"I know he did not just leave me here like this…" Ashley muttered to herself within the forest clearing. She was leaning with her back against a tree while searching through the dusk-filled forest for her attacker. She had a feeling that he might return to her, as the jacket he had given her had the same dagger that stabbed her.
The dagger felt too expensive for him to just leave behind. As Ashley picked it up, the hilt revealed an Angel, its majestic form adorned with a single demon wing, contrasting its feathered counterpart. A dagger was held above the Angel's head by chains, while below the Angel was a small box engulfed in flames. The sight alone captivated Ashley, but a strange aura emanated from the dagger that sent a shiver down her spine. She held the dagger in her hand and watched as her blood dripped off it. She then held the wound on her stomach. While it still hurt to touch, she could feel that it had somewhat closed, at least enough that it no longer bled.
The jacket itself was an enigma to her as the blood that soaked through her wound and onto it slowed disappeared as if it were cleaning itself somehow. Wearing it, she felt a warmth that hugged her gently, yet it felt as if she could walk into a wolf's den and leave unscratched.
"Why did he look like that…" Ashley looked up at the sky. The sun was setting, and the rustling of the trees grew loud. Tiny flickers of light, like fireflies, appeared in the forest clearing, their soft glow dancing on the darkening floor of the clearing. She recalled when Ansel had stabbed her—there was a pained look in his eyes as if he were the one taking the damage instead of her. Something about it made Ashley pounder as she looked back at the makeshift bandage hidden under the jacket. She let out a small smile as the botched effort reminded her of Ash, but she could tell he tried to patch her up to the best of his ability.
A silver flash illuminated the forest as the first set of stars filled the night sky. Ashley turned towards the center of the clearing and found him. A man that she should be afraid of, a man who just tried to kill her. Yet he was a man who filled her with curiosity, someone who could change her life. A person who also bears a painful past, just as she did.
"…"
"…"
They exchanged an awkward silence. Ashley noticed that Ansel's eyes were darting from place to place, as if he was thinking too hard about what to say. Ashley would be a fool to just simply forget that he tried to kill her, so she would use that as an excuse to get closer to him.
"Idiot."
"Huh?"
Ashley's comment threw Ansel off guard, not because of its suddenness but because of its friendly tone. He quickly recovered from his shock and glared at him. He seemed lost in thought, as if he were having a conversation in his head with something.
"You…are truly an enigma. But what the hell was that for? And why was the first thing you thought to say?"
"Simple. You were probably thinking of some lame excuse along the lines of, 'Sorry, I was not in control of myself.' Weren't you?"
"Shut up, dumbass…" Ashley could hear Ansel's faint voice muttering to himself. He then looked at Ashley with an annoyed look. "You are the idiot here to believe that I would say such a thing." He then approached her and poked at the wound on her stomach. Blood poked through the thin cloth that held her wound in place onto his finger.
A sharp cry escaped her lips, "H-hey, that hurts, damn it!" the pain was evident in her voice. She kicked Ansel, who effortlessly dodged it, away out of reflex. While her leg was in the air, she felt a sharp pain from her wound, and her body locked up, and she fell to the ground.
Ansel looked down at the girl, who fell ungraciously to the ground with a smug look. "You shouldn't trust a person who tried to kill you." He licked the finger that had her blood on with a blissful expression.
"Y-y-y!" The mere sight made Ashley want to gag to the point that the words that she wanted to say failed to leave her lips. Disgust, anger, and fear, those emotions were all that Ashley could muster when looking at the unsightly man whose dignity as a human was pretty much nonexistent. "Creep…"
"That's your trying to make up some random excuse that would justify me attacking you. Unlike you, I won't run from my past and intend to face it head-on. And just to set the record straight, I attacked you because I wanted to see cute girl bleed."
"Lair," Ashley recalled the face he made when he thrust the dagger into her guts. There was regret. He did not want to admit that, but she could tell. Ashley was used to dealing with stubborn guys, and Ansel was just another one she needed to deal with. "Why did you do it?" She hinted at the bandages by opening her jacket, forgetting that she was wearing only a bra underneath.
