Cadence, she found Suzu

After replying to Cadence's text, Dove takes her bag and hurries toward the art studio's exit. "I'm sorry Heph, but I have to go, Cadence needs me!"

"Oh, of course!" Heph seems happy to let Dove go, probably because they were able to finish the art piece together anyway. "Be careful!"

Dove walks quickly out of the gallery and down the street, not taking any extra time to enjoy feeling the warm weather against her bare body. She waits at the nearest bus stop for about five minutes, and then hops on the bus when it arrives, using her towel to sit on an open seat. As much as Dove would rather be out walking, she wants to meet this new friend from her world as soon as possible, and she doesn't want to keep her or Cadence waiting, especially if this person is already upset.

Dove gets off the bus at the closest spot to where Cadence texted her to meet up. After a short walk, she voices coming from an alleyway, one familiar and unfamiliar. When she looks in, she sees Cadence arguing with a woman with purple skin and a sanitation mask with an oni mask design.

"Hi, I don't think we've met before! I'm Dove!" Dove walks right up to Cadence and the newcomer, interrupting their conversation. "Thanks for texting me, Cadence."

Cadence smiles as she sees Dove approaching, but the masked woman's eyes go wide, and a blush becomes visible on the exposed parts of her cheeks. "Hang on...why are you naked?!"

Dove is about to answer when Cadence chimes in first. "She just enjoys being naked lately, it's really not that weird." Dove nods and smiles while Candence continues. "Anyway, Dove, this is Suzu, and she's looking for her friend, but she can't remember what happened to her. We're thinking it would help if she could calm down more."

"Oh, I'm super good at being calm!" Dove clasps her hands together proudly. "I bet I could help. Why don't we try a fun activity to help you relax and find your center?"

Suzu narrows her eyes at Dove. "Uh, whatever 'fun' you have planned, it won't work on me. Besides, how am I supposed to focus if you'll be there exposing yourself the whole time?"

"That's the best part; we'll be doing it with our eyes closed!" Dove giggles; she's flattered that Suzu is inclined to keep looking at her, but she does want to avoid distractions in favor of relaxation. "Let's go back to my yoga studio, there are no classes today so it should be nice and quiet there."

"Ugh, fine." Suzu huffs as she starts following Cadence and Dove to the bus stop. "Look what I'm willing to do for you, Reaper..."

"Cool!" Cadence smiles. "Seriously, Dove really knows her way around relaxation. You might not hate it."

The whole bus ride to the yoga studio, Suzu seems to alternate between glaring suspiciously at Cadence and ogling Dove's body. Cadence remains hopeful that they've found another lead on stopping the rifts, while Dove is of course happy to be helpful and isn't paying any attention to all the stares she's getting on the bus. When they arrive at the yoga studio, Dove unlocks the door and lets Cadence and Suzu inside.

Dove grabs three yoga mats and pulls them close together. "Now, everyone sit down like this and close your eyes, okay?"
She sits down with her legs crossed, and then she waits for Cadence and Suzu to do the same. Cadence sits down right away, while Suzu hesitates for a moment but joins the two friends on the floor shortly after.

Dove gets out her phone and uses it to play some relaxing music, and then she closes her eyes. "Okay, we're going to do some breathing exercises. Just follow my lead and you'll get the hang of it in no time! Here we go: and breathe in..."

Dove breathes as quietly as she can to make sure she can hear her friends (if Suzu counts as a friend already) breathing too. Cadence's breath is barely audible, but Suzu sounds as if she's sucking in air through her teeth. After the right amount of time has passed, Dove them again. "And breathe out!" Again, Cadence's breath is soft, but Suzu's comes out as more of an exasperated sigh. "Breathe in..."

The cheerful instructor continues to lead her friends through the exercise. The progress is slow, but Dove can hear Suzu's breathing steadily get softer and more relaxed. About halfway through the song on her phone, Dove hears a phone vibrate, and then Cadence's voice: "Come on, Suzu, focus." A few breaths later, the phone goes off again, and Dove holds back a giggle when she hears a slap and then Suzu grumbling to herself. Fortunately, the brief altercation doesn't seem to have affected Suzu's mood much, and she goes back to calming down.

"...And breathe out!" Dove opens her eyes as the song ends. "Let's take a break for now. How are you two feeling?"

Cadence's eyes are slightly lidded, and she has a small smile. "Eh, pretty good, I guess."

Suzu's eyes are narrow, but she looks significantly less tense than she did at the start of the exercise. "I hated that. But I think it worked."

"Yay! Great job, Suzu!" Dove cheers gleefully.

"Stop congratulating me or I'll get angry again." Suzu flops down on her back on her yoga mat, while Dove giggles.

Cadence shifts her sitting position to bring her knees together and looks over at Suzu. "Can you remember anything else that's been happening to you and your friend?"

"I...I can remember some things..." Suzu slowly sits up again. "Reaper and I were summoned to the Crypt from another world. Reaper...she succumbed to the NecroDancer and became one of his underlings. I think the same thing is happening to me..."

Cadence nods understandingly, her expression turning more serious. "I've seen that happen...my own dad tried to kill me before I broke him free of the NecroDancer's control."

"Oh yeah, I also saw you when you went through the Crypt." When Dove hears about Suzu having seen Cadence before, Dove perks up and listens more closely.

Cadence looks surprised too. "Wait, you were there at the same time as me? Then why didn't I see you?"

"Because I didn't want to be seen, that's why." Suzu huffs as if the answer should be obvious. "But I did see you. You aren't subtle...but you are effective."

"Thanks...I think?" Cadence smiles half-heartedly.

Dove scoots her mat a little closer to the others, causing Suzu to blush again. "Reaper is your friend, right? Do you think there's a way we can find her?"

Suzu starts to look worried. "I'm not sure...sometimes I see Reaper when I'm fighting rifts, but she always runs off. Maybe if I keep following the rifts, I'll be able to find her and get through to her."

Cadence smiles and stands up. "I'll go on patrol with you then. While I'm dealing with the rifts, it should be easier for you to focus on helping Reaper."

"Eh, I guess that makes sense..." Suzu looks to the side as she thinks about Cadence's proposal (although on closer inspection, she's actually just looking at Dove again), and then she stands up and narrows her eyes at Cadence. "Fine, but when we find Reaper, you leave her alone. Got it?"

Cadence nods decisively. "Deal."

"Yay! We're all working together!" Dove jumps up and hugs Cadence, who hugs back with her arms placed high on Dove's back. "Be careful, okay? And try not to fight with each other!"

Cadence nods again, but Suzu shrugs. "Eh, no promises."