~ Lydi and Amice ~

Lydi: Amice, I know you're there already. You don't need to try and hide from me. It's not like you can anyways.

Amice: Hello, Lydi... I'm sorry if I was interrupting something. I think I'm finally ready to talk to you about what's happened to me in the past. I know it's a bit sudden, but...

Lydi: It's fine. Don't worry about it. Go on and get started.

Amice: I never thought I'd be telling this story to anybody, but here we are... My story began with my mother. I don't exactly know the circumstances, but she was alone in raising me. I never knew my father, so I simply assumed he wasn't important. My mother never mentioned him either.

Lydi: I see...

Amice: I was alone with my mother for many years, but that all changed one day when she left me at a priory. She told me that she could no longer take care of me, so I was left behind. She didn't stay there to help raise me alongside the clerics working there. She just left.

Lydi: And you were still working with that church when you came to my little town.

Amice: I was. With my mother gone, I didn't know what else to do with myself. I devoted my life to my work as a priestess, learning light magic and a little bit of healing power along the way. It was the only way I could avoid my own misery.

Lydi: I suppose it ended up being a strong coping mechanism in the end.

Amice: I guess so... I worked with the church up until I came to visit your town. I had heard that the people there needed food and help from whoever was willing to give it, so I figured I might as well be that person for you. I hadn't ever been out on an expedition like this before, but I was eager to see the world, so I took the chance.

Lydi: You're a lot more ambitious than I originally took you for, Amice.

Amice: You think so?

Lydi: Even if I was offering to let you talk to me, I never thought that you'd take me up on it. I figured you'd curl up and sit with your own misery instead of letting it out. I'm impressed.

Amice: I-I'm glad to have impressed you... And Lydi?

Lydi: Yes?

Amice: If you ever need somebody to talk to about what you've seen in the past, I'll always be here to talk to. That's a promise. It's the least I can do after you were so kind to me.

Lydi: I don't know if I'll want to talk anytime soon, but if I feel ready... You'll be the first person I go to.

~ Lydi and Amice have attained support level A ~

~ Dahlia and Cedric ~

Cedric: Dahlia, I'm glad I found you. I think that we need to talk about this.

Dahlia: Talk about what?

Cedric: What you said last time you were together. Did you really think that I hated you?

Dahlia: You had me pretty fooled, yeah.

Cedric: But how could you feel like that? I'm your older brother. Siblings shouldn't be hating each other.

Dahlia: But it seemed like you were managing to do that just fine...

Cedric: I really don't hate you. Can you at least believe me on that?

Dahlia: Sure, I suppose. How do you really feel about me, Cedric? If you don't hate me, how do you feel?

Cedric: Before we get into that, I want to know what made you think I hated you in the first place.

Dahlia: You were always so hard on me! I thought that you were just out to make me suffer with how you trained me. Can you blame me?

Cedric: I had no idea I was making you feel that way.

Dahlia: That's so like you. It seems like you aren't aware of people's feelings as much as you should be. Maybe that's the reason that Father chose me to inherit the throne over you, even if I'm older.

Cedric: Dahlia-!

Dahlia: I'm sorry. That might have crossed a line... You really didn't seem to be thinking of how I felt about your harsh training methods though. Did you ever stop to think that maybe my frustrations didn't come from me being a spoiled brat? Did you ever imagine that maybe it was because you were simply being too rough on me?

Cedric: I suppose not...

Dahlia: Why were you always like that? Why were you so rough with me when there were so many other things you could have done?

Cedric: I guess that was just because o

f how Father trained me.

Dahlia: That's right. He's the strongest knight in all of Phazenia, so you had to put up with the hardships that came with his training.

Cedric: He never held back one bit with me, and so I guess I let that out on you.

Dahlia: I think it's as clear as day that you were doing that...

Cedric: I'm sorry, Dahlia. That was never my intention.

Dahlia: I think it was pretty obvious that wasn't your intention, but it happened anyways, didn't it?

