Author's Notes

I know I said I'd stop apologizing for chapters being late, but I just can't help myself. Sorry. :I

And now, Reviews!

GiggiEba, well, perhaps. You'll find out soon. If you think that was a turmoil, then hoo-boy is this going to be wild. :D

ThinMint, yeah, pretty much. Thank you for not spoiling anything. :)

Guest, thank you! You're about to find out.

Anywho, let's get on with the story!

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Darkness's POV

I played absently with a dagger made from my black flames, twirling it over in my hand. I was sitting atop a boulder a little ways away from my troops, under the shade of a tall oak. I heard footsteps behind me, and I turned to see my Argonaut general staring at me with barely-concealed pride. The wither skeleton cleared his throat.

"My liegé it is ready. The bridge has been finished."

I stood up quickly, a grim form of happiness flowing in my veins. The dagger I had been holding fell to the ground and went up in flames. I walked past my general, back towards the chasm that had stopped us for so long from attacking the clans.

The rest of my generals were lined up beside my monster army, waiting for my command. I approached my Necronaut general, who had been in charge of the endermen that were building the massive cobblestone bridge. I nodded at the bridge.

"Is it safe to cross?"

The general nodded. "Indeed, my lord. The endermen made sure it wouldn't collapse under our combined weight. A hundred iron golems could walk across it and the bridge would not so much as shift."

I smiled and walked to the front of the bridge. From above it didn't look like much, but gazing far below revealed how complex the bridge truly was. It was anchored to the walls of the chasm with multiple rock poles, which were connected to support each other like a massive dull spiderweb. I stood up on a nearby boulder to look down at my troops and raised my hands.

"My armada! It is time, at long last, to continue our journey!"

A chorus of roars and hisses bounced off the stone surface of the mountain. I felt pure glee. "The construction of the bridge has been concluded! Now we must cross, and continue marching to Veridon City!"

More sounds of monster triumph.

I drew my sword, the magma-stone still imbedded in its hilt, and pointed the black blade at the other side of the bridge. "Onwards, my troops! To victory!"

An even greater outroar followed my the sound of many feet stomping on the ground, all of my monsters moving as one shape over the large stone bridge. I walked up to my Necronaut general again. "Where is the mutant enderman, General?"

"I believe he is still at the bottom of the chasm, my liegé, likely toying with rocks."

I nodded and walked up to the edge. Upon closer inspection, I realized that the mutant enderman was indeed at the bottom of the chasm. It was simply standing there, probably not knowing what to do. I kicked a pebble down to attract the monster's attention. It looked up at me with its large purple eyes, and I gestured for it to come up and out of there.

The enderman warped to stand beside me at the lip of the chasm. I walked further inland, for safety reasons. The enderman stood where it was. I turned to face it, hands clasped behind my back.

"I must congratulate you for such a stellar job. However, there is another task I need you to accomplish."

The enderman knelt down and bowed before me. I could not help but feel satisfied with the creature. "You have built for me, but now I need you to destroy."

The monster looked up and waited for my orders. I pointed west. "If you travel in this direction, you will encounter a valley framed by mountains. The plains in the center harbor your target. A tall building, three stories tall, was built there." I leaned closer to the monster. "I want you to tear it down, and slay everything in your wake."

The monster stood up slowly and roared into the sky before warping away. I watched as purple particles drifted down onto the snow-clodden earth. Then I turned to face my army. "Faster, troops! Move it! We have no time to lose!"

Even if my monster somehow failed to kill my brother, I'd still arrive at my target long before him, and it would be too late to save the clans.

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Valory's POV

We all crowded around Adrian's cot in the med-bay, much to Izabell's displeasure. The wither skeleton looked pale and weak, his eyelids a sickly green. Lila had found him like this on the floor of his room, having gone to look for him when he didn't show at breakfast. I helped her haul the boy down. Lila would spit curses at me if I so much as bumped him against the stairs.

Now she shadowed Izabell, staring worriedly at the poor guy. The slime girl had many times told her to buzz off and let her work properly, but Lila would simply bark back with just as much ferocity. She only stopped nagging when Izabell had threatened to stop treating Adrian. We were all worried for him—well, most of us anyway.

