DAY 2: 10:30 P.M.

~SCARLET~

"Michael! What...how did you know I was here?" I stood in shock at the ash blond male before me. He grinned, leaning in a robe in front of my room.

We'd finished our games at the amusement park; Christian picked us up. The moment we got home, I told Makoto to initiate our plan or what we called Operation – Hot Springs.

The goal was to get her and Daniel some alone time, which meant I was going to be the third wheel. I'd secretly let Jaxson know that I wanted to make sure everything went well.

Mako currently took a mini nap with Daniel, having fallen asleep during the car ride. I told Daniel the hot spring was reserved at eleven at night for them and he should wake Makoto by then.

When we arrived, he carried her to their room – the compassion and affection in his eyes when he looked down at Makoto's sleeping figure made my heart melt. I prayed they would work things out during this trip or hopefully soon. I knew how frustrating it could be to love someone, but not receive the same or know if they loved you in return.

I headed to the hot spring section I'd reserved for myself, having decided to enjoy some alone time with my e-reader when I slid the wooden door open to reveal Michael.

"Jax-In-A-Box messaged me saying our precious was alone at the hot springs," he explained, pushing off the wall and standing before me.

"You guys and your weird code names. And I missed you," I whispered.

His hand brushed my cheek; his lips landed on mine. I let my hands slide around his waist, pulling him close. We were so caught up in kissing we didn't hear the footsteps in the hall.

"Scarlet and a Daniel lookalike."

We pulled away, turning to see Makoto in a pink robe and wood slippers. I tilted my head, noticing her eyes were an interesting blue – midnight blue.

"Makoto? Your eyes are different. And Daniel look alike?" I questioned, looking at Michael who stared at Makoto.

"Not Makoto and that guy looks exactly like Daniel, but older, taller, and has longer hair than him. They have the same eyes and nose, though," she replied, giving Michael a long up and down assessment.

"You're not Makoto?" I asked, confused.

"Nope," she replied.

I noticed her voice sounded different, more toneless than Mako's cheerful voice.

"You're a spirit?" Michael pointed out.

She nodded. "Midnight," she introduced.

"Midnight? Ah, well your eyes are midnight blue. Is that where your name comes from?" I inquired.

"I guess," she replied.

"Um, this is Michael, Daniel's older brother. That's why they look so similar," I introduced.

"Where are your glasses?" Midnight asked.

"I don't need them as often as my brother. I'm wearing contacts, though," he admitted.

She nodded. "Hi," she greeted.

We stood there for a moment of silence.

"Midnight. Aren't you supposed to be with Daniel?" I asked.

"He's showering. He said he wants to be clean before going to the springs. I wanted to take Nightmare for a walk," Midnight replied.

"Wait. My brother's here?" Michael asked, shocked.

"Yes," Midnight replied.

"He came with Makoto. They need bonding time." I stressed.

Michael looked confused but nodded. "Oh. But he hates water," Michael pointed out.

"So do you," I retorted.

"That's...different. I promised," he admitted; his cheeks tinted a light pink.

"I'm running away. You can continue being lovey-dovey," Midnight announced.

I blushed. "We weren't being lovey-dovey," I argued.

"Uh huh. Anyways, Nightmare, let's go back," she called out.

"Nightmare?" Michael and I said together.

"MEW."

We glanced to our left, noticing something white pop out of the bushes. The creature jumped from the grass below onto the wooden floor, rushing to Midnight's side.

I gawked at the beautiful creature. She was white with grey markings and mismatched turquoise and silver eyes. What was most stunning was that she had not one, but three tails that rapidly wagged back and forth in excitement.

She brushed her head against Midnight’s leg; the once grey markings glowed a light pink as she began to purr.

"Is that your familiar?" I asked, still stunned by her magnificent beauty.

"Yes. This is Nightmare. Mako calls her Nighty for short," Midnight introduced.

"Mew." She walked over to us, sitting at my feet.

I knelt, petting her soft fur. "Well, hello beautiful," I hummed. I looked up to Michael who smiled down at us.

"Good evening, Nightmare," Michael greeted.

"Meow."

Wait a minute...

I turned my head to see Moonlight walking down the hall.

"MEW!" Nightmare beamed, jolting from where we stood to meet Moonlight. They circled each other, before rubbing their heads together – Nightmare’s tails glowed a bright pink.

"You brought your cat?" Michael asked.

"Nope. You know how he is. Just follows me around and appears out of nowhere," I commented.

"You love me first of all, and I didn't follow you," Risuki's voice announced.

I rolled my eyes. Ah. You came for Nightmare, didn't you?

"Leave me alone," Risuki mumbled.

