Chapter 17: A Spider's last Web

After the sudden appearance of 5 hooded people with sharp, peculiar bone blades, Ryan and the others managed to escape the jaws of death once more but with the helpful arrival of Josie's Family bodyguard, Alex and his team of trained elites were still defeated in battle. As the teens rushed their way and made it out of the Suburb neighborhood safely, they soon ran out of breath and became tired of running and it was not long after that they were forced to stop and catch their breath on the middle of the roadside as the town was still a bit further than they expected.

"We must get somewhere safe…" Said Wendy as she breathed heavily after the long run along with Joseph and Josie.

"The town is still a bit far… but we can make it if we walk" Wendy added but Ryan refused.

"No, if we walk they will catch up to us…"

"But my bodyguards can handle them. They are well trained for combat" Josie replied.

"I don't know about that… I feel something different from those people… we must keep running, just to be safe" Manny spoke as he tried to encourage Josie to keep going.

"Look around you, we're tired, we have no breath left… if we can't find somewhere to rest then we must find somewhere to hide at least!" Wendy said with a high pitch as she tried her best to catch her own breath and regulate her breathing.

"Or both… I know a place near here, come on. She can help us" Ryan suggested before they followed him towards somewhere only he knows.

"Wait… she?" Wendy asked but decided to throw away that thought for now and considered her question as a rhetorical one.

A few minutes have passed and the teens made their arrival in front of an old yet stable-looking house, painted with an alluring purple and dark brownish exterior that dents comfort to the eyes that gazed upon it. Everyone besides Ryan was in heavy silence and had no clue whose house this was but seeing how Ryan calmly walked up the stairs with 3 steps and rang the doorbell 2 times, they placed their trust in him since they had no other choice.

"Who's house is this even?" Josie asked as she crossed her arms, feeling the sudden lower of temperature from the cold breeze.

" I don't know… but I hope the person can help us" Wendy replied with a low voice before the door opened slightly, exposing a female head from the small gap as her purple eyes gazed over at Ryan.

"Hitomi it's me… I need your help" Ryan asked with kindness and hope in his tone before the door closed shut in front of him. From their point of view, Hitomi refused his request for help but Hitomi,,, It was clearly different.

"(Oh my God, oh my God! Ryan is actually on my doorstep! I can't believe he's actually here! On a Saturday! I can't believe I just shut the door on him… Oh crap! Stupid Hitomi!)" The shy and introverted female opened the door in haste as she was prepared to open her mouth and apologize for what she did, but the moment the door opened, her eyes caught the glimpse of Wendy and the others, sending her thoughts about apologizing to the lad to disappear and been replaced with shyness and nervousness. She locked her eyes only at Ryan, feeling at least a small amount of comfort before hearing him speak.

"I'm sorry for the surprise guests… but we need a place to hide for a while… we really need your help, Hitomi…" Ryan begged with a look of a man who is desperate to keep everything he holds dear, safe, and sound. But even without those looks and tone of hope coming from Ryan, Hitomi would always help him in return for what he did, and because of something more.

She gave him a slow nod with a gentle smile that was directed to him before completely opening the door and gesturing to them to walk inside.

"Come on, guys. We can be safe here for a while, just until I explained everything to her" Ryan announced to them before he went inside with Shiori expecting Ryan along with his friends in front of a large bookshelf that covered almost the entire wall of the living room's interior. The smell was pleasant as Ryan and his friends made their way inside, it was as if this house had a lavender scent to it. Wendy and Josie were in awe to see how lovely her house is, a variety of beautiful and welcoming house plants were in view and placed on the perfect place to give people that calming aura. For a girl as quiet as Hitomi, she sure has this marriage material side to her that can make other females envious. Although, Manny seemed to be weirded by the fact that she had a lot of books, too much even for a person who loves to read.

"Now I know why they called her book freak…" Manny muttered to himself before Josie gazed over at him with a wave of exposed anger in her eyes which caused him to zip his mouth and became quiet. Even though his words were clearly audible, Hitomi didn't mind what he said, as she was already used to being called that. She gestured for them to sit on the comfortable furniture, which was a medium-size sofa and 3 small chairs that had the perfect armrest and comfort for relaxing. They didn't hesitate to take a seat as they knew they deserved the good rest after the long run, but Ryan had no time to rest and must puzzle everything in his mind, he ignored the fact those people wanted him for some reason only those people would know, but now those thoughts are overflowing and can barely contain anymore, but he tried his best to cast it aside and explain everything to Hitomi who just walked into the kitchen, judging from the sound of the stove, the slight banging of breakable cups made them guess that she was making something for them to drink.

"How long are we going to stay here?" Wendy asked before resting her back on the comfortable Sofa.

"I hope we stay here for a while, this place is nice, and I have never sat on something this comfortable before" Josie commented with a look of satisfaction.

"Indeed, I wish I could marry this Sofa '' Joseph joked but looked like he really wanted it due to its comfort.

"We won't be here long, I just need to explain to her everything and if everything is clear, then we can all head back home. Stay here and take a break, I'll be back" Ryan replied with a conflicted look that only Wendy seemed to notice before heading towards the kitchen where Hitomi was.

"Hmm seems you guys have a tough competition now" Joseph spoke with a medium tone where only the people close to him could hear as he caught his breath while still savoring the comfort of the chair.

"What are you talking about?" Wendy asked in confusion.

"Well, Ryan seems to be super close with Hitomi since the past few days, has he developed a crush I wonder?"

"What are you talking about in our current situation?!" Josie shouted with a whispering voice.

"Hey, I'm just saying; he seemed to spend more time with her than the two of you, not to mention he spent two days in a library with her. Ain't that right, Manny?"

"Yup, you guys gonna lose '' Manny went along with Joseph's joke at least to remove the negative thoughts away after the events, which caused the two girls to blush lightly with an angered look at both of the males.

