"I still cannot believe this," Leon said shaking his head.
Inside the back of the HDA truck a group of monsters were gathered together while being driven back to their friends outside the city limits. The truck driver kept his eyes focused ahead of him as he took the road into the nearby forest which led towards a Chinese villa the group was staying at, under orders to drop off the group at their destination then report the location of the monsters' whereabouts to the HDA for observation.
"I know, to think we would actually be getting a ride from the HDA like this surprises me, especially after what we went through last night with them," Astreal said looking around at the interior of the truck while sitting next to Leon.
"No, not that, him," Leon said pointing to Render who was sitting across from him, the battlemage drinking something while looking at Leon confusedly.
"Him? What did he do?" Apoch asked while sitting next to Render.
"He actually got the HDA to stop and get us something to eat, I'm still surprised too," Gin said while eating a burger, the boy in his human form while Kokoa was still asleep and leaning against his side.
"No, I'm not talking about that, although that is something I wasn't picturing to be happening today," Leon said looking down to his paper bag in his lap which had some fries and a burger in it as well.
"Is he talking about how he just lost all that muscle in a single second back there, because that's still puzzling me," Felucia said before drinking her chocolate milkshake while eyeing Render with a raised eyebrow.
"He's a battlemage Felucia, he can magically enhance his body like that when he wants to fight, and then returns to normal to conserve energy. How you see him now is his normal form," Mizore explained while sitting next to the doll demon, the snow maiden then eating some ice cream she had in a travel container.
"Is it that he actually asked the humans to feed him after they were about to execute him, and on live television in front of countless other humans?" Gabriel asked while glancing to Render with a raised eyebrow.
"No, if you knew him like I did you would expect him to say stupid things at the worst times," Leon said shaking his head. Render set down his drink and shook his head with annoyance.
"Hey, it was an honest request, and frankly I think that after all we've been through this morning me asking for something to eat wasn't too much of a burden," he defended. Apoch nodded while eating a small salad next to him, watching Leon with a dull stare. Leon paused for a moment then waved to Render's drink.
"You had us drive out of the way of the fast food restaurant we stopped at for food to find another restaurant that would make your stupid caramel frappe!" he shouted out. The group looked to Render as the boy glanced to his drink then shrugged.
"What's wrong with that? I think I deserved it," he reasoned before taking another drink.
"I swear you have an addiction problem with that stuff, seriously, that's all you ever ask to get whenever we get something to eat," Leon said tiredly. Apoch looked at Render curiously then to his drink as the battlemage looked at it with a calm gaze.
"Don't deny a man his life blood Leon, I've said it before. And don't judge somebody for what makes them happy in life, that's not cool," he said wisely. Leon sighed then brought out his burger with a dull expression.
"I'm starting to think you would die if you couldn't drink that stuff every day," he muttered before taking a bite out of his burger.
"Do you really like that beverage so much?" Apoch asked curiously. Render nodded and glanced to her with a smile.
"Puts a smile on my face every time, just like you," he said with a wink. Apoch blushed and looked down with a timid smile as Felucia smiled curiously at them.
"What have we here? Apoch?" she asked playfully. Apoch giggled and glanced to her while she took hold of Render's free hand. Felucia smiled amusedly at them then glanced to Astreal who was smiling bashfully and holding onto Leon's arm.
"Ok, first question, how did you two survive the day Kuyou attacked Yokai Academy, because I know I saw Apoch get shot and heard Ruby cry out Astreal's name, and yet you were both alive again when I died. And next question, did you two find some new boy toys to replace Dark and Rason?" she asked with a giggle. Render and Leon looked to her with raised eyebrows as Apoch and Astreal giggled in unison.
"Boy toys?" Render asked puzzled. Apoch looked to him with a warm smile then to Felucia.
"We'll explain everything when we return to the others Ms. Felucia," she said assuredly.
"Yes, it may take some time to fully explain everything," Astreal added with a shrug. Felucia looked at Render and Leon with a sly smile then glanced to Mizore.
"Well, that's one less girl hanging all over our Dark, right?" she jested with a laugh. Mizore looked to her with a blank expression while remaining silent, the doll demon then smiling nervously and holding her hands up defensively.
"Hey, I was just kidding, we know he's all yours," she said shaking her head. Mizore looked down with concern as Felucia watched her worriedly.
"Hey, Mizore? I didn't mean to upset you with that, relax," she said with concern.
"It's not that Felucia, it's just…" Mizore said softly. Felucia looked at her curiously then to the others.
"Again, we'll explain everything when we get back Felucia," Gin said.
"Yeah, it's going to take a while to explain everything, trust us," Render said shaking his head. Felucia looked around at them puzzled then to Mizore.
"Ok, what else have I been missing here?" she asked. Gabriel looked to Mizore with concern.
"What happened with Luna though, where is she?" he asked worriedly.
"We don't know, the Luna you saved wasn't the real Luna, it was a fake. The body crumbled to dust right before our eyes," Mizore said shaking her head. Gabriel looked at her with surprise.
"What? That wasn't Luna?" he asked shaking his head.
"Afraid not, seems it was just a decoy I brought from the other world. Apparently somebody else saved her before I could get to her," Felucia said looking down in thought. Mizore looked to her curiously.
"And how exactly did you get into that world anyway, or even leave hell for that matter? What are you doing here?" she asked. Felucia looked to the glowing band on her wrist, the group looking to it as well while the doll demon showed a distant gaze at the object.
"We'll add that to the list of things that need to be explained when we regroup with the others, it'll take some time to explain as well," she said softly. The group looked at her with wonder then to Kokoa, the young vampire stirring slightly while opening her eyes slowly and looking around in a daze.
"Kokoa? You ok?" Gin asked. Kokoa looked to him as she blinked a few times then around with a jump.
"What the… where are we? What's going on?" she asked quickly. She saw they were inside an HDA truck and noticed a soldier was driving them somewhere.
"What happened? Where's that guy taking us?" she asked with anger as she tensed up. Gin quickly grabbed her shoulder and shook his head.
"Whoa, easy Kokoa, it's alright. We're just getting a ride back to the others, don't worry," he said reassuringly.
"What? A ride back to the others? But… isn't this an HDA truck?" Kokoa asked looking around. She blinked then looked down to the clothes she was wearing. Then she looked to Leon with a quizzical stare as he stopped eating and noticed her watching him.
"What?" he asked.
"I said pink and stylish, I look like some preppy schoolgirl!" Kokoa shouted out at him. Leon backed up against the wall with a nervous smile while Astreal merely held a hand out and manifested a magical barrier of flickering light between her boyfriend and the furious redhead.
"I thought those looked good, what's wrong with them?" Leon asked shaking his head.
"What's wrong with them? Look at them! Just what kind of clothes do you think is stylish on a girl anyway?" Kokoa shouted out. Gin pulled her closer and smiled weakly at her, the girl looking to him as he handed her a bag from the restaurant. She looked at it puzzled as Leon kept on guard from the fiery redhead.
"At least he got you something to wear Kokoa; you can change back at the villa if you like. And to be honest I think you look great in those clothes, very attractive and cute," Gin said calmly. Kokoa blinked then looked back to him with wonder as he smiled gently at her.
"Why don't you take this time to eat something and get your strength back, you've had a long morning after all," he said with a wink. She blushed slightly and smiled at him then looked to Leon with a dull stare.
