Haru was smiling happily, guiding them along and pointing out different boutiques and food vendors. Before Lottie knew it, they were eyeing vintage Disney dungarees in shop windows while gorging on rainbow cotton candy. It was almost as though they were actually on vacation.
A daisy-themed paper fan with a golden handle caught Lottie’s attention. It made her wonder what her mother would have made of all this, an ache spreading through her chest at the harsh realization of how long she’d gone without thinking about her. Her hand hovered over the tiara in her bag, wanting to stroke it.
“Enough,” Jamie snapped, making Lottie jump. “We have your shoes. Now let’s go back to Takeshin.” His whole body was tense. “It’s too crowded. It’s unsafe.” Along with his black shirt and jeans, he sported a pair of dark sunglasses, looking remarkably like a candidate for Men in Black.
“Jamie!” Ellie growled back at him, a storm in her eyes growing. “You don’t speak to Lottie like that. Ever.” The edge in her voice was bitter and sharp, like biting into coffee grounds that she wanted to spit out immediately.
This was not the familiar play biting of a wolf pack she was used to, but real anger, human anger, and it made Lottie nervous.
“People are staring,” Lottie whispered, and relief washed over her when Haru intervened, holding a glossy magazine titled Popteen with a pretty pouting model on the cover, seemingly unaware of the tension.
“Jamie,” he began, “your princess and her friend are in this magazine.”
Stunned by that news, they broke their angry gaze and fanned out to see that Lottie and Ellie really were in the magazine. There were three photographs, two where Lottie looked like the perfect princess, and one of her and Ellie arriving in Japan three weeks ago, baseball cap and sunglasses barely covering her tangle of hair. The images were surrounded by characters she couldn’t read.
“What does it say?” Lottie asked Haru, her voice hard when she expected it to be shaky.
He gave her an apologetic look. “It says you are in Japan and . . .” He paused.
“Tell me.”
“It says the princess and her bad influence have flown to Japan to cause trouble in a whole new country.”
Lottie stared at Ellie. A twisted look like she’d eaten something sour rested on her princess’s face, and she rubbed at her forehead like she was trying to erase the bad thoughts. Lottie could handle people talking about her, but not Ellie, no matter what.
“I see.” She plastered a smile on her face. Be kind, be brave, be unstoppable. Please, please, be brave. “What nonsense. Best we just ignore it.” She took the magazine from Haru and placed it back on the shelf.
Haru beamed at her. “An amazing attitude,” he said, but Ellie and Jamie were not so easily convinced, their eyes narrowing like wolves’.
“Jamie’s right, though; we should head back soon.” Lottie made to leave the shop, indicating they were to follow.
If only she’d stayed inside.
They heard it first. It was a distant electric hum that grew louder and louder, turning into a piercing, screeching symphony of engines and wheels. Then came the smell: fuel and fire and devilish brimstone. Everyone started running to the sidewalk, desperate to catch a glimpse of the legend. A shriek of wheels, and there they were, a flash of magenta weaving between the traffic. The Pink Demon.
The glow on Ellie’s face was undeniable. Her eyes were lit up with the thrill of it.
The motorcyclists, three of them, skidded to a halt, turning back on themselves and creating an impenetrable wall at the far end of the street. In the center, blinding in the white sun, the Pink Demon held up her weapon, the decorated baseball bat pointing at Lottie and her group. There was menace in the action, and it felt strangely like a warning. Despite the helmet, Lottie was sure the demon was staring her right in the eye.
“Strange. She’s never done that before.” Haru sounded more curious than worried. “Usually she vanishes after an appearance.”
The words sent a chill up Lottie’s spine. “Why are they staring at us?” she mumbled weakly.
“I don’t know, and we’re not sticking around to find out. Come on,” Jamie said, grabbing both his princess and her Portman and steering them away.
“Briktah, Jamie!” cried Ellie. “Hey, let go! I—”
Jamie yanked at Ellie and she jerked forward reluctantly, stunned by the tightness and strength of his grip.
“I won’t take any risks.” He pulled her close, but Lottie could hear his furious murmur. “Think about your little sessa.”
Ellie’s eyes snapped into focus over Lottie.
They fast-walked up the street, tracing their steps back to where the car was parked, people still rushing with their phones out to get a shot of the Pinku Oni-chan. It wasn’t until they got there that it became clear they were being followed.
One of the white-helmeted bikers with a navy suit and cobalt bike sped around the corner, appearing like a clap of thunder on the tarmac. The telltale sound of engines purring let them know the other riders would soon follow.
Something deadly sparked in Haru, and the Partizan began to morph. His deep brown eyes turned dark, shadows behind his gaze. It was like the surface of the earth had cracked, revealing a bubbling and dangerous lava.
“Stay close to me.” Haru’s voice was no longer a happy summer breeze, but a fiery pit, crackling and intense.
Lottie looked at him, searching for that soft boy from moments ago, but he was nowhere to be seen, and it scared her. It was a fear she’d only felt twice before, when Saskia had tried to kidnap her, and at the Tompkins Manor sabotage. It was a feeling of complete helplessness, and her whole body shook, unable to forget the utterly horrifying memories of when Leviathan had got her, had got them. A hand around her arm
