"Papa, what is the problem?!" Maka yelled, finally getting her father's attention. He just shook his head, continuing to walk towards the apartment.
"I knew that I shouldn't have brought you there Maka, you're just a little girl, and a faery on top of that..."
"I'm 17! And there were other fae in there besides me, Papa. Besides, I can take care of myself. I have before you showed up." He finally looked at her, the street lamp cast a shadow onto his angular face.
"No, you don't seem to understand Maka." He grabbed her upper arms. "You are no ordinary fae. You are my daughter, and if they realize what's in your blood, they will try to bring it out in you." His voice spoke with a deadly calm, and a seriousness that left Maka chilled, no matter how much fire ran through her veins. She hesitated before speaking, pulling his hands off of her.
"You're right. I'm not an ordinary fae. But I have fire in my blood and I will not let anyone use me. You have to understand my conviction, papa. I have demonic attributes, yes, but they are dormant." Spirit sighed, and for the first time, Maka could truly see age on her father. It weighed down his shoulders, and kept worry in the lines of his face.
"I was told this long ago, but I never understood it until now..." Maka took a step towards her father, placing a hand on his forearm.
"What is it papa?" She asked softly. He looked at her, and started to speak.
"When the two domains come together,
you will be gifted a daughter of fire.
She will be unlike the rest
split in two, beneath her chest.
One is the queen, the other the maid,
but if one slips, the places they'll trade.
In both their hands, they hold the chalice,
one of mischief, the other of malice." Maka was memorized by the poem.
"...Papa?" he blinked, and truly looked at her.
"That's you, Maka." He held her to him tightly. "It's speaking of your faery and demon blood. Maka you have to be careful to balance them." What he was telling her was starting to sink in, and it only caused Maka to hold him tighter, as she hid her face in his chest.
"Okay Papa..."
When she woke the next morning, it was to the smell of bacon. She stretched languidly, and sat up, ruffling her hair. Sniffing the air, she shook her head in disbelief.
"Papa made breakfast?" She muttered. She pulled her hair up into a messy bun, before stepping out of her room and downstairs. The closer she got to the kitchen, the more she could realize that her father was humming. Now yeah, he was a bubbly guy, overly so most of the time, but her papa didn't associate with music. Her mother did, and it seems that she took after her father in that regard. She was actually surprised to see him so cheerful after everything that had happened last night. Her papa's gift was manipulation, and she had only ever seen it once. It was a dangerous gift, and thinking about it now, she was glad that he hadn't used it last night. She wasn't sure what would've happened, but it wouldn't have been good. Her father was one of the strongest demons out there, and he was assigned as Lord Death's, a man who held the balance between order and madness in his hands, bodyguard and weapon. Maka was snapped out of her musings when she heard her father speak.
"Is it wise to have her start so early?" The blonde was put on edge, when she realized that he wasn't talking to her, but about her. She hesitated outside of the kitchen doorway, straining to pick up who the other person was. She heard the chair creak as the person leaned into it.
"Of course. Would you rather her be forced into it and not know how to control it?" The voice seemed familiar, but every time she tried to grab the thought, it slipped further away. The voice spoke again. "Besides, we can ask her what she thinks...isn't that right, Maka?" The blonde froze, before stepping in the room sheepishly. Her gaze immediately went to the mystery voice, seeing a man with grey hair and glasses. He wore a long white jacket, and was straddling one of the kitchen chairs. He looked Maka over curiously, before he addressed Spirit. "Now is the perfect time to teach her." Maka took a step forward, her voice both wary and demanding.
"And how would you know?" He smiled.
"Intrusion, Maka. My name is Stein. I know who you are, and you remember me." Maka felt immediate repulsion at this man. 'Intrusion? As in he invaded my mind?'
"And soul." he commented. The blonde glared at him, taking a step away. Behind her, she heard her father yell. She turned in time to see the open flames from him making breakfast flare up.
Stein watched in mild interest while Spirit tried, unsuccessfully, to squash the flames. He watched Maka jump in surprise, before she held a hand out towards the fire and closed her fist. The flames were immediately squelched, and Spirit turned to her. Stein also turned to her, but before Spirit could speak, Stein rose.
"That was your Fae blood, correct?" Maka hesitated, before nodding. He hummed, and nodded. He turned to Spirit as he went to leave.
"Bring her. Noon."
When Stein left, Maka turned on her father.
"Just who was that?!" He winced slightly, at her loud voice. He turned away from her, trying to rub the marks from the fire off of the stove.
