Episode Nine

 Silhouette~

“Alright, guys! Showers are outside to the left, feel free to get yourselves changed up!” Vonni opens the door for the group, welcoming in the party. 

Juuzou walks into the calmly decorated juice bar, admiring the gorgeous ocean view from the back doors and wide open window. “Oh, wow!” She takes a few steps forward and sees shell-like gem lamps hanging from the ceiling, illuminating the bar table below. Dark wood paneling lines the walls, giving the place that nice beach cabin feel. At the center of this ocean-adorned establishment lies an oval bar, wrapping around to the outside to then face the beach.

“This.. is lovely!” Juuzou says slowly, still in awe as she looks around.

“Right?! It’s so preeeetty and cute and niceee” Hyori beams gleefully, taking a gander herself. 

Walking towards the left door leading outside, Kai announces “Ima go ahead and get changed” with his back turned.

“Sounds good! I’ll prolly do the same after a nice juice.” Mareea replies, taking a seat at the barstools. They squeak and swivel as she sits, setting her shopping bags down on the floor. 

Kai swings open the door, exiting to the shower rooms. The juice bar grows with a calm silence as the group relaxes into their seats, Vonni is the exception as she lifts a wooden flap to enter between the two semi-ovals. 

“Alright! What can I get you guys started with?” She says with a friendly grin while picking up some shakers.

“Hmm.. surprise me!” Hyori chirps, spinning in her swivel seat. She turns quickly to Juuzou, having an idea. “Ouuh! Juuzou, you should try the banana-strawberry shake! It’s sooo goooood” She melts at the thought.

“Heh, you always want a surprise, Yori.” Vonni giggles.

Juuzou takes her seat next to the human, intrigued. “You think so? Well, I suppose. From your dessert, I learned I actually like both of those..” Resting an arm on the bar, she looks at Vonni.

“One banana berry shake and a surprise comin’ up!” Turning around, Vonni gets to work on making drinks. “And for you two?” She asks, addressing Xander and Mareea.

“A Pink Flaming Mango, no ice please.” Xander points a finger to the doors, turning on his heels. “Ima get dressed real quick too while you do that.”

Mareea thinks for a moment, shifting in her chair. “Uhh something with kiwi and watermelon, please.” 

“Gotcha aaand gotcha!” Vonni gives a wink, turning back to continue making drinks.

“Oh hey, Juuzou?” Hyori addresses the succubus again. “Wanna go try on your swimsuit?” She smiles, jumping out of her seat.

Juuzou watches Hyori spin around excitedly, replying “Um, yeah, sure! Also..” She pauses, staring off past the bouncy human. “Y-You can— Call me Zou, if you want…” 

“REALLY?!” Hyori clasps her warm hands around Juuzou’s, her eyes gleaming with a blinding shine. “I wanted to call you that, like Xander does! I think it’s so cute! But I.. wasn't sure if you were comfortable, Heheh.” She gently takes her hands back, twiddling her thumbs. “Plus, I wasn’t sure if it was just something he called you— like a sibling thing! So..”

“Heh. Nah it’s.. okay.” Juuzou smiles, enjoying the scene Hyori’s putting on. She steps out from the barstool, grabbing her shopping bags. “To the showers, then?”

Hyori springs up, grabbing her own bags. “WOOO! Oh– You two gonna be fine by yourselves?” She asks towards Vonni and Mareea, who are simply chatting.

“Oh, for sure! I’ll keep Vonni company while she’s makin’ our stuff.” Mareea flashes a big toothy smile, resting a hand on her shark tail.

“Yayyy! Be right back, guys!” Without thinking, Hyori grabs hold of Juuzou’s hand again, dragging her along to the left door towards the showers. 

Juuzou’s face turns a blush red, flustered by her grip. “W-Wooah—!” Almost tripping, she regains her footing as she follows the jumping human. 

“C’mon, c’mon! I wanna see how you look in itttt!” Hyori calls out, looking behind her while pushing open the door.

