[A/N]: and so here the new material starts. Before you start reading, I'd like to appreciate everyone who has faved/followed this story. It means a lot to me, as this story is rather important to me, and with this second draft I want to make sure everyone can enjoy it even more. The songs remain those of Shinedown (thankfully they released a new album, just for more chapter titles, hehe!)

Misfits
'Cause the world has a way of tearing you down.
Keeps you tied to the surface, paints you up like a clown,
But I'm right here, day after day, year after year.

Nobody had asked them if something had happened. Even if they had, they wouldn't have gotten an answer anyway. Yet despite that they seemed to suspect something had indeed happened, if only by the sidelong glances that Izumo kept sending their way, or by how Tatara had smiled at them a little too long, humming some tune as he did so. Haru had no clue why they suspected that they had done something in the first place; they hadn't told anybody about that night and had not changed the way they treated each other. Or at least she thought so.

Though the two of them had not actually talked about it themselves, they had both concluded that they would rather wait before announcing it to their friends. At first Haru had wondered if anything would change to begin with, though Mikoto had answered that question soon enough by pulling her around a corner at school to steal a quick kiss when nobody was looking. She felt the roughness of his stubble pricking against her face whenever he did that, an ever-present reminder that the King had trouble controlling his own aura as well. It pained her to see him that way, with his hair growing ever longer and the beginnings of a beard covering his jawline, though she had no clue what she could do to help him besides remaining by his side.

Whenever they made the trip between school and home by themselves, their fingers would find and embrace each other, though they would never hold on too tight so that they could pull apart at a moment's notice. Haru did not understand the need to go to such lengths, but she found it quite exciting to see what kinds of things they could get away with before somebody noticed. Such things included trailing hands across legs while Tatara had his back turned towards them or kissing whenever Izumo busied himself in the kitchen.

They continued on with this game of sorts for a couple of weeks while they adapted to incorporating their usual schedules to these developments. That included the occasional training outside in the alley where Izumo's burn marks along the brick walls stood out like a sore thumb. Though Mikoto didn't seem to have any trouble with differentiating between time spent together as friends and time spent together as lovers, Haru was having more difficulty in that department.

Their closeness during their sparring matches confused her the most. Before she had had no problem with how close their fights brought them, both emotionally and physically, though these days she couldn't help but feel flustered at every touch and every glance. She wondered whether the heat that she could see in his gaze had always been there, or whether they had recently developed with... well, with them.

Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, Mikoto continued to refuse lengthening the time they spent training. Some days they only went at it for fifteen minutes, other days Haru managed to keep him going for half an hour. Sooner or later, however, he would simply stop trying, which in turn would frustrate and anger her to the point that she could almost no longer control the output of her aura. Somehow she doubted that that was supposed to happen. Every now and then she managed to catch Izumo on a break, but he still ignored her whenever she asked him about the answer to Mikoto's riddle.

Because of this, Haru felt the pressure inside of her increase with every passing day, together with her feeling of helplessness. How would she ever figure out what Mikoto wanted from her like this? What would happen if she didn't find out in time?

Haru had crawled into bed with the redhead that evening feeling empty and tired, falling into a dreamless sleep the very moment her head hit her pillow.

A few hours later, however, she opened her eyes, and found herself standing in what looked like a wasteland, sand stretching out towards the horizon no matter where she looked. With not a tree or plant in sight, she could only glance around in despair, not knowing what she should do or where she should go. The fact that the sun in the sky was beating down on her back and that her clothes stuck to her skin did not help.

With a sigh she wiped a hand across her forehead in a feeble attempt to wipe away the sweat that covered basically every inch of her skin. Her mouth had a strange taste to it and it hurt to swallow, and as if on cue she realised just how thirsty she was. She glanced around once more in the hope of spotting a source of water, but to no avail.

Only sand surrounded her. Lots of sand, and more sand, and even more sand. Rough, dry, hot sand that bit into the soles of her bare feet. When she looked down to stare at them, she noted that she wore a pair of shorts. She had never paid much attention to the clothes she wore in her dreams, and she found it strange that she would start doing so all of a sudden.

