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[hr][h1]Aftermath[/h1][hr]
In the days since the cult incident, Miyuki hadn't done a lot out of the ordinary. But now, every time she had to go out--which she did as little as possible--she spent much more time looking over her shoulders, or questioning her contracted demon about every supposedly suspicious person in sight.

More than once, she'd seen those little goblins again, and a few other demons. A handful of times, she'd either had to defend herself, or had mustered up the courage to hunt them down. Lham Dearg was able to take care of them, though sometimes the girl had to whack them with her own bokken--which she now carried just about everywhere she went, despite being overly conscious of people staring at the tote-bag hanging from her shoulder all the time. People were probably starting to think she was some kind of delinquent!

It was hard to keep focused on her classwork at college, and more of her peers were openly talking about all the different rumors. Demon appearances were getting more frequent, and news about Satoshi Miura's involvement with the cult--as well as the "drug-induced infighting" at their gathering--was starting to spread too. Every time she turned on the TV, the fear that someone might've recorded her, Xavier Wong, and the other girl hurting those brainwashed people caused a hard lump to form in her throat.

But, she had learned a few things as well. Using the college library as well as local bookstores, she'd started a small collection on various cultures' demonology and fairy tales. Thanks to her father's love of Western literature she was already familiar with many medieval legends as well as some of the concepts from Christianity and Judaism, but as she read up on other mythologies--like the Unseelie Courts, Jack Frost, and the Greek Cyclops--the more some of what she'd encountered started to make its own strange kind of sense.

Underneath her curiosity, however, troubling thoughts darkened her dreams. Because if all of these monsters could be real...what about things like ghosts? Or Heaven and Hell? And if those things could be real too, then what if her father...

Thankfully, Mr. Wong's number had shown up on her phone before she could dive too deep into her own anxieties.
[hr][h1]Family Restaurant[/h1][hr]
[@Eviledd1984][@The World]As the waiter set the small plate of chicken karaage, rice, and shredded cabbage in front of her, Miyuki nodded her thanks while staring at her lap. This whole time she'd barely been able to look Mr. Wong in the eye, and she was super self-conscious of sitting next to Hikari--she flinched any time she thought she might've accidentally bumped the other girl or put an elbow too far over the boundary of "personal space."

But, with a gulp and a trembling jaw, she managed to look up over her glasses and speak.

"E-eto...I d-did have a dream like that, y-yes..." She glanced around the rest of the restaurant. There was no one immediately near their table, and Xavier was clearly the most suspicious person in the building thanks to his ridiculous outfit. Then again, a movie star probably had to avoid paparazzi somehow...

"B-But I don't know if I was really...picked to, um, save the world." She glanced over at Hikari. "I was just told that something was c-c-coming, and that if I wanted someone to save me, I'd have to...to call out to a demon."

Nothing appeared behind her. No one else in the restaurant noticed anything. But Xavier and Hikair, her fellow "chosen," would be able to sense the subtle spiritual presence of Lham Dearg looming over his master, like an extra shadow. She put her hand--the marked one--on the table.

"B-but...I d-don't think I can j-just, um, just sit back while these m-monsters are attacking people, or weirdos like Satoshi are trying to brainwash us!" She suddenly blushed as she realized she'd gotten more excited than she intended, having bounced a little in her seat with a shake of her fist. "If, if I can be of any help...I'd, well...I would like to try...if you'd be okay with that, I mean..." She poked the tips of her fingers together awkwardly.

Then, one strand of her hair suddenly shot straight up as her eyes brightened.

"Ah, wait! Gaburieru--I think that's, um, [i]Gabriel,[/i] Mr. W-wong! The Christian Archangel!" She gulped again as she looked at Hikari. "If it's related to Christianity, then that makes sense that they'd have ties to Catholicism!" But now her fire dimmed as she looked back down at the table, and picked up one of her karaage with her chopsticks. "Although...if Satoshi was claiming that he was going to save the world too, and has angels on his side...does that mean we were fighting for the, um...for the wrong side?" As she quieted herself with food, she looked towards Hikari in hopes that the other girl would have something to contribute too.