*Suzuki*

I flew back to the center of town. There weren't that many people out right now, which was comforting. Else, I might have slammed my wings into them given how suddenly I descended.

Why had I ran away like that? What I did shouldn't have bothered me as much as it did. I had held a kid hostage before. Or maybe that was why. Dan's death must've continued to weigh deeply on my conscious. If only I had listened to it back in the cavern. His mental state might not have deteriorated to the point it had, which would've avoided him accompanying Uncle.

No, something told me he would still have joined his father for the chance to see his big brother and sister.

I sighed. If only Emon were here. Talking to him usually helped me lighten up. He often wouldn't say a thing until I was done speaking and he always seemed to have some advice.

Mom and Dad would have been fine too. I even would have settled for Reno. Though, I probably wouldn't even if he were here. Not simply because of his immaturity but because I didn't want to reopen his own emotional wounds. If anything, he probably felt he shared more of the burden for what happened to Dan than I did.

"Why punish yourself? You'll never be accepted by them nor by the others. You're a monster deep down," a voice called out.

I nodded. My eyes widened. That voice.

I turned around but saw no one.

"Who was talking?" I said, looking around.

"You can't even recognize your own voice?"

I gripped my head. "Y-you... Didn't Nori and Eita slay you?"

Laughter echoed in my head. "I can never truly be defeated. I am a part of you. In our veins flows the blood of demons."

I shook my head. "I-I'm not a demon," I said in a muffled grunt as I squatted near the fountain.

"You keep telling yourself that, but you know it isn't true. Face reality, Suzuki. Accept me."

I closed my eyes shut. No! I wouldn't!

"Suzuki?" a voice called out to me. I opened my eyes and looked up to see Kiara accompanied by the monkey brothers and Nico.

"K-Kiara."

She knelt down and stroke my head akin to a mother. "What's wrong? Have a headache? Want to go rest? Our house is fixed, but we only have futons right now."

I pulled away. "I-I'm fine. No need to worry about me."

Kiara sighed. "What do you mean? I can't just ignore someone squatting in the middle of the street looking like their head is being split apart."

If only she knew...

Nico hummed. "Pardon for getting in your business, but was your demon side acting up?"

My eyes widened. He could tell? Right, this man's scent isn't that different from the demons that we fought in the forest. He had to be similar.

"Talking from experience?" I asked as I stood up.

His pupils dilated like a deer in the headlines. Seemed I was on to something.

"Guess you can't keep your secret hidden forever," Kiara whispered.

So, she knew.

Nico lowered his head. "Yes, I'm part demon from my father's side. I've tried to hide it, since as a kid I would often be bullied for my bat-wing." A black bat-like wing sprouted out on his left upper-back.

He peered out of his left eye's edge and quickly retracted his wing into his back. There were people not too far away, but they appeared to be minding their own business.

"Poor guy," Kiara said, frowning.

"Yeah," Etsuo said, lowering his head.

Man-kin swung his hands behind his head. "Meh, people are going to be pricks nothing we can do about it. Don't let it get to ya, man. As long as you're a nice person, who doesn't bother others than you're cool by my book. Not that you should let what I think impact you either. Spending too much time on those things only hurts the brain."

Etsuo turned away.

Man-kin put a hand on his shoulder. "Watching you taught me that."

He looked up at him and smiled slightly. It seemed pained. He probably wished that his brother could've learned it through some alternative means, rather than watching him struggle.

I chuckled. "You're right. I've been asking myself why I even care too much about what others think of me." Even though I denied not to give a hoot.

My cousin gasped. "Was that why you were on the floor? Your demon half was using that against you?"

I nodded. "Yes. Ironically, she also told me not to care. To not feel guilty."

She tilted her head. "Well, that's different. Having a conscious is a good thing. It keeps us from doing bad stuff or puts us back on course if we've gone astray! Without one, we are capable of awful stuff. That said, feeling too guilty is also a negative." She grinned. "I know! Turn that guilt into action! Keeping it within does nothing but let it fester."

I smiled. When I first met her, I thought she was a ditzy tomboy. It seemed there was more to her than met the eye.

I bowed my head. "Realized, I haven't apologized yet for what I did to you."

"But you didn't take me to Abyssia. It was Etsuo."

Etsuo gulped.

I closed my eyes. "Not that. How I nearly killed you during my rampage."

"How do you know about that?" Etsuo asked.

My eyelids opened up. "Eita-"

"Suzuki!"

"-told me." I glanced up at the blue yonder and saw Eita as he descended. Why did he come after me? Did he have feelings for me? I didn't want that.

"Hey, we were just talking about you!" Man-kin said, waving at him.

Eita stepped back, a slight blush on his cheeks. "R-really? W-what were you saying?"

I crossed my arms. "About how annoying you are."

His head dropped. "Oh, I see."

Letting out a sigh, I walked over to him. "It was a joke."

Eita's emerald orbs glanced up at me. He smiled as a light blush covered his cheeks.

I turned away. Why did he have to give me such a cute reaction? Made me feel bad about teasing him.

