Okay, here's where we start deviating from the game's story a bit more. Btw, never forget that Brooke/Angel is actually a monster. And monsters are naturally bloodthirsty. Why are they? Eh, who knows... Also, monsters do weird shit when they're mad lol. Ah, so this chapter goes from weird/funny to serious then fluffy real quick haha. This is one of those "well that escalated quickly!" moments. This is basically like 3 small chapters in one.

They had not encountered or heard from Brooke the next day until sometime after school when she met them at the Freedom Pals base. She did not speak to anyone and looked very stone-faced and annoyed the entire time Timmy was briefing them on the day's missions. They were still trying to locate the rest of the missing cats in town and were working on figuring out who was truly behind the mess. Much to Brooke's annoyance, she was paired with Mysterion on a mission to gather intel around the park. Normally, she might have enjoyed it, if it weren't for the fact that she was still angry with him over the previous night's occurrences. Darren was also to accompany them.

He felt pretty awkward about it, though, as Brooke did not speak much the entire time they walked to the park, but he could tell she was angry. She seemed to be purposefully avoiding talking to Mysterion in particular, and also refused to look at him. Darren could tell that it was beginning to make Mysterion antsy.

"All right," Mysterion said suddenly. Brooke and Darren stopped, though Brooke did not turn around. "Angel are – are you, like, mad at me?"

"Oh god," Darren muttered.

She turned her head to leer at him over her shoulder. "What makes you think that?" she hissed through her teeth.

He looked a little frightened now. "Er, well, you kind of sacrificed me to your monster aunt last night and got me killed. I mean, what'd you do that for?"

"Are you kidding me?!" She turned on him. "Of course I'm mad!"

"Uh," Darren pointed over at something. "I'm just gonna go…somewhere else."

"B-But why?!" Mysterion took a step back as she got closer, leaning into his face.

"You fucking blew yourself up!"

"THAT'S why you're mad?!"

"YES!"

"But then YOU killed me!"

"Shut up!" She roughly grabbed his wrist and pulled him forward.

"OW! Did you just fucking BITE me?! What the hell?!"

She had bitten her fangs down on his wrist, drawing blood, then roughly pushed him away.

"What was that for?!"

"I thought you understood what trouble it was to talk to my unreasonable uncle and get him to slack off on you! But then you go and do something so fucking STUPID like that!"

"O-Oh…fuck. I –"

"And you totally had enough time to drop it and run or throw it! Why did you just stand there like a fucking moron?!"

"I – The fuse was longer than I thought it was…"

"STILL!"

"Angel, I – I'm sorry. I just – Angel?"

Brooke faltered for a moment, stumbling to the side but catching herself. She shook her head a little and chuckled quietly. "You dummy…"

"Uh, are you okay?"

She suddenly seemed dizzy and drunk and looked tired but a bit euphoric. She went to move towards him again but almost seemed like she tripped, allowing herself to lean against him. He had to brace himself so as not to fall with her. "Damn," she sighed in his ear.

"W-What? What's wrong?"

"I bit you…"

"Yeah, I know!"

She chuckled. "I forgot because I don't drink it… Human blood makes monsters act funny."

"What? Are – Are you, like, high right now or something?"

"Something…" She smirked and looked up at him with sleepy eyes. Before he had realized what was happening, she had him pinned to the ground on his back, holding him down by his wrists and straddling his hips.

"A-Angel!" He was surprised. "Er, uhm, what – what are you doing?"

"Nothing…" She tilted her head and smiled down at him. "Why? Are you scared?"

He blinked. "I – I'm both terrified and kind of turned on at the same time," he admitted.

She grinned mischievously, showing her teeth. "I like both of those things."

"I only like one."

She leaned closer and he gulped. "Heh, why are you scared?"

"You, uh, were just really mad at me earlier."

"Aw," she spoke sweetly. "You don't have to be afraid of me…"

"I don't?" His voice squeaked a little and he cleared his throat. "Er, I mean, really? But you threw me into the mouth of a giant monster last night."

"You deserved it."

He winced.

"That one time… You begged me to talk to my uncle to see if he would give you a break, but then, after all that trouble, and always worrying about you, you just go and do something stupid anyway."

"I -"

She glanced away, looking sad all of a sudden. "You just don't get it… You think you'll always come back, but what if you don't?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Desmond didn't…"

He tensed, remembering the Blood Ball all of a sudden. "That's… I'm sorry…"

She closed her eyes, and for a moment she looked like she was going to fall asleep. Then, she opened them and smirked at him. He swallowed nervously as she leaned closer.

"What are you –" his breath caught in his throat. He could feel her lips press and move against his neck. "Oh, fuck…" his voice faltered at the wave of ecstasy that passed through him and he shivered. He clenched his fists and sighed out a shaky breath as she continued, shutting his eyes and stretching his neck to give her more access. She complied, slowly trailing up to the spot just below his ear and teasing him with her teeth. He squirmed a bit under her, trying to reposition himself.

