#and yes it's the same as the ame symbol from their forehead protectors

[a-flux-uchiha]

I’ve been meaning to post these for a while, we’re not technically done, since I haven’t done Mikoto yet, but what can you do.

From top left to bottom right, it is Dot(Grimoire), Tenten(Tome), and Mai(Archive), then on the bottom it’s Ivy(name undecided), and Kushina(Kitsune).

The top three are the focus of Shuriken, Spikes and Swords, a crossover magical girl au I’m still working on, although it is fully planned out, just not fully written out.

Kushina and Mikoto were the generation before them, so they function a bit as mentors. I'm hoping to write out some shenanigans from when they were active. I've been meaning to get around to doing Mikoto, although I haven't managed it yet. I have a sketch for her, I just have to do it.

Ivy will be introduced in a second fic, something I had been intending to do anyway, just because it's been a lot of fun working on SSS. I had been intending to just continue with the three from the first one, however...I am not active in loz anymore, and that is very much on purpose, so I'd rather not have a fic still involving that. So, we're swapping Dot out. She'll just be moving away and Ivy will take her place. Ivy will be a couple years younger then Tenten, so just a year younger then Dot.

Please ask me about this au, I love it dearly, I have so much for it.

It got Long, so design notes under the read more.

Design notes going from top left to bottom right:

Dot: Her colors were a little rough since, well, almost all of her associated colors are already in Tenten or Mai. Pink, Red, and Teal all show up in one of those two. So it was a bit of a struggle to work that out. I think it worked out alright in the end though. Her design was originally a bit more complicated, then someone noted that her design was more complicated then Tenten and Mai's, so I ended up simplifying it a bit in the final version. She does have a cape, although it's rather hard to see. I swear it's there though. The bag at her side holds her magical item, which is a book, a grimoire you could say. It holds spells and potions and other such things. Her and Tenten were designed first, then Mai, so I could work out what things the two of them had in common and make them show up in Mai, since she had the least direction as she doesn't have any particular typical outfit from her anime. If you're wondering, the golden orb is magic and yes it's fully there to hide the fingers of that hand. We don't talk about that hand. Oh yes, please note the crown as well, that blue diamond is something you can note shows up on Tenten, Mai, and Ivy. It's a sort of team identifier thing. It's used when multiple teams of magical girls are in the same area, for something like a natural disaster usually.

Tenten: I settled on that hair option after it was decided to be the superior one between it and something similar but with braids. That one's probably more fun, if very Sailor Moon ish. Oh well. Her outfit does look very similar to one of her canon ones, which of course is on purpose, although note her forehead protector has the blue diamond on it instead of the Konoha symbol. She has a thigh pouch, and the bag hanging from her waist holds her magic item, which is a scroll similar to the ones she used in Konoha. When she's transformed it holds seals for all weapons she used in Konoha, when she's not, she draws her own seals on it, and those work like normal seals where she needs to put something in to take something out, as opposed to the transformed seals, which just spawn things in for her. There's a good chance I designed her first, since she's got the easiest design. You'll notice the waist belt system thing also shows up on Kushina and will show up on Mikoto, that is on purpose.

Mai: There was no particular reason for the boob window, Mai just wanted one and thought it was fun. Which, fair. It's mostly blocked by her hand in the drawing though. She's holding her magical item, which is a binder she writes in. She uses it to keep track of things, including the kinds of monsters they're seeing and in what quantities. She's got a couple other uses for it too, but that's the big one. She's technically a support type magical girl as she does not have magic from a past life, but she does still have magic she can use. Her specific ability is to briefly slow down time. She can't use it for very long though, as she doesn't have much magic. She's got blue diamond earrings, and if you're wondering, no one can pull on them, they're actively not technically attached to her ears. Not just a design choice they're actively not attached. Grab one and pull and you're just going to pull it away. It'll reattach itself when you let go. Notes I had when designing her outfit primarily were the skirt design, the lining of the top and sleeves, the gloves length, the bag, and the presence of the blue diamonds. Oh and the boots being like that. Her hair is held back by a headband, to go with the forehead protector on Tenten, and Dot's crown and hair bow.

Kushina: Her name is Kitsune, I'm sure you can guess why. She originally did have the long elf-like ears the others do, but after she figured out she could change her transformed state, she swapped them out for the big fox ears. It doesn't really matter as long as the ears aren't human. (Editor's note, here I realized while looking at my Ivy design that I had forgotten to do the long ears, and hurried off to fix that, this post has the proper version.) The whiskers on her face are fully because she knows Naruto had em in the other world, and she remembered his birth(and her death) soon after she became a magical girl. So there are very very few pictures of the times Kushina didn't have whiskers or big fox ears. Her magical item is the necklace, Mikoto's is also a necklace, although hers is a hawk. If you're wondering, Mikoto does have giant hawk wings, just because she could. And she should match Kushina. Kushina's actually wearing shorts under the green over dress.

And Last but Not least, Ivy: I lowkey almost forgot to draw the long ears on em. Luckily I remembered before posting this lol. Most important thing here and now: I'm going with a genderfluid Ivy! Mostly since I think it'll be fun. There is gender stuff going on with the whole magical girl situation, and while this isn't on display with any of the others, I figured I might as well get someone on board who could show off that side of this. that's mostly why I ended up picking Ivy out of all of my options for who would replace Dot. I'll just be using she when describing Ivy this time, but I'll probably switch it up in future posts. Ivy's one of the rare genderfluid magical girls who doesn't mind being active when they're not a girl, many genderfluid individuals who become magical girls are only working essentially part time. Whenever they comfortable with it. They're only found in teams of 3 or more because of that, so there's always at least two active magical girls. Actual design notes now: She's wearing kind of a variant on what she's normally wearing in the show, just without the jacket. Her magical item is Sora, although the slime only comes alive when she's transformed. Otherwise it's just a cute little plushie she carries around. She does have a fourth bag in the back attached to the belt around her waist, similar to in the show, and she can pull about anything out of those bags that she wants to. Similar to Tenten's scroll, they just spawn in the item she needs, although they are temporary. The blue diamond is on her bag strap, so still visible. Sora often hides out in the red bag, and is capable of healing large injuries, as well as smaller scrapes. Can and will eat bigger things now as well, although still prefers the potions Ivy can toss it. You will note that Ivy doesn't match Tenten and Mai quite as well as they match each other and Dot, that is on purpose, that's fairly typical for magical girl teams where one person was added later, since Ivy didn't become active at the same time as them, although they are her first team, she's technically considered a latecomer, which isn't bad. It's fairly normal for magical girl teams to switch up who's in them, especially early on when everyone is in college and early adulthood. Oh yeah you can note that her bangs are slightly off, particularly in the front, that is on purpose on her part, they look like Lattrua's.

[coffeecomicsgalore]

For the Love of a Chat

NOTES: Had to finish the story with a long winded chapter! Sorry guys. I hope you enjoy!

Ao3

Chapter 31 - Time travel

Ladybug and Chat Noir bounced out of Marinette’s bedroom, making their way to the area the akuma was last seen. Lost Time was hanging out at Lycée Carnot when he called out for the victim he wanted.

“Where are you, ma chère Marinette?

“Marinette?” Ladybug questioned quietly as they perched silently on the building nearest to their high school. “What does he want with me?”

“Are you sure it’s for you, milady? Maybe it’s for another Marinette.”

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng!” He drawled out. Ladybug stared at Chat with an eye roll and Chat pursed his lips in a bit of protective haste.

“Who is that and why is he calling for you?”

Ladybug stared at the akuma for a long moment to figure out who the akuma could have been. Trying to denote the features and build, she gasped as one person came to mind.

“Jules?”  

Chat was about to question who this Jules-person was but Ladybug beat him to it. “He’s in my art program. He’s been flirting with me and I’ve been trying to stop it without being rude, never giving in to what he was saying because of being in love with you and all. He did ask me out once, but I turned him down as gently as I could.” She looked over to Chat and Chat’s eyes were narrowed and filled with a bit of jealousy. “Knock it off. I didn’t want to date him and as you can see, I’m with you.”

Chat’s ears drooped and he knew she was right. “Sorry.”

She placed a caring hand on his wrist. “Hey. It’s alright, Chat. Let’s focus on the akuma, okay?” When Chat smiled and nodded in agreement, she turned back to stare at the akuma. “But why? Why is he acting like this all of a sudden?”

“You rather hang out with a cat than spend time with me?” Lost Time laughed bitterly. “Why don’t you show your face to me. Then I can show you how to have a real good time.”

Both Ladybug and Chat smacked their foreheads and groaned.

“I’m surprised Alya didn’t say anything to me when we talked earlier.”

“Nino didn’t message me either to see if I had seen the photo. It must have happened over the last few hours or so when we were... you know” He waggled his brows.

Ladybug continued and ignored Chat’s false inuendo. “Either that, or someone placed it on social media before Alya found out about it and that’s how he found out.”

“But then that means people are going to think you’re dating Chat Noir.

“Even though I am....” She added with a wink and a flick to his bell. “Well, whatever the reasoning, we have a lot to figure out so we don’t expose you, Chat.”

“Yay...” He said sarcastically. “Alright, LB. What’s the plan?”

“Well, I’m going to need you to bring me there... as Marinette.”

“Ladybug, no. I can’t.

“It’s okay. I trust you to protect me, okay?”

Chat gave her a smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I’ll protect you. I promise.”

Ladybug detransformed and Marinette stood in her place. “Okay, Chat. He’s going to be angry at you, so you’ll need to drop me down somewhere below and I’ll walk over to him. Keep close to me in the shadows and if something seems wrong, come get me. I won’t know where the akuma is hiding until I get closer. He doesn’t seem very irrational, at least, not right now. We’ll see in a bit.”  

Chat dropped her down to the alleyway. When she felt okay enough to move forward, she nodded at Chat to hide. She meekly popped her head out of the alleyway and made her way to Lost Time.

“Jules?” Marinette called out, nervously.

“Marinette!” He announced, happily. Marinette walked closer to him; her hands were clutched to her heart to act like it was out of fear. “Please do not be scared. I won’t hurt you.”

Marinette finally reached him, her eyes constantly searching for an object that didn’t make sense to his wardrobe. She noticed he was wearing all black, numbers and empty clock ticks scattered all over his clothes in neon greens, purples, and yellows. His eyes were covered in translucent green shades, while his hands were covered with purple gloves. The only thing that stood out was a silver watch on his wrist.

“Jules? What happened. Why are you like this?”

His demeanor changed from happy to angry. “I’m not Jules. I’m Lost Time.” He started. “You. You broke my heart, Marinette. I have been flirting with you, talking with you, even asking you out, and yet you go out with that mangy tom cat? What does he have that I don’t?”

“Chat Noir took me out dancing because I was upset. But he is my best friend and he surprised me. Please, Jules. There’s nothing to be upset about.”

“Lies!” He screamed causing Marinette to take a step back. “I saw you dancing with him. I saw you holding him the way you did. I saw that you almost kissed him if it wasn’t for the fireworks scaring you apart. Don’t you dare lie to me with that nonsense. I. Saw. You! The pictures on Instagram don’t lie.”

Okay, so she was definitely going to have to wheedle her way out of this one somehow. But this also meant that she couldn’t date Adrien publicly right away until this entire mess is fixed.

“Okay, okay. Yes, we almost kissed. I won’t lie to you. I get why you’re upset, but please, I didn’t want to hurt you.”

“I lost my chance with you. Lost my time to be with you. Haven’t you ever felt like you lost time?” He said, his voice strained from the pain.

“I know how that feels, Jules. Please trust me. I lost so much time with someone because of my own fault. Because of my own insecurities. I get it.”

“Well, I don’t care how you feel because I’m hurt and the only way to fix this is if I give Hawkmoth Ladybug and Chat Noir’s miraculous.” The butterfly mask covered Lost Time’s eyes and as quickly as it came, it was gone. “Lucky for me, Hawkmoth gave me a great idea.”

Lost Time lunged at Marinette and she ran towards where she felt Chat would be hiding. Running quickly behind her, she could feel Lost Time gaining speed. Marinette looked over her shoulder and her eyes blew wide when he stuck out his arm and a ball of light started to form over his watch. Using his index and middle fingers, he pushed the beam out towards her.

Chat Noir jumped out just in time to leap her out of the way from a blast of light. Lost Time groaned out in anger as he watched Chat pick up Marinette bridal style off to an area where he could safely put her down.

A few more beams of light pounced towards them, one actually hitting them and engulfing them in a translucent light.

“Bye-bye kitty cat. I wonder how you’re Ladybug is going to do without her protector around.”

---

Marinette woke up splayed out on the roof of a building. Chat was already awake, rubbing his head as he overlooked his position.

“Chat?” Marinette groaned out as she sat herself up.  

Chat ran over to Marinette and helped her up. “Hey are you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. I feel woozy, but I’m okay.” She looked up at him and could see a bruise forming on his forehead. She pushed his hair away to look at the injury better. “You have a bump. Are you okay?”

“Besides that, yeah. I’m okay. We’re still in Paris, but it isn’t our timeline anymore.”

“What do you mean?” Marinette said, confused. Chat pointed to a billboard over on the other side of the rooftop where it showed an older Adrien Agreste wearing a fitted black suit, a black button down with the silver buttons with an “M” inscribed on each one, and a signature red tie. He gave the camera a smoldering look, a slight smirk pulling at the edge of his lips, while his thumb pulled his bottom lip down just a tiny bit.  

“Damn, Adrien.” Marinette said, fanning herself. “You age amazingly.”

“That’s not all, Marinette. Look in the corner.”

Marinette looked and noticed a change in who Adrien was modeling for. “MDC? But that’s my symbol. That’s my signature.” She turned to him. “I- I made it?”

Chat gave her a tight squeeze. “I always knew you could do it.”

“I don’t mean to rain on your parade, but...”

Chat and Marinette turned around and noticed three figures standing on the rooftop.  

“Hey Minibug, Kitty Noir!” Bunnyx waved at them, excitedly. “We were wondering when you were going to show up.”

“Bunnyx? Ladybug? Chat Noir?” Marinette called out, looking at each one.

“Hey you two.” The older Ladybug called out. Her hair was out of her signature pigtails and into a ponytail. Her suit had changed too. She wore a red and black spotted high collar jacket over a black skin tight suit and gloves with a pair of red and black spotted thigh-high boots. She looked to be about 25 if Marinette had to guess.

“Nice of you to beam in.” The older Chat Noir said making younger Chat laugh out in a fit of giggles. His suit looked exactly the same except his zipper went down a little to where his bell used to sit. His hair was a high fade with longer teased locks dripped over to one side. He had a more muscular build, but overall looked as good as the billboard they spotted him on.

“I can see that I don’t stop punning, huh?” Younger Chat Noir finally said.

“Not at all, mini-me. We actually get better with our puns.”

“Told you Marinette. You’ll have to live with this furrever!”

“He’s right you know.” Older Ladybug teased. She walked up to Marinette and placed a hand on her shoulder. She gave Marinette a confident smile. “I can at least tell you this much. It’s okay you know. I remember this whole akuma and I remember what I had told myself right before the alert came out.” She quickly looked over at the older Chat Noir who was chatting away with his younger self. She knew he was going to give the same speech but with an added pun or two to break the ice. “He’s not wrong in his pre-proposal, even though he couldn’t wait 5 seconds after revealing himself.”

Marinette looked over to Chat and he was positively beaming. Older Ladybug leaned down and whispered something to her ear. “Keep this between you and me, but Adrien is going to need something positive to keep his focus on. It’s going to be a big year for both of you in so many ways. I won’t give away too much because I don’t want the future to change over something I said, but remember to follow his lead on some things, give him all the love you know he deserves, and always keep working together, no matter how hard some moments become.”

Marinette looked up with a frown. “Okay. I promise you I will.”

“I know you will.” Ladybug stood back up and looked over to Chat to see if he had finished his part of their conversation. When older Chat Noir looked up, they nodded towards each other in silent communication over their next move.  

“Alright. We are all here to bring these two back to their timeline. Marinette. You are going to be bait. Mini-kitty. You’re going to keep tabs on her and be by her side the entire time. You are going to lure him out and then capture the akuma. I’ll be on standby to help purify the akuma since Marinette can’t do it. Kitty, I want you to stand by in case something goes wrong. Bunnyx. You keep an eye out to make sure the akuma isn’t messing up the time line. Everyone got it?”

“Got it.” Everyone said in unison.

Ladybug called out for her Lucky Charm and a ring dropped into her hands. Ladybug winked at Marinette and older Chat Noir let out a happy chuckle as he crossed his arms and shook his head.

“I remember this. Mini-kitty. That one’s for you.”

Mini-kitty beamed again and Marinette looked over to him with a happy sigh. “Later kitty. Okay?”

“Okay!”

Chat took out his baton and helped bring the two of them back onto the ground. They called out for Lost Time.

“Jules!” Marinette yelled; her hands wrapped around her mouth like a megaphone. “Jules, come out. Can we talk?”

Chat followed her lead. “Jules? Lost Time? I wanted to apologize. You can have Marinette! I’m not in love with her! I just got caught up in the moment.” Marinette stopped for a second and stared at him.  

“What?” He said with a shrug. “We have to lure him out somehow.”

Marinette went back to calling. “Jules? Please come ou-”

A bright light appeared and Lost Time dropped onto the street in front of them. “Well, well, well. You are giving up on her that easily? I told you Marinette, he’s not worth it.”

Marinette ran up to the akuma and grabbed onto his hands. “You’re right, Jules. I’m so sorry for never giving you a chance.” She lowered her hands until it rested on his forearms. “Could you ever forgive me for how I rejected you?”

Jules narrowed his eyes but a hint of a smile could be seen. He gazed into her bright blue eyes. “Do you- do you really mean that?”

“Yes. Jules. Secretly, I liked you. I was just too enamored with my old crush to see the truth.” Marinette placed one hand on his cheek as she continued to lower her other hand until it reached the watch. “So how about that date?”

“Da- date?” The akuma swallowed, still staring into her eyes.  

“Of course.” She continued until she reached the watch, unclasping it from its spot and throwing it behind her.

“Chat!” She screamed out, throwing the watch in his direction.

Chat called out his cataclysm, grasping onto the watch as it disintegrated into ash. Ladybug and older Chat Noir dropped down beside their younger selves and Ladybug captured the akuma, purifying it into the white butterfly.

Bunnyx dropped down beside the older duo, and the three winked as they managed quick goodbyes.

Ladybug called out for her Miraculous Ladybug and as quickly as they arrived, they were back to their original timeline.

“Time travel is weird.” Marinette said to Chat as he nodded to agree.

After Chat made sure the akuma victim was alright and Marinette talked over the problem with Jules, Chat Noir helped Marinette onto his back, bouncing over the rooftops until they reached her balcony.

“So that was a wild ride, huh Marinette?”

Chat detransformed and Adrien wrapped his arms around Marinette’s waist.

“You’re telling me.” Marinette nuzzled her nose into his neck. “So, Ladybug told me something today.”

“And what’s that bug?”

“That I should follow my heart.”

Adrien pulled away from her for a second and scrunched his nose. “Well, what is your heart telling you?”

“That you’re right and if you still want an answer to your question, I can give you an answer.”

Adrien waited with bated breath. “If you really don’t want to wait to propose to me, then I won’t make you wait. When you’re ready, ask me. I already know my answer.”

He smiled brightly, his pearly white teeth beaming in the moonlight. “Well don’t make me wait bug. What’s your answer?”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down into a long, but gentle, kiss. When she pulled away to take a breath, she leaned her forehead against his and peered into his glossy green eyes.

“Yes.”

------------------------------

I wanted to say thank you all for all the kudos and comments. I never planned on writing this story, but my Marichat heart could not hold out from writing it.

Thank you for hanging out with me these last 31 days and I hope you enjoyed the final chapter.

[raywritesthings]

Fate

My Writing Fandom: Arrow Characters: Oliver Queen, Laurel Lance, Kent Nelson, Thea Queen, Quentin Lance, John Diggle, Felicity Smoak Pairing: Laurel Lance/Oliver Queen Summary: A different sorcerer intervenes on the night of Black Canary's untimely death, putting the multiverse back on track. *Also posted to AO3*

Oliver felt overcome. After all this time and assuming what he’d felt had to be true — that Laurel, though still his oldest friend, could never hold the same love for him she once did — he was learning just how wrong he’d been. And it was breaking his heart.

Laurel smiled up at him from her bed, still trying to be brave and kind for him even after confessing what had to be one of her deepest-held secrets. Her smile was tinged with sadness, and the truth was it had been for a while. What he wouldn’t give to take that sadness away.

Life wasn’t fair. She knew that far better than him.

“I need you to promise me something,” she said in a voice soft with both exhaustion and emotion. Oliver could only bring himself to nod.

Before Laurel could draw another breath, however, a brilliant golden light suddenly flared to life behind them. Oliver whirled around, one arm shielding his eyes and the other flung out to cover Laurel’s bed. He squinted and could make out a vaguely recognizable symbol before a person floated through it.

The stranger wore blue and gold, with a cape and helmet covering their entire face. A voice emanated from it, deep and powerful.

“Oliver Queen. Dinah Laurel Lance. Do not be alarmed.”

But in the next moment, the door to Laurel’s hospital room slammed shut, and the curtain was pulled over the window. Oliver glimpsed Thea and John both running towards the door, yet though the handle started to turn, it made no sound.

“Who are you? What are you doing here?” He wasted no time in demanding. It was obvious the man was a sorcerer of some sort, and they’d had far too much of magic for one night.

“I am called Dr. Fate, and I have been watching this world for some time.”

“This world,” Laurel echoed. She was doing her best to sit up, but the movement was taxing her. “You mean you’re from Earth 2?”

“Not quite. But my origin is of little concern. I am here because the stability of this world, and therefore every other world in the multiverse, is at risk.” The golden symbol behind him had disappeared, and this Dr. Fate touched down onto the floor and took a step closer. Oliver moved to block him.

“I understand your wariness, Green Arrow, but we do not have much time.”

“What do you mean?”

“In minutes, this Earth’s Dinah Laurel Lance will suffer a fatal embolism.”

Oliver froze and looked back at Laurel. Her eyes were wide and afraid.

“I’m dying?”

“Yes,” said Fate, with not a hint of emotion. “This was never meant to happen, but too much meddling with the timeline has caused terribly disruptive changes. Changes that will lead to a Crisis across every Earth.” With the slightest tilt of his helmet, the sorcerer looked from her to Oliver. “Without Black Canary and your descendants, your mission to save Star City will fail, Green Arrow. Only with my intervention can we hope to prevent this.”

“How?” The man was a stranger, he had trapped them in this room, and there was absolutely no reason to trust him. But Oliver couldn’t take the chance that he was right, not when it meant Laurel’s death. The idea alone was enough to make him feel faint.

“With my power, I can heal her. It will take a small transference of energy, and your previous connection facilitated by John Constantine provides the most reliable source.”

His energy. Some of his life.

“No,” said Laurel, her voice stronger than it had been. She was forcing herself.

“It is the only way.”

“Not if it hurts him.” She looked from Dr. Fate to Oliver. “Ollie, I could never ask you to do that.”

