The Next Generation of Souls

by Xenoprime1337

It's been a while since Death the Kid brought the human and witch worlds together under the banner of peace. Now, witches are living in Death City, and his colleagues are making their own contributions to his academy's roster. But even Crona-sama can't contain Asura's madness of fear forever. (Strong language, OCs, and violence await you. Set in the manga universe's future.)

10. Exiled

Author's Note: Wow, this is a long one, holy shit. Hope you're hungry, readers, 'cause this chapter is a freaking rollercoaster.

Also, I have plans to write a Cyberpunk: Edgerunners/Cyberpunk 2077 fic soon, so keep your eyes peeled for that.

Anyway, enjoy.

---

Chapter 10:

Exiled

---

"You're all seeing this, right?" Rose asked, face pressed to the glass of the window, watching as Shinigami-sama landed between Kid and Gray Star.

"I see it, but I don't believe it," Specter said, awestruck.

"None of this makes any sense," Max breathed. "How is Kid back on her feet after enduring such punishment, and why is Shinigami-sama only intervening now that she is?"

"You'll find that the two problems are related, Mr. Ford," yet another familiar voice said, one that Sid and Naigus instantly recognized.

Everyone turned to find a tall man with medium-length, scraggly white hair, glasses, and pale green eyes wearing a stark white coat marred with thick patchwork stitching.

"Professor Stein?" the students asked in unison.

"What are you doing here?" Max said, knowing Stein from the days he had visited to speak with his father.

The grizzled meister smiled grimly, lighting up a cigarette before putting it in his mouth. "I had business here at the Academy," he said, smoke curling around the words. "But I sensed what was happening and figured I'd observe. Looks like I got here just as things took a turn for the interesting."

"You mean Kid's little magic trick?" Sid asked, shooting his old friend and comrade his best approximation of a smile.

"Correct. The thing our friend Maximilian inquired about earlier."

"So…what's the deal?" Specter asked, his eyes turning back to Kid as she shambled toward her father. "How is she doing that?"

Stein breathed out another cloud of smoke. "I understand your curiosity, but unfortunately, I'm not at liberty to discuss it," he said. "I'm not sure even Kid is aware of what is happening right now, of what forces are compelling her to stand and fight despite being unconscious."

He grimaced. Of course, he knew the answer. But Shinigami-sama had rightly told him not to reveal it to anyone, lest they strike terror in the hearts of the Academy's students.

I can feel it bleeding into the air…the Madness of Fear…

A wild grin tugged at the side of his face.

Fascinating…

---

On the battlefield, tension reigned, Shinigami-sama watching his daughter's movements closely as she stumbled like a drunk, the strength and stability of her soul wavelength constantly fluctuating. Gray Star, Sage still in hand, also watched, knowing that Kid could rush her at any moment. The dark gray clouds in the sky above were motionless, the sun out of sight, no wind rushing through the trees.

It was as if nature itself was stepping aside to give the avatars of death space to settle their differences.

"Stop, Angel," Shinigami-sama ordered darkly, tucking Liz and Patty into specially-made holsters hidden inside his suit jacket before putting his hand out to halt Kid's advance. "Don't make me do this. You'll regret it, I promise you."

Kid didn't heed him, attempting to circumvent him, her hollow eyes trained on Gray Star, her target, the object of her hatred. Her hands reached for a throat, a heart, a soul. It was war she wanted, and it was war she would have, damn the consequences.

Shinigami-sama let out a pained sigh. "Very well," he said softly. "You've chosen death."

In an instant, moving so fast that even Gray Star had a hard time perceiving it, the Grim Reaper kicked his daughter hard enough to send her flying before grasping her by the face and slamming her headfirst into the ground, the dirt and earth beneath cracking like glass struck by a massive stone. Kid struggled to break free, reaching for her father, gnashing her teeth and snarling like a rabid dog. His eyes narrowed into snake-like white slits as he put his leg up above his head and drove his heel into her chest cavity with all his might, the shockwave so destructive that Gray Star had to dart back and out of the way.

Rubble rained down from the sky, the trees shuddering then falling as their foundation was torn out from underneath them. Then, there was an uncanny stillness that lasted for ages. Kid was the one to finally break it, hacking up a gout of blood onto her father's pant leg as she succumbed to unconsciousness for the second time that day.

Shinigami-sama, disappointed but ultimately relieved, stood back up and tried his best to compose himself by straightening his tie. "Angel…what have you done?" he said sorrowfully.

Two flashes of light jumped out of his suit and became Liz and Patty, who appeared on his left and right.

"Jesus, Kid," Liz said, "That was a little overboard, don't you think? I mean, I know she broke the rules, but…"

Patty shook her head. "No. This needed to happen. When Kid gets like that, she won't stop fighting until it's over."

"She's right," he said solemnly. "There was nothing else I could do."

Then Gray Star appeared at the edge of the crater Shinigami-sama had made, Jenny in her arms, Lenny still in his sister's grasp as a pistol. She looked with wide eyes at the man at the bottom of that pit, the only man her father could call a worthy challenger. It was a solid reminder of just how capable the god of death really was.

She was snapped out of her shocked state by her Aunt Liz, who, seeing her twin children in their sorry state, scrambled up the side of the crater to examine them.

"Oh, my god! Jenny! Lenny! Are you okay?" Liz said, fussing over every smudge of dirt and scrape her children had suffered. She turned to Gray Star, practically sobbing. "Gray Staaaarrrr! Are they okaaaaayyyyyy? Tell me they're okaaaaaayyyyy!

"They're okay, Aunt Liz," Gray Star said with a sad smile, which wasn't visible thanks to her turtleneck mask. "They're just sleeping it off, that's all."

"You didn't hit them too hard, did you? They can't afford to lose any more brain cells!" Liz wailed, tears brimming in her eyes as she took Jenny and carefully laid her on the ground. "Oh, man, I'm a terrible mother! What am I gonna tell my husband?"

"There is no need to worry," Sage said as he transformed. "Kid is the only one who has sustained anything close to a lethal injury."

"Seems like you guys got out unscathed," Patty said, putting a reassuring hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Good job, baby doll."

"Thanks, mom," Gray Star said shyly, pulling her turtleneck down.

It was then that Shinigami-sama approached, climbing his way out of the crater. For a moment, Gray Star thought she was in trouble, but when she saw the apologetic look on his face, she reconsidered. He looked between her and Sage as DWMA Security Force members began sweeping the area around them and carting Kid and the twins off to the dispensary.

"I'm terribly sorry about all of this," he began. "I'm fully aware that you were forced to partake in this duel, that Angel attacked you unprovoked."

Gray Star shook her head. "It's not your fault, sir. She just had a bone to pick with me, that's all."

"Well, regardless, as her father, I take full responsibility for this." He paused to dust off his suit before continuing. "I commend you for handling the situation as well as you did. Moving the battle to the training forest saved us a great deal of trouble."

"It was the only logical move we could make," Sage pointed out.

"You have good instincts. And your new yumi mode was the perfect way to put an end to her rampage. Your mother would be proud."

"Arigatou gozaimasu, Shinigami-sama."

Shinigami-sama looked to Gray Star. "Do you happen to know what started all of this? I was under the impression that you and Angel were friends."

The shinobi considered the question for a moment. "We still are," she said after a while. "At least, I still consider Kid to be my friend."

"But not the other way around?" Shinigami-sama guessed.

"I'm not sure. This didn't feel personal. I haven't done anything to upset her. At least, not to my knowledge." She looked up at him as she remembered what Kid had said to her. "She…she said she wanted to prove a point. That I was in her way. That there was an issue she wanted to put to bed."

Shinigami-sama suddenly closed his eyes and furrowed his brow, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. "That…explains a lot," he said with a sigh.

"Was this simply a matter of pride?" Sage asked. "Was her goal to attain favor from the students or you by way of victory against one of the Star Clan?"

"I have a feeling you're exactly right…unfortunately." The Grim Reaper shook his head. "Regardless of her motives, I intend to meter out a severe punishment for what she attempted to do today. You have my word on that."

Gray Star suddenly piped up. "Sir," she said, "May I ask you something?"

"Yes?"

"What do you intend to do? To Kid, I mean."

Shinigami-sama folded his arms. "I'm not sure yet. I have half a mind to expel her for trying to pull this foolish stunt, but given the circumstances and how well-contained the damage was, I can't say for certain."

"If I may…please don't expel her on my account," Gray requested. "This fight was bound to happen. I've heard father's stories about how you and he battled to settle your differences. Had Kid and I not clashed today, we certainly would have at some point in the near future."

"Yes, well…I would have preferred you clash under strict supervision, say in the Death Festival Battle Tournament, not in a schoolyard brawl during a regular day of classes."

Gray Star nodded. It made sense, after all. Fighting happened at the Academy almost every day; that was why instructors were required to supervise student duels…to avoid incidents like the one that had just occurred.

It was then that another member of the Security Force appeared, a middle-aged woman with short, straight crimson hair and tanned skin.

"Lord Death," she said, her weapon partner, a karambit knife, to one side.

"You have a report?" Shinigami-sama asked.

"Yes, sir. Death the Kid and the Thompson twins have been taken to the dispensary, as you requested. The Department of Engineering has been notified of the damages to the training forest, and will be attending to them shortly."

"Very good. Send my regards to Gennifer-san for me."

"Of course, Lord Death."

With that, she left.

