"Ariel!"

  "I'm back."

  The Vampire Lord returns from her 'chat' late at night, 2 a.m. to be exact.

  "You guys could've gone to sleep."

  "Y'know there's no way we could've!"

  This makes Ariel smile. "Guess so."

  "Well, Shinatsu did."

  "She looked like she needed it, it's fine."

  "So, what'd she want to talk to you about?"

  "Just uh.. Stating her disagreements with me being a Hunter." Ariel had to word that particularly since Diego doesn't know she's a vampire.

  "Hm. Why does she not want you to be a Hunter?" Seeing there's something he isn't aware of, the member in question asks what she means.

  "Just a story for another time."

  "If you say so."

  Ariel healed her injuries and fixed her hair back up, so the others wouldn't know what actually happened in the graveyard. Ariel chose to take that burden on herself.

  While the others are glad about Ariel's safe return, Kagura is worried about Shinatsu. It's clear something was off with her and Amelia.

  She isn't actually asleep right now. She has been lying in bed awake for the past several hours. She wants to cry, she wants to scream, but she thinks there will be no point. Amelia's reminder was the breaking point for Shinatsu.

  'I thought I finally found a place I could call home, but it wasn't even my choice to be here. I was sent to Odd Jobs as a spy, I don't belong here. There's not a single place on this planet that I belong.'

  A memory from Shinatsu's childhood from when she was at her happiest flashes. At this moment, she no longer thinks a moment happier than that will ever come to pass.

  ***

  The following day is an off day for all of Odd Jobs, Shinatsu left early to take a walk without telling anybody. It was only supposed to be a stroll for no longer than 30 minutes. But that eventually turned into an hour, and another another hour. She was walking mindlessly, bumping into several people along the way, finally coming to a stop when a girl who had been following her crossed her path.

  "Watch where you're going."

  "Oh, you're still here?"

  Sophia, the spiteful girl who harassed Shinatsu at their cafe is still in District 4. She'd been waiting until she was alone to get some payback, with her posse in tow.

  Sick of seeing her face, Shinatsu slugs her exactly there. She sees somebody pull their phone out to start recording, so she glares at him. The man promptly puts his phone back in his pocket and walks away.

  "Agh, you bitch!"

  "What's the matter, isn't this what you're here for?"

  "Tch. Beat her ass!"

  With no regard for the civilians walking on the sidewalk, the girls start fighting 4 on 1. This is a straight-up catfight, pulling clothes and hair along with the orthodox punches and kicks. Shinatsu lays out one of the girls with a fierce punch to the side of her head. Catching the other 2 off guard, she knocks them down and goes straight for Sophia. Kicking her to the ground, she sits on top of her and pummels the eyesore with malicious intent. After about a dozen brutal punches, Sophia's face is covered in blood. Looking at her bloody fist, Shinatsu comes to a stop.

  'What am I doing..?'

  Ceasing her onslaught on Sophia, the other girls tackle her off. Shinatsu suddenly gave up on fighting, so now it's a one-sided battle with the 2 girls and Sophia beating her up to their heart's content. One of them holds Shinatsu's head up by her hair as Sophia kicks her mercilessly across the face with a bit of a running start. After that, the girl who no longer had the will to continue layed on the ground as the 3 girls kicked her nonstop. Her eyes were as dead as they could be.

  "Hey.."

  Out of nowhere, someone grabs the shoulder of one of the girls. They all look to see who it is. The moment they did, one of them went flying along the sidewalk twirling like a beyblade.

  The culprit is Kagura, who's with the rest of Odd Jobs. They noticed Shinatsu was gone not too long after she left unannounced. After not getting any response from their calls or texts, they set out to look for her together.

  "Kagura.." Shinatsu moans her name while lying beat up on the ground.

  "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

  "Just some payback for humiliating me at the Academy."

  Infuriated, Kagura walks up to Sophia. "Go to hell." Before the Ayase girl realized it, she was slugged yet again, square in the face this time. This punch was heavier than Shinatsu's, but she stood her ground this time not falling down.

  "You've made an enemy of the Ayase family, I'm looking forward to the next time we meet." With that, they walk away carrying the one girl who was knocked out.