After a few moments of painful pondering she shrugged and figured that, while she was here, she should try to see if she could find anything in the near vicinity. First, however, she had to decide in which direction she wanted to go. When she closed her eyes and sighed, she suddenly sensed a presence coming from her right, and so she made her way towards it.

She walked. And walked. And walked some more. Step by step by step by step. And then another step… and another… and yet another…

The sun continued to shine brightly, its torturing, sweltering heat never once dwindling. Not even when Haru could have sworn that she had taken a million steps in the direction of that ever-growing presence, or when she thought that she must have been walking for at least half a day. At least it felt like she had been walking for half a day.

Whenever she stopped to take a short break, her breath coming out in short puffs that only made her throat hurt all the more, she saw that her feet were beginning to lose their skin. She had left a trail of bloody footprints behind her, but it hurt much less than she thought it should, going by the amount of blood she had lost. The sight of her feet made her feel queasy, and so she quickly went on before she could linger on it too long.

The presence grew louder and warmer with every step she took. She asked herself why she wanted to reach something that made her surroundings hotter as she came closer in the first place, but she didn't have the energy to start a discussion with herself about it. In fact, she didn't even have the energy to worry about the fact that she had started having conversations with herself.

"I wonder what it is," a high voice said, coming from inside her mind.

"Something hot, that's for sure," a lower voice complained, also from inside her mind.

"Don't you want to find out what it is, though?"

"No! Why are we even going towards it? If going towards it makes everything hotter, will it get colder if we go away from it?"

Nobody responded to that as Haru took another step. She couldn't explain this sensation, not even to a figment of her own imagination, a part of her own being. The yearning to find out what caused this aura, which compelled her to come closer. No, not her, but something inside of her. Something that had not yet fully integrated, but which someday might…

Her own aura.

The first week after she had received the flame from Mikoto, she had noticed that it seemed as though it had a will of its own, trying to break free from its restraints whenever it saw a chance to slip through. Slowly but surely it had adapted to its new home, however, and had almost become a part of herself, rearing its head only when she wished it to. At least until Mikoto started limiting their time sparring with each other, after which it had started going back to its unruly nature.

Now it seemed as though that flame, nestled deep inside of her, was calling out to this other fire, stretching out its warm tendrils like arms trying to reach out for something or someone. And to Haru it felt as if these emotions, which almost seemed to belong to an entity separate from herself, influenced her own feelings. It took her a while to realise that the yearning had been hers all along, and that she and this flame had merged, their thoughts and wishes becoming one.

"Ah, look!"

"I don't have to look if I can feel it. How long before we start melting?"

The voice was right; Haru could see the heat that now rose from the sands still burning her feet, though she no longer felt the pain. The air even smelled arid, prickling her nose with every breath she took.

She could also see the shadow of a figure on the horizon, and though the distance between the two was still quite substantial, the pressure of its power almost choked her. The first voice continued to spur her on to reach the person as soon as possible while the second one voiced its complaints, claiming they should just give up.

Somewhere along the line, Haru gave them the names of new Haru and old Haru. Old Haru's cowardness and pride had dominated her personality until she had met Mikoto and the others, after which she had found out that, sometimes, change didn't have to mean certain doom. Though still as stubborn as always, she now knew that the world had a lot to offer her. And because of that she took another step, and another, and another, even when her feet seemed to weigh five times as much as they used to and her back began to bend beneath the pressure of the aura.

When she saw that the figure looked like a boy with red hair – though it could have been any other colour for that matter, with the flames encasing the person's body giving it a red hue – the tension in the air forced her to her knees. She gasped for air but did not feel the heat of the sand against her palms. In that moment she realised with a start that the aura pressing down on her had pulled that of hers to the surface. Red flames ran along her limbs, stretching out towards the boy, the King, almost begging to touch him.

And she followed it on hands and knees. New Haru had gone silent in anticipating, while old Haru wailed that she had to leave. Haru herself refused, however. Though her whole body trembled and she could barely breathe, she feared that if she did not get closer to the King, the aura within her would tears itself away from her by force.

