AN: Sweet Jesus this one took forever. Anyways, for the few who actually bother to read my fics, I apologize for the long abscence and I will try to not make a habit of it. For those of you who don't know, while I was writing this, I got into a collab with fellow author Writer DxD in one of his fics "To Love Nep", where I write for some of the scenes along with him, mainly revolving around the OC I submitted to him long ago. That and along with a bad case of writers block on more than one occasion, then you can basically tell why this took me so long.

Also, allow me to get the elephant out of the room and say that I might be scrapping Custom Robo: Remastered, mainly due to both lack of motivation and the fact that it was mainly used for practice. That aside, let's cut to the chase. this is my second and official Fanfic: Fairy Fencer Neptunia. Please leave a review and enjoy.

Fairy Fencer Neptunia: Prologue part 1-a long awaited return?

"Geez, are these two idiots ever going to wake up?" Uni said tapping her foot in annoyance with Ram and Rom by her side. It had been a month since Neptune, Plutia and the candidates defeated Cyan Heart, and since then the two Planeptune CPU's have done nothing but sleep all day long, much to Histoires ire and annoyance. To make matters worse, Nepgear was still stuck in the Ultradimension due to "unforeseen circumstances", and who knows whats going on at her end.

They tried to wait and see if they would get up on there own and get her home, but clearly even that was a bit too much to ask. Having waited long enough, the three of them came by to try to wake them up and make them work to gain shares and get there friend back, even by force if necessary. So far though, no luck on there end.

"Yeah, seriously, why won't these two dummies wake up? We've tried literally everything!"

"Why... won't they get up?"

"At this point girls, I don't know. Either way, we've got to think of something to get these two up, otherwise Nepgear will never get back home." They've been trying there hardest to wake the two lazy CPU's up for at least a good hour. They tried using all sorts of methods, ranging from simple screaming to using air-horns and megaphones. But no matter what, neither of them even so much as budged an inch.

"But what are we suppose to do Uni? They just won't get up, no matter what we do." The Lastation candidate could only sigh in irritation, well aware of just how unreliable Neptune is even when she is needed.

"I really didn't want to do this, but..." She pulls out her rifle and aims it straight at the two sleeping CPU's, scaring the twin candidates in the process.

"Miss Uni?!"

"What the heck do you think you're doing?!"

"Relax, I've loaded it with rubber bullets, but you two should stand back. If this doesn't work, I don't know what will." Uni took a deep breath and steadied her aim. Just as she was about to pull the trigger...

"Would you two wake up already!"

"Huh?! S-Sis?! What are yo-" She and the twins darted there gaze around the room, but saw that no one else was in the room.

"Did you hear that too Rom?"

"Yes. That sounded like... miss Noire. But I don't see her."

Just as the three of them confirmed that no one else was here, they turned around and saw that Neptune and Plutia were both roused from there sleep.

"Mmm... *yawns* Now that was some nice nappin'. Really gotta hand it to ya Plutie. That Noire alarm you have sure does work wonders." Neptune told her sleeping buddy whilst stretching her arms up, with said person nodding in agreement.

"Mhm, it suuure comes in handy when taking naps."

("Are you kidding me?! That's what it took to wake them up?! Why do they even have something like that?!") Uni could only stand there in frustration, both at the fact that they have a recording of her sisters screaming, and it was the only thing that woke them up out of a dead sleep.

Rubbing her eyes, Neptune took a glance around the room and saw the candidates. She was going to greet them... if not for the fact that Uni still had her rifle pointed at her direction. Confused and slightly freaked out, Neptune could only break out in a cold sweat.

"Um, Uni. Why do you have that pointed at little old me?" Uni looked down and saw that she still had her rifle out. In a small panic, she tried coming up with a quick excuse...

"She was gonna shoot you two with rubber because you couldn't wake up!" Only for Ram to beat her to the punch and blurt out the truth.

"Nepu!?"

"Well that's not very nice." Both CPU's made there disapproval known to the lastation candidate, who quickly put away her rifle in fear of Plutia transforming, with her and the twins clearly remembering what happened the last time she did.

"Why would you wanna do that!?" Uni could only glare at Neptunes rather obvious question.

"That's because we've been trying to wake you two idiots up for the past hour now! Also, why do you two have a recording of Noire!?" Uni yelled at Neptune with one hand pointing to her and the other on her hip.

"Well it's actually Pluties. She made that when we were at the Ultradimension. It's practically the only thing that can wake her up."

"She always nice enough to come by the Basilicom to wake me up, so I made this for when she isn't here." To say that Uni was creeped out by that explanation was kind of putting it lightly. She quickly shook it off though and focused on the two CPU's in front of her.

"So, what's up girls? What brings ya all the way here?"

"We came here to get you two out of bed and get back to work." Uni bluntly said with a hint of venom in her voice. Neptune didn't notice though and became kind of annoyed at the mere mention of work.

"Oh man, did Histy send you guys?"

"Nope. Histoire didn't ask us anything. We came here on our own!" Ram stated with a bit of childish pride.

"Anyways, now that you're up, it's time to gather shares and get your sister home." Neptune could only groan at the candidates proclamation, not at the thought of getting her sister home, but just at the thought of working in general. So, she and Plutia tried to come up with a convincing excuse.

"Aw, do we have to. I'm still kinda tired from the last battle."

"Me too. I'm reeeally tired."

"Neptune, it's been a month since we beat Rei, I think you've rested enough." Only for Uni to immediately shoot it down, causing both Planeptune CPU's to flinch.

"Besides, Nepgears been stuck in the Ultradimension for long enough, and it's high time we bring her back!"

"Aw come on Uni. It hasn't been that long, I'm sure she's fine." Neptune said lazily, completely forgetting a rather important fact.

"Hasn't be-! Do you even realize what you are saying!?"

"She's been waiting for you all this time you big dummy!"

"Don't you care about miss Nepgear anymore." Needless to say the three of them weren't very please with Neptunes response. Even Rom seemed uncharacteristically mad.

"Whoa whoa whoa there girls! I wanna see her too honest, but c'mon. She isn't a little tyke anymore, so even if it's for a few weeks..."

"A few weeks!? Aren't yo-"

"And besides, she's smart enough that I'm sure she can find her own way back even if I take too long." Neptune interrupted, completely ignoring Uni in the process.

"She would be here now... if that were true." Rom said with a worried expression.

"Pshaw, you guys just worry too much. Like I said, she's probably still all hunky dory, right Plutie... Plutie?" Neptune turned around only to see Plutia fall back to sleep mid-conversation. The twins were surprised at how much this girls sleeps, while Uni just looks like she's going to blow any minute now.

"Aren't you at least a little worried about her!? She 's your sister for crying out loud!"

"Whoa, calm down there lonely sister. You're starting to make Histy look not so Pisty."

"Lonely sister!? I...! You...!" Uni was practically steaming mad at Neptunes stupidity and insensitivity, confusing said CPU and startling the twins. One could even see multiple veins popping on her head. Eventually she just let out an irritated yell and threw her hands up in the air.

"You know what, fine! Go ahead and go back to sleep! See if I care!"

"Miss Uni, wait!"

"Wait up!"

After which, she just stormed out of the room with Ram and Rom in tow and slammed the door as hard as she could right behind them, leaving an oblivious Neptune wondering just what the heck happened. A few moments later Ram poked her head out the door, sticked her tongue out at her and closed it again with a surprisingly equal amount of force.

"Geez, rude much? Man, either it's that time of the month or the author is really making them antsy here. Meh oh well. Maybe I'll get in a game or two before Plutie wakes up."

...Yeeeah, I'm just going to ignore that one entirely.

-Line Break-

The candidates are currently in an elevator on its way down to the bottom floor of the basilicom, with the twins standing near the exit door and Uni leaning her back on the other side, still fuming over what just transpired, and for good reason. Granted, Blanc and Noire aren't exactly best sister of the year material, what with Noires high expectations and Blancs severe temper, but they have on occasion shown that they do in fact care for there siblings. Neptune on the other hand...

"Ugh! I can't believe the nerve on that girl. She acted like she doesn't care about her at all!"("Seriously, even after everything she's done for that idiot, this is how she treats her? You've got to be kidding me!")

"I wonder if... miss Nepgear is OK. She's probably really lonely." Rom looked downcast as she spoke, worried as to whether or not one of her friends is OK.

"I'm worried about her too Rom. It's bad enough no one has seen her in a month, but for her..." the last of the word died in Unis' mouth, unable to speak of the fact that Nepgear was stuck in the Ultradimension for nearly 30 years, a fact that her sister clearly and blatantly forgot.

