A/N:Finally, another chapter! Also to Guest, I considered something like that; I thought about a little AU where the engines were Fantanzian dragons, helping anyone they can. Let me know if you think I should give it a try. Anyway, on with the story!
Shadowpelt, and Lily sat on the pair of tree stumps. Shadowpelt crossed her legs, and Lily did the same.
"Best way to learn how to strengthen bond with Lady is to meditate." Shadowpelt situated herself, and relaxed. She had done this many times before to keep the bond she shared with Whiff strong, and sometimes even to reach out to Cheveyo. Hopefully, Cheveyo wouldn't mind it if she allowed Lily to reach out to him. He was much easier to reach than an engine. He was more open to the world.
"Meditate?" Lily raised an eyebrow at her. She must not have expected to be using this particular method of relaxation to make the bond she shared with Lady stronger than ever before. Shadowpelt nodded.
"Open your mind, and reach out to all those who are around you. You may not have the skill to do this yet. Reach out to Cheveyo, and relax. Let your mind enter his, and he will enter yours. You will both become one for as long as you stay connected with him." Shadowpelt closed her eyes, and reached out Cheveyo. Cheveyo perked up when he felt Shadowpelt's familiar presence.
Cheveyo, I wish to teach my student how to become one with one another. May she reach out to you for this lesson? Shadowpelt asked him. She felt Cheveyo pondering it for a few seconds before feeling a sense of approval from him. He had agreed to allow her to follow through with this lesson. She withdrew, and opened her eyes.
"Cheveyo is ready. Reach out to him, Rider. Close your eyes, and relax. Reach out to him, and not just touch his conscience like how Rider does with Lady, enter his mind, and you will see what it means to become one with another presence." Shadowpelt closed her eyes once more, and reached out to all beings around her. It would be overwhelming for her student, but she would get used to it as time passes.
Lily closed her eyes, and relaxed. She reached out to Shadowpelt's horse, and gently touched his mind. Cheveyo flinched a little at first, taken off guard by the sudden contact, but then returned the gentle touch. Cheveyo allowed her to gently slip past his mental barriers, and enter his mind. She felt a rush of emotions, and new sensations. It was too much for her to take in so quickly. Overwhelmed, she quickly withdrew, and opened her eyes. Shadowpelt seemed to notice, and opened her eyes.
"I know it is a lot to take in. You see what they see. You feel what they feel. You smell what they smell. Your minds combine into one. Here, I will ask Lady to show you." Shadowpelt reached out to Lady.
I need you to teach your Rider how to become one with you. It is necessary if she is to strengthen her bond with you. Shadowpelt sensed that Lady was quite agitated with having her relaxation time being interrupted. However, it quickly faded once she explained to Lady why Lily needed to know this. The stronger the bond Lady shared with Lily, the farther they can reach each other, and Lily would find it to be much easier to reach out to her.
Very well, cat. Lady withdrew, and reached out to Lily, her precious Rider.
I will show you, Lily. Relax, and let me combine your mind with mine. It won't hurt, nor will it take long. Lady grasped Lily's spiritual being, and began to pull Lily's very essence from her mortal body. Lily panicked, and tried to pull away from her, but Lady's grip was fast.
It's okay, little one. I won't let anything bad happen to you. Trust me, Lily. Lady gently reassured her Rider. Lily reluctantly relaxed, and let Lady pull her into her mind.
Lily gasped. Her vision turned to Lady's own vision. Lady looked around. The island was much more beautiful through Lady's eyes. Lady's sharp eyesight sliced through the mist with ease, and the brightly colored fauna was even more vibrant through Lady's vision. Lily could hear even the slightest of sounds, even the soft scratching of a mouse searching for food. Lily could smell the beautiful flowers, and many other strange scents she had been unable to detect before. Lady looked over to Patch, and Lily felt Lady smile. Patch smiled in return.
"Hey, Lady." Patch climbed onto Lady's buffer plate. Lily felt something crawl onto her shoulder. It was what Lady felt when Patch climbed onto her.
"Hello, Patch. Is something wrong?" Lady asked him. Lily could sense a hint of worry from Lady. Lady was simply making sure both Patch, and Lily were safe, well-fed, and happy. Patch shook his head.
"No, I'm just bored." Patch sat down, and leaned back against Lady's smoke box. Lily felt something small resting on the side of her neck. This must be what Lady felt when either Patch, or Lily rested against her.
