Even if he hadn't recognized the tattoos and the hair, that necklace would have given away Roze's identity to Dante in a heartbeat. He'd been putting on a false face of cheerfulness all day, keeping the mood of the festival and ignoring the fact that his Crest of Love felt heavy around his throat. Though he knew it would heal into a scar he could hide with ease, as it always did when he lost someone dear to him, it felt as if Roze had taken half of his heart with her when she'd disappeared. Now that he saw her again, it was like a weight was lifted off of his chest.

She looked different, but to the eyes of the half demon, it only made her more beautiful. While he preferred humans for the most part, the knowledge that she was a true hybrid, much like himself, meant that the reminder of her supernatural nature didn't carry with it the suggestion that she lacked the qualities almost only seen in mortals. And he knew that she didn't, though her cold expression told him that she had been through something rough recently.

Still, he couldn't help himself. As soon as he saw her, he broke into a run, nearly stumbling in the red kimono he'd worn in her honor, and threw himself into a hug that might have knocked over someone shorter or lacking in a tail for extra balance. Tears glittered behind his red mask, but he didn't care. All he cared about was that she was here...and that maybe her feelings for him hadn't faded because of her time away.

"Didn't think I'd see ya again..."