In the meantime, Hitomi blankly stared at the kettle that was heating up due to the midlevel fire of the stove, although she seemed to be paralyzed. She never had any visitors before, not to mention her crush was one of them, her heart was still beating rapidly ever since Ryan entered her small house. She was panicking.

"(Is my house too Dusty?! I should have cleaned earlier! Darn you Romeo and Juliet for being a wonderful work of art! Ryan is actually here and I failed to make a good impression, I even slammed the door on him without noticing… I wanna die…)" She panicked in her thoughts and mentally banged her head onto a concrete wall. As she thought low to herself, she failed to notice that the kettle was already whistling loudly due to the boiling of the hot water. Soon she came back to her senses when Ryan stepped in and turned off the stove by reaching his hand next to her.

"Are you alright? You seem distracted" Ryan asked in concern towards the shy female.

"Oh…! S-sorry… It's just… I never had visitors before… I'm not trying to say you should leave… I'm just, nervous" Hitomi replied with a hint of a Japanese accent when it comes to English.

"Don't apologize, I should be the one to do that. I'm sorry if I just suddenly asked for your help… we just really needed a place to hide for a while and your house was the closest, I promise to repay once this is over" Hitomi listened to every bit of his words while she poured half of the hot water in a clean teapot, using a small spoon and swirling the hot water in the beautifully decorated teapot before responding.

"It's alright… I… t-told you, I would help you, didn't I? What happened by the way…? Why are you looking for a place to hide?" Hitomi asked, knowing that it was only them alone in the kitchen made her feel a bit more at ease than when she was standing in front of Wendy and the others. Ryan remained quiet for a moment before responding.

"Bruno's friends and father had been… killed. When I asked him what happened all he said to me was "She wanted you, but she killed them all" Hitomi was shocked at first after hearing what he said but realizing the conflicted look on Ryan's eyes made her realized that he wasn't finished yet so she saved her responses for later and listened to what he was about to say next. "I wondered who would have done such a brutal thing and why that person was looking for me but I gained nothing, not even a small clue, there is one female that will go after me but she's in a coma at the hospital… then confronted with 5 hooded people. Something about them didn't feel right, the weapon they held in both of their hands was something people can only see in movies and their aura… I felt like even if I fought with them hand to hand, I would still lose. They wanted me and planned to kill the others but we escaped thanks to Josie's bodyguards… but I think they might be gone by now… I wanted to keep my friends safe but they were tired of running, they needed a place to rest where it's safe."

Once he finished explaining Hitomi, he let out a small sigh and faced the direction of the living room, gazing at Wendy from a few distances who was arguing with Joseph about something. He showed a small smile in response before Hitomi spoke.

"I'm glad you're safe… all of you. I don't mind using my house as a temporary sanctuary... if you ever need further help… I promise to do whatever I can'' Ryan turned his head directly towards Hitomi, locking their eyes towards each other as they both smiled sweetly while standing on the perfectly waxed floor of the kitchen.

"Thank you, Hitomi… I really owe you a lot"

"Don't thank me too much… I'm happy to help you" Hitomi replied with a clearly visible blush but Ryan failed to notice as he averted his eyes towards the teapot filled with hot water, breaking their eye contact.

"What are you making?" Ryan asked with a hint of curiosity in his eyes.

"Oh… I'm making… Chamomile tea… for you and your friends"

"I didn't know you knew how to make tea. Can you show me? I always wanted to learn but I could never be good at it… even with my former guardian's teaching"

"You want me… to show you how to make… tea?" Hitomi asked, slightly nervous yet somewhat thrilled to hear his question.

With a simple nod as his Reply, Hitomi's chest suddenly felt lighten, as if the nervous emotions she has been hurrying deep down suddenly went away and focused on making the tea. She poured out the hot water from the teapot onto the drain before adding in the Chamomile tea lose into the beautifully decorated teapot, pouring the remaining hot water of the kettle into the teapot and covering the top with a lid, and steeping it with the Chamomile tea loose to further give in that relaxing aroma.

"First you have to warm up the teapot by pouring hot water first and pouring it out once it's warm… that way the tea won't cool down quicker than normal… Then add in the tea loose and pour in more of the hot water into the teapot and cover the top with its lid… now we must wait for 5 minutes… (I'm still really amazed how comfortable I am speaking with him… I don't care if he doesn't feel the same way I do towards him… I'm happy just by being friends with him…)" She said to herself in her head with a visible pink blush that glowed radiantly due to the sunlight shining down upon them from the glass window. The lad observed her procedure with a gentle smile on his face, the way she moved her hands calmly made him see a bit of Sasha in her. Once five minutes had passed, She grabbed a small tea strainer along with 5 fancy-looking teacups. Pouring the tea on the teacups and using the strainer to prevent the Chamomile flowers from entering the teacups. Once she finished, she poured a drop of honey on each of the tea and gently swirled the teaspoon for a hint of sweetness. "Please… try," She said to him with a polite gesture, indicating to take a teacup. He grabbed one of the teacups and with a gentle blow from his mouth to cool down the tea, he took a quick sip and savored the first taste. The result was better than he had anticipated. The relaxing and aromatic taste of Hitomi's tea blew away all of his worries once the herbal infusion reached down his throat, the honey gave in the added sweetness for everyone to further enjoy.

"This is amazing! You make really good tea" Ryan complimented her. She didn't expect him to suddenly blurt out those kind words that immediately melt her heart. Her blush and sudden widening of her eyes exposed that really didn't expect that result.

"It's nothing…! I just like making tea… I'm not that good"

"Give yourself more credit, this tea is really amazing. I envy your skills. Where did you learn to make tea this way?"

"From… my grandmother. She taught me how to, and then I started making one as well"

"Where is your grandmother if you don't mind me asking?"

"She's… gone…" Hitomi muttered as a reply which Ryan heard and felt bad for asking such a personal question.

"I'm sorry… I didn't know"

"It's alright… don't worry"

"Do you miss her?"

