Gypsy Rose

A Ragnarok fanfiction by Steph O'Dell

Author's Notes: I would like to amend an error from the previous chapter. Thanatos and Satan Morroc are two separate baddies. Thanatos resides at the top of Thanatos Tower, and Satan Morroc resides under Thanatos Tower. Once again, I apologize. Thank you James, O Benevolant Administrator of lRO for setting me straight. xD

Chapter Two –

Apple Juice Quenches the Pallet, but Orange Juice Just Has That Zing

Steph leaned heavily on the branch she was using as a walking stick, and moaned, wiping the sweat from her brow. "It's so hot…" She looked around, trying to find relief, but saw nothing in sight. Nothing but white sand as far as she could see.

Steph gave an unhappy grumble, and continued on her way. "Somehow, I doubt Umi knew about this desert…she would have warned me otherwise."

Movement caught Steph's eye, and she spotted a Drop bouncing merrily across the sands.

Drops were a class of Poring, a gelatinous monster that reminded people of balls of jelly. They ate anything and everything. Drops in particular were an orange colour, and had a fondness for heat. They also tasted like orange juice, apparently.

Steph wasn't generally the type of girl who'd kill an innocent Poring just so she could eat something, but she was in one of her battle-crazed moods. She drew her dagger, with an evil gleam in her eyes.

"Here little Drop…let's be friends, shall we?"

Steph picked over the remains of the Drop. "Let's see…an apple…eww! What is that?! Snot?! It's all sticky and stuff! Gross!" She wiped her hand on her tunic with a disgusted face. "Good thing those things eat stuff whole…I don't think I'd eat a half-digested apple…" Her eyes fell on a round container, and she gasped.

There, almost untouched by the sticky mucus of the Drop, was a full container of orange juice. Steph gave a low, almost sinister laugh.

"SALVATION!!" she cried, snatching the juice up with a crazed laugh.

Casting her gaze around, Steph spotted what looked to be a clump of trees. She dashed towards them, and cheered when she saw there was a sizable clump of shade under them. Plopping down heavily in the shady spot, Steph sighed happily, and polished her apple.

"Apple first…" she murmured happily. "Save the best for last."

The apple was perfect; crisp, juicy, and crunchy. She savoured every last bite, and sighed happily when it was done.

"And now…for the moment of truth…" Steph lifted the container of orange juice to her lips, and prepared to drink it.

"OH BOY, ORANGE JUICE!"

Steph was knocked over as a warm, soft mass of something slammed into her. She screamed, and landed hard in the sand. Looking up, she saw a Drop monster drinking her container of orange juice in loud, greedy gulps. It gave a rude, "AHH!" as it finished, and then tossed the container away. "Boy, that sure was great."

Steph seethed with anger. "HEY! THAT WAS MY ORANGE JUICE! YOU LITTLE THIEF!" She grabbed the Drop, and hooked her thumbs into the corners of its mouth and yanked. The Drop stretched like taffy, and it squirmed and yelled in pain.

"Hey! Ow ow ow! Lady! Cut it out! HEY!"

"You stole my orange juice, you thieving little Drop you!" Steph growled fiercely. "It was my only one, and I was really looking forward to drinking it!"

The Drop blinked at her. "But…Orange Juice isn't for humans to drink…"

Steph didn't hear the Drops' comment. "I haven't had a decent glass of orange juice since I was a little girl! And you ruined it!" Steph burst into tears, and sobbed into her hands.

The Drop looked really ashamed. "I'm real sorry, Lady! I thought you were trying to be friends with me! That's what you're supposed to do with orange juice, don't 'cha know?"

Steph peeked out at the Drop between two of her fingers, her tears disappearing instantly, as if by magic. "Say what now?"

"Yeah," the Drop continued. "See, if you find a container of Orange Juice, you offer it to a Drop as a sign of friendship. Then the Drop becomes your loyal companion, following you everywhere as—"

"That's the most ludicrous thing I have ever heard," Steph informed the Drop in a deadpan voice.

"But it's true!" the Drop insisted.

"Wait…how is it you can talk anyway?" Steph asked darkly, poking the orange ball of jelly cautiously with an index finger.

"Magic?" the Drop replied, seeming to be fishing for the right answer.

Steph stared at the Drop. He didn't look like a normal Drop; the more she looked at him, the stranger looking he was.

"You have piercings!" Steph exclaimed, pointing to the Drops' eyebrow ring and lip ring.

"Uhh…" The Drop seemed to be out of retorts.

"And are those sunglasses?" Steph pressed on, trying to take the shades from the Drop. "They are too! Romani Shades! Those are expensive!"

"Those are mine!" the Drop replied hotly. "Stop trying to steal them!"

You must have been someone's pet," Steph snapped. "So what happened? Did you run away? Or were you abandoned?" Steph glared down at the Drop.

"Honest…I have never been someone's pet," the Drop insisted. "Anyway, my name is Trent."

Steph glared harder at Trent. "Why do you have a name, then, if you weren't someone's pet?"

"I can't answer that," Trent said flatly.