  As soon as they left, Kagura and the rest ran up to the beaten Shinatsu.

  "Shinatsu!"

  Kagura reaches out her hand, but is pushed away. Getting herself up without any help, Shinatsu walks away.

  "Leave me alone, Odd Jobs."

  Shinatsu begins her zombified march, each step being a countdown to a despairing decision.

  ***

  Shinatsu's Pov

  I tried my best to move on and forget everything, but it's impossible. The past won't let me forget. On my walk to no place in particular, I recalled the last 10 years of my life. As far back as I can remember, to when I was 7 years old.

  My dad was never in the picture, not that I cared. He didn't want to raise children that shouldn't have been born. He's supposed to be a big figure of the Boreas family yet he went and got a woman pregnant not willing to bear the responsibilities of being a parent. I've only seen him once, and I'll never forget his face. I lived with my mom and twin sister, who was born 4 minutes after me. Technically that made her my younger sister so I loved playing the role of big sis. She always liked having her hair in twin tails, I copied her because of how much they added to her cuteness. We stayed in a small home, far away from the Boreas estate. We were allowed this freedom because they hadn't yet been aware of our existence. Mom told me all about the world, about the corrupt bigwigs and vampires, yet I wasn't scared at all. In fact, I was enthusiastic. Claiming I wanted to be a superhero and stop all the bad vampires. My sister looked up to me and my mom always said how proud I made her. Thinking back on it though, she must've had her reservations about me wanting to become a Hunter even with all the stuff she told me. Not that I'd ever know for sure now.

  Our peaceful life stopped when I was 8 years old. The Boreas family finally caught wind of us and took me and my sister away from our mom. I never saw her again after that. Mom tried to win an unwinnable custody battle. She was against one of the 3 big families in the world of Hunters. They have connections. That was when my life became a living hell. The family treated us differently since we were the children of some unknown woman who are father accused of tricking him into bed. Of course everyone believed the man with power. My sister and I had to deal with immense pressure because of that from a young age. Children of the big 3 families are usually homeschooled, but we were allowed to attend public school thanks to a family member pushing the suggestion. Even still, we had no time for ourselves or to play. It was school, study, train, sleep. The same cycle over and over again like clockwork. When I was 10, my sister went missing. The family didn't care since she had no talent with the blade and was terrible at her studies. Apparently, I was the competent one out of us two. This family made me sick to my stomach. I rebelled and received harsh beatings as punishment. Children from the Boreas family are all expected to become at least a 1st Rank Hunter. My saving grace was my talent. I went to school each day putting up a cold front. Naturally, I made no friends doing this. I isolated myself and continued to make enemies out of my classmates for years. I never wanted to be a Hunter. But I didn't want to be alone. I wanted a place where I could belong. A couple of my family members were kind and didn't want me to be alone, but I pushed them away unwillingly due to the master of the Boreas Family's harsh teachings. I played video games to blow off steam, it worked well since I was so good at them. Along the line, I met Iris. Though I never actually talked to her, my self-proclaimed rivalry with her is the only thing that kept me sane, and it's also the reason I continued to get smarter and stronger. No matter how silly it was, I dedicated myself to something that would push me to continue living. Iris saved me.

  I got another reality check once I turned 13. The whole family was gossiping about something. I learned that my mother had killed herself. I hadn't seen her for 5 years, but I was still broken. The Boreas family drove my sister to go missing and my mom to suicide. This world should honestly just burn.

  Despite everything, I still enrolled in the Hunter Academy. Things weren't bad there. Fate happened, and I ended up reuniting with Iris. I ended up tutoring her along with Chifuyu which wasn't bad. One thing led to another, and I ended up getting expelled under the pretext of graduating early. My aunt Amelia came to me, saying she'd give me a purpose to my life. My mission was to join Odd Jobs and expose the Vampire Lord and half-vampire hiding among the Hunter ranks. If I succeeded, I might be welcomed back into the Boreas family. I just went along with it. Over a month passed, and I truly enjoyed my time there. Life loves knocking me down over and over though. Sophia who has a grudge against me came and interrupted our peace. On top of that, Amelia already paid a visit giving me a nice reminder. I actually believed I found the place for me. It was false hope, my life has been full of that.

