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Consider this as a pilot chapter, I suppose - would like some constructive criticism as i've never written anything like this before. (Now with hopefully fixed tenses and slight dialogue changes where appropriate! Yay!)

Thanks for reading.


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Chapter 1 - You Don't Have To Fight Alone


The cloaked figure rushed down the narrow alley, the sound of boots thumping to the ground with every rushed stride accompanying the figure’s ragged breathing and rapid tap-tapping of the hip sheathed sword slapping against legs. Pausing at the end of the alley, the figure turns a hooded head back in the direction it had ran from, flinching at seeing shadows flickering across the wall, barely visible in the moonlight.
Hanako couldn’t remember how long she had been running from these creatures, but it was certainly a long time now - the build-up of acid in her stomach and the aches in her legs told her that much. To begin with she had tried to fight, wielding her sword with expert precision, cutting through flesh and bone, feeling the spray of blood on her face. But, no matter how many of them she took down, more always appeared. She couldn’t fight them by herself, so she took the only course left available to her.

She ran.

Seeing the first of the creatures round the corner and into the mouth of the alley she takes off again, every breath forcing bitter air into her burning lungs, but she couldn’t stop. Running down another street she looks around her, taking in the destroyed buildings on either side of her, the debris they had spread across the road in their death throes. Some chunks of rubble as big as cars lie in the street, surrounded by cracked tarmac and earth. On her left she passes a small park ringed by a wrought iron fence, the swings swaying and the roundabout spinning, although the air in the city was perfectly still.
Letting one of her large purple eyes linger on this scene, she hears the now familiar voice in her head, the one that often spoke to her in this world.

‘This is the city you grew up in Hanako; you recognise it, don’t you? That little park there was your favourite when you were younger, you and your Father would spend whole afternoons playing in there until your Mother had to drag you both home at the end of the day. All you have to do is stop running and you can see them both again, you’d like that, wouldn’t you? They miss you so much, Hanako…’

‘No! You’re lying! Shut up shut up shut up!’ she screams into the air around her, the only response she got a low laugh in her head.

Of course she wanted to see her parents again, but she wasn’t naïve enough to think that was possible – not by handing herself over to the thing that seemed to rule this realm, anyway. No, that voice was what commanded all the demons she had fought and fled from, and that certainly couldn’t be trusted.
Taking a leap over a single story worth of rubble in the road she turns in the air, eyes widening at the proximity of the monsters behind her. Getting a clear look at them as they charged down the road after her she felt several emotions come to the front of her mind – mainly fear and disgust. The things were roughly humanoid in shape and size, but the similarities ended there. They had dark green swampy skin, with featureless faces that were little more than beady black eyes set above razor toothed mouths. Their arms ended in clawed hands, each digit honed to a razor sharp point that made deadly raking weapons. Their legs were lined with powerful muscles that propelled them along the floor at high speeds and could be used to carry out deadly leaping dives at closer ranges.
Hanako had no trouble fighting them singularly, or even groups of ten or twenty, but against a whole horde of the things superior numbers would overwhelm her. Landing with a roll on the other side of the makeshift rubble barricade she leapt back to her feet, turning down yet another maze like side alley. Hearing the slapping footsteps behind her, she put all her willpower into making her legs move, faster and faster despite the pain now roaring through her veins. Upon exiting the alley she found herself on the edge of a large field, all the grass that once covered burnt to ashes, the odd tuft of grey vegetation sticking out of the ground, defying its very surroundings.
Sprinting to the middle of the field she watches in horror as the creatures step onto the desolate plain all around her, emerging from roads and alleys in a full circle surrounding her. Not running now, they stalked towards her, closing the circle as more of the things crowded in behind the others – there was no way she could even cut her way out now.
This was it.
Reaching up she pulls the cloak off from around her and throws it to the floor. Standing in her loose fitting jeans and tank top, she slides the sword from its scabbard at her waist. Raising it in front of her face she glances down at her right arm, the scars on her skin now glowing a bright purple, the glow starting from her shoulder and working its way down her arm. When the light reaches the scars on her hand it burns blindingly for a split-second before disappearing, returning the scars down her arm to their original pale colour.
She watches with a grim smile as the runes appeared etched onto the sword in her hand, flickering into life with the power drawn from her very soul, and still the demons advance, unphased.
They were at twenty paces now and preparing to attack.
With gritted teeth Hanako brings the sword around into a defensive position in front of her face, closing her eyes for a split second.
‘Mother. Father. I’ll see you soon.’


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Slowly opening her eyes, Hanako takes in the room around her. Sunlight shone through a gap in her curtains illuminating the sparsely decorated room she was in. Letting out a wide yawn she pushed herself up into a sitting position, wiping the sleep from her eyes.
Glancing over to her clock she let out a slight groan at seeing the time – it was already time to get ready for school. Getting out of bed she walked over to her chest of drawers, pulling out underwear and her uniform. Once dressed she had a modest breakfast in the comfort of her own bedroom, finishing off her preparations by carefully brushing her hair over her face.
Opening her door and stepping out she hears a voice, one that makes her freeze and move a hand to cover her face, despite coming from behind her.
‘Oh, excuse me, is somebody there?’
‘Y-yes.’ She replies, her tone quiet and strained.
‘Oh, would you mind walking to class with me? I’ve only recently moved to the dorms here you see, and I don’t really know the route from here to the classrooms.’
‘W-walk with y-you? N-no, sorry, I d-don’t think…’ she trails off as she hears a gentle tapping behind her, turning around to find the source of the noise.
Standing behind her is a tall girl with long blonde hair, but what draws Hanako’s attention are her murky, sightless blue eyes and the long white cane in her hand.
‘Oh…well then, can you tell me what direction the reception is from here so I can ask there?’
Realising that this girl is blind, Hanako does a double take. This person can’t see what she looks like. Can’t judge her because of her scars, or be scared of her.
‘S-sorry! I’ll take you to c-class!’ she says, fists clenched at her sides, waves of determination surging through her. As she says this, the girls face transforms into a beautiful smile that takes Hanako’s breath away.
‘Well then, that’s settled. I’m Lilly Satou.’
‘I’m H-Hanako.’
‘Nice to meet you Hanako. May I?’ she asks, reaching a hand out for Hanako’s arm, taking a hold of the material on her shirt, barely noticing the girl’s flinch.
‘Well, lead on.’