Smiling, Juuzou replies as she looks at the girl directly. “Haha! Okay, okay, I’m trying to keep up!” 

〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜

“Alright, time to try these on.” I gingerly pick up the bathing shorts from my bag, holding them like a foreign object. The texture is, kinda odd? I don’t know how to describe it. The fabric is like some weird silky thread.. I suppose for water resistance. And these showers, they’re quite large too. I blink rapidly, adjusting my vision to the loud shell-shaped gem lamp above my head. Facing a tall mirror, I look at my lanky self awkwardly holding a pair of shorts. Damn, do I normally look like this to the others? Just awkwardly standing? Anyways.. I shake off the thought, getting back to the task at hand. Peeling off my thick jeans, I place them off to the side careful to not wet them. How am I.. do I just wear these like normal shorts? Am I supposed to take more off? I don’t… My breath quivers, feeling a weird shakiness loom over me. I take an unsteady breath. Why do I feel like this over something so small? It’s just a pair of shorts— Come on Juuzou, you can figure this out. It’s just a pair of shorts. And the beach. With Hyori.. And the others. And swimming.. Something you’ve never done before. It’s okay. It’s— A quaint, caring, and pitched voice calls out to me, making me jolt a bit. 

“Hey, you doing okay? Need some help?”

Oh.. Her voice echoes lightly throughout the shower stalls, calming down my thoughts. I take a deeper breath, steady this time as I gather my thoughts. 

“Yeah— sorry.. Am I taking too long?”

“No, no! I was just a little worried.. You were really quiet! Not that— That’s a bad thing!” 

The girl rambles on, hearing her shuffle in the stall next to me. I glance at the shorts, then look back to the mirror. Help from her? How would she help me? In the stall? My stall? Wouldn’t that be.. Weird? Does she think it’s weird? Should it be weird? I don’t know— I make up my indecisive mind.

“N-No! I’m okay… Thank you”

“Okay! Just let me know if you need me!” 

Phew. Crisis averted. I think. Threading my legs through the holes, I hoist the shorts up to my waist, tying a loose knot. This is.. pretty comfortable, actually. I hear the door next to me click and unlock— Oh no. Am I taking too long now? She’s already done? Jeez, I still have to figure out this top! Uhh– Picking it up, I examine the complicated straps. Fuckin’ hell. Why so many straps?? Where do my arms go?! Uhm.. I might need— I reach towards the stall door, then abruptly stop myself. No! I can handle this. Just, take a deep breath, Juuzou. I comply with my brain, still surprised I’m even this anxious over a literal swim top. Ah! I think.. I put my hands through these. Okay, getting somewhere. Taking off my baggy shirt, I glance to myself in the mirror again. I probably have to take my bra off for this one, don’t I? Hnn this is.. really embarrassing. I mean, I get beings come in all sizes, but this mirror is massive! I’m not used to, um… seeing myself like this. I turn away from the mirror, twisting my bra off then quickly exchanging it for the swim top. Figuring out the straps, I lace them, turning on my heels back to the mirror. Hm.. Not bad, actually. I straighten myself, seemingly staring at somebeing I don’t recognize. Oh, I should probably tie up my hair too, I don’t want it to get wet.

“Hey.. Hyori? I think I’m done.”

Peering out from the crack of the stall, I see her leaning patiently on a different door. 

“Oh! Yayyy lemme see!”

I can see her bright smile.. excited for her reaction, I gather my things quickly, clicking the lock open and swinging the door. 

“What.. do you think? Did I put the top on right?”

“It’s perfect! Oh my sweets, you look amazing! The shorts really suit you!” 

Hyori bounces around me, enthralled. Ah- this examination is awkward.. But, I enjoy her silliness at least. Heh. I hope I’m not standing too weirdly—

“Ready to join the others then??”

I pause, glancing at the big doors of the shower room. My eyes zip around, looking back to Hyori. Why are my palms sweaty? 

“I-I suppose...” 

