(The following events take place at various times after Norma's rescue.)

---

Luna stood outside her door for several minutes, not sure how she could possibly find the strength to step inside after her abrupt and completely unauthorized journey out of town.

The warden... what will she do to me? / What will I do... to myself?

She had these two dissonant thoughts at the same time. A timid part of Luna's tumultuous mind knew that the warden was long dead, that she couldn't physically hurt her anymore. But her keeper had been so certain that Luna deserved every punishment she'd ever inflicted upon her that it was impossible to deny those fervent beliefs might still hold some truth all these years later, even when the warden was no longer around to continue carrying them out herself.

The door suddenly flew open on its own and a woman dressed in a traditional maid's outfit regarded Luna with shock, her kindly brown eyes nearly bulging out of her head.

"I can't believe it - Young mistress, you've finally returned to us!! We've all been so worried-"

Luna was too lost in her dark thoughts to notice the maid, who quickly realized she was having a panic attack. The woman immediately dove for her, holding the hyperventilating girl close to herself for several minutes. As always Luna made no notice that anyone was there for her, and as always the caretaker stubbornly held on to the hope that her many attempts to soothe the girl over the years were not all in vain.

"Please step inside, young mistress. Your... mother was visiting us for the first time in years and will want to see you."

Though the phrasing was technically correct, it still felt incredibly off-putting to the maid to refer to that awful woman as such. Any colour in Luna's face completely drained and even her panic attack ended immediately, replaced by paralyzing fear. Though Luna often failed to notice the existence of her caretakers because of her self-deprecating delusions, there was no doubt she had heard the maid this time. Luna refused to be led any further, but her attempt to forestall the inevitable availed her not.

"Well now, it seems my little broken doll has finally found its way back home..."

Dressed in an extremely expensive black sleeveless suit over a white button-up dress shirt, a tall woman with crystalline blue eyes and long black hair cascading down to her elbows turned the corner, only to regard her daughter with something like disgust as she casually placed one hand in her pocket.

"After all the trouble I went to in setting up this little toy box for you, was it really too much to ask for you to be a good little plaything and just stay in it!?"

The maid at Luna's side closed her eyes at her mistress' scathing words. If she could, she probably would have faded away from the scene entirely. To do nothing while the young mistress' own mother spoke to her daughter as though she were a mere object tore her up inside, and yet she knew the terrible cost for speaking up against her was far too great. Whether out of fear or disdain, Luna didn't speak either. Instead, she tried to squeeze past her mother to head for the study. Before she could attempt the maneuver, however, her mother pinned her against the wall forcefully. Luna saw stars as her head bounced off of the wall.

"Ah ah ah, I don't think so. Your caretakers have told me what you've been up to since we left you in their care. Coercing the principal into letting you form some ridiculous club by invoking our family name? You've been cutting again, really? And of course, running away for weeks without a word to the staff, then coming back here like nothing happened? I knew leaving you in this worthless town was a mistake, even if it did keep you out of the limelight for a while."

Luna merely stared up at her mother defiantly, daring her to finish the threat on her lips.

"It looks like you already know what's going to happen then, that makes things easier. It won't take long for the arrangements to be finalized, so I suggest you start packing sooner than later. Having you around is going to be a massive pain in the ass, but it's far better than letting a puppet walk around on its own like a real person..."

"No. I won't go."

"It's not a suggestion, doll. I honestly hate to bring you anywhere near the family business again, but hey, you were pretty good at what you did all things considered, even if it got us into a bit of hot water by the end of it. If this is how it's got to be though, I may as well make use of you again..."

Luna's body twisted up on itself from within. Was her mother actually serious? Did she not realize that everything wrong with Luna today was because of what she had had to do for 'the family' all those years ago?

"I... I can't! I simply can't! I will never be your tool again!!"

"Oh sweetie, you must have realized it by now, right? That's all you ever were..."

---

In a dimly lit room, a girl was typing away on her phone while humming happily to herself...

Mae: Hey, you~
Mae: Any chance the fun police will let you out of Maximum Security any time soon? I miss my Normie.
Norma: ...sorry, not yet.
Mae: Eh, it's probably for the best, anyway. After stealing mom's car for that little stint, I'm grounded indefinitely.
Mae: Not that that would ever stop me from seeing you, of course. Besides, being grounded has only ever made me want to sneak out even more, anyway.
Mae: It's actually a pretty vicious cycle. Please send help.
Norma: I wouldn't even pretend to know how to give you the kind of help you need, LOL!
Norma: I'll actually be going back to school sometime soon, though!
Mae: Seriously!? That's awesome! A lot quicker than I expected, but hey, I'll take the gift horse.
Mae: Oh, uh, by the way...
Mae: All those crazy texts and things I said over the phone...
Mae: You know I was just joking around, right?
Mae: ...Norma?
Norma: Yeah. Don't worry about it.
Norma: Because even if you weren't...
Norma: You still showed up when I needed you most.
Norma: And as long as you do that, I said I'd never give up on you, right?
Mae: ...that's right. Thanks, Normie.
Mae: And hey, keep me posted about the day of your illustrious return, alright?
Mae: I want to make sure I look my very best when I welcome you back to society.
Mae: So while I'm pointing at things like, "And this is a book! People read these! Remember books, Norma?"
Mae: You'll be thinking, "Goddamn, who gives a fuck about books when my best friend is an absolute minx!?"
Norma: OMG Mae! You're too much!
Norma: I'm honestly really excited to go back to school. Being at home with Dad, Faye, and the twins has been great, but I've been feeling kind of directionless.
Norma: ...and finally seeing you again is definitely a big factor of my excitement.
Mae: You're damn right it is! ;p
Norma: Sorry to say this but I've got to try to go to bed. Been having trouble sleeping for a while now.
Mae: Oh, Normie, I can only imagine...
Mae: If there's anything I can do for you, anything at all, just let me know, okay?
Norma: Of course. Good night, love ya Mae.
Mae: Love you too, hun. I'd say sweet dreams, but...
Norma: I'd have to take it as an insult, LOL!
Norma: Talk to you tomorrow. Here's hoping you have sweet dreams enough for the both of us.

