Chapter Eight
by Shadou-sama

Shadra had been walking for a least an hour and she was no closer to her cabin then before. No, that wasn't true. She might be a meter away from the cabin for all she knew. She was lost.

She clutched the dagger Iayah had given her before she had left. Protection. It was similar to the make of Shadra's key. Silver, with the twisting of metal creating the hilt. It was sharp, able to slice through falling silk.

Crunch, crunch, crunch. Someone was coming. She ducked behind a bush, readying her attack. The person grew closer…


"I can't be an akki," Ray muttered to himself, but only half-heartedly. It had been all he could think about for the last hour. That, and the fact that Shadra's mystery might be explained by this…

She was like a book to Ray. A book that couldn't be put down until he reached the last word, and then cried that it had ended. But with this book, only a few sentences were viewable at a time and not in the right order. And she had something to do with akki, like him… No, she's something more… Balla had told him. Something more then akki? Was she some sort of goddess? Ray laughed silently. No, if she was a goddess then Tyson wouldn't eat so much, snore so loudly or brag so big. Those were Shadra's favorite complaints. Maybe it was worse then demon. My greatest fear is what I might become…

A flurry of movement and Ray suddenly found himself a hostage at knifepoint.

"Ray?" A voice whispered into his ear, Shadra's voice. "Is that you?"

Ray tried to nod so the blade wouldn't slice his neck.

"Oh, sorry!" The blade retreated. Ray turned to face her.

"Where have you been?" Ray demanded.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I was at the Masters' cabin to get out of the rain. Why are you out so late?"

"To find you. What happened with that Yuki guy?"

"I don't think we'll have to worry 'bout Yuki anymore."

There was something she wasn't telling him, he could tell. Maybe something demonic? He let it pass. "Good. So why was he here in the first place?"

"I don't know. I don't get him at all. He pretends to hate me but if I leave him alone he gets all mad. He torments me at school, yet he invites me to parties and such. It drives me crazy!"

"Seems sort of like you."

Shadra seemingly ignored that. "Hey, would you happen to know the way back?"

"Uh…"

"Lost, too?

"Yeah."

"Maybe if we just keep walking down this road."

"But which way down the road?"

"Uh…" Shadra paused. "I got all turned around when I thought you were an attacker."

"Why do you have a knife?"

"Protection, obviously. But let's get back to the point. Which way are we going to go?"

Ray thought for a second. "I turned around once. Logically, we go the way I'm facing."

They walked down the gravel road. Ray remembered something that that Daniel girl had mentioned when they first arrived. There was going to be a dance…

"Do you want to go to the dance with me?" Ray asked spontaneously.

"What?" Shadra sounded startled. "… Aren't you going to go with Mariah?"

"Um, well…" Truth be told, Ray hadn't thought about Mariah. But now that he thought about it, Mariah would have been the logical choice. Why had he asked Shadra? Because she's like a drug. The more he took, the more he wanted. But he couldn't really say that, so he lied. "Dances aren't really her thing."

"I thought that she would love dances and such."

Stupid, stupid lie.

"But, I don't really know her so what do I know?"

Ray breathed easier. "So do you want to go with me?"

Shadra walked along silently.

"Unless you're going with Kai."

"No." Shadra said sharply. She walked silently for a few moments. "Sure, I'll go with you."

"Great."


Shadra woke up late in the morning. She and Ray had made it back to the cabin just before dawn. The others had still been asleep.

She thought back to Ray's invitation. What was the real reason he didn't want to go with Mariah? Shadra had seen through his lie instantly. But she had let it go, to his relief. And the thing was, she actually wanted to go with Ray. She had thought that she had wanted to go with Kai, which she still did. Add Yuki into the mix, and it got so much more confusing.

Ah, the age old question, who do you love? Balla said as she strode up to Shadra's head. The answer is all of them.

"How can I love all of them?" Shadra whispered.

Did I ever tell you how akkae were created?

"No, but what does that have to do with anything?"

You see, when the bit-beasts were taken, and the Masters lost their immortality, akkae were created.

"I knew that already."

Yes, but did you know that demons were apart of the Masters before that? See, you didn't know that. Balla said as she saw Shadra's surprise. They represent qualities that the Master has.

"So what does that have to do with anything?"

Yuki, Kai and Ray are all demons that come from you.

"What?" Shadra exclaimed.

Yuki has your violence, Kai has your solitariness, and Ray has your casualness. Yuki has your strength, Kai has your skill, and Ray has your agility. Of course, your qualities are more pronounced in them.

"You're joking, aren't you?"

No. I'm merely explaining why you feel for all three boys. You can't help it, because they were a part of yourself. And they can't help loving you.

Shadra shook her head. "This can't be true."

Have I ever told your lies?

"No."

Then why would I start now?

Shadra lied silently for a few moments, soaking it all in. It seemed weird. Kai didn't seem like a demon, nor did Ray. Akkae were, well, demonic. Ray and Kai didn't seem that way. But if they took different qualities…

Jenna was a demon.

"No she wasn't." Shadra whispered firmly.

Yes, she was. She had your kindness, your determination and your mercilessness in the beydish.

Shadra turned away from Balla. She didn't want to talk about her late sister, or about her being a demon.

When she died she couldn't just die. So her soul morphed into your bit-beast.

Shadra's hands clenched into fists.


An hour had passed when Shadra had finally let go of her anger. She had to ask the patient cat something.

"Balla, if the Masters get all the bit-beasts back, what will happen to them?"

They will go back within you.

Shadra didn't want that. She liked having them around, as separate people, even if they did annoy her every once in a while or try to kidnap her. Another reason why the Masters must not succeed.