"Do you require anything of us, Shinigami-sama?" Sage asked, bowing respectfully out of habit.

"No. You did your part." His eyes drifted to the Academy, to the dispensary where his daughter now lay, probably in something close to critical condition. "It's time I did mine."

---

Black Star grinned. His daughters had once again surpassed his expectations. People would be talking about this for months.

Then he remembered what Angela and Tsubaki had said, and frowned.

He had texted Allie when he heard about her win over Specter, but that was all he could do. Per his ex-wife's wishes, he no longer had a hand in her training, and per his own wishes, he stayed away so as not to negatively impact her life. But Angela's comment did make him feel something close to guilt, despite his convictions.

It was true: he barely saw either of his daughters anymore. And he hadn't said a word to Patty in almost a year, perhaps more. Again, he had his reasons, but for the first time in a long time, something compelled him to change his ways.

Of course, he knew the answer.

Gray Star was under his custody, but he had always been responsible for her training, for preparing her for her destiny. She was bound to surpass him and become his successor. Thus, he had to step in and help her along that path, the path of the warrior god.

Then Tsubaki's words struck him again.

"Keep this up, and you'll end up just like Mifune: killed by your successor."

Perhaps she was right.

But Gray's duel with Kid presented him a unique opportunity to do his part as both a father and a mentor.

He took a moment to listen for his daughter's footsteps in the grass of the training forest, waited for her to get into the Academy proper, then disappeared into his own shadow.

---

"Damn…" Specter breathed, struck by everything all at once.

All sorts of emotions and thoughts, feelings and instincts, were bouncing around in his mind.

First, Gray Star had won her duel in stylish fashion, which made him feel victorious by proxy. Then there was the shock that came from Kid's "resurrection", quickly followed by the absolute feeling of powerlessness and infinitesimal smallness that came from watching Shinigami-sama ruthlessly put his daughter in her place. Finally, there was the eerie feeling that came with a widescreen view of the battlefield, of the sheer destruction the fight between the children of the gods had caused.

Am I really going to ask that girl out?

He shook his head. That was something he could worry about later. He tuned back in just as his sister and his friends started discussing everything that had happened.

"That…was…sofucking cool!" Nina said excitedly.

"Yeah, what a way to end it all," Rose added.

Honey Lang shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe Kid got dunked on by her own dad. That's gotta sting!"

"I just hope mom can undo the damage," Max said, glancing at the crater Shinigami-sama had made. "That last hit was…crushing."

Stein exhaled, sending smoke spiraling up into the air. "Kim-sensei can heal her physical wounds, but the same can't be said for any psychological scars. That said, she is getting scarily close to developing a technique capable of doing exactly that," he mused.

"Either way, I'm sure Kid and the twins'll be fine," Sid said with a nod. "No need to worry."

Specter and the other kids, after exchanging a series of looks, ultimately accepted the adults' logic. After all, Kim-sensei was a skilled healer, and the twins had only suffered minor injuries. But injuries weren't the only consequences of the fight, and they knew it.

"What's Shinigami-sama going to do to Kid?" Allie asked, arms folded. "Do you think she'll be expelled?"

"That's up to him," Stein said. "I can't say for sure."

"Kid better not get expelled," Nina objected.

Honey Lang shared a grin with Valor. "Yeah, she's primetime entertainment around here," she said.

"Facts," Valor affirmed.

Max shook his head. "What Kid did was serious, though. Shinigami-sama has to do something."

"I agree," Stanford said sternly.

"Whatever happens," Excalibur said suddenly, startling those who had forgotten he was there, "I ask you, young ones, not to exact your own justice for what has transpired before you today, regardless of the reason. It is Shinigami-sama's responsibility to meter out punishment, not yours."

Allie's eyes widened. Had he guessed what she was thinking? She grimaced as she regarded the holy sword, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. Of course, part of her wanted to kick Kid's teeth in for not only attacking Gray, but also for forcing her cousins into a duel they clearly wanted no part of. Exacting her own justice was putting it lightly.

She wanted revenge, plain and simple.

Flint must have sensed her discomfort with regard to Excalibur's vacant but piercing stare, because he went out of his way to break the tension between them.

"Are we really supposed ta take that goofy lookin' thang seriously?" Flint scoffed, pointing at the holy sword's avatar, who was still straddling Reika's neck, his cartoonishly short legs dangling near her collarbone. "I mean, really, look at 'im!"

"Hmph! Disregard my advice at your own peril, uncouth youth!" Excalibur replied, gesturing with his cane. "It is you who should not be taken seriously, with your strange hat and ridiculous accent."

Chuckles rippled through the group as Flint sat there, fuming, allowing Allie to relax.

Cooler heads would ultimately prevail, she reasoned. Kid would get what was coming to her, one way or another. If all went well, Kid would learn her lesson and Jenny and Lenny would be spared Shinigami-sama's wrath.

Images, again, flooded into Allie's mind. Stone crumbling, paint chips flying, endless clouds of dust. She knew what the wrath of a god looked like…what the wrath of her father looked like.

Thankfully, she was torn out of her thoughts by the lunch bell.

"Thus ends the charade," Stanford said dully. "Back we go to our classrooms, our prisons."

"Jesus, Stan, you really know how to kill a mood," Rose deadpanned. "We just witnessed the biggest fight of the year! Be a little more excited for once in your life!"

"I don't know if that will be the biggest fight of the year," Max pointed out. When everyone shot him a confused look, he added, "The biggest fight of the year will undoubtedly be Kid and Gray's rematch…in the Death Festival Battle Tournament."

"That's assuming Gray even enters it," Specter said with a shrug. "She's a badass, but she hates dueling."

"You're just looking out for your girlfr—" was all Valor had time to get out before Honey Lang conked him on the head, eliciting snickers from everyone in the group, even the Pots, who stood either side of her.

"That's enough of that," she said with a grin. "Leave Spec alone."

"Alright, guys," Naigus intervened, a grin hiding behind her wrappings. "Less talking, more walking. You guys are gonna be late to class if you're not careful, so get on it."

"Yes, sensei," the students said in practiced unison.

"C'mon, Naigus," Sid said, "When I was alive, I didn't leave my men leaderless. That's the kind of man I was."

"Yeah, let's go check in with Teams 3 and 5."

Reika looked up at Excalibur. "We still have a meeting with Shinigami-sama, don't we, Exie?"

"Correct," he said with a nod.

"Have fun with that," Nina said, giving Reika a fist bump.

"I'll try," she replied with a wink.

As everyone departed, Stein was left by himself, staring out at the devastation caused by Kid and Shinigami-sama both. It reminded the mad doctor of the last time a fight like that had broken out, the last time the child of a deity had battled a mortal warrior on the path to ascension. Of Black Star demanding a younger Shinigami-sama to kill him, only to be denied.

He let out another smoky exhale.

"The more things change, the more they stay the same," he muttered to himself.

---

Gray Star frowned at her locker. Quickly and quietly disabling the ink trap she had put in behind the combination lock, she twisted the black knob on the door before pulling it open to reveal the books and notebooks inside. And the trap, which was nothing more than a bottle of ink connected to the door by a hook.

She grabbed the things she needed for Resonance 202, reset her trap, and shut the door with a soft clang.

"Nice little rig you've got set up there," someone said from behind her.

Despite knowing who it was, she gasped as she turned around.

"Dad?"

Black Star grinned as he appeared seemingly out of thin air, his body melting out of a part of the wall that was only moderately shaded.

"Wouldn't keep me out, but I'm not the biggest fan of books, so you don't have to worry about that."

She smiled, then rushed in and gave her father a big hug.

"Hey, baby girl," Black Star said, patting her on the top of the head. "How ya been?"

"I've been alright. What about you?" she asked, remembering what had happened a few days before. "I heard you fighting someone in the Death Room, and I asked Tsubaki to help, and then she came back and told me that it wasn't worth worrying about, but then I started worrying, and then I thought to text you, but then I remembered that you prefer phone calls and I—"

He shushed her with a shake of his head. "Everything's fine, sweet thing. I just got into a disagreement with your Aunt Gigi, that's all."

"Angela-san?" Gray Star said worriedly. "What happened?"

"We got into a scuffle. She was pissed at me. Tsubaki got mad at me too. Lots of people are mad at me these days."

She knew he was talking about her mother when he said that. Frustratingly, despite the fact that she knew something about her mother's feelings, despite the fact that she knew Black Star's view of her was skewed…she bit her tongue. It wasn't her place to challenge her father.

It never had been.

"Sorry, dad," she said, mostly out of habit.

"It's alright." He grinned again. "I saw your fight with Kid," he said proudly. "You did good."

"Thanks."

She wasn't a fan of people watching her, not Shinigami-sama and especially not her father. But somewhere in the back of her mind, she had known he would see. He was attracted to fights like bugs were to light.

That was when Sage arrived, coming around the corner from his locker, backpack on and notebook in hand. When he saw Black Star, he immediately straightened up, then bowed out of respect.

"Konnichiwa, Hachiman-sama," he said politely.

Black Star waved away his formalities. "Relax, kid, there's no need for that."

He smiled and stood back up. "Sumimasen."

"All good." The warrior god folded his arms and leaned back against the wall. "I was just telling Gray that I saw your duel. Looks like you're getting the hang of your yumi mode. Nice work, little man."

"I would hesitate to call it nice work," Sage said almost apologetically. "I'm sad to report that we hesitate to use that weapon form outside the Academy."

