Title: Of Flowers and Cabals - Part 1

Description: One morning Marc finds Nah praying to Naga, and before either of them no it they are on a quest to find an elusive flower, Naga's Bell, to give as an offering so the Divine Dragon will grant Nah's prayer. Little do they know a certain Cabal of Justice is watching from the shadows, whose antics might very well derail the whole thing.

Notes: Takes place two months following A Future Disowned and a few weeks following A Future Undone parts 1 to 5.


Marc blinked and rubbed his eyes as he padded through the palace hallways. It was early morning, the sun having risen little more than an hour before. Through the hallways he could hear the castle's other denizens stirring the begin their day's activities. Soon the whole place would be filled with people bustling here and there, far more than usual with almost the entirety of the second generation of Shepherds visiting after a stint patrolling the countryside.

While it was nice to catch up with friends, Marc honestly missed the peace and quiet. It was so hard to get some time alone to think. That was why he'd gotten up as early as he did, aiming to slip off to one of the courtyards and get some early morning practice in before things got too loud and hectic.

Marc sighed, stepping out into the crisp, cool morning air. In the trees and bushes the chirping of birds could still be heard, still active despite being deep into the fall.

It was then that Marc noticed that he was not alone. Evidently someone else having had the same idea as himself. Stepping around the tree that had partially blocked the person from view, he saw that it was Nah. The small manakete sat hunched in the middle of the grass. Her head was down and she was completely still, her back to him.

"Nah, are you alright?" Called out, quickening his pace a bit as he approached her. "I just saw you hunched over and-" Marc started to say, stopping as Nah suddenly stiffened, turning to regard him with a questioning look.

"Um, yes? Should I not be?" She asked, her expression perplexed.

"Oh, sorry. It's just that you were hunched over and... I thought you may be sick or something," Marc explained, suddenly feeling rather embarrassed. Now that he thought about it, there were honestly a billion more likely explanations than the conclusion he'd immediately jumped to.

"No, I was praying," Nah answered simply.

"Praying?"

"Yeah, to Naga," Nah confirmed. "Naga is an incredibly important deity to the manaketes. Among us it is said that if you pray to her, she'll guide you to happiness. Which is what I was trying to do just now."

"Wow, sounds impressive! She must be awfully busy with that many people praying to her every day," Marc replied, smiling. "Well, not too busy I guess, since she found the time to help me when I went to see her a couple weeks ago with Mother… Yeah, now that I think of it it's not all that surprising, she is really nice."

"Yeah, sounds about right." Nah nodded politely, smiling back. "Despite how busy she can get she still takes time to speak to my kind every so often. She spoke to me just now, actually."

"Wow! What did she say? Oh, and tell her I said hi. And thanks for before," Marc added quickly, not wanting to be rude. Didn't want her to think he was ungrateful or took her help for granted. Marc's hand brushed over Falchion's hilt, his fingers tingling as they brushed over the warm and practically radiant metal.

"Kids your age shouldn't be up so early."

"Ha ha! She's a real mother hen alright!" Marc laughed, shaking his head. "So, um, can I ask what you were praying for?"

"What I normally wish for. Happiness, continued world peace, that sort of thing," Nah answered. Lowering her hands, Nah scrambled to her feet, dusting off her skirt a she stood.

"And did she respond?" Marc asked.

"No. She never does when I ask for that," Nah answered. Her smiles shrunk slightly at this, her expression seeming almost disappointed.

"Well, I'm sure it's nothing to worry about," Marc interjected quickly, worried he'd upset her with his question. "I bet it's just because the world's already saved and we can all be happy now. Yeah, I bet that's it. Or maybe it's her way of saying we shouldn't rely on divine intervention. We need to build happiness with our own hands," he offered, trying his best to remain upbeat and

"Hmm... Maybe so. That's certainly a very Marc-like interpretation," Nah said. She dipped her head in a short nod of thanks, her smile returning. "When we met you I thought you were a bit of a mope, but you really are just gung ho and optimistic as your sister when you get right down to it."

"I can't say I see it that way, but it means a lot to hear you think so, Nah," Marc replied. He averted his eyes, feeling his cheeks burn. "Not that I don't try to be, despite how hard it is. It's all about building your own happiness, right?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, Marc. I didn't mean to bring that up," Nah interjected quickly, bowing her head in apology. I forget sometimes that you went through it just as bad as the rest of us did. Worse even."