After dropping Lilly off at her class, Hanako makes her way down the corridors of the school to her own, keeping her head down to avoid making eye contact with any other students. The morning’s lessons pass by in a blur, her mind fixed on the girl she had met this morning.
Snapped out of her trance by the lunchtime bell she quickly gathers all her materials into her bag and makes a dash for the door. Fighting her way through a throng of students headed the opposite way to her, to the cafeteria, she makes her way to her private spot.
Entering the small dimly lit room she shuts the door behind her before taking a seat, resting her head in her arms, dozing in and out of consciousness. A loud bang outside the door startles her, making her sit bolt upright in her chair. Tiptoeing over to the door she opens it a tiny bit and presses a large purple eye to the gap, gasping at the scene in the corridor.
The girl she met that morning, Lilly, is sitting on the floor clutching her ankle, books and stationary spread out around her upturned bag on the floor next to her. Taking a deep breath Hanako opens the door to the now empty corridor and walks over to the girl.
‘L-Lilly? Are you o-okay?’
‘Oh, Hanako, is that you?’ the girl on the floor asks, looking at a position just over Hanako’s shoulder.
‘Y-yes…let me h-help you.’
Moving over to Lilly, Hanako puts an arm gently under her shoulder, pulling her to her feet. Uttering a short gasp as she puts her weight on her twisted ankle, Lilly leans heavily on Hanako, the two of them moving into the abandoned room. Sitting her down in a chair Hanako hastily leaves to pick up Lilly’s belongings off the floor, stuffing them back into her bag.
Returning to the room Hanako places Lilly’s bag by her feet, unsure of what to say next. Thankfully, Lilly breaks the silence hanging between them.
‘Where are we Hanako? I don’t think I’ve ever been in this room before, even though it’s not so far from my own classroom.’
‘O-oh, it’s just a l-little room I come to, to b-be alone.’
‘Oh…well I’m sorry for causing trouble, I’ll leave now then.’
‘N-no!’ Hanako forcefully replies, Lilly looking a little taken aback at the outburst.
‘It’s n-not that I w-want to be alone…’ she says in a shaky voice. ‘A-anyway, would you like some t-tea?’
‘Oh, there are facilities for that in here? That’s nice, if you show me where everything is, I’d be glad to help prepare it.’
‘O-okay.’

After leading Lilly slowly around the edge of the room, guiding her hands to the different cupboards where the tea sets and cutlery are kept, Hanako watches in wonder as Lilly pours hot water into the cups, using her finger as a guideline.
Carrying the two cups over to the table the girls sit down, another awkward silence forming between them as they sip from their cups.
The ringing of the school bell signals the start of afternoon classes, startling the girls who hastily pack away the tea set and all the equipment they used.
Leaving the room, Lilly turns to Hanako.
‘It was nice having tea with you, Hanako.’ She says with a warm smile. ‘If it wouldn’t be too much trouble, would you like to meet me outside my classroom this afternoon and walk back to the dorms with me?’
‘S-sure!’ Hanako replies with a small smile forming on her own face.
‘Well then, until later Hanako.’ Lilly says, turning around to walk to her own classroom, favouring her uninjured leg.

The afternoon classes pass in as much of a blur as the morning ones, if not faster.
Had Hanako actually made a friend?
Jumping out of her seat at the end of the day she rushes to the classroom she had taken Lilly to that morning, waiting outside the door as students file out in a calm manner, most of them wearing glasses or carrying canes of some sort. Lilly was one of the last students to leave the room, pausing outside the door and turning her head from side to side.
‘L-Lilly! I’m h-here!’ Hanako calls out to her.
‘My my, thank you for coming Hanako. Shall we, then?’ Lilly asks, reaching out once again and taking a hold on Hanako’s sleeve.
‘So, what do you normally do in the evenings, Hanako? Are you a member of any clubs or anything?’ Lilly asks as they walk down the corridor.
‘N-no. I just r-read, mainly.’
‘Oh, I see.’ Lilly replies, a hint of colour rising to her cheeks at the statement. ‘Actually, I need to go into town later on to stock up on food and toiletries – would you like to come with me? You don’t have to by any means, I can make my own way th-‘
‘Y-yes, I’ll come w-with you.’ Hanako cuts her off, eliciting a smile from Lilly.
After going to their own separate rooms to change into more suitable clothes for the cold weather, the two girls meet up outside the doors to their rooms, and with Lilly holding on to Hanako’s arm, the pair make their way out of Yamaku and into the small town below.

Returning a couple of hours later with arms laden with bags of shopping, the girls make their way up the front steps outside the dorm building.
‘Thank you for that, Hanako, shopping is a lot easier if I have someone with me, although I can manage just about by myself.’
‘N-no problem, please l-let me pay for the t-tea though.’
Realising that they would miss out on dinner back at school, the two girls had headed to a small café in town, The Shanghai, to rest and eat a light tea, which Lilly had insisted on paying for to thank Hanako for coming with her.
‘Absolutely not Hanako, it was my pleasure.’
‘O-okay then, if you’re s-sure. Well, we’re b-back at our r-rooms now.’
Letting go of Hanako’s arm Lilly reaches into her pocket for the keys to her room, pulling them out and making her way to her door.
‘Thanks again for everything, Hanako. Remember, if you ever need anything, I’m here for you.’
‘W-why would you s-say that?’
‘Why? It’s what friends do, they’re there for each other.’ Raising her hand holding the keys and waving in Hanako’s direction, Lilly steps into her room, pulling the door shut behind her.
‘F-friends…?’ Hanako mused to herself, stepping into her own bedroom.


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One demon broke free from the others, breaking the innermost circle and charging at her. As it came within range Hanako’s arm shoots out, the runed sword cutting a blur through the air as it swings around, catching the monster in the throat and sending its severed head flying into the crowd behind it. Its body slumped to the floor at her feet, the skin flaking away revealing black flesh underneath, the whole body quickly dissolving into nothingness.
Having stopped their advance to watch the fight, the other monsters around her start growling, low sounds emanating from ravaged throats.
That was their only warning before the attack, whole waves of the creatures surging forward to meet Hanako’s sword. Limbs and blood swam through the air, dissolving before they touched the floor, but for every one of them Hanako cuts down more surge forward to take its place.
Her first injury came as a creature attacked her from behind, raking deadly claws down her back, causing Hanako to cry out even as she swung her sword in a wide arc, the edge of the blade biting deep into the side of her attackers face, cleaving away the whole skull from the upper jaw.
The creatures now moved in a slow circle around her, realising that they had won the day and could afford to toy with their prey. With razor teeth gnashing together while hisses escape between them, the creatures keep their beady eyes locked onto Hanako, who is now leaning heavily on her sword, bleeding from a dozen or more wounds across her body.
Accepting the fate that had been chasing her for ten years now, Hanako closes her eyes and waits for release from this world. It was, she now knew, inevitable that these demons would get her eventually.

