The man's words triggered something in Noel's mind. A frightening familiarity that she could not quite place. She had been called princess before. But by who?

That set her heart racing, and her breathing became labored.

Her whole body told her to run, even if her mind did not know exactly why. She refused to obey it, however. Noel bit down on her fear as she clenched her teeth. Her breaths hissed through the gap in her front teeth, and continued to stare down the man.

Whoever this guy was, he was only human. Nothing compared to the Ahngreel she'd met and faced.

The man's eyes popped in surprise at her unwillingness to run, or maybe it was something else as he made a beeline for her, even going so far as to push people out of his path.

The closer he got, the more that familiar feeling grew until it finally burst through her confusion like a dam. His face swam in her mind; only in her memory, that face had blonde hair and wild, primal eyes as he glared at her through a bloody nose.

It was Goro. The thug she had left unconscious the night she met Darris. He was back.

Noel's fingers tightened around the pen as the memories of that night washed over her. Much more horrific things had happened thanks to Darris and the ginkrat, but she still would not forget what Goro and his pals had tried to do to her.

She took several steps back and then turned to walk in the other direction. Noel was not quite ready to use her powers in public yet. If she could find a place alone to activate the pen, she would kick Goro's ass, just like last time.

But why was he, of all people, here? Had he been following her? Waiting for his moment to strike? As her walk became a light jog, panicked thoughts raced through Noel's mind.

"Wait!" said Goro somewhere behind her.

She did not wait. She walked faster instead. Noel was small enough to weave through the crowd with minimal effort, but it did not widen the gap between herself and Goro. She could sense him getting closer.

Fear welled up within her. She did not allow herself to look back anymore as she sped up even more. Why couldn't he just leave her alone?

Now, people were staring as she ran past them, but Noel ignored them as her only thought was, I've gotta get away. Gotta get away. The crowd around her barely glanced at her.

"Hang on, I only want to talk to you," he called.

Noel ignored him. She finally spotted her haven, an alley between the arcade and the bookstore. If she could manage to get there, she could transform with no problem.

She managed to break from the crowd and was only about two feet from her goal when she felt a hand clasp her wrist. She turned horrified eyes to Goro, who was panting as he held her.

"Wait…please wait…" he huffed.

Noel responded by taking a swing at Goro's sweaty brow, but the man caught her other wrist in a vice-like grip.

No. Not again! She opened her mouth to scream. This time, there were people. They would hear her now.

Goro's eyes popped once more as he let go of her and backed away slightly. "Please forgive me! I didn't mean to scare you."

He held up his hands to show that they were empty. Noel's scream caught in her throat, and only a whimper escaped. Was he serious?

But before she could think further, a massive shape shot past her, directly at Goro. He had no time to react as Buster's pale arm seized the man by the throat and carried him into the alley.

The Ahngreel's back blocked Goro from Noel's gaze as the two got deeper and deeper into the shadows. Whatever spell of fear the man had over her was now broken, prompting Noel's feet to carry her forward after Buster.

Noel quickly entered the alley. She was fast enough to see Buster slam Goro into the wall, which she swore rumbled with the impact. Buster's modified eyes were fierce, and his pupils slits as he bore down on the sweaty, terrified Goro.

"If you ever grab her like that again. No, if you even touch Noel at all. I will break you."

Buster's face was more terrifying than Goro could ever be. 

The veins on his paler-than-usual skin popped. His fingers tightened around Goro's neck as the man attempted to claw at Buster's hand. But his efforts proved useless; it only took a few seconds for his struggle to lessen as his face began to turn purple. 

"Stop, Buster," cried Noel, "Stop! You're killing him!"

"So?" said Buster without looking at her. 

"So?! Whaddaya mean so? He's gonna die!"

Buster did not flinch at that. "If he does, he'll come back. Then I'll kill him again if he tries to hurt you."

She had no idea what Buster meant by that, "No, he won't! Humans don't come back when they die. Now let him go!" She grabbed his massive forearm and tried to pull Goro free, which did not work in the slightest. He let Goro free anyway. 

The man slid from his fingers and onto the ground with a fit of coughs. He rubbed his neck before looking up at them in fear. Buster stared at him with a mix of rage and shock. Noel could not imagine what the Ahngreel was thinking, so her attention returned to Goro.

Are you all right?" asked Noel. She did not bend down to help Goro. She did not have any desire to touch him, even if he was in pain. She stood above him, hugging herself, trying to suppress a sudden bout of goosebumps that had begun to creep up her arms.

Goro nodded. His voice was strained as he said, "I see you've got yourself a guard dog, princess. A pretty big one, too."

"He's not my guard dog. He's my friend. And I'm glad he was here to stop you."

Goro scrambled himself to his hands and knees and gave her a pleading look. "I wasn't planning to do anything. I just want to talk with you, that's all."

Noel wasn't buying it. He and his friends had tried to play nice before, only to attack her. "Why did you chase me, then?"

The man's fingers scraped across the concrete to ball into a fist, "It's like I said, I want to talk–no, I need to. You're the only one who can help me. Please!"

Noel blinked at that, "Help you? With what?"

Goro's shoulders shook as his head dropped below his shoulders. When he spoke, his voice was full of tears. "My father. I need you to help me find my father. It's been months since he disappeared. And you're my last hope. I know you know something! You with your freaky powers. There has to be a connection."

Noel hugged herself tighter as an icy hand gripped her spine. "Why would you think I would have anything to do with this? I'm just a girl."

Goro looked up, tears streaming down his face, "A girl with superpowers. A girl I met on the same night my father vanished. He was on duty that night near the wharf. That's where you were heading, wasn't it? I know you were! Tell me!" Goro crawled forward and tried to reach for Noel's shoes. She leaped back as if Goro were something slimy. 

"Stay where you are!" said Buster, stepping in between Noel and Goro."She doesn't know anything!"

She could still see Goro from behind Buster's back. He froze in place, desperate eyes fixed on Noel. "You were there, weren't you?"

 The chill in her spine had risen to reach the back of her skull. Her mind was churning as her memories of that night surfaced. From the icy waters of her mind came a face, an empty face that she had never known alive. Except for a plastic ID card given to her by Darris. "W-what was your father's name?"

She knew the answer before he gave it. "Sakuraba Tenmei. I am his son, Sakuraba Goro."