"I'm worried too! Histoire hasn't heard from the other Histoire in almost a week now." Ram stated her worries as well. During the month she was stuck in the other dimension, Nepgear would call from the other dimension almost everyday (each year in the Ultradimensions case.), begging her sister to come get her. Though in the last few days, Histoire hasn't heard a single word from her. This is primarily what got the candidates to come over here and convince Neptune to bring her back. But it seems there efforts were for nothing if she was that reluctant to work, even if it's to get her sister back.

The three of them could only stay in silence for a good moment, both distressed over there friends current well-being, and frustrated at her sisters near constant procrastination.

"...What are we going to do now?" Rom ultimately broke the silence, with the other two turning towards her. Uni sighed heavily to herself and stood up straight from the wall with a new-found fire in her eyes.

"Well, if Neptune isn't going to get her back, then I will." Uni proclaimed while jabbing a thumb to her chest.

"Uni?"

"Miss Uni?" Both twins were taken aback at her sudden proclamation.

"It's simple, all I've gotta do is work hard and gain Planeptune enough shares to get her back and then some."

"But... wouldn't your sister get mad at you?"

"Not really. She was the one who kept Planeptune stable while Neptune was slacking off in the Ultradimension, So I'm sure she won't mind it too much. Even if she did, that still wouldn't stop me. I absolutely refuse to let my best friend stay another minute in that dimension, even if I have to do it on my own!" Uni professed in pure determination, ready and willing to do whatever it took to get Nepgear back home.

"If you're going... then I will too."

"Yeah! Me too! The twins seem just as enthusiastic, though Uni was caught off guard by there eagerness to go along with her.

"Do you guys really want to? I mean I don't want to make you girls do anything you don't want to."

"Why would you say that Uni? Nepgear's our friend too, so of course we'll help!" Rom nodded in agreement with her sister. Uni was touched by there willingness to help Nepgear in her time of need.

("Sometimes I think we get along better than our sisters do.")" Thanks you guys." She gave a soft smile to the both of them, grateful that they are all great friends, even when they're apart.

"That's what... friends are for right?"

"Right! Though you two better brace yourselves, cause we're not stopping until we have enough. Understood?" They both nodded vigorously. With that, Uni sighed in relief while holding her right hand to her chest.

("Just hang in there for a little longer Nepgear. We're coming to get you home.") Uni thought as she zoned out for a moment, waiting for the elevator to hit the bottom.

"...Miss Uni?" She was brought back to reality when Rom called her name. She shook her head and looked toward the younger candidate.

"Sorry. I spaced out there for a second. What's up?"

"Do you... like miss Nepgear?"

"Huh? Of course I do. She's my friend." Rom shook her head in disapprovement.

"She doesn't mean as your friend." Ram clarified.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Uni was a little confused about the twins sudden question, though a small part of her knew where they were going with this.

"Whenever you are with her, you always seem really happy to see her! You're always at your best when she's around, you become a bit more tsundere, oh and you smile a lot more too!" Ram stretched her arms over her head, emphasizing her point. For the most part, she was right, Uni does become a lot happier whenever the Planeptune candidate is around... which makes the next question all the more embarrassing for Uni.

"So, we'll as again. Do you "like" like Nepgear." Ram asked with little hesitation. Behind her Rom was sporting a small but cute blush. On the other hand, Uni was blushing furiously, finally catching onto what they mean.

"I-I..Uhh..." Uni was too much in an embarrassed daze to even answer. she knew it was coming, but wasn't prepared for it either way.

"Do you... love her?" What Rom just said was pretty much the straw that broke the camels back.

"W-W-W-WHHHAAAAAAA?!" Unis' face was now completely scarlet and loads of steam were coming out of her ears. In truth, she does in fact have some feelings for Nepgear. In fact she's had them for quite a while now, and as one would imagine, she's the one who's worried about her the most. It would also explain why she reacted so harshly to Neptune a bit earlier.

"I-I-I don't l-like her that way! S-She's just my friend!" Even so, she can't help but fiercely deny it out of embarrassment. While normally she is a bit more honest than this, but when it comes to sensitive topics like this, she really resembles her sister almost perfectly.

"You're blushing... so you do like her!"

"I just told you I do-"

"Uni and Nepgear, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"Are you two even listening to me?!" The twins couldn't help but laugh at the desired result of there teasing, much to Unis' chagrin. She could only shake it off and sigh to herself.

"Geez, you two are hard to deal with sometimes."

*Ding*

The elevator stopped and opened its doors to the Basilicom lobby. Gathering her bearings after the twins teasing, Uni stepped out with them. Once they did, they spotted Histoire near the exit, talking to a small holographic screen, but something seemed a little off. Histoire herself looked rather startled and shooken up, as if receiving grave news. Curious and slightly worried, they approached her carefully.

-Line Break-

"OK, thank you for telling me. I had no idea it had gotten that bad for her."

"I know, it really surprised me. She's been here for years now and I've never seen her act like that （ ﾟ Дﾟ）".

"I can only hope Neptune is willing to cooperate this time, otherwise the damage may be irreversible. Worst case scenario, she might not want to come back home anymore."

"I really hope it doesn't come to that. I don't think even she would dare make a joke out of this (;´Д`)."

"Me neither."

"Not only that, but Plutia needs to come back as well. Not only is everyone missing her dearly, but even with Nepgears efforts, Planeptune has been steadily on the decline, and theres no telling whether or not it will eventually collapse ("_;")."

"*Sighs* If only Neptune had just done as she was told, none of this would've happened. I can only pray that Uni and the twins will get those two out and about."

"Me too. Anyways, The other CPU's should be here any minute, so I'll hang up now. I'll give you an update in case anything happens ( ´△｀)."

"Alright. Take care."

"You too (´・ω・)ﾉ."

Histoire hung up and sighed to herself, silently dreading over the news the other Histoire gave her just now. For the past few days, Nepgear went from being noisy to dead silent, garnering her worries. Fearing the worst, she called the other Histoire herself and what she told her not only confirmed them, but they turned out worse than she realized.

("I can't believe it. For Nepgear to react like that is unimaginable. She's always put up with Neptunes antics without much issue... but now it looks like we've found her breaking point. It's one thing to tease or make fun of your own kin, but to leave her stranded for 30 years...")

"*Sighs* Where have I gone wrong with her?"

"...Miss Histoire?" She flinched the instant she heard that voice. In a small panic, she turned around on her book and saw the candidates standing in front of her looking greatly concerned for the small oracle.

"Sorry if we startled you Histoire. Is everything OK?" Quickly catching on, Uni tried to put her at ease. It only worked a little though, as Histoire shook out of her daze while still having that somber look about her.

"To be honest, no." Histoire answered truthfully. Before the candidates could ask why, she continued speaking, but in a more subdued tone.

"I just got done talking to the me of the Ultradimension, and according to her, things aren't going very well." The three of them immediately perked up knowing exactly what or who she meant.

"Did something happen to Nepgear?!"

"Is she OK?!"

"What... happened?" The candidates closed in on her, begging for her to tell them what's going on, though Histoire herself seemed really reluctant.

("Should really tell them? Who knows how they would react.") Histoire was having a quick mental debate, stressing over how to break the news to them, especially just after hearing what Nepgear did. Eventually, she just simply sighed in defeat.

("I don't like doing this, but...")"Well, from what she told me, she hasn't been feeling well as of late. She's barely spoken to anyone and has shut herself out from the other CPU's." She decided to tell them a half-truth, something she rarely ever does. Though it wasn't the entire truth, the candidates didn't take the news very well. Uni looked especially torn, now knowing that her best friend/crush has fallen into such a state. Histoire took a quick look around them and didn't see any sign of Neptune or Plutia. She could only sigh to herself with a hand on her forehead.

"I take it they didn't wake up?" Histoire asked them, effectively snapping the candidates out of there slight depressive states.

"No, they did wake up, but Plutia went straight back to sleep and Neptune absolutely refused to go, no matter what we say." Uni spoke up explaining to Histoire what happened, all the while in a rather foul tone. It's to be expected given with the recent news on Nepgear and her sisters refusal to even lend a hand.

("It's times like this that I thi- no, at this point, Neptune is completely unqualified to be Nepgears elder sister.") At that thought, Histoire couldn't help but close her eyes and pinch the bridge of her nose in annoyance and disappointment.

"That's why the three of us are going to do it instead!" Only for her eyes to snap back open in surprise as Ram spoke on there behalf.

"W-What?"

