"Hello, dear."

Alarmed, Varian immediately grabbed the sword without a second thought, the soft, second-lasting glows and that sense of completion always there. He turned to the right, toward the source of the voice. But all he saw was the faint silhouette of a short woman with two big pig-tails, sitting behind a curtain with a light blue glow surrounding her.

"I see you're awake already. Are you feeling any better? You and your friends went through quite the ordeal." She said gently. From her voice it was clear that she must have been pretty old.

"Who are you? Wh-Where are Rudiger and the princess?" He asked and took a step back, eyeing her with uncertainty and question.

The woman was silent for a moment, her gaze fixed on him, studying him with a hidden glee.

A real young wizard of flesh and blood, standing right in front of her...! And based on that colored streak in his hair and the glow she saw before, he must have been a pretty special case. Maybe one of the others had made a family... He did say he knew Gothel, and (in a way) their master... However, her attention quickly drifted to the familiar sword in his hand.

Is that... a shadow-blade?! She thought shocked, as she felt a sudden pain in her chest, and that warrior's face flashed across her eyes, growling dangerously:

"You have already taken so many of us! You won't take him too!"

...Some things were just so bitter that couldn't be forgotten. Not by the mind, not by the heart... not even by the body.

And the questions inside her were even more bitter: Why was he holding this damned weapon? And how did he got it, to begin with?

"Answer me!" Varian demanded, getting impatient.

She gave a soft chuckle, dismissing her thoughts. "Oh! I stared. My apologies, but... I just couldn't help it. It's so nice to meet you in person." She said, her tone quickly getting somber. "It's been so long since I've met someone..."

The young alchemist lowered the sword, but held it tighter, looking confused more than anything else. "What do you mean?"

"...What's your name?" She asked, ignoring yet again Varian's questions, which really started annoying him.

"...Varian. " He answered after a moment of silence, which probably lasted too long.

"Varian..." She repeated "What a unique name..."

"Yeah, it is." He said quickly, not bothering to hide his annoyance this time. "Now would you mind telling me who you are? And what have you done with-"

Before he could finish, the woman blew in her palm and a soft warm wind touched Varian's face, whispering 'I am a friend.'

He looked directly at her in surprise, putting the sword back in its sheath. "Y-You're the one that helped us before?"

"Indeed I am. You may call me Mrs. Sugarby. As for your friends, they're fine. But I suggest we let them rest."

Rudiger woke up next to the princess, who appeared to also be coming to.

"Mmm... What... What happened...?" She mumbled sleepily, before noticing the critter beside her. "Oh. It's you. Where's that lowlife? And where are we?!"

They looked around in sudden alarm but there was nothing to be seen, other than walls and a torch that was barely lighting the small room.

Rudiger immediately felt crushed by terror, because this situation was far too familiar.

An encounter with that creature, followed by waking up in a dark room... without any way out... and without Varian!

They both exchanged a worried glance and rushed to a wall, slamming their fists against it with all the strength they had, while desperately screaming for help (or chittering in Rudiger's case). Although this time no one heard.

Or perhaps someone did. And made sure that no one else would.

"Please, have a seat." Sugarby said, stretching her fingers, and suddenly a piece of the floor next to Varian started rising, slowly taking the shape of a wooden chair.

The young alchemist didn't say anything. He could only stare in bewilderment and curiosity. Something that didn't go unnoticed.

Sugarby couldn't help but smile at his reaction. He was really easily impressed. He reminded her of someone...

"Well?" She motioned to the chair.

"Oh! Heh... right." Varian said and quickly sat, with a small, awkward smile on his face.

"...Would you like something? Perhaps a spot of tea?" She questioned, and poured some tea in a cup from a small teapot.

Before Varian could say anything, a tray with the teacup on it had appeared before him. He didn't really like tea, but that scent coming from it was so beautiful... and so familiar... And besides, it would be rude to say no.

In the end he reached out and took the cup, thanking the woman. He brought it close to his face and took a sip, immediately feeling a lovely, flowery taste in his mouth, while that sweet aroma enveloped him in a warm, gentle embrace. And as he was lowering the cup, he couldn't help but feel like he could hear something, at the back of his mind.

Someone speaking. And someone else laughing.

But who they were... and what were they talking about... He had absolutely no idea.

