Chapter 115 - Interlude 1 - Kaori, The Half-Demon, Part 4

Two Days Later

"Okay, how do I look?" Kaori asked her parents as she showed off a black dress and black heels. 

"Beautiful," her mom said. 

"Stunning." Her father added. 

Kaori nodded and then she went to get her next outfit. 

"Okay... What about now?" She asked, wearing a white v-neck with a frilly white skirt. 

"Gorgeous," her mom said. 

"Jaw-dropping," her father added. 

Kaori nodded and swapped outfits again. 

"... Alright. And now?" She asked, wearing a type of ji she heard was meant to look casual, with long sleeves and tight-fitting black pants. 

"Sickeningly cute," her mother said. 

"Heart-stopping," her father added. 

"Ugh, you guys are no help," Kaori huffed, crossing her arms. 

"Hahaha," her mom stood up and walked over to Kaori, putting her hands on her shoulders. "You're beautiful anyway, it doesn't matter what you wear." 

"Okay, that's just not true." 

"Well, maybe it matters a little bit, but trust me, if anything is going to win Ash over, it's your heart." 

I don't think it's my heart that Ash wants to do it with but okay. Kaori thought, sighing. 

In the end, Kaori picked the first outfit. She figured the black dress went well enough with her hair.  Hm...  She thought as she looked at herself in the mirror.  Maybe I can... 

She put her hair up in a ponytail and gave herself one last look before she decided if she took any longer, she'd be late.  I hope I look alright. 

"Oh, Kaori!" Her mother called out and the half-demon walked out of the bathroom. 

"Hm?" 

"Here," she said, holding a flower in her hands. It was white with rose-colored edges. "It's good luck to have this in your hair on a first date." 

"Seriously? Why?" 

"Yep! They call this thing a  mira. It's supposedly the very flower that Lumina presented to Magia before the two of them bonded their souls together. Or, so the legend goes." 

Her mother slipped the flower just above Kaori's right ear. Behind her, Kaori's father stood with a proud look on his face and his arms crossed. Then, her mom gave Kaori a kiss on the forehead between her horns and pulled her in for a hug. 

"I'm so happy for you," she said, the glee palpable in her tone. "Go have fun, sweetie." 

"Okay," she nodded, taking a deep breath. "Love you," she told her parents before she finally left. 

Outside, the sun had retired and two moons had already risen up to replace it. The cold air covered Kaori's bare arms and legs. The half-demon hugged herself a little before she started walking towards the place she and Ash had agreed on. 

It was supposed to be some big tourist trap, according to Ash, but Kaori had never been there. It was located south of the Spirit Gardens District, a place that Kaori always made sure to avoid for fear that guards would throw her out for some reason. Apparently, it was a "cabaret", whatever that meant. 

Kaori kept her eyes low as she walked, only looking up a few times to make sure she wasn't moving past anyone too shady-looking. Kaori rubbed her palms together as she took a shaky breath.  Gosh, is it normal to be this nervous for a date? Kaori wondered as she kept going. 

Eventually, she arrived at the place to find that Ash was already standing outside. The black-haired woman was standing with her back to a wall, her eyes up, fixed on the twin moons in the sky. As Kaori got closer, Ash's blue eyes, nearly glimmering in the nighttime, turned towards her and she smiled a little. 

"Hey," Ash said, pushing herself off the wall and taking a few steps towards her. 

"H-..." Kaori cleared her throat. "Hi." 

Ash stopped just in front of her and her eyes ran up and down Kaori's body. The half-demon blushed a little. 

"You look great. The flower is a nice touch," Ash told her and Kaori thanked her mother in her mind. 

"Thanks... You too." 

As for Ash, she was wearing a black vest, pants of the same color, and brown boots that reached up to her knees. Most of her hair was swept to one side, falling over her right shoulder, nearly covering a silver necklace she was wearing. 

"So, what is this place?" Kaori asked. 

"Like I said before," Ash told her, turning towards the building. "It's a cabaret. Basically, that just means it's a place where we can eat and drink while people play music and stuff. A friend showed it to me a couple of years ago." 

"Oh... Was this someone you...?" Kaori asked but immediately regretted her words, feeling like she was prying. 

"Hm? Oh, no," Ash shook her head. "Nah. Her family... Well, let's just say they're a lot stricter than yours. They'd never allow it." 

"I didn't think you'd be the type that cared whether someone's parents allowed it or not." Kaori smiled light-heartedly. 

"You're right, I didn't care but she did, so we never tried anything. Anyway, wanna head inside?" 

Nodding, Kaori could hear the muffled music coming from inside the building. 

"Alright," Ash said, before snaking an arm behind Kaori's back and pulling her close. 

"W-WAH...?" 

"Heh, don't get me wrong," Ash told her, her lips dangerously close to Kaori's left ear. "I like having you this close, but I'm doing this so they don't kick you out or anything on account of..." She said, gesturing at her horns. 

"Oh... Right... Right..." Kaori nodded, surprisingly a little disappointed. 

And with that, Ash paid someone at the front a couple of white crowns and they were allowed inside. 

Instantly, a barrage of sound struck Kaori's senses. It was like a horse made of music had just run her over. Different instruments, some violin, some drums, and others she hadn't heard before, all coalesced to form an absolute onslaught of melodies.

