Chapter 4: Introductions and Conversations

The light of a new day streamed in through the bedroom window. Elias groaned, he hated mornings. Being a creature of night and shadow meant he struggled to find motivation in the harsh light of dawn. From his mental link, which he found to be surprisingly strong, Blue was already awake and appeared to be downstairs reading. A fae who reads is weird enough on its own, but Blue seemed to be a veracious reader, which was quite odd. But, Elias saw himself as an oddity anyway, so perhaps they would work well together.

Chise stirred next to him and started to stretch, "Mmm... ow! What the..."

He looked down at her face and was shocked. Almost the entire left half of her face was swollen and covered in dark, blotchy bruises, her eye was almost completely swollen shut. From the little bit of the eye he could see, it was obvious that quite a few blood vessels had burst because the whites of it were completely red.

She looked up at him and cringed, "If you have that look in your eyes, it must be bad."

Chise rolled out of bed, wincing slightly as the movement reminded her that she was bruised all over her body, and walked over to the mirror above her dresser. She gasped, "Holy crap! I look... terrible."

Elias stood and walked over to her, putting his arms around her shoulders. He could tell from the tone in her voice that she was on the verge of tears. "It's not... optimal, but it should heal relatively quickly. I will mix something up for the pain and swelling after breakfast. Unfortunately, I can't heal it completely, even with Blue's help. I am sorry."

"It's just... I look so... ugly like this." She sighed, and a few tears ran down her face. It wasn't that she normally thought herself beautiful, she thought she was fairly average. She just couldn't stop picturing the American comic book character Two-Face when she looked at herself at the moment.

Elias scooped her into his arms and nuzzled her neck, giving her the tightest hug he could without causing her bruised body pain. "You are very wrong. Even with the bruises and swelling on your face, you are still beautiful in my eyes."

She hugged him back and gave him a kiss on the end of his snout, "Your too sweet, you know."

"Don't tell anyone. It will ruin my reputation of being scary and formidable."

She snorted lightly, "Oh yes, everyone needs to think you are a heartless monster. So ridiculous! We aren't going anywhere today, are we?"

"Don't be silly. You are in no condition to do anything besides rest for at least the next three days. No, we will be staying home, and you will be resting."

She gave a relieved sounding sigh, "Good, then I am staying in my pajamas today. I feel sore all over and the thought of putting on regular clothes just makes me ache."

He nibbled lightly on her ear, eliciting a giggle from her, and put her down, "Let me change and we can go down to breakfast. It appears everyone else is up."

"Even Ruth? I haven't reached out to him since Blue said it would take a few days for that spell's effects to fade."

Elias reached out with his mental link, Is Ruth awake as well? The response he got seemed slightly amused in nature, You mean the Grim? Yes, though he looks terrible.

"Yes, he is awake, though apparently he isn't feeling well."

"Poor thing. He is such a baby when he doesn't feel good either."

Dressed and ready, Elias took Chise's hand in his own and the two made their way downstairs.

In the kitchen, both Ruth and Blue were in their human forms, sitting at the table. Ruth seemed to be struggling to stay that way however. Blue had his face buried in a book, taking occasional sips from a tea cup in front of him. As the couple entered the kitchen, Blue gave an acknowledging nod. Ruth, on the other hand, gave a strained whimper on seeing Chise's face and almost completely lost control of his form.

Blue closed his book with a sigh and looked sideways at Ruth, "You know, you wouldn't be having such a hard time if you were in your normal form. That spell disrupts your ability to be a familiar. That includes your ability to hold a human form."

Ruth eyed him suspiciously, "I... don't like eating in that form. Who the hell are you anyway?"

Blue responded with a soft snicker, though his expression remained bored-looking and neutral, "Geez, aren't you stubborn? I doubt Miss Silky will throw you out of the kitchen. She probably won't even kick you off the table, especially since it's not your fault. As for who I am, I am a little surprised you can't tell what I am, you must really feel like crap."

Ruth made a disgruntled noise, but his body shifted to shadow and reformed to his Grim form. This obviously helped because he gave a soft huff of a sigh and turned to Blue, sniffing. Blue stiffened at the close contact, a look of deep discomfort flashed across his face, but he didn't pull away.