Steph looked at Trent, and made an annoyed noise under her breath.

Trent's eyes got wet and shiny, and he gave Steph his best cute expression. "Pwease, oh pwease be my Master?"

Steph crumbled, and picked up Trent, cooing. "Aww, okay…you're just too cute. I guess I can give you a try—eh?"

Trent had snuggled into Steph's bosom, purring a little as he rubbed himself against her breasts. "Oh wow, you're real soft! Mmm! Oh yeah!"

A stress vein snapped in Steph's face, and she dropkicked Trent across the sands towards the horizon. "I TAKE IT BACK, YOU LITTLE PERVERT! GET LOST AND DON'T COME BACK!!"

"Waaaaaaiiiiiiittttttttttt!" Trent cried as he was sent flying over the desert sands into the distance.

"Good grief," Steph muttered angrily under her breath.

Steph fell to her knees, and moaned unhappily. She had left the shade, in case Trent decided to come back, and had set off again in search of a village.

However, she was totally exhausted, and thirsty. She felt like she wouldn't be able to go much farther.

Looking around her, Steph noticed movement again, and tensed. This was definitely not Trent this time.

A tan colour wolf suddenly appeared over a nearby sand dune, and Steph trembled with fear. The wolf snarled at her, it's yellow eyes glaring at her with a hungry glare.

"Why can't I ever meet a friendly wolf?" Steph whimpered to herself.

The wolf lunged at Steph, and she screamed and ran off as fast as she could. She knew she could never outrun the agile desert wolf, but she didn't dare stop.

Before long, however, Steph felt her energy leave her, and she collapsed to her hands and knees, utterly exhausted.

She could hear the wolf closing in on her, and turned her head to look at the wolf fearfully.

"BANZAI!" a voice yelled, and an orange blur slammed into the desert wolf, sending it flying. It gave a whimpering cry as it slammed into the sand with a loud 'thump!' and rolled several feet.

Steph looked over at Trent with shock. The Drop was wriggling about, trying desperately to unbury itself from the sand where it had landed, giving muffled cries of complaint.

Steph crawled over to Trent, and yanked him out of the sand. The Drop spat sand out, and took a gasping breath. "Thanks, babe! I owe you!"

"I…have a name…" Steph retorted weakly. "It's…Steph…"

"Cute name," Trent said, and then looked concerned. "Hey! You don't look well! Are you sick? Hey don't move, all right? Just…STEPH!!"

Steph fell over, and passed out from the heat. The last thing she heard were Trent's frantic cries.

"Hey! Wake up! You can't take a nap here! Steph! STEPH!!"

"C'mon, you fool, get up! You can't sleep here! Get up!"

Steph opened her eyes to see a young man, probably no older than her, leaning over her with a concerned face. His amethyst eyes were fixed on her face, full of worry.

"Are you okay? You weren't looking so good there for a bit…"

Steph blinked in shock. "Who…who are you? Have we…have we met before…?"

The man laughed lightly, and smiled at her. His amethyst eyes twinkled over his sunglasses, and he brushed some white-tipped black hair out of his face.

"It's not important…I'm just glad you're all right. I was worried."

Steph stared. He seemed so familiar, and yet…

"C'mon, sleepy-head. Get up."

"I said get up, Steph. You can't sleep all day."

Steph bolted awake, and realized Trent was sitting on her stomach, yelling at her to wake up. She sat up quickly, knocking him off, and causing him to fall on the floor.

"Ow! Ow! Hey!" Trent yelled as he bounced across the floor like a basketball.

Steph clutched her head, and groaned. She felt woozy, and almost fell over.

"Careful," a voice spoke up. "You're still weak from the heatstroke."

Steph looked up, and saw the owner of the voice standing by the door to the room. The person was a man, probably around mid-twenties, with long, platinum blond hair, and long bangs that hid a lot of his face. He was dressed in a black and silver Assassin Cross uniform. His arms were crossed over his crest, one foot braced up against the wall, and his scarf covered his nose. He had an air of mystery to him, but for some reason, Steph wasn't afraid of him.

"Oh…did you save me? Thank you…" Steph bit her lip, blushing. "I…I really have nothing to give you as payment…"

"I don't need payment," the man replied quietly, opening one green-blue eye to look at her. Steph gulped. It was such a startlingly bright colour, almost like it glowed.

Trent bounced back over to Steph. "You slept for a whole day," he told her. "I thought you'd sleep for a week! By the way, did you know you snore?"

Steph brought her foot down on Trent, stopping short of squishing him into paste, but causing him enough pain to shut up.

"Monsters should be seen and not heard," the assassin said quietly.

"I agree," Steph muttered angrily.

Trent managed to free himself from under Steph's foot. "That's no way to treat someone who saved your life!"

Steph stared at Trent. "You did not, you liar!"

"I did too!" Trent responded hotly. "I remember how it happened too!"

Trent faced the tan desert wolf, and glared at it fiercely. "You'd better back off, or I'll be forced to thrash you!"

