Hello everyone, and welcome back to another chapter of Therion's Bizarre Adventure! Terribly sorry about the delay, I've been having both technology and non-technology related issues, but I'm back now. With that said, let's hear some feedback!

Guest: Haha... well, I wouldn't quite say that, but this chapter's delay I feel was more the exception than the rule. Thanks for bearing with me on this though, everyone!

febriandanaking: Thanks! I had a lot of fun writing the last chapter. This one's going to be more of a "breather" chapter, but there's plenty more ahead of us!

P.T. Piranha: Hey, thanks! I've been trying to work on balancing comedy and action lately, so I'm glad it seemed to work better here. Incidentally, I too like how the Travelers seem to save the day everywhere they go; they're almost like superheroes in a way!

Kiyorena: You'd be correct in your assumption! More on that in future chapters though, haha...

ultrawing: Thank you! Here's to many more chapters, hopefully of higher quality!

Thank you all so much once again for tuning in. I apologize again for the delay, but I'm hoping that I can do better next time. Enjoy!

It was about noon when I finally decided to rejoin the others in the square. The only ones who were still there were Ophilia and H'aanit; everyone else had gone back to the inn for a quick nap before we left Saintsbridge behind.

"I'm really going to miss this town," Ophilia muttered wistfully, staring at the ground from her spot on the bench. "We haven't been here that long, but we've made so many friends in such a short amount of time… It's saddening to have to say goodbye so soon."

H'aanit nodded silently as she knelt down to stroke a sleeping Linde. "... Indeed."

"Tch…"

"I'm surprised you're not napping with the others, Therion," Ophilia remarked. Her brow was furrowed in an almost suspicious manner as she stared at me with slightly concerned eyes. "You were with Alfyn and the others last night, were you not? You must be quite exhausted…"

Goldilocks had a point; I hadn't gotten a wink of sleep since the previous night, and that coupled with the forest skirmish was starting to take its toll on me. Even so, there was still the matter of Vanessa's "night terrors" as she put it. The voices during the battle were bad enough already. Did I really need a second helping of that?

"I don't know what you're talking about. I feel fine," I brushed her off, casually leaning on the bench.

H'aanit stood up and walked closer to me, sizing me up as if I was a forest critter mere moments from becoming her dinner. "Therion, your eyes coulde put Redeye to shame! You needen bed rest."

I raised an eyebrow in bewilderment. "Redeye? What the hell is that? And I already told you both I'm fine. Sleep is highly overrated anyway - "

In an instant, I felt my legs give out from under me. The huntress rushed over to my side and grabbed me before I hit the ground, my arms flying around her neck out of instinct. I heard Ophilia gasp as H'aanit helped me stand up again, and the huntress glared down at me in unamusement as I hastily retracted my arms.

"Therion, goeth to bed right this moment or I shall taken you back to the inn myself."

"... Got it," I mumbled, not meeting her gaze. My cheeks felt hot as Ophilia gazed at me with a confused and slightly flustered look. "Uh… sorry. Bedtime it is, then."

I spun on my foot and made my way back to the inn without another word, slipping into my bed in our room. Everyone else, as expected, was snuggled comfortably in their sheets as they rested up.

Guess a few minutes of rest couldn't hurt...

"Did ya see the look on 'is face, mate?"

I laughed, tossing an apple up and down in my hand. "Never even knew what hit him!"

A cool breeze filled the night sky as Darius and I sat by the river bank on the outskirts of a small town called Clearbrook. The place seemed like a quiet enough place with decent, unassuming folk.

All the easier to steal from.

My partner in crime chuckled, causing his long red hair to shake all about him. "Therion, my boy, you've only gotten better and better since I first picked you up! How long have we been runnin' together, eh?"

"Not long enough," I joked, pausing to bite into an apple. "Om… two yeahs now, innit?"

"Now you're startin' to sound a bit like me!" he exclaimed with a cheeky grin. "Heh, yeah… man, lookit us. A couple a handsome devils like us could run the streets of Orsterra in no time at all!"

"Bold words for someone who only recently turned seventeen…"

"Still got ya beat by two years, little buddy," he taunted, winking with a smirk. "You know, Theri, these two years have been some of the best of my life. Can't ever recall havin' a partner as skilled or as fun to be around as you before, mate."

I paused, taken aback by his sudden praise. "I… w-wow… I don't really know what to say…"

He laughed again, shoulders shaking. "You don't have to say anythin'. Just keep doin' what you're doin' and we'll go far in this life, mate. And don't be stingy with your lockpicks, haha!"

The two of us laughed before turning our attention to the river before us, the moonlight bouncing off of the surface. The flowing water should have put me at ease, but… why did my chest feel so tight all of a sudden? Why did -

Suddenly, all of my memories came flooding back as I was flung several years into the future. Our first run in with the Cianno gang. The time we got our revenge on them. That night in Noblecourt. The heist that went bad.

