Who had ever thought killing someone would create a whole new world of peace for someone like Danny, the innocent that was laughing at the sign of death, but it wasn't just death, it was a sign of a peaceful life beginning. Danny knew that the bruises would go away, but he wanted his father to see his mother. Ms. Yuri stood over Danny, she smiled watching him roll in the grass laughing. Even though she was happy to see Danny finally in peace, something was off. She began looking around rather quickly as if she were being watched. She then extended her hand out "Danny, we have to get going," Danny gradually took her hand and gracefully stood up. With a swift movement, a portal opened and Danny walked in, however, Ms.Yuri didn't follow. She was looking everywhere, back and forth. She closed the portal leaving Danny walking to the other side of Emily's house. Danny looked around as the portal closed. He was standing on the doorstep, his face inches away from the door. He knocked, it was quiet until large thuds came with a sudden light turning on as well. It was Emily peering through the window by the door. "Danny?" She said suddenly with tears coming down her face. "Hi Emily," He said wearily. She grabbed him dragging him inside and shut the door. The warmth of the home hit Danny hard, as he began to cry as well. "Emily...I-I," She got down on her knees and looked up at the sad brown eyes. "What happened, why are you here?" He rubbed his eyes. "My band director dropped me off, and before I made it into the door. He was lighting a cigarette and spilled alcohol all over himself, and it hit the floor causing the fire, Emily I'm so scared." It was the second time he lied, he couldn't have told the truth. If he did, it would destroy him where he would have to be stuck between four white walls.
Emily had stood there with wide eyes, her black hair falling in her face, "Danny, you can stay here, with me, until we get this all figured out." Danny put his hand on her shoulder. "But I want to stay with you." Emily stood up and walked up the steps into the living room and kitchen area. She sat down on the love seat with her elbows on her knees, her hands holding her face up. "But, I can't have you...The court won't see it!" She said in a low stuffy voice. "But my band director, she knows about the abuse, it almost happened to her," Danny said as he came up the steps and sat down, Molly, who was Emily's cat sat on the banister and watched Danny. "He tried to strike you, band director?!" She said looking up at him. Danny nodded. "And he hit me in front of her." Emily stood up outraged, her hands were in fists that the knuckles were turning pure white as snow. "This is unfair." During that night, nobody had called 911 for the house that was inflamed, but to every bystander, that house was always inflamed, no matter who had stepped in that door, it was never an ember that was soon to go out, It was an everlasting fire. But setting fire to that house had finally meant peace for everyone around them, however, not to Ms.Yuri. It had caused more problems.
Later on in the night, in a house that had more peace, which was carefully being stirred away. Zach had seen the news of a house burning, it was only then he ran upstairs to his computer to email Ms.Yuri. "I knew it!" He said logging in to his computer. His desk now was cluttered with pieces of paper, as if he were doing research on a person for school. "Know what?" Said a familiar voice from the shadows. Zach didn't even bother to turn around. "You are finally showing your true face to others." Ms.Yuri finally passed through the walls. She was wearing what she would normally have worn on a school day. "What are you talking about?" she said crossing her arms.
"That fire at that house, it was you wasn't it?!"
"How bold of you to assume that it was my doing Zach."
"How is this not your doing, Ms.Yuri"
"Because I was still at the school, Zach, that fire started at seven, I was still at the school, packing up and trying to attempt to fix Danny's trombone, which is what I came to talk about until you started throwing random accusations through the air as if weightless."