"The three of us decided to collect shares for Planeptune in her place. If we play our cards right, we should have Nepgear back by tomorrow at the latest." Uni explain there next course of action to Histoire, who was understandably caught off-guard. While it wasn't uncommon for another CPU or Candidate to gain shares for another nation due to events like ASIC and Cyan Heart, but the fact that they were so willing to do so and clean up Neptunes mess, if only just to get there friend back really moved her.

("Sometimes I think these girls get along better than there siblings do. But still...") "Are you all sure?" Despite already knowing there answer, she couldn't help but ask since they would be essentially be doing Neptunes job for her.

"Someones got to get Nepgear back home, and if we just twiddle out thumbs waiting for Neptune, it would take forever. Also considering that she's been down there for 30 years now, I think she's waited long enough." Uni answered without skipping a beat.

"Yeah, it times to get her home!"

"I... really miss her. She's... probably lonely. She needs to come back." Histoire couldn't help but smile softly at there eagerness to fix Neptunes screw-up.

"Thank you, all of you. You three are going beyond the call of duty by doing this, and for that I am very grateful. Even so, I am sorry that you all have to fix Neptunes mistake like this."

"It's no trouble Histoire. Besides, the sooner we get her back and bring Plutia back where she belongs, the better it will be for all of us." The twins both nodded in agreement with no shortage of enthusiasm.

"Now that that's settled, pack up what you need and lets get going you two! We aren't stopping until we get enough, understand?"

"Yeah!"

"Yes."

"Alright then, let's move out!" Uni, Ram and Rom all made there way out of the Basilicom and towards the Guild. As they made there way out, Histoire couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt, both for not telling them the whole truth, and...

"I'm starting to wonder what would happen if she did come home. It's one thing for her to get upset... but to act as violently as she described it, is just unheard of." ...Feeling partly responsible for Nepgears new-found attitude.

"I worry of what will happen now? There's no telling what she might do next at this stage."

-Planeptune, Ultradimension-

"Nepgear did what?!"

"Oh my..."

"Goddamn, never thought she had it in her."

"Yeah, that really caught us all off-guard. It's a good thing Compa and I came when we did, otherwise things would've turned out worse... a lot worse."

Sitting in an outdoor cafe near the Basilicom were Vert, Noire, Blanc, Histoire and a much older looking IF and Compa.

Despite being in there 40s in this point in time, they both still looked rather young. IF's attire was the least bit changed, with the only real differences being that her coat actually fits her almost perfectly now, her long brown hair was tied up in a pony tail with her leaf ribbon, and if one were to look closely she seemed to graduate from an A cup to a C-.

Compa looks a bit more different than she did before. Her bust is now almost identical to Verts and her creamy pink hair has shortened considerably with it only reaching the nape of her neck. Her wool tank top was replaced with a long-sleeved turtleneck, her plaid skirt was much longer reaching to her knees, there was a first aid kit right beside her purse, her boots now reached up right below her skirt, her knee-socks replaced with dark brown pantyhoes, her black choker was replaced with a stethoscope and her hairband was now sporting a red plus sign within the C.

Each of them were wearing an expression consisting of surprise, distress, sympathy and everything else in between. For the last few years that Nepgear has been here, she started to become more quiet and distant from everyone and ended up working much harder than she normally does. When one of them visits on occasion, she is either wearing a small yet forced smile or a stoic face, only adding onto there worries. They didn't have time to actually set up any sort of intervention since everyones been busy with there own lives. Since Neptune and Plutias departure, the workload for the 3 CPU's had increased dramatically, and both Compa and IF had there own respective careers as a Nurse and Guild Agent. Whenever they did have free time to come see her, they've tried asking her how she was doing, but they never got a concrete answer. They then decided that the best course of action was to give her some space until she is ready to talk... Needless to say that just today that plan completely backfired.

Today started out well enough for the most part, but things took a turn for the worst almost instantly. According to Histoire, not only did she appear grouchy when she saw her this morning, but she started mumbling some rather dark thoughts to herself, with each word laced with copious amounts of venom. A few minutes past and Nepgear opened the fridge and took out a small pack of pudding... and the side of it read [For: Neptuna]. From there, everything just blew up. Before Histoire could process what was going on, with an ear-piercing roar that definitely didn't match her, Nepgear had already thrown the pudding clear across the room and started tearing down everything within her peripheral vision in a state of anger that rivaled Iris Heart in terms of pure terror. Histoire tried her hardest to get her to calm down, but her words died on deaf ears, even to the point where Nepgear had the audacity to chuck her across the room.

This went on for at least a good half-hour, and by then Compa and IF came by and immediately took action the second they stepped in. The rest happened so fast that even they could just barely process what just happened. IF tackled Nepgear and put her in a hold, but the latter was putting up a lot of resistance. As she held the berserk candidate, Compa took out a syringe with sedatives in it and injected it into Nepgear before she could react. While she still resisted, the sedative took immediate effect and she started to calm down, and eventually fall asleep. Both adults were just shocked, not just at the extensive damaged she caused, but the sheer amount of ferocity she displayed was just plain terrifying, not to mention unlike her at all.

Minutes later, the Histoire of the Hyperdimension called to check there status, and while there Histoire was explaining what happened, IF contacted the other CPU's for a small emergency meeting. Peashy was with Vert at the time, and IF specifically stated not to bring her, fearing of what might happen, so Vert had some of her workers keep an eye on her back at Leanbox while she was away. They all came as fast as they could, and when they heard about what happened, they were just speechless. They knew that she was effected from being left behind by Neptune, but none of them expect it to be this bad. Right now, everyone present was just in complete silence, taking in the new development that has happened.

"...How is she fairing right now?" Vert ultimately broke the silence, both curious and worried over the young candidate after hearing what happened.

"She's probably still asleep right now. The sedative that Compa gave her was rather small, so she'll be up soon. Even so, I don't think it would be wise if we went to check on her right now (-_-)."

"You do have a point." Vert said, deterred at the inability to help someone who she considered a little sister for the longest time, and as of now was really regretting trading her over for Peashy. Speaking of, Vert took a quick glance at IF and noted the large band-aid on her left cheek. Nepgear managed to scratch her cheek pretty badly during there little scuffle.

"Are you feeling OK Iffy?" Vert couldn't help but ask the guild member.

"Oh, this? It still stings a bit, but other than that I'm OK." IF told her as she carefully touched her cheek.

"Don't touch it too much Iffy, it would heal properly if you keep messing with it!" Only for Compa to scold her for doing so. Off to the side, Noire was looking at the brunette as well, still in disbelief that Nepgear caused everything they've heard.

"Man, this was the last thing I expected her to do. If it were Blanc I'd understand, but this is Nepgear we're talking about. This just seems really unlike her."

"...But this was gonna happen eventually. It was only a matter of when." Everyone turned toward Blancs direction as she spoke, all the while the Lowee CPU gave Noire a quick yet menacing glare at her earlier comment.

"Think about it. That lazy dumbass of a sister of hers left her here for 30 years straight and as far as we can tell, hasn't done crap to come get her and bring Plutia back. If you think about it that way, not even she would keep her cool after so long." Everyone could help but nod in agreement with her. Even if it was a simple month for Neptune, the fact that she kept her sister waiting here for so long really shows how much of a crappy older sibling she is.

"You have a point there Blanc. Even then, with how much of a pushover she is, it's still hard to believe she wold go ballistic like that."

"Well Noire, you know what they say about pushovers. Push them far enough, and they are bound to push back hard." Compa told the black haired goddess.

"...And then shit like this happens." With Blanc finishing in her own way.

"In any case, what are we to do now? We can't just leave her as she is now, can we?" Vert interjected.

"I would agree to that notion, but unfortunately this is something that can't be resolved so easily (-_-;)."

"What do you mean Histoire?"

"Setting aside the issue with Neptune, she can in fact gain shares and make her own way home, but due to her status as a CPU candidate, she'll need a lot more than the required amount to make a portal to her home dimension (-_-;). Not only that, but even with her hard work, Planeptune has been on a steady decline ever since Plutia left, so it would take her forever to even get some shares, let alone enough to get back ("_ ;")." Histoire stated to everyone present, with each of them taking in the information of the candidates simple yet tricky dilemma.

"Not only that, but even if we want to help her, we can't just ignore our duties as CPU's either. I'll fully admit that while I do feel bad for Nepgear, and I do really miss Plutia, at the same time we have our own nations to take care of." Noire added in, with the fact that she was being honest for once really put things into perspective for all parties involved.

"I know, but I can't help but wish there was something more I can do for her." Vert said, disheartened at the reality of the situation.

"All we can do is help her whenever we can. Aside from that, she's on her own on this one." Blanc added.

"Then I guess it's up to me and Compa to help her out."

