Department Store Buster

After the battle with Hilqamaar, life seemed to go back to normal—or rather, it was not eventful in the slightest. Normal for Noel was daily attacks from her curse, but neither the curse nor Darris reared their heads as the spring gave way to summer.

Not that Noel missed either. It allowed her to finally focus on her life in Tokyo. Well, as much as she could with the constant nightmares.

They had not stopped since the night she had met Darris. She would often wake up in the darkness of the early morning sweating, her breathing ragged. More often than not, she would dream of being stuck in the throat of some unknown creature, trying to claw her way out of the moist darkness against a relentless pull downward. The increasing heat and humidity only made the nightmares all the more vivid. And her room did not have air conditioning.

Azrath did all he could to help. He had taken to sleeping by her head so that he would be awakened by her flailing, which she did most nights. And when she would sit bolt upright, he would sit with her, not saying much. But he was awake with her until her breathing steadied again.

While terror plagued her nights, her days were spent at school with her friends and at an empty lot with Azrath continuing her training. Just because Darris was gone didn't mean he wouldn't be back again with his next trial. Noel had to be ready.

Her exhaustion was getting to her as every day became a blur. All her energy went into school.

Thank god for Sundays when she didn't have any obligations to fulfill. She still took the chance to get in as much training as possible. Primarily to increase her reaction time. She had done okay against Hilqamaar, but she could always do better.

One Sunday in June, Noel walked through her room, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She had only managed a few hours of sleep and barely acknowledged her appearance as she glanced at her closet mirror. Her hair was a mess, and she only wore the oversized blue tee shirt that served as her pajamas. Usually, she'd take the time to brush her hair and get dressed. Looking at her face, she saw that her eyes were shadowed by dark circles. Her shirt dangled off one shoulder, exposing the other. She watched her reflection shrug, and then she turned away.

Last night had been a particularly nasty bout of nightmares. Noel could feel the core of emptiness in the pit of her stomach.

"It's okay not to do anything today, Noel," said Azrath, "we can save training for later. You need to take it easy."

Noel shook her head. "I can't. It's far from over, and I'm not strong enough."

"I know you think that, but you're going to plateau if you don't pace yourself. Or worse."

"I'll be fine."

"No, you won't! Stop pushing yourself. Look what it's doing to you!"

She rolled her eye. Azrath was a good support, but she was not in the mood to hear his nagging right now. She moved to the door and was about to open it when there was a knock. Her heart skipped as she looked toward Azrath, who was already gone.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Jillian poked her head in. "Oh, perfect. You're awake!" Her face darkened as her eyes fell on her haggard niece. "You don't look so good. Maybe I should—"

"What did you want," Noel said flatly, scratching her stomach over the image of a grinning cat head on her shirt.

Jillian blinked, "Oh…uh. I was planning to take Danny to the department store. There're a lot of good sales today, and there's supposed to be a stage show for kids there. I just thought I'd ask if you wanted to come. But if you're feeling under the weather…."

Noel really had no desire to go, but then the thought of staying at home and listening to Azrath pester her sounded even less appealing.

And there was the slightest chance that he was right.

"Sure, I'll go."

Jillian smiled. "Great! The sale starts in a bit over an hour. We'll be leaving in 30."

"Minutes or hours?" Noel wasn't even sure if she making a joke or not. She was too tired.

Her aunt took it as one as she laughed, "Minutes, Noel. See you downstairs. I'll have breakfast ready for you."

And with that, Jillian shut her door.

Noel yawned as she walked back to her closet to pick out clothes.

"I hope you're not still hiding to peep at me."

Azrath popped out from under her bed, "We're back to that again?" He paused, then said, "At least you're going out to have fun."

"Fun?" Noel didn't exactly think spending the day with Jillian was fun. Sure, she had gained a new understanding of her aunt, but she still didn't have to like her. There was still something off about her whole change of attitude toward Papa's family. But Noel was more willing to give her a chance. Maybe Jillian would surprise her again.

With Azrath covering his eyes and looking away, Noel scrambled into regular clothes and shoved her tangled hair under a Hawkeyes softball cap. It was better than taking the time to tame it.