"Oh, you're a fairy? You smell like spring wind."

"Generally, my kind do. I am a Sylphid. My name is Blue."

A look of confusion lit Ruth's face and he glanced around the table. He knew the ways of fairy kind, innately, and understood that only those who are very important, like the Queen and King, or those with familiars had names. He also knew that a familiar rarely strayed far from their master.

Chise and Elias had taken their seats and watched the exchange between the two familiars with neutral expressions. Chise gave Ruth a light smile, "Ruth, a lot happened yesterday while you were knocked out."

"Obviously, could you give me the short version? Just so that I don't feel so lost."

She smiled again, as Silky laid down the plates of breakfast food, and nodded, "The man who knocked you out and kidnapped me forced Blue to be his familiar by using a spell."

A disgusted look came over Ruth's face, "I wouldn't have thought that was possible! Terrible!"

"Mmm, anyway, the only way to free him was for him to become someone else's familiar. So, now he is Elias' familiar."

Ruth's eyes widened in surprise. He understood how unusual that was. He had struggled at first to trust Elias or feel completely comfortable around the man. It was just an innate mistrust that fae had for someone like Elias, because he was an incomplete being. He glanced over at Blue, who had picked back up his book and continued to read while eating breakfast. This fairy seemed... odd to Ruth. He couldn't put his paw on exactly why, but he just felt different. Maybe it was the reading. Even with his strong bond with Chise, who loved to read, he found it to be a boring way to spend his time. He had a feeling most fae were the same. Yet, this guy had done almost nothing but read since he had first laid eyes on him.

Blue could sense the Grim looking at him, scrutinizing him. It made his skin crawl because he knew exactly why he was doing so. He was sizing him up and, more than likely, judging his actions. Don't let it get to you, he was like that for quite some time with me after bonding with Chise. His only concern is to keep her safe. The thought entered his head and he looked up at Elias, giving him a small nod. Don't be surprised if most fae treat me like this or worse. To them I am an oddball, a weirdo and it is why they don't trust me.

Me too. Maybe it will be easier now, since we both understand that feeling. We can empathize with one another.

Hhmm, perhaps.

Blue felt another twinge of confusion. Elias seemed to genuinely care about his comfort. He was sure that their bond was one of convenience and circumstance. And, while Blue was grateful for it because it had freed him from his humiliating servitude, he was still confused as to why Elias would feel the need to be kind to him on top of all he had already done.

As Blue ruminated on his thoughts, everyone finished their breakfast and Silky started collecting the dishes.

"Well, since you need to rest and recover, what would you like to do?" Elias looked at Chise with questioning eyes.

"Hhmm, maybe just relax in the living room. I think I want to read a bit."

"All right, I will go make you that medication, it should only take a few moments, then I think I will sit with you. If you get tired at all today, I don't want you to fight it, you need to sleep as much as possible, understand?"

"Yes, yes." She leaned over and gave him a quick kiss as he stood. He patted her head and walked towards the workroom.

Chise and Ruth both got up and made their way towards the living room. She turned when she got to the door to ask Blue if he wanted to join them, but he had walked over to the sink and put his hand on Silky's shoulder.

"Miss Silky, let me help you. I can dry if you would like."

To Chise's surprise, Silky blushed and nodded slightly. When she handed him a wet plate he lightly blew on it and it became completely dry. He was holding the plate, looking around the kitchen, "Uh. Miss Silky? Where do these go?" It struck Chise that Elias may not know where they went, because it seemed Blue was comfortable enough to gleaning small facts like that from her fiancée's mind.

A deeper blush light Silky's cheeks and she lightly shook her head, patting a clear spot on the counter.

"Are you sure?" Another light nod. "Okay. Don't worry though, I'll learn."

This scene made Chise smile. She was surprised at Silky's reaction. She had never seen Silky blush and she wondered why Blue elicited such a reaction from her. Perhaps, she found him attractive, the thought made her want to giggle.