Oh… oh, GODS how it went bad…

And that's not even getting into what he did to ME…

"Darius, what… why…?"

"Sorry, tea leaf. Happy landings!"

"... rion…"

"He… Ther…"

"Therion!"

I exhaled as I sat up in bed, panting and gasping for air. My lungs felt the uncomfortable yet familiar sensation of being filled with water, and I resisted the urge to vomit as I sensed eyes on me.

"Therion!" Tressa yelled, grabbing my face roughly and gazing into my eyes in fear. "Snap out of it!"

"Wha… koff… wh-what?" I barely managed to utter before pulling her hands away from me. "The hell…?"

"You were havin' a nightmare, buddy," Alfyn sighed, motioning for Tressa to step aside so he could check my forehead with his hand. "Hmm… a little warm, but you're not exactly burnin' up here…"

Cyrus offered me a glass of water from my left side, causing me to recoil slightly. "Come now, Therion; it's important to stay hydrated at all times. Surely a sip wouldn't hurt?"

"I… thanks," I uttered, taking the glass and eyeing it for a moment before drinking from it.

"Therion," Tressa cooed sadly, staring at me. "... What happened?"

Feeling my usual self bubbling back to the surface, I snarked, "What, you mean you don't wake up like that every morning? What kind of life are you living?"

"Okay, okay, geez! Sorry for being concerned about you," she complained, folding her arms and turning away from me.

"Quite odd, really," Cyrus admitted, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "Olberic and Primrose both awoke in similar states of panic not too long ago, but not nearly to this extent…"

"Meanwhile, Tressa and I couldn't remember having nightmares at all," Alfyn mused quietly as he sat at the foot of my bed.

"Perhaps that Vanessa's fear gas operates differently based on the victim's innate fears and experiences? Olberic and Primrose have both experienced some troubling hardships in their past, and I can only assume Therion has as well."

I kept my mouth shut, mulling it over. I didn't know Olberic all that well yet, but Prim… yeah, she's definitely been through a lot. Maybe even more than me. Can't imagine the likes of Alfyn and Tressa have ever been mistreated and abused in such a way before, let alone thrown off a cliff…

Tressa walked back over to my side and eyed me curiously. "So… What was it about, Therion?"

"... Nothing," I lied, turning my head away from her moodily.

Annoyingly enough, she just walked over to the other side of the bed and met my eye again. "Y'know, somehow I don't really believe you…"

I smiled bitterly at her. "I appreciate your concern ever so much, Miss Capitalism, but it really is nothing. That is to say, nothing of your concern. So let's just leave it at that and call it a day, shall we?"

"But Therion - "

"Tress," Alfyn gently scolded her, a hand on her shoulder. Shaking his head, he said, "It's best not to badger him right now. Maybe he'll open up later if he feels like it. Maybe he won't. For now, we should just start packing up since everyone's finally awake."

"Mrg… fine," she agreed with a huff, giving me a look of slight irritation as I smirked. "... Sorry about your nightmare, Therion."

"Tch… whatever," I replied, hopping off of the bed and gathering my possessions. "I'll meet you guys outside. Could use the fresh air…"

Truth be told, I had no idea where we were going. Once we had left Saintsbridge behind, Tressa and Olberic expressed interest in a sizable town up north called Victors Hollow. I couldn't really recall visiting the place before, but all I knew was that it was a long walk from Marsalim.

"Or was it Wellspring…?"

"Did you say something, Therion?" Primrose questioned me as we continued to walk up the stony path.

"Ah, no," I responded quietly. "No, it's nothing… just how much farther is this place, anyway?"

Cyrus slowed his pace to walk alongside us, map outstretched in his hands. "Mm… I'm afraid we're only about halfway there, my slippery companion. At this rate, we're unlikely to reach our destination before the sun sets."

"Great…"

Tressa gave me a playful punch to the shoulder. "Oh, come on, Therion! Lighten up a little. Things could be a lot worse! And who doesn't mind a little camping from time to time? All we need now is a little mood music to pass the time!"

"No… please," I genuinely pleaded with her, my heart filling with dread. "Have mercy!"

The next couple of song-filled hours were some of the most loathsome of my entire life. We'd made some progress and fought off some monsters along the way, but no amount of loot could remove the pain and misery that had been engraved into my very soul.

"Tressa," Olberic spoke at last, "far be it from me to judge, but… Might we stop for a bit?"

"Huh? But there's still fifty-five bottles of ale on the wall…"

H'aanit sighed in exasperation. "I believen he was referren to the walk."

In truth, we had walked a pretty long distance over the past couple of hours. I really don't think that the heat combined with most of the gang's singing did much to help. If anything, it just tired everyone out more.