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  When I came to, I found myself sitting on a bench in some park. The sun is setting, so I've been out for the whole day.

  …..

  "Why am I still alive…"

  Every fiber of my being is telling me there is no point in continuing to live, yet something else is telling me otherwise. Why am I still hanging on? The faint hope lingering with me disappears at last as a familiar face speaks to me.

  "Ah, don't be like that. There are plenty of reasons to keep living."

  I turned my head to the source of the voice. It came from a girl with an identical face. I could feel my heart physically drop in shock. Her hair was a different color, but it was undoubtedly her. My twin sister.

  "Shiori…"

  "For one: we have to get our vengeance on this sick world."

  My sister who had gone missing for 7 years appeared in front of me. The happy times of my childhood flashed through my mind, overwhelming me. I started having a panic attack. I want to ask where and how she's been, but I'm unable to. Though I recognize her, it's like she's an entirely different person. Her expression is one that she's never worn. My sister Shiori, looked upon me with a sinister countenance.

  "I know this is a shock and I'd love to catch up, but unfortunately I'm here to present you with two choices. One: Come with me and join the vampires. Two: Refuse and die by my hands. So, what'll it be?"

  Joins the vampires? This has to be some sick joke. Ah, I see. This definitely isn't the sister I knew. She's been twisted by this world and wants vengeance on it. Typical, I'm not even surprised anymore. So I'm just going to be killed by my sister now. Truly, what a sick world this is. My life is full of regrets, but there's nothing I can do.

  "So sister, what's your choice?"

  I look up at the night sky for no particular reason before answering.

  "Kill me."

  "What a shame."

  Shiori unsheathed the blade at her hip and walked toward me. I remained sitting on the bench. Taking one last look at my sister, I closed my eyes resigning myself.

  At that moment, I was ready to die.

  I didn't want to live anymore.

  A few seconds passed, my sister should've cut me down by now.

  I opened my eyes.

  Odd Jobs was there.

  ***

  Shiori's blade was stopped in its tracks. Kagura is clenching it with her bare hands, not paying any mind to the blood dripping down as a result. They all heard everything.

  "Aw, look Shinatsu. Your friends are here!"

  "Step away from her," Kagura spoke sternly.

  "Hm? What was that?"

  Without repeating herself, she unsheathes her blade at an incredible speed. Although most Hunters don't do this, a lot of them still keep their blades on them even when off duty. This is the case for Chifuyu and the others as they know they can be targeted at any time.

  Kagura didn't attack with the intent to kill, but she still put considerable power into the slash because of her anger. Shiori blocks the attack effortlessly with her sword. Chifuyu and Ariel push in afterward, with Iris and Diego following behind.

  "5 on 1? That's dirty." Shiori backs away.

  "… What're you doing here, Odd Jobs?"

  "You say that like you're not one of us," Chifuyu replies.

  "I'm not. Get out of here."

  'Please.' Shinatsu looks down. She forces herself to. She can't look up, not at this hope presenting itself to her.

  "We're not going anywhere. Stop with the tough act."

  "You don't know the first thing about me. I don't wanna say it again. Leave."

  Iris looks over at her shoulder at Shinatsu. For the first time ever, she got angry. "DON'T LOOK DOWN, SHINATSU! LOOK AT US! WE'RE HERE WITH YOU!"

  Reluctantly, she slowly moves her head upward. She wanted to forget her past and move on, but people won't let her. She wants to give up on any lingering hope, but her friends won't let her. In front of her are the backs of 5 people she barely knows. Yet they're going to such lengths for her. Shinatsu's will to live and urge to let go weigh about the same. She just needs one last push. One more reassurance.

  "It's true we don't know anything about you. But that doesn't deny the time we spent together, no matter how short." Kagura speaks from her heart.

  "Tell us to leave again and we will. If not, we'll put our lives on the line for you. Right here, and whenever the time arises."

  Shinatsu is overwhelmed with emotions. The scales in her mind are at last coming to a conclusion. How can she let go, when there's those who are reaching out to her.

  Tears flow as Shinatsu grabs firmly to this hope, never letting go again.

  "Please.. Help me, Odd Jobs."

