Whilst Eri and Hadiya shored up in Dublin town, and Cu Chulainn brought his forces closer and closer to the Irish coast to swoop in and try and save the city's people, Seiichi was silent and somber as he sat atop of Sakamoto. The wind softly ruffled through his hair as the Eastern Dragon continued to soar towards the green lands of Ireland, Seiichi trying to lose himself in meditation. Neither he nor Sakamoto had spoken for three whole days, and they'd be touching down at the home of a mighty prince soon, one who was sympathetic to monster causes, whose's compassion and determination had sent whispers to dragon kind's ears.

Having a soul of Determination was very rare indeed, and dragonkind very much wanted to have Prince Tobias speaking with them, and working for them in any capacity they could get him to. By hook or by crook, Sakamoto would get the prince to benefit his race. He intended to begin with the classic dragon standby…gold, treasure, shiny things. LOTS of them.

"We'll be at Tobias's estate soon." Sakamoto announced as the long expanse of Britain's fields passed down underneath. The skies were a dark greyish quilt of clouds that were occasionally broken up into little pieces of blue sky, it would no doubt rain soon. Seiichi glanced a bit up, a tiny jerk of his head as if trying to get a fly to stop landing on his skull. "I think you'll really like his city, we've heard it has a beautiful church with a monster who's voice is like an angel singing in the choir."

"I know your kind believes in religious freedom…" Seiichi found himself asking, the words escaping from his lips. "Do you have your own spiritual beliefs?"

"We believe in ourselves, of course. And of the power of the Soul, and of…something that comes after. What that is depends on the dragon. Some hold true to the idea of reincarnation, others believe in an afterlife. We feel people should be free to believe whatever they desire, just like they deserve a chance to do any job they feel. We allow women and children to do whatever work they feel like, there is no law that says a female dragon cannot fight in war, or become a smith, or even rule over any of us. Even children are allowed to if they so desire."

"Wow, women as full on smiths or warriors or leaders…the Buddha allowed women to be monks, they became their own "Bhikkhus", and a woman can reach enlightenment just like any man can, but the female monks have to adhere to more disciplinary rules."

"It would appear as if your Buddha feels women are more prone to temptation than men." Sakamoto mused aloud as Seiichi now slightly blushed. He felt a faint redness coming to his cheeks, and something went off inside him, a knee-jerk reaction, quick, nasty and unpleasant shot out of his mouth.

"Hey now, that's not fair! He's the Buddha, he achieved Nirvana itself, he knows what he's talking about and if he laid down those rules I'm sure he's got plenty of good reasons!" Seiichi insisted quickly, almost spitting the words out. "Th-that's just being unfair! Besides, so many other religions don't even let women BE monks at all!"

"What about nuns?" Sakamoto inquired with a rather nasty little chuckle.

"That's not the same, the nuns pretty much have to do what the male priests asks, but Buddhist monks don't have to take orders from the male ones, there's no power relationship! They share equal rights!" Seiichi defensively intoned. "I'd like to see Christianity do…do…" Seiichi trailed off, the realization smacking him in the face as he comprehended the words that had come out of his mouth. "Oh no. This is embarrassing." He mumbled as he hung his head. "I sound so…so…whiny. So smug. So…proud. I shattered the teachings of the Buddha on the spot just because I wanted to defend what I believed. I'm an awful Buddhist."

"You're not an awful Buddhist, you're simply a flawed person. And that makes you in good company." Sakamoto said as, at long last, an enormous city began to stretch out before them. They could see the immense cathedral of Lincoln, England, and the still-under-construction castle ramparts off in the distance. People had quickly realized a dragon was above the town and were murmuring and whispering to each other, others fearfully ducking into alleyways, hiding in buildings, terrified eyes bulging up at the halo-headed form above. Sakamoto could see a large banner procession in front of the church, and there, at the front, a holy man with a well-dressed monster that had a divine-looking robe at the front, a "puca", much like King Maecoal, lord of Monsters was. Sakamoto carefully touched down in front of the procession as Seiichi slid off, the dragon taking his more humanoid form to shake the priest's hand, along with the puca.

