(A/N): Blame animation homework for the delay.

"Even if this Necropolis place exists, there's no way to get there."

"If it's the afterlife, you just have to die, right?"

"Are you an idiot?!"

Meliodas had a point, in a way. Though it was really stupid. I laughed at them, walking in circles around the three. "That doesn't sound safe."

The whole group had exited the tavern to look for an entrance to the Necropolis, trying to decipher the words of Ellen. However, there was no particular landmark or any sign of such kind that would indicate an entrance to the City of the Dead, and so were just walking around aimlessly waiting for a signal to turn up. I stuck beside Meliodas' side, while Elizabeth and Hawk walked in front of us aimlessly. Diane had gone off somewhere behind us, peeking around in the trees while Ban headed off west, to a dry patch of dirt.

"Precious memories shared with the dead huh." Elizabeth hummed softly with a smile. "I'd love to meet my mother! She died when I was too young to remember her!" She exclaimed excitedly with hopeful eyes, hands clenched.

That doesn't count. Hawk and I sighed, "Well that rules you out."

The princess' shoulders dropped as did her smile and she sighed a bit. "I guess you're right, I don't have any shared memories."

I hummed in thought, fingers tracing the crystal in my pocket. The face... Precious memories shared with the dead huh.... I can't think of anybody aside from Liz... If only I had my memories of Dahlia, of before that time. I'm sure I've lost people before. I wish I could remember. Being reminded of the lack of my memories unsettled me just as much as feeding did; it was a touchy subject.

My memories went only as far back as me turning up in Dahlia. With no damn idea who I was. And even now, my memories of my stay in Dahlia were... blurry at best. I couldn't remember doing what they said I did.

Yet it was the truth that I woke up in the middle of the burning town, with a bloody mouth and a tearful face, claws bloody and dirty with what I'd rather picture as not human flesh.

They said it was me who did it; who killed all of those people in Dahlia, destroyed the palace, burned down the town, and drank several people dry. It was a deeply unsettling story, for I could never picture myself doing something as monstrous as that, even if I had been starved for years. I'd never do that... right? But I was the sole survivor and when Danafor had captured me there was still blood around my mouth. I tried to forget as much as I could, avoid thinking that what happened really could have been me. Or at least, whoever I was before then.

A hand suddenly took mine out of my pocket, stopping my fidgeting. I startled and looked at Meliodas beside me, who squeezed my cold hand in his own warm one, gently. His emerald eyes seemed to know exactly what I was thinking about, somehow. He really did know all my tells.

I exhaled slowly, relaxing some in his grip. The warmth was unfamiliar to my own body, but it was soothing.

"You're okay." Meliodas whispered, squeezing my hand once more. I blushed a bit and nodded slowly. Whether it was a question, statement or reassurance didn't matter.

"Ban, that's so not your style!"

"What the hell..?!"

"Elizabeth! Look at all these flowers!" Diane giggled excitedly, waving us over.

Our attention was caught quickly by Diane's delighted voice and the four of us walked towards them quickly. My jaw dropped a bit at the sight of all those soft pink flowers, ones that had covered a large area so thickly I couldn't see the dirt. I am certain that Ban was standing on a dry patch of dirt. What the....

I followed Elizabeth and stepped on to the large flower patch, attempting not to step on the beautiful things. Their appearance was sweet, but the smell not so much.

Elizabeth gasped and smiled in wonder. "What kind of flowers are these?"

I crouched down, staring at a pink flower from up close. They looked like roses, but they sprouted directly from the ground and not a bush, nor were they as tall as rose. Strange.  "I don't know. I haven't seen any flowers like these before."

Hawk scoffed, sniffing at the flowers. "Who cares about a bunch of flowers? You can eat and eat these things forever and never be full!" He said, huffing. His breath hit the flower, and petals detached from it, flying up.

Suddenly all the petals were torn from the flowers and flying as if caught in a terrible storm. We gasped, as we were quickly engulfed in a petal tornado. I could only stare at the petals as they closed in on us, in awe and some trepidation. This must be the entrance. Ban must have activated it..

"Guys! Be careful!"

