Shadow within the Darkness

(Day 7)

By: Little Ucchan

Looking up at the monster that plagued him in both his dreams and reality, Sage waited. There was nothing he could do. He realized that now. He tried yesterday. And it didn't work. He no longer had any other options, and gave up on trying to save his life.

But rather than delivering the final blow like he had thought it would, the beast turned and left. Sage stayed there wide-eyed, staring at the monster's back as it continued to walk away as if nothing had happened. Why is it leaving? It is because it was killed yesterday?

Although Sage wanted to believe that this was the case, he knew that it wasn't. That the monster had no interest in him to begin with and is now going off to kill some more innocent people. Getting up slowly with his blade in his hand, he prepared himself for combat once again.

"Wait," the small plea forced him to stop. Looking down, he saw that the commander was trying to get onto his feet.

Kneeling down besides the soldier, he spoke, "You shouldn't try to stand. Just wait here. I'll get a doctor for you."

"There is no need for that. My time is short," he told Sage, lying back down. "But yours is not." Sage could hardly hear him now. The commander motioned for him to come closer, so he did, leaning in more to listen.

"You must leave. You do not belong here…in this battle," he said in a hoarse whisper. The whisper of a dying man. After a long moment of silence, he spoke again.

"You're not going to take my advice, are you?" The bluntness of his words startled Sage, for the commander was correct. Regardless of his odds, Sage still felt the urge to do battle with the beast. To do anything to help.

"I saw that same look in your eyes within those of the many soldiers who died today," he said, smiling at the memory. "They were…promising young men, willing to die for their kingdom."

Sage didn't say anything. Even though it was all a dream, he felt guilty. Fate had allowed him to live, and the rest…to die. Including this man, who is about to die because he decided to take the blow for Sage. But instead, the man seemed relieved. He was prepared to embrace death.

"My one regret is that I wasn't able to see the face of my future queen. To know that she was safe." The commander prepared himself to ask a favor of this young man, knowing that Sage was going to battle the beast again, no matter what he said or did to stop him. He figured that this youth might as well help save this kingdom, if he was so willing to die for it.

"Young man. If you still feel so passionate about doing something to save this dying kingdom, I won't stop you. But if you must do something, do what I ask of you. As a favor for me and for all of the people that have died today."

Before death had taken him away, he had told Sage this. "There are two girls hiding here. Both of them, the daughters of our late king. Please…find them…and protect them. They…are the only ones…who can save us now." And the commander's voice still remained in Sage's mind as he ran through the castle in pursuit of his new quest.

***

Slowly opening his eyes to reveal the brightness of the room, Sage laid there reflecting on his dream. Or rather, it was the only this he could do since he was in too much pain to even attempt to get up. Sighing, he rolled off of his back to his side in order to reach his alarm clock. He groaned as pain shot through his left shoulder and ran down his entire back. Giving up on his minor task of finding out what time it is, Sage plopped back down on his back. And here I thought that I felt bad yesterday. This is worse!

Well, there was one bright side to all of this. He actually didn't wake up in the middle of the night this time. Sage figured that his body was just too tired to give out a normal reaction. Closing his eyes to escape the pain he felt, Sage drifted off into a nice peaceful sleep, which certainly didn't last long.

"Nii-chan!" Even though it hurt him to move, Sage turned his back to the door, pulling the blankets over his head.

"Nii-chan!!!!" the girl called again, entering the room.

"Go away Satsuki," he mumbled from under the covers.

"But Sage! It's eleven thirty!!" she protested.

"Does it look like I care?" he replied, then tried to go back to sleep when he didn't hear anything from his sister.

"If Ojiisama yells at you, it's not my fault." This had certainly grabbed his attention. Turning slightly to look at Satsuki, who was standing over his bed, Sage gave her a puzzled look.

"What?"

"Don't tell me you forgot. You're hopeless Sage nii-chan," she cried. Seeing that her brother did forget, she decided to clue him in anyway.

"We have a new student coming today. Ojiisama doesn't expect you to fight, but at least be presentable and get dressed. They'll be here in half and hour," she told him and walked out the door.

Sighing to himself, Sage remained in bed for a bit longer. If only he had faked being sick or something like that. Then he wouldn't have to worry about anything. But he couldn't exactly complain. At least he didn't have to fight today.

The only thing that really bugged him was that his wounds haven't healed yet. Sage thought for sure that his armor's power would have taken care of it by now. But then again, he hasn't used his armor for over six months now. It must have been out of practice. I didn't know mystical armor could get rusty.