"It's a-alright, I don't mind it, honest," Marc said quickly, waving his hands in front of him. "Really, it's nothing to worry about. Things aren't perfect, but, they're getting better, you know? Things are getting better, he repeated silently, letting the words echo through his consciousness. He needed to keep telling himself that, remind him of it as much as possible. He had to remember.

Had to do what he could to make it true.

Nah nodded in apology, but otherwise said nothing. For a long moment neither of them spoke, an uncomfortable silence falling over the courtyard. Only the whisper of the wind in the leaves, the singing of birds, and the far distant voices from other parts of the castle could be heard.

Marc shifted awkwardly in place, holding his arms stiffly at his side. He opened his mouth to speak then promptly shut it again, afraid that if he opened his mouth he'd say something to offend her. He really didn't want to do that, if he got her upset… well, he wasn't sure what he'd do but he knew how he'd feel. Horrible, just horrible. Like the most rotten person ever. It was probably better if he just said nothing.

Yet…

Yet he kept returning to what she'd said before, to the disappointed look as she told him how Naga has never answered her prayers. He had to do something about that, he couldn't just leave her without some bit of hope, without trying to do something. An idea occurred to him then. It was a simple idea, not particularly of any great note... but perhaps it was worth a try.

"So, um, Nah. I hate to intrude if it's not my buisness, but I have an idea. For your prayer problem, you know? Maybe the two of us could try, together, I mean.. If both us pray together she's bound to give you a response," Marc offered, his words awkwardly flowing from his lips. His face burned again and he rubbed the back of his neck, looking away.

"I… I'm not sure if that would work or not. It's worth a try I suppose," Nah said.

"What, really? Great!" Marc grinned from ear to hear. He'd honestly been expecting her to decline his offer, making it rather difficult not to cheer like a fool out of sheer excitement. So he'd just have to stick to grinning like one. "So, how does this work? Do we just kneel down at start talking to her or what?"

"Just about. Though generally you start with saying something like "O great and wise Naga" out loud and then go from there," Nah answered.

"Well, you're the praying expert here, I'll just follow your lead and see how this goes," Marc offered, taking a step back to give Nah some space.

Nodding, Nah lowered herself down, kneeling in the grass. "Right. So first you kneel and cup your hands in front of you like this." She intertwined her fingers, holding them upright before her.

"Like this?" Marc asked, mirroring his movements.

"Yes," she nodded again. "Then we begin the prayer, speaking the first words softly before offering up your prayer. We do this by concentrating as hard as we can on the thing we want and emptying our minds of everything else. Repeating it in your head over and over helps a lot."

"I think I understand. Will there be some way to know if Naga has heard us, or do we have to wait for a response," Marc asked.

"Depends. Sometimes she says something to me, but other times I just get the feeling she heard. And there are times I don't even get that," Nah admitted.

"Aright," Marc replied, biting his lip anxiously. "Well, I guess there is nothing for it but to get started, huh?"

"Yes," Nah answered. "Now, repeat after me." She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "O great and wise Naga, hear my prayer…"

"O great and wise Naga. hear my prayer…" Marc murmured, pouring every ounce of his concentration and heart into each world. He squeezed his eyes shut, his entire being fixed onto that one idea, that one wish: Nah's desire to for continued peace and happiness. Please, Naga, I ask you, make my friend Nah's wish come true. If there's something, anything I can do to help make it so, please, just tell me. I want her to be happy. And I want everyone to be happy, just like she does, please.

Again and again he repeated that thought, letting it become a chant. Doubts began the claw and bite at the edge of his consciousness, but he pushed them aside, forcing his mind to remain clear. Nah said he needed to remain focused and free from distracting thoughts. He had to stay focused on his prayer.

It was as such that seconds turned into minutes and minutes turned into a dozen or more. Still nothing happened. Neither did Marc hear a reply nor did he get any sense that someone was listening. He began to feel rather foolish, as if he'd been deluding himself in thinking his own prayers would be anything of note to the goddess.

Besides him he heard Nag shift slightly, stirring from her trance once more. Figuring that meant the prayer was over, Marc opened his eyes, turning to her solemnly.

"So, um, did Naga respond to you? Since I didn't hear anything, so I guess..." Marc trailed off, disappointed his plan didn't seem to have panned out like he hoped.

"Actually she did respond to me. Not sure why you couldn't hear what she said, though," Nah answered.

Marc's expression brightened at once, his eyes lighting up with fresh excitement."What, really? What did she say?" He asked, practically shouting as he found himself hopping up and down in excitement.

"Yes, she responded, but not exactly the revelation I was hoping for. She asked me for more offerings!"

"Offerings? Like what?"