I barely caught the words of the children, squinting as the wind picked up in speed, and the petals enclosed us completely. My vision was blocked completely by the soft pink and its bittersweet smell.

~~~~~~><><><~~~~~~

The pink petals swirled apart, falling away.

The sight that met me was... simpler than I expected.

Green and turquoise crystals sprouted from a crystalized ground I couldn't see, more of the same crystals like the one in my pocket towered over me. Like branches, the crystals burst from each other, following no visible pattern or logic.

I stared in awe and confusion at the place. Even the damn sky is green. What is this, some kind of joke? I would have expected green pastures, or caves, or just white or black nothingness. But no, I get some random crystals and everything is green. Really not what one expects from a dead realm.

"Captain..." Diane said hesitantly.

"Yeah. We're here." Meliodas affirmed, eyes narrowed slightly as he looked around.

Elizabeth gasped softly, "Do you think it was my wish to meet my mother that brought us here?"

"Maybe it was my powerful longing for all the scraps that have passed me by!" Hawk piped in confidently.

Meliodas shrugged, picking at his ears. "My mind was blank!"

"Mine too!" Diane beamed with a smile, leaning down.

I felt for the crystal in my pocket. It was still there, of course. I fiddled with it anxiously. Something about the crystals unsettled me. Dead people... who would I see? "I wasn't really thinking of anything either.."

Ban hummed quietly, looking around. Then gasped and stiffened, seeming to spot something. Or someone. He immediately sped away full speed, running after whatever he had seen.
What the..

"Ban!" Diane exclaimed after him.

"Hold it!" The furious voice of King came up as the young looking boy flew from behind a pillar, chasing after the fox sin.

The little boy who was apparently King was just speeding away after Ban with such killing intent, I didn't know for which of them I'd worry. I gasped a little, running a hand down my face with a frustrated groan. "Seriously?!

"King!" Meliodas gasped in surprise, as the two men sped away from us. King was clearly angry with Ban, if what happened before was anything to go by and the way he chased him said a lot. If left alone to their own devices, surely they'd... well who knows actually. Ban wouldn't kill his friend, and while King was furious for whatever reason, it wasn't like he could actually kill Ban. Right?

"That's King?" Elizabeth asked in surprise, as Hawk gasped annoyed "What the hell?"

Making up my mind, I clicked my tongue, shaking my shoulders. "I'm going after them! Better stop them from killing each other!"

"(Y/N)! Wait for us!" Meliodas yelled, clicking his tongue. He tried to grab my wrist and slow me down, but I dodged the grab.

"You'll catch up!" I shrugged and ignored him, having already sped away in the same direction as the other two. Crystals surrounded me from all sides, just endlessly sprouting from everywhere, with no visible landmarks or signs or anything. Soon I was pretty far away from the others, following after King and Ban's scents.

Which was simple, at first. But after a couple of minutes the scents were disappearing. And I realized something about the Necropolis made those things less tangible. Things like scents of living beings, because it was a point out of the normal realm of existence. The crystals loomed over me, reflecting each other and myself in their facets, eerily green and empty.

I realized quickly that I kept getting distracted by the crystals. They loomed around me like accusing critics and judges, staring me down.
The crystals were the same as the one I had picked up, just way bigger in size. The more I glanced at them, the more I felt like something was staring back at me. If this is a dead realm... shouldn't there be souls around? No, this is just a bridge between the dead and the living.

Maybe they only come when they want to? Or when they know someone...

I bit my lip nervously. For someone that would be described as a beast by some, ghosts creeped me out. I mean, if I can't see them, can't hit them, and they're already dead, how am I supposed to defend myself if I need to?! Not to mention, if this was a bridge place, then what I feared the most was getting confronted by... people I had killed. Being told that I did kill them.

That the Dahlia incident was real and my fault entirely.

I shivered. I don't like this place. It doesn't seem particularly dangerous but...

I don't think I belong here.

I clenched the crystal in my pocket, as if it could comfort me. I had slowed down to a somewhat steady walk pace, trying not to look into the crystals, afraid of what I'd see. Of course, it was then that a voice called out to me.

"(Y/N)... You haven't changed."

"(Y/N)....how long has it been?"

A quiet voice rose from the crystals, male.

I jumped, startled and quickly grabbed my sword, unsheating the long blade. I circled around, looking around frantically. "Who is that?"

The crystals almost seemed to glow and pulse and I heard a sigh.
"You... you don't remember me?..."