The wolf snarled, and snapped its jaws. It lunged at Trent, ready to crush him into pieces, but Trent was too quick for it. He rolled off to the side, and then slammed into the wolf, sending it flying again. Recovering quickly, Trent prepared to slam into the wolf again. "TAKE THIS!" he cried "NEIKE FUIKE KORORO SQUISH! With a tremendous burst of power, Trent—"

( Quite literally translates to 'Impeccable Power Squish' )

Trent stopped dead as a katar buried itself into the wooden floorboard in front of him, missing him by mere inches. Steph looked up to see the assassin had thrown it.

"I can't stand liars," he said dryly.

Trent trembled. "Okay, okay, so it didn't happen like that."

Steph looked a little shook up as well, and panted fearfully, recovering her breath. "You'd better tell it how it really happened this time, Trent. Before you get the nice assassin man angry."

"Okay…right…" Trent swallowed before resuming.

Trent stared at the wolf fearfully. "Hey, c'mon, we're all friends here! You don't wanna eat me! I taste terrible!"

The wolf simply snarled.

"Eat her! She's much tastier!" Trent yelped, terrified.

The wolf advance a step towards Trent, and he shivered, terrified.

"Pathetic. A pet should protect its master," a voice said. Trent looked around, confused.

"Huh? Who's there? Who said that?" Trent looked around, slightly fearful.

The wolf, too, stopped, as if confused where the voice was coming from.

Suddenly, it was as if the very sky itself pulled away, and an Assassin Cross appeared, seemingly from nowhere. It grabbed the wolf by the scruff of the neck, and threw it across the sand like a sack of potatoes.

The wolf whimpered as it hit the sand hard, and rolled a few times. It managed to get back on its feet, however, and charged the assassin, snarling.

The assassin gave a 'hmph' or disinterest, and yanked a small capsule out from his clothes and threw it at the feet of the wolf. It burst open, releasing a thick, choking cloud of purple gas. The wolf became disorientated, and tried to get its bearings back.

However, the assassin appeared in front of it, again as if from nowhere, and gave a battle cry.

"Eat this…SONIC BLOW!"

The assassin slammed his katars into the wolf's side again and again, at lightning speed, six or seven times. The wolf collapsed, dead as the attack ended.

Trent was still shaking visibly as the assassin approached. He looked up at the man nervously.

"Uhh, t-thanks, I guess…"

"She's suffering from heat stroke, am I right?" the assassin asked quietly after a moment.

Trent nodded, a movement requiring the use of his whole body. "Uh huh…"

The assassin picked Steph up gently, and carried her back across the sands the way he had obviously came, Trent realized there were footprints leading in that direction, most likely left by the assassin while he was cloaked.

"H-hey! Wait for me!" Trent yelled as he bounced off after the assassin.

"And that's the truth," Trent finished.

"That's better," Steph replied, sounding a lot more satisfied. "I knew you were a useless ball of jelly."

"Hey, cut me some slack! I don't even have arms or legs!" Trent whined back. "I bet I could do a fancy attack too if I did!"

"Liar!" Steph shot back. "I bet you couldn't!"

Trent stuck out his tongue, and Steph noticed it had a small piercing in it. She winced.

Is there any part of this thing that isn't pierced?!

"Anyway…" Steph said finally. "I don't even know your name. My name is Steph, and you are…?"

"Seph," the assassin said after a long pause. "Most people call me Seph."

Trent twitched, but went unnoticed. He stared at Seph fearfully, as if he suddenly realized something.

"Seph…that's a nice name…what's it short for?" Steph asked curiously, trying to be polite.

Seph paused again. "It isn't."

"Oh…" Steph replied, a little disappointed.

The door opened just then, and a young boy in tan garments came into the room. He had rather dark skin, and Steph assumed he most likely lived in the desert. He smiled at Seph with a wide grin.

"Sorry I'm late! I had some things to get!"

"It's alright, Khalid," Seph said quietly. "I'm just glad you did make it. I have things to take care of, and cannot stay here. He stood up, and prepared to leave. "She's awake now, so she'll be easy to look after. Watch out for the annoying thing though…"

Trent made a 'Feh!' sound, and turned away.

Khalid smiled at Steph. "Hello, my name is Khalid. This is my home you're in right now. I'm glad you are feeling better."

Steph smiled. "Nice to meet you, Khalid. I'm Steph. Thank you for taking me in. Tell me, are you friends with Seph?"

"Oh yes," Khalid said brightly. "A lot of people around here are. Everyone wants to be a great Assassin like him some day. Even I do."

"Where…am I, exactly?" Steph asked. "This isn't Izlude, is it?"

"Izlude?" Khalid echoed, confused. "Izlude is to the north. This is Morroc."

Steph fell over. "Aww man! How could I get so lost?!"

Khalid laughed. "Tell me, do you get lost often?"

"Yeah," Steph moaned. "Actually, I do."

Steph was famous for her terrible sense of direction. She could get lost going to the marketplace in Payon, which was just down and a little west of her house. Umi joked that they should tie a string to her wrist, tie the other end to the front door, and use it to keep her from getting lost.