"What's wrong? You don't like it?" Sugarby suddenly asked, realising that something was troubling him.

"Huh? N-no, that's not it. I-I mean- I... I do like it, it's... delicious. Really. It's just..." Varian stammerred nervously, feeling her expectant gaze resting on him (even though he could only see her silhouette.). "... I was wondering, what tea is that?" He asked, wondering what exactly triggerred that flash.

"Why, it's rose tea." She replied with a smile echoeing in her voice."I personally like lavender tea better, but this. This has a very special place in my heart. I remember me and my family having it almost every day. Before..." She stopped, her smile fading.

"Before what?"

She was surprised he hadn't realised what she was talking about, but continued nonetheless.

And before she did, she slightly growled, glaring at the sword. "Before they tore us apart...!"

"They?" He inquired, hoping she wouldn't react badly.

"Our enemies. A savage group of people who have always been hunting us down and forced us into hiding. Simply because we were stronger than them. Different than them." She hissed darkly, pain and anger ringing in every word.

Varian shifted uncomfortably on his chair. Even though it wasn't in the same extent (or even in the same context) as her, he knew how that felt like. That feeling of being different and forced to hide it. Of being rejected because you couldn't fit in. He had to face them nearly every day, and especially when they were forced to move because of him.

"...And one day... we decided to end this. We wanted to show them that we could be trusted. And so, on a cold winter's day we invited them to a reconciling feast. That was our biggest mistake." She carried on, feeling again that pain in her chest. "We decided to trust them, despite all they did to us... We let them inside our home and fed them... And how do you think they repaid our generosity?!" She glared at him, her eyes glowing white for a moment, as the pain grew stronger.

Instictively, Varian's hand moved to the side, ready to grab either the sword, or a stick-bomb from his satchel. However, he quickly withdrew it, when he realised she had been staring at him.

A stunned silence lingered between them for a moment.

Varian rubbed his arm, avoiding to look at her, the expression on his face something between shame and worry.

"I...I-I'm sorry." He said softly.

"They attacked us...!" She continued, choosing to ignore what just happened and how it hurt her. Soon it wouldn't even matter. There was rage still in her voice, but not as intense as before."That night... was the last time I saw my family. Many of them were killed. And I almost was too..." She took a look at herself, after speaking the last sentence, which somehow felt pretty strange to say out loud. "A half-faced warrior hurt me and left me down this pit, leaving me for dead. I barely survived and found refuge in this tree. But when I thought, my torture was over... I was assaulted and imprisoned."

"By that creature that attacked us before. The one on that pillar, right?" He asked, curiosity (momentarily) replacing his uneasiness.

"No, no." She shook her head, speaking more calmly. "They're not the same. The creature that imprisoned me... that imprisoned all of us... I don't know what it looks like. But I know that it can't be who you saw on the pillar."

"You mean, you know who that is?"

"Yes. Our first master. Zhan Tiri, who was banished by those monsters a long time ago..."

The young alchemist felt a chill run down his spine. If she was an ally of that creature, that was causing him almost the same uneasiness as Gothel, something wasn't right.

"But the point is, that right now. We're all caught up in thesame mess. And if we want to get out of it, we'll have to work together." Sugarby said, moving closer to the curtain. "So what do you say? Will we help each other?" She extended her hand, expecting a handshake.

Varian said nothing. He just stared at her hand unncertaintly, worriedly.

"My dear, is something wrong?" She asked coming closer, and Varian immediately stood up, placing the teacup on the ground next to the chair.

"Uhh, sure! But, um... I think I'd better go get... my friends first...!" He said quickly, turning to leave.

But suddenly he stopped, feeling something cold and sharp piercing his wrist, while all feeling in his hand was lost. He looked back worriedly, (afraid of what he might see) and saw an arm coming frombehind the curtain. A light blue, transparent arm, its wrist ending on his own as if they were joined together.

He tried to pull away, but the arm was pulling him back, and no matter how hard he would try, he couldn't move (or even feel for that matter) his hand.

"I don't suppose you were leaving now?" Sugarby smirked stepping out of the curtain.

And there it is! Finally, the first chapterof 2020! I really hope you guys enjoyed it! I gotta go now, but, I'll see you soon! Bye- Bye! Please leave a review. :)