Fable Seekers#6

SS Rank!

Marco stood half asleep in just his towel. He had gotten out of bed rather late today and was now in the bathroom brushing his teeth. Thankfully all the girls were done with the bathroom as in the morning dash he often had to wait. He felt his eyes growing more and more heavy when he felt a presence watching him. He turned and looked around the bathroom seeing no one. He could feel it's gaze on him when a crashing sound forced him to jump back into the shower.

"REJECTION!" Lily yelled out lifting her staff into the air. There was a scream of pain and the presence disappeared. Marco looked up to see Tank picking the door up from the floor while Lily started to draw some runes on the wall.

"What was that?" Marco asked tightening up his towel. Lily looked up and smiled. He had gotten abs as well as scars across his body. She knew how happy and proud Marco was of that achievement but also how shy the boy was still.

"Did you feel something watching you?"

"Yes. I couldn't see anything but all of a sudden it's like someone was peeping on me." Marco confessed. Tank had already started to repair the door which made Marco chuckle a little.

"Well that's because someone was. Someone used a rather powerful spying spell on you and I caused the spell to back fire on them which probably hurt a lot."

"Well that's fine... Anyone spying like that can't be a good person." Marco reasoned as Lily nodded in agreement.

"Anyway I think it's time I taught you to reject magic and also for you to get some ink." Lily's smile grew wide.

"I thought you were going to teach me Earth magic next? I still only know fire and we proved that against a fire breathing dragon it didn't help a lot. Plus I have loads of ink, how else do you think I write letters each night."

"Hush, who is the master and who is the apprentice? Exactly! Also it's not that kind of ink." Marco could hear Tank laughing behind Lily and was suddenly worried about what they were so giddy about.

/

One month passed from the spying incident and Marco sat looking at his arm. Lily had called someone to Tattoo his body with various runes and glyphs. She pulled up her clothes to reveal that she had matching tattoos as well. Marco and Alex blushed when she did so. Some were to boost resistance, others to aid in casting. However, the one she wanted for him more than any other was the rune that prevented one from being spied on. She had taught him the spell and various others but not having to cast the spell every time you felt a presence was better than doing so.

The Fable Seekers were camping outside a strange tear in reality. They'd been summoned by Heckapoo herself as a quest to investigate it. She was busy with a thread of portals that kept opening by themselves. Marco looked down at the Quest information before standing before the others.

"Okay Fable Seekers, this time it's another big one. We are being considered for the SS Rank and if we do it we'll be the fastest party to even reach another S Rank in written history. The reason for this is that we are being requested personally by the Forger of Dimensional Scissors. As well as all the Guild Contribution points we got from the several dozen quests Sammy has sent us on. Our mission today is to identify the cause of this tear, the nature of it, whether it poses a threat and if so destroy it." Marco finished reading and looked up as everyone sighed. Sammy had kept them moving. They had been deployed on separate missions completing five quests at once for the smaller quest. With the larger and more dangerous quests she would send two or three members so it was the first quest in over a month that all members attended. They were exhausted but also were excited. The dream of reaching SSS-Rank was closer than ever and they were ready. Alex nodded to Marco to sit down before standing to address the group.

"People, we're here. One mission away from being one step away from our dream. If we can reach SSS-Rank we will definitely be remembered as legends. Our names will be etched onto the guilds walls and people will tell stories of our quests. We already have a fan club starting up and if we pull this off I think it's safe to say that fame will grow. Marco managed to get us the political protection from the Butterfly Kingdom so we don't have to worry about that. However, we do need to care about our reputation. We are the Fable Seekers, being remembered is our game. For that we will do any mission, any difficulty no matter how big or small and this one here is a big one. Uncharted territory so I need everyone to be the best they can. Tank, I want you leading this one to defend against any attacks that may come from the front. Sven you follow Tank and keep close. I'll need your eyes up ahead. Lily, you're our first trump card. You'll be in the middle where you can be protected from both sides so when we need you, you can help us back. Marco, you're next. You'll be our second trump card and in the event we get surrounded I want you to focus on getting us out of their alive while I guard the rear. I won't let anyone or thing sneak up on you so trust in me. Fable Seekers, Are you with me!"

"Yes Leader!" Everyone responded. Alex smiled and turned to them.

"I said are you with me!" Alex yelled back.

"YES LEADER!" Came a deafening response. Alex chuckled before turning to face the tear.

