Nat's POV:
“You could’ve at least told me if you were comin’ over, y’know.” He stated softly, holding out a pair of shorts and a shirt. “Here, you can use these.” He instructs, gently nudging me towards the bathroom to change. “You’re soaking wet. Was it raining outside?” He asks as he turns the faucet of the bath. “You won’t catch a cold if you go in the bath. I’ll be right back.” He points up a finger, then turns and starts towards the door, closing it behind him. I blink a few times, now confused.
“I...have to take a bath…?” I mumble, then blush out of embarrassment, noticing my clothes. “Oh. I see…” I smile sheepishly, then turn off the faucet, closing the bathroom door before undressing, wrapping a towel around me as I climb into the tub. I look at my hair that was all over the water, gently lapping and flowing with the droplets of water.
“I wonder what Daichi is doing…” I whisper to myself, and curl my knees to my chest, hugging them. “It’s been so long…” I then pull my hair to the side, uncovering my back. I then frown. My markings on my back was a symbol of my cursed clan. There were beautiful, yet painful markings sprawled over my back, all coming from a beautiful starflower that had its center shown, with the markings vine-like, curling and shaping over my back to my shoulders.
I then heard a knock on the door, and perked up to see Bon with flushed cheeks as he comes in, slowly setting the clothing that he got from who knows where, and sat down uncomfortably behind me. Getting a bucket full of water, he slowly took my hair from my fingers, squirting shampoo onto my hair and rubbing it into my scalp, massaging my head as he washed my hair.
“A-Arigatou.” I mumble, and softly sigh as he rinses my hair again.
“So what’s wrong?” He asks, currently busy washing my bottom layer of hair. After a pause, I slowly leaned back a little, looking at my toes.
“The girl you saw...she was my cousin.” After a stop with his fingers getting run through my hair, I let out a soft sigh, continuing. “She...she hates me...because...something had happened in the past… and she’s not who she is right now. I could feel the hatred and lies and darkness pulsing through her when I touched fists with her...and...I have to protect her...She’s my only family I have now, and so...I feel like it’s my fault that this all happened to her.” I ramble, and blush softly as I look up at him. “And so now seeing that she’s with Satan, it makes me feel worse. Because-because I know that I’ll have to be the one to kill her.”
I sniffle, tears running down my cheeks to my chin, dropping into the water of the tub. When I felt my hair get let go of, I felt strong arms wrap around me from behind, and I blush a lot, getting pressed against Bon’s chest. “R-Ryuuji…” I whisper, surprised and blushing. He didn’t say anything, he only nestled his head in my curls of black and brown.
“We’re here for you, y’know. Rin, Yukio, Koko, Hoshimi, Izumo, Shima, Shiemi, Konkemaru, and-and me. Always me.” He mumbles, and I felt heat coming from his cheeks as he said this. I nod slowly, and close my eyes, blushing.
“We’re all here. We’ll be there with you. I promise.” He states firmly, and smiles sheepishly. “Even if we don’t seem like we are. I’ll always be next to you.” He smiled and pulled back, now blushing. “E-etto...you feeling better?” He asked quickly, his cheeks flushed. I nod and smiled, before shooing him out.
“Let me get dressed at the least.” I scold, and get up when he closed the door, drying off myself with a new towel and pull on the things he brought, which were probably from Shima. I then stretch, now in all of the clothes he brought. “Arigatou, Ryuuji.” I murmur, now warm in both the heart and body.
“No problem. If you need anything, you don’t need to use those coupons, y’know. You can always come to me.” He blushed, hearing how cheesy it sounded. “Y-you should’ve already known that, you Baka!” He quickly says defensively, then just blushes. “O-Oyasumi.” He mumbles, and closes the door quickly as I leave.
Smiling bashfully, I quickly start towards my dorm, watching the sun start to rise over the horizon.
A Month Later-Nat’s POV:
I sat uncomfortably in my seat, looking at Yukio and Koyalee, who were chatting and very occasionally joking around about something. Konkemaru and Hoshimi were blushing and awkwardly talking with Bon, Rin, and Shima, and Shiemi and Izumo were having a girly talk. Feeling a soft tremble, I looked up and flinched as some dust fell from the rusted ceiling, dropping to my nose. I sneezed, and looked embarrassed, then frowning. “Haru.” I state, and she nods, sniffing the air then coughing.
“Master. It’s her.” She whispers, and she starts to tremble.
“Go back, Haru. I know you can’t help me with this. I can barely do this myself.” I whisper, and get her to go back to the familiar world, replacing her with Mika. “Ready, girl?” I ask her gently, holding the piglet close to me. She only nods, and snorts lightly, stretching her hooves.
“Onee-chan, I feel something off. It’s been hotter and more sunny than usual…” Hoshimi stated softly, her fingers clutching my sleeve. I gently pat her head, and start towards the window, then crying out as the glass shattered, light burning through the windows. pushed Hoshimi down, holding out my hands for earth barriers to form like a wave in front of everyone.
“Mika!” I call out, looking for the piglet. She was now a boar, ready for me to get on. “Minna, we have to get out of here! Now!” I call out to them, and lead them out of the building, before it collapses.
“It’s been a while, Cousin.” Daichi’s voice, protrudes from the silence of the gasps for breath. I get up, and tears fill my eyes.
“Minna...get back.” I state quietly, my eyes filled with pain as I unsheathed my sword, it gleaming in the air. “Mika. Get Hoshimi and Konkemaru out of here, along with Shiemi and Koyalee. They will be needed to help treat people who are evacuated. Rin. Yukio, Izumo. Shima. Ryuuji. Go as far away from here, and don’t look back. Go to the center of the light. You’ll find him there. I saw what Haru saw earlier, her nose gives her images of what she smells. She saw Lucifer. Go. Now!” I instruct, deflecting the golden gleam of light as she thrusts forward her sword.
“Guess it’s time to seal your fate.” Daichi snarls, tearing off her locket from her neck. I nodded, slowly ripping mine off from my own. The locket that I now held had my death wish in it; it was to tear me from this world and to drag me to Gehenna, with no return. It was what all of our family members got eventually. When they thought they were ready to ‘defeat Satan’, our elders would fill their lockets with our sacred soil. This was like our lives here in Assiah.
“No!! I won’t leave you, Onee-chan!!” Rin yelled, starting towards me, but another familiar-Haru-stopped him. He gave her surprised and horrified eyes, and so I only smiled, looking back to him.
“This is my own wish. Please tell them all that it wasn’t their fault. It was my own for bringing you into this.” I murmur to them, and smile a little more. “I really care for all of you. Live strong, and love. Make new friends, don’t forget others, ne?” I feel tears drip down my cheeks. “Please don’t be a Baka, Rin. Take care of him, Yukio.” I don’t bother to wipe my eyes free of the tears, and neither do Izumo, Rin, and Yukio.
“B-but-”
“Just listen to Haru. Take care of my family, Izumo. Make them your own. And please...please trust them. They’re your friends.” I state, and slowly drop the locket, it clattering to the cobblestone streets. “Ryuuji...please don’t do anything too irrational-”
“Damn you, you Baka!!” Bon roared, starting to run to me, but another familiar stopped him. This time, it was Yami. “Live!! Don’t give in to her, Nat!! Please!! I-We-We all need you!!” He cries, but I only shake my head, looking back at him.
“I-I had fun...with you all. Ja ne.” I whisper, tears falling to the ground as I unwound the bandages on my hilt of the sword, it glowing as we both stab our swords into the locket, her figure starting to glow a blue as mine glows a golden green. “I love you all...please don’t forget that.” I whisper, my figure crumbling into soil as I was taken to Gehenna.