They were her own, after all.

‘Poor Hanako. All your attempts were futile – you could never outrun me. Accept your fate, like a good girl.’

The voice then let out a maniacal, high pitch laugh seeming to penetrate the very air around her. Over the laughing, she could hear the sound of rapid footsteps as the creatures surged forward, closing in the trap and claiming their prize. After all this time, they had won.

[If you ever need anything, I’m here for you.] A new voice, coming from beside her.

Opening her eyes and looking up, Hanako’s eyes widen. Standing tall next to her is a suit of armor, the very metal of its plates shining a bright, pure white light, causing the demons in the front row of the circle around them to simply melt into nothingness.
As the light dims enough for Hanako to see the figure clearly, she gasps and would have lost her balance, if not for the sword she was leaning on. The armor is etched with runes similar to those on her sword, but these runes glow a pure white, covering every plate of armor. In one gauntleted hand the knight holds a shield with a giant golden cross in the middle, the cross seeming to emanate the power that coursed through all the armor. In its other hand a longsword, twice as thick as Hanako’s katana and a bit longer too, the cross shaped hilt and blade glowing a regal gold.
Working her way up the knights body her eyes catch another sparkle of gold, and looking up she sees that the Knight is in fact a female, with golden hair flowing from her unarmoured head. The knight smiles down at Hanako, looking at her with sightless blue eyes. Stabbing her sword into the floor and removing the gauntlet from her hand, she takes a step towards Hanako.
The demons watch with fear and curiosity, more and more massing on the desolate field.
Reaching out her naked hand the Knight rests it on Hanako’s head, the palm suddenly glowing with fierce power. Hanako gasps as the wounds on her body close up, skin resealing itself as the pain slowly fades away. Satisfied with her work, the knight removes her hand, putting her gauntlet back on in one fluid movement and picking up her sword.
‘Pick up your weapon, Hanako. They attack.’

No sooner had the Knight uttered the words than the demons surge forward yet again, Hanako watching in amazement as her companion cuts swaths through them, using her shield to knock creatures down before stamping on their heads, crunching them under heavy metal boots. While this practised manoeuvre was taking place the sword in her other swung in wide, heavy arcs, decapitating groups of up to 5 demons at a time without losing momentum.
Not until a monster lunged towards her did Hanako snap out of her trance, picking her sword up, feeling better with her newly healed body than she ever had.
Joining in the slaughter, she and the knight cut through whole lines of the enemies, until an opening arrived in their encirclement.
‘C’mon! We can make it through that gap!’ Hanako called over to her companion.
The knight, pulling her sword from the throat of a demon turned in her direction, and nodded.
Together they sailed through the gap, cutting at the enemies on either side of the walkway as they tried to close the gap. Making it to the outside of the circle the two girls stand back to back, swords ready to meet the turning horde.
Flicking her sword to clear some of the blood off it, Hanako watches in amazement as the army of monsters simply disappears into the ground, beady eyes fixed on her until they too are swallowed by the earth.

‘What’s this, Hanako? You have a friend? Foolish girl, you know she’s just the like the others. She doesn’t really like you. She pities you. If she could see you, she wouldn’t want to be your friend, if she c-‘

Hanako feels anger welling up in her, but her outburst is cut off by a gauntlet resting on her shoulder, pulling her gently back as Lilly moves to stand in front of her.

'You know that's not true, don't you? Your poison words are proved false by the fact that my mere presence here has sufficiently weakened you and your hold on these demons.'

'You truly think you're that important? Your presence is...a temporary inconvenience. You can't always be here...'

As the laughter slowly fades, Hanako steps forward next to the Knight.

‘Thank you, Lilly.’

Smiling back down at her, Lilly replied.

‘Friends are there for each other.’


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• Next time on Shift:
  Several months have passed in our universe since Hanako and Lilly met at Yamaku, a school for the disabled. Over this time the girls have learnt a lot about each other, and Hanako has even had the opportunity to meet Lilly’s older sister, the enigmatic Akira. One day Lilly’s cheerful demeanor is gone, replaced with a constant frown and signs of worry.
  In the alternate realm of monsters and powerful weapons, Hanako watches from a rooftop as Lilly runs down a street, devoid of armor, chasing a shrouded being that is ever out of her reach, crying for it not to leave.
  Are the two incidents related? Can Hanako help her friend Lilly, the girl who has never asked for help in either realm? She has to – it’s what friends do.

Interesting start.
I like the writing style and the flow of the story.
Some inconsistent tenses throughout the chapter. You might want to fix those.

This is one of the better 'Hanako Meets Lilly' I've seen.
Also, I find it funny Hanako dreams in video games.
Is there something more going on in the dream world than what appears at first glance? What is this voice which taunts Hanako in the destroyed city?

Hope to see more.

Thanks for the comments guys - i'll sort the tenses out when I get home before posting the mostly finished second part.

Interesting! How they met, the dream world, a metaphor from a fantasy novel, I 'd say as Hanako is into books, not so much games. A great idea!

I'm not quite sure the dreams are supposed to be entirely metaphoric...

This one's a bit of a break in the pace I was hoping to set, but hopefully it's not entirely unreadable. Things will settle down for a bit after this chapter, although that doesn't mean the bloodshed and sword fights will be gone all together!

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Chapter 2 - The Runaway


‘L-Lilly? Is something the matter?’
‘Oh, sorry Hanako?’ Lilly replies, snapped out of her trance. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Well y-you’ve seemed a bit upset s-since we went to see Akira.’
‘Oh…I’m fine, honestly Hanako. I’d better go to class, bye.’
With that abrupt end to the conversation Lilly unfolds her cane and leaves the small room the pair meet in for tea every day, leaving the door wide open behind her.

