It was our fourth day of walking before anything else happened. We were walking through a dense forest, the scents of sweet sap and the chirps of birds in the air. Sparks and Minx were climbing up trees and racing around us as Mia and I kept a steady pace. All three of them seemed to be in their element; perfectly at ease with their surroundings. Even Mia seemed to have an extra energy to her steps and a more calmed look about her. Maybe Kitsunes are naturally more at-home in forests? Maybe that’s where they… well, came from?

“Mom!” Sparks cried above us, somewhere in the leaves. “Mom come up here, quick!”

“Sparks, are you okay?” Mia suddenly asked, dropping her backpack.

“Yeah, but hurry!” Minx added. “I-It’s huge!” Mia leapt up, grabbing onto a tree branch and hoisting herself up with an ease I envied before continuing upwards, out of my vision, showering me with leaves and twigs that I quickly wiped out of my hair. I instantly felt nervous, and picked up the baseball bat attached to Mia’s pack… Just in case.

A minute later Mia dropped back to the ground in a yellow and orange blur. She straightened laughed, and embraced me, making me drop the weapon as I was enveloped in a warm, fuzzy and rather pleasant hug.

“Ryu, we made it!” She exclaimed.

“Made it?” I asked into her shoulder, my breathing constricted. “Made it where?”

“To the city!” She released me and picked up her bag and the fallen baseball bat. Sparks and Minx dropped down next to her, their energy levels up yet another notch.

“C’mon Ryu, let’s go!” Minx exclaimed, grabbing one of my hands and starting to drag me along.

“Stop being such a slowpoke Human!” Sparks commanded me, grabbing my other arm and pulling.

“Fine, fine, I’m coming!” I shouted, going along with them; they still didn’t let go, only pulling harder to get me to up my pace as they ran to keep up with Mia, who was excitedly striding forward, smiling broadly.

“A warm bed, a hot shower…” Mia let out a high sigh. “Finally…”

“It’s only been four days, Mom!” Sparks told her disdainfully. I managed to shake myself free, glad to have my arms back under my own control. I hurried up to Mia’s side.

“What was it like?” I asked softly.

“Big.” She said back excitedly, obviously energized by seeing the city. “Huge, in fact! It looks like a really big chunk of the city, with a few skyscrapers and everything!”

“Really?” I felt my eyes widen in surprise. “That much?”

“Uh-huh, and almost everything looked like it was in one piece. We’re still kinda far away, though… We should get there a little after lunch, if we hurry.” And hurry we did; the only stop we made was for Mia to dig out the sandwiches we had made earlier that morning so we could eat while still moving. I could feel the excitement in the air around us like an electric charge, making my skin tingle and my eyes and ears stay wide open.

It was a good hour before we finally made it out of the forest, and once we were past the final trees I could see what the Kitsunes were so excited about; the skyline of the city was clearly visible, and so were most of the buildings! We were atop a small plateau, so I could see that it was downright huge compared to what I had seen in the previous weeks. It was made up of dozens of blocks, everything from small stores to skyscrapers to warehouses. There were even a few factories which, to my surprise, had thick, black smoke rising from their stacks.

“It looks even bigger from here!” Sparks exclaimed. “C’mon, let’s go!”

“And look at that!” Minx pointed excitedly, not to the city itself, but the land around it. It appeared almost… patchwork-like. A moment later I realized that it was farmland, extending for several miles beyond the edges of the city. It was almost like the city was some ancient castle…

“Ryu!” Mia waved a hand in front of my face. “Earth to Ryu!”

“Ah!” I gasped. “What?”

“Let’s go; Sparks and Minx are already gone!” I glanced around to see that they were already halfway down the hill, their tails gliding back and forth, their giggles carried to us on the wind. Mia took off after them. “Slow down, you two!” I quickly followed, struggling to match the pace she effortlessly set.

Fortunately, when Mia caught up with her kids, she forced them to slow down so I could reach them, and we continued at a more subdued pace. More of a quick walk than an all-out run. Sparks and Minx were sniffing the air, whispering to each other, pulsing with excitement; in less than an hour we reached the edges of the fields.

