Authors Note: Hey everyone. Glad you liked the last chapter. I know of lot of you are itching for more KH stuff, so this chapter is going to have a little bit. You must realize that Roxas has only been on this world for a few days, so please be patient while I build the world, introduce the characters, and get the story rolling. Here is another chapter for ya'll.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Blank slate
Chapter 7
Day 14
"So, has there been any information regarding Roxas?" Xemnas asked in his usual slow methodical voice.
The other members of the organization were sitting at their usual seats in the meeting room.
"Unfortunately, not. Since his disappearance six days ago, we haven't managed to find anything regarding his location." Saix said as he shot a glare in Axel's direction.
"Hmmm" Xemnas hummed in thought. "This poses a problem to our plans. Without the wielder of the Keyblade, our cause is all but lost."
"If someone hadn't been so careless with our asset, we wouldn't be in this situation." Xaldin said, a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"Yeah, Yeah." Axel responded, waving his hand through the air carelessly. "We go through this every time. I lost the Keyblade master, our plan is boned because of me, blah blah blah. Give it a rest will ya?"
"It seems you don't understand the severity of your carelessness Axel." Xemnas said, casting his yellow eyes over in the fire Nobody's direction.
"Without him, the puppet won't be able to copy his abilities. Without him, we lose the chance to have the Keyblade under our complete control." Vexen said.
"Indeed." Xemnas responded.
"look! How was I supposed to know he would be that clueless? What do you want me to do about it?"
"There is nothing you can do about it. You truly have the worst luck." Luxord commented as he flipped a card through the air.
"You will accept your punishment Axel." Xemnas said, catching the red-haired nobody's attention. "We cannot afford to lose the puppet because it's our last hope to gain complete control over the Keyblade. Your punishment is to take the Xion to castle oblivion and relive Marluxia from his post. You will watch over the castle with Xion while the rest of us search for Roxas."
"Oi Oi! What about that morons plan to try to overthrow the organization? That's the whole reason you sent him to Castle oblivion, right?" Demyx said.
"Of course, but while he is foolish, he is also very powerful. If I can…convince him to give up his ploy, he will continue to be a valuable addition to organization 13's goal."
"I'm not on board with this. Marluxia is a loose cannon. He will strike the instant you have your back turned." Saix said.
Xemnas turned to him with his eyebrow raised. "And you assume he is a match for me?"
"No, of course not. But as you said, he is powerful and will only gain in power the longer he lives."
"I will be the one to worry about that."
"Hang on! You're sending me to that boring ass castle with the mute little puppet? Hello no!" Axel said as he slammed his hands on the arm rest.
"Be silent Axel and be grateful you got off easy. You are also a valuable member of organization 13 which is the only reason we didn't turn you into a dusk." Xemnas said coldly.
Axel slumped back into his seat again grudgingly. "When do I have to go?"
"Immediately. Tell Marluxia that I have an urgent mission for him and he needs to return at once."
"Man, this blows. That castle is so freakin boring."
"Enough of your wining. Franky, I would have thrown you straight into the twilight with the rest of the useless nobodies." Saix growled.
"Humph!" Axel huffed as he turned away from them, obviously annoyed at the new situation.
The insane battle between Ansem and Sora just finished. The World of Chaos exploded in a fiery fury, leaving Ansem floating there in the realm of darkness. Sora, Donald, and goofy had just fought for their lives trying to defeat this incredibly powerful enemy. And once again, they managed to defy all odds.
"It is futile. The Keyblade alone cannot seal the door to darkness." Ansem said as he turned to the enormous door in the distance, stretching forth his hand. "Kingdom Hearts! Fill me with the power of darkness!"
The door slowly began to open allowing a flood of darkness to spill out like a title wave.
"Supreme Darkness!"
"You're wrong!" Sora said from behind Ansem. "I know now, without a doubt! Kingdom hearts…
IS LIGHT!"
Light erupted from the doorway, completely engulfing Ansem in its rays. He cringed at its touch, as if he couldn't bare the light as it grazed his skin.
"What…Light? But why?"
Soon, the light overtook Ansem as he burst into particles of light.
"Where's Kairi! I thought she was with you!" Sora asked frantically.
Riku stood there with his back to his best friend. "The door…has opened."
"What?"
"The door is open Sora! Now we can go to the outside world."
"What are you talking about? We gotta find Kairi!"
"Kairi's coming with us." Riku retorted quickly. "Once we step through, we might not be able to come back. We may never see our parent again. There's no turning back." He said somberly before his face steeled over in determination. "But this may be our only chance. We can't let fear stop us! I'm not afraid of the darkness!"
Riku then looked at his best friend before stretching forth his hand.
"Riku." Sora said before he noticed Riku was fearlessly standing on a platform of darkness. It didn't even faze him. He just wordlessly stood there with his hand outreached to Sora. The darkness began to crawl up his body like rapidly growing vines.
Sora rushed forward before he too was caught in the darkness. He extended his hand out to Riku, but couldn't reach before the darkness overtook them both.
It was pitch black, darker than the darkest night. Sora felt as if his entire being was consumed the never-ending blackness.
Suddenly, a light appeared out of nowhere. It overcame the darkness before Sora found himself standing there alone. Riku was gone, but there was something grasped in Sora's hand.
A Giant key.
"Keyblade." A voice whispered to him. "Keyblade."
Roxas's slowly opened his eyes as the dream came to an end. Again, he had been having non-stop dreams about the boy named Sora for the past few nights now. And every time, it was a jumbled mess of confusion. The dreams seemed to seemed to jump back and forth, but it was difficult to tell when each event took place.
Glancing over at the clock on his nightstand, Roxas noticed it was about three in the morning. It was early, but he was wide awake now. There was no way he was going to get back to sleep after that experience.
"Keyblade." Roxas said as he stretched forth his hand, allowing the kingdom key to shimmer into existence. "The door to light…Kingdom hearts."
He remembered Xemnas saying something about Kingdom hearts and how it was supposed to help the nobodies. But again, he didn't see how? How was Kingdom hearts supposed to help them?
Giving a sigh, Roxas allowed the Keyblade to vanish. He glanced down at the kiddy pool near his bed to see Suu laying there. She was not much more than a puddle because it didn't look like she could keep her form while she slept. Her raincoat simply floated there in the pool of slime.
Seeing that he wasn't going to get back to sleep, Roxas decided he wanted to take a walk and ponder his newest dream. As quietly as he could, he stepped over the kiddy pool and grabbed his organization coat out of his closet. He massaged the fabric between his fingers as let his mind wonder back to organization 13. It had been about 5 days since he arrived in this world and no one from the organization had shown up to get him yet.
But then again, he was ok with that. This world was far more interesting than doing some missions for the Organization. Even if they wanted him to come back, Roxas wasn't sure he would. There were to many things he wanted to experience here, so many friends he didn't want to leave, and to many questions he didn't want unanswered. There was no way he could leave now.
Roxas threw the coat over his body before walking out of the room. He really had a lot to think about with this new dream.
It was pitch black outside. Not a soul could be seen or heard as Roxas wandered through the streets of the city. The cool night air was a pleasant touch, gently caressing his skin as he let his mind ponder the sequence of dreams he'd been experiencing night after night.
