Even a Beast can shed tears. Just Because it's a beast doesn't make it a monster.

Chapter 12

"It's over." Okami sighed out as the Kongou fell.

"Hey, great work today! Like when you started hacking away like that, then after you dropped back I went in there with my guns blazing! That Kongou was stumbling all over the place, huh? We're the best team ever!"

Okami grinned at his antics. "It was an honor fighting alongside you too Kota."

"My gun and your blade, we were totally in sync! I'm gonna go home and brag to Nozomi! I'll tell her that I'm the defender of world peace!"

"Hm, let's go. We don't want to be late for Saki's lecture."

"Ah man," Kota slumped as Okami finished devouring the Kongou and petting her God Arc.

. . .

The lecture was about Arcology, which may have been the only topic that really drew Kota's attention since his family was from the Outer Ghetto. Heading back to her room after the lecture, Okami checked her mail to notice that Brendan sent her encouragement mail. So he knew she blamed herself for what happened to Eric, he was more perceptive than she thought. After getting ready to sleep she thought perhaps she should get to know her other pact members better.

. . .

True to her word, she got to learn more about her fellow pact members. Brendan was from a country called America and Tatsumi was jobless before he joined Fenrir. Going to visit Kota, she had to help him face the terrible fact that Sakuya's heart belong to another. But he took the news pretty well, and she watched a few episodes of Bugurally to help cheer him up. By the end of it he concluded that they were other cute girls out there.

She then proceeded to Soma's room to invite him to some missions around the City of Mercy then end the day at the Wailing Plains fighting a Kongou and Gboro-Gboro with stray Cocoon Maidens. Soma did join them, but with a fuss, he still seemed angry at her. But she still gave him some space while watching his back. He still growled at her for shooting Team-bullets at him but that never stopped her. After every mission she would pet the devouring mouth of her God Arc and tell it that 'he did a good job.' Back at the Den she headed to the Veteran's section to talk to Soma. To her luck he was standing out in the hallway.

"So you survived, New-Type? ... You're pretty persistent." Then he looked off into space toward the wall opposite to the one he was leaning on. "… The Aragami are lured to spots in battle by the scent of the Link-Aid… If there are people who will shed tears over your death, maybe it's a blessing for you to just die. There are those whose deaths will be lamented… and those who will be hated for surviving."

Something inside of Okami cried at his words. She got in front of him drawing his attention. She raised her hand above head and brought it down as if to slap him. But she stopped her hand at the last second, moving it away an inch, to ball it into a fist like the other one already was.

"You speak the words of a coward." She said with her head down, her hair hid her face. "You say it's a blessing to die. But it's cruel to the people you leave behind. So what if you're hated by other people for surviving, those people don't matter compared to the people that are happy at your return."

She looked up at him with held back tears in her eyes. "You may like the idea of people lamenting over you, but they suffer at your loss. Forever remembering you and the life you could have had. It's the cruelest thing you could ever do to them and you say it's a blessing. How could you be so cold?"

She ran to the elevator before her tears broke out of her like a dam. Before entering the elevator she looked back to him and said. "You know I'd cheer your safe return and grieve at your death. Just like I did and still do for my mother."

Before she could see his reaction she stormed into the elevator then ran to her room. Where she released silent tears tile sleep claimed her. But little did she know as she enter the elevator, Soma reached out for her.