Chapter XXXVIII – Threats and Acceptance

"Well, well, well. Haven't you become the strapping young lad?"

"…!" He flinched as he realised he couldn't move. "What…? When did you…?!"
"Oh? The Midnight Tigress won't reveal her secrets to anyone, even to someone as special as you… the last surviving Zoren." She came up close and pinned him down further by sitting on his chest casually.

"Kknnn! Get off me!" Xekuto gasped as he felt her lick the side of his neck, seemingly savouring his struggling.

"You're so different to when I first saw you. Perhaps I will spare you… given how charming you've become." She fingered his short, silver hair.

"Stop it…" Xekuto fixed her with a penetrating stare. "I would rather die than become your personal toy."

"Hehe… you're no fun." She giggled.

"What did you…do to me?!"He glared and choked slightly as he was forced back by his head and Tigress tightened on the grip around his throat.

"I fed you something that causes paralysis for a good hour." She murmured and traced a finger down his jawline with her free hand.

"Kkkn...!" He could barely breathe, and felt his heart hammering away at his chest and she neared him again. His brain was screaming in fury and demanding air.

"You got message that another Zoren was alive, correct? Well, those were all lies." She sneered as her iron grip secured itself even more and a trail of saliva dripped down his mouth due to lack of oxygen.

She suddenly let go and drew back. Xekuto gulped in large amounts of air and coughed fitfully.

"I just wanted some special moments with you. How sad. You honestly believed me when I said it?" Her ice blue eyes now had slits for pupils. "You're going to miss your girlfriend's trial over nothing."

"Xekuto…hey, Xekuto?"

He flinched and was thrown back into reality. Mia's hand was on his cheek, softly slapping it. "You okay?" She asked with concern plain on her face.

"Y-yeah…" He managed a smile and cupped her hand in his, leaning into it slightly and causing her to blush. "I was just recounting a bad memory, that's all."

"O-Oh… alright."

"I'm glad you distracted me from it, it was about to get really ugly." And he unexpectedly turned his face to kiss the palm of her hand.

Mia blinked and gave a small gasp of pleasant surprise as his warm lips traced a line down her life line. He had one eye closed and the other gazing at her. She whipped her head backwards, making sure Diego wasn't in the room.

"Hmm? Did you not want me to show you affection?"

"A-ah! No, that's not what I meant!" Mia became flustered at once and she bit her lip, frowning slightly.

Xekuto chuckled softly, loving this awkward side of her. He placed her still outstretched hand down and over the left side of his chest.

"X-Xekuto…?"

"Do you feel that?" He asked quietly.

Mia nodded silently and knew her face was now extremely red, but she couldn't seem to look away from his alluring gaze.

"The reason why that heart is still beating… is because you're here and alive, Mia." He said sincerely and sighed. "I want to thank you for that."

"Wh-what are you saying… Xekuto…?" She stammered but didn't want to pull that hand away and continued to feel that distant tremor which was so close in her ears. "D-Don't put it that way… You shouldn't only live for my sake."

"Weren't you listening to Shinume? The whole reason for my existence is to make sure that you are safe." He replied, his tone very serious.

Mia nodded slowly, forcing herself to not point out that the actual reason for Xekuto existing was as a source of entertainment for the beastly girl but she knew better than to say something that insensitive and stupid.

"Does… Diego know yet?"

Mia was still getting used to the fact that Xekuto was now addressing her mentor through first name and shook her head with her eyes closed. "Though… he does suspect something for sure."

"Do you want to be the one to tell him?"

"He can find out himself when the time comes." Mia muttered, her eyes narrowing slightly. It seemed as if she still hadn't forgiven the coffee addict of his actions in the past hour.

Xekuto couldn't blame her. She hadn't even acknowledged his presence for a second since the intrusion in his heart had been exorcised.

"It wasn't his fault, Mia." The silver haired attorney found the need to defend him. "He was semi-possessed, after all."

"That's not the root cause. It only happened because he accepted the deal in the first place." Mia said hauntingly back, the hand over Xekuto's chest tightening on his clothes slightly. Her eyes were soon swimming in tears.

"What would have happened if he had actually pulled the trigger whilst it was still on your forehead?! I can't BELIEVE you would actually pull that weapon towards your brain, what were you thinking?!" She cried out loudly, her hand now a fist and gripping his lapel tightly. "Y-you…IDIOT, Xekuto!"