The curious boy named Sora and his ability to wield the Keyblade much like how Roxas could, that was on the forefront of his mind. As far as he knew, Roxas was the only one who could use the Keyblade, so how was this Sora able to do so as well?
"Who are you…Sora?" Roxas asked out loud. He knew that these dreams were not just dreams anymore. They were much to vivid and much to realistic. And besides, what are the chances he would have continuous dreams like this. And, what did they have to do with him? Why was he dreaming about these things?
There were way too many questions to ask as the Nobody walked down the street.
Deciding to push those questions aside, Roxas was also curious about a couple other things. When he watched the battle of Sora and his party against Ansem and the world of chaos, Sora displayed some serious skill in magical ability. Since both he and Sora could use the Keyblade, who's to say that Roxas wouldn't be able to use magic as well? He was no stranger to magic because a majority of the organization members could use it, but Roxas himself had never tried before.
Looking around, Roxas knew that testing his theory here would probably not be a good idea. It was much to enclosed because of the buildings. Testing out magic here would only cause destruction and panic. He needed to go somewhere else before he could test his idea.
As he continued to wonder around the city, Roxas remembered that Kimihito mentioned a forest just off the outskirts of the city. From what he knew, not many people went there because of the major pollution problem. But for him, that would probably be the best place to practice not only magic, but also with the Keyblade as well. He had been slacking the past few days in order to adapt to this new world, but now that everything was settled, it was time to train again.
Surprisingly, the forest wasn't that far away from the city. He could make it in decent time if he sprinted all the way up the mountains. But it wasn't long before he found himself surrounded by tall trees…and mountains of garbage that carless people seemed to throw into this forest.
But now that he found himself alone, Roxas raised his hand and allowed the kingdom key to appear. He stared at the weapon that was identical to Sora's. How was it that he and Sora could both use the Keyblade? This couldn't be a coincidence.
Then again, he had to wonder though. How did Sora cast spells? Surly it was more than just pointing at something and saying a word, right? What power did Sora draw from when he cast spells? In fact, with other members of the organization, what power did they draw from? Like Axels fire, or Vixen's ice? What did they use?
Thinking back to when Axel was teaching him about the corridor of darkness, Roxas remembered him saying that Nobodies could manipulate the corridors by controlling the darkness. Then was magic the same way? Was it drawn in a similar way as the darkness?
Deciding to test his thoughts, Roxas slowly closed his eyes and tried to feel for an energy that might be within him. If other members of the organization could manipulate magic, and if Sora could as well, then what was stopping him?
The cool breeze gently licked his hair as he continued to stand there, searching for any hit of energy that wasn't darkness.
Suddenly, he felt a tiny flicker of something with himself. He instantly focused on that flicker and tried to bring it forward. It was a slow process, like trying to coax out a scared cat out from behind a dumpster. However, with a little more pulling, tiny flicker turned into a roaring fire as magical energy began to spread through his entire body. He opened his eyes, expecting to find himself caught on fire based on the way he was feeling, but nothing seemed different.
However, he had to test it. He had to know if what he was doing wasn't just a waste of time. He needed to see if this was the same kind of magic that Sora used.
Roxas looked around for a target to test the first spell he remembered Sora using. He didn't want to damage the forest itself, but there was a ton of junk that was volunteering to be his target. Finding his vision landing on a pile of scrap wood, Roxas pointed his Keyblade at it.
"Fire."
Instantly, a small fireball erupted from the tip of his Keyblade, sailing through the air before slamming into the pile of scrap. The pile instantly exploded, sending burning wood flying in all directions. The kick from the spell nearly caused Roxas's Keyblade to fly out of his grasp, forcing him to grab ahold with both hands.
He paused for a moment as he looked around as the burning bits of wood. The power of that single spell already caused the wood to smolder down into a pile of ash. Luckily, it didn't damage the trees or other parts of the forest.
"Wow," Roxas murmured to himself as he focused on the magic coursing through his being. As expected, there was a bit less than before, but still more than enough to practice with.
Pointing at another pile of trash, Roxas tried another spell he saw Sora perform. "Blizzard!"
I glowing blue ice projectile shot from the Keyblade before smashing into the pile of junk. Upon contact, the entire pile Instantly froze into a block of ice.
Again, Roxas felt a small drain on his magic when he performed the spell, but he still had plenty left he wanted to try. So, now feeling a bit excited, Roxas lifted his Keyblade into the air.
"Thunder."
BOOM
A blast of thunder fell from the sky, impacting the block of ice containing the garbage. The entire block completely exploded, the shockwave sending Roxas flying off his feet before slamming him onto the ground. He felt a major portion of his magic wither away after that.
"…Ouch." Roxas murmured as he sat up. He looked at the damage to only see a black scorch mark in place of the ice. The lightning completely obliterated it. That spell was powerful, so powerful that Roxas could feel a major dent in his magic.
"W-What are you."
Roxas instantly jumped to his feet before whipping around, facing whoever said that. He was standing in his usual Keyblade stance. "Who's there!" He growled as he glared into the trees
"Don't a-attack me." An exhausted voice said from behind a large tree.
Roxas cocked and eyebrow as he slowly got out of his stance. The voice sounded very quiet and kinda…raspy. He approached the tree before walking around it. Seeing what was on the other side made his eyes widen a bit.
It was a female Liminal sitting on the ground with her back against the tree. However, this was probably one of the most unique Liminal he had seen yet. She looked half human, half tree. She looked young, maybe about is age. Her legs and arms had a layer of dark green bark on them, and her hair was made of what looked to be tree leaves…and she was completely naked. She also had light blue eyes that were staring at him with slight fear.
"…what are you?" Roxas asked curiously with his head cocked.
"…I asked you first." The creature responded. It sounded as if she were exerting great effort to talk.
"I'm Roxas." Roxas said as he crouched down in front of the strange Liminal.
"I didn't…ask your name. I asked what you…are." The Liminal said with slight annoyance.
Roxas frowned a bit. "None of your business."
"I-It is when your…harming my forest." The Liminal shot back while trying to look angry. However, it was more like a mild glare because of how tired she looked.
"Your forest?"
"Yes! I am Kii, the Dryad. I watch over the forest…and protect it from ha-harm." She forced out.
"Kii…" Roxas said, letting the name roll off his tongue. He noticed she was trying to stand, but was having a very hard time doing so. "Are you ok?"
"…Do I look ok?" Kii asked with a growl. "Humans make a regular habit of dumping their garbage in the…forest. I recently ran into something really…toxic and it's affecting me badly."
"…So, you're sick?"
"That's…one way to p-put it. I don't know what they threw into my forest this time, but it's been wearing me down the past couple days."
Roxas frowned when he saw her try to stand again, only to fall back down to the ground. She seemed to weak and very tired. Focusing on his magic again, Roxas tried to determine how much he had left before he was out. He still had quite a bit left after the thunder spell, but he knew the last one he wanted to try would probably exert the remainder of his reserve. However, this one was particularly interesting because Sora used it many times when Ansem was on the verge of beating him.
"Hold still." Roxas said, pointing his Keyblade at the dryad.