"You know, I've been wondering... How did Mister Stone find you?" Patch looked back at Lady. Lily felt that Lady was rather hesitant to answer his question, but she decided there was no harm in answering it.
"Burnett purchased me from the shape shifter that smuggled me out of the laboratory I was create in as a gift for Tasha. Tasha took to me the moment she saw me in his arms." Lady chuckled softly. Lily could feel a hint of sorrow from Lady. Lady still missed Tasha dearly. Lily couldn't blame her. Tasha was near, and dear to her heart. Tasha needed to finally be put to rest. They have to bring peace back to the island, or Tasha would never fully be at peace.
Lily picked up a soft sound. She didn't know what it was at first, and then realized it was Patch's heartbeat. Lady had much sharper senses than she had previously thought. If Lady was able to detect a human's heartbeat, she would be able to track down almost anything, maybe even other engines.
"If your part dragon, does that mean you would lay eggs rather than give birth, Lady?" Patch had the same exact question Lily had. The engines were mammals, but Lady shared DNA with a reptile. Would that mean she would simply lay a clutch of eggs rather than giving live birth? Lily always wanted Lady to have a litter of kits. Of course, that was entirely up to Lady. Lady would know when the time was right.
"To be honest, Patch, I don't know. I guess we'll have to find out when the time is right." Lady replied. Lady's stomach rumbled, and Lily felt a slight pain in her abdomen. Lady grimaced a little. She must have eaten something she shouldn't have.
"Are you okay, Lady?" Patch looked over at her. Lily felt a bit of hesitation from Lady. She must not want to answer this question while Lily was connected with her like this. Lily frowned. Lady was stubborn as a mule when it came to answering questions. She would only answer the questions that would tell them only what they needed to know, and nothing more.
"Tell me anyway." Lily murmured. Lady sighed. It was as if she had heard Lily, or she just decided to get it over with. Either one, Lily needed Lady to answer this.
"The knight that attacked me earlier is having his revenge on me. They never do settle well." Lady seemed to be hiding a few details, as usual. Surprisingly, Lily didn't feel sick. Lady had a good reason to kill the knight. The knight attacked her first. Lady was merely defending herself.
"How many people have tried to kill you?" Patch raised an eyebrow at the engine. Lady thought for a moment. She was counting the attacks, at least the ones she remembered.
"I stopped counting after one hundred. They are persistent, but have no idea as to what I'm capable of." Lady smiled. Lily was taken aback by the sheer number of attempts to at least wound Lady. Of course, each one failed. No surprise there. A mere human was no match for an engine of her power.
"Dang! That's a lot! Do you ever get tired of it? I mean, does it get boring to you?" Patch asked her. Lady chuckled softly, and released Lily, letting her conscience return to her own mind. She didn't want Lily to hear this. Patch was much more accepting of the fact that Lady was a powerful predator than her own Rider.
"Surprisingly, no. They give me some entertainment, and I get the chance to play with my food a little." Lady's smile turned into an unsettling wolfish grin. She had shown Patch just a peek of her true self.
Patch shuddered at the sight. The fact that Lady was a man-eater was disturbing, but it was in her nature, just like a lion, or tiger. She was a predator, and he had to accept that, unlike Lily, who would turn pale at the mention of Lady's bloodthirsty nature. To be honest, Patch thought it was incredible to be so close to such a powerful creature. He leaned back against her smoke box once more. He could feel Lady's powerful cords of muscle flex with every breath she took, a reassurance that he, and Lily were safe as long as they stayed close to her.
...
Burnett crawled out of the tunnel, and looked around. He had finally arrived on Misty Island. He stood up, and blindly felt around. He couldn't see anything in this dense fog. He found a set of rails, and used them as a guide. Hopefully, the Logging Locos had seen Lady, and Lily, and would tell him where they were hiding. This was the prefect place for Lady to hide. The Logging Locos's attack on the town here made everyone steer clear of this place. Even the diesels wouldn't dare enter the Logging Locos's territory. Hopefully, Lady had kept Lily safe all this time. He roamed the island, almost bumped into Whiff, who was sound asleep.
Burnett knew it wasn't a good idea to wake him, but there was a chance he may have seen Lady, and Lily. He swallowed nervously, and gathered all of the courage he could muster. He gently patted Whiff's buffer plate, and Whiff stirred. Whiff growled softly, and opened his eyes, obviously not too happy with being disturbed. Whiff yawned, revealing his wickedly sharp fangs. Whiff could easily kill Burnett if he wasn't careful. Whiff looked down at the human before him, and frowned.