"A flower," Nah replied."

"Oh? That doesn't sound too difficult. Any particular kind?"

"Naga's bell. It blooms once every 200 years, and only beneath a full moon…" She trailed off, her smile faltering, her expression becoming uncertain. "...That's what the legends say, at least. I've never seen one for myself. They only grow in remote, craggy terrain far removed from human settlement."

"Wow, nevermind on the 'not too difficult thing," Marc said, frowning too. "That's a pretty tall order, now that I think about it. Very specific, too."

"It's suppose to be near impossible to find. I'm afraid Naga's given me a doozy this time…" She sighed, shaking her head. "But you can't exactly ignore a direct request from a deity, right? Still… at the moment I don't even know where to start looking. Can't help but think I'm doomed to fail this one." Nah's frown deepened with each word she spoke, her shoulders slumping. She looked so sad and dejected, Marc couldn't help but feel for her. He knew what that was like, to feel small and helpless, your goals insurmountable…

He couldn't let her feel like that, it wasn't fair. She just wanted to find happiness like everyone else. And if getting this flower helped her do that, well, he'd have to do everything he could to make sure she succeeded.

"Hey, don't give up hope just yet," Marc said quickly. Reaching out he grabbed Nah's hands, lifting them up to hold them out between them. "I'd help you look for it. Between the two of us we are bound to find one of these Naga's bells, as long as we try hard enough."

"I… you'd really do that?" Nag asked, lifting her head to meet his gaze. She smiled slightly, a little bit of hope returning to her. "Thanks, Marc, that means a lot to hear that from you."

Marc felt his face burn, hotter and brighter than before. He opened his mouth to say something, only to find his throat suddenly dry, he words coming out as little more than a stuttering squeak. "Gee, I-I... " He tried to swallow. Every nerve in his body screamed for him to look away, but he stayed where he was, keeping his eyes on her. For once his resolve to keep from doing something embarrassing and his fear of offending her in some way mastering his awkwardness. "That, m-means a lot too me t-too. You saying that, I-I mean, not what I s-said.

He swallowed again, his throat as dry and parched as a desert. Despite his discomfort he forced himself to smile and continued. All the while he still held onto her hands "I'll have to do some research first, but I-I promise. We'll find this flower, even if it takes forever. I promise."

. . . . .

"What's going on? What are they doing," Cynthia whispered behind Morgan's ear. Or at least attempted to whisper. As always the Pegasus Knight's usual exuberance made anything requiring subtlety, or silence, a rather difficult task.

"I think they're..." Morgan paused, straining her head and neck to get a better look at her brother and Nah. "Yep, they're totally holding hands. They're holding hands guys," Morgan answered, stifling a giggle. They look so cute!

"Uh oh," Cynthia uttered, her eyes widening. Next to her Owain opened his mouth to speak, only to be shut down as Cynthia wisely covered his mouth with a hand.

The three of them were seated in the Ultra Secret Lair of Righteous Justice: the usual meeting point of the Justice Cabal. The base was... well, it was basically a large wooden shipping crate the trio had hidden in a corner of the courtyard. Morgan herself had employed her, rather considerable if you asked her, talents at disguising pit traps and the like to obscure the clubhouse from prying eyes. She'd partially buried the crate to keep it lower to the ground and covered the rest in a net of leaves, branches, and vines. The only openings were the tarp covered "doorway" that allowed them to crawl inside and the rectangular peephole Morgan was currently peering through.

"What's 'uh oh'? Should we be worried?" Morgan asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Should we be worried? Should we be worried?!" Cynthia exclaimed, perhaps a bit louder than was necessary. Okay, a lot, but Morgan wasn't one to talk in that regard. "Of course we should be worried. If Marc and Nah get together, that means less time for us. Think of the future of the Justice Cabal!"

Morgan scrunched up in forehead in an attempt to raise her eyebrow even further. It didn't work too great, or so she guessed. She'd need to check a mirror later to be sure. "Why would that be a problem? Last time I checked all three of us are dating someone and we have lots if time for the club. I'm dating the philanderer, you're with Mr Broody Stormcloud, and Owain is with Miss mommy issues," she finished, counting off each of their respective partners on her fingers to illustrate her point.

"Well yeah, sure, it's fine for us. But we're dedicated enough to make time for the Cabal. I'm not too sure if Marc has that kind of commitment," Cynthia answered in a huff. "Second off, we only just expanded our number when he joined us. We need to retain this kind of growth! It's important."

