Quarterfinals Day 2

Robin felt sunlight on his face, a rare sign in the mornings.

He slowly crawled up from his position on the bed, looking at the only clock on the wall. 7:30 am, so he was up later than usual, but not by much. He got up from the bed, taking a long, exuberant stretch before moving to close the curtains. He paused as he reached the window. Perhaps it was his imagination, but hadn't he closed the curtains and locked the window? He slowly reached for his Thoron tome, which he remembered leaving on the right side of his desk.

"You won't find that there anymore."

Robin slowly turned around. Standing in the back of the room, his tomes scattered at their feet, stood the intruder. They were small, yet muscular, and was wrapped from head to toe in dark blue. He opened the curtain even farther, filling the room with light. There were odd marks on their clothes, and he could see distinctly red eyes gazing at him. However, something about their stature... Robin started thinking aloud.

"Alright, you're too short to be Samus, Bayonetta, Palutena or Rosalina; I don't think Peach has defined arms like this, though I could be wrong." He looked over the intruder again. "I'm guessing you're Zelda, because Lucina wouldn't put a disguise on to visit me." The intruder was silent and still, hiding their emotions. Robin was impressed, but maintained a smug expression.

"I am merely a guard for her highness." The voice was disguised well, perhaps even magically, but there was an air about it that was unmistakably royal in nature. "What makes you think I'm a competitor?" Robin laughed, a little harder than he intended.

"Because competitors and the board are the only ones with appropriate key-cards that can allow them into the center atrium, and my window faces said atrium." The intruder paused, stammering a reply. "Look, it's all very good, and if I hadn't taken the time to think about it, you probably could've fooled me; but I've seen people disguise themselves before, so let's take out the middleman." He took a seat in his chair, wrapping his cloak around him. "What can I do for you, Princess?" Zelda pulled down the cloth from her face, freeing her hair and face. Her eyes were still red, clearly the side effect of a spell of some kind. She was pouting slightly, a vast contrast from her usual proper looks.

"I knew better than to try and fool you," she said, "I still thought I did a good job."

"Don't be too hard on yourself, I think you'd fool most people."

"Not you, though."

"Not me. What did you want to discuss?"

Zelda sat down on Robin's unmade bed, shaking her head to free up the rest of her hair. "I want to talk about the book you received from Dedede."

Robin sighed. "I figured as much," He said, "What did you want to know?"

"Why did you want that information so badly? There's a lot of very detailed information that shouldn't be in most Hylian texts."

"I figured as much," Robin responded, "It did feel too … comprehensive to be a normal text." He turned around, facing the window.

"You seem bothered."

"I am."

"Bad dreams?" This time Robin shot Zelda a quck glance before responding.

"Amongst other things." Robin opened a small notebook, and began flipping through it. "I believe you might know a bit about them."

The princess had a grim look on her face. "I've had them as well."

Robin nodded. "Several of us have."

Zelda paused, "You think there's a connection between all of us?" Another pause. "Wait. You don't think it's my fault, do you?"

Robin was silent for a minute, as the air grew heavier. "I don't discount that possibility," he admitted, "But I'm paranoid as all heck. I think investigating this would be beneficial for everyone." He turned to look outside. "More importantly, how are you feeling?" Zelda looked at Robin with surprise. Robin smirked. "Don't look too shocked. I might be duplicitous and conniving, but I do genuinely care for people. I don't think I'd have as many friends as I do if I was completely irredeemable."

"It's not that," Zelda insisted, "You've returned my harsh words and cruel deeds with nothing but kindness." She shrugged and avoided eye contact. "It seems to be quite common recently." She muttered.

"You mean Samus?" Zelda immediately sat upright, flush with embarrassment. "Forgive me," Robin laughed in response, "I didn't mean to embarrass you." He sat with one eyebrow raised, expecting an answer to his earlier question.

"Well, you're not wrong," she replied, "Last night was the first time this entire tournament where I felt at ease."

"That's good!"

"And Samus told me I should visit you in order to get answers." Robin frowned at this and crossed his arms.

"Answers to what?"

Zelda shifted in discomfort. "Robin," she finally said, "when Ganondorf chose you as his partner, you went from someone I considered a friend to somebody I couldn't ever trust." Robin remained impassive, so she continued. "That was wrong of me, and it's since become clear that you do try to do the right thing."