Sage would give it another day. The wounds would probably be gone by tomorrow. If he was lucky, they would disappear by nightfall. Now his only problem was getting through the day without his family realizing that he was injured. What was he going to tell them if they found out? 'Oh, excuse the injuries but I battled a giant demon yesterday.' Like they would have believed him. Probably lock me up in an asylum.

"Nii-chan!!!!" Sage heard Satsuki scream at him from down the hall.

"I'm coming!!" he yelled out his reply. Slowly, very slowly, he managed to get out of bed and walk to his closet. Taking out a pair of pants and a clean shirt, he proceeded to the bathroom when he came across his wall mirror. Tilting his head a bit to get a better look at his neck, Sage sighed when he saw how noticeable the bruise under the right side of his jaw was.

"Aw man. They'll see that for sure," Sage said to himself, now thinking of a good excuse to give them.

"Sage!" This time it was his older sister, Yayoi, who was calling him.

"Yeah?"

"If you're going out make sure you wear something warm. It's freezing outside!" Yayoi warned him.

"It's cold today?" he asked out loud, hardly believing it himself. Walking up to his window, Sage opened it slightly to be greeted with a swift gush of air. He shivered in the cold and quickly latched up his window. Still feeling the sudden chill run though his body, he smiled to himself. Pulling out his jacket and a scarf, Sage made his way to the bathroom, whistling away.

***

Walking along the side of the house to the dojo, Sage pulled his scarf even tighter around his neck. Yayoi wasn't kidding when she said that it was cold outside. Well, it all worked out for the better. Now no one will notice his bruise. Lost in thought, he didn't notice the cute little redhead playing by the koi pond till she screamed out his name.

"Sage nii-chan!!!"

"Sammy?" Sage cried out in surprise as the girl ran towards him, practically tackling him in the process. He cringed in pain on impact, wishing that she wasn't so energetic.

"I missed you!" she told him, still held fast to his legs.

"What are you doing here?" Sage asked. All the while, he was trying to figure out just exactly when did Sammy start calling him 'Sage nii-chan.'

"I'm going to take kendo lessons here," she replied, finally letting go of him.

"So you're the new student?" She nodded vigorously.

"Yup! And my sister's here too. Now you can meet her."

"Your sister huh," Sage said, already liking the idea. "How old is she?"

"Um…" The little girl started counting on her fingers. "Thir…thirteen? No fourteen. Yeah, she's fourteen!"

"Fourteen huh?" Sammy nodded again. "She's around my age."

"Yup! You wait here okay? I'll go get her," Sammy told him and left, leaving Sage thinking to himself. Hmm. Maybe this won't be such a bad day after all.

***

Standing out in the cold for about ten more minutes, Sage started to worry. Sammy was taking a very long time to get her sister. Maybe she got lost, he thought to himself as he began to walk to the dojo. He'd figure that he'd just go and meet this girl himself.

About to round the corner of the house, Sage almost collided with another person, stopping himself just in the nick of time. He was about to apologize when he saw who it was. His first reaction was to back away, which was exactly what the person in front of him did. His next move was to yell out in surprise.

"Laura?"

"Sage?"

The pair remained silent, not knowing if they wanted to start a fight or just walk away from each other. Sage was hoping for the latter, obviously not up for an argument, but Laura was just raring to go.

"What are you doing here?!"

"I live here if you've forgotten," he replied. "I could ask you the same question."

"Oneesan! There you are!!" Sammy cried out when she spotted the two of them together. Sage could only stare at Laura after hearing that statement.

"O…nee…san?" He had a hard time accepting the fact that the girl he was going to meet was the brat from school.

"What?" Laura challenged, not liking the look that Sage was giving her.

"You're related to her?" Sage asked Sammy instead, pointing at Laura.

"And what's that supposed to mean?!" Laura screamed at him.

"Yup! She's my sister," Sammy answered. Sage was exchanging glances between the two siblings, trying to determine for himself what the truth was.

"You don't look like you're related," he finally spoke. "Are you sure it's not some kind of mistake?"

"Are you sure we're not talking about you, Sage?" Laura asked.

"Hey!" 

"Sammy, how do you know him?" she quickly changed the subject.

"Umm…well he was the one that protected me from that evil creature," she replied. This time, it was Laura's turn to stare in disbelief. Sammy did speak of a young man that saved her yesterday, but not once did she mention his name. She most certainly didn't expect it to be him. Laura gave Sage a suspicious glare, but he didn't notice this. He was in shock.

