"So, will you not be using the name then?"
The girl blinked, and gave it some more thought. "No, I might as well use it; since it really would be more convenient," she said. "And I mean, even Wilhelmina has a name right? So did the previous Flaming-Haired Blazing-Eyed Hunter. I guess it might not be so bad to have a little identity among the other Flame Hazes, right?"
"Very well," said Alastor, not noticing that they had both missed the whole point of the Mystes' speech. "But I sense you are still a little reluctant."
She sighed. "The name feels natural; and it kind of rolls off the tongue, but did it really have to be our enemy giving it to us?"
"That actually had me thinking, but perhaps I was indeed too hasty in my judgement the last time we were here," said Alastor. "Until now, or perhaps even now, we had never considered any of the Bal Masque as anything but our enemy. But after seeing the balance well maintained here and the change in the Supreme Throne, I am starting to have my doubts."
"It's not often you'd admit that Alastor," the girl said, looking down at the pendant.
"Even I am finite," said the Flame of Heaven. "And it is not the first time I have made a mistake."
He was silent after that, as if reminiscing something from the deep past. In the meantime, Shana couldn't help but feel the presence of a Crimson Denizen come nearer, but also sensed no intent to approach her. She peered towards the street below her.
There were two figures, both wearing the tracksuit-like jersey of the school she also attended. One of them, the male with dark brown hair, panted for breath like a dog while jogging. Beside him, a girl with greenish shoulder-length hair hovered a little ahead of him. It was only by coincidence that they passed by her residence.
Episode 5: The Difficulty of Adjusting
"Hecate... huff... huff... Can't you slow down a little?"
"You aren't showing any signs of collapsing anytime soon Yuji, you'll be fine. The fatigue right now is only psychological."
"Hecateeeee..."
As she floated backwards while observing the Mystes, her gaze strayed towards the Flame Haze, and for a moment, their eyes made contact. There was still a message of hostility sent between the two, but not as strongly as before. The Priestess beckoned the boy to keep going as she faced forward again.
"So they're doing that kind of training," Shana noted, her eyes tracking them from above. "He seems to have worthless stamina though."
"Which is probably why they are taking up this practice," said Alastor. "I don't recall you ever having that much difficulty however, even before we made our contract."
They continued to keep an eye on the Supreme Throne and the Mystes until they were out of sight and the former's presence began to fade.
"So, Alastor, now what?" Shana asked, still gazing out of her window.
"For now, we can assume that Bal Masque has no wish to harm the humans; we have seen the evidence of that in the Supreme Throne alone. However, the people of Bal Masque and their intentions are still two different things. Even the most righteous person can enact a plan too dangerous to those around them, regardless of if their motives are for the benefit of others or even for all."
"You mean like the day the Snake of the Festival was sealed away?"
Alastor hesitated for a moment, but answered her honestly. "Your successor and I chose to be absent in that last battle because we were fully convinced we should not fight. We knew the plan of the Snake of the Festival, and we knew that he intended to create a paradise for the Denizens, which would also free the humans from being hunted by them. Even then, he also ruled an empire with the ideal of coexistence between Denizen and human, as unsuccessful as it was. But we were naïve and too deliberate; when we discovered the full details of his plan, it was already too late, and the Coffin Weaver had already begun using the same principles to his own ends long after he had defeated the Snake of the Festival. On both occasions, it would have risked destroying the fabric of reality as we know it, and so they had to be stopped." He paused, feeling a little regretful of past events, but it was brief. "This time may or may not be so different. For now, we will continue to watch them until signs of a threat, or a lack thereof, begins to show."
"Alright Alastor," his Flame Haze agreed as she stepped away from the window to switch off the light.
Yuji trudged down the stairs of his home with his legs still aching from the utter abuse they were forced to bear the night before. His head was low and there was a gloomy air about him, and if one were to take a look at him, they would almost mistake him for a zombie. He was at least not worn out enough to assign blame to the absent Sydonay for the sudden change in his training regimen.
"Geez, who forces a beginner to run ten laps around the entire neighbourhood at fifteen kilometres per hour..."
Then he caught a whiff of something nice and savoury, and followed the smell's trail into the kitchen, where he had been headed anyway.
In an inverse of the usual morning's events, the boy found Hecate in the kitchen of his own home, wearing an apron and cooking on the stove while Chigusa poured juice for the three of them. A delicious scent wafted in the air around them as the non-human girl prepared a feast of a breakfast.
