Return of Dragons Chapter 4: Miria's Wisdom

Previously in the Return of Dragons Clare was travelling with Teresa, Sophia, Noel and Irene as well as the flier Johnothan. There had been a storm on the way, and Teresa was bickering with her comrades and companions, Johnothan thinking it wisest to train Clare while Teresa wanted to protect the girl's innocence. Irene and the others watched as Johnothan took out a vampire and warned them against travelling into a town where the humans were more or less 'evil' according to the flier.

Later they found a safe place to pass the night, which was filled with the rain storm. Johnothan had to recover from using too much of his fire, a recovery that had him out cold. Meanwhile Clare had been resting herself as well as the half-yoma. Little did they know the man who ordered Teresa's death Orsay had been following them the entire time that they'd been travelling waiting for the right moment to take Clare away from her mother figure. The chance was presented and Orsay took it.

By the time Johnothan and the half-yoma had recovered and were fully rested Teresa was frantically searching for the now lost Clare.

Meanwhile Clare was taken to the Organization by Orsay. She met a young Claymore called Miria and from one look Clare learned that Miria was the one to keep an eye on, as she seemed to show Clare more with her eyes than anyone else. Clare was taken into a room where something was clearly going to happen to her.

Meanwhile Teresa challenged Johnothan to a fight and the woman lost! She was lying in the dirt and her pride was wounded the greatest. What will Teresa do? Can she save Clare before something terrible happens? Or will she fail in the process?

Teresa stared into the fire before her and sighed. Three days had passed and they were no closer to Clare than before. She knew that Orsay had something to do with it, and traced his scent to some place near them before his trail ran cold. Teresa stifled a curse. She was fast becoming more and more annoyed and afraid for Clare and what she would go through. She felt Johnothan not far from her training himself. The others had joined in not long ago and Teresa decided that she would have to deal with what she had to. She felt a deep pit of worry in her stomach, and it couldn't be shaken. The training didn't last that long before Johnothan surprised Teresa by hugging her,

"You're hurting Teresa," he said to the shock of everyone there, "I sense it,"

Irene and the others hadn't seen more than Teresa's normal doll-like mask and low yoki output. Johnothan obviously sensed deeper than a half-yoma warrior. Teresa didn't know why, but tears ran down her face, his wings giving her some sort of privacy despite the fact that the others had ears the wings enveloped Teresa in an odd warmth that stemmed from the flier's embrace. Her head was resting on his chest much like when Clare's head rested on her stomach that time that she'd first spoken, whimpering about Teresa's pain that was so crystal clear to her. His embrace was different. Not because he knew she was hurting; not because she was crying in his arms, but because he was crying with her, and trying to comfort her in the only way he knew how. It was her pain that was reflected in him. Clare shared with Teresa the pains that she'd known. Johnothan was…empathic, he could feel her pain in a different way that Teresa didn't quite understand. And yet she didn't need to understand. The flier was so in tune with her yoki somehow that she was sure he felt what she felt in a way no one else would. She loved Clare; Clare was her adoptive daughter after all. She had feelings for him, feelings she didn't understand until this moment. How she didn't see it before Teresa didn't know. Johnothan was a flier, a hybrid like her. He was capable of getting into some major fights, possibly killing them if he ever became a full blown dragon and yet…Teresa felt a connection with him that was different to what she felt with Clare. She buried her face into his chest and allowed his warmth to sooth her broken heart.

Clare struggled. Everything hurt, her chest hurt, her head hurt and her body hurt. In fact there wasn't a place that didn't hurt. She remembered little of what happened to her, after she was taken in by Orsay, away from someone she loved dearly. But Clare couldn't remember. She lay in the straw pile, and assumed that she was alone. Someone shifted, and Clare heard her companion for the first time. Everything came roaring back. She'd been taken away from Teresa…her mother figure, a woman that Clare had come to feel more like a mother to her in every way than not. She opened her eyes and hoped that everything was just a dream. The warrior she saw wasn't Teresa. The warrior she saw was Miria.

"Are you alright?" Miria asked Clare gently and Clare stared open mouthed, Miria hesitated. She'd known that Dae had done something to Clare; that he'd hurt her not just by putting the yoma flesh into her. Miria had to endure it, hearing Clare's screams of pain while being unable to do anything to stop that foul excuse of a man. She was told to remain in the cell waiting for when they bought Clare in. When Miria saw the damage Clare had taken, the blood that stained her simple dress Miria knew in that instant what had happened to the girl. Miria was lucky, because she was an early bloomer they'd ignored her to an extent, for fear that she could end up like one of the other warriors before her, giving birth to a child while being a warrior trainee. Miria was also lucky (according to everyone else) in that her scars were so horrific, even the men who made her into a warrior wouldn't touch her in that way. Clare was seemingly reading Miria and she spoke,

"It hurts…"

Miria winced sympathetically, "It's going to be ok, the pain goes away after a while," Miria was surprised when Clare seemed to huddle close to her, but Miria knew some people survived this way. Miria held Clare, although she didn't know the child's name. What she did know, however was that Clare had been with the legendary Teresa of the Faint Smile. That alone was enough for Miria to know that Clare knew what her chest and stomach was going to look like by the time she too, became a complete claymore.

"Why?" Clare asked, "Why did they…?"

Miria sighed, "I am not certain, all I know is that they have their reasons. Besides there is more to being a half-yoma than you knew before. Teresa was the top of her time, perhaps you could be equally as strong, but no one is ever certain of that. I was supposed to be the weakest and yet I am not, I suppose I'll teach you everything I can confirm as being real, since you will need the information,"

"Wait…you know Teresa?!" Clare exclaimed,

"By name and reputation only," Miria said calmly, "I do not know her as you undoubtedly do,"

"Oh," Clare looked down briefly but then she looked at Miria, "Miria," The claymore blinked in surprise, "What is it that I need to know about being a warrior,"

And thus began Clare's sort of training. Of course Rubel and the other men didn't hear what Miria told Clare, but they did know that when Clare became a fully complete trainee that she knew something the others didn't. She had a friend who was a warrior, a friend who had given her hope that she would one day find Teresa again.

