Plum chased it without slowing.
She looked different now.
Lighter. Stronger. Alive.
"Don't let it get away!" she shouted. "It's already in the civilian zone!"
Burajiru ran beside her.
Not lagging.
Not struggling.
...She's really fast.
He glanced sideways. "You're really fast."
Plum didn't answer out loud, but her eyes flicked toward him.
How is he keeping up?
His Abi is... absurd.
Just what kind of person are you, Burajiru?
The parasite crashed through a house.
The structure groaned, then collapsed. Citizens scurried off in fear.
A scream cut through the air.
Burajiru skidded to a stop.
A woman was trapped beneath the rubble, dust choking her cries.
"Help, please!"
"I've got you," Burajiru said calmly.
Plum hesitated, then turned and kept running.
"I'll finish this!"
Burajiru knelt, pressed his hand to the debris. "Imagine."
The rubble softened, warped, lifted, becoming light, hollow, harmless.
The woman was free.
She sobbed in relief.
By the time Burajiru stood again, Plum was already fighting.
The parasite turned, limbs reshaping into serrated blades.
Plum summoned her scythe "Lets do this"
Steel rang against flesh.
She moved like a streak of fire, cutting, spinning, slicing limbs clean off.
...I'm stronger, she realized mid-strike.
Ever since I ate his Abi...
Another parasite burst from the shadows.
It slammed into her.
She hit the ground hard, breath knocked from her lungs.
"Gah!"
It lunged again.
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She dodged, rolled, rose.
"Why do I feel like I can imagine my body as a weapon"
And she did.
Red Abi sprang out likes snkaes.
Her arms stranformed into scythes that extended into more scythes.
The parasite lunged.
She sliced off it's limbs like scissors to paper.
She grabbed the parasite and slammed it into the street.
It kicked free.
She flew, and crashed straight into Burajiru.
They rolled together.
Stopped inches apart.
For a moment, the world went quiet.
They stared at each other.
Something unspoken passed between them.
"...I could use more of your Abi," Plum said softly.
Burajiru looked away. "Yeah... whatever."
She didn't hesitate.
Her teeth brushed his neck.
Warmth drained from him, steady, intimate.
His heart raced.
Why is this so embarrassing...?
Plum pulled back.
Her entire body ignited.
Bone reformed. Power surged.
A skull-faced grizzly bear stood where she had been.
Burajiru blinked.
"...Wow," he muttered. "You look... really cool."
She grinned, then vanished.
One swipe.
The parasite was gone.
Another rose.
Then another.
"Is it normal for this many to come out at once?" Burajiru asked, dodging a strike, tapping a street sign.
It twisted into a living serpent and devoured the parasite whole.
Plum glanced back sharply.
He's so cute standing their watching scytherian search and destroy.
"No," she answered. "But it benefits them. The more that show up, the more I can kill."
She paused.
"...I just don't want to drain you too much my love."
Burajiru shrugged. "Don't worry. I've got a lot."
Another parasite lunged for him.
He stepped aside.
It missed.
"Try fire," he said casually, tossing her a sword.
She caught it. "This is just a"
"Not normal."
The blade ignited.
She smiled.
With a single swing the fire roared.
Parasites burned to nothing.
A parasite lunged at Plum from behind, but a laser tore through it mid-attack. Plum turned, Burajiru stood there, his afro flared up, his arm reshaped into a cannon with grizzly bear fur as armor.
When it was over, Plum leapt onto him, legs wrapped tight.
"Hey! You're heavy!"
Her eyes narrowed. "Are you calling me fat?"
"No, no, I would never say something like that, you're perfect the way you're."
She smirked. "Work on your upper body strength."
They laughed.
Later, they walked together.
Sun dipping low.
Silence comfortable.
She watched him.
He pretended not to notice.
Then looked.
Then looked away.
She smiled. "Who are you Burajiru?"
"I'm just me."
"No. Really."
He glanced at her. "You first."
She told him about her sister. Her dream. A family.
He looked down. "...That's mine too."
She smiled. "Then maybe we're soulmates."
He froze.
"...That's crazy."
Her voice softened. "Tomorrow isn't promised."
He nodded slowly.
She wrapped her arm around him. "Then shall we start?"
"Start what?"
"Making a family."
He pulled away.
"Absolutely not. I'll help you, with Abi. This week. After that, find someone else to munch on."
He walked off.
Plum watched him go.
"...How rude."
But she smiled anyway.