"Let's go team."

Everyone stood up and faced the tear in front of them. If it had been a year ago every single on of them would be scared of what was before them yet now they faced it with grins. The sense of adventure in them all was blazing and they were ready. Tank disappeared through first shortly followed by the rest.

When their eyes had adjusted to the world around them they almost couldn't believe their eyes. They stood looking up to the ground. Around them was floating islands and on each was a different strange phenomenon. The closest one to them was a strange pyramid made of gold that had water flowing up into the sky. The next was full of flaming ice. Each island was stranger than the next. The sky started to change colours as the sun flew by chased by the moon. This place had no sense of day and night as they changed so quickly. Sven ushered the rest to look towards their right where the largest island resided. On this island, roughly the size of the Butterfly Kingdom sat a castle. It was covered in skulls, stone gargoyles and a black pillar of light rose from the depths. Marco thought about the situation and started to laugh.

"What is it Marco?" Tank asked concerned.

"I think I know what we have to do here!" Marco laughed.

"What's up then Mr Know-It-All?" Sven rolled his eyes.

"Well I told you before that a lot of stuff we've come across and faced, even the way the guild was shaped and ran, was similar to stuff from the games I used to play."

"Yes continue Marco?" Lily said after hitting Sven round the head for mocking him.

"Well I spoke to Heckapoo and a few others in the guild and we came to the conclusion that when people dream on Earth their subconscious bodies experience astral projection and leave their bodies. We theorised that their projections have been coming to other dimensions for millennia and a lot of fiction on earth is based on another dimensions truth."

"So what's your point Marco?" Alex asked. He was intrigued with the theory but wanted them to focus on the mission.

"Well I recognise this place! Especially that castle!" Marco said with a smile. Everyone turned to him with a big grin. If that was true their mission just got a whole lot easier.

"Okay, take five everyone. Marco, fill us in."

"Okay so in one of the games I played the hero had to venture across the land to save their friend who was kidnapped. Along the way he earned fame and was asked by the Kingdom to slay the Demon King. Not wanting to get involved and only wanting to find his friend he refused. It was a little while later that he discovered the person who kidnapped his friend and the Demon King were one and the same. He took up arms and charged into the demon realm through a tear in reality. The Demon King, a being so powerful he tore a hole in reality and connected the Earth Realm and the Demon Realm. Once he passed through he found the sky islands. Once part of other realms the Demon King had stolen them and taken them to the new realm he had created.

The Hero was forced to cross each Island in order before finally arriving at the Devil's Castle. You go in to fight the Demon King but your gear had been worn down and you were weak from fighting for so long that he kills you easily. Once you die the Goddess speaks to you and offers you another chance. She builds a path of light letting you, at full strength, go straight to the Devil's Castle to fight the Demon King. After you beat him you win the game and the tear seals itself off after returning all the Islands to the dimensions they came from." Marco looked at his companions each who had listened to his story attentively.

"So We have two options. Take the long way and hope we get brought back to life by a Goddess or... Find the path of light and take the shortcut there?"

Everyone naturally agreed to the second option and made camp at the spawning area. Sven kept staring out at the Devil's Castle while the others made the food. Marco helped Tank with the meal, having finally received the cooking lessons he wanted from the man. Lily and Alex were cuddling up as they looked at the magical islands in the sky. Alex had gotten better at showing his emotions but in spirit of their promise from childhood they would stay engaged until they reached SSS Rank and then they would marry. Before they would have considered it an impossible goal and now it was just a magical light bridge away from being achievable.

The sun passed them again but slowly this time as the moon caught up and ate it whole sending the realm into darkness. Marco explained that this was now night time and the sun would escape come morning so the group made camp. Sven took watch, an activity he would usually try to avoid. His eyes remained fixed on the castle as every one drifted off to sleep.

Marco lay thinking of his promise to Queen Moon, In two months time he would fight against an unknown opponent to remain with her blessing. He wasn't worried as the others had taught him well and he was far stronger than he could have imagined. During the time they spent with Heckapoo, Marco had actually asked her to spar and while he lost in the end he held up his own in a one on one enough that the Demi-Goddess had to invoke ancient magic to win. The cost of that was Lily pestering her to teach her it so Heckapoo and her disappeared into her dimension for 5 minutes (10 Years) with Lily returning with a smile and a brand new staff. Her old staff could no longer keep up with her magic so Heckapoo had created a new one for her.

