Disclaimer: I do not own The Seven Deadly Sins. I'm merely borrowing the characters and having some fun with them.

I do own this story.

A Genie Named King

Chapter 25

"Now," Merlin shook her head, cutting off any teasing Meliodas had been about to bestow upon King (and probably Diane if he was honest). "You know why you are here and that you need to train. What you probably don't know is how you're going to do that."

"That's an understatement," Meliodas agreed as he folded his arms in front of him. "You said we were these… magical beings back in the day. We obviously aren't that now, so how are we going to stand anything but a snowball's chance in hell against these… Ten Commandments?"

"So observant, as always, Meliodas," Merlin gave him a smug smirk that made him think her words were anything but truthful. "Gowther," she gestured to the pink haired man.

He nodded, "after your untimely demise-"

"Jeez Gowther! Read the room a little," King cut the man off, eyes flickering over the reincarnations fallen faces.

"Read.. the.. room…" Gowther tilted his head to the side. "Both you and Ban have said this to me before. I still do not understand."

Meliodas shook his head. He understood what King was upset about (talking about their deaths) but it seemed a bit pointless. If Gowther didn't comprehend basic human emotions (which all the evidence seemed to support) then he really shouldn't bother.

"Never mind," King relented, apparently coming to the same conclusion.

"As I was saying, after your untimely demise -" King slapped his forehead, Gowther continued unbothered. "- we were able to seal some of the leftover traces of your powers into your sacred treasures. Your heritage is tied to them."

"That's what Chastiefol is," King gestured to his pillow. "That's why it's able to change forms."

"So, whatever we get will be able to change too?" Meliodas pried. That would be kind of cool.

"Well, no."

"Stupid."

Diane scrunched her face, "sacred treasure? So… if we use those weapons we will have special powers? Like we did back then?"

"That is what I said," Gowther pushed his glasses up his nose.

"The goal for today is to get you… accustomed to the change touching the item will cause." Merlin informed them. She waved her hand, three weapons appearing from the air and plunking to the ground. "We will break into groups and spread out so we don't bother each other." She twisted her wrist and an earing appeared in her hand. "Elizabeth, this is for you."

"Me?" The silverette eyed the earring curiously. "This is what holds my power?"

Merlin nodded, "you were not a fighter in the same sense as the others and thus we couldn't seal your powers in a weapon. Nothing held more meaning to you than this earring." She passed the cloth holding the jewelry over to Elaine. "Do not let her touch it until we separate."

"Escanor, the axe is yours. The battle axe Henrita. You shall be with Gowther and I."

"Diane, the warhammer Gideon. This is not it's actual size and be warned that it will grow as you do. King will help you manage."

"Meliodas, the demon sword Lostvayne. Ban will be best with you."

Everyone grouped together in their assigned pairs. "The person you are with is the one most adept at handling your magic powers in case things get out of control. If such a thing were to happen, merely separate the reincarnation from their treasure. That will nullify the effects. Until they can learn to handle it, the power will remain within their item."

"Why do I get the feeling this isn't going to be as easy as you make it sound," Meliodas quipped as he stared at the sword in Ban's hand.

"Because it won't be. If it were we wouldn't be dedicating a whole day just for this. I may even be stingy with giving you a day. It could take a week," Merlin answered. "Though, I am hopeful you all shall exceed my expectations," she smiled.

"Does it matter where we go?" Elaine enquired as she floated next to Elizabeth.

"No," Merlin paused. "Though I do recommend Diane and King move closer to the Fairy village. A barrier surrounds it keeping out unwanted eyes. Diane's change will be the most physically taxing given the amount her body will grow. She shouldn't be visible this far from the resort but…"

"The barrier would be our safest bet, gotcha," King nodded.

"Remember how to get there?"

"I'm sure we can find it," King dismissed the help. "I don't want to take away from anyone's time. If we need help we'll ask someone."