"We saw you were coming on the horizon and we prepared a quick procession to welcome you, good sir." Father White intoned. "This is Toriel, she's the most wonderful singer we have in the choir, and an ambassador of monsters, she acts as a liason between them and Prince Tobias."

"I'd be happy to bring you to him, sir." Toriel said with a deep bow. "We respect the power of the dragons."

The word "respect" was a rather strong one, despite those in town being aware that dragons were immensely powerful and skilled and beloved in the east, there was very much a distinct undercurrent of fear. Everyone had heard the tales about dragons swallowing up cattle and the like, snatching up farmer's prides and joys from their fields…and sometimes not just cattle either. They'd all heard tales of how dragons treated maidens. ESPECIALLY virgins.

But they all bit their tongue and tried to keep a nice smile up as Toriel's reddis/brown eyes took notice of the ponytailed, slightly tubby Buddhist boy to Sakamoto's right, standing a little behind him. "But if I might ask, who's this little one you brought with you?"

"Seiichi, please, no need to stand behind me." Sakamoto insisted, as the teen gulped somewhat, then stepped forward. "This is Seiichi, he's a mage. He has a unique ability to speak to any animal whatsoever."

"Any animal, really?" Father Michael and the other humans all around sounded intrigued by this power, Toriel looking delighted as she glanced at the nearby songbirds a-tweet-tweet-twittering in the trees to the left and right of the church entrance.

"Could you tell us what they're singing?" She wanted to know of Seiichi as he nodded and cleared his throat.

"They're trying to impress a woman." Seiichi glanced up and pointed at a bird's nest that had been put up on an outcropping on the church. "They're trying to sing the loudest and proudest to impress her. Unfortunately it seems like they've begun sneaking in insults at each other on top of that, like "My plumage is far brighter than his" and "my wings will keep you warmer in the cold of night", and-OHHH." His eyes went wide at the next bit of birdsong as he covered his face slightly. "S-Sorry, I can't repeat the next bit in public company."

"They're talking about their dick size, aren't they?" Toriel asked.

Everyone who didn't immediately snort with laughter did a double take in Toriel's direction as Sakamoto spluttered and gasped in surprise, Seiichi's mouth hanging open as he stared at Toriel. "However did you guess?" He wanted to know.

"I'm just perceptive on these things. Besides, I love a good dirty joke." She added with a little grin at Seiichi. "It's one of the reasons why Tobias and I hit it off so well, he's as immature as I am." She laughed before shaking Seiichi's hand. "But please, come, come, before we bring you to Prince Tobias, why don't we show you around our lovely town? Maybe you can even come for our 5'o clock mass? Father White welcomes ALL denominations into service, nobody is turned from Jesus if they are but willing to listen!"

"Well…okay." Seiichi hesitated but then gave a nod as he looked at Sakamoto. "You won't mind, do you?"

"No, no, I don't think I'll mind, but I am rather hungry." The dragon confessed as everyone around glanced slightly at each other or nervously bit their lip or cringed. "Is there somewhere I could, perhaps, get a decent meat pie?"

"I know just the place." Toriel offered warmly.

Meanwhile, Gaster, Leopold and Gerald had been spending an inordinate amount of time. Gerald had simply smiled a bit when Gaster had said he wanted to observe Leopold's further magic training, and now they were currently far out in the woods outside of town, Leopold taking in long, deep breaths as he steadied himself for a level of blue magic the likes of which he'd never tried before.

"I'm going to be with you through the whole thing." Gerald insisted as he firmly grinned, then took Leopold's hand. "Now, I want you to focus on the trees. Feel the rush of the blue magic within, feel yourself within those trees, picture it clearly in your mind, and then…let it come naturally. Up they go!"

"Right! Absolutely!" Leopold said as he clenched his free hand into a fist and closed his eyes as his long white hair fluttered in the intense wind that was whipping up in the woods. Gaster sat on a nearby rock, taking down notes on a notepad whilst at the same time in the middle of eating a meal he'd brought with him. Leopold sniffed at the air a bit as Gaster glanced up from the little plate he'd brought.

"What type of food is that?"

"Seasoned potatoes with carrots rapees, grated carrot, and made in a nice wine sauce." Gaster said as Leopold slightly drooled.

