Chapter 5- The Dragon
He was tired and stressed out. The other day his sister, who he was pretending wasn't his sister, ended up finding out who one of the Zodiac was. Guy was his name. He pondered the name trying to put a face to it. It took him awhile, but he finally got an image. A rather scrawny, young boy with greenish, blue hair and the cloths of a plainsman. He remembered seeing him with his sister once. He was talking and laughing and so was she. Then he got scared and ran off. It was a strange site.
"My Lord Raymond!" Lucius yelled, running up to Raven.
"Stop calling me that!" Raven yelled, smacking the poor monk over the head.
"OW! Oh my lord... please... stop doing that..." He cried, holding his head.
"I'll stop when you stop... AND DON'T CRY! Your so sissy!" Raven yelled back, hitting him again. Lucius stood next to him silently pouting. Raven just stood there, that same annoyed look on his face.
"SIR RAVEN!!" Sang a voice Raven knew. Then out of nowhere came Rebecca, arms wide open.
"EH!?" Gasped Raven moving to the side. Rebecca flying off and glomping Lucius.
"Oh... Raven... your so mean..." Rebecca cried, latched onto Lucius now.
"Rebecca... hehe.. Raven wouldn't want anyone hugging him... He's like that..." Lucius said, laughing. Raven looked off with a scowl.
"I thought I had him that time to..." Rebecca said, laughing, apparently having tried this all before.
"If you wouldn't have yelled his name he wouldn't have noticed you..." Lucius answered, laughing. They had surprisingly become good friends with the archer girl. Lucius, Priscilla, but mostly Raven.
"Then I'll just sneak up next time... and hope he doesn't throw me!" She said, laughing again. Hugging Lucius tighter. Lucius laughed before he started choking.
"Sorry!" Rebecca gasped, letting go. "Are you ok...?" she asked, Lucius just smiled and laughed.
"Are you two done?" Raven asked.
"YES!" Rebecca yelled, oh-so-cheerfully.
"Hm... Priscilla was suppose to meet us here..." Lucius said, looking around before seeing her horse approaching.
"Lord Br-... oh um.. Raven..." came the timid voice of Priscilla as she got off her horse(well she kind of fell off but... whatever.)
"Hey! Priscilla!" Rebecca yelled, happily.
"Good day, Lady Priscilla..." Lucius said, smiling.
"Hello... everyone..." Priscilla answered, bowing.
"Oh! Your so cute and polite!" Rebecca said, hugging Priscilla.
"oh... um... hehe..." Priscilla giggled, a little surprised by the sudden attack. Lucius laughed and Raven smirked a bit.
"How are you Raven?" Priscilla asked, smiling.
"Ok... you?" Raven answered.
"Good, its nice to see you all..." she answered.
"Raven's being stuffy and wont let anyone hug him... so we have to get him one of these days..." Rebecca said, a clever smile on her face. Whispering into Priscilla's ear.
"If your going to start plotting against me do it where I wont here you..." Raven said, with a sigh.
"okay!" Rebecca answered, grabbing Priscilla and pulling her about 10 yards away.
"I DIDN'T MEAN IT LITERALLY!" Raven yelled. Lucius laughed before getting hit over the head again.
"oh... I didn't do anything..." Lucius whined.
"Don't encourage them!" he yelled.
"You're the one who told them to go plot elsewhere..." Lucius grumbled. Raven giving him a most murderous glare. "DON'T HIT ME!" Lucius yelled, before running off. Thus Raven was left 10 yards away from everyone he wanted to talk to. Of course they all came back, but by then Raven could only ponder the contents of Rebecca's schemes.
"You done...?" Raven asked, in that annoyed tune he used on a regular basis.
"Yep! So watch your back!" Rebecca answered, with a laugh and wink.
"heh... I'll keep that in mind..." Raven grumbled, while Rebecca giggled.
"Lets go get lunch! My treat!" Lucius said, pointing toward town.
"Oh, yah! I'm starving..." Rebecca yelled.
"that... would be very kind... Thank you.." Priscilla said.
"So Cute and polite!" Rebecca yelled again, hugging little Priscilla once more.
"Raven? Eh? Eh? Come on!" Lucius poked.
"Fine... what are we eating?" Raven asked.
Only minutes later the four were sitting at a low laying table with bowls of Ramen and rice balls. Well... the kind of Ramen they would have in Elibe. Raven sat trying to figure out how to eat his food correctly, he didn't understand the process of using sticks to eat noodle soup.
