Smoke fizzed out of Richard's cigarette as he pressed it into the ashtray. "Where the fuck is he..." he grumbled, leaning against a railing.

Seagulls cawed as they flew across the sky. He had to stop himself from looking at the crowds in the resort below. It kept giving him the feeling he'd see Leon and made him feel more concerned when he didn't. Even six stories up, their chatter echoed throughout the island. Hip hop and trap music burst against the walls giving little to no silence.

Damien, Raina, and Iris sat apart throughout their hotel room. Each of them looked equally worried. How could I have been so stupid? Iris thought, the blankets tearing under her nails digging into them. I can't use my powers to look for him yet... Just clenching a fist makes it harder to resist Death. He's gnawing at my every movement and of course Leon had to follow Jalaiya's host. I should've realized sooner who that girl resembled.

Raina gently rubbed Damien's back as he bit into his nails. "I'm sure he's just spending time with Katie. He'll be back soon," she said soothingly.

"For a whole day? You'd think he'd at least let us know where he went..." Damien shook his head as he rested it against his hand.

Richard came inside, grinning. "Maybe he doesn't want to be found. Our hometown brother just became a man, haha."

"I suppose that's one possibility," Damien muttered, sighing.

Iris slammed her fist on the dresser beside her, making them jump. "I'm going to get some air." She rose to her feet and walked toward the door. "If you want to do something useful, help me find ways to contact him. He should still have his phone on him hopefully..." Without another word, she walked out the door.

Pulling out his phone, Damien groaned. "You know, she gets awfully prickly over Leon. Are all sisters like that?"

Richard clicked his teeth as he crossed his arms. "Hell if I know. You'd almost think they were married with how she's glued to him at the hip. I'm going to go after her. She'll probably kill someone for looking at her sideways if we leave her alone."

Raina snickered as Richard moved toward the door. "I feel like we've all been on the wrong side of Iris's boots at least once."

An experience they all mutually agree is scary and painful.

-------------------------------------------

Richard found Iris fuming by the lobby entrance. The red carpets and silver ceiling should've been a sight to make anyone lose themselves. A beautiful array of pools and people right outside the door all having the time of their lives. She stood here at the center, trembling as others walked past left and right. "You could've stayed nice and miserable upstairs with us instead of being surrounded by a bunch of strangers you know?" he said, making her jump.

"I didn't... sense you coming. What are you doing here?" Iris asked, her eyes narrowing. She looked like she was one bad moment away from breaking down into tears. Strangely that vulnerability added to her beauty.

"Trying to help find my best friend and keep his little sister out of trouble, duh. Would've liked to go on the Slip 'n' slide instead, but as usual, you guys are a handful," Richard said. "Got any ideas where he could be? You got that internal radar crap for him, don't you?"

Iris rolled her eyes. "It's not a radar. It's sensing. Anytime his emotions run rampant, his powers begin to surface. With that girl by his side, it's only a matter of time before they do. I can only hope they're somewhere close..."

At those words, Richard sighed. "And you can feel what direction it's coming from right?"

"...Yes."

"So, a Leon radar. That's literally how a radar works."

"How would I know what a- Oh, shut it. It's more like a beacon anyway," Iris retorted, turning to him.

Richard grinned. "You realize that's part of a radar too, right?"

Iris breathed out a groan of frustration, throwing her hands up as he chuckled. "Did you come to help, or rile me up?"

He shrugged. "A bit of both. I figure sitting still isn't either of our styles, so let's take a walk. Maybe if we're lucky he just happens to be at the closest souvenir shop."

The two of them spent time walking down to the dock. They passed food stands, clothing stands, and all sorts of people. Fresh sea air blew throughout the island, the salty scent tingling their nostrils. Richard took in the sights, enjoying the moment. Every second not seeing Leon had Iris's heart spiraling out of control. She had to take a deep breath. Freaking out isn't going to solve anything... Since when have I been so frail?

Richard noticed her silence and asked, "So what do you plan to do when you get older, Iris? Have you ever thought about it?"

There was a part of her that wanted to bitterly spit out she would never get older. Her body would, but it wouldn't be in her control. Richard didn't understand that. It wasn't as if he afflicted her with this curse. Instead, she tried to imagine what she would've wanted to be if she could. "...A singer," she muttered.

At that response, his eyes widened. "Really? That would actually be pretty cool. You do have a very soothing voice, when you're not biting our heads off of course."

Her cheeks burned. "How would you know what my voice sounds like?" Then her eyes widened. "Wait, you didn't-"

"I may or may not have heard you sing along to Leon playing his bass one night when I was coming to grab you guys for a sleepover... Not to be an eavesdropper, but hey, you have some serious pipes. Might give all those pop stars a run for their money," he said, grinning.