"Sammy, you told her about what happened yesterday?" Sage questioned. If that were true and Sammy had told Laura everything, then she would also know about the Ronin Warriors. Then they would really be in trouble.

"Well…yeah! I said that you protected me from that big bad monster," she responded.

"You…protected my sister?" Laura asked him warily.

"And is that so hard to believe?"

"Well yeah. I didn't think that your scrawny ass was capable of defending anyone." But before Sage could say anything to retaliate, Grandfather Date walked up to the group with a smile on his face. The one he uses in order to break up arguments without starting one of his own.

"Well Laura. I'm so glad that you could stop by." Sage was about to open his mouth to say something, but then thought against it when his grandfather walked up to his side. It was better for him to keep quiet about the whole thing while Grandfather Date was around. He was in no position to argue.

"And is this the new student that you were telling me about?" he asked, looking at the little girl standing besides Laura.

"Yes Date-sama. This is my sister, Samantha Kinoku."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sensei Date-sama," Sammy greeted with a formal bow.

"Oh and she's polite too. You must take after your sister, don't you Samantha?"

Sage crossed his arms, shifting the weight of his body from one foot to the other. Take after her sister my ass! There is no way that those two are related. No way!

Laura had seen him moving uneasily, like he had to say something but couldn't. Turning away, she didn't have to know what he was thinking about to know that it was about her, and that it wasn't anything good. Jerk!

"Yes I do. And please, call me Sammy," she replied politely after thinking for a bit on what she should say. It was obvious to Grandfather Date that she was having a hard time in keeping with her politeness. But he understood how that was. She's still a child after all. Besides, Sage was the same way when he was younger.

"Of course," he agreed. Looking back at Laura he asked, "Is it alright if I speak with your sister alone?"

"Yeah. It's fine with me."

"Thank you. I always have personal interviews with my new students. I'm just going to ask her some very basic questions like as to why she wants to learn kendo and what she already knows about the sport," Grandfather Date explained to her.

"Then don't you want me to be there?" Laura asked.

"That won't be necessary. Have you eaten yet?"

"Um…no not yet."

"Then why don't you and Sage get something to eat inside while I'm talking to Sammy in the dojo." Both teenagers looked at each other when Grandfather Date suggested this. Laura decided to answer, knowing  that Sage didn't have a say in the matter since she was the guest and he the host.

"That's alright. I'll just wait here."

"Nonsense! I most certainly can't have a pretty young lady out here waiting in the cold when she can very well be inside the house drinking some hot cocoa," he insisted with a bit of polite finality in his voice. Sage just prayed that Ojiisama wasn't really going to do this to him.

Seeing that Laura didn't say anything else to protest, Grandfather Date continued. "Sage, I expect this young lady to get the best treatment while she is here. Do you understand?"

Reluctantly, he replied, "Yes Ojiisama."

"Good. Well Sammy, shall we go?" Holding out his hand for her, Sammy gladly took it.

"Kay."

As they were walking away, leaving the two teenagers to face hell together, Sammy looked back and waved. "Bye Oneesan!!! Bye Nii-chan!!"

Turning slowly, Laura glared at the blonde with disgust. Sage just shrugged uneasily, wondering when that happened.

***

"Wow. She went from calling me 'Sage' to 'Nii-chan' in under twenty-four hours. I'm impressed," Sage spoke aloud while he and Laura were walking to the back entrance.

"Well don't get any ideas," Laura warned him.

"Like I would ever want to be related to you," he retorted.

"Look." Stopping in the middle of their walk, she turned around to face Sage. "I don't want to be here. And you don't want to be here. So let's just forget about lunch and not talk, okay?"

It was quiet for a while as Laura waited for Sage to say something. "Under normal circumstances I would agree," he told her. "But under my grandfather's wishes, I have to be a polite host. And if it means putting up with you for the next hour then I'll do it. I don't necessarily have to like it, which I don't, but I'll do it."

"Tch. Aren't you the self-sacrificing one," Laura cried sarcastically, beginning to walk away from Sage.

"I'd rather be self sacrificing instead of a coward. At least I was there to protect Sammy." Stopping dead in her tracks, the only thing on Laura's mind right now was how to hurt Sage in many different ways. This time he just went too far.

But she didn't have anything to say. She got separated from her sister the other day and, from what she heard last night, Sammy went to hide like she told her to. How was she supposed to know that there was an actual demon running around in the city?