“Laurel, if we don’t—”

“You’ll be fine. I know you will, because that’s what you do. You have Thea and John and Felicity to help you protect the city.” She winced, one hand going to the wound in her side. “If the timeline’s changed, then it’s changed. It’s changed so you don’t need me.”

Fate stood there silently, neither confirming nor denying. But Oliver didn’t need him to.

“It can’t have changed that much, Laurel. Because I’m always going to need you. And you never have to ask.” He looked back to the sorcerer. “What do we need to do?”

“You must join hands. I will handle the rest.”

Laurel clasped her own hands together, stubborn as always. “Oliver.”

“Hey,” he said in a softer voice. Oliver sat on the edge of her bed. “Laurel, you are always going to be someone important to me. Necessary to me. Someone I love.”

“But—”

He cupped her face with one hand, and Laurel fell silent.

“I don’t know how I deserve to be the man you fell in love with, and it wouldn’t be fair of me to make that same promise to you now.” There were so many emotions and thoughts going through his head right now; he couldn’t begin to parse out the nature of his true feelings. Not when he’d only to recently been set to pledge his life and heart to someone else. Laurel deserved more than some rushed declaration.

He took hold of the photograph Laurel had dropped onto the bed sheet when Fate appeared. “But I made a promise the day I washed up on that island. A promise to come home and to make things right between you and me. After so many years, Laurel, let me fulfill that promise now.”

She opened her mouth and seemed to struggle to find her voice for a moment. “Ollie, I...I’m not worth it.”

His eyes stung with a sudden sharpness as it felt like someone had punched him in the gut. He wanted to scream, to rip through every person who had made her feel that way; everyone who had ever tried to convince him she was too much trouble or too much of a distraction; and no one more than himself.

Oliver pulled her close. “Oh, Laurel. I’m sorry. But you’re worth more than you know.” His lips pressed to the top of her head. “More than I could ever hope to be.”

“I need an answer,” Fate stated.

“Just trust me. One last time,” Oliver murmured to her. He pulled back, and Laurel gave a single slow nod. Placing his hands in hers, he looked back to Dr. Fate. “Yes.”

“And not a moment too soon.” His eyes glowed even brighter as his arms raised toward them. Laurel gave a cough and seized up, but Oliver held fast to her hands. Together, they were shining with that same golden glow.

It passed from him to her, and as Laurel gave a gasp of air he felt a wave of exhaustion overtake him. The glow receded, and Oliver slumped forward.

Two arms came around him. “Ollie!”

His eyes fell shut, and he slipped off to dreams.

—-

Laurel was invigorated and terrified. She held Oliver where he had fallen into her lap and tried to wake him. “Oliver, please!”

“He will be fine, but he must rest a while,” the sorcerer called Dr. Fate proclaimed.

She looked up with a glare. “Why did you tell him to do that? It’s his life. He shouldn’t have given it to me.”

“The choice to share it with you was his. And that choice has hopefully saved the multiverse.”

Laurel shook her head. She had only just started to accept the existence of one additional earth, and it was hard to contemplate an unlimited number of them. Harder still to imagine her continued existence would have much of any affect on them.

“I sense your doubt, but that does not change your destiny as one of this Earth’s fiercest protectors. Green Arrow will be one of your first challenges. You have seen the good in him, and you must help him to see that as well. Should he fall, it will mean the beginning of the end for your city.”

Her one arm was draped over Oliver’s back, and she curled her fingers into the fabric of his sweater. “How do you know all this?”

“That is a question far too complicated to answer for the time we have. Rest and recover, Black Canary. I would suggest a trip to Central City in the coming weeks.”

Laurel’s eyes narrowed. “Why?”

But the sorcerer only turned and rose into the air as that same strange golden symbol appeared in front of him. He floated through, and the whole thing vanished.

An instant later, the door to her hospital room was kicked in by John, and he, Thea, and her father all rushed through.

“Laurel!”

“It’s okay! We’re okay!” She held up both hands, and the three of them relaxed. For a moment.

“What’s happened to Ollie?” Thea moved to her brother’s side, and John stuck his head out of the door to call for a nurse.

“He, um, fainted. It’s hard to explain.”

Her father came up to the opposite side of the bed and kissed her forehead. “You sure you’re alright? I got here, and they said there was this golden light and the door locked itself.”

“Well, there was a sorcerer — a good one, I guess.” He seemed to at least care about maintaining some kind of peace and order in the world, anyway. “He, um, he saved my life with Ollie’s help.”

She looked back down at him, sleeping in her lap like he used to all those years ago. With his face relaxed and stress-free, she could almost imagine the time hadn’t passed.

“Excuse me,” a nurse said as she squeezed through the door. Her way had been impeded slightly by Felicity, who was standing there and silently watching. Laurel guiltily moved her hands away from Oliver once more.

The nurse called for a bed for Oliver, then moved to check Laurel’s monitors. She frowned. “Miss Lance, how are you feeling?”

“I’m fine, really.”

“You’ve recovered far quicker than would be expected.”

“So she really is fine?” Her father asked. Laurel rolled her eyes. Trust him not to take her word for it. Her annoyance was tempered knowing how worried he had to be, though.

“She seems to be in perfect health. We’ll need her to stay overnight for observation. Now, while I’m here, I’ll check the dressing on your injury, Miss Lance.”

The others all left the room as the nurse set to work. She and Laurel both received a shock, however, when the bandages were pulled away to reveal her wound healed over. The faintest outline of an arrowhead rested over the spot where it had once been, like a tattoo.

“But that- you—” The nurse stammered.

“Um, probably best you don’t ask,” Laurel recommended. She didn’t have even the first idea of where to begin a cover story for this.

Her nurse left soon after, and her father entered the room with Felicity.

“She looked worried,” her dad pointed out.

“More disturbed,” Laurel said. “The sorcerer healed my wound completely, which would be enough to throw anybody.”

“Why did he show up?” Felicity asked. “I mean, who was he?”

“He called himself Dr. Fate, and he said I wasn’t supposed to die tonight. That bad things would happen if I did,” Laurel answered.

“So a guy called Fate told you and Oliver that you needed to stay alive and he needed Oliver’s help to make that happen,” her friend summed up.

“Yeah. He shouldn’t have done it,” Laurel said, her eyes on the covers.

“Well, that’s never stopped him. Oliver would do just about anything to keep you safe Laurel. He’s been that way ever since I’ve known him.” When she looked up, Felicity was watching her with a knowing look. It wasn’t accusing; just aware. She laid a hand on Laurel’s arm. “Let me know when you’re discharged tomorrow, and we’ll get breakfast or brunch or whatever mealtime it is. We can order it in, even. I think I should head home.”

“Okay,” Laurel agreed softly. She didn’t know what else to say, and Felicity was already on her way out the door.

“Think she might know something?” Her father asked.

Laurel let out a pitiful groan. “It’s worse than that. I told Oliver.”

“Oh, baby.” He sat beside her and put an arm around her shoulders.

“I must have subconsciously known I was dying,” she decided, resting her head on his shoulder. Why else would she have done something so monumentally stupid? “It’s not like I knew literal Fate was going to get in the way.”

“Well, I for one am glad that it did. We can handle the rest. You know, Oliver, he’s become a much better man.”

“I know.” Whatever his feelings, she was sure Oliver would be kind about it. She just wasn’t sure she was ready for that conversation to happen.

Thea and John both came back in.

“Ollie’s gonna be fine,” Thea told them, relief evident in her tone.

“Yeah, just looks like he might have a new tattoo,” John added. “Some kind of bird?”

Laurel’s eyebrows shot up her forehead, and she could feel her cheeks heating up. Her friends both crossed their arms, and her father was looking down at her.

“I don’t know how that happened.”

“I guess it was Fate,” Thea joked with quirked lips.

Laurel grabbed at the sheet and started to pull it up in an effort to hide.

“Alright, enough talking,” her father said. “Even if you’re healed, you should still get some sleep.” He hugged her tightly for a moment, then stood up and joined the others as they left.

Laurel settled back against her pillows, trying to organize the different thoughts and feelings cluttering her mind. She had been spared death at the hands of Darhk, and with it had come a cryptic warning about the future of their city and their world. Could they trust the sorcerer’s word? Even if he had healed her, what if it had simply been for his own purposes?

Maybe Constantine would know who this Dr. Fate was. Oliver could always ask him. Of course, thinking of Oliver only returned her to the more immediate problem she was facing.

Could they really work together as a team the way they needed to now that he knew the truth? Why couldn’t they have been interrupted before she’d made that stupid, sentimental claim? She’d been so relieved to say it in the moment, but the more she thought of the fallout the worse her insides seemed to squirm.

Laurel resolutely closed her eyes and focused on her breathing the way Nyssa had once trained her to do. Staying up the whole night chasing her head in circles would do no one good. She needed to be ready for the next time they faced Darhk, and for whatever was coming for them in the future.

One of those things would apparently be waiting for her in Central City, if this Dr. Fate was to be believed. She wasn’t sure whether to look forward to it or dread it.

—-

His sleep, at first peaceful, turned fitful as he came closer to waking up. Oliver kept reliving those moments where he’d been frozen at the prison, helpless to do anything but watch as Darhk stabbed Laurel with his own arrow. Her face, so sad but trying to put a smile on for him as she’d confessed her love. The certainty with which she’d claimed he didn’t feel the same.

“Your mission to save Star City will fail, Green Arrow,” the disembodied voice of the sorcerer spoke. “Without Black Canary…”

He sat up, breathing hard.

“Hey, hey, you’re fine,” Thea said. She leaned forward in the visitor’s chair at his bedside and took one of his hands.

“Speedy?”

“Yeah, Ollie. How are you feeling?”

“Okay.” He swallowed. His throat felt a little dry, and his brain was still a little sluggish, but he felt well enough that he had to wonder what he was doing in a hospital. “What happened?”

“Well, from what I’ve been told, you let a sorcerer transfer some of your energy or something to Laurel so she wouldn’t die. Then you passed out for most of a day.”

Oliver blinked. On some level, he’d thought that maybe everything to do with Dr. Fate had been a dream of his. Some way to cope.

“So Laurel’s okay?”

Thea nodded. “Has been since last night. A little nervous, but.” She shrugged and sat back. “Ollie, What all happened when that sorcerer showed up? Laurel only mentioned that he needed you to help save her life.”

Oliver closed his eyes, casting his mind back. “He told us he’d been watching things on this Earth, and that things had been going wrong because of all the changes to the timeline.” He didn’t know if that had been referring to the fight between speedsters that had gone on in Central City last year or Sara and Ray’s escapades through time along with the others. That would be something to worry about later.

“Because of the changes, Laurel was stabbed by Darhk and was gonna die before she was meant to.” Even the memory of that was enough to make his heart start to beat faster with worry. “According to him, if she did die, Star City wasn’t gonna make it in the end. And neither would this Earth.”

Thea’s eyes were wide as could be. “Really?”

Oliver gave a grim nod. “He told me directly: without the Black Canary and—”

But Oliver’s mouth ran completely dry as he remembered exactly what Fate had said.

Your descendants.

He’d said it to Oliver but linked it to Laurel. There wouldn’t be much reason to do that unless…

“Ollie?”

He cleared his throat. “Um, yeah. So he offered to heal her with my help, and I agreed.” He wasn’t going to get into the struggle that had been getting Laurel to agree. Her insistence that she wasn’t worth him sacrificing even some small part of himself was too raw in his memory. “I’m sorry if you and the others were worried.”

Thea shook her head. “I’m just glad you’re both okay. You and Laurel are practically the only family I have left.”

“Yeah.” Oliver looked down. If there was anyone he trusted to talk to about this, it was his sister. “Before Fate showed up, Laurel and I were talking, and she told me she still has feelings for me.”

Thea was silent.

“I take it you already knew.”

“I could guess.” She shifted to one side in her chair and added, “It wasn’t really my place to ask. I mean, we all thought you and Felicity were a done deal.”

“So did I.” And that was the problem. He’d thought he and Laurel were finished, and he’d grown to see Felicity as the woman he would spend the rest of his life with. Now Felicity wasn’t interested in that kind of life with him, but did that mean he was only treating Laurel as a consolation? Or had Felicity been the consolation when he’d thought there was no chance for him and Laurel? Was kind of person did that make him that he couldn’t make up his mind?

Thea sighed. “Look, I’m with you whatever happens. I want you to be happy. And in more than the temporary sense.”

He frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I mean once the honeymoon’s over, once the novelty’s worn off. We lead tough lives, Ollie, and you make tough choices all the time,” she reminded him. “A partner, a spouse, they have to be able to deal with that. To believe in you, and stick with you even through the rough patches.”

“You’ve thought a lot about the kind of person I should be with.”

“That’s the kind of person we all should be with,” she replied. “Look at John and Lyla. They don’t always agree about what the other’s doing, but they talk it out. They don’t just walk away.” She leaned forward. “I’m trying to spare you what mom went through with Walter.”

Oliver let out a breath, his eyes falling closed. Thea didn’t have to say another word; he knew exactly what that meant.

Their mother had found happiness with Walter, but it had been built on a false and temporary foundation — the same as the slice of life he’d tried to carve out for himself and Felicity in Ivy Town. But just as his mother hadn’t really been the blameless woman Walter had married, Oliver wasn’t that perfect guy Felicity had run away with. Their demons ran deep, and neither Walter nor Felicity knew how to survive that. So they’d left.

Which left Laurel. Always there, always waiting for him to wise up, to realize when he’d made a mistake, to care for him even when she was absolutely screaming furious at him. She knew him better than just about anyone, without him having to explain a thing, and loved him anyway. It was humbling, the depth of her devotion. He did not deserve it. He was almost scared of it, the sheer intensity, he always had been.

But it was time to stop being a coward. After everything he had put her through, after almost losing her last night, he needed to at least try to be the man she saw in him. Save some of the light for himself, just as she had told him.

There was a knock on the door, and he and Thea both looked up as Laurel came through. She was dressed to leave in one of those big sweaters she loved wearing on her days off, and she bit at her bottom lip for a moment when their eyes met.

“You’re awake. Good.”

“Yeah.”

“Oliver, I really am sorry.”

He gave a single shake of the head. “There’s nothing to be sorry about. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”

Thea stood up. “Think I’ll go see about getting your discharge papers. You guys should compare your matching tattoos.” She threw him a wink over her shoulder as she reached the door, then left.

“Tattoos?” He had to ask.

“Um, yeah. We’re pretty sure they’re a souvenir from Dr. Fate,” Laurel explained. “Check your right side.”

She brought one hand to hover over where her wound had been. Oliver lifted the sleep shirt he’d been put in to find a new tattoo just below the one Constantine had given him. “A canary?”

“Mine’s an arrowhead,” Laurel replied, her eyes anywhere but on him.

If not for her discomfort, he might have found himself a little pleased at the information. As it was, he got up from the bed. “Laurel, about what you told me—”

“Oliver, it really doesn’t have to matter.”

He blinked. “Of course it matters. I care about how you’re feeling, Laurel.”

She waved a hand. “I mean that it doesn’t have to matter in regards to — you know, you and Felicity.”

He looked down. “There is no more me and Felicity. That’s gonna take me some time to get over, but there’s no point in denying it’s true. She’s not interested in anything with me romantically, and that’s my own fault.”

Barry had even warned him back when he’d first learned about William, but Oliver had made the decision to keep his son a secret anyway. He’d deemed William and Samantha’s privacy and boundaries more important and hoped that Felicity would understand and forgive him his choice. That she hadn’t was not a fault on her part; he had been well aware she had little tolerance for secrets. He’d only been fooling himself thinking that their opposite viewpoints could coexist long term.

It wasn’t Felicity’s responsibility to forgive him his errors any more than it was Laurel’s, but he could recognize which of the two had demonstrated a willingness to do so time and again. It was the woman standing before him now and watching him with a compassionate look.

“You don’t have to give up right away, Ollie. Relationships take work and compromise, and they can survive things like this.”

“Can they survive being walked out on twice?”

Laurel looked away, which was an answer even if not in words. “I just don’t want you changing your mind because of something I said.”

“I can’t pretend you didn’t say it. I’m sorry, but it does change things,” he told her honestly. “Because instead of hanging onto something that is already over, I’m realizing what I already have. And that is one of my best friends who has always done her best to be there for me no matter what.”

Laurel glanced up at him from the corners of her eyes.

“No matter what,” Oliver repeated, “you’re a partner in my life. And I know I haven’t always been the best partner to you. I ask too much, I take for granted that you will be there. So much so that I had no idea what to do last night when we almost lost you.”

“But you did,” she said softly. “You got me to the hospital, Ollie. You were there when Dr. Fate showed up.”

“Because I couldn’t let go. God, Laurel, the nurse had to practically force me to let go of your hand,” he admitted. He could feel his eyes stinging again. “I’m far from the person who deserves to share their life with you, and I don’t want to rush this. I want to change and make myself better first. And I hate having to ask you to wait for that.”

She moved and in the space of one breath had him in her arms. He buried his head in her shoulder and simply relished the feel of her, so warm and alive. If he could stand here holding her forever, it would be the closest to heaven he could ever hope to reach.

“You can take whatever time you need. I’m always going to be here, Oliver.” Her hands rubbed his back once, and in a tone flavored with her wry humor she added, “Apparently I have to be for the sake of the multiverse.”

He choked on a laugh. “That’s one thing I can believe in.”

It was all a little too much, too soon, too fast. They always were. But if he was being given this last chance, he was going to make it right.

[cottontail20]

A Legend All Their Own, Chapter 40: Family Crest

Summary: In the midst of preparing for war, Wanda and Vision find a moment of Joy

Ao3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16736589/chapters/44392297

The meeting with Odin delayed Wanda and Vision's plans, just a little. The King decided that nothing should be announced to the people, about Ultron's declaration of war or otherwise, until they could show that they well on the way to being prepared for what was to come. Showing that they had a plan, that they knew how to keep at least most of them alive, would be a comfort and limit any panic.

The news would be kept on a need to know basis- Wanda, Vision, Doctor Strange, the Avengers, the Asgardian Royal Family, and the top ranks of Asgard's army were the only ones made aware of Ultron's letter.

And so, the preparations began. --

Up until now, the battles that Wanda and Vision had fought in together had been relatively small in scale. They had been lucky to get by without any sort of armor so far, but now they were heading into real, all out war. Yes, Vision could make himself intangible with the Mind Stone, but could only do the same for Wanda if he was touching her. He liked to think that, as her protector, he would always be close enough to do so, but the reality was that a larger battle meant a larger chance that they could get separated.

So, armor. And, as it turned out when the subject came up, Wanda had already had some thoughts about this.

"What have you got there?" Vision, slightly surprised, looked up from a book on famous Asgardian battle strategies as Wanda sat beside him, laying a roll of parchment on the table.

"Armor designs" Wanda replied, unrolling the parchment so he could look at the plans. "For you. Stark helped me, and Thor offered a few suggestions. If you like it, we'll go give the designs to the armorer and get you properly fitted.."

Vision looked at the sketched plans. A few technical notes were scrawled around, probably Tony's input, and the armor seemed similar to Thor's, including a golden cape, showing off the heir to Asgard's influence. The color was clearly Wanda's idea.. She loved him in teal. There was a symbol in the center of the armor's breastplate that he didn't immediately recognize, but at a second glance seemed very familiar. It looked rather like the Mind Stone, surrounded by a scarlet flame.

"This symbol.."

"Ah.." Wanda blushed. "I spent a little longer on that than I probably should have."

"It looks like.."

"The Mind Stone.. and my powers. I was thinking it might work as a new royal sigil, or family crest.. Ours, maybe?"

"Wanda.." Vision felt a lump in his throat. Not so long ago, he had been nothing, no one. No real name, no family. Just an orphan, street urchin and a thief. Now he was the son of a Valkyrie. The keeper of the Mind Stone, Protector of The Scarlet Witch. Engaged to the Princess, with her wanting him to be her King.. Including him in her Family Crest.. Their crest..

"Vizh? If you don't like it, we can.. mph.."

Vision kissed Wanda, cutting her off. A soft, loving kiss, lips gently brushing over hers, and she returned the kiss, a contented sigh escaping her. Vision wanted to kiss her every chance he got right now, in case this war didn't go the way they hoped, and his chances to kiss her ran out. He would be kissing Wanda every waking moment if he could, but that pesky little thing called 'needing to breathe' stopped him, just as it stopped him now. Breaking the kiss, his forehead pressed against hers as they caught their breath. Wanda was sitting in Vision's lap now. He wasn't quite sure when that had happened, but he didn't mind. The Thief cupped his Princess's cheek, and she leaned into his touch.

"The crest is perfect, Wanda" He told her. "The armor is perfect. You are perfect. Thank you.. I was just.. I've never had a family before, so.."

"You do now" Wanda ran her fingers through Vision's soft golden hair, as she'd often dreamed of doing before they were together. "You have me."

"I am a very lucky man.."

"And I am a lucky woman."

They stayed like that for quite a while, enjoying the simple comfort of being in each other's arms, before Vision finally spoke again.

"We should take these plans to the armorer and get me fitted. I imagine these would take a while to make."

"Probably."

"And you need to be fitted for armor too."

"I know" Wanda curled closer to Vision, quite reluctant to move. "As long as they don't make it too tight around.." She paused, frowning, as if suddenly unsure why what she'd been going to say mattered. Armor was meant to serve a purpose, it didn't have to be comfortable. Still, she couldn't help feeling a little concerned about it, even if she wasn't sure why.

"Too tight around what?" Vision asked.

"I don't know.. I just think I might need a little bit of extra breathing room, that's all. I don't like feeling constricted.."

"Then we will make sure that you are not" He kissed her cheek, and Wanda couldn't help but smile.

"Thanks, Vizh." --

All those who knew about the coming war devoted much more time to training, in order to get themselves prepared.

Vision was currently training with Thor, who was going to teach him a few of his favorite tricks with Mjolnir, in case an opportunity arose where he would need to use it.

"How does it feel?" Thor asked him, rather excited. He had always thought he would be jealous if he found another worthy of his hammer, but for some reason, he did not feel that way at all with Vision holding it. There was definitely something special about the Mind Stone's keeper.

"It's strange" Vision gave Mjolnir a little test swing. "It seems like it should be heavier, but it's actually very well balanced.."

On the other side of the Training Grounds, Wanda had been working with Clint, practicing halting arrows with her power. Pausing for a short break while Clint retrieved his scattered arrows (harmless practice ones of course), Wanda glanced over to where Vision was training with Thor, carefully swinging the hammer. A small smile crossed her face.

"Proud of your boy, huh?" Asked Clint, returning with his arrows.

"I am, actually.. Aren't I allowed to be?"

"Oh, you're definitely allowed. I tried to lift that damn hammer and it wouldn't budge."

Wanda chuckled. Then she looked at the crowded training grounds, to Nat sparring with Steve a short distance away, Tony measuring Peter for something. Scattered among them were Sokovians training with various weapons. And suddenly, Wanda thought she might have a solution to her problem in helping everyone accept Vision.

"Clint, you and Natasha are good at gathering information, right?"

"It's our job, so, yeah, we are."