"Stage fright, huh? That's not a big deal. You'll get over it. But remember what I've always told you: don't hesitate. When in doubt, go forward."

"Hai, Black Star-sama."

"Still too formal," he said with a chuckle.

"Sumimasen."

He turned to Gray Star. "Not to be a dick, but I didn't just come here to give you a pat on the back. This whole thing between you and Kid got me thinking about you and Sage's progress. Your training."

"My training?" Gray Star asked.

"Yeah. It's been a while since you and I trained together. I know what I said way back when, but I can't help seeing you in me, seeing your potential, your power."

Gray Star's eyes widened for a moment, but only a moment. It was so sudden. In the aftermath of the divorce, he had told her that she had to walk her own path, that he would be watching, that he would always be there for her.

She had strode forward on that path, but it was the path of the warrior, the path that had been chosen for her. He had been watching, but only from the shadows. And he wasn't always there for her. Of course, missions took him away from the Academy, that she understood. The rest was beyond her, and it wounded her soul.

Was this his way of making it up to her?

It was so like him, and yet, for once, she didn't mind. She loved her dad, and she did so often find herself missing him, even if she dreaded his expectations of her. And she did.

"You're getting stronger," her father said, drawing her out of her thoughts and feelings. "But I think you can push it even more, take the next step on your path to mastering the Uncanny Sword. What do you say?"

Sage looked to his meister. His face told her everything she needed to know. That he knew how she felt. That it was her call. That he knew what she wanted to do.

She smiled and nodded. "I think I'd like that."

Black Star returned her smile. "Right on." He turned sharply, shadows gathering, cloaking his body. His eyes became white hot stars, his soul wavelength shooting out in every direction, almost knocking the two students off their feet with its sheer weight and magnitude.

His voice moved through the air like darkness when a light went out, the words burning into their minds.

"The secrets of the Shadow Star are your birthright. I will teach you the martial way. You will master the Uncanny Sword."

Just like that, he was gone.

"Are you alright, Gray Star?" Sage asked, a concerned look on his face.

She took a moment to assess her condition. Her heart was hammering against her sternum, her brain was threatening to go on strike, and her lips refused to reshape themselves in a way that allowed any intelligible sound to escape her mouth. So, she wasn't alright.

But she didn't want Sage to worry, so she took a breath, recentered, and smiled, despite herself.

"Yeah," she said. "I'm fine."

---

"That was irritating," Shinigami-sama said crossly as he straightened out the sleeves of his suit jacket for perhaps the twentieth time, his footsteps echoing loudly in the hallway.

"Are you talking about Kid?" Liz asked, somewhat incredulous.

His expression instantly softened, his wrath faltering slightly. "Yes…no…I don't know," he finally admitted. "Between Angel using forbidden shinigami arts and the damage she caused to the campus…"

Patty smirked. "He's just pissed because it took so long to fix the training forest."

Shinigami-sama growled, annoyed, but accepted that his right hand pistol was right. "My father would have laughed this sort of thing off, but I take great pride in maintaining this Academy. It was never meant to have holes blasted into it."

"Says the man who made the biggest crater of all," Liz said deadpanned.

"There is an irony in his concern, dear Elizabeth, but his concern is a genuine one."

The three looked ahead to see Reika and Excalibur waiting in front of the door to the Death Room.

"Huh?" Liz said flatly.

"His concern for Kid greatly eclipses his concern for the sanctity of the Academy grounds," the holy sword continued, "Yet he frets about the latter as if the former is irrelevant. Of course, that's not to say he does not care for his daughter. The opposite is true. He worries more for the earth of the training forest because he knows well that his daughter can endure more suffering than it can."

Liz frowned. "I think I get what you're saying," she said skeptically. "But I'd appreciate it if you called me Liz, Mr. Holy Sword."

"My apologies, legendary weapon of Shinigami-sama," he said, politely tipping his hat. "I meant you no offense."

She was instantly appreciative. "That's a little better," she said with a big smile.

"I should be the one apologizing," Shinigami-sama said, letting out a short, nervous chuckle. "We've kept you waiting."

"Nonsense," Excalibur said. "We are well aware of the circumstances that led to your delay. Thus, your delay is justified and therefore excusable."

"Yeah, what Exie said," Reika affirmed. "It's not your fault you're late. You had to deal with…stuff."

"I appreciate your understanding. Thank you," the Grim Reaper said warmly. "Shall we head in? I believe I promised you a nice spot of tea, Excalibur."

"Indeed you did. I am glad you remembered."

"Come, then. Let's get this meeting underway."

He reached into his suit and pulled out a long golden key with a Death skull on one end. With practiced precision, he inserted it and turned it, the many locks that secured the Death Room coming undone with a series of mechanical clicks. The wooden door then swung open on its own, revealing the raised path framed by guillotine arches.

Excalibur entered first, followed by his meister, then Liz and Patty. Shinigami-sama came last, turning to make sure the door closed back up before falling in step with the others. Eventually, everyone made it to the center of the chamber, finding the usual seating arrangement there along with an ornate silver tea set and a small plate of pound cake loaves sitting on the skull coffee table.

As Reika lifted Excalibur up into the loveseat and Patty grabbed a piece of pound cake, Shinigami-sama made his way to the mirror that stood off to the side. His mirror. He cleared his throat, and right on cue, Tezca Tlipoca again appeared before him.

"Howdy, boss. How can I help you?" he said, his voice as distorted and broken as it usually was, a consequence of his near death at the hands of Justin Law so many years ago.

"Could you send a message to Kim-san for me?"

"Sure. What's the message?"

Shinigami-sama's countenance swiftly grew dark. "She is to keep Angel and the Thompson twins sedated until my meeting with Excalibur and Reika-chan is concluded. When I give the word, the three of them are to come and meet me in the Death Room, and go nowhere else. Should they deviate from this prescribed course of action, they will be expelled."

"Understood."

With that, the demon mirror's image faded away, leaving the death god to stare at himself for a moment before turning to address his guests.

"Sorry about the delays," he said with a clasping of his hands.

"Worry not, old friend, your apology is quite unnecessary," Excalibur said as he took a sip of the tea Reika had poured for him.

"Very well. Then let us begin our debriefing. I want to hear all about your travels abroad in Europe, every detail."

Reika looked to her weapon before shrugging and saying, "There's not much to tell, boss. We came, we saw, we kicked a lot of monster butt."

"Where did you go?"

"Gosh, where didn't we go? We hunted evil souls in every major city in Europe, almost. Serial killers in London, assassins in Switzerland and Italy, monsters in Scotland and Ireland, demons in Spain…"

"Sounds like you had quite the trip."

"It was awesome!" she cried, stars in her eyes. "I mean, the fighting was fine and all, but the food, the sights, the people! What a way to see the world! Best working vacation ever!"

Excalibur cleared his throat, and his meister immediately straightened up.

"Yes, sir, it was quite the trip," she said, trying her best to be proper before slumping into the sofa and letting out a defeated sigh.

Shinigami-sama smiled. Reika's sentiment about evil soul hunting was not uncommon amongst E.A.T. students. Angel, too, considered such assignments as part of a working vacation, but Excalibur clearly recognized the danger in trivializing them.

Holy sword or no, even the most mundane evil souls were a threat to all of humanity.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," Shinigami-sama said warmly. "Tell me, have you taken any major steps on your path to mastering the Holy Sword? Any new techniques to report?"

Reika ran her fingers nervously through her short spiky hair before shooting him a nervous grin. "Um…not really?"

Excalibur nodded in agreement. "Sir Reika can reliably send defeated evil souls to the Academy no matter where she is in the world, and our opponents are often vexed by her ability to close any gap in an instant. However, I am sad to report that, due to the relative weakness of our quarry as of late, we have not needed to venture beyond the bare minimum of what is needed to slay our enemies."

Shinigami-sama frowned, pensive. "I see. Perhaps it is true what they say. Necessity is the mother of invention."

"Quite right."

"I suppose that's good news as well as bad news," he said, turning to Reika. "It's good to see that you're doing so well in open combat, but I would have hoped you would be able to harness more of Excalibur's power by now."

"Yeah…sorry, boss. Fighting monsters is fun, but Exie's right. I'm not really learning anything by fighting the same lame goons over and over again."

Excalibur nodded. "That is why I suggested we come back to the Academy: to not only train with students as skilled as Sir Reika, but to guide her on her path to mastering the last of the Three Provisions."

"Of course," Shinigami-sama said with a nod.

"Hey, question from the peanut gallery: what are those provisions, again?" Liz said as her sister lazily glanced at her phone.

"Ugh, don't make me recite them," Reika groaned, throwing her head back.

"The Three Provisions are the three conditions that one had to meet in order to wield Excalibur back in the twelfth century," Shinigami-sama explained. "After the legendary meister King Arthur, no one met those conditions, and so Excalibur was forced to explore other options."

"Is that why he was such a dick when we were kids?" Patty said with a laugh.

"Not quite," her meister replied. "It's…well, it's a long story not worth explaining. Isn't that right, Excalibur?"

"Indeed. All you need know, dear Patty, is that I am more or less the man I was back when I stood by King Arthur's side. The only thing I lack that my younger self had is a spruce mustache and beard."

"Exie really does wish he could grow it back," Reika said with a giggle.