When she was satisfied—or as satisfied as she could be—she looked back at Azrath. "Are you planning on coming?"

Azrath turned around and shook himself, "No, you can manage without me. I think I'm going enjoy the peace and quiet."

Yeah, so you can sleep. It was meant to be a snarky thought, but Noel felt gratitude well up within her. "All right then, I'll be back."

"Make sure to enjoy yourself. Family's a good way to help take your mind off your troubles."

Noel left her room and went downstairs to the kitchen, where Danny, Jillian, and a bowl of rice sat waiting for her.

She didn't bother to sit at the table. Noel just reached for the bowl. Before she could lift it, Jillian placed a hand on hers.

"Upupup, hold on, it's not ready yet." Without another word, Jillian produced an egg, cracked it against the table edge, and opened it one-handed so that the raw egg sat neatly atop Noel's rice. She then poured soy sauce from the little pitcher-thing over both. "There, you got to do it fresh, or it doesn't taste as good." She smiled up at Noel, who looked down at her strange meal. "I know it might be weird to eat a raw egg, but it's common to eat them like that here. If you stir it—"

She was cut short as Noel wordlessly picked up her bowl along with a spoon, stirred the egg into the rice as Jillian said, and shoved huge scoops into her mouth without hesitation. It was gone in five bites.

Noel licked her lips as she put down the bowl, "That was good. Can we go now?"

Jillian and Danny stared at her. Her aunt was more shocked than Noel's brother, who opened his mouth and said, "That looked gross."

Noel smirked, "You should be more open to new things, Danny. Right, Jillian?"

"Uh… yeah. Right."

Danny imitated barfing, "Yuck! You'll never get me to eat eggs."

"Never say never," said Noel, tousling her brother's hair.

She smiled down at Danny, then at Jillian. Azrath was right. If she was going to spend time with Jillian and Danny, she might as well enjoy it to the fullest. A bad attitude was a choice, after all.

The department store Jillian wanted to go to had them take the train. It was Noel and Danny's first time on one. She was tempted to imitate her brother and press her nose to the window as the building whooshed by. It was crowded like the rest of Tokyo, but they had managed to find seats as several men and women stood around them, holding onto rails and straps that hung over their heads.

They had four stops until they reached their destination. Sometime between the second and third, Jillian leaned over to Noel and put something into her hand. Noel looked down to see a stack of bills and coins sitting on her palm.

"I thought I'd start giving you an allowance. You're a teenage girl. You should go out and have some fun with your friends. That's for the last few weeks. Should be plenty to buy yourself something nice."

It was about 6,000 yen. The equivalent of a bit over $50. Was this a bribe? Noel mentally shook herself. She had to remember that Jillian still cared about her, even if she didn't get why. She smiled at her aunt, "Thanks."

Jillian smiled back, "Of course, just make sure you're with someone else if you decide to go out at night again."

"You don't have to worry about that."

"We'll see."

What did that mean? Noel didn't like the way Jillian gave her a knowing smile.

Their stop came, and a lot of people got off.

"Oh my," said Jillian, holding tight to both their hands. "It seems everyone knows about the sale. We'd better hurry, or the good stuff will be gone."

They followed the crowd, who were indeed all heading to the department store, a building as tall as any in Tokyo, with at least fifteen floors. Noel had never seen a store so big. The inside seemed even bigger, with stores, booths, and stalls crammed into as much space as possible. They were selling everything from food to knickknacks.

"Okay, here's the plan." Jillian had to almost shout over the noise of the shoppers. She checked her watch. "It's 11:32. Some of the best sales start at noon, so we'll divide and conquer. Noel, here's a list of some of the items and more money to buy them. Make sure you get the items on sale!"

"I got it. I got it," said Noel. She grabbed the list and money from her aunt and flipped the paper open. There were some groceries as well as a few cosmetic items written in immense detail down to the specific shade of rouge. Should be easy enough to find.

"Good, we'll meet on the roof at around one. That's where the show is. Danny and I will wait at the—"

Danny piped up, "I want to go with Noel!"

Jillian looked down at him, "Let's let Noel do the shopping by herself."

"No! I wanna go with her!" His voice grew louder, enough to catch the attention of the people around her. Jillian eyed them nervously.