Walking right past Laura, Sage continued, not about to let up at all. He was already having a bad day and then she had to show up. Besides that, he couldn't understand how Sammy could have such faith in her sister. It was revolting. "You know, all she would talk about was how her 'oneesan' would come and find her. Just where the hell were you yesterday? She really needed you."

Laura couldn't take it anymore. She was so angry. Angry because of what Sage had said. But more angry with herself because she wasn't there for her little sister. "And what would you know about that?! You don't know a thing about me Sage!! You think I didn't want to be there for her?!"

But Sage kept walking. This was the last straw. Storming right up to Sage, Laura grabbed him by the arm, yanking him back. "LOOK AT ME WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU DAMNIT!!!!"

Laura didn't know what kind of reaction she was expecting from Sage, but it certainly wasn't this. She had lost her grip on Sage's arm when he suddenly swerved away from her as if by instinct. He gritted his teeth in pain as he grabbed hold of his left shoulder. He didn't say anything to her, more like he had forgotten that she was even there. All he knew was pain.

Sage tried hard to surpass it. He didn't realize how much his shoulder hurt until now. He had used it to break his fall several times. Plus the bruise he got from when the tentacles had hit him across the back was making it worse. Feeling the pain leave him slightly, he relaxed. He then noticed that he still had an audience.

Laura did not stop staring at him. She couldn't really. The boy standing before her saved her sister's life, but at what cost? She had totally forgotten that Sammy had told her that Sage got hurt trying to save her. Just how many injuries did he receive while fighting yesterday?

While she was still looking at Sage, Laura had noticed that the scarf that he was wearing was loose now. Probably from when he had turned so sharply. She would rarely pay this close attention to detail, but the thing that had caught her eye was this dark spot under the side of Sage's jaw.

Without thinking, Laura walked up to him, placed her hand under his chin, and tilted his head to the side.

"What the hell are you doing?!" a stunned Sage had asked.

"Be quiet," she ordered. Amazingly, he obeyed. He didn't have enough energy to move away from her grip anyway. Besides, the sudden movement would have hurt his neck.

"That's a nasty bruise you've got there," she said quietly, tilting his head up a bit. "Your neck looks a bit red too."

Finally letting go of his chin, Laura took a step back to look at him better. "Has anyone else examined your injuries?"

"No."

"Did you tell anyone?"

"No," he answered again, which made her sigh out loud.

"Figures. You are such an idiot sometimes."

"Hey! I…"

"But I understand," she cut him off. "Who would believe that a demon attacked you anyway?"

Sage was rendered speechless. The only thing he could do was watch as Laura opened the back door. Looking back towards him, she asked, "You have a first aid kit lying around?"

"Yeah," he replied after a few seconds. "There's one in the closet down the hall."

"Good."

"Wait, why do you need it?" Sage questioned when he met up with her at the door.

"I thought the answer to that was obvious," she replied. "I'm going to treat your wounds."

"But why would you…"

"What? I can't be nice for once?" Sage decided to keep his mouth shut after that. He felt bad for questioning her, but it was just so hard to believe. Laura was actually being nice to him for a change.

"You got all those wounds protecting my sister…didn't you?" The quiet question had caught him off guard. He saw Laura's sincere expression of worry and guilt. He knew why Laura was doing this. For the first time since he had met her, Sage saw the caring soul behind those fierce eyes. He could tell from the solemn tone in her voice that she felt bad about the whole thing. But he didn't answer her. He didn't have to. Without her saying it through words, she apologized, and he accepted it.

***

Walking down the amazingly quiet corridor of the house, Sage made his way to his room with Laura following behind him. In her arms was the first aid kit she picked up along the way.

Entering the room, Sage watched as Laura looked around. Wow! It's clean in here! Not bad for a guy. Smiling a bit, she was grateful that her back was facing him.

Finding the nightstand right next to his bed, Laura placed the small box on top of it. Sitting down at the edge of the bed and opening the first aid kit, she busied herself with aligning the necessary items on the desk.

Sage stood at the other end of the bed, waiting. He didn't exactly know what to do at the moment. He never had to deal with this kind of situation before. Placing his hands in his pockets, he watched her curiously.

"Take off your shirt."

"Wha?" The simple command had shut down his brain completely. First of all, he wasn't expecting to hear that phrase from anyone anytime soon. Secondly, he didn't think that Laura would ever consider saying that to him, under any circumstance.

Turning her head to look at Sage, she caught sight of his confused expression. "You want me to take it off for you?!" she cried, giving him an irritated glare.

