Yumiel didn't waste a single second, accelerating her run. The front door had just been forced open and the lights were on. Yumiel rushed inside, dropping all her bags at the entrance, then entered the living room to see Marie being beaten by a man at her feet, one corpse and two others. Searching the house, the corpse had probably just been killed by Marie.
Yumiel only had to take one step to land behind the man hitting Marie; he tried to turn around, but Yumiel pierced his chest, ripping out his heart. Blood sprayed onto Marie's face and clothes. He screamed like all the others but died within seconds.
The two men at the back, armed with light calibers, turned around at the sound of their comrade's scream. Shooting repeatedly, Yumiel could dodge, but Marie could not; Yumiel placed herself in front, wrapping Marie in her arms, taking the bullets with her body. Marie remained still, shocked by the scene.
Once their magazines were empty, Yumiel turned around. Marie saw an extraordinary regeneration; the wounds healed on their own, pushing the bullets out of the flesh. It only took a few seconds for Yumiel to kill them, ripping out the first man's heart and crushing it above her, absorbing the blood.
Seeing this scene, he dropped his weapon and began begging for his life.
"Why did you choose this house?" Yumiel spoke in a sharp, authoritative tone.
"Just randomly!"
Yumiel crushed both his arms.
"Arrrrhhh, no—please, I beg you. I… (Yumiel crushed his leg.) Arrhhh… please, stop, I beg you, we've been watching this house from afar, we saw you leave several times, we thought you were gone."
"Were you alone, or did you have other friends?" Yumiel pressed slightly with her foot on his last leg.
"We were alone! We were alone! You're going to let me go, right?"
Yumiel walked over to Marie, picked up the Colt, and handed it to her.
"You choose. You defended the house; the choice is yours."
Marie approached the injured man. Aiming at his head with the gun, Marie had already killed one, but would she have the courage to shoot an unarmed man begging for his life?
"Please, you're not going to kill me, right? I'm sorry that bastard hit you, but he's dead. It was his idea, not mine. Please, I have a daughter, too, about your age."
Trembling, still keeping the man in her sights, she finally lowered her gun.
"Thank God, thank you, thanks to you…"
Suddenly, a .44 Magnum bullet passed through his head.
You could see smoke coming out of Yumiel's barrel before she put it back in her holster.
Marie froze before starting to cry, collapsing to the floor. Yumiel, meanwhile, dragged the corpses out, throwing them into the street, then fixed the door back in place. Marie still cried in the middle of the living room.
"You know he was probably lying? Besides, he was doomed; I had broken both his arms and a leg. In the world we live in now, he had no chance."
Marie still didn't stop crying.
Yumiel whispered: "That's why I don't like kids."
Yumiel approached Marie and hugged her gently. Surprised, Marie hugged Yumiel back, crying in her arms. Yumiel was surprised in turn. They stayed like that for several long seconds, until Yumiel began to tell her story.
"When I was young, everyone told me the same thing: genius this, genius that. But personally, I never considered myself that, at eighteen. My teachers and parents absolutely wanted me to continue in science—physics, chemistry, astronomy—but that wasn't the path I wanted. I dreamed of truth, not theory."
Yumiel paused, swallowed, and continued.
"So I chose the History and World Conflict department. And I started playing pranks. You know, the kind where you make your teacher believe the whole class had supernatural powers."
Marie laughed. Yumiel grabbed Marie's face with her hands, wiping the tears from her face and the dried blood.
"My pranks continued, but I never felt like I belonged. Then came the disaster we all know. It changed me deep inside; I made and still make choices that are horrible for some, but necessary to survive. Killing doesn't please me, though it doesn't bother me. Yet I must accept what I am."
Marie hugged Yumiel tightly, as if to suggest she understood. The sun was about to rise. Yumiel was covered in blood, and so was Marie.
"Come on, let's go shower."
Marie followed Yumiel to her room. Yumiel ran hot water in the bath. She undressed herself, then Marie, before getting into the bath. Once washed, Marie had the face of an angel. Her face had something luminous and joyful. Her blonde hair, a pale golden shade, was tied into two symmetrical pigtails framing her face with childlike softness.
"Wow, you're so cute, my little Marie."
Marie snuggled against Yumiel, who allowed her to see her beautiful, shining emerald green eyes, like Morgane's. Once all the blood and grime were washed off, she got out of the bath. Yumiel put on her pajamas and ran a load of laundry with her clothes and Marie's. She lent Marie an old worn-out pair of pajamas, far too big for her.
Then she put Marie to bed in her room.
"There, you can sleep peacefully. I'm here. I have things to do, but I'll stay here, don't worry."
Yumiel wanted to tidy up the mess at the entrance and in the house. But Marie grabbed her pajamas, as if asking her to stay. Yumiel sat on the bed with Marie's head on her lap, stroking her hair. And stayed like that until she fell asleep, which only took a few minutes.