Rosario Vampire: Brightest Darkness Act VI

by A.G. Fanfics

Mankind has declared war on the monster world, Tsukune is struggling to control his vampire urges while kept in isolation, and a great evil is preparing to conquer everything. Moka and the group must now try to prevent war between the two worlds while defending against the growing darkness that approaches them all.

34. Luna's Choice

Kyouko finished hooking her bra while standing in front of a mirror, her attention drifting away from getting dressed to where Talon might be now. Inside her own room within the villa she had been silent as she worried what had happened to the hybrid during Yokai Academy's destruction. Slowly she put on a new blue denim skirt, white t-shirt, and red jacket that were her usual clothing style, all of which had been provided by Fang Fang's tailors upon her request. She put her hair clips in at the sides of her head like she always wore then looked up with a quiet sigh.

'Talon, will I ever see you again?'

She smiled softly then looked in the mirror, envisioning the hybrid standing on the other side with his wings and wraith blades extended out.

'I really am falling for a monster; I can't stop thinking about him.'

A knock came at her door, with Kyouko taking in one last look at Talon before his image faded away to reveal herself in the mirror again. She then walked over and opened the door to find Luna there, the chronofly dressed in her casual human attire again with white sneakers, blue jeans, a white t-shirt and a green dress shirt that she left unbuttoned in the front. Her magical bracelet had its four gems glowing softly while her expression was a smile that was barely hiding her frown.

"Hey, I wanted to come by and see how you were doing," Luna said softly.

"I'm alright, at least I can walk again thanks to Ceal," Kyouko said with a slight laugh as she bent her legs a few times. Luna nodded then looked down.

"I'm sorry you got dragged into this, this isn't something you should have been involved with," she said shaking her head.

"I didn't get dragged into this; I chose to be a part of this. I wanted to stay by Falla's side at Yokai Academy, to help however I could. I got involved in a monster fight at my school, I was attacked by my own kind for helping my friends, I belong on your side in all this Luna; and I'm done being a helpless schoolgirl, done with having to be saved by everyone. This time I want to help fight back, however I can," Kyouko said assuredly.

"Guess we'd better get you another baseball bat then," Falla jested as she walked up to them in the hall, wearing her preferred clothing style of white sneakers, a black and red striped miniskirt, and a white t-shirt with a short sleeved red shirt over it that was unzipped down the middle. She glanced to Luna briefly then looked back to Kyouko with a slight smile.

"So, all done playing nurse now?" she asked. Kyouko nodded and looked over to her bed where the scuffed up nurse's dress was lying now.

"Yeah, I just hope Talon is ok now. I wish I could have helped him recover more before being separated like this," she said softly.

"You really have fallen for that guy haven't you?" Falla asked with a small sigh. Kyouko smiled gently and nodded.

"He's not a bad guy, he really isn't," she said softly. Falla shook her head slightly then started walking away.

"If you say so. C'mon, let's go see how the others are doing," she said. Kyouko nodded and walked past Luna as the chronofly looked at her sister worriedly.

"Falla? Is something wrong?" she asked. Falla stopped and kept looking ahead as Kyouko walked up next to her.

"What gave you that idea?" Falla asked sharply.

"You just seem to be acting cold towards me now," Luna said with concern. Falla looked back to her with a glare.

"I'm acting cold?" she said with anger. Luna backed up a step as Falla turned around and marched up towards her.

"Look who's talking. Gabriel sacrificed his angelic wings, his right to ever return home to heaven in order to save our sister and our friends, and you just accepted what happened to him! You didn't even say a word to him afterwards, you got up and left when Hex did," Falla snapped with narrowed eyes.

"He chose to gamble with that, Hex didn't force him to," Luna said shaking her head.

"Hex made those conditions in the first place! Don't you realize how unfair that was of him?" Falla shouted out.

"He has the right to ask for whatever he wants; it's his game after all. He's the one changing reality around us, doing the impossible for us, he should be allowed to ask for any price he wants for that," Luna defended.

"And you're ok with that; you're ok with the price Gabriel had to pay? Complica was crying her eyes out over what happened to him, I was about to cry myself because of how much he cared to help us, but you… you didn't do anything but stand by Hex's side and agree that what happened to Gabriel was right. I can't believe you!" Falla yelled out.

"I'm not happy that Gabriel lost his wings, I never wanted such a thing to happen to him. It's not like I'm glad he lost, I wanted him to win just as much you did. But Hex didn't make him roll, Gabriel chose to play the game on his own," Luna reasoned.

"He chose to play that fucking game to save our sister! To save Arial and Felucia, to find Rin, to help us find Pandora's Box so we could send them home! He didn't deserve losing his wings for that and you know it!" Falla shouted out.

"I know he tried to save them, and I never wanted him to lose his wings at all. Why are you mad at me, I didn't do anything to make any of this happen, this isn't my fault," Luna said shaking her head.

"I'm mad at you for siding with that bastard instead of the angel that gave up his wings to help our sister. I'm mad at you for acting like Gabriel had what was coming to him for trying to help our friends. I'm mad at you for defending Hex and his rules for his stupid game just because you got a crush on the guy!" Falla yelled out.

"It's not Hex's fault Gabriel lost, you can't blame him for that at all. Gabriel lost, fair and square," Luna defended with frustration.

"Fair and square? There's nothing fair about this, an angel just lost his right to return to heaven trying to save our sister and you're saying that's fair?" Falla shouted out with anger.

"Hex named the rules beforehand and Gabriel agreed to them. He was brave for playing with those stakes but it was still his choice to do so. Hex isn't the bad guy here. And of course I love him, he saved me from a horrible fate Falla, he helped save all our friends today with his power. I owe him everything, I can never repay him enough for what he did," Luna said with tears starting to form in her eyes.

"He didn't help our friends, we had to play that stupid game of his to get him to do anything for us; he doesn't care what happens to our friends at all. Ceal helped me. He cured my chrono dementia, he restored my eye, he healed my body when I was about to die, he gave me his key to Pandora's Box to go save you, and he's even putting his lifelong quest to slay Fafnir on hold again to help save Complica. I owe my life to him Luna, something I'm glad to pay. Whenever I get the chance I'm going to show Ceal just how much I love him and then some, I'm going to put Kurumu to shame as a love demon when I get him behind closed doors," Falla argued. She then looked at Luna with a harsh glare.

"But Hex only saved you because he needs you; he needs your magic to save Pandora. He only let you come after me because he needs me to help him too, because I'm worth something to him. If we weren't chronoflies he wouldn't have cared to save us, I would have been dead and you would have been in that dungeon still," she said sharply. Luna looked at her with a stunned expression as she shakily stammered something, words failing her before Falla shook her head with a frustrated scoff.

"I would slap you right now for how you're acting, if I weren't so relieved and grateful that you're ok again. I love you sister, and I'm so glad you're back, but your savior wasn't a knight in shining armor, he's just a manipulative monster who's using you for his own agenda. He doesn't deserve your heart or your affection, he shouldn't even be here with us," she said accusingly. Luna looked at her with worried eyes while Kyouko was looking away and avoiding eye contact with her. Falla turned around and started walking away, with Kyouko then following her while Luna watched them with remorseful eyes.

"He's not… using me," Luna said quietly before looking down with closed eyes. She then walked after her sister and friend while trying to convince herself that Hex wasn't a bad guy. When the three girls got near the corner of the hall they saw Complica sprinting, not running mind you, but sprinting with a fearful expression on her face as she ran down another hall.

"AH! It's almost time it's almost time it's almost time!" she cried out. The other girls looked to each other puzzled then to where the young chronofly had run past.

"Almost time for what?" Kyouko asked.

"I'm not sure, c'mon," Falla said as the girls took off after her. They saw Complica running at full speed further down the hall, the girl plowing through Yukari and Ahakon who were thrown to either side of the hall with a thud before collapsing down onto the ground.

"Ow, what was that for?" Yukari groaned as she got up.

"Where's she going in such a hurry?" Ahakon asked as he rubbed his head.

"Complica, what's wrong?" Falla called out as she, Kyouko, and Luna ran by. Yukari and Ahakon looked to each other then quickly followed after as well. Complica ran further down the hall then stopped when she glanced to the side into a room. She saw Dark working on a computer at a desk, the demon programming a new mp3 player with more songs from Fang Fang's audio library while Felucia was looking over his shoulder with an amused smile. Next to Dark was Arial who was glaring at Mizore who was trying to lean over to see as well, the two snow girls clashing frozen claws against each other while Mizore was forcing a stern smile on her face.

"Back off!" Arial barked out.

"I just want to see what music he picks out, ma'am," Mizore grunted as the two snow girls pushed against one another while Dark kept watching the screen with a blank expression, the demon fully aware of their bickering and also knowing he couldn't really stop them.

"Arial hurry up its almost time we're going to miss it c'mon!" Complica cried out. The others looked over to her curiously before Arial looked to a clock on the wall. She screamed then quickly ran over to Complica, with Mizore promptly falling over with a thud after she lost her balance. Dark and Felucia watched Arial and Complica bolting out of the room and down the hall before being followed by the rest of the group who quickly ran by.