Jack watched from the doorway with an angry-looking poker face. The stray hadn't said a word the whole day, not even to greet us. After some time, Thomas finally managed to convince most of us to leave the room. So now it was only Izabell, Lila, me, Jack, and Simon in the far corner, fetching more ointments or cloth pieces.

Izabell finally sat back on the edge of a bed beside Adrian's and sighed. "Okay. What happened to him?"

Lila didn't look up from the wither skeleton's face. "Is he going to be okay?"

"I can't tell you if I don't know what's wrong," the slime girl said.

Lila looked up sharply. "I thought you were a medic. How can you not know what's wrong with him?"

"I was a medic in training. And I do know what's wrong-"

"Then why are you asking?" Lila snapped.

Izabell took a deep breath. Simon placed a hand on her shoulder, and she visibly relaxed. "What I meant to ask is how it happened. Adrian was poisoned," she explained. "I can't cure the poison, not with the simple remedies I have here. If we had milk, or a brewing stand and nether wart-"

"So we only need milk? Then let's go get some!"

The slime girl looked like she was about to strangle my sister, but Simon broke in. "It's not that simple, Lila. All of the animals have migrated to warmer locations, and that includes cows. We cannot harvest milk if we don't have cows."

Lila crossed her arms and glared at the creeper boy. "Then we'll find some cows and milk them."

"I already told you, there is no cows left nearby."

"Let's take one of the airships! We don't use them that often anyway, and we could cover more ground than on foot."

"What part of they've left can you not understand-" Iza began. Simon silenced her with a look.

"It'll be fine, Lila," I told her, trying to soothe her nerves. "He'll get better."

"The poison's not lethal," Izabell commented. "He'll be weak for a few days, and should wake up tomorrow."

Lila still looked worried. Scared. "How do you know?"

"It's a very common type of poison," the slime girl explained. "It's the kind some monsters produce. If I could brew potions, I'd be able to help him get better more efficiently, but I don't."

My sister jerked her head up. "I know! We can go to the nether to harvest stuff for a brewing stand!"

Everyone, except for Jack, stared at Lila like she had grown a third eye. "We can't do that!" I told her.

"Why not?" She glared at me in the way that indicated she wasn't letting the idea go. "Do you not want to save Adrian?"

"Of course I do!" I told her. "But you must remember how dangerous it is! And not just because of its regular dangers, but because Darkness, the demon, is currently living there! Remember those armored zombie pigmen that attacked us when we rescued Kaitlin? There's probably a hundred of those over there!"

Lila glared at me but didn't say anything. "Also," Izabell said, "we still haven't found out how exactly Adrian was poisoned."

"I know."

We all turned to face Jack in surprise. The stray still had that angry poker face on. His dark-grey eyes were trained on Lila. He uncrossed his arms, took two steps forward, and pointed at her with a finger. "She did it."

Lila looked shocked. "What? No I didn't! Why would I poison my best friend?"

Jack's frown turned into a scowl. "I thought you were more than friends, now."

My sister blinked at him and then returned his glare. "What would you know, stray?" She spit the word out.

"I saw you two last night," Jack answered, seemingly unfazed. "I heard you apologize for something, and knowing what you were up to, it's pretty clear to me what happened."

Lila's anger drained, as well as most of the blood, from her face. She looked uncertain now, as she cast a worried and guilty glance at Adrian's unconscious body. Izabell inspected the wither skeleton's face and then turned to search Lila's gaze.

I hugged Lila protectively, glaring at Jack. "What are you talking about? Lila would never hurt Adrian!"

Jack didn't take his eyes from my sister. "Not intentionally, I agree," he said. "But people tend to get carried away when distracted, don't they Lila?"

I moved her behind me, narrowing my eyes at Jack. "Leave her alone."

Izabell walked up to Adrian's bed and inspected the wither skeleton's head more closely. She turned to search Lila's eyes after a little while. "Lila?"

My sister looked up at her sadly. "What happened last night?" Iza asked.

I held onto Lila tighter. "You don't really believe Jack's accusations, do you?"

Izabell didn't look away, and neither did Lila. She looked just about as miserable as I'd ever seen her. The standoff lasted a few seconds longer before Lila heaved a sigh. "Jack's right, Val," she whispered. "I'd never hurt him on purpose."

Izabell's gaze softened. "Tell me what happened, Lila."