He couldn't help but feel apprehensive. Moon knew of all their adventures, she knew how much he had grown so any opponent she might have must be strong. He tried not to think about it as he used his Spider-Coat as a blanket and drifted off as the Island of jumping sheep passed overhead.

...

...

...

...

"HEY! HEY GUYS GET UP!" Marco felt his eyes slowly open. He heard yelling but couldn't place the voice in his half asleep state. He rubbed his eyes as he yawned loudly bumping into Tank when he tried to get up only for the giant man to pick him up and put him right.

"Sven? What?" Alex mumbled. Lily was still sleeping and had her arms wrapped around Alex so he couldn't move very well.

"Wake up the moody cow and get over here!" He yelled over to them. All of them rose to their feet and tried to find Sven. He was no longer on their small island so they looked at the next island for him but couldn't see him on the pyramid.

"Over here!" They turned to see Sven sitting in mid air between their island and the Devil's Castle.

"SVEN WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Alex called out before instinctively throwing a rope to Sven. Sven laughed before standing and walking back to them.

"I felt something there and I spent all night thinking about it. I thought about it and I realised, some big shot like the Demon King ain't gonna walk all the way round these islands each time he wants to leave his blimey castle. Plus it seems like a lot of effort for the Goddess to just make a bridge in the realm he controls... So what if the bridge always existed and she just made it visible?" Sven reasoned. Lily looked at Marco and nodded. He moved forward and placed his hands on what Sven had walked on. It was solid.

"Any suggestions?" He turned back to Lily, He didn't want to risk destroying the bridge.

"How about that light spell you showed me?" Lily suggested.

"Ahh okay... I haven't perfected it yet so I'll need to do the full incantation. Can you stand back in case it goes wrong?" Marco asked politely. Everyone immediately walked to the edge of the island. They had witnessed one of Marco's original spells going wrong and wanted nothing to do with it.

"Red of blood and crimson pain,
And vibrant Orange shining through,
Yellow of the sun that shines the same,
And an envious Green that catches you,

The Blue of sky that sits up high,
And the deep colour of Indigo,
A touch of Violet to complete the lie,
As a rainbow of light begins to grow.

RAINBOW ILLUSION!" Every watched as from Marco's palms colour began to pour out and decorate the bridge. What seemed like mere sky a moment ago was now a rainbow filled path that charted their way.

Marco stood back and looked with a smile. The spell was incomplete and needed tweaking but it served it's purpose for the moment. He looked as the colours shimmered and moved along the bridge.

"Hey! It's Rainbow Road!" Marco chuckled as the others missed the reference again.

"Well team, we're in business! Sven, Marco, Well done on the rainbow road. We'll pack up camp and make our way to the Demon King." Alex declared with the biggest smile any of them had seen him wear. He was pumped with energy and enthusiasm. The group packed everything up and headed over the road. Sven ran ahead excitedly as he had waited till morning to show everyone and didn't go more than half way. As they walked they gazed upon the many islands around them almost spellbound by how beautiful each was.

"We've been travelling to many dimensions these last few weeks but we have never seen any of this. Doesn't that mean all of this is still out there for us to discover?" Everyone looked at Tank as his eyes remained fixed on the islands. He had been talking more of late and expressing himself but the happy tone he spoke with raised all their spirits.

They walked through the open gates of the Devil's Castle as it remained silent. There were no signs of life within the walls as they walked through on guard. Marco led the way now since he knew the path to get to the Demon King's room. Tank ran his hand's against one of the walls and noticed that it crumbled away at the lightest touch.

Alex was inspecting anything they came across and stopped to check on some bones he found. He noticed that although it had lasted unlike many others it was brittle and weak. Marco had found out in their second month together that in order for them to be more successful they each trained in another skill. Alex had focused on archaeology and restoration of historical artefacts. It had proved to be very useful when on quests as he could tell what relics and treasures had real value. He enjoyed studying all the stuff they found and actually would have finished his trial in Heckapoo's dimension earlier if he hadn't taken a few years to study and learn more skills.

Alex was starting to worry that there had been people living here before but they had died in tragic means. He watched as Lily began to feel light headed. She was a mage through and through and the drain of magic around them was starting to affect her. Alex passed Sven his gear and lifted her onto his back before continuing.

