The Red Hand

Interlude 11 – Imp Moves Forward.

Mixu sat in her apartment's kitchen and drinking some tea while she read over the news. The fight with Serval had attracted significant media attention, mostly because of the massive fire and localized devastation north of Kyoto. She and the rest of the RRT had already gotten the asschewing of a lifetime from Aoi and some of the other higher ups, but they mostly ignored their complaints. They all figured that it was better for some uninhabited area of Japan to get torched rather than a city, and they really didn't want to put themselves into Akagi's debt to get her to handle Serval quickly.

"Poor Aoi, she's gonna have such a fun time dealing with that blow back." She smirked as she took a sip. Mixu knew Aoi was already going to be put on blast by her superiors, which she thought was fitting. "Oh well, not my problem! Suck to be you, Aoi!" The Japanese government was aware of the situation with Serval and Rivenshaft, but this kind of dramatic event was not what they expected or wanted. Especially after the Libra Crisis. The entire country was still on edge due to everything that happened within the past year, and Akagi's new nation suddenly being on fire did not help things.

As she checked through the top news stories and laughed as she imagined just how angry Aoi was going to be. A familiar voice sounded from down the hallway.

"Hnggggggggg." A weary Imp slowly entered the kitchen from the hallway, and bumbled around as she tried to find a seat. "Sleeeepyyyyy." She whined as she slowly limped to the table and sat across from Mixu, her eyes showing that she was anything but awake.

"I was wondering when you'd wake up! Good morning, sleepy head!" Mixu laughed as she reached over and pat her on the head.

"You caused-created this..." Imp had bags under her eyes and two small puncture marks on her neck. "The evil vampire wouldn't let-allow me to sleep-slumber..." Mixu had taken her back to the apartment last night for punishment after she learned of her brainwashing fun with Akagi.

{As if you didn't enjoy yourself. You were practically giddy as I sucked you dry.} (Mixu)

"Hey, it was all in the name of justice and reeducation!" Mixu chuckled. "Besides, don't act like you didn't enjoy yourself." She rolled her eyes. "You were very into things. If I recall correctly, at one point you begged me to suck on you like a juice box." She smirked.

"Evil vampire is corrupting me..." Imp groaned. "Needs to take responsibility-blame for my eccentricities..." She was trying to blame Mixu for her degeneracy.

{Evil vampire drank me... But fangs felt very good-nice...} (Imp)

"I'm sorry to tell you this but blame falls on you, Impy. Don't forget that it was your idea to get blood sucked by me as an experiment. It's not my fault that you got hooked on the rush of having my fangs sink into you." Mixu laughed.

{Though I'll admit that sipping on literal Demon blood is quite tasty. Imp is a high quality snack!} (Mixu)

"Evil vampire takes advantage of me..." Imp grinned as she tried to hide her complacency in the debauchery. "Makes me do many embarrassing-bad things against my will-consent..."

"Says the one who made everything." Mixu smirked. "I take no responsibility for using the tools provided to me. Though I will admit you are quite the fun partner. Not only do you make the most adorable expressions, but you really get into the play aspect" This had become a semi-regular occurrence for the two women. They weren't in a romantic relationship, though they enjoyed each other's company, and a bit of activities were easy and effective way to refresh themselves.

*GROWL*

As they were talking, Imp's stomach let out a growl, as she hadn't eaten since yesterday and the lack of blood was only making her hunger worse.

"Foooooood." Imp stared at her. "Feed me!"

{Ok Catkagi...} (Mixu)

"Needy little creature, aren't you?" Mixu laughed as she stood up and went to the kitchen. "I'm not going fancy, you're getting a sandwich and that's that!"

"With pickles!" Imp demanded a salty treat.

"Fine." Mixu laughed. "I swear, it's like I'm taking care of a child."

{And its my fault for spoiling her I suppose.} (Mixu)

"Not child! Am old!" Imp giggled.

