed.  With these crystals, sealmakers could store up magic in anticipation of an upcoming seal and then draw upon it later!  Similarly, Knights could use these in battle if it drags on and they need more magic.”<br/><br/>He paused and then added shyly, “We could also try these on the tainted ones… This way, they won’t be forced to eat anything and we still might be able to save them…”<br/><br/>Lethe glanced at the uncertain Knight beside her.  He was still affixed to the idea of saving the Reapers.  While she condoned his desire to save their fellow Knights, there was still the issue of experimenting.  Forcing those already tortured souls through more pain in the chance of returning them to human, with no knowledge of how they’d be like afterwards: it was a dilemma she wasn’t sure she could resolve now, if ever.<span style="color: silver"> “I’ll consider it, but not right now.  They’re too uncertain for use on the Reapers, Hyuga.”</span>The man seemed to deflate at her decision.  She reached a hand out to touch his arm, forcing his attention on her rather than whatever thoughts circled his mind.<span style="color: silver">“However, I think this has been a very important discovery.  It could very well save the lives of Knights on the battlefield, being able to tap into extra magic.  Good job, Hyuga.”</span><br/><br/>The man colored at her words, torn between pride and bashfulness.  She politely looked away to give him time to gather himself.  After a few moments, he seemed to collect himself.<br/><br/>“Yes, well.  Of course, we still need to figure a way to remove the Sin from them originally and to check that this works with holy magic in addition to whatever magic was contained in this crystal.  Are you sure you can’t tell me how these were cleansed?”  A regretful shake of the head and a mention of how Master Lethe had promised to keep it secret at the person’s request had him stopping his questions.  Though he thought that breaking such a small secret as identity was a minor offense compared to how much progress could be made with the missing information, Hyuga wasn’t brave enough to lecture Master Lethe on how the potential breakthrough was more important than morals in this very limited case.  (Of course secrets were important, but it was for the greater good!)  “Oh, alright.  I guess we should also check for negative side effects or potential addiction issues.  But first, I wonder if these are rechargeable?  That would greatly save on..”<br/><br/>And then the man was lost in his own world again as he wandered back towards his desk, apparently having forgotten about her existence.  It was a refreshing experience.  With a laugh at her own thoughts, Lethe bowed out of the room and closed the door behind her.  Well, at least there were some good things to come back to.<br/><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~~~</div><br/>And then there were some not so good things to come back to.  Lethe looked at the standoff currently occurring in Squad Eight’s quarters.  A seething Alfrei, an indignant Natalia, and a stubborn Georg stood on the right side of the room.  Opposite them was an annoyed Adair and a frowning Valiar.  Joaquim stood uncomfortably to the sides while Fiona, who she’d run across in the halls searching for her, fidgeted by her side at the doorway.  Any joy she’d had at seeing Hyuga’s improvement was quickly draining out of her.<br/><br/>Seeing Natalia about to speak, Lethe interceded before anything else could happen.<span style="color: silver">“What’s going on?”</span>All six Knights turned to her in surprise and she felt her frown deepen.  They’d<span style="font-style: italic">all</span>been so caught up in this drama that none had noticed her and Fiona’s entrance?  She entered the room and let the door close behind her and Fiona.<span style="color: silver">“Well?”</span><br/><br/>Alfrei appeared to overcome his surprise and answered her with surprising hostility.  “We were wondering when we would be deployed.”<br/><br/><span style="color: silver"> “Deployed to?”</span><br/><br/>“Rosetta. Palaugrim.”  He shrugged insolently, leveling a challenging look on her.  “Wherever.  I know your squad tends to.. do less fieldwork,” a sneer was evident in his tone, “but our squad is an<span style="font-style: italic">offensive</span>one.  We could do more good actually doing something rather than being stuck.. here.”  Natalia nodded her head sharply in avid agreement while Georg said nothing, though his stance showed his consent.