"I'm sensing a big 'but' coming from this."

She couldn't hold it in much longer. "Why couldn't you tell who the author of the book was?!" Zelda nearly shouted, "Didn't it seem a bit too convenient that Dedede, of all people, just happened to know where a absurdly detailed book about exactly what you needed? Didn't you think that maybe, just maybe, you've been used by Ganond-"

"Don't think me daft." Robin snapped back, eliciting a small squeak from Zelda. "Do you really think I didn't find it suspicious that Dedede knew what I wanted?" He stood, and began pacing the room. "Of course I knew who wrote it, although it took me longer than I'd like to admit. Let me pose a question to you; would you have taken the book if you knew that Ganondorf had wrote it?" Zelda's silence spoke for her. Robin sat back down at his desk, but moved the chair closer to Zelda, creating a conspiratorial air about him. "Before you rescued me," he whispered, "I saw several images; runes, if you will. I had a hunch, especially after seeing your reaction to them."

"You were conscious?"

"It wasn't my best moment of clarity; but I could tell, even then, that those markings meant something."

"You didn't ask me before all this? When we sparred together?"

"It came to mind, but we were focusing on other things, and I figured answers would come with time." Robin frowned. "It didn't help that I was considering the possibility that you had been the kidnapper."

Zelda opened her mouth to protest, but thought better of it. Robin was finally starting to make sense. He was much more observant than she had given him credit for. "Do you trust Ganondorf?" She finally asked.

Robin laughed. "Of course I don't! I only trust the Shepherds," He began counting on his fingers, "Fox, and Bowser."

"Bowser?! And not Samus?"

"Bowser has good things to say, and he's pretty open about how he acts and feels." Zelda frowned. It sounded like Robin was scolding her like a teacher, disappointed with a midterm grade. "And I know you trust Samus, but she likes keeping stuff to herself. It's hard for someone like me to fully trust someone like that." He grinned, "I'm not Chrom, after all." After looking at Zelda's confused expression, he waved it off. "He's my boss, friend? Friend-boss. Don't worry about it."

"So why are you helping him? Why go through all this trouble to do everything behind the scenes?"

Robin stood up, exuberantly, "That's part of the game, Zelda. I won't be satisfied until I know I've gotten all the answers." He began pacing again. Zelda felt slightly unnerved. "I'm helping Ganondorf because helping him gets me closer to the answers I've been seeking! Also, I do prefer winning, and a monetary prize seems to be of little harm." He turned to face the window, the sun reflected off of his cloak, shimmering and glowing. "Ganondorf has shown no signs of being the villain that you all believe he is, and I'm willing to gamble with that if it gets me closer to why I was kidnapped, who kidnapped me, and why everyone is having sympathetic dreams."

Zelda paused, before standing up from her bed. She seemed satisfied. "Robin, after your fight today, would you like to go get dinner with Samus and I?" Robin raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "I-I just think that there's a lot we could discuss. Maybe as a group?"

"Smooth."

"I'm being serious!"

"Not a bad idea, if you don't mind me inviting a small group as well." Robin replied, smiling. "Before you ask, it would be Anna, Lucina, Bowser, Fox, Marth, and Metaknight."

"That's … a lot of people." Robin nodded. Zelda kept going, "We'd have to go somewhere in the city if we wanted to avoid prying eyes."

"Ask Samus or Metaknight," Robin said, "They both would have good ideas." He grinned. "Especially Samus, I bet she's already thought of a bunch of secluded areas …"

"Don't try to help too much, Robin." Zelda laughed, blushing furiously. She put her disguise back on. "I'll go notify everyone of our plans." And with a puff of smoke, she was gone. Robin looked around the room, before heading to the bathroom.

"I should learn how to do that." He remarked.

Robin sat in the entrance to the warp room, impatiently tapping his fingers. Even with his conversation with Zelda, he had still managed to get in an hour of warmup and was still earlier than both Anna and Ganondorf. Anna was the first to arrive, her hair strangly disheveled, holding several papers in her hands. She took a seat immediately next to Robin, and sighed heavily. After a minute of silence, and a look of amusement, she finally spoke up.

"Robin, you could ask a girl, 'Oh hey Anna, what's wrong?'"

"I didn't want to be rude and assume something was wrong." He replied casually.

"Well, since you were so kind as to ask, you and I need to talk after this match." She straightened her papers on her leg.