"You're lucky my boyfriend thinks I look good in this or else I'd throttle you," she grunted before taking out a sandwich from the bag. She took a strong bite out of it before looking down with closed eyes of arrogance while Gin chuckled amusedly at his prideful girlfriend.
"Holy shit, you two are really still a couple?" Felucia asked with wide eyes. Kokoa glanced to her with one eye while Gin nodded at the demon.
"Of course, Gin's my mate for life. I love him with all my heart," Kokoa said proudly and with some food still in her mouth. Felucia looked back and forth between them while remaining quiet then to Mizore.
"Well, didn't see that happening," she said with a laugh. Kokoa twitched then looked to Felucia with a glare.
"What was that? What's wrong with me being with Gin?" she barked out. Felucia smiled weakly at her and shook her head.
"Sorry, it's just… I honestly didn't think you two would still be together. I mean the guy was the biggest pervert in the school after all, I was almost sure while I was gone that you would have kicked him to the curb by now," she reasoned honestly. Kokoa growled as she glared at the doll demon as the group watched her curiously, with Leon now eating again since the redhead's anger had shifted from him to Felucia.
"He's not like that anymore! He's a changed man and I love him! Got that?" she yelled out.
"Sure, whatever you say Kokoa, no problem," Felucia said with a weak smile while holding up her hands defensively. She laughed lightly then looked back to Mizore.
"Today's just full of surprises for me," she said amusedly.
"If that surprises you, prepare to be shocked when we get back to the villa," Mizore said before looking down. Felucia looked at her curiously then to the others while scratching her head.
"What else have I been missing exactly?" she asked.
"A lot," the group said before resuming eating again. Felucia looked around at them then down with wonder as the truck drove through the woods towards the villa.
Inside the infirmary at the villa Ceal was working to heal Kurumu's injury, the girl now turned over on her stomach as the mage was using his magic to reattach her wings. The group watched with wonder except for Dark who was still being distant from what was happening around him.
"That feels… weird," Kurumu said as she felt a strange numbing sensation rippling through her back. Rason and Razico were each holding a wing to her back while Ceal used his hands to mend and reattach the limbs to the girl's back.
"Is she going to be ok?" Rason asked worriedly, feeling some sense of worry as he was holding the severed wing of his girlfriend.
"She'll be fine angel. And I trust this is the last time I am going to be asked to do such a thing for you people," Ceal said while keeping his eyes focused on his work.
"We owe you for this Ceal, thank you again for helping her," Ruby said graciously. Ceal remained silent while he used his hands to reattach the wings. The bright light shined from the palms of both his hands as he focused on healing the girl's body.
Fang Fang looked back to the TV which had switched to a local news station talking about recent events in the human city and the HDA reportedly taking in a group of monsters for 'questioning'.
"So what are we to do now? The HDA knows about your friends and are likely on their way here right now with them," he asked.
"What happened to my sister though, did they save her from that giant monster before your friend blew it up?" Complica asked worriedly.
"I'm not sure Complica, but it seems that they are on their way back to us, we'll find out what happened once they return," Ruby said looking to the young chronofly with sympathetic eyes.
"But what if that monster had my sister in its giant claws and your friend blew it up then doesn't that mean my sister blew up with it oh no what if my sister is dead please tell me she's not dead she can't be dead please tell me that's not true!" Complica cried out before sobbing loudly. The group looked at her for a moment then glanced to each other.
"I'm sure that's not true Complica, our friends would have rescued your sister before dispatching that giant demon," Ruby said assuredly. Complica cried and buried her face in her hands while the group looked to each other with concern.
"Do you think Moka will be safe with the HDA like that, I mean she just surrendered herself to go talk to their leader, what if they decide to kill her?" Ahakon asked worriedly.
"I don't think she had much of a choice but to go with them, the humans had them surrounded," Ran said looking to him with concern.
"I hope Moka can talk some sense into them, otherwise we're all going to be in danger again. If the others are coming back to us that means the HDA be following their movements, they'll know where we are," Yukari said nervously.
"Then either Moka convinces them to give peace a chance or else we're running for our lives again," Razico said while watching Ceal reattach Kurumu's wing to her back.
"I wonder who that woman that went with her was, she seemed a little out of place with that full set of armor and sword," Ruby said carefully while looking back to the TV.
"She volunteered to go with Moka to speak to the HDA; do you think she's a monster too?" Yukari asked looking to Ruby. The elder witch looked down in thought to that while Sun looked over towards Arial, the snow angel watching Dark with worried eyes as the demon was remaining silent.
"Dark, please say something to me," Arial said sadly. The group looked to her as Dark continued to keep his eyes locked onto the floor.
"Dark, you ok man? Hey, say something," Rason said with concern. Yukari shook her head then looked to Arial with a frustrated glare.
"Are you happy now? Are you? Look at how much you hurt him," she snapped at the angel. Arial looked to her worriedly as the witch walked up to her with a few tears forming in her eyes.
"How could you say you love him like that, how could you cut him so deeply, how could you be so stupid?" Yukari hissed with anger. Arial growled and glared at her while the temperature dropped around her.
"I love Dark, he's my everything, don't you dare tell me what I said was wrong. I love him, I love him and I always will, he's my one and only soul mate!" she yelled out.
"He's not your soul mate, he never was! For god's sake you were his guardian angel; you were the one soul that he looked up to for guidance in this world! You stupid bitch, don't you understand what you just did to him? He just heard his mother declare her love for him!" Yukari yelled back. Arial looked at her with surprise then back to Dark as the demon was now holding his hands to his ears, showing a strained expression as he twitched slightly.
"Dark? What… what are you doing?" Arial asked.
"Um, I've never seen him do that before," Rason said shaking his head.
"Stop talking right now Arial, you're just making it worse," Ruby scolded at Arial. The snow angel rushed over and held Dark's hand with worried eyes.
"Dark, please say something to me, look at me, please!" she cried out. Dark shakily looked over to her with a pained expression as she held a hand to his cheek.
"Please, mark me as your wife, I'll be a faithful wife to you, I promise," she pleaded.
"Arial shut up," Yukari said urgently while watching Dark's eye twitch.
"I love you so much, I always have, I've always loved you more than anything," Arial said softly as Dark's hands slowly dropped down.
"Stop it Arial, you're not making this better," Kurumu coughed out while shaking her head.
"Please Dark, we belong together, we're soul mates," Arial said softly while holding Dark's cheeks with a loving gaze. Dark closed his eyes as his hand flinched at his side.
"I really think you should stop talking to him, he's not looking so good," Ran commented while watching the demon worriedly.
"Dark… please," Arial said before she leaned in and kissed the demon on the lips. The group watched with surprise as Arial held the demon's head and kissed him, with Dark staring at her with stunned eyes. Slowly Arial backed up and smiled lovingly at him.
"I love you, I've wanted us to be together ever since that fateful night. Please, take me as your wife, I promise to take care of you for all time," she said softly. The group looked to Dark as he stared at the snow angel with a stunned expression.
"Arial… you stupid bitch," Ruby said quietly while slowly shaking her head.
"Dark?" Rason asked worriedly.
"Please Dark, I love you," Arial said softly.
Dark stared at her for a moment then looked down while holding his head, his body shaking slightly as his expression shifted from confusion to frustration to agony. The group watched him worriedly as he shut his eyes and shook his head, seeming to be repressing his growls and screams as he trembled.
"Dark?" Ahakon asked carefully.
"Oh dear, is he going to be ok?" Fang Fang asked.
Dark let out a strained scream through bared teeth as he shook his head and stumbled to his feet.