"He's a family friend."
"He's CRAZY!" She yelled in protest. "What were you guys saying earlier about me?" Spirit glanced over his shoulder at her.
"He believes that you should be training to learn and control your abilities." Maka rolled her eyes and scoffed, hopping up onto the countertop.
"I've learned how to control my abilities since I was 5. What could I possibly need to learn?" Spirit gave her a pointed look, which she faltered at.
"You told me that my demonic powers were dormant. Why would I need to wake them up? Isn't that like poking the bear with the stick?" Spirit laughed at her comparison.
"More like 'know thy enemy.' Now eat up and get dressed. We only have 2 hours."
Maka dressed in the clothing she normally wore when her and her mother would practice her abilities. She had two different sets: her summer and her winter. With it being 70 degrees out, Maka decided to put her hair up into a high bun, and put on her summer, which consisted of a sleeveless but skintight dark grey tank top and black shorts that molded to her like a second skin. She wore black slip-ons to the place, and her clothing was made of a flame-retardant material. The Fire Clan had learned almost immediately, that while Maka may have been fireproof, her clothing was not, so they had had her practice clothes and gloves specially made. It was silent in the car as her father drove them to a private training place that was made for demons...on her part.
"-And it's all fireproof!" He exclaimed. Maka nodded, and looked out the window, watching the houses pass by in a blur. When they stopped and parked, Maka found that it was next door to "The Brew". Just before they stepped inside, Blair literally appeared in a puff of smoke that suspiciously looked like a giant pumpkin. The purple-haired witch smiled and immediately pulled Maka into a hug.
"Ooh Maka! You are so darling!" The girl tried to squirm out of her hold, but was only released when Blair decided. She stumbled back, trying to catch her breath, and Blair turned to Spirit. "What brings you two here?" Spirit pointed to Maka.
"Training with Stein." Blair nodded and winced sympathetically.
"Good luck. I'll be over to watch!" In another flash of orange, she disappeared and Maka was left wondering what exactly just happened. Not really sure how to explain, Spirit just led her inside.
Maka gaped at the size. It was two stories, but instead of a second floor, there was a rock wall, a couple of landing places, climbing ropes, and multiple targets littered in random spots on the walls and ceiling. On the main floor, there were dummies, punching bags, and a whole wall of weapons and gloves. Maka was practically in love, but before she could walk towards anything, Stein barked her name. She turned and glared at him. He had a blue-haired demon standing next to him. He was also dressed in a loose white tank top, and black pants that tied at his calves. He was almost as tall as Stein, who stood at at least 6'1, and had muscle. Maka herself was only 5'8, and while she was toned, she definitely was wary of taking him in a physical fight. When both Spirit and Maka stood 2 feet from Stein and this weird kid, he asked Stein, loudly 'Just who is this flat-chested little girl who dared to challenge the Great Me?' Maka clenched her jaw, trying to calm herself before she did something completely irrational. At least until Stein introduced Maka as a fae, the kid guffawed in her face, spouting nonsense about how Stein should give him a real challenge instead of a little sprite. Before he could even see it coming, Maka's right hand flashed forward catching him in the jaw. He didn't even move, but she did have the satisfaction of watching his head turn to face Stein, who was watching with gleaming eyes. He slowly turned back to face her, his gaze narrowed.
"YOU DARE HIT THE GREAT BLACKSTAR?!" Stein held his hand in front of Blackstar.
"Her name is Maka. She is Spirit's daughter. You'll be training with her today. Anything goes." Blackstar grinned viciously, as Maka toed off her shoes, revealing bandages on the balls of her feet and around her ankles and heels.
"Bring it."
They had 5 minutes to get ready. At this point, everyone was coming to watch, all seated on one side of the gym, and Maka and Blackstar finished whatever they needed before the fight. Maka had pulled on black fingerless gloves, and turned to face Blackstar, who had only taken his shirt off. She had to admit that he was nice to look at from the neck down, but his irritating voice ruined the image. They came to stand in the center of the mat, where Stein was standing.