Zach's defensive guard went down. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I'm very puzzled about this, about you." Ms.Yuri took off her glasses. "I was about to give in to you, but now, I'm not so sure." Zach tilted his head. "What do you mean?" Ms.Yuri sat on the bed where Charlie, Zach's dog had sat. "After I saved you from that damn priest, saved your dog from the hands of death. Tell me, Zachary, why is my existence eating at your soul, causing you to lose your mind?" No one had ever actually asked this to Zach, he didn't even know how to answer it. "A later time, then I should ask this, but for right now, we have a slightly bigger problem." Zach's eyes grew concerned. "What's the bigger problem? What happened to Danny's trombone?" She stood up and looked over at the pictures on his wall of Ella. "When Danny was coming from he commons two basketball players stopped him, one in particular, I think his name is Sammy do you know him?" Zach scratched the back of his head. "No, I tend not to stay by freshmen basketball players, There's something about them, it's very unsettling." Ms.Yuri laughed. "Keep in mind, you were a freshmen once" Zach smiled "I know, I know, but I don't know anything about a Sammy." Ms.Yuri sat on the bed once more, stroking Charlie's fur. "His trombone is out of commission, meaning, he won't ever have one unless he buys one." Zach's eyes widened. "They broke it?" Ms. Yuri shook her head. "More than that." Zach had only known two times that an instrument had to be replaced, and those were usually the snares and bass drums for the battery. But even then, those were hard to break. "They had smashed it to pieces, bent it into shapes I have never seen before, and worst of all, made him watch." Zach stood up he remembered what his dad had said once before leaving to go back to the base. "If anger consumes you, don't let it out yet, use it when you need it the most."
"How did I forget to tell him?!" He said under his breath. He walked over to the wall and put his fist against it. "How did I neglect to tell him, why didn't I tell him?!" Ms.Yuri watched the boy. "It isn't neglect, neglect is something that wasn't forgotten, none of us knew that there was a game going on tonight." Zach was now filled with rage and anger. "I had one thing I was supposed to do, one thing, it was protecting him! because I knew he wouldn't stand a chance because of how weak he is!" Ms. Yuri stood in shock, Charlie who was now sleeping began to stir. "who told you to do it?" She asked Zach ignored her. "I knew that the abuse he had taken would eventually lead him into where he wouldn't care, wouldn't give two shits about his body anymore! I knew this and I stood by and watched it happen to him! I'm a mistake for thinking that he would be ok!" Ms.Yuri overwhelmed by his behavior, pinned him against the wall with her hands grabbing the fists and pushing them to the side. "Never ever! talk about yourself nor your classmate like that for that matter! Zach, for once in your life do yourself a favor, and accept the fact that life is like this! You have to move past it, for hell's sake Zachary you are a Junior about to graduate next year! He looks up to you Zach! No one else but you!" It was the first time that Zach had seen her snap at a student. But her eyes as he looked at them, showed more than the words that slipped past her tongue. The words she said, she truly meant them, more than anything she had usually said. She walked over towards the wall she had appeared from. Leaving Zach confused and startled by her response. "Get some sleep, Zach, and quit trying to figure me out, I have told once and I have told more than millions of times. It isn't worth going headfirst into a rabbit hole that you don't know what's on the other side, could be something that you don't want to meet." She disappeared into the wall leaving Zach clueless. He finally went to the bathroom with clothes that were left on his desk so that he could take a shower. "What would be on the other side of that rabbit hole?"
As if her warnings didn't scare him, a message that was sent by Ryan in the group chat was the most alarming thing that had happened. 'Did you hear about the fire?' Ella was the first to respond 'Yes, I heard it was around Danny's house' This was new news to Zach. 'Ella, it was Danny's house.' Zach then responded, 'was Danny in the house?' there was no response from anyone for a long time, so Zach took a shower. When he opened the curtain and turned on the shower he noticed the bruise on his leg, in which he didn't know where it came from. But the more he had looked at it, the more it started to hurt. While he was showering he began scrubbing his hair, looking down at the floor of the tub he had noticed an odd color going down the drain, not the white soap of purity. But the red bloodstains that most people had feared. He couldn't actually tell if he was bleeding or not, seeing this was not the first time he was seeing things like this. These things came from his lack of sleep, unlike one where there would be something that you would see in the corner of your eye and when you look they would disappear. No, this would stay in that corner and when he would turn to look at it, it would still be there. It was a woman, she was dressed like those things that you would see in an anime. With the exposed belly and waist with wearing a black skirt that gave her away for her legs to be completely exposed. Her top had a snake that was wrapped around her black strapped top he had his mouth open.