She smiled and pressed a long kiss to his cheek. "You're being really cute…" She released his left wrist and brought her hand over, slipping it into his hood and pushing her fingers through his hair. "Mysterion," she laughed. "Kenny…"

He shivered again. "Mm?"

"Do you want a real kiss?"

His eyes widened. "What? Are – Are you serious?" His voice had returned to normal.

"Of course, dummy." She trailed the tips of her fingers down along his cheek and jaw.

"O-Oh…okay…" He held his breath as she moved her face closer and cocked her head to one side. She seemed to be teasing him again, moving very slowly and stopping with her lips so close to his that he could feel the heat from them. He accidentally let out a small whimper and she smirked.

"Oh, shit!"

They jumped up, Brooke more calmly than him, at the voice. He cleared his throat and brought back his alter ego's gruff voice. "D-D-Darren! Er, I mean, Butthole – ButtLord – Uh, w-what – what are you doing?"

"Uhhh, apparently interrupting something really intense," he replied.

"Yeah," Brooke leered sleepily at him then giggled.

"Um, is she okay?"

"Er," Mysterion glanced around, his face searing with heat. He had completely forgotten that they were totally outside in the middle of a public place. "She, uh, she's acting kind of weird right now. She bit me and got some of my blood."

"Oh, Lucy told me once about that and – Wait, why did she bite you?" He thought to what he had just walked over to. "Eh…n-never mind. Anyways, if she's high off that Blood Lust thing Lucy called it, then we should probably get her home. Otherwise…um, weird stuff might happen."

"R-Right! Right. Yeah."

"Pfft, I'm fine!" Brooke went to take a step and tripped over her other foot, almost falling face-first onto the cement.

"N-No, no," Darren quickly caught her and began to lead her away. "Come on."

"Uh," Mysterion fixed his hood, refusing to make eye contact with Darren. "I, uhm, y-you go ahead. I gotta…take care of something. I'll meet you later." He hurried away.

"Sure," Darren muttered. "Just leave ME to drag her home…"

.

With a bit of effort, as she kept trying to wander off, Darren managed to lead Brooke all the way to her house. He decided that it would be best to leave her with Lucy, so he led her around into the backyard and over to the shed. He knocked on the door but there was no answer, so he tested the doorknob and found it unlocked. Inside, Lucy was looking at something under a strange microscope with odd little tools and needles pointed at the slide on the microscope's stage.

"Oh, for FUCKS SAKE!" Lucy shouted loudly.

Darren froze, staring wide-eyed. "L-Lucy?!"

"Oh!" She spun around, startled, then began to fix her hair. "Ahem, er, D-Darren… I'm…a bit busy at the moment."

"Yeah…b-but, uh, Brooke got some of Kenny's blood and now she's acting…weird." He glanced over at the winged girl tapping on the glass of a cage in the corner.

"Oh…" She smiled sleepily at the colorfully striped snake that peered out at her from its hiding spot. "Heyyy little noodle…" She giggled. "You wouldn't BELIEVE what I heard from the crow today."

"Oh dear," Lucy sighed. "Princess! What in the world did you drink Kenneth's blood for?!"

Brooke looked back at her. "I didn't. I bit him."

She made a face then sighed again. "Ugh, thank you, Darren. I'll handle it from here."

"Uh, right. See you later." He left.

"All right," Lucy said. "Come now, Princess. Let's get you inside of the house. Who knows what you'll mess with or break while you're intoxicated…"

"I only had a drop," she slurred.

"Yes, well, a drop too many, I'd say. Come on."

Brooke groaned but followed her anyway. She was no longer holding her wings up or folded, so they were dragging along the ground behind her, their heat leaving a melted trail in the snow and steaming. Lucy opened the glass sliding door and stepped aside for her to go first. Brooke's wings got caught on the doorframe, though, and she looked annoyed. After a few attempts at pulling them through, Lucy sighed and stepped around her to pick them up.

"All right, up the stairs, now."

"UGHHHH!" Brooke slumped forward on the steps, laying in an odd position for a moment before regretfully dragging herself up them.

Lucy watched her stop on the floor in the hall. "Ugh, come now!" She went to open the door to Brooke's room then squeaked a little when she turned to find that the other girl had vanished. "What in the –"

"Uhh, Lucy…" Jake's voice called from the other room.

She entered to find Brooke climbing into the bed on top of him. "Brooke!"

Brooke smiled down at the boy. "Hey."

"Uh, hey." He looked confused but was smiling nonetheless. "Those're some, uh, really big wings."

"I think they're warmer than usual," she said and suddenly flopped onto her side next to him, causing the bed to bounce a little. Her right wing was bunched up under her, while her left was splayed out over Jake's body.

"Er, yeah, they're pretty warm." He pulled himself up a little. "'s like a space heater…"

"Honestly, Princess!" Lucy stomped over to them. "You can't just climb all over him, he's sick! Get up and go to your own bed!"

"Noooo," she groaned, burying her face into the side of Jake's arm. "Tired…sleep."

"In your OWN bed!"

