Midnight smiled to himself as he sat on the roof of Fairy Tail's guild. He wanted to fight Team Demon Fury now, and he would strike while that pathetic girl, Mika, was still weak. He wanted to prolong her suffering, but then he would have to deal with the demons Midnight crossed his legs and bowed his head against the noon sun's glare. He had noticed that the demons didn't go to full power while facing him-because of her. If she ceased to exist then... Wait? Why was he focused on her? Mika wasn't the first person to stand up to him, but she was the first to spark so much interest in him. Why? What was so special about her that other females didn't have? The only thing she provided was strong opponents. So what was so special about her? Was it her silver eyes that blazed like a ghostly sun when she got angry, or was it that she seemed so willingly to throw her life away for a good fight? There I go again! Midnight thought bitterly. The girl-he refused to name her now- was just a distraction, a pawn, that could be removed with ease.

As he waited the sun drifted lower and lower in the sky and soon it was evening. What's taking so long? He asked himself. He stretched his legs and peered over the roof to see anyone leaving or coming into the guild. He grinned as he heard, "Mika, stay overnight!"

"No way. It smells terrible in there!" the girl snapped back.

"Only you think that..."

"I said no!" Midnight watched as she tottered forward on weak legs, head held proud and defiant. The cat walked beside her as the wolf allowed her to grab onto his fur. Midnight could see that she had on fresh bandages and for some reason he felt a sense of relief. He watched as she pulled off her boots.

"What are you doing?" the cat asked mildly.

"I hate wearing shoes when I put on new bandages. You know that." she grunted. She held the boots gingerly in one hand before shoving them into a travel bag the wolf had on his back. They walked together, their pace slow because the girl and Midnight found himself annoyed at this as he followed them. Would it not be easier to have someone carry her? He thought, temper rising. Maybe now would be a good time to play with her fears... Decided, Midnight began preparing his magic.

"The moon's out tonight." the cat said, staring up at the sky.

"Yeah. I wanted to rest tonight but the moon's out and resisting the night air is almost impossible," the demon contractor sighed. "At least it'll be peaceful."

"Aye. The moon's soft glow..." the cat replied with longing.

"The pale light that bathes my skin." the girl said with equal longing. She smiled and Midnight was so startled, he stopped his magic. For some reason... when he saw her smile, his heart thudded erratically. He dismissed it as the moonlight- anyone could look nice in the glow of the moon. "Say, Nagan, do you think we'll encounter that Midnight person again?" she asked.

Midnight's insides twisted when she said his name. It was almost like it was the first time he heard anyone say his name. "Maybe. He might be interested in battling us again."

"He never did tell me where he got those earrings from." Mika (Midnight thought her name without meaning to and just gave up) complained. "He could have just answered that before trying to kill me."

"You definitely have your priorities straight." the wolf said sarcastically. "Earrings... what do you want them for? You don't even wear jewelry."

"But I thought they looked cool." Mika mumbled, embarrassed at being scolded. Midnight could see the blush creeping up her neck.

"Mika... when do you plan on communicating with people? I understand that you think talking to us is just fine, but to other people who don't understand the situation, it seems strange that you only spend time with animals-even if they are demons." Nagan changed the topic abruptly.

"When I feel like it!" Mika said defensively. "Who cares about other people's opinions? You two are the only people I need."

"But we aren't substitutes, Mi-chan." Duskar broke in. "We can be your loyal friends but nothing more. Don't you ever wish for someone to hug you and to love you more than we can?" he asked.

"No..." Mika muttered. "What for? So they can hurt me in the end, like my father or my mother? No, loving someone else other than you two is like giving them the power to destroy me."

Midnight was immediately interested. Eh? Power to destroy her? I could use this too. He grinned. So much information and he didn't even have to force it out of people! But then, he would have to find a person that could love her, which was nearly impossible. It didn't matter how pretty she looked, she was weak underneath it all.

"You live in too much fear, Mika." Nagan sighed. She really does.

"Do you think I want to? I just wish I could forget and be a normal person." she said bitterly. Frustrated, she stamped her foot, causing her to wince. "All of my mobility relies on bandages. And I owe you two my life. I hate that. I hate owing someone anything, even if it's you two." they had stopped walking now and Mika clenched her hand into a fist. Midnight never saw it before, but she was always trembling. Always. "I wish I could forget." the group started walking forward again and Midnight wanted to ease her pain in some way.

