Over the Hills (in progress, a lot of Sonya mentions to go)

In the middle of the First District, many dark threads began to twist in existence. Not a second too soon, they unraveled and disappeared into the ground, Dani and Sorin appearing from them. The Hypnotic Seductress had attempted to take a few other Interferences as they tried to intervene in their escape, one of them being the raven that the Nightmare Illusionist wanted, but they had managed to fight back. With the odds against them, they had to escape before anymore damage could be done.

Not like it all really mattered to Dani. Even though Ignis would not be getting his personal slave anytime soon, that was not a priority to her right now. All that mattered to her was that Sorin was still with her. The woman looked to her dear warrior of the earth, placing a hand against his face.

"My dear Sorin, are you alright?"

~*~

However, unknown to the hypnotist and her subjects, another Interference had already arrived on this world. Namely, an Interference who was already after them. Walking out of the hotel in the Second District was none other than Audrey M. Jones. Not too long before she arrived, the Dream Mage had received a call from Kalas, warning her that Sorin was taken captive. And the one who had done so was another returned counterpart. She knew immediately which one he spoke of, as there was no one else who wanted the Samurai so badly. Whatever was done to him, she was going to save him, like he had saved her all those times before.

Thankfully, she wasn't alone in this. Following her out of the hotel was her long-time friend, Cheryl Mason. After overhearing what had happened, the Holy Mother decided to tag along with the girl to help get Sorin back. It was the least she could do to repay her for helping her with her own problems.

"You sure they'll be here?" Cheryl had to ask. Though really, it wasn't too much of a surprise why they would pick Traverse Town. This was the same world where she, Sorin, Pyro, and Joseph attempted to save Audrey and Jessica from Kaztos Niemory four years ago. In a sense, it was somewhat ironic if they would be here.

Audrey replied as such, "I'm not sure, to be perfectly honest. But so much happens on this world between me and Sorin, so they have to be here."

With that said, the two woman ran down the path to the First District, hoping to find the Solar Samurai and his captor.

====

"Yes I am."  Sorin said as he held Dani.  Well it was more about keeping her up than any kind of romantic gesture.  After the injury Dani took back there from Kalas, Sorin was doing his best to keep her up and safe.  Dani's safety was something he had to keep above all else.  "What about you?  Are you alright?"  Sorin asked as he tried to lead Dani over to a place where she could sit down.

"Do you need another Potion?"

====

Dani had sat down on the nearest bench after Sorin lead her over. "No, I am alright. I just need time to rest." She looked up at Sorin with a small smile, patting the spot next to her. "Sit down here with me, my dear. Your comfort helps more than anything."


Of course, it seemed issues were to happen sooner than thought. Pushing the doors to the First District as quietly as they could, to avoid drawing attention, the two women fell to the back of the house that was once Cid's shop. Audrey peered over very slightly, spotting the silver-haired woman with Sorin, as well as the Arcaninemorph that she met back in Agrabah. She frowned, instantly recognizing the woman right off the bat. While others would have had difficulty, only the Dream Mage knew from the significant change in appearance of her former counterpart before she was ripped out. She didn't bother to question how she came back, and did all that she could to not run out from her place and punch the damn woman for taking Sorin away.

"Just as I thought," Audrey said, pulling back and looking to Cheryl. "We're gonna need a plan for this. I don't think rushing in will help."

"Of course it won't," Cheryl remarked, almost rolling her eyes. Thankfully, she already had something in mind. "I'll stay back while you try to get through Sorin. If anything goes wrong, I'll come out and shoot to hold that bitch back if she tries anything."

Audrey nodded, liking that plan of action. "Okay, then I'll go ahead and wait for the right moment to strike. Let's hope this works."

With a nod of her own, Cheryl ran for the nearest ally, close enough to get a good shot when she could. With that, the Dream Mage jumped and grabbed the ledge of the roof, climbing up and crouching low to stay out of sight. She had an idea on how to go about this; as she said, she needed to wait for the right moment to strike.

====

"Yes Dani."  Sorin said as he took a seat next to Dani.  Really it might not have been a good order from Dani.  With Sorin sitting and focused on Dani he wasn't paying too much around him.  Especially with having Sonya stand guard for them that meant that Sorin would even be less focused in case they were sneak attacked.  Not that the Samurai really thought about this.  All his focus was on Dani.

