Shan stared at the horn in her hand, praying for some sort of sign, anything, to direct her on the path to take.

From her spot in the tree, she looked at the sight of all of the floating islands that made up the Middle World. Any one of them could be hiding Hari. And the sheer number of them made it impossible to search them thoroughly for any sign of the missing princess.

It's been a week since she was taken, Shan thought sadly. She tucked the horn back under her shirt. I have to have faith that Hari is alive. I won't believe so otherwise until I…I won't believe it. Her eyes stung. I will find her, she vowed in determination.

When there was no sign from the horn, Shan leapt down from the tree and slowly walked back to the others.

Kwang-Sarang looked up from her spot by the fire. Her one visible eye narrowed when she took note of Shan's grim appearance.

"It's been hours since you last got a signal," she observed bleakly. "They've been spreading out further and further apart." She took a deep drag from her lit cigarette and exhaled. "How do you know that it isn't someone else sending you these signals?" she pressed. "If they searched Hari, then they would have found it."

Shan smiled coldly. "I can't explain it," she said simply. "When the horn vibrates…it's like I can hear Hari calling me even though there are no words." She shook her head. "It's difficult to explain," she said in frustration. "If you want to split up, then I won't stop you. But I will continue to follow Hari."

"I'm with you, Shan."

Shan turned and smiled sadly at the tent they had set up. Hiskaya stood in the entrance. Her eyes were red and puffy and her face was pale. But there was a grim determination in her eyes that was uncharacteristic in the normally cheerful angel.

"I still don't sense Hari," Hiskaya continued. "But I'm trying."

"I know you are," Shan said gently. "Go and rest, Hiskaya," she ordered. "You've been trying so hard to sense for Hari. We all need to rest," she added with a soft smile.

Hesitating, Hiskaya bit her lip. "It's just…" she broke off before sighing heavily. "You're right," she said miserably. She gave Shan a sad smile before she went back in the tent. Hopefully to actually get some sleep this time.

Sitting together by the fire, Yoshua and Hanulin were looking tired themselves.

"We've all been on edge," Hanulim commented, her eyes piercing with Shan's. "We won't be any use saving Hari if we're too exhausted to continue."

The gentle rebuke made Shan frown before she nodded in acknowledgement.

Yoshua had long since cried herself dry after Hari's abduction. But the sad expression was a permanent feature on her face these days. "I'll start dinner," she offered.

Shan smiled kindly at her. "Thank you, Yoshua, we're lucky you're here," she said sincerely.

Her words brought a soft smile to Yoshua's face, but it didn't reach her eyes.

After Hari had been taken and the horn had sounded, Shan had wanted to start her search immediately. It was only thanks to Jenna's calm head that she acknowledged that this was not going to be a quick rescue. They needed to prepare for a lengthy trek in order to find where Hari was being held.

Everyone had immediately volunteered, but Shan had firmly ordered Jenna and Lofree to return to the safety of Jenna's house in Heaven. Even if Hari had been the primary target, Shan wasn't willing to overlook the way Jenna had been targeted twice now. Lofree had scowled, but agreed to stay with Jenna on one condition.

That condition being Kwang-Sarang.

It was tense to travel through Middle Earth with Hari's mentor. The blood demon made her feelings towards Hari no secret. When they had met up after Hari's kidnapping, Kwang-Sarang's fury had been cold and promised a grim end should Hari not be discovered safe and sound.

When dinner was done, Hanulim made a small plate and got to her feet. "I'll see if I can get Hiskaya to eat," she offered.

Yoshua smiled in gratitude. "Thank you, Hanulim."

Hanulim smiled tenderly at her girlfriend. "You've been working hard, trying to cheer her up. You should rest yourself. I'm pretty useless at the moment, but even I can bring someone food and clean up some dishes."

Yoshua pouted. "You're never useless," she denied.

A teasing smirk appeared on Hanulim's face. She bent down and gently poked Yoshua in the middle of her forehead. A silent conversation passed between the two of them and Yoshua blushed in realization before she chuckled.