"Hey, Dark, calm down man," Rason said worriedly.
"He's losing it," Ran said nervously.
"What have you done Arial?" Complica whimpered while shaking her head.
"Dark? What's wrong, Dark?" Arial asked worriedly. Dark yelled out in frustration, the whole group backing up as they watched him with surprise.
"Why am I here? Why? What's the reason for me being here?" he yelled out before he ran out of the room.
"Dark wait!" Arial cried out as she chased after him.
"Go after him, hurry!" Rason called out. The others raced out while he and Razico stayed with Ceal as the catalyst mage continued to mend the girl's injury. Ceal glanced back to the doorway then to Kurumu again while still having a blank expression.
"Never seen a demon from hell freak out like that before," he said plainly. Rason and Razico looked to each other with concern then to the doorway while Kurumu showed a worried expression.
Dark ran down a hallway while stumbling around off-balance, bumping against the walls as he wasn't paying attention to where he was going. He kept holding his head while yelling out with frustration as dark wisps wavered around behind him.
'Why am I here? Why am I alive? Everything I've lived for, everything I've stood for, it was all meaningless!'
Running down the hall behind him Arial was watching Dark stumble about in his run, her eyes watering up as she tried to catch up to her loved one who was having a breakdown of some form.
"Dark, please stop, where are you going? Dark!" she cried out.
"Arial! Get away from him!" Ruby yelled out from behind, with the others following closely as they kept after the shadow demon and snow angel.
"You're just making this worse!" Ran called out.
"Dark! Please stop!" Yukari cried out.
"Stop Arial, you're hurting him!" Complica pleaded.
Dark ran through the hallway then burst through a pair of doors into the courtyard outside, with guards around the area looking to him with a jump as the demon stumbled about while screaming out in agony. Dark dropped to his knees as the others ran outside behind him, all seeing the demon roaring out while black wisps swirled around him.
"Dark! What's wrong, why are you screaming?" Arial cried out. She started to run towards the demon before Yukari grabbed her arm and yanked her back, throwing her back into a stumble behind the group as they all looked to her with frustration.
"You're what's wrong! You're the reason he's screaming! This is all your fault!" Yukari yelled out at her. Arial looked at her with surprise as the group turned back to Dark.
"You foolish girl, look at what you've done to him," Ruby said with concern.
"What I did? I didn't do anything to him; I didn't want him to scream like this!" Arial yelled out. Sun shook her head with frustration then marched over to Arial, slapping her across the face as the group looked back to her. Arial recoiled from the hit then looked at the siren with disbelief as the silent girl wrote down something quickly on her pad before showing her.
DARK IS NOT YOUR HUSBAND!
Arial looked at her with shock then over to see Dark standing back up while yelling out in agony, the demon holding his head as dark clouds whirled around him.
"What's happening to him?" Ran asked nervously.
"He's losing control. His aura, it's unstable, he's losing control of himself," Ruby said shaking her head.
"Dark! Please calm down!" Yukari cried out.
Dark yelled out and stomped down on the ground, causing cracks to shatter and etch away from him as he trembled.
"Why am I here? Why am I here?" he yelled out while shaking his head. The group watched him run off again while dark clouds swirled around him.
"Dark!" Ahakon called out as the group ran after him, with Arial sprinting past them in a desperate attempt to catch the demon.
"Dark please! Don't leave me!" she cried out. The guards around the area watched the group running towards the front gate where the rubble and debris from the previous demon attack were being cleaned up and moved aside. Dark yelled out as he vanished into a black cloud, with the group looking around franticly for him while still running towards the gate.
"Dark! Please don't go!" Arial cried out as she grabbed her hair.
"Arial, shut up!" Yukari yelled out at her.
"Oh no, where did he go now?" Fang Fang asked looking around.
The group stopped and looked around while Arial ran further ahead before coming to a halt, the snow angel looking around desperately for her demon.
"Dark! Come back to me, come back!" she cried out with tears forming in her eyes. The group looked to her with frustration and marched up towards her, with the angel looking to them with teary eyes.
"What… have… you… done?" Ruby growled with anger.
"You… you…" Yukari said through bared teeth as she slowly aimed her wand at the angel, the stick glowing brightly as Arial watched them with watery eyes. Complica whimpered and looked around worriedly then over to the gate as she saw a truck approaching from the road.
"Hey, hey it's the others, they're back," she said pointing to the truck. The group looked over to see the HDA transport approaching as guards around the area and up on the wall tensed up while drawing their firearms.
"Master Fang Fang, it's the HDA!" a guard called down from atop the wall. Fang Fang stepped forth and held his hands up.
"It's alright, that transport should be carrying our guests back from their ordeal, allow them in," he called out.
"Let them in? But sir, the HDA are the ones that arrested you, they are not welcome guests of ours," a guard said shaking his head. Fang Fang showed a stern expression and pointed to the man.
"I said allow them in, this could be our last opportunity for peace between the two worlds, don't any of you dare fire. They are not here to harm any of us, I assure you," he ordered.
WHAM!
SCREECH!
The group looked over to see the truck suddenly slamming its breaks as a dark wisp flowed about in front of it, with Dark appearing and tumbling into a roll violently onto the ground. A splatter of blood was seen on the grill of the truck as everybody stared with shock at the sight.
"Oh my god," Yukari squeaked out with fright.
"DARK!" Arial shrieked out.
Inside the truck the group was looking towards the front as the vehicle had come to a sudden stop.
"Dude, what was that for, I spilled my frappe!" Render cried out as she looked down at the spilled drink on the floor. Kokoa coughed out a chunk of her burger then looked towards the front with discontent.
"What's going on up there? Why did you stop like that?" she called out.
"Holy shit, where did he come from?" the driver said looking out the front window at something. Apoch ran to the front then screamed in horror.
"Oh my god, you hit Dark!" she cried out.
"What?" Mizore and Felucia shouted out. Apoch rushed past the group out the back door of the truck, with everybody then scrambling after her while the driver watched the shadow demon lie motionless on the ground in front of the vehicle.
"But… where did he come from, he just appeared out of thin air," he said shaking his head. He groaned then picked up his radio.
"This is Burton, I've arrived at the location where the monsters are, and I just hit one with the truck," he said while holding a hand to his head tiredly.
"You what? We're under orders from the director not to harm any of them!" a man on the other end shouted out.
"He just appeared right in front of me, I couldn't stop in time," the driver said shaking his head.
While Dark lay on the ground motionless everybody raced over towards him with shocked expressions.
"Dark!" Arial cried out.
"Oh my god!" Ruby yelled out as their group ran out the gate towards the demon.
Mizore and Felucia ran out from around the truck then screamed as they saw Dark lying on the ground with blood coming from his head.
"DARK!" they cried out as they raced over to him. They quickly dropped down to their knees on both sides of the boy as they stared at him with horror.
"Dark, speak to me! Please, wake up!" Mizore cried out as she held his hand.
"Dark! Dark, wake up, wake up!" Felucia pleaded while shaking his arm. Arial ran over and stared with horrified eyes at the sight of the demon lying in the road unconscious. She started crying then raced over and knocked Mizore aside, quickly grabbing onto Dark's chest as the snow maiden looked to her with a frustrated glare.
"Dark!" Arial cried out.
"What the- who is this? Get off him you little brat!" Felucia yelled as she pushed Arial away. Mizore grabbed Arial and shoved her aside before looking back down to Dark with worried eyes. Arial growled furiously at Mizore before Ruby and Fang Fang rushed over and knelt down beside the shadow demon.
