One thing I didn't think to note, a rosary in Purgatory doesn't always have a cross. In other words, the "demon eye" itself is in place of an actual symbol of religion, hence the label rosary. For simplicity, I'm still calling it a rosary.
- ML
Note to self: I don't remember some eye colors so I'm winging it and giving them new colors lol
UPDATE 13 July 2024: Timestamp
UPDATE 27 July 2024: timestamp fix
Chapter 7: Long Ears
Year X820
The trip back to the Loner Village was uneventful. No Ferals of any kind crossed paths with the group of Reiji, Shugo, Ryouichi, and Lamy. Luckily, the rental Lamy drove took them as far as the forcefield protecting the village itself. Miratona met them at the same entrance that was past the surrounding forest. Her handprint unlocked the forcefield, and the trio had to part ways with the Tartarus Fairy demon.
"Don't ghost us again!" Ryouichi whined as he grabbed Lamy's leg. Shugo hugged her tightly.
"Visit us sometimes, old friend!" Shugo wailed dramatically.
"Alright, alright, get off!" the bunny-like demon laughed as the two males were shaken or pried off. Reiji bowed to her, her usual show of respect.
"Thank you for everything," the green haired demon said. Lamy hugged her, her face buried in the female demon's bosom. Reiji blushed, but accepted the smaller demon's embrace with an awkward path of the back.
"Good luck, all of you. And please be safe," Lamy grinned as she released the hug. "I've got more jobs to do before I'm going home."
Shugo and Ryouichi waved as the large vehicle sped off onto the Silk Road once more. Once the trio passed through the forcefield, Miratona sealed it off, rendering the village invisible and untouchable to the outside world. Miratona passed a slip to Shugo. His mood dropped when he read the bill for the suit.
"7,500?! I'm not made of money!"
"You are now, so pay up soon," the mission secretary smirked, motioning with one waiting hand. Ryouichi chuckled as Shugo handed her the cash from his payment. Reiji pat the Jade Dragon slayer's shoulder. The Beast Soul looked away as Reiji glanced at him. She frowned.
What did I do?
"Phew, we're finally home!" Ryouichi chirped, stretching his arms above his head. In her train of thought, Reiji hadn't noticed Miratona's departure. The female Beast Soul was certainly a master of stealth. Shugo was off to sniff out his sister to help treat his bad ankle. And now, Ryouichi and Reiji walked alone together on the way to Sunset Valley Avenue. Ryouichi did not live there, but four blocks over.
"Ryo, I—"
"Rei- oh, my bad," he coughed slightly. The dark skinned demon fixed her new glasses with an amused look. "No, you go first." He must be upset about something.
"Okay, uh," he trailed off, deep in thought. "The Ferals, how did you do that?"
"D-Do what?" she asked, pretending to feign ignorance. Ryouichi glared, as he knew that old trick too well. She looked down. "Oh, that... I do not know. I'm sorry."
"What do you mean you don't know? You can barely use a defense knife, much less that wicked shit yesterday. What the hell was that?!" he inquired. Reiji winced at his raised voice. He sighed. "Sorry for yelling."
"N-no, it is fine," she murmured. He could not find out anything more from the events of yesterday morning. Lamy knowing things and seeing right through was enough. "I guess I bloomed late, nothing more," she said after a pause.
"... That's great, Rei!" he grinned. "Now you can really get into missions with us, if you want."
"Oh, I wish I could, but Mina's out of the village and I'm responsible for—oh no, that cafe!" Reiji immediately broke into a run, spreading her hair out to wrap around her torso. A pair of wings bear hard on the wind until she soared above the streets. Oh no, no, no! I never called Lunalu
"That's cool!" Ryouichi called halfheartedly. "I'll be here, chilling," he mumbled, kicking a pebble.
Just as Reiji had feared, customers were outside a deserted cafe. She saw familiar faces among about a dozen: little Mikayla with her mother, a certain early morning beer drinker, and Lunalu stuck outside as well. Two other coworkers were with her, blocking a locked up shop. There appeared to be some impatient individuals.
"Reiji, thank goodness!" the younger female squealed as she threw herself onto Reiji in a tight hug. The buxom demon blushed red, hardly having a chance to settle onto the ground. Lunalu rubbed her face all over metal, unaffected by the material.
"Her face or her tits?" the wavy haired regular howled with laughter at herself. Lunalu jumped off, pouting.
"That's not funny, I have a boyfriend!"