The boy's mother noticed his entry. "Good morning Yu-chan, Heca-chan here was nice enough to make a big breakfast just for us," she said, then turned to the girl. "But Heca-chan, is it really alright to use your own ingredients?"
"It's alright," Hecate said simply, then smiled lightly over her shoulder. "I want to do it."
Just that little sentiment brought a smile to Yuji's face and instantly regenerated a little more of his health.
Soon, the three of them sat around the little dining table, upon which was an assortment of western dishes—from scrambled eggs to sausages to hash browns—fit for a hotel buffet. As they ate the meal before them, with the young man consuming the most as he was close to inhaling much of the food, they all noticed that he was gradually regaining his energy.
"You really seemed exhausted after your first evening jog Yu-chan," Chigusa told him. "You hardly seemed that tired even when Sydonay-san was teaching you martial arts."
"Yeah, he's a harsh trainer," he groaned the understatement. "But... he means well. I guess?"
He glanced at Hecate for an affirmation, and her eyes met his. But she showed no sign of confirmation and just stared at him before shoving a pancake piece into her own mouth. The boy smiled nervously; this was apparently her silent way of teasing him.
"Well, at least one good thing came out of it," he said. "I got to have something really tasty. Thanks Hecate." And he gave her a sincere smile.
The usually stoic Hecate's face flushed slightly, and she turned back to her own plate.
The Mystes and the Crimson Lord left the house together, both very satiated in one way or another.
"Hey, Hecate," Yuji inquired of the Priestess, "something's been bugging me since last night: with how badly I was able to keep up with you, how come I didn't have much of a problem back when I was racing against Shana?"
The Priestess stared at him. "That's what you decided to name her?" she asked, her tone leaving no hints.
"It's not a bad name, is it?"
The girl shook her head slightly. "Not really."
"Anyway, back then, I was able to catch up to her, just drawing strength from the Power of Existence around me, but I wasn't as tired as I am now, even if I did try to augment myself with my own Power of Existence."
"This is only my assumption, but maybe it has to do with your willpower?"
The boy raised an eyebrow. "Willpower? You mean being headstrong or something like that?" He chuckled lightly. "Somehow, that word brings to mind those anime characters who yell a lot before unleashing some superpower."
The Priestess just stared at him silently, her eyes giving such a questioning look that it felt as if her eyebrow had risen when it had not. The boy scratched the back of his neck awkwardly and averted his eyes slightly.
"W-well, remember that guy with the spiky hair we watched the other day?" he started to explain.
"Oh, I see what you mean," said the girl, then replied bluntly. "No, it's nothing like that."
The Priestess paused in her stride and turned to face him fully.
"True willpower is the ability to turn your will into reality. Energy will help, but expelling it all in raw form is only a waste. It can be refined to take any form through your will. Isn't this what I've been teaching you from the start?"
"Oh? So Unrestricted Methods are the manifestation of that willpower then?"
The girl nodded. "Along with controlling the flow of Power of Existence within your own body; with both, however, you need to become used to it until it becomes natural; and even more importantly, you need a full understanding of the reality around you, and the existence you wish to create—whether it be simple strength or a complex weave of spells—and how to bind the two together."
"I get it," Yuji said as the two continued walking. "But that still doesn't explain why I could only pull it off back then."
The Priestess looked at him from the corner of her eye as she listened and thought about it. She inclined her head towards the boy next to her again.
"I vaguely recall something Ike said a few days ago, and I've confirmed it with the memories you shared to me," she told him. "You are the kind of person who is satisfied with doing subpar, especially if it is only for your own sake. You would slack off on homework, you don't pay much attention or take down notes, you hardly try any harder than anyone else in our class in Phys. Ed., and you have a tendency to space out during lectures."
"Come on, at least I'm not as bad as Satou."
"That is only because he finds school completely boring and unimportant, unlike you," Hecate said, still with a straight face. "If you take an interest in something or see it hold some importance, even if it's a little, then focus on it, and devote tasks to it."
"Well, with that kind of mindset, no wonder you're always so motivated," Yuji said, smiling at her, "even if you don't show it."
"So are you, when you give your all," said the girl, and she smiled. "When you do something for someone else's sake, or when there is something that has to be done, you put in all of your effort and figure out some way to get real results, no matter what. That is one thing our friend Ike admires about you, you know."
"It's kind of embarrassing if you praise me like that," he said.
"But it's true," said Hecate. "Effort, understanding, intelligence, and aptitude are the talents needed to master Unrestricted Methods and manifest full willpower."
"I see, but that still doesn't really explain how I wasn't as tired during that race than I was last night. Sure, it was exhausting, not even including the fight with Shana, but last night I felt just about ready to collapse at any time on the street."