"Very well," Merlin agreed. "Escanor, Gowther," she reached out her hands. Each male grabbed the proffered appendage and the three of them disappeared.

"Whoa," Meliodas blinked. The realness of the situation started to set in. Sure he had gotten used to King and Elaine's fairy quirks over the past month, but seeing Merlin disappear? It really drove home what they were about to do. Up until now everything had been merely theory, only stories.

Now it was time to actually do something.

"Ready Capt'n?" Ban interrupted his inner thoughts.

"Uh ya," Meliodas nodded. He turned to the others. "See ya guys later," he waved.

"Good luck Meliodas, Diane!" Elizabeth encouraged them.

"You too!" Diane returned before she and King disappeared into the woods. Eliane led Elizabeth in the opposite direction.

"So, where we going?" Meliodas asked the taller man.

"Suppose we'll head this way," Ban shrugged.

He took a different path than the other two groups. Meliodas couldn't really be sure where Merlin and the others had gone, but he figured Ban knew what he was doing. He followed the Sin of Greed deep into the woods. If this had been only three weeks earlier, Meliodas probably wouldn't have done so, so willingly. But he had gotten to know Ban better during the course of their weekly meetings. The two had the most in common out of anyone in the room it seemed and it didn't take long for them to click.

"A little background info for ya before we get started," Ban announced when they came to a stop in an open clearing. "Diane may have the bigger physical change since she's a giant, but yours will be the most volatile."

"Of course it will be," Meliodas replied. Because why wouldn't it? The blonde couldn't say he was surprised by the news. He had been a demon right? That didn't exactly spell sunshine and rainbows for him.

"I'm also gonna go ahead and remind you that I can't die."

"Okay?"

"That being said, try not to kill me the second you touch this alright?" Ban grinned crookedly before tossing the sword at him.

Meliodas barely had time to process the statement, his eyes widening. He reflexively caught the sword.

A split second of silence and then he collapsed, sword still in hand.

Darkness coursed through him and he grit his teeth. Meliodas felt like he was being crushed. An unquenchable need to cause damage overtook him. He took a shaky breath, doing his best to push down the feeling.

"So~. How's it going?" Ban lazily asked. The blonde's head snapped up to look at him. No emotion showed behind the black that had overtaken the normally green eyes. "Well shit," the Fox Sin swore.

A beat later Meliodas cleaved Ban in half through the torso.

Meliodas dropped the sword, green eyes returning as he stared at the blood on his hands. What have I done? His mind was stuck on repeat. Did he really just kill his best friend?

"Fuckin' hell," Ban spoke, more annoyed than mad. "Thought I told you not to kill me?"

"Ban!" Meliodas shouted mortified as he stared at his friend cut in two. He dropped on his knees next to him. "Oh god, oh god, oh god."

"Hey," Ban demanded his attention, placing a hand on his shoulder. He squeezed forcing the former demon to look at him as he spoke, "I'm fine. Settle down."

"You're fine?! How can you say that? I just fucking cut you in half!" Meliodas bellowed as his body began to shake. "How are you not dead?"

Ban rolled his eyes. "Capt'n, I told ya. I. Can't. Die." He gave the former demon a few seconds to process. His body already working to mend itself. "I knew your power would overwhelm you and you'd probably lash out. I expected it okay?"

"You knew I'd try to kill you?"

"Yep. Can't think of too many times when you haven't when the darkness took over," he shrugged easily. "Ah, there we go," he grinned as his body finished repairing itself.

"If… if you knew I'd try, why wouldn't you run?" Meliodas asked. He couldn't fight the terror that had overtaken him the minute he had cut Ban down. How a part of him had felt almost.. giddy over the thought of killing. The feeling made him release the sword.

He may lose his breakfast in that bush over there.

"Better to let you get it outta your system," the white haired man reasoned as he sprung up off the ground.

"Letting me kill you so I get it outta my system? Do you have any idea how... How sick that makes me sound?" Meliodas glared up at him.