"Yes… she was my only family left, but her years of living a peaceful life was short… she died of old age. But I won't forget about the time we had… you should have seen her dance every time she beats me at chess, it was really funny" She said with a light laugh as Ryan listened to each of her words with empathy while sipping his tea that she made. "I would help her repaint the house and she would tease me by smudging paint on my cheeks, she was really playful, I miss her every second… oh my. I'm sorry for saying some awkward stuff! I got zoned out I was-"

"It's alright, don't apologize. I actually enjoyed listening to you. I wish you could tell me more about your grandmother, your voice makes me feel calmer by the second" Ryan spoke with all honesty which caused a rush of heat around Hitomi's body, her blush trailed across her cheeks to her ears as she suddenly froze in shock. She couldn't take any more of his compliments, once more then she will surely pass out.

"W-we should give this to the others now…!" She replied with a rush as she swiftly placed the teacups onto a thin iron tray before walking over to the others with Ryan. "(Thank you so much for listening, Ryan)" she said in her thoughts with a delightful, sweet internal smile.

"How can it be an Illusion? Cris Angel just walked in mid-air!" Joseph yelled in an argument with Manny.

"Dude, it's an Illusion"

"What did we miss?" Ryan asked, still holding the cup of tea in his right hand.

"A very boring argument about magic and illusions…" Wendy replied with an exposed boredom on her face before Hitomi placed the tray of teacups on the small table in front of them. "What's all this?"

"Hitomi made you all some Chamomile tea to help you relax. Give it a try, she's really great at making tea" Ryan happily complimented her skills which she blushed as a response. Wendy and the other teens each reached for their own cup of tea before sniffing the warm and soothing aroma of the tea before taking a quick sip. Their reaction was as expected.

"Wow, this is really good!" Josie commented.

"I'm not much into non-caffeine drinks but… it's bad" Manny frankly commented as well.

"Still pridefully as ever are we? But yeah, this is the best tea I ever tasted!" Said the chubby teen while Wendy took her time to savor her tea before commenting as well.

"Indeed, the sweetness really gives off a burst of flavor. Thank you so much for the tea, Hitomi" Wendy said with a warm smile towards the shy female with a bright red face due to all the embarrassing compliments.

"Such marriageable material there" Joseph whispered a bit audibly towards Manny before he chuckled from the small joke.

"Hey, I can make good tea too! I use fresh herbs as well" Josie added, overhearing what Joseph said

"Josie, the last time you made tea had dirt inside…" Manny replied with his legs crossed before sipping once more from his tea.

"Shut up!" Josie yelled as they all laughed and chuckled in unison. Ryan caught a glimpse of a wide smile from Hitomi and overheard a light laugh coming from her. Somehow, he felt happy for her, seeing that this might be the right crowd for her. But that also made him realize that asking for her help in dealing with big problems regarding Hitomi's skills, mostly her book, might disturb her already peaceful life. He stared at his empty cup and thought hard about what this would impact for Hitomi, all he wanted was to see her happy, and to do that, he must leave her out of their problems.

"Alright, I'll look around through the windows and see if the coast is clear. Then we can leave, we don't want to get Hitomi involved" Ryan announced with a serious tone before placing his empty cup gently on the tray and headed towards the other windows in the other room.

"Ryan's acting a bit differently now," Joseph pointed out the obvious.

"No way, Sherlock, how did you find that out just now?" Manny replied with sarcasm.

"That's just how Ryan is… there comes a time where he'll act playful and easy-going but when confronted with a problem… you start to see a whole different side of him" Wendy spoke while they all gazed over at Ryan from a distance as he gazed at the outside view from behind the windows with the same look he had when he is faced with trouble.

"Yeah… he's something else" Josie muttered. Joseph soon turned his gaze towards Hitomi who was staring at Ryan as well while standing behind Josie who seemed like she enjoyed sitting on that chair.

"So Hitomi, do you like Ryan as well?" Joseph asked, wanting to know if his hunch was correct. After hearing what he said, the shy purple-eyed female jolt as a response and blushed in heavy red due to the quick embarrassment. But as expected, she couldn't respond to his question, it seemed that she could only speak to Ryan at the moment, although a part of her wanted to speak to them, but that part was vague. After hearing no response, Wendy decided to intervene.

"What are you doing?! I'm so sorry for what this idiot just asked you Hitomi" Wendy said with a reassuring tone while Josie contained her slight giggle from the situation.

"Hey, I'm just asking whether she feels the same for Ryan."

"But I am curious as well. Do you have feelings for Ryan, Hitomi?" Josie boldly asked with a gentle smile. Wendy failed to reassure her due to the curiosity of knowing whether she does have feelings for him. She was placed in an incredibly hot seat, the aura of curiosity became so thick that it can be cut off with a pair of scissors. Her chest raced like she was running a marathon but before she could pass out from their curious gaze and the thought of confessing her feelings to Ryan's friends, Ryan arrived back in the room and caught them staring at Hitomi with curiosity in their eyes.

"What are you guys doing?" He asked, breaking the tense aura as Hitomi let out a sigh of relief.

"Oh, nothing. So is everything alright now?" Joseph asked.

"Yeah, the coast is clear. We should get going now while we still have the chance. I can't thank you enough, Hitomi" Ryan thanked her with a kind smile before finally noting her reddened cheeks, although he misunderstood what it meant. "Are you alright?" Ryan asked. Before she could even reply, he placed his left palm gently on her forehead and placed his other palm on his, checking to see whether she was at an optimal heat level or not. She paused for a minute before her response kicked in, her body temperature started to rise up along with her blush. "You're burning up, you should get some rest," he said to her while Wendy and Josie giggled from the adorable sight.

"Is he for real or is he legit clueless…" Manny muttered to Joseph but only received a laugh as a response. Soon the chubby teen heard the sound of a twig being stepped on from the outside. While he took a sip from the remaining amount of tea on his teacup, he turned his back and gazed through the window, but from what he saw made Joseph spit out his tea and splattered across the clean window with a choked look. Gaining the other's attention.