Hanako rests her head in her arms, thinking of everything that’s happened recently. After Lilly had invited her to go spend the weekend at her sister Akira’s flat, Hanako had been unsure at first – she always was when meeting new people. However, Lilly had persuaded her that Akira wasn’t like everybody else; having grown up looking after a blind sister she was completely indifferent to people’s disabilities. Hanako was a nice person, so Akira would like her. On this promise alone Hanako had reluctantly agreed to tag along.
At first Akira had scared and overwhelmed her, taking her into a deep embrace as she stepped into the flat, talking at a million miles an hour about all the great things Lilly had told her about Hanako – and wasn’t she cute!
The thought of that comment made Hanako blush a little.
Lilly had seemed so happy to be there, back with her big sister.
Until it was time to come home.
Mistaking her mood at first for tiredness – they had a busy weekend, and didn’t get much sleep on the Saturday night – Hanako wasn’t too worried. However, several days later and Lilly was still despondent, wearing a constant frown on her face that seemed so out of place. Any attempt Hanako made to get through Lilly’s defences left her pushed away.

She only had one option left.

Reaching into her pocket she pulls out her cell phone, holding it in her hands and taking several deep breaths, before flipping it open. Browsing to her contact book, she hovers over the first of the two names in the list – Akira. The two had swapped phone numbers as they were getting ready to leave, Akira telling her to phone her if she ever needed to talk about anything.

With a determined look on her face, Hanako presses the call button.


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Hanako crouched on the edge of a rooftop, watching the scene below her with her piercing purple eyes. A character shrouded in red mist hurried down the street, wisps of the strange gas flicking out behind it as it ran, distorting its shape.
As the figure rounded a corner at the end of the street a clattering stomping sound dragged Hanako’s attention to the opposite end of the street, where it had come from.
Lilly ran down the street as fast as she could in her heavy armor, sweat dripping down her brow. She got halfway down the street before sagging, her sword and shield clattering to the floor to either side of her.
‘Akira! Waaaaaait!’
The scream was loud enough to be heard by Hanako, and she was sure anything in the surrounding area would be able to hear it. It wasn’t the best idea to draw such attention to yourself here.
With tears now running down her cheeks, Lilly looked up, a new look of determination on her face. All at once the armor surrounding her seemed to fade out of existence, twinkling in the dim light of the street until all that was left of it was a cross-shaped pendant, which hung in mid-air for a split second before clattering to the floor.
Standing in the street now in little more than briefs and a bra, Lilly takes a second to orientate herself again, before setting off after the figure she called Akira, at a much faster pace now she was devoid of armor.
Making sure that Lilly was well out hearing range, Hanako jumps lithely down onto the street to the spot that Lilly had been standing in. Bending down she picks up the thin chain and cross pendant that was the physical remains of Lilly’s armor. Putting the chain carefully into her pocket Hanako leaps back up to the rooftop and sets off after Lilly, diving from one ledge to the next.

After continuing this chase for almost half an hour, Hanako watches Lilly round a corner, followed shortly by a scream from the same direction.
Diving over several buildings and down into the street Hanako plants herself firmly in front of Lilly, the sword in her hands already glowing with arcane power.
Down the street in front of her marches a horde of shambling bodies, instantly noticeable was their lack of heads – on top of their shoulders was one giant eyeball, the size of the head that should have been there. Raising her weapon Hanako prepared to meet the enemies, but was suddenly pulled around by Lilly. Standing in front of her now, Lilly plants her hands on Hanako’s shoulders and pushes, hard enough to send her sprawling on the floor.
‘No, Hanako. Go away. I don’t need you.’
Stunned, Hanako can only watch from the floor as Lilly charges, unarmed and unarmoured into the throng of eyeball creatures. Swinging wildly left and right with her fists, Lilly tears savagely through the crowd, ignoring the numerous injuries on her torso that cover her in her own blood. Punching one of the giant eyeballs so hard that it exploded in a gooey mess Lilly turns, delivering a kick to the midsection of one of the other creatures, finishing it off in an explosion of goo and jelly with a savage roundhouse kick.
After finishing off the last of the monsters, Lilly doubles over in pain at the far end of the street, her whole body covered in cuts and bruises.
Slowly, Hanako walks up to her friend, putting a hand gently on an uninjured part of her back.
‘Lilly. You should have let me; I could have taken care of these without breaking a sweat.’
‘I don’t need YOUR help Hanako!’ Lilly snarled in response, shaking Hanako’s hand off her back and straightening. ‘I don’t need anybody. Now leave me alone, I have to stop Akira!’
With this Lilly staggers off, not even sparing a glance back in Hanako’s direction. Feeling the bulge of the pendant in her pocket, Hanako sets off once again after her friend – she wasn’t going to let her do this by herself.


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‘Yo, what’s up?’
‘H-hi Akira, can we t-talk?’
‘Haha, sure can Hanako! Not like I have much work to do today anyway.’
‘Oh, that’s g-good. It’s about L-Lilly.’
Akira’s voice suddenly takes on a very serious tone. ‘Hanako, what about her? Is she okay? Has something happened?’
‘I d-don’t know. Ever since w-we came home from y-yours she’s seemed really upset, b-but she won’t talk to me.’ Sniffling now, Hanako fights against the tears brimming in her eyes.
‘Hanako, listen to me – Lilly wants to be a strong girl, okay? She thinks she needs to deal with everything by herself because she doesn’t want to burden others with her problems.’
‘S-so I should just l-leave her alone?’
This elicits a humourless laugh from Akira. ‘That’s what she wants, Hanako, but it’s not necessarily what’s best for her, you see? Just try and be there for her in case she does reach out to you, but don’t try to push her.’
‘O-okay. I think I u-understand. Thanks Akira, b-bye.’
‘Cya later Hanako, thanks for being Lilly’s friend.’
With that Akira hangs up the phone. Holding her own phone to her ear for a moment before sliding it back into her pocket, Hanako stands up from her chair. She should be there for Lilly.

Several hours later Hanako finds herself waiting outside the door to Lilly’s classroom yet again, as the whole class files out before Lilly herself exits.
‘H-hi Lilly!’
‘Oh…hello Hanako. Excuse me, but I’m feeling tired so I’m going to head back to my room. Bye.’
The black marks under her eyes did show that Lilly needed a good night’s sleep, but Hanako didn’t believe she would get that tonight.
‘L-Lilly, please can we j-just hang out? I won’t a-ask you to talk about a-anything you don’t want to.’
Lilly sighed and ran a hand through her hair, sightless eyes fixed on the floor.
‘Okay then, do you mind if we go to my room though?’
‘S-sure.’