"Is there anything you need?"  Even if Sorin sounded concerned there was still something about the tone of voice.  It just sounded fake.  Even if Dani did try to make him use emotions when he talk, Sorin couldn't help but make it sound fake.

====

Dani did note the tone of voice, that it sounded more faked out than anything. However, she didn't care. Just having him wrapped around her finger, at least speaking without monotone, was enough for her. She knew nothing would come between them now, even as Sonya went after the scent she found. All that mattered to her was her dear Samurai.

"Nothing at all, my love." The Hypnotic Seductress said, moving her hands up to his shoulders, and then leaning in ever so closely, going in for another kiss. "Just for you to stay by my side...forever..."


From the rooftop, Audrey watched as Dani began to move in on Sorin. Her blood began to boil; it took her all of her willpower to not rush in and stab the bitch through the heart. Not only that, but Sorin...wasn't doing anything to stop this. He was complying, actually helping her...why? Did she...did she actually get through to him, convince him that she wasn't good enough for him before...?

No...that wasn't the case. Even though the Dream Mage was terrible at reading people, she heard the tone of Sorin's voice, and pinpointed immediately that it was faked out. That was enough to reassure her, tell her that Sorin really wasn't in the right mind. Whatever it was, she had to snap him out of it. So without any further thought on the matter, Audrey gathered up her magic energy, about to send an Apnea spell at the woman. This might have risked her getting caught, but she was done waiting. She muttered the word, the pink mist flying towards the hypnotist...

...right when Sonya lunged at her from her place. Audrey yelped as she was caught by the Arcaninemorph, the force knocking the two of them off the rooftop...


The mist had hit true, sucking away all the air just before Dani's lips met Sorin's once again. The woman gasped sharply, pulling back and grasping at her throat for the sudden loss of air. Before she could even ask what in the world that was, she saw Sonya come down out in the open, along with a familiar girl. Even with the new garments, Dani knew exactly who it was.

Her former host, Audrey Marianna Jones.

====

Sorin was rather startled when Dani seemed to start choking for no visible reason.  But it only took a few seconds to find that reason.  Audrey.  For a split second it looked like Sorin seemed to have gotten free from Dani's control but it was too strong, even for him.  The Samurai got to his feet and stood between Audrey and Dani, his hand ready to draw his katana at a second's notice.

====

Audrey had been about to get back up herself, all the while mentally cursing for not noticing Sonya. However, Sonya was quick to stop her, putting herself over her. The Dream Mage tried to push the Arcaninemorph off of her, but found her too strong. However, she was quick to find another option; she reached to her belt and pulled out one of her Shineballs.

"Bonfire, use Extremespeed to get Sonya off of me." That was all she said before her threw the Shineball to the side.

The minute Bonfire was released, she didn't take any second thoughts. The command had already reached her, and she wouldn't disobey her trainer now. As such, she used Extremespeed on the Arcaninemorph, the impact hard enough to knock Sonya off of Audrey and allow the girl to get back to her feet. After she had gone through with the command, however, did it register who she had just attacked.

[color=maroon][i]"Sonya? What are you doing?"[/i][/color] Bonfire asked, genuinely confused to what the Arcaninemorph was doing just a second ago.

For a while, Dani was silent, just looking in the direction of her former host. Though she had not shown it, deep down, she had felt something that she rarely ever felt. Anger...hate...her blood boiling with these two things. She did not think that pathetic girl would ever think to find them out. But now that she was here...yes, now was the time to end her pathetic life for good, with no way to come back again. Though not by herself, not with her dear Sorin here. The hypnotist looked to her Samurai and gave him the one command.

"Tear her heart from her chest."

====

"Yes Dani."  Sorin said as he drew his katana.  However there was once again some hesitation as he drew the sword.  But the hesitation once again was gone quickly as he charged toward Audrey, as he would let Sonya fight the Heartless Pokemon.  He had his order to kill Audrey and he would fulfill his orders.  However like Sonya he too was still fighting from inside but the level of control over his body was so strong that it still couldn't over come it.