"What's wrong?" Ryan asked in surprise before standing up straight.

"We got good news and bad news," Said Joseph.

"What's the good news?" Asked Josie.

"This tea is heavenly! I can't get enough of the taste!"

"Joseph focus…! What's the bad news" Wendy asked, couldn't take any more of the suspense.

"Oh, they're here… the ones that tried to kill us"

"What?!" Ryan shouted before walking over to the window and staring at a hooded person that was seen standing on the road, facing their direction. The others got up from their seats but before they could make any other actions, two of the hooded people burst through the window behind Wendy and Josie and locked them both by aiming their bone-like-daggers across their necks. Manny attempted to save Josie but two more bursts from the other window, tumbling swiftly towards them and locked him the same way the other two did whole the other one just aimed a dagger behind Joseph to prevent him from moving. Ryan took a long step back, pushing Hitomi away from the enemy to keep her away from harm as his mind was blank on how he could solve this problem. Soon the door was locked open by the leader of the hooded group, entering the house and making her way towards the living room, standing before them with a slow clap.

"It was smart of you to run away, although if I were you I would have hidden in the town, at least that would give you more time before we engage… but now… thanks to your actions, we will add one more corpse to our list," Said the leader as she exposed her sharp retracted claws and pointed at Hitomi.

"What are you…?" Asked Ryan after showing them her claws. He cuffed both of his fists in anger, already calculating possible ways to attack but all of them resulted in one of his friends getting their throats slit so he postponed that thought for now until he finds an opening.

She gave Ryan an audible giggle before removing the hood that was covering her appearance. Her cat-like ears, dark green eyes, and black diamond-shaped pupils made everyone's eyes widened. Ryan stared at her in disbelief while she stared back at him directly in the eyes, smirking with satisfaction from the lad's expression.

"Cat got your tongue?" Asked the female before him with her forever smirk. Soon the others removed their hoodies as well and had the same appearance as the female although they were male. One of them had a large scar on the left side of his cheeks, staring directly at Ryan with anger for some reason while still aiming the dagger behind the defenseless Joseph.

"Just leave him alone! What do you want with Ryan?!" Yelled Wendy, defending the lad.

"That is none of your business, Mortal." Said the angry-looking creature behind Joseph.

"Now, now, Sirius. Calm down. As you can see you are in a pickle right now, I say you come with us or we'll kill your friends" Said the female towards Ryan.

"You'll kill them either way" Ryan replied, turning his shocked look into a fierce gaze.

"True, but at least you won't be in this house while they get killed. So… make your move. What would it be?"

Ryan didn't respond as he remained quiet. For once, his chest was rapidly beating, fearing what will happen to Wendy and the others, how can he prevent this situation from happening? This was his second time feeling so useless that he couldn't even make a decision, his friend's lives were at stake, not to mention he dragged the poor, shy Hitomi into this situation.

While the moment of silence occurred, Hitomi developed the sudden feeling of protecting Ryan. She could feel his situation even without seeing the full glance of his face, the feeling of Protection grew stronger and stronger for her to just stand there and do nothing, it was time that she break through her barrier and help the troubled lad and his friends.

"(I have to help him, I must! He was there for me when I needed. It's time I repay all of what he did for me, forgive me Lily, but this person is important to me…)" Suddenly, Hitomi dashed towards her book that was placed on the wooden table that was close to the Female creature. Sirius' eyes trailed Hitomi's actions, assuming that she attempted to escape, he threw his bone dagger towards Hitomi. The trajectory was a sure hit and would have killed her by landing on the head but Ryan suddenly jumped sideways towards the blade and took the hit, stabbing his right shoulder before collapsing on the floor. Hitomi paused and covered her mouth in shock, Wendy and Josie yelled Ryan's name with tears falling down from Wendy's eyes. The blade pierced his upper shoulder deeply, blood was seen coming out from the wound before the Female creature yelled in anger.

"What did you do?! We weren't supposed to injure him! What if it awakens?!" The female yelled with a fierceful look towards Sirius.

"I'm sorry… I thought she was going to escape" Sirius replied. Hitomi stopped in her tracks and rushed towards Ryan's aid, kneeling down on the floor as her eyes were seen glistening due to the coming years.

"R… Ryan?'' She whispered with a soft voice to where only Ryan could hear.

"I'm alright… I know what you were going to do… don't do it… If you fail, they will kill you…"

"They will kill us either way as you said… I can't stand there and do nothing while you get taken… not anymore… I won't stand there and do anything anymore…! I'm not in the walk-in Cabinet anymore… I won't stay and watch while I keep my mouth shut…! Not anymore, Ryan!" She yelled with all her heart but the Female creature's argument with Sirius was too audible for any of them to hear Hitomi's voice. But Ryan, on the other hand, heard everything, his eyes widened from what she said. A tear rolled down her left cheek and fell on his forehead. He closed his eyes for a second and let out a sigh, smiling at her before gently wiping away her tears with his thumb as she gazed down at him.

"Alright then… show them what you can do" Said Ryan which encouraged her even more. Wendy struggled with all her might despite a bone dagger aiming across her throat.

"Let me go you Assholes!" Yelled Wendy.

"Echo! Shut her up!" The female shouted towards the one that was responsible for holding Wendy. Before Echo could do anything, Manny quickly arched his head back, slamming on the creature that held him captive. Once he was free, he punched the other one that held Josie. With a single hit from the side of the neck, the creature stumbled onto the floor.

"This one got some spark as well!" Said Sirius with a cocky smirk. With their attention on Manny, Wendy did the same and slammed the back of her head onto Echo's nose.

"Argh! My nose!" Said Echo, feeling the unbearable pain on his bleeding nose.