Ban's eyebrows furrowed, "you didn't do it on purpose."

Meliodas wished he could believe with a hundred percent certainty that what Ban said was true. But quite frankly, he couldn't.

"Honestly I'm surprised you were able to pull yourself outta it at all!" Ban slapped him on the back with a wide grin. "Great job there. Ready to go again?"

Meliodas swallowed past the lump in his throat. He was no way in hell ready to go through that again. But he was stubborn. People were relying on him to do this and he would do it.

He just hoped he wouldn't keep killing Ban in the process.

"Hmm," Elaine hummed as the two women sat down in a small vacant spot in the forest. "Where should we start…?"

She spoke the question out loud, but Elizabeth didn't really have an answer for her. The silverette assumed she wasn't really looking for one anyway. The former apostle of the goddesses was having a hard time grasping the reality she was in, despite her excitement at the beginning, learning they were preparing for a vicious fight and then seeing how it all came about, had set her on edge.

She already knew she was a healer from what everyone had told her of the past, but how could she train that?

"Oh! I got it!" Elaine turned to her with a bright smile. She snapped her fingers and a small potted plant appeared in her hand. "Here," the small blonde offered her the blue earring.

Elizabeth examined the jewelry cautiously, taking the cloth in her hand. It was sky blue in color with a star and crescent moon embedded within it. "It's beautiful," she whispered in awe. "I've never seen anything like it."

The fairy woman offered her a kind smile. "If I remember correctly, your eldest adoptive sister, Margaret, gave it to you on your sixteenth birthday."

Elizabeth's eyes snapped up, "what? Margaret? You're kidding!" Her excitement picked up despite the confusion on Elaine's features. "I have a sister named Margaret in this time as well!" The silverette explained in a rush. "And my other sister is -"

"Veronica?" Elaine answered with wide eyes. "Wow… I- that's just… wow." Her amber eyes drifted to the earring then back to Elizabeth. "It really is eerie how much things are like back then in some aspects…" Her voice trailed off, a sudden sadness in her eyes.

"Elaine?" Elizabeth asked cautiously.

"Ah, it's nothing. Just reminiscing a bit."

"Oh…"

Elizabeth didn't want to push if the blonde didn't want to talk about it.

"It's just... I wish you guys didn't have to do all this you know?" Elaine said with a sad smile (apparently she did want to talk). "It's really not fair to you, but…"

"You need us." Elizabeth followed her train of thought and Elaine nodded.

"I wish that we could just have days like yesterday. Where we just sit around and talk, enjoying each other's company." She sighed wistfully. The blonde fiddled with her hands in front of her, as if she was debating if she wanted to continue at all. "And… I've missed my brother. I hate that he had to do that. That I wasn't there when it happened. That I never got to say goodbye properly. We… weren't exactly on the best of terms before he left."

That surprised Elizabeth. From what she had seen so far, the two of them had a very good relationship. Neither of them seemed keen on holding a grudge from their feud last night. To hear that they hadn't been on good terms before he left was a bit shocking.

Though, I suppose not getting to say your piece and then having your brother suddenly disappear on you will do that, Elizabeth mused.

"Harlequin loves me, I know he does. But there was a time there when I wasn't happy with him for something he couldn't really control. I-I never really got a chance to tell him I was sorry for how I acted back then. I was a kid and I was mad and-"

Elizabeth wrapped her up in a hug. "It's all in the past Elaine. You two are together now and you seem just fine."

"T-That's because," she hiccuped lightly, "because he loves me. He has a kind heart and back then I-I didn't understand anything. I was so mad at him!"

"It's okay that you were upset," Elizabeth spoke, not even sure what exactly she was reassuring the woman about.

"B-but because of me, Ban and Harlequin-"

"No." She spoke firmly already having an idea where this was heading. "You can't blame yourself for any tension there. Really Elaine, I think they are friends deep down and still would be no matter what happened back then."

"Y-you think so?"