That did it. Backing away, Sage started to take off his scarf and jacket. Returning to her work, she sighed in frustration. Be nice, she kept telling herself. Just forget that you hate him and the fact that he's a complete moron and be nice.

Standing up once she was done, Laura left the room to go and wash her hands. When she came back, she froze. Sage was slightly leaning over his bed, fixing his clothes, not knowing that she was watching. But she definitely noticed him. Damn that boy's got a nice bod! Too bad he's only half naked. Shocked beyond belief that that thought had come out of her mind, she immediately pushed the idea as far away as possible. Shit! I can't believe I was just thinking about that! Remember Laura, you hate him, she reminded herself. You hate him. You hate him! YOU HATE HIM!!

"Something wrong?" Sage was now standing up straight, staring at the girl suspiciously. She immediately said no, shaking her head. But now, Laura could only gasp when she saw the numerous marks across Sage's back.

At his backside within seconds, Laura examined it thoroughly, slightly running her finger across each wound as she went along. Right away Sage moved forward out of her reach when he felt something move down his back.

"Will you stop that?" he cried, not liking the weird sensation he felt when Laura did that. It made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

"What? You ticklish?" she asked with a mocking grin.

"No," he said at once. "I just wish that you wouldn't do that."

"Oh don't be such a baby!" she cried, turning him around. "I'll only take a minute." Sage waited for her to finish. He was okay until he felt that sensation again. This time near the side of his midsection.

"Laura!" he yelled, moving away again.

"Sorry. Old habit of mine."

Once she was done, Laura walked away from him to the nightstand where she had left her purse. "Your lucky. It seems that most of the injuries on your back are only bruises. I'm assuming that you don't want anyone else to know that you're hurt. Correct?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Then when were you planning on dealing with those wounds of yours? Surely you weren't thinking of just waiting it out." That was partly true. He wasn't going to do anything about his injuries. But he knew that his armor would handle it, so Sage didn't really think about getting it checked.

"Oh never mind. I guess suffering quietly is much better that having to explain to your family just exactly what happened yesterday," she told him while fishing through her bag. Her words had gotten him thinking. Why did Laura seem so calm about the whole demon thing? It's like she was used to it or something. He was about to ask, but never got around to it since Laura asked him a question. "Anything else hurt?"

Sage thought for a minute. There was his neck and shoulder. But Laura knew about that already. And the area around his ankles seemed a bit sore, but that was manageable. It didn't need any medical attention. Besides, his armor would take care of it. The fact that he now only had bruises on his body instead of cuts meant that his armor was working on healing him. He was worse off yesterday, that's for sure. Now, the only thing left was…

"My wrist."

"Alright then. I'll look at that in a minute," she told him, finally finding what she was looking for. Pulling out a small plastic container, she got on top of his bed, sitting on her legs.

"Sit down."

"What is that?" Sage asked as he sat down at the edge of the bed in front of her.

"It's a type of herbal ointment." Unscrewing the top, she scooped some of the cream like substance with her fingers and moved closer towards Sage.

"Lean forward." He did as he was told. Laura began to apply it to his bruised skin, making sure to rub it in well so that you couldn't tell that it was there.

"Damn! That's cold."

"Do you always complain?" she had asked, pausing from her work.

"Not always," he replied as Laura continued to work on his back.

"Can I see?" Feeling her stop again, Sage held his hand out in back of him. Right after, Laura handed him the container with the ointment in it. Turning it around in his hand, he noticed that there was no label on it.

"Where'd you get this?"

"I made it myself when I was in China," she answered, coming up from his side to get more. Holding out the jar to her, she grabbed some and continued. "I practiced medicine when I was there since my uncle and his wife ran a clinic. I use it when I don't have bandages. It gets rid of bruises right away. It also acts as a kind of pain reliever. You won't even know that you're injured."

"You always carry it around?"

"For emergencies. Besides, Sammy gets bruises all the time. I have to watch out for her."

"She's so energetic, isn't she?"

"Yeah," she said once she was done. "Stretch out your arm."

Placing the ointment back on the bed, Sage extended his arm out to the side. Laura took hold of his wrist and placed her other hand on his left shoulder. She felt around for his joints to check if they were fractured or broken. Finding a spot under one of the bones, she placed her thumb over it. Then without warning, she applied pressure to that spot.

Sage inhaled deeply through his teeth as the pain began to build up in his shoulder. He tried to break free of her grip, but Laura wouldn't let go of his wrist. His back arched and his eyes shut tight, Sage endured this pain for as long as he could without complaining…yet.