"Hey, I think Marc is plenty dedicated. I'm sure he'll make time if he and Nah get together. Besides, you didn't see how cute they looked together. Cuteness like that is worth the risk of less cabal time."

"I'm not convinced," Cynthia frowned. "Besides, look at Owain over here, he is a founding member and sometimes he has no choice but to miss out if meeting whenever Severa gets her claws in him"

"Hey, that is both unfair and demeaning to infer any man or woman holds dominion over the unshakable will of Owain Dark," Owain exclaimed, even louder than Cynthia had spoken before. He stood, or at least the best he could in the headquarters' cramped condition. He raised a hand over his head for dramatic effect... and smacked it against the top of the crate. Owain yelped, wincing as he shook his stinging fingers. Then without missing a beat he continued, acting as though nothing had happened.

"Even if love unyielding binds my heart with that beating within the chest of Severa Moonborn, never can I let my feeling cloud my judgment or falter in my endless quest as a chosen hero of justice," he proclaimed, covering his face with one hand in one of his, rather silly looking if you asked Morgan, poses. "Nay, I will never- No, cannot be enslaved by such perilous feelings. Not when-"

"Owain!"

The three of them jumped at the shrill shout. It had come from just outside the Justice Cabal headquarters, the voice unmistakingly belonging to-

"Owain, I know you're in there," continued Severa, her tone bringing to mind a vivid image of the red head rolling her eyes and scoffing. "You were supposed to take me shopping today, remember. Quit playing with your friends and let's go already"

"But Seveeeeeraaaa, we're busy plotting heroic deeds for the betterment of our glorious cabal," Owain whined, practically shouting back.

Morgan winced at the volume of his voice. Frantically she spun back to the window, peering out intensely. Yep, just as she feared, Marc and Nah had stopped talking, the shouting having altered then to the group's presence.

There goes the advantage of secrecy.

"Besides, this is a secret base. Only members of the justice cabal can know it's location!" Owain continues indignantly, oblivious to the disaster he and Severa's volume was inflicting upon their carefully laid plans.

"News flash, Owain, everyone knows where your little clubhouse is," Severa retorted, her voice carrying another eye roll. "What are you even doing in there, were you-" she stopped student, before shouting. "Were you spying on Nah and Marc!? How creepy can you get. Is Cynthia and Morgan in there too?"

Oops, cover blown. Opening her mouth to say something, Morgan nearly yelped in surprise as Cynthia clamped a hand over her lips. At the same time her aunt grabbed Owain by the ear, yanking him closer to him.

"Listen here, you're taking the fall for this one, mister," she hissed sharply so that only Owain and Morgan could hear. "You're going to tell her it's only you in here. Then you're going to go with her on your stupid date and not ruin the entire plan, got it." She pulled on his ear harder, eliciting a sharp nod from Owain.

Huh, that's actually a pretty good plan. Man, I must be slipping, not thinking of that, Morgan mused.

Cynthia released Owain's ear, allowing the swordsman to scramble upright and do as he was instructed. "It is of no concern, as it Is merely I, Owain Dark, alone... By myself... Yep. Alone," Owain shouted back in a positively stilted fashion. Cynthia groaned under her breath, covering her face with her palm.

"Yeah, sure, whatever. Now are you coming or do I have to drag your sorry butt out your little playhouse or whatever it is."

"The Ultra Secret Lair of Radiant Justice is not an-" Owain began to argue.

"Not now, Owain," Morgan and Cynthia hissed in unison, cutting him off.

"Sorry, I'm coming," he muttered, crawling towards the exit.

"Good, glad to see you're being reasonable," Severa grumbled. The shuffling footsteps announced the couple's departure, Severa more likely than not pulling the uncharacteristically silent Owain along behind her.

Once they were long gone the duo sighed and slumped in relief.

"See what I mean," Cynthia said, turning to Morgan.

"Hmmm," Morgan answered, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. "Yes, hmmm, yes, you do have to point here. It would be prudent to ensure the vice-grip of committed relationships do not further distract from the Justice Cabal… but…."

"But…" Cynthia prompted, drawing out the word to urge Morgan to continue

"But as an awesome big sister like myself, I cannot in good conscious do something as cruel as to sabotage his lovelife. Not when they looked that cute. Seriously, you saw how cute that was, right? Totally super cuteness," Morgan explained, grinning

"So you're not going to do anything?" Cynthia said, pursing her lips and puffing out her cheeks in displeasure at this answer.