"Well, you are twice my age." Mixu thought for a moment as she started making the sandwich. "So, does that make you a cougar? You are an older woman preying upon someone much younger than you." She winked back at her.

"Don't know-care. But you are femme fatale." Imp blew a raspberry.

"Hey, hold on!" Mixu protested her claims. "I don't bring disaster to the guys I spend time with! Nor do go around seducing them just for their money!"

Imp looked at her, doubting that first part.

"It's not my fault they get attached when I tell them up front that it's a fling." She shrugged. “I don't lead anyone on when I bring them into the bedroom. I merely enjoy a nice bit of casual fun, and then we split. Anything beyond that is their fault, not mine.” While she would be considered promiscious by many people, Mixu didn't care. She figured that since she stopped being Human, that there was no reason to hold herself to such morality anymore, and she should take advantage of what she was to enjoy herself. It didn't help that a ton of men and women were into vampires, and would willingly let her have fun with them.

"Poor men." Imp shook her head. "Bitten by evil vampire, then abandoned. Their hearts crushed-destroyed."

Mixu rolled her eyes as she brought a small plate with food over. "Don't act like I'm some heartless woman." She pinched Imp's cheeks and shook her head around. "After all, who just made you a sandwich and didn't kick you out after our night of fun?"

"I suppose evil vampire is right." Imp giggled. "You not homewrecker... yet."

"Considering that's how my mom screwed over my dad, I have no interest in such things." Mixu shook her head as she sat across from Imp. "Fooling around is one thing, but I'm not about to facilitate adultery." She always made sure that the people she spent time with were not cheating on someone else. One girl that tried to hook up with her lied to her about having a boyfriend was thrown out of the apartment before they could get anywhere.

"No, but will sleep with widow." Imp laughed as the widow in question.

"Could be worse." Mixu shrugged, not really caring about something like that. "But on that topic, are you alright with this? I know how much you loved Nariyuki." She knew that Imp was very attached to her deceased husband, and wasn't sure how internally comfortable she was with being physical with Mixu.

"Is fine." Imp gave a bitter smile. "He gone, would not want me to sulk and be sad anymore..." She and her husband had been best friends, and even nearly three decades later, she still missed him. "Nariyuki probably find it hot anyway." She gave a small laugh.

Mixu rolled her eyes. "If he was half as weird as you, he probably would." She figured that since people were generally quite weird, that Imp was probably right.

"Hmmmm." Imp thought while chewing. "Maybe more than half? Nariyuki was funny-strange man. He made cosplay outfits-costumes for us." She thought back to one event they went to where they cosplayed as characters of the opposite sex for fun.

"Oh god, he was a massive otaku like you, wasn't he?" Mixu sighed as she imagined Nariyuki to basically be a male version of Imp.

"A little bit." Imp smirked. She and her husband had gone to every convention imaginable and did all kinds of nerdy things before his passing. The two shared a passion for games, sci-fi and many other things, and it was how they met originally.

"Well, wherever he is, I'm sure he's looking down at you and remarking how awesome it is that you became a little Demon woman." Mixu laughed.

"I'm sure he would like-approve." Imp chuckled as she figured he'd be even more in love with her looking like this.

After a bit more discussion, and a second sandwich, Imp decided to head home. Her house was on the outskirts of Tokyo, and she wanted to get a bit more rest since she was missing a good amount of blood. The flurry over the last few days had tired her out, and she was on a weeks-long break after her last project wrapped up.

As she hopped across the Tokyo skyline, she came to a stop on top of one of the highrises near downtown.

"It nearly time-date." Imp said as she hopped down the side of the building and onto the street. Her visage had become common around Tokyo, along with the other RRT members, so people didn't really pay her any mind. And her eccentric attitude seemed to have charmed people to a certain extent.

*TING* *TING*

A small bell went off as she entered a local flower shop and headed inside.

"Ahh hello, Yuna!" An older woman who looked to be in her late fifties was behind the counter, and when she saw Imp enter, she greeted her using her original name.

