A/N: Finding the chapters quite repetitively lately. Suggestions would be nice. Hopefully the next chapter won't take as long to write.

Comments and criticisms highly welcomed. I hope you enjoy.


Scarlet Temptation (Part 2)

"Anju, there's something behind your ear."

She brushed slender fingers against her ear in an attempt to feel for the offending object, but felt nothing.

"Did I get it?"

Erena shook her head. "Come closer. Let me help you."

Anju tilted her head towards Erena. She trembled as fingers brushed away her hair and tickled the tip of her ear.

"Done."

"What was-!"

Whatever else she was meaning to say was lost to her as a red rose was presented before her. Anju felt the beginnings of a blush form on her cheeks under the pleased look of her childhood friend. She took the proffered gift.

"I thought this trick was normally done with a coin."

"It is..." Erena idly scratched her cheek, averting her gaze. "But I thought this would suit you better."

Anju felt warmth fill her chest. Lacing their fingers together, she pressed her lips against unsuspecting cheeks.

"Thank you."

A shy mumble.

"Your welcome."

...

"Erena-chan, look over there!"

Anju pointed at a black poster hanging on a nondescript wall at the side of the pavement.

"It's a magic competition! You have to join it!"

Erena pressed her lips together in a frown.

"We can't. Look at the date. The opening ceremony for the new museum is on that day. You're expected to be there."

"I might be, but you aren't."

"I'm expected to accompany you. My father said that..."

Anju waved her off.

"It'll be fine!"

...

Anju ended the call.

"There! Mum's on the way to pick me up for the ceremony. I'll be under protection all night. Now you don't have a reason not to go."

"But..."

Anju pressed her fingers against Erena's lips, interrupting any further protests. More than anything, she wanted to wipe the hesitant look off the other girl's face.

"It'll be fine." She soothed. "It's just for one night."

She watched worriedly as indecisiveness warred within Erena, hoping that the other girl would take the chance. Her efforts were rewarded when she next spoke.

"...Thank you."

"Don't thank me. Just bring the trophy home."

"I will."

It was in such an assured and matter-of-fact tone that Anju couldn't help but smile. She didn't doubt Erena would bring it home. After all, she's the best magician Anju has ever known.

A car honked nearby and the rear window rolled down to reveal Anju's father beckoning her.

"I should get going. Good luck!"

Anju felt Erena grab her wrist before she could take another step forward.

"Wait up for me tonight? There's something I want to tell you."

"Can't you say it now?"

Erena shook her head, gesturing to the waiting vehicle. "You'd be late."

"Tonight then. My room?"

"I'll bring the trophy."

Erena gave her a winning smile. Anju laughed.

"I'd expect nothing less."

They split up then; Anju dashing towards the opened-door car where her father rested curious eyes on her.

"What was that all about?"

"I'm not sure. Erena-chan said she'd tell me tonight."

A melodic laughter chimed from the drivers seat.

"She's going to ask you out." Erena's mother revealed, the amusement evident in her voice. "Poor girl has been fretting about it all week."

Her father gave her a mischievous grin. "You must be really looking forward to tonight now."

Anju blushed, opening her mouth to hush any further teasing from her father when she spotted something out of the corner of her eye.

"Watch out!"

She screamed as the truck crashed into their car

...

Anju woke up gasping for air. Her heart raced against her chest and her entire body drenched in sweat. She pressed her hand against her chest, breathing deeply to calm her racing heart.

It was not the first time that these dreams came to her during sleep. Ever since she had woken from her coma, she had been experiencing these nightmares time and time again. Her therapist had explained to her it was normal to have such dreams after such a traumatic event, especially since it still felt so fresh in Anju's mind.

She had been taught a number of coping mechanisms to help her overcome these difficulties and thankfully, they worked. The nightmares became less common, but every week or so, like clockwork, she would relive the events in her dreams.

A knock came from the door.

"Oujo-sama, are you alright? I heard a scream."

Anju pressed her palms against her eyes, suppressing the memories. She hadn't only lost her father that day.

"I'm fine."

"May I come in?"

"There's still a few more hours before we have to get up for school. I want to get some shut eye."