I grinned, rising back up. "Michael, can you meet me at the reserved spring? I want to make sure they know I'm not bailing," I whispered.

"Sure, love. I'll see you there," he replied, leaning down to give me a deep kiss. He smiled at my red face before glancing at Midnight, who knelt and played with Moonlight and Nightmare, who bounced around her.

"Bye, Midnight. Nice to meet you."

"Hmm? Oh, Bye," she replied, giving a simple wave before returning her attention to our familiars.

She's very different from Makoto. Not in a bad way. It's also cute. Hmm.

"I agree," Serenity replied.

"Me too. She's a powerful spirit though," Aurora pointed out.

"She has the same aura as Ethan," Serenity admitted.

Does she? Hmm, I wonder what she is. I should ask Ethan what spirit he has.

"Hah. He'd probably make you struggle like Junho," Aurora revealed.

"All you need to know is it's a very rare spirit," Serenity admitted.

I frowned, trying to think of all the spirits we'd cover so far; none of them falling under the 'very rare' category. Guess I'll find out soon enough.

"You're a Starlight god, too," Midnight declared, petting Moonlight who sat in front of her; Nightmare sat next to him.

They literally looked like two halves of a whole; Nightmare and her white fur and blue eyes verses Moonlight with his black fur and matching eyes. Reminded me of Yin and Yang.

It took an extra second before I registered her words; my mouth dropped.

"Midnight. What did you just say?" I asked.

She glanced up at me with a blank expression. "Your cat is a Starlight god like Nightmare," she confirmed.

"How...?" I trailed off.

"Mako and I can sense their auras. Winterlya said I can't tell the others, but I figured you already know your familiar's a god," she disclosed.

"Um. Well, ya I found out recently. This is Moonlight. Or I guess I should say Risuki, God of Lightning," I introduced.

"Nightmare, Goddess of Destruction," Midnight introduced.

They both sat quietly, enjoying their moment together.

Midnight rose up, yawning. "I should go. Don't want the angel to be wondering where Mako went," Midnight confessed.

"You sound like you don't like him," I suggested.

"It's not like I don't like him. I just don't like angels...much," she admitted.

"But...you were fine with Michael," I proposed.

"He's not an Archangel," she argued.

"An Archangel? Ah...I haven't gone into the different types of angel spirits," I confessed.

She nodded, eyeing me for a second. "I don't hate all angels. Or we wouldn't get along," Midnight muttered under her breathe.

"What?" I asked for clarification.

"Nothing. Anyways, I go now. Bye ScarBear." She turned around.

"ScarBear?" I asked, confused.

She looked over her shoulder. "That's your nickname. Mako is MakoBear, EliaseAnne is EliBear and now you’re ScarBear. See you around. Nightmare, you can stay with Moonlight if you want. Bye, Risuki," she said farewell to the two gods and me before making her way down the hall, turning the corner and disappearing from sight.

"Wow...that was different," I whispered.

"Interesting," Aurora mumbled.

"I like ScarBear," Serenity pointed out.

I looked down to the two familiars sitting together in the hall. They turned their heads to look up at me.

"Well...you two wanna come with me to the hot springs? You can play around or something—”

"MEW!"

"MEOW!"

They bounced in place, beginning to run around me. I laughed.

"Alright, let's go. Michael's waiting." I laughed, heading towards the springs.

I hope they work things out.

~MAKOTO~

"See. It's not that bad," I emphasized, sighing in relief as I sank deeper into the steaming hot water.

"It's only because your feet touch the ground," Daniel mumbled.

"Stop complaining and admit you’re enjoying yourself," I replied, splashing him with water.

He groaned. "I'm gonna die," he complained.

I'd woken up the moment Daniel finished freshening up; Midnight explained that she went for a walk. We'd headed to our private hot spot; the large hot spring was filled with clear water.

Steam clouded the area that was surrounded by nature. I glanced up at the star-filled sky, smiling at the twinkling lights.

"Mako."

I returned my gaze to Daniel; his arms outstretched along the stone edge of the spring. His hair was pulled back and in a little bun, courtesy of me wanting to see him with a man bun. I had to admit, it looked nice on him which was followed by me asking him to grow it out. He said he'd think about it, but I prayed he would.

I glanced at his bare chest, droplets of water rolled down his chiseled chest and abs, his V lines disappeared in the towel around his waist. I hadn't noticed before, but now that I was taking a moment to analyze his body, I'd realized he'd gained more muscle and definition. Was it due to all the training he's been doing?

He pushed himself off the edge, cautiously making his way to me. I knew he hated water and couldn't swim, but for him to let go of the edge he had been gripping for life a few minutes earlier shocked me.

