A Stray
"Where are we going?" Asked the spirit of infernal flames, Ifrit.
Following behind the little girl as she made her way to Akira's apartment, he had no idea what she had in mind.
"The lunch boxes," stopping by Saki's apartment, Hibiki placed her bag on the ground and took out the empty pair of lunch boxes that Akira gave her during recess today. "We must return them, no?"
Crossing his arms as he stood before her, the spirit was confused by her train of thought. Why return the boxes yourself when it was Akira who was handed down with their responsibility? If any at all, the only responsibility they might've had was to give them back to him so he could deal with the situation however.
"Why do chores for the man who robbed you?" He asked with a raging flare steaming out of his nostrils.
Facing the door, Hibiki only gave Ifrit a sideways glance before knocking a few times. Soon enough as the sound of approaching steps crawled closer, she turned her attention to the front. Drawing deep breaths, she made sure to keep calm before talking to Saki.
"Hmm?" Peeking out through the gaps, Saki looked right over Hibiki because of her small frame. Darting her gaze down, however, she finally noticed the girl with two empty lunch boxes in her hand. "Oh…"
Opening the door completely, Saki squinted her eyes while trying to recall where she'd seen the girl before. That's when it flashed in her eyes, the sight of the very girl moving her stuff inside an apartment on the lower floor.
"You're the girl who moved in downstairs a while back, right?" Saki asked, beaming a gentle smile.
"Y-yeah…" Feeling embarrassed, Hibiki kept her head lowered.
Extending her hand with the lunch boxes, she offered them to Saki.
"Akira gave them to me during recess. Sorry I ate most of it, we couldn't find your daughter at school today," giving her the explanation, Hibiki bowed ever so slightly. "I-it was delicious, thank you!"
Even though she had little knowledge of who the girl was or what her relationship with Akira and her daughter could've been, Saki simply continued to smile as she took the boxes out of Hibiki's hands. It wasn't just because of her motherly nature, but something more intrinsic, something that told her to treat the poppy in front with care or else she might wither quickly.
"Anytime sweetheart," placing one of her hands on Hibiki's bowing head, Saki gave her a few soothing pats. "If you ever feel hungry for more, just come visit me okay?"
"I-I will!" Blushing from an unfamiliar warmth blooming inside her, Hibiki raised her head with a light smile plastered over her lips. "Thanks again…"
Relaying her thanks, she finally turned around to leave for the lower level of the apartment. Having watched the entire encounter, Ifrit was still at a loss. Following his human master back to their apartment downstairs, he finally posed the question that had been eating away at his mind.
"Your first ever homemade meal, is that what this was about?" He asked, glaring at her intently as she threw herself on their bed.
Standing by the bed, he waited for her response, yet, Hibiki had no intentions of talking to him about the subject.
"Don't ask questions you already know the answer to," she complained and buried her head in the pillow.
"So this was about your guardians…" Still towering over her, Ifrit stared at her back as if trying to burn a hole through her body. "She's not your mother, remember that."
"I know that!" Grabbing the pillow next to her, Hibiki threw it on Ifrit's face.
The pillow phased through the demon's body yet the covers on it caught light flames. Sucking the fire back into him, Ifrit opened his mouth to say one last thing to Hibiki.
"I intend to keep our promise. Find your parents, but don't forget that you're helping me first," giving her a reminder, he turned invisible until needed otherwise.
'Bastard…' Though Hibiki, yet there was not much she could do as the contract was already signed.
Trying to drown her worries, she coddled herself in bed. With the blanket over her head, and warmth from meeting Saki still lingering, it didn't take long for her to drift into a recurring nightmare.
The bustling fire cheered with screams, the flames of rebellion reflected in her pupils, and the faces of her guardians all but crisped. And yet she was smiling, smiling at those burned monsters. The monsters that pretended to be her guardians in the clothes of nuns and a padre.
"W-why?" A raspy voice whispered into her ears.
Turning around to look at the person, what she saw washed that smile off of her face. Just like her, the faces of other tortured orphans were staring at her through their hollow sockets. The fire had consumed not only the adults but also the children she once played and grew up with.
"Why did you kill us?" Asked one such dead child.
Like a horde of straggling ghouls, they straggled closer and closer while bleeding out through their mouths and eyes. Eventually, as Hibiki tried to run away, the tears of blood turned into a river. Carrying her through its currents it landed her in a ditch with nothing but darkness and a never-ending pool of blood.
"You monster…" Those words echoed all around her in that well.
The familiar voices of her friends only made her sink further down into the blood pool. Feeling a sudden force on her neck choking her out, the image of one of the nuns trying to kill her flashed before her eyes. Trying to escape her grapes, Hibiki thrashed and clawed the woman's non-existent face, however, phasing right through her body, her lungs finally gave in.
Sinking like an anchor with the blood forcing itself into her insides, she kept on falling until she hit the surface of the well. Struggling to open her eyes, all she noticed were the glowing eyes of a sharp tooth titan. Glaring right at her face.
"AHHHHH!" Waking up screaming, Hibiki sat panting on the bed.
"What happ-" Dropping the question, Ifrit paused and looked around as he caught on something far more important. "Another demon…They're close."
His warning left the room in silence with only the sound of Hibiki's panting filling up the room.