Disclaimer: I do not own Soul Eater, its characters, or its concepts. Originally, I was going to leave this part out and cut to the next, but it's fairly important in character expression and development, so, I'll submit it anyway.

Chapter 3 – Fight for Love

The party was nearing to an end with about an hour left till the place needed to be shut down. Soul couldn't help but to watch his daughter as she enjoyed herself on the floor. So much work had been put into making this night one of the most memorable. Eventually his daughter would have to really crack down to business, so it was nice seeing her have some fun. That spunk she carried was something big, and something that needed to be lived out so she could take her career seriously.

As Soul thought back to the dress she'd found, the memory of Maka came into his head. His thoughts went back to the Shibusen Ball, the night just before Asura had been reawakened. 'If only I had danced with her then! ' How stubborn he'd been back then to stay alone! The man shook it off quickly, though. 'No, I have to think about my own daughter! She's the one I'm here for!'

"About time you came back out here! You've been sitting entirely too long!" Liz shouted, continuing to jump around and wiggle her body excitedly. The woman grabbed his hands, dragged him to the middle, and proceeded to do the twist.

Soul blushed, trying to free himself from her grasp. Now he found himself getting spun around like they were two pre-teens at a school dance. Suddenly, Soul's head began to swim in a fit of dizziness, though and he quickly grabbed onto Liz' shoulder to regain balance.

"Can't handle the action, eh?" Liz responded. "Sit back down if you want… but you better come back!"

"Don't worry… My head just hurts a bit." Soul cracked a slight smile towards them. "It's okay, go ahead and keep dancing. I'll just take some medicine and come back in a moment."

"Okay, but don't take too long!" replied Patty in a continued optimistic voice. With this, the sisters jumped back into their energetic routine. Now they saw their albino friend make way to his table and leaned back into a chair as he sent a smile their way, sipping on the drink he left behind.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Still on actively on the floor, too, was Chrona, equally as energetic as the Thompson sisters. She was distracted by a tap on her shoulder, however. Behind her stood yet another boy who would not give up on trying to win her heart. She did not recall inviting him, however. "How did you…"

"I followed you! I haven't forgotten what you said, either. 'Don't be foolish!' Ha! I won't give up. In fact… I have a challenge for you instead…" His brunette shaggy hair was never combed, nor did he bother to dress past throwing a Shibusen t-shirt and casual blue jeans. Sloan was his name, and he had his eyes on her since he first met her.

Chrona wasn't sure how to respond to this other than averting a confused look to her friends and shifting it back to him. "A challenge? Seriously?" She paused a moment, and burst out into a loud laughter. "And what kind of challenge were you thinking about? And what'll I get out of it?" A smile of confidence came about her face, of which nearly guaranteed agreement. There was rarely a challenge she couldn't say yes to, but this struck her curiosity.

"The challenge…. is a fight!" Everybody nearby gasped. "Right here, right now! If I win, you have to go on a date with me! If you win… I'll…." He stopped for a moment, observing the skeptical look she was patiently shooting back. "If you win, I'll leave you alone… for a year!"

A heavy sigh was heard from her in dis belief of the method he was attempting. "Fine… but I'm in a dress? I think you owe me a small handicap? And NO trying to look up my dress!" She shot her hand out, waiting for agreement on the terms.

"It's a deal! Heh, I can win you over like this any day I want! And no weapon forms, either! " He gripped her hand in return with a single, hard shake, and backed up, stancing himself for the minor battle. His look was one of confidence, as was Chrona's. The crowd around them circled around the duo, excitement reflecting in their eyes as the adrenalin pumped in anxiety of who would come out on top.

"Fine, I don't need my weapon form to defeat you anyway! Ahahahaha!" Chrona stanced herself as well, pausing to remember that the dress she wore. With this thought in mind, she decided to roll the skirt up just high enough so she could fight without tearing it. She had no shame in showing a little leg. Just then, the boy came roaring at her with a full fist forward. She managed to catch it quickly, barely stopping it from swiping the side of her face.