"Never stopped you before!"
Lunalu's turned red. She snarled at whoever made the remark, eyes going yellow for a moment. Reiji imagined a small dog barking aggressively in Lunalu's place. Lunalu was a Hound Beast, after all.
"Let's open up shop for these people, my knight," she giggled. "Please tell me you have the key?"
"The key? Yes, in my pocket," she went into her left pocket, presenting a set of keys. Reiji unlocked the front door, then the small staff ushered inside, locking the door back.
To begin setting up the cafe, stools were taken down from the tables, booths, and the bar, glasses and silverware were polished, and although the kitchen did not have time to prep, they used appropriately marked leftovers to begin the morning rush. Within half an hour, the cafe was fully open and Reiji found herself slowly drained of her energy once again.
With no time to changing out of her armor, she simply placed the pieces in the storage closet, then threw one of her signature blue aprons over her blouse and trousers.
She looked at herself in the mirror, inside Mina's office. No matter how her hair looked, Reiji felt very out of character without her typical maid dresses and heels. It almost felt unnatural. She pulled the rosary from her shirt, letting it be exposed as another small accessory. She nodded to herself.
"Let's do this."
"I cannot do this."
Reiji took a glass of water in her trembling hands from one of the other back of house staff. She was tall like Reiji, but her black skin, slim and long legged. It was a miracle the female demon could even fit in the kitchen without bumping her head on lights and doorways. Reiji lasted two hours before breaking down after dropping a plate. That had not happened in months and a customer waited almost 45 minutes for that plate. Furthermore, she had to juggle complaints, the register, the kitchen, the servers, the cooks, and the bartender by herself. Poor Lunalu could not neglect her server duties to assist Reiji. The dark skinned demon felt completely useless, like she already let Mina down.
Reiji couldn't help but burst into tears at the thought of disappointing her beloved manager. She sat in the office chair. The black demon sat on the other side of the desk.
"In your defense, you weren't trained to manage a whole business," the cook attempted to reassure Reiji.
"But she trusted me anyway, Ruu. I'm terrible, I will most certainly lose this job," Reiji lamented.
"Get it together, Miss Reiji! Miss Mina chose you because she believed in you!" Ruu said adamantly. Her sharp yellow eyes flashed with determination, catching through green haired demon by surprise.
"Finish your water and get back out there, you're doing great," the jet black demon grinned. "All this self pity and complaining is going to make everyone worry. Screw the customers for one day, got it?"
"Uh, r-right. Just focus on operations," Reiji muttered before chugging her water. She stood up from Mina's office chair, patting her cheeks a few times as she walked out.
Screw the customers, focus on the staff. Wait, I can't screw them...
Reiji looked outside the kitchen for a moment. She saw Natsui with his friends. He smiled and nodded, but it was definitely a distant look. Reiji shrank back from the door.
"I cannot screw that!" she wailed, covering her eyes over her glasses.
"Hey, Reiji? We got a customer who requested you," Lunalu said, poking the taller demon's shoulder. Reiji jolted.
"Oh, a request? Well, screw it, I am coming."
Lunalu chuckled at Reiji's response as the green haired demon stepped out. The whole front felt colder as she laid her eyes upon the customer at the door. She wore a puffy pink gown with a matching white bonnet over her dark blonde wavy locks. Her soft green eyes met Reiji's blank gaze, then she smiled.
"M-miss Michelle, what a surprise!" Reiji exclaimed as she bowed to the noblewoman.
This particular demon was the only daughter of the Imitatia family, well known in the countryside for their unique demonic abilities of mimicry and puppetry. Reiji briefly felt a rivalry between her and Michelle as young females, but had grown into respectful acquaintances as young adults.
Michelle returned the bow with a courtesy. Many customers who knew of her lineage couldn't help but admire her presence at a mere local cafe. She was alone, as she was old enough to travel independently. Michelle also shared the same name as the blacksmith Michele, but Reiji could never confuse the two. Right now, her heart sort of belonged to the blacksmith. Although, the coldness around Michelle Imitatia felt almost... carnal.
"It's so good to see you again, Rei-tara," Michelle grinned, then covered her mouth. "Oh, Sagara-kun, right?"
"That is alright, Miss Michelle," Reiji replied. "I will accept Sagara, or whatever you prefer."
"I think Sagara-kun will suffice," the mimicry demon smiled. She took a seat at a window table as Reiji made her way to the table. The coldness rendered her a bit lightheaded, in all honesty. Reiji had not felt this way since the Feral attack on her mission. Was this her subconscious warning her again?
