Time passed by peacefully.
The days turned into weeks, and the weeks turned into months.
Elias, Shuri, and Akeno lived together happily in the quiet shrine. Elias kept training, Akeno kept going to school, and Shuri kept the home warm and safe. They were a real family.
But Elias still missed his old home sometimes. Mostly, he missed Dee.
Up in the Dimensional Gap, Dee watched them.
She was so happy that Elias was safe and loved. But she was also feeling very lonely.
She wanted to sit on the porch with him. She wanted to hold his hand.
"It is time,"
Dee told herself.
"I am going down there. But I can't go as Death."
If she went to the human world with all her cosmic power, the gods, Angels, and Devils of this universe would panic.
They would all come looking for her. She didn't want to bring war and unnecessary attention to Elias's peaceful life.
So, Dee closed her eyes. She took her endless, scary power and pushed it deep down inside herself.
She locked it away. She sealed her magic so tightly that no one could feel it.
When she opened her eyes, she was no longer a terrifying cosmic force.
She was just Dee. A pale, pretty teenager in black jeans, a black tank top, and a silver ankh necklace. She felt light, normal, and very human.
With a happy smile, she stepped through the space between worlds.
It was a lazy Saturday afternoon at the shrine.
Elias was in the front yard, carefully trimming the bushes with some big clippers.
Suddenly, he heard the sound of heavy black boots walking up the stone steps.
Elias stopped what he was doing. He turned around, ready to protect the shrine.
But when he saw who was standing at the gate, the clippers fell right out of his hands.
"Miss me, Eli?"
The girl asked. She tilted her black top hat and gave him a big, perky smile.
"Dee?!"
Elias shouted.
He ran as fast as he could and picked her up, spinning her around in a huge hug. Dee laughed, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck.
For the first time, she didn't feel like a cold breeze. She felt like a normal, warm girl.
"You're really here!"
Elias said, his eyes tearing up.
"Wait, how? What about the gods?"
"I sealed my powers,"
Dee whispered happily in his ear.
"I'm just a normal human teenager right now. Nobody knows I'm here."
Hearing the loud voices, the paper door of the shrine slid open. Shuri stepped out, looking worried.
Akeno was hiding behind her mother's skirt, peeking out with curious violet eyes.
When Shuri saw Elias hugging a strange girl in dark clothes, she blinked in surprise.
Elias quickly put Dee down. He held her hand and walked her over to the porch.
He was blushing a little bit, but his smile was the biggest it had ever been.
"Shuri-san, Akeno-chan,"
Elias said proudly.
"I want you to meet someone very special. This is Dee."
Dee gave them a polite, friendly bow.
"Hello,"
Dee said in perfect Japanese.
"It is so nice to finally meet you. I am Elias's girlfriend."
Akeno gasped. Her eyes went as wide as saucers.
"Onii-chan has a girlfriend?!"
Shuri's surprised face quickly melted into a warm, gentle smile.
She had always wondered about Elias's life before he came here. Seeing the pure love and happiness in Elias's eyes told her everything she needed to know about this girl.
"Welcome to our home, Dee,"
Shuri said kindly.
"Elias has been a great blessing to us. Any friend of his is a friend of ours."
Dee looked down at her black boots, acting a little shy.
"Thank you, Shuri-san,"
Dee said softly.
"I traveled a very, very long way to find him. To be honest... I used up everything I had to get here. I'm completely broke. I don't have any money, and I don't have a place to stay."
Shuri didn't even have to think about it. Her motherly heart was already open.
"You do not need money here,"
Shuri told her firmly, stepping forward to take Dee's other hand.
"You love Elias, and that makes you family. We have plenty of room in the shrine. You can stay with us for as long as you want."
"Thank you,"
Dee smiled, squeezing Elias's hand.
"Thank you so much."
Akeno ran down the steps and grabbed Dee's shirt.
"Do you know how to play games?"
She asked excitedly.
Dee giggled and patted the little girl's head.
"I know all the best games."
Dee fit right into their quiet life at the shrine.
Even though she used to be a terrifying cosmic force, she was surprisingly good at being a normal teenager.
She helped Shuri with the cooking, even though she burned the rice on her first try.
She played tag, hide-and-seek, and folded paper cranes with Akeno in the garden.
For the first time in billions of years, Dee felt what it was like to just live.
And Elias loved having his two worlds merged together. For a few days, everything was perfectly happy.
But one night, when the shrine was completely quiet and Shuri and Akeno were fast asleep, Dee asked Elias to sit with her on the wooden porch.
The moon was bright, casting long shadows across the grass. Elias smiled, expecting to just look at the stars with her.
But when he looked at Dee, her face was very serious. Her dark eyes held a deep sadness.
"Eli,"
Dee said softly. She reached out and held his hand tightly.
"I need to tell you something important. Something bad."
Elias lost his smile. He sat up straight.
"What is it, Dee? Are the gods looking for you?"
"No, it is not about me,"
Dee whispered. She looked toward the sliding paper door of Shuri's bedroom.
"Because of who I used to be, I can still see the threads of life. I can see when someone's time is running out. Eli... Shuri's thread is getting very short."
Elias felt a cold chill drop into his stomach.
"What do you mean?"
He asked, his voice shaking a little.
"The Himejima clan assassins have found this place,"
Dee explained. Her voice was gentle, but the words were heavy.
"They are coming soon. In the normal flow of time, Shuri's death is near. She is supposed to die trying to protect little Akeno."
Elias gritted his teeth. His hands curled into tight fists.
He remembered Shuri's kind smile, the warm soup she made him, and how she welcomed him into her home without asking for anything in return.
"No,"
Elias said. His voice was quiet, but it was as hard as a rock.
"I won't let that happen. I promised I would protect them."
Dee gave his hand a gentle, encouraging squeeze.
"I know you will, Eli. That is why I am telling you. You are not supposed to be in this world. You are an anomaly. You break the rules of fate. Because you are here, you can prevent her death."
Elias slowly nodded his head. He looked down at his own hands.
They weren't the soft hands of an average teenager from Ohio anymore.
They were tough and calloused from holding the wooden Naginata every single day.
He could feel the dense, powerful magic flowing through his veins.
He had died to magic before, and he had come back.
His Adaptivity had made him immune to elemental attacks.
He had learned the real Onmyudo. He was a lot stronger than before.
"I can do this,"
Elias said, looking up at the dark forest surrounding the shrine. His eyes were calm, brave, and totally focused.
"I am ready for them. I don't care what kind of magic they use or how many assassins the Himejima clan sends. I can win."
Dee smiled proudly. She leaned her head against his shoulder.
"I know you can,"
She whispered.
"Just remember what Shuri taught you. Fight to live."