Shadow Beings

66. The Crossroad

Zelda's smile remained as she observed the mix of knowing and surprised looks around me.

"I'd always known that," Ava said with a reassuring smile, patting my head gently.

"Being your partner," Galen began with a laugh. "it was natural for me to notice."

Evelyn, however, had her mouth completely dropped down.

"B-but how?! Like, what?"

"Just a little mind-controlling thing I figured."

Evelyn looked simultaneously dumbfounded and proud, earning a stoic pat on the back from Trina.

"Stop and observe life for a moment. Haste isn't always good."

Evelyn mimicked Trina in a dramatic manner, earning a scowl from her at which the former grinned. The confusion dissipated away to let the other remaining feeling shine as Evelyn looked straight at me, and I pursed my lips shyly.

I chuckled as the tension in the atmosphere loosened, scattered laughter filling the air. For a moment I saw a warm aura cross Zelda's eyes, as if she'd been waiting a long time to simply see this sight.

The Demons began to relax, too, though a tight aura was always maintained around them. Zelda crossed her arms, her long dark hair tied in a high ponytail, highlighting her sharp eyes. She seemed to be in deep thought as she observed her surroundings, perhaps matching her knowledge of a time that passed with the present.

I took a deep breath as I turned to Zelda, speaking up softly and confidently.

"I would also like to invite the demons to the annual ball."

Zelda narrowed her eyes, standing straight, alerted. "Why?"

The sound of shuffling feet. Some breaths were shallow, some deeper, and most remained normal as a wave of caution came to the atmosphere from the shadow-trappers, though it was subdued by the feelings of unity and understanding, especially from my friends.

"Because I think that is the way things should be. The four types of Shadow Beings are meant to be together despite their trivial differences. That is the way we can fulfil our true role in existence here, and it is the only way for us to deal with the chaos that the presence of the demonic creatures brings. Vlad doesn't seem to be the worst of it to me, only the focus."

"The presence of the demonic creatures? What are we blaming them for?" Trina's tone cut sharply through the fragile balance of uncertainty, and one look around told me that most shadows shared that doubt

I sighed before responding softly. "Elek's book. Vlad was born because a fourth entity came from someplace that was stirred by the interference between the demonic creatures' unnatural energy and that of Earth."

"Unnatural? Holly said that all that exists is natural as it is unnatural only if nature doesn't allow it."

Trina stood still, immovable. Evelyn glanced at her friend, then at me. She took a deep breath as she raised a hand towards me before speaking up kindly.

"Then they really are unnatural. Even though they exist physically, their energy doesn't interact that way. Out of reality, in an abstract space."

Trina frowned as she turned to Evelyn, then to the others behind us. No one else seemed to understand what Evelyn referred to. No one but Ava and me.

The shadow sighed as she slightly relaxed. "This is something else that came from Entity, right? Something that I can't see?"

Evelyn simply smiled and Trina pursed her lips, taking a step back. An awkward silence lingered in the atmosphere as my gaze darted from shadow to shadow.