"Perhaps a proper rest is in order," Primrose suggested as Alfyn and Ophilia nearly collapsed from exhaustion. "Just until we regain our strength back a bit…"

Tressa huffed and puffed as we reached a relatively large patch of grass on the side of the road. Leaning forward with her hands on her knees, she mumbled, "Hah… Yeah… that might be a good idea after all. Okay, everyone! Break time!"

Everyone sighed in relief as we set our bags on the ground, some of us even collapsing onto the grass altogether.

"Hmm…"

"What is it, H'aanit?" Primrose questioned the huntress, looking over at her.

"It woulde appear we art runnen out of provisions," she declared as she rummaged through her bag. I guess it made sense that she of all people would carry the food, being a hunter and all. "I must hunten with haste, that we shall not starven!"

"Good luck with that," I muttered, slumping to the ground in exhaustion.

"Wouldst thou caren to join me, Therion?"

"No thanks, I'm good."

Tressa cleared her throat in an exceedingly obnoxious way, shooting me a look. "Hunting sure sounds like a great way to bond. Right, Therion?"

I sighed, hand over my face. "No, but I get the feeling you're gonna make me go anyway…"

"In that case, I should go with you two," Ophilia said as she stood up straight. "No hunting party would be complete without a healer!"

"Very well," H'aanit agreed, "but we must limit ourselves to three. Any more woulde spook our prey."

Olberic nodded with a smile. "Excellent. In the meanwhile, perhaps the rest of us should set up camp for the night."

"But it's still daytime," Tressa whined.

"Get to it, Greenie," I taunted before standing up to follow H'aanit and Ophilia.

"HEY! That's Green Pea to you, mister!" she fired back. The little merchant paused for a moment, thinking, before a look of disgust crossed her face. "Eww… Forget it!"

I smirked as H'aanit led the way into a nearby forest. With any luck, we could bag a deer or a bear or… something.

"Frogs. We're hunting frogs of all things…"

"Hush, Therion," H'aanit scolded as we crouched in the bushes, quietly stalking our prey. Out by the river bank, we spotted three River Frogens. I'll never understand how frogs became smart enough to wear armor, let alone carry daggers, but...

Still crouching, the huntress drew her bow in an almost effortless fashion, an arrow already nocked on her bowstring. Ophilia and I kept our mouths shut as H'aanit aimed her bow directly at one of the Froggens that had paused to take a drink. The huntress patiently waited for its head to come back up from the river before releasing her arrow.

Her target slumped over to the ground, an arrow in its skull, and the other two frogs reacted appropriately enough.

By looking straight in our direction.

Still, they were no match for H'aanit, who merely launched a couple of arrows at their froggy heads. They dropped dead, and H'aanit walked over to examine them when she was sure the coast was clear.

"Wow," Ophilia whispered to me as we followed her. "I had no idea hunting could be so grotesque…"

"Pfft. What did you think she was gonna do, beg them to die peacefully so she could cook 'em?"

"Well. No need to be rude."

H'aanit looked over at us and smiled, a Froggen slung over each of her shoulders. "We shall eaten well tonight, my companions. Come, helpen me carren the last one back to camp."

Ophilia and I took note of its slimy texture before exchanging a look of disgust. "... Do we have to?"

"Does it looke like I haven three arms?"

"Ughhh," I groaned as I lifted half of the dead frog. "Who's been feeding these damn things, anyway?"

Ophilia sighed in dismay as she lifted the other half and we began to follow H'aanit back to the campsite. "The poor things… at least their souls can rest now."

"Huff… seriously? You think these beasts have souls?"

"All beasts do, Therion," the huntress shot back, turning to look at me.

"Really now?" I questioned, narrowing my eyes. "What makes you so sure?"

"I can speaken to them."

"... You're joking."

"Nay."

"Sure, H'aanit. If you can talk to them, why are you okay with hunting and eating them?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"'Tis the circle of life, Therion," she explained as we arrived back at camp where the others were waiting. "In S'warkii, we were taught to treat beasts as sacred creatures. You may hunten them for food or for clothing in dire times, but never for sport. Sadly, not everyone views them in such a manner…"

There was a twinge of sadness to her voice as we laid the large frogs down, and H'aanit immediately got to work with her hunting knife.

"You guys brought… Froggens?" Tressa squeaked, nearly turning green at the thought of eating frog flesh.

"That we did, young Tressa. The gods have truly blessed us on this night."

"That's crazy! Who in their right mind would eat frogs?!"

Alfyn walked over to where H'aanit was carving up the meat and grinned. "Oh, boy! I haven't had Roast Froggen in forever!"

Tressa's jaw dropped as Ophilia and Primrose exchanged funny looks.