"Mia…" His gaze softened and he looked away from her. There was a slight pause, and then he murmured.

"I trust the Diego Armando in my heart. I knew he would pull away. If he hadn't, then nothing could have stopped him from killing me."

"S-Still…to do such a th-thing…" She couldn't handle all of this drama and sagged onto him, breathing heavily. "How could he… Even I don't trust him that much… and I don't care even if he was my lover in a previous world… I hate him… I hate him with every inch of my heart right now, Xekuto…" She couldn't find the strength to be angry at him and instead began to sob.

He wrapped his arms tightly around her, ignoring the sharp pain in his stomach as she leaned into him.

"He tried to kill you…he tried to put a bloody bullet into your HEART. I'm never going to forgive him… never."

"Mia… please. You have to calm down." Xekuto's voice became stony and grating, silencing Mia completely. "Shinume can easily manipulate thought processes. You heard her say it yourself, didn't you? She can make the best of friends end each other's lives with a snap of her fingers. It wasn't Diego's fault. You have to understand that."

"F-Fine… But I'm still not speaking to him for another week at least." She said grudgingly and continued to lean onto him.

Xekuto smiled and nuzzled her forehead gently, causing her to become flustered once more.

"Oh, that's right." She managed, laughing softly in relief and drew back to gaze fondly at him.

"We're… a couple now, right?"

"You've…what…I…what?!" Lana stared at Gant, her eyes so wide that her pupils were literally shaking. "You….no…. you can't have."

"It's exactly as you've heard it, Ms. Skye." Gant sneered, clearly enjoying seeing Lana in such a state of panic. "I have implanted a tracker and remote taser into Mia Fey's scarf. They are so minute that that cannot be seen. I notice she wears this scarf all the time, so it should be perfectly fine to assume that it will never leave her side."

Lana clutched her heart, staggering back as Gant neared her. She felt as if she would throw up. "Wh-what… what do you want with Mia?!" She transitioned from fear to uncontrollable anger at once. Her eyes were glaring at him with all the fury in her heart. "How dare you… how dare you do this to Mia?!"

"Now, now. Nothing will befall Ms. Fey as long as you do your part of the compromise." Gant tugged on a stray strand of his white and grey hair, still snickering. "As long you avoid her and do everything I say, she will be fine. Otherwise…" He fished out of his pocket a small remote with a red button in the middle of it. "I press this button and… we can't guarantee Ms. Mia Fey will be still breathing by the time you reach her."

Lana dug the nails into her palms so hard that she actually did begin bleeding. She was sweating furiously and shaking fitfully.

"Oh hoh… you really do care for Ms. Mia, don't you?" Gant walked up to Lana and suddenly grabbed her by the jaw, causing her to flinch. The chief prosecutor then lowered his grip to her throat.

He lifted her up slightly so that her feet were dangling a few centimetres above the floor.

Lana struggled frantically, gasping desperately for air.

Gant grinned, a glint in his eye.

"Today will be written down in history. The day that the legendary duo – Daemon Gant and Lana Skye will make their official debut." He let Lana fall to the floor, where she lay, coughing wheezily.

"Not a single person that exists will not know our name… We will take the prosecutor's brigade and change it to our liking for good... Isn't that right…?"

He forced Lana's head down sideways with his shoe, causing her to cry out in pain.

"Ms. Skye…?"

"Y-Yes…Chief G-Gant." Tears were dripping out of her diluted teal eyes as she tasted blood in her cut lip and the pain that was forcing her skull into the ground. "I will do wh-whatever you desire… just promise me…do not hurt Mia…" And with those last words, Lana Skye passed out on the floor of her own office.

"Well, that certainly didn't last long. Tch, I should've known." Tigress glared at the retreating figure of Diego Armando heading wearily back to his apartment, a hand still at his chest.

"Nothing can be accomplished successfully unless I do it all myself. Guess I will be paying a special visit to Xekuto Zoren then." She giggled and put on her black gloves.

"I am looking forward to this…" She traced a line along his neck in a photograph of the silver haired attorney as if to slit his throat. "Never knew he would grow up to be so mature and handsome…"

The whip was brought to the ground with a loud snap. And the elder of the two sisters smiled with delight.

"Still in top shape, I see. Good."

She turned to face Mia's open suitcase, still lying innocently in her room after she'd disappeared.

"I will be needing this… to last for at least an hour."