"Hey Grandmami." Frida said as they walked through the market together the next day. "When you were my age did anything weird happen to you?"

"Does puberty count?"

"No I mean something out of the ordinary."

"Like what?"

"Seeing things that aren't really there."

"Well...Okay Frida the thing is-"

"Look out!" Someone shouted.

Out of nowhere a group of black barbs were fired toward them. The two quickly ducked, avoiding contact with them. Frida helped her grandmother up and they ducked under their car. One managed to stick it's way into her skirt but not her skin. After a long time of avoiding the barbs, whatever was shooting them stopped. They came out from under the car to see the words VENDETTA RIVERA written in black ooze on the walls. Frida and Sandra headed home as quickly as possible.

"I think I better call your father." Sandra said. "There's been a lot more danger here than usual."

"Okay you do that."

She went upstairs to find Manny taking a little catnap in her bed.

"Manny! Wake up!" She cried.

"Mmm...Come on Mom five more minutes." He mumbled.

"Manny it's me! Wake up! It's an emergency!" But he still didn't respond. Frida quickly grabbed her water bottle and squirted water in his face to wake him up.

"Hey!"

"We need to talk."

"About what?"

"This."

She pulled the barb from her skirt and handed it to him. He examined and sniffed it.

"Poisonous barbs. Made from snake venom, deadly nightshade, and a drop of demon's blood. Where did you get this?"

"Someone was shooting them off in town today and then wrote vendetta Rivera on a wall. Do you know anything about that?"

Manny turned pale and began to sweat nervously. He looked like he had seen a ghost.

"Manny do you know this person?"

"No! Nope! I don't know anyone! Heh, heh."

"Manny? Who is it? What do you know?"

"Nothing!"

"Tell me or I'll drench you with the hose!" She threatened.

"Alright! I'll sing! Her name is Zoe Aves. She's my ex girlfriend."

"Ex girlfriend?! I thought you said you didn't want to fall in love."

"I didn't but that doesn't mean I didn't want to date."

"You date girls with no intention of loving them one day? And I thought T.J was sick."

"It's not like I intended to date her. I had just been separated from my mother, I was living in the woods with no human contact, I was lonely. We dated for about a year then we broke up but she didn't take it well."

"Can you blame her? You broke her heart."

"You wouldn't understand, it's complicated. The point is you gotta hide me! If she finds me she will kill me!"

He hid under her bed.

"Come out from under there, have some dignity." Frida said kneeling down to the bed.

"No way! I wanna live!"

"Can't you two talk it out?"

"Oh you don't know Zoe. There's no reasoning with her. Once she's angry with someone she's not satisfied til they're dead."

"Isn't that a bit harsh?"

"She's a demon, what do you think?"

"Well you can't hide in there forever."

"I'm not. I'm just going to hide here til she leaves."

"Don't be such a coward."

"COWARD?!" He shouted coming out. "I am no coward!"

"Then be a man!"

"Look I'll talk to her but...Please!" He dropped to his knees and wrapped his arms around her legs in begging form. "Please, please, please, don't make me do it today! Please! You don't know what it's like to be a man with an angry woman after his hide! Please! Please!"

"Alright! I can't stand to see a man gravel. But you better do it eventually."

"Thanks Frida. You have no idea how much I love you right now."

"Yeah whatever. Now get off me before someone sees."

"Sorry." He let go of her legs and stood up. "Also can we keep this little begging moment just between us?"

"Sure. That is if you promise to do half of my chores."

"What?! No way!"

"Then I'm sure T.J and Andrea would love to see this." She held up her phone showing a video she had taken of him pleading.

"You are a devious woman but if T.J found out about this he would never let me here the end of it."

"Good so we have a deal. Now let's go eat lunch."

They met up with T.J and Andrea at a restaurant for lunch. Manny tried to relax but he was as nervous as a tick. Every time they went to a public place he seemed to be making sure someone wasn't there. When it got late they decided to grab a smoothie and go to the movies.

"Here's your drink sir." A waitress said handing T.J a smoothie.

