A Guide to Surviving Against Monsters

Sitting outside the Academy, my butt on a cold, wooden bench, I stared up at the sky in mild contempt. Not because I was regretting the way I treated the Headmaster -- everyone working at the damned school deserved that kind of thing -- but because I was beginning to think that I had no place here.

I'm supposed to be their on-call demon exterminator. I'm not cut out for this job, I can't protect people.

I can save their lives just fine.

But protecting them... I can't protect their sanity or their loved ones. Just like how I couldn't protect mine.

"Emmalyn..?"

I brought my eyes down from the sky. In front of me, Miles was standing with his back to the colours painted in the air. The sun had just begun to set, orange light lining the edge of his body.

"I wouldn't have guessed that you'd be the person to come find me," I grumbled. "Hi, Miles."

He snorted. "Hi, Emmalyn. Mind if I sit?"

"I don't own the bench."

"Touché," he muttered, throwing himself down beside me, "but you could kill me if I annoyed you enough."

"I'm not a murderer," I defended, my tone flat and icy. "I've only ever killed monsters."

"Well, who knows, maybe you'll decide to rid this world of more than one type of evil."

I snorted. "Amen to that."

We both fell silent, staring at the sky above us. Miles looked tired, but considering my clothes had been torn up by that mutant, he looked a million times better than I did. A breeze blew past us, making the boy shiver, while I simply ignored it.

"So... You and Wendy, huh?"

Miles' face turned bright red, a horrified look appearing. "W-What? No! That's ridiculous!"

Scoffing, I glanced down at the hunter beside me. "We're both adults, Miles, you don't need to freak out. I would be surprised if you didn't like Wendy, honestly."

He averted his gaze, like a chicken, and I rolled my eyes. Getting to my feet, I brushed myself off and threw a short, amused look over my shoulder at him.

"Tell Wendy or someone else who knows where I live to pick me up for our meeting tomorrow. If you don't know what I mean, then ask the Grimm cousins. They'll fill you in."

Judging by the confusion on his face, the two Grimm hunters nor Wendy had mentioned anything to him, or the others.

Great. Surprise brunch for everyone! Can't wait to have them listen in on my pathetic life story.

I scowled, looking away from the other hunter.

And after that, I'll hunt a demoness.

Maybe I'll just skip town once Sasora is dead. Clearly life back in this damned city isn't for me.

Still wearing the Academy's bodysuit and boots, and with some of their weapons, I strode away, heading for my apartment. Miles watched me go, probably wishing I was a more open person.

Oh well. He and Wendy will be great together.

I pictured them together, maybe even on their wedding day, looking adorable while hiding the fact that they were both incredible hunters and medics. I could imagine Miles protecting Wendy, even when it didn't seem like he could do much to save her.

If I left town, would Wendy invite me to her wedding? Would I be able to save her from experiencing what Mia did?

My mind flashed to the day I had to tell my brother's girlfriend that he was dead. My stomach churned as I walked, remembering her horrified face and frozen body. Mia had been heartbroken and shattered, unable to do more than sob. She and Roman had loved each other, which was unfortunate.

Hunters never lived long enough for love.

That day, after having lost the last family member I had, all I wanted was for someone to hold me tight and tell me it was okay. I wanted someone to tell me that I didn't have to hunt anymore -- that this life took too much from me.

Ironically, I was the one that held Mia as she cried over my brother. Mia, the one who came to find me in this city and to tell me to run from this job too many years too late.

I hesitated outside my apartment building. I knew that the second I went to sleep tonight, I would see him. It was a gut feeling, a tug in my heart, that warned me that I would just go through another night of torture if I chose to sleep.

My head hit the door with a soft thunk.

I could leave. I had plenty of money -- monster hunting paid well, especially when your success rate was one-hundred percent. No one would be able to drag me back here, because I could kill them if they tried.

But if I did that, then what was the point?

My parents would've sent me to the Academy for nothing. Roman would've saved my life instead of their's for nothing. He would've died for nothing. The people who changed my entire being into something more would've been hunted down and slaughtered in vain.

But I didn't ask them for any of that. Could I really be held responsible if their sacrifices turned out to be worthless?

It didn't matter. The only way I could see it was from an angle of disappointment and hatred -- if I left town now, those who died for me would curse me from their graves.

So, even if I didn't deserve the burden on my shoulders, I forced myself to straighten, waltzing into the apartment building without a care in the world. I was Emmalyn Foxit, a huntress that could push the limits of reality to get the job done.

And that's exactly what I'd do.

Whether it killed me or not.