Anima sat at her desk, a pen balanced between her fingers. She began to write, the text swirling line after line.

Anomalies.

Jihl glanced over at the bars; the sun nearly touched the horizon. She sighed, gazing down at the sapling in her hand. Jihl smiled gently, and she placed the little plant within the earth, covering its roots in soil.

A departure from what is normal.

Caius gazed up at the sky; the corners of his lips twitched slightly when a jet screamed past, turning to circle the field. Noel looked up from the long stretch of land that he had been plowing snow from, and he waved at the sky.

The craft landed after a while, and a young woman opened the hatch, waving back at them as she made her way down from the cockpit.

Caius walked up to her, his hands in his jacket pockets. "Did you make it past the border safely?"

Yeul nodded, brushing her hair back after she had taken off her helmet. She smiled at her brothers, leaning down to scratch Bismark behind his ears.

Although, quite a few would claim that normal is overrated...

Bhakti danced around her heels as Vanille pulled a cookie sheet from the oven, before she called Lebreau over to inspect her handiwork.

Lebreau walked up with a swing in her step. "They look wonderful! Let's see how they taste..." She took a bite, giggling at the anticipation on Vanille's face. Lebreau made a show of scrunching up her face in a discerning way, before clapping Vanille on the back. "You're hired, girlie!"

Anomalies. Those little snags and bumps in life, hindering us at certain points...

Anima sat back after a while, placing her pen down upon the desk. She gazed out from the window, watching as her dogs ran about the yard.

Taking a moment to close her eyes, Anima exhaled. "I hope that you are well... All of you." She paused, opening her eyes. "My friends... My family." Anima took a deep breath, and she continued to write.

...and aiding us at others.

Hope grinned, waving at his parents. He turned around to gaze up at the university, chuckling when Carbuncle moved to peek out from his suitcase. Hope paused, a flicker of nervousness twinging through his stomach, but he gripped the handles of his luggage, and made his way up to the campus.

Enjoy those detours.

A breeze floated through the window, the curtains swaying in the warm wind. Snow held his arm up and sneezed, having inhaled a bit of pollen from the air. Serah laughed, and she poked her brush into the paint on Snow's hands. He grinned, rolling on another layer of pink beside the window. Serah walked to the other side of the room, a menagerie of animals painted upon the wall. She held up her paintbrush, adding a dash of pink to one of them, a horned, waving creature.

Serah cried out, and her hand flew to her stomach. Snow bolted over to her, but Serah laughed and reached for his hand, placing it on her belly.

Live life to the fullest it can be.

Lightning raced through the trees, the wind at her back, ruffling her hair. The sky stretched out before her, thousands of stars lighting up the rainforest. She reached the top of an ancient tree, hanging on to the trunk with one hand, her claws sinking into the bark. The moon cast a glow upon the leaves, illuminating her as well. A shooting star flit past, reflecting in her eyes, and she closed them. Her ears pricked at a sound akin to birdsong, but Lightning kept still.

Something climbed up along the bark beside her and moved to nuzzle Lightning's neck, purring against her. Lightning opened her eyes, and she met Fang's gaze.

Farewell.

Anima began to close her book, but she paused, and her pen touched once more to the paper.

For now.