"Quit your whining, it will heal, we always do"

Manny stood face to face with Sirius, both glaring at each other although Manny felt intimidated. Soon their clash began, Manny showed a skillful battle, no one would have guessed that he had a skillful combative experience. Blocking each successful strike from Sirius, with his final strike, Manny broke the creature's arm using his mixed martial arts experience. Cry of pain was heard across the room as Manny stood there as the victor with an emotionless gaze. He then turned his attention towards the female who had a calm smile and thought out their battle.

"You're next…" Manny spoke as a threat while Joseph and the other moved towards Ryan and Hitomi.

"Confidence! A fool's substitute for knowledge is what they say. What's your name, kid?" Asked the female. Manny took a few seconds before responding.

"I don't introduce myself to my victims…"

"Victims? I see you have a reputation. But what makes you so sure you've beaten us?"

"Yeah, don't be so cocky. You're just a mortal" Said Sirius before standing up on the floor with a calm figure. Manny turned his back to face Sirius only to be shocked when his broken arm automatically fixed its own broken bones, leaving no injury intact, same goes for Echo with no more blood coming down from its nose. "Boo!" Suddenly, Sirius threw a powerful punch onto Manny's stomach. He let his guard down and fell on the floor, wrapping his hands around his stomach to ease the pain. Josie rushed towards her friend but the other cat-like creature grabbed hold of her again.

"Let me go!" Shouted Josie. She was forced to see Manny getting brutally kicked on the floor by Sirius. He grabbed him by the hair and pulled his head upwards to meet his gaze.

"It was a good attempt, but unlike humans, we can regenerate instantly to any injuries," Sirius said with his usual smirk before slamming his face down on the floor. Josie yelled and struggled to break free due to her friend's brutal beating.

"Enough of this! Just kill them all and leave Ryan unharmed! Start with the white-haired one" the female pointed at Manny. Sirius took in the pleasure and sat on Manny's back, grabbing his hair one more time to pull his head back, exposing his throat for a clear and swift slit. Just before he could slit his throat, a bright flash of crimson light shone brightly across the room, making everyone cover their eyes due to the unbearable brightness. Once the light was cleared, Sirius and the other cat-like creatures were unable to move, as if something was preventing them from moving. A tall spider-like female was seen on the top right corner of the living room, with 8 eyes, pale-colored skin from the upper part of its body towards the head while the lower part was of a black spider's body, 8 pointed legs as her fingers were spread wide open like she was controlling some invisible strings.

"How dare you invade my Master's house," Said the human-like spider.

"I can't… move!" Sirius muttered. With a simple move from her fingers, they were seen letting out small screams of pain. The light of day soon shined upon the living room once more, exposing the thin level of spider webs coming from her fingers that wrapped each of them tightly.

"What is that?!" Yelled Joseph, staring at the spider woman.

"Why, hello there! Aren't you a cutie" The spider flirted and winked one of her 8 eyes at Joseph. Normally people would be thrilled or confused, but Joseph had terrible arachnophobia.

"Is that yours….?" Ryan asked Hitomi, referring to the spider. She gazed over at him and nodded while holding the book across her chest.

"My name is Arachne, Hitomi named me from one of her favorite greek mythologies, it's very cute," Arachne said with an alluring female voice before crawling down at the floor. Wendy was paralyzed in shock while Josie rushed in and assisted Manny from getting up on the floor. "You made a mistake harming Hitomi and her friends. I wonder what color your blood is?" Asked the spider with a devilish smirk before tightening the web that ensnared them. The thin silk of Arachne's web pierced through a thin layer of their skin, letting out crimson-colored blood that was absorbed by her web, turning the white web into the same color as their blood. "Delicious" Arachne muttered as she watched them all squeal from the pain.

"Where did she come from?" Wendy asked, still looking shocked at what she was witnessing in front of her.

"From the book that Hitomi is holding, young lady. I was summoned when she needed help" Arachne replied for her.

"She summoned you? You're a summoner?!" Joseph shouted out loud, shocked to hear that Hitomi can actually summon unknown creatures with unknown abilities. But Hitomi didn't reply, she was breathing heavily and was sweating a lot. Ryan noticed her state and began to wonder what's wrong.

"Hitomi, what's wrong?" Asked Ryan, still lying on the floor but slowly picking himself up.

"Don't worry, Ryan. She's just tired, summoning a high level being like me drained her a bit" Arachne responded for Hitomi.

"How did you know my name?"

"Because she told us a lot about you" The spider replied with an alluring giggle. "Anyways, you kids should get out of here and call for help"

"But… what about… you?" Hitomi used her remaining Energy to ask a simple question.

"Don't worry, I will handle this. I need to keep a good impression if I want Flambo to notice me-"

She paused with her eyes widened to their fullest. Hitomi stared at her in shock and disbelief when a bone dagger was seen plunged into her chest. Her 8 legs loosened like noodles and fell on the floor, breaking her spider web and setting Sirius and the others free from her grasp.

"Nice aiming, Boss" Sirius said, complimenting their Leader.

"Thanks, I admit that hurt like hell but she didn't wrap me up entirely so I managed to draw my blade."

"Arachne!" Hitomi yelled as the spider collapsed sideways onto the floor. Black-colored blood was seen gushing down from her chest which still had the dagger, plunged deeply.

"I was… careless..." Arachne muttered with her dying breath.

Hitomi planned to summon more creatures but the female leader rushed in and choked her with one hand. The others couldn't help but stare as they all knew they were powerless against these groups.

"So you are The Keeper. It never came to my mind to see she had chosen a replacement, too bad she made the wrong choice. I guess the former keeper had no other choice left and went with you." She tightened her grip onto Hitomi's neck, preventing her from breathing as she dropped the book down on the floor. "I'm sorry, but you are dangerous… burn this place!" With one simple order, Sirius conjured a ball of flame from his hands and threw it towards the bookshelf, setting the books on fire. The other creatures did the same to the other parts of the house to quicken the burning. Hitomi soon started to lose her breath, unable to breathe due to her choking. Ryan reached and grabbed the female's foot, making her gaze down on the floor to see the lad who had his face down.