Kii looked up to see the tip of the weapon. She felt a little spike of fear in her chest. "What are you d-doing?"
"Cure." Roxas said, feeling the rest of his magic store deplete.
Instantly, a bright green light encompassed the Dryad. Her eyes widened in panic as she attempted to scramble away from Roxas, however it was more like a crawl than anything. She made it a couple feet before the green light faded away. When she noticed this, she paused and clenched her hands a few times, trying to see if there was something wrong.
"What did you do to me?" She demanded.
"…do you feel better?" Roxas asked, feeling a little tired after using magic for the first time.
Kii blinked as she slowly sat up. She then pushed herself to her feet effortlessly before surveying her body for any sighs of the illness.
"What happened?" She asked in confusion. "What was that?"
"…A cure spell…I think." Roxas responded simply, letting the Keyblade vanish. "I was practicing my other spells before you came along."
"…Spells? I've never seen someone who can use them. What kind of Liminal are you?" She asked with a suspicious glare. "You look completely human."
"I didn't even know I could use spells. As for what Liminal I am…who knows."
Again, Kii frowned at the nobody. "Why did you help me?" she asked as she took a couple steps toward him, looking him up and down.
Roxas paused, looking over the plant-like Liminal. She was standing in front of him with her bark-covered arms folded. "Because I wanted to see if I could perform the spell correctly."
"You're using my forest to train? Why?"
"You're asking a lot of questions." Roxas said with a bit of irritation. "I just wanted to confirm something. As for training…it's a habit I guess."
"hmm." Kii hummed as she thought back on his spells. He completely obliterated a massive pile of trash in a single instant. And his cure spell was extremely useful, especially if she got polluted again. "This is my forest. If you wish to use it for a place to train, you have to do something for me."
Roxas cocked an eyebrow in her direction. "What do you want?"
"I want you to help me clean up my forest. Your spells will be useful. In return, I will help you train to become stronger." She said.
"…How are you supposed to help me?" Roxas asked, genuinely curious. This Liminal didn't look like it could do anything to help…
Suddenly, Roxas heard a whishing sound coming from his left. He instantly leaped to the side right before a massive branch slammed into the ground where he was standing. He looked up at the dryad in horror.
"I can control the forest." Kii said, vines wiping around her violently. A large tree stump judged from the ground beneath her, lifting her into the air. "Being surrounded my nature, no one can stand against the power of a Dryad."
She thrust her hand forward, causing a branch to spring forth from a nearby tree, attempting to impale Roxas. He ducked and rolled to the side, summoning the Keyblade to his hand again. He was forced to jump into the air to avoid two vines and they wiped under his feet.
Drawing back the Keyblade, Roxas threw it. "Strike Raid!"
The Keyblade whizzed through he airs at Kii, but a wall of wood sprang up in front of her, deflected the weapon before another sharp branch shot at Roxas. He barely avoided it as he cartwheeled through the air and landed on his feet, the Keyblade appearing in his hand again. He was already breathing hard. However, that caused him to smile a little.
"…You proved your point."
Kii lowered herself to the ground again before she was eye level with him. The look on her face was slightly smug. "Do we have an accord?"
"Yeah…We do."
It was a few hours later that Roxas was finally walking home. Kii had dragged him around the forest, showing him some of the more horrendous dumping sites. She told him he would need to help her dispose of it as well as cleanse her when she became too polluted. However, he had to explain that the number of spells he could use was limited. So, they came to a compromise of Roxas doing what he could with his magic, and then Kii would help him do physical training.
If Roxas were being honest, Kii looked like she was enjoying herself too much when she trained with him. Most of her attacks would kill a normal human, but since he was a bit more resistant, he would survive. Still, that didn't stop her from pummeling him a few times. Being surrounded by a forest put him at a serious disadvantage.
It was about nine in the morning now. Luckily it was the weekend, so there wasn't any school. Yukiko was kind enough to let him know that there weren't going to be any classes on Saturday and Sunday. He had mixed feeling about having those days off because he was enjoying school so far. He enjoyed the things he learned and he enjoyed hanging out with Yukiko.
She was always so happy to see him, especially when he brought her a freshly made lunch from Kimihito. The first time he delivered it to her, she literally tackled him to the ground and almost broke his back with her inhuman Yeti strength.
After school, Yukiko would always come over and they would do homework together. Kimihito always welcomed her and insisted she stay for dinner every time. Having been reimbursed by the government, he had absolutely no qualms with feeding all the Liminal in his house.
Centorea and Papi had taken to her as well. Centorea was very impressed with how polite and considerate Yukiko was, while Papi was just happy to have another playmate.
However, today was different. There was no school, and Roxas had the entire day to himself now. Honestly, he never had that much time before because he was always training with the organization. Now he had a full day to do whatever he wanted, and he didn't know what to do with it.
Giving a tired sigh, he opened the door to Kimihito's house and walked through. Surprisingly, everyone was awake at this point. Kimihito was happily making breakfast as usual, Centorea was polishing her sword, Miia was staring at Kimihito lovingly like she usually would, and Papi and Suu were playing video games in the front room.
Upon entering the kitchen, Kimihito looked over his shoulder at him. "Oh, you're back. Didn't hear you leave this morning."
"I woke up early and couldn't get back to sleep, so I took a walk," Roxas said.
"You were gone pretty early…and why are you so dirty?" Centorea asked, resting her sword on the table.
Roxas looked down at his coat, noticing that it was filthy from the long morning. All the times Kii slapped him around and pummeled him into the ground was definitely showing on his cloths. "I was training."
"Training?"
"…yeah."
"Training for what?" Centorea asked, clearly curious.
"…I don't know…I just feel like I need to." He said, though that was half true. He trained because it was more of a habit than anything.
Centorea nodded. "I can understand that. I also practice with my sword even though it's not necessary in this day and age."
A pair of blue arms circled around his neck from behind, causing Roxas to look over his shoulder. Suu's smiling face was grinning back at him.
"You w-were gone."
Roxas reached over his shoulder, patting the slime on the head. "Yeah, I had some things I needed to think about."
"Suu w-was w-worr-worried."
"…ok." Roxas said, not sure how he should respond to that. He didn't know just leaving would make anyone worry about him. This world was far from what he considered dangerous.
"Well, Breakfast is almost ready Roxas." Kimihito said as he turned to the nobody. "So why don't you go and take a bath and get ready for today."
Roxas raised an eyebrow. "Is something going on?"
"We are going out to have some fun." Kimihito said with a smile.
Breakfast was a bit more vocal today because everyone was excited. Today was Saturday and Kimihito agreed that he would take them all out to explore the city. Of course, Miia, Centorea, and Papi were up to their usual bickering about who would secure Kimihito's attention, but that was nothing new.
While they fought in the background, Kimihito turned to Roxas. "So, is there any place in particular you want to see?"
"…Not really." Roxas said, causing Kimihito to laugh awkwardly.
"I guess I should have expected that answer. We need to find you a hobby."
"I like writing." Roxas said as he looked over at the older man. "I've been writing down my dreams every night."
"Anything familiar yet?"
"…Well…most of it seems familiar somehow, but nothing really stand out." Roxas said back, taking a bit of egg.
