Disclaimer: everything belongs to their rightful owners.

After their 'mission' on apologizing to Seijuro, Tetsuna and Daiki were on their way out of the circus, wanting to hurry and curl up in their beds but unfortunately, it seemed a little hard for that to happen, they realized as they continued walking in the area in circles.

"Daiki-kun...I think we're lost.."

Tetsuna murmured as she glanced around, one tent looking very similar to the other. They've been going on like this for who knows how long but long enough for Tetsuna to confirm that they were definitely lost, no matter how absurd it seems, considering the place they were at.

"don't be silly why the hell would we be lost in a place like this?"

Daiki scoffed, absolutely convinced that they weren't lost at all. It was just that their destination was far. That's all.

"but we've seen this tent before. Just admit that we're lost"

"all of them look the same"

Tetsuna just shook her head and looked around, trying to find someone she could ask for directions to exit the area. Her blue eyes caught sight of a shade of pink from behind of the tents and she hurried towards that way, remembering that there was a person who had the colour for her hair. Daiki, who didn't notice Tetsuna's absence, kept on looking around for the exit. It wasn't after he heard a squeak that he noticed she wasn't beside him anymore.

"Tetsu?"

He followed the source of the squeak and saw Tetsuna looking innocently at a girl, who instantly made Daiki's heart beat faster the moment he saw her. The girl, Satsuki, looked over to Daiki who just arrived, her hand on her chest, still beating fast from the shock Tetsuna gave her from suddenly 'appearing' beside her out of nowhere.

"ah, you two...!"

Satsuki exclaimed, remembering the two from the finale incident, her pink orbs widening by a fraction. Daiki rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly as he was the one who created a ruckus over a magic trick (which in a way wasn't his fault given the circumstances) and shifted his gaze from the pink haired female. Satsuki, who noticed his action, put her hands behind her back and smiled warmly at the boy.

"I know Tetsuna-chan's name but I believe I don't know yours. Mind telling me?"

"..Daiki. It's Daiki"

He said after a pause. The girl smiled a little wider and gave a nod.

"I see. I'm sure you're familiar with my name but let me introduce myself again." She held out a hand to him. "I'm Satsuki. Sei-ku— I mean, Seijuro-kun's assistant. Nice to meet you"

The nickname she almost used didn't go unnoticed by Daiki but he chose not to say a word about it and just took her hand.

"nice to meet ya too"

Tetsuna smiled beside Daiki as the two let go of each other's hands. It was nice to see her friend become acquainted with someone either than her. Due to Daiki's physical appearance, not many have the guts to come close to him. He's considered a titan in the small town after all (of course since they've never seen a real titan with the height of two meters) so seeing how Satsuki wasn't afraid of him made her really happy.

"by the way, what are you two still doing here? The show is already over so...?"

Daiki and Tetsuna exchanged glances and felt a little embarrassed to tell her since getting lost in the tent area isn't exactly something easy to admit but they told her anyway. They needed directions to go home after all. With a giggle, Satsuki pointed her finger straight forward, the two teens turning to look at the direction.

"go straight and you'll be able to return to town. But,"

Daiki and Tetsuna turned back to her with an eyebrow raised. The word 'but' is never something good. Well, depending on the situation, of course.

"it's dangerous to walk in the outskirts at this time of night" she explained. "it's the time when the ghouls come out to feast"

"Ghouls come out to feast on anyone wandering in the night." Something the people in the area tell their children so that they won't wander around outside when the sun has gone down. No one knew the source of it but they believe it. They believe it because someone had said that he had witnessed a ghoul wandering in town at night and took away a child with it. Of course, there was no way to confirm it but would anyone take chances of a doubt?

"but that's just a myth" Daiki scoffed. He was one of the rare people in town who didn't believe in the whole 'ghoul' story.

"well..." Satsuki smiled. But it wasn't the cheerful smile she would always give. "there are many ways a person can interpret a ghoul-ish figure, isn't there?"

Daiki's eyebrow raised a little higher and he scoffed again.

"is there now"

Tetsuna who was silent the whole time the two were talking locked her eyes on Satsuki, a part of her feeling a little suspicious of the way she talked about the so-called ghouls. It seemed to her that she knew— if not personally —a thing or two about the ghouls. The way she smiled as if she was hiding something planted a feeling of curiousity in her but she really couldn't explain why she felt a little uneasy as well. Like there was more to the story than just simply it being just a myth.

"anyway, I think it's best if you wait until the sun rises before returning home. We can provide you with a place to stay, though it wouldn't be much.."