Jake chuckled. "Aw, I don't mind." He blushed a little and looked away. "Uh, besides…I was gettin' kinda lonely anyways."

Lucy sighed once more. "Fine. She seems to truly be falling asleep now anyway. Just…make sure she doesn't leave until she's fully rested."

"I hope you're not expecting me to stop her if she tries."

"Of course not, but still…" She watched Brooke for a moment before officially deciding to leave her there. "All right. I must get back to my research. Message or call me if she causes trouble."

"Will do." He gave her a lazy salute and watched her leave. "So," he turned back to Brooke, "what's got you actin' so funny?"

She mumbled something inaudible, paused, then said, "Blood."

"That's weird," he stated. She edged closer to him and placed her arm over his chest, grabbing his other shoulder, then relaxed with a sigh. Jake chuckled and kissed her head. "Okay. Have a good nap, sis."

...

Darren had met up with several of the other boys outside of the community center after their missions. Mysterion, Cartman, Kyle, and Stan. "Oh, look," Cartman said. "The boys are back in town."

"Dude, you guys," Stan was searching around frantically for something. "You gotta help me!"

"What's going on?" Darren asked.

"Toolshed lost his power drill," Kyle told him.

"Oh no! What's Toolshed without his power drill!"

Stan turned on him. "Dude, seriously! That's my dad's! I'm gonna be in so much trouble if I don't find it!"

"All right, all right. Calm down."

"This is where I remember having it last," Stan said. "But I can't find it anywhere!"

"We'll just have to keep retracing your steps," Kyle said. "Don't worry, we'll – hey, whoa. Where's my kite?! It was literally on my back like two seconds ago!"

They heard a chuckling from a nearby tree and looked up to see what appeared to be some kind of racoon crouching on one of the lower boughs. It was carrying a large beige sack on its shoulders, holding onto a part that wrapped around its neck with little black paws. It grinned, looking down at them with mischievous blue eyes. "Too easy."

"It's a talking racoon!" Stan pointed. "Holy shit!"

"You guys see it too?" Darren looked relieved. "Oh, thank God."

"Racoon? Sure." It stood up and leaned against the trunk of the tree. "The proper term, though, is tanuki."

"Oh, so YOU'RE a tanuki," Mysterion said then turned to the others. "I read about these guys in a book I borrowed from Angel."

"I thought you only read titty magazines," Darren said, earning him a glare from the other boy.

"Yeah," Kyle said. "Lucy explained a little about them the other night." He shot the racoon a leer. "Are YOU the one who took my kite?"

"Heh, how'd you deduce that one?"

"What about my dad's power drill?" Stan asked.

"Hmm." The tanuki twisted around to rummage through his bag then pulled out the large kite.

"Hey!" Kyle snapped. "Give me that!"

"Sure thing." He dropped the kite down to him.

As Kyle caught it, it puffed smoke in his face and suddenly became a little green leaf. "What the – You jerk! Give me back my REAL kite!"

He chuckled at him. "Sorry, kid. That's not how it works, see? You want it back, you gotta trade something equal or better."

"But you STOLE IT!"

He shrugged. "Eyes on the prize, kid."

"You asshole!"

Cartman laughed at him, but quickly became blind to the humor of the situation once he noticed the tanuki fiddling with some silver claws. "HEY! My Coon claws!"

"Pretty sharp for a kid to be playing with." The claws suddenly puffed smoke and became leaves that he shoved into his bag. "None of you really had anything of value… Except the power tool. I suppose I could trade or sell that."

"No way," Stan said. "I need that! That belongs to my dad!"

"You're a Nether monster, right?" Kyle asked. "Give us our stuff back or we'll tell the Princess!"

"Ha! You think being all buddy-buddy with the Princess makes you immune? That's rich! Look, kid. Only people a tanuki won't steal from are other Nether monsters. She knows how it is."

"He's a Netherborn." Darren pointed at Mysterion. The other boys looked at him oddly, though Mysterion only winced a little. "I mean, he's not a monster, but still."

The tanuki snapped his fingers and pointed at Darren. "True. Which I why I didn't take anything from him."

"That's not fair," Cartman said. "He doesn't even have anything to take!"

"Fuck you, dude!"

The tanuki laughed. "Humans really are a riot. Never gets old."

Mysterion reached for something in his cape and produced a thick, leather-bound book with the shape of a Wechuge skull carved into the cover. "Angel let me borrow this translated copy…" He flipped through the book. "It's a tome. Like some kind of bestiary. Here it is. Tanuki." He showed them the page depicting a colored illustration of another tanuki. It was drawn slinking off on its hind legs, looking back over its shoulder, and hefting a large sack similar to that of the one in the tree.

"That's a pretty sweet book," Darren said.

"Yeah," he agreed. "It has all kinds of different monsters and animals in it. It explains their origins, anatomy, and behavior. Stuff like that. Apparently the original book is much, uh, taller, because it was written by Angel's mom."

"Does it say how to deal with this asshole's bullshit?" Cartman asked.