"I don't mind," said Noel. She couldn't remember the last time she had spent time with her brother.

"Are you sure?" said Jillian as Danny ran excitedly to grab his sister's hand.

"Totally." This wasn't the first time she'd been shopping with Danny. And this was a good time to go on an adventure, just the Millers.

"Well, if you're sure. Good luck."

Jillian disappeared into the crowd.

Noel pocketed the money and looked at the list. "Alright, let's start with the makeup. That'll probably go quickly."

"Can I ride on your shoulders, Big Sis?"

"Big Sis?" No, what he actually said was "onee-chan." "Where'd you learn a word like that?" She bent down and let Danny clamber onto her shoulders. Then she stood with a hand on one of Danny's legs as he answered.

"Granny Kiri taught me. She said that onee-chan is a special name for big sisters or people who are like big sisters. But then I told her that I already have a special big sister, so I should only use it for her."

"Is that right?" said Noel. Guilt made her heart twinge. In the chaos of her life in Tokyo, Danny had taken a back seat in her priorities. Noel was already breaking the promise she had made to their parents before she left Davenfield. It had been so easy to let Jillian and Granny take responsibility for him as she dealt with her own issues.

It was understandable, but it did not make her a good big sister. Her grip on his leg tightened as she navigated the crowd, going up and down the floors to find the stores indicated on the list. They almost got lost a few times. They managed it, though. The crowds in the store were just as big, though not as ravenous as Americans on Black Friday. Her family had gone to Davenport once in hopes of a good sale. Never again.

Never again.

All the while, Danny seemed to be having the time of his life as his head was well above the crowd, and he would point out the things he saw to her. Mostly scenery and people, as, being four, Danny couldn't read English, let alone Japanese.

"There's a car on that sign! That's a giant watermelon! Can we buy it? Ooh, there's a huge guy walking around without a shirt on. He's got really pointy ears! I think he's part of the show! Those lights are pretty! There are a whole lot of people around. Can we go upstairs yet?"

He went on and on. Noel was too busy focusing on the list to respond with no more than a grunt or a "That's cool." She had gotten all of the items on the list. And a nearby clock said 11:57. They were making great time! Her arms were laden with bags of all her purchases.

"—sir, you are not allowed to walk around the store without a shirt. That costume is inappropriate for the shoppers. We must ask you to leave."

Noel thought about what she could buy with her allowance. ¥6,000 was a lot of money. And it was all hers! She had never had this much all at once. Her first instinct was to save it for a rainy day. That would be the practical decision, as her mother would say. But she had seen a good pair of running shoes in a shop window. How much were they again?

"Sorry, guys. I can't really understand what you're saying. I'm lookin' for someone. She's about yea high with brown hair and blue eyes. I think she was wearing a black and yellow hat. A hat. You know, hat? That thing you wear on your head? Do you know what I'm sayin'? Of course, you don't. Why am I even botherin'?"

"Sir? Sir! You are disturbing the other customers. Please, follow us to the exit. Wait, where are you going?"

Noel's feet had taken root as the context of the conversation she was listening to hit her like a truck. Someone was looking for a girl with brown hair, blue eyes, and a black and yellow hat. That was not good.

"Hey, Mr. Pointy-Ears! Your hair's really cool!"

Noel could feel Danny shifting back and forth as he waved at whoever this Mr. Pointy-Ears was. There was only one person who had pointy ears. Or, more accurately, one group of people.

"Oh, perfect! I see her. She's with that waving kid. Thanks, guys!"

"Sir, where are you going? Do you even understand Japanese?"

Oh, shit! Noel's mind kicked into overdrive.

"Danny, stop! Get off me, now!"

"Huh? But why?"

"Just do it!"

She felt Danny obey. Noel crouched the let him climb off her. Her fingers reached for his hand and dragged him as she ran, body low, through the crowd. Her senses were heightened; she felt as though she could navigate this crowd blind.

"Ow, you're hurting me, Noel!" whined Danny as Noel moved through the crowd.

"Sorry," she whispered, "It'll be over soon, I promise."

I'll keep you safe. No matter what! He was her responsibility; he always had been. She would kill them before she let them touch her baby brother. Then she realized that she didn't have the pen with her.