"Of course!" Elizabeth gave her a bright smile, glad the smaller woman seemed in better spirits. "They bicker like the oldest of friends! I think they just both get a bit protective of you and that's why their friendship isn't quite as open as Ban and Meliodas. But I think they'd be that way no matter what! It's just their personalities."

Elaine giggled. "That's true. They are quite contrasting." She grinned up at the silverette. "Thank you, Elizabeth. Now. Let's get started!"

She levitated the pot over, letting it collapse in Elizabeth's waiting hands.

The former druid frowned down at it. "Uh, what am I supposed to do with this?"

"Make it grow!"

Well, this wasn't going to be as easy as she thought.

Escanor was a lot more nervous than he should be.

Merlin had transported their little group of three to some mountainside that hung over the ocean. The blonde chanced a glance over the side, quickly backpedaling as he spotted the waves crashing, spraying white froth into the air a hundred feet below them. His back pressed up against the mountain side.

"I-Is this r-really the best spot to be training?" He choked out his question.

"Yes. This is the most remote location on the island," Merlin answered. "In fact, you can only get here with my help."

"B-but a cliffside?" He half heartedly argued. He was a bit at war with himself for doing so. On the one hand, he didn't want to fall off and, well die. On the other, Merlin said it was fine. "It seems a b-bit dangerous."

"While it is true that you were quite destructive in the past," Gowther commented drily. "It's unlikely the floor will give out from under us unless you manage to unleash about a sixth of your original power. Though," the Sin of Lust tapped his chin with a finger. "Whether or not you can access it, I cannot discern until you transform."

Escanor paled.

Merlin chuckled. "Tactful as always, Gowther." She shook her head, her raven locks swaying in a sudden gust of wind as her eyes shined with clear amusement. Escanor wished the moment would freeze so he had the time to describe her beauty on paper. Those sharp gold eyes turned on him and he got his wish. His world stopped for a few seconds as a small smile graced her lips. "Don't worry," she told him. "No harm will come to you as long as I'm here."

He wasn't worried about harm coming to him. Escanor's own well being wasn't something that was very high on his list of worries. Sure, he had a sense of self preservation (like most people, hence the trouble with their training area), but his concerns were different. When Merlin and Gowther talked about his past life, it was… terrifying.

They spoke of an unbelievable amount of power. A power that challenged the Ten Commandments and allowed him the strength to defeat a few in battle all on his own. The way Merlin spoke of him, if he had been alone he possibly could have taken all the Commandments if they were in a one on one situation.

But that wasn't how things had ended up.

The Commandments had blindsided them.

It shouldn't have been possible for them to even gain entrance into the Fairy King's Forest. The Sins foolishly thought they were safe there to plan their next move. King had tried to reassure them that they would be safe. He was wrong. They all were. When the Commandments had shown up, all hell had broken loose.

Merlin told Escanor that part of the reason they were even able to gain as much of an upper hand as they did to seal them away, was because of him. His magic was unheard of to the Commandments, a complete mystery. They showed up in the morning, not realizing Escanor was just reaching his peak. Even then, the Sins barely managed to seal them as the sun slid past it's peak, the late afternoon shadows dappling the ground.

Escanor was scared of that power Merlin spoke so highly of.

He was scared he'd hurt her.

Because his past life had something he did not have the luxury of right now. Time.

Past Escanor had had the chance to live with his mighty power. While he… well if Gowther was right, he only had a few short months to try and grasp it before the battle was once again thrust upon them. It wasn't something Escanor was very confident that he could do. A hand on his shoulder brought him out of his downward spiral.

"You'll do just fine," she reassured his unspoken concerns with one of her rare delicate smiles. "I know it's a lot to ask of you… but will you try? For me."

"Of course!" Escanor responded without any thought. Because if Merlin asked, he couldn't deny.

