Chapter Thirteen

Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Princess Miyu.

"So, you're found me," the statue taunted. "What an intelligent child you are."

"Lemunia, get away from that thing!" Pazusu called to him. Lemunia turned back to him still holding the remains of the curtain in his hand. Pazusu thought he was about to say something but he only dropped the curtain onto the dusty floor and turned back to the statue.

"Listen to him, child," the statue spoke again. "You are both having a very bad dream. Go back upstairs and sleep. Sleep," it hissed.

Pazusu shook his head. This wasn't a dream, it couldn't be. Could it? He waved his hand in front of his face. No, it wasn't a dream. That statue was trying to deceive them both. It was in all Quarls' personalities to be deceptive. He could remember, centuries ago, horrible things that the Quarl had done in an attempt to take over the Shinmas. Thousands on both sides had been slaughtered including Larva's parents and Carlua's father. But the Quarl had been wiped out after that. The only living member was Cait Sith.

"Cait Sith," he uttered. "This is Cait Sith's doing." Now everything was clear. Those two shinmas from the future, Miyuki and Lemunia, had only been after Carlua, Cait Sith and himself. They must have known what Cait Sith had been planning this all along. This statue was Caial: the most powerful sorceress in all the Western World. And Cait Sith's mother.

"They should have allowed us to kill him," Lemunia mumbled. "His scheme effects us all."

"What are you talking about?" Pazusu demanded.

Lemunia turned back to him, his eyes still glowing green. "We are all destined to die and it's all because of this." He pointed back at the statue.

"Don't point your finger at me, you ingrate!" the statue bellowed. "You are all just pawns used to help with the resurrection of the Quarl. You are all just stepping stones for a higher purpose!"

Lemunia began to shake his head back and forth as if to clear his mind. "No, you will. . . ." His voice trailed off and Pazusu watched in amazement as the luminescent green faded away. "Where am I?" he asked tiredly, suddenly back to normal.

"You are destined to be no more than a pawn! So I suggest you just accept that!" the statue screamed.

"Lemunia! Get away from her!" Pazusu called to him urgently.

The green eyes returned at full force. "No, you're not going to win this time!" Suddenly, there were feathers whirling through the air. A sphere of blue light appeared in his hands and he shot it straight through Caial's body. Pazusu barely had enough time to grab Lemunia and turn away, using his body as a shield, before the statue exploded in a rain of rubble. He turned back and a stray piece of rock shot into his side. He gasped and cried out as the rock embedded itself deeper into his body.

"This is not the end," the voice echoed, fading away. "We will meet in person again, Pazusu."

Pazusu felt Lemunia shutter and saw that the green eyes were once again gone. Without a word, Pazusu did what he could to get him up to his feet, hoping that he would not collapse. There was no way he would be able to carry him back to his room.

"You've done enough now," he said through clenched teeth trying to fend off the pain.

"No, the night is still young. There's more hunting to be done."

Pazusu wasn't sure what to make of this statement but he tried to guide Lemunia to the stairs. "You should go back to bed. It seems you still have some recovering to do."

"I must hunt!" Lemunia shoved Pazusu away, hard enough to knock him off his feet.

"What has been done to you?" Pazusu gasped raising his hands up in defense.

Lemunia, realizing what he had done, knelt down next to Pazusu and helped him up the stairs without a word spoken. Pazusu didn't say anything as they moved through the corridors of the ship, not wanting to provoke him anymore although Lemunia was clearly agitated. If this was even him.

When they approached Pazusu's room, Lemunia left him and blended into the shadows, so well that Pazusu could no longer sense him.

Somewhere, a little further down the corridor, he heard a door open and close.

( - )

The sun was just beginning to rise, chasing the morning fog away as two figures broke through the rugged terrain and ran towards their destination. Suddenly, a sharp wind blew down from the north, swirling the fog around their legs. Cait Sith stopped abruptly, as the wind brought a sudden feeling of apprehension.

"What is it, my lord?" Gima asked concerned, for the feeling affected her as well.

"Someone has destroyed my mother's statue," Cait Sith muttered. "Now they're onto us." He glanced up at the sky then back down at the ground. "We must move quickly, Gima. They are now on to what we're doing." They quickly took up their pace again.

( - )

Ichiro had been demanding to know what had been going on between Aoi and Ranka the entire time they had been running through the second tier. Aoi had ignored him because he was good at it. Ichiro didn't quit badgering him until he caught wind of the scents of two Western Shinmas traveling together.