"Why not now?" Robin replied, "Time is money."

"This needs to be private." Robin could now see worry in Anna's eyes.

"What happened?" His voice betraying his emotions. Anna shook her head.

"If you're worried about Cordelia or your kids, they're fine," she replied, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't make you worry." She leaned back against the wall, sighing again.

Robin squeezed her shoulder. "Anna, don't work yourself to the bone," he said, "Whatever it is, I'm sure it's fixable."

Anna smiled. "Sometimes, I forget how good you are at comforting people," Robin smiled, "You really can be a sweetheart!"

A large silhouette blocked some of the light in the small corridor. Robin looked up at his teammate. Ganondorf was wearing his standard armor, evoking the image of a proud warrior.

"You look ready." Robin remarked.

Ganondorf huffed before replying. "Ready as I can be," he said gruffly, "I hope your plan works."

"Trust me, I hoping it works too." Anna looked at the duo expectantly. "Anna, just trust me, this will work."

"I know it'll work," She replied, "I'm interested in what you have planned." Before Robin could answer her, the teleporter began glowing. Ganondorf immediately stepped in.

"You'll just have to see for yourself." Robin said in a teasing manner. Without another word, he and Anna walked through the blue light, and came out in a futuristic stadium. There was a distinct odor that permeated the area, one of metal, smoke, and fire. Several cars were moving in the streets below, and the sounds of the people were muffled by the heavy walls. "Alright, where are we now?" Robin asked, trying to take in all the lights and sounds.

Anna pulled out her tablet. "Midgard. I guess this is where Cloud lives."

"I like it," was all Ganondorf said, "How much time do we have?"

"We need to get you guys ready right now." Anna led the duo towards a tunnel, security and several wire frames bustling near it's gaping entrance. The sounds of the crowd intensified. It seemed a lot closer than the first match. "Good luck, you two," Anna winked at the team, "I'll be rooting for ya!"

Robin and Ganondorf stepped into the blinding lights of the arena, an almost sterile environment. On the other side, coming down their own ramp, was the duo of Pikachu and Rosalina. Pikachu skittered on all fours while Rosalina floated onto the arena. Ganondorf leaned over to Robin.

"So, when do we initiate the plan?" he whispered.

"I'll give you the signal," Robin replied, "You can't miss it."

A dull, digital voice echoed throughout the arena. "All contestants please enter the center ring." As Robin and Ganondorf exchanged pleasantries with their opponents, Robin noticed Rosalina staring him down, her eyes brimming with curiosity. He felt uncomfortable, to say the least.

"Prepare to Smash." The monotone buzz over the loudspeakers only excited the crowd.

"3."

"2." Robin looked across the circle. Pikachu was curled up, ready to pounce. Rosalina, however, was standing perfectly still.

"1."

A loud blaring horn echoed throughout the arena, and Robin sprinted off in Pikachu's direction. He dodged a quick bolt of electricity to his left, then felt a rush of wind behind him. Robin shot off an Elwind in a lazy arc, catching Pikachu mid-run. The Pokemon slid, avoiding the spell, but slowing him down. Robin immediately followed with an Arcfire. Again, Pikachu managed to dodge the attack. Robin rushed in. If I'm going to counter that speed and range, I either need to stay close or remain as far away as possible. This middle ground is dangerous. Robin ran through the scenario in his head. Alright, let's stick to the plan. Robin swung his sword at the Pokemon, who dodged, flinging it's tail at Robin's head. Robin blocked the tail with his sword, and heard the ring of metal on metal. Sparks flew, and Robin felt a slight tingling sensation. He grimaced. Pikachu had struck the ground near him with an electrical attack. He ran forward, flinging another Arcfire to his left.

A large figure flew by, missing Robin by a couple of feet. Robin felt his Arcfire tome slip from his fingers. "Oh come on!" He shouted out loud. Robin pulled out his Thunder tome, glaring over at his partner. Ganondorf got up slowly, bruised and generally looking worse for wear.

"Did you really just drop your tome?" Ganondorf accused.

"What about you?" Robin yelled, "I thought you were going to keep Rosalina away from me!" As if on cue, Robin saw a bright light out of the corner of his eye. He managed to scramble forward, dodging a Thunder attack from Pikachu. He felt a great weight on his back, as a glowing star landed on top of him. Luma, not exactly according to plan. Robin felt the air come out of his lungs for a moment. He looked up. Rosalina towered over him.