"How are you at spreading it?"

"We did a bit to get the good word out for the Avengers in the early days" Clint replied. "Why, something you need people to know, Princess?"

"Well.."

Wanda told Clint everything, about Vision's origins, what his eyes meant, that he was the son of a Valkyrie.

Clint blinked.

"That.. Is a pretty great story."

"It's all true" Wanda smiled. "Think you can spread it to the masses for me?"

"Yeah" Clint nodded. "I'll get the other Avengers on it too."

"Maybe add the story about how he saved me in the battle at Stanville?"

"Done" Clint saluted her, then rushed off to talk to Nat and Steve.

Vision caught Wanda's eye, waving to her across the grounds, and she waved back, grinning. Everything was coming together.

[axela-storm]

Werewolf Au : 12. So, you are not dreaming

*****************

"Now, that we are friends, can you tell me what is this place, and why am I here?" Melamory lifted Nairel in her arms. "You look very real, and you weigh a lot .."

"Hmm ... well, in some sense I'm very real, but not everyone can see me or come in here, and I can't leave this place without ... without you." Nairel was looking at Melamory's face.

"Why? Can you explain it to me?"

"Well, I'm not sure if I can explain it to you well, but I can tell you something about me.

And so, you can understand more things, but first ... put me down please ... "

"Oh..ha ha ha ..sorry" Melamory put the fox on the ground.

"Much better, thank you, now answer me a question, who do you think I am?" Nairel inclined his head.

"Hmm … a fox?"

"No, think again..."

"What do you expect me to tell you, I only see a chatty fox in front of me, but in a dream that may be normal, right?"

"Dream? Do you think you're dreaming?"

"Yes, real foxes can't talk." She shrugged.

"Your logic is not wrong, but if you are dreaming right now, why don't you wake up?"

"How will I do it? Nobody can wake up because they want to, this does not work like that.

You are confusing me, can you speak more clearly? "

"Okay" Nairel sighed, "But don’t be scared .."

"Scared, me? .. Now yes, I'm starting to get scared. Come on, talk ..." Melamory sat on a stone and crossed her arms in her chest, "Start explaining everything to me, Nairel."

Nairel jumped onto the stone too, so he was closer to her, thus it was more comfortable to talk.

"Well, this place used to be called Helheim a long time ago, but now many things have changed.

And now this is just a small place, hidden between worlds.

I have lived here for many years waiting, and not only me, all the creatures of this world live only for a one purpose, to become the disir, fylgjur or vordr.

In other words, be the protectors and followers of magical and powerful creatures. "

Melamory's eyes looked like two plates, so surprised she was.

"But, I don't understand ... I'm not a magical creature, much less am I powerful, I'm just an ordinary girl."

"It's not true, you're not ordinary, and you're not a human ..." Nairel put his nose over her elbow, "If you were an ordinary girl, I would not be here right now.” Then he raised his head and continued in a solemn voice.

“Melamory Redgrave, the daughter of Eruwaedhel the Queen of Freylea and Teolinael Kael'thas the prince of Alfheim ...

I swear my loyalty to you, and from now and forever, my life belongs to you, I will be your protector and your follower throughout your lifetime.

I, Nairel, solemnly swear, before the eyes of the ancient gods and of all the creatures of Helheim, to be the guardian of Melamory Redgrave, the legitimate princess of the kingdoms of Alfheim and the Freylea.

I submit myself willingly to the will of the princess, and remove all restrictions of my powers to fulfill my duty as the magical spirit and a guardian."

Nairel's voice, with each word sounded louder and louder, until it seemed like a thunder ... and then, in his forehead appeared a bright violet stone, which looked like a jewel.

"The pact has been confirmed ..."  A voice similar to a whisper was heard ...

On Melamory's left wrist appeared a symbol that looked like a flower.

"What is this? !! What's going on !?"

"Sorry, my daughter, I should have told you everything before this happened." The quiet voice of Melamory's mother sounded a bit sad.

"Mom? How? You ... you knew all this? And Dad?"

“Yes, we know everything ... I'm very sorry to have hidden it from you, who we are and who you are ..

We did not expect the Hemelvaart to be so soon, we just wanted you to live a normal life of a normal girl. "

"I can understand, but what am I going to do now? What about Nairel?"

"Oh, don't worry about him, Nairel is your guardian now, he will always be with you and nobody can see him, only you, us and the people whom you allow to see him."

"Mom, I don't fully understand what is going on, and it scares me a little, but I want to know more things about myself, about you and about dad." Melamory hugged her mother, she was crying.

"Don't cry, my sweet cake, it's not so bad, you just have to get used to it, you're not like the others, and that's all.

You can continue with your life, with the school and with your friends, as you did before." Liz was caressing her daughter's head.

"It's time to go back home, sweetie, come on ..."

"But, mom, what will happen to Nairel? He can come with us?" Melamory was looking at the silhouette of the fox, who was sitting on the stone looking calmly at them.

"Don't worry, I'll always be with you," and with those words he became a ball of mist.

He moved towards Melamory and disappeared into the flower on her wrist.

"I am already here, you can see it, I'll be with you always."

"Oh, we can talk, right?"

"Always, whenever you want .."

"Okay"..

Liz returned, but Melamory was still asleep, this time it was a normal dream though, she was exhausted and her body and mind needed a rest.

"Are you okay, Liz, how has she taken everything?"

"Surprisingly our daughter is a very strong creature with a very flexible mind, she didn't get too scared, I think she felt more curious than anything else."

"Yes, I also believe that, she was always very curious about the things around her, but talking about her guardian, how is he? Nairel?"

"Yes, Nairel, he made the oath to the ancient gods ... and they accepted it .."

"Interesting, it's the first time in ..Hmmm …. in a century? Or more ??”

"Yes, I think the elders are finally showing a bit of interest."

"Ha ha ha, Liz you are very observant, but why now? Why were they interested in this pact?"

"I'm not sure, but first I have to talk to Nairel, are you listening to me? Come here, we have to talk! "

A ball of mist came out of Melamory's wrist and became a white fox with green eyes and a violet jewel on his forehead.

Liz and Teo, both, observed a new magical member of the family, then Melamory's father asked:

"So, you decided to be my daughter's guardian?"

"Yes, your majesty, I am Nairel, humble servant of the princess, her guardian and assistant in any duty of hers."

"Liz, we have to talk to him. Seriously, that gets funny." Teo rolled his eyes.

"Let's get out of there, our girl needs to rest. Nairel, follow us."

They left Melamory's bedroom and went into the living room. Nairel sat next to the fireplace, Melamory's parents sat on the sofa.

"Ok, now we can talk," Teo started. "First of all, Nairel, you'll have to know, the times and things changed, so you'll have to adapt to be able to live in this world and not put our daughter in unnecessary danger. The most productive thing would be for you to talk with other members of this family. "

At that moment, in the room, appeared a black cat, very large with three tails and with light blue eyes, the jewel on his forehead was deep red, and a green snake with yellow eyes and the jewel of color dark blue.

"They are our guardians, just like you, Feradre and Shanael."

The cat stretched her body and looked at the fox:

"I am Feradre, you can call me Fera, welcome, newbie."

"I am Sh-shanael, welcome." the snake approached and stared at the Nairel sticking his tongue out.

Feradre or Fera was an example of a noisy and curious creature with an explosive temper, adoring her owner and just as she wanted, she protects the whole family.

Shanael is a calm and wise creature just like his owner.

"Well, now the whole family is here, Nairel, welcome to your new family, I hope that you will fulfill your mission and our daughter will be protected and safe with you.

But for now you have to learn many things, observe, study everything and if you don't understand something, ask Fera or Shanael, they will help you or explain you everything you may want to know. " Liz was caressing Fera, who was lying on her lap.

Shanael was curled up near the fireplace looking at Nairel, his body shining with the light of the fire. His eyes were closed, he seemed to be sleeping.

"Shanael, I leave this to you, talk to Nairel and explain everything he wants and everything that he has to know." Teo said turning his gaze to Shanael.

"Yes, don't worry, I'll explain everything, if Fera lets me ..."

"Don't start this, Shana, you're a boring worm, but I'll let you explain the rules of the game to the new one." Fera raised her head and looked at Shanael.

"Well, that's all for now, we'll let you talk, we're going to sleep, it's late, and tomorrow we have an important talk with our daughter, don't make a lot of noise."

Liz and Teo went to their bedroom, letting their magical creatures get to know each other better and talk to each other.

The three creatures were left alone, Fera was on the couch and Shanael was lying in the same place as before.

"Well, Shana, are we going to talk or are you going to sleep?" asked Fera.

Shanael opened one eye and answered: "Nairel didn't ask me anything yet, but if you want I can explain the basics."

Nairel was confused, he didn't know what to ask first. He looked first at Shanael and then at Fera.

"I don't  know what I should ask first, I know that my duty is to protect my mistress from all the dangers that may arise, such as dragons, evil magicians ..."

"Ha ha ha ha ..have you heard that .. dragons .. ha ha aha .. evil wizards .. ha ha .." Fera was laughing loudly almost falling off the couch.

Shanael raised his head:

"Fera, you’re going to fall, stupid cat ... Nairel, listen, you are in a world that is called Earth, here, basically, there are not many magical creatures, the humans that live here don't have magical power, there are no dragons here, and no evil magicians either. I have not seen them here in centuries, the danger here may be more mundane, such as accidents or some cruel and ruthless humans, but nonetheless there are other creatures with magical powers, such as werewolves that live near here. "

"Then we have to protect all of them ..." Nairel started.

"No, Teo and Liz, they have everything under control, and besides, that one of those is a friend of Melamory."

"Friend? How come? They're cruel beasts and can’t be friendly with other creatures !!"

"I don't deny it, they are, but there are exceptions, and this is one of them, it's a young wolf cub, and Melamory doesn't know that he's a werewolf, he keeps his wolf form with her, and for now he shows nothing of hostility or evilness towards her. I don't recommend you meddling by telling Melamory that he is a werewolf, leave this as it is, so do Melamory's parents and this young werewolf too. "

"I don't understand it at all, but I will keep in mind your words Shanael, but then if there is no magic in this world, from who or what do I have to protect Melamory?"

"Don't be in a hurry, you will learn it, little by little, for now just watch and talk to her, this will be enough for now." Fera was turning on her back, stretching her legs.

"Fera is right, don't rush, look, listen, learn, these three things will help you understand everything."

"Hmm ... I didn't expect any of this, but I swear I will do everything I can to learn and adapt to this world!" Nairel was convinced to become the best guardian for Melamory.

"I think it's all for now, if you don't have any more questions, I'll retire." Shanael stared at Nairel.

"Are you running away again, bored worm, don't you want to have fun? No fun in that stiff body of yours?"

"Fera, don't provoke me, you are a fat and round cat, you would have to repent ..."

"Hmm .. I'm not fat, I have a strong complexion, and you're a piece of cheap belt.”

Nairel was looking at how these two arguing, but he didn't feel anything dangerous in the skirmish, the snake was calm and completely ignored the jokes of the cat.

He said goodbye to them and returned to his mistress. He was looking at her while she was sleeping, then he curled up next to her and fell asleep.

"Hey you, what do you think about this rookie?" Feradre was looking at Shanael.

"I don't know, but he has potential, I hope he will not make as many mistakes as someone I know ..." replied Shanael with closed eyes.

"Wanna die?"

"No, and you?"

"Shut up .."

"Okay"

Meanwhile, Teo went to see Alister, he was worried about the boy. He already scolded Liz for being so irresponsible, it was not necessary to traumatize the boy so much with the wave of horror that Liz released without realizing.

Liz stayed at home next to Melamory, she was still worried about her daughter.

Teo knocked on the door of the cabin, where Alister and Hyun lived.

He had to apologize and see how the boy was.

*****************

One more … 🥰

[moodforanime]

The Nomad| The Possesions of the Wild(Naruto fanfic)| Volume 1

Chapter 8: Akari's Appearance

Word count: 2.1K

A/N: /

Tags: @insanity-is-always-fun

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

'Lord Hokage!' An woman said, as she rushed into the Hokage office.

The woman wore nurse clothes and, for a moment, she tried to trim her brown hair while catching her breath.

'Hey, Hey, hey!' An guard entered panting, following the nurse. 'At least knock, now will ya?'

The woman came running from the hospital as soon as her boss let her do so that morning. Of course she wouldn't let some guard stop her from reporting to the Hokage the results she received with just a couple of hours ago. The Hokage made an sign to the guard, who exited the room, not forgetting to close the door behind him.

'What's the rush, Asuka?' The Hokage asked.

'As you may already know, an girl named Kaiya is at the hospital in recovery after an surgery she had yesterday afternoon.' The woman spoke at fire-fast speed.

'Yes... I heard.'

'We took some blood and DNA tests while she was out in order to see how exactly should we proceed with her body, and you might want to see what we got.'

The Hokage's eyebrows each formed an perfect curve. He had his doubts on it, but the girl wasn't very different in any way. Her appearance was seemingly ordinary, she didn't act too repulsive or much-to-herself and, from what he heard from her team, she did her best and protected her team on the last mission.

If she had, by any chance, an ugly past that gave her doubts on her loyalties, she might've not hesitated and wouldn't risk her life. She either truly wants to be a shinobi of Konoha, or she is a really good actress. He wondered which one it could be.

Asuka walked closer to his desk and layed an notepad full of writing in front of him.

'We saw that she has an O-type blood. It isn't that uncommon, but it would get complicated if she would be in need of blood.' She explained, pointing to different notes on the page. 'Leaving that Aside, it's her DNA that's funny.'

'How so?'

'You know how we can, with a little work, identify someone's family tree through their DNA. Well, while the origins of 49% of her DNA are still unknown, we could still pair 51% percent of it with an clan, well, somebody actually, from here.'

'Did you Really?' The Hokage asked, truly surprised.

Asuka nodded.

'Who, then?'

Asuka pointed an name standing at the end of the page. The Hokage's eyes widened. From all the families possible, he couldn't bring himself understand how it happened to be this one. He had to delay finishing some paperwork and the meeting with Danzo and the other elders in order to check on something.

'Alright, then. You should return to the hospital now, I'm sure people wait for your assistance.'

Asuka nodded and picked her notepad, before bidding an goodbye and exiting the room.

'I need to talk to you, Asumi.'

____________________________________________________________________________

Lee did as he said and visited Kaiya the next day as well. The only difference was that he was alone this time. This time, Tenten, Neji and Guy joined him, much to both Kaiya and Lee's relief. They entered the room, guided by no one else but Asuka herself, who just returned from the Hokage's office.

'You're a lucky one, you know?' Asuka told Kaiya. 'Most shinobi don't get this many visitors. Especially ones who bring them food.'

Kaiya looked away, feeling her cheeks boiling. Asuka puffed in disagreement, before exiting the room.

'What?' Tenten asked in oblivion, looking at Kaiya and Lee, who avoided eye-contact.

'Never mind that.' Neji said, figuring out the situation and tensity in the air as an smirk escaped him along with an amused puff, before changing the subject. 'So, Kaiya, how do you feel? We heard from Lee that you had some... surgery?'

'Yep.' Kaiya answered in an strangled voice as she nodded while turned her head, hoping that her cheeks didn't appear as they were set on fire. 'I'm pretty good, to be honest. I hope that they'll let me go by Wednesday.'

'I don't think that'll happen.' Lee said quickly as he looked at Kaiya, blinking slowly.

All heads turned to Lee, who almost regreted his choice.

'I-I I mean, most people need at least two weeks to recover enough from an surgery to do most of their activities.' Lee tried to explained.

'Well, I guess you could say that I'm not like most people.' Kaiya retored in the most serious manner.

While Neji and Tenten began to giggle, Guy felt an smile grow on his face as he watched Lee block. It wasn't unusual for Lee to be verbally attacked, but it was unusual for him to be blocked like that, to make it even worse, he appeared like he didn't attempt to with any of his comebacks.

Kaiya looked at Lee, raising her eyebrows. As she opened her mouth to say something, an quite audible creak stopped her, announcing that someone entered the room. All eyes turned to the door that opened, letting two familiar faces enter the chamber.

'H-Here it is, Asu- Akari-sama.' The blonde nurse said, letting an young woman enter.

'Thank you, Kenta.' Asumi answered, without giving Kenta a single glance. 'Hello, everyone.'

Kenta quickly closed the door, along with an screech of terror.

'Hello... who are you, may I ask?' Guy asked, narrowing his eyebrows.

'Oh, I'm Akari.' She smiled. 'You must be Might Guy, am I right?

Guy slowly nodded, overflowing in suspicion.

'I've heard alot about you. It's nice to finally meet you in person.' Asumi stretched one of her hands towards Guy, who took his time in answering to her gesture.

Akari turned to Kaiya, whose eyebrows, just like everyone else's, almost touched each other.

'How... How did you know I was in the hospital?' Kaiya asked, doing her best in sounding calm.

'Word travels fast between the genin team leaders.'

'You're a team leader?' Kaiya asked.

'I used to. My team absolved to jounin last year, but I still keep in touch with my ex-colleague's.'

Guy felt his brain pumping blood. He was a jounin for quite a few years already, but didn't remeber the girl. More importantly... How did she know Kaiya?

'Ex-colleague's? What do you mean by that?' Lee asked, the only one brave enough to do so.

'Oh, let's just say that... I got some business in which I had to leave my past behind.' Asumi shrugged, as she set herself on an chair, looking at Kaiya.'But let's not talk about what I did or not. Tell me more about how you got here.'

It was just enough for Guy to shot an look at his students for his message to be heard. The three students looked at him and nodded lightly. Although he felt uneasy with It, it was best if he would leave this to Kaiya. The woman wore an forehead protector with Konoha's symbol on It, and it was difficult to get such thing if you were an outsider.

'Well, we will leave you two to it.' Guy said, as he, along with his students, slowly walked to the door.

Kaiya looked down, unsure of what to say. She didn't really want them to leave because Akari came along, but she wasn't sure of what to say, without making things uncomfortable for everyone. Her teammates each mumbled an goodbye, to which Kaiya tried to answer with an forced smile and an hand wave.

It was after they left that Kaiya felt how her visitor appeared to relax a bit. It wasn't a lie; Asumi did, in fact, feel less tense than when they were in the same room. In truth, she knew who Guy was ever since she was a kid, but she figured just a while ago that Guy wasn't as stupid as he liked to appear and that it wouldn't take much time for him to add one to one and realise who she was. She wouldn't talk to him ever again, if she could help it. She turned her attention back on Kaiya, whose expression was now blank.

'Say, Kaiya...' Asumi stopped herself, noticing how Kaiya didn't even mind to give the impression of listening. 'Is there something wrong?'

It was then that Kaiya moved her attention back to Asumi.

'Oh, I-I'm sorry, Akari-san. My mind drifted off to something.' Kaiya rested her head in her palms for a few moments, before fully turning her head to her visitor, forcing a smile.

Asumi looked at the girl. Although the girl seemed to be in an rather stable situation, she had an surgery just an day ago. She would get much out of her in this state. She was now very much aware of how gentle the mission was and how it required a lot of time, maybe even years, and she hated it. Because of her rather short patience, most of her missions don't last more than a month or two, but nobody could say nothing. They were all very effective.

'It must be boring here, all alone.'

'I guess.' Kaiya mumbled.

'I'm sorry, it must be horrible.'

'Don't throw that pity on me.' She suddenly demanded. 'It makes me vomit.'

She didn't like when people tried to see through her point of view and make it pitiful. She needed various things, it was true, but pity was, for sure, not on the list.

Asumi rised her eyebrows in surprise. You didn't see this everyday. On her missions, she saw plenty of people who were suckers for pity and attention.

'You look tired. Maybe you should rest.' Asumi suggested after a few moments' break.

Kaiya looked up to Asumi, her face blank. Everyone told her to rest, but it was easier to say than to do. Looking at the blank walls became boring sometimes, but the quietness, loneliness and safety offered Kaiya something she didn't get very often; time to think.

Her mind could drift off as it pleased, and could settle some things down. The fact that people refused those chances just because they wanted to stick with other people were things Kaiya could never understand.

She watched how Asumi opened the door and left, just before another familiar face to enter.

'At last!' Asuka exclaimed. 'It was me who got tired of them.'

Kaiya simply tilted her head into Asuka's direction as she walked towards her with an plate in her hands. Asuka placed the plate on Kaiya's laps.

'There.' She said. 'I'll pass by later to take the plate. I hope it'll be empty by then.'

'Yes, miss.' Kaiya mumbled.

Her meal consisted of some potato puree and a thin schintzel. It didn't look very appetizing, but who was she to comment? Not so long ago, her meals looked worse than She could've easily comment on it, but she couldn't bring herself to it, knowing the answer; eat it or starve.

She began cutting her schnitzel and, without even realising, the piece of meat was gone. She let an burp escape her mouth as she put the plate on her nightstand. She let herself fall into an comfortable position and did the only reasonable and possible thing she could do at the point; letting her mind wander.

Around that time, the thing that crossed her mind the most was the encounter with Temon and Kana. Even though she did what she did, the idea of killing someone didn't hit her as hard as Temon's words.

One of her worst fears was her reaction when someone would bring that subject up, and she felt ashamed with it; she should've controlled herself better. Her colleagues asked about it, something completely natural, but she couldn't bring herself to explain it to them when she couldn't explain it to herself.

In the end, how could she, without making them any more curious? For Now, it was good that they didn't know much on her backstory. If they were to know, they wouldn't be put in any particular danger, but it couldn't be gulped all at once and it may create resentments and fear, rejection an even exile, even. For all she knew, if she were to tell them, she must feel the trust from the bottom of her heart.

[sayofchains88]

Chapter four: The death of a king, Christians other self by OrangeLetters88~

He looked down at her with despair, disappointment and shock. Alice clutches his knees tightly causing him to collapse with her on the ground. Her face flushes hot with tears as she begins rubbing her head deeply into his chest for comfort till she is pulled back anchoring her backwards toward the ground.

Chains can be heard whilst drags her, choking her making her unable to stand. "Cooper! I swear I will kill you! Lay your hand off my kin!" Alex screams.

"I changed my mind I won't attack this gaudy little part you come to live in. Alice be a nice girl and tell them what you think." Cooper demands bringing her to her feet. Her night gown now covered in mud and dirt. Her hair messy from being dragged to the ground and an unmistakable BDSM collar wrapped hard around her neck the type that uses a padlock in the back of the piece.

"Yes sir..." Alice spoke softly. Cooper pulls on the chain like a ropes to a horse with more strength causing her bring her hands to the collar to give room from being choked further. "I mean poppy. I am sorry Poppy. Forgive me."

Cooper holds his hands out to her. She reluctantly walks into his arms hugging him firmly. Ashamed she peeks down squeezing her eyes shut. He pets her hair taking long heavy strokes. Alex stands by repelled by how she is being objectified and paraded like an animal. Cooper notices his anger and smiles.

Lifting her chin to kiss Alice on the lips and hugs her once more this time more passionately.

Alex moves a little ahead when Christian decides out of nowhere to smash his head against Coopers angering him. He yanks the chain up out of Cooper's hands dropping it to the ground in the midst of madness. His claws diving quick and fast into Cooper's shoulders at the same time Cooper grabs for Christians face lifting him like a rag doll in the air and slamming him into the ground.