"Don't think I'm letting you off the hook," Ichiro had said. "After we take care of these Westerners, you better be ready to tell me."

"Just try to focus on fighting," Aoi had responded.

Now they were standing on the edge of a pond facing two individuals on the other side: a man with a sword and a dragon, and a water sprite.

"I call dibs on the lizard man," Ichiro said.

"No, I will fight him," Aoi replied.

"But I called dibs!"

"You are better matched for the other one."

"Oh, come on!" Ichiro held out his hand. "I'll play you for him. Rock, paper, scissors: best out of three."

"You're wasting time, Ichiro."

"But I don't wanna fight the other one!" Ichiro complained.

"What do you think they're doing over there?" Spartoi asked Water Lipper squinting his eyes to better see the new comers.

"It appears they're having an argument," Water Lipper replied.

"What could they possibly be arguing about this early in the morning?" Water Lipper shrugged.

"Perhaps we should go over there and introduce ourselves," Water Lipper suggested as she stepped into the water and disappeared.

"Well, it'd definitely save us time." Spartoi shrugged as he made his way over to the other side of the pond by land.

"Aoi, give it up! You just have sword envy!"

"And a sword is what you're lacking," Aoi replied calmly.

"So what? I've got speed instead."

"Looks like you were right, Water Lipper." Aoi and Ichiro turned around.

"Hey! You're trespassing on second tier property!" Ichiro said.

"Big deal!" Ichiro jumped away from the edge of the pond as the water sprite appeared from within the water. "So, we're trespassers and the best they could send us was a swordsman and an elf?"

"I ain't no elf! I'm a lycanthrope!" Ichiro howled.

"Then you're a hairless dog?"

Ichiro growled. "Bitch!"

Spartoi pointed at Aoi. "Dibs," he said to Water Lipper.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me. You're giving me the dog-boy?"

"Well, I am the one with the sword."

"And the child doesn't have one so that would make you better matched to fight him," Water Lipper pointed out.

"But my swords bigger than the samurai's," Spartoi complained.

"Fine! You can fight the samurai." Water Lipper gave in.

"Mine's bigger than yours!" Ichiro interjected having always wanted to say that but knew that Ranka would have something to say about it if he dared to say it in her presence. Everyone else, even Aoi, raised an eyebrow at this.

"Is that some kinda Japanese slang," Spartoi asked missing the point.

"You should seriously consider having your dog neutered," Water Lipper told Aoi.

"Whoa!" Ichiro yelped. "Let's get this over with. I guess you can fight the lizard man, Aoi. This woman just threatened to have me de-crowned. I have a bone to pick with her."

"It's a dragon!" Spartoi corrected Ichiro. "Good luck, Water Lipper." Water Lipper disappeared into the water again. "Come on, samurai man. Let's see what you're made of."

"Likewise," Aoi agreed.

( - )

"Come out, come out, where ever you are!" Ichiro called out over the water as he ran laps around the pond. He stopped on his seventh lap. "Aw, come on! It's not tea time for you Westerners, is it?"

Water Lipper rose out of the water. "I prefer water over tea actually."

"Really? I prefer coffee."

"So, that's why you're so hyper."

Ichiro nodded his head spastically. "Coffee good! Now stop hiding like a coward and fight me like a. . . . . .a shinma!"

"Well, there's no need to be so pushy." Water Lipper held out her hands and a wall of water rose up and swallowed Ichiro up.

'Holy shit,' Ichiro thought as he struggled to swim to the surface, which seemed to get farther away from him. 'This chick is serious.' A wave swelled up and deposited him on solid ground. He spit up water but was quick to get back on his feet as another wave was sent his way.

( - )

"What's you're name, samurai," Spartoi asked.

"Aoi," he replied curtly. "You?"

"The name's Spartoi." He unsheathed his sword. "Let's get this over with."

Aoi unsheathed his katana. "Why are you in such a hurry? Do you have other plans?"

"The plans have changed so much, I'm not sure what were doing anymore," Spartoi replied bitterly. "But we are after Miyu. That much has stayed the same."

"Predictable," Aoi said. "But coming into the second tier is a worse mistake. This tier is now housing two guardians and a third in waiting. You and your friend are clearly outnumbered." He held his katana low. "You should return to your ship and leave immediately."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! We just got here and you want us to leave?"

"I suggest you count your losses and consider yourself lucky that you're still alive."

"I'm not ready to count my losses just yet."