The crowd was roaring with excitement as they cheered on. With this, the boy continued his aggressive attack with another fist coming in through the other side. He was quicker than Chrona had anticipated. The sixteen year old barely managed to duck under while still holding his right hand, but soon followed with an upper cut with her right hand right into his stomach. He backed up, holding his stomach in pain. "Oh, so we're playing hard ball now, huh? I was being easy on you, but its game on! Prepare to lose!" he bragged, a confident smile on his face.

Chrona dusted her dress lightly, or what bit of it wasn't rolled up. She could tell she was receiving an undressing look from him. The fact that she wasn't afraid to fight him only encouraged him even more. Of course, bravery is what she was known for. There was nothing she was afraid to do, even if it put her into Death's office, where she was prepared to receive her scolding. What reputation he would earn just for going out with the daughter of one of the few famous Death Scythes, Soul Eater Evans, at that! Quickly were combinations of left and right jabs. She continued to dodge what she could, an occasional blow landing.

She returned his attacks with a successful leg sweep, knocking him down to the ground, where she twisted him into a tight hold, nearly flashing her own underwear, though that was the least of her concern.

At that moment, just at the dining tables, Marie, who had just barely noticed the disruption. She jutted to the table where Soul still remained, his head lain down on his crossed arms. "Soul! Are you paying attention?" Soul only mumbled in an uncomprehendable manner. He was well unaware and completely off focus to the events that were occurring. "Fine… If you can't do it, I'll just have to stop it myself!" Marie stormed angrily through the crowd circling the biggest entertainment of the night. She stepped into the middle of the fight, grabbing each opponent by their arms, separating them so they could no longer reach each other, despite that they continued to swing their arms wildly in effort.

"Stop it, you two! This is no place or time to be conducting this sort of business! Now, I would like to know what happened here." She let the two parties go. Her age certainly did not reflect any loss of strength or passion. They dropped to the ground, rubbing their cheeks with a look of disgust. Neither party budged even an inch to explain. Marie sighed in disappointment, knowing she did not have the mind to discipline the girl at her own party.

The boy was rather roughed up. Chrona was not an easy one to fight. She was not one to pick her battles by merely tugging hair and scratching faces. He stood, still, dusting off his own clothes. "One day, I'm going to get a rematch! You'll see!" He shot a quick wink. At this point, Marie had no idea what was going on. She was just happy to see the scuffle end as he jutted from the grand apartment.

"Save it for the kishins, will ya?!" The death scythe stopped her speech, leaving the scene toward the table where Soul still remained. She finally reached the table, tapping Soul's shoulder gently. With this, Soul popped his head up quickly from the white-clothed table he'd rested it on.

"You okay?" Marie smiled pleasantly.

His voice was hesitant, but he'd mustered an answer anyway. "Y-yeah… headache, that's all." Now he returned the gentle smile in attempt to reassure her. It didn't do well in what he'd intended, though. Really, he didn't feel up to talking. It was only one hour left, and if he could endure this small amount of time, he could officially claim that he'd been there the entire time for his little girl.

Insistent to interfere as a caring fellow Deathscythe and friend, though, Marie pulled up a chair beside him, straightening her own dress politely before sitting. "You know, I could handle from here if you want to go home! You've done enough as it is."

"No, no… I need to be here for her. What kind of father would I be if I wasn't?" Soul answered.

Marie shook her head, smile still on her face. "You've always been there for her, Soul… go, take a break, get some medicine. You don't get headaches like this often, so I'm sure she'll understand!"

Red eyes looked into amber ones, challenging glares to see whose stubbornness would win. The headache growing on Soul's mind interrupted though, the loud music really not helping, and he knew Marie could see the slight wince he'd given in the midst of their stare. She'd won. "Fine, fine… but don't let her get into any trouble, okay? See that she makes it home safe."

Soul had finally exhausted himself for the night, and really didn't make good company anyway. Accepting this one-time-excuse, the weapon entrusted Marie and made his way home, nestled himself in bed while his daughter enjoyed the rest of her night. Chrona, as the chosen weapon to ascend since his very own ascention, deserved the celebration before the real work began. This was the least he could offer her.