"Well…That's a shame. Hopefully you'll remember something soon." Kimihito commented, causing Roxas to nod. "So, what's Yukiko doing today?"
Roxas chewed his food before he shrugged. "Don't know. She mentioned that she's left at home a lot because her host is busy. So, I think she is still at her house."
Kimihito had a small grin on his face as an idea popped into his head. Roxas may not know what he wanted to do, but Yukiko would probably have some suggestions. "Why don't you invite her to come with us?"
Roxas looked over him. "…Is that alright?"
"Of course, it is. She's practically family now, and I think the others would be happy to have her along," he said as he turned his attention to the bickering girls. "Right?"
"You say something Darling?" Miia asked, breaking the argument between the three Liminal.
"Exactly, they won't mind at all," Kimihito said with a smile.
"…Ok,"
Suu was happily walking next to Roxas as they made their way to Yukiko's place. Kimihito decided to meet up with Roxas later because the girls were literally dragging him from place to place. There were so many things they wanted to see that he didn't have it in his heart to make them wait. So, he gave Roxas a bit of Yen, gave him a time and place to meet up, and sent him on his way. Suu decided to tag along with Roxas because she had yet to see any place outside of the house.
Speaking of her, Suu was getting a lot of attention, especially on the train ride. She sat right next to Roxas, humming a tune with a smile on her face. Everyone was looking at her very curiously. Though Roxas couldn't blame them because this was probably the first time any of them had seen a slime before. That, and the fact she was only dressed in a rain coat could have been another factor.
As they exited the train, she was gently holding his hand with one of her feelers while skipping beside him. Luckily though, the culture exchange bills didn't really apply to her because she was a slime, so officers didn't stop them every chance they got.
Eventually, they made it to Yukiko's apartment complex. Suu hummed curiously as he looked at the group of rundown buildings before he looked up at Roxas.
"This is where Yukiko lives." Roxas said to the slime.
"Yukiko?"
Roxas nodded, impressed that Suu didn't stutter once. Her speech had been improving so much after such a small amount of time. Every time Roxas and Yukiko would to homework, Suu always included herself. She always watched them and even found out how to ask question. It was amazing to witness her ability to learn.
Roxas approached Yukiko's apartment door before knocking.
There was a bit of a pause before footsteps could be heard from the other side of the door. Soon, the door swung open, revealing a familiar figure of Yukiko. Her face was courted in confusion for a brief second before a smile spread across her lips.
Roxas took a moment to realize what she was wearing…or rather, what she wasn't. She was dressed in a white fur bikini with a blue scarf. It was probably the oddest and most revealing clothing he had ever seen.
He felt his heart beat a little faster, causing a tiny rush of blood to his cheeks. This new feeling completely caught him off guard.
"Roxas?" Yukiko asked in confusion before glancing down at the slime. "And Suu? What are you guys doing here?"
Her question shook him from his stupor as he cleared his throat.
"Kimihito is taking everyone out to have some fun. We were wondering if you wanted to come too."
Yukiko's eyes widened as a massive smile crossed her face "Are-are you KIDDING ME? Of COURSE, I do!" She exclaimed. "Just wait out here, I'm gonna get changed really quick."
Roxas nodded before Yukiko slammed the door in their faces. By the sound of her scrambling footsteps through the apartment, he could tell she was extremely excited. However, his mind went back to that tiny new feeling he felt when he saw Yukiko. It was completely new and very unfamiliar. However, along with Yukiko, the feeling was gone now.
"Weird." Roxas said, causing Suu to look up at him, her feeling forming a question mark.
It didn't take long before they could hear Yukiko's footsteps approaching the door. When she emerged again, she was wearing a light grey sweater with the sleeves pulled up to her elbow, just before the fur started on her arms. She also had on the same blue scarf with the snowflake pattern and a pair of black workout shorts that halted about mid-thigh, showing off the rest of her tanned legs before the white fir appeared. All in all, she looked cute.
Yukiko rushed out the door and locked it behind her. The then turned to Roxas and Suu before glomping them both. "Sorry for the wait. My family's traditional cloths aren't really accepted here as casual clothing."
"…You mean what you were wearing earlier?"
"Yep!" She said before tugging on his arm. "C'mon! Let's go!"
Roxas, Yukiko, and Suu found themselves in the mall again, exploring the different shops that allowed Liminal. Roxas told Yukiko that he and Kimihito had a meetup time around 1:00 PM in the middle of the mall, and considering it was only 11:30, they had over an hour to kill. So, they spent the time visiting different places Yukiko wanted to see, but never had the chance until now.
"That one next." She said, pointing to another fashion store. There was a sign that said "All Liminal welcome" on the side, so they knew it was ok to go in. Once inside, Yukiko's eyes sparkled at the different assortment of cloths. She steered clear of pants and long sleeved shirts though, for obvious reasons. But the skirts, shorts, and short-sleeve shirts were on her radar.
"How does this look?" Yukiko asked as she held up the shirt in front of her.
"…Fine." Roxas said, but it was kind of obvious he didn't really care.
"Muu! Roxas, c'mon! Throw me a bone here." She said before she turned to Suu. "What about you? What do you think?"
"Suu?"
Yukiko gave a small sigh as she put the shirt back. "You two are no help at all. Don't you care at all for fashion?
"Not really." Roxas responded.
"Then how did you know what to buy?" She asked. "Your cloths seem pretty stylish."
"Miia."
Yukiko laughed a bit. "Yeah, that makes sense."
"How many times do I have to tell you! My host left me here."
"And you could just be saying that. I have no choice but to report you."
"You moron! Who do you think tipped you off? My host is trying to get me deported here."
"And what evidence do you have to support that claim?"
Roxas and Yukiko looked just outside the store to see a police officer standing in front of a Liminal. The Liminal had black skin and equally black hair.
"Hey, isn't that Pyra?" Yukiko asked.
"yeah, it is."
"I wonder what's going on?"
"For the last time, how am I supposed to get evidence. He ran off like a complete asshole?" Pyra growled, folding her arms under her chest.
"Again, that's quite an accusation." The officer replied calmly.
"Oh…" Roxas said as realization hit him. He remembered Pyra talking about how her host was trying to get her deported. Was this another attempt?
An idea formed in his mind as he started walking towards them, catching Yukiko's attention.
"Hey, where are you going?"
Roxas didn't answer as he approached the two. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet.
Pyra was not having a good day. It was Saturday again and she was forced to ask the fatso to take her shopping for more school supplies. She was a bit surprised he agreed so quickly, but after finding herself in this situation, she now understood why it was so easy.
She had to admit though, this was a new low for the overgrown perv. She seriously didn't know what she was supposed to do in this situation. She had no proof, and she knew the bastard wouldn't answer his phone. There was nothing she could do.
"She's with us."
Instantly, Pyra and the officer's head turned to the new person standing there. He was holding out one of the host badges they gave to human students at her school. Looking up, she instantly recognized who he was.
"Roxas?" She asked, mildly confused.
The officer looked at the kid before his eyes narrowed. "Are you her host?"
"…Will this suffice? I'm one of her classmates." Roxas responded, ignoring the officers question.
The officer looked at the badge and it was indeed authentic. "She said her host left her here. She wasn't with you originally, so that means she was wondering around on her own."