"Hello, Mera." Imp smiled as she walked over to her. She didn't really use her original name from before FWO, but didn't stop people she knew from doing so.

"How have things been going? I heard something about a fight near Kyoto the other day." She looked a bit worried. The two had been friends since highschool, and even after Imp's changes they still talked regularly.

"Is good!" Imp replied. "Evil dragon was defeated by power of friendship!"

{And explosives! Many such explosives!} (Imp)

"Well, that's good to hear." Mera smiled, not really understanding the context, but being happy nonetheless. "So what brings you here today?"

"Want flowers." Imp gave a fake smile as she explained what she wanted.

"Ahh, right. His birthday is coming up soon, isn't it?" Mera said with a guilty expression. She'd and her husband had been good friends of Imp and Nariyuki, and his sudden passing shocked them. Mera had tried to comfort her friend during the difficult period, but she knew that Imp took his death hard. "I just got in some Blue Peonies. Do you want them?" Those were Nariyuki's favorite flowers, and something Imp bought every year for his birthday.

"Yes." Imp nodded. After a few minutes, she was given a small bouquet of flowers and she continued on her way back to her house.

Compared to the rest of the RRT, Imp actually lived in quite the lavish place. She had an actual home, much too big for one person, and lived in a well-off neighborhood in the suburbs that surrounded the Tokyo Metropolitan Area. She and her husband had purchased it together after their marriage, and she could never bring herself to leave it.

"I'm home." Imp said as she entered through the front door. Naturally, no one was here, and there hadn't been another person living here in nearly thirty years, but she still said it every time she entered. Perhaps it was because she was hoping that one day, Nariyuki's voice would call out to her, but she knew that such a thing was impossible.

Heading inside, she moved into the living room where a small portrait of a young man sat in a wooden cabinet. The room itself was rather sparsely decorated, save for the numerous pictures that showed a younger Imp and her late husband.

"Look Nari, I brought your favorite." Imp started speaking normally as she placed the flowers in front of the picture frame. "I'm sorry I haven't been able to bring these for so long, but I promise you that won't happen ever again." She picked up two sticks of incense and lit them with fire magic before placing them in a small dish off to the side of the flowers.

"It's been nearly thirty years since you left me." She gave a bitter smile as she started talking. "For the longest time, I thought it wouldn't get any better. That I would do nothing but be miserable for the rest of my life, and that the only thing I had to look forward to was our reunion in death but..." Imp let out a deep breath. "But for the first time since you moved on... I've... I've taken a step forward. I've got friends and life... life seems like it's worth living again." Her time both within FWO and since had greatly affected her. Before the game, she hadn't really given any thought to socializing with others and had basically shut herself into her work. However, in FWO she found that not only could she enjoy time with others still, but that she needed socialization. It gave her new life, and having a purpose other than just mindlessly going to work made her feel better.

"I finally watched that anime you were always telling me about." Imp smiled. "Sorry it took me so long, and you were right, it really was funny. I don't think I've laughed that hard in a long time." She sat in front of the portrait for what seemed like hours, telling her husband about everything she'd been through during these last five years. It was as if a flood had erupted from her heart as she talked and talked and talked until her mouth ran dry. Imp had never been one to speak with others about her feelings, even now, and her husband had been the only person she felt comfortable confiding in. Once she was finished, she prepared a small offering for him before retiring for the rest of the evening. It would take time for her to recover from decades of depression, but today marked an important step forward in her recovery. Imp would never forget her husband, but she could and would move on. Whether that was with Mixu or someone else, only time would tell, but at least now she could make such a choice, free from the restraints that held her back.

{I will always love you, Nariyuki, and I'm sorry that we never got to grow old together. So please forgive me for living on long after you passed. I don't know how long I will remain on this Earth, nor do I know if we will ever meet again, but know that I will never forget you, and how much you meant to me.} (Imp)