If you guys have noticed, it took me (once again) a long time to update this story. But my excuse (this time) is the fact that I was working on BOTH the previous chapter and this one. I decided to just post both chapters in the same date... Is what I was supposed to say, but, as you may have noticed, the previous chapter got posted first... like I said, "I'm not going to forget this story until it's finished" unlike those who stopped writing their incomplete stories just because they lost interest in continuing it. I believe it to be an obligation to finish your work if you just presented it. It can be an insult to just show them a part of it.

...Oh, and I took long to post coz reality is being a bitch... Not to mention my morale went down due to a FAILING GRADE IN A MAJOR SUBJECT!!! AAARGH!!! Not to mention my forgetful grandma lectured me from out of nowhere for staying up late from playing the PC for so much... I mean c'mon! Sure I've got bags under my eye, but her way of saying it is so stupid! I know she's my grandma and her memory isn't as sharp as her past, but I'm starting to lose my patience. Heaven forgive me for what I might say to her...

But enough about this. As a little fun, There's a bit of reference with the well-known RPG game, "Ragnarok" here. If you know the game, OR the anime, you'll know of it. If not... well, that's alright.

Oh, and it's gonna be awkward with continuing this story from now on... Why? Well, in this chapter, we're introducing someone new... and I'm using my nickname... WHICH BY THE WAY, CAN BY USED BY BOTH MALE AND FEMALE. What name would that be? Just read to find out.


Chapter 29: Confession

The sun has almost set as Stella was merely watching the sun go down while taking refuge under a tree. An expression of sadness was visible on Stella's face. "...Didn't she tell you to leave me alone?" Stella spoke, talking to the presence she was feeling behind her.

And the presence was none other that Davis. "I didn't wanna listen to her anyway." Davis replied.

"Then please do... I don't want any company right now..." Stella said, almost on the verge of crying again.

"...No." Davis said bluntly.

"What?!" Stella quickly turned to face Davis with an angry expression on her face.

Davis on the other hand, had a stern expression on his face. "I'm yanking my hair out to help you. The least you could do is to tell me If you guys haven't noticed something. I'm not just doing this for you, you know."

"I don't care if you're doing this for me or not. And I don't remember asking for your help! Some stranger like you has no right to talk to me like that!"

"Stranger?! Stella, what are you talki-" Before Davis could continue, realization struck him. "... You lost your memories, didn't you?"

"Th-!" Stella became quiet, quite surprised at Davis's sharp thinking. but her silence was only short... "...Well now that you know what's wrong with me, can you leave me alone now!?"

"...I'm sorry..." Davis sulked, bowing his head.

"Wha..."

"It's gotta be bad, losing something like tha-"

"Stop it! What do you know?! You'll never know what it's like to lose your memories!" Stella shouted out of distress, on the verge of crying again with tears beginning to form in her eyes.

Davis didn't retort. He just stood there, feeling helpless.

"Oh, on the contrary, he knows that more than anybody." A voice spoke, coming from the top of the tree.

"Oh great. It's her..." Davis mumbled.

Looking up, Stella was surprised to find Selena sitting comfortably on one of the tree's sturdy branches. "Wh-what do you mean by that?"

"He's also lost his memories. But unlike being stolen by a thief like yours, he didn't know anything on how he lost his memories." Selena replied.

"Wh... Y...you're lying!" Stella said with a quivering tone, afraid of her mistake towards the male warrior.

"I'm not really the kind to lie, hon. And since you've lost your memories, you shouldn't conclude everyone as a stranger or tell them that they wouldn't know what the feeling is like." Selena scolded, with her signature smile on her face as usual.

Davis couldn't respond since it was the truth; the male warrior grieved.

"...Ah... Ugh... *Hic* *sob*..." Turning to face Davis, Stella fell on her knees, sobbing.

"S-Stella?!" Davis quickly went to the side of the crying female warrior and held her by the shoulder, kneeling down to equal himself to her level. "Stella, what's wrong?!"

Selena rolled her eyes. "Oh, come now, Davis. Isn't it obvious? She's crying because she regrets talking to you in a rude manner." Selena smirked.

"Shut up! I don't need your lip!" Davis retorted.

"Oh? You seemed to enjoy it when we did it..."

"Wh-!? I DIDN'T MEAN THAT LIP!!! DAMMIT, SELENA!" Davis shouted, completely red.

Selena giggled.

"Tch..." Ignoring the archer, Davis returned his focus on Stella. "Stella. Stella, c'mon, calm down".

"*hic*I'm sorry... *hic* I'm so sorry...*sob*"

"Don't be... You didn't know..."

Stella couldn't hold it, and hugged the male warrior out of the blue.

"Wha-" Surprised, Davis froze as Stella held on to the stunned male warrior. Slowly, Davis returned the female warrior's embrace, who then tightened her hug, startling Davis.

Selena smiled as she watched the events unfold. "Well, I think I'll be at my archery..." Selena spoke as she immediately left the scene.

"Wha-?!" Davis wanted to talk the archer into staying, wanting to clarify any possible "misunderstandings". But before he could even talk, Selena was already gone from sight. "(Damn woman!)" Davis inwardly cursed with his face still red from Stella's embrace.

Their position lasted for a few minutes with Stella slowly calming down, eventually letting up. Stella slowly let go of Davis from her embrace and rested both her hands on the male warrior's chest with a tear in each eye on her flustered (due to her crying) face. "...Sorry..."