"One might find that task difficult, Sir Robin." Rosalina chuckled to herself. "My Lumas tend to seek out those who are the greater threat."

Ganondorf was now attempting to fight Pikachu, with no success. The Pokemon was now on his head, delivering shock after shock. It would've been humorous, if it wasn't so embarrassing. Robin began channeling energy into his Thunder tome. Nothing was going right, but he still managed to set one thing up for himself. The Luma is producing enough light to interfere with the light emitting from my tome, Robin thought, I might be able to pull this out.

Robin had discovered something rather peculiar about tomes. It had come about as a result of his trying to fly with Elwind. After dropping his tome in an accidental collision with the roof, Robin felt the wind magic persist. Several tests later revealed that if you charged just enough magic into the tome without firing, it would stay there, dormant. It was harder with Wind and Thunder, but the results were very promising with Fire tomes. The best part? It was unstable enough that almost anything could ignite the tome, setting off an overcharged magic attack. Ganondorf was still struggling with Pikachu, but had managed to toss the Pokemon off of his back. As Pikachu charged toward Ganondorf, Robin shot off a quick Thoron blast in that direction.

The explosion was huge. Much bigger than Robin anticipated. He felt his ears ringing as the silhouette of a surprised Pikachu flew over the edge of the arena. Ganondorf had barely held on to the stage, struggling to climb back up. Robin smiled grimly. Even if he lost, at least something had worked. He looked back up at Rosalina, and his blood froze.

She was smiling. Her eyes were sparkling with excitement. She looked down at Robin and a wand materialized in her hand. "As I expected." Was all she said, and with a wave, the world went dark.

Robin opened his eyes to a river of shimmering stars. He looked around; he was sitting atop a grassy hill, with a small path leading down. Around him were several floating islands with paths connecting them. Robin noticed a small table with two chairs. Rosalina was seated in one such chair, beckoning towards the tactician. He cautiously approached.

"Don't worry, Sir Robin," She said kindly, "I only wished to have a chat with you. I find this the easiest way to do so without prying eyes and ears." The princess poured Robin a cup of tea. As Robin sat down, she motioned to a small bowl with sugar cubes in them. The whole table was set immaculately. A plethora of options at Robin's disposal. He chose to pour some milk and a sugar cube, mumbling a 'thanks'. As he sipped his tea, he noticed Rosalina smiling at him. "I hope the tea is to your liking?"

"Um … yeah. It's really good," Robin remarked, "So … where are we and how did you do this?"

"This is my house, Robin." Rosalina swirled the tea in her hands. Robin noticed there wasn't a spoon in her hand. "And teleportation is a power I do enjoy having."

"I mean how did you do this with that power limiter on?" Robin motioned to his wrist, where one would be.

"Oh, you mean this?" Rosalina pointed to a small metal bracelet lying on the grass next to her chair. "It's rather easy to remove, don't you think?"

"I … don't have to wear one."

"Ah, I suppose not. I don't think they planned for your mind." She frowned for a moment, considering the thought. "I do wonder if I'll get in trouble for taking it off, though."

"B-but how did you take it off in the first-" Robin was interrupted by a sly wink from the princess, as she sipped her tea.

"Everyone has their secrets, Sir Robin," she replied, "I hope it's not too much to ask for one of my own." Robin shook his head. "I thought so."

There was silence then, and Robin took in how silent and still everything was. Even with the stars constantly in motion. In fact, the stars were moving much too quickly compared to home. And then he saw it. A large red orb came into view, like a bloodshot eyeball. He could see rampaging storms, peppering and savagely tearing apart whatever landscape lay beneath it. Flashes of light illuminated the clouds like bulbs on a camera.

"Ah yes, I suppose that I should have mentioned our orbit," Rosalina noted, "That had to have been a surprise for you, I'm terribly sorry." Robin shook himself from his trance.

"O-orbit?" Robin stammered, "I think I've heard that before, but what is orbit?"

Rosalina giggled to herself, "My oh my, I don't think I've ever had to explain orbiting before." She sipped her tea in contemplation. "We're moving around a central object, like a moon or a planet." Robin was staring at the stars now, focused intently on the motions of the stars. "Think of this as a spaceship, like Samus's."