"Let her go… or I swear I am going to kill you…" Ryan muttered with a deep tone which only made her laugh. She kicked him across the face and made him release his grip from her foot. Wendy broke free from her paralysis and saw what the female creature was doing to Hitomi, charging towards her and ramming the female with her shoulders, although it wasn't that strong, it did make her release Hitomi and take a step back. Wendy's action only made the female angrier, her tail perked up, and punched Wendy on the stomach, although not as hard as Manny. She coughed as a response to the successful hit and knelt on the floor where Hitomi assisted her. Ryan caught the glimpse of the female punching Wendy on the stomach, soon everything stopped for Ryan. His eyes soon glowed in a flash of orange. Sending an unnerving feeling towards the female creature and the others. Once she attempted to gaze at Ryan, all she realized was how she was already punched across the face without even seeing his attack, he then executed a roundhouse kick which sent her flying towards the burning bookshelf. Sirius saw what happened and charged at Ryan, attempting to tackle him but Ryan countered it with an offense. Jumping as high as he could and lifted his right knee, successfully hitting Sirius on the face with his knee before using the momentum of gravity to slam his face hard on the floor as well. Three more appeared and battled Ryan but using his surroundings as an advantage, he managed to knock them all out.

"Everyone get out! Now!" Yelled Ryan before Josie rushed Manny outside before Ryan, Hitomi, and Wendy made it out as well after grabbing her book from the floor. Joseph wanted to leave but soon remembered Arachne. With the fire growing stronger, he placed her arm across his shoulders and carried her with his strength.

"Don't bite me. Don't bite me. Don't bite me. Don't bite me!" He said repeatedly, trying to cast his phobia aside.

"Don't worry… I won't bite… and I'm sure the spiders in your house won't bite you as well" Arachne Muttered to reassure him as he made his way past the unconscious enemies. They all made it out safely with Joseph collapsing on the grass lawn due to Arachne's weight.

"Is everyone alright?" Ryan asked.

"Yeah… we're alright" Wendy replied for him while Manny was still unconscious. He gazed over at the dagger on his shoulder and removed it, causing more blood to come out. He winced from the pain and lost all his strength, whatever triggered him earlier was now gone. Soon the roar of fire became louder and was seen raging across the house with the sound of the burning wood and the breaking of the glass due to the fire. He planted heavily to control the pain before Wendy stood next to him and pointed towards Hitomi, who was seen standing on the lawn and staring at her burning house, holding her brown book in his right hand. All the memories she had with her Grandmother were made in that house and now it was starting to burn to ashes. Soon her silent cries and whimpers were heard, placing everyone in silence and guilt, especially Ryan who is technically at fault for coming here. He used his remaining strength to walk towards Hitomi and stood next to her. Words couldn't express how guilty he felt, so he placed his right hand on her head, gently caressing her hair and patting her head softly. She paused in her cries and stared at Ryan in silence for a moment before getting even more emotional as she planted her face and arms onto his chest where she cried heavily, letting all her bottled voice and emotions out. Hearing her cries made him feel even more at fault as he wanted to travel back in time and fix everything.

"I'm sorry… everything is my fault… none of this would have happened if I didn't come here… I'm so sorry Hitomi… I dragged you into this…" Ryan spoke, just hearing his voice she could tell how truly sorry he was. She opened her heart eyes and spoke while her face was planted on his chest.

"Don't blame yourself… you can't keep blaming yourself for everything…" She spoke with a muffled voice but he heard it loud and clear.

"Okay, are we just going to forget that Hitomi knows magic?" Joseph asked.

"Shh… you're ruining the moment," Said Arachne with a small smile.

"Yeah… you are ruining their moment…." Wendy muttered but somehow felt a bit upset seeing Ryan and Hitomi that close. But soon the creature s walked out of the fire, looking unharmed despite how wild the fire was. Shocking everyone as Ryan protected Hitomi by standing in front of her.

"Sorry to ruin the moment but did you forget that we can regenerate from any injuries? So I'm going to give you two more choices, Ryan. What would it be, the hard way? Or the dangerous way?" Asked the female leader. Ryan gritted his teeth and clenched his fist, standing strong even if he didn't even have any more strength left.

"I will not let you lay a hand on them…" He spoke before he felt a hand pay his back, it was Manny. Limping next to him with a smile.

"Right behind you, brother," said Manny, followed by Wendy and the others.

"We're here too," said Josie.

"We are the Mystery Club, we do this together" Joseph added.

"Guys… don't," Ryan replied, he still couldn't bear the thought of seeing them get hurt but Hitomi stood next to him on the other side and spoke as well.

"Let us help you… Ryan…" Hitomi spoke without realizing that she managed to speak audibly as the others finally heard her voice the second time.

"You are always protecting us, but who is protecting you? You need all the help you can get, you are not alone, we are always here by your side" Wendy spoke next to Hitomi, fueled by the determination to help the split colored lad who had his eyes widened from their trust.

"Wendy… alright then… thank you, all of you"

"Well ain't that sweet. Kill them" The leader ordered before Sirius and the others dashed towards them with killing intent. They braced themselves for the impact but a familiar tall man appeared in front of them which caused the enemies to stop on their tracks, the lad opened his eyes and saw the person standing in front of them.

"Nice to meet you again, Ryan," said the person before turning his back to face Ryan head-on. He paused for a moment, remembering where he met this familiar man and then it hit him, it was the man he met the other day who disappeared in the fog before encountering Illumina and the Sprite.

"You're the man I met in the foggy road…" Ryan recalled as he tipped his hat to him, wearing a long brown trench coat.

"Who are you- wait… it's you! What are you doing here?!" Asked the shock leader, her face resembled a gamer facing a terrifying boss level. Confusing Ryan and the others. He removed his hat and placed it in his trench coat, hair brushed to the side, and died in brown colors. Revealing a charming smirk.