Ansel looked away rather quickly and scratched his chin. "Do what?"
"Don't play dumb. Eh!?" Ashley looked down and noticed that her bra was exposed to the world, so she quickly covered up the jacket. She then glared back at Ansel, who was now looking at her. "I can tell you have a plan for something. Otherwise, you would not have saved me from bleeding out." From her short interactions with him, she could tell that Ansel was quite good at avoiding topics that broke the flow he wanted. So, to get answers from him, she would have to push the offensive. "You attacked me, then patched me up. For what reason did you have to do such a thing, you damn creep?"
"You really like calling me a creep." Ansel shrugged his shoulders and approached Ashley, and knelt before her. His brown eyes reflected the flicking lights of the fireflies. "I will ask you one better. Why did you want to die?"
"…" Ashley's attempt at driving the conversation forward backfired. A question that she had hoped that he would not ask was brought up. Though it should have been evident that he would pick up on it, after all, in the moments she thought would be her last, she smiled. A smile to welcome the cold, harsh death she felt she deserved for leading her parents to their deaths.
"Human eyes are the reflection of one's soul. Of course, you know that already. While you fought back initially, it was nothing but a reflex. You quickly gave up soon after processing that I was about to kill you. When I grabbed you by the neck, there was enough space for you to kick me to free yourself. Your strength is nothing to laugh at, but you didn't fight back." Ansel crooked his head and looked at Ashley with a soulless expression. "While it pains me to say it, your eyes stopped me and allowed me to regain control. You were about to be murdered as a framed criminal, yet you were accepting of the situation." Ansel stood up and created some distance. He muttered some inaudible things to himself while Ashley looked at him with a surprised look.
Ashley had not expected to follow up his question with a detailed explanation of why she was still alive; while there was a slight relief that he was being honest with himself by saying that her death wish brought him back to his senses, she felt annoyed that even in an argument with this man she could not win. From the outside looking in, everything he does seems like it was planned out. There was little room for error; if there was, he would quickly cover it up and act like it was something he had accounted for from the start. She wanted to know more about him.
"If you want to know more about me, then start by looking at me with a poker face. I refuse to work with a person who's more interpretable than an open book."
Ashley bit back her frustration as a faint smile formed on her lips. There was no winning. He had a thing to say to everything she did. Ashley could not help but think of how a person like him had lost control of his body.
"Owww—" While lost in thought, she saw a blur rush forward and a sudden flick to the forehead. She looked up and saw Ansel was mere inches from her when he was just a couple of feet, less than a second ago. "How?"
"You think too much. You'll ruin your cute face by doing that." As he finished his statement, a colorful explosion filled the night sky.
Ashley looked up and saw the color show that the small town of Aldor was putting on. The town had begun their celebration of their new, yet unknown, future with the city of Pandora. Ashley let out a small sigh as she rubbed her stomach. She had missed out on the town dinner that they normally would have before the start of any celebration.
"Up we go."
"Wait-huh?" Ashley found herself suddenly lifted onto Ansel's back. "S-stop!" She was flustered by the warmth of his muscles and tried to get down.
"Not happening; I know you can barely manage to walk right now." Ashley felt her blood seeping through her wound as she felt it reopen by his roughness. "Also, make sure you keep that jacket closed. I don't need Cypress wondering why I am walking back into the down with you and not wearing a shirt. Or him seeing the blood."
"Maybe don't thrust a dagger into this cute girl next time."
"I thought you hated praise."
"I—how do you know that?"
"I know a lot of things. I am a detective, after all. From the great storm and what happened that fateful night that took your parents. Just ask, and I shall tell."
His offering was tempting, but Ashley felt like if she took the bait, there would be no return. Right now, she refused to simply play the cards he had dealt her. She wanted to win using her own hand, but to do that, she would need to figure out what he was after. And staying on this route would be the best chance she had of learning more about the city.
"Suit yourself," Ansel said as if reading her mind. "But I took a liking to you. I'm not gonna simply toss you aside just because you took the most straightforward route."
