Note: I notice in the novels, whenever Anri dissociates herself from reality, they tend to phrase her escapism as "the world inside a picture frame." I'm shocked how I never used that term in my writing until now.

"Still, he has enemies, you know. Maybe someday some thugs might get back at him by hurting someone he cares about. And what if he flies into a blind rage one day and ends up hurting you in the process?"

Akabayashi's words echoed to Anri as she nervously stared at the silver tip poking out of her hand. As well-intentioned as that warning was, he had failed to realize that the possible threat wasn't only a one-way street.

"I LOve yOU, i loVE You, I LOVE you, I LoVE YoU, i love YOU, I LOVE YOU...!"

The distorted voices churned and roiled, forcing the girl to push herself further and further away from the world inside a picture frame. She gripped her trembling hand by the wrist and took in a deep breath.

Breathe, breathe, breathe... and exhale.

...

The voices were now back to their whispering state, causing the silver tip to ease itself back into her hand. Anri sighed in relief.

Ever since Shizuo had reached out to her from the frame, she knew that the more she found herself being pulled in, the more her control over Saika was slipping away.

The easiest thing to do was to cut off all ties with him. Let go of his hand, fall back into the black void, and stare at him from a distance, maybe even blur her vision so he would mush with the painting's surroundings.

But she couldn't. She didn't want to. He had made her so happy, so, so happy... Unfortunately, Saika couldn't let her be happy forever.

"Oh, but you seem to have taken a liking to Shizu-chan. I don't want him, so he's yours. I'm praying that you dice him into tiny pieces as soon as possible."

How horrible it was for Anri to hear those words from Izaya, whose open hostility to the bartender and her made them core exceptions in his love for humanity. Even though they hated him back and he had been referring to Saika specifically, it was still degrading to her to have her relationship with Shizuo reduced to the blade's obsession in cutting him.

But still, with the way things were going, someday the blade might pop out of nowhere and slash their bond into bits. Then what?

She never thought about it much, but was he truly immune to Saika? There had been a time when its massive possessed army—led by Haruna Niekawa—had gone after him. Did he somehow get slashed in the process...?

She went and asked him something one day.

"Shizuo-san, how many fights have you been in?"

"Huh? Too many to count. What made you ask?"

"N-nothing, I was just wondering. But... are there any notable ones that you can remember?"

"Hmm..." The bartender contemplated for a bit as he took a whiff out of his cigarette. "Well... I could list a few. There's obviously my history with that damn flea all the way from high school—though I'd rather not delve into that." She noticed a slight vein popping out of his temple. "Then there's this one guy who was part of a biker gang—apparently, he wanted to avenge his comrades since I had decked them beforehand. Surprisingly durable too, he came out heavily bandaged yet was chirping as bright as ever."

"Anything else?"

"You sure are curious today. Let's see... there's also this one time I had to fight a possessed demon army."

Anri widened her eyes.

"They were controlled by this blade or whatever Celty told me—Saika, I think. Long story short, they all told me that they loved me, and I beat the shit outta them." Shizuo's tone darkened at the last part, which made her gulp slightly. "However, despite the numbers... In the end, I feel thankful to them."

"... Huh?"

"I always thought that nobody will love me due to my power, so it was inevitable of me to go all out and wreck myself in the process. But hearing them all say that they loved me specifically due to my power..." He stopped for a moment, the little flick of hope glimmering through his sunglasses. "It gave me the strength to control myself for the first time, that I can accept my power."

Dumbfounded. She felt dumbfounded by his words. She had always thought that he had held the utmost contempt for Saika and wouldn't hesitate to beat the ever living daylights out of the people who wield it, even if one of them had never intended to cause any harm in the first place. It may had been the case when he had fought them, but now...

Shizuo turned his back to Anri. Without drawing attention, she slowly, slowly drew out her blade—

"LOVELOVECUTMUSTLOVELOVECUTLOVELOVE...!"

Be quiet! The girl resisted the amorous shockwaves rippling through her body. She'd never dream of stabbing him, but she needed to know if he was under her control. Once the sword was activated, it would draw its offspring within proximity. Surely that would mean he would immediately turn around and have her see the same glowing red eyes like her, and...

Nothing.

He didn't turn around.

She sighed in deep relief.

But that sigh definitely made him turn around. "Huh? Anri, is something wrong?"

She pulled herself back into her normal state. "No. No, nothing is wrong..."

Nothing went wrong that day, but what if he were to find out about it? Would he snap because he'd assume the army was her doing? Would he have to stop her if she ever succumbed to the blade's words? She hoped that would never happen anytime soon.