Now that the whole squabble with Truth-- Sitri's former split personality--, was finally over, the whole group finally had time to relax. After what seemed like an eternity to the girls, they finally saw one of the most awaited parts in an anime.
"Wooh!" Tamamo jumped happily, wearing a yellow pair of frilly bikini. "Fan-service time!"
"I don't know what fan-service is," Thalia walked from the huge umbrella, and out into the sun. She's wearing an another bikini, this time colored green. "but I do know this is a great time to relax!"
"T-Tamamo-san!" Hexhine hugged the fox from behind, a purple, gothic one-piece covering her body. "Wait for me!"
"Party on the beach! Yey!" Ani sat at a nearby sand castle, happily drawing dead knights and warriors around it. Her clothing seemed to be that of a swimwear version of her usual dress.
"Hmm..." Celleya hummed to herself, then smiled. "It's a great time to spend with onii-chan." She's wearing a white two-piece, with accentuated stripes of black. She looked around, but then she felt a hand above her head. Looking behind her, she spot the one she was looking for.
"I hope so." Sitri said with narrowed eyes. Remembering the 'voting' time they spent about discussing where they would go for a rest, he can't help but to let out a sigh. 'I was completely outnumbered back then. At least they let me rent out the whole beach for today.'
'Don't want any inferior humans snooping around my gi--, them.'
The demon lord opted to just wear a black trunks, leaving his upper body bare. Meanwhile, Celleya was stiff as a rock as she stared at her brother. Even though his body is as white as it can be, the outlines on his muscles can still be seen. And those... 'Wow. I never saw niichan workout, yet he has those nice looking abs in him.'
Sitri noticed his silent sister, then spoke. "What's wrong, Celleya?"
"E-Eh? Oh! N-Nothing!" Celleya turned around, a blush adorning her cheeks. She pointed at the ocean, then talked. "The sea's looking quite good today, so let's swim!" She ran towards the crystal clear water, along with the others.
"Hmm, nobody wanted me to put a sunscreen on them?" Sitri mused. "I feel like that's unusual."
Every girls' mind froze. 'I-I forgot to ask him.' Since they were all excited, they just put on their sunscreens themselves, and forgot a very cliché moment.
Sitri silently sat at the sand away from the girls. He's just protecting himself from the sun, by hiding under their large umbrella. The demon wasn't a vampire by any means, yet he hated the sun as much as holy swords. It looks like Sitri's white skin has an origin now.
His mind drifted back to the events that had transpired not long ago. 'I've come really far now, aren't I? To think that the Demon Lord Sitri is out on a beach.' He stared at Tamamo, who's swimming like a real dog. He couldn't help but to shake his head.
"Still, I guess this isn't as bad as it sounds." Unknowingly, he smiled to himself.
"You've been smiling a lot these days." Truth said inside his mind.
"Truth?" The white-haired boy asked, surprised. "Ah, I am, aren't I?"
"Well, as long as you do not smile while your beheading someone, that's good." He imagined Truth nodding his head.
"Why would I do that?" Sitri's eye twitched.
"I don't know. Why wouldn't you do that?"
"You know, sometimes I think you're not just a personality." Sitri deadpanned.
"Well, since that past Sitri sealed me, I can think for myself now. But damn, you can read my thoughts now too." Sitri swear he heard some curses after that.
"You can read mine too." He closed his eyes in annoyance. "And stop thinking about tentacles with my girls. I'll freaking kill you."
"Chill, nyehehe." He didn't stop thinking those though.
As Sitri contemplated about going to his dimension and beat the crap out of his other persona, he heard Thalia yelling at him.
"Sitri! Why aren't you going out here? The water feels good!" She splashed some to Tamamo, who retaliated back by swishing a tail.
"You know I don't like the sun." He spoke normally without yelling. He knows the vampire can hear him either way.
"It's not like your gonna burn in the sun, baka!" The she giggled. "Or are you gonna sparkle instead?" For some reason, the vampire kept on laughing after that.
"That didn't even made sense." Sitri said under his voice, then breathed out. He stood up, stretched his hands, and promptly walked towards them.
"See Tamamo-san?" Celleya whispered besides the fox goddess. "He looks--"
"D-Delicious..." Tamamo stared at the demon, a drool slipping out from the side of her lips.
Truth to her words, the demon does look good. With his shining onyx horns, white hair, and a toned build, all the girls around him stopped whatever they're doing just to look at him.
=≠(???)≠=
The blue-haired girl stared at the scene playing in front of her, dreamily touching Sitri's cheeks at the book.
"Neh, Sitri, why are you so hot?" She giggled to herself. She blinked, then shook her head.
"Eh, why is the narrator thinking about the main character of the book she's reading?" Then she continued on writing.
=≠(Beach)≠=
"My name is sir Stupe F. Pid! And I'm a stupid knight who'll defeat you!" Ani spoke, trying to act like a warrior. She even had a bucket as a makeshift helmet.