The distance between the two of them hurt, and tears welled up in her eyes at the pain that increased as she got closer. Staying away from him would hurt because her flames demanded to be near him, but approaching him made their desire all the stronger.

Mikoto was a magnet. He lured people in with his immeasurable power and his unreadable demeanour, gave them what they wanted and bound them to him. He gave her love and strength and warmth, and in return she had to remain loyal to him to the end of days.

She must have made a sound or done something to attract his attention, for the King snapped his head to the side, shooting her a look over his shoulder. He stood with his back to her, his hands clenched into fists. His chest heaved as he, too, struggled to breathe, and parts of his face had been burned away.

When their eyes met, warm brown clashing with hot red, his entire stance changed. Where before he had stood tall and proud with a straight back, he now hunched over, and his expression became invaded by guilt.

"Mi–" Haru began, concern lacing her voice, but something inside of her lurched all of a sudden. Pain erupted within every cell of her body as the flames she had tried to keep inside, which she had followed to what felt like the very pits of Hell itself, pressed against their shackles. The brunette screamed as the entirety of her aura squeezed its way out of her, leaping towards their King, only to find that, since they were still bound to Haru, they could not leave her behind.

She had no words for the amount of power coursing through her, but even so she knew it was more than she had used back when Ayame had died. More than she could have handled back then, though she couldn't exactly keep her grip on whatever this was either. And still, whatever Mikoto had to endure on a daily basis must have been far worse than any of this.

The smell of burning flesh worried her nose and, as she shrieked and writhed, somewhere at the back of her mind she knew that she had set herself on fire. That her aura had done so in an attempt to join up with Mikoto's, who still stood before her, staring at her with wide eyes.

Her eyelids fluttered open and she shot up, her aura wrapped around her entire body. Breathing heavily, it took her a few moments before she realised that she lay in bed, in Mikoto's room, in HOMRA, in Shizume City. She swallowed hard and, with great difficulty, managed to force her aura back down, leaving behind nothing but sweat covering her skin.

A dream. It had been a dream. Nothing else.

Still trembling, Haru turned to look at Mikoto, who kept shifting around in his sleep. She wondered what he was dreaming about, though it didn't take a genius to figure out that it couldn't have been anything pleasant.

"Mi–" she began as she reached out a hand towards him, but the moment she placed it on his shoulder, he shot up.

Before she knew it a palm blocked her view as the redhead pressed a large hand against her face, fingertips digging into the flesh. Her breath hitched in her throat when she felt his heat crawl up his arm, rushing towards her like a tsunami towards a city. In response her own aura flared as well, though whether to join up with it like in her dream or to protect her, she did not know. She only knew that it did it of its own accord.

Red crashed into red and she let out a yelp when he tightened his hold on her, crying out his name. His eyes snapped open and he released her at once, after which she slumped over.

Nobody said a thing as the seconds ticked by.

But while Mikoto's red dwindled and disappeared, Haru watched in distress as the room remained illuminated by hers.

"Mikoto," she murmured, for the third time already, "can we… Can we go outside?"

The redhead only stared at his hands for a few more seconds before lifting his gaze, searching the red marks he had left behind on Haru's face. She wouldn't have any of that and, sighing, she swatted his face to the side with a warm hand. His lack of panic at the situation had managed to calm down hers.

"It's all right, okay?" She managed to summon a small smile for him. "We're all still getting used to it. And perhaps we never will. But… that's all right as well. I won't leave you for something like this."

His eyes finally met hers, and though he seemed uncertain, he nodded his head once. Only then did he take in the dim light of her aura, frowning once more. When he moved a hand in her direction, however, she swatted that away as well.

"No, you can't help me like that all the time. You're not my Tatara, and I don't want to think of the strain it'd put on you," she said with a shake of her head. "Plus, what happens if you're not here next time it happens? What then?"

The redhead considered her words for a moment before he nodded again. By then Haru had already slipped out of bed to make her way out of the room. Only when she came downstairs did she realise what time it was; Izumo had closed the bar and gone home for the night. Or, in this case, day. Thankfully they currently had summer break, so going out at this hour wouldn't do them any harm.

