>"Well, it couldn't be Sakuya in our past, because then she'd be gone and we wouldn't have a Sakuya, so... are you saying maybe there's two books or something?"
>"Let me explain." Celes starts. "It may take a little time. You see, prior to the events of the Night of Rage, Sakuya- the one from our timeline, was running an errand for her mistress, when she became possessed by the Sin Spirit of Pride. Their merger, however, became complicated by the personalities of the two parties involved. Influenced by Pride's presence, Sakuya refused to release her hold on him."
>"Hold on, I thought you said Pride possessed
her." Momiji interrupts.
>"He did. But Sakuya remained the dominant will. I've never known it to happen before, but somehow she imprisoned him within her. And we could not seperate them, not without causing serious, even irreparable damage to both of them. On the Night of Rage, however, Remilia Scarlet paid us a visit, and she found a way to pull them apart. With some help from Meiling Hong and the Spirit of Lust, Remilia was able to separate Sakuya from Pride without harming either of them."
>"At least, that's what we thought at the time." Celes says with a slight sigh. "Unbeknownst to any of us, using her powers over fate that way had unforeseen consequences. Now, this is the part that's the hardest to explain. Somehow, Sakuya was almost overtaken by alternate versions of herself. Sakuyas that never happened." The Keep steward pauses, clearly expecting to have to clarify that.