Back in Lilly’s room Hanako watches her friend go through the mechanical motion of making tea, placing two full cups down on the table between them. The two girls sip from their cups, the only sound breaking the not quite comfortable silence.
‘Lilly’
‘Hanako’
Both girls smile at this, their crossed words breaking the icy atmosphere in the room.
‘Y-you go first Lilly.’
‘Hm, okay then. Listen Hanako…I’m sorry if I’ve upset you recently, I just have a lot going on right now…’
‘It’s f-fine Lilly, you don’t have to t-talk about it if you d-don’t want-‘
‘No, Hanako. I don’t want to worry you. It’s just that…when we were visiting Akira that weekend, just before we left to come back here I heard her on the phone. She was…’ Taking a deep breath, Lilly steels herself for what she has to say. ‘She was talking about moving away…back to Scotland, with our parents.’
Hanako was in disbelief upon hearing this. She knew that Lilly’s parents currently lived and worked in Scotland, but Lilly made it sound like they had abandoned their daughters, leaving them to fend for themselves in Japan.
‘I know I don’t see her much,’ Lilly continued, ‘But with her being on the other side of the world, I’d…I’d miss her Hanako.’
Seeing the tears welling up in her friend’s eyes, Hanako leapt up and took Lilly into a big embrace, whispering that everything would be okay – surely Akira would let Lilly know straight away if she was planning on moving away?

After making Lilly promise she would get some sleep that night, Hanako returns to her bedroom, pulling out her phone again and calling Lilly’s sister.
‘Hanako? Whassa matter? It’s laaaaaaaaaaaate.’ Akira greets her mid yawn.
Knowing Lilly had good hearing, Hanako whispers her response. ‘It’s L-Lilly, I know why she’s upset. She h-heard you on the phone at your flat…talking about m-moving in with your p-parents.’
‘Oh…oh no.’ Akira moaned down the phone. ‘That’s not it at all! I was just talking to them about going for a little visit – and maybe even bringing Lilly with me if she wants to come…’
‘Oh…w-well, shall I g-go tell her?’
‘No Hanako, you’ve done more enough. I’ll swing by and see her tomorrow after work. Thankyou Hanako, I mean it. Night.’
‘G-goodnight.’


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Lilly could sense the presence of her sister standing still at the end of the deserted road, facing her with open arms.
‘Akira…?’ Lilly asks in a small voice.
‘Llllliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiilllllllllllllllllllllyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.’ Her sister replied, her voice a low serpentine hiss.
‘Akira…why are you running away from me? I just want…to talk to you.’
‘You wantssssssssssss to talk to meeeeeeeeeeeeeee?’ the figure asked in a mocking voice. ‘Come clossssssssserrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr and taaaaaaaaaaaalk.’
‘Lilly!’ Hanako interjects, having heard the whole conversation. ‘That’s not your sister. Stay where you are.’
‘Stay out of my business Hanako!’ Lilly screams in her direction, before bracing herself and taking one step forward, then another.
Having made it half way down the road towards her sister, still shrouded in red mist, Akira holds up a hand to her younger sister. ‘No closssssser.’
Coming to a halt, Lilly asks, ‘Okay, can we please talk now?’
‘Talk? Yessssss, but we ssssssshould eat firsssssssst.’

The ground beneath their feet shakes violently, cracks forming in the ground from which spews a fine red mist, the gas solidifying and taking the forms of the eyeball-headed creatures from earlier. With all of their murky pupils locked onto Lilly they step forward with arms outstretched, advancing on the now vulnerable girl.
Leaping between Lilly and the nightmare monsters for the second time, nothing could hold Hanako back now. No sooner was the sword pulled from its sheath, accompanied by a scraping metallic sound, than the blade carved a purple arc through the air. Bits of goo and gunk flew through the air where eyeballs were pierced, accentuated by spurts of red from torso cuts.
‘Hanako…’ gasped Lilly, now crouching in a ball on the floor. ‘Please…go…’
Turning to look down on her friend, Hanako holds out her spare hand. Opening her fingers slightly, a cross pendant slides out, unreeling on a length of chain that Hanako snaps her hand back around as the last inch is about to fall through her fingers.
‘Take it.’
‘I…I can’t.’
Opening her hand and holding it palm down, Hanako watches as the necklace clatters to the floor next to Lilly.
‘Then I’ll take its place.’

Taking up a defensive stance over the crouched form of her friend, Hanako waits for the monsters to close in again, led on like puppets by the not-Akira further down the road, watching with savage glee.
For every creature that Hanako cut down more simply rose from the fissures in the ground to take its place, a never ending shuffling army of piercing stares advancing on the two of them. The bodies stopped their advance a few paces away from the girls, shuffling to form a walkway leading down the road.
Down this path walked the not-Akira, red particles forming into something more solid looking. Advancing on them, hissing and sticking out a forked tongue, Hanako tried to lift her sword arm, but found that it wouldn’t move - looking down she noticed that her arm was caught in a red vice grip.
‘Not you, you’re desssssssssssssert.’ With that tendrils of the red smoke rose from the floor like vines, wrapping around Hanako’s legs, holding her firmly in place.
She only had one chance now.
‘Lilly! You have to fight! You can do this by yourself, just put on your armor and FIGHT!’
Staring expectantly down at Lilly, the Akira monster hissed a laugh at her unresponsiveness. ‘My sissssster issss weak.’
Lilly didn’t move a single muscle as she was advanced upon, not even flinching at the hand that came to rest on her cheek.
‘Tassssssssssty.’

Hanako caught only a flash of crimson as two knives flashed past her eyes, embedding themselves to the handles into the face of the now solid creature standing over Lilly.
‘That’s my sister, bitch.’ Snarled a much more human sounding voice behind them. Leaning down to squeeze Lilly’s shoulder as she stepped past her, Akira took another two knives from the brace under her shoulder, the small blades flashing an angry, blinding red.
As the creature raised its hands in a pathetic attempt to block the incoming attack, Akira drove the knives into the soft flesh of its belly, twisting them savagely before pulling them out and embedding them into the now unprotected chest.
‘Sorry, but I’m so awesome there can only be one of me.’ Akira grinned down at her doppelganger as it seemed to lose form, stretching and writhing on the floor before settling into the shape of a giant red serpent, coiled and perfectly still.


