Wow… Thanks for those who bothered to read my story and don't hesitate to review!

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN RAGNAROK!!! Individual character names are mine, but the idea of the monsters and town names belong to Gravity. DO NOT SUE!!!!

OK… on to the story!

Sacred Bonds

By: Azure Nightshade

Chapter 2: Whaa…?

I woke up and the first thing I noticed was a blindingly bright light. Ok… that does sound a little stupid, but it was the first thing I noticed. My head was a little foggy, but even in my dazed state I could tell that this was not where I last remember being.

"Did… did I die?" I found myself thinking. "Is this heaven?"

I was used to a dark dank cave. This was obviously not a cave. I blinked my eyes, trying to get them to adjust to a light. That was when I realized I could feel something covering me. As my awareness expanded, I realized I could hear voices murmuring in the background, just behind a curtain I could now see was surrounding the bed I was on. Stiffening as the fog of sleep cleared from my head, I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep so that anyone who came in would hopefully leave me alone. I listened harder to the voices behind the curtain.

"I hope you know just how… absurd this is, young lady," a very prim and proper voice, female, stated.

"I know… I know… and I know you don't believe me, but I had to do something… he saved my life! I wasn't just going to leave him there!"

I nearly jerked upright at the sound of the second voice. It couldn't have been, could it? "That thief girl… she didn't… help me… did she?" was the only thing I could think to myself. Hearing the conversation go on, I chose to focus only on what they were saying.

"Miss Sapphyrie, surely you don't believe that… IT… saved your life? It is nothing more than a monster… it isn't even a pet. It isn't tame. It will be wild and unpredictable. It can and will harm you and others just simply because it is a monster. Why can you not see this?"

"I don't care what you think HE is! I know what I saw! I know what happened! He saved my life, and I intend to do the same. He's not like the others… I've fought them before. He's different. I'm going to take care of him, whether you or anyone else agrees or not!"

I heard furious stomps come toward the bed I was in, and I tried to do my best to look like I was still unconscious. I heard the curtain roughly pulled back, then put in place again, and then the sound of someone plopping into the chair next to my bed. It's her… I can tell… the thief. What did that other lady, the nurse, call her? Night-something… that's right… Miss Sapphyrie… Was that her given name, or her surname? Why do I care, for that matter?

"Why do I care?" the thief unwittingly echoed my thoughts out loud. I barely managed to keep from opening my eyes and asking 'about what?' I laid perfectly still as she continued to speak.

"Everyone seems to think that I shouldn't care about you; that I should have either gotten rid of you or left you there. I couldn't… I just couldn't. Not after what you did… not after that conversation." I hear her pause, as if sorting through her thoughts. "I know you have to be different… I have never seen any monster… not even the tame ones… act as, well, as human as you do." The thief sighed, and then chuckled. "It's probably a good thing that you're asleep… I probably couldn't say these things in front of you if you were awake. I don't know why I feel like I have to help you, but since I do, I'm going to do it to the best of my abilities."

I gave into the temptation of opening my eyes, just a little. I had to see her face. I don't know why, I just had to. I kept my eyes to narrow slits so it would be harder for anyone to tell I was awake. Looking through my lashes, I caught my first glimpse of the thief in good lighting.

Oh. My. Gods.

I have died. That's all there is to it. There is no creature on earth that can look like that. It's not allowed. She can't be human… She's some sort of angel. I can't believe I thought she was just attractive. The lighting in those caves must be worse than I thought. Her silver-gold hair shone in the light, and her eyes, which looked like a cross between sapphire and emerald, sparkled as she looked out the window, lost in thought. She let out a gentle sigh, and I could hear my heart breaking at the sound of it; more so, because I knew I was the cause of that sigh. Gaining control of myself, I closed my eyes again, not yet ready for the inevitable confrontation with this beautiful… being.

"Well…" I heard the female thief say as she stood up, "I have things that I have to get done. I'll be back as soon as I can…" I swear I could almost feel her smile. "Maybe by then you'll have awoke."

I waited until I could no longer hear her retreating footsteps before opening my eyes again. I didn't know what to think. Why did she feel obligated to help me? I recalled her conversation with the nurse. "'I'm going to take care of him, whether you or anyone else agrees or not!'" I remembered her shouting. Did she really feel that strongly about protecting me… even from her own people? These thoughts ran through my head at a dizzying pace, and in the end my only conclusion was to ask her just why she felt this way.

"I'm just going to have to get over this strange feeling and ask her… best that I do so when she gets back from her errands… get this off my chest as soon as possible." I thought to myself as I shifted slightly on the hospital bed, trying to make myself more comfortable. "Now that I have that decided… here comes the hard part… the waiting…"

Sorry people… I know it's been forever since I've updated… but I'm having a really hard time getting out what I want to happen with the story… hence the short chapters. Once I have a more clear cut view of what I want to happen, I promise the chapters will be getting longer and updating sooner. Until then, you'll have to bear with me. Anyways, Reviews are always welcome, and suggestions on the Bongun's name are welcome as well. I do have the thief girl's first name, but you'll learn it next chapter.