Stop it! You're here to destroy them, not play some petty games with the girl. Wait... that's it. Mika, you will regret ever meeting me. Midnight grinned devilishly but a small, tiny part of him twinged with guilt. Still, he continued to follow the group until they reached a two story home. Mika opened up the door with no key he could see and walked inside. He tried to go closer to the home but Midnight found that he was forced to a halt and was suddenly turned around. What the hell? He tried again to no avail and went around back before somebody could see him.

"What do you want?" Nagan sighed, leaping down from the tree in the back. The cat's fur glowed and it seemed to enhance his power. "You stalked us home, so what do you want?"

"To fight you again. That should be obvious." Midnight refused to look surprised and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Just me or our entire team?" the cat inquired, sitting down before wrapping his tail around his paws. "I know for sure that Mika would be up to the challenge."

Midnight faltered for a moment at the thought of fighting her again but straightened his back. "I'm not interested in fighting her-"

"Why? Worried you'll lose?" Nagan interrupted. His eyes betrayed his amusement.

"As if!" Midnight sneered. "I doubt she'll be a problem against me. I know her fears after all."

"So you do. You heard it all recently, correct? If you think that her fears might cripple her, then you're wrong." Nagan's eyes sharpened. "In fact she wants to face her fears head on and overcome them. She'll be terrified every step of the way, but she'll do it."

"I don't care." Midnight said flatly. "Why are you even telling me this? You're just going to die along with her."

Nagan laughed a laugh that sounded like a cross between a snarl and a howl. "Do you honestly think so? If you think of us in that way, then you'll never beat us." the cat looked to the house. "Mika lives for her friends so if they did die, then she would most likely die from sorrow. But if her friends can't die, then she'll be happy and she only counts two people as friends, Midnight."

"Everything dies." Midnight protested, shell shocked.

"So you say. There's a boundary around the house so you can't enter it unless she invites you inside." Nagan began to walk back into the house. "But all of her friends are welcome." the cat disappeared into the back door, enveloped in the shadows.

What's up with this whole situation? Midnight stood there, standing out distinctly, deep in thought until he heard the sharp intake of breath. He turned and felt his eyes widen. Dammit.

Mika stood inside the boundary in fresh shorts and a black bikini top, guitar in hand. Around her neck was a black choker. "What are you doing here?" she asked quietly. Midnight tried to think of a response as his mind tumbled in on itself. She was frowning and looked sleepy, because of him. He wanted her to at least smirk at him or have an unnerving smile on her face, anything but a frown. "Oi! I asked I question." she snapped her fingers and annoyance rolled off of her in waves.

"Oh uh... I wanted to challenge you to another fight." Midnight answered lamely. Of all the reasons...

"So you pick now?" Mika sighed, and touched her temple with a finger. "Look, I'm tired now so can we do this later?"

"You're not going to report me?" Midnight asked, surprised.

"If I did we wouldn't be able to fight, but if you cause any trouble I'm taking full responsibility and I will take you down." Mika smiled at the thought and ran her fingers gently over her guitar strings.

"So don't cause trouble."

"Oh? What gives you the right to tell me what to do?" he teased. Wait... what am I saying? What am I doing?

"I don't know you pick a reason." she replied easily. Her guitar turned a low green and disappeared. "Since you woke me up, I guess I'm not sleeping anymore."

"Then what are you going to do instead?" Midnight blinked.

"What I always do. Watch the moon and the stars." Mika smiled fully, pink lips curving perfectly.

"Can... can I watch with you?" Midnight asked, looking away quickly.

"I don't think I want you to. You're a criminal for a reason right?" she replied.

"Yeah..."

"Oh! How did you escape without anyone noticing?" Mika chirped.

"Why should I tell you that?" Midnight growled harshly.

"If you tell me, I'll let you come watch the sky with me." she said, unfazed by his response. Midnight felt his heart beat quicken at the thought of being closer to her. Mika turned away from him, placed one hand on her hip and turned her head back to look at him. "What do you say?"

"I- Yeah sure." Midnight swallowed hard.