"Thank you. You know I don't say this to every woman but you'd be perfect as my girlfriend." He said groping her. She took his smoothie and poured it all over his head.

"Saw that coming." Andrea said drinking her smoothie.

"Oh shut up."

"Maybe if you weren't so pervy girls might actually like you." Manny said.

"Oh like you have better luck with women." T.J said.

"Um...Yeah I probably don't."

That's when he caught the scent of crow feathers and strawberries. He knew that scent all too well.

"Oh no." He thought.

"MANNY RIVERA!" A pitched voice shrieked.

The four friends turned to see a sixteen year old girl dressed in purple and black armor with black wings come flying through the window of the smoothie shop. Manny transformed and took off running with the girl chasing after him.

"Leave me alone Zoe!" He shouted.

"You're gonna pay for what you did to me! You cold hearted barbarian!"

She threw her barbs from her talons. Manny dodged them with his great speed but he couldn't run forever. Zoe whistled and a flock of crows, vultures, and hawks swooped down on the young man. They began pecking at his head and body. Then using telekinesis she lifted him up and pinned him to a tree.

"Zoe! Please I can explain!"

"Now is not the time for explanations! Now is the time for revenge!"

She pulled a dagger from her belt and pointed it to his throat. Frida, T.J, and Andrea had gone to search for Manny. They split up in different directions. It was Frida who found him and he was in the woods pinned to a tree.

"Oh my God!" Frida thought in terror. "She's really going to kill him."

She had her bow and arrow ready. Zoe's dagger moved to touch his neck, but just before she could cut his skin and Frida could fire...

"I never stopped thinking about you!" Manny choked.

"What?" Zoe said surprised.

"I never stopped thinking about you." He breathed. "I'm sorry about what I did. Really I am and not a single day goes by when I don't regret what I did to you."

She lowered her dagger.

"Why? Why did you leave me?"

"I...It's complicated. We were getting too close."

"And that's a bad thing? Would it have been so terrible if we fell in love?"

"It would have been for me."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"I can't tell you."

"Why?"

"I just can't!"

"So you just never cared about me?"

"No! That's not true! I did care about you. You're the only person who understands what it's like to live between two worlds."

"And yet you just couldn't love me."

"I wanted to love you!"

Frida didn't know why but this really upset her. But should she be upset? She told him to work it out with her but she never thought he would still have feelings for her.

"Then come with me." Zoe said. "We can start over and have a life together."

She brought her lips to his, Manny almost kissed her but a pain in his heart stopped him.

"I can't!" He said. "I know you want this! But you and I can never be!"

Black tears began to stream down her cheeks and her purple eyes began to burn with heartbroken anger. She raised her dagger but suddenly an arrow was fired and cut her arm. She screeched and turned to see Frida ready to shoot another arrow if needed.

"Oh I see!" She cried angrily. "Is that why you won't love me?! Don't tell me that you've given your heart to this worthless human!"

"Excuse me?" Frida said.

"You've seen your last day human!"

"No! Zoe! Don't! Frida run!" Manny cried.

Zoe lunged for Frida, the blue haired girl began running for her life but the demon girl was a lot faster than she was. Thinking fast, Frida grabbed a branch, pulled it back, and when Zoe came by she released the branch which hit her in the face. Then T.J and Andrea appeared to help them. Andrea quickly threw her spear at Zoe's wing.

"My wing!"

"Zoe Aves!" T.J called. "My name is T.J and I advise you to please stop this madness! Frida has done you no harm!"

"Silence worm! Before I rip off your limbs!"

"Look surely we don't have to resort to violence." He said. "And besides if Manny isn't interested you, I am."

He pinched her bottom playfully causing Andrea to face palm in annoyance.

"How dare you!" Zoe screamed.

SLAP!

"Ow!"

She sent the shaman and warrior flying into a stone which knocked them out. Frida was out of arrows so she threw some rocks at her but Zoe stopped them with her powers.

"Really? You think you can stop me with some measly rocks?" She asked.