"…And where's the evidence?" Roxas calmly replied.
The officer felt his eyes narrowing a bit. It was true he didn't have any way to prove his claim beside his word alone. And he knew that wasn't enough. So there was nothing he could do about it because this kid had a host badge. It was a well-known rule that he could host other Liminal species that attended his school with it.
"Well played kid." The officer growled before he turned to Pyra. "You got off lucky. Make sure you don't spread any more lies about your host. They sacrifice a lot to take care of you."
"Fuck off." Pyra growled at the man.
The officer huffed as he walked away, leaving Roxas, Pyra, Yukiko, and Suu standing there in an awkward silence. Roxas wordlessly slipped the badge back into his wallet as he turned to the Hellhound.
"Another attempt?"
Pyra felt her eye twitching. "I had it under control."
"…Sure, you did."
Pyra rounded on his, fixing him with a glare. "What game are you playing Roxas? Why did you help me?"
"Because I could." Roxas said simply as he turned to Yukiko and Suu, who were looking on in complete confusion. "Where are we going next?"
"Hey, I'm not done talking to you!" Pyra seethed. "People don't just help others because they can. That's not the way the world works."
"Why not?"
"Because people always want something in return. So, what do you want?" Pyra asked.
Roxas gave a sigh as he turned to her, looking her dead in the eye. "I want nothing from you, so quit complaining." He said with a bit of irritation in his voice.
Pyra was also irritated. She really didn't get this boy at all. His actions were strange, but his reasoning was so simple. It didn't make any sense, and that irritated her because she was usually good at reading people.
"Roxas, what's going on? How do you know Pyra?" Yukiko asked, glancing between Roxas and the Hellhound a few times.
Pyra glanced over at the Yeti. This was the first time she noticed her standing there. But not only that, she also noticed Suu standing next to Roxas as well. She was peering up at her with a curious gaze.
"What in God's name is that?" Pyra asked, pointing to the slime.
"That's Suu." Roxas responded, patting the slime girl on the head.
"Is that supposed to be a slime? I've never seen one before." Pyra inquired, forgetting about her irritation for a moment.
"Apparently, they're rare."
Pyra watched at the slime wrapped her main feeler around his arm, a gentle smile on her face. It was kinda amazing to see honestly. She had never seen anything like it before.
"Roxas! You didn't answer my question." Yukiko said, her face puffing out in an adorable way.
"Oh, right. I met Pyra on my first day. She gave me directions to the headmaster's office."
Pyra waited for Roxas to tell Yukiko how much of a bitch she was to him, but he didn't say anything else.
"Is that it?" Yukiko asked suspiciously.
Not liking the fact that she was being ignored, Pyra spoke up. "No, he decided to be a white knight and walk me home after my host forgot to pick me up." Pyra said, an extremely condescending tone in her voice.
"He did? Why?" Yukiko asked.
"Because my host is a jackass." Pyra hissed. "Speaking of which, just take me home. I've had enough human exposure for one day."
Roxas flipped open his phone and looked at the time. I was about an hour before he was supposed to meet up with Kimihito and the others for lunch. There was no way he was going to walk Pyra home and make it back in that time.
"No."
Pyra narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean no?"
"No." Roxas said as he put his phone back. "We're meeting Kimihito in an hour and we're not done looking around."
"Then what am I supposed to do? If you haven't noticed, I can't go home on my own!" Pyra growled.
"Not my problem. You can stick with us and I can take you home after we meet up with Kimihito."
"So what, I'm your prisoner now?" Pyra said angrily.
"…Your words, not mine." Roxas said as he turned back to Yukiko. "Where to next?"
"Um…" Yukiko said as she nervously looked at the fuming hellhound. "It's fine. If she wants to go home, we can do that."
Pyra felt her anger die down a little when she noticed Yukiko trying to quell the tension. She knew that the Yeti girl was always very timid, like she didn't get out much either. Not to mention she was bullied a bit more than other Liminal in the school because she was way to kind to retaliate. And that made her an easy target.
But now she was here in the mall, enjoying her time with this Roxas kid. And now Pyra was suggesting they end there fun and take her home.
Now she felt like a jerk.
Giving a frustrated sigh, Pyra placed her paws on her hips. "Alright fine, I'll follow you around…but I need a favor."
"What?" Roxas asked.
"I need a few things. It would be awfully nice of you if we could make a few pit stops while I'm stuck with you guys." She said sarcastically.
"T-That sounds fair, right Roxas?" Yukiko said quickly.
"…Alright."
It was a much different atmosphere as Roxas, Suu, Yukiko, and Pyra explored the mall. Yukiko tried to maintain a cheerful attitude and even attempted to include Pyra in the conversation, but the Hellhound was deliberately making it difficult.
Luckily, Roxas didn't seem to care that she was glaring holes in the back of his head the whole time. She always walked a few paces behind them, giving the impression that she was some kind of stalker.
In another attempt to lighten the mood, Yukiko dragged Roxas to another clothing store. Surprisingly, the results were humorous…and a little sad for the hellhound as she watched Yukiko try on a few different styles, only for Roxas to give the same unhelpful answer. This boy didn't have the slightest clue when it came to fashion.
"C'mon Roxas! You gotta say something more than just "its fine."" Yukiko whined.
"…Sorry."
"Muu!"
Pyra's eye twitched. She suspected that there was something off about Roxas. He was an odd character, but she was really beginning to feel sorry for Yukiko. Both the slime and Roxas were pretty much useless. It wasn't until Yukiko picked out another shirt that Pyra had enough.
"Alright, I can't take it anymore." Pyra murmured, catching everyone's attention. "The shirt doesn't go well with your hair, but the shorts don't match."
Yukiko's eyes widened immensely as she looked over at the hellhound. "you-You like this stuff?"
"I'm a girl, aren't I?" Pyra asked sarcastically. "As much as I don't like humans, they are very creative when it comes to fashion. Besides, this human and Suu are about as useful as a yuki-onna in the pits of hell."
"…I have a name, you know." Roxas said, clearly irritated.
Pyra ignored him as she picked out a light blue skirt to match the shirt. "Try this one instead. It matches your eyes."
Yukiko couldn't keep the smile off her face as she snatched the shirt away. "Thanks Pyra!" She said before disappearing into the changing room.
Pyra and Roxas stood there in an awkward silence while Suu was off wandering around the store, staring at the small selection of drinks. Pyra glanced over at the nobody with her arms crossed. "You know, when a girl is showing off some cloths, you're supposed to complement them."
"…Really?" Roxas asked.
Pyra frowned over at the nobody. At first, she though he was being a smart-ass, but he genuinely looked sincere with his question.
"Yes, really. It's common sense."
"…Ok." Roxas responded back just as Yukiko opened the door.
"How does this one look."
"It's cute." Roxas said flatly before Pyra had the chance to say anything.
Yukiko paused for a second before Roxas's words echoed through her mind. Even though he said it in the flattest manner ever, her face still lit up in a bright shade of red as she let out a small eep. "R-Really?"
"…yeah."
"Muu! I wish I could buy it then!" she whined. "But I really don't have any money."