"The rules are: first to 15 wins. The points are given as seen fair. If you forfeit, the win goes to the opponent, if you cannot get up after two minutes, the win goes to the opponent. Fair?" Both Maka and Blackstar agreed to the rules, and stepped back to their corners. Out of the corner of her eye, Maka saw Blair come in and she couldn't help but smile slightly for the woman she barely knew. Stein yelled, and Blackstar immediately lunged for Maka. She barely deflected him, jackknifing to the right, and lifting her leg to connect with his stomach. He was solid against her shin, and much to her dismay, the kick barely affected him. Instead, he grabbed ahold of her ankle and swung her to the right, towards the crowd. At the switch in momentum, Maka felt her stomach go into her throat as she hit the wall above everyone. She hit the floor harshly, as everyone had moved out of the way. Groaning, she leaned on her hands and knees as she looked up at Blackstar. He was grinning. In the background she could hear Stein say '3 points'
"You sure you wanna play with the dangerous kids, faery?" Her viridian gaze narrowed. 'What is your gift? It's not strength...what could it be?!' The sooner she could figure it out, the sooner she could find his weakness and take him down. She stood slowly, taking in the people around her, before she saw a shock of familiar white hair.
"Soul?" She couldn't help murmuring.
"HEY! You're opponent is me!" She turned back in time to see Blackstar with his fist raised and running towards her. She jumped back against the wall, before using the force to propel herself over Blackstar, her legs tucked neatly under her as she landed in a roll. She turned to face the blue-haired demon in time to see him arcing towards her with his leg. She immediately threw her arms up, crisscrossed, to catch the brunt of the hit, before she swung her foot out, connecting with his knee. He went down with a yell, and Stein called '1 point.' Maka took time to glare at him, before she jumped back from a swipe by Blackstar. He laughed aloud.
"Are you going to keep running little faery?" Maka stared at him in disbelief. He was only toying with her! She crouched down.
"I'll make you take me seriously." She spat. Blackstar halted and smirked. He spread his arms wide.
"Do your worst." With a speed too fast for a normal Faery, she threw herself at Blackstar, knocking him to the ground. His head hit against the mat, and Stein called '2 points' bringing Maka up to tie with Blackstar. Before she could get off of him, he forced her off with his legs, propelling her into the air. Her eyes were wide as she reached out to grab a rope. She hung onto it tightly as Blackstar laughed from his laying position on the floor. Maka thought about spitting on him, but instead swung towards a landing spot. She landed shakily, and heard that Blackstar now had 5 points. She grit her teeth.
"This whole thing is rigged!" Stein laughed.
"Not at all. You just can't play the game well dear." She scoffed.
"She's going to stay dormant!" Now he smirked.
"We'll see." Was all he responded with, in an ominous tone that Maka didn't like one bit. Before she could ask what he meant, a medicine ball was thrown, just missing her head by inches and imbedding itself in the concrete wall.
"WHAT"S YOUR PROBLEM!?" She roared to Blackstar. He held another one in his hand.
"Get down here and fight me, you coward!" Maka expelled a harsh breath, before she ran for the edge, jumping towards the rope she had previously used. In a matter of seconds, she was back on the first floor and dodging the second medicine ball.
"Are you trying to kill me?!" She hissed. Blackstar smiled.
"Maybe." Maka shook her head, but didn't account on the third medicine ball he had behind his back. Before she could completely dodge it, it collided harshly with her temple. She watched herself drop immediately towards the black mats, not moving, but still conscious. She could see her father try to run towards her, but he was held back by Stein. '8 points' Blackstar was walking slowly towards her, and she could see Blair watching her with worried amber eyes. She felt Blackstar kick her over onto her back, and he lifted his hand.
"You haven't seen my gift yet, have you?" Her eyes widened when his right hand crackled with electricity. He grinned at her horrified face. "Yup. Pretty awesome, right? One touch can fry a human. Strong demons will survive, but I wonder how it does on faeries?" In a split second, his hand was gripping her face, and her back arched off of the ground, a scream tearing itself from her throat. The black swallowed her almost immediately.
He could always tell when Blackstar was going to use his gift. The hairs on the back of his neck always stood up, and he could feel his gift stirring within himself. Now Blackstar did take things to the extreme, but when he reached down and grabbed Maka's face, he had gone too far. Her scream was blood-curdling, and horrifying, and her back arched grotesquely off of the mats. Only when she blacked out and stopped yelling, did Blackstar release her face. To his left, he watched her father break down in tears at his daughter's demise. Really, how else could Soul put it? There was no way, demon or otherwise, anyone could've survived that. Everyone stood there in silence as the reality sunk in. The only thing that could be heard was Spirit sobbing. He watched Blackstar stand and face the crowd.
"And that's what happens when you disrespect the Great Me! Does anyone else wish to challenge me?" Even though she was clearly dead, he could hear Stein counting. When he got to '100', the craziest thing Soul had ever witnessed, happened.
"Yeah...I will."