"Focus!" Gerald snapped his fingers as Leopold gulped a bit and blushed. "You can eat after we do this training! Gaster, if you'd be so kind as to…move maybe downwind?" He asked as Gaster nodded and went to go sit on a nearby rock instead as Leopold glanced a bit back at him again, then closed his eyes to try and focus on the trees. He clenched his teeth, his body faintly glowing with blue light before the trees began to quake and shudder and move about, and then…KRA-THA-BROOOOOOMMM!

With a thunderous, shuddering noise the trees around them began to be lifted into the air in an aura of beautiful blue light. Slowly but surely, they rose higher, higher, soon they were a good three, four feet off the ground and Leopold was sweating anxiously, the droplets of salty water flopping off his head and a-plopping down onto the ground below as he tried to keep the focus.

"Doing well so far!" Gaster complimented. "I've not ever seen you move anything so enormous, especially so much OF it!"

"Th-thank…you…" Leopold cringed, panting deeply, holding his fist tighter and together as Gerald looked into his pupil's face.

"Okay, okay, that's enough, we're going to ease them back into the earth the way they came." He said quickly as Leopold wiped his brow on his long-sleeve shirt he was wearing, panting heavily as he focused. He mentally pictured putting the trees slowly back into the spots they'd been uprooted from, the trees slowly beginning to fall back in place-

Until he accidentally lost his grip. A few of them flopped down too hard and tilted, collapsing onto their sides with loud, booming THUDS, one almost smushing Gaster as he let out a squeal, and his plate went flying, along with all the food he had left on it, and his notepad. "ACK!" He stretched out a hand, activating his own blue magic! THWOOP! He barely caught them in midair…

Well, almost all of them. The notepad went soaring and Leopold quickly reached out a hand as it almost landed in a spot of mud. THWIP! It slid right into his outstretched hand as he caught it, sighing in relief before he brought it over to Gaster, but as he reached out to give it, his eyes briefly caught a glimpse of what the skeleton monster had been writing.

"I keep noticing things about Leopold I didn't before. Whenever he's truly nervous, and isn't sure he can do something, he'll slightly curl one of those long, thick, pure, shining white locks of hair he has around his finger. But he'll then try to do it anyway because he wants to make sure he's living up to the standards of being a mage, and of being Gerald's pupil. I truly admire his dedication."

"Uh, here. Good thing it didn't go in the mud." Leopold said as he handed off the journal to Gaster, who took it back, glancing slightly nervously from it to Gerald's face. "I think I'm gonna wanna take a little break to eat something, Gerald."

"Fine by me, just fine." Gerald said with a firm nod. "I'll go get us some firewood and we can cook you something nice." He remarked. "Why don't I use one of the trees you just knocked over?" He added with a chuckle.

"Uh, no, how about uh…we'll make up a fire and you go get some herbs and stuff for a soup?" Gaster said quickly as Gerald chuckled and waddled his way on off, heading down a natural forest pathway as Gaster and Leopold took a bunch of fallen down branches and the like, picking them up and setting them together in a pile, surrounding it with stones. They reached down to pick them up, one after the other, but then-

Then their hands touched. Gaster and Leopold slowly looked up into each other's eyes as they felt over the texture of each other's hands, then slowly sat down as Leopold began to rub sticks together, starting up a fire.

"Um…uh, G-Gaster, are you…I mean…" He nervously chewed on his lip. "When you look at me, what do you see?" He inquired as Gaster laid his hands in his lap. The skeleton monster's face looked from the fire to Leopold, his black eye sockets slowly blinking, it was astounding how expression such a seemingly non-expressive skull could be. He took in a long and deep breath before he spoke, his voice quiet and hesitant.

"I've never really been interested in anyone whatsoever in any kind of…romantic way. Never. I've felt plenty of women looked pretty enough, but not really ever felt much more than that. But then there was that girl, who had such soft hands, and…and those entrancing eyes, who ran into me by the library. And when it comes to looking at you, I…I mean, when I think about how you make me feel, I realize I…I like seeing you smile. Every time I see you smiling, every time your hair flutters in the wind, every time I look at those beautifully deep eyes of yours, I feel warm inside, and it's like a wind begins to blow against my face to cool me off. I sometimes get…tingly too. Like a sort of…tingling buzz runs up and down my body, spreading out from my back." The skeleton monster admitted. "What about you?"