"Um, what's going on?" Felucia asked. Mizore got up and rubbed her head while Dark finished his music uploading and picked up the mp3 player and ear buds.

"I'm not sure, let's go see," he said before he helped Mizore stand again. The snow girl smiled softly at him then looked to the doorway.

"What are they afraid of missing?" she asked before they all ran off after the others as well.

Further down the hall Gin was looking at a large painting of an ancient Chinese empire that had a large kingdom on one side with a serpentine dragon flying through the air on the other. The wolf admired the artwork while Kokoa was standing next to him, glancing to Sun with narrowed eyes as the siren was standing behind the boy on the other side. Sun glanced to Kokoa with a dull expression then to Gin with a sly smile, her hand slowly reaching out to take hold of his. Kokoa growled as she tensed up before Sun was suddenly run over by Complica and Arial, the two young girls stumbling and regaining their balance before continuing along while Sun lay on the ground face first and twitching slightly. Gin looked over to the siren with a jump while Kokoa burst out laughing at the sight.

"Sun? What happened?" Gin asked as he looked over and saw the two young angels running down the hall. Complica looked back to Sun and shook her head while still running alongside Arial.

"I'm sorry Sun we didn't mean to do that we're just in a real big hurry it's almost time and we can miss this I'm sorry are you ok-" she said before rounding a corner with Arial, her words fading away as Gin and Kokoa watched them go before looking down to seeing Sun slowly sitting up and rubbing her head.

"Sun? Are you ok?" Gin asked as he helped the girl up. She looked to him with timid eyes as she was held by the boy, with Kokoa then glaring at seeing him holding her up. Sun nodded as she let her legs give out, with Gin then holding her around the waist as she pretended to be weak in his arms. Gin looked at her with concern as she timidly brushed the hair away from her eyes.

"Are you going to be alright, do you want to lie down?" he asked. Sun leaned closer and smiled gently at him, with Gin leaning back with a nervous expression before Kokoa ran over and tried to pry the siren off of him. Sun clung to him while watching her with a dirty scowl, with Gin looking between the two worriedly before seeing the rest of the group running past them. They all stopped in place then looked to the trio, with Sun glancing around at them then to Kokoa while the vampire was glaring at her still.

"Let go of him right now!" Kokoa yelled out.

"Um, what's going on here?" Yukari asked. Sun quickly let go of Gin and stood up with a nervous smile before Kokoa threw her back into the painting, which promptly came crashing down onto the floor behind the siren as she slumped down against it. Before the vampire could charge her Gin grabbed Kokoa and held her back while smiling nervously at the group.

"Uh, nothing really, but what's up with Arial and Complica? Where are they going in such a hurry?" he asked, eager to change the subject.

"That's what we're going to find out," Dark said before he took off again, with the others following after. Gin watched them go then looked to Kokoa as the vampire was still trying to charge Sun who was leaning back against the damaged painting and watching her with a nervous smile.

"You think you can hang all over my boyfriend like that right in front of me and get away with it? Just wait until I get my hands on you, you're going to be begging for mercy, or at least writing it down while I strangle the life out of you!" Kokoa shouted out as Gin grunted and struggled to pull the vampire down the hall with him.

"C'mon Kokoa, it was just a misunderstanding. Let's go see what's going on with the others, alright?" he said with a few grunts while Kokoa kept thrashing and clawing towards Sun with murder in her eyes. Sun watched Gin pull the raging vampire down the hall and around a corner before she breathed out in relief. She blinked then looked down the hall with a raised eyebrow, then got up and followed after the group out of similar curiosity.

Down another hallway Render and Leon were struggling to hold their girlfriends back from one another, with the witch sisters glaring and trying to claw at each other. On both sides of the hall ahead of them there were ancient samurai suits of armor on pedestals with katanas raised and small plaques at the bases depicting the time period theses armor and weapons were used in.

"For the last time, that's not true! Mr. Render is an idiot!" Astreal shouted out.

"He is not an idiot; he's just pointing out the truth!" Apoch shot back.

"Your breasts are not bigger than mine! They're not bigger at all!" Astreal yelled out with a blush on her face.

"Yes they are, stop being so jealous!" Apoch yelled back.

"How did this subject even come up again anyway?" Leon grunted as he held Astreal back by the shoulders while Render was standing behind him, the battlemage glancing back to his friend while holding back his raven haired girlfriend by the shoulders as well.

"Well, you said that nothing's been going right today, so I pointed out that at least we have girlfriends and mine is smoking hot and well-endowed, and then they just went crazy again for some reason," he said with a shrug.

"She's the exact same as me, we're the exact same physically!" Astreal cried out with a flustered expression.

"Render says I'm more well-endowed, so obviously we're not the exact same!" Apoch shot back.

"Yes we are! You do not have bigger breasts than me!" Astreal yelled back.

"There's nothing wrong with me developing faster than you have, quit being so jealous and just face the facts already," Apoch snapped back. Astreal screamed and shoved Leon aside then Render, the boys stumbling over to either side of the hall as the sisters got in each other's faces with glares.

"Your damned boobs are not bigger than mine! Our figures are the exact same!" Astreal yelled out. Render regained his balance then shrugged with a small smile.

"Well, the truth is her breasts are bigger and she has a more voluptuous figure. No offense Astreal, but everybody sees that," he reasoned.

"Nobody else sees that, you're just delusional Render, they have the same physical features except for their eye and hair colors," Leon argued sternly. Render looked to him with a raised eyebrow.

"So then they don't have the same physical features, you just proved my point buddy," he said simply. Apoch stood proudly with a sneer at her sister while Astreal fumed with rage. They then watched as Astreal let out an annoyed scoff then lifted up her shirt, with her breasts bouncing a bit in her white bra as the girl glared at her sister.

"Mine are just as big as yours! See?" she yelled out. Apoch scoffed and lifted her shirt, showing her black bra as her breasts bounced as well. Render and Leon stared with wide eyes as the sisters growled at each other while pressing their breasts together in a bumping match.

"You wish, see for yourself, mine are bigger!" Apoch shot back.

"No they're not; you're just using padding in your bra you cheater!" Astreal yelled as she yanked her sister's bra down, exposing the girl's breasts as Render's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. Apoch gasped then growled at her sister before yanking her bra down, with Leon staring with a stunned expression at seeing Astreal's bare bosom bouncing slightly.

"Shows what you know! See, nothing but what I was created with, and that's more than you have!" Apoch shouted out. The sisters butted heads and breasts again as they glared at each other while Render and Leon just stared at the sight with surprise.

"Um… what are you girls doing?" Leon asked shakily.

"This is happening, this is really happening," Render said with awe and wonder.

"Mine are bigger!" Apoch yelled out.

"Not they're not!" Astreal shouted out with frustration.

"Yeah they are…" Render said as he stared at Apoch's bosom with an impressed smile.

"No they're not…" Leon said quietly as his eyes were glued to Astreal's breasts.

From around the corner Arial and Complica came bolting by at high speed, the two crashing into Apoch and Astreal and sending them all to the ground with a crash. Render and Leon snapped back to their senses and looked down to seeing the witch sisters lying on the ground dazed while Complica was face first in Apoch's chest and Arial was face first in Astreal's.

"Ugh, watch where you're going," Arial groaned as she sat up, her hands holding onto Astreal's breasts before the witch let out a high pitched cry.

"Oh my god, that's so cold!" she whined as Arial blinked a few times to clear her vision, the angel then realizing she was sitting atop Astreal and holding her breasts. She then jumped up with a gasp as Astreal held her arms around her bosom and shivered.

"Whoops, sorry about that," Arial said with a nervous smile.

Complica blinked a few times then slowly sat up, seeing Apoch shaking her head before looking at her with a deep blush as the chronofly's hands were also holding the witch's bosom. Complica looked down at them then tilted her head slightly while cupping the girl's breasts.

"Wow, those are big," she said simply. Apoch opened her mouth with a stunned expression before just staring at the angel with a blush on her face. Complica just squeezed them a few times with a curious expression.

"Those are even bigger than my sister's," she said with wonder. Apoch looked down to her breasts then to Complica while blushing more. Complica then shook her head and looked to Arial.

"What are we doing? We're going to miss it, let's go, hurry!" she cried out as she scrambled to her feet and took off, with Arial then quickly following after her. Apoch just stared at where the chronofly had been groping her with a stunned expression while Astreal was shivering and holding her arms around herself.

"That was so cold, that was so cold," Astreal whined as she sat up and looked down; moving her arms to seeing that her body did react to the chill touch of the snow angel. Leon's nose trickled a bit of blood at the sight of her erect nipples before he quickly shook his head and looked away with a blush.

"Um, Astreal? Are you… ok?" he asked. Astreal nodded slowly then looked up to him, then down to her breasts, then to him, then back down to her breasts, then screamed as she hastily put back on her bra and lowered her shirt.