She trailed a glowing hand across the counter, watched it illuminate the surface. Strange how, even though she felt like she might burst any minutes now, she could feel so clam. Was this what progress looked like? Not mere changes on the outside, but internal alterations as well?

The sound of a door opening made her look up from her hand, and she realised with a start that Mikoto had already passed her and now stood by the back door, waiting for her. Without a word she followed him, but as he locked the door behind him, Haru asked, "Is it all right to leave the bar like this?"

The redhead shrugged, pocketing the key. "The doors are locked and everyone knows what kind of people we are."

True. Anybody who came to HOMRA looking for a fight would get more than what they bargained for. Though most had learned this soon enough, some just couldn't give up. Perhaps they could not resist the temptation of beating the ever-growing clan wielding fire as their weapon.

Haru turned to protest, but saw that the King had already assumed his usual stance. Though she did not know whether it was a good or bad sign, she could not stop the grin from spreading across her face, her blood boiling at the prospect of a battle. And going by the look on Mikoto's face, he felt much the same, though he tried his very best to hide it as his aura spread out across his skin, enveloping his body and causing the dark alleyway to light up in a way that her own flames could not.

Without being prompted, Haru took in her position in front of the redhead, bending her knees and raising her hands, ready to defend herself.

When she watched Mikoto surround himself with an even larger amount of flames, her smile disappeared. He fought against a smile of his own, probably still feeling guilty about what had happened, but it was obvious that he needed this just as much as she did. The ferocity of his fire forced her own aura to attempt to match it, but to no avail. She had to control them, for they belonged to her and not to the King.

The redhead charged at her all of a sudden. Normally she would have stood her ground, but she realised that that probably wasn't the best course of action at the moment. Instead she launched herself into the air, rotating once around her axis before landing on her feet a short distance farther down the alley, just in time to watch Mikoto's attack smash into the ground. Cracks appeared beneath his knuckles, but Haru tried her best not to think about what might have happened had she been there.

Not that he gave her that chance to begin with. The moment he saw where she had jumped off to, he rushed at her again. The trail of fire that followed him distracted her for a split second, and before she knew it all she could do was cross her arms in front of her to shield herself from the fist he hurled at her.

The force of the hit actually managed to push her back a few steps, but she grit her teeth and stood her ground after that. Then she uncrossed her arms and, in the blink of an eye, had grabbed his forearm with two hands. He didn't get the time to react, for by then she had already vaulted over him, making a perfect half circle around him while dragging his arm with her. Mikoto might have power, but sports had filled up most of the hole she had had in her life until she had met him. She knew how to use her power for different purposes.

Though he had the grace to look surprised, the fact that he did so while turning around with her made her move less impressive. The very moment she landed on her haunches, his arm still in her grasp, she knew she had fucked up. The redhead ripped his appendage free before swiping at her with a foot, which she dodged by jumping back into the air.

Now that had been a mistake.

His fist slammed into her stomach with such speed that it surprised her to notice her arms had come up to take the hit for her. She flew backwards, skidding to a halt a short distance away, and before she could notice the skid marks her feet had left behind on the asphalt ground and the pain that accompanied that, Mikoto was on her again.

She had to think fast! Meeting him headfirst would not work, going by the amount of force he put into his onslaught. Rubbish that lay nearby whirled at the wind that picked up as he raced by, and Haru realised she was wasting her time by noticing these things.

When the redhead came upon her, she simply slipped to the side, skittering around the King until she had reached his back. Without wasting a second, her knuckles found his ribs, knowing that hitting his back probably wouldn't do a thing. And it seemed to work, for he let out a grunt of what she might have called pain, but all too soon he turned around again.

The moment she saw, a shiver ran down her spine. With the way his aura played with his hair, he almost looked like some overpowered character from a lame shounen manga. Panic flooded her and she took a few quick steps back before she bent her knees and pushed herself into the air with all her might. Using her flames as a booster, for a moment she felt like flying…

But then the rooftop came into view, and she reached out to grab the edge, scrambling up as fast as she could and scraping her legs in the process. Standing on top of this building, however, the sight took her breath away.