"Are you sure IF? Don't you two have jobs to get to?"

"Maybe, but we aren't as busy as you three Noire, so we'll do everything we can to get her home." IF said, feeling a good amount of guilt for not helping one of her former caretakers when she needed it the most.

"Iffy's right! Though at this point I may have no right to say this, but Ge-Ge helped raise us and Peashy despite everything that's happened. So it's finally time for us to return the favor!" Compa proclaimed, now determined to help the candidate in her time of need. Histoire couldn't help but get sentimental at there willingness to help Nepgear, the same two kids that she and the Planeptune CPU's raised since they were babies.

"Thank you, both of you. This really means a lot (*^▽^*)."

"That's what friends are for right?" Compa replied with a big smile.

"Right. She's been here long enough, so It's time she got back to where she belongs." That said, IF turned to look at a nearby clock that read [12:17 pm] and then towards the three CPU's with an expression of regret.

"Yeah, sorry we had to drag you three out hear for nothing."

"It was no trouble Iffy. I think I speak for the three of us when I say that I'm glad you called us over when you did." Vert told the brunette, putting her at ease of only a little.

"Even if we won't be able to help very much, we can at least do what we can and hope for the best. N-Not that I'm actually worried or anything."

"Says the girl who cries herself to sleeping knowing Plutia is still gone." Blanc said mockingly.

"Hey, you're one to talk!" It took every ounce of willpower for her not to strangle Noire for that comment. Instead she decided to ignore it and continue on.

"In any case, we'll keep in touch in case more shit hits the fan. You all do what you have to."

"Leave it to us." IF gave the three CPU's a thumbs up as they rose from there seats and transformed into there HDD forms. Waving goodbye, they took to the sky and flew back to there respective lands.

"So, should we head back? Gears probably awake by now."

"Yes we should, though I think we should be exercise caution when we get there. I imagine the sedatives effects would have her in a much calmer state of mind, but there's still no telling what she'll do (￣□￣)." The two women nodded in agreement, knowing what the young candidate is now capable of. The three of them rose from there seats and made there way back to the Basilicom, now wondering what's become of her at the moment.

-Line Break-

Taking a look inside the Basilicom, everything looked as if a hurricane just past through not too long ago. Cloths were torn up and scattered everywhere, furniture was all but destroyed, most of the electronics, especially the game systems, were smashed to bits, and even the walls sported many burning cuts across it, evidence of the use of a beam saber. The overhead lights were also smashed, with the only thing lighting the room were the windows where the curtains were ripped asunder along with everything else.

In the center of the room lies a sleeping Nepgear who, upon closer inspection, looks like she has seen better days. Her eys had bags under them, her hair was messy and was missing her D-pad hairclip, her sailor dress was torn a bit and tarnished with stains, her socks are ripped in some spots and her shoes are almost completely worn out. It's more than likely proof of the struggle she had with IF not to long ago. At that time, she had a look that one would never see. The kind of look you'd give an archenemy. Looking at her slumbering form, she now only has one of deep sadness, of one who has been truly abandoned. One could even see streak marks on her cheeks from crying in her sleep.

"Mmm..." She stirs quietly, slowly but surely opening her eyes in a daze. She struggled to push herself off the floor, clearly still weakened by the sedative Compa administered, but eventually got herself up and sat upright. After rubbing her eyes, she took a look at her surroundings and was only a little startled at the state the room was currently in. She was about to question what happened, but then she remembered...

"I... did all of this?" From an outside perspetive, no one could tell what she was feeling or thinking. But from within, Nepgear couldn't help but be surprised at all the damaged she caused. She tries to remember what happened in the events prior, but a lot of things were a blur past the moment she threw that pudding across the room. Recalling the pudding, she instantly remembered how and why she acted that way... and then looked down crestfallen when she remembered the one who indirectly sparked the fire.

"...Neptune." Just by uttering her name, Nepgear felt a small ache in her chest, not of sadness, but of something she never really felt before. She couldn't quite put her finger on it... though with everything that's happened over the years, she might have a good idea what it might be. Her sister has always did have a bit of a bad habit of placing fun over everything else, even to the point where she left her own sister behind. Nepgear normally puts up with it with great stride, if only just to see her sister happy... but everything seemed a bit different when she first came to the Ultradimension.

From there, a lot of things seemed to change. Neptune seemed lazier than usual, her usual attitude was now a bit more rude and insensative and in general just did whatever she felt like without much thought. As a result, Nepgear always seemed to be at the butt end of her jokes, sometimes gets called out for things she didn't mean or do, and more often than not, always seemed to get left behind. At first she didn't really mind, siting it off as her sis just being sis, but soon after the Leanbox incident (an event she wished she forgot), she started to take notice. Along with the changes in her attitude, Neptune didn't actually paid much attention to her, if not at all. rather she opted with playing around with Plutia and the kids. The latter she understood why, but whenever she saw those two playing around, she couldn't help but feel really left out. There were even some rare moments where she felt like she had been replaced.

As all that was going on, she couldn't help but notice that she was starting to react to some of the things that happened around her. Whether it was one of the others poking fun at her dependence on Neptune or one of those affinities that she seemed to get quite often for no apparent reason, she always acted surprised and even a bit insulted by some of them.

("Now that I think about it, by then I even started to call out Neptune for her own problems.") She thought to herself as she looked back up. There were in fact wuite a few moments where she herself did harp on her own sister. Starting from her originally innocent "CPeww" joke, straight up to her taking at jab at Neptunes "candy-coated skull". Even with all that going on, she still kept a smile and believed that things would return to normal once they went back home and defeated Rei... until the day came, and "That" happened.

Everything seemed OK, they finally got a way back, everyone was saying there goodbyes... and then Plutia happened. Even though she herself admited way back when that the purple sisters need to go back, she was still refusing to let Neptune go. As a result, she glomped on her tightly, and ended up tripping them both into the portal, effectively leaving her stranded. At that point, after 17 years of putting up with it, Nepgear finally snapped.

"That was... the first time I've ever sweared in my life." After that whole incident, she had been calling from the other dimension almost all the time, begging her sister to come get her. Unfortunately, her pleas fell on deaf ears, as Neptune favored sleeping with Plutia than getting her own sister back home. It was at that point where she realized that she has been both replaced and abandoned. From then on, she just simply lived in the Ultradimension, not even caring if her sister was going to get her or not. She even began to slowly but surely push everyone else away, not letting them in when, in retrospect, she needed it the most. Not only that, but over time, she began to feel something entirely new to her towards her sister. Something she wasn't accustomed to at all. At the time she didn't know what it was, but it just kept growing stronger and stronger as the years go by.

It wasn't until today that it was kept bottled up, and by then she was practically unstable. The instant she opened that fridge and saw the pudding, it all came out in one huge burst, resulting in the damage she is seeing right now. Even now, after doing all of that and still under the effects of the sedative, that feeling started to creep up on her once more, and it was growing fast.

Before she could question what it was, her hand grazed onto something on the floor. She turned her head and saw that it was two small object. One of them was her D-Clip, and the other seemed to be a small doll. Picking it up, she took a better look at it and found out that it was a doll of her sister, the one that Plutia made when she first got here. She hasn't seen her sister in so long that she barely even recognized it. She softly brushed its hair in her hand, recalling all the good times they've had... only for them to be immediately replaced with all the bad ones.

"Neptune... Neptune!" At this point, she now remembered what that feeling was. A feeling she never really got used to before now: Anger. She was angry at the fact that she was everyones chewtoy for the longest time. She was furious that she was stuck in this dimension for a total of 47 years now. Above all else though, she was absolutely livid at her so called sister for making her go through all of this, and for what? She doesn't know. All she knows is that she was now getting sick of looking at the doll she was holding. She almost wanted to vomit just at the sight of it. She held its body in one hand, and the head in the other. She twisted the head, pulled on both ends, and...

*RRIIPPPPP*

Tore the head of the doll off its shoulders. Not wanting to look or even touch it any longer than she had to, she got herself up and made her way to a near bye trash bin and threw both halves straight into it.

"Stupid big sister." As soon as those words were said, a text box came out right in front of her in white letters.

[Nepgear has gained the "Resentful younger si-]

Before it could finish, Nepgear violently grabbed her beam saber and slashed it right down the middle, causing it to disintegrate into small particles, much like any other random enemy she's encountered.

"Whoever's making these stupid affinities, knock it off! It wasn't even funny in the first place, so stop!" She yelled furiously at the top of her lungs, all the while wearing a very irate expression that basically says she's had enough. After doing so, she felt a little dazed and she staggered a bit after her outburst, clearly showing that the sedative was still in effect. Needing to sit down until it wears off, she made her way to what was once a couch and sat on the only part of it that wasn't destroyed. When she did, she picked her legs up and held them close to her chest.