Daiki rubbed the back of his neck and let out a small sigh. "if you insist..."

The pinkette smiled widely before gesturing to the two to follow her. "I'd like to introduce you two to the first string members if that's okay. Since you two are staying for the night, might as well get acquainted, don't you think? At least that way you could ask for help when needed"

"sounds wonderful" Tetsuna uttered, letting a smile grace her features. "we'll be in your care then"

Satsuki just giggled at her words and continued walking towards another large tent— though not as large as the one before —then proceeded to go in, happily greeted the ones inside. Daiki and Tetsuna wasn't really sure what to do so they just awkwardly followed behind her. The moment they entered, they felt pairs of eyeballs turning their way, making them feeling a little nervous.

"nn? Sacchin, you brought people...?" The purple titan from before, who named himself as Atsushi, asked lazily as he munched on a pack of chips seated at the far end of the table. There were quite a number of crumbs on his clothes but he didn't seem to care.

"those two... Aren't they the ones during the finale?" The green haired dagger thrower, who was seated a little further from Atsushi, uttered, pushing up his glasses. His lips were in the form of a frown as he scanned the two 'strangers'. The blond seated beside him— still shirtless like he was from the show, making Daiki wonder if whether or not he felt chilly being in that fashion —excitedly raised his voice, a childish grin present on his face.

"aah! You're right! That's the guy who wanted to punch Seijurocchi!"

"oi who said I wanted to—"

"you should be glad the kid didn't do anything to you" A brunette— who Tetsuna recognized as the tightrope walker —cut off Daiki's sentence with a smirk on her face as she was seated comfortably, you could say, on the table, a glass of wine was held in her hand.

"the last time someone went against Seijuro-kun, he became traumatized by whatever he did to him"

Daiki visibly cringed at the scenarios that started playing in his head at the brunette's words. Somehow, he could just feel what the person went through.

"that brat" The spectacled animal tamer from before, who was seated just beside the brunette though not on the table, scoffed and slammed his beer glass on the table. "he's too high and mighty for a brat. Respect your elders dammit..!"

"Junpei, you've had too much to drink" The brunette lightly hit Junpei on the head which he reacted with only a frown and a mutter of "I didn't even drink much"

Satsuki giggled at the two's actions and turned to Daiki and Tetsuna, who were wondering if their presence had been forgotten. Not that it was surprising for that to happen to Tetsuna.

"let me introduce you. The one at the far end eating is Atsu—"

"we met already, Sacchin..~" "is that so? Well then...the one with the glasses and also a helpless frown," she giggled at this "near Akkun is Shintarou-kun. The blond is Ryouta-kun. She's Riko-san and beside her is her dear boyfriend, Junpei-san~"

Satsuki gestured to the person she was introducing and giggled again at the end. Riko lightly blushed at her statement and shouted out a "hey! Don't go telling others about us so easily!" accompanied by the pointing of her finger to Satsuki. Daiki grunted as if it was a perfect response for the introduction and Tetsuna smiled at the liveliness.

"everyone seems close.. Have you been working together for a while?" The bluenette asked.

"not exactly" Ryouta explained. "we're all from the same district so we've been together as long as we can remember"

It was Daiki's turn to ask, "you guys the same age?"

"my, is that how it seems?~" Riko said, looking absolutely flattered for some reason.

Satsuki let out a giggle before answering, "no. Riko-san and Jun-san are a little older than us"

Daiki hummed as a response and glanced around the place. It look very homely for a tent and the way the members communicate with each other made them seem like they were family. Well, they did say they were from the same district..

"wait, where's that Seijuro guy? He's a first string member too, right?"

Daiki suddenly asked, making the first string members in the tent— who were chatting about their plans for tonight —turn to face him. They stopped to wonder for a while and Atsushi chose to answer his question. Well, not exactly answer...

"dunno. Maybe Sei-chin is talking with—"

"did you need me for something?"

Seijuro's voice from behind Daiki cut off the purple haired boy's sentence— in an almost-too-good timing —and Ryouta instantly waved at his direction.

"Seijurocchi~ Come join us! We got some newly opened wine!"

Shintarou glared at the blond in irritation and scooted further away from him, not wanting to stay any closer and have his ears ruined by that loud voice of his. Seijuro smiled lightly at the offer but shook his head.

"no thanks, Ryouta." he said politely. "I have already had enough to drink for tonight."