"Then come on in!" Mika ran back to the wall of her house and began climbing to the roof of her home. For the first time, he noticed how small she really was. Her attitude made her seem taller, but she was barely five foot four. He watched as Mika stood on a railing and stood on her tiptoes to try to reach a pipe. Grinning, Midnight scrambled after her, going a different way.

"You'll never get to the top like that." he began climbing swiftly, leaving Mika behind.

"We'll see about that! Nagan! Some help here?" she called.

"No cheating!" Midnight chided, nearing the top of the house.

"Fine then." Mika pouted, finally pulling herself up onto the second pipe. From there, it would be easy to get to the roof. Midnight was regretting the route he took; there was only one narrow ledge left before just the wall remained. He had picked a dead end. Mika stood on a fat pipe, her smile never wavering. "I'm so gonna win."

"I won't let you!" Midnight leaped onto the ledge and looked for a way to get to the top. There! If he moved a little to his right, there would be a thin pipe for him to climb up. Mika leaped straight up and her hands grasped the edge of the roof. She pulled herself up on top and her eyes glinted victoriously.

"I win." Mika laughed, as Midnight finally pulled himself up onto the roof.

"Fine, fine." he muttered.

Mika promptly sat down, hugging her knees to her chest. The moonlight bathed her skin in a faint light and Midnight couldn't look away. "So tell me."

"Tell you what?" Midnight asked, startled.

"Tell me about how you escaped without anyone noticing." she prompted.

"Oh that." he sighed, reluctant to give away a dangerous secret. "You know that I'm an illusionist right? Well, I just used some of my magic to put up the appearance that I'm still in the cell. It's all fake but no one can really tell." Midnight babbled. Realizing what he said, he quickly cursed himself and Mika. How dare she make him tell secrets so easily? It wasn't like him to spill out words like that. I hope she dies. He thought then he instantly rejected that thought. His confusion made his stomach churn; he couldn't understand what was happening here.

"That's cool." Mika replied, before staring up at the moon. Her eyes seemed to glow with strength and power. Her eyes looked like reflections of the moon itself and Midnight was entranced. "Midnight, where are you staying?" she asked quietly. "I just want to know. Villains shouldn't be able to find lodging so easily right?"

"I sleep wherever I can." he grunted, not wanting to spill more secrets about his life thus far.

"What do you eat?"

"Why do you care?"

"How do you stay unseen?"

"None of your business." Midnight snarled. He had enough of her probing questions. "Shut up."

"Make me." Mika shot back. So he did. Midnight squeezed her throat using her magic, her collar cut off her air supply.

"That's enough!" the night roared. Duskar slammed down on the roof, his claws sending tiles flying. Several sharp points dug into Midnight's skin. Raven black wings flared and the black feathers swirled around the wolf. The wings seemed to be located between the wolf's shoulder blades, interestingly enough. "You dare harm her when she invited you into her boundary? Angel's Dancing Blades!" the feathers sharpened, looking like daggers, before they flew at Midnight. He held back a yell as the feathers danced around him, cutting his skin and clothes.

"What is this?" Midnight gasped as the feathers swirled to a stop. They didn't fall but were slowly gliding down to land on the roof top. Meanwhile, Mika had freed herself from Midnight's magic.

Her eyes blazed with distrust and betrayal. "Angel's Dancing Blades, Form Two." she growled, holding her torn off collar in her hands. Duskar obliged. The feathers danced once more at a maddeningly fast pace and Midnight couldn't concentrate enough to defend himself. Finally, Midnight released a grunt of agony as the feathers slashed his vest in half, slicing the skin underneath. Mika held up a hand and the feather drifted lazily to the rooftop.

"Coward's Run." the wolf uttered. Terror gripped Midnight's mind and at once he was on his feet. What's happening? He thought wildly as his body mechanically began climbing off the roof. Then his legs were forced into a run; a run that brought him humiliation. Angered, Midnight turned his head back to say something and regretted it immediately; the wolf demon stood with his back to the moon, wings flared out at full length. It looked as though Duskar carried the weight of the moon on his wings, on his shoulders and if he ever once thought about dropping his burden, the world would suffer for it.

Midnight was forced to run on until he reached the edge of Magnolia. His breath came out in ragged gasps and his legs throbbed. He dropped his shredded vest on the ground around his feet. Midnight held his shaking hands up to the moon and his insides churned with loss and sorrow.

What's happening to me?