Gasoline

Old Friends & Past Demons

"What?"

"I won't let you kill anybody!"

"You're one to speak, considering I've disarmed you and forced you to knee. Wait... Oh my Irene, it's the eyes." Anne hissed angrily, stepping back. Now she had to prove to this man she wasn't an enemy. Great. Just fantastic. "Look," she then said, dropping her swords and kicking them over to him, raising her hands in innocence. "I resisted. They didn't corrupt me, alright? I just... I need to know if my brother is okay. I got separated from him a long time ago and I heard from a few bandits that he was alive."

"You said tall dark hair? Yeah, I knew him. His name was Aaron, right? He helped out around here when Lord Aphmau ran Phoenix Drop."

"You-! Wait... knew?"

"Yeah. Almost five years ago, he and a group of my friends went after a man named Zane. Aphmau told me to watch the village. I... Don't know what happened. They all disappeared, as well as Zane and his guard. None of them have been seen since."

Her eyes widened in shock. "No..." Anne stumbled backwards from the man, a distress look falling over her features, leaning back against a tree as she struggled to breathe.

The blue-haired man pushed himself back up to his feet, grabbing his swords and sheathing them, before grabbing hers as well. He then approached her with furrowed brows, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "They'll come back," he said softly, reassuringly. "If I know Aphmau, she'll find a way.."

"Five years! They might be dead!" Tears had began to well up in the woman's vibrant red eyes. Her entire being had been torn to shreds, and she could feel that.. Temptation returning. One that she hadn't felt in so long. It terrified her. Anne realized that the man was holding her swords out to her, and took them weakly, placing both back into their sheaths. She then looked brokenly at the forest, her gaze blank.

"What's your name?"

"Anneliese..."

He nodded and took her by the arm, leading her towards the woods. "Nice to meet you, Anneliese. My name's Dante."

She watched as he led her through a path of bushes. Eventually, a small path was evident. It didn't take long before she realized he had taken her to his camp. It was beneath a ledge, and was next to a small pond. There was a few blankets and a makeshift bed made of twigs, grass, and branches. Dante seemed to set to work making a second bed, but Anne stopped him. He turned to face her.

"Aren't you going to stay?"

"What point do I have? Aaron isn't here."

"But he might come back. And if he does, it would probably be around this area. Plus... It wouldn't be too bad to have some company around. Being alone for so long makes your mind start to go insane."

Anne watched him for a moment before sighing. "Fine. I'll stay." She turned to sit down at the edge of the pond, gazing out at her reflection in the water, moving her bangs to expose the scar across her blinded eye. She could hear rustling behind her as Dante went back to work making a makeshift bed for her.

"You know," he said as he worked, "we could always spar a little. Help each other improve. I've yet to meet another person who fights like me. The style we use... It's often frowned upon."

"Yeah," she murmured. "Yes, we could.. I'd... I'd like that.." Her thoughts drifted to when she had fought Zenix and Gene. A sudden pain shot through her mind, and she let out a cry, form falling limply to the side as her mind was engulfed in darkness.

"You've made a grave mistake."

Anne spun around, struggling to breathe as panic took over. She knew that voice like the hilt of her sword. "What do you want," she whimpered.