Jeez. I stutter embarrassingly while putting my clothes in adjacent lockers to the door, then turning to exit with the cute human. Sigh. What would.. father think?

〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜

“Hey, you two! Your drinks are done!” Vonni calls out to Juuzou and Hyori, waving a high hand from the beach. “They’re over on the bar!” She returns to her quaint sand castle, compared to Kai and Xander’s massive build in the works.

Mareea floats calmly in the water, swaying her tail. The beach waves fill the windy air with a reliable and repetitive sound, melting slowly into the fine sand. Distant laughter from Kai and Xander chime in as they pelt wet sand balls at each other, running around the beach. 

This is.. rather nice. I like the sounds here. Juuzou thinks to herself, reveling in the nice breeze similar to the air atop tranquil skyscrapers. 

“Thanks, Vonni!” Hyori replies, making her way to the outside bar, her pink frilly swimsuit bouncing while she jogs.

Following her, Juuzou takes ginger barefoot steps, getting used to the sand between her toes. Damn, she walks fast! 

Running up to her, Xander approaches Juuzou with a wave. “HEY, ZOU! NICE OUTFIT!!” He booms, still a bit far.

“Xander, I’m right here!” Juuzou states, covering her ears slightly. She walks up to the noisy demon, looking off behind him. “Uhh… what happened to.. your sand castle?” She says slowly as she points.

“Oh. Kai decided to body slam the castle, so we gave up.” He combs his fingers through his jet-black silky hair. “Anyways, I came over to ask if you wanna join us to watch the sunset! Should be happening in about a half hour.” Xander smiles widely, flashing his short fangs. 

Juuzou perks up at the idea. “Oh..! Um, s-sure!” She stammers, glancing at the approaching human.

“I got your drink, Zou!” She grins, holding both drinks in hand. “Vonni surprised me with a pineapple passionfruit mix! It’s soooo gooooodd” Hyori dragged out her words, taking another sip of her juice while handing Juuzou hers.

Juuzou takes the wet glass with visible condensation, adorned beautifully with a strawberry pricked by a yellow toothpick umbrella. The pink smoothie drink looks vividly smooth and refreshing, causing her to gulp out of mouth-watering anticipation. “Ouu.. this looks delicious.” She takes a small sip, savoring the flavors on her tongue. “Mmm-! This IS delicious!” Juuzou claims, taking a bigger sip.

“I knowww! It’s tastier on the beach, I swear! Wanna take a dip in the water after we finish?” Hyori addresses the two demons, one of them seemingly still fixing his hair. “We can sit and enjoy the nice sun in the meantime!” She goes to walk up to shore, then abruptly stops in her tracks, flinging sand on her ankles. “Oh! There’s something I want to ask you, Juuzou!” 

“Hm?” She answers mid-sip. Swallowing, she fully replies. “What’s up..?” Juuzou begins to walk alongside the human, with Xander following behind. 

Hyori takes a sip of her drink again, then faces the succubus girl. “I wanted to ask if you’d join us for my bake sale! I want.. to help my parents out by selling some sweets. But, I need help from you guys!” She pauses for a second, lost in thought. “But um.. Everyone else agreed to help out, so I wanted to ask you too!” 

“A… bake sale? Well, I’ve never.. baked anything before. I don't want to mess things up for you—” Juuzou shivers with a chill running up her spine, worries crawling against her back. 

Hyori smiles, resting a hand on Juuzou’s upper arm. “Don’t worry! I’ll give you guys instructions and be there to help manage things! I just gotta find time when my parents aren’t home! We’ll be SUPA sneaky, hehe!” She takes a seat next to Vonni on a towel, almost finishing her drink already.

“Well, okay! It’s not like I’m.. doing anything anyway.” Juuzou sits down beside Hyori, crossing her legs. 

“You guys taking about the bake sal—” 

“CANNONBALL!!” 

A red flash zips into the water interrupting Vonni, followed by a big splash almost reaching the three beings sitting atop a towel. Kai and Mareea stand on a tall rock ready to jump themselves.