  Her dead eyes regain their color. Words that Shinatsu has never spoken in her life. The others don't look back, they're only looking forward at the enemy in front of them.

  "Should we take this as an Odd Job, Kagura?"

  "Yeah. I guess we'll have our client pay us after this is done."

  This is a serious situation, but they still had to get to a joke off. They wouldn't be Odd Jobs otherwise. Shinatsu is put at ease with this.

  "I hate you guys," she says with a smile. They let out wry laughs in return.

  "How beautiful, you guys are gonna bring me to tears over here. Good for you sis, you still want to live in this sad world."

  "So, what's her deal Shinatsu? She's your sister yet she's also a vampire."

  "I'm on the same page as you. What happened, Shiori?"

  "Oh, you're curious now? How sweet of you. All you need to know though, is that I'm a half-vampire just like that boy. I became one of my accord."

  "What?!"

  Everyone is shocked. This is major news finding out there's another half-vampire besides Chifuyu.

  "The situation remains the same. Since you're not going to join me, I'm going to kill you."

  Shinatsu still hasn't fully processed this. It was a big enough a shock to find out her sister was still alive, but becoming a half-vampire on top of that is too much to think about immediately.

  "Do you really think you can do that when I'm here?" Ariel finally speaks.

  "The has-been Vampire Lord, I'm not interested in you."

  "Oh well, I'm plenty interested in you. How did you become a half-vampire? Whose blood did you take?"

  "Hm… If you can land one hit on me, I'll consider giving you an answer.

  "Is that so?"

  Ariel promptly charges in and starts with a heavy dropkick, Shiori blocks it with her blade.

  "Don't kill her, Ariel!" Shinatsu shouts.

  "Don't worry. If it's a hit she wants, then I'll give her one!"

  Diego looks on in awe. "Wow, she's strong! She's not even using her blade."

  "I've heard about your vow. Are you sure it's a good idea to be attacking me, I'm still half-human after all. You might die!"

  "Let's test it out then."

  Their fight moved a bit further from everyone else, so they can't hear them talking. Testing her luck, Ariel lands a punch right in Shiori's stomach blowing her back. She proceeds to look at her hand, waiting for something to happen. A single drop of sweat slides down her face in anticipation.

  "Looks like nothing happened!" Ariel yells triumphantly.

  "Haha. You're insane."

  "Maybe, but now I know I can beat your ass. So, you gonna tell me your secret?"

  "Nope."

  "Figures." Ariel charges back in, but is suddenly brought to her knees.

  The others see Ariel suddenly on the ground and hop into the fray. Shinatsu stays behind though, she can't bring herself to fight her sister, not at this moment.

  "Ariel!"

  "You guys should follow suit."

  The rest fall, being pushed down by an immeasurable pressure.

  "What is this?" Ariel questions.

  "Neat, isn't it? It's my curse."

  "What, half-vampires can use a curse?!" This is news to Chifuyu.

  "Tch. So you have one. You must've killed several humans. No. A lot more to also be able to produce this strength."

  "Is she.. pushing us down with gravity?"

  "Bingo! You get a prize." Shiori throws Diego a piece of candy that she had in her pocket.

  "Shiori, please stop!" Shinatsu ran up to them. She's not armed so it's not like she can fight.

  "No. I don't think I will."

  "I could've followed down the same path as you, but I knew it wouldn't lead me anywhere in the end. This revenge against the world shit should only be in manga."

  "Hahaha! Don't put me in the same category as the cliche characters whose sole purpose is revenge. My goals are far beyond that."

  "Are you not with the Slayers?"

  "Nope. I guess you could say I've gotten to know a few of them though." Shiori yawns. "It's getting pretty boring right now, I thought you guys would put up more of a fight."

  "Don't look down on me." Ariel's force is breaking the very ground below her as she breaks free from Shiori's gravity. She uses the momentum from the force she created to pounce straight to the sister, grabbing her face.

  "Spoke too soon huh?"

  After getting her quip out, she gets slammed into the ground causing the others to be set free.

  "Ah.. Finally. I could feel my back slowly giving in," Diego comments.

  "So, feel like answering me now?"

  "Let me think about it… No!"

  Shiori tightens her grip on the blade she's been holding. Noticing something, Ariel jumps away seconds before purple lightning surges the spot she was in.