"Heard you the first time. It's okay." Davis said with a smile, resting his hand on Stella's hair.

"..." Stella turned red, but this time, it was due to obvious reasons. "Do... do I apologize a lot? Y...you know.. when I had my memories..."

"Well, no. Not really. but then again, I wouldn't know since you've never really done anything to me to make you apologize."

"...Oh..." Stella gloomed.

"Wh... Why are you getting depressed?" Davis asked with a sweatdrop.

"What? Oh! No, I'm alright. I'm sorry if I made you worry."

"There you go again with apologizing."

"O-oh. Sorry."

Davis raised a brow.

Stella looked down, as if acting 'apologetic'. "...U... um..."

"Hm?"

"C... could you let me go now?"

"What?" Davis looked at their position, and only just noticed that he was still holding on to her "Gaah! s-sorry..." Davis said, quickly turning red.

"I... it's okay..."

With a typical situation, the two went silent as the awkward atmosphere loomed.

"U...ummm... What was I like?" Stella spoke, taking the courage to speak.

"H-hmmm..." Davis pondered. "Well, for starters, you've got a positive outlook."

"Oh~!" Stella's face brightened up after hearing Davis's description of herself.

"You've also got confidence whenever we go do our duties."

"Duties? What kind of duties?"

"Oh, the usual; killing weak demons that bother Master Laharl."

"What?!" the female warrior exclaimed. "K...k...Kill?!"

"...What?" Davis said in a tone saying "Did I say something wrong?"

"We k-k-kill people?!"

"Huh? W... well yeah, but only the annoying ones of course."

"It doesn't matter! Killing is wrong!"

"...Oh... uh..."

"Ah! uh..."

Another awkward silence befell the two.

"...Who..."

"Huh?"

"Who am I?" Stella said with a sad expression.

Davis sighed took a deep breath and placed his hands Stella's shoulders. "... You're name is Stella; You are a female warrior and pupil of the netherworld's young overlord, Master Laharl; You've got skills in wielding your spear; you're a cute girl who was bullied by boys in your childhood for being a fighter; you're a hard-worker and trains hard to maintain her skills, unlike me who lazes around all day... well, that pretty much covers it... Why are you going red?"

"H-huh?" Stella who was looking down, suddenly looked up and faced the male warrior eye-to-eye, with her face all red "Wh-wh-what? m... my face?" Stella stuttered, only realizing that she was blushing. "Aaah! Don't look!" Stella squealed and took a few steps back from the male warrior and covered her blushing face with her hands.

Seeing the cute side of Stella, Davis couldn't help but blush as well. A chuckled escaped his mouth. "Well, that's pretty cute." Davis said with a smile... more like a grin.

Stella groaned at the male warrior's comment, which made Stella's face heat up even more.

Davis laughed at Stella's reaction for a short while. After his little laughter, Davis sighed happily. "Well, I guess you're alright now." Davis said cheerfully.

"H-huh? W...well yeah... I guess."

"That's good. Well, I guess I could show you around the castle while we wait for the others."

"...Eh?"

"I said I could show you around the castle. Since you lost your memories, it shouldn't be a surprise that you don't know your way around here."

A gentle smile appeared on Stella's face. "...I would like that..."

The whole day, Davis showed Davis around the area, showing her Selena's archery where they saw the archer practicing... but oddly had a doll resembling Davis at the middle with arrow on the eyes, forehead, and neck; Davis and Stella sweatdropped at the sight. Next, they came across a group of prinnies doing their usual chores, with Etna 'managing' them. Stella politely bowed at the high-ranking demon with respect for offering to help her retrieve her stolen piece of herself. Etna responded with a gentle smile; something that was so rare for Davis to see ever since Laharl forgave Etna from betraying her... Then Davis thought that Etna knew what was stolen from her; after all, Etna went through what Stella is going through. It would explain why Etna offered her help so easily. Davis couldn't help but smile at the thought. Lastly, they visited Tomoe, who was training Flare with her basic fire magic. Davis greeted the two, who decided to take a break and went over to Davis and Stella. Having the chance, Tomoe asked what was stolen from Stella. Davis responded, telling her that it was her memories. Tomoe didn't know how to react. She already knew that the thief could steal things beyond tangible objects; but the fact that she could steal even such valuable things astonished the martial artist. Not wanting to turn the atmosphere any more unpleasant, Tomoe assured the female warrior that they would get her memories back, saying so with a friendly smile. Stella returned the smile with a grateful bow. Davis also smile at the two girls' friendly gestures. They conversed for a bit, then Tomoe bid the two farewell before going back to train... but not after whispering to Davis "Do anything to her in her current state, and you're dead." Surprised, Davis was about to defend, but changed his mind as Tomoe returned to her business.

After showing Stella just about every nook and cranny of the castle, their last destination was their dorms. Davis didn't bother show Stella where he slept and only pointed where it was. Davis lead Stella to where she, and the other girls sleep. "Well, here's where you hit the sack."

"I see. Thank you for giving your time for me."

"No problem. Now it's getting late. After we eat, we should all go to sleep."

"...Alright." Stella complied, but somewhat reluctant to have the day and so fast. Davis didn't notice the hesitation in Stella's voice.

A couple of minutes after their little tour, dinner was being served to every vassal in the castle (with Laharl, Etna, and Flonne having royal treatment of course). Tomoe, Flare, and Selena went to Stella's side and all four girls ate together. Davis was eating at a different area with prinnies bustling with their own meals, merely watching the girls give comfort the the now-smiling female warrior. Thus, it was practically an all-girl's moment.