He skimmed through the pages and notes. "Mm… Oh. Yeah, it says that 'tanukis are playful but mischievous and stubborn. They never feel guilty about their thieving and relish in collecting things of value, be it of monetary value or other.' Hmm… Oh! 'They have, however, been known to trade some items for others of an equal or higher value. But will not return an item otherwise, and some items they will refuse to trade at all.'"

"Well that's just great!" Stan threw his arms up. "Hey! Tanuki! You got a name?"

"Oh," Darren pointed at a note. "'A tanuki has a generally friendly disposition, but is wary and rarely trusts others. Once befriended, however, they have proven to be valuable and undyingly loyal until given reason not to be. Once a tanuki's trust is lost, it can never be regained.' Huh, neat."

"Sure, I gotta name." He stood up straight and pointed to himself. "Name's Toni."

"So, Toni," Stan said. "What do you want in exchange for OUR stuff?"

He tapped his foot on the bough. "Hmm… Depends. What are you offering?"

They exchanged looks.

"Look," Kyle said. "Why don't you just tell us some things you want or need and we can go get them and trade you? Sound good?"

"Hm, I guess it would let me take a little break… Sure, kid. You've got yourself a deal. All right, let me think…" He tapped a little claw to his snout. "Well, I do need some medicine."

"Medicine? What kind of medicine?"

"Antibiotics, preferably. Maybe some pain killers. There aren't many good herbs around here."

The boys exchanged looks again. "Okay," Stan said. "What else?"

"Milk."

"Milk?"

Toni nodded. "Milk, powdered milk… Aw heck, just make it baby formula."

"Uh…okay?"

"What about for my claws?" Cartman asked. "Those are my last spares until my Amazon order comes in…"

"Hm… I suppose I could part with them for some diapers."

"Baby or adult?"

"Baby." He made a face. "They make adult diapers?"

"That's some pretty weird stuff," Darren remarked. "What do you want all of that for?"

"Yeah," Stan said. "What value does that stuff have? I mean, I get the medicine, but the other stuff?"

"Look, I didn't question why you guys are running around public wearing your Halloween clothes, so don't question me, okay. I have to go take care of something now, so when you guys get everything, meet me at the edge of that city called Locke, across from the Dairy Queen."

"Locke?!" Kyle jumped.

"Yeah. Now, go on! Shoo!" He disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Why didn't he take anything from you?" Stan asked.

Darren shrugged. "Probably because I literally have nothing on me."

.

The boys had split up for a while, Darren going with Stan, until they met up again at the Dairy Queen on the edge of town. Mysterion was already there, waiting across the street, when they arrived. The other side of the street was like entering a whole other world. The old, close-knit buildings loomed silently and lifeless, dull, gray, and cracked from neglect.

"Ah, you're here." Toni appeared with a poof on top of an old public mailbox. "You got the stuff?"

"Yes," Kyle said sternly. "We had to spend money on some of this crap." He shook a plastic bag full of medicine at him then walked over to show him the contents.

Toni peered over the mailbox to look. "Hm… That looks like it'll do. Let me check, first."

"No way!" Kyle pulled the bag away. "Give me my kite back first!"

Toni narrowed his eyes at him.

"You have to give him yours first," Mysterion told Kyle. "While I was waiting for you guys, I read the rest of the notes on tanukis. They don't trust people easily, but despite being thieves, they always stick to their word."

Kyle grunted but handed over the bag, which Toni took calmly and began to look through its contents. After deciding that it all seemed legit, he turned the entire bag into a large leaf and shoved it into the sack on his shoulders then pulled out another leaf and gave it to Kyle. The boy looked confused for a moment until it puffed smoke and suddenly he was holding his kite.

"My kite! Hey… This isn't just a leaf in disguise, is it?"

"Nah, that'd go against the tanuki code." He pulled out another leaf and it transformed into the yellow power drill that belonged to Stan's dad.

Stan quickly handed Toni the bag of formula he had bought and took the tool. Next, Cartman pushed over a large box of diapers. "What?" he asked at the others' expressions. "My Coon claws are totally worth these many diapers. Maybe more."

After giving them back their things and turning what they gave him into leaves that he stowed into his bag, Toni smiled at them and hefted the bag higher onto his shoulders. "All right. Good deal. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be taking my leave."

"Motherfucker," Cartman grunted at the joke.

Toni vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving a single leaf behind.

"Come on," Mysterion started walking further into Locke.

"Where are you going?" Stan asked, startled.

"Something's fishy about the deal he made with you guys. I want to see what he's up to in Locke. Stay here if you want." He slipped into a dark alley between some abandoned buildings, his cape flowing behind him.

The others exchanged looks before following, except for Cartman, who turned to go back to the Dairy Queen. They caught up with Mysterion at the end of the alley where he held out an arm to stop them as he peered around the corner. Toni had just stepped out from behind a bent-up dumpster and shot a glance in several directions before slinking off further along the streets. At Mysterion's silent command, they hurried after the tanuki as quickly and quietly as possible. Several times they had to quickly jump behind cover when he would stop suddenly and glance around. Finally, he stopped near the concrete steps of an old brick duplex, glanced around one last time, then climbed in through a broken window.