As we made our way through the fields, I marveled at the sight of Humans working the fields like something from a fairytale; using hoes and rakes and other hand tools rather than combines and other massive machines. Both men and women were hard at work, wearing blue jeans, shorts and T-shirts. It was quaint… almost a bit eerie. Few glanced up at us as we passed, and those that did only gave us a quick glance before setting back into their work. Apparently newcomers weren’t all that rare.

Sparks’ and Minx’ jaws got steadily lower and lower to the ground as we came closer and closer to the outskirts of the city and the buildings grew larger and larger.

“Look at how huge everything is…” Minx gasped, looking up at the collection of skyscrapers, reaching up to the sky like fingers grasping at heaven. Their new set of memories probably told them that they had never seen anything bigger than the apartment building they were living in before; no wonder they were surprised.

The edge between the city and the fields was just as sudden and abrupt as the one back at the apartment building that we had lived out before; grass and crops one moment and pavement and buildings the next. The second that I stepped onto the pavement and the sea of grass was no longer visible, I could almost imagine that everything was normal… Then I noticed the people walking about and lounging on stoops, and all thoughts of normality flew out of my head.

A boy about my age was sitting on the top of a staircase near us, talking to a girl of the same age. The boy had two feathery black wings folded against his back, and his hair matched them, while the girl appeared to be a perfectly normal Human. They leaned in and gently kissed as we walked by, and I narrowly avoiding staring. Instead, my attention was snatched by a woman that was a green and brown snake from the waist down that slithered in the opposite direction as us.

“Whoa…” I whispered, feeling my eyes widen as sight after sight of the unfamiliar familiar met my senses. Things were so normal… But so strange at the same time.

“Oh my…” Mia muttered next to me. “I-I guess that Sparks and Minx were right…” Both little Kitsunes were too busy to notice the odd (to them, at least) statement from their mother; both were looking around in a similar amount of awe as Mia and I.

“There are so many people!” Minx exclaimed.

“There’s so much going on!” Sparks returned. Both took eager steps forward, only to be restrained by Mia, who grabbed each by one arm.

“Stay with us.” She commanded, yanking them back beside her. “You can look around later, once we’ve found a place to stay!”

“Okay…” Both replied as one, their ears and tails drooping in tandem.

“So… Ryu, any ideas?” Mia turned to me.

“Me? You’ve lived here longer than me!” I exclaimed. I was met with a slightly miffed expression. “Kinda… You know what I mean.”

“I don’t have any more experience in this kinda situation than you do.” The Kitsune replied. “So… when in doubt, ask a cop!” She smiled slightly, looking straight ahead again. I turned my head as well to see a perfectly normal Human standing at the corner of the street; he was wearing a deep blue, crisp police uniform. To my surprise, however, he didn’t have a gun at his belt, nor did he have a radio, or handcuffs; instead he had a sword at his waist, one hand resting lightly on the haft.

“Sounds good to me.” I murmured, trying to quash the feeling that something was going to go wrong, that someone was going to attack me or Mia. It’s happened just about every other time since that Earthquake…

“Excuse me…” Mia went up to the police officer. “I was wondering if you could tell us where we could find a place to stay while we’re looking for a house…”

“You just got here, huh?” The man returned, looking down at Mia. Specifically her hands, hanging at her sides. I wondered if he was checking for a weapon. “You aren’t registered yet.”

“Registered?” Mia sounded confused. I seconded that. “Registered for what? Where?”

“For being a Demon.” The guard said back. “Follow me. Please bring your kids.” He turned around and started to walk off.

“I have to get registered just for being a Demon?” She asked, shocked. She quickly grabbed Sparks and Minx, who were still in awe of the sheer amount of activity going on, and dragged them after her. I followed closely behind.

“Yes ma’am.” The man seemed a bit more polite now. He looked back at me. “You don’t need to come. Only Demons need to get registered.”

“I really don’t have anywhere else to go but with them.” I replied meekly.

“All right.” He nodded

“Where are we going?” Minx inquired. “Ow!” She glared at Sparks, who had jabbed in the ribs with an elbow.