"Anyway," Khalid said. "You should rest, and get some supplies before you try to continue on from here. Prontera is closer than Izlude, but you can get to Izlude fairly quickly from there. Besides, Prontera is the capitol city."

"Really?" Steph said, surprised. She figured that she could get more experience going there than Izlude, and decided in her own mind to go there instead.

"Better give her a map," Trent piped up. "Or Seph'll have to come rescue her again."

Steph stepped on Trent again.

"So, why do you need yellow herbs again?" Steph asked Khalid as they walked over the white sands of the Sogart Desert, towards a large, white stone monument.

"There's a doctor, who lives in Morroc who heals people for free," Khalid explained. "The kids get hurt a lot, and poison is common because of all the scorpions around. So I gather herbs for him as my way of thanking him." Khalid smiled at Steph, who blushed back a little.

"That's nice of you," she said.

"Well," Khalid explained. "When I was young, I got stung by a scorpion, and almost died from the poison. He cured me, and even took care of me while I recuperated. I was so thankful to him…" Khalid seemed lost in thought. "He wouldn't accept any payment I offered him. So I started bringing him herbs."

"Are they hard to get?" Steph asked. There were always lots of green herbs around Payon, but the shiny herbs that grew east of the village were rare, and sought after. Both Steph and Umi made good pocket money collecting them for the village doctors.

Khalid nodded. "Morroc is a desert town, so hardly anything grows. Herbs like water, so they grow around the small pools near the town, and the ruins. The best ones grow near the Sphinx."

"Sphinx?" Steph asked curiously.

Khalid pointed to the cat-like monument they were coming up on. It sat on a large patch of sand in the centre of a deep pool of water, and a wooden bridge stretched from the bank to between its paws. A lady with long hair stood beside the entrance, yawning a little.

"Don't mind her," Khalid said good-naturedly. "She's like the guide to the Sphinx. She tells people about it when they come. She must really hate her job, but she's here every day, no matter what."

Steph smiled. A woman quite similar to the Sphinx guide stood in the centre of Payon, telling people about all the things to see there. She didn't seem to like her job either, but was there every day, rain or shine.

Trent seemed bored. "This place is kinda dull," he commented off-handily

"You didn't have to come," Steph grumbled. "You could have stayed behind…"

"Nah," Trent replied, grinning. "I couldn't pass up an opportunity to watch you make a fool of yourself again."

Steph shook her fist threateningly at the Drop.

"Oh, look! Here's a good one!" Khalid said excitedly. He held up a bright yellow plant in his hand, and Steph felt excited.

"Wow! I didn't realize they were so big!" She ran over to Khalid. "And they look really healthy!"

"I told you, they like water," Khalid said proudly. "These yellow herbs are the best I've ever come across. And they're quite plentiful here."

Steph looked over, and caught Trent chomping down on a yellow herb plant, looking quite pleased with himself.

"TRENT, YOU GOOBER!" Steph screamed, running over and kicking the Drop. "WE NEED THOSE! DON'T EAT THEM!"

"Sorry," Trent replied, mumbling past the plant in his mouth. "But I really like yellow herbs. They're my favourite."

Steph made a face. "But they're so bitter raw."

Trent swallowed. "Well, I like 'em. It doesn't mean you have to."

"Well, don't eat them all," Steph muttered angrily. "We need to bring them to the doctor so he can make potions out of them."

"Sound like fun," Trent replied dryly.

Khalid laughed. "Your friend is amusing."

"Oh yes, a barrel of laughs," Steph replied sarcastically.

"Here, I'll show you how to pick them properly," Khalid said, ushering her over. Steph sat down beside Khalid and watched intently.

"First, you carefully take it under the leaves like so," he said, demonstrating. "Then, you very carefully cut the stem near the ground with your knife, like so." He carefully severed the plant from the roots, and placed it in his bag. "They are very delicate, you see."

"I see," Steph said, amazed. "Green herbs are harvested differently. You just take the leaves…"

"Oh, yes, but green herbs are heartier," Khalid said. "Yellow herbs are delicate, and the doctor uses the whole plant in his medicines."

Interesting," Steph said.

Trent glared at the two, who were sitting rather near each other, their heads dangerously close. He suddenly bounced over, landing in Steph's lap, and piped up loudly.

"You know, I hear people actually smoke yellow herbs. Weird, huh?"

Steph smiled, almost painfully. "Uhh, yeah…" She then looked like she remembered something. "Oh, wait…people seemed to like smoking green herbs too, but they would roll them up and smoke them that way."

Khalid laughed. "How odd!"

Trent still didn't look too happy, so he bounced up and down on Steph's lap. "Hey! C'mon! Let's go! Let's harvest some plants!"

"Okay, okay!" Steph grumbled. "When did you get all excited to do this?"

"Anything to get you away from him," Trent muttered under his breath as he bounced off towards the nearest yellow herb.

Skoll chased Sol across the sky, and soon a thick, black velvet blanket fell over the world, ripped with many tiny holes, though which the light of the heavens poured through.

Steph and Khalid sat on the room of the Inn, watching the stars twinkle at them, and connected them with invisible lines they drew with their fingers, making pictures of animals and famous warriors.