"Alright we're here. On the other side of this hall with be the Demon King and his generals. He won't try to engage us until we defeat his generals so if we go all out and destroy them as soon as we can we can move onto the final boss. He has a lot of health so Tank you keep his attention and we'll attack him while he's distracted. I'll then take away his attention when you need a minute to recover. Lily, He has an ability to reflect all magic back to its user but only when he knows it's coming. Use Sven as a distraction and time your magic as best as you can but if you can try to play support and keep us moving. Alex when he's near the end get Tank to shield toss you and go for the kill." Marco explained as he drew out the plan on the ground.

"Everyone ready?" Marco asked as everyone nodded silently. Everyone turned to Alex who looked back at them blankly. Marco ushered for him to go and he realised that they were waiting for him to lead them. He felt pride grow within him. He'd been having doubts about whether he was right to lead them anymore. All of them had grown so much stronger and with Marco and Sammy often guiding them to where they needed to go he felt like he should take a back seat but it dawned on him that Sammy came to him with every decision and Marco always left the main role to him. The boy trusted him to carry the weight of the party and Alex was determined not to let them down.

"Let's make history!" Alex said as he drew his sword. He pushed open the large doors and led them into the grand hall of the Devil's Castle. As they entered lanterns around the room began to light with flames. They walked through the hall as it lit up until finally a large fire appeared before them in the shape of two pedestals. Between them sat the King's throne. Everyone circled round and readied themselves facing the figure in the throne. Marco scanned the room but was unable to spot the generals. He began to worry when Tank spoke breaking the silence.

"Marco.. I had a question?"

"Yes Tank?"

"What would happen... If you never chose to be the hero but kept playing regardless of the quest?" Marco froze hearing his words. He turned to face the others as the grim reality dawned on them.

"...Time would still carry on... If it wasn't a game but the real world time would pass... But if like the game the NPC's were bound by their positions they would remain until.. Until...-"

"-Until they turned to dust.." Alex finished. They looked at the ground they stood on and noticed piles of dust. A draft blew in from door they left ajar and the dust scattered. Lily covered her mouth in shock and Sven started to shake the dust off himself. Marco turned back to the figure in the throne as it's hood fell back to reveal a husk of a body. He looked closer and noticed two red glowing orbs in the sockets of it's eyes. He went to tell the others to run when suddenly a great pressure was put on them. Marco felt all of his joint click and strain as he was forced to the floor. Gravity pushed down on him rendering him and the others unable to move.

"WH Y.. WHHYY.. WHY DI D YOU N OT COME!" A large voice boomed throughout the hall. The doors slammed shut and apart from the two flames beside the man the whole room went dark.

"You.. Were meant to save us all.." Sobbed the voice from the chair. Marco managed to shift his gaze to the husk. Tears rolled down it's leathery flesh.

"Marco... What did you leave out of your story..?" Alex managed to ask. He groaned in pain as the pressure caused his jaw to ache.

"..When you complete the game.. You find out that the Demon King was really a peaceful man forced to obey an ancient evil... It sets up the next game in the series and make you think about your actions. You slayed an innocent man and his family.. To save the world. At the same time you brought them peace from their suffering.." Everyone fell silent. They knew why Marco hadn't told them now. If he had they would have hesitated to attack, they would have slowed and eased up their attack and it would have cost them their lives.

"RISE HERO.. Face the people you failed.." All of them remained motionless. The force above them remained heavy and unrelenting.

"WH Y! WHY DO YOU NOT RISE!" The sobbing started to intensify. Marco felt both guilt and anger swell up inside him. He started to push against the ground with all his might. He strained as beads of sweat fell from his face.

"Magic resistance! Strength Boost! Speed Boost!" Lily whispered beside them. All of them felt a little of the burden fade and started to rise with Marco. The first to his feet was Tank. He dug his sword into the ground and remained facing the Demon King.

The others joined him one by one. Their bodies creaking and the pressure started to cause them to feel sick as well as in pain. When they were all on their feet they stood before the Demon King, silently and determined.

"You are not the Hero we waited for..?" The Demon spoke them. Without wraith or hate, but with hope. Marco tilted his head a little to signal Alex to speak up.

"No. We are not the Hero who abandoned you. We are the Fable Seekers and we will end your suffering.." Alex felt almost fell to his knee from the pressure but found himself being supported by both Sven and Marco.