"Oh my god, Dark? Dark can you hear us?" Ruby called out worriedly.
"What was he doing in the middle of the road like that?" Gin asked shaking his head.
"He's not moving! Somebody do something!" Kokoa cried out. Ruby and Astreal pulled up Dark's shirt, seeing his chest bruised and having a few broken ribs.
"Oh god, Dark," Ruby said holding a hand over her mouth. Astreal ran a hand along his upper body and shook her head.
"His shoulder is dislocated and I can feel several breaks, he got hit hard," she said worriedly.
"Hurry and heal him, do something!" Mizore cried out at the witch.
"We need to get him inside, he's going to need extensive work with this," Ruby said shaking her head. Fang Fang looked back to the villa then to the demon.
"Get him back into the infirmary, perhaps Ceal could treat him as well," he urged. Felucia quickly lifted Dark up into her arms and looked to the yasha with watery eyes.
"Where is that? Where?" she cried out desperately.
"This way, follow me," Fang Fang called out as he ran off, with Felucia and the group quickly following after. Arial shakily looked back to seeing them running off then scrambled after them while crying.
Inside the infirmary Rason was helping Kurumu stand up again, the girl looking down at her body with wonder while her wings were extended out behind her. Although her shirt had a huge hole in the front from where the rylo dug its talon into her gut, her stomach looked to be as good as new again without a single scratch or mark on her skin. She looked back to her wings then to Ceal as the mage was looking at the demonic extensions with a casual eye.
"How do you feel Kurumu, are you ok now?" Rason asked. Kurumu nodded slowly while Ceal walked around behind her, running his normal hand along the ridge of her wing gently.
"I feel fine, I feel all better now," she said softly with a smile forming.
"Arch your wings back succubus," Ceal said in a somewhat commanding tone as he examined the wings. Kurumu arched them back while looking at him with wonder, the mage running his hands along the ridges towards where they connected to her back.
"It's amazing Ceal, you really put her back together," Razico said in awe.
"Retract your wings, slowly," Ceal ordered, ignoring Razico's comment. Kurumu just watched the mage with wonder while her wings slowly pulled back and disappeared. Ceal gently ran his reptilian hand along her back against her skin, the girl feeling a small shiver from the touch as the boy examined her.
"You should be perfectly fine now succubus, however don't assume that next ti-" Ceal started before Kurumu spun around and leapt into a hug with him, the mage's face being pressed into her bosom as she squealed with joy.
"Thank you Ceal, I feel as good as new again! I can't thank you enough for giving me back my beautiful wings, you're really not such a bad guy after all, a bit gloomy and cold, but not bad at all in my book! Oh thank you thank you thank you!" she cheered while Rason and Razico watched with weak expressions. Before either of them could say a word however Ceal grabbed Kurumu by the arms and yanked her back, holding her firmly in front of him as she yelped with surprise. The mage had a dull expression on his face while Kurumu watched him nervously.
"Do that again and you'll be Xarai's new chew toy, understand?" he said coldly. Kurumu trembled and nodded with a nervous smile.
"Sure, no problem, won't happen again," she said shakily. Ceal let the girl go then looked to the other two in the room with them.
"Let me make something clear, I am not your personal medic," he said sternly.
"We know, and we do thank you for helping us like this. Our friends would have been in real trouble if it weren't for you," Razico said kindly.
"Thank you, for healing my girlfriend and restoring her wings," Rason said graciously. Ceal looked away and crossed his arms.
"That is to be the last time I do such a thing for you people, are we clear?" he stated.
"Crystal," Kurumu said with a nod and smile.
"We won't ask anymore of you Ceal, you've done more than enough for us," Razico said assuredly.
From the doorway Fang Fang came running in and waving into the room in a hurry.
"In here, get him in here!" he called out.
"What's going on?" Rason asked.
Felucia ran in carrying an unconscious Dark while Mizore followed closely behind her, the shadow demon's head having blood dripping from it while his arms were limp at his sides.
"Dark!" Razico said with a jump.
"What happened to him?" Rason asked as the girls rushed the demon over and set him down on a bed. The others ran in behind them and watched Dark as he lay on the bed motionless.
"The HDA driver ran him over with the truck, he's not moving!" Felucia cried out.
"The HDA hit him with the truck?" Razico asked shaking his head.
"The driver said he couldn't see Dark until he got hit, he was invisible for some reason and in the middle of the road," Kokoa said with confusion and worry.
"I still don't get what he was doing out there like that, how didn't he see the truck coming?" Gin said with bewilderment.
"It's all her fault; she drove him insane with her stupid obsession! Dark was running around in torment because of her!" Yukari shouted while pointing to Arial.
"I didn't make him get run over by the truck, that wasn't my fault!" Arial cried out.
"You did this? This is all your fault?" Mizore yelled out at Arial with tears in her eyes.
"Who the hell is that kid anyway? And where is this Ceal guy, get him in here and have him help Dark, quick!" Felucia said looking back to Dark. The group then looked to Ceal as he was just watching them with a dull stare.
"I hate all of you people," he said flatly.
"Please help us Ceal, he's in horrible condition," Ruby pleaded as she ran over to the bed along with Apoch and Astreal. The witch sisters held their hands over Dark's chest to try to heal him while Ruby brought out her wand to assist as well.
"It seems to me all of you are constantly getting yourselves into these conditions every five minutes, I would consider it nothing but a miracle if you all could get through one day without hell breaking loose," Ceal said shaking his head.
"We know, crazy shit happens to us every day, believe us when we say that is not our intention, but please, help him," Ahakon said pointing to Dark.
"I will do no such thing, as I've constantly reminded all of you, I am not your medic," Ceal said sternly.
"Please big brother, please help him, he's really hurt," Complica said while running up to him with teary eyes. He looked to her with a solemn gaze then to the group.
"Complica, we had an agreement, you will not ask more of me, remember?" he said expectedly. Complica whimpered and wiped her tears away, then nodded and looked down.
"I know, I'm sorry," she said softly.
"Please, I'm begging you to help him, you can do it can't you?" Arial cried out. Ceal looked to her with a cold stare and crossed his arms.
"I could, however I won't," he said simply.
"What the hell, you're not going to help him? Why not?" Felucia yelled out with anger at him.
"Please Ceal, I don't know if we can properly heal his injury like this, we're just barely keeping him alive," Ruby said looking over to the mage desperately. Ceal glanced to her then looked to Arial again.
"I'm tired of all these distractions and hindrances with you people. I shouldn't even be out here, yet I am because of Falla's most insistent wishes to keep you all alive. I've helped your friends escape their prison, I've slain a dragon for you, I've healed four of you from near death, and you constantly ask more of me. My patience is at its end with all of you, I am under no obligation to help the demon recover nor do I personally have any desire to do so," he said coldly. Arial started to speak before Ceal pointed to her with his reptilian hand.
"And you, snow angel, have been nothing but a thorn in our side since we found you. I helped you recover earlier today from your injuries because of Complica's wishes; however that will not be enough of a reason for me again. Out of all the people I've been forced into contact with lately you are by far the most single-minded and foolish of them all. It's because of you and your futile crusade for that demon's heart that I've had to clean up more of these problems lately and I'm sick of it," he said with a tone of anger. The group looked to Arial as she whimpered and shook her head with tears in her eyes. Felucia glanced from Arial to Complica then showed a cautious expression.