My sister slumped against me. "We were... kissing... last night. I had been... worried, I guess, for the past couple of days because of something that happened between us and... he walked into my room to talk about it. So... things escalated quickly and I... I got carried away and... bit him." She breathed out the last few words, barely audible.

I held her tighter. "It's okay, Lila, it's fine. You didn't mean it. It was an accident."

Tears started walking up in her eyes, and her bottom lip trembled softly. Izabell looked at Simon, who simply shrugged. I glared at Jack. The stray looked guilty for a split second before his poker face returned and he left the room. Simon walked up to us.

"We can travel to the nether if you'd like, Lila. Izabell knows how to make instant healing and regeneration potions. It won't cure Adrian, but it'll help him get better. I'll ask Thomas to organize a patrol of sorts since we clearly can't all go."

Lila's eyes brightened. "Really?"

Simon smiled at her. "Of course. He's our friend. And Z's been itching to gather brewing materials anyway. We need to build the portal up first, though."

My sister wriggled from my grasp and headed out. "I'll ask Eba to help me!" she called over her shoulder.

Izabell sighed and placed her head on Simon's shoulder. "Are you sure that's smart? Going to the nether?"

The creeper boy shrugged. "It's smart, but not exactly safe. I'd like to try my own hand at brewing. And Adrian does need better medicine since we have no chance to find any milk."

I turned away as Izabell muttered "Yeah, I know." I was having trouble knowing what to feel like. On one hand, I felt bad for Lila and Adrian. On the other I felt angry at her, and myself, for being so... reckless. And distracted. I should have payed more attention last night so Jack didn't find out what happened. And I also felt mad at him, for being so mean to Lila.

I bid farewell to Simon and Izabell before walking out of the med-bay. Lila was talking with Eba at the dinner table. Jack was nowhere in sight. I took a chance and walked outside, scanning the snowy plains. There was a single set of footsteps leading into the forest. I followed them all the way to a lovely little hollow, where a withered tulip stood in the center. There was little snow here, surprisingly. I found Jack sitting on a log nearby, turned away from me.

I walked up to him and sat on the other side of the log. Jack didn't take his eyes off the dead tulip. "Why are you here?" he muttered. "I thought you hated me now."

I inched closer. "I don't hate you, Jack."

"You didn't believe me." He looked up into the sky. "You stood up for Lila. And you looked so angry."

I shifted a little, not liking his tone of voice. It sounded... hollow. Dead inside. "She's my sister. I had to stand up for her."

Jack looked at his feet. "My brother never stood up for me. And he would beat me if I stood up for him."

I placed my hand gently on his shoulder, and he twitched ever so slightly. "I'm sorry to hear that."

The stray didn't look up. "Don't be. That's over now."

I wiggled a little closer. "You've never told me about him. Your brother."

He shrugged. "You never asked. I don't mind talking about him much."

"What was he like?"

Jack blinked and sat back. "He was the worst. Him and his little gang of idiots. They were always pestering everyone, especially me and the poor. But everyone liked him. 'Oh he's so charming', 'oh he's so great at this or that', 'oh he's the perfect heir to the throne'. And I was... ignored, mostly. By everyone."

I rubbed little circles on his shoulder with my thumb. "That must have been awful."

Jack nodded. "It was. But, now that I think about it... there was one person who cared. An archer, Meadow... she taught me how to use a bow. In fact, the one I carried? That Flicker chewed up? It was hers. She was like a mother to me."

The stray looked and sounded so vulnerable. "What happened to her?" I whispered.

"I don't know," he answered. "She moved away. To Malachite, I think. A slime city. She gave me her bow a couple days before with a note that she told me not to open until three days had passed."

"What did the note say?" I asked, burning with curiosity.

"'Hello Jack', it began. 'Please, forgive me for not telling you earlier. I moved away, to a different city, to live with my fiancé. I know how hard life is for you, and am terribly sorry for not having stayed. But I know you'll be a great person once you're older. You will make mistakes, but that is what makes us human. Learn from those mistakes. And let the ancient lords guide you wherever you go. With love and respect, Meadow."

Tears welled up in Jack's eyes. I smiled at him. "That was nice of her."

He wiped the tears off his face. "Yes. I had never earned the respect of a warrior. It felt nice to know she thought so highly of me."

"And... what happened to your brother?"

Jack slumped again. "He died. Committed suicide, actually."