I frowned. The voice sounded so sad.. I looked around, trying to pinpoint where it was coming from, sword held high. "Where are you? Show yourself!"
There was a flash of something in one of the biggest crystals in a corner and I quickly sprinted over there. The surface of the crystal flickered, like water touched by something, and a reflection appeared.

It was a dirty blonde boy with tresses of hair that fell down his shoulders like silk. He was dressed in white clothes, not so different from his own pale skin. What shocked me was the red eyes, staring at me so lovingly as he held out a hand as if to hold mine. Red eyes that looked just like mine in those moments; that knew the thirst and hunger that made your throat and teeth ache.

"Hello there (Y/N). I didn't expect to... see you again."

His voice was gentle, yet raspy in a soft way, almost whisper-like. I lowered my sword a bit, but still frowned as I got closer to the crystal. The boy was a vision, I wouldn't deny that. He was beautiful, almost in an ethereal way, despite the rough edges of his torso and jaw. I stared at him, trying to recall if I had met him before. But nothing came to mind. It was blank. "Who... who are you?"

The boy smiled sadly, red eyes crinkling at me with such affection I almost wanted to look away. "You haven't changed at all (Y/N). My name is Lance."

Lance... The name did not ring anybells in my brain. And while I should've been comforted by that, it just unsettled me more. Nobody had looked at me like that before.

"Oh (Y/N). How did you get here?" The boy in the reflection said mournfully, looking awfully concerned for me.

I sheathed my sword hesitantly, frowning. Something in my chest seemed to want to jump at the sight of him, whether it was in a bad way or not I wasn't sure. "Precious memories shared with the dead" I said hesitantly.

He sighed in relief. "Of course. I-I never thought I'd see you again, pardon me."

"What do you mean? Have we met before?" I asked, frown deepening as I stepped closer to the crystal. I was tempted to put a hand to the crystal surface, as if I'd be able to touch him.

The boy's smile shook and broke my heart, so gentle that it was barely there. "A long long time ago. But that was in another life my dear."

I gulped, getting even closer to the crystal, I rose a hand to touch it hesitantly. Another life?? Something in the back of my mind creaked open and close with his voice, but I still knew nothing. "Why?"

He smiled brokenly, red eyes growing teary. "It's alright. I'm glad that you've forgotten, in a way. You suffered so much. At last that pain is no longer yours to bear."

My heart ached in my chest, so much it was painful. I didn't know who he was not at all, but seeing him with such a painful expression on his face made me want to cry. "Will I... Will I know who you are someday?"

"Perhaps." He said quietly, raising a hand as if to caress my cheek and I could have sworn there was a brief touch of warmth. "But I think I'd rather you remain like this, with this innocent look and eyes still untouched by pain. I'd rather you not remember me, than see you tormented by the past."

He obviously could tell I was displeased by the answer, but smiled sweetly, a hand reaching out of the crystal. I almost flinched away as the translucent hand inched towards me, but the touch was unexpectedly subtly warm and soft. He held my cheek in a painfully affectionate manner, closing his eyes and sighing.
"It's alright, (Y/N). Live. Don't you die (Y/N). It is not your time."

I had even more questions now than I did before. This was a boy I couldn't recall. He had eyes like mine when I was hungry, even fangs in his mouth when he smiled. He clearly had some type of... connection to me, that was impossible to deny. Why can't I remember who he is then?
My head pulsed for a moment, an unbearably strong ache that pushed at my skull. I gritted my teeth and pulled at my hair dizzily. My heart aches when I see his smile.

A smile I wanted to protect.

Lance frowned, patting my cheek. "Stop it. Do not try to remember." He ordered me harshly, despite the soft concern in his eyes his mouth twisted into a frown.

"B-but I.." I mumbled in protest, furrowing my brows.

Then the continuous explosions finally reached me, catching my attention, and I immediately looked in that direction. Smoke rose north from my position, pieces of crystal turned to dust passing me by. I clenched my teeth. The others!

Lance's hold on my cheek strengthened for a moment, and then he let go. "Go. Your friends need you."

I pursed my lips, still with so many words on the tip of my tongue. But the boy named Lance just beamed at me, as the crystal reflection rippled, and he faded.
I stared for a moment at the crystal, feeling an urge to cry. I touched the crystal's now blank green surface, and sighed.

I'm glad it was you, Lance, whoever you are, and not a soul from Dahlia that met with me.

With a heavy heart I turned away and ran in the direction of the explosions as fast as I could. Someone is fighting with the others. Troublesome.