"Wait, that name Complica sounds familiar, who are these two anyway?" she asked.
"Complica Cii, Luna and Falla's younger deceased sister, and Arial Kuyumaya, the snow girl that freed Dark from his original master," Gabriel said looking between the two monster children. Felucia looked between the two children then gasped and pointed to Arial with wide eyes.
"Wait, what? That's… that's the kid that Dark spoke about, the one that set him free?" she asked shakily. She trembled then pointed to Complica.
"And… she's the one that killed herself with that time spell? Holy shit, holy shit! What the hell are they doing here? Just what have you guys been doing since I was gone?" she said with a stunned expression while looking around at everybody.
"We told you, a lot," Gin said with a shrug.
"What did you say to Dark now? What did you do to him?" Mizore yelled out at Arial. The snow angel looked to her worriedly then to Dark as the demon lay on the bed motionless. Mizore shook her head then looked to Ceal.
"Please, I'm begging you to-"
"I will not help your friends this time," he stated, looking to her with a cold stare. Mizore trembled and held her hands together.
"Please, you can't… you can't just do nothing," she said shakily.
"I helped rescue you all from the HDA when you were set to be executed, I put you back together after this snow angel clawed your insides to shreds, I restored those two witches over there with new hearts after the HDA shot them, I've healed and reattached that succubus's body and wings, I've done far more than I had to for you people," he said with a sharp tone. Felucia stared at him with wide eyes then looked around at everybody.
"What the fuck has been going on here while I was gone? Seriously, I haven't been gone that long," she said with disbelief.
"Please help Dark, please," Mizore begged Ceal. He glanced to her then looked to Gabriel.
"Where is Complica's sister? Why isn't she here with you?" he asked while pointing to Complica.
"C'mon man, the guy's lying right there after he got run over, can't you help him first?" Leon said waving to Dark.
"Answer my question, where is Complica's sister," Ceal demanded. Mizore looked to Dark with worry then back to Ceal while shaking her head.
"We don't know, the Luna that we thought was being taken away wasn't really her, it was a decoy," she explained remorsefully.
"What? A decoy?" Rason asked. Felucia nodded and looked up.
"Yeah, I broke into that bastard's palace above and grabbed her, only that wasn't Luna at all; it was just some lifeless doll. It turned to dust in the city," she said.
"You went into my old master's world? How?" Ran said looking to Felucia.
"Your old master?" Felucia said looking to Ran with a jump.
"Where is she?" Ceal demanded loudly.
"Where's my sister, what happened to her?" Complica asked worriedly.
"We don't know, somebody rescued her before Felucia could get to her, we don't know where she is. Now please, help him, we know you can heal him faster than any of us," Mizore pleaded while waving to Dark desperately. Ceal looked at her carefully for a moment then over to Arial with a dull glare.
"I will only do so on one condition," he stated. The group looked to Arial as she watched Ceal with worried eyes. Ceal then pointed to Mizore while keeping his eyes on Arial.
"You will return what you stole from the snow maiden, and abandon this crusade for the shadow demon of which you do not have any claim over," he ordered.
"What?" Arial said with a jump.
"You heard me, give the snow maiden back her ring and put an end to this childish obsession of yours over the shadow demon. I'm not going to deal with any more of these accursed distractions, and seeing as how even with the snow maiden beating you to a hair of your life isn't enough to deter you from pursuing that demon I'm going to put a stop to this right now," Ceal said before crossing his arms. Arial stared at him with shock then looked to Mizore as the snow maiden watched her with a scowl.
"Um, what ring?" Felucia asked glancing around.
"Felucia, please be quiet," Ruby said while watching Arial carefully.
"Wait, you can't-" Arial started before Ceal shook his head.
"If you want me to help that demon then you will do as I say," he stated firmly. Arial shook her head and looked at Mizore with disbelief.
"But… she's not-"
"Just stop Arial!" Complica shouted out. The group looked to her as she was watching Arial with teary eyes of frustration while standing next to Ceal.
"He's not your husband! He's not your husband! He never was your husband, he never was going to be your husband, HE NEVER WILL BE YOUR HUSBAND!" she shouted out desperately. Arial stared at her with a stunned expression then looked to Mizore, the snow maiden merely raising an eyebrow at her while having her arms crossed.
"Your words caused him to go crazy Arial, he's in here in critical condition all because of you," Rason said sternly.
"You're not his wife, you're not even his guardian angel, you're nothing but a wretched little demon," Yukari snapped. She blinked then glanced to Felucia.
"No offense Felucia," she said simply. Felucia merely had a bewildered expression while she was looking around at everybody.
"I'm sorry… but, does she really think she's marrying Dark? Seriously?" she asked while pointing to Arial.
"She thinks they're soul mates Felucia, and she's been too stubborn and blind to see the truth, even when it's right in front of her eyes," Ruby said with discontent at the snow angel. She shook her head and looked back to Dark with remorseful eyes.
"Not even we were so stupid when we were chasing after Tsukune," she said softly.
"I'm not blind! I love Dark! I love him more than anything in the world!" Arial shouted out. Sun walked over and kneeled down in front of the snow angel, with Arial looking at her worriedly. After a moment Sun wrote down something then showed it to her.
Do you remember how you vowed to help Marin save her inn, how you refused to go to Yokai Academy that night in order to help a fellow wife in need?
Arial looked at her and nodded as the siren wrote down something else then showed her.
Well now you're causing pain to another fellow wife, Mizore.
Arial looked at her with worried eyes and shook her head.
"But Sun, she's not Dark's wife, she can't be, I am!" she cried out. Sun showed a remorseful expression and sighed quietly, then wrote down something else while the group watched them carefully.
Dark chose to marry Mizore, he loves her Arial. If you truly do care about other wives like you say you do, then you'll honor Mizore as the one Dark wishes to be with.
"But… but…" Arial whimpered while looking at Sun with watery eyes. Sun looked to Mizore then to Arial with sympathetic eyes before writing something else down.
Please put an end to this madness Arial, your demon is being hurt by it. You need to set things straight again. You're Arial Kuyumaya, the mother of a proud shadow demon.
Arial read the pad then looked at her with confusion.
"What? Mother?" she asked. Sun nodded and pointed to Dark, with Arial looking to him with worried eyes.
"He's always seen you as his mother Arial," Gabriel said softly. Arial looked to him while wiping her tears away as Sun stood up and backed away again.
"Do you have any idea how special you were to him as his guardian angel?" Rason asked gently. Arial looked at him with wonder then to Dark as she slowly walked over towards his bedside.
"He led his whole life in honor of you Arial, he wanted to make you proud as if he were your own son," Rason said as the group watched her, the snow girl looking at the shadow demon on the bed while Ruby, Apoch, and Astreal were trying to stabilize him with his injuries.
"He's never thought of you as his soul mate, you've been something else of equal value to him; you were his mother. You were the one that gave him life in this world, you were the one that saw the good in him before even he himself did, you were the one that gave him a reason to live," Apoch said softly. Arial closed her eyes, remembering Dark's words earlier and understanding what he meant.
"Why did you save me Arial… why did you save me only to kill me…" Dark said softly.
'I took away his reason to live… his guardian angel…'
Arial looked at Dark with a pained expression then slowly took out the crystal ring from her pocket, looking to it with a saddened gaze.
"Arial, your son needs you," Gin said wisely. Arial looked to him as the wolf watched Dark lay on the bed with a worried expression.
