Malik looked down to the streets below from his spot on top of the building, 40 stories above it all.

  The wind up here was way stronger than down there, blowing with enough force to knock him off the building had he been even the slightest bit lighter, the city below was a mess of motion as people went about their days, cars sped to wherever their destination was, from up here it looked like nothing more than a bunch of ants.

  Malik walked forward until his hands rested on the metal railing. He leaned over, just enough to see the city below him, he held his phone tight in his hands, kinda scared of dropping it off this high place.

  One of his hands drifted to his hips, only to remember that he didn't have his guns right now, He grumbled. He'd never been without his guns before, he wasn't used to them not being on his hip.

  "Um… are you okay?”

  Malik turned, to see Yui standing behind him, her hands clamped in front of her nervously.

  the strong wind pulled at her, and it almost seemed like she was being dragged forward by it, she seemed kinda concerned, she must have followed him up here

  “…Yeah,” Malik said after a beat. “I’m fine.”

  He turned back to the city, resting his forearms on the railing.

  “Just thinking.”

  Yui stepped up beside him, following his gaze downward, tho she quickly stepped back a little when she noticed how high up she was.

  “…About what?” she asked him, wanting to get a feel of what was going on inside his head.

  "Stuff." The dark skinned boy stated simply.

  "Stuff like almost dying just a couple hours ago." She asked.

  Malik let out a small huff through his nose. “Something like that.”

  The wind howled softly around them, rattling a loose vent somewhere above. For a few seconds, neither spoke. The city made a lot of noises even despite how high up they were, it was still loud.

  Yui stepped forward again, leaning on the railing like him, but she took special care to make sure she didn't look down.

  "I heard your guns are being held by the workshop."

  "Don't remind me." The teen exhaled heavily. "I hate not having them."

  The girl didn't get Why he seemed so attached to those things, tho, she wasn't about to judge him.

  She seemed a little cautious, like she was measuring whether it was worth it to ask what she wanted to ask,"Hey, can I ask you something?"

  "You just did." The boy stated, a light smirk playing across his lips.

  She huffed gently, but smiled. "You know what I mean."

  "Sure, go ahead."

  Yui hesitated again, looking down at the street. She seemed to be searching for the right words. "It's just… I know we're strangers, and I'm probably overstepping or something but..."

  Malik looked over at her curiously. "But?"

  "Why exactly did you become a sin hunter? The more I talk to you the more I find it difficult to understand you."

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Malik looked down at her, normally he wouldn't have even thought about it, but... something about the way she asked made him pause. Not many people cared enough to ask, and even fewer asked without judgment.

  “…I guess,” he began slowly, letting the wind tug at his words, “I didn’t really have a choice. Not exactly.”

  Yui tilted her head. “What do you mean?”

  He ran a hand through his hair, the cold scratching at his scalp. “I wasn't.. exactly the best kid growing up, my parents were barely ever home so I tried to get there attention, and it usually wasn't in the best of ways." The older boy started. "Then I got expelled from school, I practically got disowned. So then I tried being a sin hunter, maybe I could get back in their good graces that way y'know? But SEVENS didn't want me, and they just sent me here like I was some stupid pile of garbage or something"

  Malik exhaled, the wind tugging at his jacket, his gaze still on the city. “…Anyway, that’s how it went. Didn’t exactly pan out the way I hoped.”

  Yui stayed silent for a moment, letting the words settle between them. The air seemed to hum with tension as she wasn't exactly sure what to say to that.

  “…That… actually makes sense,” she said finally, her voice low but steady. “You didn’t choose this because you liked it. You just… ended up here.”

  He glanced at her, one eyebrow slightly raised. “That’s one way to put it.”

  Yui shifted closer, keeping a careful distance, but close enough to show she wasn’t just making idle conversation. “…And do you… I mean, do you like it? Being a Sin Hunter?”

  Malik’s smirk was faint, but it didn’t reach his eyes. "I'll let you figure that out."

  Yui pursed her lips, clearly dissatisfied with the answer, but she didn't push for a clearer one. For a few seconds, they simply stood there,

  "So like, is your hair naturally like that, or is it died?"

  " What?"

  "I mean you never know."

  Yui blinked, taken aback. “My hair…? Oh, uh… no, it’s natural. Why?”

  Malik shrugged, not really looking at her. “Just curious. Stands out, that’s all. You’re easy to spot in a crowd.”

  Yui gave a small, amused smile, the tension in her shoulders loosening just a little. “I guess that’s true. I never really thought about how weird it is. In fact doesn't liun have white hair, I can't imagine he dyed it"

  "Yeah, dude seems like a stick in the mud." Malik said, from what he'd seen if him he was a rule follower who would never do anything like dying his hair.

