**Chapter 45 – The Night Elara Broke (Year 1481 – Children at 9 years old)**
Elara woke up screaming in the middle of the night, as always.
But this time it was different.
She ran out of the dormitory barefoot, straight into the garden, and began punching the ground with her fists until they bled, screaming names no one knew—names of dead versions of the sisters.
Lysithea ran after her, hugging her from behind as she collapsed.
— I saw you all die again… I saw it again… I can't take it anymore…
Lysithea cried with her, rocking her like a baby:
— Look at me, Elara… look… they're alive… I'm alive… breathe with me…
All the children woke up and formed a circle of hugs around the two.
Joker and Harley, still small, sat on her lap, holding her bloodied hands.
— Big sis Elara… we're here… forever…
It took three hours of collective crying until she fell asleep exhausted in Lysithea's lap, with thirteen bodies forming a protective cocoon around her.
