Welcoming Death - Hololive Fanfiction [ONGOING]

CHAPTER 25: THE FOOL

As two exited the arcade, bags chock full of prizes, a strange yet familiar chill surrounded Calli. She couldn't help but feel like she was being watched from the shadows that paved the evening streets.

Instinctively, she wrapped an arm around Ina as her smile dropped, "Ina."

"What's wrong?" She whispered softly with concern.

'A presence.'

'Calli's fellow kind I assume.'

No. Not today. Calli didn't want to ruin this. This friendship was already so fragile, only mended recently. She didn't want a reminder of how different the two were. 

Leading her through a path, Calli tried to pull her away from the terrible presence. "Let's go back--"

"Hey, Rigor mortis!" 

But it was too late. Those same few reapers who had bothered Ina; those same few reapers who refused to cut Calli a break; those terrible few. They looked right at Calli with blood red eyes.

“Hanging out with the shadiest girl in the school? Of course you fucking are.” The reaper boy dug one hand into his pocket. The other held tightly onto a wooden staff, folding his fingers over it one by one to force their attention onto it.

Gritting her teeth, Calli understood this violent implication. She relied on her protective instincts, raising her arm to cover Ina. With a bite behind every word, she exhaled out sharply, “ohhh, and you’re supposed to be the better option? Don’t make me laugh.” Her uniform began to morph into her reaper clothing, skeletal structures surrounded by a burning bright blue climbing around her form, “I’m down for a rerun of the last time we did this.”

Sensing a fight about to break, Ina pulled her arm away from them, “Calli!”

“I’m more interested in Miss Takoyaki over here.” He chuckled with a smirk, raising a brow. “I heard from a little bird that you crushed that poor phoenix friend you have into the wall.”

“I-” 

Calli marched forward, not allowing Ina to speak further, “don’t you dare talk to--” Her words were disturbed by one of his reaper taking Calli's arm, clicking a metallic wristband. Her eyes widened at the sight of it as her school clothing suddenly took the place of her reaper form. The burning blue flames died immediately. 

She knew this device: It was the same thing Death-sensei would use to limit the reapers when they fought each other. Damn it. They must've snuck one out after she guarded Ina the last time.

Ina stared at Calli wildly as she panicked, trying to force the wristband off.

“Hey!”

Brushing her off, the boy walked past Calli to Ina. “Ignore that person. Focus on me instead!” He spun the wooden staff as the familiar blue flame burned throughout it. As the fires engulfed the length of it, the handle became a burnt black twisted toward an impressive arched blade. A scythe that outmatched Calli's height by a mile.

Ina stepped back a few, looking between him and Calli.

Seeing her attention torn between them, he decided to take it back from her. The reaper raised his scythe, twisting his torso to wind back and releasing an onslaught of slashes.

For Ina alone as a human, it was no sweat to dodge but she knew intuitively this was a planned move. A warning before he got serious.

This only served to rile up AO-chan.

"He'll kill us!"

"He's going to kill us!"

"Kill him first!"