As the guild-wide celebration slowly died down, a figure watched every moment. He did not move, nor speak nor barely blink until every member was gone from the celebration or passed out drunk. He wore an oversized black cloak with so much excess he seemed like a pile of cloth from the right angle. At this hour, and with his own skill, he was not seen by a single person.

"Disgusting beings." He spoke from his roof perch. He leaned against a stone chimney, which hid his figure well. "They think they can drink away their sins and drug their minds blank. They do not know that scars can't be washed clean. Humans are all the same..."

From within his cloak, he produced a stack of folders. He flipped through them before deciding on one and opening it. He took the attached pen and scribbled a hasty note before returning them to his coat.

"It's almost dawn, and my work here is done." He muttered, squinting at the brightening sky. It wouldn't be long until one could see the sun. He made his escape across the rooftops. His stride did not break between them. He moved like a phantom, with his concealing cloak and constant pace. He did not sense anything as he made an especially large jump onto Phoenix Crest's guild hall. He scampered past the spires and was leaping onto a residential house when he was hit by a comet.

Flint's flaming foot crushed the cheek bone of his adversary, sending him into the concrete. Flint landed firmly, his foot staying lit. "Who the hell are you and why are you sneaking around?!" The master demanded.

The cloaked figure didn't answer, merely rising into a squat position. Half his hood had been burnt off, revealing a masculine face now blackened with soot and partially burnt.

My fire hurt him? Flint pondered, but said nothing. The man scampered to the side, but Flint was quicker. He dashed, lines of fire rising from his trail, and knocked the man off his feet.

"Your lack of an answer only raises my concern." Flint growled, standing over the man.

"Flint!" The shrill, desperate voice of Flint's little sister cut through the air. Flint cried out her name and ran to the guild hall, where it was coming from. His captured suspect was completely forgotten as he rounded the corner where she should be only to find nothing. His head shot around, but she was nowhere to be found. Same went for his opponent, sadly. Something was not right.

"You're a fool."

Now it was two figures dashing across the Magnolia cityscape. They both wore cloaks, although one was now burnt in the hood and one was significantly smaller. The new cloak spoke with a feminine tone.

"Don't be dense, Envy. I could have taken Aspen out easy." Burnt Hood snarled. "You know I couldn't use any magic, especially not in front of him. You are lucky you got away with what you did."

"He had you pinned, I had no choice." She spat.

The two made it out of the town and escaped into their forest. After they were a good distance in, Burnt Hood leapt into the lowest branch of a tree and made his way into the canopy, where Envy soon followed.

"I have business to attend to; you have to deliver this for me to Era." From within his cloak, he produced the papers from before.

"I don't wanna be your delivery woman, I want to be the one on missions!" She complained. "Whatever, was the mission a success?"

"In every way." He smiled, flipping through papers as he spoke. Every folder had a picture of a Phoenix Crest mage attached and several pages of notes. "With my influence, Master Aspen called a competition. They competed against each other for some prize. It's funny really; they say they are allies but jump at the chance to injure one another for 'sport'. They all displayed their abilities, documented here."

"Excellent. Is Wrath in place with the next target?"

"Yes, he should begin within a few weeks."

"I'll head to Era with this." Envy stood from the branch, papers under her arm. "Be careful Van, I won't always be there to bail you out, even if I wish I could be out on missions..."

"Stop worrying." He snickered under his hood. "I'm the strongest out of us after all."

Da Fuq Was That Line Break :O

The weekend was over and it was back to work. During the week was when the members of the guild went on missions. Whether they be five day missions or several single day missions, they all tried their best to be back for the weekend to be with the guild. At this time, Ryder, Lilliana, and Fredrick sat in the guild hall together. Ryder and Frederick fiddled with a silver mechanism, while Liliana lost herself in a book. She didn't read much longer, for the door of the guild opened and closed behind Joy, who strode in with a smile. Her white hair was pinned up in a bun and she had the request in her hand while she strode to the table.

"I received your message, Liliana. You said you needed extra help on this mission?"

"Awesome." Ryder piped up. With Cross gone they needed to replace the muscle lost, and Joy was an improvement. The mission would be a breeze. "You ready to get going?"

"All prepared, and by the looks of it you are too." Joy smiled. Ryder wore a shirt and cargo pants, and Liliana wore a tank top and had her hair in a ponytail. "Apologies Ryder, but as an S-class mage I will be taking the helm for this mission." Although never explicitly stated, Ryder was always considered the de facto leader of the team Sterling Silver, same with Mason and his team Unicorns Are Mystical.

"Whatever..." Ryder shrugged with surprising apathy. "Let's go."

"Oh my, I thought that would have hurt your pride more." Joy chuckled as she joked. "Mason is leading a team, but you currently aren't..." She cooed. As far as Joy knew, Ryder was competitive and hated to lose to anyone, especially Mason. The two didn't really hate each other, but rather their rivalry just sometimes made them too bitter to be close friends.