Feeling he had an easy defeat he gathers up the ends up Alice's chains to be darted in the face with a jack only to drop it again. Christian gasps, but has grown attached to throwing heavy objects with simplicity slightly smirking with a limp.

From behind Cooper, Alex grips his hoody to push it over his face dashing to propel him to the ground with enough time to take the chain off the collar. Christian pushes Alice beside him.

Cooper stands up, his nose streams with blood, deep purple bruises on his face. He holds his hands out to Alice once again to come to him like a dog. Alex looks behind a moment only to be gripped by the collar of his long black sweater.  

The forces of his hand pushing down on Alex's head making him bow down in front of him. "You were scrawny weakling in the steel mill. Your righteousness to help your family and now they have aged on without you deep in the grave and dare feel you will stop me? You feel you are superior than me because you have two kin? I will make them my slaves. I will mold them in my fashion to do my bidding. Christian I have a collar with your name on it!" Cooper yells making a scene and causing the neighbors to come out crowd him, judging eyes stare down while Alex is made to lick his boots.

Rising he pulls him up by the hair head-butting him multiple times. Christian acknowledges he needs to protect Alice only stays guard and watches.  

Swinging him left and right Alex moans out being pushed back into the dirt face first. His anger unparalleled to his defeat earlier, his steel toed boots stomping his head into the grainy watery mud; Alice cries out, but Christian stops her. Jill pulls her inside the house.

Christian notions for her to lock the door behind her, the latch can be heard. Alex is over and over again punched in the gut until he is completely flat on his stomach in a large mud puddle. His eyes slightly open his void eyes looks forward.

Barely coherent breathing is noticeable. Cooper knows he will not die easily. He has been altered as a vampire. Sun is ineffective to him.  He scoops his limp body from the ground, but not before spitting on him.

The crowd broke up slowly follows Cooper walking away before he jumps on to a roof and disappearing. Christian looks onward to track his master's captor. His eyes completely blank as though something deeply transformed inside of him were enabling his current conquest.

Cooper looks back startled. He could feel the air around Christian has changed. He is not the same as earlier. His fearless expression moves him. "My master if you please..." He said catching up in speed.

His sharp claws threatened Cooper with each swipe. Keeping in toe with each stride until a large gap prevents Cooper and Christian from moving ahead quickly enough.

Cooper confused stop dead in his tracts to observe Christian when it hit him. "Alex is the true heir of the clan...you became his certified protector...I won't let it happen! This is my clan! Alice is my slut! Come and take him from me if you want him so badly!" Cooper roars deep in his jealousies that echoes off the surrounding buildings.

Alex's consciousness returned to him grabbing Coopers arm weakly. Looking him straight in the eyes before comprehending Christian in front of them. Christian quickly snaps out of it looking around.

"Cooper?! Where am I Alex?" Christian shudders embarrassed. Alex gently push's out of Cooper's arms despite drastically unsteady wobbles into Christian's arms falling to his knees.

"You became the protector. You inherited the ghost reflex king protector...sometimes your actions will not be your own. You cannot lose yourself in these trances or you will lose yourself forever..." Alex urges.

"Whatever, I don't care anymore about you or your boyfriend. I don't care anymore...I will make this clan mine, but this also means Pappy has died. His reign is over in this world if the protector awakened...I will be back for you when I am stronger." Cooper said walking off the ledge retreating.

                       "What do you mean trances? What is going to happen to me? Alex?" Christian asks petrified.  

"I didn't ask to be the new clan leader, but he came to me when Alice was turned...I should have seen this coming. King Protector always goes to males in the group. It's like a curse. I need to end this cycle. I need you more than ever, but I need you to keep it together as long as you can before we learn what to do. Pappy's king protector went insane and ended up dying to keep him safe..." Alex explains as his speech slows. "We need to seek the witch who started this. I remember Pappy tried before to appease her, but she did not bow..."

"I don't think this is what I signed up for Alex..." Christian unsure how to respond wrapping his arms around Alex who drifted to sleep in his arms; Christian's head felt cloudy bring his hands to his tear ducts wiping his watery eyes with fingers and picking Alex up.

Glad for his safety, but concerned for his own well being.

Christian in his house after the last two weeks, his head down on the table with his hands out in front of him when Alice comes in without knocking. "Looks like they finally managed to get that collar off, I am glad someone here is a locksmith." Alice said excited.

Christian sits up ecstatic. "That's great! I was wondering when they were going to get it off you!"

"I noticed you didn't look too happy since you got back with Alex...are you okay?" Alice questions.

Christian shrugs looking off to the side. "It's whatever. We're going to see a witch soon to get information..." he says closing his eyes again.

"Why seeing a witch now?" She asks.

"Generational clan curse, I was chosen to defend Alex as rightful clan leader." Christian describes tossing a pen to the floor. Jill comes in announcing.

"Alex finally is awake. Careful if you come in please. He seems pretty weak despite how much blood he has been given over the past week." She mentions with a tenderness.

Alice and Christian follow after Jill through the door when Christian drops to ground holding his left hand. Shaking in pain he looks up, his eyes streams tears fighting the sensation. A symbol shaped for eternity burns into his wrist along with the ankh side by side.

"This curse is going to destroy me..." Christian mutters falling into Alice's arms face forward. Alex walks through the door with the help of Mr. Smith pushing away he slumps to the ground putting his hand on Christians forehead.

"He is burning up...please hurry get me ice, towel and a pillow. Need to bring him around before anything sets!" Alex demands as everyone rushes to get the items he needs quickly. Jill comes in with the pillow and kitchen towels while Alice got ice in cold water in a bowl.

"I thought you were supposed to be resting!" Alice scolds running around.

"I could feel Christian. It would be too late if I was always bed ridden..." Alex remarks.

Alex took out a small knife cutting his left palm squeezing blood into Christian's mouth incanting something under his breath in the act of feeding Christian he chokes a little. His eyes slightly open glowing staring up.

"I can feel it turning my brain to mush. Your incantation won't hold forever for me..." He hit his hand away feeling hopelessness. Alex grabs his hands smacking them together.

"Remember who you are! You are the only one I seen turn so quickly without problems. You are also strong enough to wield heavy items and make a tire jack appear stronger than I ever seen one and go through a door. You need to trust me to help you. I won't let you become someone you aren't...you aren't a slave to me or anyone else! Please listen to me!" Alex pleads.

Christian shields his eyes with his arms squeezing them together tightly against his face. Alex shoos everyone away wanting privacy. "I am scared after the first time...I am scared right now. I been branded by powers I cannot explain..." Christian explains.

"It's okay to be scared...we will find a way to stop this. We will meet the witch soon." Alex says as he sits with Christian on the floor between the doorways. Christian falls into a slumber, but Alex notes his eyes coming back open. He sits up swinging his legs over pulling them in and resting his chin on his knees.

The two look into each other's eyes face to face. A smile curled on his face while his eye color seemed to dim to a more plain grey. "Master, you are trying to get rid of me. My main service to you is to protect you. How dare you try to sabotage me...?" He explains concerned.

"I do not need you. I only need Christian. I will deal with you when I speak to the witch. Be gone with you..." Alex said shooing him away with his hands. Christian's possessed body latches to his hand gingerly.

"I see...you remember Pappy's partner's death. It was unfortunate, but it is also my duty to bring the vampires body to fullest extent of their ability. Their body expiring is unfortunate, but needed to protect you is more then so. Usually how long I last is dependent on my master. Pappy was unfit for his role if I was not able to keep mine. Now he has perished and I am back to do my duty once again in your grace." He justifies.

"Do you know if I will last long enough?" Alex curiously asks him.

"I can tell already you are not very good at leading your new kin. Alice was almost a sex slave to your old clan. You have much needed development to carry even this small group before even expanding outwards. Cooper has much more reliable kin at this point, but their much more innate to being a vampire then you three put together." He chimes.

"I will rid you and become someone who does not need a possessed butler to carry or support me. Christian is more than enough without you." Alex responds.

"You are right, he certainly became a vampire fast and without much aid or help, but he didn't come after you. I did. You may have been staked or held prisoner. Christian and Alice are hardly ready enough to take on missions deadly like this. Throwing Cooper off was literally my first commands from Pappy's deceased spirit calling forth my aid. I ask you to cooperate with my being till you rid me if that is so you like." He once again only was giving facts.

"Did you communicate with Pappy? How did he die?" Alex pleads while shuffling to sit up.

"He was killed from another clan you are destined to meet. She had always wished to kill Pappy and now has done so. She goes by the name of.... never-mind let's talk about Steel she is fallout of teens and adults who instead of succumbing to starvation took to seeking a vampire to live out starvation. Her clan is doing well. Even better then Coopers. I hope you produce a flock in similarity to hers." He returns. "Steel is not the killer...but she is close with Cooper."

"I acknowledge I have always avoided my fate. I just wanted to survive. That event was so pitiful. The begging and screaming in the streets of dirty lower class workers who had nothing to eat and workers paid pathetically...after you turned you had to run away and figure it out yourself how to live or be killed by those who knew. It was a hard time. Eventually times changed...I don't think I ever met Steel, but Cooper was in my clan and I buried it deep in heart whom anyone was and now my life is more endangered then it ever was and now bringing that to my new kin..." Alex said gathering his thoughts when Christians possessed self-leaned into Alex's shoulder.

Alex shook Christian who seemed to pass out. "He used too much energy just to bug me..." he whispered under his breath. Christian groggy limped over Alex's shoulder. Alice conveniently comes.

"Help push him on my back so I can bring him to bed. We have a long day tomorrow." Alex asks Alice. She complies. "Alice...I am so sorry for letting so much happen to you in such a short time. To me it's been always easier to run away. I can no longer run away from what I been doing for hundreds of years..."

"Oh...Alex...I..." Alice said looking away distracted.

"I could feel you before you came to the door. I know what was done to you and right now I know if I don't improve I will lose you both...forgive me." Alex responds hauling Christian inside the house and placing him in the bed.

Alice scuffles over placing her head on his back, wrapping her hands around his waist.

"You didn't even know me and trusted me at the very beginning. I could have been a killer..." Alex says arched over. His head down. He could feel tears welling.

"But you didn't..." Alice whispered. He turns in her arms embracing her with all his might when he realized he has been tricked. She stabs him in the back multiple times.

He falls to the ground. Her face clearly changed to another woman from his old clan. "You are the shapeshifter."

"And you let your guard down. Like we would really give you the real Alice; be a good boy and die. Give Cooper the crown already." She laughs watching him inch away. Alex rolls holding a broom he found on the ground against her daggers.

"It's like I said. I am no longer running away! Tell Cooper he can kiss my ass already and I will be back for her!" Alex shouts jumps behind her taking her head slamming it against the metal rims of the bed. Christian gets up almost robotic pulling her to her feet.

Dragging her outside slams her to the ground. His claws reaching around her neck while cracking a smile. "My master is done with games. Now we play it my way. You now have two options. You take us to Cooper or I will kill you right here now." Christian says nicely as he can. Alex stands in the doorway huffing.

"Injured or not I will make sure you get yours." He points out throwing the tire wrench in his hands.

"Fine, Jesus Christ...I will take you to Cooper and unharmed. I know this spirit and this isn't the greenhorn you brought the last time. I have better to do then be killed by this ogre spirit." The woman snits enraged. "So Pappy is truly dead. He gave the leadership to a wimp who literally did nothing. Barely went out and now you plan to take reign?"

"I am taking back Pappy's reign. I am making my own on top of that! Do not question me. You are nothing more than a leech under Cooper's feet. I understand we are Vampire, but you are nothing more than a senseless beast parading in human skin. Don't ever talk back to your true clan leader, but I am lenient. I will let Cooper have you if you dare seek his authority more. I do not need you, but I need Alice back. I made her and I well aware of what is happening to her." Alex states in a stern voice.  

"Why did you only now have the guts to talk to me this way? Depending on what goes down. I might follow you. You never did this before and now you are willing to destroy the world to take Alice back. I am Colleen." She said staring him in the eyes.

"Colleen, I am sorry I never got to know you all. I was afraid before, but now I need to be a bigger person. I can't risk Alice's life anymore." Alex explains slumping. Christian moves in to push him up.

"Master I can go alone...you are hurt once again." He replies.

"I need to do this now not later. We have no time to rest." Alex chides. Colleen put her arms around Alex in support aside from Christian.

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[sufferthesea]

The Death of a Seamstress  (aka 8 Ninken Jackets and Kakashi Assumes Too Much)

Kakashi Week 2017 - Prompt #4: Ninken

Kakashi! Haven’t you ever heard the expression “You know what happens when you assume”? Anyway, I don’t know who makes ninken jackets but someone has to, right?? (Also sorry for spelling errors and stuff? I’m too lazy to go back through for a 10th time to check...) 

Rating: General Words: 3.132

Also on ao3

It’d been several years since all of Kakashi’s ninken got their little jackets and forehead protectors. He remembered when he’d first got the blue jackets with the Henohenomoheji face embroidered onto them and presented them to the eight ninja hounds.

“Kakashi,” Pakkun had said gingerly, as he pawed at the smallest jacket of all, meant for himself, “this is nice and all, but … we’re dogs. We don’t need these jackets. None of the other ninken wear them.”

“Maybe,” a younger Kakashi had replied, “but you’re the ninken of the Hatake clan. We actually have some pride. Put on the jacket.”

Throughout the years, the jackets had gone through a lot. They’d been torn, stained, forgotten, and even buried at one point - though Kakashi figured that had been on purpose by a few of the dogs who were embarrassed to be seen wearing clothes. He’d done his best to patch them up, but his hands weren’t nimble enough to work a small needle through the fabric. And when he had decided to do it himself, they had turned out rather pathetically. The fabric was puckered, the hems were uneven, and they looked sadder than before. It only took one serious look from his ninken and Pakkun declaring, “I am not wearing that - anywhere,” before he gave up for good trying to fix it himself.

Whenever he got the chance, he’d return to the old seamstress who’d originally made the jackets for the ninken when he was younger. Sakumo had taken him there when he was a child to have a set of custom shirts made with a mask before he started at the Academy, and she seemed like the perfect person to ask to make the matching set of jackets for the dogs. Of course, it helped that she’d already knew Kakashi and didn’t ask many questions - the only thing she’d told him to do was summon all the dogs so she could get their measurements. Every time he returned to the shop, she’d patch up the jackets with smooth seams and polished stitching. She’d even gone so far as to replace all of them with brand new jackets a few years ago as a gift to a “loyal and kind customer.”

Now he was holding a paper bag packed with the eight jackets, each one folded as neatly as he could manage with the tears and tatters fluttering about. He’d done his best to tell his ninken that they needed to take care of the jackets - they couldn’t be reckless, but even with his stern words there was at least one dog who’d accidentally scratch at himself and tear a hole clean through the fabric. Plus he couldn’t help that they’d gotten worn down through use - I mean, you can only fight in clothes for so long before they’re damaged at least a little. This last bought of training hadn’t been bad, but somehow every - single - jacket - was - ruined.

Kakashi felt incredibly bad since these hadn’t even lasted that long, and the old lady hadn’t even charged him for them! But still, he needed to replace them.

The small shop was tucked away in an easily overlooked corner of the village, behind a few weapons shops and a bookstore. A wooden sign hung over the door that read Custom Clothes - Seamstress and Tailor in faded ink and the windows were dark even though all the lights were on inside. Kakashi pushed open the door and was greeted with the familiar chime of bells overhead. There were wooden mannequins placed in the front of the shop, each one wearing a different outfit. A display case over to the side held bolts of fabric, a few sketches, and an old pincushion. At the back of the store was a door curtained off with a sign that read Private - Fitting Rooms. It smelled like potpourri, and threads of linen hung in the air.

“Sato-san,” Kakashi called, wandering over to one of the mannequins dressed in an airy, cream-colored yukata. “I hate to say it but my ninken have torn through all of their jackets. Do you think you could fix them? Or replace them? I’ll pay you this time.”

Someone moved behind the curtained room and footsteps echoed off the wooden floor. Kakashi didn’t bother looking up as he rubbed the sleeve hem of the yukata between his thumb and index finger.

This is nice, he thought to himself. I should ask her to make me one of these before summer gets here.

The curtain was thrown back and Kakashi, still gazing at the mannequins, held up the bag. “I’ve got them all here. Could you see if there’s anything to salvage?”

“What do you mean you’ll pay her this time?” came an unfamiliar voice.

Kakashi turned and was startled to see a young woman standing in the fitting room entrance, the edge of the curtain in her hands, a stern look on her face. She was dressed head-to-toe in black with a white apron tied around her waist, decorated with the same symbol Sato-san had explained was her family crest. The girl had her hair pulled back into a bun and a pencil behind her ear. Her glare was frightening and Kakashi stepped back from the yukata and threw a hand up as if to show he wasn’t armed.

“Sorry about that,” he laughed lightly, “I wasn’t aware anyone else worked in this shop. I was looking for Sato-san. She usually mends these for me.”

The girl continued to stare at him but she let go of the curtain and folded her arms. “Yes, I guessed that. What are you doing having my grandmother sew your clothes and not paying her?”

“Huh? Your grandmother?” Kakashi studied the girl’s face and he could see a faint trace of Sato-san in her - the same large eyes, the same stooped shoulders, even the small flyaway piece of hair on top of her head was the same. “This is a family business? That’s nice. But she’s really the one who does all of my mending, so if you could just go get her —”

“Not until you pay her what you owe,” the girl said sharply, standing firm. “It sounds like she’s been doing a lot of work for you, so I expect you to pay up. What’s your name? I’m sure she kept a record of how many times you came in. I’ll get the guest book and we can crunch some numbers. Take a seat over there.” She pointed to a cushioned bench on the other side of the room before disappearing behind the curtain. When she returned she had a huge book in her arms and a determined look in her eye.

“I didn’t mean to give off the wrong impression,” Kakashi began, clutching the bag to his chest. “I never cheated your grandmother out of anything. She said she’d made these as a gift for me. But I’m more than willing to pay you to fix them.”

“Nice try!” The girl dropped the book onto the bench and flipped it open. “Grandma was very nice and she did a lot of favors - but plenty of people took advantage of that kindness and nearly put us in debt! I’m going to collect every last cent that was owed to her if it’s the last thing I do. Let’s see … What’s your name?”

“Uh - it’s Hatake Kakashi.”

“Hatake … Hatake …” She turned the pages until she reached the page titled HA and went down the list. “Ah, here you are. Hatake Kakashi! Let’s see. You’ve been in - ah!” She stood up and gawked at him. “You’ve been coming here since you were a child?”

The jonin nodded simply. “Yes. I’m sorry, are you able to mend these?”

“Just a minute - Grandma always put a check mark next to orders that were paid in full, and a star next to a gift. Of course, most of these pages are filled with stars - but I know what was a gift and what wasn’t. Hmm, seems that most of your orders have been paid … that’s a first. Ah! Here it is! Eight sets of jackets for …” She paused, puzzled, and reread the page. “Maybe the writing is smudged. Does that say what I think it says?”

“Eight sets of jackets for my ninken, that’s right.”

She turned, giving him a bizarre look. “You had … custom jackets made … for your dogs?”

Kakashi felt a sudden blush cross his face and he looked away. “That was the order that was a gift - the most recent one. I’ll pay you to mend these ones - or to make new ones.”

Huffing, the girl slammed the book shut and eyed him suspiciously. “So, only one order was a gift, huh? I guess you’re lucky. There’s some people in here who’ve been scamming my grandma for years. I’m going to make them pay in full. Can you imagine that bill? Let’s see the damage.” She took the bag from his arms and sifted through the shreds of fabric. “Jeez, you can tell these belong to dogs. Er, ninja dogs. I can’t save any of this. I can make new ones, if you want to order them. My grandma kept all of her patterns so they should be around here somewhere. Maybe in the back …” The girl wandered off to find the missing patterns.

“So,” Kakashi said, following her through the curtain into the back room. He stopped and stared in awe. He had always assumed the shop was tiny, since the front of the store wasn’t much to look at. But back here was another story. To the left were fitting rooms to be used to adjust and tailor clothes, to the right was where customers were taken to be measured, and in front of him was another door leading to what appeared to be a workshop. He suspected he had been back here at some point when his father had ordered his masked shirts, but the memory was distant and faded – and since the ninken were so well behaved (usually), he had just sat on the bench in the lobby reading Icha Icha while Sato-san had led the dogs behind the curtain and taken their measurements.

A long table lined with benches and cluttered with scraps of fabric and spools of thread filled the center of the workshop. It was bright inside and there was a solid wall of bare mannequins waiting to be dressed. A filing cabinet was shoved in the corner of the workshop and all of the drawers were opened; hundreds of papers were pulled out and lying scattered on the floor.

“Sorry for the mess,” she said. “I’ve been going through all of Grandma’s papers to get things organized. I’ve got to finish her orders and collect her payments. Come this way. We’ll find the patterns. What were you saying?”

“Huh? Oh - I was just … I was gonna ask where Sato-san was. I didn’t know she had any family, so it really surprised me that you were working here.”

The girl hesitated, pausing in her walk towards the large table in the center of the room. Kakashi almost ran into her but stepped aside just in time. She shook her head and scurried over to the other side of the table, heading towards the filing cabinet. “I’m sure your patterns are in here. It’ll just take me a moment.”

Kakashi sat on one of the low wooden benches and watched the girl balance the bag of shredded fabric in one arm and frantically shuffle through the see-through patterns in the cabinet.

“Aha! Here they are.” She pulled out a large paper folder and slapped it on the table beside Kakashi. Across the front in scribbled handwriting read, Hatake, Kakashi - 8 Patterns - Jackets, Various Sizes. “I can make as many jackets as you want with these!” she beamed, setting the bag down on the table. “Look here, see these notes? She wrote down what fabric she used, what thread, what kind of stitch, and she even wrote down the name of the dogs the jackets were for. She always paid attention to stuff like that,” she mused fondly, running her fingers along the folder. “So - you wanted to order new ones? I’m sure we have this fabric still in stock. And it looks like there’s a pattern on it.”

“Yeah - it’s Henohenomoheji.”

“… what?”

“Uh, it’s …” Kakashi felt another embarrassed blush rise on his masked face and he cleared his throat. “It’s, you know, the little face kids draw on their scarecrows.”

“Huh — oh! Kakashi! I get it! Hm. I wouldn’t have pegged you as someone with a sense of humor. Actually, considering you’ve had jackets custom-made for your dogs with a scarecrow face on it, I guess you are kind of funny.” The girl took back the folder and went to studying the patterns, looking through the bolts of fabric to find the exact type. “You can wait here or you can come back later. It’ll take me a while. Well …” She studied the measurements for Bull and paled. “This one might take me all night. Maybe you should come back tomorrow afternoon. I can tell you then when they’ll be ready.”

“Sure. Do you want to keep my wallet hostage so you can be sure I don’t cheat you?”

“Very funny. You can pay me before I hand over the jackets when they’re finished, though. I’ll tally up the bill now if you want.”

“That would be helpful, thank you.”

