Chappie 5. Yup. Took a little longer than expected.

On a more interesting note, Prinder had some interesting questions concerning the last chapter, which I'm more than happy to shed some light to.

1. Why, of all of the times for it to happen, when Rosette says that he doesn't kill, Chrno just does it with only the slightest provocation? I'm going to guess that it has a lot to do with him not being able to understand Human rules of conduct and law, that, or he just wasn't listening to Rosette's sermon.

The reason Chrno acted so harshly after Rosette said he's never killed anyone (I may add that was added for some dramatic irony), was simply because the night before, the two made a connection that humans and demons don't normally make. They spoke. For Chrno, that made him even more possessive of her, hence why it didn't take much for him to kill Eric.

2. Why didn't Chrno attempt to maul Remington for touching "his Rosette" in the alley? I'm going to make another guess and say that it had something to do with the fact that Chrno may not have been able to help her that way, but she needed to get out of the rain and dry and in a relatively safe place.

Sure, we know Chrno doesn't like Remington. But while they were in the alley, Rosette told him that simply because he doesn't like what someone's doing, doesn't make it right for him to kill. He was confused, but because Rosette collapsed emotionally after the death of someone she didn't like in the least, Chrno took that comment to heart. It may not seem like it just yet, but he does share a small amount of compassion for her, and doesn't like to see her in so much pain. So he's trying to calm his rage whenever someone touched 'his' Rosette, but... I wonder how long that will last. XD

Thanks everyone, for all of your wonderful reviews!!

Chrno Crusade © Daisuke Moriyama

-

-- Chapter 5 --

Withstanding

She sat down on the padded couch with a warm towel blanketed across her shoulders, and a hot cup of tea in hand. She still continued to wear the same emotionless expression on her face, dazing off into space as Remington walked into the room, carrying another towel.

"Here you go, Rosette." He said warmly, handing her the white fluffy cloth which she took without make eye contact with him.

Yuan sat down in the chair across from the young girl, folding one leg over the other as he waited. A grandfather clock down the hall in his apartment was the only sound that echoed through the walls, the only thing disrupting the disturbing silence. It was probably ten minutes before she finally spoke up, her voice cracking in her throat, obviously strained from crying.

"….He killed someone today, you know." She said in barely a whisper, not moving an inch as she stared down into her cup of tea.

"….He?" The man asked, his voice careful and calm.

"The demon."

He sighed softly, placing both hands in his lap as he contemplated on something to say.

"…I shouldn't be here." She managed in a strained voice. Her companion looked up at her with a bit of confusion, and surprise.

"Why is that?"

"Because," She gazed up at him, their blue eyes meeting each other in a distant stare. "He could kill you too."

"I'm keeping my distance, Miss Christopher. The demon shouldn't be provoked." He said truthfully, seeming completely calm sitting next to the girl that was given the title, 'The Possessed'.

"…..He said he doesn't like you."

There was a short pause as Yuan suddenly looked concerned, and a little startled. "Your demon… it spoke to you?"

"…Yes."

"When was this?"

"Last night, after I came home from visiting you." She whispered, and felt the same unnerving cold whisp of air along her arm. By now, now that her mind has receded into a state most would call insane, she was able to feel that the chilling sensation meant the demon didn't like her topic of conversation.

For a long while he became lost in deep thought, a curious expression upon his face, not to mention concern. Demons rarely ever spoke to their Contractors… Why would this one? "What did it say?"

"…..He said he was going to protect me. That I was his." She spoke softly, a small tinge of remembrance in her eyes. "…And that you were a Minister."

Yuan's eyes widened considerably at that comment, his face turning pale as he obviously tensed in his seat. "…I was." He admitted slowly. "But that was a long time ago." Too long ago. Why would a demon be able to recall something so far in the past… Unless it was important, demons rarely remembered humans because of their insignificance. "Rosette… did the demon…. Happen to give you its name?"

Though he had asked, he sincerely doubted it. A demon revealing its name to a human, it's nearly unheard of, mostly because of old traditional reasons. Human ears weren't allowed to hear their name, and a lot of times, their voice. Not to mention, see them, but from what the young girl said, she hasn't seen the true form of her demon.

"His name?" She asked quietly, looking up at the taller man without any change in her expression. "…He said his name was… Chrno."

