"Ay, Jack…"
An oversized demon walked under the moonlight. Short strands of blue hair weaved with every footstep taken.
As usual, she wore the custom-made uniform designed by the town's local tailor. The soft, sky blue coat fitted her figure rather well.
Some flaws reluctantly tried to stand out, such as the uneven trimming in the coat's left breast-pocket, or the asymmetrical button placement in the cuffs. Though, she didn't seem to have noticed such mistakes.
Jack's house quickly came into her sight. "There you are…"
The demon licked her lips. An excitement-filled quiver ran down her spine.
"Haven't seen him in so long. Hope he's at home…"
It didn't take that long for her to arrive at the worn-down abode, where the outsider resided. She knocked on the door. Thereafter, the hand retreated behind the titan's large back.
She swung her hips back and forth for a few minutes. The smile on her face showed no changes at all.
"Odd, he didn't seem to have heard… Maybe he didn't heard."
She leaned to knock on the door once again. The gigantic hand didn't make contact with the wood, as the face behind went from happy to serious.
"... No, the proper term would have been 'hear,' not 'heard.'"
The blue-ish hand smacked her own thick lips. "Unforgivable. I can't make these mistakes, not now."
She knocked again, this time slightly serious. Her thoughts remained on the mistake from earlier.
Silence…
"Jack? Are you inside??"
The impassive expression of hers turned into a frown. "Did something happen to him?"
It didn't take long for the hazel in her eyes to gleam with murderous intent. "Dad… If you were-"
"Nade? What are you doing here at this time??"
The deep voice shook the demoness out of her spiralling thoughts.
Her face transformed once again into that of a cheerful princess. "Ah, Jack! Where were you? I was looking for-"
"Nade, it's well past midnight. You should be sleeping in your house, instead of coming to mine."
Akin to an actress, she pretended to be hurt by the blunt tone carrying his words… It didn't last for long. A slight tear in the cloth covering Jack's shoulder caught her attention. The tear of a bite.
Her face shifted from cheery to serious. "... Jack, what happened?"
His dark brows sank slightly. "Nothing. I'm just tired right now."
The solemn looking demoness forcefully got into his personal space. "Lies, you wouldn't be wounded if that was the case." She reached out to grab the wounded part. "But this shirt has some notorious bite marks-"
A hand pushed her off.
"!!"
Seconds later, the owner of the blue coat crashed into the solid, dirty ground. Surprise painted all over her eyes, it all befell Jack's comparatively smaller frame.
Nonetheless, despite their height difference indicating otherwise, the demon towered far above the girl. "Nade, you're really starting to get on my nerves. Leave on your own, before I make you go."
After those last words, he turned around and headed towards his large hut.
"Wait!" she yelled to him, fruitlessly. His steps did not slow down at all.
Frustrated, her hands clenched the ground. Dirt slipped into her fingernails, while her eyeballs darted everywhere in a span of less than five seconds. All in a pointless endeavor to find a way to make him stay. Thoughts rushing through every corner of her brain tried to think of something worthy of the departing figure.
It hit her.
"Dad thinks you're housing someone!"
He stopped.
He actually stopped.
A smile appeared on her face.
"I-I can help you clear your name!"
Seconds passed. One, wind blew past them.
Five. He blinked.
Eight, she stared at his halted back.
Ten. He turned back to face the demoness.
"Leave now." He walked in, leaving her outside.
"... Not even that lie worked?" She muttered to herself.
…
It took Nade a few minutes to wake herself up from the shock of her failure. She left the house behind.
Meanwhile, Jack sat with his back facing one of the more stable walls. His body emanated the kind of concern he hadn't felt in years. Not ever since that incident.
"He knows…? How? Oliver never saw them, did he?"
A lack of understanding was all one could see on the purple titan's face.
"Right, it could have been any of the soldiers working under him or the other heads."
The demon sighed. "Perhaps being around the same people for so long has dulled my senses…"
His gaze fell on the opposite spot of the room. The mattress above the floor accommodated his tired body.
"... What's done is done. Now, the future."
As far as he could see, he'd have to make a choice soon.
"The town itself can still be saved from the clutches of the outsiders. Considering how shut-off everyone is, it'll help me to stay hidden," he whispered to himself while nodding his head.
A shred of a smile spread over his facial cheeks. Yet, it soon turned into an ugly, memory-charged expression.
"... I wouldn't have to be in this hellhole, had it not been for that stupid bounty."
His fist clenched tightly, nails almost pierced the flesh of the shaking hands. Two rows of teeth gritted against each other.
"Wait… Jack, calm down. Don't get worked up again over the same things. Instead, I should be figuring out where to go."
Most of the burning rage had been doused. After all, there were bigger issues than that.
"The main issue is still there: What do I do with Randall and Anne?"
He pondered for a long, silent ten minutes.
Eventually, he reached an answer.
"Right. Anne is too strong to be left behind, and Randall isn't too far off… Plus, both of their backgrounds are just… strange."
He understood why he was there. But them? Why'd two adventurers– clearly strong enough to hold their ground even against other bounty hunters– retreat to a crappy place like Fernbedie?
"There's also their skillset. The level of knowledge that Anne has isn't something that an average bounty hunter has…"
That also sent shivers down his spine.
"... I guess I should keep them close," he muttered to himself, assuming it was the best choice he could make.
Don't keep them living with him to clear Oliver's doubt off himself, but not kick them to the streets either, which would ruin a potentially useful bond.
In his mind, that was a solid plan.
He closed his eyes, and opted to lay down on the dirty, time-worn mattress. His eyes closed under the veil of moonlight, and his body finally drifted off into sleep.