"I do…" he said wearily, a single tear forming under one of his ever-open eyes. "But enough about ancient history. Shall we discuss the finer points of our adventures in Europe?"

Shinigami-sama nodded. "Yes, I think we shall. This is a debriefing, after all. I need every detail for our records."

In his mind, he hoped that there was more to talk about. That he could delay his daughter's punishment longer. But he knew that there was no point in delaying the inevitable.

Soon, he would have to do something he never thought he'd have to do…and certainly not to his own daughter.

---

To Gray Star's chagrin, the walk to Class Half Moon was thick with onlookers, spectators, and gossips. The curious, the bold, and the nosy; all annoyances, all unwelcome. Sage's glares were enough to scare most of them off, his harsh dark eyes dissuading them from doing more than prodding his meister with a question or two.

Wading through the crowds was akin to trying to sprint through quicksand: no matter how much energy she put in, it felt like she moved at the same sluggish place.

It took ages, but eventually, the duo made it to their destination.

Gray Star tried her best to open the door quietly, hoping to slip into her seat without drawing too much attention. Perhaps Maka-sensei would quickly chastise her for being late, and that would be the end of it. That was what she expected, what she wanted.

What she got was something else entirely.

The moment she set foot in the classroom and took in the space around her, everyone, every single student in Class Half Moon, stood up and started clapping. Cheering, laughing, calling out her name. It almost gave her a panic attack. What were they doing? Had she done something wrong?

Then she realized.

They were celebrating.

Her.

She looked for a face in the crowd for guidance, and found Specter, slow clapping, a knowing grin on his face.

"You've earned it," his look said.

Sage's hand on her shoulder sealed it for her. She could afford to smile. In a way, she had earned it, even if she didn't think much of it.

Her victory.

Something resembling a smile slowly stretched its way across her face, but anyone who looked would be able to see that she was nervous, from the way she kept her hands behind her back to the sweat that was gathering on her forehead.

"Alright, that's enough," Maka-sensei called out, silencing everyone in a firm but calm manner. She turned to Gray Star and whispered, "Your parents told me what happened. I guess everyone else here saw it for themselves."

When Gray Star didn't say anything, she continued.

"You've been through a lot today, so don't feel like you're obligated to do any really focused resonance work. Just relax, okay?" she said with a wink. "I'll make sure nobody bothers you."

Gray Star looked to Sage, who gave her an affirmative nod.

"Okay," she said finally.

Maka-sensei smiled, then walked back out in front of her desk, allowing Sage and Gray Star to slip into their aisle and slide into their seats as she talked.

"Alright, everyone," she began, "I know today has been rather exciting, but we need to bring our focus back to our class, our partners, our resonance." She emphatically cracked her knuckles before putting a fist on either hip, something most people recognized as a sign that she was determined. "I want you to begin by practicing increasing your resonance rates while maintaining stability. Ranged weapons, this means as little "noise" or instability potential as possible. Remember, it's better to have a lower resonance rate that's stable than a higher resonance rate that's unstable. Any questions?"

Everyone murmured in reply from their place in the amphitheater seats, Gray Star shaking her head along with the rest of the class so as not to draw attention to herself, even though she knew that not everyone was focused on their instructor.

"Alright, then. Break up, transform, and start resonating. I'll check on each of you in about ten minutes to see where you all are. Then we'll get to the heavy stuff. Ready, set, go."

She clapped, and everyone immediately stood up and started taking their places around the room, Gray Star and Sage being the only ones to hesitate.

"What do you want to do?" Sage asked.

Gray Star smiled, knowing just from his tone that he desperately wanted to call her 'mistress' despite her asking him not to. "I think I just want to meditate alone for a moment. I have to…process things."

Her weapon made to reply, but stopped himself when he saw who was coming their way. Gray Star turned to find Specter and Nina standing in the aisle next to them. The Evans kids regarded her with warm looks, a far cry from Specter's normally bored expression and Nina's usual excitable smirk.

"Hey, Gray," the former said, a certain sadness in his eyes, something that said he thought he understood what she was going through. "You okay?"

She took a moment to consider her answer before breathing out a sigh and simply saying, "Yes, thank you."

"Did anyone give you shit on the way here?" Nina prodded.

"Indeed. But we handled them," Sage said darkly, his eyes narrowing.

Nina's eyebrows shot up, and a nervous laugh escaped her lips. "I'm sure you did. If looks could kill…Jesus…"

"Sage was able to keep the hounds off my heels," Gray Star admitted. "But…it was still…a lot."

"You know, if the N.O.T. kids or the punks get too nosy, just let us know," Nina said, catching her fist with her other hand. "We'll teach 'em some manners."

"We're behind you. All of us," Specter added, gesturing to her friends, who stood in various places around the room.

When her eyes focused on each member of her friend group, they smiled and nodded to her, some out of respect, some in seeming agreement with Specter's assertion despite not hearing it. It was the unspoken accord of their friendship. That they would help her whenever she needed it, not because she was the daughter of a god, and not because she was a skilled warrior, but because they had known each other for so many years, because they had grown up practically side by side.

It was sometimes more than she thought she deserved, but this time, she was willing to accept it.

"Thank you," she said again, smiling genuinely for perhaps the first time in a long time. "Thank you."

---

"Here's your order, sir," the barista said, happily handing him a foam cup wreathed in cardboard with a Death skull printed on it, the insignia of his long-time enemy.

Too happily, if he was honest with himself.

The coffee was a cold brew coffee, one he would need to add blood to in order for it to be palatable. With a raised eyebrow, he glanced around the coffee shop, scanning for any hazards. It was a nice enough place, a little tacky for his tastes, but more importantly, it appeared free of any meisters or weapons with strong souls.

Satisfied that he was at least somewhat safe, he slipped some of the life essence of a cow he had drained on his way through the American midwest into his cup. Only then could he allow himself to take a sip. He grinned.

It was marvelous, if a little syrupy.

His eye wandered to one of the employees behind the counter, a darling young woman with walnut-colored hair. He met her gaze, and for a moment, he thought she had recognized him, that his limited understanding of the witch art known as Soul Protect had failed him, that his four hundred year-old form was a poor choice of disguise. But then he saw her smile, the way she stifled a giggle and shared a whisper with her colleague.

He had to suppose she found him handsome.

Relief washed over Mosquito as he sat in that coffee shop, deep in the heart of what he had once considered enemy territory. It was odd, hiding in plain sight, and in no way good for his nerves. But it was necessary if he was to get to the Reaper's place of work without having his soul torn from his body too soon.

For so long, he had been Lady Arachne's most trusted advisor. For so long, he had strayed away from his first path, the path he had embarked on more than eight hundred years ago. Now, he had to face the consequences of his actions.

Now, he had to face the Reaper once again.

With a mask of a smile on his face, he spent a few minutes drinking his coffee, then threw the cup into the garbage, waved farewell to the far-too-cheery baristas that seemed to be smitten with his tall, pale and handsome form. The bell above the door rang eerily as he stepped out into the cobblestone streets and turned his gaze up toward the city's pillar of power, the engine of death that was the DWMA. It stood at the very center of the desert oasis, the castle-like main building tall enough to be slightly shrouded by the light gray cloud cover that the afternoon sun had yet to burn off.

Just seeing the facade was enough to shake his resolve, if only slightly. Taking that first step proved to be more difficult than he had imagined. But once his first foot moved, the second was quick to follow suit.

As he walked, he silently thanked his lucky stars that human legends about vampires were untrue. If sunlight were truly a deterrent for him, moving on the DWMA would have been far more trouble than it was worth. In stern silence, he made his way through the winding streets that climbed up toward the city center, his mind a tortuous whirlwind of regret and fear.

Then, as he made his way into a large plaza shaped like, what else, a skull, he saw something that forcibly ripped him out of his head and caused him to gasp in surprise.

There, in the center of the courtyard, was a towering stone rendition of the Grim Reaper himself, skull mask on his face, scythe in hand. He stood in the center of a massive alabaster fountain set with skull-shaped onyx stones, the water flowing out of it pure and crisp. But what struck Mosquito the most was the plaque that was bolted into the base of that fountain.

It read:

Shinigami-sama, Lord Death, The Grim Reaper

Remembered by his son, Death the Kid

We mark his passing with this fountain at the heart of Death City, his home

Dedicated on Death Day, October 28th

Mosquito's eyes widened, his heart, his soul, and all of his convictions were torn asunder, leaving him a broken shell of a man.

"Shinigami-sama…is dead?"

---

"Well, I think that concludes our meeting for today," Shinigami-sama said as he glanced at the clock he kept on his desk. "Seeing as you just got back, I don't think it's necessary to send you off to your special training elective with Crona and Ragnarok."

"So…study hall?" Reika said, dejected.

"Yes, study hall. You do have a lot of work to catch up on, after all."

The straw-haired sword wielder let out a long sigh. "Alright," she moped. "I'll go to the library…"

Excalibur hopped down off the couch to follow his meister out. "I shall supervise her. Sir Reika does have a tendency to get distracted, after all."

Reika twitched at her nickname, but sighed in defeat. Excalibur would never change. She was doomed to forever be called by the wrong pronoun.

Not that she really cared; she just didn't want people to get the wrong idea.

She waved goodbye and began her walk out of the room, Excalibur right behind her, when she heard Shinigami-sama call out suddenly.

"Wait, Excalibur," he said. "Could I bother you to stay a little longer?"