"What do you want?" Whiff growled deep in his chest. It shook the ground beneath Burnett's feet. Burnett shifted nervously. Whiff clearly wasn't in a good mood today.
"Have you seen Lady? She has Lily with her." Burnett tried not to act too nervous. Whiff's predatory instincts could be activated if he wasn't careful. Whiff's scowl faded, and his gaze softened.
"Yes, I have, but I won't tell you who they are with." Whiff replied. Burnett sighed. Whiff was almost as stubborn as Lady it seemed. However, he couldn't blame Whiff. He would be the same way.
"Who are they with? Whiff, please tell me." Burnett tried to not escalate the situation by getting frustrated with Whiff. Whiff's scowl returned. He clearly wasn't in the mood to talk.
"If I told you, the other steamies would see me as a traitor." Whiff growled, black smoke billowed from his nose. He was becoming more and more irritated by the minute.
"What do you mean, Whiff?" Burnett narrowed his eyes. Now he was suspicious of the steam engine. What was Whiff hiding from the others?
"None of your business!" Whiff snapped. Burnett flinched, but didn't back down. He knew how to handle a stubborn engine, thanks to handling Lady for decades. She was far more stubborn than Whiff ever will be.
"Whiff! Do you not realize how much danger Lily is in?! What if a diesel finds her, then what?!" Burnett seemed to strike a nerve in the engine. Whiff's expression softened again. He must have realized he was doing more harm than good.
"She is with my Rider. I'll take you to her." Whiff replied. Burnett nodded. That was more like it. He climbed into Whiff's cab, and Whiff set out for his Rider's camp. Burnett couldn't see anything, but a steamie would have no problem navigating through the thick fog. His heart skipped a beat when he saw Lady, but Lily wasn't with her. Patch was in her company. She took both Lily, and Patch to Sodor. Whiff slowed to a stop, and Burnett stormed out of Whiff's cab, furious at Lady for letting Lily, and Patch come here without his permission, let alone by themselves.
"Lady! Do you have any idea how worried I was?!" Burnett exclaimed between gritted teeth. Lady looked at him in surprise. She must not have expected him to find her.
"It was not my idea, Burnett. I was merely obeying Lily's commands, and keeping them safe, but it seems you do not appreciate it." Lady growled deep in her throat. Burnett's anger faltered a bit. His fear was quickly pushed to the back of his mind, not too clever of him.
"Lily! Where is she?!" Burnett looked around, and his anger turned to panic. Lily was nowhere to be seen. Hopefully, she was somewhere safe.
"She's training with Shadowpelt. Lady wants to make sure Lily knows everything she needs to know before returning to Sodor." Patch replied. Burnett was a little relieved that Lily was safe, but who was Shadowpelt? Lily was training with a complete stranger.
"Who's Shadowpelt?" Burnett looked at Lady, hoping for an answer. Whiff bit his lip. He must know something about this Shadowpelt.
"She's my Rider. Patch, take him to her, so he can meet her. I'd rather not say what she is. The other steamies would surely see me as a traitor if they find out about her." Whiff knew Burnett probably wouldn't be too fond of it, but it would be best if they stayed on Misty Island for now, at least until the diesel activity died down a little. Patch nodded, and climbed down from Lady's buffer plate. Lady watched the two humans like a hawk as they ventured into the forest. This was going to be interesting.
Patch led Burnett to Shadowpelt's camp, but neither Lily, or Shadowpelt were nowhere to be seen. Patch looked around a little bit, and found Shadowpelt, and Lily sitting on tree stumps with their legs crossed, and their eyes closed. Burnett stopped dead in his tracks. Now he understood why Whiff wanted to keep his Rider a secret. Out of all the races in the world, he chose a were-cat for a Rider. The were-cat opened her beautiful emerald eyes, and smiled gently.
"Patch, welcome." the were-cat's voice was smooth as silk. The legends were true after all. Lily opened her eyes, and froze when she saw Burnett.
"Grandpa! What are you doing here?!" Lily was completely taken off guard by Burnett finally finally finding them. No doubt he was furious at her for disobeying him, and knowing the dangers she faced.
"Lily Stone... Do you realize what could have happened if the diesels found out about you?" Burnett struggled to keep his anger in check. The were-cat bit her lip. She must not have known about this.