"I-I'm Hexhine, the D-Demon Lord of the Underworld. I shall erase you from existence!" Hexhine stood, shakily pointing at the blonde child.
The two proceeded to slowly punch and hit each other, all the while yelling some random spells. "Armageddon!" The 'Demon Lord' Hexhine yelled.
Sitri, who's in the water swimming, stood abruptly as he watched the two play. "It's nice to see Ani being close with Hexhine."
"Yeah," Tamamo swam near him. "Ani's acting like a grown-up girl now. Never knew the Demon Lord himself could raise a child."
"Are you mocking me?" Sitri playfully splashed some water at the fox, who was laughing. While her mouth was open, some salt water got in.
"Eek!" She spat it out almost immediately, who hit Sitri in the face. With a deadpan, he wiped the liquid away.
"Armageddon--" A huge magic circle started to materialize, but Tamamo instantly bowed her head repeatedly.
"Gomen nasai gomen nasai!" She laughed awkwardly at the end.
"Hmm." He just shook his head, then petted the fox by rubbing her head.
Off to their far side, Thalia and Celleya was off conversing with each other.
"Thalia-san?" Celleya looked at the vampire's porcelain-like body.
"Oh come on, Celleya-chan! Cut off that honorific! Chan is much more nicer to hear." She lightly smiled at the horned girl.
"Ah, Thalia-chan it is, then." She pointed at Thalia's luscious green hair. "I just wanted to ask, is your hair's natural color really green?"
"Neh?" The vampiress grab some strand of her emerald hair, looking at it. "Yes it is. It came from the blood of Beelzebub-sama. His Majesty's hair is green too."
"Mmm." Celleya nodded. Then she looked at her own hair. "Mine's so dull and plain..."
"No! Celleya-chan, you don't know how I'm so jealous in your hair color." She even faked a cry. "To have a white hair means your much more connected to Sitri."
The demoness smiled at that. "Ah, I guess you're right."
"Hmm," Thalia turned her head towards the two youngest of their group, Ani and Hexhine. At least, the most youngest looking. "At first I thought they just wanted to play at the sand first, but it's been half an hour already. Why wouldn't they go here in the sea?"
"Now that you've said that, I think so too." Celleya nodded. "Perhaps they can't swim?"
The two subjects of their conversation now had receded under the umbrella, and was having a blast talking about anime.
"And later on, the main character's villain was his brother after all!" Ani exclaimed.
"Eh, no spoilers, please..." Hexhine tried stopping the over energetic girl.
"Then that book's name was actually an initial for his name! Cool right? Kind of like mine." Ani remembered how Sitri and Gabrielle told her past.
Ani just smiled when they did. In truth, she didn't really care, as she was more preoccupied by some business.
"Um, perhaps your talking about Fairy--" The goddess was cut off by Ani placing a finger in her lips.
"Shh, I'm still talking. As I was saying, There's this guy who was turned into a monster who likes eating people, but he doesn't want to--"
And the girl kept on rambling endlessly, even forgetting about going to the water. Poor Hexhine got stucked with the non-stop Ani.
=≠(That night, 7:34 pm)≠=
Sitri decided to walk alone along the seashore, and just enjoyed the full moon reflecting on the water.
"It's calm." The demon walked near the water, then stared at his reflection. He couldn't help but chuckle. "My eyes does look cold."
"Onii-sama?" Someone spoke behind him, startling the white-haired teen a bit.
There's only one person who can pop out of nowhere without him noticing. "Ani?" He turned around. Truth to his guess, it was the energetic little girl. He gazed at her eyes, noticing the slight somber expression in them. "What's wrong?"
"I heard you've confessed to everyone?" She stepped closer, staring back at him intently.
"Yes." Sitri promptly sat at sand, then turned to the moon just over the horizon. "Everything had been cleared up." The horned-boy uttered.
"Really? Even to Celleya-chan?" Ani sat at his lap, surprising him from the sudden weight.
"Celleya had always loved me, eversince she was just a child. It's wrong, I know, but am I the type to care about that?" He laughed lightly.
"That's... great, master." Ani leaned on his chest, then closed her eyes. "They're talking about it back at the cabin. I was, surprised when I heard it." Her voice became quieter and quieter every second.
"Ani?" Sitri tried looking at her eyes, but she was looking down. "Are you okay?"
"Hai," Ani suddenly looked up, smiling at him. She suddenly stood up. "Just don't let them take a bath with you, okay?"
Sitri stared at her for some seconds, then grinned. "Of course."
Ani waved, silently walking back to their resthouse. Meanwhile, Sitri studied what the little girl just showed him moments ago.
"... That can't be. Ani thinks of me as her brother." Sitri kept his gaze at the retreating form of the girl. Shaking his head, he looked back again at the crystal-clear waters. "Don't expect too much, Sitri."
=≠(The path towards the resthouse, 9:46 pm)≠=
Ani wobbly leaned on a lamp post, her eyes shaking and unfocused from what she's currently thinking.