"Why are you protecting the kid, Arthur!" Shouted the leader and revealed his name to be Arthur.

"Change of old plans, Camille. This boy lives and that's final" Said Arthur with a calm posture.

"But giving him to Grole will prevent-" Camille was cut off by Arthur by placing a finger in-between his lips and said 'shh' audibly.

"We don't want to give the kids some spoilers" Hearing him say that made her even angry, biting her bottom lip until it bled before shouting.

"We are not playing a game! The safety of this world is in our hands! With your ability, you should know what happens next and therefore this is the only way to prevent It from escaping, yet why are you stopping us from doing so?!"

"Camille, for a leader of the last group of the mercenaries in the Other Dimension, you have one heck of a temper. I think you caused enough damage for today, not to mention… you were going to break our second most important oath… do you remember?" Arthur suddenly asked with a death glare which caused fear to ride up from their spines. "How about this then, I'll let you have them… if you could beat me. How's that?"

Her eyes widened from his proposal, Sirius and the others were forced to step back, afraid of facing the unknown being in front of them. "Tch! Fine! They're yours, but we will be back for you, Ryan Cunningham!" Yelled Camille before disappearing into the forest. Leaving the others in shock and more confusion.

"What just happened?" Joseph asked.

"You survive, hooray!" Arthur replied with a playful cheer.

"You're not an ordinary person, are you?" Ryan asked, snapping out of his shock.

"Well, you saw 5 monster-looking creatures run away from a man who looks like he's 50, so I guess not." He replied before walking away to the opposite side of the road but Ryan stopped him in his tracks.

"Where are you going?" He asked but the man took a moment before replying.

"... Wherever Destiny takes me"

"What if they come back? Who will help us?" Ryan asked, hoping the man could at least help them further.

"Don't worry, they won't bother you for now, but the day after tomorrow… they will return, If not by morning, then by noon. You have to find a way to solve this on your own. This will be the last time we meet, or not… the future is uncertain"

"Wait! Who are you?"

"Just a man looking out for the future of this world" He replied before a sudden appearance of thick fog covered him, preventing anyone from seeing even a silhouette. "I almost forgot!" Arthur added, gaining the other's attention. "Lesthovayne… you'll know what that means soon enough, Ryan" Arthur stated before disappearing without leaving a trace once the fog cleared. Ryan still had a lot more questions he wanted to ask, why did he protect him? Why did the cat-like creatures, who Arthur called Mercenaries, afraid of Arthur? And how do all of these creatures know his name and why are they out to get him? He would have stood there for a few more minutes, trying to piece everything together and find a loophole but soon everything went black and he fainted. He could hear faint voices of his friends calling out his name before losing full consciousness.

Once he slowly regained consciousness, he realized that his head was lying on a soft warm lap of a beautiful female, whose hair was the perfect color of Golden Blonde, emitting a radiant glow of aura around her before being greeted with a calm, and relaxing voice.

"How are you feeling, a friend of Hitomi?" Lumi greeted him with a soft smile.

"I'm alright… who are-" before he could finish his sentence, Wendy rushed towards him with visible tears in her eyes.

"Ryan, you're alright!" She shouted with a look of relief. "I was worried about you! You suddenly fainted"

"I fainted…? How long was I out?" He asked before Manny appeared in his view, looking calm and unhurt.

"About a few minutes ago. Hitomi summoned this female and healed us both. I removed the dagger so she could heal you better." Manny replied to him before she averted his gaze and locked eyes with the beautiful female with long wings that emitted a warm heat that relaxes anyone nearby.

"My name is Lumi. I specialize in healing and caring for the injured"

"I see… thank you so much. Where's Hitomi?" He asked while he slowly got up.

"I healed her earlier, she's summoning Flambo at the moment"

"Who's Flambo?" Wendy asked in curiosity.

"A powerful being that controls all forms of Flames… if you excuse me, I must heal my friend" Lumi replied for him before levitation towards Arachne who was unconscious on the ground, still having a dagger plunged into her chest. Once Wendy helped him stand up from the ground, he could see Hitomi chanting the words that were written on a certain page of her book, the language she was using was something they couldn't understand while she stood with the raging fire of the burning house still in view. Joseph and Josie were seen standing next to each other while watching Lumi heal Arachne with her ability. Once Hitomi finished her summoning, a bright flash of orange light shined upon them before an 8 feet tall, muscular half baked male appeared before them. His hair was nothing more but raging flames, bright orange eyes, and a muscularly built body. Wearing a red pair of pants with a mixture of a hot rod design like a 90s rockstar with large red shackles tied on the ankle of his feet.

"How am I to be of service to you, Hitomi? Do you want me to bake you your favorite cake again?" Asked Flambo with a slight chuckle before noticing her troubled face.

"What's wrong?" He asked once more before she pointed behind him, once he turned his back he saw her house, covered in a tsunami of flames.

"What happened?!" Flambo shouted.

"We were attacked…" Hitomi replied.

"By who?! I will burn them to ashes for what they did!" A surge of hot aura was suddenly felt by Ryan and the others, it was clear that the being with the flaming hair was indeed powerful and frightening.

"They're gone… for now…" Hitomi replied before the flaming being calmed down.

"I see… I know what you want me to do, and I will happily do it" Flambo spoke before facing the burning house and opening both of his palms to the direction of the fire, absorbing the flames into his palms until there was no trace of fire left, only burnt wood of the ruined house.

"I have removed the fire"

"Thank you… Flambo"

"Hitomi! We have a problem…" Josie yelled her name, gaining both Hitomi and Flambo's attention. The flaming being realized that Arachne and Lumi were there as well, he levitated toward the two summoned females before Hitomi and the others walked close to them as well.

"What seems to be the problem?" Flambo asked, directed towards Lumi.

"Arachne… She's gone…" His eyes widened in shock before Hitomi did the same thing. She rushed over to Arachne and knelt before them, staring closely at the lifeless spider.