Aoi took up his katana. "Then I'm sorry Spartoi but we must fight to the death."

"Don't be sorry. I've been waiting for a one-on-one with a Japanese Shinma for quite some time. And I don't intend to lose."

Aoi made the first move, running towards Spartoi with his katana angled to strike. Spartoi met the blade of the katana with his own sword and the katana was instantly broken in two.

"This battle won't take too long," Spartoi commented. "A samurai is nothing without his sword."

"It seems I am just a Japanese Shinma now," Aoi said. To his surprise, Spartoi laid his sword down.

"I would never battle another swordsman when he doesn't have his sword."

"How noble of you."

"We're a little more civil in the Western World." The dragon began to unfurl from around Spartoi's shoulders. "But now you can see what I can really do. Go my dragon!" The dragon surged up and untwisting its massive coils, swept down towards Aoi. Aoi dodged it, still keeping a hold of the hilt of his shattered katana. The dragon looped back and surrounded Aoi within its coils. "So long samurai man!" Spartoi called out as the dragon's head fell down upon Aoi. The dragon's body became an amorphous shape but suddenly a green light shot through the mass and Aoi appeared again running towards Spartoi.

"You're going to try to fight me with a broken blade?" Spartoi dodged as Aoi rushed past him with his broken katana turned outward. The dragon's body dissipated and curled back around Spartoi's shoulders. Aoi halted several meters behind him, the hilt of his broken katana held outstretched from his body. Their surroundings grew eerily silent except for a couragous breeze that rustled the branches of the trees that stretched out above their heads raining down gracefully shaped, green leaves that swayed towards the ground. . . . . . . .

Before the first leaf had a chance to settle on the ground, Spartoi feel to his knees. The sudden motion sent the leaf back up into the air to look for a better spot to land. Aoi held up the hilt that was no longer bladeless but was crowned with a green light that shown like emeralds in the thin streams of sunlight that broke through the canopy above them. Spartoi fell even lower to the ground as the slit in his side grew larger and began to spit blood. "But the blade. It shattered. It. . . .shattered?" He looked back at Aoi who looked over his shoulder at him without a trace of smugness showing on his face. "How?"

"My sword is a living being," Aoi put simply as he sheathed the glowing blade. "It's not just a piece of sheet metal." Aoi turned around to face him. "You're wounded. If you continue to persist then you will die. You and your comrade should retreat until you heal."

Spartoi's massive shoulders shook as he struggled to get back on his feet. "You're kidding, right? What's a Japanese Shinma thinking when he starts to take his enemy's wellbeing into consideration? Do you seriously win battles that way?"

"I don't want to fight you," Aoi said "But you give me no choice."

"Of course I'm giving you no choice! Why the hell would I give you a choice, other than fight or be slain?"

"It seems more that you're not giving yourself a choice," Aoi murmured.

"Water Lipper!" Spartoi bellowed. It took a moment but the water sprite appeared at the surface of the water. Aoi saw Ichiro standing on the other side of the lake looking left and right, with what he assumed was a confused look on his face. With how low the water sprite was haunch over in the water, it was impossible to see from where Ichiro was standing.

"You might want to clear the area," Spartoi told Water Lipper.

"Spartoi. . . ." Water Lipper murmured with concern, her eyes on the blood running down his side creating a red platform under his feet.

Ichiro came running at a sprint towards Aoi. He was there within the time it took to blink an eye. "You guys giving up?" he asked.

"Water Lipper, get out of here. I don't want you to get hurt!" Spartoi said. The dragon suddenly started to shift and become restless.

"Hey! What's going on?" Ichiro stepped closer to Aoi when Water Lipper sprang out of the water and grabbed him around his waist. "You're fighting with me kid," she said.

Ichiro dug his nails into the earth to try to stall her pulling him towards the lake. "What the hell, Lady! I'm too young for you!" Ichiro cried out.

Water Lipper grunted. "I have the right to kill you. I'm not going to let Spartoi have all the fun." She jerked him back suddenly and his fingers dragged out of the earth as she pulled him screaming bloody murder and crude insults all the way into the water and disappeared. Aoi had no time to even look how far Ichiro and the sprite had gone under water because the earth under his feet began to crack and explode like gunshots. All his attention was focused on Spartoi, whose dragon was beginning to unfurl again but as it did it expanded and grew larger. Spartoi's body quaked. It was quite visible that his body was having some trouble grounding the energy that reverberated between him and the dragon. There was a good reason why he had ordered his comrade to high-tail it out of there.

