[ She's babbling. It's not like Hibiki at all - she talks a lot but never like this, stumbling and tripping all over her words, pouring them out like she's scared of what will happen if she doesn't fill the silence. Like that, she almost sounds like...

Well. She sounds like Ai. And she's been doing this long enough to say with confidence that it's never a good thing when her trainees start taking after her. And while Hibiki might not be one of hers on paper, she sure is in spirit.

Ai's fingers tighten on her shoulders. ]

Hibiki-chan, did someone scare you? You don't have to say who or what happened. But we can go and find security if you're not feeling safe.