Robin looked up to the princess. "A spaceship. T-this thing is a spaceship." Robin put his head in his hands, "Oh gods I'm in the stars."

"Drink some tea, Sir Robin," Rosalina insisted, "This is insignificant information at best." She poured him some more tea, which he immediately grabbed and nervously sipped. "I'm here to share things of interest to you."

"I think it's particularly interesting that you warped us into the void during a fight." Robin was rattled, his eyes darting to and fro. "Did we just disappear? How does that work?"

"The Lumas took care of it, I wouldn't worry." She replied. The vision of what was the equivalent of several toddlers stuffed into Robin's cloak didn't make him worry less. "Robin." Rosalina's tone darkened. "The reason I brought you here wasn't for my own amusement. I've been observing many of you on my journey through the cosmos. You're very gifted. Not strong, but bright, and much crueler than I could ever hope to be."

"I don't think that's really a compliment." Robin said, frowning slightly at the insult.

"I didn't mean it to be a slight on you, Sir Robin. You always do what's necessary, even when everyone else cannot. It's admirable in a way."

"Even you didn't bring me here to compliment me," Robin interrupted, "This may be a … new experience for me, but I'm not so rattled for us to avoid your point." Rosalina smirked.

"Very well." She put down her teacup, staring down the tactician. "Tell me, when you came back into being, did you find it odd that you were immediately set upon?"

"Of course, I would think that my recent actions would reflect that."

"Noted," She replied, "And yet, you're no closer to the answers you seek, are you?"

"... No."

"You may find helpful, then, that I happened to do some investigating of my own."

"Nobody else has checked out Hylian texts from the libraries."

"Sir Robin, with everything that you have seen today, do you really think that I need a library to acquire the information I want?" She waited for Robin to respond, but after several moments of silence, she continued. "This place is not just my home, it is an observatory; an observatory of both the surrounding galaxy and various dimensions. In all my observations, your world is one that has caught my interest."

"You flatter me, but what does my world have that interests you?"

Rosalina paused for a moment, staring into her tea. "Do you believe in fate?" Before Robin could answer, she interrupted, "No, I can tell. You don't have much faith for things that you can't see. Well, some might call this fate, but I believe that every world has points in it's lifespan. Points were civilizations and peoples have to make a choice. This choice can influence the whole path the world takes." Robin looked at her inquisitively. "You disagree?"

"I've never believed in the world having a script we were meant to follow," Robin said dismissively, "and besides, Lucina and her other friends broke our fate."

"Precisely." Rosalina said forcefully, her eyes were gleaming again. "I've seen so much. All of those dying lands with so many fallen heroes, desperately clinging to hope as it was torn away. In all of those lands, only a handful of civilizations could even survive a cataclysm like yours. But your progeny saved the world from choices that had been made for you."

"That can't be too special in such a big universe like this."

"The universe is generally neutral. And by neutral, I mean indifferent." Rosalina stood up, beckoning Robin to follow her. They began walking down the hill. "Robin, one of the responsibilities I have in this dimension is to 'reset' the timeline."

"Reset." Robin repeated. The princess nodded.

"Yes. Whenever things begin to devolve and spiral out of balance, it's my job to reset the dimension using the Luma's power."

"Well," Robin paused, mulling it over, "That's quite the responsibility. Does every dimension have someone filling that role?"

Rosalina shrugged. "I've never met another being like me, but I can never confirm or deny the unknown." The hill ended as Robin and Rosalina reached a small paved path leading to a small building in the center of the station. "But I have learned something over the countless time I've existed, observing and resetting."

"What's that?"

"Everything balances out in the end, and reaches a center." She said, "For every triumph over evil, another world falls." Rosalina turned to Robin. "Your world was unique. When I looked into your world, I saw two emergent paths. One of cruelty and death, and another with hope. Locked in an endless embrace. Your children broke that engagement, leading your people towards victory."

"So you're a fan."

"Yes!" Rosalina yelled emphatically, "I loved it! It was romantic! Twisting apart fate and cruelty through time!" She looked at Robin. She had tears in her eyes. "A child saving their parents!"

Robin was silent, following Rosalina as she entered the building in front of them. There were hundreds of thousands of stars projected into the ceiling.

"Out of all of these worlds, were we really the only ones to do so?" Robin asked.

