Dancer in the Dark

Chapter 7: Friends and Foes

"What's this?" Asked Lio as he watches Ren sit down next to him and Suisei.

"Don't worry about it." Snarkily replied Ren. 

"You humans are some rather strange creatures." Said Lio. 

"You're deciding to serve and protect a human so that would make you even more strange." Replied Ren.  

"I guess you have a solid argument." Said Lio with a smirk on his face. 

"Keep it down- Just a few more minutes, Flare-" Muttered a sleepy Suisei. 

"This is all your fault. Master would not be this exhausted if you just decided not to die." Whispered Lio in an attempt to irritate Ren. 

"There's no need to rub salt in the wound." Quietly replied Ren as he kept his composure. 

"Sorry, It's been a while since I was last able to tease a human." Whispered Lio. 

Suddenly, Ren hears the crackling of leaves and the rustling of a nearby bush. He quickly stands up and gets ready for a fight. 

"Sit down and quit being so paranoid. It's just a rabbit." Said Lio, quietly to not wake up Suisei. 

"How can you stay so calm when we're in a demon-infested forest?" Asked Ren, quietly in case Lio was correct about it being just a rabbit. 

"Well, I've already exterminated them all." Replied Lio as a rabbit jumps out of the bush. 

"A single person wiping out an entire regiment of demons... That's not something you hear every day..." Said Ren with a combination of shock and awe in his voice.

"It's bold of you to assume that I'm just your average person." Replied Lio.

"Well, you're definitely not an average human. The amount of mana your body is releasing is a little intimidating." Said Ren. 

"Just a little?" Asked Lio with a little disappointment in his voice. 

~~~~~

"I'm so glad you're alright." Said Yuuki as Flare awoken from the sleep spell. 

"Where am I?-" Asked a confused Flare. 

"Flare-sama! You're finally up!" Exclaimed the four other members of the party.  

"You're at the camp." Replied Yuuki. 

"What happened?- Is everyone alright?-" Asked Flare, frantically as she remember the events that occurred not too long ago. 

"Yes, the majority of us escaped safe and sound." Replied Yuuki in an attempt to comfort Flare. 

"What do you mean by majority? Where's Suisei?! Where's Ren and the other three?!" Asked Flare as Ren, Suisei, and Ren's accomplices were nowhere to be seen.

"About that..." Said Aoi in an uneasy tone. 

"Aoi?! What are you thinking?!" Asked Yuuki as he raised his voice. 

"We have to tell her the truth, Yuuki..." Replied Aoi. 

"Yuuki. What happened to the others?" Asked Flare in a cold and serious tone. 

"Nothing happened." Replied Yuuki, trying to dodge the question. 

"Yuuki. Tell me." Said Flare as her tone became even more serious. 

"Fine. I'll tell you." Replied Yuuki before he took a deep breath. 

"We were never able to get in contact with Ren or the other three that were with him. It's presumed that they were either captured or killed while scouting. As for Suisei, she sacrificed herself to save the rest of us." Said Yuuki as he sat down in a seat next to Flare's bed. 

"Tell- tell me- tell me you're kidding..." Replied Flare with anguish in her voice. 

"Unfortunately, he's not kidding." Said Aoi, confirming the bad news. 

"No- there's no way..." Replied Flare as tears begin to fall down her face. 

"See. I told you we shouldn't have told her." Whispered Yuuki. 

"What else were we supposed to do? We couldn't keep it a secret from her forever." Replied Aoi, quietly in a disgusted tone. 

"Sometimes it's better to lie." Whispered Yuuki. 

"This isn't one of those times." Replied an angry Aoi as she raised her voice. 

"Yuuki. I think you should step out for a bit." Said another party member as he overhears the two. 

"These ungrateful bastards... Not only did I get rid of the burden, but I also got rid of that freak. They'll thank me one day." Thought Yuuki as he left the camp silently. 

~~~~~

"Now what?" Asked Suisei as she sat against a tree. 

"Well, going back to the camp wouldn't be the best idea." Replied Ren. 

"Why not?" Asked Suisei in confusion. 

"Well, first of all, that friend of yours is a demon. Even if he was able to conceal his identity, bringing back a random person, especially a person that isn't even a resident of the country, would only be bad news. Do you even realize how many hoops Flare had to jump through just to make sure you weren't put under house arrest or constant surveillance?" Replied Ren. 

"No- I didn't realize- Has this country always been so strict on foreigners?" Asked Suisei. 

"We're at war, Suisei. Anyone and everyone could be your enemy. The kingdom has a right to be paranoid." Replied Ren. 

"He has a point, master." Said Lio. 

"Yeah, I guess." Said Suisei. 

"Also, while we're on the topic of enemies... I suspect that we have a rat in our ranks." Added Ren. 

"What do you mean?" Asked Suisei. 

"I've attached a spell onto Yuuki that allows me to hear everything he's saying. From the sounds of it, he told Flare and the others we were dead." Replied Ren. 

"And here I thought there wasn't a way to hate him more than I already did." Said Suisei in a revolted tone. 

"Yeah, that imbecile drove me insane. When I saw him put a sleep spell on Flare I knew he was up to something." Replied Ren. 

"I guess we're pretty screwed then. Going back isn't going to be an option." Said Suisei. 

"Sounds about right." Replied Ren. 

"So now what?" Asked Lio. 

"I honestly don't know. I've never been in this kind of situation before." Replied Ren. 

"I want to just go back to camp and slam that jerk's head into a wall a few times." Said Suisei. 

"That sounds like an excellent plan, master." Replied a delighted Lio. 

"I'm all for it." Replied Ren. 

"Then it's settled!" Exclaimed Suisei as she stood up. 

"I know that I said I was all for it but going back would be nothing except trouble. It's not like Flare would even believe us anyway. She would probably play it off as some sort of misunderstanding just so we don't go at one another's throats. She really is way too good for this world. " Replied Ren. 

"Yeah, you're probably right." Said Suisei as she sat back down. 

Author's Notes: Sorry for the late update. Was extremely busy yesterday. Please forgive me!