Finally, Steph turned to look at Khalid. "Do you…live all by yourself?" she asked.

Khalid nodded slowly. "I do…It wasn't always like that."

"You had parents once, right?" Steph asked tentatively.

Khalid hesitated. "No…a friend. He was like a brother to me."

"Oh?" Steph asked, sitting up on her elbows.

Khalid stared up at the sky for a while, thinking. "He had no family, like me, so we helped each other get by. We both learned to steal, and we did so to get by. One day, he told me he was going to be a great warrior, and left. I never saw him again after that."

Steph looked at Khalid sadly. "You must miss him…"

"I do…" Khalid said quietly. "I had a fight with him the day he left. I had told him about wanting to become an Assassin, but he didn't want me to be one. He told me it was too dangerous, and that most do not make it."

Steph looked at Khalid with sad eyes.

"But I know why he was worried. Being an Assassin is dangerous work, and there are many risks. One must be proficient with poisons, and master stealth and mercilessness. It is a lonely profession." Khalid sighed, and looked into Steph's eyes.

"So…why then? Why become an Assassin?" Steph asked quietly.

Khalid was quiet. He looked away for a while, and then spoke.

"To protect people."

More silence followed. A soft wind blew through the town, stirring up a bit of dust that stung Steph's cheek as she squinted off into the night, her gaze fixed on the lights of the buildings of Morroc. She looked down at Khalid with a soft smile.

"I became an archer for the same reason."

Khalid smiled at Steph.

"So, did this friend…have a name?" Steph asked.

Khalid's eyebrows knitted together. "I cannot remember it, for the oddest reason. But here—I have a picture." He dug around in his breast pocket, and pulled out a tattered old photograph, and handed it to Steph.

Steph gazed at the photo, squinted a bit in the low light, and then realized it was the image of two young boys. They were grinning from ear to ear, their arms around each other's shoulders. One was obviously Khalid, for he had darker skin and light, sandy hair. The other had a paler complexion, but dark hair, that was strangely white at the tips. Steph felt something jog in her memory, but she couldn't recall what.

"I…I feel like I've seen him before…" Steph murmured.

"Maybe you have," Khalid said. "He has probably become a great warrior now."

Steph smiled. "Maybe so…but you can't believe you won't be one soon?"

"Oh, maybe not right away," Khalid said shyly. "I plan on taking it slow once I am an Assassin. Learn the trade carefully, from someone who is a master of it."

Steph handed the picture back to Khalid, who put it back in his pocket. He looked at her with a little smile.

"What about you? Did you have parents?"

"Not really," Steph said quietly. "I had a mother, who was a lot older than the other mothers of the village. It was me and her and my little sister for the longest time."

"You have a sister?" Khalid asked, curiously.

"Yeah," Steph said proudly. "My little sister, Umi. She's two years younger than me." She grinned. "She's also very pretty, and really smart, and a good cook."

Khalid smiled. "I'd like to meet her someday."

Steph grinned. "Well, when you become a famous Assassin, I'll take you to meet her," Steph said firmly.

"Deal," Khalid said, offering his hand to Steph to seal the deal. She took it firmly, and the two shook on it.

"You have a firm grip," Khalid remarked, surprised. "I would never have guessed! You're so pretty and delicate-looking!"

Steph laughed, embarrassed, and scratched the back of her head. "Aww sucks! That's sweet of you to say! Everybody always called me a tomboy back home!"

Khalid smiled, his face getting a little pink. "You're really pretty when you laugh…"

Steph stopped, surprised, and her face got warm. Her cheeks flushed, utterly embarrassed. "Y-you r-really t-think so?"

Khalid nodded, his face flushing more. "You should smile more often…"

Steph, totally red in the face now, just sat there, as if unable to move. She blinked repeatedly, as if trying to understand what was going on.

Khalid leaned closer to her, his heart beating loudly in his ears. His mouth got very dry all of a sudden, and he felt sweat pour off his back. Steph too, without realizing it, had leaned a bit closer, and suddenly the two were close enough to touch their noses together. Steph's eyes fluttered closed as if by some reflex, and Khalid's did the same. His mouth was close enough to hers now that she could feel his gentle breath on her lips. Her heart was so loud in her ears it was deafening. She felt herself lean in that little bit more, as if reaching for him. It was a very intense moment.

"OIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!" A loud, obnoxious yell blasted up from the road below the Inn, and both Steph and Khalid were startled out of their trance. They looked at each other, embarrassed, and then down at the source of the disturbance.

Trent was staring up at them, looking very cross. He seemed to be a deeper shade of orange than usual, and his eyes were sharp as knives.

"Get yer asses down here, and get inside! It gets cold at night you know! Move it!" He yelled at them in a loud, angry voice, like a mother scolding her children.

What's your deal?!" Steph barked angrily back at Trent. "What are you yellin' at me for?!"

"Shaddup and get down here!" Trent snapped back.

"Better do what he says," Khalid joked nervously. "He sounds serious."