Late night quickly came. Everyone in the castle was fast asleep... except for a certain little unsettled person, wandering the castle grounds. Davis, who was SUPPOSEDLY asleep without a top, slowly opened his eyes, easily sensing the wandering presence in the castle. Without even yawning, Davis slowly got up with both sleepiness and annoyance in his eyes. The sleepy male warrior picked up his axe from one side and slowly headed for the door. "...I'm gonna need a nice, cold bath after this..." Davis thought out loud, imagining the 'bloody' mess he might possibly make. And just as he faced the door, the presence was already behind it, as if on cue. Davis quickly-yet-silently opened his door and pointed the blade of his axe at the presence.

"Eep!" he presence yelped in surprise, although the presence was able to keep her voice down seeing as it was in the middle of the night.

"St-stella?!" Davis whispered his shout. "What are yo... uhhh..." With Davis's eyes slowly adjusting from the night, he saw Stella only a tank-top and silk shorts; obviously her sleeping attire... and as a 'healthy' man... seeing Stella in her current attire is something that Davis... DEFINITELY doesn't dislike. "Erm... C...can I help you?" Davis stuttered the first word, with his face turning red. Lucky for him, the dark night his his red face.

"I... I was hoping I could.. um... sl...sleep with you?" Stella stuttered her self, with her face also turning red... but an opened window illuminated the red moon's light, revealing the cute expression Stella was making.

Silence fell. Not even cicadas chirped. "...ER...what?" It took a few seconds for Davis to even register in his mind what the female warrior just said... then turned red even more.

"U-um, m-maybe coming here was a bad idea. I.. I'm sorry... I'll... I'll just go now..."

But before Stella could even turn around, Davis already began babbling. "B-but... y-y-you c-c-couldn't... I-I-I- mean th-the prinnies! they-"

"Prinnies?" Stella said with e question mark appearing above her. Unable to bear her curiosity, Stella took a little peak inside the room, and found it to be SWAMPED by prinnies snoring here and there.

"Uhhh.. Yeeeeaaah... um... since... since I'm the only guy here... these guys are my roommates so... yeah..."

"O-oh... I'm sorry... I'll... I'll be going now..." And with that, Stella reluctantly turned around. But before she could even take a second step forward, a hand suddenly grabs her by the hand. Obvious with who the hand belongs to, Stella's face turned red once again as the warmth of his hand flowed onto hers.

"...Just... be quiet and don't wake the prinnies up." Davis spoke in a soft tone, with his eyes hidden and his cheeks all red, still unnoticeable.

"Eh-" Stella's eyes widened.

Davis slowly opened the door, allowing entrance to the female warrior. Silently, they crept within the room, hoping to not cause any noise. It wouldn't take them four seconds to get near Davis's bed... but the duration was long enough for Davis to realize something... "(...This is the first time I've invited a girl in here...)" Davis thought, with his blush intensifying. hoping to shake off the feeling, Davis quickly grabbed and wore his top and laid on the bed, making one side for the female warrior to lay. With a bit of respect, Davis faced the opposite direction as Stella promptly laid to his side, but instead of facing the other way, she faced Davis's broad back. It was a truly manly figure, with his muscles marked on his rather tight top. She could not hold herself, touching the comfortably warm back of the man in front of him.

Davis blushed as he went stiff; he could feel his breath unable to escape his lungs due to surprise. It was a simple touch, yet in made the male warrior all tense. Their moment lasted for who-knows-how-long, all in silence. With the length of time of their silence, Davis swallowed his pride and slowly turned around, inwardly praying that Stella was asleep, and a heavy sleeper at that. Luckily for him, his prayers were answered as he found Stella with her eyes closed. Davis sighed of relief... but as he could finally breath easy, he just HAD to notice how cute Stella was whenever she was asleep; he just HAD to notice the feminine figure of the female warrior whenever she breathed, the rhyming movements of her breathing. "O... oh crap..." Intensely blushing, many 'indecent' thoughts entered Davis's mind. There in front of him, was Stella, who was defenseless in her state... and that's due to her being asleep! With her being weak due to her losing her memories, she couldn't do anything when she awakes; Davis could do anything to her and she couldn't do anything about it... Of course, Davis wasn't that kind of man; he would never take advantage of a defenseless woman... But the thought of it alone... made Davis's heart race. Her cute expression was VERY tempting to touch... and as a man giving in to temptation, he could not resist; slowly, he caressed the female warrior's hair, and moved them away from her cheeks. With the back of his fingers, he caressed her cheeks; her skin was truly smooth... flawless.

"...I wish time would just stop..." Stella suddenly spoke with her eyes still closed.

It took Davis three seconds to realize what he had just heard. Slowly, his face made an expression saying "Oh crap!". In total surprise, Davis froze,with his hand hovering just above Stella.

But before Davis could get his hand to safety, Stella gently took hold of his hand and laid it on her cheeks, allowing Davis to feel the warmth of her face.

"I want to tell you this now while I have the chance..." Stella softly spoke, taking a few-second-pause before continuing... "... Sir Davis..."

The male warrior's reaction was that of total disbelief, with his face all red. His chest tightened at the sight and sound of Stella.

.

.

.

"I love you..."

.

.

.

She said it... she actually said it... Even WITH her memories, Davis could never imagine Stella to say the very strong words. Davis believed that it was due to her not having her memories that she wasn't acting like herself... but Davis was too dumbfounded to think reasonably.