====

As Sorin charged in, Audrey quickly summoned Inari in her grip and held it up. The katana and the glaive were met with a loud [i]clang[/i] as the two lovers had gone in a clash. Though Audrey shook from the impact, she held firm, looking straight into Sorin's blank eyes.

"Sorin...please..." she said quietly, trying to talk through to him. It might not work, but she had to try. "It's me...Audrey...don't you remember...?"

Bonfire was taken by surprise when Sonya attacked the Close Combat. However, the Heartless Pokemon was able to hold her own against the attack and retaliated with Fire Fang. Not to do any real damage, but to hold the Arcaninemorph in place. [color=maroon][i]"Sonya, it's me Bonfire! Why are ya attackin' me?!"[/i][/color]

Dani paid absolutely no attention to the Arcanines. Her focus was all on her Samurai and her former host. Never before did she show so much hate and anger, and yet here she was, absolutely livid in the presence of her former vessel. She couldn't even hide it through her usual calm and collected act; right now, she wanted that girl dead. She wanted everything she had, everything that she didn't deserve...

And so she shouted, something she had rarely done as well, "Do not fall for her trickery! Kill her now!"

====

Sorin seemed to once again falter as Audrey spoke but unfortunately, his attack continued.  The Samurai's attacks were fierce as he mainly used the katana in order to try and keep Audrey's glaive out of the way as he tried to strike with the Chaos Seal.

Despite all the hesitance he had shown it still wasn't enough as Sorin pressed his attack.  He had his orders to kill Audrey and nothing was going to keep him from fulfilling them, no matter what he was screaming in his own mind.

====

In any other situation, Dani would have seen Sonya coming. She would have summoned her threads to keep her in place, and perhaps hypnotize her if she had any left. However, all of her focus was on Sorin and Audrey. Nothing else mattered to her; only for her warrior of the earth to kill that damn girl once and for all. Finally...she will reach her goal...

Unfortunately, because of this, the Arcaninemorph's charge had hit dead on. The Hypnotic Seductress cried out as the lunge knocked her off her feet, leaving her open for more attacks.

Bonfire grinned as she watched Sonya snap out of it and charge at the evil woman. She was quick to turn serious, however, and snarled in Dani's direction, getting in a stance. The Heartless Arcanine wouldn't do anything yet, however, not unless her trainer ordered her to do so.

As for Audrey, the Chaos Seal had hit true, the girl letting out a yelp and backing away. She should have known that wouldn't have worked; whatever Dani had done to him must have been strong enough to not have him break out easily. There had to be some way to break him out...but what...

It didn't take too long for Audrey to figure out the one option: her Dream Walker ability. Though she had only used it once, and certainly didn't want to face anymore eldritch horrors, it had to be the only way to help snap Sorin out of this mind control. Funny, when she had gone mad and killed the few townsfolk here, it was the Samurai who snapped her out by fighting within her Station of Awakening. Now here she was, about to do the same thing...

Without a second thought, Audrey closed her eyes and whispered, "Sorry about this, Sorin..." Most likely before Sorin would attack again, the Dream Mage cast her Apnea spell, stealing his breath to catch him off guard. Not wasting another moment, Audrey slammed the blunt side of Inari against Sorin's head, going for a knockout blow.

====

It seemed like Sorin was far too focused on offense, too focused on keeping Audrey on the defensive that his defense wasn't up to how it usually was.  It wasn't that much longer, but just enough so that Audrey's spell caught him off guard.  The sudden loss of breath made the Samurai stop his relentless attack for a second, which was just long enough for Audrey's sword to collide with the side of his head.

Thankfully the blow was just enough to knock Sorin out.  If the fight had continued it would be rather likely that both of them would have significantly injured each other.

====

The minute Sorin was knocked out, Audrey knelt beside him the next minute, taking out an Ether cube and using it to restore her magic. She looked to Bonfire and said, "Sonya and my friend can take it from here. You stand guard for me, okay?"

Bonfire growled in approval, now moving so that she was protecting her trainer and the downed Samurai. With that, the Dream Mage began to focus, her magic energy gathering around her and Sorin. Just focus on entering the subconscious, she told herself, like she did with K1-R4 in Space Paranoids. It was a spur of the moment then, but if she could focus now, it could work again...