“We’re going to the Demon Services Office to get you three registered.” The man looked over at them and smiled warmly. It seemed that his initial indifference didn’t extend to people new to the city. “It’s so we can tell the difference between Demons that are on our side and the bad guys.” Sparks glared at the man as he turned his gaze back to the front. The little Demon muttered something that made Mia nudge him roughly on the shoulder and give him a hard glance.

“What?” I asked. “Bad guys?”

“Raiders, those types.” He replied. “We don’t exactly have time to ask every Demon we see if they’re on our side or not while we’re under attack, so all Demons living here need to be registered.” He pointed at a little girl that had grey, pointed ears atop her head and a matching tail; it looked a bit lupine. She was holding onto her mother’s, a Human, hand, skipping in the same direction as us. “Look at her hand.”

On the back of her right hand was a golden insignia, almost like a tattoo; it looked like (I have NO idea what I want this to look like… any ideas anyone?)

I kept my eyes on it, studying it until the girl and her mother turned down a side-street. My eyes then roamed, looking around, taking in more strange sights. I looked up to see a shapely woman with blue hair and bat wings flying over head. I dropped my gaze a bit more and I saw some teenaged Demons, one with a third eye in the middle of her forehead and two guys with pointed ears and flaming orange-red hair sitting atop a building, dangling their legs over the edge and chatting about something I couldn’t make out.

I suddenly rammed into Mia’s back and blushed, stepping back and over to the side, expecting her to look back at me. She didn’t, so I, curious as ever, looked up to see where we were.

The police officer had led us to a building next to the police station. It was apparently an older building, only four stories tall and made of aged brick, now weathered and a mix of grey and brown with stains and scars of long life. Brown and green vines crept up the front and sides up cracks between the squat windows like veins throughout the skin of an old woman’s hand.

“These are the Demon Services Offices.” The man said, adjusting his hat with one hand. “They were created right after…” He looked at Mia and paused, appraising her. “Do you have your memories?”

“Y-yes…” Mia replied, sounding surprised. “But-”

“What kind of car did you drive before the Earthquake?” The man asked, his voice somewhat intense, the question apparently deeper than it first appeared.

“I rode the bus.” Mia sounded suspicious, apparently smelling something that set her on edge.

“Okay.” He nodded. “Just making sure; it’s policy.” He went to open the door, and Sparks and Minx crowded close to their mother.

“What was he asking, Mom?” Minx asked, standing next to her leg. Sparks stood in front of the two, between them and the building like he was shielding them as best as his little frame could manage.

“Sounded weird.” The little boy Kitsune spat.

“It was just… something for grown-ups, that’s all.” Mia quickly lied. “Right Ryu?”

“Yeah.” I quickly agreed. Probably too quickly, because Sparks instantly looked at me with suspicion.

“I’ll tell you about it when you’re ready.” She told both of them as she led them to the front doors, which the police man was holding open politely.

“I’ve got to get back to my patrol.” The man said earnestly, the suspicion gone from his demeanor now that he was sure that Mia remembered before the Earthquake and that he needn’t tip-toe around her new memories. “Go to the front desk, and they’ll send the three, er, four of you where you need to go to get registered and settled.” Mia thanked him, and he tipped his cap and left quickly.

“I want you two to be on your best behavior, got me?” Mia told them sternly. “If not, I’m gonna make both of you regret it!”

“Yeah, Mom!” Sparks told her quickly. “I got it!”

“Me too, Mom!” Minx agreed.

“Good.” Mia smiled. “Now let’s go; we should get done before dark…” I quickly darted ahead and held the door open for them, then followed behind. The lobby showed its age with a low ceiling and few windows, the floor below our feet tile that clicked as Mia’s claws hit it. Behind a wooden desk was a rather bored-looking, older woman who appeared to be Human who rested her head on one fist.

“Are yew here ta be registared?” The woman asked in a lethargic drawl.

“Yes, we are.” Mia replied earnestly.

“Tike this…” She quickly wrote something on a small slip of paper and handed it to Mia. “And go to the third flo, office 311, on the righ’.”