I held in the urge to stare into any other crystals and sped away, reaching the source of the smoke and crystal dust quickly. I almost crashed headfirst into Diane's leg though.

Diane jumped a bit from her position on the crystal ground, startled. She gasped when she saw me, almost sitting up. "(Y/N)!"

Meliodas and Ban, who were sitting beside her head jumped at that. As soon as I saw them, whatever thoughts were flying around in my mind and that ache in my skull flitted away. Ban took one glance at my suspiciously red eyes and hummed, while Meliodas had jumped from his position and grabbed me by the waist, pulling me down with him.

"I told you to wait! We had no idea where you were! Ban and King came back ages ago!" Meliodas scolded, emerald eyes stabbing me with an angry look, as he wrestled with me, attempting to make me sit down.

"Uh no, not really. King just appeared to fight this crazy woman." Ban disagreed, pointing in front of us with a bored look.

Despite the squirming as I tried to get out of Meliodas' grip I followed Ban's finger with my sight. Indeed, King was fighting a crazy woman. A black haired young woman with pink and white clothes and some pieces of silver armor. The rapier she held as she desperately tried to fend off and parry King's Chastiefol was an elegant, thin blade, fitting for her.

I narrowed my eyes, giving up on getting out of Meliodas' grip and resisting (unsuccessfully) a red blush as he pulled me into his lap. "Who's that?" I asked quietly, trying not to squirm.

"Holy Knight." Ban shrugged. "Didn't catch her name."

The fight somewhat helped distract my thoughts. Meliodas had sat me between his legs, as if I was a little child, and his arms circled around me to stop me from running. I gulped, a phantom feeling of my heart skipping running through me. The closeness was too intimate for me, and I tried to control my thoughts and not give away too much, even as a blush covered my whole face down to my neck.

I hummed, staring attentively as King calmly waved his hand around and Chastiefol mimicked the movements, fighting mercilessly against the young knight. The knight jumped up a crystal column, dodging Chastiefol and blocking a hit with an explosion. Aah, so that's where it was coming from. Huh, explosion magic. Haven't seen that one before.

The knight raised her rapier high, as Chastiefol fell from the explosion. "Brilliant Detonation!" She exclaimed, taking her chance. A huge sphere of her explosion magic gathered above her head, red and orange swirling dangerously, almost bubbling.

The four of us sat up at that, a bit anxious. Meliodas pulled me to my feet with him, a hand on my wrist.

"Uh..." I mumbled, as Ban stammered, "Hey now!"

Undisturbed, King snapped his fingers nonchalantly, as Chastiefol spun and multiplied into small knives. "Spirit spear Chastiefol, fifth configuration: Increase!"

I whistled lowly, as the knight's brilliant explosion magic was deterred by Chastiefol, the knives colliding with the explosion bubbles midway and exploding in the air. Damn, I had forgotten how good King was with that spear.

While the explosions were deterred, another bunch of knives had been positioned behind the knight, poised ready to attack. With the knight distracted, she didn't notice until the blades were already raining down on her at King's closing of his fist. The crystal she stood on burst into dust and pieces, and I coughed a bit.

Wait where's Elizabeth?!

"Oi! You guys really went at it!"
"You aren't hurt are you?"

I sighed in relief as Hawk came running, Elizabeth riding on his back, worriedly scanning the rest of us. "We're okay!"

Meliodas nodded, giving her a thumbs up and beaming, "Nope, we're all fine!"

"Thank goodness!" She exclaimed with a sigh, deflating.

I hummed with a smile, slipping out of Meliodas' grip to get closer to the Holy Knight and King, attempting to get a good look at her. "So who's this?" I asked with a raised brow, looking back at Ban.

Ban shrugged, "Guilt something?"

Pfft. Yeah, I doubt it. I snorted.

"Uh no, I'm pretty sure it's Guila." Meliodas cut in nonchalantly.

Whatever her name was, she wasn't going to give up until she could no longer stand up.
In the next second, I caught her moving from the corner of my eye. Suddenly she was standing up in a flurry, breath ragged, but still running at King with rapier ready, explosion magic bubbling at the tip. "At this close a range, even the spirit's spear defense won't save you!" She yelled, eyebrows furrowed with a victorious smile.

Unfortunately for her, I was too close to both of them already. King barely had time to gasp and attempt to step back, but I moved much quicker than either of them, unsheathing Valhalla for the first time in a long long time. Unwilling to let tiny King get hurt after finally finding him, my protective instincts switched on. Reaching down into myself for the first time in almost a decade, I grabbed onto the wisps of the magic swirling inside and wrapped them around my sword. Immediately I noticed the pull in my stomach and the burn in my throat, and knew there would be consequences for doing magic while starved, however I gripped the pommel and swung the heavy claymore blade at the Holy Knight in a wide arch, hitting her right across the chest with an angry yell,