"...Silly, isn't it? Me, falling in love with someone whom I've only met in just one day..." Stella said, with tears steaming down her closed eyes to her cheeks...

It was obvious to Davis, that despite her confession, she wasn't happy... Davis wanted to comfort her. Davis wanted to relieve Stella of her sadness... But with everything that's transpired, it was hard for Davis to even relax on his own bed. He can't just simply say 'that's not true', because in his mind, she was right. It was childish to think of love that only happens in stories and fiction. Falling in love with someone in less than a day only occurs in such. It was truly foolish to think that you've fallen in love just after spending time with him for a day.

Davis cursed at the thought. The truth was unbearable, and it was making Stella sad... And even if Stella had lost her memories, she still confessed to Davis; she still fell in love with him despite the short time they spent together... it made Davis really happy... but the circumstances turned their smiles upside-down... and that's just the tip of the iceberg... He also had Tomoe to think about. Not to mention the limited time he's got. The more Davis thought of his predicament, the more he cursed inwardly. It was no wonder the great majority of all demons shunned the idea of love... Davis just wished that he was all oblivious to the world around him; after all, ignorance is bliss...

...But just as thinking that, Flonne, of all people, popped into his head. Flonne, who wasn't the brightest person in the netherworld (OR Celestia for that matter) was always considered to be the most knowledgeable when it came to love... which made Davis wonder, 'how could someone like Flonne ever know so much about love when she doesn't even know elementary mathematics?' it was truly a wonder for Davis about that... Then... it hit him... he finally realized the concept of Stella's confession; the concept of those love stories. It was so simple that Davis simply spoke the words...

"... It's not silly..." Davis spoke.

Stella, who was still awake, slowly opened her eyes and showed Davis her teary eyes, which sparkled like pearls in the night.

"... Your reason for that kind of love is not silly... because you don't need a reason to love someone... Just loving someone is enough..."

Stella was in awe, gazing at the male warrior's stern expression; it had no blush; it had no embarrassment... only a serious expression. tears started to stream down her cheeks again... but this time, she had a smile she never thought she'd have... "...Thank you..." Stella spoke the simple, yet strong word and took Davis's hand to her cheeks, closing her eyes to sleep with her smile still present.

Davis smiled at the beautiful sight; a sight which he never thought he'd see. Davis closed his eyes... and went to sleep, with a smile on his face for the first time... But his smile didn't last a minute... he knew his happiness was short-lived... he'll have to choose eventually between her and Tomoe...

...Now that Davis thought about it, choosing between Stella and Tomoe seemed pretty one-sided. He has always looked at Tomoe more than Stella. And due to the circumstances when they met Stella for the first time, he never got the chance to talk to Stella... oh sure, he had plenty of chances... but he never thought about it until today...

Davis no longer saw his choices as 'one-sided'... which made choosing one of them all the more difficult for him...

Sunrise...

"DAVIIIIIIIIIIIIS!!!" An angry shout of a female was heard.

"Hwa-hwa-hwa~!" Davis, who was startled from his slumber, jolted up in surprise, believing to hold an axe in his hand, obviously still half-asleep.

Suddenly, a big kick practically smashed the door open, with Tomoe as the perpetrator, startling every prinny in the room. "What. Happened. Last night." Tomoe questioned, pausing after every word.

"Wh-what?!" Davis exclaimed with an exclamation point and question mark hovering above his head.

Beside Tomoe was Stella, bowing down to Davis in an apologetic manner. "...Sorry... Got caught by 'her' when I snuck out..." Stella said, pointing at the archer, who had her sweet-yet-devilish smile on.

"(Oh crud!) Tomoe, it's not what you think!" Davis said in a panic.

"Is that so?! Then tell me Davis! What WAS I thinking?!"

"Uh... Well... That's... um... *Groan*... oh come on, give me a break, Tomoe! You know I can't answer that!"

"Hmph!" Not getting an answer, Tomoe's glare turned to the amnesiac Stella, who flinched at Tomoe's intimidating demeanor. "And what's your say in this?"

"Ah- um- well- that's... ummm... I... felt uneasy..." Stella hanged her head.

"You felt uneasy sleeping with us, who happen to be of the same gender, yet went to Davis, WHO MIGHT'VE DONE SOMETHING TO YOU IN YOUR CURRENT STATE?!"

"Eep!" Stella flinched again. "...Sorry~..."

"Come on, Tomoe. You know I'm not that kind of guy!" Davis defended.

"I know you're not..." Tomoe said, facing away; the air became heavy all of a sudden. "...I'm just making sure you DON'T become that kind of man."

Davis sweatdropped. "Believe me, I won't. Untrusting much?"

"Who would trust someone who barged inside a woman's room while the woman is still changing?" Selena suddenly said.

Hearing her words, Stella's eyes widened, then turned to face the male warrior.

"W-whoa! Stella, it ain't what you think!"

"What's there to think?"Selena said again with her usual smile... then suddenly looked away with a blush and watery eyes (obviously crocodile tears). "...*sniff* after all...I can still remember it like it was yesterday... when you suddenly entered the room while I was still naked... ohhh... How can I marry like this... Woe is me~" Selena said, placing a backhand on her forehead, acting all dramatic.

"Aaargh... Could you stop it?! I said I was sorry! It was an accident!"

"I.. I don't believe it..." Stella said in complete disbelief. "... No wonder... last night..."