"Well … no." Rosalina admitted. "Link and Zelda's ancestors had items to move through time, and one did do a similar thing as your children." She turned around quickly, "But to be allowed to meet and work with people like you is marvelous!"

Robin grinned. "Trust me, the feeling is mutual." He responded. "Now, what did you want to show me?"

Rosalina finally blushed, her calm demeanor finally broke. "Right! I almost forgot. Well, all of the smashers have come from worlds where they conquered evil, sometimes several times over; as if it was predestined. Like I said, you and Lucina had done something special, even when surrounded by so many heroes."

"I don't understand what this has to do with my kidnapping."

"Did you believe it to be chance? That you would come back and immediately be captured?" Rosalina seemed to grab one of the stars. Inside it was an image of a mask. "I had asked Samus to describe the image that your daughter and Zelda had found on your cell door. It turns out to be an ancient Hylian mask, but I'm sure you knew this already." She teared the star apart, and a wooden mask fell to the ground with a hollow clunk. "This is Majora's Mask, a harbinger of the end." Robin stared at the mask, which seemed to radiate malice.

"So, why is it in your room?" Robin asked, cautiously.

"I told you, I can get things I want." Rosalina stated flatly. "Twas quite difficult to obtain, but I did obtain it."

"Yeah, I caught that, but there's no way something like this can do any good, even in your hands."

"Agreed, but I thought it would do well in your hands."

Robin looked at the mask. He could hear a distinct whispering coming from the item. He shook his head. "I can't take this," Robin said, "I can tell from here that it's too much."

Rosalina shrugged, and the mask went back into it's encasing. "I thought you might said that." She took Robin's hand, and before he could react, kissed him on the cheek. It was a quick peck, but Robin felt immense warmth. "I have imbued you with some power that will resist the item's evil."

"Did it need to be from a-"

"Yes. Would you prefer one on the lips?" Rosalina asked with little to no emotion. "You're one of the few that has the magic necessary and the scientific mind to look into this mask and discover it's purpose." She looked deeply into Robin's eyes. "I'm an observer, Robin. I shan't involve myself more than I should. However, I have a feeling that what is about to occur will force my hand."

"What's about to occur?" Robin asked.

"Whoever kidnapped you; whomever worships this mask obviously wanted you out of the picture. Or they planned to take out some other Smashers while they attempted to rescue you." Rosalina stated. "It doesn't take much thought to assume this unknown party is planning something rather ambitious." Robin frowned.

"Are you trying to tell me that I shouldn't help Ganondorf?"

"Hardly, but I am asking for you to be wary," Rosalina said, "Ganondorf has shown no intent or malice that I have seen, but someone here is planning something." She twisted the star, flattening it into a playing card. She placed the card into Robin's pocket.

The two stood over the hill once again, the smell of grass floating through the air. Robin felt the wind through his hair, probably artificial in nature. He faced Rosalina. "I still don't understand. You said you're an observer, but this seems rather active. Why help?"

Rosalina smiled, "Well, the board saw it fit to invite me to this competition, so I'm obliged to assist those who need it." She gave Robin a pointed wink.

"Touche," He paused, "I was planning on meeting Zelda and some others after the fight. Would you join us?"

"I would be delighted." She responded. "Now, let's go back, shall we?"

The world melted away, colors melted together in a surrealist landscape. They were back in the arena, Rosalina smiling over him. There was a flash of light, and Rosalina was gone, replaced by Ganondorf's fist. There was a hiss, and a loud buzzer. Robin looked around. No time had passed, or an imperceptible amount of time. What horrifying powers. He thought.

The post-match hubbub was a blur for Robin, who was hurried out of the press room by Anna. Ganondorf told her he could handle it. Robin turned to face his red-headed friend. The fiery merchant held on to him protectively, moving him through halls of the mansion. "Where are we going, Anna?" he asked, once the fuzz from his dimensional travel wore off. Anna's face was grim. "I've never seen you so … upset."

Anna sighed. "Robin, the board wants to meet you."

Thanks to everyone welcoming me back! It feels great to be back. I'm currently writing the next few chapters, as we head into the Semifinals and Finals. Your support has been wonderful! It's crazy that's it's almost been a year since I started this, even though I took half of that off. (Oops.)

I said I'd answer any questions, but instead I'll just thank all of you who welcomed me back again! Makes it easier to write when you have a nice group like you all!

Next Chapter - The Final Prize