He walked over to his past life's battle axe and stared at it with new determination. Merlin needs me to do this. All of them are gunna need your strength. He spoke mentally. To whom, he wasn't quite sure. The axe, his past self maybe? Either way it didn't matter. Escanor reached out and firmly took a hold of Henrita's handle. Power coursed through him and he let out a loud gasp, but he grit his teeth and bared it for as long as he could.

Because for Merlin;

He'd do anything.

"Soo…" Diane started off as she followed King through the forest. She assumed he was leading her towards the village he and Merlin had talked about. "Hayden is fun huh?"

King glanced back at her over his shoulder, an indiscernible expression on his face, before returning his attention in front of him. "You could say that I guess."

"He's not that bad," she giggled as she quickened her pace to walk beside him. Her warhammer, Gideon, floated on top of King's Chastiefol on his opposite side. She eyed it out of the corner of her vision. It seemed to call out to her and she desperately wanted to touch it.

"No," King agreed, "he's just exhausting."

"Well you don't have to do too much today right?" Diane tilted her head as she regarded him. Honestly he looked far more rested than he normally did. She idly wondered why that was. She pushed the thought aside as she realized that she had slept in his bed last night. With him in it. "Just need to make sure I don't break anything," she beamed hoping to hide the growing heat on her cheeks.

He snorted, averting his gaze from her smile, "not sure that's possible." He walked a little faster.

"Why's that?"

"Unless I can find a pretty sizeable clearing, you'll be breaking some trees when you grow."

"King."

"Hmm?"

"Are you calling me fat again?"

King whipped around. The protest on the tip of his tongue died at the mischievous gleam in her eye. His jaw slacked as he gaped at her. "You're messing with me."

"Maybe." A smile tugged at her lips. A bush nearby rustled and as she looked at it, a short woman with dark, almost black, hair appearing. "Oh hey!" Diane called out to the stranger who paused, furrowing their brows at finding someone so deep in the woods. "King?" She whispered in his ear. "They're a fairy right?"

The auburn headed man glanced at the other woman and nodded his head.

"Perfect," she pulled back and regarded the dark haired fairy. "Would you mind showing us to a clearing near your village?"

The woman's brows shot sky high at the suggestion. Her green gaze shifted towards King and her mouth dropped. "Your grace!" She squealed, floating over to the pair in a rush. She bowed deeply in front of the stunned man before sending him a blinding smile.

Diane frowned.

"I can't believe I ran into you in a place like this! I wasn't in the village last night when you visited and I'm kicking myself for taking that extra night shift!" The woman fretted as she leaned in a bit closer to King then Diane would have liked.

Not that she'd tell them that.

"But what luck running into you out here! What is it your grace would like of little ole me?" She fluttered her lashes suggestively as King stared at her wide eyed. His amber gaze shifted to Diane and pleaded with the former giantess to help.

The brunette took that as her cue to step in (not that she needed his permission to squash this woman's plans of seduction, or whatever the hell she was doing). "Uh, excuse me?" Diane wriggled herself in between the pair. Her breasts practically in the woman's face while her butt grazed King's arm before he took (probably a panicked) step back.

The fairy woman scowled at her. "Can I help you?"

"Yes, you can," Diane put as much sweetness into her smile as she could muster despite her desire to throttle the woman in front of her for so shamelessly hitting on King. "I was hoping you could show us to a clearing near your village."

"Why? You aren't a fairy," she immediately fired back, placing her hands on her small hips. Her green gaze looked Diane up and down, studying her.

"You're right there. I'm Diane."

"Selma."

"Well, Selma," Daine started off slowly, "would you mind helping us out? We'd really appreciate it."

"We? You're with his grace?" Selma huffed as she quirked a brow.

Diane did her best to remain polite. "Yes, we are traveling through the forest together, looking for your village actually. Right, Harlequin?"

Silence.

Diane scowled as the woman in front of her began to give a smug smile. Instead of looking (and trying not to punch) Selma in the face, she turned on King. "Harlequin?" She tried again.