She had left it at home with Azrath.

Noel had no way to defend herself. But it didn't lessen her resolve. She chanced a glance upward. However, she couldn't make anything out over the crowd, who were all staring at her with concern and slight amusement. She looked ridiculous, running around like she was on a battlefield.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Noel could feel the shame of bringing the Miller reputation of weirdness across the world. Their looks were the same as the people of Davenfield. None of it mattered as long as she got away from their pursuer.

Noel moved forward. Her eyes were focused on her left and right when she accidentally ran into something sturdy. A hand pressed against her shoulder to stop her from falling.

"Whoa there, almost had a bad spill."

Before she could see who she had run into, Noel heard Danny say, "Hi, Mr. Pointy-Ears!"

Her breath caught as her eyes focused on a pair of sturdy black boots worn by massive feet. Her gaze turned upward at the pair of jeans above the boots and to the bare, grey torso above that. A large, round face looked down at her over huge pectorals, a face with fiery orange eyes and slick, black hair fashioned into a small pompadour. A small braid dangled by his left ear as he stared into her eyes.

He gave a slight smile. "Oh, hey. I found you. You're Noel, right? I'm—"

Noel didn't give the Ahngreel a chance to finish as she took off like a rocket, dodging around him with Danny and the grocery bags in tow.

"Wait!" the Ahngreel shouted, "Come back!"

She thought about ditching the bags but decided it wasn't speed they needed. It was a good hiding place. To get lost in the throng.

Noel pushed through the crowd, no longer caring about not causing trouble. She had to get them to the stairs. Downstairs would be preferable but upstairs would also work. Just somewhere that huge Ahngreel would lose sight of them. And boy, was he huge!

She had only gotten a glimpse of him, but Noel could tell he was taller than Hilqammar and almost as wide as Oriander.

Another Ahngreel already. And in public! Darris must have sent him to test her in a populated environment. To see what she would do in public. That didn't bother Noel much. It was the fact that he sent her when her family was here. He had broken his promise!

Rage pumped through Noel's veins as she cast her eyes about for the stairs. She would hide Danny in a safe place, or get him to Aunt Jillian if they were lucky, then confront this stalker creep pen or no pen.

Her eyes focused on the wall opposite, where a group of people was walking into an elevator.

Perfect! Noel made a beeline for the elevator. Pushing into the crowd and barely managing to squeeze the two of them into the box.

"Going up?" asked a uniformed woman by the buttons. She was smiling, completely unaware of the panic on Noel's face. Or maybe she was the ultimate professional. "There's an art exhibit on the 14th floor, an arts and crafts station on the 15th, and a special stage show featuring the characters from the popular show Police Hero Squad who are set to battle the evil Captain Pig Dragon."

Seriously? An art exhibit and a stage show? How fancy is this place? And what the hell was a Captain Pig Dragon?

"I know that show!" said Danny, "I want to go there! Officer Red is awesome!"

Noel's eyes caught movement. They locked onto the Ahngreel. He was looking around with a pretty dopey expression as he searched for them.

"Fine!" she said, "Let's go to the roof!"

"Yay!"

The elevator operator smiled and gave a small bow. "The roof it is. Please be patient as the elevator stops on the other floors."

She pushed a button, and the doors closed just as the Ahngreel spotted Noel. His mouth opened just before he vanished from her sight.

Noel breathed a sigh of relief and looked down at her little brother. "Are you okay?"

Danny smiled up at her. "Yeah! That was fun! Mr. Pointy Ears is silly. Is he your friend?"

Noel was taken aback by the question, "Of course not! What makes you say that?"

"I know what bad guys look like. I've seen them on tv. He didn't look like a bad guy to me."

The pointy ears, claws, and whiteless eyes didn't make him look like a bad guy? She had to question Danny's judge of character.

They stood in silence as the elevator rode upward, dinging to a stop as people traded places in and out of the elevator. They had started on the seventh floor, and they were aiming for the roof. Every time the elevator doors opened, Noel kept her eyes peeled for the massive form of the Ahngreel waiting for them on the other side of them. On more than one occasion, Noel was tempted to exit the elevator and take her chances with their current floor, but the anxiety of seeing him kept her where she was.