She just stayed there for a good while. During that time, her expression slowly but surely went from perpectual anger to one of sadness and guilt. While she has every right to be angry considering her predicament, but after calming down a bit and recalling what happened not too long ago, she couldn't help but feel a lot of regret over what she did to Histoire and IF. Neither of them deserved what happened and she knew it, but after holding it in for years now, at that point she couldn't control herself. Not only that, but besides her "Stupid-big-sister-that-left-her-in-another-dimension" as she calls her now, she misses everyone else back at her home. She misses the IF and Compa that she knows, the ones she didn't help raise. She also misses Nisa, Gust, Falcom, 5pb., Cave, Ram, Rom and...

"Uni..." She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she seems to miss her the most and every-time she thought about the Lastation candidate, she always felt rather strange. Maybe it's because she's her best friend and she hasn't seen her in years. Even with all of that floating around in her conscience, she could only think of one thing, a single question that hasn't been answered ever since she had been stranded here.

"Just... why? What did I do to-"

*knock*knock*knock* Before she could finish her question, a loud knock on the door startled her out of her current state. She heard a few voices from the other side, recognizing them almost immediately.

"Gear, are you awake in there?"

"Maybe she's still asleep?"

"How much of that sedative did you give her Compa (?・・) ?"

"It was only a small dose. Why?"

("IF?! Compa!? Histoire!?") Nepgear was now panicking, wondering what to do now. As she thought to herself, the guilt form earlier started to flood back to the forefront of her mind. After that whole fiasco earlier, she didn't know what to do or how to speak to them. Eventually, her body just moved on its own and she made her way to the door, having no idea what to expect once she opened that door.

-Line Break-

IF, Compa and Histoire were all gathered around outside of the Basilicom living quarters where they usually stay. They knocked on the door earlier, but so far they haven't gotten a response.

"*sighs* Now I'm getting worried. Gear, I don't know if you can hear me, but were about to come in!" IF stated as she reached for the door... only for it to open slightly by itself, much to there surprise. Looking through the small crack in the door was Nepgear, fully awake and to the three of them, looking like a huge mess.

"Ge-Ge, you're awake!" Compa proclaimed, happy and relieved her friend and former caretaker was at least conscious. Nepgear on the other hand just stood there quietly in the doorway looking down to the floor and back to them, contemplating what to say or do next.

"...Nepgear, is it OK if we can come in?" IF caught on quickly and decided to be upfront with her. After what seemed like a while, Nepgear nodded her head slowly and opened the door all the way for the three of them to enter the destroyed room. Closing the door behind them, Nepgear stood in front of them timidly without looking directly at them, showing clear signs of remorse and hesitation. The four of them just stood there awkwardly for a good amount of time, each not knowing how to respond. Before long, IF sighed internally and decided to go first.

"Nepgear, we-"

"I'm sorry!" Before IF could finish, Nepgear apologized loudly and bowed her head in front of them with her arms to her sides and eyes closed. The three of them were caught off guard at the sudden response and could only look on as Nepgear spoke.

"I'm sorry, I really am! I know it was wrong of me to do what I did to you! None of you deserved it, but I just couldn't control myself anymore! Between being treated like dirt and being left behind for years on end, I just couldn't hold it in anymore! I...*sobs* I..." As if an overfilled dam bursting out all at once, Nepgear couldn't stop herself from apologizing and just continued on, all the while crying and choking on her own words.

While Histoire hand her eyes covered by her hair as she looked down, The other two looked appalled at the sight before them. After neglecting her for so long and for not being there when she needed it the most, IF and Compa were shocked to see everything she had been holding in for so many years just come flooding out, even more so than when she went berserk. They were ashamed that they didn't do anything for her. From that, they couldn't help but think back to the times she would contact her worlds Histoire and begged her sister to get her back home. Looking back on it, the last few times she did so, she sounded incredibly desperate, like a child crying to her parents for help.

"Ge-Ge..." Compa couldn't help but silently cry at the sight of Nepgear right now, the guilt finally getting to her. IF was mostly the same, though she was trying her best to hold it in. After wiping her eyes of tears, IF went up to her and placed her hand on her shoulder softly. The mere touch jolted Nepgear out of her apology spree and raised her head to IF.

"You're not the only one who screwed up here Nepgear." Before the candidate could respond, IF pulled her in close and gave her a much needed hug. Needless to say she was stunned at the sudden contact, especially after what transpired. Before she could speak up, IF talked in a sad, motherly tone.

"You've helped take care of me, Compa and Peashy ever since we were babies, and had continued to do so when we've grown up, and all we did was tease and made fun of you while you were working your hardest for us and your 'sister'. And even after you've been here for many years, even if we do have our own lives, we've barely even gave you a hand when you needed it, if not at all." IF kept her eyes closed as she spoke to the candidate, now using everything she had to keep her tears in. When people grow up, they have a habit of looking back at there past and just facepalm, or even regret some of the stuff they did when they were younger, IF being no different. One event that she now regrets was at one point she called Nepgear unreliable... when in reality she should've said that about Neptune. Nepgear herself was still crying, albeit silently as IF continued talking.

"So I speak for all of us here when I say..." She embraces Nepgear a little tighter and spoke softly, all the while some tears finally drops down from her face.
"...I'm sorry, Gear." The instant IF said that, the floodgates bursted forth and Nepgear began crying on the older womans shoulder with all her heart. Soon enough, Compa joined in the group hung and started crying as well as IF slowly let her tears fall. Histoire could only just sit on her tome with a look of immense guilt. Just as the other Histoire said ' If Neptune had just done as she was told, none of this would've happened'... then again, none of them helped much either. After a while, the crying died down and everyone was sitting in a small circle in the only part of the room Nepgear didn't destroy.

"Are you OK now Ge-Ge?"

"*sniff* Yes, I'm OK now. Thanks Compa." With a sigh, Histoire decided to speak up after being quiet for a long time.

"Nepgear, I don't know if this might be the right time, but after what just happened I think I should tell you now... There is a way for you to get back home without Neptunes help."

"Really!? There is!? How!?" The instant Histoire said it, the candidate jolted up on her feet with a desperate yet hopeful look on her face. After being stuck in another dimension for 30 years because of your irresponsible older sibling, being told that there is a way you can get back on your own can make you prepared to do damn-near anything. Histoire then proceeded to tell Nepgear the way to get back home, and while it is essentially the same as before, she still felt the need to explain.

"That's it? I just have to collect shares and that's it?... like my stupid big sister was suppose to do?" Nepgear said that last part silently to herself, though the others heard it regardless since it was pretty silent in the room.

"Yes, but you're going to have to collect about twice the normal amount since you are a candidate. It may be hard since Planeptune has been on the decline, but with luck you should be able to pull it off."

"And this time, we will be here to help you." Compa told Nepgear with her usually bright smile.

"Really!? You will!?"

"Yeah. You've been here for long enough and it's also high time Compa and I return a long-overdue favor. The other CPU's will be helping out as well whenever they can." Nepgear was moved to tears to the fact that now everyone is willing to help her. Granted it took them long enough, but right now she is just immensely relieved with the possibiity of her finally coming home.

"Thank you. *sniff* Thank you both so much." Nepgear said as she gave a bow to them. As she got back up, she wiped away her tears and gave an incredibly determined glare, something that hasn't been seen from her not since the ASIC Incident.

"Well, I better get started immediately. I won't get back home from just by sitting here, so I need to go to the guild and do every single quest available." ("I'm not spending anymore time here than I have to.").

"We're right behind you Nepgear."

"Hey, wait up you two!"

After that declaration, Nepgear made her way out of the basilicom with IF and Compa right behind her.

"Wait, Nepgear!" Histoire called out just as they opened the door...

"Don't worry. I promise I'll clean all this up and pay for the damages when I get back. See you later Histoire!" Nepgear waved goodbye as she quickly closed the door behind them, not giving the small tome fairy enough time to speak.

"*sigh* I forgot to tell her that with Planeptunes shares now, it would take her at least a year to get the required amount (-_-;). I guess after being here for so long, she's practically dying to get back home. Even so, my only worry is that she may push herself too far doing so (;´Д`)." While Histoire was glad that they managed to get Nepgear out of her funk, but she could only sigh at her new-found impatience. While it's understandable given the circumstances, she worries that this might do he more harm than good.