"You're going to kill yourself," Aoi yelled over the noise of the rumbling ground. Spartoi didn't seem to hear him. Aoi braced himself. This was one final fallout. If Spartoi was going to lose then he was going to take Aoi with him, and Aoi didn't have the time to run. He unsheathed his katana and the blade glowed. He, of course, wasn't going down without a fight either.

The dragon swung up and curved over its lengthening, spiny body. "This is the end for you, samurai man!" Spartoi yelled over the roar of the dragon. Aoi didn't hear him. It didn't matter if he had heard him or not. The dragon threw its self down upon him expanding even wider to encompass the entire area of the lake and the air grew unbearably hot. Aoi was blinded by a yellow light that seared his eyes. This was it.

The impact was huge. It rippled through the earth, a shockwave so big it was even felt in the human realm. Everything quaked. Ranka clutched at her chest as she was disturbed from her meditations. Miyu and Larva were thrown off the bed and onto the floor in a tangle. Shiina managed to cling to the bedspread while the room rocked. Carlua held on to Pazusu's shoulders to keep him up right and to keep herself from screaming. Livea and Klaus were traveling on the ground and only paused momentarily before pursuing their original objective. They had better things to worry about. Miyuki was in Lemunia's arms as he flew over the tops of the trees. They didn't feel the quake but they knew that the trees dancing erratically back and forth was not caused by the wind and Lemunia's keen eye sight quickly picked up the cracks that traveled in the ground like the veins of a living being. The other Lemunia was temporarily awakened from his catatonic state. His eyes scanned the room over suspiciously as he tried to figure out where the hell he was but then his mind went out of focus and he was satisfied with going back to hunting. Cait Sith stopped his pursuit and stood with Gima.

"Do you feel that Gima?" he asked even though it was quite obvious. She nodded. "What power. Isn't it exciting! It seems the others are well occupied." He laughed. "This is going to be easier than I thought it was going to be even with those other Shinmas showing up." He continued to chuckle under his breath as they continued to run through the Japanese Shinma realm.

The shockwave was still traveling through the realms but by the time Reiha and Matsukaze felt the end of the wave, Reiha only showing annoyance that it knocked her teakettle over, at the epicenter the earth had stopped quaking and was still. The trees around the lake had been demolished and the ground upturned into huge drifts, some rising as high as the trees that use to stand there. The water had turned from a crystal, clear blue to a dirty yellow-brown and was steaming.

"Hot! It's hot! This goddamn water is hot!! Ouch!" Screams could be heard from the other side of the lake. Ichiro bellowed out every profanity he knew and then some he made up just for the occasion as he jumped out of the water and ran around, trying to cool off. His skin was a fleshy pink with red splotches in some places. Water Lipper quietly surfaced and crawled out of the water. Her once blue and teal skin was scorched the same yellow-brown color as the water. She coughed and brownish sand came up with the dirty water. She wiped her cracked lips and laid down on the shore. Ichiro whirled around and pointed an accusatory finger at her. "This is all your fault, bitch!" he growled as he blew on his arms. "First you try to drown me and then you try to molest me, and then you try to drown me again and then you try to scald me. You have some major issues!!"

Water Lipper only stared at Ichiro like a wide-eyed fish out of water. Her mouth opened and closed as she took in dry, ragged breaths. "I can't believe it," the words were cracked and Ichiro's ears perked up to hear better. "You're alive after being under water for that long? Damn it! I shouldn't have sealed you in that bubble. If I had left you on the shore, you would probably have been blown to smithereens." She gasped in pain. "Oh God! Spartoi, you idiot. How could you have been so selfish? Uhn." She tried to lift her head but it fell back limply.

"Whoa, whoa whoa! Wait a minute!" Ichiro drew closer to her. He looked over her body. She was dry and the yellow-brown skin was cracking from being scalded. She was in bad shape. She wouldn't last very long. "What's this bubble you're talking about?"

"A big mistake," Water Lipper whispered bitterly. "After I pulled you into the water, I sealed you inside a bubble, with water in it of course. The bubble was supposed to keep you from initiating any attacks on me while I took you deeper into the lake but alas. . . . ." She trailed off.

"You. . . you saved my live." Ichiro said it with some amazement.

"Not intentionally," Water Lipper was quick to point out and it hurt. She coughed again. "I always hated irony," she muttered when she had recovered her voice.