Three years had passed, and in those three years, Clare's birthdays came and went. She was often seen travelling along routs that the former Number 47 travelled along. Clare often sort out Miria, a comrade that had become a sister figure to Clare, often treating Clare with respect, unlike everyone else when they heard of her rank. Clare was glad to have met Miria, indeed her friend had become the Number 6 just a couple of days ago and Clare was trotting over to meet her, for the first time in a year. Clare was alone for the most part, long hair flowing wherever the wind took it. She had, over the past year discovered a sensitivity to yoki. And she didn't like what she could sense. Miria was depressed, Clare knew that much. And Hilda was nowhere to be sensed either. Normally Miria was with Hilda, who Clare had liked because Hilda didn't care that Clare was a 47 either. Hilda was like their older sister, Miria being the middle sister while Clare was considered the youngest. Hilda was good, always making Miria and Clare laugh whenever she could. As Clare approached Miria, she noticed that there was only one set of amour. Miria's set. Miria's sword wasn't too far away and it was clear that Miria was bathing again. Clare didn't like how she smelled either, and it was something that she and Miria agreed on. Clare dumped her amour like normal and hasted to the river where she knew Miria was. There was something strange about Miria's blackened flesh scar, it was less than before; of that Clare was certain,

"Miria!" Clare called and Miria looked up at Clare, a sad look in her eyes that Clare knew meant something was wrong,

"Clare, it's good to see you," Miria struggled to withhold her tears and Clare came over and joined her friend in the river. Clare was slightly shorter than Miria, slightly. And she hugged Miria. Normally Miria would try to escape Clare's hug as she wasn't all that big on affection, she didn't enjoy being hugged all of the time, even by Hilda and those two were really good friends before Clare met Miria. They'd grown up together as far as Clare knew. So that Miria even allowed Clare to hug her at all screamed that something was wrong. Miria's shoulders were shaking and Clare tightened her grip.

"Miria, I missed seeing you," Clare said quietly, "I'm glad I found you, I have something I want to tell you,"

Miria sniffed slightly, clearly trying not to cry, and Clare didn't make a fuss over it, "And what would that be Clare?"

"I'll tell you over something to eat, I'm famished," Clare said quietly,

"Very well," Miria said calmly now, tears in her eyes, but not running down her cheeks any more. Clare could never master the emotional control of her friend and Miria frequently trumped her in a lot of areas. Not that Clare stopped trying; she wanted to be one of the best before she went looking for Teresa, so that Teresa would have a reason to be proud of her. For Clare it was her raison d'être, her own choice to follow her own pathway as Miria'd once told her.

An hour or so later the pair were talking, with Clare telling Miria about her new discovery (namely her increased yoki sensitivity) while Miria told Clare some not so good news that explained why Miria was depressed. Clare was shocked. She struggled not to get pulled in with grief for Miria's sake but it was too hard.

"She's…she's really gone?" Clare asked feeling the hairs on her neck and head prickle. A cold sinking feeling hit her gut and Clare tried to focus on something else. Hilda had been a warrior for five years. Five years wasn't that long Clare had thought, but that of course meant that she might not even live that long herself. That was two years more than Clare and Miria had been a warrior for the same length of time, Clare suddenly realised. Of course awakenings happened; Clare knew this as it was a part of a warrior's life, but still…she didn't think she was ready to lose one of her friends just yet.

"Yes," Miria said, her face void of any emotion, "That isn't near the average lifespan, but it isn't too far from it. As you know most warriors last around seven years before they die, either by awakening and being killed or by sending out their black card, some last on as awakened beings but usually are killed within days of becoming one. That's just the way things are for us.

Ophelia tore up Hilda's card…" Miria said softly,

"Ophelia did what?!" Clare gasped in shock, the unpleasant feeling creeping back into her skin. Ophelia was the Number 4 and Clare had heard all sorts of tales about her from Miria, most of which made Clare sick with dread every time she'd heard them. And now there was another tale to add to the list. Clare felt sick. She closed her eyes and tried not to think into the story. So now she knew why Miria was so bummed out. It was because of Ophelia, Ophelia and her psychotic nature to go after anything that was an awakened being. Clare didn't have to ask Miria why Ophelia tore up Hilda's black card on her. She knew in her heart the answer. Ophelia kept talking about some ribbon awakened being with many legs, stating that she was going to "kill" it, according to Miria. Clare chewed her food slowly and sadly. "Poor Hilda," and then Miria sighed,

"I suppose so," Clare looked at Miria, but thought better of it. She knew that her friend was hurting and needed Clare's support. "So how goes fighting the yoma? Last I heard your region was reasonable towards you." Miria stated mildly,

"Ugh," Clare groaned, "They got rapidly worse, and I don't even know why that's so,"

"Always the way," Miria said with a nod, "the closer to Sutafu, the worse they'll be, it's almost like they know something is wrong with the Organization…" Miria looked thoughtful and Clare heard noises that announced good old Rubel was on his way.

"Don't look now," Clare said,

"Yeah, Rubel," Miria nodded, she got up, "I guess we won't be able to talk for a while because it sounds to me like you have some work to do Clare. Ermita has already given me my marching orders so I'd best get going, it was good to see you Clare, please take care of yourself."

"You know I do," Clare said with a sigh. An hour later Clare was given a task and she plodded onwards. She had to get stronger. It was her only hope.