"AH! What was I thinking?" she cried out as she buried her face in her hands out of embarrassment.

After a pause Apoch blinked then looked to Render, the boy watching where Arial and Complica vanished down the hall with a puzzled expression. The boy then looked back to Apoch as the girl was staring at him with a blush. He glanced to her bosom then smiled proudly.

"Yeah, that's my girl alright," he said with a nod. Apoch smiled timidly and looked down to her chest, feeling her heart fluttering at his admiration for her, and then looked to Astreal with an arrogant smile.

"Told you mine were bigger, not only does Render see it but even Ms. Complica noticed their impressive size," she boasted. Astreal let out a flustered scream then looked to Apoch with a deep blush on her face.

"They are not, and would you pull your shirt down already, stop flaunting those things around like that!" she yelled out.

"I don't mind if my boyfriend sees them, they're his after all, and I want you to admit once and for all that mine are bigger than yours!" Apoch declared while pointing to her sister, making no effort to cover herself up at all while Leon kept looking away and Render watched his girlfriend with a curious smile.

"I will admit no such thing! They're not bigger than mine, they're not!" Astreal snapped back while looking at her sister's breasts nervously.

"Yes they are, admit that I'm right and you're wrong!" Apoch demanded as she waved her bust around, with Render starting to drool and Leon covering his eyes with one hand while shaking his head slowly.

"No they're not!" Astreal shouted back. Apoch growled then lunged over and tackled Astreal to the ground, the blonde haired sister's arms being held down while Apoch held her breasts in the girl's face. Render's eye twitched a bit as he saw Apoch pinning Astreal down with her bosom and a daring smile.

"Yes they are! Admit it!" Apoch demanded. Astreal kicked around under her sister as her muffled voice and cries were somewhat heard through Apoch's breasts. Leon peeked back over then jumped at the sight.

"What are you two doing now?" he cried out.

"They're doing what men have only dreamed of twin sisters doing, now silence!" Render quipped while holding out a finger at Leon, his eyes remaining locked on the sisters' struggle.

"Say it!" Apoch ordered. Astreal shook her head while trying to say something through the girl's bosom.

"Say it!" Apoch ordered again. Astreal whimpered and shook her head before looking up at her sister with nervous eyes. Apoch leaned back and glared at her sister, with Render and Leon staring at the sight with stunned expression.

"Say it, right now," Apoch ordered. Astreal glanced to Apoch's breasts then back up to her as the large group of their friends rounded the corner, all of them then coming to an immediate halt as they saw the sisters down on the floor how they were.

"What the hell is this?" Kyouko asked shaking her head with surprise.

"Alright, yours are bigger, yours are bigger! You win! I give up!" Astreal cried out. Apoch smiled arrogantly down at the girl and twitched her eyebrow.

"Damn straight I win," she said smugly. She blinked then looked over to see everybody staring at her with stunned expressions.

"What… the… hell?" Falla said shaking her head slowly.

"What are you doing to her?" Luna asked with disbelief.

"Looks like she's dominating Astreal with her boobs," Felucia said plainly. Apoch looked down to her sister then screamed as she quickly jumped up and set her bra and shirt straight again. Astreal just stared at her with nervous eyes while Render and Leon glanced from Apoch to the group then back to Apoch.

"Um, it's not what it looks like, really," Apoch said nervously.

"And just what is this supposed to look like?" Gin asked with bewilderment. Apoch stammered something then looked to Render, the boy shrugging with a weak smile.

"They, uh, were just settling an argument," he reasoned.

"Settling an argument? She was shoving her boobs into Astreal's face!" Falla said with disbelief. Apoch waved her hands in front of her with a nervous smile.

"We were only settling which one of us had bigger- oh never mind, it's nothing for you to be concerned with, really," she said shakily. Astreal got to her feet and stared at her sister with a stunned expression then looked to Leon, the boy opening his mouth to speak then halting as words failed him. The group looked to each other then back to the witch sisters.

"We'll talk to you two about this later, you can try to explain yourselves then, but for now which way did Arial and Complica go?" Dark asked. Apoch and Astreal looked down the hall then to the group while pointing behind them.

"They went that way," they said together. The large group ran past them, with Render and Leon watching them go before looking back to their girlfriends. Apoch smiled arrogantly at Astreal with her hands at her hips.

"That settles it then, you agree that mine are bigger," she asserted.

"How can this be, we're cast from the same spell, to be twin sisters," Astreal said sadly at seeing Apoch's breasts bounce slightly as the raven haired witch stood proudly before her.

"I'm just developing more before you are, nothing to be ashamed about," Apoch said with a sly smile at Astreal. Render nodded at Leon with a simple smile while Leon gave him a dull glance back. Apoch giggled then started walking away.

"Anyway, let's go see what the others are-" she started before a sword whipped down in front of her, the girl halting in place with a yelp as the katana struck into the ground in front of her. The others stared at the sight with surprise as Apoch shakily looked down to the ceremonial blade that had nearly struck through her.

"What… the…" she squeaked out. She looked up to seeing the arms of one of the suits of armor having dropped out of position with a few strings of wire broken at the shoulders.

"Oh my… sister?" Astreal asked worriedly. Apoch slowly turned back to them with a nervous smile.

"That… was close," she said shakily. The others rushed up to her as she looked down to the sword that was struck into the floorboards.

"Holy shit, that nearly took your head off," Render said looking to the blade.

"Are you ok?" Leon asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Apoch said as she caught her breath. Leon looked up at the suit of armor with a careful eye.

"After we find the others we'd better tell Fang Fang to have those looked at, somebody could be seriously hurt if they're falling apart," he said. Apoch nodded then held onto Render's arm for comfort, the boy leading her off while Astreal and Leon followed after. The four headed off after the others down the hallway, none of them seeing a black shadow swirling around the sword before vanishing.

Walking down a hallway within the villa Kurumu, Rason and Ran were seen, all three of them having saddened expressions while they discussed the recent event of Gabriel losing Hex's game.

"I can't believe it, he lost his angelic wings and power just like that," Rason said shaking his head.

"Goddamn Hex and his stupid game, how could he even make Gabriel gamble with that just to help us?" Kurumu said with anger. Ran whimpered and shook her head while looking down.

"I wanted to find my sister, but not at such a cost. I feel so bad for him, he sacrificed so much and gained nothing for it in return," she said softly. Rason nodded then stopped and looked behind them as they got near an intersecting hallway, the two girls then looking to him as he showed a concerned expression.

"Maybe I should play that game as well, Gabriel shouldn't be the only one to try for us," he reasoned. Kurumu gasped then quickly grabbed onto his arm.

"Don't you dare touch those dice Rason, I mean it, it's not worth the risk," she pleaded quickly.

"She's right; I don't want anyone else making such a gamble, even for my sister. Please don't do it Rason," Ran added worriedly.

"But what if it's our only way of getting to Rin and Pandora's Box? I know it's risky, but Gabriel shouldn't have to be the only one who tries for us," Rason said looking down. Kurumu shook her head as she clung to his arm.

"We'll find another way; we'll do anything but play his game. We all agreed that playing isn't worth it, we're not touching those dice again," she said urgently.

"I don't want anyone else to suffer trying to find my sister, we'll figure something else out," Ran said. Rason sighed and looked down while Kurumu looked down the hallway with a frustrated expression.

"I can't believe that bastard made such a deal, and what's worse is that Luna sided with him on it. How could she have been so cold like that, agreeing that Hex's game was fair and that what happened to Gabriel was ok. The nerve of her," she scoffed. Rason glanced to her then looked down the hall with a solemn gaze.

"You know how Luna gets when somebody saves her, I'm sure she's trying to justify whatever happens with Hex as being acceptable just to stay near him," he pointed out.

"Um, what do you mean when somebody saves her? Has this happened to her before?" Ran asked puzzled. Kurumu looked to her then down with concern.

"Rason originally saved her long ago from an abusive human, ever since then Luna's obsessed over him as her angel. When we first met she was so crazy about him, literally, that she tried to fly away with him, literally. She eventually got the hint that he was my boyfriend and settled for a friendship with him, but even then she still stuck to him like glue. It's like she becomes completely smitten by any knight that saves her from harm, only this time the knight isn't a knight, he's a horrible monster who's just using her to free his sister. I don't understand why Luna can't see that Hex is manipulating her, using her only for her magic," she said softly.

"Maybe she doesn't want to see it, maybe she wants to believe that the person who saved her from being abused in the darkness is somebody greater. He's done so much for her, maybe she truly wants to see him as a good soul," Rason said with a small shrug. Kurumu nodded slowly then closed her eyes.

"I'm grateful she's back and alright again, but still, Hex is not the right guy for her. She deserves somebody far greater than him," she said with concern.

From around the corner Arial and Complica raced through, sprinting past and knocking Kurumu, Rason, and Ran off to the side where they all slammed into the wall and slumped down onto the floor. Arial and Complica continued their stampede down the hallway while the stunned trio twitched a bit while being pressed against the wall.