"I wouldn't say that…," Morgan replied, her grin growing ever wider. "I just said I wouldn't ruin things. We're still going to prank the heck out of them. If something as trivial as that messes things up between them then we'll know they didn't belong together anyways and Marc can spend more time with us! If they do stick it out, then we can be satisfied that we tried and failed in the face of true love! We win either way!"

"Fine… I suppose that would be reasonable," Cynthia relented, releasing a pent up breath with a side. "These pranks better be good though, if you hold on the A-grade material I will be sorely disappointed in you."

"Who do you think you're talking to?" Morgan laughed, jabbing a thumb towards her own chest. "You are talking to a prank expert. The expertest of experts in the art of the prankt. Trust me, Cynthia. What could possibly go wro-"

Morgan's words would cut short as spoke from just outside the bushes, their voice carrying through the foliage and all throughout the wooden crate.

"Is anyone in there?"

. . . . .

"Umm, is anyone else in there?" Marc repeated, eyeing the bushes where he knew the Justice Cabal clubhouse, sorry, secret headquarters, were hidden. Truthfully he sincerely hoped that no one else had seen him fumble through talking to Nah, how he'd held her- He shook his head quickly. No, Owain seeing it was bad enough, if anyone else had…

For a moment it seemed like his fears had been for naught, nothing moved and the courtyard remained silent. He probably had just imagined hearing voices just then: the whole Owain ordeal and the embarrassment that followed had just put him on edge. Yeah, that's all it must have been.

Then, just as Marc was about to sigh in relief, panicked screams from at least two people cried out in unison, splitting the peace and quiet.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!"

"What do we do, what do we do what do we do!?" Cynthia's voice cried out.

"Our cover's blown! Run for it!" Morgan's voice answered, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Where!?" Cynthia replied, the panic in her voice intensifying with each passing second. "If we go out there now they'll be sure to see us!"

"I'm on it!" There was a loud pop, almost like a firecracker. A pull of smoke billowed from the side and the front to the structure hidden in the bushes.

"Morgan! What *cough* did you *cough* do!?"

"Smoke bo- *cough* bombs. I made them *cough* myself. Cool *cough* huh?" Morgan answered cheerily between fits of choking sounds.

"You're supposed *cough* to *cough* throw it outside! How does this help us!?" Cynthia screamed, her cry dissolving into wracking coughs.

"Oh *cough* *cough*, duh. On it!"

A hand shot out from the flap that led into the crate, tossing a handful of clay spheres into the grass next the bushes. A series of rapid cracks filled the air, sending out clouds of a opaque smoke.

"Now go, go, go, gogogogogogogo!" Morgan urged. Through the smokescreen Marc could just barely make out his sister and Cynthia scrambling over one another, nearly toppling over more than once as they attempted to shove each other out of the way. Then they were gone, slipping out of sight through the hole in the outer wall their grandfather had made some years before.

Marc and Nah simply stared dumbly through the whole ordeal and some time after, unsure how to really react. Or at least, that's what Marc hoped it looked like. He couldn't speak for what Nah was thinking, but right now he wanted nothing more than to curl up somewhere and die of embarrassment. They'd seen him pray with her, and hold her hand, and blush, and… everything!

"What was that all about?" Nah asked at last, the manakete's gaze still fixed in the direction the two had run off in.

"I-I am n-not sure. I d-don't really… It's n-not important, I think," Marc stammered, turning away quickly.. "I guess w-we better get cracking, if we're going to find this flower. I'll be in the library then. I find you as soon as I figure something out." He called back to her quickly as he made a hasty retreat, not wanting her to see how his face had turned completely scarlet in embarrassment, or how much he was shaking. He didn't even wait for an answer.

Only once he'd reached the safety of the castle library did Marc slow, his pace becoming a walk before he stopped entirely. He slumped against a bookshelf, letting himself slide down it until he was seated on the floor. He yanked the hood of his coat down over his face, holding it in place sat there,.stiff and mortified by had happened. He already screwed this up, he knew he had.

Why couldn't he do something, just once, without making a fool of himself?


Author's Note: Well guys, a lot of people requested this one and here it is: the first of a two parter showing how Marc and Nah became a couple. Now, since I figure it wouldn't interest some people as much as others, I figured it would be a good idea to intercut it with Justice Cabal shenanigans, which were honestly an absolute blast to write. The next part will likewise keep to this some topic, cutting between Marc and Nah doing stuff and to Morgan, Cynthia, and Owain being idiots. It should be fun

As always please take the time to leave a review and let me know what you think. Hearing back from you guys is a real help, as knowing you are out there reading and enjoying this story is a huge motivator for me to keep going.