From here she could see the lights and life of the heart of the city, flickering and twinkling between the other houses and skyscrapers. The sounds of people and cars were easier to hear up here than down in the streets, she realised. Additionally, up here the smell of sweltering hot asphalt hit her like a brick, stunning her just as much as the beautiful sight did. How curious that something so pretty could stink so much. She closed her eyelids for a moment and took in a deep breath, hot air filling her lungs, and suddenly she remembered the dream. Her eyes snapped open and she turned around to see Mikoto had joined her on the rooftop with considerably less effort than that it had cost her.

A pang of anger went through her, the flames surrounding her flickering brighter for a moment. She saw she had taken quite a bit of damage when she looked down, though she did not yet feel most of it. On the other hand, the redhead stood there, chest heaving and skin shining with sweat, but otherwise unharmed. How unfair it was to give them but an inkling of the power that he held, dangling it in front of their eyes but never following up on the promise.

This time, she attacked him.

At first she took a few unsteady steps in his direction before breaking out into a run, her lungs burning as she tried to breathe.

Without allowing the redhead to regain his bearings, she flew at him. He readied himself for her attack, though she surprised him by dropping to her haunches again and throwing a leg at him. Before her shin could connect with his calf, however, he managed to catch it with two hands. Instead of pushing back, he used the force from her swing to hurl her in the opposite direction.

Her eyes widened and the air grappled at her face as she soared to yet another rooftop. From behind her she saw the King following her, wind running through his hair as he did so, pushing the tresses which had gotten far too long away from his face in order to reveal a grin. The sight of it surprised Haru, and she barely got the chance to prepare herself for collision when the brick wall hit her harder than expected. A strangled cry tore itself from her throat as the air was knocked out of her, after which she fell into a heap on the ground. Looking up, she saw Mikoto standing a ways off, his face once more a combination of guilt and excitement. It spurred her to her feet, albeit slowly and unsteadily.

Despite the hit she had taken, she still felt powerful and stiff with her aura. Her muscles itched for more action, and she would not, could not, deny them this. Jumping from foot to foot, as if to shake off the damage she had taken up till now, she watched what the redhead would do.

Mikoto held his arms up defensively, unwavering, his glowing eyes following her every move, though he did raise a brow at her antics. Was this what it felt like when in the presence of a predator?

But she wouldn't allow herself to become any more distracted than that, and she ran towards him at full speed, showing no signs of stopping this time. The King faltered for a split second, his eyes widening a fraction as he braced for impact…

…which never came.

Haru all but flew over him instead, landing just behind him and tapping him on his back before bounding off to the next rooftop. If he was a lion and she his prey, then her only chance of survival lay either in safety in numbers, or stamina. Since it was just the two of them, she would have to rely on her skills in athletics.

Running in the opposite direction, she leapt from rooftop to rooftop, spreading her arms out to her sides whenever her feet left the safety of the concrete. For a while she managed to forget about everything, her mind becoming blank as she thought not about her current sparring match with Mikoto, the insatiable nature of the fire within her, or the fact that she still hadn't started working on that pile of homework she had to finish by the end of the summer break… No, she could think only of the lightness of her body as she used her flames to push herself on. Why had she never done this before?

As she jumped on, she had not realised that her speed had started to dwindle. Only when she heard approaching footsteps behind her did she remember her current predicament. Surprised to see the redhead had managed to catch up with her, she faltered for a moment, which caused her foot to slip when she tried to land.

Anger at the interruption bubbled up inside of her, and Haru bit her lip as she whirled about, fist ready to greet the King's cheek…

Only for it to hit his palm. He didn't even have to try.

Her other hand followed soon after, but the redhead simply caught that one as well. His attention left the one he held in his left, however, and so she managed to tear it free and slam it into his side. Triumph filled her as he grunted and stumbled slightly, and she took a few steps back.