"Let him lead..." Ryder shrugged, still grinning despite the joke. "And when he fucks it up I'll be sure to never let him live it down."

"Keep in mind that as an S-class mage, I will be assessing you personally and as a team in order to have better comprehension and decision making ability in future situations, should the need arise." Joy said, walking away. She rarely had the chance to spend personal time with this particular team. "The more I know, the better. It's important for higher ranking members to understand the whole guild, it helps us make better choices should the need arise."

"Alright..." Ryder shrugged again, remaining casual. "Although we'd probably perform better if my brother Cross was here."

"Yes, I know that he disappeared last week..." Joy muttered. Now that was a strange character. The master had personally explained Cross' condition to them, but that didn't stop him from constantly surprising her. "I know he has spontaneous excursions, but I still worry... Did he tell you anything, or leave without a trace?"

"Left without telling us a thing..." Ryder explained as he followed her. "I hope he hasn't killed too many people..."

"I wish you were kidding..." Frederick muttered. "At least the man has a moral compass, or else it would be a lot harder to trust him."

"I find Cross to be one of the most interesting in the guild." Joy piped up. "He is always behind the scenes, helping the guild from the shadows, with skills like no one else. I guess its best that he isn't in the spotlight, a man like him..."

"We'd certainly not be very popular if he was our front man..." Ryder said in agreement.

"Flint must agree, he spends half his time trying to keep your team out of the papers." Joy giggled.

"Keep Cross out of the papers..." Ryder corrected. "And likely out of prison."

"He's only been in there, what, three times? No matter where they put him he breaks out within a week." Joy laughed at the antics, for the actions were nothing more than antics when speaking of Cross. "Tell me, is it true that he wore a dress and snuck out as a lunchlady? That's the word around the guild about his most recent escapade."

"I honestly couldn't tell you." Ryder shook his head. "He has done so many insane things I really couldn't pin point a specific one. I just kind of nod and say 'Sure Cross' whenever he tells me how he's broken out of someone or killed someone in a duel."

Joy's expression fell. She remembered the exact way Mason look as Ryder spell almost tore through him.

"Ryder, Liliana, Frederick," She included the exceed with a bow of her head. "The night of the Scavenger Hunt... what happened between Ralec and Mason? We both know that I showed up too late..." Joy clenched her eyes and shook her head. "I knew Ralec was going to try something. I should have been ready, I'm supposed to protect our guild! I failed as an S-class mage..."

"No, I'd say Mason is the one who failed at being useful in combat..." Ryder said rather cruelly. "As always."

"That sounds a bit... much." Joy clenched her teeth and suppressed an outburst. There was clearly more to that statement than met the eye, er, ear. "Ryder, what exactly do you think of Mason? What is your relationship with him? Tell me not as Joy, but as an S-class mage."

"He's... annoying." Ryder picked his words carefully. "I don't dislike him, but he's too damn humble. He seems to me that he thinks that so long as he doesn't take pride in his abilities that it leaves him exempt from criticism."

"I would... agree." Joy said with difficulty. "I find that he's often so scared to fail that he holds back. It's as if he thinks if he doesn't 'play the game' he won't lose." Joy sighed. "He has a strange lack of competitive spirit, not often found in the guild. That is, unless he is frustrated or angry... then he seems to go back on everything he stands for. He will compete and fight blindly and without thought." Joy's eyes hovered over Ryder. "And you, my friend, frustrate him constantly."

"Good." Ryder said simply, becoming visibly more annoyed. "And in addition to that, I've heard he says that I'm better than him a lot. As if to say that I should be held more accountable for my actions just because I'm stronger than him. It pisses me off."

"You piss him off." She chuckled. "Think about what you know about Mason's goals. Find his dragon mother, just like you and your father I assume. So he sympathises with you and has a special connection since you are both Dragon Slayers. You're both seen as strong, but being a year older you've always been stronger than him. He wants to be respected, in and out of the guild, but doesn't think he can get it within your shadow. Aside from you he couldn't care if he's no better than Enzin-pardon me that was rude... But that's aside the point. What I think you don't realize is that even if he is constantly bitter towards you, he respects you in a light like no one else in the guild."

"You said search for my father..." Ryder said, calming down somewhat. "You are aware he's dead, right?"

The cabin went silent. The conversation had been only between Ryder and Joy while Liliana read, but now her eyes did not move across the page.

"Your father... I had no idea." Joy gulped. "I'm sorry I assumed, and I shouldn't have... "

"It's not a problem, it's clear you didn't know."

"At least with his mother Fraenah, Mason knows she's still alive. He told me a long time ago..." She said sheepishly.

"Well, lucky him..." Ryder said bitterly.

"Don't be childish Ryder, it's not his fault Argentile is gone." Frederick chided. "You two are guildmates, don't hold unfounded hatred."