<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“I see.  The three”</span><br/><br/>“Seven!”<br/><br/>Lethe paused and looked around the room.<span style="color: silver"> “Seven?”</span>She parroted in apparent confusion.  There were only three of them standing there.<br/><br/>Natalia rolled her crimson eyes, “Us four, Hyuga, Vlad, and the new girl.”  She nodded towards Fiona.  “That makes seven of us, Master Lethe.”<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“Vlad is currently under Valiar’s command.  And Hyuga is working on something for me.”</span><br/><br/>“Clearly you can place Vlad back under Alfrei’s command; I’m sure Hyuga would be happier to rejoin us.”<br/><br/>Lethe looked at the still frowning Valiar.  As if sensing her scrutiny, her eldest Knight turned to catch her eye.  A shake of his head told her all she needed to know about Vlad.  He still wasn’t ready.<span style="color: silver">“Rejected, Natalia.  If you wish to go, you will have to convince me where you plan to go and how you plan to be successful.”</span><br/><br/>The red-eyed woman sighed heavily, muttering under her breath: “why is it suddenly our job to do hers?”  She clearly hadn’t meant to be discreet as Lethe could hear the comment from the door.  Nonetheless, the Seraph ignored the comment as she kept her focus on Alfrei.  The man’s sigh implied long-suffering on his part.  “Fiona can tank for us then.  We’ll maintain our normal formation otherwise.”<br/><br/>The black-haired woman shifted uncomfortably beside her.  Unexpectedly, Valiar was the next to speak.  “Have you practiced these new formations yet?”<br/><br/>Natalia was now rubbing her temples with one hand in clear exasperation.  “They’re not<span style="font-style: italic">new</span>.  We’ve been using these formations since the beginning!”<br/><br/>What was going on?  Lethe was completely confused by the sudden behavior Gil’s squad was showing.  She didn’t recall any of them being like this in the past.  If anything, Alfrei had seemed exceptionally prepared, if the way he’d acted at that one training in Lindela was any indication.  For him to be rushing out so carelessly: it seemed uncharacteristic.<span style="color: silver">“While that may be true, I don’t believe Fiona has taken part in these trainings before.”</span>She ignored Alfrei’s under-the-breath mutter that was clearly meant to be heard.<span style="color: silver">“I won’t send out any of my Knights—”</span><br/><br/>“You’re not—!”  Rage transformed into panic in an instant.  Wide red eyes stared around the room.  Joaquim appeared shocked; Adair and Valiar seemed enraged; Lethe taken aback; and Alfrei approving.  She.. She hadn’t meant to say..  She took a step forward to run out but was stopped by a harsh command.<br/><br/>“What do you think you’re doing?”  Natalia froze at the hostility, fearful eyes turning towards a livid Adair.  “You weren’t dismissed, Knight Natalia.”  She slowly placed her trembling foot down, trying to straighten up despite the many eyes focused on her.<span style="font-style: italic">I.. I won’t be cowed by bullies!</span><br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“I was unaware that Squad Eight was so adverse to my leadership.”</span>Lethe finally broke the silence, her voice emotionless.<span style="color: silver">“I will speak with the Council regarding having your squad reassigned.  Your next two days will be free for training to incorporate Fiona into your new lineup.  However, Vlad and Hyuga will remain where they currently are.  Knights Natalia, Fiona, Vice Captain Alfrei, dismissed.  Knights Georg and Joaquim, if I may have a moment of your time?”</span>She stepped aside to let the named Knights leave.  When the door was closed once more, she turned to look at the remaining members of Squad Eight.<span style="color: silver">“Would either of you two like to explain what’s going on?”</span><br/><br/>Georg stared at the wall in front of him, refusing to meet Master Lethe’s eyes.  The Seraph had done nothing to deserve Alfrei’s and Natalia’s sudden acrimony, but he felt that he should be loyal to the two of them.  They were his squadmates, the Knights Master Guilford had personally chosen for his squad.  Georg had sworn Master Guilford his loyalty; even if the man was dead, Georg would ensure his protégés were watched over safely.  He turned his head towards Master Lethe, still refusing to meet her eyes, and bowed shallowly.  “Please excuse me.”<br/><br/>Lethe’s hand motion cut off Adair from speaking.<span style="color: silver"> “Very well, Knight Georg.  Dismissed.”</span>He was reaching the door when the white-haired Knight spoke up again.<span style="color: silver"> “I’m disappointed in how Squad Eight is behaving itself.  I know Master Guilford’s death has affected you all tremendously, but the lack of professionalism being displayed is most worryingly, not only as the recipient but as an indicator of potential ability to lead.  As a former Captain and a member of the First War, I’m sure you understand my sentiments, Knight Georg.”</span>His hand tightened on the doorknob but he retreated without any words of defense.<br/><br/>Joauim stared at the door Natalia had escaped through.  He wanted to follow after his adopted daughter, figure out why she was behaving so unusually.  The blonde had looked unhappy five days ago, but for it to have somehow escalated into such rudeness!  He was worried.  Of course Master Guilford’s death would have been shocking to her, but to react in such a way to Master Lethe?  He would have left if he could.  However, the appalling behavior from his squadmates needed to be addressed first.<br/><br/>He looked at the three remaining figures.  He knew Valiar fairly well from their few interactions; they had both fought in the First War and that shared experience created a basic camaraderie.  The man was frowning, seemingly upset by the entire display.  After Alfrei’s shocking words about Master Lethe earlier, Joaquim could understand the other man’s unhappiness.  If someone had said Alfrei’s words about Master Guilford, Natalia, or his family, things would not be as tame as the current situation was.  Adair looked furious; he and Alfrei had been constantly butting heads and the few days respite of not travelling together didn’t appear to have made the situation better.  Master Lethe was inscrutable besides intense blue eyes focused directly on him.  The emotional restraint from them was scary, especially compared to how his squadmates had acted.<br/><br/>“I.. apologize for the behavior of my squadmates.  I believe they’re more distraught about Master Guilford’s death than it originally appeared.”  He finally offered as recompense.  He had no idea what was prompting Alfrei and Natalia to act in such unusual ways; though even if he knew, he wasn’t sure if he’d disclose their secrets.<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“My words from earlier still stand.”</span>The frigidity of Master Lethe’s response made clear his apologies were not adequate.<span style="color: silver">“If this is an indication of Alfrei’s ability to lead, I’m afraid I’ll have to demote him.  Insubordination is unacceptable in times of war, as I’m sure you know having fought through the First War.  His attitude today could have easily gotten other Knights killed.  It may not look like it, but there’s no doubt that the Second War has arrived.”</span>Joaquim pressed his lips together but said nothing.<span style="color: silver">“I expect <span style="font-style: italic">you</span> to clean up that behavior, Knight Joaquim.  If your squad truly wishes to leave my command, then when I can trust your squad to act in a professional manner, I plan to have you Captain of the squad unless I decide it’s better to split the team up and augment other squads who currently have openings.”</span>His eyes had flown up in surprise at her words but they had narrowed in determination by the end.<br/><br/>“I don’t think that would be good for the team, Master Lethe.”<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“Then Squad Eight had best clean up its act.  Its current behavior is inadmissible on a battlefield.  You’re disgracing Gil’s legacy right now.”</span>He flinched from the cruel words.<span style="color: silver">“May the Light guide you and your team through these dark times.”</span>With a nod of acknowledgment, Joaquim also fled the room.<br/><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~~~</div><br/>“I can’t believe the nerve of that woman!”  Alfrei hissed angrily, stomping towards.. somewhere!  They’d just been evicted from<span style="font-style: italic">their</span>squad quarters because of that slut!  Who did she think she was to demand they leave Hyuga and Vlad alone?  Hyuga and Vlad were members of<span style="font-style: italic">his</span>squad.  She had no command over them!