I gasped. "Oh, lords, I'm so sorry."

The stray shrugged. "It's fine. I miss him, for some reason. Despite him being the absolute fucking devil."

I couldn't help but ask. "Why did he kill himself?"

Jack shook his head. "I don't know. I guess he thought himself invincible. The idiot drak poisoned wine on purpose."

"How do you know it was on purpose?"

"Because I tried to warn him. 'Don't drink that! It's poisoned!' 'I know, Jackass', he said. 'So what? Imma drink this and you can't stop me' 'uncle troyel will be angry if you do!' 'That's funny, Jackass. Uncle Troyel loves me. If anything, he'll get pissed at you for not stopping me' 'but I am trying to stop you!' 'Fuck you', he said, before downing the entire fucking bottle."

I moved my hand down to place it on his wrist. "That sounds horrible."

"It was." He looked tired. "His face turned green and his eyes looked like they were ready to pop out of their sockets. He started foaming at the mouth and scrabbling at his own throat. It lasted for a full ten seconds before he passed out and died."

I shuddered, not wanting to imagine that. "I'm sorry," I told him again.

"It's alright. It's actually the reason why I'm out here to begin with. My uncle, the skeleton king, wanted to hang me in public for a crime I didn't commit. So I ran away. Both Sarah and Adrian were sent to fetch me, but I guess Thomas changed their minds."

"Yeah."

We sat there in silence for a little while. Jack finally looked at me, albeit out of the corner of his eye. "Why are you doing that? Not that I'm complaining, but still."

I blinked at him. "Doing what?"

He nodded at my hand, which was still lying on top of his. I had been rubbing his with my thumb without noticing or meaning to. I stopped and pulled away, feeling heat crawl up on my cheeks. "Sorry," I muttered.

The stray searched my gaze and smiled faintly, placing his hand atop both of mine. "Like I said, I wasn't complaining. But I would like to know, Val."

I felt myself blush further. "Know what?"

"What you think of me. What you think in general. You are a very open person, but it's... I can't explain. It's like you're all over the place, unsure of what to do."

"What do you mean?"

Jack smiled again. "I know you wanted Lila and Adrian to be together. But you still convinced me to try talking to her about how I felt. And I don't understand what that was about."

I felt even more embarrassed, and I was probably glowing bright red at this point. "Uh... w-well... I had a plan... sort of." I whispered the last few words.

Jack shifted closer. "What plan?"

I squirmed under his gaze. "I... I-I like you, Jack. B-but you liked Lila, so I... had to do something. I thought that, If I got Lila and Adrian to... hook up, and then you tried talking to her, you'd be... you wouldn't like her anymore. And then you might start paying attention to me..."

The stray chuckled. "That's one hell of a master plan."

I inched away. "Don't laugh. This is embarrassing."

Jack shook his head. "I know, I know. Sorry."

I waited expectantly for him to say more, but we kept silent. Finally, I gathered the courage to ask. "S-So?"

He raised an eyebrow. "'So' what?"

"Um... Wh-What do you think? About... what I told you."

Jack nodded. "Ah. Right. I... I don't know."

"Y-you're... you're not mad?"

The stray heaved a sigh. "No, I'm not mad. I do feel hurt though."

I cringed back. "Really?"

"Yes." He looked away. "You made me follow Lila around when the whole thing was hopeless to begin with. When you could have simply told me how you felt. You didn't need to dissuade me from liking Lila. And I still like her, despite this. Because I can't change how I feel on a dial. Because love is complicated as hell."

"Oh." I shrank back, feeling like a horrible person. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't be," he soothed, pressing the back of his hand against my arm. "I know how powerless it feels to watch a crush run after someone else."

I sighed. "Is this going to be awkward now? Being friends? Since you know how I feel?"

The stray removed his hand and stared at the sky once again. "No. I feel honored, but I'm not ready. I've forgiven you, but I'm not ready to forget. You understand, don't you?"

I blinked at him, not knowing how to feel. "Y-Yeah. I understand."

"Thank you." Jack stood up and stretched. "Let's go back. The gang might leave without us."

I stared at him, confused. "Leave? Where to?"

"The nether," he replied. "I caught a few words of what Simon said after I left. I thought we were going."

I hopped up and followed him. "Right. I forgot. Come on, Lila and Eba have probably built up the portal by now."