His amber eyes were curious as he examined her. A shadow passed through them that she barely saw but somehow quickened her heartbeat all the same. Diane racked her brain, trying to remember another time when he looked at her like that. Suddenly they crashed down on her:

Yesterday when I caught him naked in the shower.

Last night after the movie when he had felt my skin under my shirt.

When he returned from the fairy village and we talked.

We shared the same bed.

She let out a shaky breath and denied the feelings those thoughts were surfacing.

"You… said my name," he let out lowly, Diane's ears straining to hear. That simple sentence made her realize why he was acting so strange.

She had never used his real name before.

Diane flushed.

She used it so easily, it felt natural to her. But it was the first time she had ever said it aloud. Diane wasn't sure exactly why she had felt the need to call him Harlequin instead of King. Maybe it was because of Hayden's appearance? Or maybe it had to do with Selma so clearly attempting to flirt with him that she wanted to make it obvious they were together.

Her eyes widened, we aren't together! Hayden's comments this morning are getting to me.

A snapping of fingers in between her and King broke her of her thoughts.

"Who do you think you are to talk so freely to his majesty?" Selma growled distastefully at her.

"Huh?" Diane tore her gaze from King, barely catching the way his amber stare began to harden, to scowl at the women. "I'm Diane, we've been over this."

"You can't just call him by name!" Selma hissed.

"Why not?"

"He's the Fairy King! You're a human!"

Diane bristled, "what-"

"Enough," King commanded silencing their squabble. Both stared at him. "Selma was it?"

"Yes your grace!" She sang giving Diane a smug look.

"You really shouldn't be so rude to people before you know them."

"What?"

King's eyes narrowed at her and she took a step back. "Just because she isn't a fairy doesn't mean she doesn't deserve your respect."

"I didn't mean-"

He held up a hand, silencing her. "I know what you meant and I don't appreciate it. Diane is my friend and a fellow Sin. You'll do well to remember that."

Diane gaped at him hardly believing what he was saying.

Selma stared, dumbfounded. Her mouth open and closed numerous times. When she looked about ready to actually say something, King wrapped his hand around Diane's wrist. All words of protest died on Selma's lips as she scowled at their touching.

"Come on Diane. We can find the village on our own," he mumbled as he tugged her along behind him.

King pulled her through the forest, not speaking a word for a few minutes. It was all Diane could do to keep up with his effortless pace while not tripping on her own feet or the roots scattered across the forest floor. Her mind abuzz.

What just happened? She wondered as she stared at King's tense shoulders. "Harle-" she stopped herself. Calling him by his actual name had started this whole mess in the first place. "King?"

He halted at her voice and released his hold on her. "I'm sorry about that."

"Why?" Diane furrowed her brows. She shook her head, "if anything I should be apologizing."

"What?" King whirled around to face her. "No, you have nothing to be sorry for," he told her vehemently. "She was outta line thinking she could speak to you like that. Just because you're a human doesn't mean you're any less of a being then a fairy. It's absolutely ridiculous!" He threw his hands up in the air. "They've had how long to get over the stupid prejudices against other beings. They work with humans on a daily basis, I don't understand how that kind of thinking can still exist."

Diane's mouth dropped slightly.

He had defended her.

She blushed as she said, "I don't think that was her main reason."

"What else could it be?" King tilted his head. His tirade stopped by her simple comment.

"Ah, well," Diane pulled a pigtail in front of her face to hide the growing heat on her cheeks. "I think she was… jealous."

"Huh?"

"She was flirting with you and I…" she gulped, "I called you Harlequin when she called you your grace. She was probably more jealous of that then anything. You're her king after all."

King scowled, "I'm not her anything."

Diane couldn't help but giggle as a giddiness passed through her. She was more then happy to hear that King didn't seem to want anything to do with the woman. Mostly because she herself had been, well, jealous. Selma had just walked right up to him and batted her long lashes at the man. That right away had set her on edge.

