I mean, you and your college crush, who was also crushing on you, met up in the middle of a war zone. She left five minutes after graduation and didn't even leave a note. Why would you instantly reconnect emotionally and admit your feelings at that point? There's hurt to resolve.

But if there was a relationship that, for reasons, had to hold to the bare minimums (darn religious kids and religious orders and asshole priests), and you knew about that reason? The hurt would be there, but probably easier to forgive.

And when both of you were free, then you could express it all.

So their first kiss does NOT happen later, it happens in school, but they can't move forward at that point due to things that must be resolved first.

And then you, a warrior, see her on a battlefield, both of you in full-on War Goddess mode, and there is that thunderous spark again.

I have to rewrite their re-meeting because I want them both to go into a show-off mode, unconsciously doing it as, well, a fighting flirting.

I love these two weird-ass girls. They both go through so much pain and suffering and when they find each other again, it's... not an immediate healing, especially with some stuff that happens later, but it's going to be very good when they finally get through it.

They're going to earn that happy ending.