"I…" Leopold took a lock of hair, slightly curling it around his finger. "I don't know if what I'm going to say will help or hurt, but…I've not ever felt like this around anyone. I keep sort of…thinking about you. Even when I'm training. Sometimes I'll be in my room alone or sitting somewhere and I'll think you're right next to me, but you aren't, but…but I wish you were." He confessed. "Gaster, are…are you and I…?" He asked. "I mean…do you care about me in the way I think you do?"

"Do you care about me in the same way?"

"I…I think so. Yes. Yes, I do."

"I do too."

"So…we love each other." Leopold said as they slid closer to each other, soon sitting on the same side of the fire, their hands touching again, and their heads resting against one another.

"Yes. Yes, I believe we do." Gaster admitted. "You're a breath of fresh air. I feel like I could just watch you forever. I don't know why humans are such beautiful beings, but…you are. Especially you."

And then it happened.

SMMMMK. Soft, gentle lips pressed up against his cheek, for a brief moment, Gaster froze up. It was as if lightning ripped through his body, his whole frame seemed to freeze as he then slooowly turned to gaze into Leopold's grey eyes. His first kiss…and with a human. A lovely-looking human at that. He tried to form words, he tried to speak, to say something, anything but all that came out was a faint soft of raspy release of air, and then…

Then his own lack of lips were pressed against Leopold's, who softly closed his eyes. They held that moment tight to their chests, not wanting to let go and for a few moments, it was as if nothing else existed. There was no wind, no birds chirping in the trees, not a single sound, not a single thing existed but them by that fire.

And then they heard a faint "he-hem" and looked up, Gerald having come back with a small bag full of herbs and other vegetables as he shook it about. "Let's make a pot up for the soup, shall we?" He remarked. "Gaster, if you'd be so kind as to walk with me while I look for some rocks to hew into a big ol' pot?"

"S-Sure." Gaster nervously gulped as he rose up, Leopold smiling as he walked with Gerald down a natural forest pathway, the rather oddly-bodied monster quietly looking up at Gaster, then at the big boulder that was off in the distance. "Sir, I just want you to know, Leopold and I didn't do anything untoward. It was only a kiss, you have my word."

"I know how you feel about him. I think it's…" Gerald trailed off. "…I find it rather disgusting, skeleton monster. I'll be blunt. It's gross." Gaster cringed, it hurt to hear such bitter words being flung at him with such iciness, but then the next words out of Gerald's mouth made him stop in his tracks. "But you make him happy, so fine. Keep seeing him if you'd like."

Gaster stared at him in surprise. "If you think my feelings for him are so disgusting, why…"

"Him being happy will improve his skills. He now has someone to fight for." Gerald approached the boulder, knocking his hand against it before glancing back at Gaster. "This will do the most good for him as a mage. That's what I care about. Not whatever the fuck you feel like doing to each other, no matter how disgusting I personally think it is. I like humans just fine, but I don't think they're meant to really fall in love with monsters, but even so, despite how I feel…I KNOW letting you do this is best for him. So I'm putting how I feel aside for a greater good." He then smiled rather dryly. "But I'd like to ask you…would your own family be as accepting of this?"

Gaster hesitated as he approached the boulder, focusing his blue magic on it, taking big, large chunks away from it as best he could, creating a large pot made out of stone. "I…doubt it, sir."

"Then for the sake of a greater good…keep it a secret." Gerald added. "And most definitely do NOT tell your brothers. I've heard all about Garamond. He'd cut Leopold's head off in a second."

"Yes, sir."

…

…

…

…My name is Abel Rogers. I write this on behalf of a shared journal of pain, suffering and hope. In the event that nobody gets to our city in time, I want this to be a testament to what we endured here during a siege by the king of monsters, Maecoal.