Unfortunately for Sonya, she wouldn't have gone far beyond the clawing and the biting. Dani had done all that she could to hold back her cries, as from all around her, her many threads rose and grappled the Arcaninemorph's limbs, tearing her off the woman. Though she lost some flesh, her dress ripped to reveal the deep wounds, she ignored the great deal of pain she was in as best as she could. With that girl around, she would not sit by and let her take Sorin away from her.

As the threads tossed Sonya away, Dani grit her teeth and slowly stood to her feet, her arms over her abdomen as blood began to pour from the wound. She looked up towards the couple, saw the pink mist surrounding them. The woman snarled, her eyes turning reptilian once more, her teeth turning sharp, and scales appearing around her neck. Whatever that girl was doing, she would never allow it.

"Stay...away...from [I]MY [B]SORIN!!!"[/i][/b]

At the final cry, more threads of darkness had appeared, aiming to impale her ex-vessel on the spot. Though Bonfire was about to step in to protect, the same threads that grabbed Sonya had also snaked in to stop her from intervening.

Neither would make it. Before any of the threads could meet their targets, seven shots rang out. The first three pierced the tendrils aimed for Audrey, while the rest went for what was after the Heartless Arcanine. They almost seemed to shriek and then shrunk back into the ground. Dani grunted in both surprise and anger, looking up to where the shots had come from. "How [i]dare[/i] you try to interfere!? Step out this instant!"

"Hehe...interfere...isn't that what we do on a daily basis?" Cheryl Mason had finally stepped out then, her gun aimed at Dani with a smirk on her face. Said smirk was wiped off in an instant, turning into a glare at the woman. "I'm not running away anymore. Not after everything you did, including what happened here four years ago..."

Right then, the mist surrounding Audrey and Sorin had finally died off. The girl was now unconscious beside the Solar Samurai, having entered his subconscious...

[size=1](You describe the setting, okay Sorin?)[/size]

====

Audrey would find herself right in the middle of Sorin's station.  The stained glass platform was a mix of light and dark colors, split half and half.  The image of Sorin was right in the middle, with several circles surrounding him each containing one of the Samurai's friends.  The largest one would have Audrey herself in her current outfit and her image was surrounded by the lighter colors.

Sorin himself would be here as well.  Though he wasn't really in a position to help Audrey as he seemed to be tied to a cross.  "Audrey!"  Sorin called out to her as he tried to get free.  The bonds around his wrists and ankles seemed to still be incredibly tight, even if it looked like they slackened a bit.

====

Dani had been seething even more with rage as she glared daggers at Cheryl. The amount of anger she had been in was almost too much for her to handle. There was the sound of bones rattling, skin about to tear...all coming from her. She had been about to change into something she had not used in so long, not since her battle with Sorin in Audrey's Station of Awakening...

She wouldn't be able to. Sonya had charged at her again, this time burning her with the Flare Blitz. She growled, once again downed, and tried to grab Sonya with the tendrils again. Just before they would, once again did Cheryl shoot at them with her gun, including the ones that came for her.

As long as the Holy Mother was around, Sonya was free to attack the hypnotist at all times.

~*~

Audrey had looked around at the Station. This didn't happen before when she last used her skill, but better than ending up in the middle of some screwed up location. When the Dream Mage looked up and saw Sorin tied to a cross, she almost wanted to make a joke on symbolism, but held it back. He needed her help right now.

"Don't worry Sorin, I'm getting you down!" she said as she ran up. She had been about to summon her sword in her hand...only to find that, just like before, she couldn't. Swearing under her breath, she instead went to climb the cross to reach to the bindings and rip them off as best she could.

As it were, it was easier said than done.

====

The bonds would not be so easy to remove.  It would take some time to get Sorin free, something they didn't have as Sorin shouted.  "Audrey!"  Someone was there.  Someone that shouldn't be here even before Sorin and Audrey got their new powers.

He looked just like Sorin but there were a few differences.  One was that his fingers were claws.  His hair had black streaks in it and his eyes were pitch black.  Overall he seemed amused at Sorin and Audrey.  "Surprise."  The Sorin look alike said.