She wanted to be in control for once. And she wanted to see how far the King could go in her area of expertise when she gave it her all. A grin found its way to her lips once more while she gathered her aura at her feet and sprinted off, leaving a trail of flames behind wherever her soles touched the ground. A few rooftops later she bent her knees as she landed on the next before propelling herself forward with all her might.

To tell the truth, Haru had always wanted to fly. Though she had made fun of Mikoto a while ago for staring at the sky in a wistful manner, she herself probably wished to become one just as much as he did. Now that she thought about it, however, becoming a cloud probably fit the redhead better than a bird. Drifting along with no goal in mind, clinging to its form even as the wind pushed it along, and failing in the end. That thought made her frown. Would Mikoto, too, one day lose his form? What did that even mean in the first place? And if she truly were a bird and he a cloud, then no matter how high she flew, she would never come close enough to actually touch him.

As she soared through the sky, the city kept creeping closer, and the gap between Mikoto and her continued to grow whenever she chanced a look over her shoulder. A sense of satisfaction filled her at the prospect of beating the Red King at something - anything, chasing away the sadness from before. Whenever her altitude dropped and she threatened to crash into the ground, she stumbled to a jog before jumping again, arms outstretched and a grin on her face. Already could she feel the energy beginning to drain within her, and she realised that she hadn't felt this great in a long time. Perhaps she was simply a dog who needed to go out more often.

The row of houses ended abruptly, which startled Haru, who had wanted to plant her feet on the rooftop to take in her surroundings. The lights from the city had gotten brighter, and the noise had become louder. Though this neighbourhood slept, farther ahead lay one of the busier streets in the district that lead straight to the heart of Shizume City. Haru could already see and hear the traffic.

Without thinking, the brunette tilted her body forward, eyes intent on the ground that came rushing up towards her. She reached out, and the moment her palms met the asphalt, she sank through her elbows only to push herself back up, rotating once. The momentum from her fall toppled her over a few more times and she jumped from hands to feet until she stood still, her arms in the air as though she had just performed an acrobatic stunt.

She greeted Mikoto with a grin when he finally caught up with her, breathing heavily and looking rather annoyed. Despite that, Haru noted that his flames had lost their ferocity.

"Come." She held out a hand and waited while Mikoto caught his breath before he grabbed it. He raised a brow, but Haru only smiled at him as she tugged at his arm and pointed at one of the closest skyscrapers. His gaze followed her finger before he nodded, and he was right behind her as she launched herself up again.

With the help of their auras, they reached the top of one of the buildings rather easily. Before she knew it, Haru's feet dangled over the edge of the skyscraper, with Mikoto beside her. At first she hadn't dared to look down for fear of the height, but once she realised she wouldn't fall off, she relaxed and enjoyed the view.

Though they had chosen one of the smaller skyscrapers a short distance from the city's centre, they could still see far and wide if they turned their backs to the rest of the city. Even in the middle of the night there was no lack of people out on the streets, no way to become bored up here.

Haru rested her head on Mikoto's shoulder, attempting to gauge his reaction. When he did not seem all that disturbed by the intrusion, she asked, "What did you dream about?"

Amber eyes cut her way and he frowned. Without answering he looked away, his gaze searching the horizon, and Haru thought he wouldn't reply. She closed her eyes and began to doze.

"Sometimes I dream of what would happen if I let go of my restraints," the redhead said, startling the brunette. "Everything becomes a wasteland…"

Confused, Haru lifted her head. Restraints? Wasteland? But hadn't she…?

Though she did not voice her thoughts, Mikoto nodded without looking at her. Instead he stared at the palm of his hand, and when Haru glanced at it as well she saw the scars.

"You were there tonight. I felt you coming, but I thought nothing of it. And then you were there, screaming like that…" He closed his eyes and flinched at the memory.

Haru placed a hand on top of his and rested her cheek on his shoulder again. Then she turned so that she could press her lips against the side of his neck as she entwined her fingers with his. "I'm sorry you have to go through all this."

The King only grunted in return and squeezed her hand. Without another word they sat there, side by side, staring at the night sky.

Things would get better eventually. They had to. They'd both learn how to control these flames, and all would be great again.

Or so they hoped.