"LAST NIGHT?!" Both Tomoe and Selena shouted in surprise; even Selena couldn't contain herself. The two girls turned their attention towards the male warrior, who had an expression saying "OH CRAP!"

"N-now don't suddenly jump to conclusio- Bff-" Before Davis could explain, a BIIIG fist lands right onto his face, courtesy of the martial artist.

"Oh my... I never thought you were like that, Davis." Selena said.

Obviously, Davis couldn't reply with Tomoe's fist still connected to his face.

"U-um, It's not what you think!" Stella interrupted. "H-he only-" But before she could continue, every eye of Selena, Tomoe and Flare went all to her. "...uh... ummm... W...well..."

"Whoa! Stella! you don't have to- hmmmph!" Davis suddenly interrupted, but was swiftly halted by Tomoe, putting her palm on Davis's mouth, practically gripping Davis's jaw.

"Ignore him. Please continue." Tomoe said, holding Davis tightly my his cheek bone.

"U-um... ahhh..."

"You guys, get your butts over here so we can finish this as soon as possible." A voice suddenly calls out to them from behind. looking back, the group found Laharl with an impatient look, with Etna and Flonne beside him. Following their master's orders, Tomoe let go of her vice grip on Davis, with Davis thinking "(Saved by the overlord...)" as he massaged his aching cheek bones. The group, except for Stella and Davis, headed for their master's side and walked off. But as they went off, Flare turned around to face Stella.

"Don't worry, miss Stella! We'll get your memories back!"

Happy to hear the adorable little girl's words, Stella couldn't help but smile. "... I know you will."

With that, Flare turned back around and tailed back onto her mentor.

Again, Davis and Stella are left alone. With nothing to do... the atmosphere slowly got more and more heavy and awkward...

"Wait a minute!" Stella suddenly shouted.

"Wah! what is it?!"

"Why are you still here?!"

"Huh?! Why WOULDN'T I be here?!"

"I thought you were gonna help get my memories back?!"

"..Oh, right... Lost your memories so you wouldn't know..."

"Know...? Know what?"

"You see, for some reason, the jerk who hired the thief knows who I am, and doesn't want me in the picture. For whatever reason, the thief would steal a part of one of our allies' personality and then hold it for ransom so that she could call out the rest of the group, excluding me... We thought we'd heard the last of the thief when you and Tomoe managed to get back Selena's personality (...Though I wish they didn't, but I can't have that...). But it turned out that the one who took your memories is taking revenge for the loss of the other thief... *whew*!" Davis ended his statement by wiping his forehead with his arm.

"...Ooo...k..." Stella said with an expressionless face.

The two went silent again, with the weird atmosphere returning.

"So ummm... I guess we should... go on a date?" Stella said with a blush, looking at different directions except Davis.

"Eh?" Hearing Stella's words, Davis's face quickly turned red as fast as light.

"I said we... should go out on a date..." Stella repeated, with the redness on her face intensifying.

"A what? A Da... da... da... da... da..."

"W-well, it's only the two of us... so... I thought we could... uh... c...continue where we left off... last... night..."

"...Erm... Uhhh..." Davis scratched his head lightly, contemplating over his situation. It was only the two of them... with the exception of the vendors in the castle and other on-lookers within the huge royal home. Since Davis was only close to his friends, who are all away in an important duty, nobody would hinder him with his 'date' with Stella. "... Wh... what the heck. Sure, I'll take you out on a date." Davis said with a confident smile, which was a bit conflicting with the blush ion his face.

"R...really?"

"Yeah. I figured since we have nothing to do while they're gone, we might as well enjoy ourselves."

Ah... Great!" Stella said cheerfully, dashing towards Davis's direction and immediately took Davis's arm and wrapped it around herself.

A bit surprised, Davis allowed the female warrior to snuggle under his arm. "Well, how 'bout we take a stroll around the shopping area of the castle? I bet you've got things you'd like to see there."

"Sure!"

The two walked off, with Stella still under Davis's arm and headed for their destination. upon arrival, the first thing they saw was an array of shops and stores, selling all kinds of goods. Looking left and right, Stella scanned the wares every store was selling. But her attention was quickly taken by the seemingly big circle in front of her, with a woman beside it; it was like a standing disc of wind in a slow, spiral motion. What's that?" Stella asked her 'date'.

"That?" Davis faced the direction Stella was facing. "Oh, that's the dimensional gate. It's the place to go to to get to where you want to go. Tomoe and the others went there to get your memories. And that's also the place where they'll appear once they get your memories back."

Just as Davis finished his explanation, someone appeared through the gate, none other that Laharl and the others.

"Oh! Speak of the devil!" Davis said as he saw Tomoe appear.

"We're back with..." Tomoe paused with her sentence, and her face showed a rather surprised look.

"Hm?" Davis made a confused hum at Tomoe's weird reaction. Oddly, Tomoe was looking between the gap with Stella and Davis. Davis looked beside him, and noticed that his arm was still around Stella. Davis sweatdropped. "...Oh... Uhhh..."

Why were they back so early? Well...

Flashback to Tomoe's area...

At the area of challenge...

The thief was sitting on a broken old stone pillar, swinging her leg from boredom with her spear planted at the ground beside her. Suddenly, a bright light emitted behind her. "Well, it's about time you got he-" The thief's sentence was cut short when she saw the young overlord and her infamous vassal. behind the two was Selena, Tomoe, and Flare. "Wh-WHAT ARE THEY DOI- eep!" The thief jumped, dodging a ball of light Laharl simply flung towards her direction and destroyed the pillar where the thief was, as well as obliterating her spear in the process.