Indeed, as Ash had predicted, a few guards and some of the regular customers gave Kaori a few dirty looks but she only pulled her closer and they seemed to get the message that the two were together. While that made it so they weren't kicked out, the sudden intimacy of their position was... distracting. Kaori could feel Ash's warm body, toned and firm, pressed against hers. 

She tried to focus on everything around her just to make sure she didn't lose it here. There was a bar to the right and a buffet-like "all you can eat" area to the left, with tables spread out ahead, in front of a stage where sapphire-colored lights illuminated the space the musicians took. 

"I'm not really too hungry, so I'm just gonna go for drinks. What do you want though?" Ash asked. 

"Uh, same..." Kaori replied. Admittedly, she was running on an empty stomach but she was also afraid that eating too much would make her bloat up a bit. 

Ash nodded and looked around, searching for an appropriate table for them. 

"Right here," she said, pulling two chairs back at a table to the far left. This area was particularly dark, with the candles lit across the room not quite reaching this spot. "Any preference? For your drink, I mean." 

"Not really." 

"Okay. Be right back then." 

Ash left to go to the bar and Kaori took a deep breath, nearly grinning to herself.  I can't believe we're doing this!"  She only hoped that she wouldn't scare Ash away somehow. Even now, she thought she was probably overly excited.  Just relax! It's... It'll be alright! 

"One for me," Ash suddenly said, as she returned and Kaori flinched, "and one for... Did I scare you?" Ash asked, smirking. "Sorry about that." 

"N-No, it's alright..."  That's not very relaxed of you, Kaori,  she scolded herself.  Chill. Calm down. 

"So, I got us this drink from Pearl called 'Magia Tears'." Ash informed her. 

"Um... Okay. What is it like?" 

"Well," Ash said, her pitch dropping. She slid a cup across the table in front of Kaori and she grinned. "Take a sip."

"Uh..." Kaori looked down at the liquid. It was rosy, and even though Kaori was no mage, she could feel the magic coming from the cup. "Alright." 

Then, she lifted the cup and took a small sip. The drink was the sweetest thing Kaori'd had in a very long time, and the instant it reached her stomach, Kaori felt her entire body flare up. It was like suddenly she could feel the air more, the table she was sitting on, even the music was a little louder. 

"Wow," Kaori noted, blinking. "It tastes good." 

"It heightens the senses," Ash explained. "Makes things more... Visceral, you could say. Taste, touch, smell. All that stuff. Though, you can't drink it more than a couple of times a week, because you get desensitized to the effect." 

"Oh. And why is that useful?" 

At that, Ash grinned. 

"I wonder. Think about it, how many things could someone do that would be, I don't know, a little more entertaining if they could feel it better?" 

As she said this, Kaori understood, and the half-demon took a deep breath. 

"Oh." 

"Yeah. Oh." Ash echoed. 

Kaori took a deep breath. 

Wow... So it's really happening.  Kaori thought, looking down at her own hands.  I... I can't believe... 

"Hm? Hey," Ash started, a little worried suddenly, "if you don't want to drink it I can get you something else, I just thought..." 

"No, no," Kaori quickly waved her hands. "I just... This feels like a dream." 

At that, Ash smiled sweetly. 

"If that's the case... I'm glad I can take you away from this world for just a little while, at least." 

Then, she effortlessly chugged the contents of her own cup, which made Kaori's eyes bulge out of their sockets. 

"Oh shit, that's nice. Well, how about we see how far this dream goes?" 

What proceeded after that was enlightening, to say the least. Ash and Kaori settled together, dragging their chairs to be as close as they could, as the music ahead played and soon, a few sorcerers joined the other performers. Illusionists who created different monsters in front of the crowd, sent flames circling the building and made the room itself turn into a watery paradise. Each little trick earned cheers and "oohs" from the crowd, though Kaori found herself more and more focused on the girl next to her. 

It had started with just an occasional hand that roaming over Kaori's right thigh, then Kaori found herself wrapping an arm around Ash's, and as the two would react to the performances, she noticed that their faces would end up closer and closer. 

It was when a slower ballad started playing that Kaori found that her attention had been fully captured by the girl next to her. She scanned the features of Ash's face, her slender jawline, her confident eyes, her lips which then went up in a smile as she noticed Kaori looking at her. 

A part of the half-demon told her to look away, but the hand that Ash had over hers made that fairly difficult. Ash's smile was slowly replaced by a smirk and her eyes looked back into Kaori's. It was like gravity itself had slowly started pulling them together until their lips were nearly touching and at that moment, Kaori closed her eyes. 

When they finally touched, she didn't know if it was the drink or if this was just was kissing was like, but "magical" was the only way she could describe it. It just felt right to her. 

One second became two, two became ten, and ten became a minute before they finally pulled away from each other. 

"... Wow," Kaori said. "That was... Um... Wow." 

"Very expressive, I like it," Ash chuckled. Kaori giggled right back and looked down at herself. 

"I... It's hard to find words, I just..." 

"Well, we could talk or we could just keep making out. I don't know about you, but I'd prefer the second option." 

"Y-Yes, right, of course... I... Do I go in now, or," she leaned in and then pulled back. "Or, you should... Oh, gosh... This is so awkward now. Sorry, I just..." 

Ash pulled her in and connected their lips once again. 

With that, every word in her lungs faded away. 

And, for just a while, Kaori allowed herself to forget about the color of her eyes and the two horns on her head. 

And that made the kiss so much sweeter.