Story: Dawning Radiance

Genre: Dark Fantasy/Romance/Action

Rating: T

Claimer: I own each and every one of the characters in this story, so please do not use them, as they are my babies...enjoy!

Valshe cast a glance over at Nate, who had gone very quiet and seemed to be too preoccupied with his hands to notice me staring at him.

A personality disorder.

I shook my head in shock and disbelief as I stared at Nate's sheepish little smile "Surprise…!" he laughed humorlessly "That's not possible…" I sputtered, crossing my arms across my chest stubbornly "I've seen you and Rey together before! That can't happen if he's just another personality!" I replied matter-of-factly.

They both watched me for a little while after this before turning to each other and shrugging "See, that's not really a normal thing for them" Valshe tried, pausing like she was trying to remember how to explain, before giving an apologetic and slightly embarrassed smile. "I don't exactly understand it either, so Nate can explain this one to both of us, okay?" she turned to face Nate, who sighed "It's not easy for a human to understand, so I don't really blame you for not getting it Valshe. We don't split very often because it uses up a ton of energy, so if something goes wrong we'd be in trouble, but…it's just a really complicated spell that we use when we get into fights. So far, we can only keep ourselves separate for about three and a half hours at the most, but sometimes Malachi can keep it going for longer" he rambled, not knowing how to explain it too well himself.

"So essentially, it's like duplication magic, only Rey occupies the duplicate, right? Can't you just cut the duplicate off so he has his own body, or do you holy Ethereals not know how to do something like that yet?" I teased, pushing myself off of the bed with a yawn.

Nate shrugged "It's different to cut the duplicate off than to split our minds and try to cram his into a simple duplicate…" he then nodded mutely and stood up as well "I guess I could show you if you want. After all, I'm just going to bed after this, so it's not like I won't get the energy back fast enough anyways" he put his hand out so his palm was facing the wall and said something under his breath.

Slowly, his body began to give off an iridescent white glow, which slipped down his arm and out his palm, where another, still transparent hand was beginning to materialize, pressed up against his.

The copy formed smoothly into a spitting image of Nate before solidifying, and Nate pulled his hand away, causing the glow to fade back into the darkness of the room.

Rey opened his eyes, which were the only difference between the two; his had a streak of sea green just above and just below his pupils, contradicting his otherwise dark brown eyes.

He glared, first at Nate, then at me "What? I was sleeping" he hissed angrily, crossing his arms "I told Xander some things" Nate told him innocently, and both of them turned to me.

"Oh, that's just great" Rey complained grumpily "Make friends with the demons Nate; that's real smart! You'd better get out before I have to force you out, understand? Leave!" he spat at me, advancing on me and pulling his arm back the slightest bit, as if he were preparing to swing at me.

I smirked and held up my hands in a mocking fashion "I dunno, I'm pretty comfortable here" I returned, and the only thing that kept him from punching me was Valshe, who stepped in between us and took hold of Rey's closed fist gently "Calm down, okay? He's not doing anything wrong" she murmured to him, and he pulled away with an irritated scoff "Whatever" he grumbled.

She then turned on me, wagging a finger at me crossly "You shouldn't be provoking him in the first place Xander" she scolded, hand on hip "I did no such thing! I can't believe you'd think I'd do something like that!" I cried teasingly, turning to head for the door with a grin.

"But, as much fun as this was" I told them sarcastically "I think I'm going back to bed, see you guys in the morning!" I called, heading out the door and down the hall to my room, where I crashed heavily onto my bed.

The next morning came fast enough, and I woke up to Valshe yanking the blanket off of me and yelling that I had to get up 'Right now Xander!', before noticing that I was wearing only boxers and with a crimson blush, fled the room as fast as she'd come in.

I'd barely gotten dressed when Rey burst into my room and grabbed me by the collar, yanking me out the door and towards the stairs "What part of 'right now' didn't get through that thick head of yours Demon? Hurry it up!" he barked, releasing me and leading me down the stairs and through the front room, throwing the huge front door open and shoving me out into the early morning sunlight.

Already outside was Malachi, Nigathiel, Valshe, and Damien, who all looked up at the scene when we entered the courtyard with them "Don't push me, I can walk just fine by myself!" I growled at him "Then maybe you should've been walking faster!" he shot back with a fierce glare.

"Boys, boys! There's no need to be arguing this early! Just enjoy the nice morning while it's here, and the day will go by fast enough. Who knows, it might even be fun" Malachi coaxed, peaceful smile ever present on his lips.

I froze for a moment before turning to stare at him in disbelief "What do you mean by 'the day'? I can barely deal with him for an hour let alone a whole day! And besides, we're supposed to be leaving before lunch…right Damien?" I swiveled to face Damien, who shrugged apologetically. "We can't break through the barrier unless that freakin' Angel lets us, and he thinks it'd be a good idea if we spent some time together before we head back" he rolled his eyes sarcastically and tossed a half hearted glare over his shoulder at Malachi and Night before shaking his head in defeat.

As we left the mansion property and headed down a path that lead into the woods around the lake where Nate and I had talked what seemed like ages ago, Malachi explained what exactly it was we were doing that day.