"What… just happened?" Ran asked weakly.

"Ow…" Kurumu squeaked out.

Ahakon and Yukari ran down to the intersection of the hall then spotted their three dazed friends.

"Oh no, three more down," Yukari said shaking her head.

"They went this way you guys!" Ahakon called out as he waved towards the hall. He and Yukari ran by while the rest of the large group quickly followed after. Once they had passed by Kurumu, Rason, and Ran dropped down onto the floor with a thump.

"Ok… what are we missing here?" Rason asked weakly. Kurumu and Ran slowly got up while shaking their heads then looked to seeing their friends running off down the hallway.

"It really is nonstop with all of you, isn't it?" Ran asked looking to Kurumu.

"You get used to it, believe it or not," Kurumu said as she and Ran helped Rason stand up. The boy shook his head to clear his senses then looked towards where everybody had run off.

"Now what's going on?" he asked tiredly.

"Only one way to find out," Kurumu said as they took off after the others.

Sitting in the lounge Ruby and Razico were seated on a couch in the lower den, the two cycling through human news reports on the big TV while looking for any update or mention about what was happening with the HDA. Standing over by the windows Hex was looking around at the sky while tossing his dice up and catching them leisurely at his side, watching the day starting to turn to dusk as the evening hours rolled by.

"I can't believe that Yokai Academy is really gone, I wonder what happened to the students and faculty that were still there," Ruby said worriedly while flipping through the channels with the remote.

"I'm sure the headmaster is taking care of it, we'll just have to hope for the best with them," Razico reasoned.

"And Tsukune… he's still in Paradise as we speak," Ruby said shaking her head. She groaned then looked up while leaning back in her seat.

"And Ren's still in there with him, oh I hope they're doing ok on their own like this, I wasn't planning on leaving them in there alone for so long," she said with growing concern.

"I take it we can't get to him even if we wanted to," Razico said glancing to her.

"No, with the barriers sealed I can't even create the gateway into Paradise, not like it would do us any good anyway. We wouldn't know where in Paradise Tsukune was, and even if we could find him he's certainly not done with his bloodlust training, not to mention that I don't think Moka wants him to know about everything that's going on out here. He's got enough to deal with already, if he knew what was happening out here it would surely cause him more distress," Ruby reasoned.

"The headmaster will probably let him be for now, as long as he and Ren are ok in Paradise they're actually safer there for now," Razico said with a shrug.

"I don't know about 'safer', but you're right, I don't think the headmaster will bother Tsukune with any of this for the time being, which means we can still fix this before he finishes his training… I hope," Ruby said looking down with concern. They then looked behind to hearing screaming along with footsteps fast approaching, both of them then watching as Arial and Complica raced into the room and towards the lowered den.

"It's almost time!" Arial cried out as she and Complica dove down onto the couch, knocking Ruby and Razico onto the ground next to the lowered table while Hex merely watched them with a raised eyebrow.

"Ow, have you girls lost it?" Ruby barked out as she stumbled back onto her feet. Razico stood up while rubbing his head as the two young angels were fighting over the remote for the TV.

"What channel was it on? Where is it?" Complica cried out.

"Let go, I'm trying to find it!" Arial shouted out as the girls were pressing buttons on the remote and quickly cycling through the channels.

"What's going on here? What are you two doing?" Razico asked.

"What are you trying to find?" Ruby asked looking to the TV with puzzlement.

From the doorway the rest of the group rushed in and saw Arial and Complica yelling while switching through multiple channels.

"They just wanted to watch TV?" Kokoa asked with a raised eyebrow.

"What were they afraid of missing?" Falla asked looking to Luna who merely shrugged. Render blinked then looked to the clock, then jumped a bit.

"Oh my god," he said with wide eyes. The group turned to him as he franticly looked around before he dived over into the kitchen behind the counter, seeming to search through cabinets and pantries in haste.

"Render? What's wrong?" Apoch asked.

"I'm still lost here, what are they freaking out over?" Felucia asked looking at Arial and Complica who were yelling franticly while switching through multiple channels on the TV.

"I don't know what channel it's on down here!" Arial cried out.

"We're going to miss it, hurry!" Complica cried out desperately.

"Miss what? What are they trying to find?" Kurumu asked shaking her head.

"What's going on in here?" Gabriel asked from behind. The group turned to see the angel walking back into the lounge, the boy wearing his white shirt and green academy jacket again. Complica looked over to him then quickly ran over and grabbed his arm.

"Hurry Gabriel we can't find it and it's almost time please you have to help us please please please!" she cried out. Gabriel just looked at her for a moment then over to Arial while the others watched him curiously.

"What channel is it on?" Arial cried out. Gabriel blinked then looked to the clock, then up in thought. After a moment he chuckled then walked Complica back over to the den, with the others watching with puzzlement.

"That time already is it?" he asked playfully.

"Gabriel? Do you know what they're talking about?" Rason asked. Gabriel nodded as he set Complica down on the couch then took the remote from Arial. He pointed to the TV and switched it over to a channel as the two girls watched anxiously. A TV guide came up and the angel sifted through the networks while watching it with a calm smile.

"Ah, there it is," he said before clicking on a station. The TV switched to an anime about giant fighting robots that were shaped like animals, the group watching as the ridiculously cheesy opening theme song to the show started playing. Arial and Complica cheered while the group just looked at them with bewilderment.

"This is it!" Arial cheered out.

"Fighting Team Robanimals! Yay!" Complica cheered with a hop.

"Fighting Team… Robanimals?" Gin asked with a confused expression.

"Hell yeah!" Render called out before he bolted out of the kitchen in a blur, jumped into the air, did a double somersault over the group, and then landed down on the couch next to Arial with a bowl of popcorn, a soda, and a chocolate bar.

"Sweet! I wasn't sure if I would be able to watch more of this after things started going crazy, this is awesome!" he cheered. Arial quickly swiped some of his popcorn while her eyes were glued to the TV, with Complica bouncing energetically on the couch as she watched the show. Apoch stared at Render with a stunned expression then looked to the TV. The group looked to each other then back to the young angels as they were watching the human anime that featured giant robots and fast talking, slick dressed heroes and villains.

"They just wanted to watch cartoons?" Rason asked.

"They ran us over just to watch their TV show?" Ran asked with annoyance. Gabriel chuckled and shrugged.

"It's their favorite show up in heaven, they never miss it," he reasoned. The group looked to him curiously as he was watching the two young angels with an amused smile.

"What? But how did you know that was what they wanted to watch?" Kokoa asked. Gabriel glanced to her then to the two young angels with a smirk.

"Well, for Complica I had to replace their TV quite a lot since somebody kept playing baseball in their living room and breaking it," he said knowingly, with Complica looking to him with a nervous smile and giggle before back to the show. Gabriel nodded then looked to Arial.

"And I've spent a lot of time helping repair Arial's home after her tantrums over Dark, and that was the one show she never missed and it also seemed to keep her busy while we fixed up her home," he said, with Arial glancing away and looking off the side like she didn't know she was being spoken about before looking back to the TV. Gabriel chuckled then looked to the group.

"Not to mention Complica talks about the show nonstop whenever I visited her family. And when I say nonstop I mean nonstop, usually until she passed out," he said with a shrug. The group looked to Arial, Complica, and Render as the three were watching the anime and smiling brightly.

"Yeah! Go get him!" Arial cheered out as she watched two giant robots that looked like bears hitting each other while standing amidst a ravaged city.

"This is the best episode yet!" Complica exclaimed with a hop.

"You got that right kid," Render said before he munched on his popcorn with his eyes fixated on the show. Apoch looked at him with puzzlement then to the TV with a raised eyebrow.

"Render? Do you like these kinds of shows?" she asked.

"He likes anything that involves explosions, fighting, giant robots or monsters, and pretty flashing lights," Leon said flatly. Apoch looked at him curiously then to the TV as she tilted her head slightly. Falla smiled at seeing her little sister enjoying the show then looked to Gabriel.

"That's so sweet of you to know what she likes, thank you for helping them find their show in time," she said kindly.

"If we wanted any remote peace and quiet down here it was a good thing they got to it in time," Gabriel reasoned with a weak laugh. The group smiled at him as he watched the two young angels with a caring smile. Luna smiled softly at him then looked down with worried eyes, feeling remorse sinking in again knowing what Gabriel gave up to help them. Kyouko then started laughing while watching the three on the couch, with the group looking to her curiously.

"What's so funny?" Yukari asked.

"It's just… these two have been fighting evil monsters and armed humans, they're stuck down here in our world, and yet now here they are watching cartoons like real kids, like this is all normal. It's just funny to me, after everything we've been through and about to face, they're watching cartoons without a care in the world," Kyouko said with a shrug. Falla looked at her curiously then started giggling as she saw her little sister enjoying the show.