"*sigh* Oh well, I can only hope she doesn't drive herself crazy. As for me, I still have some work I need to do myself (*￣m￣)." With that, Histoire made her way out of the room to do some paper work while the girls are gone... and needless to say, she will never get done no matter how hard she tries.

Outside of the Basilicom, the candidate and the two adults made ther way toward the guild in the middle of the day, with Nepgear at the head in a relatively fast walk.

"Alright, if we can get there soon, we might be able to get a lot of quests done my this evening. And again, thanks for helping me you two, this really means a lot to me."

"It's no problem, though I'll warn you, while I did say that we will help, we won't be able to all the time."

"I know, you two have lives of your own to get to after all. Even so, I think I can manage on my own if I work hard enough."

"That's the spirit Ge-Ge!"

"Hey look, we're already here." IF pointed to the nearby guild as they continued walking.

"OK, let's go!" Nepgear broke out into a run while the other two followed suit right behind her. After what happened this morning and earlier on, Nepgear was more than determined to make herself a way home and finally see everyone again... well, everyone except Neptune. she doesn't show it now, but some of that anger from earlier still lingers on in her heart, and for good reason. While she is unsure of what she might do when she sees her so called sister again, but she is sure of one thing...

...When she does get back, Neptune would wish she left her in the Gameindustri Graveyard all those years ago.

-Hyperdimension, the next day-

Outside of the guild, Uni was with Ram and Rom checking the worlds current shares, and due to there hard work both from yesterday and today, they've successfully got Planeptunes shares up to the required amount.

"Phew, alright we got what we needed. Honestly this was a lot easier than I thought."

"Yeah, that was super duper easy!"

"Easy..."

"Now all we have to do is report back to Histoire, have her open up the portal and get Nepgear back home. So lets hustle you two, we don't have time to waste."
"OK!" As the three of them began to make there way to the Basilicom, Rom came to a sudden stop and looked to the ground with a sad yet solemn look about her. Ram and Uni noticed almost immediately and walked a bit back towards her.

"Rom, what's wrong. You have a tummy ache?"

"No. I was just...thinking."

"Thinking about what?" Uni took a knee beside her twin as Rom spoke on.

"Miss Nepgear's been in that dimension... for 30 years right? What if..." Small tears began to build up on the young candidates face.

"...What if she... forgot about us?" To Ram it was a big surprise to hear that, but for Uni those words struck her like lightning. She could barely move from where she is and her breath was hitched at her throat. She couldn't even think straight at all. Just the mere thought of Nepgear forgetting about them, forgetting about her, was enough to make her nauseous for weeks, not to mentioned scared out of her wits. After everything they've done and been through together as friends, the thought of Nepgear forgetting all that because Neptune was being a lazy jerk was just unthinkable. She was so scared that she-

"Don't think like that Rom!" Rams yelling snapped Uni out of her shock and looked to see her sister surprised at her sudden outburst.

"Nepgear would never forget about us! You know that as well as we do, so don't thinking about stupid stuff like that OK!"

"Ram..." Shaking herself out of her daze, Uni stood up straight and placed a hand on Roms shoulder.

"Your sisters right Rom. We're all her dear friends, and after what we've all been through, she would never forget about use no matter what." ("She would never forget about me...") Uni thought to herself for a moment before shaking herself and looking back at Rom with a determined glare.

"Anyways, once Nepgear gets back, the four of us could play together like always and celebrate with a welcome back party. Does that sounds good?" Rom hesitated for a moment but gave the Lastation a firm nod accompanied with a beaming smile.

"Good, now lets get going. She's probably more than ready to go home now." Just as Uni got up on her feet...

"Yeah, the sooner she gets back, the sooner you two can get some alone time!" Ram decided to tease her of her obvious crush once more.

"W-What!? That again!? I keep telling you that's not it!" Uni tries to deny it with every fiber of her being, but her face was practically as red as a tomato, giving it all away.

"Oh come on Uni, we all know you like her."

"You...really do."

"NO! I! DO! NOT! How many times do I have to say it!? I don't like Nepgear that way!"

"Yes you do." both twins said simultaneously, earning an embarrassed and angry glare from Uni, who looks like she could blow like a volcano any minute now.

"Hmph! Fine, Ill go on ahead then. See you two later!" Deciding to turn the tables, she turned around quickly and sprinted toward the Basilicom as fast her legs could carry her, leaving the twins in her dust.

"H-Hey! Wait for us you big meanie!"

"Don't...leave us behind!" The twins decided to give chase before she could get out of there sight. Uni was honestly getting quite a few laughs out of this little stunt of hers. Granted, Blanc would kill her if she found out about something like this. Then again she or Noire haven't heard of the time Plutia decided it was a good idea to 'play' with them despite the fact that at least 2 of them were children, so something like this shouldn't hurt much.

As Uni was running, she couldn't help but have a big smile on her face. While she wouldn't admit it that easily, she was really excited to finally get Nepgear back after so long. The twins may not realize it, but she was really considering about confessing to her once she got back. It's probably going to be tricky, knowing the kind of person she is, but compared to her sister she's at least a little more honest. Regardless, she took a deep breath as she ran and moved onward, both eager and slightly nervous for her return.

("Just hang in there Nepgear. You'll be home soon. I promise.")

-Ultradimension, 1 year later-

One year... one grueling year has past since then, and things were rather eventful for Nepgear. She had been working almost non-stop for every single day hunting monsters, gathering materials and everything else in between to raise Planeptune shares. And as promised, IF and Compa spent a good chunk of there free time helping her whenever they could, as did the other CPU's and Peashy. Other than that, she had been on her own other days, and she did get really lonely, often thinking about everyone (except Neptune) in her dimension, how they were doing and wondering if they miss her. Eventually, through an ironic twist of fate, she started to get used to it. Not only that, but although she is relatively the same as she was, she became a bit more assertive and independent as a result of all that hard work. As for what she's doing now, well...

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I did it! I finally got enough shares to go back home! Granted it took me an entire year to get all this, but who care!? With this, I can finally go home and finally leave this place!" She's basically overjoyed beyond belief. Ignoring the fact that she looks like she hasn't slept or bathed in days, she was just jumping around like a bunny rabbit in a fully-grown vegetable garden. She had never been so excited in her entire life. Not even that massive robotics convention couldn't even compare to the utter euphoria she's feeling right no-

"SHUT UP, IT'S THREE IN THE MORNING!"

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON OUT THERE!?"

"kEEP IT DOWN OUT THERE, OR I'M CALLING THE POLICE!"

Nepgear got out of her excitement and took a look around... and see that she was prancing around and screaming in a residential area late at night and had woken up damn near everyone.

"Oh Goodness, I'm so sorry. I'll be going now!" Embarrassed to no end, she quickly got into HDD and flew off without a moments thought. After getting a fair distance away from the area, she can already see the Basilicom up ahead and without any hesitation boosted herself towards there, eager to get back, get some rest and finally end this 31 year nightmare. she was almost there, just a few feet away, until..

*Flash*

"Wait wha-?" Before she began to process what just happened, she went out of HDD mid-flight and begun falling toward the Basilicom entrance at high speeds. Whether this was exhaustion or from overusing it at that last quest, she could only utter one question before hitting the pavement...

"What did I do to deserve this?" The instant those words were spoken, she had alredy hit the ground hard, leaving a huge dust cloud in its wake. For a while, all she could see was black and could barely hear anything. After a while, she began to hear faint voices.

"Do you think she will be OK?"

"I don't know Vert. It looked she landed pretty hard. It practically took everything Compa and I had just to pull her out."

"Yeah, she was stuck in there pretty deep. Her legs were sticking straight up and her panties were showing."

"It's a good thing we found her when we did, otherwise that would've ruined all her hard work in one fell-swoop."

"Nepgear..."

"There there Pe-Pe. Ge-Ge's going to be OK."

After a while, the voices started to get clearer and before she knew it, her eyes started to open up to a familiar ceiling. Groaning out of her daze, she tried to get up, but hissed in pain and decided to just tilt her head to the side to be greeted with the site of Compa, IF, Vert and Peashy standing in a small circle in the now refurnished room, all with expressions of worry all over there faces.

"Uuuuuugh...what happened?"

"Hmm? Hey, she's awake! Nepgear's awake!" As soon as Peashy turned around and yelled out, everyone looked to see the candidate slightly awake from her fall. Peashy ran towards her while the others simple walked since she wasn't that far. With a bit of pain, Nepgear rose to a sitting position, now realizing she's on a couch and looked towards everyone.

"You OK Gear?"

"Not really to be honest. Uuuh, I feel like I got hit by a truck going 60 mph."

"Well that's no surprise. We practically found you in a small crater outside of the Basilicom this morning."

