Aya stared down at the proffered hand, not trusting Sebastian for a moment. Whatever he thought she could do, even if she [i]could[/i] do it… honestly, she was afraid. But she looked over at Ariadne standing over his body ready to kill, and she knew he was right. This was no time to be afraid. Not when her fear of doing what she needed to had taken so many lives already. Who was she to be afraid when she'd already wasted her chance to make things right? Even if it was too late already…

Turning back to face Sebastian, she looked him in the eye and took his hand. He'd told her to search – to look into the monster's soul, but… how was she supposed to do that? She'd never even attempted such a thing. But she just kept staring up at him, never braking her gaze. Taking a breath, she tried to reach out with her senses and search.

And then suddenly it became clear. Like flexing a muscle she didn't even know she had, she finally really [i]looked[/i] at Sebastian. He wasn't in full color as Aya'd thought – he was made of starlight, just like everything else. Tiny pinpricks of light made up his body, bunched so close together he seemed truly solid.

[color=mediumspringgreen][i]This is my realm[/i][/color] she thought to herself in a daze, as if only just realizing it. [color=mediumspringgreen][i]You are mine. Give me what I want.[/i][/color]

And he did.

In the next moment Sebastian's hand turned blindingly hot, as if he really was made up of stars. It burned at Aya, but her hand was trapped, unable to let go of his. She staggered, mouth agape but unable to make any sound as the lights that made up Sebastian's hand began to break apart and flow into her arm. She felt she'd pass out from the onslaught of something powerful and alien and [i]dark[/i] entering her. Flashes of memories spun through her head and she almost screamed from the pressure of it all when she latched onto one thing: Cassandra. Images of the girl shot through her mind, but only for a moment before they were overwhelmed by the rest. Emotions jolted through her one after the other – murderous glee, rage, but then one managed to stay longer than the rest. Finally the burning began to dull as an almost soothing feeling of acceptance washed over her, hardened with an edge of mischief.

Aya looked up and saw him fade away in a shining mist, the glint in his eyes the last thing to go. Sebastian was gone.