That was way too intense…we almost kissed, Steph thought to herself that night in bed. She was huddled up under her covers, Trent hogging half her pillow, drooling and snoring loudly. Her mind clicked away at such a pace she couldn't find sleep.

Why did that happen? Do I like Khalid? Sure, he's nice and all, but…do I really like him? Does he like me? Would it have gotten even more intense had we not been interrupted? Wait…was I even ready for that?! Did I do the right things? And more importantly, why is it called green cheese if it's white?

Steph sat up in bed, was too wired to sleep. She ran a hand though her poppy-coloured hair and groaned under her breath.

"What is wrong with me?!" She hissed to herself, burying her head in her lap.

Khalid and Steph didn't make eye contact the next morning. Khalid glued his gaze to his food, and Steph, who hadn't slept very much the night before, tried to look out the window at something while trying not to fall asleep at the table.

The door opened without so much as a knock, and Seph came in, holding a parcel of sorts in his arms. He paused at the door, looking over the two at the table.

"Did something happen?" he asked flatly.

"Hoo boy, did something happen all right," Trent muttered from under Steph's chair.

Seph paused for another moment, and then walked over to Khalid. "I have the supplies she will need for her trip."

"Oh, thank you," Khalid said gratefully. "You didn't have to do that for me…"

"It was no trouble," Seph responded. "I had to get some things for myself, as it were."

"Are you leaving again?" Khalid asked, crestfallen.

"Yes," Seph replied. "Tomorrow. I have matters to clear up elsewhere."

Khalid looked upset, but tried to smile. "You'll be back soon, though, right?"

Seph said nothing for a bit. "I will try."

Steph fell off her chair, and woke with a start as she hit the floor. She rubbed her head as she sat up again. "Owwie…"

"Smooth…" Trent muttered.

Khalid blushed, and looked elsewhere. Seph looked from Steph to Khalid a few times, and then turned to leave the house.

"Leaving Seph?" Steph asked, sleepily.

Seph nodded, but as he opened the door, it suddenly swung open, and an Assassin fell inside the house, and into Seph's arms. He gave a chocking wheeze of pain, and Steph saw he was covered with many arrow and knife wounds.

"What happened?" Seph asked the man.

"R-r-rouges…" the man gasped, clutching his wounds and wincing in pain. "Outside…town…stormed the…Assassin Guild…many of them…"

"Rouges," Khalid looked distraught. "Why would rouges attack the Assassin Guild?"

"Worst enemies," Seph replied. "Rouges and Assassins are bitter rivals. They would do anything to get what they seek, and use any means necessary. They are worse then trash."

Trent seemed to make an upset sound under the chair, but Steph figured she was hearing things.

"No one…can…stop them all…too many…" the man gasped out. "Please…help…Master Seph—"

And with that, the man died.

It was an uncomfortable feeling, watching someone die like that. Steph felt the hair on her back stand straight up, and a cold shutter passed though her. Everyone else looked a bit unsettled as well.

Seph stood up. "I'm off to stop this."

"Wait!" Khalid said, grabbing Seph's arm. "I'm going too!"

Seph shook his head. "You'll only be in the way."

Khalid looked upset. "You don't get it! I need to do this! I need to prove to the Assassin's Guild that I'm worthy to become an Assassin! I can do this! Please! Let me do this!"

There was dead silence in the room for a moment, until a voice piped up.

"Let the kid go. If he wants to get hurt so badly, let him. He's a big kid now, he can make his own decisions."

Steph kicked Trent, her face shocked. "What a terrible thing to say!"

Seph seemed to think for a second. "You…got taller…" he said to Khalid, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I hadn't noticed until now."

Khalid looked very happy all of a sudden. He smiled at Seph, tears threatening to spill down his cheeks.

"I will not let you down."

Steph looked at the two men, and felt something knot in her stomach.

"I'm coming too!" she said, standing up. When she was met with blank stares, she felt a bead of sweat run down her face.

"Well…I want to help too, you know."

"Maybe you can," Seph said quietly. "A lot of Rouges use bows. You may be of some help to us."

"Really?" Steph asked, amazed.

Trent grumbled. "How does that saying go? 'I have a bad feeling about this'?"

The Assassin's Guild was a large set of ruins East of Morroc. They had once been a temple of sorts, but now were nothing more than sand-swept blocks and crumbling pillars. The Guild itself was inside the largest of the structures, deep underground, where it was cool and dark, safe from the dry desert heat.

But now the Guild was crawling with rouges, all of whom were very shady-looking and some downright greasy-looking. They were covered in spiky collars and bracelets, and dressed in dark colours. Most sported scars and patches of some kind, and some even had tattoos. They were a loud, rambunctious lot, and Steph could smell them before she could see them.

"Eww, when do they bathe?" she muttered to herself.

Trent grumbled again, and Steph thought she heard something about stereotypes and people's skewed views on things.

Steph ignored Trent, and squinted, trying to see past the blinding waves of sand being blown around by the wind, and figure out what she was up against. Finally, the sand settled down, and Steph made out many, many, many figures. She counted quickly.