I chuckled bitterly, shaking my head. "Sorry if it's not up to your standards, Princess. Best she could do on such short notice."

"Mrg…!"

"Ahh," Alfyn sighed blissfully as he held his hands out close to the campfire I had lit. "There's nothin' quite like a warm fire on a cool starry night. The only thing that could make this night any better would be some ale!"

"Seeing as alcohol is a rather flammable substance," Cyrus cut in, "I'm frankly relieved we don't appear to have any at the moment…"

"No, I agree with Alf. What's a peaceful night under the stars without a little booze?" I joked, cracking a weary grin.

"Now you're speakin' my language, Therion!" Alfyn cheered as he moved towards me, hugging my frame. "C'mere!"

"H-Hey, hands off!"

Tressa let out a tiny giggle as the rest looked on in amusement. Suddenly, a loud rumbling noise pierced the air. "... Oh…"

H'aanit wasted no time in seasoning the meat she had just carved up. She then impaled pieces on sticks and handed some to everyone, and we took turns roasting them over the fire.

The meat tasted… funny. Not bad, per se, just… different. It was soft in texture and tasted almost like a weird hybrid of chicken and fish. I looked around and saw that everyone had varying facial expressions, some more satisfied than others. H'aanit leaned over and let Linde try some of the food, and the snow leopard scarfed it down quickly.

"A strange texture to be sure," Olberic remarked, chewing before swallowing, "but a meal is a meal. My thanks, H'aanit."

"T'was a pleasure, Sir Olberic," the huntress said with a grin, making eye contact over the flames.

Dismissing myself, I decided to head to bed early for a change. Once again sharing a tent with Alfyn, I decided that I might as well get as much sleep as possible before he starts snoring again…

I couldn't remember having any dreams or nightmares that night. When I woke up, the moon was still high in the night sky.

"A full moon," I mumbled, rubbing my eyes.

Peering out, I could see that the campfire was still burning bright. For whatever reason, Primrose was sitting nearby on a log, staring wistfully into the fire. It wasn't really any of my business to snoop, but I had a feeling I wasn't going to get back to bed anytime soon anyway…

Walking over to her, I called out, "Hey."

She whirled around frantically, her brown ponytail nearly whipping me, before calming down. "... Oh. It's just you."

"Yep. Just a scraggly thief from the streets that a little girl blackmailed into joining her private army. Nothing out of the ordinary here."

Primrose giggled quietly. "Indeed… What strange times these are."

Sitting on another log, I asked, "So, what's got you up at this hour? Indigestion from the frog legs?"

"No," she denied, her nose crinkling in disgust. She took a moment to recompose herself before going on. "... Do you remember what that Vanessa woman said about her fear concoction?"

I paused, momentarily pushing down the nightmares I had earlier today as if they were a plate of horrendously repugnant foods. "... Can't say I do. Why?"

"Everytime I close my eyes, even to rest my head for just a few minutes, I keep finding myself reliving that horrible night over and over again. I was powerless to stop them..."

"... Oh," I mumbled, recalling how she had told me just yesterday about her father's untimely murder. The crow men, she called them… I'd have to keep my ears wide open the next time we stopped at a tavern. "Sorry. I'm sure his death must really haunt you.

"Exactly," she huffed, her head hanging in shame and disgust. "Ten years have passed, yet it still hurts all the same… Tell me, Therion. Am I wrong to feel this way?"

"... No."

"Really?"

"Your entire life was screwed over before you even turned fourteen," I stated bluntly. "Anybody in their right mind would be at least a little messed up over it, even after a decade."

"Yes, I… I suppose you're right."

"We all have our own demons, Prim, and yours might be the most wicked of all. As long as you're true to yourself and stick to your guns, nothing else matters," I said, shrugging. "Besides, if all else fails, you still have your team to pick you back up if and when you need it."

The dancer giggled, glancing at me in an almost mischievous way. "How inspiring... Does that mean that you'd be there to pick me up, too?"

"... Hmph."

"Hee hee… Thank you, Therion. I feel I can rest easier now knowing that I have my friends here to support me."

I cracked a smile, feeling warmer from more than just the campfire. "Heh. How cheesy."

"Like you're one to talk!"

"I only said that sugary crap to make you feel better!"

"Ehehe!"

I rolled my eyes and stood from my seat. "Well, now that you're all better, I'm gonna go back to sleep. Night."

"Good night, Therion," Primrose said, giving me a heartfelt smile. "Rest well. I get the feeling we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow..."

"Great..."

As I returned to my tent and laid in my cot, the warmth of the campfire still lingered. I didn't know what potential insanities awaited us in this "Victors Hollow" place, but I closed my eyes and tried to enjoy the peace while it lasted. Sure, those Vanessa-induced nightmares were still a real possibility, but... I'd manage.

I always do.