A/N: Ok so it's the summer break. Yay summer! I'm super pumped cause I have a bit of free time to update this story more, finish some others that have dragged on for a while, and clear up time just in general. So naturally I typed up another chapter for this story and am probably gonna add more. I mean I have the whole plot typed up after all~

But I'm just super sorry that the story's dragged on for this long. I usually finish them a lot quicker than this, but time's a slut (as mentioned previously. Thanks for the quote John Green. Love it).

Ihateendings - I'm still writing this story. Updates are just a bit sporadic right now because I have multiple I'm working on :I

Enjoy the summer sun lovelies, it only comes once a year and you'll miss it during winter,

D.L.D

P.s Check out my other stuff for Seven Deadly Sins: 'We're Kids?!' and '3,000 years'. If you like this, you might enjoy them :P


Ban's P.O.V

Idiot...

Idiot.

Idiot.

Idiot.

The word can't help but repeat its irritating tone in my head as I pound against the music room door. To me the deafening thuds of each harsh connection are nothing, along with the trail of blood that leaks from my constantly reopened knuckles. Crimson stains the door, dribbling and splatting onto the floor as the blood pours in a small trickling fountain. My screeching shouts only add to the desperation of my acts as Elaine reaches forward and shakes the devil's hand. That sick devil's hand. The same one who was responsible for this situation as well as Elaine losing her freedom.

Like me that snake shares the burden of that day. Even if Melascula denies it, she's as guilty as I am in the cruel fate of Elaine's life. She helped to add to the chaos that was Elaine's future. She was the one who brought her back to life just for that purpose. She did it to keep her name in the good books of the school officials.

But that's not what pisses me off.

What pisses me off is that even though Melascula denies it, I know that bitch wanted this to happen. She wanted Elaine to fall into the trap that so many had fallen into before. That trap that people like my former friends, neighbours and even my douchebag parents stumbled into. They all fell prey to demons at one point in their lives and only left their family or kids to follow the same vicious cycle. They were led to believe in false miracles, the contracts they entered being irreversible. Life changing.

So it's no wonder why I hate demons. I can justify why I hate them with my very fiber and being.

And Melascula's only adding more fuel to the fire.

"Ban stop!" King speaks over my shouts once more, the wimp only watching as my elbow rams against the door. He blinks and flinches at a particularly rough thud. "Ban..."

The glass of the door shatters, clattering as it splits even more when it lands on the floor. Sharp shards are jammed into my elbow, the blood of the wound already drying up like water on a humid day. I should remove the glass still stuck in my skin, it could cause a lot of trouble later on, but I don't care about that right now. Not at all. In fact all the stinging and aching fades faster than you could blink, the pain barely registering as I reach into through the cracked window and grab the door handle. The metal feels cool against my hand, the smooth material sending a light chill down my palm as I push it downwards.

At my touch, the door easily swings open. It opens with a silent creak, revealing the scene that I was too slow to stop. I was too stupid to even consider the possibility of it happening; I was too blinded with rage to even think of how Elaine would try to stop me. Now that it had happened, I feel as if I'd done nothing to help.

By trying to help I did more harm than good.

"Elaine..."

All the anger and desperation falls away as I stare at her still form. She'd fallen face down, her light blonde hair scattered about her shoulders and head. Her white tie was flipped over her shoulder, the flawless material marked with a grubby substance. Once porcelain hands were now a sickly snow, all of the colour and life seeming to have drained from her body.

I swallow thickly at the sight. I'm sure she's died. I'm sure Elaine had traded her life for ours. But as I stumble towards her form a check for a pulse, the even sound of breathing fills my ears. It was deep and heavy, as if she were asleep, and I could tell that it was steady enough to carry a pulse. A pulse that could provide life and so I let out a relieved sigh.

She was alive and that's all that mattered. Being alive was the main thing, it was the hardest thing to return to, and so being alive was enough for now.

"Well at least she's alive," King breathed his own sigh of relief, his features softening as I delicately turned Elaine over.

I had forgotten the old fart was present. Well I hadn't forgotten, but he wasn't exactly necessary to remember. King was the one telling me to not break into the music room when Elaine was making a stupid deal. He was the one saying that if I calmed down for a minute we could think of something else. But he didn't get that we didn't have much time to do anything. So I had naturally tuned the old fart out, his words being drowned out within the roaring rage of my mind.

However now I'm kinda glad the old fart came along. He was Elaine's brother and so I knew he'd be hit hard by this too. He'd understand how I was feeling, know that it's not that great to be in a situation like this. Even if we didn't get along at the best of times, we both knew what it was like to love Elaine. We both knew how important she was in our lives. Plus King would be willing to help find something to reverse this (even if I didn't really want his help).