Roxas felt a little bad seeing her downcast expression. He was about to pull out his wallet when someone tapped on his shoulder. He looked over to see the angry shop owner standing there with his arms crossed.
"Is that thing with you?" He asked, thumbing over his shoulder.
Roxas glanced over and noticed Suu there. She was sitting in the middle of a small pile of empty bottles with the most innocent smile on her face. One of her feelers was emptying out the contents of the last bottle.
"…Yes."
"I hope you are going to pay for all those."
Roxas looked flatly at the innocent slime. She stood from the ground and pranced over to him, still smiling happily. Giving a sigh, he pulled out all the Yen Kimihito had given him and gave it to the shop owner. "I guess I am."
The shop owner snatched it away before counting the bills. "Be sure to purchase the drinks before drinking them in the future." He grumbled as he walked away.
Roxas again gave the slime a flat look, but the cheerful smile on her face easily melted away any irritation he had. He simply gave a small chuckle as he patted her head.
"Next time, let me know if you're thirsty." He said.
"O-Okay."
Roxas nodded as he turned to the two amused liminal. "Sorry Yukiko, I'm out of money."
Yukiko laughed. "No, don't worry about it. We're just having fun anyway. Besides," Yukiko said as she also patted Suu on the head. "It went to a good cause, right Suu?"
The slime nodded enthusiastically.
Pyra couldn't help it, she felt a small smile of amusement as she saw the interaction between Roxas, Yukiko, and Suu. They all seemed so genuine about how much they enjoyed each other's company. However, she did notice that there was something strange about Roxas. She couldn't put her paw on it, but the way he acted was way too weird.
It was later that the gang was walking down the mall in the direction of a few stores Pyra needed to visit. Roxas was walking side by side Suu, while Yukiko decided to linger back and talk with Pyra.
"So, what do you like to do for fun?" She asked.
"Not much." Pyra answered. "I enjoy reading, exercising, long walks."
"Really? What kind of stuff do you read?"
"Anything with a good story." Pyra responded as she watched Suu tug on Roxas's sleeve, pointing to a nearby store with a question mark above her head. "Yukiko…" She started.
"Yes?"
"Is there…something wrong with Roxas? He seems really…odd."
Yukiko bit her lower lip. "I'm not surprised you noticed. Roxas…has amnesia."
Pyra stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes wide in shock. "You're kidding me."
"I'm not." Yukiko said, stopping next to her. "He doesn't remember anything past…a few weeks ago, maybe?" Yukiko mumbled, trying to remember.
Pyra felt her eyes narrow. "Bullshit! You believe that? Just how naive are you?"
Yukiko felt her eye narrow as well. "It's not bullshit! He's telling the truth! Why do you think he's lying?"
"Because he's human! Don't you get it? He's just trying to lure you into a false friendship only to dump you like some pile of worthless shit. You don't mean anything to him."
Yukiko felt a serious amount of rage at Pyra's words. Usually she didn't get angry when people made fun of her, but she hated it when people talked like that about those she cared for. "Take that back!"
"Why should I? I've seen the dark side of humanity."
"Humans can be nice too." Yukiko hissed back, losing her patience. "Besides, Roxas isn't even human. He's a Liminal."
Again, Pyra paused for a moment before she massaged her eyes in frustration. "Let me guess, he told you that as well?"
"Yeah!"
"…I really can't believe you're actually buying this. I mean look at him! He even smells human."
"s-shut up!" Yukiko snapped.
"Has he even done anything remotely inhuman? Is there any proof to justify his claim?" Pyra pressed.
"I-Um…He has a host!"
Pyra scoffed. "And who's to say he isn't in on it either? Face, it! He's lying straight to your face and you're so desperate for friends that your swallow anything he tells you, is that it?"
Yukiko felt her teeth grind together in anger. Even though Pyra had a point, there was no way Yukiko could think that Roxas or Kimihito would do that. They were so genuine, so kind.
"Shut up you Bitch!" Yukiko snapped.
Pyra growled angrily, her red eyes showing an unrestrained amount of fury. "What did you call me?"
Yukiko didn't care at all. She had hadn't been this angry in a long time. "I called you a Bitch! What're you going to do about it?"
"…You just crossed the line." Pyra said as she extended her red claws. "Humans and Liminal aren't supposed to fight, but there's nothing stopping me from beating your ass into the ground."
Now Yukiko was feeling a bit worried. She knew how strong hellhound could be. Even though Yeti's were strong too, they were no match against hellhounds when it came to strength.
Before Yukiko could react as Pyra shot at her. Pyra extended one clawed paw, aiming straight for Yukiko's face.
Yukiko instantly flinched, waiting for the paw to connect. However, something even faster grabbed Pyra by the wrist, halting the paw just inches in front of Yukiko's face.
Pyra's eyes widened as well as she felt an enormous pressure bearing down on her wrist. It felt like the bones were grinding together. She saw a hand grasping her wrist and she followed the arm before she saw a pair of very angry blue eyes glaring at her.
Roxas had caught her wrist, even faster than she could see. The look in his eyes was quite frightening and there was no mistaking it.
The boy was angry. It wasn't a false anger, but genuine fury that swelled within those cold blue orbs.
"What are you doing?" Roxas growled out.
His voice snapped Pyra out of her stupor as she gnashed her teeth at him. "Let go your asshole!" she roared as she tried to swipe at him with the other paw. However, quicker than both Yukiko and Pyra could see, Roxas snatched the other paw out of the air. His fingers constricted around her wrists with incredible force, slowly bringing the hellhound to her knees.
"Ouch! Let GO!" Pyra snapped.
"What were you going to do?" Roxas seethed angrily, applying more pressure to her wrists.
There was not many times Pyra had felt fear before, but now was one of those rare occasions. Seeing Roxas's angry glare clearly told her he wasn't going to stop until her wrists snapped like a couple toothpicks. And she couldn't do anything about it. He was way too strong. Way to strong to be…to be…
Human.
That thought came with a feeling of panic. If what Yukiko said was right and Roxas wasn't human, then the consequences of hurting her would be minimal. And to add to that, no one would really care if she got hurt.
"Stop! Your hurting me!" Pyra whimpered, finally realizing the position she was in.
"…And why should I care? You were going to hurt Yukiko, right?" Roxas said, his grip tightening a bit more, causing her to yelp in pain.
"R-Roxas, Stop!"
Instantly, Pyra felt the sweet feeling of relief as the pressure lightened a little. Roxas was looking over at Yukiko, still completely angry.
"Why?"
"You've done enough. S-She learned her lesson." Yukiko said. Honestly, she was a little afraid as well. She had never seen Roxas that angry before, and to put a hellhound on their knees was no small feat either. No human would have been able to do that. It was clear that Roxas was not lying when he said he was a liminal.
"She almost hurt you."
"I know. But its ok, she was angry." Yukiko said as she gently rested a paw on his forearm. "People do and say things they don't mean when they're angry."
Roxas paused before he finally released Pyra completely, allowing the Hellhound to scoot away from them and gently massage her sore wrists. He felt his anger die down a bit more as Yukiko gently hugged his arm to her chest.