We half-walked half-ran to the house. I felt relieved that Eba and Simon were still attempting to complete the nether portal frame. Lila was nowhere in sight.

Simon nodded at us, his poker face not betraying thought or emotion. "Hello. I'm glad you brought Jack back. Thomas wants him to help us gather nether things."

The stray sighed. "I'm sorry for the way I acted."

Simon shrugged and went back to building. "Don't apologize to me. Save that for Lila. She's inside, watching over Adrian."

Jack nodded and walked inside. He waved goodbye to me as he closed the door. I stared at the wooden slab for a moment longer before turning to look at Simon. "Who did Thomas choose to go?"

"Everyone except for Lila, Kaitlin, and Izabell. And Adrian, obviously. So it'll be six of us heading into the nether."

"Okay. Do you need some help?"

Eba pushed two parts together and Simon started hammering away. "No, we're good. You should start saying goodbye to everyone, though."

I nodded and walked inside, closing the door behind me. Kaitlin and Izabell were sitting at the table, talking with Snowdrift. The blaze princess was holding a squirmy Flicker close. "He'll only be gone for a while, don't worry," I heard her say. Izabell nodded. "Simon can take care of himself, Snowdrift. So don't be scared. He'll be back."

The little snow fox whined and pressed himself against the table. Izabell started petting his head and whispering comforting promises. I nodded at them and walked into the med-bay. Jack and Lila were sitting on opposite cots, with my sister being on one next to Adrian's and holding his hand. I didn't want to interrupt, so I waited at the doorway.

"...m sorry." I heard Jack say. "I shouldn't have been so rude and unsympathetic."

Lila stared at him for a moment before sighing. "I forgive you, Jack. And I haven't been exactly fair to you either. I've always thought you were self centered and reckless."

The stray smiled faintly. "Join the club."

My sister smiled back at him. "What, you get that a lot?"

Jack's smile widened and he sat back, crossing his arms. "More than you'd think."

They didn't speak again for a little while, so I knocked on the doorframe and walked in. "Hey, Jack."

He nodded at me. "Hello."

I sat down next to Lila. "Hey, sis. How are you holding up?"

She shrugged. "Usually with my legs or back, but eh."

I punched her in the shoulder lightly. "Seriously, though. How do you feel?"

Lila stared at Adrian's unconscious body. "A little better. Impatient. I just... want to know that he's okay. That I... that I didn't kill him." She whispered the last few words.

I rubbed her back gently. "You heard Izabell. The poison isn't lethal. He'll be out and about in less than a week, you'll see. Sooner after we get the stuff from the nether."

She smiled and turned to face me again. "Thanks. For everything."

"No worries," I told her. "Besides, you've always helped me when I'm stuck. Now it's finally time for me to repay your unconditional kindness."

My sister shook her head, still smiling. "Do you remember that time when we were kids that you didn't know how to set a trap properly and ended up tangled in your own web?"

I shoved her playfully. "How could I forget? You could've chopped my hands off with that chunk of stone."

"It was the only sharp thing around," she said humorously.

I shook my head and pushed her again. Thomas peeked his head in. "Guys? It's time to head out."

Jack and I got up to follow him. I waved Lila goodbye. "Good luck!" she called after me.

We walked outside to watch Simon hammer the last part of the portal together. The corners were wooden support bits or whatever, which is how we got the portal to stick together. The creeper boy rolled his shoulders and dropped the hammer on the snowy ground.

"Now all we need is a lighter."

"Can't you turn it on with your glove things?" I asked.

Simon smiled. "Yes, I can. But it might take a few tries in this cold."

We turned at the sound of nearby footsteps to find Ara, Simon's creeper friend, walking towards us. "Hellooo," she called.

We all smiled and greeted the friendly creeper. She stopped beside Simon. "What are you all doing out here?"

Thomas spoke first. "We're going to the nether. One of our friends needs medicine, and we can only find the materials needed over there."

Ara nodded. "Ssso that'sss Why thiss portal isss here? Do you need any help?"

"We just need to light it," Simon answered her.

Ara's dark eyes brightened. "I'll go get a torch!" The monster wandered into the house in search of her target.

We waited patiently outside. Well, most of us did. Sarah and Jack looked like they couldn't wait to head off. But then again, that's always the case with those two. We were all chatting with each other when suddenly a tree fell at the edge of the forest. I jumped in surprise at the resonant boom that came with it. On high alert now, we peeked around and through the portal frame to see what had happened.