<br/><br/>Natalia said nothing, holding her head high despite the way everything within her trembled.  She would<span style="text-decoration: underline">not</span>be cowed by bullies!  And that’s all they were: Adair, Lethe (she didn’t even deserve a title!), that purple-haired woman who’d been overseeing her sparring.  Bullies! All of them!  “You should absolve them!”  She muttered spitefully, turning to glare at the sound of a gasp.  Ugh, why was that girl here?<br/><br/>Fiona looked at the two blondes in front of her uneasily.  They had seemed very welcoming when she’d first joined the squad.  However, now they seemed.. Well, the Vice Captain wasn’t hostile, but Natalia certainly seemed to be if the current glare was any indication.  Of course they were going through a hard time, having just lost their Captain, but this was a bit… She didn’t want to say ridiculous but it seemed much too extreme.  She moved out of the way of a body that barreled past her.  Georg.  He wasn’t hostile to her but he seemed mostly preoccupied with the two blondes.  While she knew that as the newest member of an already established team, the others would have a stronger bond.  But… She remembered the way Valiar had given her an escape route when they’d first found out Master Guilford had died and the way he’d happily taught her about the healing arts, never scolding her when she made a mistake.  Even Knight YunQiao had seemed decent, willing to answer her questions though he was clearly busy with whatever task Master Lethe had assigned.  In contrast, the three ahead of her seemed caught up in their own world, one that didn’t include her.  She sighed and fiddled with the sword strapped to her hip.  Maybe she could request a transfer?  Master Lethe seemed to care about her Knights.<br/><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~~~</div><br/>[[Day 16, Month --2]]<br/>“Hello every—what happened to our room?”  Cricket swung the door open, stopping when he saw the paper scattered throughout the room.  Well, there appeared to be some method to the way the papers were arranged, but there was still<span style="font-style: italic">way</span>too much.  Had someone TP-ed their squad quarters?<br/><br/>“Why aren’t you—oh, hello.  What happened here?”  Leon craned his head around Cricket’s arm, catching sight of the exorbitant amounts of white.  “Are we in the right room?”<br/><br/>“We’ve only been gone fifteen days; there’s no way we’ve forgotten the route to our own squad quarters.”  Seraphim commented drily from behind Leon and Cricket.  The two’s bodies were blocking her sight of the room.<br/><br/>“Maybe we got moved to another room, given Team Prissy’s incorporation into Captain’s command?”  Leon seemed more confident now after their sojourn in Palaugrim.  They’d finished their itineraries, and the updated ones, by Day 10.  However, Lethe appeared to have been busy and had just ordered them to stay there and be useful.  They’d helped with subduing some Sin-dominant areas and training with the Knights there.  It had definitely been a learning experience.<br/><br/>“Why would—oh.”  Seraphim finally saw their squad quarters when Cricket and Leon moved out of the way.  “Wow.  I haven’t seen that much paperwork even when Captain’s been gone for a few months!”<br/><br/>“And just think, it was much worse before I started helping her with it.”  Adair added from behind them.  All three returning Knights turned to see an amused Adair and Valiar.  The former turned to the latter, “Can you get YunQiao?  May as well have a mini reunion and discuss what’s been up.”  Valiar’s jovial expression stilled at the words and the cleric nodded in assent before walking off.<br/><br/>“Well… that’s ominous.”  Cricket finally said when Valiar’s back had disappeared around the corner.  “But before we get into the heavy stuff, you said that this was worse before?”  It was a clear attempt to re-establish the good mood and the others went along with it.  Their squad was finally reuniting; it was a good reason to be happy.<br/><br/>“It already looks like paperwork bunnies were busy in here!”  The pink-haired Knight added with a laugh as she finally walked into the room.  She reached down to pick up the papers from the sofa, pausing only to make sure it was okay for her to do so.  Leon joined her in clearing off the couch while Cricket de-papered the armchair.<br/><br/>“Well, before the only walking space was the path between the door and the table.  Lethe was crawling under the table to get to her seat.”