"Goddamn," Ichiro breathed. He watched as Water Lipper tried to swallow her last breaths. "Look, I'm. . . .um. . .I'm sorry. This probably wasn't what you had in mind." Water Lipper couldn't speak any longer but shook her head to let him know that she was still alive. "So, um, if you want I can put you out of your misery." Water Lipper laughed. It was surprisingly loud and suddenly, Ichiro could hear her voice in the back of his mind. "It's too late for that kid."

Ichiro reeled back, clutching his head. "What the hell?" he yelled but when he looked down again, he found that her eyes were glossy. His hands fell down to his side. "Man, this sucks." He kicked at a nearby rock as Water Lipper's body dissipated into ashes and disappeared. He sat down on the ground and closed his eyes but only for a second before they popped back open and he sprang up to his feet suddenly remembering. "Holy shit! Aoi?!"

"I'm right here, Ichiro," Aoi appeared next to him apparently unscathed. His katana was sheathed again and he was covered in a thin layer of dust.

"Aoi!" Ichiro cried with tears in his eyes. He was so close to throwing his arms around his friend before he decided otherwise and quickly "Man"-ed up again. "So, um, where's the other guy," he said as a smooth cover up.

Aoi's eyes darkened and Ichiro gulped. "It's over, Ichiro."

Ichiro's ears went down. "Oh." He kicked at another rock. "Well, I guess we have to get back to Ranka-sama."

"Correct," Aoi said simply as he turned to go.

"Um, Aoi?"

"Yes, Ichiro."

A wicked, no good, badass smile came across Ichiro's mouth. "So, what exactly is going on between you and Lady Ranka?"

Aoi purposely kicked up sand into Ichiro's face as he took off into a sprint across the damaged earth leaving Ichiro spitting up the dirt that got into his mouth while he yelled for him to wait up.

(-)

"Lemunia, down there," Miyuki pointed down to a crisp, green opening in the trees. She could sense Livea and Klaus coming up fast and if they landed they were sure to meet them there. Lemunia circled around, shifted his winds slightly to catch a stream of air to make a smooth landing.

As they started losing altitude, Lemunia nodded to the edge of the opening. "They see us. Do you still want to land out in the open?" he asked.

"Does it matter? Livea and Klaus will probably talk us to death before they become intent on fighting us. They can't seem to keep their mouths shut." Lemunia rolled his eyes. As they came closer to the ground, he swung his legs under him so he was upright and began to take in his wings. By the time they settled on the ground, his wings were completely folded and hidden under his cloak. He held Miyuki for a while longer before letting go when he saw Klaus and Livea approaching.

"This is it," Miyuki murmured. She shivered unintentionally. Livea and Klaus were still some ways away, taking their sweet time. Miyuki cocked her head towards Lemunia. "I don't think I'm ready for this," she confessed trying to keep her voice leveled. She sensed Lemunia bristle. "We still have some time," he said. "I can take you back up in the air and we can retreat into the second tier."

"They'll be bound to pursue us."

"Yes."

Miyuki shook her head. "It's too late. I should have told you to turn around when we were in the air."

Lemunia suddenly felt guilty that he hadn't sensed Miyuki's apprehensiveness earlier. "Miyuki, you're not going to die. I won't let it happen."

Miyuki didn't respond because Livea and Klaus were now standing only a few meters away from them but she shot him a grateful glance out of the corner of her eye.

"Well, good morning," Klaus said cheerfully, nodding his head to both of them. They were silent. Klaus frowned and cleared his throat. "Woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?"

"Shut up, child," Lemunia ordered bitterly.

Klaus's frown deepened into a full out scowl as the temporary creases transformed his childlike appearance into that of a impatient adult. "Don't treat me like a child," he hissed.

"I'm not, I'm treating you like dirt."

Miyuki felt the air suddenly go stale with tension. She had to set her apprehension aside and focus on her surroundings. First opening she got and she was taking Lemunia and running. Livea watched her with growing curiosity. Miyuki stopped searching with her eyes but couldn't bring herself to look Livea full in the face. "She'll know," Miyuki thought. "She'll be able to tell right off the bat."

Livea smiled. "It's nice to see you one last time, Miyuki," she said sweetly. "I won't miss Lemunia but I know I'm going to miss you terribly."

"Whoever said it was going to be the last time?" Miyuki asked solidifying her voice. She felt her nails lengthen within the sleeves of her cloak. She had to get ready. No sickle this time, she would use her hands as her sole weapon.

