PLW: I actually am alive! It's summer now, so that means more writing time, and more time for me to distract myself from stories I need to finish… ^.^; Ah, I don't own Soul Eater, only the setting of the city and Solrea.

^.v.^

It was getting close to midnight, but the lights in the city still burned, and people still walked the street. A teenage girl pulled her hoodie over her head farther, her black hair partially obscuring her violet-colored eyes. She had nothing on her, but when she turned into an alley near an abandoned warehouse, three figures followed her.

The girl heard their footsteps and turned. Her eyes widened as she saw them, all women, who then pounced on her. Their nails scraped down her face, their knuckles hit her. The girl lashed out, kicking and yelling before unleashing an ear-splitting scream. The women backed away, hands on their ears.

"Hey, you okay back here?" Voices drifted down. The girl overcame her fright, and dashed off, her converse slapping the pavement. The chain gate jingled as she climbed over it, landing and dashing off to the warehouse portion of the factory.

^.v.^

Shinigami-sama snapped out of his light nap as he heard a beeping coming from the mirror nearby. He wasn't expecting a call this late at night…

He walked over and tapped it. He recognized the line; it was a private one. With urgency, he answered the call.

The girl from earlier now had bandages on her face, and was panting. Two necklaces, both of skulls, dangled from her neck. She was in a dark area.

"Solrea?"

"Ohaio, Shinigami-san. I need help."

^.v.^

"So this is where my father wanted us to go…" Death the Kid shuddered at the state of the warehouse. It was beginning to fall apart, and was covered in graffiti and old posters.

"Yep." Liz checked the piece of paper. Something about this whole errand didn't sit right with her. Shinigami-sama had just up and asked them to take care of something out in a large city, fulfilling an old promise.

Patty, on the other hand, had no misgivings about it, walking right up to the warehouse and sticking her head in the doorway.

Once inside, Death had to cover his mouth. It smelled like paint, paint thinner, and the inside of a spice cabinet. A fire pit, various crates, and an old mattress with some blankets and a pillow were shoved over in one corner, while empty paint cans and spray bottles littered the ground. Paintings of all types covered the walls, ranging from deranged to fantasy. Various plants hung from the low rafters, tied up and drying in the air.

"Yo. Who's there?" A figure moved from the shadows. It was a raven-haired girl with a paint spattered tank top and jeans, bandages on her face, and two skull necklaces hanging from her neck. An open switchblade was in her right hand.

Patty piped up. "Death the Kid and his guns Patty and Liz Thompson!"

The girl cocked her head before closing the switchblade and attaching it to her pocket. "Shinigami-san sent you?"

"He's my father." Death explained. He'd not heard someone call his father 'san' in a while.

The girl's eyes widened at bit. "Shinigami-san has a son? First I'd heard of it."

"Why do you call him 'san'?" Patty asked.

"Failsafe. Works most times. I've lived here in a half English and half Japanese speaking city for a while, so honorifics aren't really my strongest suit." The girl stuck out her hand to Death. "I'm Solrea Marquesia."

Death accepted the proffered handshake. Solrea then turned and began to climb up a ladder to the low rafters. She tossed down a second mattress and a drawstring bag, both dusty and a bit dirty.

"Sorry about the quarters." Solrea said, swinging down from the rafters and landing perfectly. "It's probably not what you're used to," she eyed Death's clothes, "But this is all I've got for extra persons." She threw one of the two blankets onto the extra bed, along with a long winter coat. "It gets cold at night, so use the coat too. I've got my hoodie." Solrea stopped, and looked at Patty and Liz. "Can you guys spend one night in gun form?"

Liz shrugged. "Won't kill us."

Solrea nodded, then looked Death up and down.

"With clothes like that, you're likely to get jumped by muggers. When we head over to the soup kitchen for dinner, we'll get you extra clothes there. That won't be for a little bit, so I could show you around the city."

"That would be fine."

Solrea nodded, and threw on her hoodie, beginning to walk out. Death, Patty, and Liz followed her. Death was just glad to get out of there; the art was making his skin crawl.

This was going to be interesting indeed.