"H-Hey! Who said he could come?!" The thief complained.

"You didn't say they couldn't come." Tomoe retorted.

Flare joined in, sticking her tongue out towards the thief.

The thief growled. "Well, then I guess you don't care if I BREAK THIS!" the thief showed, showing them a sphere of light levitating above her hands, most likely to be Stella's memories.

"... Go ahead then." Laharl spoke.

"...H-huh?"

"You break that..." Laharl opened both his palms and reached for the sky. Then, from out of nowhere, numerous balls of light appeared, levitating; twas nothing less than Laharl's famous 'Overlord's Wrath'. "...And you're dead."

"Eep!"

"Besides, All I've got to do is train my servant to make her as good as before. I won't really lose much." Laharl said, not taking her pupil's reactions to heart, which was rather sour; they do, after all, cherish Stella as a true friend. her losing her memories would not be the same. Laharl sighed. "...But my OTHER srvants would prefer it if you give that back... So I'd do that if I were you."

"OK OK OK! Just make those things go away already!" The thief pleaded.

"What? Giving up already? I was expecting you to put up more of a fight... oh well..." Etna shrugged.

"What?! Me?! Take on HIM?! I'm not a moron! I'll get killed!"

"Hmph. Well, at least you know." Laharl said, acting all proud with his nose getting longer.

"Anyways, we'd like to get that off your hands now." Etna casually approached the thief and simply took the sphere from her."

"Uuu~..." the thief sulked "...This sucks..."

"Now then...Time to take out the trash." Laharl spoke again, charging his floating balls of light.

"Eh? EEEH?!" B-b-but I thought you'd... Oooohhh..." The thief began to tear up, now realizing the fate that fell upon her sister.

Etna observed from the sidelines with a stern expression. "...Say, prince..."

"What? Can't you see I'm busy?"

"...Maybe you should just turn her into one of your vassals?"

"Huh?!" Everyone spoke the same word.

As if responding to Etna's suggestion, Laharl unsummoned the balls of light, bringing relief to the thief. "Hmmm... What makes you think we can trust her?" Laharl questioned his vassal.

"I don't." Etna replied bluntly. "But it wouldn't hurt to try."

"Yes it will." Laharl, Selena, and Tomoe spoke at the same time, sweatdropping.

"Oh, don't sweat the minor details."

"MINOR detail?!" Laharl quoted with an angry vein popping out. As if having no choice, Laharl merely sighed and shrugged and face the thief. "Well? What's it gonna be? You joining, or 'this'.?" Laharl questioned, while holding one more ball of light.

"Joining you, joining you!" The thief quickly replied, repeating her sentence.

"Well THAT was quick. And just in time for breakfast too."Flare commented.

Tomoe smiled. "C'mon. We should get home."

"Oh, and um, since it's my rest day today, can I go over to Aramis's house?"

"Oh? Alright then... but make sure you two don't do anything indecent now."

Flare blushed "W-we know that! And we're only friends! B-besides, shouldn't you worry more about you and sir Davis?"

Tomoe's eyes widened and her cheeks turned deep red. "Wh- I didn't... But I only meant... Wait, you..."

"Come on, Lady Tomoe! You need to advance before miss Stella could nab sir Davis by the throat! I mean, c'mon! She doesn't even have her memories, yet she's able to sleep with Sir Davis in a single night's work! And she's not even trying!"

Tomoe practically got stones at Flare's statement of Stella 'SLEEPING' with Davis.

"Ummm... Lady Tomoe?" Flare called after seeing the unresponsive martial artist.

"I-it's nothing! And you shouldn't be knowing this kind of stuff!"

"Then, shouldn't you already know this kind of stuff by now?" Flare retorted pout.

"A-alright, little missy. I think you should be heading over to your little friend's house before I change my mind."

"Aah! Changing the subject! No fair!"

Tomoe giggled. "Come on. We should be going. I'll take you to the gate."

End of Flashback...

"...Ummmmm... " Davis was stumped; he didn't know whether to ask WHY Tomoe was there, or if he should straighten out the fact about why his arm was around the female warrior.

But before he could even talk, a fist typically lands right onto Davis's nose.

"Eep!" Stella yelped. "Wa-wait! I-it's not what you think!"

"Oh, then do tell us of the situation." Selena, who suddenly appeared before them, interrupted with her usual smile still in place.

"Forget it. Just give Stella her memories." Tomoe sighed as she told the archer.

Promptly, Selena went for her back pocket and showed a glowing orb that seemed to levitate from her hand.

"Ah... my memories..." Stella gawked over the orb with anticipation.

"Ngggg... go ahead Stella. Take it." Davis told the female warrior with a smile... while rubbing his still-aching nose.

Stella nodded and cautiously approached the orb, ever so slowly...

"...It won't bite, so please hurry and take it." Said Selena, losing her patience.

"Eee! So-sorry!" Stella yelped and accelerated her pace. With the orb now at an arm's reach, Stella's hand slowly stretched for the floating sphere. But as Stella was about to touch it, the orb suddenly levitated at a higher level, just in front of Stella's face. a Bit shocked, Stella failed to notice the orb disappearing into her head. The light quickly faded, and the female warrior's knees began to buckle and eventually fell.

"Whoa!" Davis exclaimed, subconsciously reaching out to Stella. "Stella! You okay?" Davis spoke as he held onto Stella's shoulder, which Davis noticed to be slightly trembling.

