As much as Jade would have liked to agree with those sentiments -- that they would all see each other again -- he could not bring himself to make such promises. After everything else Crystallis had thrown at them, that possibility felt too good to be true.

He didn't voice that thought, though. Looking at Rukia's solemn face as she held her weeping Shadow, there was no doubt in his mind that she was well aware of the inevitable. Perhaps the others were aware of it as well, but chose to hold onto their hopes regardless. Although that kind of faith didn't quite resonate with Jade, he could at least respect it somewhat.

It didn't matter right now, in any case. The time for goodbyes would come one day, assuming they all survived the coming months. For the moment, they still had lives to live. Hopefully with this, Rukia would be able to allow herself to enjoy life without being haunted by the weight of her duty.

"Yes. Well done." Jade remained standing close by, looking down at her with a faint smile. "Now... Before we start worrying about the future, why don't we first ensure we will actually have one? I think certain duties can be put on hold until the total destruction of all life has been averted."

Not that he was brushing off Rukia's concerns. He just couldn't resist making at least one dry comment before this was all done.