"You would end our plight...? A folly of a remark.. But try nonetheless!" The voice was devoid albeit a sliver of hope. Lily kept chanting place more and more spells on Alex. She fell to the ground unable to resist the weight anymore and out of magic. Alex took a step forward, unable to fall as Marco and Sven moved with him. Tank moved forward using his shield and sword as if he was climbing a mountain before kneeling and remaining. Alex climbed up his back and readied his blade. Marco stood behind Sven and pushed him with all of his might. He crashed to the ground but watched as the force sent Sven flying into Alex who was thrust forward through the gravity. The combination of their efforts both magical and physical forced Alex's blade to pierce through the heart of the Demon King.

"A noble effort.. But you lack the power of a hero." The Demon King's voice relented. He had lost his last hope and no longer had any interest in them. Marco raised his hand enough to point in Alex's direction.

"Bless thy blade in the finest way,
Surround it tightly with the light of day
In holy power to purify thy foe,
Remove the darkness and end thy woe,
Holy Enchantment!" Marco yelled out as his world went black. Alex felt his blade start to grow warm as an loving light started to shine from it. The Demon King yelled in agony as the pressure relented and they all dropped to the floor from the release. Alex stood back up and faced the body as it turned to ashes.

"I'm sorry we were too late to save you.. I promise you we won't forget you or forgive the one who did this to you.." Alex wiped his tears as his body was overcome with the emotions of the thousands of people who had lost their lives. Their pain, their sorrow and finally their relief to be unbound from the horrible spell. He felt their joy and their thanks fill his very being as he cried out.

"Thank you.. Hurry.. The gate is closing.." The voice's of all the people rang out loudly as the walls began to crumble. Alex picked up Lily and Tank picked up Marco as they ran from the castle. The entrance was about to crumble before them so Sven rushed forward and sliced down the fragile rocks letting them pass. When they reached outside they watched as the islands were ripped from the realm. They ran across the rainbow bridge as it began to fall apart before diving through the tear crashing to the ground. Alex turned round to face it as it vanished and bowed in remembrance to people who lost their lives. Everyone fell to the ground exhausted.

Marco eventually awoke to see the other four staring at him worried.

"Hey guys?" He managed to say before he was hit round the head by Lily.

"How many times do I have to tell you that in life or death situation learning a new spell is not the solution to the problem!" She hugged him tightly as he wasn't sure whether to moan about the pain or take her comfort. Alex chuckled before sitting down beside him.

"You did good.. If you hadn't cast that spell we'd probably have joined them, waiting forever never to be rescued.." Alex admitted sombrely.

"I'm sure someone would have done it eventually?" Sven tried to cheer him up as he'd been down since they came back.

"That tear appears every 100 years for a few days... They waited for a fleeting hope of being rescued and time after time that feeling faded... When we freed them.. I felt it.. Everything that they went through.." His face was devoid of emotion, no longer the joyous smile or spirit of adventure but the shell of himself.

"I faced some stuff... In that Trial of Heckapoo. Stuff I never want to talk about but nothing was like that feeling of being crushed under the weight of their hatred..." Sven sat beside them. He looked at the ground and clicked his joints.

"We all did.. I think we grew stronger for it.. I know it was hard but we did it.." Lily sighed and joined them.

They all looked up to Tank who stood before them and didn't sit with them.

"Regardless of what happened to them, we, the unrelated party, came and ended their suffering. The tear has closed and those wonders have returned to their worlds after years of being apart. I know it was hard... But we just saved their souls and brought wonder back to the world. We might have to change a few details but it'll make a story yet." Tank stood proudly before them. They all smiled at him. He was their unwavering rock, their walking fortress.

"Let's get you all home." Tank picked up every member of the party, much to their protest, before cutting a portal and disappearing through it.

The area was silent, a tear that would never return had faded from reality. Iconic and precious landmarks from over 20 dimensions returned to their homes and spread wonder among the residents. After 4000 years the Demon King was defeated and the terror of the Devil's Castle was put to rest. The Hero never turned up so a party of brave adventurers rose up and became Heroes for them.

Tumbling to the floor of the Reverie House the group looked up to see everyone and Heckapoo with tears inside their eyes. They rushed forward and began to hug them all tightly. At first they thought everyone was congratulating them but they realised they were genuinely upset.

"What's wrong Honey?" Tank asked Maria with a frown. She rushed forward and banged her fist against him armour. She kept banging her fists against him until he grabbed her hands and stopped her.

"Maria.. I'm meant to be the quiet one?" Tank encouraged but she was sobbing so hard he couldn't understand her. The rest turned to Heckapoo and Sammy who looked angry.