"He's a tough fighter Arial; believe us when we say he's certainly stepped up as a protector to those around him. You should feel proud of him and all that he's done. All that he is, all that he's become, is because of you," he said looking back to the snow angel. Arial looked to the ring in her hand then to Dark with watery eyes. Rason looked at Dark with concern then to Arial.
"Please Arial; he needs his mother, his guardian angel again. He needs to see that reason to live, to fight against evil in the world. Without you in his life as his guiding light… he'll fall into darkness," he said softly. Arial closed her eyes and lowered her head, her fingers closing around the ring in her hand. After a moment she sniffled then looked back to Mizore, the snow maiden watching her with a careful eye still.
"But why… why you? Why should I give him up to you, what makes you so special that you deserve him?" she asked with a tone of annoyance.
"Because he chose me Arial. He came to me when I couldn't see him, he protected me even when I never asked nor expected him to, he wanted to be with me and marry me because he saw something in me. And I want to be with him as well, everything about him I cherish. I love him so much," Mizore said softly. Arial looked at her with a mixture of sorrow and frustration then down to her hand which held the crystal ring. After a while she looked to Ceal with pleading eyes.
"Please, please heal… my son," she said softly. The group looked at her with wonder as she got down on her knees and held her hands together in front of the mage.
"Please, don't let him die," she pleaded.
"The ring," Ceal said glancing to the snow angel's hands. Arial looked to them then to Ceal again while shaking her head.
"I understand, I really do. Dark needs a guardian angel to look up to, to help him see a reason to push on in this world and fight, and that's me. That's my place, and I'll accept that proudly. However I cannot give the ring to this girl," she said standing back up.
"That wasn't the deal Arial!" Mizore yelled out at her. Arial looked to her with a glare as she put the ring back in her pocket.
"Tell me, would you just allow your son to marry any girl he found without even approving them? Would you just let your son marry somebody who might have been a horrible match for him?" she demanded.
"A horrible match? What are you talking about; I'm the best match for him!" Mizore yelled back. Arial shook her head and crossed her arms.
"I understand I'll never be his wife, that I have a greater purpose to fulfil for my demon. I'll be a guardian angel for him, I'll be a caring mother for him, I'll always watch out for my Dark. And that means that if he's going to marry anybody that they need to get my blessing first. My son deserves the best, and unless they prove their worth to me then like hell they're going to be marrying him," she argued sternly.
"I don't need your blessing you little bitch!" Mizore shouted out at her with anger. Arial gave her a dull glare in response.
"If you want to marry my son, then yes you do. And I'd drop the attitude if I were you, this is not speaking highly in your favor," she retorted. Mizore growled furiously while the group just looked at Arial with tired expressions.
"Are you kidding me?" Rason groaned as he face palmed.
"Well… at least she understands she's not going to be his wife now, that's progress… right?" Kurumu reasoned weakly. Ceal rolled his eyes then walked over to Dark.
"Close enough," he said flatly before he rested his hands on the demon's chest. The group looked to him with wonder while Mizore shook her head with disbelief.
"What do you mean close enough? She's still being stubborn and thickheaded, she didn't change at all!" she cried out.
"Watch your tongue, my Dark's wife knows how to show proper respect when addressing his mother," Arial snapped. Mizore looked at her with shock and frustration.
"What? What?" she shouted out. She yelled out in frustration and tried to rush at Arial, with Felucia quickly grabbing and holding her back by the arms. Arial watched the snow maiden thrash about while trying to claw at her then looked over to Dark, the snow angel then walking over and watching with worried eyes as Ceal used his magic to restore the shadow demon's body from the inside out.
"Calm down Mizore, I'd say take what you can get with her," Razico said with a shrug. Mizore looked to him with a furious glare.
"Are you kidding me? She can't just take away my ring and right to marry Dark!" she yelled out.
"Well… she is his mother… in a way…" Ahakon reasoned unsurely while looking away with a shrug.
"She's a little brat with angel wings!" Mizore yelled out at him.
"I heard that," Arial snapped as she looked back to Mizore with a scowl, with the snow girl looking to her with frustration. Mizore growled with anger before Felucia whispered into her ear.
"Ok, I have no idea what's going on here, but might I recommend calming down for now? Whether she's out of line or not, if you wipe her soul from existence then I'm pretty sure Dark will be mad at you," she suggested. Mizore looked to her with frustration and worry then to Arial as Felucia let her go, the snow maiden trying her best not to lunge at the snow angel and claw her to pieces just as the young girl did to her last night.
"Is he going to be ok?" Yukari asked as she watched Dark being treated by Ceal.
"He should be fine soon, at least physically," Ceal said with a shrug.
"What do you mean at least physically?" Felucia asked. Ceal glanced to Arial as the snow angel watched her demon lying on the bed with worried eyes.
"The rest will be up to her," he reasoned before focusing again on his work. Arial nodded slowly as she watched Dark's chest heal and his ribs reform from the catalyst mage's magic, knowing she would have to fix the damaged mind of the demon that she herself had caused.
"This morning has been quite a rollercoaster," Fang Fang said breathing out in relief. Sun and Ran sat down on a bed and breathed out as well after all they had gone through.
"Again, you'd be surprised how our days usually go," Kokoa said simply while shaking her head. Yukari and Ahakon nodded in agreement to that while Rason held Kurumu from behind, the two couples watching Dark and retaining hope that he would get his senses back soon. Felucia nodded then looked around at everybody.
"Um, speaking of which, while we're waiting for Dark to get patched up, would somebody mind explaining… what the hell has been going on here since I've been gone?" she asked with puzzlement.
Dark slowly opened his eyes, his body shifting around slightly while he was lying on the bed in the infirmary. He slowly sat up and blinked a few times, looking around to seeing that he wasn't alone in the room. Fang Fang was talking to two of his guards at the door, both standing at attention for him while the yasha was going over recent events. Razico and Ruby were standing near the TV along with Gin and Kokoa as they were cycling through several channels, looking for any new developments regarding the HDA and possible peace between the worlds. Yukari and Ahakon were sitting on some chairs next to another wall while looking down in thought, both trying to think of where Luna might have gone. Rason, Kurumu, and Gabriel were talking about the missing chronofly as well, all three puzzled as to where their friend may have vanished to and who might have set her free. Ran was talking to Sun while both were sitting on a bed, the two sirens talking about their youth and how they briefly came into contact, almost, with each other during the night of the monster attack that destroyed Ran's home. Ceal was leaning against the wall looking down with a blank expression and his arms crossed with Complica leaning against the wall next to him, the young chronofly mirroring his stance and posture while she waited alongside her big brother. Apoch, Astreal, Render, and Leon were gathered together with the girls sitting on another bed in the room while talking to each other about current events.
"Dark, you're awake," Felucia said from beside the demon. Dark looked to seeing Felucia sitting on a chair next to his bed, the doll demon smiling brightly at him while the others in the room looked over to seeing Dark now sitting up.
"Felucia?" he asked. Felucia cheered and hugged him tightly with a large smile.
"I was so worried about you, are you ok now? How do you feel? Can I get you anything?" she asked eagerly. Dark blinked then glanced to her with a raised eyebrow.
"Am… I dead?" he asked unsurely. Felucia leaned back and giggled, shaking her head then looking to the other side of his bed. Dark looked over to see Mizore smiling with relief at him while she was sitting next to his bedside as well.