"I guess you're right, this is the last thing I expected them to be doing while down here with us," she said before laughing as well. Luna started laughing lightly while the group looked at the three on the couch with amused smiles, except for Apoch who was still baffled how Render could like a cartoon so much.

"It's unreal, she's acting like a kid now," Gin said as they saw Arial laughing and watching the show.

"She is a kid Gin, it just doesn't show too often with her," Ruby said gently. Mizore nodded slowly as she watched Arial smiling and watching her cartoon, the snow angel seeming to be completely different than her usual temperamental and icy self.

Dark smiled at seeing his angel watching the cartoon then walked over and knelt down behind Arial and rested his hand on her shoulder, the girl grabbing his hand while smiling happily at the show. She looked up to him with a giggle as the demon smiled down at her, the boy then chuckling a bit before looking back to the cartoon. It was more than apparent that he felt a sense of joy in seeing his guardian angel so happy.

Falla walked over and sat next to Complica, the younger girl then snuggling up next to her as she watched the show with a bright smile. Falla held her sister gently and felt a sense of warmth she found to be missing from before, the feeling of spending time with her younger sister that she never got to before. She kissed Complica's head then looked at the show with an amused smile, not finding it to be entertaining but not caring since she was sitting with her sister.

Luna smiled softly at her sisters then looked to Gabriel as the angel started walking past the group towards the kitchen. As he got there Luna quickly walked over to him, the boy looking back to seeing her smiling gently at him.

"You really have been watching over them in heaven, haven't you?" she asked. Gabriel smiled slightly then looked over to the two young angels, both of them watching the show with excitement while the group was glancing back to him and Luna.

"Well, they were my responsibility, and I did get to know them well in that time. Arial may be a bit obsessed with Dark and difficult to talk to, even when she's not listening to her music, but she really is a good soul. And Complica really is an angel Luna, she's so kind and caring to those around her, she always showed me pictures she drew of you, even though they were so cluttered it was hard to make out all the details," he said with a small laugh of amusement. Luna smiled gently at him as she realized just how close he had been with the two young angels as their guardian. Gabriel then showed a concerned expression and looked down.

"I'm just sorry I failed in keeping them safe, really Luna, I tried-" he said before Luna shook her head and spoke up.

"No, it's not your fault Gabriel. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be so harsh with you; you weren't just watching over them in heaven, you were watching over so much more. You didn't know they would have gone into that rift; I'm surprised Complica was brave enough to go near it let alone go through it. I'm sorry I snapped at you, I was just scared for my sister's soul," she said softly. She whimpered then looked to him with a teary-eyed smile.

"I'm sorry, for you losing your wings and your home; you really were brave to take that gamble for us. I'm sorry that you lost, I really am. You didn't deserve what happened to you," she said gently. Gabriel glanced to her then down again while shaking his head.

"I feel as though I do Luna, I failed in watching over them and returning them to heaven. I failed all of you," he said remorsefully.

"No you didn't," Luna pleaded as she quickly held her hands to his chest and shook her head. She then slowly looked to her hands as she felt a strange warmth coming from them, a slight tingle in her chest again being felt like she had noticed with him before. Gabriel looked at her worriedly as she looked from one hand to another with a gentle expression of wonder.

"I'm sorry Luna, I just…" he said before he noticed she was staring at her hands now. The group looked at her curiously while Hex raised an eyebrow at her in question. Luna slowly moved one hand along Gabriel's chest, then down his arm towards his hand as she felt the strange sensation of a warmth that felt so natural to her all along his body. It was as if an aura of his was flowing right through her hand and causing a small jolt to her heart.

"Luna?" Gabriel asked.

"What is this?" Luna asked quietly.

From the doorway Fang Fang came running in, looking around with an eager smile before spotting Gabriel.

"Ah, there you are, I've been looking everywhere for you. Please come with me at once my friend," he said running over to him. He quickly grabbed Gabriel's hand and started leading him towards the door in haste, with the angel stumbling off-balance while the group watched him curiously.

"Fang Fang? What's going on?" Razico asked. The yasha looked around at the group with a big smile and waved towards the door.

"Follow us, you all must come and see as well, it's going to be incredible," he said eagerly, then quickly led Gabriel out of the room, the angel smacking into the doorframe and being dazed a bit before stumbling after the yasha.

"Where's he taking Gabriel?" Ahakon asked.

"Not sure, he seemed excited about something though," Kurumu said with a shrug. Falla looked to where the angel had been taken away then to Complica with a curious smile.

"C'mon Complica, let's go see what's happening with Gabriel," she said gently. Complica looked to her with wonder then smiled softly as she held onto Falla's arm which was holding her.

"You never asked me to go anywhere with you before, I like this side of you a lot more," she said. Falla smiled and stood up with her little sister.

"This is the only side of me there is now Complica, and I want to spend as much time with you as I can before you go back home to mother and father," she said genuinely. Complica giggled and hugged her, with the group smiling at them while Arial and Render were still engrossed with the show. Complica then looked to Arial then ran over and yanked her to her feet, the snow angel jumping a bit before looking to her with confusion.

"C'mon Arial, let's go," Complica said eagerly.

"Go? But the show isn't over yet," Arial said looking back to the TV.

"But something's going on with Gabriel, I want to go see," Complica whined. Arial looked to her then to the show then back to her, and then sighed with annoyance.

"Fine, but let's hurry up, I don't want to miss the ending," she said before the two ran off with Falla. The rest of the group followed after while Render continued to watch the show, Apoch watched him with a raised eyebrow, and Hex walked over to the kitchen where Luna was looking down at her hands curiously still.

"Render? Don't you want to go see as well?" Apoch asked. Render looked to her, then to the TV, then back to her.

"But… fighting robots… action… explosions…" he said softly with popcorn in his mouth. Apoch showed a troubled expression then walked over and kneeled down behind him, leaning closer to the boy and pressing her bosom against the side of his head.

"Please Render, for me? I really want to go see it with you," she said softly while watching him with gentle eyes, lightly bumping her chest against his head a few times. The boy glanced to her bosom then to her as he swallowed his food with a gulp then smiled with a small chuckle.

"Well, when you put it like that, how can I say no?" he said with a shrug. Apoch smiled as the boy got up and hopped up onto the floor next to her, the couple then heading off after the others while Luna examined her hands curiously.

"Luna?" Hex asked. The girl glanced to him then back to the doorway with wonder.

"What is that anyway?" she asked quietly.

Running down the hallway Complica, Arial, and Falla were right behind where Fang Fang was leading a confused Gabriel through the building. Fang Fang was smiling and rambling on about how exciting this was while Gabriel was trying to maintain his balance while looking at the yasha with puzzlement. Behind them Complica was holding onto Falla's hand and leading her down the hallway with a giddy smile, the elder chronofly looking at her sister with a loving smile while Arial ran alongside her.

'Maybe it's not all bad she's down here, at least this way I can actually spend some time with her as a real big sister. I never thought I would get such a chance ever again.'

They made their way through the building then ran out into the large courtyard where the giant winged demon from earlier was lying off to the side, the monster's charred body still smoking slightly while Fang Fang's guards and personal were working to clean up the damaged courtyard and repair the building where it had taken serious damage from the fight. Men were working to fix the burned and destroyed floors of the building where a few pulley systems were rigged to help move planks of wood and building supplies to the upper floors. Standing over by the dead demon Ceal was looking around at it while his arms were crossed, the boy then glancing to seeing the others heading over to him.

"I've found him, and I believe we're going to be having some spectators for the show," Fang Fang said looking over to seeing the three girls running up to them.

"Big brother, what's going on?" Complica asked as she looked at the giant dead demon.

"What did you need me out here for?" Gabriel asked looking at the monster then to Ceal with confusion. Falla looked at the charred demon curiously then to Ceal.

"I was wondering where you went earlier, what are you doing out here?" she asked. Ceal glanced to Complica then to Gabriel as the rest of the group came out into the courtyard behind them. Ruby stumbled off to the side near the building and leaned against a wall while breathing heavily, with Razico watching her with a curious eye as the witch tried to catch her breath.

"Seriously, why are we always running everywhere?" she complained as she held her side.

"You really did get out of shape working at the academy didn't you?" Kurumu asked her with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm not out of shape!" Ruby shouted out at her.

"It wasn't so bad, jogging is good exercise," Gin said with a shrug.

"Oh please, you're a werewolf; of course you like to run. Name one other person who likes to go on a wild dash through a building like that!" Ruby barked out at him.

From behind the group Render and Apoch came running out of the building and over towards them.

"Man, nothing like watching an awesome show about giant fighting robots before going for a wild dash through a whole building with your girlfriend to make you feel alive," Render said looking to Apoch, the witch blushing and smiling at him while Ruby gave them a dull glare. The group smiled amusedly at them then looked to Ceal.

"What's going on, why did you want Gabriel out here?" Rason asked. Fang Fang stepped back to the others while Gabriel looked from Ceal to the large dead demon that was burnt from head to toe.