"Lady kept us safe." Lily frowned. She was standing her ground, just like how Tasha did whenever they got into an argument.
"I don't care! You're coming home with me, and that's final!" Burnett was just about to drag her back to Lady, when they all heard a ground-shaking roar. Lady stormed through the trees in the form of a dragon, and glared down at her owner, her eyes burning with unbridled fury. Lady snapped her jaws at Burnett, and barely missed him. Burnett yelped, and jumped back. He had never seen Lady act in such a manner.
"Lady, what is wrong with you?!" Burnett exclaimed. His anger quickly turned to fear, as Lady inched forward, and growled at him. Her fangs were mere inches from his face.
"I won't let you take her home!" Lady snarled. Thick black smoke billowed from her nostrils, and Burnett could see a warm glow at the back of Lady's throat. She was more than happy to kill him if he dared to try to take her Rider back home.
"How did you know?" Burnett knew Lady had sharp senses, but not that sharp. They were quite a ways from the rails when this happened. Lady growled, and Burnett took a step back. He knew Lady was not one to play with. Lady was dangerous, and he accepted the risk when he bought her when she was just a kit. Now she has turned against him, ready to burn him to a crisp if need be.
"Lily contacted me. Now hand her over, or I swear, I'll kill you myself!" Lady snarled. Burnett quickly backed off. Lady never took her eyes off of him.
"Good... know your place, Burnett." Lady hissed. She relaxed a little, but not completely. She wanted to be ready just in case Burnett tried anything funny. Shadowpelt looked into Burnett's eyes, and read him. Burnett felt as if she was staring into his very soul.
"Rider's grandfather troubled. What eating you?" Shadowpelt cocked her head to the side slightly. Burnett sighed. There was no use in hiding it. The were-cat already knew something was wrong.
"Why, Lily? Why did you run away?" Burnett asked Lily. Might as well question her since his own engine wouldn't hesitate to kill him if he tried to take his granddaughter home.
"Tasha needs closure. We want to make peace with the diesels. Tasha needs to finally be put to rest." Lily replied. Burnett knew the fact that Tasha was killed by a diesel struck the child hard, but he couldn't risk losing her too. It would be too much for him to bear.
"I can't help, but support cause. Whiff worried about me. Whiff wants peace, so does Lily." Shadowpelt's beautiful emerald eyes glowed with compassion. She had a calming influence on everyone. She was reassuring everything was going to be just fine. Besides, Lily could not have a better mentor. Were-cats were known for their wisdom, patience, divine craftsmanship, and vast knowledge of the arcane. Lily would have to learn magic if she is to understand the magic of Sodor.
"I can't believe Whiff chose a were-cat. Out of all the people on Sodor, he chose a were-cat." Burnett still couldn't believe Whiff had chosen a were-cat for a Rider. It wasn't natural. However, Whiff chose her for a reason. Shadowpelt looked at him as if she was offended by his comment. Her grey ears folded back against her skull, and her tail twitched.
"What do you have against my kind?" Shadowpelt glared at him. Burnett realized he had offended one of the most powerful races on Fantanzia. She could cast a simple spell to kill him if she wanted to. However, Shadowpelt was not the type for violence.
"Oh nothing! I-I didn't mean it that way. It's just that steamies normally don't get along well with were-cats." Burnett stammered. Shadowpelt seemed to understand, thankfully.
"Ah." Shadowpelt nodded. "Whiff takes care of me. Whiff different."
"I can see that." Burnett muttered. Shadowpelt rolled her eyes. She knew he would warm up to it eventually. He would have to know at least a little bit about her kind, being Lady's owner demanded him to be knowledgeable about all the different creatures of magic.
"So... what do we do now?" Patch looked at everyone. Burnett wasn't sure what to do next. Lady refused to allow him to take her Rider home, and probably wouldn't allow him to leave the island.
"Too dangerous to return to Sodor. Might be best to stay here for little bit. Long enough for Lily to finish training." Shadowpelt stood up, and called for her horse. Cheveyo trotted up to her, and came to a stop before them. He pawed at the ground with his hoof, and snorted. He was at ease around Lady now that he knew she was harmless, to him at least. She helped Lily onto Cheveyo's back, and Patch climbed onto his back after Lily had situated herself on the blanket on the horse's back. Lady took the form of a wolf once more, and she and Shadowpelt led the humans, and Cheveyo back to Shadowpelt's camp.