  “Do you ever… get used to it?” Yui asked quietly, her voice almost drowned by the wind. “Being out there. Facing Sins. Seeing people die. Or… almost dying.”

  "How the hell should I know, I've bee a sin hunter just as long as you have."

  She pursed her lips, realizing her question was a bit misguided. "Right…"

  Yui fidgeted with the sleeve of her sweater, fingers worrying at the fabric. The wind picked up again, cold and strong against her skin.

  For a while, they just stood in silence. It was a strangely comfortable quiet, neither of them feeling the immediate need to fill the air with words. Until Yui spoke again.

  "I guess… I was just wondering... if it gets any easier."

  "What? Rethinking your hero goal?"

  She managed a small chuckle, but it was bitter around the edges.

  "It's not that. I just-"

  Her lips pressed into a thin line, cutting herself short. The wind tossed her hair across her face. She pushed it back impatiently.

  "I'm sorry, don't mind me. I'm just overthinking things... But no, I'd never rethink, even after all that just happened, especially after what just happened, I never wanna go back to that life." Yui said

  There was a pause.

  Malik turned his gaze back to the city below, the street lights twinkling. In the distance, a car horn honked, far away and faint.

  When he spoke, his voice was almost lost in the night air.

  "It never gets easier..."

  "Didn't you say you didn't know?"

  "I've been around sin hunters all my life yes I know."

  ...

  "Goddamn I need a burger or something." He said, watching as the sun rose.

  "Oh god me too, I'm totally starving." Yui said, she rubbed her stomach for emphasis.

  Her stomach grumbled. "Ugh, I'm so hungryyyyy. But I also don't have any money"

  Malik sighed, shaking his head in slight annoyance, but also fondness. "Fine, just don't get anything expensive."

  Yui's face lit up as she hopped from side to side, excited like a puppy. "Really?!"

  Her stomach growled loudly, almost comically, as she pressed her hands together pleadingly, big round eyes shining. "I promise I won't, I'll get a plain hamburger, I swear!"

  ---30 minutes later---

  The duo sat inside the restaurant, a quaint fast-food place with a cozy ambiance.

  Yui sat across from Malik, devouring her food with impressive speed. She had gotten a plain hamburger, like she promised... As well as another plain burger.. and another one, plus some fries and a coke.

  Malik watched her with a mix of amusement and disbelief. He hadn't expected her to be such a bottomless pit.

  "Slow down, you're gonna choke." He chuckled as he took a bite out of his own burger.

  I can't help it, I'm starving!" Yui said, talking despite a mouthful of food.

  She gulped down a sip of coke and wiped her mouth, then went back to eating almost as fast.

  Malik shook his head, trying to keep from laughing. "You're gonna puke all that up in the next, like, five minutes."

  "Today's been a crazy day hasn't it? I mean, there was your evaluation, my evaluation, all that sin stuff."

  "Yeah, it's been one hell of a day," Malik said, taking another bite of his burger. He seemed more relaxed now, the corners of his mouth twitching with the ghost of a smirk.

  "I still can't believe you made it past your evaluation," he said, eyeing her with a mix of grudging admiration and amusement. "That dude was pretty strong."

  "Eh, I can, I'm an angel gear after all." The girl said with a sly smile.

  "Don't go getting cocky now, you're still just a novice, if you go into battle thinking you'll win by default because you're an angel gear, then you're gonna get killed no doubt" the boy warned with a slight but of amusement.

  He then, thought back to something she had said earlier. "Oi, earlier you said that you don't wanna go back to the life you were living before, whats up with that?" He asked, "what, you got family baggage or something?"

  "No no it's nothing like that it's just... I don't know, life at home has just, gotten so mundane, some days it's so boring that I can't even do something fun to get that boredom off my shoulders it just stays there. My parents are great people and I love them... but this? This is what I'm made for, literally." The girl explained to the boy who looked slightly confused.

  "I can't really relate but... I get it. I get the concept." The older boy said.

  "Hey speaking of parents, are yours just fine with you being a sin hunter?" Malik asked, to which she nodded

  "It took a little convincing at first, but they were able to be convinced." The girl explained.

  Then, she let out a loud burp which pretty much shook the building.

  Malik looked at her incredulously and she responded with a sheepish grin.

  She then took the last bite of her burger. She had cleared the table in no time at all.

  She then stood up, to the confusion of her dark skinned friend.

  "Last one back to the form is a rotten egg!" She declared as she ran off immediately, not giving him the time to get up.

  " Hey wait a damn minute!" He yelled watching as she ran off like a little kid. He sighed, not an annoyed sigh, a fond sigh. Was this.. what it was like to have a little sister?