“Thank you.” Mia told her with a nod, which the receptionist ignored. She waited another moment for a response, and when she realized she wasn’t getting one her ears drooped a bit, but she nevertheless pocketed the paper and started down the hall, Sparks and Minx in tow, and me at her side.

The office was indeed easy to find, and we arrived quickly. The room itself was a typical, doctor-office-esque waiting room, complete with only mildly comfortable plastic chairs with thin cushions and stacks of magazines cluttering the few tables in the room. Mia released her kids and went directly to the receptionist on the far wall.

“Hey, how ya doin’?” The woman was in her twenties, and was busily chewing on a wad of gum. She barely glanced up from her thick, airport-style romance novel to acknowledge Mia. “How many?”

“Excuse me?” Mia asked politely.

“How many are ya registerin’?” She asked, her eyes traveling slowly across the crinkled pages. “Four?”

“Three.”

“’Kay then, here ya go.” She reached below the desk, flipping her book over to mark her spot, and handed Mia three thick packets of paper. “It’s all in triplicate, seein’ as copiers don’t work anymore. Give ‘em back to me when yer done, ‘kay?”

“Yeah.” Mia nodded, grimacing at the forms before her before grabbing a pen and sitting down at a table, starting to fill them out.

I sat in a chair near her and looked at the clerk behind the desk. She blew a bubble of bright-pink gum and turned a page in her novel, dead to the world. I stared at her for a moment, but after I realized that she wouldn’t be looking up unless someone burst in wielding a weapon I looked back to Mia.

She was thoroughly engrossed with filling out the hefty stack of paperwork. I read over the first page quickly; it seemed to be an ID form, asking her to list race, fur/scale color, hair color, and so on. It was, strange as it was to see, hand-written; apparently printers were also out of action. Not wanting to bother her, I glanced over at Sparks and Minx.

Both were sitting in chairs next to each other, sitting forward enough that their tails swayed from side to side slowly. Both seemed very excited to be there, strangely enough; still captivated by how foreign and huge everything was compared to what they remembered… I shook my head, trying to get the uncomfortable thoughts out of my head.

It took an hour for Mia to fill out forms for all three of them, and by the end Sparks and Minx had gone from excited to apathetic to bored to stir-crazy. They had tried reading some magazines, but had given up in disgust because they made no sense to either one of them. Eventually I played a couple of small games with them to keep them from ripping anything apart or simply going off the deep end.

“Things you would find in a bedroom.” I said after a moment of thinking.

“Bed.” Minx quickly said.

“Table.” Sparks replied next.

“Closet.” I answered.

“Clothes.”

“End table”

“TV.” Both stared at me.

“What’s a… TV?” Minx questioned, her foxish curiosity piqued, her eyes wide.

“Erm… Well…” I searched for an answer, but I couldn’t find one to give them.

“He just made it up.” Sparks accused. “You’re out Ryu.”

“Weapon rack.” Minx continued.

“Armor stand.”

“Battle trophies.”

“Portraits.” Minx opened her mouth to reply, but stopped as the door opened and a man, Human, in medical scrubs came in holding a clipboard. He was thin with brown hair and had a kindly look about him. He was young, probably just out of med school, if even that; they were most likely low on personnel.

“Mia, Sparks and Minx?” He read before looking up at the three Demons. “I’m doctor Stiles, and I’ll be doing Sparks’ medical evaluation and applying his Mark. Doctor Naomi will take care of you two in a different room. Follow me, please.” He smiled warmly and held the door open for them as they left. Mia glanced back at me, and I gave her a smile and thumbs up before she walked out the door.

I waited in the room, feeling a bit awkward for being without Mia or… her kids for the first time in days. I flipped through a magazine, looking mostly at the pictures and ignoring the words. There were pictures of things like cars and cell phones and TVs… Pictures of junk that didn’t work anymore.

The magazine flew from my grasp as I heard Sparks scream somewhere down the hall.