"Yeah..." My voice sounded a little quiet, maybe even whispered as I lifted Elaine into my arms. She remained limp, her head cradled in the crook of my arm. "Let's just get her back to her dorm."

King frowned slightly at the sight, his narrowed eyes fixed on me and Elaine and then the music room. He placed a hand to his chin, cupping it in thought, before humming slightly as he silently examined the state of the room. A final lingering glance at the glass from the door and he finally responded.

"Alright," King nodded, an odd but familiar look filling his stupid face. "She'll be more comfortable there."

"You don't say," I roll my eyes, grumbling slightly as I shake my head.

We then leave the music room, my mind only spiraling all the more as Elaine shifts slightly in my hold. I should be happy that she's alive. In fact I should be jumping over the moon and glad that she was still on this plain of existence. Being alive was the main thing to care about: it was the thing that indicated we still had a chance to save Elaine. But it's hard to celebrate when there's a lingering feeling in my gut. A niggling, lingering feeling that only adds up to dread and doubt. Demons are never straight forward with their methods after all. They always have a back alley.

So when I look at Elaine's pale face and feel her soft, cool skin as her hand brushes against mine, I can't help but grimace slightly. I can't help but fear that she'll be stolen away from me again.

Just like last time.


Diane's P.O.V

Things seem to be settling into a more normal pacing now. Well, I think they are.

You see ever since Captain left Liones Academy, things had never really been normal. It couldn't be normal. Classes, teachers, places, even certain aspects of the school were different without the sunshiny presence of Captain. He was the one who ran the Boar Hat, the one place people could get a decent drink around here; Captain was the one who helped to sort out the sports teams; He was the one who volunteered to help some apprentice Holy Knights train; Captain even did things that made everyone wonder how he had the energy and time to do it.

So naturally when he left, the whole school kinda crumbled in on itself.

The usual order of Liones was gone, poofed, everyone shocked or abuzz with the news of the Dragon Sin being gone. Bullies began to make their claim on people that were once protected and others began to rebel because they thought 'hey what's the fucking point?'. Even the Sins went through a little rough patch, Ban going MIA for a while and not turning up until Elaine dragged his ass to the Boar Hat to talk things out.

I may have even cried for a couple of days, burying myself in snacks and comfy blankets. For a couple of days no-one could really contact me, the loss of Captain hitting really close to home as it was as shocking as it was unexpected. Only King and Elizabeth had seen me during that time, King joining me for my movie mope-fest, while Elizabeth popped by and showed some concern. But during those times she had her own problems too, showing concern for my well being but still kinda being distant.

Then after that mess came the whole Goddess vs Demon crap. That feud is what broke the order of Liones completely, a full schism being formed when the students and even some of the staff began to cause all sorts of chaos in the name of the Celestial or Demon schools. When that whole thing erupted, everything else crumbled. It's still crumbling.

That's why Elizabeth wants to talk to Captain.

But that's near impossible now. Captain was someone new now, or perhaps he was just someone we never knew from the beginning. No-one had really seen him for the past few weeks, many saying that he was still being properly groomed by his father before making a 'public appearance'. But I just think that's complete bull. It just doesn't seem right or true.

But even with those rumors circling about, Elizabeth is still determined and confident that she can contact Captain. She knows that she can reach out to him somehow and I believe her when she says so.

I remember what Elizabeth told me in the garden, how she'd been completely solemn and slightly different from the Elizabeth I've grown to know over the past school term. This Elizabeth was more sure and assertive, more confident and bold; the old Elizabeth was a little more reserved and skittish, offering the same knowledge and skill but being a little more lamb-like. She was more innocent before this whole thing happened. But now Elizabeth was a little more hardened. She was more...dutiful.

She had held that sword like it belonged to her, even if it was for a fraction of a second. Elizabeth knew what it was like to fight, what it was like to risk it all for something. For a small but game changing moment, Elizabeth wore one of those cryptic and dangerous looks that Captain got sometimes. She looked as if she knew what she had to do. But as quickly as it came, the princess had wiped it away. That firm reality her eyes had held had dulled into widened shock. Disgust.

Elizabeth had seemed repulsed that she knew how to use a sword, that she knew how dire things had become. She seemed like she wanted to hide it away from how she shivered and jumped away from the blade. The look of fear, sadness and even anger that formed when she quickly placed the sword away gave me a glimpse of what was going on inside her head. It displayed to me how torn up inside Elizabeth was, her bold and confident front being just that: a front.

Elizabeth was just as scared as the rest of us. She missed Captain just as much as all of us did - perhaps even more so. But most of all, Elizabeth was scared. She was scared of what was going to happen and how it could affect us all. Yet she shoved it all aside to help everyone else. She shoved away her fear to help us.