"Oh for...Why don't you just stay dead!"  Sorin shouted.

The copy frowned.  That was not the reaction he wanted to see but he shrugged it off.

====

Audrey had the feeling that someone was watching them as she tried to break Sorin free from the bonds. She just didn't think much on it, being busy and all. That was until Sorin called her attention again, which brought her to drop back down, whip around, and bring out her guns. Good thing she still had those.

And look who it was, the same demonic Sorin that she and the Samurai faced many times before, usually when Sorin had turned into Saria. The Dream Mage's reaction was similar to Sorin's, except with more bluntness in her words. "Listen here, Demin, I'm not in the mood to deal with you. I kicked your ass before, and I can do it again even without my old powers. So either piss off and let me save my boyfriend, or lose your head. Again."

~*~

Back in reality, Dani was continuously mauled by the angered Sonya. There was no way to trap her or anyone, not without that damn holy one's gun shooting her threads down, and she couldn't change without constantly being interrupted. At either rate, things were getting much much worse for the Hypnotic Seductress.

She had no other choice. Without any way to fight back, she had to escape.

The threads had appeared one last time; this time, they didn't grapple or impale at anything. Instead, they wrapped around the heavily injured woman, pulling her into the ground until she sunk all the way in. Unless Sonya had stopped herself, she would instead be attacking at the ground.

Cheryl frowned as she saw this, looking around. The woman had to still be around; if there was anything she knew about villains, it was that they never left without a word edge-wise, usually of the typical 'you won't get away next time' variety. Sure enough, the woman's voice heard...yet she was nowhere to be found. Nowhere a few feet away, in the alleys, up on the rooftops...nowhere at all.

"Very well...she may have Sorin back for now. It will only be a matter of time before he leaves her for good." And then she addressed the Holy Mother, "As for you, 'Heather', you were better off abandoning her."

And then it was gone. Cheryl frowned even more, then sighed, putting her gun away for now. That bitch was gone, so that was all she could do for now. Now all she had to do was wait for the Dream Mage to break the Solar Samurai free.

====

Demin scowled at Audrey.  Really he was not getting the reaction he wanted.  "Oh please.  I have the perfect chance to take over the body and you actually expect me not the take it?"  Demin said as he flexed his claws, not even the slightest bit worried about Audrey.

If this was a different situation Sorin would have rolled his eyes.  "Audrey."  Sorin said as he looked at his girlfriend.  Despite how he felt about what Dani had him do, defeating Demin was much more important.  Really because Sorin was tired of him popping up all the time.  "Finish him off for good."

====

When Bonfire watched Sonya vent out her immense rage and now alternate from sadness and anger, the Heartless Arcanine had to frown, at least as much as one could. Though she really didn't know what had happened, she hated seeing her new friend act this way. She trotted up to the Arcaninemorph, nudging her shoulder in an attempt to help calm her down.

[color=maroon][i]"Hey, don't worry about it, Sonya,"[/i][/color] Bonfire said reassuringly. [i][color=maroon]"I have no idea what went on, but I can tell it ain't your fault."[/i][/color]

~*~

Audrey nodded to Sorin, keeping her guns trained on Demin. She was here to save her lover; she wasn't about to lose him to the demonic alter-ego, or the woman who placed the spell on him. Scowling at Demin, she said simply, "If you really want to take over, you'll have to kill me first."

And with that, she pulled the triggers and fired rapidly at Demin.

====

Demin grinned as he charged out of the way of Audrey's shots.  The grin on his face showed that he wasn't taking Audrey all that seriously.  After all she was still the weak little girl to him that couldn't do anything by herself.  "Bloody Claws!"  He shouted as he sent the waves of crimson energy at Audrey.

Sorin scowled as he watched.  Why wasn't Audrey using Inari?  The glaive would be a much more useful weapon to use against Demin.  If she used Inari she would have the range advantage as Demin's only close range weapon was his claws and there was no easy way to get through Audrey's sword with them.