“What’re you doing with that? Stay away from me!” He yelled. There were a few crashes and bangs, and I heard something glass shatter. “Crazy Human! Lemme go!” There was another series of crashes. “Stopit! Get that thing… offa… me…” His voice trailed off.

Somewhat worried, I looked up at the receptionist to find her flipping another page of her book and chomping away on her gum. She’s not gonna be any help… I slowly rose, leaving my magazine on the floor where it had landed spread-eagle, and quietly made my way to the door. I didn’t want to alert the woman, seeing as I wasn’t sure if I could leave the room, so I stealthily eased the door open, slipped through, and slid it carefully back into the frame.

I tip-toed down the bland hall, chasing after where I had heard Sparks’ voice coming from. I put my ear to the first door I came to and closed my eyes to listen.

“Mom…” I heard Minx say. “What about Sparks?”

“I’m sure he’s fine, honey.” Mia replied.

“Now I’m going to give you two your marks, okay?” I heard an unfamiliar voice ask. “It might sting a bit, so I need you to be brave, okay Minx?”

I pulled away from the door and went to the next one. It was quiet when I put my ear to it, but a moment later I heard someone begin chanting. Surprised, I nudged the door open, ready to duck back in case I was noticed.

Inside I saw the doctor from before making controlled gestures as he quietly chanted out what I guessed was a spell. His arms hovered over Sparks, who lay motionless on an examination table on the far wall of the room. His body was almost limp, his tail twitching feebly and his hand slowly opening and closing.

As I watched the doctor said one last word and touched the back of Sparks’ hand. There was a gentle golden glow, a small sphere around his hand. He moaned softly and whispered something as it vanished.

“What did you do?” I gasped, going through the door and closing it behind me. Is he drugged? Is he hurt? Will he be okay? The doctor turned around; it was the same one from earlier, Stiles, and he looked startled.

“What? You’re not supposed to be in here without-”

“What did you do to him?” I cut him off.

“He was getting… rowdy, so I subdued him.” He said defensively.

“Subdued? He’s only a kid!” I shouted. “What if you hurt him? What if he has some… some reaction to whatever you gave him?”

“Reaction…?” He shook his head. “I didn’t give him any medication; I warded him.”

“You did… what?” I asked after a moment of puzzled silence. Warded?

“I put some wards on him.” He paused. “Oh… You don’t know about them, huh?” Without waiting for a reply he stepped aside and motioned to the little Kitsune’s arm. Up and down it were slips of paper that had what looked like runes on them. They clung to his fur and shirt-sleeve like they were glued there. “These wards,” the doctor continued, “seal away a Demon’s energy and make them weaker. It makes them tired and restricts their movement…” He frowned. “Though I think I went a bit overboard…” He quickly removed the papers from Sparks and placed them in a pocked in his white coat.

“Why did you do that to him?” I quietly asked.

“He was getting violent.” He simply replied.

“But he’s only a little kid!”

“Even young Demons can be dangerous! One of my co-workers nearly lost a hand to one earlier this week!” He snapped. “He’ll be fine, anyway. His energy will come back in a few minutes.” Sparks moaned again, a bit louder this time, and his head lulled to one side. His breathing was shallow and slow, but he was breathing.

I glanced at his right hand and saw the same golden mark I had seen on all the other Demons; it looked somewhat holographic, though I knew it was just an illusion of his fur and the mark and their somewhat alike colors.

Dr. Stiles started to clean his equipment and wash his hands, so I tried to rouse Sparks.

“Hey, Sparks,” I whispered into one triangular ear, gently shaking him. “Sparks, wake up.” He groaned and his ear twitched, though he didn’t coherently respond. “Sparks, time to get up!” He blinked his eyes open to slits.

“Ugh… Ryu…?” He half-groaned/half-whispered. “I… that, that Human…”

“Shh… I know.” I squeezed his hand. “How’re you feeling?”

“Numb. Really sleepy.” He tried to sit up, but flopped back down to the table, his tail barely moving. “Like I got hit by an ogre with a hammer.”

“Don’t move: you’re still too tired.” I whispered, gently holding him down. “I don’t want you to pass out again.”