So I can't help but feel bad for Elizabeth as I walk through the empty corridors of the school, my backpack swinging off my shoulder as I held one of the straps. She had so much to think about. So much to do.

But so did all of us I guess.

Everything is just so different now. It's like the world had been flipped upside down, reversing everything and creating pure and utter chaos. But then not everything had been changed, only the local schools in the area, all of which were sponsored by rich toffee noses who didn't know jack squat about quality education. It was because each school was privately funded that no-one really delved into the corrupt nature of these schools. They just let it be.

That created the perfect environment for this to happen.

A short scoff leaves as I turn the corner and go up the stairs, not at all bothered by the eerie emptiness of the school. Not a single soul had passed by, everyone either out to avoid the trouble of the Goddess Vs Demon thing, or helping in said conflict. No-one really turned in at curfew anymore, many of the teachers giving up on trying to contain the wild population of the school and instead taking the predicament as an opportunity to have a small break.

It was only really the royals and other aristocracy who remained at the school, many of them living far out or knowing that crime would not pay off. Plus they could always pay their way into a Celestial or Demon school if Liones failed. It was a perk of being rich.

It didn't take long for me to reach the corridor in which Elaine had a dorm in, her place located pretty close to the gardens as the school knew about her condition. However I didn't expect to see Merlin hanging about there, her slender silhouette sitting in an armchair that was placed in the widened space between the different dorms.

"It's rather late to be out Diane," Merlin tsked slightly, a sneaky smirk edging its way onto her painted lips. "You know it's not safe right now."

I ignore her smirk and comment, knowing she was just teasing me. Plus from the dark circles that rimmed her hazel eyes, I knew that Merlin probably needed the joke to keep her running. She did thrive off the bustling life of Liones after all.

"What are you doing here, Merlin?" I raise a brow, genuinely confused with the sudden presence of the Senior. Especially with how she was looking. Merlin wasn't even dressed in her uniform, instead clad in her casual wear (which wasn't much better).

She wore a pair of black cycle shorts, cropped a little shorter than usual to show off her long legs. Along with that was an off-the-shoulder top that was white in colour and cut off around her midriff. I also spot a navy jumper wrapped around her waist, probably for if it got cold later. But even so that still meant her clothing was not entirely school or kid-friendly, a lot of skin being shown by the tightness or small nature of the items.

To be honest I think Merlin just had a thing for risque clothing, her uniform just about being her most covering outfit, aside from her black sundress she wore to the school carnival. It was something that was part of her.

But today it seemed off, perhaps forced even, as she looked more like she was going to study in a park than be witchy and stuff.

"You haven't heard the news?" Merlin raises a slender brow, dark and finely shaped. "I thought King would tell you about it. He did say he was going to message everyone..."

"What are you talking about?" I frown slightly, the mention of King making my mind begin to form little theories. Dark little theories that could be highly possible with the nature of the school right now. "What happened?"

"It'd be best if they explain," Merlin sighed slightly, glancing out of the window behind the armchair. A tired look passed over her features, a hand cupping her chin. "It's...a hard one to digest."

I give a nod at Merlin's words, deciding to leave her to her reading as she looks like she needs some of the peace and quiet. However the cryptic nature of her words have set me on edge, the tired look and dull tone of her voice being something I haven't seen or heard in a while. When I did see or hear them, I knew that it was something serious or grave that Merlin was talking about. It was something her extensive knowledge couldn't solve.

My heart now racing a little, I head to Elaine's dorm and knock on the door. It looked the same as always, the little brass numbers of the door shining in the light. However the time it took for someone to answer bugged me, causing a second and more loud knock to be given. It was a solid knock, given as I held my breath and hoped that nothing too bad had happened.

"The door's open!" I hear King's voice from inside, the tones of it familiar but seeming to own a dimmed air. A dull air.

I open the door and it opens seamlessly with a small nudge to the handle. I easily head inside, taking off my shoes and glancing about for anything amiss. I find nothing, the small plants that Elaine kept about all seeming to be in place. There wasn't any signs of a fight or struggle. There was nothing to present danger. However the answer is given as soon as I spot the solemn expressions of King and Ban. Matching ones at that. They both look as if they could cry a river and yet they also couldn't. It was like a dry and empty grief and misery, lacking and yet filling and so no-one knew how to react to it. No-one knew what to do with it.

"It's Elaine isn't it?" The question leaves quiet, hangs in the air as I look at the pair. My fingers begin to twist within my hair, my nerves set on edge as one of them responds.

"Yeah..."

Something bad has happened.

I'd better call Elizabeth.


Elizabeth's (normal) P.O.V

They say that even the most carefully thought out plans can go wrong. There's always room for something to fall out of place, or just ruin the plan entirely no matter how small it is. Plans are made to be followed, but can always go wrong. No, they always go wrong. No plan is ever followed right down to the last letter, some sort of quick thinking or improvisation always needed when a tiny mishap occurs.