"I TOLD YOU TO INVESTIGATE IT!" Heckapoo said angrily.

"Look can someone explain why you are so mad!" Marco pleaded as they looked at him confused.

"Well that's bloody obvious! You've been missing for one whole month with not a single word! The Tear in Reality wouldn't open up for us and we thought the worst! You swan back in here like you've only been gone for a few hours! How do you expect us to feel!" Sammy yelled at them all. All of them felt their blood run cold as they thought about what she said. A whole month of zero contact. Of course they would be worried.

"Looking at your faces... How long has it been for you?" Heckapoo asked worried.

"We haven't even been gone a day! Look!" Sven pulled out the food they had prepared before they left showing them that it was still fresh and definitely not a month old.

"I better go get in touch with Queen Moon, She's probably worried sick. I'll leave you guys to turn in." Marco quickly disappeared through a portal followed closely by Heckapoo.

Sammy turned to Alex and could see how heavy his heart was.

"What happened?"

/

"...Wow... I can't even begin to understand what you've been through.." Sammy said as she sat back at her desk. She looked down at the paper and filled it in.

"I'm really sorry but I'm not going to be able to turn this in alone. I need one of you to come with me... The implications from what you did may have lasting effects so we need to prepare for that.." Sammy felt guilty as she could see they just needed to sleep.

"I'll go.." Alex said standing up.

"Me too.. I don't want you to go without me!" Lily grabbed his hand and held it tightly. Sammy smiled at the two. They'd only grown closer through adversity.

"Let's go.. And I'm banning any more missions until after Marco's test in the Butterfly Kingdom. The next month is going to be R & R so get some rest." Alex reached forward and cut a portal to the guild. Sven could hear cheers coming from the other side and smiled. It seemed like more than just family was worried about them. He turned to another portal opening and Marco walked through looking sheepish.

"How did it go with her Majesty?" Sven laughed seeing how white Marco looked.

"Well.. Before I could even tell her anything she spent a while just yelling at me.. She cried and then threw a cup at me..."

"Wow.."

"Yep.. In future, as well as back to daily updates.. I have to tell her the details of each quest." Marco sighed.

"She was just worried about you.. I can't believe I've been away from my baby and Rosalie for a month.. I know we use to live apart but now it seems longer than I could imagine.." Sven admitted. Thankfully for him, Rosalie and their daughter were out shopping so he had time to prepare for her hitting him.

"I know.. I feel guilty.. We could have died and they would never have known where we were.. My parents wouldn't have known what happened to me and found out they'd been lied to for months.. Kelly and Tom.. Probably Star too would hate me till they die.." Marco felt a comforting arm wrap around him.

"But we didn't die! That's what counts... It may have taken some time but we did good and came home safe! Plus you learnt a new spell and I'm sure you will only grow from this..." Sven paused and then sat in Sammy's seat.

"Take a seat at my desk Marco." Sven waved his hand to the seat opposite from him. Humouring him, Marco sat down.

"6.. 7 Months ago now when we found you in the woods... We just thought we'd found a strange runaway. We thought it was just a small deed we probably would forget in a few days time.. Yet we have slain dragons and giant spiders. We did the trials and got the scissors. We killed a soul eating beast and we even surfed down that waterfall. We saw people failed by a hero so chose to become heroes for them. We have done everything we have because you've been by our side leading us down this strange and ever weird road of adventure. At first, I thought you were just some bragging little shit who had some big friends. Truthfully when I heard you got given the job at the castle cause you were buddies with the Princess I thought you were like every cheap bastard who rose to the top on graces and looked down on us who worked for it. But, you were nothing like that. You chose a hard path and have fought tooth and nail to reach this point. Yes, they would miss you and mourn you but answer me this... Would you go back and change it all? Would you beg that princess for a second chance? Or would you do it all again?" Sven glared at him with a seriousness Marco had rarely seen him with. He took in each and every word before smiling.

"I'd do it again and again.. Each time getting better and faster until even you couldn't out run me!" Marco smiled. Sven put his hand on the table and Marco grabbed it. They shook hands and then stood up. They turned to see the handle turning and the door open revealing Rosalie. She dropped the shopping and fell to her knees.

"I got this.. You head to bed Hero!" Sven laughed, patting Marco on the back before heading over to hold his wife.

"Good Luck... Hero.."