Kai yells towards the water, cupping his hands around his mouth as Mareea cackles. “Nice one, Xander!” 

“HAHAAHA! I WIN AUTOMATICALLY.” Xander booms, swimming on his back.

“THAT WAS NOTHING! WATCH THIS, FOOL.” With a running start, Mareea flips into the sea, creating an even larger splash. 

“WOAH!” The demon and shark man call out simultaneously in awe, wide-eyed. 

“Uhhh I dunno if I can top that, honestly.”

“C’MON! HAVE SOME BALLS, KAI!” Mareea calls to him, swaying her tail side to side as she back floats away.

“HEELLLL YYYEEAAAAAAHHHHHH DO IT!” Xander somehow yells so loudly, that he shakes the water a bit. 

“Okay, okay! Holy fuckin’ mackerel, man!” The rock Kai’s standing on also tremors, making him stumble forward. “ahhHH SHIT!” He falls belly-first into the water, creating a loud slapping sound that reverberates throughout the beach. 

“AAAAHHAHHAHAHHHA!” Laughter ensues from both Xander and Mareea as they swim to Kai.

Hyori winces, sucking air through her teeth. “Yeesh! That’s.. gotta hurt. She finishes her drink and quickly stands to check on Kai. “Guyyss don’t laugh! He could be seriously injured!”

“Heh. It was a little funny though.” Juuzou retorts, savoring the last bit of her smoothie.

Vonni stifles a chuckle, covering her mouth. 

Calling out from the shore, Hyori cups her hands to her mouth. “You okay, Kai??” 

“I’m good! I’m fine! Just uh...” Kai stands up in the water, rubbing his stomach. “That’s definitely gonna leave a mark. ow.” He sits in the shallow area, enjoying the waves. “I’m alright though, just stings. At least somebeing’s worried about me.” Kai jokes with a playfully displeased look on his face.

“Thank sweetness!” Hyori sits down in the water with him, spreading out her toes in the wet sand. “Hey guys! You two should come over!” She addresses Vonni and Juuzou, both standing from the towel.

“For sure! The water seems really nice right now!” Vonni replies, heading to the shallow. 

〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜

The water. Right. It should be easy, right? Sure, it’s something I’ve never done before and it’s extremely intimidating, but.. I want to know how it feels. Jeez, why do I always have to get stuck in my head all the time?! C’mon Juuzou, you can do this. I take a step forward. Okay, that’s a start. The water seemingly stretches out for as far as I can see, even with my enhanced vision. It’s not scary at all. Yeah. You can do this. I take another step, slower than the last. They’re waiting for you. Are they all staring at me, or is it just in my head? Ahh— why is this so hard? It’s just water. With creatures in it. And wayyy bigger than Xander’s bathtub. But it’s fine. You can do this. I take a couple steps, now the waves tickle my feet a little. I can feel myself sinking into the sand. I back away, afraid of falling deeper. I can’t do this. I-I.. This— No! You can do this. Taking a few deep breaths, I plunge towards the water, fully ignoring the risks my brain is yelling at me. Now knee-deep, the waves softly crash against my legs, wetting my new swim shorts. The water is.. lukewarm. It’s quite nice actually. I shuffle my feet in the sand, letting myself sink. I cautiously take a slow seat, allowing the static sound of waves fill my ears. Quiet chattering in between, I glance to the bit-distant group of five splashing each other, and I smile at their antics. I’m.. enjoying this. The water reaches my chest, and the urge to float on my back compels me, even though I tied up my hair to avoid getting it wet. Undoing my bun, I carefully lay back in the water, my ears being enveloped in the muted sound of water. The thoughts that were once in my head have escaped me, only thing left is the calming realization of how nice this is. Man.. why was I so scared before? I can slightly hear their banter within the water as I float on my back. I close my eyes, feeling the warm setting sun against my lids. Small waves pass over my chest, wetting my cheeks a bit. But I don’t mind. I open my eyes, and as my vision clears, I see a pink-haired silhouette shadow over me. 