---------------------------------


‘You mean…you’re not leaving?’
‘Lilly, I’m your sister. If I even thought about moving out of the country, you’d be the first person I’d tell! And it would have to be a bloody good offer that makes me move back in with the parents anyway…’
Lilly places a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle. ‘You really are too harsh on them Akira, you know…’
‘Or maybe you’re too forgiving?’ Akira asked, giving Lilly a playful punch on the shoulder.
It bought a smile to Hanako’s face to see her friends like this, happy again.
Until, out of nowhere, Akira grabbed her in a headlock, rubbing the top of her head.
‘A-akira!’
The three girls sat in the room laughing, Lilly with a smile planted firmly on her face, her armor picked up and re-equipped.


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• Next time on Shift:
  They both have their issues, but together the best friends manage to overcome anything that comes their way. Until, one day Hanako locks herself in her room. And the next day. Refusing to talk to anybody or even accept any food, Lilly tries to reason with her, but is stone walled at every turn.
  In the alternate cityscape Hanako comes up against a familiar giant demon, tearing down whole buildings in its blind rage. Lilly is dismayed to sense that Hanako hasn’t even unsheathed her sword, and seems to be accepting hit after hit from the giant monster, expending more and more effort to simply stand back up each time.
  Can Lilly help pull her friend back from the edge, or are both Hanakos lost?

Now it's not even dreams... I remember this place, can it be the subconscious mindscape?

As a young teenager, I dreamed of and imagined a place like this often, the dark city of eternal dusk... In my case, completely desolate,empty, endless, as I wanedered around, looking for a way out. Fortunately those dreams ended when I dreamt I escaped that city... I was sacrificed on top of a hill, died, and then raced through a tunnel towards a bright light. And as I reached the light, I awakened.

BlackRockHanako, thanks for bringing back a mysterious youth memory of mine! It seems that when I was 13, Rin had nothing on me. Or at least not in my dreams.

Beoran wrote:Now it's not even dreams... I remember this place, can it be the subconscious mindscape?

As a young teenager, I dreamed of and imagined a place like this often, the dark city of eternal dusk... In my case, completely desolate,empty, endless, as I wanedered around, looking for a way out. Fortunately those dreams ended when I dreamt I escaped that city... I was sacrificed on top of a hill, died, and then raced through a tunnel towards a bright light. And as I reached the light, I awakened.

BlackRockHanako, thanks for bringing back a mysterious youth memory of mine! It seems that when I was 13, Rin had nothing on me. Or at least not in my dreams.

Chapter 3 also containing a little man that runs along beside the car when you're on a long journey, jumping over obstacles and crashing into people. Ahah.

I don't know but that place reminds of a game called Dead Nation on the PS3, similar story line that your the only person left alive in a world of undead.

I like the whole concept itself. The events of her life being reflected in her dreams, her mindscapes, or whatever we call it, is a interesting way of seeing her efforts of dealing with them. Personally, i would recommend to keep an eye on the actual amount of these mindscapes, so they stay inimitable and especially stirring.
You are great at describing certain things. I can imagine the whole scene, the characters and the inhuman creatures easily.

‘Sorry, but I’m so awesome there can only be one of me.’ <=== Great one

The last chapter definately seems a little OTT - I may look into tweaking it at some point, but for now consider it me just getting it out of my system so I can write the slower paced next 2/2.5 chapters.

Okay guys, Chapter 3 is here, and back to more subtle places than the second chapter. I'm actually very happy with how this turned out, especially after having bits of difficulty getting it off the ground (resulting in some other short pieces you may have seen around here.) But finally it's done, all in one marathon sitting. Please, let me know how you think it turned out, and how you think I portrayed an event most of us are well aware of, albeit a year earlier.

---------------------------------

Chapter 3 - Happy Birthday


‘Hanako? If you don’t get up now you’ll be late for classes.’
Placing her ear to the door Lilly could hear a faint sobbing sound coming from inside.
‘Are you okay Hanako?’ she asked, a worried frown creasing her face.
‘Y-yes, please L-Lilly, go without m-me.’ The answer came in a small voice, punctuated by more sobs.
‘Okay Hanako, I’ll come visit you at lunch, I promise.’

With that Lilly turned around, reaching in her bag for her retractable cane – she’d need it if Hanako wasn’t walking to class with her. Feeling her way through the various staircases and corridors, cane outstretched with one hand, the other clinging onto whatever rails or walls were available, Lilly walked to her classroom, arriving just after the morning bell had gone – not bad considering she’d made the journey alone.
As the teacher started the lesson on the English Language, Lilly breathed a sigh of relief – she could afford not to pay attention, at least. Pondering what could have gotten Hanako so upset, Lilly thought back over the last few days. Even when they’d parted ways last night after an evening of drinking tea and gossiping, Hanako had seemed fine, giving Lilly her usual tight goodbye hug and wishing her goodnight with an almost sing-song voice.
Lilly just didn’t know what had gotten into Hanako, but she couldn’t just ask the girl outright…could she? It was hard to tell how she would react, the two of them had definitely grown close, but Lilly still knew next to nothing about her.
Oh, she knew that Hanako was covered in scars – even if she hadn’t heard the occasional person around the school talking about it when the pair passed by, she could have taken a good guess. Most people weren’t that insecure in public without a reason.

Lilly wasn’t even sure, as horrible as the idea sounded, if the only reason Hanako had attached herself to her was because she couldn’t see, couldn’t judge her on first appearances as most of the world, even inside the walls of Yamaku, was wont to do.
But no, the two did have a lot in common after all, well, drinking tea and reading books, anyway. Lately the two had been recommending books to each other and then going to check them out at the library, a task slightly easier for Hanako as Lilly’s braille books had to be ordered in specially, but thanks to Yuuko they always arrived eventually. Lilly didn’t enjoy all of them as much as some of the others, some of the over-the-top fantasy stories with their vivid visual descriptions didn’t do much for her, but some of the simpler stories certainly had an appeal. It wasn’t hard to figure out why someone who spent a lot of time hiding from the world would bury themselves in tales of friendship and romance, with happily ever after endings where the young man and woman triumph over adversary to be together.