She had white hair that was accompanied by whited out eyes. She had horns, black ones like Ms. Yuri's the same markings, but her skin was paler than Ms. Yuri's. "Are you sure that it wasn't her doing?" She said with a deep soothing voice. Zach wouldn't dare to answer her questions. But today, he would decide to put his mischief up to use. When he got out of the shower he walked with a towel below his waist and walked to his room. When he had dressed he had seen that she was watching. "Oh my~," She said quietly. she was gawking at him, smiling. "I see why that girl took a liking to you, your muscles are so interesting..." As he put on pajama bottoms he turned to face her. "What are you doing here?" She made eye contact with Zach. Her smile faded away, "Oh? now you pay attention to me? What's wrong Zach a snake caught your tongue?" The snake on her straps opened its mouth and hissed. "Oh calm down Thesero." She said as she began petting the snake's head.
Zach wasn't having it, after having to deal with another demon, he was through this phase of curiosity. "Why are you here..." He asked in a lower voice to make him sound more threatening. "No reason, except for your band teacher's love." Zach cocked an eyebrow. "Pardon?" The demon smiled happily. "I don't think you realize how hot your band teacher is." She said with a giggle. "She's obsessed with her." The snake commented. "I am not! "Replied the demon. Zach had stood there confused about the whole situation. "So wait, you are in love with Ms. Yuri? does she know about this?" The demon nodded while the snake shook his head. "She knows nothing about it, except that she knows that Verial is a creepy-ass stalker in the demon realm." Verial, who was now flustered due to the comment the snake had made. "You are the most insufferable animal ever!" She said crossing her arms. "Hey, I'm not the one who kept staring at her ass, during the meeting yesterday." Zach was thrown by surprise, 'a meeting? were they watching her while she was at the school,' Verial then giggled. "It's not my fault she was looking too hot in those shorts~"
Zach shook his head in disbelief at what was in front of him. "I can't believe that this is happening." But then he remembered that Ms.Yuri had said that she hated succubus demons, and judging by the way this demon was, she was exactly that. "I don't think she's gonna like you back," Zach said with a smirk. Verial who was arguing with the snake turned to look at the boy. "Why do you say that boy!" Zach leaned against the desk and laughed. "Because she told me that she hates succubus, she thinks they are the most terrible perverted creatures on the face of this Earth." Verial's jaw was dropped and Thesero had thrown back his snakehead laughing. "What a surprise! She doesn't like your kind." Verial turned to the snake, "As if! Maybe I am an exception."
Zach laughed throwing his head back and closing his eyes, but when he opened them back up the snake and the succubus were gone. He looked down at his phone that was on the desk sitting face down. He was tempted, to call back Ms. Yuri and tell her what had happened. But as he leaned against he had gotten the sense of nausea. Charlie who was sitting on the bed gazed up at the boy. He whined as he wanted to go outside. As the two exited the room and went down the step Zach had noticed that his mom was sitting at the counter with a cup of coffee. Her head hung down low as her hair covered her face. As Zach approached her, he noticed that she was crying. "Mom?" He asked in a low voice. She lifted her head, her eyes were puffy from crying. "Oh honey, I'm so sorry." Zach tilted his head. "Mom, what are you sorry for?" As he looked down at her hands she was gripping on a letter. A letter from the military, and from the looks of it, it wasn't a good one. Zach had something twisting in the back of his head, it was the last thing that Zach needed right now. "Zach, your dad he, he" the words she was trying to say refused to come out of her mouth. As if her emotions were tugging on a rope around her neck causing her to choke on the words. She pushed the letter towards her son.
Zach who refused to even touch the letter already knew. "Mom, he can't be...." Zach said covering his face with his hands. "He... He isn't" His mom shook her head. "I'm sorry"