"Take your shirts off angel," Ceal said, the group looking at him puzzled while Gabriel turned to him with a jump.

"What? My shirts?" Gabriel asked. Ceal nodded while watching the angel with his cold blue eyes. Gabriel looked around at the others then to Ceal.

"Um… why…" he asked carefully.

"I'm not asking you again, take them off," Ceal ordered.

"What's happening here?" Ran asked cautiously.

"Ceal's ordering Gabriel to get undressed, starting to feel a little uncomfortable here," Ahakon commented. Fang Fang chuckled and shook his head.

"He's just requesting that Gabriel remove his shirts. Go ahead friend, its ok," Fang Fang reassured. Gabriel looked to him then to Ceal with a cautious expression. After a pause he slowly took off his academy jacket then his white shirt, the group then seeing his withered wings which had no feathers on them.

"Oh Gabriel," Kurumu said softly with remorse. Complica whimpered then looked to Ceal as the mage was looking back to the dead demon.

"Why did you want him to show us those again?" she asked sadly. Ceal glanced to her then looked back to Gabriel.

"Now turn around," he said calmly. Gabriel looked at him puzzled then turned to face the group with Ceal now behind him.

"What are you doing Ceal?" Razico asked. Ceal held a hand to the dead demon and another to Gabriel's back, the angel looking back to him as the mage examined the boy's crippled wings.

"Helping an angel fly again," he said before white swirls of light appeared around his hands, the group watching as the glows spread about to both the dead demon and Gabriel's wings. The angel watched with wonder as a numbing sensation spread across his back while the swirls of glowing light spun around his wings. Slowly etches and crevices sliced and carved across the burned demon's body while Gabriel's wings started to regrow, with the flesh and bone reforming as the group watched with wonder.

"Oh my, Ceal," Falla said softly.

"What's happening?" Felucia asked.

"He's transferring the organic matter from the demon to make new wings for Gabriel," Ruby said with wonder.

Gabriel watched as his wings gradually formed again, with the feathers slowly growing and taking shape as Ceal focused his magic on the angelic extensions. The large burnt demon started to shift slightly as a few of its bones cracked and some of its flesh tore apart and ripped open.

"You did a noble thing trying to help us by wagering your very existence as an angel," Ceal said, with Gabriel then looking to him with wonder. The catalyst mage watched the burnt demon shift and tear in some areas then looked back to Gabriel's wings as they were gradually taking shape while the feathers were still slowly growing and glowing white.

"However, you're causing Complica pain and distress with your lingering wings, just as you are to all of your friends," Ceal continued, with the group watching him curiously. Complica and Falla watched the mage with wonder and gentle eyes as he used his magic to reconstruct Gabriel's wings.

"And quite frankly I don't need any more distractions in front of me in my quest to slay Fafnir, one of which being Complica crying again," Ceal said simply. Gabriel looked at him with wonder then to his wings as they slowly started to reform back to normal size, with the feathers still glowing white from the magic while growing.

"I cannot restore your angelic power or help you return to your home, but I can give you back something else you lost in that gambit, your wings," Ceal said as the group watched with awe, seeing Gabriel's wings extending out to the sides as the feathers took shape with the glowing light fading from them. However they weren't bright white feathers like they were before, instead they were now black. Gabriel looked at his feathers with surprise then back to Ceal as the mage finished using his magic, the group then seeing Gabriel standing there with new wings of black feathers.

"You were right before angel," Ceal said, with the group watching Gabriel with wonder as the catalyst mage walked around the boy to see the wings from the front.

"Now you are a monster, like us," Ceal finished.

"Gabriel, your wings," Rason said with awe.

"They're… beautiful," Kurumu said with a smile forming.

"Oh my god, those look amazing," Kokoa said with a smile of wonder.

"They look as good as new," Ran said as she eyed the angel's darker wings.

"Now those are the wings of a fallen angel," Gin said with a nod of approval. Gabriel looked at his wings with wonder, feeling them just as he did before as they slowly retracted behind him.

"I don't believe it, I don't know what to say Ceal, thank you so much," he said looking back to Ceal. The catalyst mage looked up around at the sky as it started to turn darker then to Gabriel.

"There's still daylight left, give them a test flight to make sure you still know how to fly," he said pointing up. Gabriel looked up at the sky then to the others as they watched him with curious smiles.

"Go on Gabriel, give them a try," Yukari said eagerly.

"Yeah, get up there," Ruby said in agreement. Gabriel smiled at the group then looked up as his wings arched back. With a mighty flap he took off into the air, the group watching as he soared up over the building and into the sky. Gabriel looked around as he flew up above the villa then to his wings as they flapped behind him, feeling how easy it was for him to fly once again. They felt just like his wings did before, as if he had been born with them even though they weren't the same anymore. They were created using the flesh and bone of another demon, his wings having been formed by the catalyst mage's power and grafted to his body as if they were his own.

"It's incredible, they feel perfectly normal," he said with wonder.

Down on the ground the group watched Gabriel soar around high above the compound, the angel's wings allowing him to fly just as easily as before.

"He can fly again, it's a miracle," Ahakon said with wonder. Complica giggled then looked to Ceal as the mage was just watching the airborne angel with a blank expression.

"You're the greatest big brother!" she cheered as she ran over and hugged him. He looked down to her as she smiled up at him with joy.

"Thank you for giving him his wings back thank you thank you thank you!" she said before hugging him tightly. The boy merely held one hand around her before looking to Falla as the girl ran up to him.

"Ceal, thank you so much for doing that, you're the greatest boyfriend ever!" she said before pulling him into a kiss, the boy then using his other hand to hold her while Complica nuzzled her head at his side. The group looked at him with smiles as the two chronofly sisters held onto him. Falla then broke the kiss and smiled lovingly at the boy.

"I don't know what I would do without you, I love you so much Ceal," she said gratefully. Ceal looked at her with a gentle gaze as he held a hand to her cheek, however he didn't say anything back. Falla looked at him with a curious smile and shook her head.

"You don't have to be ashamed to say it back, please, I love you Ceal," she said again. Ceal just looked at her with a gentle expression while still remaining quiet. Complica looked up to him curiously while Falla held the hand that was resting on her cheek.

"Ceal? Don't you love me?" she asked.

"Of course he does, he even told me so. Why won't you say it back to my sister?" Complica asked. Ceal glanced down to her then to Falla who was watching him worriedly.

"Ceal, what's wrong? Why won't you say it back?" she asked.

"C'mon man, we all know you love her, quit making her wait to hear it herself," Leon said shaking his head. Ceal looked down and away while Falla watched him with growing concern.

"I don't understand, why won't you say you love me? Don't you Ceal?" Falla asked.

"He does, he told me he does, isn't that right Ceal?" Complica asked worriedly.

"Really Ceal? You're still going to try to pretend you don't feel that way about her?" Gin asked shaking his head.

"Quit being so stubborn and just tell her how you really feel, we all know you love her," Ruby said waving to Falla.

"You didn't even say it to her before you left Yokai Academy, why won't you tell her now?" Kyouko asked.

"Because he can't," Fang Fang said as he watched Ceal knowingly. Ceal looked away with a slight amount of discontent while the group turned to the yasha.

"What do you mean he can't say it back?" Complica asked. Fang Fang looked at Ceal with a slight smile then to Falla.

"Please don't feel rejected Falla, it's nothing like that at all I'm sure. You see, for dragon slayers they are raised with honor and taught to suppress their emotions and control them. One such example is how they express love, which is not taken lightly at all," he explained with a serious tone at the end. Falla and Complica looked at him curiously then to Ceal as the boy was avoiding eye contact with them. Fang Fang nodded then looked to Ceal with a casual shrug.

"It's how all dragon slayers are, they are very prideful and also devoted to their loved ones. Should they ever speak the words of love it must be from their heart and of the strongest strength, otherwise it would be considered meaningless and wasteful. Ceal may have admitted, or at least made known, that he loves you to everybody else, but to you personally he can only say such words when the time is right," he continued.

"When the time is right? What better time would there be rather than right now when she's telling him pointblank that she loves him?" Kurumu asked with puzzlement. Fang Fang chuckled then looked to Falla with a knowing smile.

"Should he say the words 'I love you' Falla, that would be the equivalent of a marriage proposal," he explained. Falla jumped then looked to Ceal with wide eyes while the group looked at him with wonder.

"What?" Falla asked softly. Ceal glanced to her while Fang Fang nodded.

"Yes, should he ever tell you he loves you personally, then that means he's chosen you to be his bride and wishes to marry you. To say it before then would be considered meaningless, and love is something they won't waste with anyone who they don't truly care for," Fang Fang said, with Falla staring at Ceal with wonder as the boy looked into her eyes.

"Is that true?" Falla asked. Ceal nodded as he remained silent. Complica looked at him with wonder then tilted her head.

"But, you do love her, right?" she asked. Ceal glanced to her then to Falla again while remaining silent. Fang Fang chuckled and shook his head.