"Do you think he lives in there?" Kyle asked.

"Why would he?" Darren asked. "He's a Nether monster. I'm sure he lives somewhere in the Nether. Uh, at least, most of the time?"

"Let's check it out," Mysterion said. He hurried across the empty street and stopped below the window, standing on his toes to peer inside. As the others joined him, he lifted himself up, careful to avoid the broken glass, and entered the duplex.

The inside was dark, likely having lost electricity a long time ago, but there were a few little battery-powered lanterns that lit up enough for them to see. The scene almost reminded them of a post-apocalyptic house. It looked as though whoever lived there before just up and left one day without warning and no one took over since. Most of the furniture and decorations appeared unmoved and untouched, dulled with time and covered in dust and cobwebs. There were a few framed photos on the peeling walls, but it was too dark and dusty to see the faces. Suddenly, they heard crying from upstairs.

"Is that a baby?" Stan asked.

They hurried up the stairs and into one of the two bedrooms. The room was pretty well lit due to the pale sunlight coming in through the window, and the curtains had been pulled back to allow maximum sunlight entry. The room seemed to have once been a light blue color but was now yellowed with time. There were paintings of clouds along the top halves of the walls and several stuffed animals and baby toys littered the floor in the corners, though the toys did not look as old as everything else. Toni was perched on the wooden railing of a white crib and leaning over it to look down at the crying baby within it.

"Shh-shh-shh," he soothed and spoke softly to the baby. "I know you don't feel well. A fever's no fun. And I'm sure you're hungry, too." He reached into his sack and produced the bag of medicine and the baby formula. "Hm…now how do I –" He noticed the boys standing there. "Oh, so now you're stalking me, huh?" He straightened himself up and leered down at them. "I gave you your stuff back. What more do you want?"

"Y-You…" Stan stammered. "That's a baby…"

"Yeah?"

"A human baby."

"Great observation skills there, bud," Toni said.

Mysterion glanced around the room. "What…are you doing with that baby?"

"Trying to break his fever and get him to eat." Toni sighed, his shoulders sagging. "I was just sneaking around a couple of blocks away when I slipped into an alley to get out of the rain when I found this little guy bundled up in a cardboard box on side of a dumpster all alone. We're supposed to avoid direct contact with humans, and I just figured somebody would come for him eventually. Well…that didn't happen. See, I stuck around for a bit. Then the rain started falling harder, so I went push the box under some cover and waited some more. About an hour later, no one showed up, so I took him with me and found this place." He sighed again. "But I should've done it sooner, 'cause now he has this fever…"

The boys moved closer to get a better look at the baby. He had settled down, but was still teary-eyed and red-faced, squirming with discomfort under the blanket. Toni began sorting through the medicines to figure out what would be best and the amount he should use.

"Why don't you take him to an orphanage?" Darren asked. "Wouldn't that be better than this?"

"Dude," Kyle said. "The nearest orphanage is like three towns away and I've heard really bad stuff about them."

"They're not rumors, either," Mysterion added.

"We don't have those in the Nether," Toni said as he began to crush a piece of one of the pills and add it to the baby milk.

"Orphanages?" Stan asked.

"Yeah. Monsters don't abandon their young, and if something happens to the parents, all orphans go to the castle or get adopted immediately by some other monster. It's rare we have orphans. Had a lot after each Nightmare war, though." He removed the sack from around his neck and dropped it to the floor then lightly hopped into the crib. He lifted the baby up a little and began to feed it the bottle. "There you go. Tasty, right?"

"So, you've just been looking after him here?" Kyle asked.

Toni shrugged. "It's only been two days."

"If you needed help, you could've just told us."

"Yeah," Stan agreed. "You didn't have to take our stuff to get us to help you out."

"Where's the fun in that?" Toni joked. "Heh. I don't know what to do with him. I want to get back home, but I can't just leave him, you know? I'd take him with me, but humans aren't allowed in the Nether."

"Brooke, er, the Princess," Darren corrected himself, "let's us go sometimes. Why are there all these rules about humans and monsters when Brooke, uh, the Princess doesn't seem bothered by it at all."

"The rules were put in place by Sol," Toni explained. "Her word was law. And still is. Of course, I'm sure there can be exceptions for the Princess and her friends."

"Maybe it's time for a change," Mysterion told him. "She IS the current ruler. One day, she'll be the queen, right? I'm sure if you explained it to her, she'd allow you to take him with you."

"Maybe," Toni looked down at the baby as he finished feeding. "You want to be the first ever human to live in the Nether, baby?" The baby smiled and reached up to grab Toni's snout. "Ah," his voice sounded funny now. "I see you're feeling better already." He gently pulled his snout free and looked at the boys. "All right then. Soon as this little one is fit for travel, we'll go drop by and pay the Princess a visit. Oh, but don't tell her." He winked. "I want it to be a surprise."