“You look quite relaxed, hehe!” 

I hear, muffled by the water. I sit up again, my wet heavy hair tugging me back, longing for that relaxing touch. Wringing it out to get rid of the water weight, I look to Hyori, now sitting beside me. 

“Yeah, it was really calming.” 

“I’m glad!”

The girl giggles happily, playing with some sand.

“You ready for the sunset? It looks super cool here! You can see its reflection melting into the horizon.”

She asks me with a wide grin, giddy to share the experience I assume. I look back to the orange-yellow ball of light, easier to look at now that it’s setting.

“Yeah, I suppose. I really like watching the sun from Xander’s window so.. I’m a little excited!”

Who am I kidding, I’m really excited! I’ve.. never shared this feeling with beings, especially among… I think friends? Would they all consider me a friend? We just met, is this how you make friends? I don’t know–- I shake off the thought. The others gather around Hyori and I in the water, chatting in pairs. I look to Xander and Vonni to the right, lovingly snuggling each other as they watch the horizon. Kai and Mareea are off to my left, simply talking about some pep rally or something while they stare at the sun. Hyori taps my shoulder, and I slowly turn my head to her. 

“You know, I had a lot of fun today.”

“Yeah? I actually.. did too. I’ve never, well, spent time with beings like this.” 

“Really? Did you not have any friends where you come from? Devil’s Fork is really big with lots of beings!” 

“A-Ah, well no.. I didn’t have friends. I wasn’t really allow— Err, I didn’t have the chance.. to make any.” 

Yeah, because that place sucked.

“Aw! Well, I’ll be your friend, then!”

“Wait, r-really? You’ll.. be my friend?” 

Wow. Her smile is ever so blinding, enhanced by the warm setting sunlight.

I’ve never had any friends before.. And Xander doesn’t count. Does she… does she really want to be my friend?

“Of course! I think you’re really cool, Zou! Showing you around has been so fun, I just hope you get accepted into our school!” 

“Oh right! Ah, I forgot to tell you guys, I got accepted, actually!”

Damn, I totally forgot to mention that with all the things we were doing. I probably should’ve earlier—

“FOR REAL?? Ohmysweets do you know your classes yet?? Ah, probably not, sorry! Oh, but I would LOOOVE to show you around the school! AAHHHH this is so exciting!” 

She kicks her feet in the water as I chuckle watching her get all happy and ramble-y as she does.

“Heh heh, that sounds good! I’m.. supposed to meet up with the principal really early— Ah!”

Xander appears standing behind us, splashing a bit of water on my back. 

“WOOOOO! I overheard! You got accepted!!” 

He celebrates noisily, waving his hands up in the air as it grows dark. 

“Anyway, we were planning on getting ready to head home. You two good, or wanna keep talking?”

“Ah— sorry to cut our conversation short, Hyori, but I’m terrible with waking up early..” 

She stands up, reaching a small hand out to me. I take it gingerly, hoisting myself up as she pulls.

“It’s no prob! I take the same route as you two anyways, let’s go change!”

She smiles again, a sight that I’m starting to long for. Is that weird? I hope it isn’t. Her smile is just.. so sickly sweet to look at. I begin to walk towards the showers, wringing out my hair again.

 〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜

Parting ways with the pair of sharks, Xander, Juuzou, and Hyori wave goodbye to them. While Brewer Street begins to illuminate a yellow glow by the rising crescent moon, the three beings walk along the road chatting.

“Ahh, it feels good to take a warm rinse after the beach!” Hyori lets out a sigh while spinning around with a towel on her head, holding it by the ends. 

“Agreed, feels better to get that salt water out of my hair.” Whipping out a comb seemingly out of nowhere, Xander starts to brush through his defined hair.

Juuzou, admiring the glow of the moonlight, glances to storefronts turning their lights off for closing. “Does everything close around this time? It seems like all the stores around are...” She ponders, holding her wet clothes in a neatly tied baggy and her new clothes in their shopping bag.