"I understand, Oujo-sama. Please do not hesitate to call me if you need anything."

"Thank you."

Anju laid down on her side, her back towards the door. She clenched her eyes shut, forcing herself to rest. It felt like an eternity before dawn came.


Eri walked around the room, observing as the officers carry out their various duties in fortifying the room that housed Kaitou-san's latest target - the Sunrise Ruby. She had her phone in her hand, waiting, even as she gave instructions to the different officers when she saw something amiss.

By the time she had made three full circles around the room, the blonde gave into temptation. Dialing the number she knew by heart, she tapped her foot impatiently as the call tried to connect.

"The person you are calling cannot take your call right now, please leave a message after the beep."

Eri ended the call. This was really unlike Nozomi. The other girl was never late.

"Is something the matter, Ayase-san?"

"I can't seem to get a hold of Toujou-san."

"Toujou-san had called earlier. She said she was unavailable to come here tonight."

Detective Minami was called away by another colleague before Eri could ask for more details. She fingered her chin thoughtfully, muttering to herself.

"How curious."


Ookami let out a sigh of relief. His plan had gone off without a hitch. A simple in-and-out job, done within 15 minutes and gone before the cops had realized what had happened. It was quick and easy.

Surprisingly, Detective Ayase is a no-show. He half-expected the good detective to jump out of hiding at an inopportune moment to ambush him, like the previous attempt with a certain fictional princess, but now that he was away from the scene of the crime, the idea was becoming les and less likely.

A part of him laments the absence. He had been looking forward to a battle of wits against her. After the last debacle, he had prepared several contingency tactics to be put in use if his original plan was thwarted by the detective. He hadn't need to use any of them tonight.

With a push of a button, his wing glider folded neatly beneath his cape and he landed on a nondescript rooftop. He had tucked away a change of clothes here before he started the heist. All he had to do was change and he'll be on his way to take his train home like a regular citizen.

Ookami had barely moved two steps when he felt an inexplicable power thrust upon him, forcing him onto his hands and knees. He gritted his teeth as he tried to free himself no avail. Below him, the floor glowed red, revealing an intricate pattern.

A magic circle?!

He looked around, searching for his attacker when his eyes settled on a young woman dressed in a navy blue witching garb, completed with a matching pointed hat on familiar violet hair.

"P-Princess..." He gasped.

Nozomi glared at him, unamused by the nickname.

"Give me the gem and I'll release you."

"I'm afraid that is impossible. You see, I had promised this jewel to a lady friend and she'd be quite displeased were..."

It was evidently the wrong answer as, with a snap of her fingers, red lightning bounced from the magic circle. Ookami cried out in pain as the electricity arched through his body.

"I won't ask again."

"Does Ayase know about this?"

"Leave her out of this!"

Nozomi's eyes flashed dangerously. Another arc of electricity ran through his body, but this time Ookami had expected it. He bit the inside of his mouth, stopping himself from crying out loud. His vision blurred.

"She doesn't know then." He smirked. "That makes sense. I don't see her approving of this at all."

He softened his features when he saw the violet-haired woman trembling.

"You don't have to this. There's always another way."

"There is no other way!" Nozomi screamed. It was as if a lid had been broken off from a jar and all the frustration that she had built began pouring out nonstop. "I use real magic. Every spell and incantation I could think of and it didn't work! You're nothing, but a con artist. What cheap trick could you do that I can't?"

"Take the gem from me and I'll show you."

"W-what?"

Nozomi was taken back by the confidence in his voice.

"Take the gem from me." He repeated. "And I'll show you the magic to her heart."

"Fine."

Nozomi stepped inside the magic circle and moved towards Ookami, the effects of the circle being nullified for the caster. She told herself she didn't believe in his words, that she was only doing this to obtain the Ruby for her spell.

"Breast pocket." Ookami added, helpfully as she stood before him.

Without further prompting, she slipped her hand in the inner breast pocket, her fingers quickly feeling the smooth cold surface of the gem. She was about to grasp it when Ookami suddenly seized her wrist and pulled, jerking her forward. Unexpecting the motion, she fell, collapsing on this floor beneath him.