From just behind the young girl, it seemed as though her demon was grinning cruelly, as the former Minister's face paled considerably again. Only this time, his hands gripped the chair so tightly, one could have sworn he was about to tear the fabric, and a small trail of sweat appeared on his temples.

"Get out." Yuan spoke darkly, his eyes narrowing at the young girl as if she had committed the utmost vile crime. "Get out. Now."

"Yuan…" For the first time since she came here, her voice and expression showed concern, as if his pained voice had snapped her out of her current emotionless state.

"GET OUT NOW!" He roared, standing to his feet, his eyes wild with fury, making her jump. Hesitantly, she slid off the couch, quickly making her way to the front door, without looking back.

She left, the door closing harshly behind her, the former Minister still watching the area where she was sitting in. for a moment his eyes began to shine gold, his teeth gritting together painfully as he clenched his fists. "Sinner Chrno…" He whispered. "So you've made your move again…."

-

Rosette continued to run down the street, her semi-dry clothes getting soaked again in the pouring rain. It was night already… probably around midnight, considering the position of the moon in the sky. And the temperature was dropping… whether it was because of the rain, or her demon angered at the response Remington gave her, she didn't know. All she knew is that if she stayed out here much longer, she'd get sick.

By now her chest was heaving, her heart racing a mile a minute as she continued to run, searching for the familiar apartment building she called home. She needed to be safe, warm… because the only person she thought could comfort her in this time of need, had thrown her out.

She never knew Yuan could be so… furious.

Though at the time she was in a dark state of mind for the entire conversation with him, she could remember most of it clearly. It was obvious he had met Chrno before… and his hatred for the demon seemed as strong, if not stronger, than Chrno's.

As if things could get more complicated.

Panting, the young girl stepped forward, looking up to the aged building before her, rain stinging her eyes. She was home… but could she really go back? After what had happened… will she be responsible for murder? And what of Joshua? They've lived together their whole lives and Chrno never made a move to harm him, but… he also never killed anyone either before today. She had no idea what was going on in her demon's mind….

"Go on," The familiar voice whispered in her ear, but it was no longer laced with the certain cruel amusement it usually brought. It was quiet… almost solemn.

"I can't." Her voice cracked in her strained throat, tears mixing in with the endless rain that stained her cheeks. "I'm scared…"

"Scared of what, dear heart?"

"Of what might happen…" She paused, taking in a shallow breath. "To Joshua… to me…"

"Your brother has never shown any hostility towards you. I will not harm him."

"How can I be sure…" She whispered, her gaze casting down to the sidewalk at her feet.

"… I suppose you can't. I am a demon, after all." There was a pause, before his tone changed again. "He is close to your heart. Any harm I do to him, will be done to you. And I promised I would protect you."

Silence fell upon them again, and the young girl looked back up to the apartment, still hesitant. "You never once thought that when you killed Eric today…"

"…Your human emotions are confusing." He whispered, sounding mystified. "Why would someone you have no regard for, cause you this much pain?"

"Because…" She frowned, her voice lowering. "There is always someone out there that will grieve…"

"R-Rosette?!"

Before the demon could respond, she looked up, surprised to find Joshua standing out at the entrance of the apartment, clothes quickly getting soaked in the heavy rain, his eyes wide and tinted red, an obvious sign he had been crying.

Not a moment later, the young boy ran towards her, flinging his arms around his older sister tightly, as if he would never let go. "Neesan….Neesan!" He hiccupped, burying his face in her shoulder. With a careful gaze, she brought her arms up to gently return the hug, before more tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Joshua…" She whispered, clinging to him just as tight, before falling to her knees, bringing her brother down with her into the wet pavement.

"I-I was so s-scared…. You wouldn't c-come back…!" Joshua cried, shaking as he cried into her soaked shirt. "Th-that the ghost had killed you too…"

She frowned, staring ahead at nothing in particular, pain washing over her expression. He knew nothing of what had happened to her the past few days… her brother, her only family. The person she cared about the most.

And yet she knew, she couldn't tell him.

"I'm sorry…" She whispered, holding him close. "I'm sorry I made you worry…" She gently ran her hand through his hair, trying her best to comfort him. She could only imagine what he was going through when she left… all he could do was wait. "Let's get inside before we catch a cold."

Her little brother could only nod, before they both slowly got up to her feet, his hand wrapping around hers tightly as they walked inside, sheltering themselves from the rain and cold.