…

The next day, late in the afternoon, Mysterion came home to find his sister missing. Both of his parents, unsurprisingly, were drunkenly passed out in different places in the house, unaware of their absent children. He called for her as he searched through the small house, and became increasingly worried as he got no response and could not locate her. Instead, he found large gashes and claw marks in the hall along the walls and floor that led to her room. His first thought was that Cassidy had done something again, but he quickly remembered that she was currently trapped in a literal wall back in the Nether. These gashes and marks also appeared much too large for a banshee's claws.

"Shit."

He ran out of the house, trying to think of where to start looking first. Where could she have gone? He gasped, remembering something, then held out his hand. The little white Oracle Stone appeared, floating just above his palm.

"Junior, I need you to show me where Karen is," he said urgently. "Is she okay?"

The stone made a strange sound and twirled once before showing him the scene that had happened earlier. Karen was playing in her room when a strange sound was heard from somewhere else in the house. She paused, looking startled as something large loudly and quickly made its way down the hall, slamming hard into her door. She screamed a little with fright and dropped her toys, staring worriedly at the closed door. Another thud, then the door was suddenly burst open and a horrific black and purple mass of teeth and claws and red eyes pulled itself into the room.

Karen screamed and ran out of the way as it lunged at her, flailing clawed tendrils around and tearing at the walls and carpet. She ran out of the room and the Nightmare followed, slamming into the walls with each sharp turn it tried to take in the small space. Luckily, this seemed to give Karen the time she needed to avoid and escape it as she ran out of the house.

"Shit! Fucking shit!" Mysterion clenched his fists and glanced frantically around the junkyard as the vision faded. He spotted large gashes in the mud, similar to the ones in the house, and quickly followed them. "KAREN!" He called loudly. He heard a loud crashing noise and a scream. "Karen!"

He bolted in the direction of the sounds, around a large junk pile, and found the huge Nightmare trying to grab at something hiding in a smashed old car. It pushed its body against the car, lifting it a little and causing it to crash back down. Karen screamed from inside of the car, trying her best to hide under the backseat.

"Karen!" Mysterion called. "Leave her alone!"

The Nightmare stopped, one of its many grotesque eyes rolling to look at him, then turned itself to face him. The shape it had taken resembled some kind of horribly disfigured frog or similar creature, with thin, long front limbs and long spindly, clawed fingers. There were many clawed tendrils lashing around on its back and its main mouth was wide and filled with numerous, needle-like teeth. Its mouth gaped, almost like a smile, and it lunged for him instead.

He ran and ducked out of the way, and it slid in the mud to stop itself and turn to him. He tried to lash at it with his shadow powers, but the Nightmare opened its maw and chomped down on the shadowy mist, dispersing it.

"What?!" He was stunned. Did magic not work on them? He tried to duck out of the way again as it slashed at him, but it countered by extending and lashing a clawed tendril at him where he moved. The sharp claws caught his side, hooking into him, and the Nightmare flung him away like a pebble, spraying blood across the ground.

"Guardian Angel!" Karen shouted.

Mysterion landed hard on his injured side and was winded. He struggled to push himself up, holding his side and looking up through bleary eyes at the monstrosity as it neared him. The Nightmare seemed to be relishing this. It grinned broadly, approaching him slowly, and slowly lifted a tendril. The shape at the end of the tendril changed, turning into a long, pointed, drill-like tip that it positioned in the air, ready to strike. He quickly tried to get up but slipped in the mud and fell again.

As the Nightmare swiftly brought its weapon down upon him, he shut his eyes and gritted his teeth, horrified and furious over what would happen to his sister. There was a loud clanging sound and he opened his eyes to see a winged figure standing between himself and the Nightmare.

"Angel?"

Brooke clenched her teeth, struggling against the Nightmare with her scythe. All of the beast's eyes turned to look at her, widening a bit, the slit pupils becoming little more than thin lines. With a surge of energy and fire, she threw the Nightmare off and slashed at it. It roared with pain and crawled backwards from her. Part of its body was now loose and torn, flowing in the breeze like a tattered banner. It wasn't long that it backed off, however, as it quickly lunged at her from an angle, its main mouth open to strike. She slashed at it again, flapping her wings once to jump away from it.

The Nightmare snarled and began to move faster, more frantically. It changed its shape, now resembling some kind of cephalopod with teeth where suction cups should be. The sudden change seemed to have caught her briefly off guard, and its now elongated limbs were able to reach her. It lashed at her with several limbs, catching one of her wings and slamming her to the ground where it kept her pinned. It rushed the rest of its body over, opening a toothy beak and preparing to crush her in its mouth.

There was a strong wave of heat that passed through the air; any snow around them melted instantly. The Nightmare shifted oddly a few times before a beam of white light burst upwards from its body, followed by a spiral of blue fire that tore apart the rest of it and completely obliterated it. As the fire and light dispersed, it left behind Brooke. She was in the air, red eyes glowing brightly, and a frightening expression of fury on her face. Upon hearing something shift behind her, she spun around and launched a fireball at the ruined car, missing it by mere inches, then summoned her scythe again.