Not hard to figure out at all.

Contemplating these things, and many more, the sound of the afternoon bell ringing startled Lilly, causing her to jump in her seat. Had she daydreamed through the whole lesson? Oh well, no time to worry about that.
Practically jumping out of her seat, as quick as it was safe for her to do so, Lilly picked up her bag and cane and rushed for the door, getting outside the room first for a change. Retracing the route she had walked to that morning she made it back to her dorm in good time considering the crowds in the corridors, students bustling about in an effort to make it to the cafeteria before the good food was gone.

Knocking gently on her friend’s door for the second time that day, Lilly waited for a response. Nothing.
‘Hanako?’ she asked in a quiet voice, just enough to penetrate the wooden door.
There was no reply again, but she couldn’t hear any crying or movements from inside the room. Maybe Hanako was just sleeping it off having worn herself out crying and fretting. She wished she could actually help her, but she certainly didn’t want to wake her up.
With a slow nod of her head, Lilly made her way back to her own room, closing the door slowly to avoid it from slamming, a sound which would carry through the thin wall between her and Hanako’s rooms.
Feeling around on the floor she felt for the lunch she had made for herself and Hanako today, especially glad that today was her turn to do so. Taking a minute to find a pen and piece of paper on her desk, she slowly and carefully wrote out a short note, her handwriting good enough to put most people with twenty/twenty vision to shame, if not a bit wonky, scrawling diagonally down the page.
[Hanako, please eat this. I’ll come to check on you again later.]
Attaching the note to one of the small bundles of food Lilly made her way carefully out of her room - Carrying two sets of lunch along with a bag and trying to open a door was no easy feat, no matter how well you know the layout of the rooms.
Leaving one of the food parcels outside Hanako’s door, Lilly slid the small sheet of paper under her door, then left for the small room she and Hanako often took tea in, but today she would be alone.

Sitting down with her lunch and a cup of tea in front of her, Lilly debated calling Akira. Not really for advice about Hanako, after all, Lilly probably knew Hanako better than anyone in this school, but just for a general chit chat. The two hadn’t spoken much since the last…incident, prompting Akira to show up at the school. There wasn’t any awkward feelings lingering from that event, the two girls just simply hadn’t had the time, what with Akira working and Lilly being busy with school and Hanako, along with her Student Council responsibilities.
Cursing herself, Lilly smacked a hand on the table in front of her, hard enough to make the tea cup rattle in its saucer. She had a Student Council meeting this afternoon, meaning she wouldn’t be able to go see Hanako straight away after class. Maybe she could cancel her other obligation? Yeah, that’d go down well with her cousin, like a sack of bricks, infact.
No, she would have to go visit Hanako when that was all done with, hopefully it would be a short meeting tonight. The Student Council president, Chou – a girl in the year above Lilly, seemed nice enough, but she wasn’t overly confident in the abilities of the council, preferring to sit around chatting and organising the odd tea morning to raise money, instead of doing what her cousin would call real work.


Okay, so the meeting overran a little and apparently the sun was setting outside before everything was wrapped out. Wishing farewell to Shizune and Shiina who had elected to stay in the room for Shiina to tell Shizune some apparently important news, Lilly made her way out of the room, walking the whole length of the campus for the god-knows how many time today.
Tapping her cane on the floor in front of her as she walked, Lilly was surprised to hear a door open in front of her when she reached the dorms.
‘Oh Hanako, are you better n-‘
‘B-better?!’ her friend shrieked at her, loud enough for some doors further down the hall to crack open. ‘Is there s-something w-wrong with my Lilly? Is th-that it? You think you n-need to check u-up on m-me? S-sorry for being such a b-bother!’ With that the door slammed shut again, followed by the sounds of other doors being conspicuously shut.
Somewhat taken aback by the outburst, Lilly moved next to Hanako’s door, speaking in hushed tones. ‘Hanako, I’m just worried about you, please talk to me…tell me what’s wrong.’
‘Please L-Lilly…just leave me a-alone for a bit, I’ll g-get through it b-by m-myself. P-please.’ She pleaded through the door, making strange choking sounds.
What choice did Lilly have but to abide by Hanako’s wishes? Anyone with half a brain could tell that Hanako just wanted to be left alone, and pushing her would only make it worse. ‘Okay Hanako, I’ll leave you for now, you know where I am.’
With that reassurance Lilly walked back to her own room and sat down on the side of her bed, her head resting in her hands.


---------------------------------


The scream pierced the still city air, causing Lilly’s head to snap around, listening intently for the direction the cry had come from. Not a hard task as the noise was followed by a ground shaking smash, almost unbalancing Lilly where she stood. Nodding to herself, the Knight made her way towards the source of the sound, knowing only one thing – her friend was in pain, and she had to help her.
Fueled by this knowledge she ran down road after road as if the heavy metal armor encasing her weighed less than if it were made of feathers. Her hand fell from its position on the grip of her sword when it became apparent she wouldn’t run into any trouble, whatever the thing attacking Hanako was, it was big enough to drive away every other demon in this place, both Hanako’s and her own. What power could be so all-consuming?
Another scream rang through the air, this one sounding weaker than the last, but still slightly louder – she must be getting close now! Rounding a corner she skidded to a stop upon sensing the nature of the best in front of her.
It radiated hatred.
‘Hanako!?’ Lilly shouted down the street, willing her friend to answer, to tell her where she was. The only response was the sound of the creature in front of her stomping around, its footsteps chasing through the air like thunder.

‘What are you doing here White Knight?’ an all too familiar voice asked with a sneer, ‘You can’t help her fight this one, you know. She doesn’t even want to fight it, infact she enjoys getting beaten senseless by it, she knows she deserves it. It’s her punishment.’ The voice continued, before breaking out once more into a fit of laughter, this bout much louder and more hearty than any of the other times Lilly had heard it.

Just what was going on?

‘Lilly…?’ a small croaked from somewhere near her.
‘Hanako!? Hanako, where are you?’ Lilly asked, her head whipping around for any sign of the girl.
‘Please Lilly, you have to go, you can’t fight this thing, it’s pointless…just leave me.’
‘No!’ snarled Lilly, finally reaching for the shield slung across her back, her free hand tugging the longsword out of its scabbard at her waist. Squeezing her eyes shut she conjured the thoughts that were the source of her people. Her sister, who loved her unconditionally and bought her up, never once complaining about having to mother a young blind girl, whilst working long days just to get some extra spending money for the two of them. Her friend, lying on the floor somewhere near her bruised and battered, her friend who had never had a bad thought in her life, yet seemed to have been dealt a losing hand at birth.

