Sisters of Destiny: Beyond Gal*Gun

Chapter 6

"Thank god that's over." Jack says as Yukina nods in agreement. As they head out of the academy with the Kamizono sisters they head to their base of operations and living quarters where Yukina is introduced to their odd method of entrance.

"Do you have to go down there?" Yukina asks.

"I was suggesting the window, but considering Shinobu's experience with windows, I don't think we want a repeat of that..." Jack says as Shinobu nods in agreement. Everyone heads down the smokestack and Shinobu grabs an extra futon to accommodate their new addition to the demon hunting group. Almost as if attempting to play matchmaker though, Shinobu has placed Yukina's futon just a few feet away from Jack's. "...Really Shinobu?"

"What?" Shinobu asks.

"You've purposefully placed her futon next to mine." Jack replies. Shinobu pretends to pay it no mind as she moves it another foot away, placating Jack and Yukina.

"She is trying too hard to get us to be a couple..." Yukina mutters to Jack.

"I'd believe it myself..." Jack mutters back as Shinobu excuses herself. Eventually, Jack's stomach lets out a rumbling noise. "What on earth?"

"Something didn't agree with you?" Maya asks.

"I have no clue." Jack replies as he waits just outside the restroom and waits for Shinobu to finish with her business. Once Shinobu comes out though, the weird sensation has left Jack's body and she's taken aback by Jack waiting.

"Jack? Were you waiting for me or something?" Shinobu asks.

"...In a sense." Jack replies, but before he can say anything more though, Shinobu suddenly turns rampant.

"Why on earth were you waiting for me right there you freak?!" Shinobu suddenly shouts, surprising Maya and Yukina. Maya then looks at what's going on and her eyes go wide knowing what Shinobu is about to say next.

"Shinobu-chan-" Maya gets cut off.

"Jack you dumbass!" Shinobu blindly shouts at Jack, and he cringes.

"Shinobu-chan-" Maya gets cut off again...

"Pervert!" Shinobu continues to yell at Jack. Jack begins to crouch, and Yukina notices something awfully off with Jack.

"Shinobu, please-" Yukina gets cut off and Maya braces for the worst part.

"CREEPO!!!" Shinobu screams in Jack's face. When Shinobu finally calms down though, she opens her eyes, looks at Jack and realizes too late the damage she's done- Jack is curled up in a ball, frightened and on the verge of tears. "...Jack?"

"Shinobu-chan!" Maya shouts angrily. "Yu-nee and I were trying to stop you for this exact reason!"

"Jack? Are you... Crying?" Yukina asks, approaching Jack cautiously. Shinobu attempts to approach Jack, but Yukina glares icy daggers at her, keeping her at bay.

"...Please don't hurt me..." Jack whimpers as Yukina carefully puts a hand on his shoulder.

"Look what you have done Shinobu." Yukina says. "You took it the wrong way and you screamed at him for absolutely no reason!"

"Shinobu-chan, I'm disappointed in you." Maya says. "You made Ja-nii cry." She adds as Jack embraces Yukina.

"Ah... I didn't know..." Shinobu says, realizing the grave error she's just made. "I've always seen Jack as a tough as nails hunter that got along really well with girls... I've never seen that side of him before... I've never seen him so... Fragile..." Eventually Jack has recovered enough to stand and wipe away the last of his tears, but he still lightly clings to Yukina, still shaken by Shinobu's sudden outburst. "Jack... I'm sorry for what I said earlier..."

"I'm pretty sure Maya and Yukina dealt with that..." Jack says. "I think it's about time I told you something, something you remember me holding back when I first met you two." And once he's emotionally stabilized himself, Jack lets go of Yukina and looks at everyone for confirmation. "I wasn't just a demon hunter because I wanted to be one... It's my way of dealing with my broken past..." The girls are appropriately shocked. "I had a horrible father. He'd never be happy with anything I did, he used to beat me which explains the scar on my forehead, but most of all... He sometimes screamed at me over the littlest of things..." He explains, and Shinobu covers her mouth with her hands in shock, realizing she had reopened one of Jack's deepest wounds. "Eventually I ran away, and ever since that I thought my dad was a literal demon from hell. That's when I decided I become a demon hunter, stealing masamune, muramasa and this holy whip to do the job... Well I didn't really steal them but I got them from a former demon hunter. Ever since, I've been drowning my past in hunting down the very thing my dad resembled: demons. My life revolved around that and school. Student by day, hunter at night, it's why I would always be seen napping in school."

"I... I never knew..." Shinobu says in disbelief. "...I'm so sorry! Can you ever forgive me?"

"Shinobu... Maya... Yukina..." Jack begins to say, bringing their attention to him. "You three entered my life when I was considering ending it... You three are the reason why I'm still sane. I was bullied in the academy by the guys, and it's why you could always see me talking with girls when I wasn't napping."

"I never knew..." Yukina says, remembering how jumpy Jack was whenever she decided to wake him up. Maya also comes to realize how Jack never had any guy friends, just girl friends.

"I forgive you Shinobu, for a start." Jack says. "But I just want to say how glad I am to have met you and Maya. If we hadn't encountered each other that day, I probably would have done hara-kiri... And Yukina... You gave me a relationship that I thought would never be a thing..."

"Jack..." Yukina says, but trails off.

"You made feel something that I thought I'd never receive... Love..." Jack says. "I can't thank you three enough for practically saving my life." He finishes as he and the three girls get into a tender group hug. When everyone parts they realize that the sun has long set, and everyone hits the hay, but as everyone falls asleep, Yukina discreetly moves her futon back to where Shinobu had originally placed it.

"I am so touched that you feel that way for me..." Yukina whispers. "I feel the same way too..."