Excalibur turned on his heel and put his cane down on the white stone of the dais.

"But, of course." He turned to Reika. "Run along and gather your notes. I shall meet you in the library."

"Alrighty. See ya later!" With that, she darted off down the guillotine path and swiftly shot through the Death Room door.

"She's not going to do any studying, is she?" Shinigami-sama deadpanned.

"No, not if I am not looking over her shoulder."

"Apologies in advance, but I appreciate you staying."

"'Tis nothing, old chap. Anything for a friend."

"Thanks." The Grim Reaper let out a sigh. "To be honest, I need some advice."

"Wavering, are we?"

"Hm?"

"Death the Kid. You hesitate to deliver judgment upon her, yet you know it is your duty as headmaster of this academy and her father to do so."

"You're right." He flopped into his armchair, defeated. "I know what I need to do, obviously. There's only one course of action to take. I just don't know if I have the strength to take it."

"No," Excalibur corrected, "It's not that. You have all the strength in the world. Your fear is that your daughter will forever resent you if you use it against her."

Shinigami-sama put his head into his hand, suddenly tired.

"Is that what's got you all torn up?" Liz asked from her place on the loveseat she was sharing with Patty, who had finished the pound cake loaves.

"I suppose so," he admitted. "I'm worried our relationship may never be the same after this."

"Hey, Kid loves you," Patty pointed out. "She might hate you for a minute, because getting chewed out sucks, but she'll never stop loving you."

Her sister nodded. "She's right. Patty and I get into fights sometimes. We'll tell each other we hate each other and slam doors on each other, but at the end of the day, we're still family. That's what families do: they fight, and then they get over it."

"This is a little more than your average fight," Shinigami-sama said wearily. "Angel challenged an unwilling student to an unsanctioned duel with intent to harm on Academy grounds. I'm preparing to meter out a punishment that no one in my family has ever suffered; this is serious."

"I would advise you not to hesitate, old friend," Excalibur said firmly. "You know the old adage: Spare the rod, spoil the child. There's a grim truth to it, one I know well."

Shinigami-sama's eyes narrowed, his silence prompting the holy sword to continue.

"I have seen what happens when a father neglects their child in that way. Had King Arthur been more swift to challenge his son's actions, he might have been spared Mordred's wrath. In the end, they destroyed each other; I would hate to see that tragedy relived in the modern age."

The Grim Reaper furrowed his brow and pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers as he considered the advice of those before him.

As headmaster of the DWMA, he could not show mercy, as it would be akin to letting nepotism override justice. But as a father, he could not be ruthless; overcompensating for the sake of justice by way of a harsh punishment would surely stir his daughter's wrath and ruin their relationship forever. With a slow exhale, he made up his mind.

He would not repeat King Arthur's mistake, nor would he banish Angel from his "kingdom".

...not forever, at least.

---

At first, there was blackness, then, a burst of color, a flare in the dark that was fleshy pink. It didn't register in Kid's mind exactly what she was seeing until she realized that she had yet to open her eyes. A light from above her was burning through her eyelids, like sunlight bearing down on her on a hot summer's day.

She liked the idea of sitting under a tree, letting the cool breeze play with her hair as she listened to her music, not a care in the world. It was a nice dream, one that compelled her to keep her eyes closed. She hoped she could just fall back asleep, live in that world for a little longer.

Unfortunately, reality had other plans.

She felt an unnaturally soft hand lightly tap her on the cheek, forcing her to scrunch up her face and shut her eyes even tighter before finally accepting defeat and slowly waking up. The lights above her were blinding enough to make her eyeballs feel like eggs on a frying pan, and it took her a moment to shake off the sensory overload. But once that was over, she quickly made out a set of plain, sterile walls, a medicine cabinet, and Kim-sensei sitting bedside.

The dispensary. She was in the dispensary. Why was she in the dispensary?

Memory struck her all at once. She remembered chasing Gray Star through the Academy halls before getting sent flying into the training forest. A bit of pride welled up in her as she remembered the devastation she had caused with her Death Cannon, although this was quickly quashed by a heaping helping of shame at the fact that she had ultimately lost that fight.

Dammit…

"Afternoon," Kim-sensei said. "Nice and rested, I hope?"

"Guess so," Kid said, tentatively rolling her shoulder and subconsciously putting her hand to her chest, a ghost of pain lingering there before fading away. "Thanks, I guess."

"You're welcome. It took a lot of energy to undo the damage done to you, I'll have you know."

"Jeez…didn't think Gray the type to lay it on thick…"

"You mean…you don't remember what happened?" Kim-sensei asked with a pensive frown.

Kid's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean? What happened?"

The pink-haired tanuki witch just sighed and put her hands up. "Not my place to say. You'll have to take it up with your father."

She threw her head back in disgust. "Ugh! Just what I need," she spat. "I'd rather go home."

"Unfortunately, I can't let you do that, as much as I'd like to." When Kid shot her a dirty look, she added, "If you go anywhere other than the Death Room once you leave the dispensary, you'll be expelled, hun."

Ice shot through her veins as the color drained from her face. Her father didn't threaten expulsion often, and he had never threatened her with it, not even when she had tagged the side of the Academy with a Death skull smoking a blunt. She was used to getting threats of punishment, and she was very used to getting stuck with extracurricular work that was intended to "straighten her out", but this…this was different.

She blinked a few times before looking to Kim-sensei for some kind of reprieve, a sign that she was joking. But the look on the doctor's face was quite clear. There was no reprieve.

"Where are the twins?" she asked.

Kim-sensei stood up and pulled the curtain behind her aside to reveal that Lenny and Jenny were awake and alive, resting on their own beds. When they saw her, they immediately perked up, then let out sad sighs. Evidently, they knew what was coming also.

"Hey, Kid…" Jenny said softly, waving falteringly as she put her phone away.

"Feel better?" Lenny asked, trying his best to make himself smaller as he tucked himself into the corner of his bed.

Kid threw off her covers and stood up, her head suddenly swimming, her hands shaky. She quickly put her hand to her face, trying her best to hide the tears that teetered on the brim of her eyelids. Unsuccessful, she sat back down and used her sleeve to swipe them away, the denim messing up her mascara and making it streak across her nose and off the side of her cheek.

Kim-sensei just gave her a sympathetic smile and handed her a tissue, which she immediately used to remove all of the errant black marks from her face.

Knowing that they had to be there for their meister, the twins quickly got out of their beds and came to her side, their nerves fried, too.

"It's gonna be alright, boss."

"Yeah, what Jen said. We'll be there for you every step of the way."

"Your dad isn't gonna expel you. We won't let it happen."

"We go where you go. That's a promise."

Kid let out a choked chuckle, her happiness strangled by sadness and anger. "Going down with the ship, huh?" she said, mostly to herself. "Fuck…I must have really done it this time."

She ran her fingers through her hair before giving herself a hearty slap to the face, one hard enough to make even Kim-sensei wince.

"Let's go," she said tiredly, standing up almost robotically. "Time to visit my old man."

Kim-sensei silently waved goodbye as they left, Kid rounding the corner first, her gaze pinned to the tiles on the floor. The twins followed her in silence as they walked, not sure what to say, not sure if they could help. Kid knew her way to the Death Room; she had played in these halls, had grown up bouncing on the couch in her father's inner sanctum and hanging upside down from the crosses and caltrops that dotted the desert around his sitting area.

It hurt her to know that she could get there with her eyes closed, but just this once, it proved to be a positive.

She only barely registered that someone was waiting outside the Death Room door, the old doctor called Stein. He didn't say anything, just watched through sun-fogged lenses as she walked past, twins in step behind her. She didn't say anything, either.

What was there to say? That she was doomed, perhaps. Maybe that was why he was there, she thought.

To bring me back to life when dad's done with me…

Knowing well that she couldn't turn back, she took a deep breath, steeled herself, and opened the door.

As she passed under the arches, the door shut by itself, locking with a series of mechanical clicks. It was a sign that her father did not want any interruptions. So, a bad sign.

When she got to the main meeting area, she dared to look up, and there she found her father, alone in his lair, his back to her and her weapons.

"I see you got my summons," he said simply, not bothering to turn around.

He knew she was there.

She let out a sigh. "Yeah. I did."

It was then that he finally turned around, agonizingly slowly. When his eyes did finally meet hers, she was surprised to see sadness in them, not anger or rage. There was no veil, just a sincere look of disappointment.

"Have a seat." He gestured to the couch in front of her.

Silently pissed, but simultaneously scared, she did as he asked, finding a place in the middle of the seating arrangement, the twins naturally ending up on either side of her. They looked to her, nervous but firm in their conviction to support her. Her father didn't bother to sit down, opting instead to take a few steps to his right, ending up across the coffee table from them.

"You know why you're here," he said sternly, his golden eyes dark and dangerous, boring holes in her chest and piecing her soul. "You broke the rules, challenged an unwilling student to an unsanctioned duel on Academy grounds, leveled a good portion of the training forest with intent to seriously harm or injure…and that's just the start."

Kid swallowed. She didn't remember doing much more than what her father had just described. What else could she have done?

"First, though this has no bearing on the proceedings, I want to give you a chance to explain yourself. I have my own theories about the motivation behind your little stunt, but I don't like making assumptions. I'd rather hear it from you." He folded his arms, one eyebrow raised. "Well? What do you have to say for yourself?"

After a brief period of internal deliberation, Kid simply shook her head, already knowing where this was going.