"It's also stupid to think I'd get mad at someone for just saying my name," King mumbled more to himself, but Diane heard him all the same.

"So, you weren't mad when I said it?" She twirled a piece of hair around her finger, toeing the ground sheepishly.

"Course not," he quickly answered. "I was just… caught off guard is all." A splash of pink covered his cheeks before he could hide it from her. He turned around and said, "Elaine and Hayden are really the only ones who've used it in all this time... We aren't too far from the village now, I think. I can sense a large group of fairies up ahead."

King started floating away and she followed.

"Would it be alright if…" she paused, unsure if she should even bother asking.

"If what?" He didn't look back, gaze set firmly forward, but she could see the red on the tips of his ears.

"If I called you… Harlequin?"

King's eyes snapped to hers. She bit her lip anxiously, worried she crossed a line. Him saying he wouldn't get mad at someone for addressing him by his name was one thing. Actually calling him such was completely different. It felt kind of… intimate.

"Uh," he licked his lips. "Sure."

She blushed and felt the need to elaborate (on what exactly? She didn't really know), "I mean I would only do it sometimes! Like w-when we're alone or only Hayden's around. He already calls you Harlequin so it shouldn't be too weird for me to call you Harlequin. B-but if we're with the others, I'll probably still call you King. Those guys can be real assholes and would probably read too much into it if I started calling you Harlequin around them. Which is just stupid! I mean it is your name so I should be able to call you that without them-"

"Diane," King spoke, halting her rambling as he grabbed her hand. He squeezed it, giving her a small smile as he softly said, "you can call me Harlequin whenever you want."

Her heart beat hard against her chest. Amber and amethyst eyes locked and suddenly her mouth was dry. It was as if she had used up all her words in her useless blabbering and couldn't even give him any kind of spoken response. Blood pounded in her ears as she did nothing but stare at him stupidly. Diane just couldn't look away from the beautiful amber shade. That gentle smile he wore began to drive her up a wall.

It wasn't fair.

How could he do these things to her? She knew it wasn't on purpose. King was just being King and she was powerless to resist. She copied King's earlier action and licked her lips, hoping it would aid in wetting her palate enough to allow speech. His gaze followed the motion and Diane suddenly felt hot as the amber stare darkened.

"H-harlequin?" She spoke softly. One half of her was scared that her voice would break the moment, the other desperately wanting to understand him.

King sprung back from her, releasing her hand as if it caught fire. Red crashed harshly against his cheeks as he sputtered, "I- uh, I think that- the village- um, this way!" He spun around and took off.

Diane gawked at the sudden change. King hardly noticed as he disappeared behind a tree line.

"Ah! King! Wait for me!"

It didn't take the two much longer to find a clearing within the barrier Merlin had set up around the village.

King sighed heavily in relief.

Diane's training would be a welcome distraction from his episode earlier. Today really wasn't his day. Between Hayden's wake up call, running into Selma and, of course, King's own normal antics around Diane, he was ready to call it quits.

And it had only been a half hour since they left the group.

Wonderful, King couldn't help but grumble. Diane stood off to the side, wandering around Chastiefol and studying her hammer.

His mind, meanwhile, reeled from the scene he had made just minutes ago with Diane. What in the hell was I thinking? Touching her like that! I'm such an idiot! He mentally scolded himself, fingers lacing in his hair.

He had been so… surprised when Diane had called him Harlequin. His mind shut down and all he could think was she said my name. Like a moron he'd told her as such. Which caused the whole damn scene with Selma.

He scowled.

King hadn't dealt with such prejudice in a long time and the thought of it still set him on edge. Perhaps Diane had been right when she said Selma was jealous, but that would only be partially correct. King had come across enough of that kind of… disdain enough in the past to know there was more than jealously there when the female fairy had looked at Diane. Despite being positive there was more to it then Diane thought, King was glad the former giantess thought it mere envy.

He didn't want her to feel like any less of a person over what one of his own people had said.