"As I said earlier, you have a tendency to figure something out when you're desperate," Hecate explained. "So, perhaps subconsciously, you manipulated that Power of Existence you drew into yourself to absorb all of your fatigue."
The Mystes blinked. "That's possible?"
"Power of Existence doesn't always have to be put into a spell or object, it just needs form, energy, and purpose. It does not matter if that purpose is mundane."
As they continued to chat while walking, another figure, which had long dark hair and was roughly the same height as Hecate, slowly caught up with the two from behind, just a little out of earshot.
"So, think you could teach me how to fly one of these days?" Yuji asked the Priestess.
"Maybe sometime soon. Your running is pathetic."
"You've become more brutally honest recently, you know that?"
The boy felt a light grip on his sleeve, and found the girl holding it with the gentleness one would use to pick up a hamster.
"Hecate?"
"It's been a very long time since I last did this," she said, and smiled peacefully. "I have a feeling that things will only be getting better for us in the days to come."
The boy's cheeks flushed a little, but he was happy. Blunt and honest with an emotionless face as she was, she was still as sweet and full of mystery as he remembered her; and at least now, she wasn't forcing herself to hide things from him, and believed herself to be one who truly existed, and acted like it. In a way, the girl was right.
They heard a light, crisp yet soft sound along with the rustling of a plastic wrapper and footsteps behind them. Rather, they were sounds Hecate's keen hearing had heard since they had left the house, and had now come closer.
"...Of course I can be mistaken."
"You've been trying to ignore her the entire time haven't you?" Yuji asked diffidently.
"Yes," Hecate said with a tone like an ice block, blunt and cold.
The two of them turned around, one with a cold, emotionless face, and the other with a somewhat forced smile.
"Good morning, Shana," Yuji said with a wave of his hand.
"Hmph, just because we had that one talk doesn't mean we have to be friendly now," the girl with long hair and melon bread in her hands said coldly. "Also, I'm just using the name because it's more convenient; don't think too much about it."
Hecate narrowed her eyes, but not out of irritation or anger so much as exasperation.
"So, how long have you been following us?" the boy asked.
"I'm not following you, we just happen to be headed the same way," the Flame Haze said, frowning.
Yuji blinked. "But we've sensed you just a little ways away from my house and—."
"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" the dark haired girl suddenly cut him off. "I had my reasons for stopping, idiot. It's just a coincidence."
The boy looked at her with a very puzzled expression. "Uhhh?"
Meanwhile, Hecate just put her fingers to her forehead, eyes closed and brow in a slight frown, before turning around and continuing her walk to school ahead of them.
"Huh? What's up Hecate? Wait up," Yuji said as he followed her, with Shana in tow. The Priestess did not let out another peep until they would meet their friends at school later.
"...so now, I have to run laps before we even start training, meaning since I'm exhausted by the time we really start, I'm back to the stage where I get hit a lot."
"Heh, sucks to be you Sakai," Keisaku said with a grin.
"Don't rub it in Satou," the Mystes whined. "I can't even try to take it out on the guy who came up with the regimen."
It was just the two of them, Hecate and Shana at their joint lunch table in the classroom, although there were also four vacant seats already connected as well.
"But hey, you're the one who wanted to fight by her side in the first place, aren't you?"
"Yeah, but that doesn't make it any less hard," Yuji sighed. He took a glance at Hecate, who lifted her head up slightly from her boxed lunch at his motion, and smiled. "But I guess it'll be worth it."
"Then don't complain about it, if that's what you think," Shana said before taking another bite out of her melon bread. The other three stared at her, surprised that she would even take part in their little conversation.
"Sorry for the wait, here's the tea," Kazumi said as she entered the room with a thermos, followed by Ike carrying a few small cups.
"Ah, thanks Yoshida-san," Yuji said as the lone human girl poured her warm brew into the cups and distributed them.
Kazumi watched with satisfaction as the Mystes enjoyed the meal she had lovingly made for him yet again while the disguised Crimson Lord savoured the aroma of her tea before taking a sip. Across the Priestess and next to Kazumi, Shana continued to munch on her food, pausing only to wash it down with her tea.
"Melon bread again?" Kazumi noted, observing the two wrappers and single unopened piece before the Flame Haze.
Shana took another bite of her fluffy yellow bread. "Yeah, is there a problem?" she replied with a cold look. "I already told you I don't need to cook."
"Th-there's no problem, I was just thinking that you must really like melon bread," Kazumi responded timidly.