"But I thought you could heal anyone?" Joseph asked.

"I do… but… this dagger, there's something dark emitting from this blade. This must be the reason for her death" Lumi assumed before Flambo reached for the dagger's handle, feeling something off about the bone blade.

"This is no ordinary bone dagger… this is a Black Serpent Fang… once you get stabbed by this you'll lose all of your physical and mental strength…"

"That must be why I fainted…" Ryan added before gazing upon the crying Hitomi, holding Arachne's cold hands as tears fell on her already pale face.

"Arachne… you didn't even get to confess your feelings to Flambo personally…" Hitomi muttered with a sobbing tone as the raging hair of Flambo started to turn white and emitted a weak heat to his surroundings.

"She managed to tell me something before she passed away…" Lumi spoke before Hitomi wiped her eyes and waited for her to say what it was. " She said "Thank you for everything, Hitomi. I enjoyed everything we told each other, I wish for you to finally receive the life you always wanted even if I'm not there to hear about it. Thank you, for being my friend" Once Lumi was finished, Hitomi couldn't contain any more of her tears and let them all out in a loud cry, closing her eyes as she let her voice out for everyone to hear. Her cries of sadness were painful for everyone to hear, including Ryan. He wanted to comfort her again but Lumi had that covered, wrapping her arms around her and pulling Hitomi close to her, still keeping that warming smile before using her wings to cover Hitomi as well for added warmth. Flambo planted his feet on the grass, feeling its moist texture before holding Arachne's left hand and planting a soft kiss on the back of the hand. Soon Arachne started to vanish, like a wave of glitters riding the breeze as it carried them towards the sky until no trace of Arachne was left. Few minutes had passed and Hitomi managed to rid herself of years but still felt the incredible sadness of a Spider friend.

"We better get going now, I hear sirens coming their way towards this location" Lumi stated, standing next to Flambo.

"If you ever encounter them again, please use your energy to summon me… what they did to your house and Arachne… they must pay dearly for it" Flambo spoke, holding in his temper before Hitomi nodded and watched them tinted into a wave of life and returned back to the book. She opened the page on the chapter where Arachne was and saw the page turned into ashes, with no more creatures to be summoned in that chapter, the page resulted in disappearing as well. Once she was left alone, holding the book. Ryan walked over to her and stood next to the female.

"Are you alright…?" Ryan started as she replied with a simple nod. "I see. I'm really sorry for what happened, I know how it feels to lose a friend… and I'm sorry about your house. I don't know how I can help you, I don't have enough money to pay for the damages, but I can go back to the Manor and retrieve the needed money if you want me to?"

"No… that's alright… I have more than enough money to rebuild my house… I just don't know where I could sleep for the time being…"

"Why don't you ask her to sleep in Lucas' house, Ryan?" Joseph intervened, wanting to help as Josie and Wendy turned their head towards them after overhearing what Joseph suggested.

"Hmm that would be the least I can do, but we don't have a guest room and the couch is too small for anyone to sleep on… unless you don't mind sharing a bed with me? My bed is fit for 3 people" Ryan boldly suggested without thinking of the wrong side of his suggestion. Hitomi's sadness faded and was replaced with shock, just by thinking of sleeping next to Ryan made her heart pound rapidly.

"(Sleep next to Ryan?!)" She said to herself before blushing, even Wendy was shocked to overhear his suggestion.

"She doesn't have to. When I was cleaning in the shop about a year ago, I noticed a door behind the old bookshelf next to your current room. It was a bedroom and in perfect condition, already having an AC and a brown bed, or was it blue? Hmm, I don't remember" the three girls let out a sigh of relief in unison after hearing what Joseph said.

"(Oh thank God, there's another room! But why do I feel like I'm disappointed to hear that…?)"

"I see, I should ask Lucas when I get back. What about it, Hitomi? Are you okay to sleep in my place till your house gets rebuilt? Just so I can make up for what I caused" He asked her with a polite tone. She took a few moments of silence before nodding.

"Yes…"

"Great, now tell us why you can summon beings and what the heck a Keeper?" Joseph suddenly asked before Wendy stepped in to stop him.

"We should discuss that tomorrow. For now, I think we should all go back home and get some rest"

"Haha, yeah. I think we can all agree on that" Ryan spoke before he felt Josie tugging the sleeve of his hoodie.

"What will we do when they come back…? We're no match for them…" Josie asked, noticing the fear in her eyes, he gazed over at Manny, he can tell that even he doesn't know what to do so he has to comfort her until he finds a way.

"I'll do my best to look for a way this afternoon… I promise" Ryan spoke with an uncertainty of their future but Josie needed to hear something like that, even if it was clear that he was unsure.

"Thank you" Josie replied with a gentle smile and gave him a quick hug before the sound of the siren was heard. "Let's go, Manny!" Said Josie before they both walked away towards their home as a single firetruck passed them by along with a silver-colored car.

"Well the firemen are quick," Joseph said with sarcasm.

"So what now?" Wendy asked. Before Ryan could answer, Hitomi fainted, thanks to his quick reflex he managed to catch her with ease, realizing she had instantly fallen asleep, probably tired after what she just did earlier.

"I guess we should go back as well," Ryan replied before Lucas's voice was heard.

"What are you guys doing here? I told you to go back home and what happened here?" Lucas asked from inside the silver-colored car, noticing the burnt house which the firefighters called it in after realizing there was no fire left. Wendy and Joseph ignored his question and went inside the car, both feeling tired. Joseph sat on the passenger seat as usual while Ryan, Hitomi, and Wendy sat from behind after gently placing the sleeping female on the seat and closing the car door.

"I'll tell you on the way… but for, let's head back, Uncle Lucas. We have a guest..."

Said Ryan before the teens all shut their eyes and rest. Lucas let out a sigh and nodded, gazing at Hitomi from the rearview mirror and heading back to the shop at a balanced speed.