(Every character depicted in the story below is a consenting legal adult over the age of 18)

A/N: Amadeus tells Huntrix what’s up, and the concert begins.

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For a moment, he considers whether to tell Huntrix or not. On the one hand, he doesn’t want to ruin the girls’ night by revealing troubling information before the performance. On the other hand… they were all grown women and they deserved to know the truth.

So, clearing his throat, Amadeus gets Rumi, Zoey, and Mira’s attention and shakes his head.

“Those fox ears weren’t prosthetics girls. Those were very real.”

As the girls of Huntrix all stare at him in disbelief, Grayfia nods at his side.

“Indeed. It would appear that Ahri is a youkai of Japan… a kitsune specifically.”

Rumi raises her hands in front of her.

“Wait, pause… you’re saying that Ahri isn’t human? But that’s ridiculous! We’ve definitely seen her at parties before without her ears or the rest of the costume on. Right girls?”

As Zoey and Mira start to nod, Grayfia just shrugs.

“Kitsune are infamously good at illusion magic, so that’s unsurprising.”

All three girls freeze up at that and Amadeus winces a little as he watches the realization that they’ve all been had dawn on their faces at the same time.

“But wait, if Ahri is a kitsune… does that mean Evelynn is an actual demon?! There’s no way, she’s too pretty to be a demon!”

Mira scoffs at Zoey’s protests.

“Don’t forget what we just got done dealing with a few weeks ago, Zo. Pretty demons can and do exist… or did exist, anyways.”

A pall falls over the three members of Huntrix at Mira’s words, all of them clearly thinking about the circumstances that led to Rumi being on death’s door and Amadeus being the only one who could save her from her own physiology. Rumi is quickest to bounce back though, slamming a fist into a hand.

“We can’t let this go on if she really is a demon though. They do stunts all the time involving her drinking souls and all that stuff! If Ahri is the real deal and Evelynn is too, then… we have to stop her!”

Amadeus watches as Zoey and Mira nod along with determined looks on their faces. After a moment though, Zoey looks uncertain again.

“What about Akali and Kai’Sa though? What’s going on with them? Is Akali some sort of supernatural ninja? Is Kai’Sa secretly a cyborg dancer or something?!”

The Huntrix girls all look to Amadeus and Grayfia like they might have the answers… but in all honesty, Amadeus doesn’t know anything about ninja or cyborgs, whatever those are. So all he can do is shrug helplessly. Grayfia shakes her head as well, signaling her own lack of knowledge in that arena.

Mira growls.

“Doesn’t matter. Evelynn is the priority, right? Especially if she’s actually sucking souls. We might not kill all demons anymore… but we’re not gonna stand aside and let her prey on humans… right?!”

Rumi and Zoey both pump fists in the air, answering in unison.

““Right!!!””

This is followed by them looking to Amadeus expectantly and maybe a little hopefully. Oh, is he supposed to join in? He opens his mouth to do so, however before he can… loud music suddenly starts playing.

“Shit… the concert is already starting, we’re too late!”

Rumi holds up a hand to stop Zoey’s panicking.

“It’s alright. We have some of the best seats in the house, remember? We’ll be able to put ourselves between Evelynn and the crowd if it comes down to it. Let’s go girls.”

Amadeus just grins as Rumi takes charge like the leader she is. He and Grayfia follow Huntrix as they stomp down the hallway. At one point Rumi does realize she sort of forgot about the two of them and shoots a guilty look back over her shoulder, but Amadeus just waves her forward. She and her girls have his full support, whatever they decide to do.

Eventually they make it to their seats, a special spot located near the stage that nevertheless seems to be partitioned off from the rest of the incredibly crowded stadium. Looking out over the sea of faces, Amadeus can’t help but be a little awed in spite of the potentially dire situation they find themselves in.

This many humans in one place, all here to witness the arts… it was hands down one of the most beautiful things he’d ever seen. Right up there with Grayfia’s blush and Huntrix’s songs.

And all of them were here to see ‘K/DA’… hopefully they would live up to expectations. And also hopefully they weren’t actually harboring a soul sucking demon because Amadeus wasn’t sure he would be able to stop Huntrix from intervening… nor did he really want to if he was being honest.