"My dream's happening... I'm gonna lose master. They're taking him away from me!" She clutched her head, then dropped at the cemented ground. "I-I can't let them. M-Must, prevent that dream." She nodded to herself.
She staggered towards the porch of their cabin, but she shook her head. Standing straight, she looked up, wearing her usual smile.
Hexhine's head turned to the opened door, smiling when she saw her new 'friend'. "Ani-chan, good eve--"
The death-goddess stopped midway when for a split second, she thought she saw the little girl smiling at her murderously. Blinking, she noticed it was just a trick of the light.
Still, it made her heart stop for a moment.
"Hexhine-chan." Ani slowly walked towards her, her head tilted for some reason. "What draws blood more when slashed on a body; a knife, or an axe?"
Hexhine blinked at the random question. "I don't know. But, if I had to guess, I think it's the axe?"
"Mmm. Okay." The girl receded into the stairs behind her, nodding all the while. When she was out of sight, Hexhine heard the girl giggle.
"Ani-chan..." Hexhine's eyes worriedly looked at the bloody footprints at the floor. "What did she do?"
=≠(Tamamo and Celleya's shared room, 10:24)≠=
Since there wasn't enough room for Celleya, the fox-goddess offered her room to the demon. Thalia offered too, but her coffin really isn't for two people.
"Good night, Tamamo-chan." Celleya turned their bed lamp off. The blonde nodded, still continuing on reading a manga despite the lack of lighting. Well, enhanced eyesight and all.
Not long after, she heard the quiet snore of her companion, eliciting the goddess to turn at her. She smiled, then turned back to her book.
There was a sudden knock on their door. "Hello?" That was definitely Ani's voice.
Tamamo carefully got off from the bed, then approached the door. Opening it, she saw an Ani cutely rubbing her eyes off its drowsiness. Her pajamas' even slightly bit for her, making her look more adorable.
"Ani? Do you need something?" Tamamo walked a bit closer to the girl.
"Tamamo-chan, I wanna pee, but I'm scared to go downstairs. It's so dark. And onii-sama's still not here." She hugged the fox.
"Ah, okay then." Tamamo slightly giggled. "Follow me."
As the fox closed the door behind her, she immediately felt the child hold on the sleeve of her green night wear. Slowly walking so that Ani could still follow her, they trudged down the path towards the comfort room down below.
Reaching down the stairs, Tamamo felt her friend tug on her pajamas. "You know some scary stories, right Tamamo-chan?" Ani whispered. "What does the killer usually use as a weapon?"
Tamamo rose an eyebrow at that. "Well, knives are the typical weapons used in horror stories." They're now walking towards the hallway leading to the comfort room. "Why did you ask, Ani?"
"Oh, nothing, nothing!~" Ani approached door, opening it herself with a quiet creak. As she was about to close it, she peeked her head outside one last time. "Tamamo-chan, what happens when one of your tails gets cut off?"
Tamamo instinctively clutched some of her fluffy tails. "I don't know! Mou, Ani. That's a scary thought, you know?"
Ani just giggled, then she slowly closed the door. Suddenly, Tamamo's surrounding became much more darker than before. Every unknown sound she hears makes her flinch, and even her own breathing creeped her slightly.
"Why am I being paranoid? I-If anything appears, I could always just blast it to oblivion!" Tamamo sweated. Suddenly, she heard a quiet murmur inside the CR. If she didn't remember that Ani was there, she would have already freaked out.
"--always wanted to have... ehihihi." She adjusted her sense of hearing, and unsealed it a little bit. "--mamo's ears looks cute too."
"Can't wait to finally k--" Ani abruptly stopped.
"... Tamamo-chan, eavesdropping is rude, you know?"
=≠(Upstairs; 2:57 am)≠=
Thalia bolted awake when she heard a grating sound outside her room. It's as if somebody's carving something on a wood. Curiousity getting the best of her, she peeked outside.
The wooden hallway was dark, but not to the vampire' eyes. She could clearly see her friend, Ani, carving something at the floor with her knife. She was smiling, and her eyes were wide for some reason.
'Ani? Why is she doing that?' Thalia moved her gaze at the markings on the wooden floor.
Happy forever
Nobody takes
Everybody gone
Dead, smiling
The word 'dead' was written all over the place. Ani suddenly giggled uncontrollably.
"Kehihihi-h-hihihih-h-hehahahaha~" her head was even nodding erratically.
Thalia hadn't noticed it, but she was stiff as a rock peeking there. She never saw Ani in the past like this. And it's actually quite unnerving.
Thalia blinked, when somehow, the little girl vanished. 'Where did she go?'
She remembered that the door right in front of her current vision is Ani's. A slight movement on the wooden door made her turn to it. It slowly opened, and for some reason, she can't see the insides of the girl's room. It was pitch black.
Save for a shining blue eye, and a curled up lips, looking back at her. Thalia immediately closed her door.
A shiver ran down Thalia's spine. "Was that... Ani?"