The Angel of Darkness, And the Demon of Light

Chapter 18: Dark Times, Bright Memories

The group quickly made their way back to Seam's shop, with little to no words exchanged between them. When they made it to the shop, Susie practically flew in, Kris, Chara, and Ralsei by her side as she carried the unconscious angel. "Seam, we need help." Chara immediately said once they were inside. Seam quickly walked over to them. "What happened?" He asked.

"We were fighting Jevil, and Vixen kept getting hit. She's alive, but her HP is just barely in the negatives." Chara briskly explained. "S-Seam, can you heal her?" Ralsei asked, worriedly. Seam took the injured girl from Susie's arms, and looked at the others. "Follow me." He stated, as he and the others heads into the backroom.

In the middle of the room, there was a fluffy orange rug with a purple pillow on one of the ends. It was big enough for a person to lay down on. Quickly, Seam went over to the rug, and layed Vixen down on it. Chara came over as well, removing Vixen's cloak and putting it over her like a blanket.

After making sure she would be fine, Seam finally spoke to the others. "She'll be fine, but it might take some time for her to wake up." He explained. Ralsei looked down at her, sadly. Seam noticed this as he looked at him. "Is something the matter, child?" He asked. "V... Vixen... She... She pushed me out of the way of an attack... She did that before, but the one who sent the attack was weaker... N-Now she's been badly hurt, and I couldn't do anything...!" Ralsei stressed, tearing up again.

Seam walked over and put his hand on the young prince's shoulder. "Its alright... I've known Vixen for some time, and she's a tough girl... She'll be fine." He calmly said. "I-I know she's strong, but..." Ralsei paused, looking down at his friend. "She's... She's my first ever friend... She's always been there for me, a-and defended me... But now... I couldn't do the same for her..." He finished, sitting on his knees beside her.

Now that her cloak was off, he could see the cuts on Vixen's shoulders. And since the cloak was covering her back, it was noticed she also had a bruise from falling out of the air. Yet somehow, even though she was badly beaten, she still looked as peaceful as she often did.

Susie was tapping her toes on the floor, before she suddenly growled and punched the wall. "God damn it!" She shouted, causing her other teammates to jump. "If we hadn't gone down there, she wouldn't have gotten hurt! I swear, I'm gonna kill that little bastard..." Susie sneered, muttering at the end.

Susie half expected Ralsei to say that that wouldn't be necessary, but... He said nothing. "Umm... Ralsei? Dude, you OK?" Susie asked, somewhat concerned. Again, Ralsei said nothing. Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what to say or do. Until...

"H-Heh... I guess... Her other friend wasn't wrong... Her kindness ended up in her getting hurt..."

Ralsei's voice suddenly said, getting everyone's attention. "Huh?" Chara questioned. "She saved me back there... I went to ask her if she was OK when Jevil hit her, and Jevil sent attacks at us. Yet rather than getting herself out of the way... She decided to get ME out of the way instead..." Ralsei responded, smiling sadly at everyone.

"...You really care about her... Don't you...?" Susie asked, surprisingly calm. "I do, yes... She's always been really nice to me, and I've always enjoyed being around her..." Ralsei answered, before giving a weak laugh. "I remember that once, she convinced me to sing a song with her... I must admit, it was a lot of fun..." He stated.

Chara thought for a moment, wondering if maybe if Ralsei were to recount a happy memory with Vixen to them, he might cheer up some. It made sense in her mind, so she asked. "Hey, do you think you could tell us that story, Ralsei?" She asked, politely. "H-Huh? O-Oh! Um... Sure! I-If you guys want..." Ralsei replied, somewhat surprised by the request.