"Let me hazard a guess, hm? After our talk on Friday, you felt…dissatisfied, shall we say. Anticipating another fatherly lecture from me today, you decided to take a shortcut, to…nip the conversation in the bud, as it were."

Kid just rolled her eyes into the back of her head and fell back into the couch, simulating dying. It was something she used to do as a child, playing dead to elicit sympathy. Since she had started attending the DWMA, it was more a show of frustration or defeat than anything else.

In this case, both.

"You came to the Academy today intent on challenging Gray Star to a duel, hoping that an easy victory over her would prove to me that you are a capable shinigami, one that doesn't need to be bogged down by things like rules and limitations." He shook his head in disappointment as his daughter sat back up. "You should have known better. Even if you had succeeded in your plan, it wouldn't have worked."

Kid grimaced, fuming internally, but didn't say anything. Of course it sounded bad when he said it like that. Was it really so bad for her to want to try and prove herself?

As if reading her mind, he said, "I understand the desire to prove oneself, but what you attempted today was not a sound strategy to do that." His eyes locked back onto her. "So…tell me, Angel. Was my speculation about your motive for this fiasco correct?"

She let out a sigh before finally spitting out a hesitant, "I guess."

When her father didn't immediately respond, Kid looked up only to see a grim look on his face, more grim than usual. He wasn't angry, not even disappointed. No, it was something deeper than that.

A concern, and perhaps a certain level of sadness. What the hell was he so worked up about? She was the one in trouble.

If she was being honest, she would have preferred him angry.

"Very well," he said. "Before I hand down your punishments or explain my reasons for giving them, I need to address something. Something important. Something deadly serious."

Kid swallowed hard. "What is it?"

"Do you remember what happened after Gray Star rendered you unconscious with her Opening Shot technique?"

She shook her head. "Once she knocked me out, that was it. Blackout. Game over."

"I was afraid you'd say that," he said wearily.

"Why?" she shot back.

He paused to consider the question, but ultimately gave up with a deep, frustrated sigh. "There's no easy way to say this, but it must be said. Explicitly. Only then will you understand just how serious this all is, why I brought you here."

"Just tell me," she said, frustrated. "You're dragging this out, dad."

Another sigh, then…he dropped the bombshell.

"You invoked the power of a forbidden shinigami art, Angel," he said grimly.

Her eyes widened instantly. "What?" she said, hoarse despite her best efforts to present herself as calm and unfazed. "What shinigami art? I…I don't remember…"

"It is called Forbidden Shinigami Art: Revoke Mortality. It is an ability that allows a shinigami to keep fighting without being conscious. In dire situations, it can even stave off death, if only briefly."

Kid looked at her trembling hands as if they were alien to her, the corners of her vision blurring at the edges as her eyes lost their focus. "I did that…?"

"There's a reason it's forbidden. All one can do when under the effects of the technique is hunt and kill. No restraint, no way to discern friend from foe, just a single-minded drive to destroy."

"Jesus," Jenny breathed.

Lenny stayed silent, his face blanched by fear.

"Wait, dad, I've never even heard of this move. Never! How could I do something I didn't even know how to do?" she pleaded.

"I have my suspicions, but I can't say for sure. That's a discussion we'll have to save for another time. This is strictly a disciplinary conference, for you and the twins."

Kid gritted her teeth, but chose to bite her tongue, not wanting to bury herself more than she apparently already had.

"A shinigami wielding that power is a danger not only to themselves, but to everyone around them," her father said. "Your desire for revenge must have superseded your inborn restraints, the limits placed on you as an unascended shinigami." His expression softened a moment, his eyes drifting to the floor. "You lost control, and I…I had to…suppress you."

"You…suppressed me?" Kid repeated in a harsh whisper, more hurt than anything else.

Her father stood up straighter, his resolve seemingly restored. "That's right, I did. I warned you not to follow through with your plans, but you were so consumed by your drive to defeat Gray Star that I couldn't reach you. Had I not intervened, you would have posed a risk not just to her, but to everyone at the Academy."

She ran her fingers through her hair hard enough to tear something, trying her best not to freak out. "What did you do?" she whispered, reaching for that phantom pain in her chest.

"I think it's only fair that I show you rather than simply tell you." He turned to his mirror. "Tezca. Play the footage."

"Footage?" the twins asked in unison.

"You got it," replied the mirror, his voice sourceless.

Then the mirror went black, like any reflective surface did when someone called the Death Room with it, but there was no dial tone, no ringing. Just the void. Then, light filtered through, revealing an overhead view of the training forest.

There, on the ground a few dozen feet down, Kid and the twins saw…Kid, on her feet, but only barely. Gray Star was there too, in a defensive stance, Uncanny Sword in hand. Even though the Kid in the footage was tiny, they could see that her movements were unnatural, as if someone were pulling her along with invisible puppet strings.

"Is that…me?"

She made to ask more questions, but was cut off by her father's voice coming loud and clear through the mirror.

"Don't engage!" he called out. "It's too dangerous!"

The twins gasped as it dawned on them what they were seeing, whose eyes they were looking through, but Kid remained silent.

"I'll handle this."

She could hear the venom in his tone…and it didn't get any better from there.

With wide eyes, she saw everything that had transpired after she had blacked out. She heard him try to reason with her, only to sentence her to death, something he only did when someone was beyond saving. She watched as he sent her flying only to slam her back down to earth, shattering the ground and her ribs with his heel.

The phantom pain in her chest wasn't so phantom after that.

It was unnerving, but also infuriating. All of her power and training, everything she was and strived to be, and yet her old man had dusted her without a second thought. Like a bug challenging a speeding big rig.

Hopelessly outmatched.

"That's enough," Shinigami-sama said, the footage winking out as the mirror became reflective once again. He turned back to Kid and the twins. "Now you see the severity of the situation you've gotten yourself into," he said darkly.

The twins gulped, expecting the worst.

Kid was over it. She just wanted the verdict. All his posturing was starting to drive her nuts.

Her golden eyes were cold and empty. She had gone from angry, to terrified, to done in less than half an hour, and the emotional rollercoaster had taken its toll. Though her body had been healed, she felt exhausted, crushed, broken.

"I had half a mind to expel you, Angel, and suspend the twins for participating in this disaster, though sources say they did so unwillingly, and only out of blind loyalty to you."

The Thompson twins looked at each other before nodding feverishly, panic-stricken and shaking in their matching red skate shoes. Kid's eyes remained glued to the floor, her face shadowed by her hair. The tension in the room was stifling, gripping, but worst of all, inescapable.

"Thankfully for you," he continued, "There's a difference between attempting to seriously injure a fellow student and actually succeeding. Because Gray Star emerged unscathed despite your best efforts, you've only barely avoided the worst case scenario. I decided to exclude damages to the Academy from the list of infractions, since the training forest is all but expendable, and the only other thing that was damaged during the fight was a window and lunch table."

Not trusting herself to say anything helpful, Kid remained silent.

"However," he continued, "Due to everything I witnessed, and the accounts we got from both students and faculty, I must do everything in my power to punish you for breaking Academy policy."

Here it comes…

He straightened up, arms behind his back, eyes narrowed dangerously, his aura both calm and wrathful all at once.

"First, Death the Kid AKA Shinigami the Third, AKA Angel. As punishment for your flagrant disregard for Academy policy and the safety of Academy students and personnel, you are hereby placed on disciplinary suspension. Any and all services provided by the Academy are considered closed to you. You are no longer permitted to be on campus unless you obtain special permission from myself, or unless a world-level crisis is occurring, in which case you will be notified either by myself or Academy personnel that your suspension is temporarily lifted.

"You may no longer complete regular missions for the Academy or use lethal force without special permission from myself, and you will be held liable for any future damage to public property in or outside Death City when completing such assignments, which will be put on your personal record as student debt. You are no longer permitted to wield your weapons, Jenny and Lenny Thompson, without express permission from myself or a three-star meister unless a world-level crisis is occurring. You cannot use anything beyond nonlethal force under any circumstance except necessary self defense. If you are found to be wielding your weapons or using lethal force without permission, for any reason, you will be immediately expelled, no questions asked."

He narrowed his eyes, his golden irises punching a hole in her resolve, any measure of strength she had left.

"You are also expected to remain in good academic standing, which means improving your grades in all classes by at least two full letter grades within a period of six weeks. You must do this through official channels and by way of homework assignments and examinations that will be taken in designated areas by authorized Academy personnel, only after being approved by myself and your instructors. As stated before, you may not set foot on Academy grounds unless given special permission to do so, and you will not attend any classes. You may only come to school to receive physical copies of homework assignments from your instructors, and to do so, you must file the appropriate paperwork and have it approved by me.

"Failing to improve your grades within the designated six week period will result in expulsion. As per Academy expectations, you are still expected to collect one more evil soul before the end of your first year, either during or after your suspension period, to meet the requisite twenty five evil souls each student meister is expected to collect per registered weapon they wield."

He paused for a moment to let his words sink in, to let the gravity of the punishment he had handed down weigh on her soul.

"Am I clear?" he finally asked, arms folded, resolute.

Kid closed her eyes tight, as if trying to escape a bad dream, only to sigh and open them back up.

"Crystal," she said, utterly broken.

"Good." He looked between the twins. "Now for you two."

Their eyes went wide in fear as they shrank back into the sofa, trying their best to disappear.