Yukiko then turned to Pyra, who was still looking at them with wide eyes. "I'm sorry. I…I know using that word really offends any kind of canine Liminal."
"…"
Pyra was completely blown away. She didn't expect an apology from the Yeti. In fact, she was the one who started it. All Yukiko was trying to do was have a nice conversation and then she verbally attacked her and Roxas. Yet Yukiko was apologizing.
Now Pyra felt like a complete asshole.
"Humph! Why are you apologizing?" Pyra asked as she stood up. She gave a little wince because her wrists were still very sore. She then turned to Roxas. "You really aren't human, are you?"
"…I don't know what I am." Roxas said coldly.
"And you really do have amnesia it looks like." Pyra continued as she massaged her forehead. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'll believe you for now."
"…I don't care."
"Roxas, be nice!" Yukiko said as if the past few minutes had never happened.
Before Roxas had the change to respond, an officer popped out of nowhere. "What's going on here?"
"It's nothing, beat it." Pyra answered quickly.
"…I received a tip that a human was hurting a liminal in this area." The officer said as he glared at the group. "Is it true?
"Hah!" Pyra laughed. "As if a puny human could hurt me. Stop wasting our time and get lost."
The officer growled again before he turned and started to walk away grumbling about rude liminal brats.
She turned back to the group, who was staring at her. "What? It's true, right? Roxas ain't no human. By the way though, how can you be a host if you're not human?"
Roxas was still a bit pissed off at Pyra, but he answered her anyway. "…It's a loophole of sorts. I was tested, and the results said I was human. But I'm much stronger than regular people."
"Yeah…I can tell." Pyra said as she massaged her wrists a bit. "You almost broke my wrists."
"…I was trying to." Roxas responded coldly.
Hearing that, Pyra grinned a little. "…I think I'm beginning to like you."
"Because I'm not human?"
"Hell yeah!" Pyra grinned without a single ounce of shame. "This changes things so much. I thought you were a little weird for a human at first, but now it all makes sense."
"If I were human, I would act the same way." Roxas said, getting a little more irritated by her words. "Besides, my host is my friend, and a human. If you have a problem with him, then I have a problem with you."
Yukiko looked at the tense atmosphere with a concerned look in her eye. Neither Roxas nor Pyra were budging on this topic. Pyra obviously had a deep hatred for humans and Roxas's host was human. Neither could see eye to eye.
"Um…Roxas's host is really nice." Yukiko squeaked, trying to cut the tension a bit.
Pyra glared over at her. "Is that so…"
"Yeah! Every time I go over and study at Roxas's house, he always very friendly and invites me to dinner. He also makes me a bento every day."
"…" Pyra's glare lightened a little as she continued to listen.
"He-He also is a host for three other Liminal, and they really like him too…You can't say all humans are bad, can you?"
"…If you've seen what I have, you might rethink that." Pyra murmured.
"Well…do you like it when people unrightfully judge you because you're a hellhound?" Yukiko asked, flinching a bit when Pyra's glare intensified.
Damn. The Yeti girl had a point, but her hatred couldn't be quelled that easily.
"Fine…I'll give him a chance." Pyra said as she turned to Roxas. "Where are we supposed to meet up with your host?"
It was a little later that everyone was waiting near the food court for Kimihito and his party to show up. Not much was said and it was again a very awkward atmosphere.
"Roxas! Over here!"
"Finally," Roxas murmured as he stood up and turned to see Miia waving to them. Papi, Centorea, and Kimihito were walking up behind them with big smiles on their face.
"Yoriki, You're here too!" Papi squealed as bolted at the Yeti for a hug. Yukiko graciously returned it while Ruffling the Harpies hair.
"You're getting better Papi. It's Yukiko." Yukiko said kindly
"oops."
Kimihito smiled at the duo before he turned to Roxas. "So, did you enjoy your time?"
"…For the most part."
Kimihito cocked an eyebrow before he noticed someone else sitting there, glaring at him. He noticed that her features were a bit more intimidating, but the only thing he found a little unsettling was her stare.
"Friend of yours?" Kimihito asked Roxas, gesturing to the hellhound.
"…Not especially."
"Classmates." Pyra said up as she stood from her spot. She walked up to Kimihito and attempted to stare him down.
Kimihito only responded with a kind smile, not showing the least bit of fear on his face. He held out his hand instead. "Nam's Kimihito. I'm Roxas's host."
Pyra stared at the hand, obviously knowing what the gesture meant, but didn't want to return it. Kimihito just gave an awkward laugh as he withdrew his hand and scratched the back of his head.
"Master, that's a hellhound." Centorea said, a frown on her face.
"A what?"
"Hellhounds, I've heard of those!" Miia piped in. "They're the ones that share the underworld with the devils, right? They are like the watchdogs of hell."
Pyra grinned a little. "You're well informed. But we also hunt down the damned that try to escape their eternal punishment." She said as she turned to Kimihito, expecting him to cower in fear. However, to her great amazement, he simply looked more interested than anything.
"That so?" he said with passing interest as. "Well, it's nice to meet you. You said you're one of Roxas's classmates?"
"…Yes." Pyra said, clearly perplexed by his strange reaction.
"Master, I would suggest you step away from her. Hellhounds are notorious for being violent. They enjoy the pain of others, which is why they play a role in torturing the dammed." Centorea said, a small glare on her face as she protectively stepped in front of her master.
Pyra felt her eyebrow twitch a bit. "Humph, at least we don't need teasers to reproduce."
Centorea glared harshly at the hellhound. "You are treading on thin ice, Hellhound."
"Alright, that's enough." Kimihito said, cutting the tension. Again, this surprised Pyra because this human wasn't the least bit bothered by what he just learned about her race. "Centorea, is that any way to act towards someone you just met?" he chided softly.
Instantly, Centorea's face grew red with embarrassment. "S-Sorry master."
Kimihito nodded as he turned to Pyra. "Sorry about that. Centorea means well, but she can be a bit overprotective."
"…Its fine. I'm used to it by now."
"Well, it shouldn't be like that. A person shouldn't be judged by what species they are, but rather by who they are." He said with a smile before Miia tugged on his arm.
"Darling, I'm hungry." She whined.
Kimihito chuckled. "Alright, let's all get something to eat." He said before he turned to Pyra. "Would you like to join us?"
Again, Pyra could not believe what she was hearing. Not only was this human unaffected by what she was, what her species did, and by the way she treated him, but he even invited her to eat with them. No one was supposed to be this nice. What game was he playing?
"…I shouldn't-"
"Nonsense! Besides, it's not coming out of my paycheck thanks to the reimbursement." Kimihito said, throwing Yukiko a wink. Yukiko only giggled in response.
Pyra was going to insist on not coming, but the human was already being dragged away by the Lamia toward one of the restaurants in the food court. She was so perplexed that she didn't even know Roxas was standing next to her with his arms folded.
"…You don't like being judged by your species, right?" he asked.
"Yeah, so?" Pyra said with a glare.
"Don't you think it's a bit hypocritical to do the same to humans?" Roxas said as he walked up behind the rest of his housemates to wait for his turn to order food.
Pyra looked at the entire group of strange people. Despite what they just learned about her race, none of them seemed to care. The atmosphere was warm and cheerful. Everyone had on a smile and wasn't judging her the least bit on what she was.