"No, you're not dead, but you had us scared to death," she said before she quickly leaned over and hugged him. Dark just looked at her with a confused expression then to seeing the group gathering closer around his bed.
"How are you feeling buddy?" Rason asked.
"I'd say he looks as good as new again," Ahakon said with a smile.
"Of course, Ceal did heal him after all," Complica said somewhat arrogantly while she looked to the catalyst mage, the boy merely watching the shadow demon with a blank expression.
Mizore leaned back from her hug as Dark looked back down with a slightly strained expression.
"Dark, are you ok now?" she asked softly. She and Felucia watched the demon just stare down at his lap while remaining silent, both seeing that he was still feeling greatly troubled. Mizore then glanced to the side and cleared her throat, with Dark then slowly looking over to seeing Arial walking up towards his bed.
"Dark, I'm sorry," she said softly. Dark just looked at her while having an uneasy expression, with the group seeing that he was still feeling confused and hurt by what had been said. Arial looked down with remorse then to Dark with pleading eyes.
"When I saw you kill your old master, after what he made you do, I knew without a doubt that you were a good soul. You weren't some killer or mindless demon from hell, you were so much more. That was the first time anyone ever did anything so powerful and moving, and all because of me. I was touched Dark, so much that… I thought…" she said before looking down with remorse. She whimpered and closed her eyes.
"That I thought there was something between us, something that… wasn't there. I was confused Dark, but I couldn't help myself. You were the only soul that ever expressed such emotion for me, that ever did something so incredible that it just took my breath away," she said looking back to him. Dark showed a gentle expression as Arial walked closer and held his hand.
"I am proud of you Dark, of everything that you've done. I've been bragging up in heaven every day about my shadow demon in the mortal world, how he's the coolest guy and the best hero the world will ever get," she said softly.
"It's true, she never shuts up about you," Complica commented dryly. Arial smirked a bit then showed a remorseful smile at Dark again.
"I love you Dark, but… I see now that the love I feel for you isn't that which is shared between a husband and wife. What I feel for you is special, irreplaceable, one-of-a-kind. I feel love for you, as if you were my own son, and I'm so proud of what you've become with the life I gave you," she said genuinely. Dark showed a saddened smile as a tear formed in his eye.
"Arial…" he said softly. She nodded then looked down to his hand which she held gently.
"I'm sorry, for hurting you like I did. I just couldn't help myself. Please forgive me Dark, forgive your angel for letting you down," she said softly. The group looked to Dark as he closed his eyes and looked down for a moment, the boy then lifting Arial up and setting her down on his lap with the girl looking to him with worried eyes. He looked to her with a small smile and brushed the hair away from her face with a gentle touch.
"I'm glad I've made you proud Arial, I wanted to make the best of the wish you made, to make the best of my life in your honor," he said gently. Arial smiled lovingly at him then hugged him tightly, the boy holding her gently as the group smiled at them, except for Mizore and Ceal.
"I love you Dark, you're the greatest demon a mother could ever hope to have," Arial said while her wings fluttered once behind her. She leaned back and smiled at her demon, with Dark smiling gently at her.
"I'm so proud of you, my son," she said softly. Dark smiled and looked down, seeming to have a slight amount of bashfulness to the angels words. Mizore cleared her throat again, with the two then looking to her as she had her arms crossed with an accusing stare at Arial.
"That's fine and all, however there's still the matter of my ring," she stated with annoyance. Dark looked to Arial who crossed her arms with an accusing stare right back at Mizore. She then looked to Dark with a raised eyebrow.
"Dark, why exactly did you propose to this girl? She's not nearly good enough for you, you can do much better," she said shaking her head.
"What?" Dark asked with a jump while the group watched Arial with tired expressions. Mizore growled at the snow angel as Arial looked back to her with a dull glare.
"How dare you say I'm not good enough for him you little-" Mizore started before Arial whacked her in the head with a stern expression, the snow maiden grabbing her head with annoyance while Arial scowled at her.
"She has no respect for your mother at all and she has the nerve to just assume she's a perfect match for you," Arial scoffed.
"She is a perfect match for Dark!" Kurumu yelled out.
"Her heart has his mark imprinted on it permanently, she's already known to be his wife to all demons from hell," Ruby said waving to Mizore.
"And of course she has no respect for you; you tried to kill her yesterday!" Yukari added.
Arial looked back to Dark as the boy was watching her worriedly.
"I will not have my son marrying somebody like her unless I can see for a fact she's good enough for you," she said assertively.
"Wait… what?" Dark said shaking his head.
"Just what I said. My son deserves the best, and only the best should have that ring you made. Until I find the appropriate bride for you that ring is staying with me," she declared.
"What? What do you mean until you find the appropriate bride for him? I am his bride to be!" Mizore yelled out. Arial looked back to her with a sharp glance.
"I never gave you my blessing, how many times do I need to remind you of that? Dark is my perfect demon, and I'll be damned if I let him marry somebody who isn't deserving of him," she quipped.
"Arial, Dark chose Mizore as his bride because he loves her. He's protected her more than anybody and is always taking the best care of her. She makes him happy; she's the only one who can actually get him to smile often. There is nobody more deserving of Dark than she is," Rason reasoned while shaking his head. Arial looked at Mizore with an accusing stare and placed her hands at her hips.
"I'll be the judge of that," she said sharply. Mizore growled as she stood up, her hands forming into ice claws as the group watched her worriedly.
"I don't need your blessing, I don't need your approval, and you're sure about to be damned for coming between Dark and I like this. Now hand over my ring and get off my husband!" she yelled out. Arial looked at her with a dull glare then to Dark with a blank expression.
"I'm sorry Dark, but she just isn't the right girl for you. We'll find somebody more deserving of a demon such as yourself," she said shaking her head. Mizore yelled out in frustration and tried to charge the snow angel before Sun and Ran grabbed her by an arm each and held her back.
"How dare you say that you little monster! Why are you letting her do this Dark, she stole my ring and now she's saying we can't be together, do something!" Mizore shouted out. Dark looked to Arial then back to Mizore, and then to Arial as the group turned to him. He opened his mouth to speak then looked down while remaining silent, with Mizore watching him with disbelief.
"Dark? Say something to her!" she said expectedly. After a pause Dark looked to Arial with a curious expression.
"Should she gain your approval will you give her the ring and your blessing?" he asked.
"What?" Mizore cried out. Arial glanced to her then looked to Dark with a raised eyebrow.
"If she proves her worth at being a suitable wife for you, then yes," she said simply. Dark looked to Mizore as the snow maiden was staring at him with a stunned expression.
"She's more than worthy, you'll see that for yourself," he said assuredly. Mizore shook her head and stared at him with disbelief.
"What? You're agreeing to this? For god's sake she tried to kill me yesterday!" she cried out. Dark glanced to Arial then back to Mizore with a blank expression.
"She was just being a little overprotective," he reasoned unsurely. Mizore stared at him with stunned silence as she lowered her hands to her sides.
"A little overprotective? She clawed me to pieces in a tantrum because she wanted to marry you herself!" she shouted out. Dark looked to Arial again then down in thought while the group watched him curiously.
"Is he really trying to justify this?" Ruby asked with disbelief.
"Looks like he doesn't want to upset his mother figure in life," Gin reasoned. Render started laughing and pointed to Dark.