It was then that I noticed his hair was damp with sweat. He must've fought hard against his brother earlier. Well, he and his cousin had managed to defeat him. Though, I had no idea how much of one it was given Eiichi looked to be on his last legs. On the other hand, Eita himself was still recovering.

"Did your mom tell you to take it easy?" I asked, leering at him. If not for Zafir, I would've told him so earlier.

Eita ran a hand through his wet hair. "Yeah, but even if I do, the world is still moving without me. I'll fall even further behind. Plus, I'm taking it easier compared to my brother."

"True, but still. You should take a shower and lay down."

Eita grabbed his shirt and wiped the cold sweat rolling down his chin with. "You're right. I wouldn't want to worry Mom by getting sick either. She already has a lot on her plate."

I smiled. So, he wasn't clueless to that.

He smiled back as he let go of his shirt. "Well, just wanted to check up on you. Now that I've done so, I can rest easy. Especially since Eii is out right now. Means I have no sparring partner."

My eyes shifted toward the others, only to realize they were gone.

"Huh? Where did they go?" I asked, looking around.

"Kiara left a moment ago. You didn't notice?" He chuckled. "You must be more exhausted than me."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "And here I was going to look for a sparring partner for you." Truth be told, I wanted to volunteer, but I didn't wish to give the guy false hopes. 

He blinked. "Didn't you tell me to rest?"

I sighed. "For when you feel better, but you're right. You can think of that later."

He raised his shirt up to his lips. "T-thanks for caring."

I turned away. "I-it's nothing. I do owe you one for having saved me."

"If you wish to repay me, how about a date?" He closed his mouth and lowered his head.

I grumbled. This guy was taking it a little too far.

"Y-you don't have to if you don't want to. I won't force you."

Taking a deep breath, I crossed my arms. "I'll consider it."

He let go of his shirt and beamed. "You will?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Kid."

He backed away and cleared his throat. "I mean, you'll consider it?" he asked, trying to sound as stoic as he possibly could.

I nodded. "Yes."

He jumped into several meters into the air. "Yes!" His face flushed as soon as he landed back down. "I mean, great."

I sighed. "Don't try to act like someone you're not just to impress people. Especially girls. If someone likes you, it should be because of who you are. Not what you pretend to be."

Eita smirked. "Alright. I'll try to be more of myself from now on! Well, I better go get cleaned up for our date!"

"I didn't say it was today!"

"Oh, right. Well, I better be ready anyway!"

I sighed as he left. Should I have done that? Didn't wish to give the poor guy hopes. That said, it would be my first date in a long time. I didn't really have time for it, as a rebel. Plus, it would've been unfair to my potential boyfriend. But now that that was over, I could give it a chance.

Though, why did a Raiyama have to fall for me? They'd been the ones behind the hurt in my family. Dating one would do me no good.

"Aww, you're going on a date!" Kiara yelled as she popped up from behind the fountain as soon as Eita was gone.

I put a hand on my hips. "You're girlier than I thought if this kind of stuff interests you."

She grinned. "Mom did love reading me romance novels. Some were pretty blegh, but others were nice."

"I see. Well, for you information, there's no romance from my end."

Ki swung her hands behind her head. "I see. Well, at least you're giving him a chance by accepting his offer."

I grumbled. "You must've misheard. I only said that I would consider it."

"Right, but still!" Ki chuckled. "I think he'll make you happy. Eita seems like a nice guy, plus he's rich and handsome if that's your type."

I scoffed. "I'm not a gold digger, nor am I a shallow girl." Though, she wasn't wrong about about his looks. Despite his antics, Eita looked pretty cool. He was also a lot more muscular than I'd anticipated. I'd expected him to have a flat stomach underneath those baggy clothes of his.

"Suzu, your face is turning red."

I grumbled. "You made me think of something I preferred not to."

My cousin smirked. "What would that be?"

I flicked her forehead, causing her to yelp. "Nothing you and your friends should know."

"So she knew we were here," Man-kin said as he poked his out of from the fountain.

"Told you and Ki to leave her and Eita alone," Etsuo mumbled.

Seemed Nico was the only one who actually bothered to give me some space. Made me feel a little bad for how I'd treated him with indifference when we first met at the palace.

"Where did Nicolas go?" I asked.

"He said that he was going to go train. Overhearing how hard Eita and his brother had been training inspired him to go practice some more," Etsuo said as he came closer. He stared at his hand. "I probably should too." His hand curled into a fist as he let out a sigh. "I'm still pathetically weak."

Would training him be a good idea? He hadn't exactly come over to our side.

"Let's go see Dad. He can teach us a few tricks!" Kiara said, taking his hand.

Uncle had returned? Mom, Dad, and my brothers must've come back too.

"H-hey! Slow down!" Etsuo yelled as he was pulled away by my overenergetic cousin.

Man-kin chuckled as he followed after them.

I smiled as I watched them run off. "Wait up! I'll like to join you! If that's alright with you, of course," I yelled, chasing after them.

Kiara looked over her shoulder and smiled. "Of course it is!"

A warm feeling washed over me, pushing aside the dark vibe from earlier back into its cavern.

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Thoughts? Theories? Predictions?**