These things. These things she stayed strong for. These were what was worth donning her armor for, even as the weight of it threatened to drag her down to the bottom of the ocean, she would wear it. For them.

Glowing with a fierce light that even she could see through her useless eyes, she dived forward towards the unseen behemoth, holding her shield high and bringing her sword up to deliver a deep slash to whatever piece of flesh she came into contact with. She didn’t quite expect it to be that piece of flesh though, and she cried out in surprise as a small body impacted her heavily in the side, sending her veering off course and into a pile on the floor, the small weight on top of the heavy metal plates barely noticeable.
‘Lilly, I told you to back off! You can’t fight this thing, I told you that already! The only person who can do this is me, but you have to understand I can’t fight it like other things, I’m not strong enough!’
‘So…what can you do?’ Croaked Lilly, ready to persuade Hanako that she had to fight, she had to power up the runes in her arm and give it everything she had.
‘All I can do Lilly…is let it attack. Eventually it will get worn out, and then? I’ve won.’
Lilly’s reply is cut off by another voice joining in the conversation.

‘You’ve won?’ a brief chuckle, then the voice continued, ‘you haven’t won anything by letting this demon beat you down to a pulp, Hanako. You know it’ll just come back, it always does. It’s just unfortunate that you’re not strong enough to deal with it once and for all. Maybe this time it will actually finish you off? That would be nice, but then I’d be so alone here…’

‘Don’t listen to that voice Hanako, you are strong enough to do this, I know you are!’
‘The voice isn’t lying Lilly, I can’t use the power in me to fight this thing, it just wouldn’t be right…I just have to do this, for myself. Please, don’t get in the way. Everything will be alright soon, I promise.’
Shifting herself into a sitting position, no easy task with that much weight around you, Lilly could hear the massive demon roaring once again, the blasts of wind created by its moving appendages proof enough of its vast size. How many more hits could Hanako take from a thing like that? Not many, Lilly assumed.
She flinched at the sound of a fleshy impact, followed by a blood curdling scream from the young girl, still taking hit after hit and standing up again every time, making no move towards the sword on her hip, or any attempt to awaken the power that surged within her. What did she mean, ‘it wouldn’t be right’ to use her power to fight, anyway? A question for another day, if the two of them made it through in one piece.


---------------------------------


The next day, Lilly noted with a touch of worry, Hanako still wasn’t coming out of her room. She knew better than to knock for her that morning, instead pressing an ear to her door as quietly as she could manage, each sob that reached her breaking her heart a little more.
That’s it, she decided, wiping a hand across her eyes. If Hanako wasn’t coming out of her room by the next morning, she would have to tell someone. The Nurse, maybe? Hanako’s homeroom teacher, Mr Mutou? Even though she knew that Hanako would likely hate her for it, you simply couldn’t stop eating and drinking for two days straight, somebody had to know. But there was still time.
The lessons that day flashed by in a rush, punctuated by Lilly sitting in the small tea room by herself, not checking up on Hanako that lunchtime. She’d spent all day thinking about her friend, and what she must be going through in that small room, all by herself.
Finally getting back to her room she wasn’t in the mood to study, instead sitting in silence, a cup of tea balanced on the table while her other hand stroked the pages of a book resting on the floor, the only sounds punctuating her room were the turning of pages, and the occasional sipping of tea.

It’s no surprise, therefore, that the knock on her door, quiet as it was, startled her, causing her to jump and hit her knee on the table. Swallowing a curse Lilly made her way to the door, opening it and asking ‘Who’s there?’
Instead of a reply, she got the immediate sensation of a body being pressed close to hers, hair tickling the underneath of her chin as a head rested on her chest.
‘Hanako?’ she asked, uncertain of who else would act this way, yet surprised that Hanako had left her room.
‘L-Lilly…’ Hanako purred, her face still buried in Lilly’s chest, tears making the collar of her blouse wet. ‘I’m s-sorry, for snapping at y-you…I’m a b-bad friend!’ With this exclamation Hanako tried to pull away from Lilly, twisting her body to get away from the embrace.
Lilly kept the arm around Hanako’s back locked tight however, and the girl struggled for a while before sagging forward back into Lilly, who guided the two of them carefully to the bed, sitting on the edge with Hanako leaning on her.
‘You’re not a bad friend Hanako, I shouldn’t have tried to push you so much, but you know you’re never a bother to me. I worry about you just like I’d worry about any other friend, inside or outside of Yamaku, no matter what the circumstances.’
‘Oh Lilly…’ Hanako sighed, falling backwards on the bed, ‘Th-Thankyou…for being here for m-me after everything. I j-just have to d-do some things by m-myself, but I…I always c-come out of it a bit st-stronger, I think.’

Lilly said nothing, electing to lay back on the bed next to her friend, and wrap her in a tight embrace, listening as her breathing slowed and the sniffling stopped, a smile on her face. Not bothering to get changed into more suitable clothes, Lilly felt her own consciousness slipping, as, fully clothed, she fell asleep in her full school uniform, the warm body next to her pressing into her side, a comforting, welcome presence.


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• Next time on Shift:
  With another great hurdle overcome, the girls grow closer still, and each decides that maybe it's time the other knew a little more about their pasts. What will Hanako think of Lilly's abandonment, her parents chasing riches while leaving their two daughters to cope on their own? And what will the Knight's reaction be to finding out the truth behind the lifeless city, where demons are given true forms?

Another great story BlackRockHanako, like always. At first glance at the title, I was a little hesitant about the Fantasy tag, but wow, the fantasy elements were intergrated really well.

And then theres Grammer Nazi MK,

you haven't wont [won] anything yet

And thats all I noticed.

MystiKnight wrote:Another great story BlackRockHanako, like always. At first glance at the title, I was a little hesitant about the Fantasy tag, but wow, the fantasy elements were intergrated really well.

And then theres Grammer Nazi MK,

you haven't wont [won] anything yet

And thats all I noticed.

Thanks for the kind comments (again )

Changed that particular sentence and a few others that were missing letters..or whole words.