"Dani—" I began, but couldn't finish; his body embraced mine, pressing me against him.

I blinked; my heart went into overdrive as I froze in place; Daniel's fresh lavender scent mixed with my cherry blossom shampoo.

"Daniel?" I asked softly, unsure how to proceed. I let my hands slide along his back, returning his embrace. We stood in each other's arms for a long time, the sound of night creatures and soft cool breeze passed us; the only thing helping keep my nerves at bay. Just the fear of him wanting whatever was between us to end, made my eyes sting with tears.

"Daniel...if you don’t...want this..." I began, choking on my words. I hadn't realized how much I'd fallen in love with all my men, and I didn't want Daniel leaving me. I loved him.

"Mako. Stop," he whispered, tightening his hold.

"But...I'm confused. I don't know what you want, Daniel. I get the whole Midnight situation and I understand...I'm trying to be patient and see everything from your perspective, but I'm failing. I've never dealt with this before and I feel like I'm on a seesaw. One half is telling me you love me while the other...makes me wonder if you hate me..." I whispered, tightening my hold on him as I cried into his shoulder.

He let me cry; his hand rubbed my back as he whispered sweet words in my ear.

"Makoto, if only you could see a glimpse of how much I care about you," he whispered; his voice trembled before he pressed his lips against my neck. He pulled back to look at me, those golden globes were glossy with his own tears.

"I...I just need a bit more time. I love you, Makoto, that's for sure. But...I just need a bit more time before I can reveal me. Not just the one you see before you. All of me. I know you'll accept me. I just need to gain the courage to accept myself," he revealed.

We stared into each other's eyes; his hand lifted to rest against my cheek. A tear rolled down to meet his thumb that rubbed it away.

"Okay," I replied.

He pulled me into his arms and he gave me a passionate kiss; his tongue slipped into my mouth as his hands began to roam down my back. I let my hands roam his back as we continued; our exhales increased as we moaned, enjoying each other's taste.

When we both struggled for air, we pulled away, pressing out heads against each other as we caught our breath.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

I lifted my eyes to meet his. "For what?" I asked, confused as to why he was suddenly apologizing.

"For lying. I...know that it upset you, and I shouldn't have. I just freaked out, and I try and deny how I'm feeling when I'm put on the spot," he admitted, lowering his head.

I pressed myself against him, biting my lip. It hurt to see him in agony and my heart ached to make it right somehow. Maybe I just need to give him more time?

I pressed my lips against his neck, trailing upward to his chin. I let my hands slide against his chest, pushing him gently towards the stone wall of the spring. He caught on, walking backward until his back was pressed against its smooth surface.

"Daniel. I'll be patient. Midnight’s asleep, but when we get back to Minato, I'll talk with her, she’s...very defensive when it comes to my well-being. We've been through things...that are hard to discuss. She just doesn't want me to get hurt. I know you wouldn't hurt me intentionally. I get it. I'll try to wait until you’re ready," I revealed, giving him a small smile before my arms hooked around his neck, giving me enough leverage to kiss him.

His arms wrapped around my lower waist; his hand rested on my ass. I pulled back after a few minutes of back and forth kisses; both of us taking turns to kiss each other's necks.

"I think we should get out. The heat’s making me dizzy," I confessed, trying to stay orientated as my surroundings spun. Daniel pressed his hand against my cheek; his eyes glowed a bright gold, and his hand felt warm.

I sighed in relief as the world stilled; my dizziness faded. "Thank you," I whispered.

"You’re welcome, Firefly." He smiled, letting go of me to lift himself out of the hot spring, helping me out before he lifted me up. I hooked my arms around his neck, resting my head against his shoulder.

"You okay?" he asked, his voice filled with concern.

I nodded against him, pressing my lips lightly on his shoulder blade – his markings caught my attention. "Ya. I'm really tired," I whispered.

"You haven't gotten a good rest since we got here," Daniel suggested, beginning to walk back towards our room after slipping into his slippers.

"I'm scared to rest. I don't want to waste time that could be spent with you," I replied.

"There's always time for us, Makoto. I'll always make time for you. Even if things get chaotic when we reach Heila, I'll make sure that we see each other whenever I can. But, you need to sleep. I like to sleep, so we can count it as quality time. What do you say?" he asked.

I opened my eyes to look at him; his smile reached those enchanting gold eyes I loved.

"Okay. Just...this time," I whispered; my eyes began to close as I relaxed in his arms. My head returned to rest on his shoulder. I didn't stop myself from drifting off; the swaying movement and Daniel's low exhales calmed my once troubled heart.

We'll figure it out...and if all else fails, I'll give him space till he's ready.