Having finally found her voice again, Natalia opened her mouth to speak. "You don't have to keep living like this anymore, all by yourself."

Natalia's hold on him tightened subconsciously, as if by doing so she might hold them both together and keep everything around them from falling apart. "You told me earlier that you didn't have anyone, but that simply isn't true! As your friend, I'll do whatever I can to help you."

She meant that, too. For what little it seemed to be worth at the moment. Her heart pounded in her chest, as she tried to grasp at the words, "...Asch, come with us. We can find a way out of this place together, and once we have, we can rescue the people of Akzeriuth and look for a way to stop Van so that he can't cause harm to anyone else."