Finally, the music seems to coalesce into something more meaningful… and the stage lights up as the first lyrics come out alongside the members of the girl group.

You know who it is
Coming ’round again
You want a dose of this right now it’s K/DA uh!

Beside him, Amadeus hears Zoey lean over to Rumi.

“They’re wearing their original costumes and performing their debut song. Is this a reset or something?”

Rumi, who has her brow furrowed and arms crossed over her chest, shrugs in response.

“Dunno… just keep a close eye on Evelynn, okay?”

It’s pretty obvious almost immediately which one is Evelynn. Her entire vibe is pretty demon-y, Amadeus has to admit… though she’s also incredibly beautiful and she certainly rocks those tinted glasses she’s wearing, to say nothing of the rest of her ensemble.

Frankly, all four members of K/DA look phenomenal. As they sing and dance and the crowd responds to their energy with a frantic sort of excitement, Amadeus tries to stay focused on the matter at hand… but it’s admittedly quite hard for him. It’s way too easy to just get lost in the performance instead.

They’re good. They’re very, very good. Their movements, their singing, all of it comes together in a way similar to what Huntrix has with their songs. As they go from the first song to the next, Amadeus can’t help but admire them.

… However, there’s something that’s itching at the back of his mind, even as his girls are stiff beside him, watching like a hawk for any sign that Evelynn might try to drain a fan’s soul right there on stage. Amadeus doesn’t think it’s likely, but he knows if anything does happen that they’ll immediately try to stop it.

Meanwhile, he just can’t quite shake this strange feeling as he watches K/DA perform. There’s Ahri the Kitsune, Evelynn the supposed Demon, Akali the mask-wearing Rapper, and Kai’Sa the Dancer. Truth be told, he doesn’t see anything strange about Akali or Kai’Sa, outside of the obvious. They’re abnormal yes, but only in that way talented humans are abnormal.

Both women are so far above average that it’s noticeable, the kind of humans who would always draw special attention regardless because of how skilled they are at their chosen fields.

Meanwhile, Ahri and Evelynn… well, they have amazing voices. And they also aren’t afraid to use obvious magic as ‘special effects’. Ahri creates beautiful illusions with her kitsune magic in the air around them, while Evelynn almost seems to disappear into a shadowy visage that leaves only her tinted glasses visible from time to time.

The crowd eats it up of course. Everyone who has paid to be here and see this performance absolutely loves every second of it. Amadeus loves it too… but he knows enough to be a little unsettled all the same.

Its not until near the end of the concert that he finally realizes what he’s seeing, however. That thing that’s making him so uneasy. It’s not until Ahri does something truly startling.

Up until this point, the kitsune has only shown one tail. Amadeus hadn’t thought anything of it, the vast majority of kitsune only have one tail. Earning more is difficult from what he understands.

Which is why it’s so shocking when at the height of the performance, Ahri takes a step forward, singing a solo piece… and her one tail spreads into nine behind her. Amadeus’ eyes widen in disbelief and he shares a shocked look with Grayfia. Given how surprised Grayfia is, he correctly deduces that Nine-Tailed Foxes are still as rare today as they were five hundred years ago. So what the hell is a Nine-Tailed Fox doing here, performing for humans?!

But more than that… is the other revelation that Ahri’s reveal gives him. It’s in that moment, as she’s spreading her tails and showing them off to a roaring crowd while singing at the top of her lungs… that Amadeus finally understands what he’s been seeing the entire concert.

It’s an exultant moment. It should be one of the happiest moments of Ahri’s life, he figures. And yet… he can tell underneath the broad smile, underneath the puffed up chest, underneath the spectacular performance… she’s not happy. It’s extremely well hidden, but he sees it all the same. Ahri… doesn’t want to be there.

Once he realizes it with her, it becomes obvious with the others as well. They really are giving it their all to be clear. Their performances are pretty much some of the best things Amadeus has seen since waking up in this era. However, they fall short of the glorious private show that Huntrix provided him.

Why? Because their hearts aren’t in it. When Huntrix performed all of their songs for him, they were loving every second of it just as much as Amadeus was. It wasn’t a chore for them. It wasn’t an obligation. They wanted to perform for him as much as he wanted to see them perform.