"Ugh... *hic*" Stella cried, tears streaming down her cheeks... Her memories... her precious memories, all streaming into her mind like a fast-forwarding movie; her mother's love... her instructor's teachings...her days as a liebe... the days of her training... her experiences with boys... ... ... Her meeting with the group, her quarrel with Tomoe, her sad loss... and lastly... ... ... ...

Davis still held Stella by her shoulder as he remained beside the female warrior, who was still sobbing. But Davis suddenly jerked in surprise as Stella slowly stood from her kneeling position.

Sniffing, Stella wore a smile that was both happy AND sad at the same time. "... Thanks, guys... I'll be alright... I want to be alone for now..." ...It was the only thing Stella said, and merely walked off with the last tear falling down her cheeks.

The group merely watched, with Davis sighing.

"... Is it always like this here?" The thief spoke.

Hearing the familiarly hateful voice, Davis quickly turned his face towards the source and found the thief. "Wha- WHAT IS SHE DOING HERE?!"

"Whoa, slow down, cowboy. I ain't here for trouble. I'm on your side now."

"What?! The hell?! You expect us to trust you?!"

"Don't look at me. Ask that red-headed demon with the prinnies. SHE'S the one who suggested I join. I thought I was a goner till she saved my sorry butt back there."

"Tch... whatever..." Davis spat. "...Hey, where's Flare?"

"It's her rest day today so she went to Aramis's house."

"...I see..." Davis heaved a big sigh.

The thief pondered. "...Flare? You mean that little brat that was with... EEP!" The thief shrieked when both Tomoe and Davis shot her an intimidating glare. "Sh-shutting up now..."

Davis heaved another big sigh. "...Screw this... I'm going out..."

Outside of the castle...

It was morning, and despite the weak rays of the sun, it was as hot as summer. Stella stood under a big tree for some shade; the very same tree she took refuge under when she lost her memories. She still had tears streaming down her cheeks, but had a smile on her face. "...You know, now that I got my memories back... Everything seems so... valuable to me now..." Stella said, detecting a presence behind her, knowing full well with who it was "...Sounds corny, huh?"

"...Not really..." Davis answered.

Stella faced the male warrior, and showed him a sad smile with tears running sown her blushing cheeks. "...Thank you, Davis... for everything yesterday."

Davis's eyes widened with disbelief. "Y... you remember?!" Davis blushed.

Stella giggled. "Of course, silly. My memories didn't overwrite what happened yesterday... including last night..." Stella's eyes turned away with a blush.

Davis gulped.

Suddenly, Stella tackled the male warrior with all her weight and embraced him. Thanks to Davis's physique, she was light. But due to his surprise, he was slightly sent backward from quick loss of balance. Stella held on, snuggling her face at the male warrior's masculine chest.

"Wha? Wha? Wha?!" Davis stuttered, with his face completely red. There, literally under hos nose, was the female warrior, embracing him like there was no tomorrow. Davis found nothing wrong with hugging back, so he shyly wrapped his arms around the seemingly frail-looking female warrior...

"Hmmm..." Stella responded with the male warrior's embrace, lightly squirming under Davis's arms, basking in the moment. "...Davis..."

"..Yeah?"

"... Will you choose me?"

...Davis choked as very thought in his head paused at Stella's question; only one thing went through his mind at what Stella meant... "H-how did-?!"

"Flare's mouth slipped." Stella interrupted, happily remembering when Tomoe and Flare reunited and Flare accidentally blurted out about 'Davis choosing'. A smirk rose onto Stella's lips, which was hidden under Davis's chest.

"Wha... HAH?! Y... you-"

"It's okay..."

"H-huh?"

"If it means I've got a chance, it's alright... So..." Stella lifted her face, showing a blush in her cheeks. "... Let me help you decide."

"..Eh?"

Before Davis could react, Stella's hand cupped Davis's cheek... and planted her lips onto his in a kiss. It was instantaneous, but gentle at he same time. The event was fast... but it was as if it went in slow-motion; the soft-luscious lips of the 'girl' in front of him felt, and even tasted so good... the captivating sensation was felt so good to Davis that it was all he was thinking about; Davis could've even swore he heard Stella moan, which made Davis all the more excited.

Their kiss lasted for several seconds, and eventually separated from each other. And just as his their lips parted ways, Davis's face widened as reason finally took control in his head.

Stella smirked as she giggled. "Now THAT'S a proper kiss..." Stella said, reminding Davis of their "First time".

David blushed even more at Stella's words.

Stella released herself from Davs's arms and walked past him.

Davis's eyes followed the female warrior as she walked away... but with the direction Stella was heading, his attention quickly shifted to the person Stella was about to pass... a person who saw everything that took place just now... Davis showed an expression of horror...

There, behind them all that time, was Tomoe, who had a dumb-founded expression.

before passing the dumb-struck martial artist, Stella whispered... "Sorry, Tomoe... All's fair in love and war..." Stella took a few steps, passing Tomoe... "...I'm not giving up that easily..." Stella spoke without even turning around to face her rival.

Tomoe just stood there, taking every word Stella let out.

Stella stretched her arms up into the sky. "Aaah... What a good morning..." And with that, Stella walked away with a bright smile on her face.

The silhouette of the female warrior disappeared from the male warrior's view, and was left with a shocked martial artist.