Daiki was reminded of when he and Tetsuna went to apologize the moment he said that. He certainly was drinking wine at that time. The navy haired male glanced over to Tetsuna, who had conveniently moved from his right to his left— perhaps to distance herself from a certain redhead —giving a short moment of panic to the male before he noticed her in her shifted position.

don't scare me dammit...

"anyway, did you need me for something?"

The redhead inquired once again. He looked a little impatient, as if he had another schedule to attend to. Daiki blinked a few times before realizing that he was asking him and he hurriedly answered,

"n- no! not really. Just wondering where you were..."

Seijuro quirked an eyebrow and just uttered a "is that so.." before turning over to Tetsuna. It made Daiki wonder how he could know where she was with such ease when he would always have to looked around like a maniac before discovering where she was. And that's always when she calls out to him. So it really intrigued Daiki to how he managed to do that.

"Tetsuna-san, do you mind coming with me for a while? There is someone who would like to meet you"

The girl stared at him confusingly and asked who the person was, which was only responded with a "you will see...". Somehow it gave Tetsuna a bad feeling and she felt that it's better to say no but she didn't really have a reason to decline. She was staying the night here after all so the excuse of "I want to return home" was definitely not available. So all that's left is just to agree.

"wait." Daiki interrupted. "I'm coming with you."

The displeasure in Seijuro's face was evident but Daiki didn't back down on his decision. Only for this he had to be more stubborn than usual and go against this red demon (in Daiki's head the image of a demon would automatically appear when he sees Seijuro for some reason). There was no way he would let Tetsuna go anywhere in this foreign place alone, especially with him. A chilling gaze was sent to Daiki by Seijuro gave a reply to his demand.

"no. That person wants to meet Tetsuna-san personally. Without any unwanted guests."

The redhead stated, emphasizing on the word 'unwanted' which successfully made Daiki flinch. Even so, the navy haired male stubbornly insisted that he would follow. The two males stared at each other, waiting and wanting the other to back down. Daiki was a little unnerved by Seijuro's stare but tried his best to cover up his emotions. Seijuro, on the other hand...

Tetsuna couldn't really tell what was he feeling deep inside but what she could sense was that Seijuro was getting a little anxious for some reason, though it was hardly visible to most of the ones present in the tent. The bluenette has a talent for human observation so she could read other people's emotions pretty well. The way Seijuro's fists were lightly clenched by his side and his lips were pressed into a fine line made her wonder, what was it that was making him feel uneasy? Was Daiki's demand that much of an unreasonable one? If so, why..?

"um" Tetsuna spoke up all of a sudden. "I would like it if Daiki-kun comes along. It will make it less awkward for me. Please let Daiki-kun come along with us"

The redhead looked over at the girl who wore an expression of determination and stayed silent for a moment. He didn't want to agree because of strict orders from that person but if he were to disagree again, he might make her reluctant to come along. As it is, she already is.

"...very well." Seijuro finally said, letting a small sigh escape his lips. "You may come. But only on the condition that you must listen to my instructions the whole time. Understood?"

Daiki nodded at that and Seijuro let out another sigh. He wasn't following direct orders but... Satsuki walked over to his side, a rather worried expression on her face, and whispered in his ear.

"are you sure about this?"

Seijuro just closed his eyes and replied, "it can't be helped. If he does not come she also might not. I can't risk that." For our sake, I can't..

Satsuki sadly looked at the redhead before muttering a soft "I see..." and watched as he guided the two out of the tent. An unshakable feeling of worry filled her heart. Silently, she prayed that nothing bad would happen tonight.

Seijuro guided Daiki and Tetsuna to a tent that seemed to be set for a v.i.p or someone similar to that. It wasn't exactly big but it was different from the other tents, with the small lanterns hanging at each of the corners of the tent and the other decorations that made it look rather fancy. Seijuro asked the two to wait outside for a minute and he proceeded to go in the tent. Few moments later he came out and gestured for them to enter.

The interior of the tent was a lot more fancier than the outer part and seated on a large cushiony chair with a small table in front of it was the plump man Tetsuna and Daiki had seen before. He smiled at first seeing the bluenette when Seijuro introduced her to him— initially he couldn't see her but when Seijuro pointed out where she was he noticed —but the smile soon disappeared when he saw Daiki standing beside her. Rather protectively, might I add. He shot a questioning glare at Seijuro which made him avoid eye contact with the man. The man then just grunted and sat up before walking over to Tetsuna.