“Where’s mom?” He questioned.

“She’s in the other room with your sister.” Was my reply.

“I… I wanna see mom.” I noticed something in his voice I hadn’t really heard before then; fear. Of course he’s scared! He’s just a little kid!

“I don’t think you should try to walk just yet, Sparks.” I slowly advised.

“P-please… Ryu… I wanna see mom!” He said it with urgency, the fear and need even more obvious.

“Okay Sparks…” I slid my arms underneath him and lifted him, keeping him close to my chest. He barely managed to keep his head from falling back, his eyes still slits.

“Hey!” The doctor had noticed my actions. “You shouldn’t be-”

“Open the door.” I demanded.

“But he sho-”

“Open the door.” I tried my best to look, if not menacing, at least dead-serious. He looked at me, and then slowly pulled the door open. I walked out, struggling somewhat with Sparks’ weight, and staggered down the hall, Sparks breathing still slow and regular in my arms, his eyes had slid closed. Fortunately, the hall was empty; I didn’t want any awkward questions, and my mind was too many other places to really give answering any of them much thought at all. I was also lucky that the door back into the waiting room was a push door, so I opened it without too much trouble.

The moment I was back into the room, Mia and Minx looked up, then were suddenly on their feet, rushing over to me. Mia lifted Sparks from my arms with a terrified gasp.

“Ryu, what the hell happened?” She asked, quickly laying Sparks down on the floor and looked over him. I realized dimly that it was the first time I had ever heard Mia swear as I answered.

“The doctor… He did something... Weird, to Sparks.” I mumbled to her.

“He warded me, Mom.” Sparks breathed, making Minx gasp. “A whole bunch of ‘em… I couldn’t move… I could barely breathe.” Mia tried her best to hide her confusion, but glanced up at me.

“I’ll tell you later.” I mouthed, and she quickly went back to looking after Sparks, drawing him into her lap and comforting him, while Minx held his hand tightly, looking more scared than I had ever seen her before. It was then that I noticed that both girls had Marks as well, glittering softly on their right hands.

“Yeah, excuse me ma’am?” The receptionist drawled, actually looking up at us for once. “I have something for you.” Mia ignored her, so I went up instead.

“I’ll take it.”

“Fine.” She sighed, boredom radiating from her like a cloud of smoke from a bonfire. “Take these-” She shoved a small packet of papers at me, “and go down to the temporary settlement office. They’ll hook you up with a place to live and some money, at least for a while.”

“Thanks.” I muttered, taking the papers and looking back at the Kitsunes. Mia was in deep concentration, apparently healing Sparks a bit. The little Demon looked a bit better, but not a whole lot, still lying down, though now his eyes were open, and he was whispering something, his lips moving consistently.

“No prob.” She was already back to her book. For a moment I wished I could have her… Her what? Her emotional detachment? No… I didn’t really want that. Maybe I was just getting tired of the… emotional see-saw my life had become since the Earthquake.

Shaking my head, I went back to my group.

“How is he?” I asked, kneeling beside them.

“He’ll be fine, I’m sure…” Mia told me. “But magic isn’t doing much; at least not healing. I think it’ll just wear off on its own. Soon, I hope.” She brushed her hand along Sparks’ forehead. Minx still anxiously clutched his hand, her eyes wide and full of tears that hadn’t fallen, and hopefully wouldn’t.

“We need to go downstairs again.” I told her. “They’ll give us an apartment and some money, I think…” I looked down at the papers clutched in my hand, the handwriting too messy for me to read. How did she get this job?

“Sparks…” Mia glanced about, looking for a clock, before apparently remembering that they didn’t work anymore. “We’re going to need to get going, okay? It’s getting late.”

“I’ll be fine, Mom.” He whispered, his voice just a bit stronger now. He strained to sit up, only to flop back down pitifully.

“Sparks!” Minx cried.

“Minx, he’s fine.” Mia assured her. “Sparks, I’ll carry you, okay?”

“Y-yeah.” Gone, apparently, was his boyish pride, replaced with a need to be held by his mother. The elder Demon easily lifted him, cradling him against her chest. Minx and I stood, Minx hurrying to hold the door for her mother, while I followed, holding the forms tightly.