"Can't blame a girl for trying right?" Frida asked.

She began to choke Frida with telekinesis. She coughed and gasped for air.

"Hmm...I know you, you're that girl Mother told me about. Well once I kill you I'll cut out your heart and use it to reach my full power."

Suddenly she felt claws scratch her back cutting off her wings. She dropped Frida and turned to see Manny panting with small drops of her blood dripping from his claws. She looked at him with eyes of hurt and betrayal.

"How could you?" She whispered tearfully.

Then she ran away into the woods. Manny helped Frida up.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Are you hurt?"

"No but um...Quick question."

"Yeah."

"Did you...Really want to love her?"

"Oh you heard all that?" He asked blushing.

"Yes."

"How much?"

"Every word."

"Well...This is embarrassing."

"Manny what exactly happened between you two? And who is she?"

"Okay, it's a long story but you deserve to know the truth. Zoe is half human like me."

"But I thought you were the only half human in the world."

"I'm the only half human half spirit in the world. She's half demon. Her mother was Carmelita the vulture demon and her father was some human drunkard named Buldeo I think."

"Didn't the council know about her?"

"No. Her mother raised her in the woods where the council couldn't smell her scent. We met about a year ago, we bounded over the facts that we both were half human and we never knew our fathers."

"Why did you break up? Though now that I've met her I can see why. Was she clingy? Rude? Annoying?"

"We were getting too close."

"That's it? Seriously?"

"Look I can't fall in love."

"Why?"

"Because I might die because of it!"

"What do you mean?"

He looked around to see if anyone was listening.

"Okay you can't tell anyone this but remember when I told you my heart was my weak spot?"

"Yes."

"Well that means if it gets wounded physically or emotionally I'm screwed."

"Emotionally?"

"If I fell in love and got my heartbroken who knows what would happen. I'm half human so I get more emotional than other spirits and demons do. If the woman I loved rejected me or betrayed me I would die, if she was ever hurt or killed I would go on a seething rampage of destruction or worse."

"Tough break. Why didn't you tell her that's why you broke up with her?"

"Because I would have to tell her what my weak spot was. The only reason I told you was because you were close to touching it and you might've killed me if I hadn't."

"So I'm guessing you don't know her weak spot?"

"Nope."

"So um do you still have feelings for her?"

"What?"

"I saw you try to kiss her. So do you?"

"That's...I...No!"

"You do! You totally do!"

"I do not!"

"You do realize that crazy girl just tried to kill you and me?"

"Hey! It's none of your business who I like!"

"Well I'm not surprised! You're both insane and annoying. I guess you two deserve each other!"

"And you're not annoying?!"

"Oh what happened?" T.J said waking up. "Andrea are you okay?"

He helped her up.

"Yes I'm fine." She said.

"You have a bump on your head."

"So do you."

"Do you feel dizzy? I can carry you if you are."

"No thank you."

"At least I'm not attracted to Psychopaths!" Frida screamed getting their attention.

"Psychopaths?! You're father is one of the biggest psychopath I've ever met! I once saw him hogtie a boy just for saying hi to you!" Manny shouted to her.

"What are those two fighting about now?" Andrea asked.

"Who cares? It's probably something stupid." T.J said.

"Yeah you're probably right. So movie?"

"Sure."

T.J and Andrea went to the movie alone while Manny and Frida fought until her grandmother became worried and started searching for her.

"Frida!" Sandra called from her car. "Frida! There you are! Do you know how late it is?"

"Sorry Grandmammi."

Frida got into the car by herself. Manny had gone to blow off some steam so he wouldn't be home for awhile.

"Frida? Is something wrong?" Sandra asked.

"No I just got into a fight with a really stupid guy."

"Ah boy trouble. I remember when your mother had it. Of course back then I didn't approve of her relationship with your father."

"No Grandma, it's not like that. He's just a guy I know and he's just so frustrating."

"I know. Spirits are difficult creatures."

"Actually he's only half spirit and-...How do you know about spirits?"

"Frida I think it's time I told you a family secret of ours."