Now she was at war with herself. What Roxas said was very true, she didn't like being judged because she was a hellhound…or at least mostly hellhound. But she was doing the same thing to humans. Even Kimihito's words rang through her head about how a person should be judged based on who they are, rather than what they are.
Giving a defeated sigh, Pyra waked up behind Roxas and tapped his shoulder to get his attention. "Fine, I will admit there are some RARE half-decent humans, but they are far and few in between."
Roxas simply shrugged as he turned back to the menu.
Pyra hated to admit it, but she enjoyed the rest of the day. Not only did Kimihito buy her lunch, which was one of the first times she had ever eaten out, but he also insisted that she come to the movies with them. Of course she tried to refuse, but he wouldn't take no for an answer. She had never been to a theater before and apparently neither had Yukiko. And as hard as she tried to hate the experience, she just couldn't do it.
Yukiko was super happy as she and everyone else exited the theater. She had a skip in her step as she turned to them. "That movie was so good! That scene at the airport was awesome! And I can't believe how cool Spiderman was! I loved it!" Kukiko squealed as she jumped up and down with excitement before glomping onto Roxas. "Did you like it?"
"It…It was really good." Roxas said honestly. This was also his first time attending the theater. Seeing a movie on the big screen was pretty incredible. The story was endearing…even though he felt like he should have watched the movies leading up to this one. The action was cool, and the music was amazing. This experience was a bit difficult for him to articulate with words.
"What, that's it? Wasn't that your first time being at the movies?" She asked, watching Roxas shrug. She gave an annoyed grunt as she turned to Pyra. "What did you think? Wasn't it totally awesome?"
Pyra was a bit too deep in thought about her day to give an immediate respond. However, she glanced over at the yeti before giving a small smile.
"It was good."
Yukiko dramatically threw her arms into the air. "you guys are killing me! How can I be the only one whose freaking out about this?"
"Papi love it!" Papi said enthusiastically.
"Finally, someone who understands!" Yukiko said as she and Papi dramatically embraced each other.
Everyone shared a good laugh at their antics, even Roxas.
Pyra was looking at the whole situation in complete awe. She had never seen such a warm atmosphere between human and Liminal. Everyone seemed so happy and cheerful. It was very hard for her to accept honestly.
Finally, after a bit more walking around, everyone was pooped.
"Alright, I think we've had enough fun for the day. Why don't we head home?" Kimihito said, getting a round of agreement from the crowd. He then turned to Yukiko and Pyra. "You two are more than welcome to hang out and play some games with us."
"Really? I would love too!" Yukiko said, happy to spend more time with everyone.
Pyra on the other hand was deep in though. "I'll have to pass this time." She said quietly.
Kimihito had a smile on his face, but his eyebrows scrunched slightly. "It's no problem. Anyone is welcome in my house."
"…I kinda expected you to say that…but I've got a lot on my mind. I would rather go home for the night." Pyra said honestly. The bite in her voice was all but gone now. She couldn't find a single fault with this human. All his actions were clearly kind, but more than that, they were…genuine.
And that was really messing with her outlook on humans.
Kimihito approached her, and was about to lay and hand on her shoulder, but she flinched away. He chuckled awkwardly as he scratched the back of his hand. "well, just know the doors open. If you want to hang with Roxas and study, feel free to anytime you want."
Again, she was being a jerk to the human, but he just retaliated with kindness. She had never seen a human like this before.
"…I'll keep that in mind."
"Alright." Kimihito said as he turned to Roxas. "I guess you're walking her home?"
"…Looks like it."
"Ok then, I will see you when you get home."
It was a little past 4:00PM as Roxas, Yukiko, and Pyra walked in the direction of Pyra's house. Suu decided to go home with Kimihito because she was a little to dehydrated to go with them.
The hellhound was very quiet, but the atmosphere wasn't full of hostility anymore. Both Roxas and Yukiko could see she was deep in thought. Even Yukiko didn't try to spark a conversation this time.
They eventually reached her house before Pyra paused in front of the door. All three could see the light on in the second story window with the silhouette of the fat man on his computer.
"…Is that your host?" Yukiko asked.
"Unfortunately." Pyra responded, clenching her paws. "I really hate that bastard."
"…Is he the reason you hate humans so much?" Roxas asked.
Pyra chuckled a little. "Not even close. All that idiot did was confirm what I already felt about humans." She said as she turned to them. "I came here because I was curious about the difference between here and hell…But seeing how most humans treat liminal, they haven't really done much to disprove my feelings."
"And Kimihito?" Yukiko asked hopefully.
Pyra paused again as she closed her eyes. She took a deep breath before letting it out slowly. "I…guess I will admit there are a few decent humans out there."
A giant smile crossed Yukiko's face as she rushed at the hellhound and threw her arms around her. "See! I told ya so! Big bro is awesome!"
"…Get off me!" Pyra growled, attempting to shove the Yeti off. Eventually she was successful when Yukiko had her hug fix. She looked at the two with a very uncomfortable look in her eyes. "…I guess…I'll see you at school on Monday?"
"Yeah! Do you want to sit with us for lunch?" Yukiko asked, her eyes big and sparkly.
"…that would be nice." She said as she turned to Roxas. "You might have been right about your host, but don't let it go to your head."
Roxas felt the corners of his mouth curl up. "Noted" He said before his frown returned. "But Pyra, why do you hate humans so much?"
Pyra chuckled a bit as she approached the nobody, stopping within a few inches of his face. "That's a story for another time. Oh, before I forget…" Pyra said as she suddenly cupped his face with one paw and pricked his cheek with one of her claws. "Hellhounds don't like to be beaten by anyone. Be on your guard because next time, you'll be the one on your knees." She finished as she ran her claw down his cheek.
Roxas winced as he felt his cheek cut open. Blood started to leak, but before a single drop could fall from his face, Pyra closed the distance between them and ran her tongue along the cut.
Yukiko's eyes widened immensely as a large blush covered her face. "W-What are you DOING?"
Pyra grinned as she took a step away from the perplexed nobody. "Hellhounds love the taste of blood. And our saliva has healing properties. It really helps when you want to torture someone for long periods of time." She said as she licked her lips. "Your blood has a very exotic taste to it."
Roxas reached up and felt his cheek. His cut was completely gone.
"W-WHAT?" Yukiko blanched.
Pyra laughed at their reaction before opening the door to her house. "See you two later." She said with a wink as she closed the door.
Roxas only stood there in shock, not knowing how he was supposed to feel about what just happened. Unfortunately, Yukiko was feeling the exact same way.
Authors note: A lot of you guys were requesting I added a little more KH to the story, so I did. I was planning to, but some people were getting a little impatient. There will be more elements of KH in future chapters, but for the most part, this will focus more on the monster musume elements. I hope you guys don't mind.
So, what did you think? Pyra finally found a human who isn't complete trash, but why does she feel that way in the first place? I gave a few hints in this chapter, but they were pretty darn vague.
Also, I know someone is going to comment on it, but saying Bitch is something only canine Liminal can say, otherwise it is super offensive.
What did you think? Please leave your thoughts in a review. Thanks!
Until then!
