Calling The Reaper

A Funeral For A Demon

I was still in the chasm with Hotaru's dead body when the ground began to shake. I quickly got out of the chasm only to see the wall slowly receding back into the ground. When the wall was completely gone, standing there just on the other side was Mon, Aito, and Tsukiko. Mon was the first to see me and she ran to me examining the wounds from the recent battle.

Mon:Oh my... what happened?

Me:I was attacked. By Hotaru.

Mon looked at me with questions in her eyes. Aito saw the chasm and went over to it only to look down and gasp.

Aito:Is that Hotaru? She looks like a human girl.

Me:She is a demon in human form. She reverted back into her human form after she died.

Tsukiko:So she's a demon but in human form? Is that the same with all demons or is she special? Maybe its just her. I don't know much about demons. Can you tell me about them? Unless you don't know much about them yourself. What about you sis-

Mon quickly covered Tsukiko's mouth and made sure to keep it there. Tsukiko tried to free herself but Mon wasn't letting go. Mon then turned to me with a sad expression.

Mon:So she's really dead?

Me:Yea. But the problem is how I killed her.

Aito:What do you mean?

Me:While I was battling her I felt myself lose control. I killed her without hesitating.

Mon:You mean like how you felt when you broke Miki's hand?

I looked at her and nodded. Her information really is scary. I reverted back into my human form and, not knowing how badly I was hurt, fell to my knees. The pain was enough to stop a charging bull. Mon quickly took action and ran over to me.

Mon:Spirit of healing.

She placed her hands on my back and I could feel the soothing sensation flowing into my body. I looked at the cut on my side to see it slowly fade and the blood disappear. The pain subsided and Aito helped me up. I went over to the chasm and looked down at Hotaru. I felt so guilty. I then knew what I had to do. I turned to Mon who looked at me and raised an eyebrow.

Me:We're going to have a funeral.

They all looked at each other and nodded. Later on, we decided to venture into the woods behind my house. The same place I found the shard. Aito was carrying Hotaru's body in a white sheet that we bought from a store on our way here. They all followed me and we arrived at the center of the woods. Henshin was with us and he transformed into a dog and began digging. We waited for awhile until the hole was big enough and we laid Hotaru's body into it. We were careful not to drop her and after she was in the hole we filled it back up. I had picked some flowers from a bush on the way here and laid them on the grave. Tsukiko had grabbed a stick and began to etch something in the dirt on the grave. We all looked at her, wondering what she was doing. When she stepped back, we read the word. 'Hotaru'. I smiled and patted Tsukiko on her head. I could feel the tears swelling in my eyes, ready to fall down my cheeks. Mon stepped forward and put her hands together.

Mon:Spirit of the ages.

She placed her hand over the grave and the dirt turned to stone. She stood up and brushed off her hand.

Mon:Now it will be there forever. Not even rain can wither that rock.

Me:Thanks Mon. We better get going.

Everyone agreed and we left. I quickly looked back at the grave and felt happy. She's now able to rest in peace. I turned and walked back to my house where the others were waiting. They all seemed to be very serious. I looked at them feeling like I did something to piss them off.

Me:Did I do something?

Mon:No. We just decided on something.

Me:What?

Tsukiko:You're our leader!

Me:W-what?!

Aito:We all agreed that the team needed a leader and you're it.

Me:Wait a minute. Since when did this team need a leader?

Mon:Since more demons have begun to appear. We had decided that you would be our leader this morning and we went to go find you to tell you.

Aito:But you weren't here and, by accident, we ran into that weird kid who you had talked to before you went to go find Hotaru.

Me:You mean Roka?

Tsukiko:Yep! He told us where to find you.

Me:But why me? Mon, you're older and have more practice with your powers and Aito is older than you.

Mon:We chose you because you have more experience with demons. I've always used my powers for small things like healing Tsukiko when she got hurt or fixing something that was broken. I've never battled any demons.

Me:What about you Aito?

He folded his arms and turned his head in a somewhat snotty way.

Aito:I'm not about to lead a team of children.

He then looked at me and walked over to me. He placed his hand on my head and smiled.

Aito:Besides. I'm with Mon. You have more experience than any of us and I'm pretty sure you're more attuned to your powers.

I looked at them all with a shocked face. They barely knew me and yet they trusted me to lead them. I couldn't help but smile. I mumbled under my breath and they all looked at me, wondering what I had just said. I told them it was nothing and they shrugged. I mumbled it again. Thank you.