"Fine," she conceded to a point Shan didn't understand.

"Good," Hanulim said in satisfaction before she entered the tent.

"You two didn't need to come along," Shan said once again. "I know that this isn't easy. Not that I'm not grateful to have you."

Yoshua chuckled softly, the sound sounding strange after so many says of somber silence. "None of you can cook," she reminded her. "And if Hari…" she broke off and swallowed. "It's good to have a healer around," she finished sadly.

Shan's knuckles clenched so hard they turned white.

As night came close, Kwang-Sarang wordlessly stood to take the first watch. Yoshua and Hanulim joined Hiskaya in the tent while Shan retreated to a nearby tree branch. Her heart was still restless, but Shan forced her body to relax as much as possible. If she ran herself ragged, then she wouldn't be able to save Hari.

The full moon shone brightly above the Middle World. Shan watched it sadly, remembering the evenings she had spent watching the night sky with Hari by her side.

I wonder if Hari is watching the moon now, she thought morosely.

Uneasily, she closed her eyes and did her best to let sleep come.

A soft vibration against her chest instantly woke her up.

Shan bolted upright and grabbed the Sound of Wandering from around her neck. She exhaled in relief when she confirmed that it was in fact vibrating. She pressed it to her lips and blew, taking comfort from the warmth of the connection the tiny horn briefly made with Hari.

A soft whistle came from the horn.

Don't stop, Hari, Shan thought as she leapt from the tree. Keep signaling me.

Kwang-Sarang saw her and got to her feet, grim hope in her eye. She nodded and stayed behind as Shan took off.

At her top speed, Shan leapt from floating island to floating island. If the signal grew weaker, she immediately turned around and returned to where she came from. If the signal grew stronger, she stayed the course. Every few moments, she stopped and signaled Hari once again. The whistle returned when they reconnected and it gave Shan strength.

For almost an hour, Shan followed the signal, once again cursing Middle Earth for its sheer size. When the horn stopped vibrating altogether, Shan stopped in her tracks and stared at it. Her blue eyes bore a hole in the horn, willing, praying for the signal to continue. Minutes trickled by and Shan grit her teeth before sitting down heavily on the ground.

Now that she had stopped, Shan realized that she was breathing hard from exertion and from the heavy use of mana to increase her speed. Her heart was beating quickly and she placed a hand over it.

"I wonder how Hari's heart is holding up," she whispered uneasily. Her sight began to blur and she hastily wiped her eyes. "This crying business has happening a lot more lately," she complained. "I can't lose focus."

Even though the trail was dead, Shan was relieved by the amount of progress she had managed to make. She found a new tree to rest in and sighed tiredly. After that, she was too wired to sleep, so she resigned herself to simply sit there and watch the night sky.

When morning came, Shan kept watching the distance. There was no activity from the horn which didn't surprise her. Kwang-Sarang had been right, Hari's signals were starting to lengthen in between. Shan hoped that this wasn't bad news for Hari and it meant she was merely waiting until it was safe to signal.

Eventually, Shan sensed she had company. She leapt from the tree and waved her arm in greeting at Hiskaya who was flying point. Hanulim followed while carrying Yoshua, and Kwang-Sarang came after then carrying their equipment. They landed in front of Shan and Hiskaya immediately ran to her to hug her.

"You ran so far," she said. "It took me hours to find you."

Shan returned the hug. "I'm sorry to worry you," she said sincerely. "Every second counts."

Hiskaya pulled back, giving Shan a tired smile. "I'm not complaining," she reassured her. "I'm glad that you made so much progress." Her smile turned sad. "I know that I shouldn't fear for Haki, but I just…" her voice broke off when it thickened.

"We're going to be reunited with them," Shan whispered, hoping she sounded confident. "I promised to protect your love with Haki. I'm fighting for you two as well."

"Thank you, Shan," Hiskaya said with a watery smile. "Just know that I'm fighting to protect your love, too."