"The roof," said the operator with a smile. The remaining people got off as a few more got on. Noel and Danny followed the exiting shoppers. As they passed the operator, she bowed, "Enjoy the show!"

"Thanks."

The rooftop was packed with people. Even more so than the lower floors. A loud voice echoed around them, but it barely registered in Noel's mind as her eyes darted around. It'd be best to wait here for the show to end. And when everyone leaves, disappear into the crowd.

Danny gasped, then pointed ahead.

"What's wrong?" Noel looked around and tried to find what danger Danny had seen.

"It's them!"

It took Noel a moment to realize that Danny was pointing at the stage where five people dressed in color-coded helmets were posing on stage. There were red, blue, pink, yellow, and green, all vaguely police-themed. Danny was bouncing on his feet, craning his neck to get a better look.

"Officer Red is so cool! He's like the dad of the team." He tugged on Noel's hand. "I can't see!"

"Let's get closer, then."

Noel pushed her way to the stage as Officer Red gave an impassioned speech about traffic safety, making exaggerated poses throughout. The upper half of his face was hidden by a dark visor, but Noel could still tell he was into what he was saying.

"—make sure to look both ways when crossing the street, even when the pedestrian crossing sign says walk. And never stop in the middle of a crosswalk! You never know when the Six Beast Gang will take control of innocent civilians and turn them into bad drivers. They can strike at any—"

An echoey laugh rang around them. Noel glanced around, but none of the adults seemed concerned. This must be part of the show. The children—including Danny—all gasped as another actor leaped onto the stage from the left. They were dressed from head to toe in a rubber costume that flopped and jiggled with every over-the-top movement.

"Police Squad Heroes!" said the creature in a booming voice, "You have interfered in my plans for too long!"

"Captain Pig Dragon!" shouted the blue hero, pulling out a toy-like axe, "We should have known you were behind this!"

Captain Pig Dragon, who looked nothing like a pig or a dragon, laughed again, "Of course I am! I can't let my former squad be free to make life boring! What's the harm in living in a world full of danger? It makes life that much more precious!"

Officer Red stepped forward. "It's our job to protect people from harm! That's the Police Hero code! You knew that once as our captain! Our former captain, I should say."

This story was so inane. Noel could feel her mind starting to drift already. Her eyes wandered in search of the Ahngreel. Had he made it to the roof yet? She had a feeling he was here somewhere.

Danny seemed into the show as he was looking at the stage—specifically Officer Red—with awe.

"I'll always appreciate you for raising me like your own son, Captain," said Red, "But I cannot abide you hurting people like this. It's why I must stop you here and now!" He pulled a blaster from his hip. The pink one grabbed his arm.

"No, Leader. You can't! Not without your team."

Red shook his head, "I must, Pink. It's my fault he's like this. It's my responsibility."

Pink let go, and Red pointed the blaster at Pig Dragon.

"This ends here, Captain."

"Indeed, it will!"

A light on the stage flashed, and several plumes of smoke shot up. Then Officer Red collapsed to one knee. There was a collective gasp from the kids. Danny gave a cry.

"Officer Red! No! Get up!"

Noel could hear sobs. Some of the children were actually crying. Was this really meant for kids?

Red's team knelt down around them. Pig Dragon stood over them, laughing.

"It's over, Police Squad. I won! It's time to die!" Pig Dragon raised a fake rubber arm. The heroes huddled together, ready to accept their demise. Then a voice rang out.

"Not today, villain!"

Someone from the crowd jumped onto the stage. Someone huge and gray.

He landed with enough force that the entire set shook violently. The other actors even steadied themselves on the ground, though none fell over. Their helmets were all locked on the massive back of the invader.

The Ahngreel's fist was drawn back and taut.

"Fiery Straight!"

Like a spring uncoiling, the arm shot out and sank into Pig Dragon's rubbery face. There was a moment where the world seemed still as Noel watched the Ahngreel's face—his expression of triumph—as his punch embedded deeper and deeper into the costume.

She could swear she could hear the moment of impact ring out as the costume's head exploded from the rest of the body and was sent flying offstage.