We found the Temporary Settlement office without much difficulty. It was a small, cramped place with tall, dark file cabinets looming over us like sentinels. Two desks were shoved in the front with barely any room for the chairs behind them. A man and a woman occupied the desks; both were tall, lanky, and bookish, wearing small, wire-framed glasses. They looked like they were related, and were Human.

“New paperwork?” The man groaned, looking up as we entered. “This late? This sucks!”

“Shut up! Think about these poor people, having to get settled this late!” The woman yelled back, standing up from her desk, cursing quietly as she slammed her knee against it with a metallic clang and thud, and then smiling as she closed the last three feet to us. “Hi!”

“Hi…” Mia replied slowly.

“Can I see your forms, please?” I stepped forward and handed them off, and the woman looked over them quickly, then looked over us, Sparks still lying in Mia’s arms. “Um… Mia, right? We don’t need all of you, so your kids can wait outside.”

“Ryu, is it okay if you-?”

“Yeah.” I cut her off. “I’ll take care of Sparks and Minx.” I assured her. I lifted Sparks without further ado, and Minx held the door open for me. Out in the hall I laid Sparks down carefully, and Minx put her lap beneath his head. They were silent, Sparks’ eyes closed, and Minx simply staring into space. It was as subdued as I had ever seen the both of them.

It wasn’t nearly as long as the last time; Mia came out within ten minutes holding in her hand a thick manila envelope. She looked down at us with a small smile.

“Well, we have a place to live now.” She told us. “Sparks, how are you feeling?”

“Better…” He said, his voice still weak, but above a whisper. He slowly sat up on his own, then tried to stand, only to fall back down again. “Not good enough, though.”

“Ryu, take this.” Mia handed me the envelope before lifting Sparks. “You’ll be fine in no time; I promise.” She kissed Sparks on the cheek.

“Yeah! We can go exploring tomorrow!” Minx told him excitedly. “It’ll be awesome!” They started moving down the hall, and I followed quickly behind. “All the big buildings and everything-”

“Now, now Minx… you can’t just go into any building you want!” Mia told her with a small chuckle.

“Why not?” Sparks asked. Mia started to give them a tutorial of life in a city, and I started to drift into the darker corners of my mind, the world around me running together like someone had dipped a marker picture into a fish tank. Now that we had finally gotten here, I began to once again question myself; what of my family? Were they still Humans? Were they Demons now? Did they keep their memories, or lose them? Were they in the city at all? Were they even still alive?

Even if they were Human, and here, and alive, something that seemed so impossible and out of reach… how on Earth would I find them? With how big the city was, with no phones or way of learning where anyone was… We could both live in the same city our whole lives and never find each other!

The real world greeted me with a soft impact into something warm and fuzzy; Mia’s back. She stumbled forward and nearly dropped Sparks, and my heart beat furiously for a moment.

“Mia! Holy- I-I’m sorry!” I stammered.

“You should be…” Sparks murmured.

“Sparks!” Mia chastised. “It’s okay Ryu, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing… I was just… thinking.” I told her and, judging by the way she looked back at me, she knew what I was thinking about.

Hi, hi, hi! Long time no see, readers! Thanks very much for sticking with me and reading this far, and thanks for all those leaving me those reviews; it's nice to know that people are actually reading my stuff. I want to extend a special thanks to two people who have been nagging me to update; you know who you are, and thanks.

Now, I have a request of you. I need a design for that Mark the Humans give Demons. Right now, I have no clue what it's gonna look like. Drawings, written descriptions, whatever, I just need ideas right now. Thanks very much for your help, guys.

Speaking of pictures, perhaps you'd like to see some? I have some of Ryu (Both versions... Hehehehehehe) as well as some other characters. I'll give you links... IF you request it! So, the pressure's on you, ladies and gents! Remember, tell your friends about this AWESOME story, and tell them to read it! (Yeah, right, like I'm that confident!) See you next time; it probably won't be long, I think I've gotten over my block now.