At that moment, Elias walked up behind her, a glass of light brown liquid in his hand, "Here, drink this. Like the one last night, this one taste pretty bad."

She took the glass, tipped her head back, and drained the whole thing, as she had the night before. Her nose crinkled, and she stuck her tongue out, "Yuck, no kidding it's bad. That one was worse than the one last night."

He took the glass from her and with a surge of magic, refilled it with water, "There, that should help wash the flavor away."

"Thanks." Drinking the water, she looked back over at Silky and Blue. When she was done, she smiled, "I guess it makes sense that he would be good at drying dishes, being an air fairy and all. I didn't expect him to be the type to want to help with house work."

"Well, from what I understand, he has a lot of respect for fae like her, Brownies, because of how hard they work. I think it is why he calls her Miss."

"That's really sweet. It's cute too, because he makes her blush."

Elias' jaw chittered on a small chuckle and the two walked hand in hand to the living room. Ruth was already curled up on the end of the couch and looked like he had already fallen asleep. Chise sat next to him and grabbed her book off the coffee table. She smiled at Elias and patted the seat next to her. He settled himself down and she snuggled up under his arm. Just as they were settling in, Blue walked in and, instead of sitting in the available chair, sat on the floor.

Chise gave him a questioning look, "Don't you want to sit in the chair?"

He gave her his usual bland look, "Oh no, I'll just lay here and read. It's more comfortable to me than a straight back chair."

She shrugged and settled back in. Elias made a slightly irritated noise, "Chise, I am sorry. I left my book upstairs in the bedroom, I need to go get it." He made to get up, but Blue put his hand up. "Wait." He looked up, as though he was thinking, clapped his hands together and slid them apart. A book appeared in his hands and he held it out to Elias, "This one, right?"

Elias looked down at it and nodded, "Yes, thank you. What an interesting summoning technique."

"My knowledge of the flow of magic and my ability to sense the world through air currents means I can manipulate space between myself and objects readily."

Chise, ever eager to learn new things, looked at Blue with interest, "Air currents? How does that work?"

Elias couldn't help but give a small clatter of a chuckle. One of Chise's most endearing qualities was her seemingly boundless thirst for knowledge. He gave her a soft affectionate nuzzle to the top of her head.

Blue couldn't help but feel a bit perplexed and slightly amused, they were so much like the typical couples he had seen in London. It was just so odd in someone who was a few hundred years old. "All fae sense the world in their own way, usually related to their powers or nature. The wind and air are my elements, because of this I sense the world around me through subtle changes in air pressure. It is the reason I can do other things while reading. I don't have to use my eyes to see what I am doing. Everything in the world has its own unique air pressure, and I rely on that."

Chise had a look of intense interest on her face, "That's amazing. And all fae experience the world differently like that?"

"Hhmm, to an extent, yes. For example, since Ruth is a dog in nature, he would sense the world the way a dog would… majority nose with sight at well." He glanced over at Ruth, "I'm right, aren't I?"

"Mmm." Ruth seemed to be listening, though he looked asleep.

"See? It's fairly simple, figure out a fairy's element or nature and you can tell how they sense the world in general." Blue laid back on the floor, book in his face, as the room fell into a comfortable silence. It only lasted a short time before Blue sat up and snapped his book shut. He turned towards Elias, "Someone is walking up to your door. I… think it is someone you know, but… ugh… I just can't tell."

"Hhmm, I guess I should go check." As Elias stood, Blue had already changed form and perched himself on Elias' horn.

"I am going to come. You know… just in case."

Elias could sense that Blue was uncomfortable and seemed to be in a state of agitation. He wondered if it was the newness of his surroundings, or if it stemmed from the mistrust he had developed because of his captivity. Either way, he didn't mind. For a reason he had not discerned yet, he liked having the little fairy perched on his horn. It made him feel… happy? He wasn't sure, maybe he should ask Chise, she was always happy to help him work through his own feelings.

He opened the front door, just as Simon was about to ring the bell.

"Oh Ainsworth! How did you know I was out here? Eh, no matter. I have something I need to talk to you about."

Elias gave him an even look, "If you have an errand, now is not a good time."