Livea was about to respond but Klaus jumped the gun. "Miyuki, you're life will be taken by me!" Livea's eyes widened and her mouth hung open in mid-protest. Klaus had stepped forward so suddenly during his declaration that Lemuina had physically jumped in response. Miyuki didn't realize it until he was suddenly in front of her and his speed would have knocked her over if she hadn't grabbed a hold of his shoulders. He had cut it very close, she soon found out. She was practically plastered to his back. She could feel the blood pulsating through his wings, furled tightly against his back. The pulsation was so hard that it knocked the breath from her chest. She waited for the moment when his wings would unfold in an explosion of black feathers and they'd be gaining altitude in a blur as a shocked Livea and Klaus became smaller and smaller until they disappeared and she and Lemunia were floating up in the stratosphere.

She blinked rapidly to come back down to reality. She was relieved to find that no one had noticed that she had spaced out. Perhaps not much time had passed. Livea was still in a state of shock but she and Klaus had narrowed their gazes in on Lemunia. They hated Lemunia, even more than they hated Miyuki, although she was a close second. Lemunia was a threat to Klaus as the older male of the two and to Livea he was just a threat. And then there was the fact that they were related. . . . . . . . .by blood.

Lemunia looked as if he was about to rip out Klaus's jugular with his fangs elongated, so long they he couldn't shut his mouth properly but Klaus wouldn't back down. He defiantly returned the challenging glare. If it was any other time, he would have gladly picked up the gauntlet if Lemunia had thrown it down, but this was to be their final battle. He wanted it to be with Miyuki.

"Klaus," Livea hissed. Her mouth was now closed with teeth clenched. "What are you doing?"

Klaus smiled charmingly at her ignoring the fact that she was fuming. She really wanted to fight Miyuki. Well, too bad. She would just have to turn that fury on Lemunia. "Livea, dear sister, do you think you'll be able to handle our friend Lemunia? He's quite a handful I'm sure and I wouldn't want him to be too much for you." He ignored the glare she shot him and the sound of Lemunia clicking his fangs against his lower teeth impatiently. But that is what it took to set Livea up. She didn't want anyone to think that she was weaker than someone of the opposite sex. She didn't respond to him, too angry about having her desired enemy taken away from her but she didn't want to cause a scene, especially in front of Lemunia and Miyuki. She would clobber her brother after this was over. She relaxed her heated glare at Klaus and settled into focusing on Lemunia.

Miyuki still clung to him like a monkey on a tree and she was comfortable in doing so because Lemunia wasn't relaxing. She wouldn't feel safe until he did but she knew it was useless. Lemunia was a long way away from relaxing his defenses. She slowly slid down off his back and took a spot next to him.

Livea gestured to Lemunia with her right hand to follow her. "Come on, Lemunia, dear. We're going to take a little walk. Just to give Miyuki and Klaus some leg room," she shot Klaus a look that was very unladylike. "There's a little valley some ways that way." She pointed behind her. "There we'll have some privacy."

Lemunia visibly twitched. It was his choice to have them battle separately or together on the same field. Everything came down to him. He glanced at Miyuki. They had enough problems with Livea and Klaus using each other as back-ups when they fought together. He only hoped Miyuki could hold off Klaus while he dealt with Livea and was able to get back to help her. Miyuki smiled but the tension in her lower jaw turned it into a Cheshire grin that was all but reassuring, but he knew what she was getting at.

She was giving him permission to leave her behind.

He nodded for Livea to lead the way and she quickly turned on her heels and was taking off towards the outlining trees at a graceful yet rapid gait. Lemunia threw Miyuki a glance that told her everything that he could spill with words and took off after Livea leaving Miyuki with Klaus. It was a choice that burned him up inside and made him want to punish Livea for it.

Miyuki watch Lemunia even after he disappeared into the trees. It was only until she was once again conscious of Klaus's eyes drilling into her. She turned her attention to him. "Focus," she thought.

Klaus smiled. "Are you ready to begin?"

To Be Continued.

BlueDragonGirl1: I'm probably the suckiest fanfic writer when it comes to updating. And here we are, closing in on the four-year anniversary of this fanfiction. I will honestly try to update more this summer. Actually, I kinda have too. You see, I'm headed off to college this Fall semester and I've noticed that many fanfic writers who go off to college don't return to finish their stories and I really want to get to the endings of all my fanfics. Bare with me people! This may be one wild ride! R&R!