"Wait!" Mysterion called. He had dragged himself to his feet and went over to her, one hand holding his injured side while the other reached up to grab Brooke's cloak. "Brooke!" She turned on him, baring sharp fangs and preparing to strike him with her blade. "Angel!" He shouted.

She stopped, looking surprised, then lowered herself to the ground to look at him.

"It's me," he breathed. "It's okay. You got rid of it… The threat's gone."

She blinked at him a few times, her scythe disappearing, then stumbled a bit as the glow faded from her eyes. She held her head and shook it with a groan. "I – I'm sorry…"

Karen suddenly ran over to them. "Brooke! Guardian Angel! Are you okay?" She gasped. "Guardian Angel, you're hurt!"

"Erk, I'm fine, Karen. Don't worry about me. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. That big thing was so scary! What was that?"

"Don't worry about it," he told her. "You won't have to worry about one of those again." At least he hoped.

"I just knew you would come to save me, Guardian Angel. Then Brooke came, too!" She looked at her. "You really ARE an angel, aren't you? Is that how you knew I was in trouble, too? Do you know my Guardian Angel?"

"Yes," Brooke said quietly. She was looking up at the gray sky. Rain drops were beginning to fall rapidly. Her head was pounding. "Come on. Let's get under some shelter and wait the rain out."

She used her broad wings to shield them as they made their way to an overhang of large sheet metal between two mounds of scrap. The three of them slipped under it and sat as far back as possible with Brooke in the middle. She carefully wrapped her wings around them to block any splashing rain and to keep them warm.

"You knew I was in trouble, and you know my Guardian Angel," Karen said. "Does that mean that you're a guardian angel, too?"

Brooke was staring absently out at the rain and watching it fall harder. She huffed. "Me, a guardian angel? Yeah, right…" She looked down at the ground a few inches from her. "Didn't you see what happened?"

"Of course! You saved me AND Guardian Angel. You usually hide your wings, though. Is that a rule?"

"Something like that."

"So, whose guardian angel are you?"

"No one."

"Really?" Karen looked a little confused. "You have to be for someone. Why else would you be here? Did you fall and get lost from Heaven?"

She didn't respond.

Karen thought for a minute. "Oh, I bet I know! You must be my brother's guardian angel!"

Brooke flinched a little and looked at her. "What?" Mysterion also looked over.

"That must be it," Karen smiled. "You're always around Kenny and looking out for him. He must REALLY need his guardian angel if you always have to hang around him so much."

"S-Sure." Brooke looked away again and soon turned her attention to Mysterion on her other side. His right side was bleeding and he was leaning heavily into her and breathing deeply. She reached over and gently slipped her hand under his to press her palm against the wound. He grimaced and let out a quiet, painfilled hiss. "It's okay," she said softly. "It's not deep."

He grunted as her hand heated up, then let out a sigh and relaxed against her as the heat seared the pain away and closed the wound. "Thank you," he said quietly.

"Wow." Karen watched from Brooke's other side. She silently watched them together for a few minutes. "Um… Are you two a couple?"

"What?" Brooke quickly looked at her. "N-No."

"Karen," Mysterion huffed.

"Oh. Good." They both looked oddly at her and she squirmed under their gazes. "I mean, I just wanted to make sure. Not that it would be a bad thing! I just wanted to know because," she looked up at Brooke, "my brother, Kenny really likes you."

They both tensed.

"If he's not with you, he's always talking about you," Karen continued. She laughed. "And I bet when he's not talking about you, he's thinking about you! I think he really loves you."

"O-Oh," Brooke blushed.

Mysterion groaned and leaned himself far back into her wing to hide.

"Yeah," Karen said. "I've never seen him so happy or excited except when he talks about you. …But if you're his guardian angel, does that mean it's a bad thing?"

"Hm?"

"Or do you love him, too?"

Brooke tensed again, feeling a rush of adrenaline as her face heated up. "I –" She held her breath for a moment. "I do. I love him a lot." She felt Mysterion shift in her wing.

Karen smiled. "Really? You should tell him. I think he really wants to tell you, but he's scared for some reason. He's started to get really sad lately, too. I think it's because he wants to tell you so badly."

"Sad?"

"Yeah. He doesn't say anything, but I can tell." She yawned. "You guys should tell each other and be happy. I don't know why you don't. But, whatever it is, it can't be more important than being happy. Right?"

"…Right."

She yawned again and laid her head down in Brooke's lap. "Brooke, one time when you slept over at our house, I heard you singing in the middle of the night."

"You…did?"

"Mm-hm. Where you singing to my brother?" She giggled.

"N-No. He was asleep."

"Oh. Well, it sounded really pretty. Can you sing it now?"

She felt embarrassed but took in a deep breath and said, "Sure. But no more questions after."

"Okay."

"Lay down your head…and I'll sing youuu a lullaby. Back to the years of looo-li lai-lay. And I'll sing youuu to sleep, and I'll sing you tomorrow. Bless you with love…for the roaaad that you goooo.

