Hello everyone. Thank you for taking time to read this story. This is my first attempt at writing fanfic as well as my first time posting anything I have ever worked on. This takes place right where the game left off. This is what I have pulled out of the depths of my mind so far. I will try to update on a regular basis. Any constructive criticism is welcome. I look forward to hearing what you think! ~Aedori

Chapter 1

"Why did I do that?" He thought to himself as he sat down at his desk that was strewn with books of all sorts. He pulled his battered gray cap off and tossed it on to the corner of the desk. He ran his fingers through his thick dark hair and sighed in a bemused manner. "Why did I do that?" He quietly whispered to himself. He sat for some time with his elbows on his knees and his head resting in his hands playing back what had transpired over the last few months in his mind.

She has always been confounding on more than one level. She is wise beyond her years when it came to interacting with people but when it came to the magical world, she had so much to learn. So many small things she would already know if she wasn't a wildseed. She might have even had enough sense to run for help instead of walking through a magical ward to save him. Then they wouldn't be married, and she could have had a regular first year at Iris. Instead she is shunned by most of the students because she is the new blushing bride of the most feared Professor at the Academy. If she wouldn't have crossed that ward she might have even found young love and let it run its course. Instead she was married at 16. It was still common in the older families to have brides as young as that but that was one of the many things he was trying to break from. He had no desire to become anything like his father. And yet here he was married to a girl that is younger than half the woman his father has divorced in the last two decades.

There was a big difference between him and his father though. He actually cared for his wife, no matter how hard he tried not to. She could be so disarming and rather impish. She had a huge hunger for knowledge and an even bigger appetite for trouble. Its the fact that the girl is a magnet for trouble that makes the urge to protect her even stronger.

His train of thought dissolved as a knock on the door sounded.

He sighed as he sat up straight and placed his cap back on. "Who is it?" He said in a mildly annoyed voice.

"Oh, its just me Hieronymous. You don't have to sound annoyed." Chimed a cheerful voice from the other side of the door.

"Ah, Petunia. Do come in." He muttered an incantation and the door unlocked. Petunia rushed in all smiles. Donning her signature look of bright frilly things, it was almost painful to look at the riot of colors she wore. As she looked at Hieronymous she stopped dead in her tracks and began to chuckle.

"What is so funny Petunia?" He asked with a puzzled look on his face.

"Did Setsunai visit you today instead of going to the ball?" She asked with a knowing look on her face.

"Well, yes she did. I don't see how that is any of your business though." Furrowing his brows. "Why do you ask?"

"Because it appears as though you have some of her lip gloss on." She began to chuckle some more "Or is this a new hobby I don't know about?"

At that comment Hieronymous ran a finger along his bottom lip. A thin layer of sheer pink shimmer showed on his fingertip. He raised an eyebrow. "I always wondered why her lips were so pink." Shaking his head he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his mouth.

"So I am assuming that things are going very well with you and your wife then?" Petunia smiled warmly.

"It's not as you assume it is." He crossed his arms. "She showed up at my door and told me that she preferred my company over going to the dance. We talked for a while and then she mentioned that she had never been kissed. I don't know why I did it, but I kissed her. Not in the manner of lovers mind you. It was just a chaste kiss." He could feel himself beginning to blush, not because he kissed her but because of the need to explain himself. "Not that it is any of your business, but I did not take any liberties with that girl."

"Oh Hieronymous! She is your wife and as long as everyone is enthusiastic about what is happening or about to happen, it is fine. I don't understand why you are in such a tizzy. I found it amusing that I walk into your rooms and you look like you been hit between the eyes with a hammer and you have lip gloss smudged on your mouth."

"I find it far from amusing." He shifted stiffly in his chair.

"That is because you have no sense of humor." Petunia said in a teasing voice.

"Was there a specific reason as to why you came to my rooms or did you just want to point out all my faults?"

"I just wanted to see how you were. You have been shut in your room for the whole day. I was hoping you hadn't fell ill again." She nodded and began to head for the door. He snorted like he did not believe what she was saying. "Well I will see you when summer classes start. Do be gentle on them Hieronymous. I don't want another influx of crying teens in my office like last summer."

"I wouldn't be doing my job if were gentle on them. My job is to scare them into obeying the rules."

Setsunai sat in the car with her head up against the window. She was fighting a bout of motion sickness. He stomach turned with every bump the car hit. She wished that she took more green magic, not that it would do her any good now that her Dad is with her but at least if they stopped somewhere she could have locked herself in a bathroom stall to quickly cast a green spell that would counter motion sickness. Sadly she didn't know enough green magic to help. If it were blue or white magic she could do it in her sleep.

"How you doing kiddo?" She heard her dads voice ask over the hum of the tires.

"Uggg." Was all she could reply with.

"Hang in there. We only have an hour more to drive before we are home."

"Kay" She mumbled.

She drifted in and out of sleep until she felt the car slow to a stop and shut off. She slowly cracked one eye open and saw the front lawn of her house. She slowly sat up as her dad got her bags out of the back of the car. She opened the door and slowly got out of the car. The cool evening air felt great on her face and a tiny bit of nausea left as she breathed in the refreshing air. She went into the house and looked around. Not much had changed but it no longer felt like home. She was already missing Iris and Hieronymous. She sighed deeply.

"I'm sorry kiddo for some reason I thought you outgrew your motion sickness. I would have kept some medicine in the glove box if I thought long drives still affected you."

"It's ok Dad. I thought I outgrew it too." Its probably because she was overly excited. After all its not every day that you get your first kiss. She could feel herself begin to blush. "Ah, I am going to wash my face and then go to bed. I think that will make me feel better."