"No, no. Something happened in the village that pertains to you and your family, I thought you should know. Also, I need my medication."

Blue had been observing the exchange between the two men silently. He disliked clergy, was naturally distrusting of anyone directly connected to churches. And, there was something about this priest, he couldn't quite place it, but it made him suspicious.

"Well, come in then. I do have to warn you though, there was an… incident yesterday and Chise was injured. She will heal quickly, but the wounds are new and look particularly bad at the moment."

A concerned look came over Simon's face, "That's not good. By the way, Ainsworth, why is there a fairy on your head?"

Blue snorted and smirked, "A priest with sight? What an oxymoron!" He fell backwards in an elegant sort of way and landed on his feet, in his human form, behind Elias.

"Hhmm, ah yes. Blue, this is Simon. He is the priest of the village church and also keep an eye on me for his higher ups." A disgruntled noise left Blue's throat and Elias' jaw chittered in amusement. "We have known one another for almost 15 years, so you could say we are friends. Simon, this is Blue, he is my familiar as of yesterday."

Simon gaped at him, "Whatever happened yesterday must have been big. You will tell me the story, won't you?"

"Yes, of course."

As they entered the living room, Chise turned to see who was visiting, "Oh, hello Simon, you were who was at the door."

"Oh goodness! Miss Chise! You poor thing! Who would do such a thing?"

Elias gestured to the chair as he took his place next to Chise, "Simon, sit. First, tell use what you wanted to say, this story is quite long."

"Ah, right. Some weird man was going around the village demanding people tell him where you lived and asking strange questions about Chise. Of course, no one would tell him anything. He got quite angry with a few people, including me. Called me quite a few unnecessary names. He gave me an uncomfortable feeling, he seemed very untrustworthy."

To everyone's surprise, it was Blue who responded first, "If I showed you an image, could you tell if it was the same man or not?"

"Yes, I should be able to."

Blue stood and walked over to Simon. He seemed slightly uncomfortable but placed two fingers on Simon's temple. For a brief moment, Simon's eyes flashed the same color as Blue's before returning to him normal soft brown color. He blinked a few times and gave Blue a startled look, "What was that?"

"Memory sharing. Was that image I showed you the same man?"

"Yes, it was."

Blue plopped back down on the ground, making an irritated noise, "It was him. Had I been more diligent in watching what he was doing, I could have prevented this. He was asking about you hours before he actually took you. Bleh!"

Simon gave Elias a confused look. Elias sighed, "It seems the man you are talking about is the same one who attacked Chise and attempted to kidnap her."

"Well, what happened then?"

"Chise, you should tell it, since I came in so late."

"Mmm." Chise started the tale. Simon paid wrapped attention, even Ruth had given up on sleep to hear the full story. Blue listened with his same seemingly bored face, only his eyes gave away the anger he felt at himself. He had brought his knees up to his chest and had rested his chin on them. Elias observed him silently. He couldn't explain why, but it bothered him that Blue seemed to blame himself for what that man had done.

Chise had come to the part in the story where Blue had been summoned and she looked at him, "What's with the way he called you anyway?"

"Just one more humiliation he put me through because I refused to do what he said, same with the name."

Simon looked at Blue in confusion, "Name? Why would he have given you a name?"

"I was his familiar. Not by my choice, mind you. Through a spell, I was forcibly bound to him. Even in that process, a familiar is given a name by the person they are bound to. He decided to give me the most degrading name he could, Servant. Luckily, the bond was very weak, so he could compel me to do very little."

Chise continued the story with little facts and informative bits thrown in by Blue. Everyone in the room became very uncomfortable when she reached the part about the knife. How could they not? It was a visceral, painful thing to recall for Chise. She seemed pained by the retelling and moved through it quickly.

"Unfortunately, he was able to grab Blue while he was cutting me. Blue, why did it hurt you so much when he grabbed you?"

"The gloves he wears are made from iron threads and that, on its own, is damaging to any fae. But he also imbued the gloves with a spell that breaks through our barrier."

Chise gave him an inquisitive look, "He said something like that and it confused me. What does that mean?"