"26…47…50?! Fifty men to do all this? What a bunch of cowards." She sniffed angrily. "They obviously can't do anything unless they're in groups."

"Their motto is, 'Prey on the weak, ignore the strong, and win at any cost'," Trent explained dryly. "So don't underestimate them, by any means."

Steph sighed. She stepped into the clearing in the debris nervously, and cleared her throat loudly.

Fifty pairs of eyes turned to look at her.

"Uhh, hi there," Steph said cheerfully, her voice failing her. "You all look kinda busy, so I'll keep this brief. I'm here to see someone named Kidd."

"He ain't here," one rouge grunted.

"You don't look like a 'Sin," another rouge remarked. "Whatcha doin' here?"

"Me?" Steph said nervously. "Oh, I, uhh…have a delivery to make!"

"Smooth," Trent murmured.

"Let's see this 'delivery'," a tall, rather good-looking Rouge (if it was possible among Rouges) said, stepping forward. He wore a patch over his right eye, and a dark scar ran over the bridge of his nose. He looked down his nose at Steph, grinning almost evilly.

"Uhh, well, gosh, I seem to have misplaced it," Steph said, sweating bullets. "I guess I'll have to find it and come back some other time."

"Oh no, the party's just getting started, see?" the one-eyed rouge said to Steph, grabbing her arm roughly. "You're too pretty to just let go wandering back into the desert."

The other rouges all murmured happily about the rouge's statement, and many began eyeing Steph up. She squirmed nervously.

"Oh crap. Uhh, hey, c'mon, that's not very nice you know. Can't you cut a lost girl some slack?"

The rouge grabbed Steph's tunic and began to try to take it off of her. "Let's see what we've got under this, shall we?" His voice was like oil now, smooth and silky, but nasty all at the same time. Steph struggled, trying to get away.

Seph, you're plan sucks! she thought bitterly to herself.

"Ooh, you're a real cutie," the rouge said, his hand sliding down the collar of her tunic. Steph squealed, and tried desperately to get him off.

"GET OFF ME, YOU JERK!"

The rouge laughed, but his head was yanked back as if by an invisible force, and suddenly, Seph materialized, and threw the rouge across the sand into the crowd of other rouges who had stood up in surprise.

Steph grabbed her tunic and held it together, panting fearfully, and shaking. Seph stepped in front of her.

"You heard the lady."

Khalid ran up to Steph. "Are you alright?" he asked hurriedly. She nodded.

The rouge that had been thrown stood up, wiping his mouth off. "Well, well, well boys…look who it is…" He grinned evilly. "If it isn't the great hero himself…Sephiroth."

The sounds of people screaming, and doors slamming could be heard, and a baby's cry pierced the air, and Steph looked around to see where the noise had come from. But it had gotten silent again, and so she turned back to the showdown.

"Where have I heard that name?" Steph whispered.

"Who hasn't?" Trent whispered back. "He's only one of the greatest Assassins who has ever lived. And one of the deadliest. People say he can destroy an entire town by himself, and there would be no trace of it by morning."

Steph shuttered. "That's pretty scary."

Seph stared down the rouge. "You know my name, I see. So, shall I then know yours?"

"The name," the rouge said, pointing to his chest, "Is Roy. People call me 'Ruby Red Roy' because of all the people I've killed."

"That's nice," Seph said disinterestedly.

"That's all you can say?!" Roy barked angrily. "What kind of a comment is that?!"

"You mean nothing to me," Seph said flatly.

"So why ask for my name then, dipshit?!" Roy blasted.

"I only wanted to know your name," Seph said darkly, "So I know what to tell the Undertaker…to put on your headstone."

A ripple of 'Oohs!' went up from the crowd, and Roy seemed to get really pissed.

"I'm gonna fucking KILL YOU!" Roy blasted, whipping out his knife. His face was a bright magenta colour, and Steph actually flinched as he lurched forward. The guy was rather scary.

But Seph wasn't intimidated easily, and didn't move as Roy lunged at him. He did, however, bury a katar deep in Roy's gut, as Roy was about to stab Seph in the chest.

"Oh, that katar is poisoned, by the way," Seph informed the man calmly. "You have about ten seconds to live. Make peace with whatever gods you worship, because you are about to meet them."

Roy slid off the katar with a gasping sound, and fell to the ground, shuttered a few times, and then died.

Steph cupped a hand over her mouth to keep from vomiting. It was too much for her. She had never dealt with death like this very well. She still remembered the smell of her mother after she had passed on…

Steph turned away and revisited breakfast.

There was a moment of absolute silence, and then everyone attacked, all at once. It was a brawl of epic proportions. None of the rouges were any match for Seph, and they all fell to his katars. Khalid seemed hesitant to fight, but when he actually started, he was very good at it.

"This is…terrible…" Steph gasped weakly.

"This is life," Trent replied, grimly. "Everyone is out for everyone else. This isn't some fairy tale, where everyone is happy at the end. You live, you fight, you die. That's the reality of it all."

Steph trembled. She was terrified. She never wanted to kill anyone. She just couldn't do it. And yet here she was, witnessing this massacre.