May you sail fair…to the far fields of fortune. With diamonds and pearls…at your heaaad and your feet. Aaand may you need never. To banish misfortune. May you find kindness in allll that you meeeet.

May there alllways be angels…to waaatch over you. Tooo guide you each step of the waaay. Tooo guard you and keep you…saaafe from all harm… Looo-li, loo-li, lai-lay…

May you bring love…and may youuu bring happiness. Be loved innnn return…to the end of your days. Now, fall off to sleep…I'm not meaaaning to keep you. I'll just sit for a while…and sing looo-li, lai-layyy…

May there alllways be angels…to waaatch over you. Tooo guide you each step of the waaay. Tooo guard you and keep you…saaafe from all harm… Looo-li, loo-li, lai-lay… Loooo-li, loo-li, lai-layyy…"

She stroked Karen's cheek as she slept in her lap, watching her fondly. They sat in silence, wrapped in the warmth of Brooke's wings, as the rain poured on. By the time the sun had fully set, the rain finally began to slack until it had stopped completely.

"Are you okay to walk?" Brooke asked.

"Yeah." Mysterion got up with her and took Karen into his arms. His wound seemed to have healed completely, leaving only a stain of blood behind. "Is it all right if we go to your house? I know ours is closer, but…" He thought of the torn-up bedroom and hallway.

"That's fine."

They walked quietly through the wet, still night, listening to frogs croaking in the darkness. When they reached Brooke's house, she led him upstairs to the empty fourth bedroom that only contained a bed, before she headed for her own room. He carefully placed his sister in the bed and pulled the sheets up to cover her, pausing a moment to make sure that she was okay before he left the room. He entered Brooke's room and quietly closed the door, stopping to watch her.

She was sitting on her bed and peering out the window at the clearing sky. The moonlight was bright and made her wings appear to almost glow. After a moment, she looked back at him. "What is it?" she asked barely above a whisper.

He swallowed then made his way over and climbed up beside her. They watched each other for a moment. "Uh," he cleared his throat and began to speak in his normal soft voice. "Did you… Did you mean it when you said you love me?"

She didn't answer for a long moment, only stared at him. He was beginning to feel worried until she finally said, "Of course."

He scooted closer. "Um, so… Is the reason you don't follow that feeling… Is it because of who I am?"

"Hm?" She tilted her head at him.

"You know…b-because you're royalty and I'm…me."

She looked a bit surprised for a moment then shook her head with a sad smile. "No, dummy. That doesn't matter."

"Then…why won't you –"

"I told you at the Ball, didn't I? At least, I thought I told you enough…" She sighed. "Some of the most important people to me ended up being destroyed forever. I'm already terrified of losing more, and to top it off, I have to deal with the Nightmares. And, as you saw, they've starting gathering in the area. They're figuring it out. It only takes one to escape and tell all the others. To tell their 'King'." She looked at him with teary eyes. "You're too important to me, Kenny. I can't lose you, too."

It felt like his heart skipped a beat, and he almost choked as his breath caught in his throat. He swallowed. "If – If that's the case, then what is pushing me away going to solve? We're already close. I already love you. I – I have for a while…"

"I don't know…" she shook her head. "I don't know what to do. And when he comes back… I managed to seal him away for a while by using a large amount of Oracle Stones, but they were destroyed in the process. I killed them… They knew, but… I-I can't do that again. But there's no way I can defeat the Nightmare King. He destroyed my mother and my brother, and I can't even control my own stupid powers! And I shouldn't have let myself get so close to you! I'll just end up hurting you, or worse."

"It hurts more when I'm not with you…" he muttered.

She shot him a worried look.

"Angel," he moved closer. "I – I really love you, and I want to be with you. I – will never – leave you. I don't care what the hell happens." He moved even closer and wrapped his arms around her. "You'd have to get rid of me yourself. Let me in. I'll stand with you."

She released a shaky breath and laughed a little, then brought her hand up to stroke his face. She smiled sweetly at him as she slowly pushed her hand into his hood to remove his mask then pulled his hood down to reveal his blushing face. "That's a big promise," she whispered.

"I don't care. I mean it."

She huffed with amusement then tilted her head to kiss him softly on the lips. His heart fluttered and a wave of heat rushed through him. As she made to pull away, he kissed her, pulling her back to him. He tilted his head to get a better angle, feeling another rush of heat and excitement as she wrapped her wings behind him and slid her hands along his waist before pushing him down on his back and straddling him. Unlike the last time she did that to him, he was no longer afraid, not in the slightest. Rather, he was excited and gleeful.

He smiled and laughed a little in their kissing, causing her to laugh, too, before continuing. He chanced it and slipped his hands to her waist while she slid hers up his sides beneath his shirt and released his lips to kiss at his neck. He sighed, enjoying every kiss, every touch, every single second. This was the best he had ever felt, physically and emotionally.

"I love you," he sighed.

She paused a moment to whisper in his ear. "I love you, too."

To be continued…

O_O

...Oh, that song Angel sings is a real song called Sleepsong by Secret Garden.