"Every magic user has a built-in barrier, most don't even realize that they have it. The basic idea is that it protects one from unintentionally transferring magic when touching someone. The spell he used broke down that barrier and made it so that I could not stop the transfer from happening. He also was a sadistic bastard, so he intentionally made it painful." As he had talked, he had tightened his arms around his legs, pulling them closer into his chest. Pain was evident on his face. "You see, that spell, he developed it specifically as a punishment for me. I refused to help him in any way, refused to let him into my mind, refused to listen to anything he told me. It angered him greatly and because he couldn't beat me up like he would a human, he made the spell. Sometimes he didn't even need to use magic, he would grab me just because he enjoyed seeing me suffer. I may not have allowed him into my mind, but I checked his every once in a while, to keep an eye on what he was doing. I know how he thought. That's why I say I should have seen this coming. However, I had been… distracting myself more and more recently. I highly regret not being aware of what he had planned."

He was startled out of his talking by Chise making a noise of protest, "You can't blame yourself! That guy was a sick bastard and would have found a way to try and get what he wanted regardless of what you did."

"You have no idea how right you are. You should know something. I didn't know if I was going to tell you this, but you deserve to know the truth, at least. He has had his eyes on you for about four and a half years now."

"But… that's when Elias bought me from the auction."

"Exactly, if I remember correctly, right before Elias bid out with $5 million, there was a bid for $2.25 million. That was the idiot. He has wanted your magic since you went up for auction. I just never thought he would be stupid enough to try and actually take you from someone that could kill him with a thought. He was sadistic, not smart."

Chise was obviously surprised by this revelation, "That is… incredibly creepy."

Everyone else in the room seemed to be taken aback by the information, except Elias. He had already gleaned that information from Blue. At first, he had been angered, of course, by the way the man had treated her and by the fact that he thought he would be able to take her from him and get away with it. But, that feeling had given way to a strange kind of relief. This reaction had confused him at first, but the more he considered it, the more he came to a realization. He was relieved that he had made the decision to buy Chise when he had, because the alternative would have meant a terrible fate. Chise had been in the man's clutches for maybe a half an hour and he had done so much damage to her, if he had been the one to buy her who knows how long she would have survived. The thought of her going through that kind of degradation and then having all the magic drained from her body, leading to a painful death… it was truly a terrifying thought to him.

Blue leaned back a bit and looked at Chise, much of the self-anger had left his face and he had his normal expression in place, "What I still can't fathom is why you did what you did when he grabbed me. What possessed you to strike a man who had just dug a knife into you just to help me?"

Ruth made and angry huff and gave Chise a look that could kill, "You did what now?"

"Well… you see… I wasn't really thinking about what I was doing…"

"You don't say?"

"I just… acted on impulse. Something in me just felt that what I was seeing was wrong and that I had to do something."

"You always do things like that! Always recklessly putting yourself in danger without thinking of the consequences." Ruth huffed in irritation and laid is head back on his paws.

Blue gave him a guarded, appraising look before turning back to Chise, and sighing lightly, "The thing is, while I appreciate the fact that you wanted to help me, even at the time, I knew it was ultimately an unnecessary act."

She gave him a look of confusion, so he continued, "I already knew Elias was almost there. Like I told you earlier, I sense the world through air pressure. I could sense something not quite solid moving toward us at high speed. I already knew that his nature is shadow, so I came to the logical conclusion this it was him I sensed. I also knew he would know exactly where you were. Remember, I had detected the tracking spell placed on your necklace. I had not intended the idiot to grab me, obviously, but I thought it wouldn't last too long. Honestly, it… shocked me when I went flying out of his hand, I was also a bit weak and dazed, so it took me a moment to realize what had happened. When I looked up… well, it wasn't pretty. In all the years that I had been stuck with him, I had never witnessed him so… savage. Maybe he was frustrated by your lack of cooperation. He may have thought you would be more passive, since he assumed you were already in a similar situation to what he had planned for you. I really have no idea. The only good thing is that it didn't last long."