She grabbed a pencil and quickly wrote down a handful of figures. She shoved the paper at Kakashi and pointed at the bottom string of numbers, “That’s your bill.”

Kakashi’s only visible eye widened in bewilderment at the sight but he fought to retain his cool exterior and shrugged. “I … see the price of labor has gone up.”

“Well, it is only me here. If I start these tonight it’s already overtime! Unless you can wait a few days, then I can knock a few zeros off. Otherwise, I’m charging you for priority. I’m pretty backlogged, you know.”

“Yeah, I can tell.” Kakashi studied the pieces of fabric pinned to other patterns and the wicker basket on the floor beside the sewing machine, overflowing with garments. “That price is fine. As much as they hated wearing them, I feel like they’re a little ashamed to be seen without them. It’s a modesty thing.”

“Uh-huh. Right. Anyway, I’ve got to close up soon or else more people are gonna think they can come in this late. I’ll walk you out.” The girl clutched the folder into the crook of her arm and escorted Kakashi out of the workroom, through the curtain, and to the front door. “Stop by tomorrow and we’ll see where we’re at.” She waved at him to stop when he moved to grab his wallet out of his pocket. “You can pay tomorrow. Maybe by then I’ll have softened up a little and reduced the price. Do you mind if I keep these here tonight? I can use them as reference. My grandma always did things a little differently than me. I want to make sure I get them right.”

“I’m sure you’ll do fine. You did those?” He motioned towards the clothed mannequins sitting in the front of the shop.

“Yeah! They were some of the first things I made when I took over this shop. I was getting used to her sewing machine, but I think they turned out alright.”

Kakashi guessed that from the aversion of the question, he knew the answer about where Sato-san was. He took a deep breath, remembering the old woman who’d done so much to help him in the past. Although the village had certified tailors and seamstresses to make the chunin and jonin uniforms, as well as masks, Kakashi had always brought in his clothes to be mended by the woman. He’d also kept all the shirts she’d made for him when he was young; even though he had far outgrown them, they were still in good condition. For the most part. Kunai strikes and bomb shrapnel were not kind to clothes, no matter how well they were made. He looked at the girl, feeling a strange sort of sadness in the middle of his chest, and he muttered, “I’m sorry for your loss. Sato-san was a really wonderful woman. I’m glad you’ve taken over, though, and kept her shop open.”

The girl stared at him in silence for a while before leaning forward with her eyebrows pulled together tightly and her mouth stretched downward. “Huh?”

“Sato-san,” Kakashi said, unintentionally shuffling backwards under the gaze of the girl. “I’m s-sorry for your loss. She really was a nice woman.”

To his surprise, the girl let out a sudden laugh and stood up, looking just as confused as before. “My grandma isn’t dead! Is that — is that what you’ve been thinking this whole time?”

“Uhm … yes?”

“No! No, she isn’t dead. Oh my gosh. I should’ve said something. Grandma retired last year and has been traveling around to different villages. She trained me to be a seamstress like her and left me in charge of the shop before she left. She had a few orders left but I said I would take care of them, but they were a lot more than I thought. I’ve been trying to get through them all, but I don’t work as fast as her. And, like I said, she was too generous for her own good so now I’ve got to collect all that money before we lose the shop. But that’s none of your concern, aha ha ha! I didn’t mean to frighten you, either, by letting you think she was dead. I think she’ll be stopping by for a bit sometime in the summer, if you want to come by again to see her.”

Kakashi wasn’t sure if he was embarrassed or relieved. “That’d be nice,” he forced himself to say. He couldn’t believe he just paid his condolences for a woman who wasn’t dead. “I … should go. It’s getting late and you need to close up. I’ll stop by tomorrow. Goodbye.” He turned and hurried out of the shop, leaving the poor girl behind. He marched down the now-dark street back towards his apartment.

I’m so stupid, he thought as he passed by the shops, long since closed for the evening. I can’t believe I just assumed her grandma was dead. He was absolutely convinced that if it weren’t for the jackets he was going to pick up tomorrow, he would never show his face at the shop again. Shoving the key into his lock, he pushed open his door and dragged himself into the apartment. It doesn’t matter tonight, he tried to tell himself as he collapsed on the couch, kicking off his shoes. I have to see her tomorrow, so I’ll just pretend it didn’t happen. After that, though, I’m never going back.

Soon, he was asleep, the embarrassing moment and the hefty fee temporarily forgotten.

[darkelfshadow]

Session Summary - 34

AKA “Trials and Tribulations”

Adventures in Taggeriell

Session 34 (Date: 4th November 2017)

Players Present:

- Rob (Known as “Oloma”) Human Female.

- Bob (Known as “Sir Krondor”) Dwarf Male.

- Sean (Known as “Seanicus”) Elf Male.

- Paul (Known as “Labarett”) Elf Male.

- Phil (Known as “Nac”) Half-elf Male.

- Arthur (Known as “Gim”) Dwarf Male.

Absent Players

- Travis (Known as “Trenchant”) Human Male. <Played by Paul>

NPC

- (Known as “Naillae”) Elf Female. <Controlled by DM>

Summary

- Wealday, 10th of Kuthona in the year 814 (Second Era). Winter.

- The party begin this session, in the large gladiator stadium of the city of Earthcloak. The game has just ended, with victory going to a Dragonborn gladiator.

- Nac and Gim wander around the open stadium, tired, injured but still conscious, looking up into the upper stadium and the two thousand faces of the shouting fans. They look around the stadium floor and see the injured and unconscious bodies of Sir Krondor and Labarett, along with the unconscious bodies of the downed gladiators, being placed onto canvas and wood litters and carried into a side area that appears to be a healing station. Various attendants are looking over and applying healing ointments and bandages to wounds.

- Nac tries to follow the Dragonborn victor but he walks into a seperate side door and the door closes with a loud bang and a click, indicating it is locked.

- Trenchant and Naillae are not visible, as they have sat down again in the stands and the people in front of them are standing and cheering wildly.

- Oloma is standing alone in another side room, with two angry gladiators berating her for having cheated in the games by using magic. Seanicus is still waiting outside, looking through the entry gate into the lower stadium.

- Six Halflings dressed in leather armour and with a brown shoulder cape going over one shoulder, with a symbol of a sailing boat over a geometric pattern, the crest of Earthcloak, enter the room. These six Halflings are Constables of Earthcloak and the lead officer, a Halfling by the name of Lomi, informs Oloma she is under arrest for magic use.

- Oloma can see that the Halflings Constables are very nervous and scared of a magic user, their voices are shaky and their foreheads are sweating (Successful Insight check). Oloma lowers her weapon and calmly talks to the Constables.

- The conversation goes back and forth. Oloma is very apologetic and accepts that what she did was wrong. This seems to surprise the Constables, who act like Oloma might turn into a demon or beast at any moment, and seem unwilling to even approach the wielder of magic.

- A few minutes later however, the Constables faces suddenly show relief when four more Halflings suddenly arrive. These new Halfings show no fear and confidently walk into the room. They wear bright silver mithril chainmail with a blue tabard hanging over it. On the tabard is a pair of crossed silver swords. Hanging off the sides of these Halflings are a pair of gleaming silver mithril shortswords.

- The lead Constable, Lomi speaks, “Thank Yondalla. The Templars are here. She’s all yours!”

- Behind the Templars walks in the tall and dark muscular form of Awamir who runs the Gladiator stadium, “There she is, like I said. I have fully cooperated with your requests. I don’t want any trouble with the Templars of Arvoreen.”

- At the same time Nac, Gim, and the now somewhat healed and conscious Sir Krondor and Labarett, enter into the room with Oloma from the stadium side. Some of the party recognise the silver crossed swords on the tabard of the Templars, the symbol of the Halfing god Arvoreen, the god of protection, vigilance and war.

- The lead Templar walks forward, “In the name of Lord Conlan of Earthcloak and by the authority given to me by the Lord Protector of Earthcloak, Sir Gonad, I hereby place you under arrest for the use of prohibited magic.”

- A laugh erupts out of Sir Krondor, “Yep, that’ll teach you!”

- Oloma calmly replies, “Yes of course, I am most sorry. I panicked. I was hurt and confused and I lashed out at a friend when I should not have. Forgive me Labarett, I was wrong. I’m glad you’re up again.”

- Labarett simply nods, “What is done is done. Being on the great circle, we make mistakes, we learn, we grow and we become better than we were before.”

- The Elf Barbarian shakes the hand of Oloma and she nods back without speaking.

- The lead Templar speaks, “Enough of this. You are under arrest and coming with us now.”

- Oloma turns back to the Templar, “I am very sorry, would it help to make a public apology to the crowd?”

- The Templar pulls out a pair of silver manacles with an engraving of a pair of crossed swords on them, “No. You can explain yourself to Sir Gonad, it is he who will judge you.”

- Oloma does not resist the Templar when he places the manacles on her. As the manacles click Oloma feels something, like a pressure, move over her. The Templar explains that they will take her to the nearby wall fort, the Harbourwatch Castle. The party arrange with Awamir to collect their belongings, including Oloma’s equipment, which the Templars do not object to.

- Sir Krondor claps his hands and speaks, “Well, looks like we’re not needed here. Let’s get our gear and go.”

- Nac, Labarett, Gim and Sir Krondor turn and walk away. Oloma looks at their retreating backs with a sigh, wishing she had chosen a different course of action.

- After the four companions collect all the gear from the secured room of the gladiators, they exit the stadium, passing through the crowds of people at the main gate and look around for Seanicus. They are unable to find him as he is not there. Not knowing where the Warlock has gotten to, they make the decision to continue on their way to the White Wolf Tavern.

***

- Seanicus stands by the front main gate of the stadium, crowds of people pushing against him. The Warlock had seen the end of the game through the entry tunnel and saw the Dragonborn gladiator waving his sword in triumph. The Warlock whispered, “That guy would be 200 gold coins richer right now. Be a shame if someone was to robbed him.”

- Looking keenly at the Dragonborn gladiator the Warlock saw the tall figure walk into a far side room and door closed behind him. With nothing else to do, Seanicus stood by the main gate and waited. He was unaware of what was transpiring to his companions inside the stadium. After a few minutes he noticed a tall figure wearing a hooded cloak, coming out from a nearby side door in the stadium and walk away into a crowd of people outside. A cold wind blew the side of the hood aside for a second and Seanicus saw the flash of light playing on scales on the face, a Dragonborn.

- Seanicus smiled, “What are the chances that could be the gladiator? Follow him.”

- As the Warlock speaks those final two words a dark shadow appeared, visible only to the Warlock, a hound of pure darkness appeared silently at the feet of Seanicus. It immediately moved, unseen between the crowd and arrived at the tall hooded figure. The dark hound slipped into the shadow of the hooded figure, always following now, and alerting Seanicus to where the figure was at all times provided Seanicus did not fall too far behind.

- Seanicus followed behind the tall hooded figure, out of sight, but thanks to the shadow hound that now followed with the figure’s shadow, always aware of exactly where the man went. Through the crowded street the Warlock followed and then through a series of empty bending, winding and intersection smaller alleyways with tall buildings towering over him until Seanicus had no idea where the he was or which way was north.

- His shadow hound indicated the figure had stopped. Coming around a bend Seanicus saw that this alleyway ended at a dead end about 60’ away. A few closed doors lined the alleyway and windows above, shuttered closed, were visible. The tall hooded figure was standing near one door, slightly open, and appeared to be talking to someone inside. The alleyway was deserted of anyone else.

- Abandoning caution to the wind, Seanicus walked down the alleyway and neared the figure. As he finally got closer, the figure turned and looked at the Warlock, removing the hood, “What the fuck do you want?”

- Now that Seanicus could see the face and build of the figure up close he realised that this could not be the gladiator. The frame and shoulders were too narrow and this Dragonborn was lacking the large muscles he saw on the Dragonborn gladiator. Cursing his bad luck, the Warlock stopped and said, “I’m lost. I thought this was the way to main road. Could you direct me to where that is?”

- The Dragonborn laughed with a bark, “Fucking foreigners! Go back that way, turn right, right, second left, then third right and keep going.”

- Seanicus turned and walked away, whispering under his breath, “Come” and unseen to anyone but Seanicus the dark shape of the shadow hound left the Dragonborn and returned to the Warlock.

- Trying to follow the many bends and intersections and keep in mind what the Dragonborn told him, Seanicus did not at first see the three dark figures, leaning against the wall of one building. As he got nearer the three figures walked out to block the alleyway. The figures were short of height but wide. He couldn’t see there faces as there hoods covered them but he could see long beards protruding out; Dwarves. Warm breath blew out from each hood in the cold air.

- Seanicus turned his head to look behind as the sound of more footsteps alerted him to four more hooded figures now at his rear. The Warlock removed his golden war hammer and whispered to it in Dwarvish, “Tell these Dwarves I am the rightful wielder of you and I am worthy.”

- Seanicus held the war hammer up in the air, the dim light from the cloudy day, glinting off it. A deep voice came from the war hammer, in Dwarvish, “Fellow Dwarves! Honour this man, he is worthy and chosen by me to wield …”

- But one of the hooded figures shouted out, “That’s it! He’s the one the boss told us about. Get the hammer!”

- Seanicus lowered the war hammer, which had now stopped talking. The Warlock walked towards the closest hooded figure, “Oh you want this. Take it,” extending the hammer to within arms reach of the figure handle first.

- The hooded figure reached out with two hands, as another figure from the rear shouted too late, “Don’t grab it you fool!”

- But the warning was too late as the Dwarf did indeed grab the golden hammer and instantly fell over backwards with a thud as lightning arced around his body.

- Seanicus raises both his empty hands and with a spoken word two eldritch beams of energy burst forth towards the hooded Dwarves. Unfortunately for the Warlock, the Dwarves ran towards him and all started to grab at him. Thick, strong Dwarven arms wrapped around Seanicus waist, arms and neck. The warlock looked at two of the figures, and curled his finger to point at them, speaking a word, sending more eldritch beams to shoot forth.

- “Cover his mouth you fools!” shouted a deep voice.

- A dirty hand, smelling of brandy, came from behind the Warlock to cover his mouth. Then two Dwarves came to the front of him and started punching him to the face and stomach, nearly knocking him out.

- The Dwarf on the ground finally managed to release the war hammer (Successful Strength check) and it dropped to the ground. One Dwarf used a long pair of blacksmith tongs to pick it up and place it into a sack held by another Dwarf.

- Seanicus, his eye bloody from a punch to the head, looked up at his attackers. He could see under their dark outer cloaks they wore a white wolf cloak over a chainmail shirts.

- One of the Dwarves spoke, “What do we do with him now?”

- Another voice spoke, “The boss didn’t say to kill him.”

- “Yeah,” replied another voice, “But she didn’t say to not kill him either.”

- The group all burst out laughing now and a single voice says, “Slit his throat and leave him here.”

- Seanicus looked around the Dwarves, unable to do anything to stop this. Just then from down a nearby side alleyway a loud female voice shouted, “City Watch! You’re all under arrest! Stay where you are!”

- The group of Dwarves started to bolt and run down another alleyway, punching Seanicus to the ground as they left.

- As Seanicus hit the ground hard, he turned his head towards some of the fleeing Dwarves and spoke with a mouth filled with blood, “Follow!”

- Again a dark form of shadow appeared, and started to run towards the closest Dwarf, to merge into the figures shadow.

- Slowly the Warlock pushed himself up from the ground and began to jog towards where his shadow beast told him the Dwarves where headed. His head was throbbing and his side ached from the assault he had suffered. Seanicus was finding it difficult to maintain a fast enough pass to follow. Through gritted teeth the Warlock pushed himself, “Must keep up, else I’ll lose the connection.”

- Further and further behind the Warlock was getting, as the Dwarves purposely kept taking alternating paths and bends, until eventually the Warlock stopped to catch his breath, unable to sense the location of his shadow hound anymore.

- Hearing footsteps coming up behind him he quickly turned, expecting to see one of the hooded Dwarves back again to finish the job in killing him, when he saw a female Dwarf with striking orange hair moving towards him looking all around. She wore a brown travelling clock over studded leather armour. Two light throwing hammers hung from her side.

- Approaching the injured Warlock she asks, “Are you ok? You look hurt.”

- Seanicus recognises the voice as same one that called out about the City Watch. He looks her over, “Are you really with the city watch?”

- Again the female Dwarf looks around, “No I just said that to get the Dwarves to flee, but with you casting spells like that around here, you’ve likely attracted the attention of the Templars. Their Habourwatch Castle on the west wall is not far from here. We need to get out of here now if we’re to avoid them and do not use any more magic. Let me take you back to your companions at Rosee’s Inn.”

- “No, I need to follow those Dwarves. If I can get closer I will sense their location,” replied Seanicus wiping blood off his face.

- The female Dwarf replied, looking around, “No need, those Dwarves are the Jagged Blade Gang. I know where they hang out. You can sort them out later but we really need to get out of here before the Templars get here. Quick this way back to Rosee’s”

- Seanicus, with no idea where the Dwarves went, or which way it was to anywhere reluctantly starts to follow her, calling back his Shadow Hound which reappears with his own shadow. Seanicus snaps, “Wait. Wait! How did you know I was staying at Rosee’s and who exactly are you.”

- Without stopping, the female replied, “I’m Kirgrire, a Harper, and I think we need to both do some talking but first let’s get to Rosee’s and out of here.”

- Seanicus looks at her, not quite sure what a Harper is but before he can ask, the sound of running footsteps sound behind them and Kirgrire quickens her pace, “Templars! Run now! Talk later!”

- The pair run off through the alleyways and manage to avoid the Templars, making their way to Rosee’s Inn.

***

- Naillae and Trenchant have been sitting in the upper seats in the gladiator stadium, waiting and looking for the party to return to them. After half an hour Nailae looks over at Trenchant, “They have forgotten about us, haven’t they.”

- Trenchant sighs, “Yep. Let’s go and see if they’re outside. Maybe they’re waiting for us.”

- Naillae looks over at the Bard as they get up to leave the stadium, pushing through the crowds, “You don’t really believe that?”

- “Not for a second,” replies the Bard coldly.

***

- Oloma is taken by the Templars and led via another corridor to come to exit the stadium via a private side door. The four Templars and six Constables form a group around her. The Templars are not overly rough with her and in fact, behalf in a professional and fair manner.

- Oloma speaks to them along the short journey and learns a little of what is happening. She is taken to a large fort built into the west city wall, over looking the harbour entry, the Harbourwatch Castle. In the front of the castle has been built a large monument. There are twenty one life size statues of children, playing and looking happy. A small silver plaque is visible just under the monument but it is too small for Oloma to read as she walks past. She turns to one of the Templars, “What is that monument?”

- The Templar looks at the children and bows his head as he passes, as do all the Templars, “That my lady is why we Templars exist. Never again shall the children of Earthcloak be taken away from us by the evil doing of magic users.”

- But before she can ask anymore questions she is lead into the great fort and down a series of corridors until she finds herself in a large hall. There are many Templars around the Keep, performing various activities or training in weapons.  Standing at attention, on guard, are six more Templars within the hall. The other four Templars that brought Oloma here direct her to a wooden chair and get her to sit down. She waits for a few minutes looking around. On a hunch, she tries to call forth a minor psionic power but nothing happens except for the manacles getting slightly warm.

- Soon a new group arrives at the hall. The two front templars, dressed in mithril chain and gold detail, lead the way for another figure. He too is wearing mithril chain, a grey cloak and dark green pants tucked into thick leather boots. Strapped to his back is a long mithril sword, much larger than what would be expected a Halfling could wield. His face is scared. The symbol of Earthcloak is engraved on his shoulder pauldrons.

- The new figure speaks, “Why is she bleeding?”

- One of the Templars speaks, “She was in the Gladiator games my lord.”

- The figure commands, “Get her a drink and remove the manacles. She is no threat in here with all of us.”

- One of the Templars unlocks the silver manacles whilst another moves over with a mug of water. Oloma takes it and drinks it, “Thank you.”

- The figure speaks, “I am the Lord Protector of Earthcloak, Sir Gonad Jahner, Knight Of The Order Of Arvoreen. You have been charged with using magic in the city of Earthcloak, which is prohibited. How do you plead?”

- Oloma looks up, “I am guilty my Lord, may I offer my sincerest apologies for my momentary loss of judgement and control during the games. I have dishonoured your city, your people, and my travelling companions, though that was never my intention.”

- Sir Gonad nods, “Very good. The Templars tell me you surrendered immediately and did not resist arrest. For that, and as this is your first offence as a visitor to our city, I shall give you the lowest punishment. You shall pay 50 gold coins and spend the day in the public stockade.”

- Oloma speaks, “My lord, I am Oloma Of The Living Blade, a visitor to both this city and these lands. My travelling companions and I are travelling through here on important business for the alliance of the Harpers, Order Of The Gauntlet, Emerald Enclave, and Lord’s Alliance. My Lord, within our group are Wardens Of Tyriba and we have been tasked with an important quest to stop the Dragon Cult from bringing Tiamat back into this world. Time is of the essence.”

- Sir Gonad turns to one of the Templars dressed in mithril and gold, “Does she speak the truth?”

- The Templar nods, “She does my lord, her words are true.”

- Sir Gonad continues, “We had heard the rumours of the Cult raising in the south and of the mercenary armies to the west lead by great Dragon Vorgansharax but we did not believe them. How credible is this threat? Do you believe it is possible that they can bring Tiamat back into this World?”

- Oloma replies, “Yes, from what I have seen and learnt, unless we can stop their plans I believe they will succeed in bringing the Dragon Queen back into our world.”

- Sir Gonad turns to the Templar, “She speaks the truth my lord.”

- “In that case, Oloma Of The Living Blade,” begins Sir Gonad, “Far be it for me to delay you and place our world in peril. I shall release you forthwith, and not subject you to a day in the stockade but I shall insist you still pay the fine of 50 gold coins. All men and women must obey the law, no matter their station.”

- Oloma thanks the Lord Protector for his mercy and then asks him about the monument of children outside this castle. She learns that the Templars of Arvoreen were created after a tragic incident about 150 years ago, in the 664th year of the second era, when 21 children went missing from Earthcloak, including the grand daughter of the Lord of Earthcloak at that time. The Constables of Earthcloak searched the city and eventually found a hidden lair of a wizard in the basement of one of the buildings within the city grounds. There they found the 21 children all dead and drained of their life, the result of vile and twisted acts. The looks on the children’s faces, and the injuries visible on their bodies, showed their final hours were not pleasant. As they searched the lair, a Halfing wizard appeared, the one who had abducted and killed the children. A fight broke out but the Constables were powerless against his great magic. He killed many Constables, laughing as he did so, and destroyed many buildings that day. The wizard fled the city, to where he went no one knowns. Little is known about the wizard except that he was called Yarash and had the accent of someone from the eastern lands of Tikoran. Since that day the Office of Lord Protector of Earthcloak and The Order of Templars Of Arvoreen were created and trained to deal with magic users. All magic has been banned from the city since that day.

- Oloma thanks the Lord for his time and leaves the Habourwatch Castle. There is no one waiting for her outside and she has no idea where anyone is. She decides to walk back to Rosee’s Inn, which will take her past the Gladiator stadium again.