"Sin Reflection!"

An explosion of magic burst out of my sword, reflecting back her own. Just like karma, the Holy Knight Guila could only scream and curse as her own magic and actions reverted upon her, bubbling magic exploding into a burst of light and heat, vanishing her.
Not unlike Full Counter, Sin Reflection reflected the opponent's magic onto themselves, except that instead of doubling the power, it also counted the past attacks done in the last hour.
Needless to say, Guila's magic was powerful in itself, but accumulated like that, she didn't stand a chance.

Elizabeth gasped worriedly, King and me standing too close to the explosion. "Miss (Y/N).."

Diane blinked in surprise. "I don't sense Guila's presence anymore."

Meliodas stared in surprise for a moment, still poker faced then exclaimed "Nicely done (Y/N)!"

I huffed, completely unbothered by the huge explosion, gripping still Valhalla. The silver blade hung heavy in my arms, the sapphire on the hilt glinting dangerously red. "Shouldn't have messed with us."

Ban whistled lowly, looking away when his attention was grabbed by something invisible to us.

As I patted King's shoulder with a friendly smile my fingers started to tickle and I yelped; our bodies were disappearing, turning into little golden flecks of light.

Hawk whined, panicked, "M-my ears are gone!"

"Hawk!" Elizabeth exclaimed, going to check on him but quickly noticing her arms were flecking away too. "It's happening to me too! What's going on? It feels gross!"

I looked around quickly; everyone's bodies were disappearing. Ah, we must be going back. Oh... Unconsciously King and I walked back to the others, gathering around together as Diane screamed.
"Hang on what's this?!"

I picked at the flecks curiously, staring as another golden fleck peeled off my arm. "Well this is weird. Even for us."

Meliodas snickered, putting an arm around my waist. "Should I make it better then?"

I flushed slightly, rolling my eyes at him. What's with him today?! I half-heartedly attempted to pull him off as he nuzzled against my torso, in a VERY unappropriate way. "Aish Captain stop it!"

"You guys don't belong here, so the Necropolis is starting to reject you. You met the person you wanted to see."

I gasped a little, as the two kids from earlier appeared in front of Ban and King. Ban gasped quietly, "What are you two doing here?"

"Wait, you were residents of this world, the whole time?" King asked surprised.

The children didn't answer, but their smiles were answer enough. Elle beamed up at Ban, "Your cooking was really yummy, thank you."

"Sure thing." Ban said, immediately going all soft on the blonde kid.

I stared sadly at the children, aching for them. They look so young... how did they die? The answer didn't matter in the end; they were already citizens of the Necropolis and wouldn't leave. As our bodies dissolved, I looked around for a last time, staring at the crystals in hopes of seeing the familiar unfamiliar face one last time.

I caught just a peek of Lance, mouth in a smile but eyes and brows twisted into an unbearably sad expression as he stared at Meliodas and I. I could only stare, longing to know who he was, as he waved goodbye. Our bodies dissolved into light completely, and we were blinded by the light for a second.

Then we were back in the world of the living, and my eyes were glossy. I clenched them shut and released a shuddery breath, slipping out of Meliodas' hold.
Meliodas hummed, arms on his hips as he looked around. "Looks like we're back on our own world."

Diane sighed in relief, looking at her arm now back in normal condition. "Phew, scared me for a moment!"

Elizabeth gasped suddenly and I quickly followed her gaze. "Ah it's her."

The Holy Knight Guila, who had attacked us in the Necropolis didn't look different at all in her real form. She just stood there on the grass, completely immobile with her armored hand stabbing her chest. She resembled an inanimate puppet, cut off its strings as she stood there hunched and limp. She showed no signs of the injuries she had sustained, which implied that really only her soul had gone there and whatever injuries one could obtain in the other side while only present in such a way weren't going to present itselves in the living world.

I grimaced. Never liked puppets.
Meliodas noticed her and hummed, "I see, she reached the Necropolis by putting herself into a state of near-death."

"Doesn't that mean she's gonna wake up soon?!" Hawk squeaked nervously.

Elizabeth gasped in realization, stepping away. "Let's get away from here everyone!"

Got a point.

"I say let's kill her while the killing's good." Ban smirked, hands in his pockets.

King rolled his eyes, hand on his hips as he refuted, "Don't be barbaric. I'll petrify her."

I snorted, crossing my arms with raised brows. "As if that's much different."

Meliodas crossed his arms, shaking his head "Nah take it easy. Just let me handle this."

As he unexpectedly took out some ink I snickered undiscreetly. Oh, I'd pay to see her reaction!