<br/><br/>All three returnees laughed at the mental image.  Easy chatter flowed throughout the room as they cleared up eight spaces and then took seats.  Valiar and YunQiao joined them as everyone caught up with the past two weeks.  Inevitably, gossip turned towards their ‘newest members.’<br/><br/>“What do squads of fifteen even look like?”  Leon wondered aloud.  Their joint venture with Team Prissy had ended before it even really began, despite all their preparation work.  He’d also never heard of a squad being permanently that large.  “Four tanks, one cleric, two physical offense, four mages, three rear guards, and whatever their newbie is.  Good Light, that’s a lot of people!”<br/><br/>“With the way she’s been going so far, it looks like we’ll be in smaller teams instead of always moving as one group?”  Seraphim hypothesized, turning to look at the three who’d stayed on Gless.  Their uneasy looks didn’t take a genius to figure out.  “Alright, what’s wrong?”<br/><br/>“I don’t know if Lethe’s planning on keeping them.”  Valiar finally admitted with a sideways glance at the determinedly silent Adair.  “She pretty much threatened them with dishonorable discharge if they didn’t clean up their act.”  Shocked silence met his words.  “Without going too much into it, she thinks that for certain members, their actions could be liabilities on a battlefield.”<br/><br/>“And why aren’t we going too much into it? Dishonorable discharge, for Master Guilford’s remaining Knights no less, is a serious action.”  Seraphim was frowning when she finally spoke, purple eyes intent on both Valiar and Adair.  YunQiao didn’t seem surprised but he didn’t appear outraged either.  Whatever the reason was, the black-haired mage clearly knew and accepted it as valid.<br/><br/>“Not to mention the PR ramifications, especially right after Master Guilford’s death.”<br/><br/>“Seraphim, Cricket.. Leon” the last name was tacked on at the end, “just trust me on this one, okay?”  Valiar didn’t want the two more volatile members of their team hearing Alfrei’s or Natalia’s unfortunate words.  It would cause even more unnecessary rancor, as it already had with Adair.  He hoped the two, three if he included Georg, would hurry up and find more positive ways to channel their grief.  Right now, it was only leading towards disgrace.<br/><br/>Two sets of eyes narrowed on him suspiciously.  They had heard the hesitation on the last name.  This unknown reason would undoubtedly upset them more than Leon; Adair was already more upset and YunQiao was neutral.  It had something to do with Captain.  Cricket opened his mouth to say something when Leon surprisingly interrupted:  “Where’s Deimos?”<br/><br/>“I haven’t seen him since the first day.”  Valiar latched onto the topic change, forced as it was.  “I’ve been busy mentoring the newest member.  Have you seen him?”  He directed his question at YunQiao, desperate to maintain the conversation.  The caster leveled an unimpressed look on him but answered nonetheless, “No.  I don’t think he’s on Gless.”<br/><br/>“Well, he wasn’t in Palaugrim with us.”  Leon added, further forcing the conversation away from the previous topic.  “That reminds me, didn’t you bring something back from Palaugrim for Captain, Cricket?”<br/><br/>Unamused hazel eyes looked over the trio but the cross-dresser allowed the topic change.  “Yeah, tons of well wishes and letters for Guilford’s memorial and funeral.  I think they weigh more than I do by now.  When is that anyways?”<br/><br/>“Tomorrow afternoon.”<br/><div style="text-align: center;">~~~~~~</div><br/>[[Day 17, Month --2 (Early morning)]]<br/>Orphelia stumbled out of the bedroom towards the kitchen.  Pickles.  She needed pickles. And rocky road ice cream.  At least the icebox was only a few steps away rather than the length of a house and a flight of stairs!  Her zombie-walk for heaven paused at the sight of light in the living room.  Oh, so Thea was back for the evening.  Normally she would have been more excited, she hadn’t seen her friend in almost five days now!, but.. pickles.. and rocky road ice cream.  She resumed her foray to the kitchen and dumped both items in a bowl.  A spoon and a wad of napkins joined the concoction and then she was collapsing onto the sofa.<br/><br/>Puffy blue eyes glanced at her as Thea discreetly tried to sniff back her tears.  The younger woman was surrounded by pieces of paper of all sizes.  Some had glitter, some had doodles, and some simply had words.