Chise was a bit red in the areas of her face that weren't bruised. She hadn't even considered any of that until just now. It made her feel foolish and childish for not thinking of that at the time.

It seemed Blue could tell that she was feeling bad, "Don't feel too bad. You were in a bad situation and in a considerable amount of pain, of course you wouldn't be thinking too clearly at the time." His normally bored expression broke into an encouraging smile, and Chise returned it.

Turning her face up to Elias, Chise gave him a questioning look, "I was a bit surprised at how calm you seemed when I saw you."

From the look in his eyes and the set of his shoulders, Chise could tell that he was slightly embarrassed, "Ah… well you didn't see me before you sat up. When I saw him on top of you, hitting you, I actually lost control of my form a bit and let my rage control me. I honestly almost killed him on the spot. But, I heard you make a pained noise and it pulled me back. By the time you saw me, I had rained in control of myself again. In hinge sight, I am glad I did, or I would have unintentionally killed Blue as well."

Simon had been riveted by the tale and stayed silent through most of the conversation, but cleared his throat, "What I still don't understand is how Blue went from being that man's familiar to yours. Everything I know about those kinds of arrangements says that it should be impossible."

Blue gave him a deeply suspicious look, "You know an awful lot for a man of the church. Hhmm… anyway, yes, in normal circumstances, it is impossible to break the bond once the oath is said. However, my circumstance were far from normal. I never said the oath, nor was I in the bond of my own free will. It was an incredible weak hold, made all the more weak by the abuse he committed against me. I held great resentment towards him, the bond would never get stronger, only weaker. I had figured out early on that the major weakness of the spell was the bond itself, all that needed to happen to break it was the introduction of a new, stronger bond. Any bond I entered into freely would automatically be stronger and break his hold."

"Who actually was he, and Ainsworth, how did he get away? I am surprised you let that happen, it's not like you."

A sigh escaped Elias' mouth, "He was not a mage I had actually heard of until yesterday, but he goes by Iron Mage. He was able to get away because he was able to use that damn spell on his gloves to pull the power right out of my vines. I could, of course, have caught him with very little problem, but I was far more concerned with making sure Chise was okay."

Simon gave a nod, "Ah, that makes sense. I was very concerned, so were the people of the village."

"Really?" Elias wasn't quite sure if he believed they were that concerned. Why would they be? He was not one of them. Sure, he interacted with them on occasion and provided medications to anyone who needed it. But what would make them care about him?

The look on Simon's face conveyed exasperation, "Of course they care. You have been part of this community for longer then I have. You have helped plenty of people with the medication you make. They certainly consider you one of them. Besides, everyone in town loves Chise. Do you think that guy might come back? If he does, what should the people of the village do?"

Elias could say he was honestly shocked that the people of the village felt that way about him. It was only natural that they would like Chise, most who met her felt that way. But he seemed to have very few people who even seemed comfortable around him. He felt a sudden surge of protectiveness for these people who thought of him as one of them. A grave look entered his eyes, "There is a large possibility he will come back. If anyone sees him, they need to avoid him at all cost and they need to let me know as soon as possible. He has lost his only constant source of magic and will more than likely be desperate. He could possible hurt someone even worse than he hurt Chise."

"I will let everyone know." The clock chimed, and Simon cringed, "The sisters are expecting me back, so I should get going." Elias made to stand so that he could get Simon his medication and see him out, but the other man held up his hand and pointed to Chise. She had fallen asleep against Elias, her head resting on his chest. "You should stay there, she needs to rest."

Both men were surprised when Blue stood up, "Don't worry, I can get it for him and see him out."

"Thank you, I appreciate that." Elias was most surprised because he could sense the mistrust that Blue had for the priest. He knew it was natural for the fae to mistrust clergy. Even after so many years, Silky still disliked Simon and Ruth had never fully trusted him. As Simon followed Blue down the hall to the workroom Elias sent him a small thought, Don't be too mean to him. He isn't a bad person, just a bit of an idiot.

No need to worry. I just want to ask him a question.

As they walked into the workroom, Blue went to the cabinet where all the finished medications were kept and pulled out the one meant for Simon, he turned and gave the priest his ever-present bored look, "So, tell me, at what age did you lose the ability to use magic?"