"Holy crap, the shadow demon's a momma's boy!" he laughed. Arial flicked her hand out towards him and launched out an ice shard, which promptly struck into Render's forehead with a thunk. The boy wavered with a dazed smile on his face then dropped down with a thump and Apoch looking at him with a startled jump. Arial huffed while crossing her arms then looked to Mizore with an accusing stare, the snow girl looking at her then to Dark with disbelief still. Felucia looked at Dark curiously then to Mizore.
"Well, that doesn't sound so bad actually," she said with a shrug. Mizore looked to her with a murderous glare and formed a rather large yet intricately detailed ice shard in her hand. Felucia jumped and waved her hands around nervously with a weak smile as she shook her head while Mizore geared back to throw the shard at her.
"C'mon Mizore, you know how much Arial means to Dark, and she is his guardian angel, you can't ignore that. If all it takes to marry him is getting her blessing then that's fair, I mean he got your parents' permission didn't he?" she reasoned franticly.
"Dark saved my life from Fairy Tale; he freed me and helped liberate my entire town! He could have stripped me down naked and ridden me in the snow palace afterwards in front of everybody and nobody would have tried to stop him!" Mizore cried out. Felucia showed a nervous smile to that then slowly glanced to Arial.
"Well… so that means he did get their approval, so… it would only be fair if you got his mother's approval," she said shakily. Arial looked to her with a slight smile.
"Looks like somebody here knows how to show proper respect for a mother," she commented. Felucia laughed weakly then looked to Mizore with worry as the snow girl was glaring at her with anger. Dark looked around at the girls then to Mizore as the snow girl closed her eyes and lowered her stance while dropping the ice shard.
"Mizore?" he asked. She glanced to him then looked to Arial with discontent, the snow angel returning the harsh look while still sitting atop Dark's lap.
"Fantastic, we solve one problem only for another to immediately take its place," Rason said flatly. Mizore held in her growl then looked down while breathing out slowly to cool off. After a moment she looked to Dark with a blank expression.
"Fine. I love you Dark, and I'm not letting you go for anyone or anything. I know how important your guardian angel is to you, I'm not going to argue that. I've gone through the fires of hell for you before, so I'll do so again if that's what it takes to be with you," she said softly.
"Are you comparing me to the fires of hell?" Arial yelled out at her. Mizore glanced to her with a slight scowl.
"Heavens no, mother," she scoffed with a cold look in her eye. Arial glared at her while Dark glanced between the two worriedly.
"You will address me as ma'am, you don't have the right to call me mother yet," Arial snapped.
"As you wish, ma'am," Mizore said through slightly bared teeth and around her lollipop.
"I take it back, this isn't progress at all," Kurumu said shaking her head.
"I actually think this is a step backwards," Rason commented with a raised eyebrow.
"As long as it keeps them from breaking out into another fight I'm actually ok with this arrangement," Fang Fang commented with a weak smile. Arial got off the bed before Dark moved over to sit on the edge near Mizore, the snow angel then walking past Mizore with closed eyes and a cold shoulder. Mizore growled quietly then smiled slyly at her.
"Say, ma'am, how about I start right now with showing you how much I care about your son?" she asked shrewdly. Arial stopped and looked back to her with a raised eyebrow.
"What do you mean?" she asked. Mizore giggled then looked to Dark with a seductive smile while slowly pulling her lollipop out of her mouth, then moved closer and leaned down towards his face while gently sliding her other hand around his back.
"Like this," she said before she kissed him passionately, with Dark closing his eyes and holding her gently while Arial stared with wide eyes. Felucia watched the couple kissing with an amused smile then glanced to Arial.
"Seems pretty self-explanatory to me," she pointed out.
"What do you think you're doing with him?" Arial yelled out.
"I'd say she's giving him so real powerful love right now," Felucia mused with a giggle.
"She is such a caring girl for Dark after all," Kurumu added with a grin at snow angel. Arial watched with shock and anger as Mizore kissed Dark deeply, the snow maiden then breaking the kiss and glancing to her with an innocent smile.
"I do so love him after all ma'am," she said softly. Arial growled with fury as her hair froze over while the group watched her with amused smirks.
"You… you can't kiss him like that right in front of me!" she yelled out. Mizore smiled coyly as Dark stood up, the girl then turning around and holding him close to her from behind while shifting her hips around slightly against him.
"I'm just expressing my love for him ma'am, you can't condemn me for such a thing after all," she said with a smirk at the snow angel. Dark looked at Mizore with a raised eyebrow then to Arial with a shrug.
"I'd be lying if I said she wasn't making me feel happy or loved right now," he said simply.
"She's dry humping you right in front of me!" Arial yelled out. Mizore stopped moving and smiled arrogantly at the snow angel.
"I'll do more than that to him if it shows you how much I love him," she said casually with a twitch of her eyebrow. Arial growled then ran over and grabbed Dark's arm, yanking him to the side before Mizore grabbed his other arm.
"You can't touch my demon like that! Let go of him!" Arial yelled out as they tugged the boy side to side.
"But I'm in love with him ma'am, I need to express that emotion and make sure I keep him happy like a faithful wife would," Mizore reasoned with a smirk at the snow angel while pulling on Dark's arm. The demon glanced between the two then looked to Felucia.
"So… what are you doing here anyway?" he asked.
"Oh, you know, dropping by for a visit, seeing how everyone is doing, that sort of thing," the doll demon said with an amused smile at him. Mizore and Arial locked into a cold stare at each other with what could be assumed to be lightning sparking between them while Dark looked up with a quiet sigh.
"Oh yeah, this is going to go much more smoothly for us," Ahakon said shaking his head.
From the doorway another guard ran over looking around in a hurry.
"Master Fang Fang, I've been looking all over for you," he said as he caught his breath. The group looked over to him as Fang Fang turned to the guard with a questioning expression.
"Yes? What is it now?" he asked.
"Sir, I believe we located that girl that was taken away by that giant demon earlier, the one your friends are looking for," the guard reported. Everybody looked at him with a jump as Fang Fang showed a curious expression.
"The girl that was taken away earlier? Wait, you mean Luna?" he asked looking to Complica.
"You found my sister? Where is she? Is she alright?" Complica asked franticly as she ran up to the guard. The man nodded then looked to Fang Fang.
"Yes, we just found her, she's perfectly fine," he reported.
"Where? Where is she?" Fang Fang asked urgently. The guard paused for a moment then pointed down the hall.
"She's in the lounge," he said simply. The group looked to each other with puzzled expressions then back to him.
"What? She's here? In the lounge?" Fang Fang asked shaking his head.
"Yes, she's here with somebody else, though I have no idea how they got in here. She said her name was Luna and she matches the description you gave us. She's in the lounge right now waiting for you," the guard said rubbing the back of his head unsurely.
"She's here? With somebody else? Where?" Kurumu asked urgently. Fang Fang looked to the group then ran out the doorway with the guard, with everybody else then quickly following after. They all raced down the hall towards the other end of the main building, all of them then quickly running into a large lounge area. There was a lowered section with plush couches lined around the edges and a table set in the middle off to the right, a large TV mounted inside the wall near the lowered nook, a small kitchen off to the left, and another wall that was comprised of sliding window sections that led out into a small garden that was set next to the building.
And inside the room were two figures who the group was staring at with surprise. Sitting on a couch in the middle of the lounge Hex was looking at the group with an amused smirk while holding a glass of wine.
"Hello, hope you don't mind that I helped myself to something to drink while we waited for you," he said casually. Sitting next to him Luna was seated and looking at the group with a relieved smile while in her dress, all of the others staring at her with shock as she stood up and waved to them.
"Hey, did you miss me?"