"good evening, young lady" he greeted with friendliness in his voice. "sorry for making you stay here at this time of night. I just wanted to have a small chat with you. Please, sit down"

The man gently placed on Tetsuna's back, the girl tensing up a little at the touch, and guided her to a chair placed just opposite of the one he was sitting on. Not wanting her to be even a millimeter away from him with the man, Daiki immediately raised his foot to follow her but was stopped by Seijuro, who prevented him from going and mouthed a "stay put". Daiki was about to give a protest but he then remembered his deal with Seijuro and kept his mouth shut.

"so, Tetsuna-san, am i right?" The man asked.

"yes but...how do you..?"

"Seijuro told me your name. It's a nice one"

"..thanks"

There was something about the smile he was giving her and the way that his greedy eyes examined her figure that gave a chill down her spine. She felt extremely uncomfortable by the gaze but was unable to find the words to say it in a way that wouldn't offend him.

"anyways, the reason I wanted to meet you is— oh dear, I haven't told you my name have I?" he said in realization. "I'm Karasawa Tsujirou. Just call me Tsujirou"

The girl nodded and politely uttered a "nice to meet you" as common courtesy. Tsujirou then, without any ado, continued with his words from before.

"as I was saying, the reason I requested Seijuro to bring you here is because I wanted to give you an offer"

"an offer...?"

Tetsuna blinked confusingly at the smiling face of the man, trying to process what sort of offer did he want to give her. An idea or two did come to minds but she can't really say if that is the truth. At the corner of her eye, she could see Daiki sending suspicious glares to Tsujirou and Seijuro standing beside him, acting as if he was a butler to the man.

"yes."

His smile widened. Tetsuna could hear her heart beating loudly in her chest but she kept a straight face. She didn't want to show any weaknesses. Something told her that if she showed any sort of emotion to this person, it's her lose.

"Tetsuna-san, would you like to join us?"

"...pardon?"

"I'm asking if you would like to join our circus, my dear"

The question totally caught Tetsuna off guard. Daiki as well. His eyes nearly popped out and if it wasn't for Seijuro who slapped his hand on his mouth, he would've been shouting right at this moment. Who would've thought that she would be asked to join the circus— one of the best one at that. The girl didn't know how to respond to his question but her answer was already obvious.

"I'm sorry but I would have to decline that offer."

Her firm statement surprised Tsujirou and without a doubt irked him. His smile twitched and he chose to ask why she declined.

"because," Tetsuna said. "I have a family to return to and I will not leave them for your circus."

Her family, which is now only just her sickly grandmother. There was no way she would leave her alone to fend for herself. She couldn't leave the town she was born and raised in, even with how the economy was. She also couldn't leave Daiki just for a place in the circus. There are too many important things that she is not willing to leave just for a circus. And after all, watching the show is much more enjoyable then being the show.

Tsujirou's smile was faltering and his fists were clenched tightly on his lap. The attempt to hold back his anger was apparent.

"is that so...too bad.. I would've loved it if you had joined us.." he uttered, gritting his teeth.

Tetsuna stood up from her seat and gave a slight bow. "once again I'm sorry. Excuse me"

The girl walked out the tent, Daiki following a few steps behind her and Seijuro just watched their backs getting further from them, the moonlight illuminating their figures. A loud thump was heard from behind and the redhead turned around. Tsujirou's fist was on the small table, trembling with rage. As if it was something usual, Seijuro didn't bat an eyelash and walked over to him.

"mas—"

"Seijuro."

Tsujirou cut off Seijuro's words with a voice that was no longer friendly as before. It was now filled with rage and anger.

"I told you, didn't I? Obtain her. No matter what the method is"

"...understood."

There was a moment of hesitance before Seijuro responded to the order. His ruby eyes stared at the ground below, void from any kind emotion.

The fact that I'm used to all this...is pitiful...

The sun still hasn't risen up in the sky when Tetsuna found herself awake from bed, a snoring Daiki beside her and her bedhead as ridiculous as ever. The two treated each other like siblings so sleeping together was something normal for the two.

The girl glanced around her surrounding with half asleep eyes and decided to take a step outside the tent they were in. she was greeted by the cool air of the night and she let out a relaxed sigh. One thing she loved about Rione is that during the night time, it had the most comforting feeling anyone could ever ask for.

She walked around slowly around the tent, enjoying the cool air when all of a sudden, she felt a hand grab her upper arm and another covering her mouth. Her eyes widened in surprise and fear and she struggled to escape with all her might but slowly she lost the strength in her body and her eyes became heavy. In a few seconds, darkness was the only thing she could see.

Thanks for reading!