Ms. Erimentha and Ms. Hadiya explained who Mr. Solomon was. As a spider monster with considerable weaving ability he agreed to help shore up defenses, and to provide weaponry. It took him hours upon hours of spinning to create club-like weaponry, hardened webs of spider silk made to patch up holes in walls, or forming shields. He's currently bone dry and needing to wait, but he says he truly can't wait, we'll need more for torches and similar weaponry, so to replenish himself, he's trying to drink much more water.

We've taken to boiling a lot of ocean water to help with our water supplies. I dug and dug and dug an enormous hole, one of several, and added in a gigantic pot. We offset the lid ever so slightly, and then put in a separate container. The boiled off water will condense on the inside of the lid, then run down the side into that second container to make nice, fresh water without salt to drink.

We do need the salt though, to ensure meat doesn't go bad, so we're putting that to use as well. Some rather stupid morons suggested drinking urine. Needless to say we decided the simplest way to have them learn was to let the dunces try it themselves.

Once they'd finished puking, they agreed to just help make more water distillation holes. Still, it wasn't a total waste. Once we realized how sick they were going to get, we decided to get them above the ramparts of our city walls and we aimed them at some monster guards patrolling down below. King Maecoal was furious at us for this. The bunnies below had no idea what they were in for, by the time they finally thought to whip out their bows and arrows, we'd already taken off, laughing at them all the while. Now they have to waste some precious water of their own taking a bath.

We're making do as best we can. We've decided to ration out food until help can arrive. A lot of us also set up "hungry days". Days where us who've decided to make the sacrifice don't eat more than one meal a day. Either breakfast or dinner, usually. Today my only meal is some hard tack I saved from my ship, a bit of bacon, beans, some cheese, and some water.

I know people worried that, perhaps, Solomon would get hungry and try to eat people. But luckily he's thought up a plan if things get bad. He intends to start sneaking over the wall if need be to grab up other monsters.

I hope it doesn't come to that. But he proposed the idea so quickly that I don't know if he's terrified of being put to death before he goes mad with hunger…or because he doesn't have any sympathy for monsterkind at all.

At night, sometimes, when we are all around our fires and keeping watch, Erimentha and Hadiya will tell stories of the gods and goddesses of their lands. I'm always saddened when they get to the tale of Medea. It's a horrifying, cruel, monstrous tale. The woman was in desperate love with the sailor Jason, who led the Argonauts. She betrayed her Father, King Aeetes of Colchis, because he wouldn't give Jason the golden fleece. When he finally got it, Medea distracted her father and allowed Jason to fled as they killed her brother. She cut him up into pieces, tossing them all over the island because she knew that unless her father put them back together, he couldn't get a proper burial. Then when she and Jason and his men made it back to the island of Thessaly, she uses magic to trick the king of the land's daughters into thinking they could make the old king young again by dismembering him, then making him into a soup! Then after having many, many children…it went horribly. Jason abandoned Medea for another woman, and she ended up not only killing the children she had with Jason, she sent the other woman, Glauce, a golden dress and coronet that was a trap. When Glauce put it on, she was set on fire. And it killed the princess AND the king, who rushed to try and get it off and burned to death too.

The moral of that story seems to be that had Jason been loyal to her, and had King Aeetes been true and kept his word, none of this would have happened. That going back on your word will only ever end in agony and despair and horror. But to see so many people suffering so horribly to get that across…

Erimentha and Hadiya tell it well, though. Everyone's transfixed, their eyes wide, all huddling together as the ladies describe the tale. Erimentha in particular is a master storyteller. One day, she'll no doubt write all about what happened here and the story will be told for eons. In fact she's writing the next entry tomorrow.

Hadiya does admit to me privately sometimes she gets somewhat creeped out at how much passion Eri puts into describing the more frightening, terrible aspects of the story, but she says Eri just gets so wrapped up in it, that she understands. She wanted to know more about the God my people used to worship. I told her she really didn't. He was a horrible, monstrous thing.

And the worse thing is I can still hear him.

At night, he's out there in the deep. His voice is like squishing bugs, bubbling up from below, from the dark, terrible depths. He's been watching me for so long and he refuses to let me go so easily. I was glad to leave my home, I thought I could ignore him, just leave him behind, forget about him. He will not let me. He insists upon himself.

And he keeps getting louder…