"Ok kiddo." He reached out and ruffled her hair. "Sleep well and I will see you in the morning. Mom should be home by then but she will probably be sleeping. You know how rough those overnight shifts are on her."

"Kay Dad, Love you, good night." She trudged up the stairs and went to her room.

Everything was as she left it. Even her stuffed animals were the way she left them. Stacked like some fuzzy cheer-leading squad. She scooted them to one side of the bed and began her nightly routine. She changed into her P.J.s, washed her face, brushed and braided her hair, then sat down to write in her diary.

May 2nd

Sorry I have not written for a few days. A lot has happened and I was trying to mull it over before I made an entry. We passed our finals, Ellen and Virginia were beyond clever. They are slowly accepting the fact that I am married to Professor Grabiner, one of their least favorite people. I just wish they could see the Hieronymous that I see. Not the rigid somewhat scary one that he leads people to believe he is. Speaking of Hieronymous... He kissed me. Not like a romantic kiss. It was more like a kiss saying hello. I'm still surprised by it, just thinking of it makes my heart flutter. When he pulled back some of my lip gloss was on him. I didn't want to say anything to him about it because I didn't want him to get too upset about it. He is one to over react sometimes. I'm sure he will notice it before someone else does.

I had the worst motion sickness on my way home. Dad is still calling me kiddo and Mom still works overnight sifts. Now I have to figure out how to write a letter to Hieronymous that doesn't shame me or make him think I am a silly school girl. What am I saying. I am a silly school girl.

Setsunai sighed and cast an illusion on the page to make it look like a page she was doodling on. Just in case someone picked up the book and looked through it they would think that it was her sketch book. She had already cast an illusion on the outside of the book at the beginning of the year. Ellen had a habit of reading anything she laid her hands on even if she didn't mean to. She just loved books that much. Ellen could care less about random sketches though. Setsunai thought of it as one of her more cunning moments. She smiled at the book and thought about how much things have changed in the last year. She would have never guessed that she would have done half the things she did, let alone get married. She always liked Hieronymous even though he was stern, brooding and rather mysterious. She never thought that she would marry the object of her crush. Or that he would eventually stop hating her for her stupid act of trying to save him when he was in no real trouble at all. How was she to know that he had depleted his magic and that was why he was out cold on the floor with a Manus hovering over him with a hungry look in its eyes? Even though she excelled at blue and white magic for a freshman she still wouldn't have known about the wards till sophomore year.

"Who summons dangerous things in a public room anyway?" She grumbled as she went to turn her light off. She snuggled into her bed as she thought of what the summer may bring. She drifted off to sleep while counting sheep that had bright colored butterfly wings.

Setsunai woke with a lurch. Something was not right. She looked around her semi-dark room. Did her Mom getting home wake her up by accident? Everything seemed to be in order as she scanned from one side of the room to the other. She heard a tap on her window. Tilting her head in confusion she got up and slowly approached it. On the outside window sill was a rose tied with a smokey gray ribbon. Confused she reached for the window then stopped herself as she thought better of it and cast Awareness instead.

Tiny tendrils reached out from her mind and caressed her surroundings. Pulsing around her like a ripple in a pond. Something seemed wrong. She could not place it but it was wrong. She looked out of her window to the alley. She could see an obscured outline and sense its presence. It was not human and it was waiting. She could feel her fear and panic building as she tried to think of what she should do. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and used Farspeak.

Hieronymous sat straight up in bed as he felt his mind being battered. "Setsunai?" All he got were impressions of the emotions she was sending him. Fear and danger. "Calm down. What is wrong?"

She opened her eyes at the sound of his voice in her mind. The blur in the alley was gone. "There was something in the alley looking into my window. I'm scared. It disappeared when I contacted you." She heard a noise behind her. "Oh God, It's in my room." She slowly turned toward the noise.

Hieronymous was pounding on the Headmistresses door in a blind panic. Petunia opened the door and did not greet him in her usual cheerful way. "Hier-" but before she could finish his name he cut her off.

"Setsunai is in trouble. She used Farspeak to contact me. She was terrified and said there was something watching her. She lost track of it and last I know it is IN her room with her." His voice shook with rage and fear.

"What are you waiting for then? Teleport to her. I will be right behind you." She said in a harried voice. "I need to grab some supplies." He nodded and disappeared.

Hieronymous felt the world solidify around him he blinked a few times and looked at his surroundings. He was in the backyard. The sun was just beginning to rise. He reached his awareness out and felt nothing. The house was empty. He ran to the back door and blasted it open with red magic. The first floor was empty, nothing out of place except for the door he blew up. He strode up the stairs ready for a fight. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust then his senses began to kick in, he could hear a trickling sound like rain on dry leaves and he could smell a metallic stench. He turned into the nearest room and his brain refused to make sense of what it saw. He stood there for a moment as his brain fought against him. What he found he was not ready for. Then it all clicked into place. This was her parents room. They were no longer with the living. Something had tore them asunder. Blood was dripping from the ceiling and the metallic smell was their blood.

"No, this can't be real." Hieronymous croaked. "Setsunai!" He shouted at the top of his lungs as he turned to continue his search. At the end of the hall was a door with her name painted on it. Shaking he pushed the door open. There was nothing. It looked untouched except for an open window and a rose on the window sill.

A noise behind him made him turn and ready a spell. It was only Petunia. He slowly released his magic.

"I am so sorry." She said with tears in her eyes. She reached out to Hieronymus. "It looks like she has been pulled into the Otherworld."

"They might have gotten my first wife. But they WILL not get this one." He said with a voice full of venom. "I will not let history repeat itself."