  "Aw. Saw that coming?"

  "Another curse? No, it has to be from that sword."

  "Bingo! I'd give you a kiddie treat but unfortunately I don't have any on me."

  This visibly ticks Ariel off. "Shinatsu, let me mangle her just once," she asks while twitching her fingers.

  "Please don't."

  "Well, I wasn't expecting a drawn-out fight so I'll be taking my leave now. If you weren't going to join me sister, I planned to kill you so I could move on. But I suppose I'll abstain. I do want to see where you go from here now."

  "…" Shinatsu remains silent.

  "Well, should we let her go?" Ariel asks.

  "Sorry, please do."

  "If you say so."

  "You really are kind. Here, a gift." Shiori tosses them the Alter Weapon.

  "What? You're giving this to us?"

  "I'm not much of a swordsman. My curse is all I need anyway, along with some knives."

  She gives Chifuyu one last look before leaving.

  "See you soon, Odd Jobs."

  ***

  Minutes have passed since Shiori left, Odd Jobs is still at the park just sitting down.

  "Looks like we have an off-duty report to write."

  "Yay.."

  "I still can't believe you guys actually followed me the whole day."

  "It was Chifuyu and Kagura's idea."

  Those two saw Shinatsu's eyes earlier. They were more familiar with them than they'd like to be. They were the eyes of someone who lost the will to live.

  "Would you guys mind listening to what I have to say?"

  For the first time ever, she told others what she had been bottling up for years. She told everyone what's happened in her life, the happy memories of her childhood, her cruel upbringing in the Boreas family, and about wanting a place to belong. Everyone listened attentively, as she continued to talk for over a couple of hours. Shinatsu told them how much she's enjoyed being at Odd Jobs, apologizing for not wanting to live anymore. She left out why she was sent to Odd Jobs, she just couldn't get herself to tell them. For the time being, she couldn't help but still have some reservations. But this is without a doubt progress.

  Iris was trying to hold back from crying, but she can't stop herself as she goes to hug Shinatsu.

  "Don't ever say you don't want to live again. You have people who care about you. We care about you!"

  "I won't. Thank you, Iris."

  "Not too long ago, living was also hard for me. Someone changed that though, without them knowing. That's why I was inspired to create Odd Jobs. To help people who are also struggling, and to build a group who wants to do just that. Whenever things get tough, we'll be there for each other. That's the kind of ideal I wanted for us to have when I first thought of starting Odd Jobs. You have a place where you belong. Right here with us, Shinatsu."

  "I have issues with family, so I can tell you with certainty that you can't let them get the better of you. Strive for a life you can be proud of. I know that's easier said than done. I needed a wake-up call myself. But once you truly feel like you're happy with where you are and your family tries to interfere, give em the good ol finger and tell them to go to hell."

  "I've learned that life is full of surprises, good and bad. You never know, the good ones may just be worth pushing through to see." Ariel slaps her in the back.

  "Don't stop taking steps forward. The road ahead won't be a straight path, and it's sure to have a lot of bumps. But we'll be there, taking them with you."

  Uncontrollable tears stream down Shinatsu's face once more. "Thank you guys. This means everything to me.."

  Everyone smiles.

  "Oh right." Remembering something, Kagura runs over to some bushes. "I had this with me the whole day, I've been meaning to give it to you." She quickly runs back over to the group with a bag.

  "What is it?"

  "A gift. Go ahead and open it."

  "Okay.." Shinatsu opens the bag with a quizzical look and takes out the wrapped item.

  "A beanie with a cute bunny." She states what it is.

  "Well, what do you think?"

  Awkwardly putting it on, she blushes as she looks down away from everyone. The truth is, she loves it.

  "Still playing tough are we? Those cheeks are bright red," Chifuyu jokes.

  "Shut up!"

  "I think she loves it," Diego joins in.

  "M-me too."

  "Sure seems that way."

  "All of you, shut up!"

  "Watch out, the adorable little cub is going to attack us!"

  "Hahaha!"

  "Hahahaha!"

  "Hahaha!"

  "Hehe."

  "Teh.. Hahahaha!"

  They all laughed, including Shinatsu.