The Mountain's Peak

Harper's mouth dropped open and stayed that way as Annie turned back around to face Haru and Harper, "Is this creature's weapon trained on you?" she asked Harper quietly, so only her follower could hear. The rasp of her voice, like the scrape of chalk on stone, was clearer as she lowered her volume.

"Yes," Harper responded, less quietly.

Annie's eyes trained on Haru, and her expression became lethal. "Put your weapon down," she hissed.

Hm. So Haru was some type of demon, but clearly, she was sane. Or at least, very good at pretending to be sane. He couldn't say the same for the demon-like person she stabbed.

"Might be a good idea to listen to her," he suggested casually. "Since she seems to be as capable of rational communication as you are."

Haru faltered again.

...There was no point in denying it. And while she was still wary of the newcomer, she knew that Peter had a point.

She let out a sigh and lowered her weapon.

She wasn't going to put the sword away. She wasn't ready to trust the girl that much.

"Fine," she said. "I guess the secret's out, then - I'm a demon."

“What a surprise,” James said dryly, taking a small step back as he looked at the three girls near the doorway. “If you’re a demon yourself, why were you lying to us about your own kind? Or are you some sort of ‘exception?’”

She let out another sigh.

"As far as I know, I'm the exception," she admitted. "I've heard rumors, but they're just that - rumors. There's supposedly a doctor that's like me, and a demon slayer's supposedly running around with a demon in tow, but..."

She hesitated.

"I don't know," she admitted. "It's just a little hard to believe. And while I can get away with treating every demon like they're me, it's not really something a regular old human can - they'd just end up taking advantage of that."

Now that she had admitted the truth, it didn't make sense to keep her blood art going anymore. She took a deep breath and let the changes she had made fade away - the green highlights reappeared in her hair, her eyes regained their cat-like slits, and her teeth grew into fangs.