It meant the world to Shan to hear it. But in her heart, she still grappled with intense fear that she wouldn't be strong enough to fulfill her promise.

*BREAK*

"Hari, we must resume."

Reluctantly, Hari removed the horn from her lips, severing the connection between herself and Shan. She stared sadly at the horn and waited for the vibrations to stop before she returned it to the safety around her neck.

Living as a prisoner was not one she would recommend.

Ino had taken a sadistic joy in making Hari's confinement as difficult as possible. Any food she brought for the prisoners was tossed on the floor, leaving it barely fit for rodents. Their water was served in a dirty pail and tasted musty. Both Hari and Chisato were escorted out separately three times a day to use the restroom. But even that consisted of only a toilet and a sink. Washing herself and her clothes in the dirty sink had been mortifying, but Hari knew that she was not in the position to complain about the treatment.

Oddly enough, Ino's determination to make her life difficult before she stabbed her with the golden spear wasn't what made imprisonment difficult. No, that honor was reserved for one temperamental fire guardian who was currently residing within Hari's magic and was slowly burning the life out of her.

Yeah, Hari wasn't a big fan of that jerk.

Hari sighed at Chisato's words. "I'm no closer to bonding with her than I was a week ago," she complained. "All I see is fire. There's no one there to make friends with."

Chisato shook her head. "She won't reveal herself to you that easily," she lectured. "The way to bond with a guardian is through trust. You haven't tried to trust her yet."

Hari scowled. "Kind of hard to trust someone who's killing you," she said wryly.

Between the harsh conditions and the curse, Hari felt herself weakening at an alarming rate. The drain from the Northwestern territory was also taking a toll. She was still having attacks, but Chisato put a quick stop to whenever her magic flared up. This much appreciated, mainly because it delayed her symptoms even if slightly.

"Every guardian tests their witch," Chisato repeated. Her dark eyes sparkled fondly. "Mine dropped me from the top of Heaven to the depths of the Underworld to see if I would break and fly on my own before catching me last second." She chuckled. "Such a trickster."

"He sounds like a peach," Hari deadpanned.

At Chisato's urging, Hari lied back down on the pallet. She watched warily as Chisato kneeled over her head and pressed her thumb on her brow. A coolness ebbed through the contact, like the feeling of a gentle breeze on a cool day. It made Hari feel woozy and she closed her eyes as her exhausted body began to fall in darkness.

Which only made it more terrifying when Hari opened her eyes to a world of fire.

Hari glared at the walls of fire that surrounded her. There was no more Chisato, no more prison. Just Hari, and the pissed off Guardian of Fire who enjoyed tormenting her.

"I'm back," Hari said as she got to her feet. She stretched and groaned in relief as the phantom aches left.

Trying to connect with the Guardian of Fire meant that Hari had to tap into her very soul. It was slightly disconcerting to see that her soul was made up of nothing but darkness and fire, but she hoped that was a temporary thing. Ever since the day Hari had been captured, Chisato had been sending her to the depths of her soul to try and form the bond necessary with the Guardian of Fire.

There had been…less than pleasant results so far.

From the other side of the walls of fire, Hari could see a faint outline of something stalking back and forth in front of her. A warning growl echoed throughout the space and the fire burned brighter.

Hari bit her lip anxiously. "Hey, please calm down," she pleaded. "I'm just here to talk." She swallowed nervously. "I…I want us to work together."

Another growl told Hari that this wasn't a popular idea.

Slowly, Hari sat down on the ground. At least the flames weren't stifling unless she got too close. Most of her time here with the spirit was spent sitting and trying to look as non-threatening as possible.

Until the Guardian of Fire eventually got impatient and launched fireballs at her, forcing to wake her up. Hopefully that didn't happen this time.

Hari wracked her brain of all their previous encounters. She had, admittedly, gotten heated (pardon the pun!) during their early encounters. It was hard to not blame the fire spirit for her ailing condition, though she did concede that it wasn't her fault at all that she was confined to Hari's soul. Those angry exchanges had made the spirit even more wary of Hari's presence. So, Hari had spent the past dozen exchanges just trying to soothe the spirit and assure her that she was safe. Which she also didn't like, to Hari's frustration.