Shaking the thought away, she asked for Michelle's drink order.
"Hmm, what is this mango float?" the mimicry demon asked. "I saw it listed on a sign of specials for today."
"That is actually a Humanoid dessert," Reiji answered. "Todays special drinks are—"
"I want to try that and a lychee soda." Michelle grinned at the green haired demon, in the middle of her sentence. Reiji forced a smile. "As you wish, Miss—"
"Oh, you and your formalities, just call me Immi-Chan!"
So stupid. Reiji thought, then shook her head. What? That is not stupid at all, just different! Michele Imitatia is my wonderful comrade, one of my first townspeople friends...
"Right, Immi-chan," she nodded then retreated to the kitchen to give the order.
15 years ago
Year X805
The first year of freedom was very difficult for the young Reiji. She and dozens of liberated creatures journeyed from the now abandoned prison camp that was her "home," to the Loner Village in the country of Magnoramus. Their freedom was all thanks to the protective powers of a certain pair of tomcats, a rabbit girl, a busty bird woman, a blind female with stumps for horns, a humanoid female with metal looking fingers and toes, and a walking skeleton male. Reiji still remembered the incredible group and their grand entrance right as Shugo's Dragon Slayer magic came to life. It all happened so suddenly.
Prisoners and guards running toward or away from things; guards' bodies falling to their deaths; an unsettling density in the air, like something of insane strength had destroyed the forcefield that once surrounded the prison. It was an ambush of sorts, where the enemy did not stand a chance. Reiji did not think Shugo even remembered how awesome he was when his Jade Dragon rage blew their cell apart.
But despite the newfound peace in Loner Village, the chaos still lived in many of the freed prisoners' minds, hearts, and bodies. A healthy environment, education, work with purpose, and true peace in their little worlds helped to recover the damage done under Queen Dominique's terror, but the trauma was deeply rooted and eternal.
One day, Reiji was drawing a circle with many odd symbols. It was sort of play-pretend ritual she saw in a dream once. It had taken many days for the green haired demon to feel comfortable drawing in the open. No one bothered her, or maybe they were put off by a nine-year-old child drawing strange things on the ground. But not this girl standing in front of Reiji.
The dark skinned demon locked eyes with a human-passing female not much older than she. Her light brown hair was combed back under a white bonnet. Judging by the elegant little black dress she wore, this strange female was apart of a fortunate family. Her warm green eyes made Reiji's heartbeat pick up. The amount of eye contact made her stomach turn.
"Uh, h-hello," Reiji muttered, looking away.
"You're an artist, so cool! I like your glasses," the child smiled brightly. "Let's be friends, since you're alone."
"I-I am not alone," Reiji flushed red. She had Takeshiro, Shugo, Ryouichi, and Uchizumi. What more could little Reiji ask for? "I, y-you..."
"I'm Michelle," the girl replied. Little Michelle grabbed a stick and began drawing her own circle. It was sloppy and hardly close to what Reiji had practiced over and over.
"I'm gonna draw one better, watch me!" the green eyed girl grinned. Reiji couldn't help but chuckle at the strange demon. Suddenly, Michelle's hair stretched and grew out a vine-like strand, which grabbed another stick. Reiji fell backwards in shock. But the light brown vine soon shrank and lost its mobility.
"Y-your hair!" Reiji gasped.
"I can copy creatures' powers. Cool, right?" the noble female asked smugly. Reiji's hair grew several vines. The dark green locks rose like tentacles from her head. Surprised green eyes looked at Reiji's agitated yellow eyes.
"I, I can do it better," Reiji said.
Reiji would go on to rival the noble female for a couple of odd years. Michelle loved pink just as much as Reiji admired all things blue.They ended up dressing similar for a while, a test of one's creativity through style. Michelle was like an obnoxious princess who "couldn't help her cuteness," while Reiji was a shy maiden lucky enough to be associated with such nobility. They finally became casual friends once the need to surpass the other grew unappealing.
Present, X820
A small part of Reiji felt small near her confidence still. She thought it came from a place of envy, so the green haired demon kept it to herself. Reiji brought a tray of Michelle's lychee soda and mango float to the noble female's table. The noble female smiled with glee.
"How marvelous! This floating mango looks like a layer of fruit and cream," she beamed. Reiji chuckled softly.