It had reminded him of a time when he himself had been distrustful of humans. Which brought up a whole slew of memories he didn't want to recall. He shook his head in an attempt to quell that line of thinking.

"Harlequin?"

King found her immediately, silently cursing himself as Diane said his name. Each time it jolted his heart into overdrive. His palms became all sweaty and he fought the urge to tug at the collar of his hoodie as he felt impossibly warm.

At least if she asked he could blame it on the heat.

"Can I touch it now?" She tilted her head innocently as she regarded him.

King's mind went straight to the gutter. Images of Diane saying his name as she touched him flooded his imagination. He pinched himself harshly to dispel the fantasy. "Uh, yeah," he swallowed thickly. "Go ahead."

Diane beamed brightly as she reached for the handle. She grasped the hammer and squeaked as she began to grow. As she gained height, so did Gideon. "Ah!" She cried as she accidentally stepped back into a tree. The surprise made her drop the hammer, both of them returning to their smaller size.

The brunette dropped forwards on her hands and knees, breathing heavily.

"You alright?" King floated to her side. Gideon rested on top of Chastiefol once again. The hammer had grown large and would have formed a crater before returning to it's shrunken size if he hadn't of caught it.

"Y.. yeah," she told him in between breaths. "That's.. Not.. what I.. was expecting."

King quirked a brow at that, "what were you expecting?"

She flopped over onto her back and King did his best not to stare at her heaving chest. "I didn't think that… it'd be so exhausting."

"Well," King floated on his back, low to the ground. "You didn't even reach your full height."

Diane sat up and stared at him. "You're kidding!" She paused, still trying to catch her breath. "That's not… the tallest I'll get? I was up to the top of the trees!"

"The trees here are probably about fifteen to twenty feet," King glanced at the surrounding foliage thoughtfully. "You still have at least ten feet to go if not more."

"Ugh," Diane collapsed back onto the grass. "This is going to be a long day."

"Finally," Meliodas groaned as he collapsed in a chair. He and Ban had made it back to Merlin's and were now gathering around the table with the rest of them to eat.

One word summed up his training.

Horrible.

After the first murder attempt on Ban, Meliodas followed it up with several more. Each one he felt vile about while the Fox Sin assured him that it was fine. I'm called undead Ban for a reason, the white haired man told him. It did little to relieve his worries.

It had taken him half the day to get past the first initial wave of kill everything in sight. The other half of the day they devoted to him just standing there and fighting off said killing intent as long as he could. At this point he could make it up to a half hour.

Meliodas only hoped that the others had had better luck than him.

A/N: This chapter got a LOT longer than I had originally planned. Initially I didn't even have the chunks with Elizabeth/Elaine and Escanor/Merlin/Gowther written out. I had placeholders for them but wasn't sure where to go with them. After chatting with my lovely beta, we decided to include them. I'm actually pretty happy with what we came up with. The little insight into Elaine's mind explains her feelings on the past and heck even the present and maybe even why after all this time, Ban's still an ass to Harlequin XD It's all for Elaine's sake. King hurt her and Ban be pissed. Though not as much as he use to be ;) He's missed King as well I would think.

And Escanor. Writing him is always such a grey area for me. He's such an interesting character and I'll admit that I don't think I've studied him quite enough to do him justice. But his little chunk here gave you luvly readers a little more insight into the what transpired before the part Gowther showed everyone a few chapters back.

I'm tempted to apologize for the the amount of Kiane fluff in this chapter… but I wouldn't mean it XD. Take all the sweetness that is them and their awkwardness! I love them and I won't be stopping anytime soon! I really enjoyed this chunk because of Diane's casual use of King's real name. It's something she hasn't done before and neither of them realized the effects it would have. Plus, Selma. *laughs maniacally as she stirs the pot*

Anywho, this A/N got a lot longer then I wanted :| Apparently I'm long winded today. Ops. Thank you to everyone who continues to read, review, fav, and follow!

Luv~