So, Hari opted for a new approach.

"I don't know if I actually introduced myself," she said uncomfortably. "Which seems weird, seeing as you're trapped in my soul and all."

Another angry growl.

Hari held up her hands. "I didn't trap you here," she said defensively. "And you haven't exactly been kind to me, either. You are literally killing me these days."

The growl eased up.

"Anyway, my name is Hari," she continued. "I'm Princess of the Underworld and its future queen." She smiled. "I have a little sister named Haki. She's the best sister. It's just us and our dad, Satan, King of the Underworld." She frowned and traced circles in the dirt beside her. "My mom was killed when I was ten," she said sadly. "When my mom was alive, I was actually a bit of a crybaby," she admitted ruefully. "And I got jealous of Haki a lot. I didn't want to be a big sister at all and I wasn't very nice to her." She scowled playfully at the shape within the flames. "Don't tell her this," she said with a sad smirk. "Haki was so young when I was a jerk that she doesn't even remember it anymore. I much prefer our relationship now."

Slowly, the spirit stopped pacing. Hari could still see it through the other side of the flames as it hesitantly sat down.

"It was my mom's death that led me to becoming a better older sister," Hari continued. She felt tears threaten to overwhelm her for a second and her throat tightened with her grief. She cleared it a couple times. "Maybe I can tell you that story sometime," she said thickly. "But…it still hurts to think about." She smiled. "Let me tell you about my girlfriend…"

Time was irrelevant when Hari was within her soul. Hari continued to speak about anything that came to mind. Speaking of Shan and the love she had for her came easy. Opening up about her fears about her Demon's Body slowly gaining strength came with more difficulty. But through it all, the spirit listened silently. Hari could feel her staring at her, judging her, looking for any signs of threat or weakness.

"Do you have a name?" Hari eventually asked. "I keep referring to you as 'Spirit' or 'Guardian of Fire'. I don't even know if that's your actual name."

To Hari's surprise (and hope!) a thoughtful trill sounded from the other side of the flames. Then, the spirit got up and walked closer to the wall of flames separating them. For a few moments, nothing happened. Then, Hari saw it.

A pawprint, flashing brightly within the flames.

Hari stared at the large pawprint. It wasn't as large as Zeke's, but it was still intimidating in its size. She stared at it and swallowed nervously when she realized what the Guardian of Fire wanted. Hari clenched her hands tight to keep them from shaking.

Slowly, she got to her feet and began to approach the flames. The closer she got, the more she could feel their heat. Sweat quickly began to trickle down her back and every instinct she had was telling her to get away before she hurt herself. But still, she forced herself to get closer. She placed her left hand at the base of her neck where her Sound of Wandering rested with her physical body.

Shan, give me strength, Hari silently pleaded.

And then she pressed her right hand up against the paw print.

Predictably, Hari's hand burned. Her legs locked as a scream of agony escaped her. She could only watch as the flames as they consumed her hand and ate away at it. To her horror, flames began to crawl up her arm. They climbed up, starting up her wrist and then making their way up to her shoulder. When the flames reached her chest, her scream intensified and she thought she was going to pass out.

Just when she thought she was going to die, the pain stopped. Then, all of the flames vanished in a puff of smoke.

Hari's legs gave and she crumbled to the ground. She wheezed as she desperately tried to fill her lungs. Her arm and chest burned, but to her awe, the pain was already receding from what it had been earlier. Slowly, she sat up and stared at her arm. There were burn marks, unsurprisingly, from her hand to her shoulder. Like stripes. They were white, as if they were scars left over from an injury long passed. When Hari pressed a soft finger to them, she was surprised when she didn't feel pain or heat. They weren't physical wounds at all.

"They're magic," she breathed.

"Is that really so surprising?"

And then Hari found herself staring directly in the face of a very large red tiger.