Young Writers Society

Harper saw the man leaving and turned to follow him, glad she was wearing her taller platform boots so she wasn't so thoroughly dwarfed in height compared to him. She was still a bit shorter, though. That didn't bother her much.

"Hi," she greeted him as she caught up, "Sorry, I didn't introduce myself, I'm Harper. Last name irrelevant, foster kid, ya know?" She chuckled. "Do you think there are really demons on the mountain?"

Jay didn't believe in demons. He didn't believe in a God or in Heaven or Hell. He believed there was nothing before you were born, and there was nothing after. His mother had been a devout Christian, even after she was ostracized by her family and friends because she dared have sex before she was married. She kept believing, kept bringing Jay to church. Still, there was one line that always stayed with him.

Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.

What did we have to lose by going up the mountain? Especially if the others did believe in demons.

"I'm Jay," he told them.

Realizing that almost everyone was heading up towards the mountain, Haru resigned herself to her fate and followed the group - quickly taking the lead in front of the one person who didn't scream city.

"I'm Haru," she glumly said. "Short for..."

She thought it over. None of the people present had even offered their full names, so what was the point in offering hers? Besides, she liked going by Haru more - it was more personal, and just more convenient than spitting out the rest of her name.

"Just Haru works," she decided. Her hand lingered over the gourd at her side. She was starting to get hungry. She was always a little hungry, but it was getting worse - just when she couldn't even slip off.

Then Harper's question registered, and Haru decided that she should give trying to deter everyone one last shot before giving up.

"Oh, definitely," she said. "I think there's loads of demons. I bet they eat travelers like us for breakfast - and I bet they like eating people live, too, and right in front of whoever they're traveling with so they can get excited from all of the fear in the air."

Harper didn't look the least bit deterred, in fact, she was grinning. Oh, of course, all of that was bad, but they were only rumors. Barely more than ghost stories, and Harper loved ghost stories.

"Perfect!" she chirped, "Are we going on our way then?"

James only glanced at the masked person when they introduced themselves. They did sound feminine, but he didn’t know if Haru was traditionally a boy or girl’s name. Not that it really mattered. They seemed the only mildly knowledgeable one among them and probably the only one with them who was actually from this world.

He picked up his pace so he was beside Haru, and not behind. He glanced back at Harper, the pink haired girl.

“Yes,” was all he said to her, before looking back up the mountain.

“I’m sure whatever they are, I’ve faced just as bad if not worse,” he muttered to Haru. “And call me Peter. Just for the hell of it.”

Just great. Peter, apparently, wasn't just used to the wilderness. He was used to demons, too. Haru gave a very strained smile at both his comment and Harper's earlier exclamation, only to remember neither one of them could see it underneath her mask.

"I'm glad you're good with dangerous situations, then," Haru said - barely restrained frustration seeping into her voice.

Harper fiddled with the pendant around her neck, her very dangerous failsafe. Demons were a risky kind of exciting. Just as much a learning experience as a good way to get killed.

She twirled her parasol as she gave the group a quick once-over. Her eyes lingered on the masked girl - or boy, or otherwise - specifically on her sword. Between that and the mask, the girl looked like some kind of cartoon samurai character. One of those anime characters the geeky kids were always going on about. Harper only really listened to them for the purposes of flirting, but she had picked up quite a bit from them over the years.

She only really flirted with them so someone else would get them to go away, though. Jack, usually. He liked her a lot, and he didn't like those other guys hitting on her so much.

"What's the mask for?" she asked good-naturedly. She could ask about the sword later. If this person had it, and they were worried about demons, they probably thought it would help against the demons. Harper silently prayed the poor soul never met Annie.

Well, that was a question Haru wasn't really prepared for. No one ever asked what the mask was for - they usually just accepted it as part of her persona, especially when someone mistook her for one group of people or accurately took her for another.

"It's for the aesthetic," she hesitantly said. There was a pause. Then a better, more reasonable explanation came to mind. "It's also to scare people off. It's dangerous traveling by yourself in the country. There's thieves, bandits, demons..." Demon slayers, too, but she was supposed to be one of them right now. "Most of the time, people try to avoid me if they see the mask. It's the best protection out there, right beside wisteria for demons."

Harper smirked, "I can respect an aesthetic choice," she twirled her parasol again, hearing the beads clink together on the top. "Is the sword there for the same reason?" she laughed, a light, airy sound, "Considering your paranoia about demons, I'd guess you think it'll do jack against them." A pause. "It won't, just so you're aware."

"Actually, it's a nichirin sword," Haru said. She carefully withdrew it from her sheath and held it out in front of her - the sunlight glinting off of its blade. "I know they can heal after getting cut with regular weapons, but they won't be coming back if they get decapitated with this."

She put the sword back and shrugged.

"Besides," she said, "it's always good to have a sword on you."

Harper blinked, slightly startled at that answer, then her grin returned, her eyes brightening as she looked at the blade. "You've killed demons before then?" she asked, sounding far more than just intrigued.

Haru hesitated.

"...Yes?" she said. She had, so it wasn't a lie. But it still felt like one, given the context of their conversation. She wasn't the demon slayer she pretended to be back in town. As it was, her expertise came from the other side of the demon slayer-demon relationship.

Jay decided he was going to keep playing along. For better or for worse, he was stuck with these people, so it would be beneficial to play into their delusion.

"Have you slayed many demons?" He asked the masked figure.

Haru faltered again. Why did they have to keep asking questions like this? She was doing her best to lie about it, but there was only so much she could say before they started to doubt her story.

"Definitely," Haru answered. "I've slayed loads of demons. They were mostly weak, though. They didn't even know how to use their Demon Blood Art."

That part, at least, was true.

James was only half-listening to the conversation as he remained walking in front with Haru, but the subject of demons did seem relevant, considering they were very likely going to run into them on their journey up the mountain.

"What are demons like here, exactly? Are they not just people? Do they have to be slain, or can they be reasoned with?"