It became quiet all of a sudden. Seph looked around. Most of the rouges were either dead or wounded severely. Khalid grinned as he wiped the sweat from his brow.

"You did very good," Seph informed Khalid. "I'd say you became a man today."

Khalid grinned from ear to ear. "Thank you, sir. I'm honoured."

"I'll take it up with Kidd," Seph continued. "I'll let him know about everything you did today. I'm sure he'll feel as I do, that you deserve to be an Assassin."

Steph looked up and tried her best to smile at Khalid. She still felt nauseous, but she was happy for Khalid, and wanted him to know that she was happy for him.

Trent even looked happy, even if it was in a distance, masculine sort of way.

"You did great, kid," Trent said quietly.

"Thank you, all of you," Khalid said, with a smile. His tears had begun to run over his face. "I am so happy right now. It's almost as if I could fly. I feel almost as if I could touch the clouds. This is the happiest day of my life."

Steph smiled, remembering how great she had felt to achieve her archer status. Khalid looked overjoyed.

"We should celebrate!" Steph said. She had managed to stand up now, shakily, and walked a step closer. "I'll buy you a drink!"

"Indeed," Khalid said happily. We should celebrate. It is a good da—"

A sharp whistling sound cut Khalid off, and Steph realized, to her horror, that an arrow was buried in Khalid's chest. His face was of complete shock, and he slowly fell backwards, as if in slow motion. Steph was unable to move. She was completely in shock and disbelief.

"KHALID!!!!" A scream next to Steph snapped time back to normal. Trent had been the one to scream, and his eyes had gone wild. The Drop was in hysterics as he bounced over to Khalid's side. "Oh god, Khalid! Khalid! KHALID!"

Khalid was bleeding heavily from the shaft in his chest, and seemed to be in too much shock to move. He still had the same shocked look on his face as he lay there. Steph felt her whole body begin to shake again.

Seph whirled around, and saw the shooter. It was a rouge wielding a bow, who had been standing on top of the Guild, with his back to the sun. They had all completely missed him.

Seph's whole body seemed to snap in anger. "How…dare you…" he whispered. "How…dare…you…" His battle aura became visible all of a sudden, and the wind became violent. His platinum hair whipped about his face, and his eyes had gone hard and dangerous.

"You…scum…no…worse than scum…" Seph took a step forward. "You absolute dirt."

The rouge seemed scared, and fired another shaft. It whizzed past Seph's cheek, grazing it slightly, and landing in the sand behind him. Seph didn't even flinch.

"YOU….WILL…PAY." Seph's words were hard as steel now, and Steph felt an icy stab in her stomach as fear overwhelmed her.

From Seph's right shoulder unfurled one black angel wing. The air became filled with black feathers, whipped about violently by the winds Seph had stirred up.

With a savage cry, Seph leapt forward, and lunged at the Rouge. His speed was unimaginable as he suddenly appeared in front of the Rouge, and raised his katar to strike.

"Goodbye," Seph whispered under his breath as the katar came down and severed the rouge's head from his body.

Seph stood there, bathed in the rouge's blood, and did not move. He seemed absolutely unable to move, as if he had just used every ounce of strength he had. The blood make plipping sounds as it hit the stone beneath him, almost musical in nature, deceivingly light-hearted for the scene at hand.

Khalid coughed suddenly, breaking the silence. Blood bubbled from his mouth, and he winced in pain.

Steph collapsed again, screaming in terror. "Oh God, oh God, oh God, oh God, OH GOD!!" She clutched at her hair, yanking and tearing at it, her eyes wild and unable to tear themselves from Khalid's bloody body.

"DO SOMETHING!!" Trent screamed at Steph, desperate.

Steph shook her upper body, back and forth, as if to say 'no'. She was sobbing and crying hysterically.

Khalid turned his head to look at Trent, who looked back with wide, terrified eyes.

"…Tr…ent…" he managed to say, and then his eyes closed, and he gave one last, ragged breath as he died.

Steph sat on the bed inside the house, staring at a crack in the floor through half-shut, wet eyes. She was still in total shock from the day before.

Seph was leaning against the wall across from her. He too seemed rather out of sorts, but he seemed more stoic than Steph did.

"I can't…believe he's gone…" Steph said quietly, her voice choked.

Seph said nothing.

"It almost seems unbearably cruel…he had just achieved something so important, and then…" Steph stopped. She felt another tear edge silently out of her eye and hit the floor.

Seph, again, said nothing.

Steph took a shaky breath, and said the next words very slowly.

"But what I don't understand is…"

Outside, a small cross made of wood stood at the head of a pile of earth and rocks. And there, cuddled next to the cross, was an orange blob, crying silently as he sat there where no one could see him.

"…why Trent is the only one of us who hasn't left his side."

NEXT CHAPTER:

A new town, a new adventure. Can Steph put the pain of Khalid's death behind her? Can she find the name of the knight who saved her? Will Trent ever stop causing trouble? Find out in "This Town is a Gathering Place, Honey, You Just Don't Know Why Yet."