"Jennifer and Leonard Thompson. For aiding Death the Kid in attempting to harm a fellow Academy student and her weapon partner, albeit unwillingly, you are hereby put on temporary academic probation." When they shot him mirrored confused looks, Shinigami-sama shook his head. "Listen closely, I'm going to explain what that means."

They nodded silently, their fear twisting their faces into unique masks of distress.

"You are still expected to attend regular classes, and while Academy services like the library are open to you, you cannot provide any aid to Kid in order to assist her with removing her suspension. This means you cannot study with her, give her notes from your classes…anything of the sort. Should you be found guilty of doing any of these things, you will be placed on disciplinary suspension. Also, due to your lacking grades, you will also need to improve your grades in all classes by at least one full letter grade within a period of six weeks, otherwise, you will be placed on academic suspension. Understood?"

They nodded again, neither of them willing to test his patience.

"Very well." He let out a long sigh through his nose, his expression conveying a release of tension, tiredness interlaced with sternness. "That concludes the disciplinary hearing."

"Can we go now?" Kid asked flatly, not willing to look him in the face.

"You're excused," he said, his expression hardening again. "But we will have another conversation soon, Angel. Father to daughter. Our discussion about your behavior has only just begun."

No response was given, nor did she look at him. Instead, she simply turned and vaulted over the couch, her legs narrowly missing Lenny's head. Upon landing, she slowly walked her way down the guillotine-lined pathway, hands in her pockets, the twins too stunned to follow her.

She didn't wait for them.

The door to the Death Room unlocked just in time for her to push it open with her foot. She passed Stein on the way out, but didn't acknowledge him when he spoke. His words spilled into the air like his cigarette smoke. She waved them aside. Kid's world was nothing but white noise, her thoughts blocking all sensory input.

Stone-faced, she found herself grappling with the fact that the school she had grown up in and had grown used to leaving behind for missions around the world was now forbidden to her.

The thought made her want to throw up…even though part of her hated the place.

She wandered those long, empty hallways for a while, her mental map of the Academy interior allowing her to do so on autopilot. It was well past three, and everyone had gone home. She was alone.

Numb to everything, she eventually pushed her way out those big double doors, kicking rocks in the courtyard before starting her way down those cursed steps. She heard the twins rush to catch up to her, only to stop suddenly, too scared to fall in step behind her. Despite the hollowness in her heart, she kept walking.

Fuck this, she thought, hazarding one last look at the DWMA's grandiose, overblown facade over her shoulder. And fuck you.

She whirled back around, focusing on the steps beneath her as she marched her way down, an exile in her own land.

---

"I apologize for making you wait, Professor," Shinigami-sama said as Stein took his place across the coffee table from him.

The mad doctor let out a nicotine exhale, sending a wispy skull screaming into the air. "No need to apologize. It couldn't be avoided; Kid's actions demanded attention."

"Right," he said, still weary from the conversation he had just concluded. "At any rate, I'm glad you could come. Shall we skip the formalities and address the elephant in the room?"

"The green soul and the children's book Black Star recovered," Stein said nonchalantly.

Shinigami-sama nodded. "All we know about the book is that it's based in German folklore, and that the soul in question might be magical."

Stein grinned. "The soul is certainly the most interesting aspect of this mystery, no doubt about that."

"Tezca told me you had made a breakthrough. Care to enlighten me?"

"Sure." Another exhale of gray. "I looked through everything you, the Department of Witch Affairs, and the Research and Development Division gathered on the green soul Black Star retrieved from the wolf girl he described in his report. Turns out your initial analyses were quite apt. These souls are definitely polluted with magic, and are categorically more powerful than the average evil soul. I agree with your assessment; the term 'old monster soul' is grossly outdated. Age does nothing to a soul, only to physical forms and given names."

"Creatures of old," Shinigami-sama realized. "Ancient powers, legendary warriors.

"Precisely. Names like Excalibur, The Man With the Magic Eye, Shinigami-sama, and The Grand Witch have all stood the test of time. The raw power of souls with names so ancient borders on the monstrous. Using old monster soul as a blanket term is short sighted, to say the least."

"I agree. Do you have a replacement in mind?"

"Human souls, witch souls, evil souls; those terms can stay the same. They're accurate enough. These green souls, I think, should be called what they are."

"And that is?"

Stein narrowed his eyes. "Magic-touched."

---

There were far too many stairs.

Mosquito frowned as he looked up at the DWMA from the bottom of its massive sandstone stairway, which seemingly stretched on for a mile or more. He silently wondered whose brilliant idea it was to make such a thing the entryway to the Academy. It seemed a rather bothersome obstacle for its visitors, let alone the students who ascended it every day.

Then he thought about just how resilient young people tended to be, and what exactly the students were being trained to do, and it all made sense.

With a sigh, he reluctantly began his way up. Very reluctantly. Despite looking like a tall, handsome young man, his form was still four hundred years old, and age had a knack for making even the simplest tasks quite arduous.

Going up a flight of stairs was one such task. He walked and walked and walked up those infernal steps for what felt like ages. It was exhausting, and Mosquito found himself dabbing his forehead with a cloth from his suit.

About halfway through the climb, he noticed that someone was coming toward him, a student, it seemed. She was a young woman a few steps shorter than he was, with raven-colored hair and pale skin, wearing all black and spikes. Clearly, a dark youth.

Before long, they got close enough to see each other more closely.

She ignored him, but upon examining her a second time, he felt his ancient heart stop when he noticed something he hadn't quite been able to see before. Three crisp, bright white lines cut through her hair, though they only appeared on the left side of her head. He knew what those lines were.

The Lines of Sanzu!?

He subconsciously moved away from her, his eyes wide with fear. Had she been paying attention to him, she might have thought his sudden stopping and staring strange. Thankfully, she was in her own little world.

She continued down the steps, unconcerned with him. A few moments later, two other students, dressed in matching outfits, came down the steps after her, worried looks on their faces. He couldn't be bothered with them.

That there was someone else bearing the characteristic marks of a shinigami, someone he didn't recognize, was unnerving.

"Just how long have I been gone?" he muttered under his breath.

---

"Did you hear the news?" Soul said as he poured some coffee from the break room pot. "About Kid?"

"Yeah," his wife said from her place on the red velvet sofa. "I can't believe I won't be seeing her in class anymore. Not that I saw her much anyway," she admitted, remembering the time Kid had brazenly leapt out the window to avoid one of her lectures.

So much paperwork…

"It's pretty brutal if you ask me. Kicking her out like that, I mean." He handed her a small paper cup with a Death skull printed on it, steam spilling from the lip.

"Well, she—thank you—broke the rules, Soul," she said as she accepted the cup. "If Shinigami-sama hadn't punished her accordingly, I would have marched into the Death Room and slapped him myself."

"Yeah, I don't doubt it." He flinched instinctively, expecting a Maka Chop, but thankfully, the coffee he had just given her saved him from her wrath, though he did get the Maka Glare, which was just as bad if not worse.

Maka just let out a sigh. "What a mess. I feel so bad for him."

"I feel bad for Kid, honestly. Yeah, what she did was dumb, but between getting outmatched by Gray Star, getting blasted by her own dad, and then getting suspended…she can't be in a good place right now."

"You're right, but…" she trailed off as she looked through her husband, using her soul perception to send her gaze through the walls. She focused on Kid's soul as it bobbed down the last of the Academy's steps, the twins' souls following close behind. If the young shinigami had been alone, she would have been worried, but with her weapons at her side, she'd be alright.

Satisfied, she retracted her vision, but before she could fully leave that space, something stopped her.

A cold dread washed over her as she saw someone ascending the Academy steps, someone whose soul was…off. It was shielded by soul protect, but that meant nothing to her superior scrying abilities. She saw right through his disguise, and there, buried in the man's chest, was a sickly green soul bearing a long proboscis-like nose and a pair of tattered wings.

A familiar soul.

"That's not possible," she breathed.

Soul, recognizing the tone in her voice, put a hand on her shoulder, the other hand gripping his own cup of crappy Academy coffee. "Babe. Are you okay? You're doing your thousand-eye-stare thing again."

When she didn't answer him, he put down his coffee and snapped his fingers in front of her face.

"C'mon, Maka, snap out of it already. What am I missing here? You gonna clue me in?"

She suddenly gasped, dropping the cup. The coffee gushed out like a blast of molten rock, almost getting on Soul's shoes. He made to scold her, but when he saw the fear in her eyes, he bit his tongue.

"I've got to call Shinigami-sama," she whispered.

---

"So, that's it, then?" Shinigami-sama asked, almost disappointed. "All we know is that the green souls are corrupted by magic in some way, and that the only calling card for the organization that's currently plotting against us is a German folk tale?"

"Correct," Stein said flatly. "The book was written by the brothers Grimm some two hundred years ago, but both brothers are dead, with no known descendants of note. I checked."

"Damn. I was hoping for something more."

"I'll keep looking into it. At the very least, we know what to expect from our enemy in terms of raw fighting strength. The book might have a code, too, but I'll need to examine it further before I'm certain."

"Should we warn the students about magic-touched souls, put it in the curriculum?"

The mad doctor paused for a moment to think it over. "No, not yet. I haven't nailed down the particulars of what magic-touched souls can do, and neither has the Office of Witch Affairs or even the Witch Assembly themselves. Just warn the E.A.T. students that they may encounter opposition that's above their pay grade."

