"Don't ever try to steal Nora again!"

Violette came running out of the Japanese countryside house, with the shapeshifter girl in her arms. Pieces of green jade were stuck in her long hair. Kumiho followed just a few seconds later.

"She belongs to me and you know that!" She screamed after her rival.

The demon goddess spun around on her heels and set down her girlfriend way more gentle than Eliza imagined her capable of. Nora checked herself over, looking for wounds, but only her face was a bit bruised.

The two human girls were still sitting close to the pond, wearing loose robes that reminded them of kimonos. The fox had brought them to replace their wet clothes. Eliza luckily had gained her consious back, thanks to some medicine the fox and Rose had prepared for her. There was still a bitter residue lingering on her lips and she tried not to lick them. Now she watched the clash between the two magical beings unfold.

"Then why the Hell did you cheat on her?! If you loved her, you wouldn't do that!"

Oh, so that's what it was. Eliza and Rose got dragged into this mess because someone fucked up their love life.

"I just wanted the Bonding to happen, okay? Someone told me that cheating would trigger it!"

Kumiho's face was twisted in a scowl, all reason had left her body and mind. Her robes reflected her mental state, tattered and torn in places, her long, black hair a mess.

My Mistress wasn't once so bad, the fox explained, but she was tempted into darkness when her love interest didn't return her feelings anymore.

"Then why are you helping us if Kumiho is your master?"

I only wish for her well being. If you two get killed, she has no chance of returning to her old self. Your powers are the key to this world's survival.

"That's a lot to take in."

Eliza was perplexed. She knew there was something going on and her being a Salem Witch was more than just simply a title, but she hadn't been aware yet that her task was basically saving the world.

Then the house shook and pieces of wood flew through the air. The giant jade fox appeared in the midst of the chaos, a sound that was simliar to a lion's roar, escaped it's stoney maw.

"I thought I had that thing killed!" Violette exclaimed, itching to attack the beast once again, but she was restrained by her Bonded partner, unable to wriggle loose.

The fox spirit laughed in an unsettling way. Her emotions twisted and turned way too sudden to be healthy. The fox was right. Kumiho was not herself.

"Midori is one of my strongest magical creations!" She declared, looking lovingly at the green fox, "Simple spells and brute force won't destroy it." Her chuckle turned into a laughing fit, seemingly finding the whole situation one big joke.

"Stop laughing! It's all your fault we're here!" Rose suddenly spoke up, leaving Eliza flummoxed. She saw tears running down the girl's angry face, a side she wasn't aware of existed.

Then she fully lost it and charged at the evil fox spirit before Eliza could do anything. But before she could reach the wicked woman, the jade fox placed itself between them, roaring and growling. It then jumped, pushing its owner's attacker to the ground. Fangs bared, it went for the girl's neck, ready to kill.

"Rose! NO!" Was all the Salem witch could force her voice to draw out, overcome with fear and pain once again. Why did everyone have to get hurt? Why did it have to end like this? She couldn't take it anymore!

A power not her own came floading in, taking her over, almost consumed her, called upon by her emotions. It was different from when the jade fox broke open her arm. This time it came from love, not anger. Love for Rose, love for her friends, love for everyone in her life. She would not let Kumiho have her way.

Her body moved on its own. She felt her hand reach for the small black book, calling it with her magic. It landed in her outstretched hand and flipped open, the pages colored black once again. This time the writing was in red ink.

The Void destroys.

A chant escaped her lips. Her words ignored the omnious message, she had no control over them. The red writing in the book started to spin, forming a whirlpool. She felt the swirling mass tugging at her, but she was not it's target.

Red tendrils sustained by her magic escaped the vortex and wrapped themselves around the green stone beast. It wringled and yowled, trying to break free, but it was futile. The tendrils were stronger, as if it was fate itself that had decided to eradicate this threat to the living.

They lifted the fox-shaped creature off of Rose and dragged it back to the portal they had come from. Eliza watched as red and green intertwined in a ball of light and disappeared back into the book.

But before Eliza could call her magic back again to attack the fox spirit, she had already created a portal for herself. Rose scrambled to get away as quickly as she could, the monster had left her weak and bound to reality once again.

With regained confidence, Kumiho spoke in an oddly calm voice.

"This is not the end, my friends. You'll see me again, mark my words. Because I have Darkness by my side and I always get what I want."

She bowed, strands of black hair covering her pale face, and slowly walked backwards, vanishing into the portal. It closed before anyone else could slip through.

"Fuck," was all Eliza could manage to express before the magic left her body and she passed out.