***

- Naillae and Trenchant have now been standing outside the Gladiator stadium for ten minutes.

- Trenchant speaks, “We’ve waited long enough, we’re headed back to Rosee’s Inn.”

- Naillae quickly speaks, “We’re alone. In a strange city. We could go exploring, just you and me. We could have some lunch and then maybe a drink or two, and ….”

- Just then Oloma’s voice calls out, interrupting Naillae, “Hey, over here. Wait up!”

- Trenchant looks relieved to have a third person join them and enthusiastically waves Oloma to join them.

- Oloma comes jogging up to the pair, “I’m not interrupting you too?”

- Naillae says, “Yes” at the same time Trenchant says, “No, please join us.”

- Oloma fills them in what happened at the stadium. All three decide to head back together to Rosee’s Inn as no one is sure where the others are.

***

- At Rosee’s Inn, Seanicus and Kirgrire are seated at a table near the fireplace. The Inn is busy but Geneegin seems to be giving them special treatment, in particular Kirgrire. Kirgrire is trying to get Seanicus to speak to her but is not getting very far as the Warlock is not very talkative.

- The front door to Inn opens, with a blast of cold air, and in walks Trenchant, Naillae and Oloma. They see Seanicus and his new female Dwarf friend and join them at the table. Seanicus updates the new comers as to what happened to him outside the stadium and how he has now lost his war hammer to the Jagged Blade Gang. He introduces Kirgrire to the three.

- Trenchant puts out his hand to Kirgrire to shake and says, “My lady, I am Trenchant Kincaid, the Bearer Of Winfley, Warden Of Tyriba.”

- Kirgrire shakes his hand, and the pair exchange a secret hand signal, each now knowing that the other is also a Harper.

- “And it would appear you have another title as well?” asks Kirgrire looking at Trenchant with a raised eyebrow.

- “Trenchant, Harpshadow of the Harpers,” replies the Bard in a low voice.

- “Well meet Trenchant, I am Kirgrire, Harpshadow of the Harpers,” replies Kirgrire in a low voice and then in a louder voice, “It’s a shame I did not know your identity before. Would have saved me following your group all yesterday, and last night in the cold and today. I’ve been following your group since you visited the stock yards.”

- They learn that Kirgrire is a spy for the Harpers. She has been keeping the Red Scale Transport Company in the stockyards under watch for the last three weeks as there has been a lot of suspicious activities going on. She sent a messenger bird to update the Harper network three weeks ago but due to the very cold weather, there has not been an opportunity to receive a message back yet. Trenchant updates her on the status of the Harpers and alliance and how they have been tasked to join the wagon train and follow it to somewhere called Naerytar which no one knows what or where it is. Kirgrire states she has never heard of it either.

- As Geneegin comes over with more drinks, Kirgrire speaks, “If you ever need me ask Geneegin here. He’s an ex-Harper and was my superior and mentor in the network. Would still be my partner too if you hadn’t fallen in love you dam fool!” though Kirgrire says this with a light hearted smile.

- Geneegin smiles back, “Well, I had to choose between the life of a harper with you, always on the road, eating when I can, or settle down with my love Rosee and help her start up her dream to run an Inn. Which meant always sleeping in a warm bed, good meals and of course, waking up to her face every morning.”

- Geneegin looks back behind him at the bar and at his wife, Rosee standing there, and says warmly, “I made the right decision. I’ve done my part for the realm, it’s time for others now to step up now. Younger others.”

- The conversation moves on to the stolen war hammer of Seanicus, which the Warlock informs the group that he needs to get back or else he will start to lose his powers. They learn from Kirgrire that the Jagged Blade Gang uses one of the ware houses in the south docking district as their head quarters and they also hang out and drink at the White Wolf Tavern which is just around the block from the ware house.

- Seanicus slams the table, anger in his eyes, “The thing I want to know is, how did this gang find out about my war hammer!”

- Trenchant speaks, “Yes that is intriguing. I would also like to know where the rest of our party is.”

- Oloma adds, “Yes and once they get back here we can start planning getting your war hammer back Seanicus. This jagged Blade Gang has picked the wrong group to mess with.”

***

- Meanwhile, over at the White Wolf Tavern, Nac, Gim, Labarett and Sir Krondor have arrived. They enter the tavern and take up a table, The tavern is busy with about a dozen Dwarves seated around tables or at the long bar. There is a lot of drinking going on and some gambling.

- Torroc, the Inn Keep, comes over to the new group and in Dwarvish speaks, “What can I get for you.”

- Nac replies in Common, “I don’t speak Dwarvish. We want drinks. What do you have?”

- Torroc replies in Common, though it is obvious he finds it distasteful to do so, “We have ale for four coppers or brandy for two silvers. No wine, this isn’t some bloody Elvish bar.”

- Labarett the Elvish Barbarian looks at Torroc, “What about Dwarvish brandy? You have any of that?”

- Torroc laughs, “Aye, I’ve got that for ten gold a glass. But I don’t think you could handle that one laddy.”

- Gim immediately says, “Bring a bottle of Dwarvish brandy!”

- Nac adds, “And four glasses!”

- Sir Krondor begins, “I don’t know about this. One of us shouldn’t drink in case we need our wits about us.”

- Nac taunts the Dwarf Knight, “Come on now Krondor, what about your Dwarven pride. The other Dwarves will think you’re weak if you don’t.”

- Sir Krondor looks around the room with concern, “Really? Ok count me in!” putting ten gold coins onto the table.

- Torroc looks at Sir Krondor, “It’s you again Sir Knight. Any more stories you want to tell us. I liked the one you told the fellows here yesterday about the golden war hammer of Sir Krafulim Longshield being found by an Elf.”

- Labarett slams ten gold coins down too, “Me too! I’ll show you an Elf can handle Dwarven sodding brandy!”

- Torroc takes ten gold coins from each of the four and then pours the thick brown liquid into each of their small glasses. The distinctive rich smell of the liquor fills the room and the eyes of the other Dwarves look over.

- All four drink their brandy in one gulp and then place the glass onto the table. Labarett’s and Gim’s faces turn red and each of them starts to sway slightly (Failed Constitution save). Labarett starts blinking his eyes and the room is slowly spinning around.

- Nac and Sir Krondor lick their lips and smile. They have a pleasant warm glow about them (Successful Constitution save - will now have advantage on cold checks for the rest of the day).

- Nac speaks, “Smooth. Another round Torroc! Four more glasses!”

- Sir Krondor speaks, “Wait, I’m not paying for that!”

- Nac puts forty gold coins onto the table, “My shout boys! Drink up!”

- Torroc smiles and starts pouring, “Oh this I’ve got to see!”

- Whilst the Inn Keep is pouring the brandy some of the other Dwarves have moved closer, taking an interest in the drinking and starting to place bets down on who will survive the next round. Nac notices one particular Dwarf, who had been seated by himself in the back, wearing a white wolf cloak, get up quickly and leave in a hurry (Successful Perception check). In Nac’s happy warm state he decides to not worry about it.

- Labarett pushes his refilled glass away, “No thank you. One is my limit.”

- This makes some of the Dwarves around the tavern burst out laughing. Some Dwarvish names and words are spoken, which Labarett can guess are not of the friendly type.

- Gim, still slowly spinning from his first drink, goes to grab for his glass, which takes three attempts as the glass seems to be not where Gim thinks it is.

- Nac smiles at Gim and then grabs his glass, along with Sir Krondor who grabs his glass too.

- Some of the Dwarves throw a handful of gold coins down onto the table and make bets that they won’t make the second round. Nac throws an equal number of coins onto the table to match and takes their bet.

- Nac, Gim and Sir Krondor each drink their glass in one gulp and put it back down onto the table. Nac turns to look at Gim, who is smiling and with his eyes still wide open, slowly starts to fall sideways. Gim falls onto the floor with a heavy thud.

- Nac smirks, “Never could handle his drink that Dwarf” and then grabs all the gold coins on the table, as he has won the bet (Won 9 gp).

- There is still one filled glass of Dwarvish brandy on the table, as Labarett did not drink his.

- Nac turns to Sir Krondor, “Come on, you going to let that drink go to waste? You want these Dwarves to think you’re chicken, or you can’t handle a drink?”

- Sir Krondor picks up the last glass and raises it, “For Fanur!”

- All the Dwarves shout out, “Fanur!”

- Sir Krondor drinks his third Dwarvish brandy and puts the glass down. He looks around the room smiling at the cheers of the other Dwarves for his remarkable feat of fortitude. (All up Sir Krondor rolled 16, 26 and 23 for his Constitution saves).

- As Gim is now unconscious and Labarett is very unbalanced, the group decides to stay in the tavern for some time until they can at least get Gim onto his feet. After an hour, and with the help of a bucket of cold water thrown onto the Dwarf, they wake Gim up. They head out of the Inn and start to make their way back to Rosee’s Inn on the other side of town, having to help Gim walk most of the way.

- Any thoughts about the strange Dwarf in the white wolf cloak that quickly left the Inn earlier are completely forgotten from Nac’s intoxicated mind.

***

- At mid afternoon, the four of them finally arrive back at Rosee’s Inn and rejoin with the rest of the party and meet with the new comer, Kirgrire.

- The companions exchange stories of what they have been up to and all are now up to speed with the outcome of Oloma’s arrest, Seanicus’s war hammer being stolen and finding the Harper contact.

- Sir Krondor speaks in an embarrassed tone, “Seanicus I have an apology to make. I was bragging about your war hammer to the Dwarves in the White Wolf Tavern yesterday. If they hang around there, as Kirgrire says they do, they would have heard about it then. I’m sorry.”

- Seanicus angrily replies, “Your apology won’t bring my war hammer back! Without that hex weapon I will lose my powers!”

- Sir Krondor, emboldened by the three Dwarvish brandies in him, stands and places a hand on his heart, “You’re right! All hear this oath I take now.”

- Trenchant starts, “Bloody hell, let’s not rush …”

- But Sir Krondor cuts him off, “I, Sir Krondor, Knight of The Anvil, Knight of the Gauntlet, Warden of Tyriba, swear on my life to retrieve your war hammer and return it to you. This I make my personal quest.”

- The Knight sits down smiling as the others in the group look around, now committed to attacking the gang.

- Now that the decision to take action against the gang is done, the party decide to eat a meal and then get some sleep to make a midnight raid on the warehouse of the Jagged Blade Gang. Sir Krondor asks Kirgrire if she knows of any Knights Of The Gauntlet in Earthcloak and the Harper advises that the Sherif in town is Captain Kison, and is a member of Gauntlet.

- Sir Krondor excuses himself and heads over to the Sheriff’s Office, which is only a couple of blocks away from Rosee’s Inn. The Dwarf Knight arrives at the solid and well secured building and enters it, asking some of the occupants to see Captain Kison.

- Captain Kison is happy to meet another Gauntlet member and the halfling, who wears a well maintained suit of splint mail with a flail hanging off his side from his belt, leads Sir Krondor into his private office.

- Captain Kison offers Sir Krondor a drink of brandy but the Dwarf Knight, with three brandies down for the day already, turns it down. Sir Krondor informs the Captain what has happened regarding the theft of the legendary war hammer of Sir Krafulim Longshield by the Jagged Blade Gang. Sir Krondor is disappointed to learn the Captain Kison can not take any action unless he has proof, which Sir Krondor does not have.

- Sir Krondor presses Captain Kison for any aid he can give, “I am not asking as a citizen and I am not asking you in your capacity as Sherif of Earthcloak but I am asking you as a fellow member of the Gauntlet, please any help in this matter would make a difference!”

- Captain Kison agrees to pull all the Watch patrols from that area, so that they party will be free to use magic if needed without fear of being arrested. He also informs Sir Krondor that the last Templar patrol on that side of the city will be at 10pm and no more Templar patrols will start until sun rise. Captain Kison also gives some simple floor plans of the warehouse that the Jagged Blade Gang is using, a two story building with an attic and side shed.

- Captain Kison also gives some information on the gang make up, “It comprises about twenty five gang members that we know of. Their leader, Grussebella Bloodchin is a nasty piece of work. She will happily gut you alive and pull your innards whilst you watch, and she’ll laugh the whole time she’s doing it. She’s psychotic. Be careful too, we believe she has an enchanted weapon, not too sure what it is though. And don’t underestimate her. She runs that gang with an iron fist. Those gang members obey her every command without question.”

- Sir Krondor asks, “And if these gang members were to meet an untimely death tonight in our attempt to retrieve the war hammer?”

- Captain Kison replies, “You and I are men of battle Sir Krondor and we each know that in battle there are always casualties. The watch will not care or investigate the deaths of gang members. Earthcloak has many gangs and they are fighting with each other constantly. One less gang is of no concern of mine, in fact, you would be doing me a favour.”

- With this information Sir Krondor returns to Rosee’s Inn and rejoins the party. They all head up to their rooms to get a long sleep in before the coming midnight raid.

***

- The party and Kirgrire awake just before midnight and prepare for the cold night raid. As they leave Rosee’s Inn they look up to see the large blue moon, Athair is nearly full, and the smaller grey moon, Harell, is almost half full. There is plenty of light to see out tonight.

- Gim looks up, “Athair is nearly full tonight, that’s a good omen! Bless us tonight father, let my axe taste blood!” (Athair is Dwarvish for “father”).

- Labarett looks up too, “Yes, let’s hope that the influence of Harell is not strong tonight.” (Harell is Elvish for “The Deceiver”)

- Naillae scoffs, “Bloody superstitious lot! We’ll succeed or fail tonight based on whether you all pull your weight and don’t do anything stupid. We need to sneak in undetected. If it was just me it would be easy but you lot make so much noise I can hear you walking a mile off. Follow my lead and don’t do anything rash!”

- The party walk the long distance to the south of the city. The night is very cold. Kirgrire leads the party to the south dock district and points out the ware house where the gang is. She points out the front door, side shed door, one lit ground floor window and an attic window which though in darkness she tells the party it can almost be guaranteed to have a look out watching the street. The Dwarf Harper can not aid in the raid as her involvement can not be known, as it will compromise her duties as a spy, so she leaves the party and fades into the dark night.

- The party decide to go around the block and approach the warehouse from the far west side as the positioning of the side shed there will help stay out of sight of anyone watching from the from the attic window.

- Trenchant and Naillae sneak forward to the side shed, Naillae using her skills as a trained rogue of the Lington Thief’s Guild to move from shadow to shadow, silently. Whilst Trenchant pulls up the hood of his Elven cloak to make the enchanted cloak change colours to match his surrounding, making it almost impossible to see him.

- They move up to a metal portcullis that has a large padlock on it. Oloma uses her telepathy to pass messages to and from the lead pair and the rest of the party.

- Trenchant and Naillae advise the rest of the party that the side shed has six horses in it and there is an internal side door that leads into the warehouse, that has light coming from the door frame. They can hear a loud group of people inside gambling.

- Labarett moves forward slowly. Whilst waiting for Naillae to unlock the large pad lock, Labarett performs a silent ritual that allows him to talk to animals. He then tells the horses to be silent and not be alarmed by them coming inside. One of the horse replies, “Yes, new friends. Other smaller masters inside.”

- The rest of the party move up into the shed, trying to keep quite, which judging by the sour expression on Naillae’s face, the party did not move as quietly as she would like. Naillae whispers, “Thank your bloody moons the morons inside are playing cards loudly else they would have heard the lot of you!”

- Labarett asks the horse, “Where are most of the small masters?”

- One of the horses bows his head low, “Down. Down. Under.”

- Naillae whispers, “The plans didn’t have anything on it about a basement.”

- Oloma whispers, “Seanicus can you sense you war hammer?”

- Seanicus answers back in a low whisper, “Only if it is near.” The Warlock closes his eyes for a moment and then opens them, pointing a finger downwards, it’s somewhere below us. There must be a basement beneath us.”

- Sir Krondor suggests having himself and Naillae creep forward to the front door and have her unlock that whilst she comes back to unlock the side door and have the party attack the warehouse from two fronts. Nac advises against that in case the two doors open into different rooms, as the building plan they obtained from Captain Kison did not have any details about the internal layout.

- Once Naillae unlocks the side door, she steps aside to let Oloma open the door. The Mystic opens the door slowly to reveal one large open area that covers the entire ground floor. A staircase directly ahead goes up to the second level and a large wooden trap door, with an iron ring handle, is visible near the stairs. To the far left, about 60’ away, is a fireplace and some tables, one of which has six Dwarves, each wearing a white wolf cloak, seated around it playing cards. Most of the light in the large open area is around the Dwarves with the rest of the area, including where the party is, is only dimly lit.

- Nac moves into the door way and casts a Silence spell at the far Dwarves, immediately the loud sound of their talk, laughter and metal mugs thudding against the table cease. The Dwarves turn around and see the open side door with Nac and Oloma in view.

- Combat starts. The party need to quickly take out these Dwarves and do so making as little noise as possible so as not to alert any more Dwarves in the rest of the warehouse.

- The party move in but rather than rush in to attack the Dwarves within the circle of magical silence they make a tactical mistake and instead Trenchant, Oloma and Nac rush in to take of positions of cover behind a nearby table and attack via ranged means whilst Gim moves of to the side and uses his crossbow to attack from afar. Naillae moves to the bottom of the stairs and readies her daggers in case anyone else comes to join the fight. Only Sir Krondor attempts to rush forward towards the foes but his short Dwarven legs can’t get him to the reach them before all six Dwarves pick up their shields and battleaxes and move forward. Most of the Dwarves now out of the area of silence.

- Two of the Dwarf gang members rush towards Sir Krondor and engage him, their weapons silently striking as they are within the magical circle of silence. Two Dwarf gangs members rush towards the three of the party crouching near the table and block them away from the last two members of the gang that are running to get help. One runs towards the stairs at full speed, obviously trying to get help from upstairs and the other moves over to the wooden trap door and begins to lift it up. As Oloma gets hit by two of the gang members she takes one blow before teleporting behind the pair to appear standing on the trap door, her weight now preventing it from being opened.

- Seanicus and Labarett, who are still moving into the warehouse, move in. Seanicus moves off to the side and starts shooting eldritch beams of energy at the gang whilst Labarett rushes in and charges towards the gang member trying to open the trap door. The Elf barbarian hacks at the Dwarf in a Barbaric rage.

- In the confusion of battle Gim misfires his crossbow and nearly breaks it but instead jams the mechanism needing him to spend some time to fix it (Fumble attack roll, that he re-rolled because he used his Inspiration and he again rolled a Fumble). Instead his takes out his great axe and moves towards the gang members and engage them in close combat, joining Oloma and Labarett. The sounds of the battle, metal against metal, and shouts of pain and anger, are loud now as most of the combat is outside of the circle of silence.

- Sir Krondor is battling two of the gang members single handedly and the combat is frantic, with the Dwarf Knight nearly taking a deadly blow to his neck by one of the gang member’s battleaxes but the Knight manages to duck just in time (Critical Hit, forced re-rolled by Sir Krondor using his Inspiration, and turned into a miss).

- The gang member on the trap door doesn’t last long with Labarett and Oloma attacking him in close melee (Oloma cut his tendon reducing his speed with a Critical Hit) and with Seanicus sending Eldritch beams of energy to blast at him.

- Trenchant and Nac remain behind a table using it for cover whilst throwing spells and crossbow bolts at the gang members. Trenchant casts a Sleep spell at three of the gang members and one of them drops to the ground snoring loudly. In response, one of the gang members comes rushing towards the pair crouching at the table and forces them back as the gang member’s battleaxe swings at them. Labarett quickly charges over to help Trenchant and Nac.

- One of the gang members makes a run towards the stairs, running past Gim he swings his great axe into his back as he passed. With a gapping back wound, the gang member sprinted on, past Naillae who was guarding the bottom of the stairs and the Elf Rogue stabs a dagger into the Dwarfs leg, as he ran past up the stairs but Naillae quickly threw two of her daggers into the back of the gang member, killing him. The heavy body of the Dwarf, in armour, falls backwards and rolls down the stairs with a loud crash, his battleaxe and shield clattering down the stairs too.

- Naillae shouts to the party, “Expect company! I can hear footsteps coming from above!” as she starts to move away from the bottom of the stairs and take a position near Seanicus.

- Seeing the sleeping gang member Gim moves over and lifts his great axe high over his head and brings it down with his full force into the sleeping foe’s neck. The blade cuts throw the neck and hits hard against the wooden floor boards, killing the gang member instantly (Critical Hit - Triple Damage).

- Sir Krondor swings into one of the two gang members on him and cuts open the foe’s stomach, killing him. Oloma rushes over to help the Dwarf Knight finish off the remaining foe.

- Gim, Labarett and Nac have surrounded one gang member and Oloma and Sir Krondor are attacking the other remaining gang member,

- From the second level, comes the heavy sound of foot steps running, as four more Dwarf gang members start to run down the stairs. Seanicus and Naillae who had been waiting and covering the stairs to start to hurl eldritch beams and daggers at the new comers.

- Trenchant concentrates on a spell and from around the head of the Dwarf gang member who is leading the charge down the stairs appears a twisted crown of jagged iron. The eyes of the Dwarf are now glowing and his expression appears like a madman. This Dwarf, now under the control of Trenchant, stops running down the stairs, turns around and begins to attack his companion behind him.

- Naillae and Seanicus are attacking the other Dwarves on the upper section of the stairs whilst the bottom two Dwarves on the stairs are now locked in combat with each other. Naillae’s throw is wide and the Dwarf gang member easily knocks it aside and taunts her (Fumble attack - Taunt disadvantage next turn).

- With the last two remaining gang members on the ground floor slain the party are now free to attack the other gang members on the stairs and turn their attention to them. Meanwhile the Dwarves on the stairs, who can’t get down as they are blocked by the possessed gang member attacking them, thanks to Trenchant now controlling him, so they are forced to hurl light throwing hammers down at the party.

- Sir Krondor moves over to the trap door and guards it in case any foes come from below. Gim starts throwing hand axes up at the gang members on the stairs which causes one of them to cower behind the stair railing in terror (Critical Hit - terrify foe). Labarett moves up to the stairs and from the below uses his javelin to poke the gang members through the stair railing.

- Seanicus is hurling Eldritch beams at the foes on the stairs and likewise Naillae is throwing her daggers.

- Gim gets another good throw with one of his hand axes and strikes one of the foes in the groin causing him to bend over in agony (Critical Hit - low blow - miss one turn).

- Sir Krondor moves away from the trap door and takes out his bow to start firing at the foes on the stairs too.

- Oloma, who had gotten up onto a table during the combat below, is also using her mind against the foes on the stairs, forcing one of the Dwarves to question his own mental identity (ID insinuation psionic ability to force disadvantage on their attack rolls).

- Gim throws another well aimed hand axe and inflicts a grievous wound on one of them (Critical Hit - double damage). Not to be outdone by the display of Gim and his deadly hand axes, Nac casts his Chill Touch with such force that it strikes all four gang members on the stairs with deadly force (Spell Critical).

- The gang member under the control of Trenchant kills his companion and them moves up the stairs to engage another of his companions.