"Yes, that is close. The mango float is made with condensed milk, graham crackers, heavy cream, and sliced mango fruit. It is the overnight processing that creates this delicious Crimson Sun weather treat," Reiji described. "And the soda is imported from False Line City."
"Oh, wow, False Line? I had no idea we received shipments from so far away. Thank you for the dessert, Sagara-kun," Michelle said. Reiji bowed, a common courtesy of all guests, before tending to the next table beside Michelle's.
.
Due to the shortage in supply and overall exhaustion of the staff, Reiji chose to close the cafe two hours early, around 17:00. Thankfully, Mina had replaced the old washroom with a full dishwasher system that also sanitized, polished, and heat dried dishes. Bar glasses still had to be hand washed separate from food dishes, cookware, and utensils, of course.
Reiji helped clean the dining room tables and floors, although that part always came with her initial job as a server. Lunalu happily swept and mopped with Reiji.
Reiji's mind kept drifting back to the abnormal atmosphere around Michelle, the coldness and desire for something. The green haired demon wanted to figure it out, but Michelle had already left for the day.
"Earth to Reiji!"
The dark skinned demon jolted in surprise at the sound of Lunalu's melodic tone near her ear. Reiji's ears burned with embarrassment at her breath so close to her face. Lunalu brushed a strand of dark blue hair behind her single-pierced ear, glossed lips curled in a teasing grin.
"Oh, right! My apologies," Reiji blushed. "What were you saying?"
"Your ears are long," the tanned demon said.
"They always have been," Reiji replied, puzzled.
"They're like a little bit longer though, like a real Elf creature."
"Elves do not exist," Reiji pouted. She touched her ears. Oh, they definitely grew a little bit. How did no one notice until now?
"You look super cute!" Lunalu grinned.
"Oh, nonsense, they're just my ears," Reiji murmured. The Calibara demon giggled. "Just ears, sure, but how'd they change like that? Potion?"
"I do not know, I did not notice," Reiji answer honestly.
"Even your demeanor is different. You're not so bashful anymore." Lunalu got closer, looking in Reiji's eyes. Lunalu's violet ringed green orbs were curious.
"You've got spunk."
"Uh, what?"
"You know, spunk! You're like, more open and kinda cool."
"Oh, thank you, Lunalu," Reiji replied, fixing her glasses. She did not believe a word of it. "Did you, uh, notice my glasses?"
"Eh, kinda the same?"
They are brand new! Reiji thought with disappointment.
"Even your stutter isn't so bad. The real Reiji wouldn't expect me to compliment her glasses," Lunalu added. Reiji felt a dagger prick her head. She is brutal today!
"Aaaannd, you didnt use your hair once today!" Lunalu concluded. Reiji facepalmed.
"Where are you going with this?"
"Dod you get a boyfriend? Girlfriend? A boo?" Lunalu smirked. Reiji blushed as she shook her head. "No, nothing like that!"
"Ah, come on! Somebody HAS to want a part of your rocking body—" Reiji made a large hand from her hair before slapping it over Lunalu's mouth.
"Back to work, Lunalu!"
Reiji hurried home after rushing the last of the cleaning. She triple checked every door to ensure it was locked, as well. The green haired demon was still mulling over her conversation with Lunalu. Reiji? Changing? Impossible. She was the same person since she could remember: a massive coward riddled with nerves, unworthy of that kind of love...
As Reiji walked down her avenue, she saw Michelle walking toward her direction. The Copy demon carried a slim paper bag in one hand. Reiji kept her eyes on the floor, pretending nothing was on her mind.
"Sagara-kun, I can still see you," the noble female said. Damn it.
"Good evening, Michelle," Reiji forced a smile. "What brings you to this quiet street?"
"I was looking for you, actually," the Copy Demon replied. "I wanted to see an old friend one last time."
"Last time? Are you leaving Loner?" Reiji questioned. It was unfortunate to learn of yet another familiar face leaving. Even Otto vanished suddenly. At least she would get to say goodbye to this one.
"Yes, I'm moving back to my parents' estate near False Line. I've already gone to my other friends, and saved you for last."
"Why me?"
"You're one of my oldest friends, Sagara-kun," Michelle conceded. She held the bag out to Reiji. "So as a farewell gift, let's share a bottle of Jade Flower Sake, I heard it's your favorite."
Lunalu's demon race comes from Queen's Blade. Her character design is similar, except she does not dress like... that. Iykyk.