Tiara's New Mission

"Are you sure about this, Kagetsu?" inquired Tiara, "You're really going away? But why? For what reason do you have to leave this place? I mean, the Elder forgave you after you brought the Throne of Yord back, because he understood you did everything for Sara and the fact that the talisman has gained new and greater strengths because of this. But why in the world do you find it necessary to leave for the mountains?"

She was standing in front of the house once shared by Kagetsu and his younger sister. Her ever faithful Partner, Japolo, was seated on the left shoulder of his princess. Behind Tiara stood both Lena and Leon, who had also come to see why the young man was going away. Tiara wanted to see if they could stop him from leaving, she didn't want to lose him again. But Lena was more resigned to the fact that there was most likely nothing they could do, and if she loved him she would let him take the time off to think.

"Understand, Tiara. Many things have happened in the past few weeks. I need time to sort out my life, now that Sara will never return. By the end of the summer, however, I will come back to this house. Then, we can figure out where to go from here. Japolo, continue to be a good Partner to Tiara, keep her out of trouble. Lena, take care of yourself. Leon, stick by Lena when she needs your help. I want all four of you to understand that this is for the best," Kagetsu informed the others. He walked past Tiara, a tear on his cheek. The man was heading towards the Western Mountains, known for their solitude and peace.

Tiara watched as he left, wondering why he felt that way. Why couldn't he just try to get through this with the help of his friends? They could see and talk to Sara anytime by visiting the Throne of Yord, the Elder had given them permission as childhood friends of the girl. Surely Lena, Leon, Japolo, and herself would never leave Kagetsu in such a state. Didn't he realize that not telling someone his problems would make them worse? Heck, the last time he failed to talk about what had happened and how he felt, he'd gone and stolen the Throne of Yord, without seeing if Tiara or Lena would be able to figure out another road.

* * *

The Spring turned to Summer, and Summer to Fall. But Kagetsu never came back. Sara had told the girls that he was ok, she would have known through the Throne's power if something had happened to her brother. So Tiara simply assumed he was taking longer than he'd expected to think about whatever had sent him to the mountains without asking for the support of his friends in his time of need. Of course, that didn't mean that she wasn't angry with him. The Throne of Yord was kept in the Western Mountains, so he could have at least left some sort of message with Sara. Then they could give her messages for him.

One week, just before Winter's beginning, Tiara was before the Elder. She was being briefed on her next mission, and it seemed like it would be important. In fact, it was so important that Lena had to come along, since the Elder wanted two of his best Princesses on the case. Both girls knelt right before him, with Leon and Japolo in the back. Because he was so tiny, Tiara's Partner had to stand on Leon's shoulder.

The Elder told them, "As you may or may not be aware, four Princesses and one male Magic User were attacked by demons just this past week. The boy, and two of the girls, did not make it. The other two girls were badly wounded and lost their Partners in the assault. These wicked beasts must be stopped. Therefore, I need the two of you to head up into the Northern Hills, to the home of Divine Sorceress Sienna. She will have a series of tasks for Tiara to complete, that will assure our future. Lena, you are to go and supplement Tiara in her effort. Remember, the fate of the Guardian World rests in the hands of you two."

With that, they were dismissed. Both girls agreed to meet the next day at noon, after packing the necessary items for their journey. Once the two of them arrived at the pond they had designated for the meeting, they would begin the two day journey into the hills. For in order to teleport to a place, one of two factors must be present. First, you must be able to picture in your mind where you wish to go. So if they had never seen the mountains, they would be unable to reach them with a spell. When it came to travel to the Other World for missions, there was a special gate that could show the Magic User a picture of that world and the target area. Using that, they could form the necessary mind photo for the spell to be cast.

That was how, the next day, the two rivals met and began walking towards the hills. Tiara looked at Lena. "So, I wonder what the Elder needs me to do? And how come I have to bring someone else along to help me? This has got to be some really big task. Else he just needs some fodder for the demons while I'm working. But either way, it's kind of ironic that he's teamed me up with you for this mission. Must be because of what happened with the Throne of Yord last spring." She sighed, Tiara really didn't want to go with her rival on such an important mission. Luckily, there was no need for them to squabble this time.

"Either the Throne of Yord," Lena deduced, "Or it could be because the two of us grew up together. I don't know, the Elder is so cryptic at times." She looked to Leon, who simply shrugged. After all, if the two Magic Users couldn't figure out what the Elder meant, then it would be way out of his league to do so.

After the two days had passed, they arrived in the Northern Hills. The beautiful rolling highlands were dusted with snow, as was to be expected at this time of year. It brought back memories to Tiara, from when she was only five years old, and playing in the snow with her friends. Sara had been trying to build a snowman, but the head wouldn't roll anymore. When she and Lena tried to help out, the three ended up pushing too hard and breaking it. Kagetsu, who'd been watching these antics from the bench while reading, came over and tried to help his sister and the other girls out. Tiara thought of these events, and sighed.

'Why hasn't he returned? Nothing bad has happened, what is he keeping from us. He comes back after the whole Throne of Yord disaster, is home for barely a week, and then decides to take a trip to the mountains for the summer. But he doesn't come back even as winter is setting in. And I bet it's a horrible one up there. Whatever his problem is, not getting any help is not doing him any good,' Tiara thought.

- - - -

But why would Kagetsu go up in the mountains for that long do you ask? The answer…plot device! Besides, it makes sense. I wondered what would happen when they got back together. Remember, Kagetsu did kill her first Partner, even if it was in self defense. I would have been feeling a little awkward after that. After all, he wasn't a heartless murderer, circumstance just led things to happen like they did. Tiara would seem like the type who would try to make things work out no matter what happened, but Kagetsu might just need to think about what would be best. He did take awhile to decide to steal the Throne of Yord to save Sara, probably tried to think of other ways first. The mountains would be a place he could go and not worry about having Tiara or Lena around to impair his judgment.