Iris paused, turning before he could see her smile. She didn't know why she did it. Is being acknowledged all it takes to please me? ...How simple minded. Despite those thoughts, she didn't dislike it.

—-----------------------------------------

"Well aren't we lucky," Leon said, grinning at his phone.

Katie looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

They were sitting on a rock beside a stream and a waterfall. Trees surrounded them with sounds of the forest as Leon stared at a text. It was from Verizon saying welcome to Hawaii. "You flew us to the same place we were going anyway... Me having a signal here makes sense now."

"That means my family is most likely somewhere on this island too..." Katie said, frowning.

Her sweater was wrapped around her waist the same as Leon did with his jacket. The sun was scorching down upon them, and they both were drenched in sweat. He'd given Katie one of the hair ties that happened to be in his pocket. They were his reminder to Iris that she could be just as lazy in cleaning up as he was. Katie almost flinched when he took her hand. She hadn't realized she was trembling. "No matter what happens, we'll make it through this. Just stay close to me," he said, rising to his feet.

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

They spent most of the day making their way through the forest. It was a peaceful day. Some may even have called it tranquil. They made small talk here and there. Spirits were generally high. Between the forests and open fields, they encountered animals here and there like wallabies and hawks. Thankfully there were no other encounters with creatures like the sirens. He noticed how often she looked to the sky and the ocean over the horizon and smiled.

"You alright, Katie?" he asked, making her jump.

They'd paused on a hill overlooking the rest of the island. It was easier to see some buildings peeking from over the mountain ahead of them. "Sorry... I'm sure you remember me describing what my home was like. We didn't get to see the sky or the ocean. There was no breeze... no feeling the sun's warmth. Just a cold metal room and an endless void outside the window. The most we could see was the Earth as we orbited around it. It was beautiful... but it always made me feel like I didn't exist. Like..." Katie paused, stopping to think about it.

Leon wrapped an arm around her, smiling. "I knew you would like this. This is where you belong. There's a lot more to see too."

She smiled back at him. "I would love that."

There was no sign of civilization until they noticed a jeep driving from afar. A group of tourists taking the tour for the original location that Jurassic Park was filmed. Leon explained the movie to Katie who listened with starlike wonder. "Dinosaurs are still alive you know..." she said, making his eyes widen.

Leon chuckled. "You know Katie, I never took you for a jokester."

"Oh, Leon, I'm not. My mother taught me about every beast known throughout history. There are islands hidden in the Pacific from the human countries where most monsters you hear in myths still exist," she explained, making him pause to listen. "Most that are on islands or countries like this one hide amongst humans, afraid of being hunted down. They also tend to use them as prey for those unfortunate to wander alone too long. There might even be some dinosaurs you've never heard of."

His eyebrow raised. "Is that a challenge? I'm known as a dino nut, I'll have you know."

Katie giggled. "Is that right?"

Before they knew it, they spent over an hour challenging each other on different prehistoric animals. Their names, their histories, where they're from. It seemed ironic to Leon that Katie knew so much about a world she'd never set foot on until a few days prior. Even as they laugh and enjoyed each other's company, that pressure in the air never left. That feeling that these merry moments could be changed in the blink of an eye.

Several hours later...

It hadn't been long before they found a way down a hill leading to the closest town, Honolulu. They walked through the streets, passing people here and there. "Would your mother attack us on a crowded street?" Leon asked, his eyes scanning the buildings around them.

Katie grimaced. "If she knew what you were, I don't think there's any limits to what she would do. Secrecy goes out the window when it comes to her life's mission. That being said, there's a lot of ways she could do it silently if she was desperate enough. Her pride probably would have her confront you directly though."

She wouldn't want it to be subtle or quick. Mother would want us isolated. She would want to see me killing him instead. Risking failure if he survived a surprise attack would also be catastrophic in her mind. They'll most likely be watching us until we are alone. At that thought, Leon looked at her.

She hadn't realized he was listening, and a smile formed on his lips. It was a first for his smile to give her chills. "We aren't going to let a perfectly good night like this go to waste then, are we?"

"What do you mean?" Katie asked, frowning.

He took a glance at his watch. It was only 5pm. He sent Iris and the others a quick text that they were safe. He grinned as he ignored the blowing up responses asking where he was. They'll live, he thought. The scents of seasoned pasta and meat filled their nostrils. A loud growl came from both of their stomachs, and Katie turned away embarrassed. Neither of them had eaten more than dabbles of fruit all day. Leon smirked and took her hand, saying, "Come on. Let's get something to eat."

At first, her heart had been beating intensely, afraid of what came next. Talks about fighting her family. All of the horrible things to come. Their brief happiness coming to an end. Horrible truths that continued to plague her every second. Leon spoke of none of those things.