"I understand. I'll be sure to—" He was interrupted by his cell phone going off. He pulled it out of his suit and saw who it was, then answered. "Maka?"

He listened for a moment, then his eyes went wide.

"What!?" he cried. "Are you certain?"

His expression became grim as he listened. Stein waited patiently, sensing that something was amiss. The Thompson sisters' ears perked up as well, knowing the look on their meister's face.

"Understood. I'll make the necessary arrangements." He hung up and turned to Stein. "I just got word from Maka: Mosquito has returned."

"What!?" Liz and Patty cried.

Stein raised an eyebrow at that. "Really?" He narrowed his eyes and focused, using his own soul perception to find the man in question. "Well, I'll be damned. Another living magic-touched soul. What I wouldn't give to experiment on him," he said with a wild grin.

"We don't have time for that now," Shinigami-sama said sharply. "Tezca!" he cried, his head snapping back to his mirror. "Mobilize all Academy forces, tell them to secure the front of the school, immediately!"

"They're already on their way," the demon mirror replied with a nod. "Our resident sniper has a visual, and Sid and Naigus are in position to intercept."

"Good." He turned back to Stein as he swiftly put one of his demon tool earpieces in. "What will you do, Stein?"

The mad doctor cracked his neck before reaching up to twist the giant bolt that pierced his skull. "Just say the word…I'll dissect him for you," he said wickedly, his free hand crackling with the awesome power of his soul.

"Works for me!" His hands shot out to his left and right. "Liz, Patty, let's go!"

The Thompson sisters nodded to each other in affirmation before transforming, settling into his iron grip as the legendary pair of handcannons known as the Death Eagle .42s.

Jets shaped like skulls, eight of them, apparated out of shadow and surrounded Shinigami-sama, bright blue flames erupting from them. With a grunt of effort, he took off and flew out of the Death Room, leaving Stein behind to chase him on foot. Knowing the Academy was mostly empty, he wasted no time. The jets enabled him to turn on a dime, and he maneuvered through the many halls and corridors at breakneck speed. When he came to the front doors, he blasted through them, almost knocking them off their hinges.

The air rushed past him and kicked up a cloud of dust as he suddenly braked in the air, the jets disappearing as he landed next to Maka.

"Where is he!?" he demanded, his eyes pinned to where the stairs ended and the courtyard began.

"I have eyes," he heard from his earpiece. It was the sniper. "Target is twenty meters out and closing."

"He's not far," Shinigami-sama said, mostly to himself. He turned to Maka, who had Soul at the ready. "Where's Black Star?"

Before Maka could answer, the man in question appeared next to them, his body dissolving out of the shadows provided by the cloud cover.

"You rang?" he said with a grin.

"It's about time you showed up," Shinigami-sama said crossly.

"Yeah, fastest on the planet, my ass," Soul added.

Black Star scoffed. "The star of the show always comes in at the last second to save the day. Everybody knows that."

Maka looked over to rebuke him, but noticed that Tsubaki wasn't in his hands. "Where's Tsubaki?" she wondered.

"Farmer's market. Didn't feel like interrupting her."

"Bad call," Shinigami-sama lamented. "We could use the Uncanny Sword."

"Why? What's got you all so wound up?"

"Did you not hear what I told you over the phone?" Maka barked.

"I tuned out after "we need you", to be honest."

"Dick!" she spat.

"You're welcome."

"This is no time for arguing!" Shinigami-sama said sternly. He turned to the warrior god on his right. "Mosquito is back."

He grinned eerily. "This motherfucker! Speak of the devil, and he shall come, huh? That's just perfect." He cracked his knuckles, blue bolts of soul energy surging through his hands. "Time to see what color his soul is."

"Wait, Black Star, we need him alive."

"For what? A cup of tea in the Death Room? Get your head out of your ass."

Shinigami-sama let out a chuckle. "Look, if it makes him tell us how in the hell he managed to come back after all these years of being dead, I might just break out the whiskey and tumbler glasses."

"Guys!" Maka cried. "He's almost here!"

The two gods nodded in solidarity and took their stances, Shinigami-sama pointing Liz and Patty's barrels at the courtyard entryway while Black Star put his best foot forward, ready to pounce at a moment's notice.

Security Force agents in black suits wielding a variety of weapons formed a semi-circle in front of the Academy, flanking the left and right sides of the three legendary meisters. Others took their place on the various towers and balconies of the school, one of whom was a skilled sniper. She kept her weapon's crosshair trained on Mosquito's head, her finger on the trigger.

Stein was the last to appear, silently striding through the still open double doors and taking his place next to Black Star, his expression unnaturally calm. Seconds ticked by at an agonizingly slow pace as they waited for Mosquito to approach. His footsteps got louder and louder until, finally, his head popped into view.

Everyone in the courtyard bristled and tensed, ready to blow him away if Shinigami-sama gave the word. Though out of sight, Sid and Naigus were ready, too, the zombie knife meister waiting underground for the signal to attack. The only one who didn't seem ready for a fight, strangely, was Mosquito himself.

He stood at the top of the steps with his hands up and walked slowly, clearly recognizing that at any moment, his life could be violently taken from him.

"I appreciate you rolling out the red carpet for me, Shinigami-sama," he said coolly.

"It's a welcome I reserve for only the most despicable, wretched souls on the planet," he replied, Liz and Patty's barrels aimed at his head. "You should be honored."

Mosquito bowed politely. "I assure you, I am." He paused for a moment to put his hands back up, then sighed. "I also find myself confused, and saddened at the death of your father, the late Shinigami-sama. My sincerest condolences for your loss."

"You dare invoke my father's name, now of all times?" Shinigami-sama spat, exasperated.

"I mean no offense. I do so out of the utmost respect for him."

"You know, you're pretty polite for a dead man," Black Star said, appearing behind Mosquito in a rush of shadow, his arm cocked like a cannon.

"And you have not changed at all, young warrior," he said, not bothering to turn back and look at him. "Though it seems you are much stronger than you were when we first met."

"Thirty years'll do that to ya."

Mosquito's eyes widened. "Thirty years? Has it truly been that long?"

"Twenty seven years, if we're being precise," Shinigami-sama corrected. "But that's neither here nor there. What's important here is that you're alive and well when you should be dead and gone." His eyes narrowed. "Care to explain how that's possible?"

Mosquito's wine-colored eyes glanced in Maka's direction. "I think our friend the scythe meister may already have an answer."

Shinigami-sama turned to her. "Maka?"

She nodded. "You split your soul before your body was completely destroyed, sent it somewhere safe and out of the way. I can see it in the structure of your soul, the pieces that don't quite fit together."

"You're quite perceptive. Indeed, I sealed my soul into a familiar and hid, giving myself ample time to regenerate."

It suddenly dawned on Shinigami-sama why he hadn't seen Mosquito's soul when he had perished at the hands of the sorcerer called Noah. "The bat I saw when you were slain," he realized. "That was how you escaped!"

"Indeed, it was. I am fortunate that he chose to let that bat go free for favor of…other prey. Otherwise, I may have been trapped in the Book of Eibon forever."

"I suppose that leaves one question left to answer," Shinigami-sama said darkly. "Why are you here?"

Mosquito stood up straighter and cleared his throat, smoothing out the crinkles in his suit for good measure. With a confidence and poise unbefitting a man in his situation, he simply said, "I am here…to surrender."

Shinigami-sama's head snapped over to Maka. "Tell me he's lying, Maka!"

She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them again, everything but Mosquito's soul was visible. Even in its diminished state, she could feel the raw power radiating from it, the layers upon layers that hid his many forms inside. But more importantly, she saw no fluctuation in its stability, nothing that would indicate a lie.

"He's not," she realized.

When Shinigami-sama's eyes widened in surprise, she lowered Soul and reiterated, louder this time.

"He's telling the truth."

---

Omake

Catherine smiled as she looked out the plane window, at the sea of clouds that was laid out before her. It almost looked like a meadow covered in snow, or a world composed entirely of cotton candy. The moon, despite its normal yellow coloration, cast a cold blue light over the skyscape, the sky itself going from blue, then to purple, then to a deep black that was spotted with stars.

It was beautiful.

She turned back to Ivan, who was moments away from falling asleep, and lightly tapped him on the shoulder.

"Yes?" he asked, sitting at attention despite his drowsiness.

"Something has been bothering me," she said. "Why is it that our target thought I was with the bratva?"

"Who, Killer Lady?"

"Yes, her."

"She thought you were in the Russian Mafia?"

"Yes, she did. Were you not paying attention to what she was saying?"

"I was more focused on the goons she had brought with her. Why do you care about something some evil soul said to you."

"Well, it's just that she said it with such conviction…I have wonder why."

He paused to think about it for a moment. "Perhaps it was your papakha," he said.

Catherine looked down at the tall, gray woolen hat in her hands. She had always worn it, ever since graduating from the Russian Branch's training program just a few months before. It was a simple article of clothing, but was branded with a silver Death Skull, the symbol of Shinigami-sama and the DWMA.

"Now I see," she said. "The skull. It must be a symbol of the bratva, also."

"It would not surprise me."

She let out a chuckle.

"What a fool…" she muttered.

"Can I sleep now, Madam Pushka?"

A warm smile came to her face. "Yes, Ivan, rest well."

He settled into his seat and drifted off immediately, leaving her alone with the moon, the stars, and the clouds.