To his relief, she finally let go of his shoulder and wrist. Grabbing his shoulder soon after, Sage was ready to scream at her. But she ended up speaking first.

"There's nothing wrong with your bones. I think you just pulled something," Laura informed him and she started to put some ointment on his shoulder. "Just lay off of it for a while. That's all I can tell you."

"Why did you do that?" he asked, now that his chance to yell at her was gone.

"I had to figure out what was wrong," she replied, getting up from the bed.

"You could have warned me you know," he told her when she was standing in front of him.

"You wouldn't have let me do it, if I had told you. Sit up straight."

"Still, a warning would have been nice."

"Tilt your head up." Holding his head up under the jawbone with both of her hands, Laura checked his bone structure. "You really are such a baby."

"I resent that remark."

"Don't talk," Laura commanded as she tilted his head a bit higher. Taking some more of the ointment in her hand, she gently rubbed it into his neck where the bruise was.

"You know I'm pretty amazed on how you could get all of these injuries and still manage not to break a single bone," she said.

"I'm just gifted that way."

"I told you not to talk," Laura cried. Pouting, Sage stayed quiet.

"Which hand?" she asked, kneeling down in front of him when she was finished. Holding out his right hand, Laura placed it in her palm. She gently wrapped her fingers around his arm, a little bit above his wrist.

"How far can you bend it?" Sage answered her question by bending his hand about half of the distance that he normally could. Holding his hand in hers, Laura slowly moved it around, stopping at each new position to ask him if it hurt. He would reply a series of no's and then a couple of yes's.

"It's only a light sprain," she reported. "But it'll get worse if you apply any more pressure to it. I'll bandage it. Just in case."

While Laura was doing this, Sage was thinking. He couldn't make sense of a couple of things that happened today. There were still some questions that he needed to ask her.

"Why did you want Sammy to train here? I though that this was the last place that you would consider."

"I just like how your grandfather teaches. That's all."

"Really?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes really. And if you're waiting for an in-depth explanation, just forget about it. You're not getting any." Now that sounded like the Laura he knew.

"Alright fine. But can you at least explain why you're so calm about what happened yesterday. You know that I fought a demon…"

"And I seriously question just how the hell you managed to destroy it," Laura interrupted.

"Yes…well anyway," he continued, trying to avoid that subject. It would be kinda embarrassing if Laura found out that he wasn't the one who killed the monster. "Knowing all of this, you're okay about it. Like…it's normal or something."

"Normal?!" Laura shouted. "Why do you say that? It's not like monsters and demons are a daily part of my life you know."

"You never know with you," he said without thinking and then regretted it when Laura started to glare at him.

"One more rude comment out of you and I'll add to your injuries," she threatened. At the thought of this, Sage decided to watch what he said from now on. Well, at least till he was strong enough to defend himself.

"Sorry if I lack the shocked expression of most people when they realize that an actual demon exists," she began to explain, realizing that he was still waiting for an answer. "But I knew about demons and evil spirits since I was a child. It's part of my heritage as a demon hunter."

"Demon hunter?!" Sage cried out in shock.

"I'm not one now!!" she yelled. "But my family came from a ninja clan that was known for hunting down demons. I've always heard of the stories and knew of their existence. But I'd never though that one would appear in downtown Tokyo."

"You know, if anyone surprised me it was you," Laura said, referring to Sage.

"Me?" She nodded.

"Not many people, when faced against a demon, would do what you did. I've gotta admit, you've got guts."

"Thanks," he replied, then looked down at the floor in front of him. It just felt so strange talking to her like this. It wasn't what he was used to.

"What's wrong? You got something on your mind?" Laura asked when she noticed how quiet he was.

"I have…something else to ask you." She didn't protest, so he continued. "Why are you doing this?"

She didn't answer at first, still busy in her work. "I…I wanted…to thank you somehow." Laura didn't say anymore after that. She was thinking of something else to say, but nothing would come out. It was her frame of mind that was holding her back. She still felt that she hated Sage. And that impression of him would never change. Not for a long time.

Leaving the subject at that, neither of them said a word to each other. Now he knew what Ryo saw in her. Laura could actually be a really sweet person in a twisted kinda way. She still had a hint of that attitude of hers, even when she was actually being nice. And if only Sage had met Laura under different circumstances, then she would have been a good friend. A handful to deal with, no doubt, but a good friend. Smiling to himself, he mused. Now if only she would remain this way for the rest of the school year.