Instead, there was simplicity. Normalcy. Just something as simple as sitting at a restaurant and eating dinner with him had her smiling ear to ear. They talked and joked, ignoring the prying eyes that watched them. After that, Leon took her to the mall. So many people of all sizes it made her head spin. He had her try on different clothes. At first she didn't understand why, but the more she tried, the more she enjoyed it.

It was easy to say she had never smiled so much in her life. In a way, that was almost terrifying. How easily they could forget their worries. Walking into a shop to try on everything and not buy a single piece of clothing. They took a walk in well lit areas, eating the street food as random people sang and danced on the beach.

A band was playing on a stage setup up on the boardwalk. There was a giant mass of people jumping, singing along, shouting. The singer was popping off, playing his saxophone in between his lyrics. Leon pulled her into the moshpit and they jumped with everyone else. Jumping. Shouting. Laughing their asses off. Everyone had their hands in the air, pumping their fists. It was almost overwhelming.

By the time the group finished, they walked back towards the city. They found a nice hotel close by, Katie standing anxiously as he took care of getting the room. She felt like a child being led around so aimlessly. In a strange way, that didn't bother her. Katie hummed along to the elevator tune. "Well someone's in a good mood," Leon chimed, smirking as her cheeks burned.

"Well I am... It feels so strange," Katie admitted, dwindling her thumbs together. "Thank you for tonight."

He knew better than anyone it was something she had to experience. All of the things he took for granted, but had never truly enjoyed until he shared it with her. In some ways, he needed this as much as she did. Leon chuckled. "It's not over yet."

Katie raised an eyebrow at that statement. Her mind raced with what he had in mind as they walked down the golden brown halls to their room. She raised her eyebrow at there being two beds, and then her face burned at that fact being a disappointment. It was a decent sized room, the two beds having white fluffy sheets, a dark blue curtain covering the windows, and an HD TV on a giant TV stand.

At first, her face went as red as a tomato at the initial things she thought he had meant. She wasn't completely naive to the acts of men and women. Cynthia learning all sorts of vulgar things out of boredom definitely tainted her once innocent little mind. But then Leon flipped on the TV, and sat her down to watch Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Her eyes kept flickering towards him, even as she was giggling and laughing at the movie. She kept expecting something more.

That expectancy made her heart clench, almost enough to make her desire explode. Leon's eyes widened. "Oh shit! I almost forgot!"

"What is it?" Katie asked, watching him rummage his pockets.

He pulled out a small box, wrapped in a red and green wrapping. "Happy birthday, Katie!"

"Wha- When did you- How long have you-?" Her mind was racing. So much had happened, she barely registered that it was her eighteenth birthday. But then she remembered when he asked her to go ahead of him earlier to the restroom. He'd run off and by the time she'd finished, he'd been panting, saying he forgot his wallet at the gift shop. Katie gulped and pulled the ribbon to open the wrapping. It was a black box. When she opened it, her eyes widened. It was a necklace. An angel wing, but at the bridge between the wing and lower barb was a sapphire.

She was speechless. Leon smiled, helping her put it on. Feeling it in her palm was almost enough to move her to tears. But then Katie grabbed his shoulders. "Wait, what are you-" he started, when she pushed him against the bed.

Leon met her eyes and this time it was his turn to blush. "There are nicer ways to get me to lay down-"

He was silenced with a kiss. It was deep. Passionate. She was losing control of herself in a way she never knew was possible. Katie threw off her sweater and started removing his shirt. He felt like he was being attacked by an animal, but strangely he didn't mind. He sat up. "Are you... are you sure this is what you want-" he stammered, when Katie interjected, "Leon."

"Yes?"

"Sit. And close your eyes." She meant to say it softly, but it came out as a command.

"Oookayyy," Leon muttered, doing as she told. The sounds of clothing being unclipped, slid off, and thrown were the only indicators of anything around him. What the heck is getting into her? Is she being possessed by a demon?

Katie gasped. "I am not!"

Leon smirked, crossing his arms. "We seriously need to talk about mind privacy." One eye peeked open, only to get smacked by an angel wing. "Oww!"

"Hey, no peeking!"

It was the most tense wait of his life. Normally he could go hours without anything happening and not blink an eye. These few seconds with his eyes closed felt like an eternity. The TV clicked off. She took his hand. "Open your eyes."

The first thing he looked at was her necklace. When he took a second blink, he realized that she had laid bare everything to him. Angel wings included, though reduced to tiny form. It was his turn to be speechless. She took his hand and placed it against her chest. He felt her heartbeat as their eyes met. "I love you, Leon."

He took her hand and reciprocated the action so she felt his own heartbeat as well. "I love you too, Katie. ...What do we do now?"

A mischievous smile formed on her face as she snapped her fingers. All of the electronics in the room burst, shutting off. The room grew completely dark as she told him her first lie. "I have no idea."