"I was coming over to visit with Peashy when I heard what happened, so I had to hasten myself to see if you were OK." Vert spoke up as Peashy sat beside the candidate without her notice. Nepgear tries to stand up, but the pain was stinging so much that she couldn't.

"Don't move around too much Ge-Ge. Your wounds aren't severe, but try to take it easy until they heal OK?" Nepgear nodded silently.

"How long have I been unconscious?"

"Not for very long, but you were really out of it. When was the last time you slept?"

"... I think it was about a week ago?" Everyone was a little startled at the candidates reply, although surprisingly Peashy is staying quiet.

"What the- A week!? Geez, no wonder you look like a mess."

"You've been really pushing yourself hard, haven't you Nepgear?" Vert said, obviously worried about her health and well-being.

"I have been for an entire year as of now. At least it payed off in the end right?"

"You need to take care of yourself regardless... But still, a whole year huh?" Everyone went silent at IFs words. It truly had been a whole year since that incident, and Nepgear had been doing nothing but work since then. Everyone pitched in sure, but over time it felt like there bonds with one another began to slowly slip away. No one bore any ill will towards her and vice versa even before Neptunes departure, but even with Vert here, it feels like they are all just acquaintances now.

"Nepgear..." After a while, Peashy decided to break the silence, though her voice sounded oddly mature for her. Nepgear turned around to her side only to see not Peashy, but Yellow Heart sitting right next to her with a rather sad look. Throughout the years, while Peashys human personality has remained the same, even since Cyan Hearts defeat, her HDD personality has drastically changed from the young child they've come to know to that of a young adult. Before anyone could react, the young CPU gave the candidate a huge hug, causing the other occupants to gasp in surprise and Nepgear to blush furiously from the sudden contact.

"W-Waaahh! Peashy, what are you-?"

"Nepgear... I'm sorry." Before she could get her question out, Yellow Heart apologized solemnly.

"Wait what!? were did this come fr-"

"I thought since this may be the last time we'll see eachother for a while, I might at least get it off my chest now while I still had the chance." Everyone was quite surprised at her words, not just at how sudden they are, but from what it may imply.

"Peashy...?" Nepgear was understandably confused, yet touched by her words.

"Vert told me of what happened a year ago. About how mad you got after being here for so long... and to be honest, I don't blame you." Now she was caught completely off-guard. She wasn't expecting for that to be brought up again, much less for Yellow Heart to bring it up. Nevertheless, the candidate decided to stay quiet and listen to her.

"While we all had a lot of fun playing around and stopping the sages, and I will always be grateful that you, Neptune and Plutia all raised me as if I was your own. but looking back on it, the way Neptune- no, the way most, if not all of us treated you back then was just wrong. I realize now that while we were just fooling around, most times you ended up being the butt of everyones jokes, and we never once asked you how you felt about it. We just did our thing while you just got the shaft in all of it, whether it was getting insulting affinities or getting suffocated by Verts chest, or even getting left behind all the time."

"Peashy..." Tears were starting to swell up in Nepgears eyes, with everything that has happened ever since she got here started to flood back into her mind.

"You had every right to be upset over what happened, and you especially had the right to be mad after being left here for so long and Neptune just ignored you." Yellow Heart said with a hint of anger in her own voice, probably mad that Neptune hasn't even bothered to visit her after saving her from the sages, let along get her sister and Plutia back where they belong. Taking a deep breath and composing herself, Yellow Heart continued on.

"So with all that said, and IF may have already done so on our behave, but I need to say this to you personally..." Nepgear could just barely take it anymore. She was on the verge of breaking down right in front of everyone again. And what Yellow Heart said next...

"I'm sorry Nepgear. I really am." That pretty much tore it.

"Peashy!" Without hesitation, Nepgear lunged herself at the buxom goddess and began to cry her eyes out once more into Yellow Hearts chest, with the latter just gently patting her on the back for comfort. After a bit, Nepgear calmed down and wiped away her remaining tears.

"Goodness, I guess even after all this time I'm still kind of a cry-baby huh?"

"Hey, it's OK to cry, so don't worry about it. It just shows that your still you, which is a good thing."

"Really?"

"Yeah definitely! You may be a little different now, but your still Nepgear to me." Yellow Heart proclaimed with a beaming smile, showing her still present child tendencies even in her current form.

"Thanks Peashy, I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome! But seriously though..." Yellow Heart went back into serious mode.

"I don't want us to leave on a bad note like we had when Anonydeath posed as my dad and kidnapped me, so try to remember the good times, OK?" Nepgear gave her an affirmative nod before giving her a good look.

"You know, now that I think about it, you really are all grown up now Peashy."

"Yep, You can say that my head has caught up with my body now, hehehehe."

"You still act like a kid on occasion though, so you really haven't changed much all things considered." IF interrupted earning a glare from Yellow Heart.

"Heeeeyyy! That's really mean IF! You don't see me talking about how old you and Compa are despite how you look." Both girls looked shocked and slightly peeved at the young CPU's remark.

"Wha!? Pe-Pe!"

"Whoa now! Don't you dare talk about that again Yellow Heart, or may the true goddess as my witness, I WILL END YOU!" After that, there was only silence... that was broken soon enough by Nepgears snickering. Like a chain reaction soon enough, everyone started to snicker and laugh at one another at how ridiculous it has gotten at a short amount of time. After a bit, Nepgear looked to Vert who was strangely standing still and quiet with her bangs shadowing her face.

"Vert, are you OK?"

"Yeah Bert, you don't look so good. Is something wrong?"

"Y-You two..." Before either of them could think...

"ARE JUST SO ADORABLE!" Vert rushed up to Nepgear and Yellow Heart and locked them both in a bear hug and held the two of them close to her chest.

"It is official! I am making you both my little sisters from now on! You two were just so cute I couldn't decide on either of you, so I just want both of you!" Vert proclaimed rapidly as she started to crush both CPU and candidate in her voluptuous chest.

"Ack! Vert, I'm still kind of- Ow! In pain right now, so- Ouch! Please let go!"

"Vert please! I can play with you all you want, but Nepgear really needs to go home, so let us go!" There pleas and struggle fell on deaf ears as the Leanbox CPU continued to squeeze them.

"I said... LET GO!" Soon enough, Yellow Heart quickly got out of Verts grasp and pushed her off of her and Nepgear...Only for her to crash into nearby furniture at mach 1 speeds and effectively knocking her unconscious.

"Oops. Ehehehehe." Yellow Heart just simply rubbed the back of her head as she visibly sweatdropped, forgetting her own strength as Compa quickly made her way to the knocked out CPU, Nepgear gasping for air and IF pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Anyways, once you've recovered Nepgear, we'll grab Histoire and get you back home. For now just relax OK. You've definitely earned it." IF said with a soft smile on her face as said candidate sat back up on the couch, finally regaining her breath after that bear hug.

"Haa...Haa.. OK, I'm going to lie down for a bit." As said, Nepgear lied back down and just relaxed. Yellow Heart just looked on and gave her a soft smile, glad that her hard work has finally payed off.

-2 hours later, somewhere in the outskirts of Planeptune-

"Is everything set Histoire?"

"Yes, I'll set up the connection and open the portal immediately (^_^)." Histoire cheerfully said as she began connecting to the Hyperdimension Histoire and readying her way home. While that is going on, Nepgear turned toward the few people that were here and gave a happy smile to them, already telling them of what she's going to say.

"Well, this is it, isn't it?"

"It sure is Ge-Ge. I couldn't be any more happy for you. You're finally going home." Compa gave her a beaming smile, though she also seemed a little said. Understandable since she is leaving after so long.

"I apologize on Noire and Blancs behave since they couldn't come today. They wanted to come to send you off, but they had a lot of work to do. Nevertheless, I will truly miss you Nepgear. Sorry if I wasn't a proper older sister." Vert Looked more sad than anything else, probably still feeling a little guilty over trading her for Peashy.

"For what it was worth, it was really nice having you here Nepgear. Sorry I called you unreliable." If gave off a smile as well, her words being completely genuine.

"Thank you everyone. Though I was stuck her for quite a while thanks to Neptune, for what it was worth, I did have some good memories here. I'll be sure to visit if I can, and I will make darn sure Plutia comes back her whether she or Neptune like it or not. You all can bet on that." Nepgear proclaimed with a new-found confidence in her voice.

"Wow, looks like Peashy isn't the only one here who grew up."

"I concur. You've really come into your own now Nepgear."

"Well it wasn't by choice, I will say that it was probably for the best. Otherwise I would've stayed the weak and dependent girl I used to be... OK I may still be a little, but you all know what I mean."