Maybe that's why I was prepared for something to go wrong. I could sense the wrongness before it had even happened, before I even knew what it was, and it caused me to feel nervous about what might happen. It made me think that perhaps my plan might not play out well. I wasn't usually a leader in these sorts of things, my role as one cast away when I decided to leave Celestial Prep. All the skills I'd earned from back then were like fuzzy memories at times: buried but not completely gone.

So when I'd conjured a way to perhaps return things back to normal, I couldn't help but feel doubt niggling away at the back of my mind. I couldn't help but hear its whispers saying that I should leave it to the professionals, or those who were more experienced.

But even so I chose to push it all away.

I chose to put faith in my plan that really relied on luck and luck alone.

"It's not exactly the wisest plan I'll admit," Jenna hummed slightly as she thought over my idea, a small frown on her features. Her eyes then flicked to the covered sword that stood beside me, a dark graveness forming as she frowned a little more.

Unlike our previous encounters, I had sought her out this time. She had agreed to talk to me about the whole situation, offering some advice and saying that since the meeting was on my terms we could meet at a location of my choosing. Naturally I'd chosen the library, knowing that no-one really came here anymore. It was like a ghost town really, abandoned and silent, all of the life that was once there now gone. That made it perfect for a private discussion.

"Do you think I should still go through with it?" I raise a brow, anticipating her answer as I knew I'd get a neutral one. Well an answer that was as neutral as possible.

But from the look in her eyes, the way she glanced at the sword, I felt like Jenna didn't exactly like the idea of me stepping right into danger's way. I knew that it wouldn't be easy. It wouldn't be something that could be pulled off within a matter of hours or even days. It may take weeks, months maybe, just to gather the information we all needed to finally execute the final stage. Then there were the chances of me getting caught, or having my real intentions exposed.

Going along with this plan would be like walking in the path of a speeding car, hoping that the driver would swerve out the way just in time. I had to be careful about what I did, but also know that if the enemy didn't want to do the right thing I could end up getting caught in the middle of it all.

"I say you have a fair shot if you do," Jenna finally answered, tearing her gaze away from the covered sword. She shivered a bit, pulling a grimace as she silently scowled at the weapon. "But leave that sword. If they even sense that thing, you'll be in serious trouble."

"I didn't intend to bring it..." I answer softly, glancing to the sword as well.

It still had that pure aura around it, strong and unwavering as it filled the room like a thick smog. Just the feel of it was potent, permanent, like the scent of a bottle of vinegar you spilled onto a carpet. It would takes ages to forget the smell and then another age for it to finally fade away after numerous attempts of scrubbing away at the stain. Add in the fact that it was made specially for me, therefore heightening its power when I was about, and the wave of its aura would feel like drowning sometimes. Drowning in a great big river of light.

"It's not all bad you know," Jenna gave a gentle smile, her tone softened. She crossed her arms over her chest, blowing a strand of hair out of her eyes. "Don't be ashamed or disgusted by it."

Her celery green eyes connect with mine, a small nod being shared as she notices my surprise. All I can do is stare back in slight surprise, my eyes widened as a small blush spreads over my skin. I have no clue where Jenna had gotten that from, where she'd gathered that I didn't like the sword because I was hiding away from what it linked to.

"I - " I'm cut off by my phone vibrating in my pocket, the sonorous chime it brings instantly making me think of Diane and the other Sins.

Instantly I open the notification and spot that something's happened. The message was too urgent to be about something casual. Plus the mention of Elaine has me worried, a sinking feeling swimming within my gut as my mind spirals around the possibilities. She did tell me that part of her soul was owned; a part of it taken away by a demon to bring her back to life. This problem could be linked to that, especially with the Commandments lurking about...

"I'm sorry but I have to go," I flash Jenna an apologetic look, my heart now hammering from the text I'd just received.

"Oh no it's fine," Jenna flashed a grin, not at all looking bothered. "Just stay safe, Elizabeth."

I leave without another word, only nodding in response as I rush out of the library.

I hope nothing too bad has happened. Hopefully it's just something minor like an injury or a small accident. It has to be. It can't be anything really bad right? Anything to do with the trouble that comes with the recent schism. I hope it's not anything to do with the recent schism. I hope it's not anything to do with anyone caught in the middle of the schism.

But I know better than anyone that this has everything to do with the schism. It no doubt has something to do with Elaine's very soul.

"Please don't let it be another thing to do with this..." I whisper the words as I walk out into the evening air. The sun had set a little while ago, the once baby blue sky now a midnight board. "Please."

Before I know it I'm at Elaine's dorm, gnawing at my bottom lip as I know that it has everything to do with the feud. It has everything to do with the trouble I've caused.