"Huh?" Ashley could not help but blush.
As they walked, Asnel led the way through the forest with a small flashlight. Ashley felt drowsy from Asnel's gentle movements, yet the pain she felt prevented her from drifting off into a relaxing sleep on his back.
"Hey, creep."
"I have a name," Ansel said disgruntled.
"You brought that name onto yourself. But what's the city like and…" She felt her stomach; the wound that had reopened had closed once again. His talk about Gifteds and Curseds weighed on her mind. She knew that his talk about her not being human earlier had to be true.
"I hate to be that person to crush your adorable dreams of the futuristic city, but it's nothing but a living hell for people like you and me. You might think I am overreacting by saying that, but it's true. People die every day to the point where it's pretty much expected." Ansel took a pause. "As for the wound on your stomach, it should have been fatal, but your cursed blood kept you alive."
Ashley then looked down at Ansel's neck and saw grotesque-looking crimson webbing in the shape of veins.
"Those, whether you like them or not, are a part of you. The veins are…unsightly, but they only appear when you use OA or lose your temper. They are harmless and give you a boost to your strength or regeneration. They only become an issue when they turn an ebony purple. Simply put, crimson shows control and ebony chaos. Let the chaos consume you…" There was a long pause as a pained voice followed. "I hope that will never happen to you."
"W- Oww!" Ashley felt a pinch on her thigh as she tried to ask another question.
"Relax with the questions, lil miss. You are about to tread a dark truth that your heart is not ready for."
As they moved through the stillness of the forest, a distant melody floated on the breeze, weaving its way through the trees. The music, though faint, seemed to echo in their ears, mingling with the sounds of laughter and jubilation from the lively town. Ansel's footsteps faltered for a moment, and he veered off the main road, seeking a quieter path back toward the tavern.
Through the thicket of trees bordering the town, Ashley's eyes were locked on a rare sight. A young woman stood beneath the towering ancient tree on a stage built by the townsfolk, her voice soaring through the air, captivating the townsfolk who gathered around her. Her enchanting voice filled the air, accompanied by the distinct chill of her icy gaze, which seemed to fixate on the two of them within the forest. Ashley couldn't help but feel a shiver crawl up their spine as if that icy gaze held more than just a hint of hostility.
Ansel pushed forward, a muffled grunt escaping his lips as he quickened his pace through the dense forest. Ashley noticed Ansel's skin moistened with sweat as they moved.
"Let's get you home before it's too late." Ansel changed his plans. Instead of heading towards the tavern, he kept moving toward Ashley's small house.
"I'm staying with you." Ashley wrapped her arms around Ansel's head and put him in a headlock. He did not bother to resist and let out a sigh. He tapped the side of Ashley's thighs, and she let him go.
"Why?"
"Just for tonight. Since you are staying in the tavern, I get Cypress to have you share a room with me."
"That is one impossible, and two only spells disaster."
"So what? You want the whole town to know of the dirty deeds you did to the prettiest girl in the town? I'll have you know that if I said that, people would be pissed. Many of them are wishing upon a star to be my first."
"I think I made a mutter with his one." Seeing that Ashley finally pulled a win, she smiled and unconsciously gave Ansel an comforting hug.
Ansel turned back and snuck around the back of the tavern. A small door was kept open by a large bin of trash. He then entered and found himself in the kitchen.
"Can you walk?"
"I…I can try." Ashley sounded a tad bit disappointed by his offer.
"Good." Without a moment's notice, he dropped Ashley, and she fell to the ground. He then reached into Ashley's jacket. His cold hands brushed against her body, and she blushed. Ansel ignored her reaction, pulled out the dagger, and dashed off into the corner of the kitchen.
"…" Ashley glared at him with longing eyes before using a table filled with strange documents as a support to stand with. As she got off the ground, a large man busted into the kitchen, bringing the reeking smell of booze with him. "Oh," Starled; Ashley turned towards the entrance of the kitchen and found Cypress wobbling back and forth. "Good evening." Ashley greeted the man with a forced smile as Ansel watched from the corner of the room.