The clock above the doorway ticked three times, each tick an eternity longer than the last.

Taylor’s chest constricted, as if someone had reached a hand into her and squeezed the air out of her lungs.

She was in danger. More importantly, her sisters were in danger. This wasn’t some no-name thug with a gun, not that that wouldn’t have been terrifying enough. This was Oni Lee, the ABB’s mad dog. In terms of sheer body count, he would likely be considered the most dangerous cape in the city.

“You will come with me,” he repeated.

There was no room for argument, no place to deny him what he wanted or to fight back. It didn’t even sound like a demand. Oni Lee said they would jump, and he expected them to do just that.

Taylor moved.

She threw every insult she knew at herself even as her legs started to move, even as she stumbled forwards, even as she saw the eyes of the man behind the mask widen. Her fingers brushed against his chest, then went right through as he turned to ash.

“Fool.”

The single word of condemnation came from right behind her. Taylor whipped around in time to see a knife plunging at her through a cascade of hair.

She felt something settle in her stomach and pushed.

The knife jerked to a stop inches from her face, held there by a cat’s cradle of ribbons tethered to the ceiling lights. Oni Lee paused, the black holes of his mask boring silently into her soul.

Then a new Lee appeared, once more between her and the door, standing in the ash of his original. His knife was already in hand. But before he could threaten her with it, his body suddenly spasmed, a pained gasp escaping him as the blade fell from limp fingers.

A moment later, both he and his weapon crumbled to ash, revealing a new girl standing behind him.

She was short, with long black hair tied in a ponytail that reached all the way down to the small of her back. A blue Oni mask sat on the back of her head, so her hair emerged from its mouth. She wore a tight dress of flowing cloth, loose sleeves, and a skirt that stopped at her knees. A thick sash wrapped around her waist... from which protruded the mouth of a sheath.

In her outstretched hand was a knife, one of those traditional Japanese ones. A tanto? With a brightly lacquered wooden grip, it looked almost like a toy if not for the very real steel hovering where Lee's kidney would have been. Used to be.

“You are trying to hurt my Onee-sama,” the girl said in a monotone but still sugary-high voice. She didn’t break eye contact, or even blink.

Oni Lee reappeared, this time almost on the opposite end of the store from Taylor and her sisters. One hand held his knife, but this time his other hand was clamped on his side, trying to hold back the obvious red stain spreading through the fabric.

He made a noise halfway between a growl and a groan, then faded into ashes.

A new Oni Lee appeared before Taylor, arm cocked back with his knife poised to strike.

The new girl stepped out from his shadow, the short hiss-click of her knife sliding back into its sheath the only sound she made.

“Omae wa mou, shindeiru,” the girl intoned with gravitas.

“Nani?” he asked.

Oni Lee’s arm fell off like a doll’s limb that had been yanked too hard. His knife was still held in a white-knuckled grip, even as blood pooled on the floor.

Then Oni Lee vanished in a cloud of ash and did not reappear.

The girl sighed and turned towards Taylor, a bored non-expression on her face. “He still lives. Does Onee-sama wish for me to correct this?”

Taylor swallowed, looked down at the arm that was resolutely not turning to ash, then shook her head. “No, that’s… okay. We need to get out of here.”

“Shit, even littler little sis,” Cheshire began. “Y’er almost cool.”

The new girl looked at Cheshire, her expression still completely flat. She turned her attention to Taylor. “What is that thing, and why is it soiling my Onee-sama’s presence?”

Cheshire choked. “Bitch, I will cut you.”

New Girl put a casual hand on the hilt of her knife. “Not if I cut you first, Kuroneko.”

Taylor pinched the bridge of her nose. “No one is cutting anyone,” she declared. “Come on.”

Lights began to flash outside and the telltale sound of sirens approaching had all four girls tensing. Taylor grabbed Crochet and Cheshire by the hand and started moving towards the back. “Is the fire exit blocked?” she asked the owner.

“It isn’t,” the man said. “G-go ahead, miss.”

“Thanks. Come on, uh... new girl. Time to go.”

“Yes, Onee-sama.”