Another tree started moving and then fell. It looked like someone had pushed it into the ground. We watched on as a third tree followed the others. And then, much to everyone's shock and surprise, a large black hand emerged from the dark forest. It clung onto the snow-coated ground. Another hand appeared, grasping a boulder that stuck out of the ground. And then two large, purple eyes came into view.

We were frozen with shock as a huge enderman dragged his way out of the forest, making a mess of the beautiful cover layer of snow. The monster was at least two stories tall, and despite its thin frame, it looked incredibly strong. It sat down on the snow after crawling out of the forest, making an inhuman panting sound.

The monster gazed around but apparently found nothing of interest and stared at the snow. It just sat there like a massive toddler, looking intently at the snow. We started slowly backing away when the mutant enderman shoveled up a big bunch of snow. It piled up the white lump on the ground and grabbed another one, dumping it on top of the first. Then it grabbed a third, making a lopsided Seven-foot snowman with four arms. The monster picked up a few pebbles and sticks, finishing its creation. A sound, resembling a purr, emanated from it.

Just then, Ara pushed her way out the door. "I'm back!" she called.

The enderman's head snapped towards us, its eyes locking on Thomas. A black swirl swam within them, and the monster growled. It crawled onto all fours, its snowman forgotten. The monster stood, its jaws massive and gaping, sharp teeth lining the top and bottom rows. It drew in a deep breath...

...and released a thunderous roar that made the earth shake.

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Theridas's POV

"Um... lady Anastasia? Have you seen Pepper?"

The ex-Queen turned from Ella's little tea party and frowned at me. "Forgive me, Theridas, but I have not."

The little ghost girl at the table looked up. "I do!"

I stared at her. "You do?"

"Yeah!" The little girl got up and sat down at the couch. "She was like this, and she said 'oh, man, I really need to practice. I've been missing too many days. With good reason, though'. And then she giggled, and smiled and left."

I had been pretty worried when Pepper had suddenly disappeared after I'd gone in the kitchen to make some soup for Ella. "Did she say were she was going?"

Ella placed a finger on her chin and looked at the top corner of the room, a gesture she picked up from Pepper that made me miss the creeper woman terribly. "To the park, I think."

I sighed and nodded. "Thanks, Ella." I turned to face lady Anastasia once again. "Could you keep an eye on the food, my lady? Just turn off the stove ten minutes after it starts boiling."

Lady Anastasia got up and nodded. "Of course, Theridas. Go fetch Pepper."

"Thank you, my queen."

I walked hurriedly out of the apartment and down the stairs. Miss Brekelbaum greeted me with a grunt after I waved. The cranky old skeleton had warmed up to Ella, but she still wasn't that friendly with me, Pepper, or lady Anastasia. I wandered the streets, heading in the general direction of the park. I passed the cousin's bar and decided to ask Ronaldo if he knew what Pepper had been talking about.

I walked in and looked around. Ronaldo was at the counter, writing down stuff on many pieces of paper with the help of a calculator. I dodged around the surprisingly crowded tables and stood in front of him.

The man, whom I've yet to find out his clan, looked up with a smile. "Ey, Therisito! How're you man?"

I smiled back. "Hello, Ronaldo. I'm great."

He started piling up the papers and shoving them away. "Just payin' Some bills, you know? What can I do for you today?"

"Actually, I wanted to ask you... Pepper sort of up and left some time ago. Ella said she'd heard her talking about practicing something at the park. Do you know what she meant?"

The man tapped his chin with the pen. "Yeah, but the little girl got the wrong park. She's done this before, to many people, but there's nothing to worry about. Pep likes to 'train' her fighting skills every week or so. Today's Friday, no?"

"Um... yeah."

"Right. Yes, she goes to the abandoned park for fighting practice, as she calls it. It's like four streets down to theee... east, I think. Lemme make sure. Erik!"

The other man, Ronaldo's cousin, peeked his head out of the kitchen. "Qué?"

"Donde queda el parque abandonado?"

"El de concreto?"

"Ese mero."

"Chale... al este, creo. Cuatro calles abajo."