"Well, unfortunately it's easier for you to say that then it is for me to do it..." Ryder retorted, leaning back in his chair. "But I don't hate him. It's just a bit difficult for me to sympathize for him or owe him anything when he actually has a chance to see his mother again. I was kinda robbed of that ability."

"Ryder!" Frederick scolded, knocking him over the head with his wrench. "Don't be ridiculous. Mason helps you in many ways, and you know it. Do you think you'd be where you are today if you two weren't constantly competing?"

"Yeah, probably!" Ryder said in annoyance as he rubbed his sore head. "I'm strong and smart enough to be able to find a way to get here even without him! Sure, he's been helpful, but I don't think it's exactly fair to suggest that I wouldn't be able to pull myself to this position without his help. It kinda undermines my abilities!"

"And what about the fight against the Ringmaster?" Frederick continued. "Or your wyvern slaying mission? And when he came to your rescue when you were trapped in a dark Mage guild hall?"

"I'm not saying I'm ungrateful to him for saving my life in those situations!" Ryder replied. "But I dislike having my abilities undermined because he's helped me in the past. In fact, we were able to do that because we worked together, and from his underwhelming performance against the piece of garbage, formally known as Ralec, I'd say I pulled a fair amount of the weight!"

"Ryder, there's no argument that you're powerful." Frederick rolled his eyes.

"Ralec's spell was unexpected and powerful, Mason almost defeated him. He just didn't account for a single hidden ace." Joy defended. "But I'm sure he will be working twice as hard now to become powerful since he lost."

"I agree..." Liliana piped in. "He has shown in the past that if he is defeated, he will come back stronger."

"Only for him to fail again. If he doesn't become more proactive it'll just be one after another with him." Ryder pointed out.

"I would say he is the opposite of Cameron." Joy pointed out. "Cameron will fight tooth and claw in every competition, no matter how small."

"Interesting to point that out..." Liliana said quietly. "I'd have to agree."

"We all saw that in the Scavenger Hunt." Joy giggled. "Despite how cool he acts, I think it's cute how he wants to be a champion."

"I'd say he did a decent job there..." Liliana pointed out. "Considering who he was up against."

"I think Dylan deserves our commendation, and that's saying a lot. Coming from a girl." Joy snorted. "He grinds every one of my gears, but he stood up to Xander and won."

"He's still an asshole..." Liliana and Ryder said in unison, causing them to look at each other.

"We all trust Dylan over Xander, and it's encouraging to see weakness from the latter." Joy sighed, propping her chin on her arm. "I've never done a portrait of Dylan, he's never let me." She began to trail off with her artist talk. "His firm expression, air of mystery from his staves, it could be a great work."

"I'm sure the guy has his reasons but that's no excuse for the way he acts towards women..." Ryder said with a slight scowl. "We're a guild... we kinda need to work together to accomplish things. How doesn't he realize that?"

"Dylan has his reasons..." Joy sighed. As Ryder would probably guess, she knew exactly what had happened in his past. He was a member though, and it wasn't good form to be bringing up everyone's buried past on a whim.

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Ryder sighed in response.

The train slowly lurched to a halt. Joy stood and recovered her bags. "I've enjoyed our ride, thank you for the conversation." She smiled. "And if you didn't, well, it could be worse. I hear Abraham is on a long train ride with Sandra... in the family cart."

Images of crying babies, flying food and running children flew through Ryder's mind."Dear God..." He muttered.

"She seems to enjoy his presence enough, I'm glad she has found comfort in someone." Joy lugged her suitcase.

"You don't think..." Liliana muttered

"I can't imagine..." Ryder muttered back to her.

"But Sandra would never be obvious about something like that..." Liliana continued. Their hushed conversation was not heard by Joy, who was a little ways ahead of the train aisle.

"Yeah, no shit..." Ryder whispered back while maintaining a shocked expression.

"I wonder if Abraham will act. I find it romantic when someone is open about their feelings..." Liliana flushed.

"Yeah..." Ryder whispered back, oblivious to what she really meant.

"Best not speak too loud about that with Joy." Liliana warned.

"I agree..." Ryder said with a nod, getting closer to her so they could be even more quiet. Joy smiled at the action, a blush dancing along her cheeks.

l_ 90 degree angle line break _l

"I'm gonna freeze the kids face till it's blue!"

"That's child abuse."

"What if I freeze over his mouth?"

"That's assault."

"If it doesn't stop crying I'll strangle it, I swear."

"That's murder!"

The conversation between Abraham and Sandra was lost. All around them sat wailing babies and frantic mothers. Children roamed the aisles without abandon. Food dominated the air, whether it was mashed potatoes or mushy baby food. Sandra sat with her arms crossed, fuming. She was so mad, it didn't even feel cold around her.

"You know, if you hadn't switched missions last minute we wouldn't have this problem." Abraham chided.

"Don't you get snippy with me!" She scolded, causing him to chuckle.