"We know Gear. Still, it was nice to have you. See you later, and good luck when you get back."

"And give Neptuna a good kick in the bootie when you get there!"

"I'll make sure of that Peashy, I promise." Hearing a familiar noise, Nepgear tunred around and noticed that Histoire is seconds away from opening the portal.

"Aaaaand, there. (*^0^*)" Just like that, a huge column of light appeared before them and Nepgear was so glad she was speechless. She is literally a few steps away from finally coming home, back to her friends. Just as she was about to step forward, she heard a few familiar voices coming from the other side.

"Miss Nepgear...are you there?"

"Heeeeey, are you there!"

"Nepgear, if you can hear us, get into the portal ASAP. There's no telling how long it will last."

She could only gasp in both excitement and nostalgia after hearing the voices of her fellow candidates, her dearest friends after so long. She was especially happy to hear Uni again, though she didn't exactly know why, nor did she care. Just as she was about to call out to them...

*crackle*crackle*

"Wait, what the goodness was that?" From out of nowhere, sparks of energy started to fly off the column, and before hey knew it, it began to grow massive at an alarming rate and started to suck up anything in it's general vicinity.

"EEEEK!"

"What the hell is going on!?"

"Everyone hold onto something!" Following Verts instructions, the five of them grabbed onto anything they could and held on for dear life, Nepgear especially. As she held onto a nearby tree trunk, she heard her friends from the other side yelling and panicking, making it obvious it was the same for there side. Worried for there safety for a moment, her grip became lose.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHH!" Before she knew it, she was screaming as she plummeted and was ultimately absorbed into the light, much to everyones shock.

"Nepgear!"

-Hyperdimension, Planeptune outskirts-

"Nepgear, are you alright!? Nepgear!" Uni called out to the candidate as she Ram and Rom were holding on for dear life, trying not to get sucked in.

"Uwwaaaaa!"

"Ram, no!" Ram lost her grip, and as she began falling to the light, Uni quickly grabbed her hand and held on tight while Rom held onto her leg and she kept a firm grip on the branch she was holding. Soon however, she noticed that the branch started to break apart.

"No. No, no no no-"

*snap*

"CRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPPP!" She yelled out as she and the twins shared Nepgears fate and got swallowed up by the light. When they all vanished, the column started to thin and just disappear altogether. As the dust settled Histoire, just floated on her book, both shocked and confused over what just happened.

"Hello? Is anyone still over there (_) ?" The Histoire of the Ultradimension called out, confirming that the connection is still there.

"Yes, I'm still here. What exactly happened?"

"I don't know. I was opening a portal to your dimension, and the next thing I knew, the portal went haywire and Nepgear got sucked up. (O_O)"

"The same story is here I'm afraid. The other candidates got sucked in as well, but that raises the question as to where they are now?"

"Well since none of them wound up in either of our dimensions, I can only guess that they must've ended up in a different dimension entirely. (-_-)" The Histoire of the Hyperdimension could only sigh and pinch the bridge of her nose, not only worried about the candidates safety, but also frustrated at the new problem that has arisen from it.

"This is not good. If Noire and Blanc catch wind of this, it won't end well. Though aside from that, I wonder how this could've happened?"

"I don't know. We were both establishing a connection, opening up the portals as soon as it was se-" At that instant, both there faces paled and went silent as they pieced together what happened... They both opened a portal at the same exact time, causing both to collide with one another and go haywire like it did. At that point, all either of them could say was...

"Uh Oh. ( ﾟ Дﾟ)"

-?-

"Mmmmn... Huh? Where am I?" Nepgear was currently waking up in a fetal position, in what seems to be an endless black void. Understandably startled, she immediately stood up and looked around. No matter how hard she looked, she could only see nothing but pure black. Gulping for a moment, she decided to yell.

"Heeeeyyy! Is anyone out there!? Ram, Rom, Uni! Can you all hear me!?"... no one answered her.

"...Long ago, when light and darkness still bore life..."

Startling the young candidate, she turned around to the source of the voice, only to be greeted by a bright light right in front of her.

"...The Goddess emerged from the light..."

The voice continued to speak as the light began to come closer to her.

"...And and entity known as the Vile God burst forth from the darkness..."

As the light engulfed her, a sudden gust of wind blew at her. Curious of what is gong on, she slowly opened a single eye...

"What in Gameindustri is this!?" Only to snap both open as she took in the sight before her. She was standing in midair above a sea of clouds, with the only visible landmarks being two mountain tops sticking out from the land below. On each mountain top stood a single figure of great stature, and just from the feeling she was getting from there, Nepgear could easily tell there power rivaled, if not surpassed the likes of DOS Arfoire, Cyan Heart, and maybe even the True Goddess herself.

On one end stood what looked like a massive, muscular devil like creature colored almost entirely in black, had the face of an ogre, had what seems like dragon head on the tips of its wings, a red jewel adorned on its chest and was wielding a massive sword with an ominous red glow to it, ready to fight the other deity.

The other was that of a woman with reddish silver hair, wearing shiny, blue knight armor complete with face plate and was wielding a sword of her own, emitting a pale green glow that seemed holy in nature.

Before Nepgear could even blink, both entities clashed with one another with great force. They began to fight eachother fiercely, with power that shakes and inverts the area around them and at speed that not even the CPU's could hope to match. They eventually locked blades in a power struggle, with both entities backing off. The Devil claps its hand together and summoned thousands upon thousands of blades behind him, all aimed for the womans life. The woman herself acted in kind, clasping her hands together and summoning an equal amount of blades from the land below. As they all took aim, Nepgear just noticed that quite a number of them were aimed at her.

"Aaah!" she screamed as the blades all fired at once. Covering herself and closing her eyes shut, she quickly noticed that nothing was happening, opening them back up, she saw that the blades were completely going through her, only to gasp in shock seeing both entities impale eachother with the blades they sent out.

"...A fierce battle between the deities... the light tore the darkness to shreds as darkness corroded the light...and eventually, both sides lost there spark of life..."

The disembodied voice spoke on as the power of both deities began to emit another bright light, blinding the candidate for a moment, only to fade to black in the next instant. Fearing of what would come next, she peaked her eyes open once more.

"...Goodness." Only to be great with the view of both deities, impaled by each others blade and stood still like lifeless statues.

"...And so, the Goddess and the Vile God fell into a deep, eternal slumber...like a dying star emitting a final burst of light, before imploding into darkness."

The voice faded way as the scenery around Nepgear faded to black and she began losing consciousness once more.

-?-

Laying on her back. Nepgear slowly awoke once again in unfamilar scenary. Sitting up and looking around, she could see that she was in a vast, grassy plain with what seems like ancient, broken technology from a time long past sprawled as far as the eye can see. Wasting no time, she stood up and dusted herself off.

"I don't know where I am, but I'm sure I'm not in Gameindustri anymore. I wonder what that dream was all about? More importantly, what exactly happened back there? I got enough shares and I'm pretty sure everything was checked. Oooh, what could've gone wrong? I've just spent and entire year working on it and then this happens?" She couldn't help but kick a small rock in frustration at her predicament right now. She spent a whole year build up shares just to get home only for it to blow up in her face because... reasons? She doesn't know, all that she knows is that the portal went haywire when it activate and both she and the other candida-

"Oh no!" Remembering her friends for a moment and what could've happened during that incident, Nepgear frantically looked around for them to see if they landed anywhere near her.

("If I'm right, they must've fell into the portal when it went haywire. C'mmmoooon, please be here!") She thought as she scoured the entire are, eventually spotting three small dots over the horizon colored black, blue and pink respectively.

"*gasp* Is that-!?" She quickly broke out into a sprint and made her way towards there location. As she ran faster and faster, the dots started to turn into familiar figures that she hasn't seen in a long time. The one in black had pigtails and the other two had matching dresses, one had short hair, the other long hair. As she skid to a stop a few feet away from them, she was frozen in place. After not seeming them for so long, she had a hard time believing they where her right in front of her. She began to doubt if these were her friends...but her suspicions were put to rest the instant they spoke up.

"*sniff* that was...really scary."

"Yeah, this isn't fun anymore. I wanna go home now!"

"I'm not even sure if we're in Gameindustri anymore you guys. *sigh* I'm just hoping she's-"

"Ram, Rom, Uni, i-is that you?" Nepgears sudden question broke them out of there conversation and made her presence known to them. All three candidates turned around suddenly to see a face they haven't seen in a while. they all became wide-eyed and just stood there in place for a while, not speaking a word... only for Unis voice to break the silence at last.

"N-Nepgear?"

-Prologue End-