“Well, most places close, but there's some stores around still open. Why, you want a bite?” Xander asks, now pocketing his comb and fluffing his hair a bit.

“No, no, I’m good.. Just curious.” Juuzou trails off, looking to a familiar storefront. “Oh, looks like The Angry Bull is still open.” She points out, taking a gander at some posters displayed upfront.

Hyori looks to where Juuzou is pointing, skipping along the road. “Yeah! Joey keeps doors open a bit longer than others on Brewer Street. It’s quite nice for nocturnal beings!”

“Oh.. I guess I didn’t consider that. What about the other stores?” Juuzou asks, looking back down to the dark asphalt. She analyzes her shadow, noticing a bird-like silhouette flying above her. Juuzou whips her head up quickly, stopping and turning back to see apparently nothing in the velvet sky. 

“They— Uh, you okay, Zou?” Xander interrupts himself and questions the frightened succubus, coming to a slow halt. 

Juuzou stares intensely into the trees, looking for… something. But to no avail. She sighs, turning forward. “Y-Yeah, sorry.. I thought— I saw something.”

I swear.. I swear I saw it.

“You sure you’re okay?” Hyori approaches Juuzou, reaching with a delicate hand. Concern is easily visible on her face, brightened and emphasized by the soft glow of the moon.

“Yeah, I’m fine... I’m probably just a little tired.” She replies, rubbing her left eye with a clenched fist. 

Hyori loses some of her worry, relaxing her arm. “Well, If you say so. This is my stop though, you guys!” She walks towards the bakery entrance, waving a hand. “Make sure you get some good rest, Zou! I bet today was a lot for you... So sleep well!” She beams up with a smile, turning to walk inside as she waves.

“I’ll try! Thank you.. Today was really fun! Uh… friend?” Do people say “friend” to their friend?? Juuzou asks herself, a bit embarrassed as she ends her aloud sentence. 

“Hehe, silly! Since you let me call you Zou, you can call me Yori!” She giggles as she talks, seemingly amused by Juuzou’s words. “Goodnight you two!”

“Night!” Xander, tending to his hair again, calls out to the human as she walks inside the darkened bakery. 

“Goodnight, Y-Yori!” The demon girl waves shyly, turning to face Xander grooming himself. “..Do you always have to fix your hair like that?”

“Of course!” He yells as he walks, pocketing his comb once more. “I gotta look good for my Vonni~”

“She isn’t even here!”

“Yeah, but she could be. At any moment. Like if she video-called me. What if MY HAIR IS A MESS?!”

“Xander, I’m right here!” Juuzou hisses.

“Right— sorry.” He lowers his volume, looking around to see if he unintentionally stirred some beings awake. “Anyways.. I wanted to ask you something.”

“Hm?” Juuzou walks beside the red-skinned demon, attentive to her shadow still.

“How did you enjoy my friends? No bullshit or influence from me, just your raw opinion.” A serious look befalls Xander’s normally aloof face as they both approach the apartment lobby doors.

Juuzou thinks over the day she’s had, taking a long thorough pause. “Well, I had fun! And, I tried a lot of new things today. I think.. your friends are nice. I don’t know if they consider me a friend…” She pauses again, a small smile plastering on her face. “Except for.. Yori. She said we could be friends!”

“That’s awesome! I’m glad you enjoyed the day.. I was– I was a little worried about you, Zou.” He opens the door for Juuzou, letting her go in first. “You were cooped up in my apartment for days! I think you needed this.”

“Yeah.. I think I did too. Though, I’m exhausted. That was a lot of social interaction…” She huffs, stepping inside the lobby, Xander following suit.

Closing the door softly behind him, he whispers. “I bet. I’m proud of you, Juuzou. You did a lot of new things today, I’m sure it was tough.” He places a ginger hand on Juuzou’s shoulder, giving a look of gratitude. 

“Thank you, Xander..” 

“Mhm! Ready for your first day tomorrow?”

“I hope so.”

I really hope so…