The actors playing the heroes stood. Their faces were hidden as well, but it was easy to see they were as shocked as everyone else. This was not part of the show.

The headless Pig Dragon stumbled back and fell into a metal beam that shook the set even further. He bounced off, then fell to his knees.

Noel thought the worst for the poor actor, but a sweaty, nervous face was peering from the ripped neck hole of the costume.

There was a moment of silence as the crowd absorbed what had just happened.

The Ahngreel turned back to look at the people. His expression was dopey again, like a kid who just realized he wandered somewhere he shouldn't while spacing out. Then, he smiled.

"It's a good thing I was here, wasn't I? You're safe now, thanks to Buster Brinn!" He gave the stunned crowd a thumbs-up.

The kids in the crowd erupted into cheers. Some of the parents started to clap as well. They seemed to accept that this had been rehearsed, especially as Pig Dragon fell flat on his back.

Noel had no idea if the man was going with the flow or had actually fainted. The blue hero ran toward the fallen Pig Dragon and knelt over him. He leaned his head in. His mouth moved slightly. And after a hushed few seconds, he gave a slight nod to the other actors.

Officer Red stepped forward. His disposition was back to bright and confident. "Well, then, citizen. I thank you for your willingness to help an officer in trouble. But it's best to leave the dangerous villains to the proper authorities."

"That's right!" said a voice offstage. Another colored hero stepped out. "You never know when backup will arrive!"

"It's Officer Black!" cheered Danny.

The sixth hero stood in front of everyone. Buster Brinn was looking down at all of them with slight awe.

Then his eyes surveyed the crowd and fixed on her. He smiled and tried to hop off stage but was met with Officer Red grabbing his arm.

"Where do you think you're going?"

The man's fingers were not big enough to wrap around his wrist. Buster stopped and turned.

"You need to understand the severity of your actions, young man."

"Did I do something wrong?" Buster Brinn's face was filled with concern.

What's with this guy? Now that she got a better look at him, the Ahngreel was young, he wasn't handsome, but his round face reminded her of an innocent farm boy who'd left his home for the first time. Or maybe he was more like a lost puppy.

Noel shook herself. A few people appeared from behind the stage and pulled up Pig Dragon's actor to march him off stage. The eyes of the other actors and of the Ahngreel's were on them. This was the perfect chance to leave. "C'mon, Danny. Let's go."

"But your friend needs help! He saved Officer Red, and he's gonna be punished for it! That's not right!"

"He didn't save anyone! We need to leave! Now."

"But—"

"No buts. Listen to your big sister!"

Her brother looked up at her. His blue eyes became intense.

"NO! You're being a bad big sister! If you don't wanna help him—"

"You don't understand. He's danger—"

Before she could explain, her brother pulled his arm from her hand and began to push his way toward the stage.

"Danny! Stop!"

Noel tried to grab his arm again, but Danny managed to wriggle his way between two people and disappear. Her heart sank as her temper flared.

Without hesitation, she began to cut through the crowd.

Her effort was made easier as other smaller bodies began to surge toward the stage as well. By the time she got there, Danny's angry yells mixed with the chatter of belligerent children. All of them were shouting up at Officer Red to let Buster Brinn go.

"He saved your life!"

"You can't take him to jail!"

The actors on stage looked surprised to see such a negative reaction. Many of the children—including Danny—tried to climb onto the stage but were quickly pulled back down by their mortified parents.

Their faces were flushed with anger and embarrassment as they yanked their children away, who all resisted with tears in their eyes.

One of the mothers shot a contemptible glance at Danny, Buster, and then at Noel. She shook her head as she dragged her crying child away.

"Foreigners. Such bad influences. That boy could do with discipline."

"What was that!?" said Noel through gritted teeth.

But her attention was brought back to the stage as Danny managed to succeed in climbing onto it with the aid of some of the kids. He ran to Officer Red and tugged the legs of his red jumpsuit.

"Let him go!" said Danny. His voice was slightly amplified by the stage. "He helped you!"

Officer Red's helmet tipped down to look at Danny. His head tilted in confusion.

"Now, hold on. What are you saying?"

