She curls into her sister's arms, sobbing. 

And Xunyu gets past them - and uses a hasty set of cleaning spells to clear away the gore on Chengsu's shield, and the gore puddling around them, and everything that splattered onto Xunyu, and she calls, softly, voice shaking, "Chengsu?"

As the gore melts away, so do the shields. Chengsu's still mouthing the chant of the spell, but without words or mana.

Hug?

It takes a second, but she collapses in, boneless.

Hug.

"I've got you," she murmurs, "We're all safe right now." 

"I thought you would cut me off. We were in there for-" Hours. Minutes. Days.

Squeeze.

"You were still fighting," she says, voice echoing how broken she felt when she realized what had happened. 

"...I just held the shield. The rest was- all them."

"We should leave."

"Before anyone comes to gawk." Though tragically that might require stopping hugging Chengsu... And the stairs down to her room will be - crowded, right now. 

Or before the witches who just did by themselves in five minutes what took forty Shanghai wizards a year's worth of mana and three days decide to shed their pretense of mortality entirely.

"Yeah. That. Quickly, please."

- She's going to temporarily claim one of the smaller reading rooms, one claimed by two young enclaves sponsored by Shanghai. She somehow doubts anyone will be coming around to object. 

It'll give the main area time to clear, and it's quick and close. 

That works.

Where she's going to hug Chengsu, and try very hard not to spill her own fear and trauma everywhere, because what Chengsu went through was worse. No matter that Xunyu would've swapped places with her if she could.

Chengsu's not actually very good at this 'physical comfort' thing.

It seems to be helpful, though.

" - Don't do that again," she says, softly, after a long, long moment. 

"Not if I can help it," she agrees.

"...I kinda threatened to stab Jiana if she cut you off."

That startles a snort out of her.

"Oh, that's not good."

Small grin. "I don't think she was offended. And then London and New York offered to help cover the mana."

"There, building bridges. Don't say I never helped you."

Her thin smile collapses.

"You have. You're - you've been everything. You - "

"Chengsu you went into a mawmouth for me how was I supposed to live with myself if - if you didn't somehow come back out - "

Oh no she was trying not to get her feelings all over Chengsu. Oh no now she's crying. 

Oh.

"I'm sorry, Xunyu." Hug?

Hug! And sob, though she's trying very very hard to shove her feelings back in and be here for Chengsu.

But it's like a dam's broken, the thin barriers holding back her tears collapsing. And she can't help but choke out: "The only thing - the only thing I could've done for you if you hadn't - "

"Before she killed the mawmouth mom tried scrying her brother and he was still screaming and she - she killed him through the scry so he wouldn't be - " Gasping sob.

"The scry you need is personal and - no one else could've done it for me."

"Xunyu... It's not-"

"I don't expect you to do that for me."