Cedric: I swear to you that I didn't mean-

Dahlia: I know you didn't, but it still hurt a lot, Cedric.

Cedric: I'll try to be easier on you in the future. Will that make you feel a little bit better?

Dahlia: Maybe. We'll see. I just know that I have a few other things to take care of. I was going to spar with Neil for a little while before we went out to keep fighting. I'll be on my way now, if that's okay with you.

Cedric: Alright... I suppose I'll be seeing you later then...

~ Dahlia and Cedric have attained support level B ~

~ Ricola and Caspian ~

Caspian: Hey there, Ricola. I was just wondering if we could-

Ricola: Talk? I refuse to talk to anybody like you.

Caspian: Listen, okay? I know that you hate me. I deserve it. The least you can do is open up a little bit and listen to what I have to say. I'm sure that it'll help you feel at least a little better about the whole situation, even if the difference is only marginal.

Ricola: Don't hold your breath. I don't think I'll ever be able to get along with you. You have committed horrible crimes that I cannot forgive.

Caspian: We all make mistakes. I should know. I've made a lot of them in my time. However, you also need to know that people can learn from their mistakes. I'm trying to do that, regardless of if I end up being successful or not. You can at least try to appreciate that, right?

Ricola: I'm afraid not. It will take more than shallow words to get me to forgive you after all that you have done. I'm warning you in advance that it won't ever happen if things continue the way they've been going so far. In fact, I think that I've spoken to you for long enough. If you'd be willing to excuse me, I have to be on my way.

Caspian: Hold it, will you?! I'm trying to apologize for what I've done, but you won't even hear me out!

Ricola: And why should I?! You killed my father! I saw you kill him! You remember seeing me!

Caspian: I was being manipulated into doing this! I didn't originally mean to hurt anybody!

Ricola: I have no reason to believe that. I should go and take care of anything Lady Dahlia asks of me. If you don't mind, I'll be on my way.

Caspian: Can you at least listen a little bit? Give me two minutes.

Ricola: Will you leave me alone after these two minutes?

Caspian: Fine, yes. I wasn't going to join the Leijona, but I needed money. I had no other choice if I wanted to survive. I didn't want to break into your house. The other members of my group wanted to drag me into it against my will.

Ricola: Okay, sure. I'll believe that when pigs finally fly.

Caspian: I let them go along with me. In order to get money, they demanded that I come with them. I should have seen that they weren't the best people in the world. They manipulated me into killing him so that I could survive. They should have just helped me get by without doing such horrible deeds. They used me as a tool to get revenge against the nobles of Phazenia. I didn't want to do anything like that.

Ricola: You've had your time. I'm going to go now. I have better things to do than talk to you.

Caspian: Wait, Ricola! *sigh* Of course she's gone... What else did I expect?

~ Ricola and Caspian have attained support level B ~

It's crazy to think that this is my last update of 2018. Dang.

I'm hoping to get a lot more done in general, both with my stories and other things, this year. I'm going to work on a few more forensics pieces this year, try and beat a few more Fire Emblem games (as of now, I've only beaten Path of Radiance, Awakening, Echoes, and the three Fates paths, which really isn't many in a series of 15, though I am most of the way through Radiant Dawn and I'm working on Blazing Sword), and publish a few more stories!

I'm going to try and get further with both this story and my Digimon story. Quiet after the Hurricane is set to end on April 11th, the fourth anniversary of the series, and after that, its sequel, Secrets beneath Secrets, will be released. I'm also in the process of planning an Octopath Traveler story alongside a few of my friends, so that will also hopefully be up in the new year.

Unfortunately, one thing I can't exactly say about the new year is when the other stories of mine will be finished. Evolution Adventure is turning out to be a lot more of a slow burn than I originally anticipated, so that chapter count is probably going to increase considerably. This story will have around thirty chapters in the main story along with roughly five or six paralogues. The supports will only drag that on because of how many there are in this.

I'm working on it though, and that's what matters, right?

Anyways, I'll be seeing you all around next year. I hope you've enjoyed what's come in this past year!

-Digital