"Nozomi!"

Nozomi froze at the sound the new voice, the gem forgotten.

"Detective, how kind of you to finally join us."

Eri stood just outside the circle, having run forward from her hidden spot when she saw Ookami grab at Nozomi.

"What did you do to her?! Nozomi!"

"Ericchi... please." She pleaded. "Don't look at me."

Nozomi curled into herself, body wrecked her sobs as tears fell from her eyes. Her secret was out. It was all over.

"I already knew."

Nozomi startled at the admission. It was so wholly unexpected she thought she had heard wrongly, but she knew it wasn't the case when Eri continued.

"I've known about your magic powers for a long time now. I'd always been a bit of an outsider. Cases and mysteries interested better than any person could."

Eri stepped inside the magic circle.

"But you were the exception. A mystery. So, I accepted your friendship, because I wanted to know why you were different, what made my mind go back to you when I should working on solving a case."

She moved towards Nozomi, one torturous step after another.

"I came upon the answer a few weeks later, when I saw you using your magic when you thought no one was looking. That should've been the end on it. The mystery was solved and should've been able to move on."

Even with the weight of the world forcing her down, the blonde pressed on, step after arduous step. Nozomi looked on worriedly, opening her mouth to tell the blonde to stop, but Eri cut her off.

"But I found that couldn't stop. I didn't want to, because by then, I had fallen for the real you. The shy, honest girl underneath the confident visage."

Eri opened her arms in invitation and it was all Nozomi needed. She ran towards Eri, arms outstretched, threading her fingers behind Eri's neck as their bodies met, the momentum spinning them around. She didn't wait any further to do what she had always wanted to, drawing the blonde in close for a kiss.

"Like magic." Eri whispered, when they finally broke the kiss and Nozomi snickered. It was the first time she had heard the usually serious detective make a joke and it was as terrible as she had expected.

A slow clap of hands pulled them out of their personal bubble. Ookami stood with his hands clasped, a please smile on his face. The red magic circle had flared and fizzled out, having expended its magical source.

"Bravo! A spectacular performance! I couldn't have done it better myself." He bowed with a flourish. Eric barely gave him a glance.

"Go. I have something more important to do today."

"Oh?" He was about to point out her unintended innuendo, but held his tongue when he saw how enamoured they were for each other. "I'll take my leave then."

"And I expect to have the item returned by your friend before dawn."

"I simply have no idea what you mean."

He laughed as he made his escape. He still had a little bird to catch.


Erena glanced at the Yuuki heiress as she drove them to school. The girl had her eyes shut, trying to catch a bit of rest before the day starts. It was what she did every time after she had a nightmare.

Erena was worried for Anju. Before, the heiress would accept a bit of comfort from her after having woken from the nightmares, but recently she had been very distant, trying to shoulder everything on herself and Erena had no idea why.

Arriving at the school, Erena killed the ignition and got out, moving to carry the wheelchair from the trunk and set it up. Opening the passenger door, she went to help the other girl into the wheelchair when she noticed had dozed off.

Erena paused. She had a sudden impulse to just get back into driver's seat and drive back to the mansion, taking the heiress back to her room for some much needed rest. She banished the idea away as quickly as it came. Anju had said she wanted to attend classes today and as her servant, she was in no position to defy her orders.

"Oujo-sama. We've arrived."

Erena gently shook the other girl awake. Anju blinked several times before reaching up to curl her arms around Erena's neck. Mumbling an 'excuse me' under her breath, Erena slipped her hand below Anju's back and knees and picked her up.

She swallowed as the other girl tightened her hold, relishing the contact between their bodies. With the increasing distance between them, it was only fleeting moments like this that Erena could be close to Anju.

"Did I do something wrong?"

The words came in a whisper, unbidden, and Erena scolded herself for speaking in a moment of weakness.

Anju stiffened in her arms and Erena quickly deposited the girl in her wheelchair before she got any more uncomfortable. She took a second to gather herself before finally answering.

"You're carrying out your duties perfectly."

It did not escape Erena's attention that Anju hadn't actually answered her question.