Noel expected Red to get angry that the stage was invaded and call for security. Instead, he let go of Buster Brinn's arm and kneeled to look at Danny—the green one took his place, keeping the Ahngreel where he was. "Sorry...ehto… my English is not too good. Please speak slower."

His voice took on an accent.

"Leave him alone!" said Danny slowly and deliberately.

"Sorry, young man. This person… caused a lot of trouble. He helped us, but …er…doing right thing can get people into trouble. Someone could have gotten hurt."

As Noel pushed her way to the stage edge, she saw Officer Red clap her brother on his shoulder. He smiled. "You trust Officer Red. I make sure he is not punished too badly. Can you trust me?"

Danny looked at him for a second, then nodded.

Red stood. "Good! Let us find your mother."

"My sister's right there." Danny pointed.

Red's visor turned downward to fix on Noel. His mouth fell open. "Miss Mira?"

Noel gave a start, "Yes?" He knows my name?

"I didn't expect to see you here. Is this your brother?" The accent was gone. He was back to speaking Japanese.

"Yeah, he is. Hold on, do I know you?"

"You don't recognize my voice? I'm—" his helmet twitched in Danny's direction. Then towards the other kids, who looked up at him. Then he puffed out his chest and put fists on hips. "Why, I'm Officer Red, of course! Protector of law and order and hero to the children!"

Noel just stared at him.

Red deflated slightly. "Well…"

Then Officer Black leaned in. "Geki, the manager wants to see us. The other shows are probably canceled."

Officer Red deflated even more. "What'll we do with him, then?" he whispered. They both looked at Buster Brinn, who was standing there quietly, eyes fixed on Noel.

"Wait, for security, I guess," Black said with a shrug. "Subaru's already downstairs recovering. He doesn't look like he's able to work the rest of the day."

Red sighed, then turned fully to the Ahngreel. "Okay, come wait backstage with us. We'll think about what to do with you there."

The Ahngreel's mouth opened. Noel expected him to protest, then he nodded. "All right." He glanced at Noel, "Sorry, we'll have to talk later."

Noel watched as Officer Green began to lead Buster Brinn—whose heavy footfalls shook the stage with each step—behind the single curtain, but Danny chased after them. "Wait! What are you gonna do with him? He's not going to jail, is he?"

Officer Red—or whoever he really was—made a grab for him but missed. "Wait, young man! He will be fine! Please return to your sister!"

Then an unpleasant sound rang out—a metallic groan. It was brief, but the sound made all on stage freeze, except for Danny, who was still running toward Buster Brinn. The Ahngreel was docile now, but who knew when he'd lash out and attack? Plus, there was that strange sound.

Panic settled in Noel's chest. She needed to get Danny away from this place. She needed to protect her brother. Without hesitation, Noel dropped her shopping bags and began to clamber onto the stage. Officer Red turned his helmet to look at her.

"Miss Mira, what are you doing? Please get off! We'll handle this. It's much too dangerous to move—"

Just as Noel got onto the stage, the noise began again, only this time, it was louder and longer. Like a steely choir, multiple moans began to wail as the origin of the noise became clear. Her eyes were drawn upward, where a simple steel rig held the lights, curtain, and sound equipment.

Everybody else on stage also looked up as they all watched the top mesh beam begin to give. The screams and cries of the crowd behind them began to fill the rooftop.

It all happened at once. As the rig began to collapse, Noel's eyes fixed on Danny, who was almost directly under the lights. She charged forward—or was about to when a red arm wrapped itself around her waist and yanked her back. She could hear herself screaming as she reached out a hand for her brother.

"No! Stop! Let me go! DANNY!!"

Not again… Please, god…Never again.

Noel had already lost Mama and Papa. She didn't know what she'd do if she lost Danny.

She tried to fight her captor, but he was far stronger than her as he dragged her off stage. Her eyes were filled with Danny, who was looking wide-eyed at Noel as she elbowed whoever held her. Her other hand reached forward, and her fingers scraped the air, begging the universe to pull him toward her.

The crash of the metal rig rang in Noel's ears as white fog exploded from below the stage, obscuring her view. Noel's eyes filled with tears.

But that did not stop her from lashing out violently at Officer Red as he continued to drag her away into the panicking crowd.