"Is that all you've been living on?" Ike asked. "Haven't you ever thought of having a little, you know, variety?"
"I don't see any reason why," said the Flame Haze. "Just like I told Kazumi before, it fills up my stomach just as well as anything else; and besides, I like the taste."
"Perhaps it would explain your stunted growth," Keisaku muttered, and Shana chose to ignore the remark and continued.
"As for variety, each place sells a different taste of melon bread, although you won't notice at first. Some are a little spongier, some are sweet, others have a better blended mix, and some have more moist ones."
"Sounds like you're quite the connoisseur," Ike commented.
Soon, Eita and Ogata entered the classroom as well, having bought their bread just below.
"I'm telling you Tanaka, the two of them should just realize something's going on between them already," said Ogata, apparently continuing a conversation they had been having.
"How are you so sure?"
"Comparison and contrast," the girl told the boy with a wink.
"R-Right..." Eita said, rubbing the back of his neck, thinking that he and Ogata were really no different from the subject of their conversation.
"Who are you talking about?" Keisaku asked them as they approached.
Matake Ogata stopped in front of the makeshift dining table and looked at him with a straight face. "Definitely not you Satou," she answered as Eita tossed his best friend a single packed yakisoba bread.
Keisaku raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "Whatever."
No later than when the final two members took their seats, Ogata suddenly addressed two of the girls joining her.
"Ah, Hirai-san, Konoe—I mean, Heca-tan," she corrected herself, glancing at a grinning Ike, who had apparently already spread the "nickname" to their little circle of friends.
The two non-human girls gave her their attention.
"I've been thinking about it ever since seeing you two battle so fiercely, and I've thought that maybe you two could join the volleyball team," Ogata said energetically.
The Priestess stared for a while and lowered her head slightly in thought. Apparently, that show of strength was not ignorable, but was appealing to those who sought victory. In truth, however, while it may be yet another fun and new experience for her, it was not anything she really wanted to do; she merely did not want to lose against her Flame Haze rival.
"Sorry, but I don't think it's for me," she answered.
"Aww, but you're so talented," said Ogata.
"It's not talent," Hecate told her with a straight face. "It's thousands of years of experience."
Yuji's eyes burst open and his face paled at the same time as Keisaku spit his tea in the already shocked Eita's face; meanwhile, Shana's mouth flew wide open as she recoiled and Kazumi put a hand to her mouth.
Only the two other human students not in on the hidden truth stared at the eccentric yet expressionless girl. After a moment, they suddenly burst in laughter.
"Good one Hecate-chan," Ike said, holding his stomach.
"Yeah, that would really explain a lot!" Ogata added, wiping a tear from her eye.
The others quickly recovered from their initial surprise and laughed as well, and even Hecate giggled with them.
Meanwhile, Shana just eyed the group a perplexed expression, her gaze constantly hovering over the Priestess. For a Crimson Lord who she knew had been in isolation for ages, she had become so accustomed to communicating with these people, as if she really belonged with them.
Ogata turned to the Flame Haze now. "What about you, Hirai-san?"
She opened her mouth, already prepared to reject her offer, when she was abruptly cut off.
"I don't think it's such a bad idea," said a male voice, and she turned to the source.
Him again?! "You don't have much to do after school, right?" he said. "And you've always struck me as the type who doesn't like her energy to go to waste. If you're thinking of saying no too, then don't you think there should be a reason not to?"
Shana blinked, forced to admit that he had a point. It was true that she had nothing left to inspect in the city until Bal Masque made their next move, and sitting in the apartment all day was indeed boring, but did it have to come from him again? How could he even tell anyway? She wasn't anything close to an open book.
As reluctant as she was, the last thing she needed was to become lax and out of touch. She turned back to the tomboyish human girl.
"Fine, I'll just try it out one of these days, but no promises," said the Flame Haze. "And... call me Shana."
"That was unlike you," Alastor told his contracted Flame Haze as she picked up a number of packs from an assortment of melon bread. The orange hue of the late afternoon seeped through the wide glass window of the convenience store she was in. "I am not against adapting to your social surroundings while we have little to do, but it almost seemed like you readily accepted his advice."
"Y-You got it all wrong Alastor," Shana tried to argue. "He just told me what I was already thinking about. You've always told me to keep myself in top condition, right?"
"Hrmm, true."
Walking over to the counter with nearly half of the available melon bread, she dumped her goods before the puzzled clerk; but upon opening her wallet she found that she had barely enough money left to buy one of the pastries. She frowned and stared at the empty space in her wallet as she realized that she had forgotten to withdraw the cash provided by Outlaw.