"He can't say such a thing in front of her Complica, not until the time is right. It may be known that he does care for her, but did he actually use the words 'I love her', even with you?" he asked. Complica shook her head and looked to him curiously.

"Well, no, he didn't say those words like that, but he did admit that loves her when I asked him, he said he does," she said.

"Yes, and that is technically allowed. Although most slayers won't even admit such a thing, he can agree with such questions as long as he doesn't specifically state that he loves her," Fang Fang reasoned.

"So when Ceal actually does say he loves Falla, directly to her, that means he's proposing to her," Mizore said with wonder. Falla blushed and held a hand to her cheek.

"That explains why he's been so reluctant to admit he cares for her, even when it's so obvious, he can't admit such a thing until he's ready to marry her," Leon said with a smirk.

"And I thought we were prideful when it came to picking our mates," Kokoa said with a curious smile.

Falla gently held her hands to Ceal's chest as she gazed into his eyes.

"If you say you love me, you're proposing to me?" she asked softly. Again Ceal nodded while remaining silent. Falla smiled gently then held him close with a loving embrace.

"I'll wait as long as it takes to hear those words from you Ceal, and the full meaning that will be behind them. I love you, I want you to know that, and also know that I'm not leaving your side until you say those words back," she said as she held him. Ceal held her close while Complica smiled at her sister.

"Hey, so what's going on out here?" Luna called out. The group looked to see her and Hex walking out of the building together. Falla smirked and pointed up.

"That's what's going on," she said smugly. Luna and Hex looked up to see a figure flying around in the sky that started to have stars appearing above the clouds.

"Who is that?" Luna asked. The flyer above circled around the building then swooped down, landing near the group with a small gust of wind as his black feathered wings arched back. Luna stared with wonder at seeing Gabriel slowly standing back upright, the boy's wings set behind him while her eyes took notice of his bare chest and upper body for a moment longer than she expected to. She shook her head to clear her mind then stared at him with surprise at seeing him with his wings again.

"Gabriel?" she said with a smile forming. He looked to her and smiled with a shrug, with the chronofly feeling a strange pull coming from within her briefly. She wasn't sure why but seeing the angel standing there like that seemed to spark something inside her for a moment.

"Ceal manifested him new wings from the downed demon over there, he can fly again," Ahakon said looking to Gabriel with a smile.

"Gabriel, you look… wow," Luna said softly as she eyed the boy with his new wings. He chuckled then looked to Ceal.

"Thank you Ceal, I don't know how I can ever repay you for this," he said gratefully. Ceal glanced to him then to Hex.

"Taking away his ill-gotten gains is payment enough," he said coldly.

"Ill-gotten gains?" Hex asked amusedly. He looked to Gabriel's wings then chuckled.

"I see you've given him some new wings to fly with, however don't assume that means he's able to get around his lost wager and return to heaven," he mentioned glancing back to Ceal.

"I didn't think wings forged from a demon would allow him entry back into heaven, but his right to fly was never part of your twisted game. I merely restored the balance and gave him back something you had no claim over," Ceal replied with a bit of annoyance in his voice.

"Twisted game? My dealings are all straight, win or lose I always uphold the rules of the game. He lost his right to return to heaven from losing that game, his wings were angelic and thus allowed him entry into that realm, so they were taken away as per our agreement," Hex stated coolly while resting his hands at his pockets.

"You're just like Pandora, you twist any wish around to get your sick kicks out of it," Falla hissed at him. Hex laughed and looked at her amusedly.

"Tell me, when Luna rolled to have your witch friend shoot down that monstrous demon over the human city, were any of you complaining then?" he asked. The group watched him carefully as he shook his head with a smirk.

"Or when she rolled to save your friend from dying by giving her soul band an unlimited charge, you all didn't think I was so evil then did you? Of course you didn't, you were all so grateful then. However the moment you lose a game you assume that I'm the devil and that the game is rigged, such typical behavior for lesser beings that have no respect for such power that they're playing with," he mused casually.

"Again with the insulting us," Ruby said with discontent. Falla shook her head with a scoff.

"You know what? Your sister can rot in her damned box for all time, you can forget about me helping you free her," she snapped at him. Hex looked at her with a raised eyebrow as the girl crossed her arms while glaring at him.

"Ceal's going to grind her monsters into the ground for one wish we need, then pulverize her damned creatures again for his wish, and then that bitch is going to spend the rest of her days alone in that box with her pets," she said harshly. Luna shook her head and looked to her with worried eyes.

"Wait a minute Falla, he's just trying to save his sister; you can't condemn him for that. And he didn't make Gabriel play that game, you can't blame him for what happened," Luna pleaded.

"I can sure as hell blame him for what happened, he made the damned wager of what would happen to Gabriel if he lost," Falla snapped.

"You're playing to change reality, something that's impossible in our world Falla. Of course the costs would be high if you lose, but it's something he asks that we agree to before we play, he's not tricking us into anything," Luna reasoned.

"You're unbelievable; even now you're still siding with him after what happened!" Falla shouted out at her.

"Do you have any idea what he saved me from Falla? Of course I'm siding with him, he's done nothing wrong!" Luna yelled back.

"I know damned well what he saved you from, and I know why he saved you. He just wants you for your magic, he just wants us to save his sister and that's it! He doesn't love you Luna, how could he love any girl, he gambles for their hearts like they're gold coins, he's despicable!" Falla shouted back.

"Yeah, he's an even bigger enemy to women everywhere than how Gin used to be," Yukari chimed in with a stern nod.

"I gotta agree with her on that one, this guy has no respect for any woman," Gin said, with Kokoa and Sun nodding in agreement while watching Hex with stern expressions. Luna covered her ears as she shut her eyes tightly.

"Stop it! Stop treating him like he's an evil monster like his father, he's nothing like that! He hasn't done anything wrong!" she cried out.

"He took Gabriel's wings away! How can you defend that?" Falla shouted out. Luna trembled as she shook her head.

"Shut up!" she cried out.

"If you weren't a chronofly he would have left you in that dungeon, he wouldn't have bothered with saving you at all," Ran said shaking her head.

"You don't know that!" Luna cried out. Complica looked at her sister with worried eyes then to Hex.

"Would you still have saved my sister even if she didn't have any magic?" she asked urgently. The group looked to Hex as Luna glanced to him with watery eyes. The boy raised an eyebrow at the young chronofly as she walked closer to him.

"Would you still have rescued her even if she couldn't have helped you?" she asked. Luna shakily looked to him, worried what his answer would be. The boy smirked slightly and shook his head, with Luna stepping back away from him as she whimpered.

"No, I wouldn't have," he said casually.

"What?" Luna asked shakily. Hex looked to her and shrugged.

"Why are you so surprised Luna? I told you from the start that I needed somebody with your abilities to help me, that's the whole reason I got you out of that dungeon in the first place. It wouldn't have helped me at all to rescue any others my father had locked away, I needed a chronofly such as yourself," he reasoned.

"You… you would have let me… you wouldn't have saved me if I wasn't a chronofly?" Luna whimpered.

"You're horrible," Complica said shaking her head as she backed up. Hex rolled his eyes with a quiet sigh.

"What are you all getting worked up over? I've told you all, right from the beginning that I wanted to save my sister. That's my only concern. I agreed to help Luna and keep her safe in exchange for helping me rescue my sister, I've made that known to her all this time, this was a mutual trade for us both," he pointed out. Luna closed her eyes as she tried to control her breathing.

"But… I love you," she said shakily. She then looked to seeing him watching her with an amused smile.

"Did you think I would be saying that back to you? Luna, you may be a treasure yourself, and of great importance to me for reasons I have explained, but I have never once said that I loved you," he said simply. Luna felt her heart break as the group watched Hex with dull glares.

"You… but… we…" Luna said shaking her head. Hex shook his head a bit and smirked at the girl.

"I needed your help as you needed mine, that's all this has been Luna. Did you think that there was something else between us?" he asked. Luna choked back her sobs as she felt her legs wobble slightly then nodded. Hex breathed out then walked over to her, gently wiping a tear away from her cheek.

"You silly girl," he said gently.

"But, you said… I was the last treasure in this world," Luna said softly.

"You are, you are a real treasure Luna, one that I wouldn't mind having all to myself even now," he said with a nod. Luna looked at him with teary eyes then backed away from him.

"That's… that's all I am to you, just a treasure, an object, a means to an end for you," she said softly. He merely gave a slight smile at her as she wiped her tears away.

"You lesser beings always confuse me with the way you just assume things are one way and get upset when they're another. We offer to grant you your greatest wishes, but you never consider the consequences or costs to such gifts and blame us for any inconveniences your own greed brings you. You just assume that if we don't help you with your petty goals then we're just evil beings in life, that if we're not with you we're against you. And you believe that by me helping you I feel something deeper for you, when I told you from the start that I merely needed your help with my own pursuit in this world. Luna, I had thought you were smart enough to see things for how they are, you understood the rules to my game very clearly, yet still believed there was more between us merely because you wished for there to be," he said with a tone that could be considered pity. Luna held her hands to her mouth as she shook her head slowly.