====

Audrey would have put up her Daydream shield or dodge out of the way of the crimson waves. Though she would have had a better advantage with her sword, even without it she could avoid the damage however she can. However, it would still leave her at a disadvantage, as she wouldn't be able to finish off Demin with just her guns while keeping herself and Sorin safe. But why couldn't she summon Inari...?

However, right when that had come to mind, right before the Dream Mage could do either of the two things to avoid any damage, something had come down in the way of the energy waves. A charged slash, cutting them through in half. Audrey blinked, but before she could ask, a two-tailed white fox, one who'd be familiar to both her and Sorin, had landed right next to her. And floating on its back, in the same style of [i]Okami[/i], was none other than her glaive.

"Inari!" she exclaimed, both in surprise and relief to see Kitsumi's spirit fragment here to help.

The white fox grinned at the girl beneath his mask. [color=white]"You didn't think I was gonna sit this one out, didja kid?"[/color]

====

Sorin let out a sigh of relief.  Even if Audrey didn't have her sword before she has it now.  It made Sorin feel better that Audrey had her main weapon now.  Now that Audrey had her glaive she would be able to have a much easier time to beat Demin.

Demin however looked rather annoyed that the fox interrupted the fight.  Even more so now that Audrey had her sword.  "Well you can die with her!"  Demin shouted as he sent several more waves of crimson energy at Audrey and Inari.

====

Cheryl walked to the unconscious couple, kneeling beside them. She had to smile a little as she looked over them, glad to see that they were still together after all this time. Though her thoughts did wander to the demon for a bit, she didn't let it worry her this time. The Holy Mother already made her resolve on that matter.

~*~

For Audrey, the girl had put up her Daydream shield the minute Demin sent more energy waves at them, the magic shield reflecting them away from her. Inari had backflipped out of the way, the glaive tossed over to Audrey as he did.

[color=white]"I don't need any weapon to help participate!"[/color] the fox shouted, and before his tails appeared two will-o'-the-wisps. They circled him for a bit before rushing at Demin. [color=white]"Hurry and kick his ass, Audrey!"[/color]

Audrey nodded, having caught her sword and holding it at the ready. Once the energy charged into the blade, the Dream Mage charged forward, swinging forward for a powerful slash.

====

With Inari covering her and with her sword back in her hands, Sorin wasn't worried about Audrey.  She was much stronger than she had been when they last fought Demin.  He had no doubts she could handle him herself, especially with Inari covering her with those Will-o-Wisps.

Demin on the other hand was not having a very good time.  He dodged the wisps but was caught by Audrey's fully charged slash.  He was knocked to the edge of the Station.  Demin growled as he got back to his feet.  "I'll just wipe you all out at once!"  Demin shouted as he started to spin.  Crimson energy appeared and formed into a giant tornado.  "Bloody Tornado!"  Demin shouted from the middle of it that went right for Audrey and Inari.

====

Audrey stood her ground as the energy tornado went for them; however, once it reached her, pieces of her magic shield began to break off. As such, the girl took a bit of damage, but nothing that would make her fall back. She held her ground, whipping out her guns again and firing at the tornado, hoping to do some damage to Demin from there.

As for Inari, he too managed to hold his ground, despite the energy whipping and cutting through his fur. However, when he sent more will-o-the-wisps, they were lost in the tornado. He cursed under his breath, but allowed for the Dream Mage to take it from here instead.

====

The shots from Audrey seemed to go through the tornado but it didn't weaken or slow down.  It was impossible to tell if Demin was getting hit at all or if he was just ignoring it in his attempts to eliminate Audrey.  The tornda seemed not to let anything in front of it stop it.  It was there for only one thing and that was to kill Audrey.

Sorin grit his teeth as Audrey's attack was ineffective.  There was something he could do, he had to do something to help.  From his position Sorin noticed something.  The tornado was surprisngly wide and made up for it by not being that high.  "Audrey attack from above!"  Sorin shouted, hoping Audrey could hear him over the roar of the blood red tornado.

====

Audrey stopped in her shots after hearing Sorin's shot, now seeing that the tornado wasn't that high. She nodded, putting her guns away and picked up her sword before charging forward. As she jumped, Inari leapt over and helped throw her higher. The Dream Mage descended towards the tornado, charging her sword up before throwing it forward to stab at Demin.