<br/><br/>“You’re not fooling me, you know.”  The blue-haired woman finally said, jamming a spoonful of delicious pickles and ice cream into her mouth.  “You may as well cry.  Not like I’ve never seen it before.”  She pulled out her now cleaned spoon and swirled the mixture together in a vain attempt to get it to melt.  Despite her words, Thea was still trying to pretend she hadn’t been crying.  Orphelia rolled her eyes in exasperation and threw a ball of scrunched up napkins at the other woman.  “Just blow already.  You’re annoying.”<br/><br/>Delicacy had no place when it was three AM and she was cranky.  This ice cream had better melt faster!  Her nose scrunched up at the sound of Thea actually blowing her nose.  That was annoying too.  She stuffed more ice cream and pickles in her mouth before something inappropriate slipped out.  Thea would probably forgive her, but then Thea would feel bad and she’d feel bad for making Thea feel bad and it was better to just not say anything.<br/><br/>“Those all yours?”  She finally broke the silence, spoon waving at the large bag of what looked like letters and the papers scattered over the table.<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“No.  They’re,”</span>Thea stopped speaking for a moment, no doubt to try to compose herself.<span style="color: silver">“They’re letters from the people on Palaugrim.  For Gil’s memorial and funeral.”</span><br/><br/>“So why are you reading them?  Shouldn’t his family handle that?”<br/><br/><span style="color: silver">“Ah, maybe?”</span>Worried blue eyes drifted in her direction,<span style="color: silver">“Should they?  I didn’t realize. I can put them back?”</span>Despite her words, Thea wasn’t reaching for any of the letters.<br/><br/>“Whatever.  Why are you reading them?”<br/><br/>A shoulder lifted and then dropped, a vague answer to represent a vague reason.<span style="color: silver">“I thought I could reference some of them in his… eulogy.”</span>Fingers unconsciously played with the letter in her hand.<span style="color: silver">“But then I started reading them and..”</span>The sigh conveyed everything else.  Thea placed down the letter she was holding and picked up an atrocious picture of stick figures.  There was glitter and stickers over it in a revolting mess of colors, at least in Orphelia’s refined opinion.<span style="color: silver">“Look at this one.  Her name’s Marigold; her parents named her after Guilford after he saved her mom during a Sinner attack.”</span>Orphelia forced the required weak smile to her face.  So that’s why there was so much yellow; she had thought those four figures were just sick like her.  Thankfully, Thea placed the atrocious thing back down, only for another picture to take its place.  This one at least was better drawn; it looked like a drawing of a man standing and waving from a mountaintop.<span style="color: silver">“His name’s Kaito.  He was paralyzed in the First War.  He writes that Gil gave him the courage to overcome his injury and fulfill his dream of climbing to the top of Mount Hamilton.  This is a picture he drew from the top.”</span>That dinky mountain?  She and Rhett hadn’t even bothered climbing that one when they’d gone to visit the range.  The Zairyonian stuffed more ice cream into her mouth before she said anything though.  Just because she was (<span style="text-decoration: underline">justifiably</span>, thank you very much!) irritated didn’t mean she was<span style="font-style: italic">heartless</span>.  Thea already looked ready to—never mind, Thea was already crying again.<br/><br/>Lethe placed the drawing back down before she got it wet.  She wiped away the tears that didn’t block the sad words written at the bottom from her vision.  Kaito had wanted to present the picture to Guilford directly, on his own two feet, when they next met.  However, that wasn’t an option anymore.  Her kitchen table was covered by similar wishes: expressions of grief, thanks for the help Gil had provided, hopes for a peaceful rest in the Light’s embrace.  There were so many stories, so many ways Gil had changed lives, made the world better.  How could he be gone already?  How could she properly express everything that should be said?  She stared at the dregs of her teacup as if the leaves could somehow guide her.  The last time she’d been staring into a teacup.. The memory elicited a sad laugh from her.  The last time she’d been staring into a teacup, Gil was still alive.