"How'd you know about this place?" Rebecca asked, smiling.
"The tactician took me to eat at a place like this once... I love the food..." Lucius answered, smiling. Of course everyone else could manage there chop sticks.... yet Raven sat in the corner continuously dropping his food because he couldn't figure out how to hold them right.
"Its very good taste wise... and I love these little sticks..." Rebecca said, holding them up perfectly and laughing. Raven glared, trying to understand how she was holding them.
"What about you Raven?" Asked Priscilla, as she finished a rice ball.
"Yah.. I like it..." he grumbled, grabbing a rice ball. The one thing he didn't have to use the sticks for.
"Oh, I heard about this whole crazy Zodiac thing... strange huh?" Lucius said, with a look of content.
"Yah! Turning into a Animal! Then Changing back only moments later, the whole thing seems silly..." Rebecca said, eating some Sushi.
"but... Its real..." Priscilla said, setting down her chop sticks. That same Noblewomen look as she always seemed to have on her face.
"Yah! Of course... wait... I remember now... You were there when Guy changed right?" Lucius answered, leaning forward, clearly very interested.
"Oh yes... It was strange.. I was a bit scared... I was so worried about Guy..." Priscilla said.
"What happened? You didn't get hurt at all right?" Raven asked, between his bites.
"Oh, I would have fallen off my horse if Guy wouldn't had caught me... well He tried..., but then he turned into a Rat and I landed on the poor creature..." Priscilla answered, looking quite guilty.
"You didn't get hurt though, Right?" Raven asked.
"No... you could say he broke my fall...but... I think hurt him, really..." Priscilla answered, with that sad, yet innocent look of hers.
"Well, You should thank him! I think it was noble of him to help a lady in need..." Lucius said, smiling.
"Noble? No... More like polite, common behavior..." Raven added, with a scowl.
"Maybe... well it was the thought that counts... Oh hay... Priscilla... What did you do when he transformed back?" Rebecca asked, looking as curious as ever. Raven eating his Ramen, but still listening.
"Oh! I looked away!" Priscilla answered, happily. Raven spitting out the Ramen in his mouth, involuntarily I may add, and spilling most of the soup in his bowl. Everyone stared, well except Lucius who continued eating his Ramen.
Ak...
...ward
Sil...
...ence
"You know... You really shouldn't spill your food like that... Its rude, my lord." Lucius said, ever-so-politically correct and breaking the silence. Raven looking like he was ready to choke the monk he sat next to.
"Well... I was just... A little surprised..." Raven said, wiping his mouth, then picking a piece of food off the tray in center and throwing it in his mouth. The other three stared.
"What?" he asked.
"um... That was Sushi..." Rebecca said.
"So?" he answered.
"Raw fish eggs!" Lucius said, smiling. Raven's eyes widened.
"Plus... I already bite off that one..." Rebecca said. Raven twitching before swallowing hard, followed by downing a whole cup of Tea in about two swallows. Of course that would probably make anyone else sick... but he's Raven... He'll live.
"Help! Help! Everyone hide! The village is under attack! The Black Fang are here!" Came the voice of a messenger outside. The villagers began to panic, closing the doors and windows. The group grabbed there weapons and headed out the door. Well except Lucius who was oblivious to everything that was going on.
"Come on... There probably looking for us anyways..." Raven said. Priscilla getting on her horse and Rebecca getting an arrow ready. Lucius soon came out of the restaurant.
"What were you doing?" Raven asked.
"I got Doggy Bags!" Lucius said, holding up a bag full of leftovers. The others just stared. "I thought we might get hungry..." Lucius added, a pouting.
"Come on..." Raven sighed, rolling his eyes. Then running toward the village entrance. Just as they reached the outside the met there teammates. They had gotten attacked on there way to the village for supplies.
"Lets go block off any bandits from sneaking out from the lake." Rebecca said, pointing over to the lake. A few pirates and bandits coming from the lake and mountains in the area.
"Come.." Raven said, running over to the area. He pulled out his sword and the fight began. Lucius hitting any opposing bandits with light magic, while Priscilla was hitting anyone close enough with a fire ball. Rebecca firing into the air at some wyverns above. The battle roared for almost an hour. Raven eventually getting separated from the other three. He was the only close range fighter and could take out many of the bandits alone. The others had there own problems...and he couldn't concern himself with them at the moment.
