Pace's POV
Pace was happily humming to himself as he entered the room. Debito was already there with his legs propped up and half-asleep. Pace headed towards his bag and opened it to take out a pouch.
This held their reserve money and he took out a big wad and placed it into his wallet.
"DID YOU EAT AWAY ALL THE MONEY YOU HAD?!" Asked Debito in shock.
"Nope! I did some charity!"
"Huh?"
"A poor kid. Wanted to go home to Kharkiv or something. Looked like she was starving. I fed her and then gave her the rest of my money. She reminded me of Milady. Imagine if she gets lost all alone in a city and has no help."
"Mmmm....." Said Debito drowsily.
The door opened and Luca came in. Setting his bags on the table he turned to the other two.
"You stayed here the whole time?! Why don't you check out the beautiful city?!"
"I went out. And I had a fight too. Fun." Said Debito sitting up straight.
Luca just shook his head disapproving.
"You seem to be in a good mood, Luca!" Said Pace.
"Oh I just realised that maybe us being here for so long might have a purpose! A poor girl got cheated by this man and was left with no way to go home. I helped her out and it really felt good to see her smile. The sort of smile Milady gives me when she enjoys her tea."
"I think that is not a good example....." Said Pace with an awkward smile.
"Wait... you helped a girl too?" Asked Debito suddenly.
"Too... what do you mean...."
"I met a girl on the bus who I helped and Pace helped a girl with some sob story too... What did she look like, Pace?"
"Rags, Short silver hair, medium height..."
Debito looked at Luca and from his expression understood that he too had met the same girl.
"Was her grandma sick in Kiev?" Asked Debito suddenly.
Pace nodded and then after a pause said "Kharkiv"
They looked at Luca who was going pale now "St. Petersburg"
There was silence.
"WE GOT DUPED!!" All three screamed angrily.
"Wait....." Said Pace suddenly "I was in the restaurant for quite a long time. Till 5.00... and the girl was with me for over an hour..."
Debito suddenly shouted "Impossible! I met that girl on the 4.15 bus! She was with me for nearly 15 minutes!!"
"And the shop where I met her was quite far away from where you people went..........How? " Said Luca dazed.
Again a moment of silence.
"Well, only one way to get the answer." Said Debito.
The next day the three of them started their hunt. Even by afternoon they had no lead.
"A thief like that will strike again! We just have to persist!" Said Debito gritting his teeth.
"So speaks experience....." Said Luca with a sigh ignoring his glare.
To think all three of us fell for that....
But Debito was right and they overheard a woman talking of how she helped a little girl. They questioned the woman who told them the exact place where the incident had happened.
The three of them headed to that part of town and continued their search. They were rewarded soon. Pace saw the girl crossing the road and running towards an alley.
"AFTER HER!!" Shouted Debito.
The other two hoped he would restrain his murderous rage. After all she was a kid.
As they crossed the road, they got a glimpse of someone else running into the alley.
Luca sighed satisfactorily.
As we suspected.....
They ran into the alley. They heard somebody running and they immediately gave chase. Soon the girl came into their view. Luck was on their side because they finally chased her into a dead end.
"YOU'LL TRICK US WITH A DYING GRANDMA HUH?!" Shouted Luca.
The other two looked at him in surprise. They did not expect him to make the first move.
The girl took a step back.
"There's no room to run. Give our money back and we will let you go." Said Pace quietly.
The girl seemed to consider this. Then she spoke.
"Get out of my way and I'll not hurt you."
Debito stated laughing.
"Ok silly brat! You have no idea who we are! Or are you counting on your siblings to help you out?!"
The three of them were completely blocking the narrow alleyway now. Even if the rest of her triplets ran out they could easily overpower her. It was all within their expectations.
There was a moment of silence.
"Oh... so that's what you think...."
And then with a smile she said :
"Specchio Stella Luminosa"
Before they could even process what they had heard, there was a flash of light and standing in front of there were 5 identical girls.
"Wait.... you.." Luca's mind worked faster than his mouth. From her words the one that stood out.
Stella.... Star.... La Stella....
But he couldn't say anymore because at that moment the girls chose to attack.
Two of them immediately charged at Luca and threw him to the side. They were much stronger than he had expected. Pace immediately activated his arcana and moved in to catch them but they were fast. Very fast.
The 5 girls kicked and ran all around them. Each one was real. Each one bad-mouthed them as they tried to break free.
Suddenly Debito was tripped over by a girl who began to kick him.
"Dirty huh?! Heard of a bath huh?! Damn you! Who do you think you are bastard?!"
Debito was spurred on by her sudden colorful language.
"Tra Coppo Scomparire"
Debito turned invisible.
The girl hesitated for a second. Then sending a kick into empty air she ran.
"That's the one. After her." Pace heard Debito's voice.
The other 4 girls tried to stop them but they managed to push past and continued the chase.
The girl twisted and weaved through the narrow alleys but Pace and Luca stuck close to her. The panicked girl finally turned into an empty street.
Then she ran straight into Debito who materialised in front of her. Before she could run off again he grabbed her and held her tightly. The other two joined him and helped to restrain her. Luca started explaining even as they did all this.
"You have an arcana. So do we. We want you to join our family. Papa is the host of The World and needs your help. It is to maintain the balance of all our arcana."
Pace continued "You will be safe there and get to use your powers to help people. You do not have to hide them anymore. You will not be alone there."
"Lemme go! Lemme go!" The girl ignored all this and continued screaming.
Finally Debito took over.
"Look here brat! If you come with us, you get a home, free food and clothes and you don't need to steal like a little tramp anymore, Ok!!"
The girl finally stopped struggling and looked at him. Debito continued.
"The arcana are meant to be used for good. Not to cheat people. But I won't judge you. The family saved me from taking such a path and now I'm giving you that choice too! Food, a home, a job, money and plenty of action! That's all we have to offer! What do you say now?!"
There was a moment of silence. Then with a flash the girl Debito was holding disappeared.
"Sound interesting."
The three of them turned to see the girl standing quietly behind them.
"Brat." Said Debito grinning.
The girl's mouth was slightly twitching too now but she controlled herself and replied in a firm voice.
"I'm Elina. Tell me who you people are first. What you said sounds good to me. I'm in."