Simon stared at him, the look on his face could almost be described as horror, "How… how did you know?"

"Well, from the moment I set eyes on you, I knew something was different about you, something off. When I shared that memory with you, I figured it out. I could feel the empty pathways. If you were just a normal human, there would be no paths. So, what age was it?"

"I… I was 15. I had always been able to see fairies and I was supposed to start my training as an apprentice the next year. I got really sick and once I got better, all the magic in my body was gone. I could be no one's apprentice after that. I decided to go to seminary after that and become a priest. When my higher ups found out about my past, I was scared they would kick me out of the priesthood, instead they asked me if I would be willing to watch a mage that they had their eyes on. I was given the charge of the local church and became Ainsworth's watchdog."

Blue looked at him with calm eyes, "Have you ever noticed how little trust my kind have for you?"

"Yes, I noticed they stopped trusting me after my magic left me"

"That is the reason why. They sense something off about you. A human with sight, but no magic is very rare and tends to make us extremely nervous."

"Hhmm, I see… it is actually nice to know why… I feel like I should thank you."

Blue held up a hand as they got to the door, "You have no reason. You should have asked him a long time ago. He could have told you all this."

"Really?" Blue nodded and opened the door. Simon put his hand out, offering Blue a handshake. Blue hesitated and a look of discomfort ghosted across his face, but he returned the handshake.

"Good bye, I can't tell you that I still fully trust you, that would go against my kinds nature, but I will try my best."

"Mmm, that's all I can ask for, I guess. It was a pleasure meeting you and I look forward to seeing you again." He gave one last wave and started walking toward the lane.

Blue shut the door and placed his head on it. Why did he have to feel so strange? He had to force himself to shake the priest's hand and it had made panic rise within him. His heart still pounded painfully in his chest. Damn! He took a few large breaths, trying to calm himself. Finally, his heart slowed down and he was able to get his face back to his blank expression, so he made his way back into the living room. A smile almost broke across his face as the sight met his eyes. All three of the couch's occupants had fallen asleep. Even Elias' eyes were muted, and his breathing was deep, his head tipped over Chise's on his chest in an almost protective way. Blue lay back down on the ground and put his book back to his face. He felt comfortable. It was nice. Was this what it meant to be part of a family?

Later that day, as the sun sunk slowly over the horizon, everyone sat at the table. It was dinnertime. Ruth seemed much better after spending most of the day sleeping, but was still in his dog form, as it still made his head swim and his stomach sick to be in his human form. Blue had a new book in his face, having finished the one he had that morning. Chise looked over at him and made a small sound of surprise.

"Blue, are you reading one of my manga?"

He removed the book from his face and raised an eyebrow, "Manga? Is that what it's called? I found it in the library and was interested, I have never read a book with pictures included. Would you prefer I not read it?"

"No, no. You are welcome to it. I was just surprised is all. I used them to learn to read English better. I have them in two copies, one in Japanese and one in English, and I would read them comparatively."

"Wait, are you saying there are more like this?" There was a small hint of interest and excitement in his normal even voice. He realized it and hoped that no one else did.

"Oh sure! Tons. They are insanely popular in Japan. They come in almost any genre you can think of."

Blue gave her an even look, trying to control the intense interest he had, "And where does one get them from?"

"Usually on the internet, though I did find a shop in London the last time I was there to have lunch with Alice."

Elias could tell from his link that Blue was really interested in this shop that Chise spoke of. He couldn't explain why, but he really felt the need to make the fairy happy since he had lived such a terrible life before coming to his family. This seemed as if it was something that would do just that, "Well, I do need to go see Angelica when Chise is better. We can go to this shop at that time, if you would like."

Blue's eyebrows shot up, but his face remained passive, "Really? You're sure? It wouldn't be an inconvenience?"

"No, not at all. We will go."