But it was no time for jokes; this issue was in regards to having a relationship, which is obviously not something to take lightly. Tomoe finally admitted that she's in love with Davis, but has not yet told this in front of him yet... She never took the chance, always regarding her 'duties' over all else. Now the tables have turned; it was Tomoe who was now in the back seat...

"T...Tomoe..." Davis approached the stunned martial artist.

"...Davis..." Tomoe spoke back, looking rater down-cast... "...If you're going to pursue a relationship, you should remember..." Tomoe looked at Davis eye-to-eye. "... Do not forget your duties... You're a warrior of Master Laharl..." ...And with that, Tomoe walked past the male warrior, with the shadow of her hair covering the sad expression of her eyes.

"W-wait... Tomoe..." Davis weakly spoke, still clueless of what to say.

"Please don't refer to me on that kind of thing... I... Don't know anything of it... Besides, it would only be a hindrance to my duties..."

Davis flinched at Tomoe's words. "...Is.... that what you really think?"

Tomoe didn't respond, and just walked away.

Davis could merely watch as Tomoe made a turn and disappeared from his sights.

"...This is for the better... this is how it should be..." Tomoe told herself... "With this, everyone's happy... yet..." Tomoe held her chest, as if in pain. "...What is this...? This... heavy... Ugh..." A tear ran down her cheeks. A bit surprised, Tomoe wiped off the flowing tear "...No... No... I shouldn't be selfish... I shouldn't..." Tomoe kept telling herself... all while falling down on her knees and sobbing in secrecy...

...But secrecy isn't the right word to describe it; unbeknownst to the martial artist, behind her was the thief, looking at her miserable state. Only a few inches away, The thief remained undetected by Tomoe's senses; all thanks to her woes. Silently, the thief took out a hidden dagger behind her, slowly raised it and aimed for the unsuspecting martial artist. All that's left is to give the killing blow. "(...she's that down in the dumps that she can't even notice me...?)" The thief questioned herself inwardly. Taking a few-second pause, The thief sheathed her dagger and turned around and walked away, STILL unnoticed by the martial artist. "(...A thief's specialty is stealth... but you should've at least noticed me behind you in that distance... you're really just that down...)" The thief spoke inwardly... But just as The thief left her martial artist alone, there she saw Selena, with her usual smile. "Hey, are you crazy?! If you saw what I was about to do just now, why didn't you do anything?!"

Selena giggled. "But you DIDN'T do anything."

"W...Well yeah... uh.. what's that behi... oh..." The thief sweatdropped at what she saw; behind Selena, was a single arrow, with green liquid freshly dripping.

"As you an see, I WAS planning on doing something." Selena said with her usual smile still there.

"Um... yeah... (C...crap, good thing I didn't really do it...) u-um.. I... I guess I should be going now... Um..."

"Selena..."

"Huh?"

"You may refer to me as Selena."

At that instant, the devilish smile on the archer suddenly turned gentle in the eyes of the Thief. She didn't even notice that she was gawking at the archer.

"...Um... and your name is...?"

"Ah, i-it's Robin."

"Robin it is." Selena extended her hand, offering to shake, which the thief gladly accepted. "I hope we get along well." Selena smiled cheerfully.

"Um, ditto."

"...Otherwise..." The arrow behind Selena suddenly sparkled in the eyes of the thief.

Robin gulped as she sweatdropped.

"Ah, good morning, Tomoe."

"Eh?" The thief turned around and found a down-cast Tomoe, with her hair hiding her eyes. "Uh, yo. Um, you-"

"-Try that little trick back there again and trust me; I. Will. KILL you..." Tomoe threatened in a low voice, walking past Robin and disappearing from their sights.

Robin was stumped, with the expression of shock glued to her face.

Selena giggled "Well, guess you were lucky." Selena told the thief with her usual smile and walked away, leaving the still stumped thief.


Davis: *looks at Author menacingly*

Author: D-don't look at me like that! This is part of the story!

Flare: *looks at Author suspiciously*

Author: Flare too?!

Flare: When are you gonna make Lady Tomoe kiss Davis?

Davis and Author: WHAT?!

Davis: *Glares at Author with killing intent*

Author: FL-FLARE, YOU SHOULDN'T SAY THINGS LIKE THAT!!!

Davis: BASTARD! You're planning me and Tomoe to... to...

Author: N-now now, Davis. You're temper...

Davis: YOU MADE ME WHO I AM, YOU MORON! AND I THOUGHT THIS WAS A ONE-SIDED ROMANCE FIC?! HOW COME I'VE BEEN KISSING ONE GIRL TOO MANY?!

Author: Th-think about it! Those were stolen kisses! None of them took your consent!

Davis: SO?! IT'S STILL A KISS! AND YOU CHOREOGRAPHED IT!

Author: Err... I think you meant wrote.

Davis: WHATEVER!!!

Flare: ...wait...

*Both looks at Flare*

Flare: ...Then... would Lady Tomoe... also...

Davis: *BLUSHES HARD*

Author: uhhh... Davis... It ain't what you think-

Davis: Shut it... If anything happens... you die...

Author: T_T

Flare: *Looks at Davis* hmmm...

Davis: Hm? What's wrong Fla- mmm!

Flare: Hmmm *kisses Davis*

Author: ... whoa... should've seen that commin.

Flare: *brakes the kiss* Teehee! Stole a kiss ^_^

Davis: O_O :o

Author: Ummm... Phedophile?

Davis: DIIIIIIEEEEEE!!! *runs after Author with axe on hand*

Author: Hiieee! *runs away*