"You're a monster… you are just like you're father," she said with horror.

"Am I? You do realize that he would have been far more unpleasant with all of you, whereas I've not only saved you from his grasp but also protected you, kept you out of his sight, and even offered my power in a fair game of chance to help save your friends. Just as you've said Luna, I've done no wrong here, it is you who assumed more to be true than what was," Hex reasoned. Luna looked down with heartbroken eyes while the group glared at Hex, the boy merely smiling calmly at them with a shrug. After a moment Luna nodded then looked back to him with remorse.

"You're right Hex, you always are. I did assume there was more to us, I thought you had a heart, I thought you genuinely cared about me," she said softly.

"I do care about you Luna," Hex mentioned. Luna shook her head as she backed up to Falla and Complica.

"You care about me like you would a golden idol or a tool to free your sister; you don't care about my heart at all. A woman's heart is nothing but a token for you to win, I was fooling myself into thinking you could only love me," she said softly.

"Well, yes, that was pretty foolish to assume," Hex said with a nod. Luna looked down to her bracelet then to Hex with watery eyes as she gave him a dull glare.

"Give your father a message for me if you see him again," she said with anger. Hex looked at her curiously as she glared at him.

"I'm done being used by your family," she said harshly.

"So you're ending our agreement I take it?" Hex asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm with my friends, I'm with my family; I don't need your protection Hex. I wanted to help you before because I was touched by your love for your sister; I thought you were a gentleman. But I was wrong, I wasn't saved by a knight in shining armor, I was just taken away by another monster who wanted to use me for my magic. Our deal is off Hex," Luna said sharply. Hex chuckled and nodded then looked up at the sky.

"Well, I suppose I can't make you help me, so if that's your choice then so be it. Pity, I would like to have taken you with me once this world falls into ashes and flame, but if this is where you wish to die then alright then," he said casually.

"We're not going to fall to your father Hex, he's not going to win this war," Ruby said sternly.

"We've dealt with unstoppable destroyers before, we can take down another no problem," Kurumu declared firmly.

"He's going to get what's coming to him for all that he's done," Ran said with anger.

"We're not afraid of him or his army," Ahakon said.

"You're no longer welcome here, despite what you have done for Luna in the past. Please leave now or we will make you," Fang Fang threatened. Hex chuckled and looked to him amusedly.

"Again, your threats mean nothing to me. But since Luna no longer wishes to help me there really isn't anything more for me here. Still, if it wouldn't be too much trouble before you die under my father's army, I would appreciate it if you would find and open my sister's box, I would so love to have her freed and removed from this world before it falls," he said casually while looking back to the group.

"Oh don't worry, we'll be seeing your sister soon," Render said with a stern glare at Hex.

"She's going to be granting our wishes after all, whether she likes it or not," Leon said coolly.

"Tell your sister I'm coming to see her again, I'm going to enjoy destroying her pets all the more this time around," Ceal said coldly. Hex smirked at the mage then looked to Luna, the girl watching him with a glare still.

"For what it's worth I hope you survive this Luna, although I'm not going to be betting on it," he said with a shrug.

"Don't worry about me Hex, I'm feeling pretty lucky about this," Luna said bitterly. Hex nodded then turned to walk away.

"For your sake I hope your luck doesn't run out," he said before walking off, the group watching as he faded away and vanished. Luna looked down with closed eyes as she struggled not to scream or cry, the group then looking to her as she wiped a tear from her eye.

"I'm glad you finally saw him for what he was Luna, that guy didn't deserve you at all," Falla said shaking her head.

"Yeah, I'm glad he's gone, he was giving me the creeps," Yukari said with a shiver. Luna kept her eyes closed and started walking back towards the building.

"Luna?" Kurumu asked.

"Are you ok?" Mizore asked softly.

"Every time," Luna said miserably. She stopped and shook her head with a frustrated expression of sorrow.

"Every time I fall for somebody it's never meant to be. First with Rason, then Hex. Every knight that comes to rescue me isn't the one who returns my affection, they're never meant to be my true love. I hate how life teases me so, I hate falling for guys who will never return my love!" she cried out before running back into the building.

"Sister, wait!" Complica called out as she ran after her. Falla shook her head then ran off after them as well.

"Well, I feel horrible now," Rason said glancing to Kurumu. She shook her head as she watched the chronofly sisters vanish into the building.

"You didn't do anything wrong Rason, she just needs to find her real true love still," she said softly.

"The poor girl, giving her heart out like that only for it to be crushed so badly," Kyouko said sadly.

"Do you think she'll be ok?" Ran asked worriedly.

"She stopped herself from becoming a trophy girl for Hex, she's going to be much better off now, just give her some time to recover from this," Ruby said gently. Gabriel looked down with concern, hoping Luna would be alright again as well. He didn't know why, but when she started crying out of sorrow it really hurt him, almost as if he could feel the same heartache that she felt.

"Let's give her some time to recover and rest, hopefully by tomorrow she'll be feeling better," Mizore suggested. Felucia nodded then looked to where Hex had vanished.

"I should have decked that bastard for making her cry like that before he left, if I ever see that guy again I'll show him he can't treat a lady like that," she growled while cracking her knuckles. Dark nodded as he glanced to where the reality bender had vanished with a glare.

"Should he show himself here again we'll find out if they can indeed bleed and die," he said coldly. Fang Fang looked at where Hex had disappeared with discontent then to the rest of the group with a shrug.

"Well, at least he's not going to be bothering us for the time being. Let's get inside and make sure your friend is alright, it's almost dinner time and it would be nice to have her join us," he said calmly. The group nodded and started walking back towards the building. Gabriel picked up his shirts and slipped them back on while Astreal stopped and took one last moment to look around at the stars above before following after the others.

"I hope big sis is having luck talking to the HDA about a truce, we haven't heard anything from them all day," Kokoa said worriedly.

"That would be great news to hear right about now," Kurumu said with a sigh as they started walking through the entrance into the building.

"They haven't sent any more troops here to execute us, they must be talking still," Gin reasoned.

"Let's just stay positive and hope she's winning them over," Rason said hopefully.

CRASH!

The group quickly looked behind as a dust cloud billowed up from the building's doorways, everybody staring with surprise at the sight as the sounds of rubble and debris piling up was heard before the haze slowly cleared up. As the dust calmed down they saw Astreal staring at them with wide eyes while right behind her was a large chunk of debris that had fallen from above where a few guards were staring at the scene with shock. Broken ropes were swinging about as the chunk of charred wood and metal they had been moving out with the pulley system had snapped free and dropped down next to the building's entrance, just missing Astreal by a hair. The witch shakily looked back to the jagged metal beams and broken wooden boards that were right next to her as the group stared at the sight with stunned expressions.

"What the hell just happened?" Kurumu said with shock.

"Holy shit, are you ok?" Rason asked. Astreal trembled then turned around, the group seeing that her skirt and shirt had a few tears where some of the jagged debris had just grazed her. The girl backed away from the wreckage then dropped onto her rear as she stared at what could have been her death had she been any slower with following the group at the rear.

"Oh my god…" she breathed out.

"Sister, are you ok?" Apoch asked, rushing over to her side and kneeling next to her. Leon quickly rushed over to her other side while Fang Fang stared at the debris with disbelief.

"Oh my word, that could have been the end of you," he said shaking his head.

"Holy crap, she was nearly crushed like a bug," Kyouko said with fright.

"What the hell, are your men trying to kill her?" Rason asked looking to Fang Fang.

"I'm sure it was just an accident, although that could have been a very messy and unpleasant one had she lingered behind any further," Fang Fang said looking to Astreal with worried eyes.

"I don't think even Ceal could have healed her after that," Ruby said shaking her head.

"I wouldn't imagine so either," Ceal said flatly.

"Astreal, are you alright?" Gabriel asked worriedly. Astreal slowly nodded as she caught her breath.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said softly.

"Wow, that was too close," Yukari said looking at the jagged debris. Apoch and Leon helped Astreal stand back up, the blonde witch smiling nervously then glancing to them.

"Guess our luck hasn't run out yet, huh?" she said with a nervous laugh. Apoch and Leon shook their heads as they looked to the debris with wonder.

"I'll be sure to find out how my men were so careless with that, are you sure you're alright Astreal?" Fang Fang asked with concern. The girl nodded and looked to him with a weak smile.

"Yes, I'm fine, don't worry about me, it just scared me to death is all. Come, let's get going and meet up with the others," she said with a wave of her hand. The group nodded then continued down the hallway into the building while Astreal paused to catch her breath and calm her mind, the witch feeling her heart beating faster from the adrenaline still. After a moment to collect her thoughts she followed after her friends while a small cloud of dust lingered behind her.

As the girl walked off a ghostly skeletal hand was briefly seen in the haze, reaching out for the witch before vanishing with a dark shadow swirling around it.