Blue put his book back to his face but wasn't really looking at it. He was just trying to hide his eyes. He knew they were showing his emotions and he hated to let others see them. He still could not fathom the kindness he was being shown. He had spent some time looking into Elias' mind and knew that the man struggled with his own emotions. It made Blue wonder why he would care about his feelings when he didn't understand his own. He huffed in his own head, why was he struggling with his own emotions so much? He thought he had let them go long ago, but now they were swamping him, it was frustrating. Could it be that he was starting to like these people? Part of him was glad that he liked them, it would make living here so much easier. But, he also hated that he liked them, it meant that if they eventually came to dislike him it would hurt all the more. He was tired of feeling hurt… really, he was tired of feeling at all because it had caused nothing but problems for him.

Silky laid out the plates for dinner and everyone dug in, enjoying the excellent food she prepared.

"How are you feeling Chise? Are you in any pain?" Elias looked at her as they ate with a look of concern. She was eating, but slowly and seemed a bit uninterested.

"A bit. I just feel uncomfortable all over and my head is starting to hurt."

He gave her a stern look and placed his hand lightly on her head, "Why didn't you say so? I will go get you more medication. I made large batch today for this very reason. I do not want you trying to tough it out, that won't help you get better."

"Right. I'm sorry."

Elias got up from the table and disappeared down the hall towards the workroom, he returned a few minutes later with a glass of medication in hand. "There. Drink it all, like before."

She obediently drank it down, shivering and sticking her tongue out at the unpleasant taste. The table settled into a comfortable silence as everyone eat.

Later that night, Elias and Chise lay in bed. He was in a sat up position and she laid against his chest. She had intertwined her fingers with his and was marveling at the contrast between his beautiful plum skin tone and her porcelain tone. His other arm was wrapped around her middle and he gave her a light squeeze.

"Chise, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"When you first bonded with Ruth, were you unnerved a bit by the access he now had to your mind?"

She looked up at him thoughtfully, "I guess so. It did feel strange, at first, that he could see what I was thinking and feeling. I was always so private with my emotions that it felt weird that I would no longer be able to hide them from everyone anymore. Why? Are you feeling that way?"

"Slightly. I don't mind it, I think. But, it does feel a bit strange. Can I ask you something else, about an emotion I have been feeling, but having a hard time identifying?"

"Of course, you can. I am your human teacher after all."

He pulled her whole body onto his and nibbled at her neck, making her giggle, "Hhmm, indeed you are. When I think about the fact that Blue decided that he wanted to be my familiar, I get a warm feeling in my chest… it feels like happiness… but it becomes stronger when I consider the fact that he chose to do so despite what the other fae will say about it. It's almost like how I felt when you first touched me of your own volition. What is that warmth?"

"Elias, I think it is happiness at being accepted. Not many of the fae have shown you much kindness in your life, but Blue chose to become your familiar despite them. It feels like the first time I touched you, because it is the same feeling… the joy of being accepted for who you are, despite appearance or reputation."

"Hhmm, now that you say it, it does make sense. Do you think it is a normal thing to feel that way?"

She laughed lightly and planted a kiss at the end of his snout, "Of course it is. Everyone wants to be accepted, maybe not by everyone, but by someone. So, you are happy you have a familiar then?"

"Yes, I believe I am. I get a pleasant feeling when I think of it and I get the same feeling when he perches himself on my horn."

"I did want to ask you about that. It doesn't bother you? And why your horn?"

He tapped the end of his snout in a thoughtful way, "I think it may be the most advantages spot, he has a full view of the surroundings and is able to maintain contact. Most fae must share their power by making contact with us or our staff, as Ruth does with you. When he shares his power with me, he wraps his hand around my horn, thus making the connection. And, no, I don't mind it at all."

"I… see…" A large yawn escaped her lips as she spoke.

"You need to sleep." He ran the tip of his tongue over her lips and started to move to place her next to him on the bed.

"Wait… Can I stay like this tonight? On top of you I mean… it's warm and comfortable…"

"Of course." He reached over and turned off the light, plunging the room into darkness. Wrapping both arms around her smaller frame, he dropped his head over her shoulder in a protective way. She snuggled into his and placed a kiss on the shoulder she lay on. It took very little time until they both drifted off to sleep.