But K/DA, despite having this packed stadium of people here to see them… weren’t happy to be here. There was something holding them back from giving it their all. Something keeping them from putting everything they were into their art.

Amadeus frowns as the concert comes to a close. There are no soul sucking incidents at least. Evelynn is clearly using some form of shadow magic to enhance her part of the performance, but beyond that and clearly playing the role of the dark and dangerous femme fatale, she never makes a single move towards any of the fans.

That, of course, is not really good enough for Rumi and the others. As soon as the concert is over and K/DA is off the stage, Rumi is on her feet and has a determined look on her face.

“Alright. Let’s go have a talk with them now.”

Once again, Amadeus has no problem letting Rumi take the lead. His girls were Demon Hunters before they were members of his peerage after all, and Amadeus certainly isn’t going to make them stop hunting demons just because they’re now Devils.

Besides, he wants a closer look at K/DA himself. After all of these revelations… he wants to know what the hell is going on more than ever.

Using their badges, they’re granted access with just as minimal fuss last time. Rumi leads the way backstage as a woman on a mission, heading for the other girl group’s staging area without hesitation. They find the four members of K/DA still together, clearly coming down from the performance.

When their approach is noticed, Ahri stiffens up, no doubt remembering what happened before the show. Amusingly enough, it’s Evelynn who actually reacts the most positively, stepping forward with a delighted smile on her face.

“Well now, if it isn’t the girls from Huntrix. How lovely of you to attend our concert. You-!”

Only, the woman’s voice cuts out as they all finally get close enough to one another. Her eyes widen behind her tinted glasses as her back goes ramrod straight. The same thing happens to Rumi, Zoey, and Mira… and truth be told, Amadeus is a little stunned as well as he senses the truth of the so-called ‘demon’ in front of them.

Evelynn isn’t a demon after all. She’s something far stranger. She’s a Devil.

There’s a long, pregnant pause of silence as they all come to terms with what proximity has just taught them about each other. Evelynn’s mouth opens and closes wordlessly a few times, while Rumi suddenly looks a lot less certain about things than she did previously.

Ahri furrows her brow at the silence and both Akali and Kai’Sa just look confused as well. But before anyone can say anything else, a jovial voice rings out.

“Excellent performance, ladies! As good as ever! Oh, and is that Huntrix I see? How wonderful!”

The voice belongs to a man in a suit… the same sort of nondescript black suit as the man who had accosted Ahri before the concert had been wearing. This man is not that man, however. He’s not as bald or as tall, for one.

However, the way that the members of K/DA react to his presence isn’t all that different from how Ahri had reacted to the first man’s presence. It’s more subdued, more subtle, more hidden… but Amadeus can see it all the same. None of them are happy to be sharing the same space with this new arrival.

As he walks up to join their two groups, the man’s eyes move from Huntrix over to Amadeus himself and he arches a brow before sketching out a bow.

“Ah, a guest as well. It is a pleasure to meet you, I am Si-Hung, K/DA’s manager.”

Oh, so like Bobby. Except… Bobby definitely didn’t make any of the girls of Huntrix feel like this Si-Hung was clearly making K/DA feel. Amadeus frowns slightly as Si-Hung comes out of his bow, looking at him expectantly. Hm…

“I am Amadeus.”

He leaves it at that, not wishing to give the other man anything else. At the very least, Amadeus can tell that this is not another Devil… but that just makes it all the stranger. What are a Devil and a Nine-Tailed Fox doing in the human world as part of a band they don’t truly seem to want to be a part of?

Neither of them should actually have to be here if they don’t want to be. Is Amadeus just reading too much into things?

Sensing the awkwardness reaching a crescendo, Zoey does what she does best and breaks into the moment with a bright smile directed at K/DA.

“You girls were amazing tonight! I was surprised to see you all back in your original outfits though! I didn’t think tonight was meant to be a reset, was it?”

That draws things into a proper reluctant conversation as the girls from K/DA slowly start to respond. Si-Hung, meanwhile, stands a bit apart, watching with a broad smile on his face that doesn’t reach his eyes.

Something was decidedly off here… but Amadeus doubted he had the power or authority to demand answers right this moment. He would probably only make things worse if he was too blunt about things. Instead… he needed to approach this situation with a bit more subtlety.

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