He figured that since we'd be enemies again by tomorrow, we might as well head out and 'enjoy' the last day we had together.

At least Damien, Rey and I were on the same team when we began to complain about how the last thing we wanted to do was spend a day with each other, though Malachi and Valshe would have none of it. Nigathiel watched us all with amusement, adding in his two cents every once in a while.

Just as we hit the beginning of the woods, both Malachi and Nigathiel froze and bristled, looking around and around us with alert expressions on their clear faces.

Damien paused soon after they did, his face somewhat shocked before he grabbed Valshe by the wrist and dove back the way we came, just as an explosion pounded into the ground where they'd previously been standing.

The rest of us jumped back away from the blast, but were instead caught in the shockwave that followed it and were blown farther away from each other.

One explosion followed another and another, and all I was worried about for the moment was making sure I wasn't hit as I dodged around trees and headed deeper into the forest, before the ground below me settled and except for the explosions overhead, all was quiet.

I bent over, hands on knees and panted hard while I glanced around for anyone else who might've followed me back here.

Reaching for my belt, I checked to make sure that both my sword and my Oni were there, just in case things took another turn for the worse. I opted for my sword for the time being and took hold of the rough hilt, sliding it smoothly out of the sheath and letting it dangle at my side as I took another careful look around.

Finding the others would be simple enough; all it took was one sweep through the air and I'd be able to spot them right away then we could get things figured out from there.

I let my wings extend and stretch, stirring up the leaves at my feet with the wind they started up and bounced lithely into the air, tightening my grip on the sword and holding it at the ready, prepared to slice at anything that came my way.

The tops of the trees were just about at eye level when a strong force connected with my side and I was brought crashing back to the ground below me and my attacker.

Shoving myself off of the dirt as fast as I could and moving instinctively to swing my sword at the person, I was almost surprised when I heard it clash with another sword, the sound of metal grinding on metal giving me an anticipating thrill as a feral grin spread over my face.

"As much as I'd like to pummel you, now really isn't the time" the boy I now saw was Rey commented sarcastically before jumping back with his sword still at the ready "What the Heaven was that for? I'm trying to find the others!" I exclaimed, sheathing my sword disappointedly.

"No, you were tryingto get your head blown off! Are you crazy? Not even a Seraph could fly through that without taking damage!" he yelled back, advancing on me harshly "But if that's really how you want to go out, then be my guest" he growled once he got closer, and I shoved him a few steps back with a frown

Turning heatedly and starting off in the direction I thought I'd come from, I stopped when Rey caught my shoulder "We might as well stick together" he muttered hesitantly "It'll be easier to find them, and if we get into trouble, we can watch each others backs" he grumbled, casting his gaze on one of the trees beside us.

I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at him, but shrugged it off and nodded; it wouldn't be that bad if we at least tried to get along. "Right. Let's go then" I told him, continuing my stride through the smoky, partially destroyed forest.

We tread silently through the loosely spaced trees, weapons at the ready and eyes surveying the area around us carefully "Why would you willingly want to team up with me anyways? Any other time we've seen each other, you're always yelling about how much you hate me, so why help me out?" I asked, jumping over a tree that had fallen over in the blast.

For a moment, he didn't reply; just half glared at me as he cleared the tree as well before he rolled his eyes "I'm helping you; that should be all that matters, Demon!" he growled, turning his eyes to examine the vicious looking sky above us when I smirked at him. "Whatever you say, little bro" I taunted, and I noticed his cheeks redden a bit with anger (or embarrassment?) while his face twisted into another scowl "Don't call me that" he snapped at me "Or I just might leave you behind"

To the reviewers: indescribable music: Thanks for another review! I'm sorry the chapter you've been looking forward to is so short this time, but I was trying to explain stuff, and then I couldn't really add anything else without having to end it at a really awkward part later (not that I didn't do that on this one anyways). Hope you stick around to read the next one!

A. Montgomery: Fifteen books? I haven't even had time to read one, 'cause I've just been so busy this summer! I liked adding the twists too, until I realize that I've thought of no way to explain it to my readers, and then I have a mind spasm because I'm trying so hard to figure it out! But, I digress, I hope you understand Nate and Rey's condition a little bit more now, and if you don't, I can try to explain it more in the next chapter. Thanks for reviewing again, I hope you have time to read the next one!

Devil wingz: I did that super long chapter last time, and now I have this super short one right after it...sorry about that! You guessed that they were the same person? Aww...I figured some people would, but I was hoping it would come as a shock instead :gives cookie for guessing right: here is your prize! I know I like to drop my chapters off at cliff hangers, but I didn't really do it on this one! I'm getting better, see? :sweat drops: Well, thanks again for all of your reviews, and I hope you keep reading! :waves back:

A/N: Okay, so I know this chapter is super short, but I'll try to make the next one longer (I'm working on it right now, so...) I also know that I haven't posted anything in a month as of today, but July has been a super busy month for me this year, so I never have time to get onto Word and type up another chapter. Also, I've decided that if you have questions for the characters, then you can just add them to your review and I'll put the answers in after the chapter in the 'To The Reviewers' section, 'kay? Until next time, please review, and don't try to fly around during a bombing; you probably won't be a very happy camper afterwards!