Daughter Of Madness [Kid X Fem!Chrona]

The Curse Lives On

Kid and Chrona sat at an iron café table outside of Deathbucks. As fall bled into winter, it was more common for chilly overcast days to hide both shadows and sun. Though as gloomy as the weather was, Chrona was glad she'd mustered enough courage to sit across from him after the whirlwind of emotions the party had stirred up. As it was, every time she thought to speak, she found herself second guessing her intentions. Or rather, how others perceived them. She couldn't help but wonder if Maka's well intended excitement was feeding into the awkward wall she found between herself and the shinigami. She sipped carefully at her cup of hot chocolate, trying to buy time within the silence to broach a more pressing topic than the rabbit hole of speculations that plagued her.

Kid hadn't been able to convince his father to let her come along during his mission in Massachusetts. She wished she could have gone, but Lord Death had been rather stern on the matter. It was getting to the point the two seriously considered Shinigami-sama knew more about what they were doing than he was letting on. Her partner in crime slumped further in his chair, his gaze locked with his coffee in a lifeless staring contest. Perhaps he couldn't bribe his emotions with sweets as easily as she could.

"How did the mission go?" She finally asked. The boy jolted at her voice, guilt and fatigue written on his face. As the rush of adrenaline subsided, he sighed and shook his head.

-The Previous Day-

The mission itself proved to be simple, if not annoying. A demon going by "The Bloody Pit" had been hiding in the shadows of the Hoosac tunnel for centuries, luring travelers into oncoming trains by concealing the sounds within the tunnel. It was only after careful observation that Shibusen was able to identify it as Kishen activity. There had been no telling how many souls it had consumed over the years, leading Lord Death to ban Chrona from the mission entirely. It didn't matter how competent a fighter either was, Lord Death didn't want a witch anywhere near a kishen egg with that much potential. Kid found it odd, considering The Bloody Pit was terrified of the light. One flood-lamp during midday was enough to corner the monster for collection. Still he had to respect his father's wishes, so following the mission he had to investigate on his own.

Kid walked among the shelves of an ancient book store. In his hand a list of fifteen books that held mention of Iroha. He scanned the shelves for one of the titles; his gaze was drawn to an empty slot on the shelf. He sighed; the volume must have been purchased by another patron. Shaking his head, Kid moved on to the next title. Yet the same occurred with the next book and the next. He pulled at the hood that covered his stripes in irritation. All of the books were collector's items, some hand written, it was hard to believe none of the originals were here. Someone couldn't have just bought them all , it was too much of a coincidence.

"What are you doing!" Demanded a small, haggard old man. Kid turned around abruptly to face the hunched senior.

"I'm looking for a book on the Sekaigami Iroha." Kid said. The man regarded the disguised shinigami.

"How would you know about her?" The man groused. "You're far too young." He lowered his glasses, peering at Kid with beady black eyes.

"That's just it; I don't know anything about her. I would like to remedy that." The man snorted, and held back whatever biting remark first came to mind.

"You're lucky I have a soft spot for preserving what mortals try to forget." He paused, expecting some sort of gratitude. When none came, he merely grumbled under his breath and ushered Kid to follow. "Well you won't find any of those books out here. Come this way." He hobbled past the shelves and preening bird statues to the back of his shop. Inside a glass case was a charred grimoire. "I've tried to find copies of the others, but my competition is unreasonably persistent." Kid reached for the book to have his hand grabbed. "Be careful!" The shop keep shook his head. "Young people, honestly. No respect for knowledge what so ever."