"Órale. Gracias!" Ronaldo turned back to face me. "Yep, four blocks down, to the east. Then you turn left. Pep should be there. It's this big concrete square with a couple playground things and a fence all around it."

I felt relieved that I decided to stop by. "Thank you, Ronaldo."

"Anytime, buddy. You know where to find me."

I nodded and left, turning left to travel east. I walked past miss Brekelbaum's apartment complex and kept going for another two blocks. Then I turned left. There was an alleyway that led onto an open space. In the center was a large fenced-in area, with a basketball court and playground equipment. Just like Ronaldo said, Pepper was right there.

I passed through a hole in the fence and watched. There was a big leather bag hanging from one of the basketball hoops, and Pepper was beating the shit out of it. She struck hard and fast, and viciously, barely giving the poor sack a chance to return to its center. I waited for a little bit before clearing my throat. "Pepper?"

The creeper woman halted mid-swing, and the leather sack bumped into her. Pepper stepped back and looked at me. "Theridas?" A smile lit up her face and she walked over to me, pulling something metallic from her hands. "Hey, there!"

Pepper walked up to me and planted a big kiss on my forehead, making my heart flutter. "Mmmuah! What are you doing here, love? How did you know where to find me?" She clung to my arm and placed her head on my shoulder.

I gave her a goofy grin, feeling a little flustered. "Um... I was in the kitchen and then I noticed you were gone, so I asked lady Anastasia and Ella if they'd seen you, and Ella said you were going to train at the park, so I went there first and decided to ask Ronaldo if he knew what you meant and then he told me that I would find you here and I'm ranting, aren't I?"

Pepper giggled and kissed my cheek. "It's fine, love. Yeah, Ronaldo and I go way back."

"Did you date him too?" I asked jokingly.

"Of course not!" She feigned indignation and pushed me away playfully. "I don't date every guy I meet, you know."

I chuckled. Then I noticed that her hands were wrapped in bandages. "Are you hurt?"

Pepper raised an eyebrow. "Hurt?" She followed my gaze and looked at her hands. "Oh! No, no, I'm fine. I just wrap them up when I use... these."

She brought out the metal things and slipped them onto her hands. "They're knuckle dusters. I had them made for me a long time ago. I wear the bandages cuz these things dig into my hands if I don't."

Pepper swung out a couple times, demonstrating. I nodded. "Okay. But, please, could you tell me next time? I was worried sick."

Pepper took off the knuckle dusters. "Sorry, love. I will, promise." She gestured to the sandbag. "Wanna try?"

I frowned at it. "I don't know..."

The beautiful creeper woman smiled and stood behind the sandbag, holding it in place. "Come on, hun. Go for it."

I sighed and walked up to her. "How do I...?"

"Just punch it," she explained. "It's nothing too complicated."

I nodded and took a step back, getting ready to hit the leather sack. I reared with my fist and punched it kind of weakly.

"You can do better than that," Pepper said. "Hit it hard."

"Okay..." I threw another punch at it, earning praise from my girlfriend. She encouraged me to keep punching it until I was landing hard and fast blows.

"Come on, love! Pound it like it's my ass!"

I missed the blow and flinched, blushing hard. "Pepper, That does not help at all!"

She simply giggled and told me to keep punching. Soon enough, my arms and hands felt sore. We walked home side by side. Pepper took the bandages off her hands and wrapped mine. "It'll stop hurting soon, hun, don't worry," she said as she held my hand.

"I know, but it stings."

"You're a great fighter. Did you ever do any fighting as a servant?"

"No. There was never a need for me to fight."

"Well, those punches you threw at my sandbag were pretty awesome. You could probably take me on with a little practice."

"I'd rather not."

"Aw, come on! It'll be fun! Just let me teach you."

"Isn't it just punching and trying to not get punched back?"

"Well, that's one way to put it. But it's a little more complicated than that."

"Okay. I guess it couldn't hurt to know how to defend myself."

"Yes!" She kissed my cheek again and squeezed my hand. "You're the best! Trust me, when we're done, no one will ever beat you in a fight."

I smiled at her enthusiasm and kissed her forehead. "I'm sure. Come on, lady Anastasia and Ella must still be waiting. Let's head home."

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Author's Notes

About time, don't you think? Shit's gonna hit the fan soon, just a heads up. :P

Thank you so much for your time and support. Have an awesome day!

~ LeMafiaKreb