====

Audrey's strike was just enough to knock Demin out of his attack.  The darker personality of Sorin's was clutching a bleeding wound at his side.  "God damn you."  Demin growled.  It was pretty obvious he was at a serious disadvantage.  His power was no where near as great as before not to mention how much he had underestimated how strong Audrey had gotten.

Sorin smiled slightly.  The fight looked to be over soon.  Audrey just had to finish off Demin and they could get free and they could just end this whole thing.

====

Audrey landed back on the platform after her attack, getting back to her feet just as quickly. With Demin wounded, she just needed to end it right here and now. She approached Sorin's dark self, charging her sword once again, as Inari stood back with a smirk across his muzzle. The Dream Mage stopped just before him, preparing her one final attack.

"Go back to the darkness where you belong."

And with that, she stabbed forward to impale Demin on the spot.

====

Demin gasped as the blade went through his stomach.  The dark counterpart to Sorin squirmed as he tried to pry out the blade but it was useless.  Demin cried out, in a cry of desperation before he faded away in darkness, leaving nothing of him left.

Sorin sighed in relief.  He was sure that Demin had been defeated for good the last time they had fought back in Traverse Town.  Despite him being back again it seemed like he was weaker than before and that cry he gave as he died made Sorin sure that Demin was dead for good.

====

Audrey sighed with relief as well, glad that the annoying dark counterpart was gone, and hopefully for good. Though anticlimactic, she figured the reason he wasn't so powerful was because of Sorin's waning darkness. She just hoped they wouldn't have to deal with him again.

[color=white]"As glad as I am to see that we kicked his ass, I think we're forgetting something,"[/color] Inari said, gesturing to Sorin still bound to the cross.

Audrey just nodded and said, "I haven't forgotten," before she turned to face Sorin once more. With her sword now, this would be easier for her. Charging the blade up once more, the Dream Mage slashed at the chains, the force strong enough to break the bonds.

====

With the chains holding him broken, Sorin fell to the stained glass platform of his Station.  The Samurai easily landed on his feet and rubbed his wrists as he looked at Audrey.  While he was happy that he was free from Dani's control, part of him didn't want Audrey to be here.  He didn't want her to know what he did, how he was controlled.

Sorin took a deep breath as he looked right at Audrey and gave her a small smile.  "Thanks."  Sorin said simply.

====

Audrey smiled back at Sorin once he was freed. She felt the need to run up to him, hug him as tight as she could. But for some reason, she found that she couldn't move. Everything began to fade around her, indicating that they were about to awaken.

"Let's get out of here..." was all she said before everything went black. But not before she caught the sight of a silhouette in the shadows, and the sound of clinking blades...

~*~

Audrey groaned as she awoke on the ground in Traverse Town. She began to sit up, rub the back of her neck. Mentally, she reminded herself not to use her ability on cold hard ground next time.

"That didn't take long," Cheryl said, having knelt before them the whole time. "You save him."

The Dream Mage didn't respond, didn't seem to acknowledge her best friend there. She turned to Sorin and, without bothering to see if he woke up yet, collapsed onto him, clinging onto him as if she were about to lose him again, and started to weep. After all the trouble she had gone through, she just wanted to let it all out.

====

It took a few seconds of Audrey being on top of him before Sorin started to stir.  The Samurai blinked a few times, finally back in control of his own body and tried to sit up when he felt a weight on his chest.  When he looked, his eyes widened and he quickly grabbed Audrey in a tight hug.

"It's okay Audrey.  It's me.  You did it."  Sorin said softly, his hand running through Audrey's hair as he tried to calm her down.

====

"I...I know..." Audrey sniffled, the tears slowing down after a moment. "I...I just...you have no idea what's been going on...I'm just glad you're safe..."

She let go after that, wiping away her tears and backing away for Sorin to get up. The Dream Mage looked back at Cheryl, who just looked on in silence. "S-sorry about that."

The Holy Mother just held her hands up. "Hey, you needed your moment. Though you could have just asked me to walk away." She then looked at Sorin, waving slightly. "Been a while, hasn't it Sorin? It's me, Heather...well, Cheryl now."