Meanwhile, whether by coincidence or fate, or perhaps due to the simple fact that their homes were in the same direction, Yuji and Hecate had been walking down the very same sidewalk that the convenience store was. The two of them saw the Flame Haze through the window and exchanged looks with each other.
Hecate turned her vision back to the apparently troubled Flame Haze and took special note of her pile of melon bread, then let out a small sigh.
"You don't think we should leave her like that too, do you?" the boy next to her said.
"Yes," she admitted, knowing that to Yuji, her emotions were loud and clear, including her feeling of sympathy.
The Priestess took the hand of the Mystes as she led the way back to his home.
When he arrived home, Keisaku found Margery's room littered with empty brown bottles, as usual. And to no surprise, there was Margery Daw herself, lying down on her couch with a flushed expression and another half-drained bottle in her hand. On a side note, the vessel of Marchosias was somehow lying under the overturned coffee table.
"Geez, it looks like a tornado hit the place again," the young man remarked as he lifted the piece of furniture off the tome.
"Yeah, she's still sulking over her loss apparently," the Claw and Fangs of Violation told him.
"She really took it pretty hard, didn't she?" the boy said as he looked at the passed out Flame Haze. "She probably doesn't have any idea Ogata helped her home either."
"If my Depressed Downer were sober enough to actually meet her properly, I wouldn't be surprised if they'd get along," Marchosias said casually. Keisaku simply shrugged and began picking up the mess all over the floor.
"Hey kid, doesn't doing this kinda stuff bug you sometimes?" Marchosias asked seriously. "You know you're not really obligated to help her out now that she's not exactly the "guardian of the city"?"
"You want me to be honest?" Keisaku replied. "Frankly, it was a pain in the ass at first. But I'm used to it now, and I want to do it." His face reddened slightly. "Someone has to keep our home neat."
"Oh~?"
"Don't even," the boy warned in a low voice. He looked at Margery again; drool was trickling down her lower lip. He sighed and shook his head. "Isn't there anything I can do for her?"
"Trust me kid, you're already doing plenty," Marchosias told him. "No need for anything fancy or special; she doesn't like that kinda stuff. Just keep doing what you're doing."
"Keep doing what I'm doing?" the young man repeated. "I guess that works."
Back in her apartment, Shana nommed on a single measly piece of melon bread—the only one she had been able to purchase from her pile, despite her attempts to coerce delayed payment. She took small bites and chewed thoroughly, savouring every morsel of it while she could.
"Do you sense them?" Alastor asked his Flame Haze.
"Yeah, they're probably jogging by again," Shana assumed, sensing the presence of the Supreme Throne come nearer.
"We had best not forget to retrieve the money we need tomorrow," Alastor reminded her.
"I know Alastor," the girl said before taking another nibble.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, catching her by surprise. She never figured anyone would ever bother visiting her at this late hour, when they should be having dinner in their own homes. Setting down her melon bread on the table, the Flame Haze approached the door and was even more surprised to see Yuji and Hecate standing at the other end with a casserole covered with tin foil.
"Good evening, Shana," Yuji greeted. Behind him, the Supreme Throne stared at the Flame Haze, but this time there was no hostility in her eyes.
"What are you two doing here?" Shana asked, very much confused.
"It isn't a good thing to enjoy just one flavour," Hecate told her in her usual monotone. "If you admit you're missing something, then accept this. Or are you too good for my cooking?"
"Th-the Supreme Throne cooked for us?" Alastor said, even more surprised than his own Flame Haze was.
"Yeah," Yuji replied with a smile. "She's pretty good too. I'd recommend it."
"Why should I-?" Shana was about to protest when a faint sound from below her washboard chest interrupted her.
Rrrrrrrrwl.
The Flame Haze blinked, and sheepishly took the casserole from the Mystes. "F-Fine, but this still doesn't make us friends."
The Mystes smiled and shook his head, while Hecate's expression remained as passive as ever.
Having received her package, the Flame Haze quickly shut the door and leaned against it. "I just don't get those two," she said as she opened the casserole.
It was pasta, Italian style. It gave off a sweet and delicious aroma that filled the room. It was also something that could go with what was left of her melon bread. She looked at her meal for a while, then opened her door again just in time to see the Priestess and the Mystes walking away.
"Wait," the Flame Haze called to them from her half-open door. "Why did you do this for me?"
Yuji smiled at her and Hecate turned her face away in response. "Because you should enjoy yourself too," said the Mystes.