A Guide to Surviving Against Monsters
00:25

I was frozen in place, trying to detect Sasora's presence in case she had tricked us.

The thing that broke me out of that trance was a sob, and knees hitting the hard ground.

I glanced up with wide eyes, afraid someone was hurt, only to see Annie on her knees in tears. My worry drained away, my expression settling into one of distaste and frustration. I retrieved my chokuto, sliding the blade into the scabbard on my belt, and walked toward the group.

"She could still be out there. We should probably cancel this mission."

They said nothing. The students were as white as paper, and my fellow hunters stared at me.

"Annie," I began, kneeling in front of her. "What's wrong?"

The girl sniffled. "I was so terrified. A real d-demon just threatened us. A demon!"

"The fourteenth strongest demon," Miles added softly. I glared at him over my shoulder.

Not. Helping.

"But you're not hurt?"

She shook her head, choking back another sob.

"So stop crying."

I definitely could've been nicer. I probably should've, judging by the way everyone stared at me like I'd just threatened to kill her puppy.

But we were hunters. There would be worse for her to face.

I straightened, glaring at everyone around me.

"No tears. Not unless you're seriously hurt or a comrade has passed on. Because otherwise, there's no reason for them. Because as long as I'm around, I'll make sure you have no reason to cry. Not while I'm your supervisor."

"Emmalyn, no matter what you are, you can't fight against a real demon. Not one like Sasora."

Oh, Luca. Just as pessimistic as I am.

I walked up to the man dressed in all black, his long hair unruly. Luca looked down at me as I stopped in front of him, the hunter completely relaxed. The fact that he was relaxed was a sign of trust, which I knew wasn't easy to get -- especially from someone like Luca.

"What if I told you I was made to counteract demons and large-scale monster attacks? Specifically on the Academy."

"Like what? The Academy's personal guard?"

I shrugged. "You could say that."

Luca's face scrunched, disbelief clear in his features. He grabbed my wrist, his other hand on my shoulder, shaking me back and forth.

"You can't be serious, Emmalyn. You're just one person."

I sighed.

"Believe what you want to," I relented, glancing at Wendy. "Are we cancelling the mission or not?"

"Our top priority is to report Sasora to the headmaster," she answered, eyeing Luca's hand around my wrist. I raised an eyebrow, daring her to say something about it, but my old friend stayed quiet. "I'll call the bus back."

I nodded, the huntress turning away and digging through her pocket for a borrowed phone from the Academy. Shaking Luca off, I stepped away as well, my back facing the group of regular humans as I scanned our surroundings.

Even if Sasora wasn't going to return, I still had to be alert.

There were other monsters in these parts.

Like the ones laying in wait, hoping to catch one of us alone or off guard, so that they could have a snack.

Maybe we'd replace some mutants after all.

I drew my shuriken, the star shaped knife heavy in my hand. My eyes swept over the bushes, trying to spot the disfigured form of a mutated monster, or the grotesque shade of green that marked them as infected.

There.

The blade flew, shooting off faster than most birds could fly. Red splattered onto the bushes, but the entire ordeal was rather silent. The others didn't sense a thing, or at least they didn't show it.

I began walking toward the bushes, to make sure the thing was dead, when Theo noticed.

"Emmalyn..?"

I glanced back.

Wrong move, in hindsight.

"Yea--"

"--look out!"

Something slammed into me, bringing me down. It was Theo, both of us hitting the pavement with a thud as a shadow flew overheard. My vision swam, clearing just in time for me to see a mutated wolf snarling at the group of students. I cursed, trying to stand back up, only to realize something was on top of me. Theo was slumped on my back, staring with wide eyes at the beast. The wolf had three eyes, one of them completely green, and an extra tail. It was also ridiculously large, and extremely hostile.

"Get away from it!" I screamed, pushing on Theo's chest. "Get off me, damn it!"

"Emmalyn, you can't keep fighting for us," Theo sputtered, trying to hold me still. "It's just one mutant, the others can deal with it, please stop panicking!"

"It's not the only one!"

He stopped dead as I shouted back at him. I had flipped onto my back, Theo hovering above my torso, his weight in his elbows. The hunter's face was inches from mine, my hair falling to the side, both eyes glaring up at him. Not only was I short, but I was small all around, making me feel dwarfed underneath him.

"There is at least one other mutant here," I told him, pointing at the wolf. "That one has no wounds. I hit something with my shuriken, I'm certain."

"You knew they were laying in wait and you didn't mention it?! You were just going to kill them in silence and not warn anybody?!"

"Theo--"

"Stop it, Emmalyn."

I froze, breath stolen. I couldn't even focus on the wolf that was snarling at my comrades, Wendy and Weston up front to stand against it while the others took on a triangle formation around the students to protect them.

In the end, the only thing I had to worry about was the hunter above me.

For once, Theo was angry.

His gentle, quiet demeanor was gone. His eyes, which were normally filled with amusement or encouragement, were now an icy shade of frustration. Sandy beach waves fell from his head, his bangs curling in front of his forehead. The man blinked furiously, trying to ignore the hair poking his eyes as he stared down at me in anger.

"I don't care how long you've been a freelancer, or how good you are at being a huntress," he snapped, "you're on a team, Emmalyn! Stop telling us to let you handle the most basic monsters. Stop doing things alone. Stop trying to keep us out of everything just so that you can deal with the danger yourself. We're not children."

I flinched as he lifted one elbow off the pavement, slamming his gloved hand into the ground beside my head.

"Stop making yourself lonely. You're going to get us killed, Emmalyn. You're going to get yourself killed, and I can't..."

Theo...

"I can't watch another person die."

He slumped forward, his head hanging and his hair brushing against my chin. I floundered, gaping like a fish out of water. For once, I didn't feel the need to snap back at someone, or to get defensive.

He had a point, after all.

"Thank you for saving me," I whispered, "but there's another mutant, Theo... We need to replace it."

He scoffed, pushing himself up. I met his gaze hesitantly, only to see that his anger was gone, replaced by a gentle smile and a hint of worry in his eyes.

"What am I going to do with you, Foxit..."

"...Hunt a second mutant with me?"

The Grimm hunter smirked, offering me a hand. He pulled me to my feet, just as Wendy began to tussle with the wolf, Weston taking whatever shot he could from a distance.

Theo nudged my arm as he stood next to me, motioning to Wendy. She had her daggers in hand, two of the throwing knives embedded in the mutant's flank.

"Do you want to help her?" He asked, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

I knew what question he was really asking. Do you feel the need to step in and 'save' her?

I shook my head. "Follow me, my shuriken is in the bushes."

"Shouldn't we warn them about it?" He asked, watching as I strode off into the bushes, whip dangling from my hand.

"Be my guest."

I stepped off the road, forcing the bushes apart so that we had something that resembled an opening.

Glancing over my shoulder, I winked at Theo before tilting my head toward the forest.

"Just remember to catch up."