- The Dwarves on the stairs, throwing down light hammers, do not last long under this intense barrage from the party. Gim throws another deadly hand axe (Critical Hit giving double damage and allowing another attack against another target). Sir Krondor fumbles his bow and drops an arrow as he lets the string go too early but luckily does not break his bow string (Fumble).

- Eventually only the last remaining gang member, still under the control of Trenchant, is left. Trenchant makes the Dwarf drop his weapon and shield move down the stairs into the centre of the party and lay face down. The party then execute the Dwarf in a simultaneous attack.

<And as the party catch their breath after that hectic battle, having succeeded in entering the hide out of the Jagged Blade Gang Dwarves, that is the end of the session.>

XP Allocation

Group - Combined (This is equally divided by the number of players who were involved)

Quests (Only quests that are completed or rendered undoable, during this session, are shown here)

- Enter the Jagged Blade Hideout undetected = 250 XP

Creatures Overcome

- Jagged Blade Dwarves = 7000

Individual (This is only given to that person and is not divided amongst all players)

Special Bonus (Outstanding Role Playing)

Nil

XP Levels and Player Allocations

Player : Start +  Received = Total  (Notes)

Phil : 25419 + 906 = 26325

Rob : 32217 + 906 = 33123

Arthur : 22121 + 906 = 23027 (Level up to Level 7)

Bob : 21367 + 906 = 22273

Travis : 19383 + 680 = 20063

Paul : 17140 + 1132 = 18272

Sean : 16875 + 906 = 17781

NPC (Naillae) : + (453)

[mbtizone]

Jacob (Lost): INFJ

Dominant Introverted Intuition [Ni]: Everything Jacob does is in service of the big picture. He’s always thinking about the future. Jacob knows that the island will need a protector once his time is over and spends years recruiting people. His primary objective is to defeat his brother and find someone to take his place on the island. After he has selected his candidates, he draws them to the island. Jacob is remarkably patient in his quest and has an instinctive understanding of what he needs to do to accomplish his goal. Although Kate accuses him of being the reason that the others died on the submarine, Jacob does what is necessary in order to protect the island, because he understands its importance. He’s skilled with symbolism, as evidenced by the metaphor he uses to explain the island’s purpose to Richard.

Auxiliary Extroverted Feeling [Fe]: Jacob has a warm disposition and knows how to relate to others. He sees potential in other people and has a way of making them feel special. Even though his mother raised him to believe that people are bad, Jacob sees the good in humanity. Despite her wariness about people, Jacob doesn’t have a black-and-white outlook on them. However, although he doesn’t share her views about them, he doesn’t like to cross his mother or do anything that will upset her. He embraces potential candidates for their flaws and doesn’t pass judgment on others. He continues to hope for the best in people, and, up until the moment Ben killed him, Jacob continued to hope that he was wrong about him. Jacob knows how to adjust his approach to get what he needs from people, and he realizes that one method won’t work for everybody, which is why Jack needs to be shown things, but Hurley can be told. Jacob personally identifies with the people he chooses as candidates, because they are flawed in the way that he is.

Tertiary Introverted Thinking [Ti]: Because Jacob’s ultimate goal is to find someone to replace him as protector of the island and defeat The Man in Black, he needs to be able to think up ways of meeting that end. He rarely shares his process with other people, though, which can lead people to become frustrated with him. His plans are always developed internally and Jacob doesn’t let other people in on what he’s doing. He tells Hurley to bring Jack to the lighthouse, but doesn’t explain why. When Jack destroys it after seeing his childhood home in a mirror, Jacob is completely unperturbed, which is confusing to Hurley, who is later told that Jacob’s only intention was for Jack to see that and realize that he is important. Jacob is curious about humanity and engages in debates regarding their true nature with his brother.

Inferior Extroverted Sensing [Se]: Though he’s usually quite calculated, Jacob can make impulsive decisions in the heat of the moment. After his brother kills his mother, he wants to punish him. Since he is unable to kill him, Jacob throws his brother into the Heart of the island instead. However, this move wasn’t as advantageous as he had hoped, as doing so turned the Man in Black into the Smoke Monster, who goes on to terrorize the people Jacob draws to the island. He’s skilled with weaving, and created both a tapestry and a rug for his shelter out of thread that he spun himself. Jacob prefers to be on the sidelines instead of in the thick of things, which is why he appoints Richard as his representative. He watches the people that his brother lives with because he wants to know whether they’re good or bad. He doesn’t trust his mother’s assessment or what she tells him about humanity, but what he can observe for himself.

Enneagram: 9w1 So/Sx

Quotes:

Jacob: Think of this wine as what you keep calling hell. There’s many other names for it too: malevolence, evil, darkness. And here it is, swirling around in the bottle, unable to get out because if it did, it would spread. The cork [he corks the bottle] is this island…and it’s the only thing keeping the darkness where it belongs. That man who sent you to kill me believes that everyone is corruptible because it’s in their very nature to sin. I bring people here to prove him wrong. And when they get here, their past doesn’t matter. Richard: Before you brought my ship, there were others? Jacob: Yes, many. Richard: What happened to them? Jacob: They’re all dead. Richard: But if you brought them here, why didn’t you help them? Jacob: Because I wanted them to help themselves. To know the difference between right and wrong without me having to tell them. It’s all meaningless if I have to force them to do anything. Why should I have to step in? Richard: If you don’t, he will.

Jacob: I take it you’re here ’cause of the ship. The Man in Black: I am. How did they find the Island? Jacob: You’ll have to ask ’em when they get here. The Man in Black: I don’t have to ask. You brought them here. Still trying to prove me wrong, aren’t you? Jacob: You are wrong. The Man in Black: Am I? They come. They fight. They destroy. They corrupt. It always ends the same. Jacob: It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress.

Jacob: You call him “the monster.” But I’m responsible for what happened to him. I made him that way. And ever since then, he’s been trying to kill me. It was only a matter of time before he figured out how, and when he did, someone would have to replace me. And that’s why I brought you all here. James “Sawyer” Ford: Tell me something, Jacob. Why do I gotta be punished for your mistake? What made you think you can mess with my life? I was doin’ just fine ’til you dragged my ass to this damn rock. Jacob: No, you weren’t. None of you were. I didn’t pluck any of you out of a happy existence. You were all flawed. I chose you because you were like me. You were all alone. You were all looking for something that you couldn’t find out there. I chose you because you needed this place as much as it needed you.

Jacob: How’d it go? Hurley: Where were you, man? Jacob: Doesn’t matter, he wouldn’t have been able to see me anyway. Hurley: Yeah, well if you’d told me that and I’d like, explained everything, then maybe Jack wouldn’t have freaked out and smashed your mirror into a billion pieces. Thanks for the seven years of bad luck, by the way. Jacob: You’ve got ink on your forehead. Hurley: I have ink on my forehead? That’s all you have to say? Jack broke your lighthouse, dude. Mission un-accomplished. Whoever you said we need to help get to the island is totally screwed. Jacob: [unconcerned] Well I’m sure they’ll find some other way. Hurley: So…everything you wanted me to do didn’t get done, and you don’t even care? [Jacob looks over towards Jack, Hurley does the same.] Hurley: Wait a minute. Did you want Jack to see what was in that mirror? [Jacob smiles] Why? Jacob: It was the only way for him to understand how important he is. Hurley: That was your plan? I think it backfired, man. Jacob: Jack is here because he has to do something. He can’t be told what that is. He’s got to find it himself. Sometimes you can just…hop in the back of someone’s cab and tell them what they’re supposed to do. Other times…you have to let them look out at the ocean for a while.

Jacob: Do you think he’ll come back? Mother: No. Jacob: He said you killed our mother… Is that true? Mother: Yes… If I had let her live, she would have taken you back to her people; and those people are bad, Jacob–very bad. I-I couldn’t let you become one of them. I needed you to stay good. Jacob: Am I good, Mother? Mother: Yes, of course you are. Jacob: Then, why do you love him more than me? Mother: I love you in–in different ways. [touching his cheek] Will you stay with me, Jacob? Please? Jacob: Yes. [she chuckles and snuggles up to him] For awhile.

Jacob: [about his tapestry] You like it? I did it myself. It takes a very long time when you’re making the thread, but, uh… I suppose that’s the point, isn’t it?

Man in Black:: She know you visit me? Jacob: She never asks about you. Man in Black:: Then, I’m sorry I asked about her. Why do you watch us, Jacob? Jacob: [mutters] I watch because I wanna know if Mother’s right. Man in Black:: Right about what? Jacob: About them. Man in Black:: Oh, you mean my people. You wanna know if they’re bad. That woman may be insane, but she’s most definitely right about that. Jacob: I don’t know. They don’t seem so bad to me. Man in Black:: That’s easy for you to say. Looking down on us from above. Trust me, I’ve lived among them for 30 years. They’re greedy, manipulative, untrustworthy, and selfish. Jacob: Then why are you with them? Man in Black:: They’re a means to an end. Jacob: What end? Man in Black:: I’m leaving, Jacob. I found a way off the Island. Jacob: No, it’s impossible. There is no way off the Island.

Jacob (Lost): INFJ was originally published on MBTI Zone

[foxeswritefiction-blog]

The Afterlife in the Sky

I watch stun grenades, bricks and Molotov cocktails fly across the screen, people scream and flee from the corrupt Ukrainian police and I'm only able to understand and comprehend what is happening through the English subtitles on the screen. Protesters toss tires into fires, causing thick, black smoke to billow up to the milky way and suffocate the cosmos, as well as the corrupt Berkut police ruthlessly killing peaceful citizens.

Winter on Fire is as cinematic as it is heartbreaking, and I have to remind myself the bloody bodies on screen are real people, and this isn't an action-packed dystopian Hollywood movie; the brains spilled across the asphalt, the blood running down their faces, the gunshots, the screams, they're all real— there aren't props or sets made by professionals, but barricades, recycled and makeshift and finely crafted by those defending themselves against the Berkut. They wave their blue and yellow flags atop their shelters and wear pots and pans on their heads, and I have to tell myself again, "There is nothing artificial about this. This is real."

I think about these people before the Ukrainian Revolution. I wonder if they feared for their lives before Maidan became a symbol of dissent, if now, they look over their shoulders skeptically or stiffen during police encounters; and then I wonder— what about those lost in Maidan? What about the 125 lives taken in Maidan? Or the 6,000 and counting lives lost in the war following Winter on Fire. Millions of people send smoke to the sky along with their compatriots' souls lost in battle; Muslim, Catholic, and Christian alike pray to the God of their understandings.

Ukraine is in mourning every morning and evening and some are still searching for those lost in Maidan, those never found or uncovered from kidnappings, and I wonder where they went. Why can't they be found? I see them hoisted onto stretchers and zipped into body bags, I see them stowed in the back of ambulances and whisked away at unusual speed, but I don't know where they go.

☄

The Incas believe the milky way or Mayu is a river connecting heaven and earth, it is said the river flows from the Vilcanota in Peru. They say it is the road our loved ones walk in the afterlife to cross into the celestial realm in the sky. It is believed one visits the Hanan Pacha (the upper world) in their dreams.

The Incas celebrated a ceremony called Inti Raymi which translates to "sun festival." Inti Raymi is celebrated in June winter solstice and centers around the sun god Inti; the festival is believed to be the day when the Vilcanota aligns with the Mayu causing heaven and earth to come together and the sun to rise and set in the milky way.

Inti Raymi, the celebration of the sun god, is the largest festival in Inca religion. Today the festival takes place on June 24th, the last day of the Incas winter solstice, which technically begins on the 21st. The celebration of Inti Raymi is full of song and dance and fire rituals, the Incas painted their faces yellow and adorned their heads with deer antlers and doubled them as instruments.

☄

I remember how fervently my grandma, who I called Manna, believed in heaven. She believed she was invited and papa and my sister and my mom and me, she didn't think my dad would ever make it, but prayed for him anyhow. She always said she knew she would go to heaven when she died, and I remember unable to comprehend a life without her, which led to vivid fever dreams about her dying from various causes. I remember calling her several times in the middle of the night for reassurance she'd live forever.

I remember she'd always tell me everyone has to die, because that's the funny part about life, to which I would cry until she calmed me down, hushed me and instructed me to look out the window at the moon, and I remember pressing my face up against the chilled glass and spotting the full, white moon just outside my bedroom window.

"Are you looking at the moon?" she said.

"Yes," I replied.

"Okay, good," she said. "Now listen to me sweetheart, we are looking at the same moon."

"Really?" It hadn't occurred to me.

"Yes, really. And we'll always be looking at the same moon. No matter where I am."

I remember her telling me not to worry about her dying because eventually I'd meet her in heaven and I remember asking, "can we meet on the moon?"

☄

President Yanukovych resigned at the dissenting demand of Maidan, and the celebration that ensued paid tribute to those lost in Maidan. The people applauded at the announcement on that Yanukovych resigned and re-elections would take place in May, and they cried and sang for their freedom, proudly waving their blue and yellow flags, with tears of joy tearing through their matching facepaint.

The beauty in the film is restored, after mass bloodshed and war, I can see the beauty of Maidan. I can Maidan as a place of togetherness, not a war torn city. In Ukraine, the passion for freedom outweighs the fear of oppression.

They fill the memorials with assorted rose bouquets and prayer candles and family photos and Ukraine flags and priceless mementos, mourning and thanking their loved ones for risking their lives for the freedom and future of Ukraine. Muslim, Catholic, Buddhist, Jewish and atheist pray together as one, honoring their Ukrainian brothers and sisters.

Ukraine celebrates through the night, with soulful music and festival lights shining into the heavens in lieu of  billowing smoke from the winter on fire. I wonder, when the smoke dissipates and the lights go up in Maidan, do the souls of those lost go with them?

☄

While the Incas celebrate the sun I wonder where Mama Quilla is. Mama Quilla is the goddess of the moon, marriage, the menstrual cycle, Inti's wife and sister, and protector of women.

Mama Quilla is the epitome of feminism in Inca religion and is praised today, particularly by women. The Incas believe Mama Quilla's lunar eclipses were shadows of animals pouncing on her and attacking her; they responded by yielding their weapons of the lunar phases and threw rocks to help fend the animals off; and they collected silver from the ground and believed she shed silver tears on them.  

On Inti Raymi, I wonder if she is full of life and gleaming white over Peru, or if she is a silver waning crescent hidden by the Mayu, ample with stardust and spirit animal constellations, as it flows from Vilcanota to the upper world. I wonder if she sees the souls of those who have passed float through the Mayu to the Hanan Pachu, and I wonder if she floats too.

☄

I remember sitting beside Manna's chair in the dead of night, it was my turn to watch her even though my family urged me to sleep and rest and not 'take it upon myself to take care of her'. I remember when I began to drift off to sleep, my forehead pressed against the arm of her chair, I woke up as soon as she did. Her eyes opened and looked straight ahead at the small night light blinking in the bathroom. She let a small sigh escape her dry lips and she croaked for me, I asked her if she needed water, she didn't say yes or no, all she said was, "It's time."

I frantically pulled the crumpled note from my pocket and held my phone up to the constellation of words scattered across the page and read through a rushing river of tears. I told her everything I'd planned to tell her before she went.

I remember promising to never let a man treat me poorly, and if Josh, my boyfriend at the time, did anything to hurt me I would stomp him out with my combat boots, like she always promised to do for me. I remember promising to graduate from college, no matter how badly I want to drop out and runaway. I remember promising to write about her always, and to pick up where she left off with her memoir and to pursue my dreams in lieu of financial stability. Her eyes glazed over and opened again, she perked up at the invisible presence that watched over us both and I tried not to let my tears inhibit my words.

I told her I loved her, I think I told her 20 times. I promised to be kind to my father and my sister though our relationships were fleeting. I promised to always look at the moon when I missed her and to name a star after her.

And I remember when the time came, to name a star, it was 15 minutes after I'd heard she passed and I had finally emptied myself of my tears for the day; I looked up at the night sky and for the first time, I was unsatisfied. I couldn't name a star after her because I couldn't find one good enough. I remember staying outside on my balcony for hours, lying on my back and criticizing the stars as they shot across the sky like a constellatory light show; with each star that fell from the sky, to wherever, I wondered where she went.

I remember the third time I tried acid. I was alone and outside, watching the sky during a meteor shower. I remember seeing patches of the milky way, aural blue watercolor splotches glittered with stardust. "Is that real?" I asked allowed to no one in particular, but was answered with a chill wind creeping up my spine and a star shooting through the galaxy.

I didn't decide the milky way was real and not just a hallucination, but the universe decided for me, and I named her Sandi.

☄

I wonder if Manna has seen the milky way, or the souls from Maidan. I wonder if she's in heaven, and I wonder if I reject or accept the idea of heaven or spirits crossing into it through the Mayu. I wonder if I'll ever know where Manna went or if I'll meet her on Mama Quilla when my time inevitably comes. I wonder why we go where we go when we die, and if she's with Ukrainians or the Incas, or both, because it seems the only requirement for access to heaven is to fervently believe in something, which every fiber of your being, so much it makes you cry or risk your life. 

[moodforanime]

The Possesions of the Wild(Naruto fanfic)

The Possesions of the Wild(Naruto fanfic)

Chapter 1:Arrivals

Word count: aprox 2k words

Tags: @insanity-is-always-fun

A/N: Hey guys, this is, originally, a fanfic that I write on the site/app Wattpad. The fanfic is still in work, but nearly finished. If you want to read further without waiting for me to post the next chapter, go there by this link: https://my.w.tt/6qm9WEoq9V

Also, if you want to get a notification of this being posted ASAP, let me know so I can tag you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This wasn't her first attempt in such thing, but it was, for sure, the first time she made it this far. She huffed in annoyance as her footsteps increased on the wooden floor. Next to her, a boy with the most annoying temper she came across tried to keep up with her bold legs.

'Say again, what was your name?' He asked, trying to get rid of the black curls that blocked his eyesight.

'Kaiya.' she sighed.

She wasn't acquaintances to him for more than five minutes, but she was already tired of him.

'Hm, nice name.' He considered, just as he did for the past five times when he asked for her name. 'Well, here we are.'

They stopped in front of a pair of huge wooden doors that almost touched the high ceiling.

'Don't forget,' the boy warned, 'we're talking to the Hokage, and, since he's the leader of the village, you might want to show some respect.

'Excuse me-' She said indignated, but couldn't say anything more as the boy already knocked at the door.

Who was he to order her on how to act? She would've said a few words to him, but she had better things to do than to blindly argue. She looked ahead as she put her dark auburn hair behind her ears in a nervous manner, preparing her speech for the thousandth time that morning.

'Enter.' A deep voice said from behind the doors.

Here goes nothing, Kaiya thought, as the boy pushed the doors open. He entered, followed by a hesitant Kaiya. While the boy closed the doors, Kaiya analysed the room. It was a rather spacious, circular room with huge windows at it's another side and very few items located in it; a couple of portraits on the walls and a desk at which sat an old man with and pipe in his mouth, clothed in the official clothes of a Kage.

'Hello, Akira. How may I help you?' The man greeted with a smile on his face.

'Good afternoon, Lord Hokage.' Akira spoke as he bowed, making Kaiya wonder if she should do the same. 'I came in to report.'

'Report? So early? Let's hear it, then.' The Hokage said, with a mix of surprise and worry; the report should've been done only in four hours.

'This girl, Kana-'

'Kaiya...' Kaiya corrected before blocking herself, frowning. She couldn't help it; she hated when people mispronounced her name, especially if she'd say it many times before.

'Right. She demanded to see you. Daichi and I tried to explain to her that you're a busy person but-'

'It's fine, Akira.' The Hokage turned to Kaiya. 'How can I help you?'

'I wish to settle down in Konoha.' Kaiya spoke loud and as clear as she could, just as she repeated before.

'Settle down?' The Hokage raised his eyebrows in surprise. 'How comes?'

The Hokage looked at the girl. She was tall with a dark auburn hair, a tired pose, light scars here and there on her face and arms, casual clothes, a small, dirty, yellow purse tied just above her hips and a look that almost suggested that she took part in a big fight.

The most eye-catching thing about her would've been the tachi sword she was carrying on her back. Much to his surprise, she didn't wear any forehead protector that might've helped him identify any affiliation. He didn't know if he should feel worried or curious about it.

Kaiya looked at the Hokage, locking her onyx gaze on his. She saw this coming, and she never looked forward to explaining. Taking what happened in the Mist Village, she preferred telling as little details as possible.

'It's nothing complicated.' She simply answered, very well aware of her mispronunciations. 'It's only the fact that I wan' to find a way to improve my life, and the best way I could think of was to affiliate with a Hidden Village and become a shinobi.'

The Hokage raised his eyebrows; he clearly didn't expect this answer.

'Ah. I don't hear that these days anymore.' He muttered to himself, before turning serious again. 'So, tell me again, your name was... Kaiya?' The Hokage asked while puffing out some smoke.

'Yes, sir.' Kaiya confirmed.

'Only Kaiya?'

Kaiya clenched her fist, her knuckles making crack sounds, while her face twitching, a usual reaction for her when not pleased with something.

'I suppose.' Kaiya coldly answered through her teeth.

'But that's impossible! We all have the last name. There's no way you're an exception.' Akira butted in.

'Well, it looks like I am.' Kaiya clapped back, giving Akira an eyebrows-raised look, along with a gaze that overflowed with anger, something that surely shut the dark-haired boy off for the moment.

'I see.' The Hokage decisively said.

He couldn't disagree with Akira and he had to admit that the girl's refusal to answer made him curious, but all he could do was to try and find the reasoning behind the girl's judgement.

'Well,' he continued, 'I honestly don't see why I should refuse you. Anyone who wills to fairly work in order to survive just like you do deserve a place in Konoha.'

'Lord Hokage!' Akira spat out.

There must be some truth in it, Akira thought, and the old man must be going senile.

'Don't worry, Akira.' The Hokage said, raising a hand. 'I'm not going senile as some villagers say.'

Akira's jaw dropped and his eyes widening in utter shock, as the Hokage let a small smirk form on his face.

'Villagers say that he's a smell?' Kaiya asked in oblivion, forgetting about Akira for the moment.

'Yes, but it's all a bluff, I say.' Akira said, half-frozen in shame.

The Hokage let a chuckle escape his mouth. It was always fun to see people denying their gossip of him when in front of him. In truth, he could find some reasons to not let the girl stay, but her answers truly impressed him. She didn't let anything but her funny accent slip by, covering it with intelligent answers. If she only was able to drag the stone, then she might really be of use in Konoha, maybe even standing the chance of becoming part of the ANBU. There followed a few moments of silence, in which the Hokage arranged a few papers on his desk.

'Well,' The Hokage coughed as he put the last few papers away, 'if nobody has any more objections, I will take notice of a few important things.'

Kaiya's face remained still even though on the inside she glowed with joy, while Akira clenched his fists in annoyance.

'First of all, if you want to live in Konoha, you must be part of it.' The Hokage explained, now in a rather dead serious manner.

'I-I don't understand, sir.' Kaiya said.

'I don't expect you to do yet.' The Hokage puffed amused. 'You see, the ninja world is a very complex thing that doesn't base only on the training nor aptitudes you have for your missions. You'll meet people, not only fellow colleagues and teammates, but also friends for a lifetime, and you will, for sure, create different kind of bonds with them. Unlike other countries, here in Konoha, we have something that we call the Will of Fire.'