"You know…" Joshua whispered as they walked through the door to their assigned room number. "The entire school was in an uproar when you left… It was closed as soon as the paramedics came to take Eric to the hospital."

She fell silent, staring at the ground once her hand left his, only to wrap her arms around herself in a shaken manner. "It didn't help much, did it?"

"…What didn't?"

"Eric died." She spoke softly. "He was dead the moment he hit the wall."

"….There hasn't been any news of his condition." He paused, sounding solemn. "But he didn't look good."

"He told me." She took in a shallow breath, looking up at him hesitantly. "My…. Ghost told me. He was dead."

The blond boy looked over at her with astonishment, a mix of fear and surprise washing over his face. "…It talked to you?"

"Yes… " Was all she could muster, afraid that more questions would follow. She couldn't tell him his only sister was bound to a demon, and one day, that demon would take her life…

It was obvious he wanted to ask more, but he could tell by the look on her face, she didn't want to reveal much. "Alright." He spoke quietly. "It's really late… why don't you change and go to bed. We can talk in the morning, if you want to."

She smiled warmly and nodded, giving him one last hug before kissing him on the cheek, and walking towards her room.

She wanted to tell him so badly… she wanted to be able to have someone she can trust to be able to talk to. She was scared… and somehow, she could tell things were only about to get worse.

Quietly, she stripped down, throwing her sopping wet clothes in the hamper by the door, and began to dry off her hair with a towel. It was really pouring outside…. And she still felt cold. She hoped she didn't already catch something… that's defiantly not something she wanted on top of all this.

She slipped into bed, shivering as she pulled the blankets up to her chin, turning over to her side to bring her legs close to her body.

A warm gentle breeze brushed over her cheek, making her eyes flutter open in vague awareness.

"Don't worry, dear heart." Her demon spoke softly in her ear, using a tone she was almost certain she never heard him use. It was almost…. Kind. "I won't let anything happen to you."

She simply shivered more, turning her head into her chest as the warm air continued to dance upon her skin in an oddly soothing manner. A few moment passed, and what happened next… startled her so badly, that her entire body froze, unable to move.

She felt not the warmth of air upon her cheek. She felt skin.

"Ch…Chrno?" She whispered, her voice shaking as her body failed to move despite her mind screaming at it to.

"I'm here for you." He said softly, but for some reason… it wasn't as if he was speaking from beyond another realm. She could hear exactly where his voice was coming from. And it was right beside her bed. "You don't need to be scared anymore. I'll always be right here….beside you."

His hand moved from her face tenderly, before slowly resting upon her own hand that lay right beside her chest. She was frozen, so immensely shocked that she was still unable to move. Though through the darkness, she looked down at her hands… and was able to see, just barely the shape of a human-like hand. It was a good deal larger than hers, easily covering both of her fists – but that wasn't what scared her. At the end of each finger, were deadly, razor-sharp talons.

"Wh-what…?" She whispered, her voice shaking almost as bad as her body was. "Ch-Chrno…"

"Don't be afraid." He whispered, his breath lightly ticking her ear as she blushed brightly, her heart pounding loudly in her chest. Never… never had she thought that this demon would have a physical form…she had never once thought that there was even a chance, he would reveal something like this.

She felt his hand gently squeeze hers, trying his best to comfort her. And even though she couldn't see him… she knew he was constantly watching her. Slowly, she felt his breath move downwards to her neck, making her shiver despite herself, but it was no longer in fear. Her stomach churned oddly at the sensation, gasping as she felt warm lips press against the skin of her neck, her eyes widening in shock.

"Sleep well, Rosette." He whispered, as suddenly, the young girl felt her eyelids grown heavy, and she found herself struggling to stay awake. Not again…the same warm, comforting sensation spread throughout her body, forcing her to do nothing but accept the intrusive spell he had put her under once more.

"Chrno…" Was the last thing she whispered before she dozed off, sleep taking her now still form.

And as she rested, the demon stayed by her side, watching over her until the break of dawn.

-

Whoowee! Got a little hot in there for a moment. XD Poor Rosette… Chrno is getting so unpredictable.

And yay! I made sure that nice streak of Remi's was brutally shattered. Looks like there's more to him than meets the eye… kukukuku.

Until next chapter!

Zoey