Mae sighed and set her phone down beside her before stretching out on the bed. Aside from seeing Norma that one time after following the strange sense of her location all the way to Quin's hideout, she was feeling incredibly deprived.

"Haaaah, I can't go on like this!!" she cursed, balling her hands into fists. Going nearly two months without seeing her was like torture. The hobbies she'd always enjoyed just felt like chores now. She had been passionate about becoming an aesthetician, but unless Norma was going to be seeing her work, she couldn't bring herself to care enough to practice. Embarrassed that this had become her new norm, Mae pulled up some photos of her best friend on her phone and gazed longingly at each one, memorizing every detail of her posture, body language, and expressions until she ran out of pictures.

Of course, she hadn't been 'joking around' with Norma before. She'd simply let her base desires have free reign for a while, and it was so very, very tempting to fall right back into them again.

There's gotta be some healthy balance here, right...? A certain way I'm supposed to think and act? Goals for improving myself as a human being and becoming the person I want to be?

But for the life of her, Mae couldn't possibly figure out what that could ever look like anymore. She needed Norma in her life, and anything that didn't involve her was no longer of any interest.

Well, I always wanted a direction in life, didn't I? Looks like I finally found it...

---

After returning to town and letting her gang know she'd arrived safely, Raine drove her green truck into the driveway of her home. The thing had one wheel in the scrapyard after all it had been through, and even though it was an eyesore, Raine couldn't help but pat the hood of the vehicle on her way by.

"You done good, old girl. You can let go whenever you're ready, now."

The truck made no indication that it had been made aware of this sentiment, but Raine smiled anyway and whistled as she headed for her door, taking a minute to fish through all the keys, lock picks, and spare change she had crammed in her pockets. She couldn't help but notice the garbage can was completely overflowing and surrounded by black bags in various states of decay, having been torn open by animals over the weeks. Raine sighed, turning the key and bracing herself for the state of the rest of the house.

There was garbage everywhere. Fast food containers lined the floors and the powerful scent of alcohol emanated from the kitchen counter where a massive collection of bottles - mostly beer but also vodka and whisky - sat unrinsed and fermenting in the sunlight of the kitchen window.

Raine stepped over shattered glass and a scurrying rat into the living room where her father was, slumped sideways onto the armrest of the couch with the TV blaring as he slept off his latest bender. More than the alcohol he reeked of, he himself smelled worst of all, obviously not having attempted anything in the way of hygiene in quite some time.

"Damn it old man, you really are helpless without me, huh?"

Though part of her resented her father for the life they now led, she still regarded him warmly as she lifted him over her shoulder and plopped him into his bed, throwing a clean blanket over him. A look at the picture on his nightstand explained her fondness for him - A much younger version of the man hoisting herself as a toddler, both of them laughing together.

He took care of me long enough. It's only right I take care of him now...

---

About three weeks later...

Raine had finished tidying up the house again and was just going over the hefty pile of bills on the kitchen table when she received a text from an unknown number.

???: Hi, Raine? It's Norma!
Norma: Sorry I haven't messaged you until now. It's something I've been meaning to do for a while.
Raine: o, hey norma
Raine: gud of u 2 txt
Raine: how r u?
Norma: Umm... I'm doing a lot better than I was, that's for sure.
Norma: Things are actually pretty quiet around here and it's kind of freaking me out!
Raine: lol
Norma: I know I'm sounding like a broken record at this point, but I wanted to thank you again.
Norma: We still don't know each other that well, and yet against all odds you were there to save me from Quin.
Norma: My family is keeping me safe for the time being, but soon I'll be returning to school and things will pretty much go back to normal for me.
Norma: I'd really like to spend time with you outside of a life or death scenario if at all possible.
Norma: Would you like us to set something up closer to the date?
Raine: ya, sounds good 2 me
Raine: not sure what we can do tho, don't really ever go out w/ pretty girls
Raine: u there?
Norma: Ah, uh, yes! Don't worry, we don't have to do anything in particular!
Norma: Just spending time with you sounds great to me.
Raine: ...if ur sure. let me know the time later. and u can msg me whenever, k?
Norma: Perfect, I look forward to talking to you more often, then.
Norma: And especially seeing you in person!
Norma: Thanks for agreeing to hang out with me. Hope I haven't been too annoying!
Raine: nah, ur good. I like hearin from u.
Norma: ...whew! Okay then, talk to you soon, Raine!
Raine: c ya!

Raine stared at her phone for a few more, minutes, not daring to believe the words on her screen.

...she wants to see me?

With all the girls hanging around Norma all the time, it was almost too good to be true.

All of the obsessive thoughts about the possibility of her and Norma ever being together came crashing through her mind at once. She'd somehow been able to ignore them - just barely - up to now by assuming she'd never be interested, but Norma making the first move to see her had built up her confidence far too much. Norma's next message with the details of their meetup couldn't come fast enough.

...why'd you have to go and do that, huh? Now, I don't know if I'll be able to hold myself back anymore...