'The Will of- what?' Kaiya questioned, confused.

'The Will of Fire.' The Hokage smiled. 'It's a philosophy that was founded by one of Konoha's founders, Hashirama Senju. He became the First Hokage and shared his Will of Fire with other people around the time of Konoha's foundation. Do you have any idea of what it might mean?'

Kaiya thought for a moment, but she couldn't find anything.

'Not really, sir.' Kaiya eventually answered.

'Well, here's the deal,' The Hokage spoke. 'I will assign you with a team of genin shinobi, and by the time you become Jounin, I expect an answer.'

Kaiya hesitantly agreed. There would surely be a long path until she'd become a Jounin, let alone the thought if the old man would make it until then, taking his age and position in the village.

'Well,' the Hokage began as he started searching through his drawers. 'If you're going to live your shinobi life here, you may need this.'

He raised a blue bandana with a piece of metal in the form that had the symbol of Konoha craved in the middle.

'What's that?'

'It's called 'forehead protector'.' The Hokage explained. 'Every village-affiliated shinobi in the world has it. It can define which village you're part of and, obviously enough, to protect your forehead by any attacks aimed there.'

Kaiya looked at Akira and noticed the same piece of blue material and metal proud fully resting on his forehead. She then looked at the Hokage and realised he didn't have one.

Forehead protector'?' Kaiya repeated.

'Indeed.' The Hokage confirmed as he carefully placed the forehead protector on his desk.

'Why don't you have one?' She blurted the question out, regretting it almost instantly.

'He's the Hokage! Of course, he doesn't wear-' Akira spat in annoyance.

'Akira, Akira, please.' The Hokage made a sign with his hand in an attempt to silence the boy down and waited until he did so. 'As Akira most kindly said, I'm the Kage of Konoha. A Kage wouldn't need a forehead protector as they would wear the symbolic clothing, showing their position in their hometown village.'

Kaiya looked at the forehead protector for a moment, before taking it in her hands, analyzing it.

'Thank you.' She simply said as she tied it to her head.

The Hokage smiled, understandingly.

'Now, am I right to assume that you don't have a shelter?' The Hokage asked, Kaiya nodding. 'Well, if I am right, there should be a free apartment close to Konoha's centre. I'm sure Akira would be glad to show you the way.'

'I wouldn't think so.' Kaiya muttered as Akira puffed in annoyance.

'Is there anything else, Akira?' The Hokage asked, mainly for the discussion to flow.

'No.'

'Then you two should go.'

'Indeed, we should. 'Akira agreed. 'The sun is setting and I honestly don't want somebody like her down Konoha's streets at night.'

Kaiya gave a short glance to Akira and was shot by a sharp gaze in return. She hoped that the Hokage didn't catch Akira's allusion, but of course, he did. He had years of experience with people, and disrespectful allusions weren't something rare.

'We'll be off, Lord Hokage.' Akira said, with a bow. 'Goodbye.'

The Hokage only nodded In response and watched as Akira exited the door, followed closely by Kaiya.

'Asumi-San.' The Hokage called out.

He didn't need to say any more. A young kuniochi appeared in front of him. She was tall with sand-coloured hair, a white bunny mask covering her face and a katana on her back.

'Lord Hokage.' She said with a bow.

'I need your help.' The Hokage spoke, with a calm urgent in his tone. 'I need you to keep an eye on someone for a while.'

'Who?' The woman asked, curious.

'Let me explain. You don't have to worry about going far away, as you'll only have to work here, in Konoha. You may as well have heard that I let a girl settle in Konoha.' The masked kuniochi nodded. 'You've got to keep an eye on her. She's around fourteen with brown hair and responds to the name of Kaiya. Keep an eye on her. See what she does for a while, analyse her behaviour and program, anything you can.'

Although she didn't really feel pleased with it, Asumi nodded. She didn't understand why the Hokage ordered her such thing. It wasn't any special mission, and a Jounin could do it just fine.

'Maybe you don't understand very well, Asumi.' The Hokage said, feeling the disbelief in the shinobi. 'This is a quite delicate situation, as Konoha's safety depends on this mission. This mission would only fit an Anbu member, and you're the best candidate for this, taking your skills and the fact that you're a rookie, thus you still have that... taste for freedom just like every youngster in Konoha. Do you have any question?'

Asumi only shook her head.

'Good. You're off.'

The kunoichi disappeared as fast as she appeared, leaving the Hokage alone in his office. He sighed.

'What does a Hokage have to do in order to protect his village? He wondered aloud

(Next chapter)

[moodforanime]

The Possesions of the Wild(Naruto fanfic) chapter 1: An Arrival

This wasn't her first attempt in such thing, but it was, for sure, the first tims she made it this far. She puffed in annoyance as her footsteps increased on the wooden floor. Next to her, an boy with the most annoying temper she came across tried to keep up with her bold legs.

'Say again, what was your name?' He asked, trying to get rid of the black curls that blocked his eyesight.

'Kaiya.' she sighed.

She wasn't aquintanced to him for more than five minutes, but she was already tired of him.

'Hm, nice name.' He considered, just as he did for the past five times when he asked for her name. 'Well, here we are.'

They stopped in front of an pair of huge wooden doors that almost touched the high ceiling.

'Don't forget,' the boy warned, 'we're talking to the Hokage, and, since he's the leader of the village, you might want to show some respect.

'Excuse me-' She said indignated, but couldn't say anything more as the boy already knocked at the door.

Who was he to order her on how to act? She would've said a few words to him, but she had better things to do than to blindly argue. She looked ahead as she put her dark auburn hair behind her ears in an nervous manner, preparing her speech for the thousandth time that morning.

'Enter.' An deep voice said from behind the doors.

Here goes nothing, Kaiya thought, as the boy pushed the doors open. He entered, followed by an hesitant Kaiya. While the boy closed the doors, Kaiya analysed the room. It was an rather spacious, circular room with huge windows at it's other side and very few items located in it; a couple portraits on the walls and a desk at which sat an old man with and pipe in his mouth, clothed in the official clothes of an Kage.

'Hello, Akira. How may I help you?' The man greeted with an smile on his face.

'Good afternoon, Lord Hokage.' Akira spoke as he bowed, making Kaiya wonder if she should do the same. 'I came in to report.'

'Report? So early? Let's hear it, then.' The Hokage said, with an mix of suprise and worry; the report should've been done only in four hours.

'This girl, Kana-'

'Kaiya...' Kaiya corrected before blocking herself, frowning. She couldn't help it; she hated when people mispronounced her name, especially if she'd say it many times before.

'Right. She demanded to see you. Daichi and I tried to explain to her that you're a busy person but-'

'It's fine, Akira.' The Hokage turned to Kaiya. 'How can I help you?'

'I wish to settle down in Kono'a.' Kaiya spoke loud and as clear as she could, just as she repeated before.

'Settle down?' The Hokage raised his eyebrows in surprise. 'How comes?'

The Hokage looked at the girl. She was tall with an dark auburn hair, an tired pose, light scars here and there on her face and arms, casual clothes, a small, dirty, yellow purse tied just above her hips and a look that almost suggested that she took part in an pig fight.

The most eye-catching thing about her would've been the tachi sword she was carrying on her back. Much to his surprise, she didn't wear any forehead protector that might've helped him identify any affiliation. He didn't know if he should feel worried or curious about it.

Kaiya looked at the Hokage, locking her onyx gaze on his. She saw this coming, and she never looked forward to explaining. Taking what happened in the Mist Village, she preferred telling as little details as possible.

'It'z nothin' complicated.' She simply answered, very well aware of her mispronunciations. 'Itz only the fact dat I wan' to fin' a way to improove my life, and the best way I could think of was to affiliate wid an Hidden Village an' become an shinobi.'

The Hokage raised his eyebrows; he clearly didn't expect this answer.

'Ah. I don't hear that these days anymore.' He muttered to himself, before turning serious again. 'So, tell me again, your name was... Kaiya?' The Hokage asked, while puffing out some smoke.

'Yes, sir.' Kaiya confirmed.

'Only Kaiya?'

Kaiya clenched her fist, her knuckles making crack sounds, while her face twitching, an usual reaction for her when not pleased with something.

'I suppose.' Kaiya coldly answered through her teeth.

'But that's impossible! We all have an last name. There's no way you're an exception.' Akira butted in.

'Well, it looks like I am.' Kaiya clapped back, giving Akira an eyebrows-raised look, along with an gaze that overflowed with anger, something that surely shut the dark-haired boy off for the moment.

'I see.' The Hokage decisively said.

He couldn't disagree with Akira and he had to admit that the girl's refusal to answer made him curious, but all he could do was to try and find reasoning behind the girl's judgement.

'Well,' he continued, 'I honestly don't see why i should refuse you. Anyone who wills to fairly work in order to survive just like you do deserve an place in Konoha.'

'Lord Hokage!' Akira spat out.

There must be some truth in it, Akira thought, and the old man must be going senile.

'Don't worry, Akira.' The Hokage said, raising an hand. 'I'm not going senile, like some villagers say.'

Akira's jaw dropped and his eyes widening in utter shock, as the Hokage let an small smirk form on his face.

'Villageurs say that he'z seneel?' Kaiya asked in oblivion, forgetting about Akira for the moment.

'Yes, but it's all a bluff, I say.' Akira said, half-frozen in shame.

The Hokage let an chuckle escape his mouth. It was always fun to see people denying their gossip of him when in front of him. In truth, he could find some reasons to not let the girl stay, but her answers truly impressed him. She didn't let anything but her funny accent slip by, covering it with intelligent answers. If she only was able to drag the stone, then she might really be of use in Konoha, maybe even standing the chance of becoming part of the ANBU. There followed a few moments of silence, in which the Hokage arranged a few papers on his desk.

'Well,' The Hokage coughed as he put the last few papers away, 'if nobody has any more objections, I will take notice of a few important things.'

Kaiya's face remained still even though on the inside she glowed with joy, while Akira clenched his fists in annoyance.

'First of all, if you want to live in Konoha, you must be part of it.' The Hokage explained, now in an rather dead serious manner.

'I-I don't understand, sir.' Kaiya said.

'I don't expect you to do yet.' The Hokage puffed amused. 'You see, the ninja world is a very complex thing that doesn't base only on the training nor aptitudes you have for your missions. You'll meet people, not only fellow colleagues and teammates, but also friends for a lifetime, and you will, for sure, create different kind of bonds with them. Unlike other countries, here in Konoha, we have something that we call the Will of Fire.'

'The Will of- what?' Kaiya questioned, confused.

'The Will of Fire.' The Hokage smiled. 'It's an philosophy that was founded by one of Konoha's founders, Hashirama Senju. He became the First Hokage, and shared his Will of Fire with other people around the time of Konoha's foundation. Do you have any idea of what it might mean?'

Kaiya thought for a moment, but she couldn't find anything.

'Not really, sir.' Kaiya eventually answered.

'Well, here's the deal,' The Hokage spoke. 'I will assign you with an team of genin shinobi, and by the time you become Jounin, I expect an answer.'

Kaiya hesitantly agreed. There would surely be an long path until she'd become an Jounin, let alone the thought if the old man would make it until then, taking his age and position in the village.

'Well,' the Hokage began as he started searching through his drawers. 'If you're going to live your shinobi life here, you may need this.'

He raised an blue bandana with an piece of metal in the from that had the symbol of Konoha craved in the middle.

'What'z dat?'

'It's called 'forehead protector'.' The Hokage explained. 'Every village-affiliated shinobi in the world has it. It can define which village you're part of and, obviously enough, to protect your forehead by any attacks aimed there.'

[moodforanime]

The possesions of the wild series Volume 1: The Nomad

Chapter 1: Arrival

A/N: Hello my dudes. I’m back with a completed fanfic. I osted some chapters from this fanfic before, but I forgot which chapter I last left off, so I decided to post everything all over again, to make sure I didn’t miss anything.

Word count:2,301 words

Tags: @insanity-is-always-fun

(Index), (next)

_____________________________________________________________

This wasn't her first attempt in such thing, but it was, for sure, the first time she made it this far. She huffed in annoyance as her footsteps increased on the wooden floor. Next to her, a boy with the most annoying temper she came across tried to keep up with her bold legs.

'Say again, what was your name?' He asked, trying to get rid of the black curls that blocked his eyesight.

'Kaiya.' she sighed.

She wasn't acquaintances to him for more than five minutes, but she was already tired of him.

'Hm, nice name.' He considered, just as he did for the past five times when he asked for her name. 'Well, here we are.'

They stopped in front of a pair of huge wooden doors that almost touched the high ceiling.

'Don't forget,' the boy warned, 'we're talking to the Hokage, and, since he's the leader of the village, you might want to show some respect.

'Excuse me-' She said indignated, but couldn't say anything more as the boy already knocked at the door.

Who was he to order her on how to act? She would've said a few words to him, but she had better things to do than to blindly argue. She looked ahead as she put her dark auburn hair behind her ears in a nervous manner, preparing her speech for the thousandth time that morning.

'Enter.' A deep voice said from behind the doors.

Here goes nothing, Kaiya thought, as the boy pushed the doors open. He entered, followed by a hesitant Kaiya. While the boy closed the doors, Kaiya analysed the room. It was a rather spacious, circular room with huge windows at it's another side and very few items located in it; a couple of portraits on the walls and a desk at which sat an old man with and pipe in his mouth, clothed in the official clothes of a Kage.

'Hello, Akira. How may I help you?' The man greeted with a smile on his face.

'Good afternoon, Lord Hokage.' Akira spoke as he bowed, making Kaiya wonder if she should do the same. 'I came in to report.'

'Report? So early? Let's hear it, then.' The Hokage said, with a mix of surprise and worry; the report should've been done only in four hours.

'This girl, Kana-'

'Kaiya...' Kaiya corrected before blocking herself, frowning. She couldn't help it; she hated when people mispronounced her name, especially if she'd say it many times before.

'Right. She demanded to see you. Daichi and I tried to explain to her that you're a busy person but-'

'It's fine, Akira.' The Hokage turned to Kaiya. 'How can I help you?'

'I wish to settle down in Konoha.' Kaiya spoke loud and as clear as she could, just as she repeated before.

'Settle down?' The Hokage raised his eyebrows in surprise. 'How comes?'

The Hokage looked at the girl. She was tall with a dark auburn hair, a tired pose, light scars here and there on her face and arms, casual clothes, a small, dirty, yellow purse tied just above her hips and a look that almost suggested that she took part in a pig fight.

The most eye-catching thing about her would've been the tachi sword she was carrying on her back. Much to his surprise, she didn't wear any forehead protector that might've helped him identify any affiliation. He didn't know if he should feel worried or curious about it.

Kaiya looked at the Hokage, locking her onyx gaze on his. She saw this coming, and she never looked forward to explaining. Taking what happened in the Mist Village, she preferred telling as little details as possible.

'It's nothing complicated.' She simply answered, very well aware of her mispronunciations. 'It's only the fact that I wan' to find a way to improve my life, and the best way I could think of was to affiliate with a Hidden Village and become a shinobi.'

The Hokage raised his eyebrows; he clearly didn't expect this answer.

'Ah. I don't hear that these days anymore.' He muttered to himself, before turning serious again. 'So, tell me again, your name was... Kaiya?' The Hokage asked while puffing out some smoke.

'Yes, sir.' Kaiya confirmed.

'Only Kaiya?'

Kaiya clenched her fist, her knuckles making crack sounds, while her face twitching, a usual reaction for her when not pleased with something.

'I suppose.' Kaiya coldly answered through her teeth.

'But that's impossible! We all have the last name. There's no way you're an exception.' Akira butted in.

'Well, it looks like I am.' Kaiya clapped back, giving Akira an eyebrows-raised look, along with a gaze that overflowed with anger, something that surely shut the dark-haired boy off for the moment.

'I see.' The Hokage decisively said.

He couldn't disagree with Akira and he had to admit that the girl's refusal to answer made him curious, but all he could do was to try and find the reasoning behind the girl's judgement.

'Well,' he continued, 'I honestly don't see why I should refuse you. Anyone who wills to fairly work in order to survive just like you do deserve a place in Konoha.'

'Lord Hokage!' Akira spat out.

There must be some truth in it, Akira thought, and the old man must be going senile.

'Don't worry, Akira.' The Hokage said, raising a hand. 'I'm not going senile as some villagers say.'

Akira's jaw dropped and his eyes widening in utter shock, as the Hokage let a small smirk form on his face.

'Villagers say that he's senile?' Kaiya asked in oblivion, forgetting about Akira for the moment.

'Yes, but it's all a bluff, I say.' Akira said, half-frozen in shame.

The Hokage let a chuckle escape his mouth. It was always fun to see people denying their gossip of him when in front of him. In truth, he could find some reasons to not let the girl stay, but her answers truly impressed him. She didn't let anything but her funny accent slip by, covering it with intelligent answers. If she only was able to drag the stone, then she might really be of use in Konoha, maybe even standing the chance of becoming part of the ANBU. There followed a few moments of silence, in which the Hokage arranged a few papers on his desk.

'Well,' The Hokage coughed as he put the last few papers away, 'if nobody has any more objections, I will take notice of a few important things.'

Kaiya's face remained still even though on the inside she glowed with joy, while Akira clenched his fists in annoyance.

'First of all, if you want to live in Konoha, you must be part of it.' The Hokage explained, now in a rather dead serious manner.

'I-I don't understand, sir.' Kaiya said.

'I don't expect you to do yet.' The Hokage puffed amused. 'You see, the ninja world is a very complex thing that doesn't base only on the training nor aptitudes you have for your missions. You'll meet people, not only fellow colleagues and teammates, but also friends for a lifetime, and you will, for sure, create different kind of bonds with them. Unlike other countries, here in Konoha, we have something that we call the Will of Fire.'

'The Will of- what?' Kaiya questioned, confused.

'The Will of Fire.' The Hokage smiled. 'It's a philosophy that was founded by one of Konoha's founders, Hashirama Senju. He became the First Hokage and shared his Will of Fire with other people around the time of Konoha's foundation. Do you have any idea of what it might mean?'

Kaiya thought for a moment, but she couldn't find anything.

'Not really, sir.' Kaiya eventually answered.

'Well, here's the deal,' The Hokage spoke. 'I will assign you with a team of genin shinobi, and by the time you become Jounin, I expect an answer.'

Kaiya hesitantly agreed. There would surely be a long path until she'd become a Jounin, let alone the thought if the old man would make it until then, taking his age and position in the village.

'Well,' the Hokage began as he started searching through his drawers. 'If you're going to live your shinobi life here, you may need this.'

He raised a blue bandana with a piece of metal in the form that had the symbol of Konoha craved in the middle.

'What's that?'

'It's called 'forehead protector'.' The Hokage explained. 'Every village-affiliated shinobi in the world has it. It can define which village you're part of and, obviously enough, to protect your forehead by any attacks aimed there.'

Kaiya looked at Akira and noticed the same piece of blue material and metal proud fully resting on his forehead. She then looked at the Hokage and realised he didn't have one.

Forehead protector'?' Kaiya repeated.

'Indeed.' The Hokage confirmed as he carefully placed the forehead protector on his desk.

'Why don't you have one?' She blurted the question out, regretting it almost instantly.

'He's the Hokage! Of course, he doesn't wear-' Akira spat in annoyance.

'Akira, Akira, please.' The Hokage made a sign with his hand in an attempt to silence the boy down and waited until he did so. 'As Akira most kindly said, I'm the Kage of Konoha. A Kage wouldn't need a forehead protector as they would wear the symbolic clothing, showing their position in their hometown village.'

Kaiya looked at the forehead protector for a moment, before taking it in her hands, analyzing it.

'Thank you.' She simply said as she tied it to her head.

The Hokage smiled, understandingly.

'Now, am I right to assume that you don't have a shelter?' The Hokage asked, Kaiya nodding. 'Well, if I am right, there should be a free apartment close to Konoha's centre. I'm sure Akira would be glad to show you the way.'

'I wouldn't think so.' Kaiya muttered as Akira puffed in annoyance.

'Is there anything else, Akira?' The Hokage asked, mainly for the discussion to flow.

'No.'

'Then you two should go.'

'Indeed, we should. 'Akira agreed. 'The sun is setting and I honestly don't want somebody like her down Konoha's streets at night.'

Kaiya gave a short glance to Akira and was shot by a sharp gaze in return. She hoped that the Hokage didn't catch Akira's allusion, but of course, he did. He had years of experience with people, and disrespectful allusions weren't something rare.

'We'll be off, Lord Hokage.' Akira said, with a bow. 'Goodbye.'

The Hokage only nodded In response and watched as Akira exited the door, followed closely by Kaiya.

'Asumi-San.' The Hokage called out.

He didn't need to say any more. A young kuniochi appeared in front of him. She was tall with sand-coloured hair, a white bunny mask covering her face and a katana on her back.

'Lord Hokage.' She said with a bow.

'I need your help.' The Hokage spoke, with a calm urgent in his tone. 'I need you to keep an eye on someone for a while.'

'Who?' The woman asked, curious.

'Let me explain. You don't have to worry about going far away, as you'll only have to work here, in Konoha. You may as well have heard that I let a girl settle in Konoha.' The masked kuniochi nodded. 'You've got to keep an eye on her. She's around fourteen with brown hair and responds to the name of Kaiya. Keep an eye on her. See what she does for a while, analyse her behaviour and program, anything you can.'

Although she didn't really feel pleased with it, Asumi nodded. She didn't understand why the Hokage ordered her such thing. It wasn't any special mission, and a Jounin could do it just fine.

'Maybe you don't understand very well, Asumi.' The Hokage said, feeling the disbelief in the shinobi. 'This is a quite delicate situation, as Konoha's safety depends on this mission. This mission would only fit an Anbu member, and you're the best candidate for this, taking your skills and the fact that you're a rookie, thus you still have that... taste for freedom just like every youngster in Konoha. Do you have any question?'

Asumi only shook her head.

'Good. You're off.'

The kunoichi disappeared as fast as she appeared, leaving the Hokage alone in his office. He sighed.

'What does a Hokage have to do in order to protect his village? He wondered aloud.

A/N

Hey there! First of all, thank you for reading the first chapter of The Possessions of the Wild! What did you think of it?

Before you read any further, I just want to say that the book is STILL in work and the chapters won't be edited later on. So expect some clinginess or slightly out of character for the canon Naruto characters.

You might have noticed the background music I put at the media, right? Well, every now and then, I like putting a song I consider that it fits the chapter. The song 'Floating dead leaves'(the one in the media) is my favourite OST, for sure! What about you, guys?

Now, when the Hokage analysed Kaiya, I mentioned something about a sword, right? What was it called, again? A Taka... Taichi... ah, yes, a Tachi! A Tachi is a Japanese one-edged sword that's pretty short, compared to its brothers and sisters. Its length varies between 70 and 80 centimetres (from 27 to 31 1/2 inches).                     

Yep, that's a Japanese sword, folks. Well, I won't detain you from going to the next chapter. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you in the next one. Bye! :)