The battle ended shortly after the leader was killed. Raven stood on the edge of the lake, huffing. He bend over, exhausted. The others were about half a mile from him. He couldn't manage the walk in his state.
"I'll just rest here..." He said to himself. He put his sword away and began wrapping his arm in new bandage.
"Lord Raymond!" Came the monks voice. There appeared Lucius, arms open and smiling. Ravens Eyes widened as Lucius latched onto his arm.
"I'm so glade you're ok! You're ok right!?" Lucius asked, as perky as ever.
"eh... ah.. Yah... Oh! LET GO OF ME!" Raven yelled, hitting Lucius in the head.
"Lord Brother!" Came Priscilla's voice as she came running from the other direction.
"Oh no!" Raven yelled, pulling his arm from Lucius and moving away. Priscilla's glomp hitting Lucius and knocking the two of them to the ground.
"Ha! You guys can't get me with your little scheming!" Raven laughed. His laugh being interrupted by Rebecca's arms being wrapped around his waist and hugging him from behind.
"Got you!" Rebecca yelled, before Raven disappeared into a puff of smoke.
"EH!?" Coming from the three. Rebecca holding up the Ravens cloths. "Dis....appeared?" She gasped. Priscilla and Lucius pulled themselves off the ground and ran over to her.
"Rebecca!? What...just happened!?" Lucius yelled.
"I...I... blew up Raven!" She yelled, crying. Latching onto his coat, which she held.
"Not... quite..." Priscilla said, pointing to what lie below them, squeaking its little head off. There on the ground sat a little red dragon, about 3 inches long. Oh and when I say "Dragon" I mean the kind of Dragon you would see in our world, aka, A Little Red Seahorse. Yah... you heard me... SEAHORSE!
"OH MY GOSH! Fresh water!? Salt Water!? What is it!?" Rebecca yelled, holding the little pissed off seahorse in her hands.
"Allow me to assist you..." came the voice of a grown male. Out from who-knows-where came the Man in the Black coat. Yet surprisingly, his voice seemed different as well as his height.
"Is Raven gonna DIE!?" Rebecca asked, yelling as loud as possible. With her worried puppy dog eyes.
"Oh! No! No... See what you do in a time like this is..." The man took the seahorse form her. "You take your seahorse friend... hold him gently by the tail..." the man paused before he continued "then you.....HURL INTO THE ABYSS!" the man yelled before throwing poor Raven into to air, eventually landing in the lake.
"AHH! RAVEN!" The three yelled as he landed into the water. The all stood there dumb founded. As the cloaked man skipped away saying, "I ALWAYS wanted to do that!"
Another puff of smoke came and Raven was floating in the river, coughing and wet. The three waved him to come back and he began to swim back. Rebecca gave a sigh of relief when she found out Raven was okay. Lucius noticed Rebecca still clutching Ravens coat. Of course our ever-so-clever monk covered both Rebecca's and Priscilla's eyes with his hands as Raven came out of the water.
"Oh my..." Lucius sighed.
"What?" Raven asked, gasping for air.
"My lord... be decent..." Lucius answered, looking away himself. Finally Raven noticed. Then he managed to get angry, embarrassed, and panic all at the same time.
"What... Why are you..." Rebecca said, pulling away Lucius's hand, blankly blinking once when she looked at Lucius, then once more when she looked at Raven. "Oh!" She said, putting her own hands over her eyes, giggling slightly, but trying not to show it.
The four eventually got back to the village and were rewarded for there efforts to save the village with free food at the restaurant they were at earlier. Yah, free raw fish after Raven turned into a Seahorse, just what there in the mood for.
Well, other then that, Rebecca now giggling whenever she sees Raven and Raven getting that mixed emotion of embarrassed, angry, and panicky whenever he saw any of the other three. And just like the other Zodiac, he left out many details to his transformation, mostly the part after and the fact that he turned into a squeaking thing of sea food (which makes even Guys form not seem so sissy). He just said his form was a Red Dragon and nobody questioned him further.
Saisu: -waves happy flag- Thanks for the reviews!
Sarah: This chapter took much less time then the last one didn't it... and its longer! What's up with that!?
Saisu: well... I have a harder time writing about Matthew, Guy, and Priscilla then Raven, Lucius, Priscilla, and Rebecca. I really had a hard time getting Guy and Matthews personalities right in the last chapter... Cut me some slack...
Sarah: Yah whatever...-watches TV-
Saisu: O-o well.. um.. THANKS EVERYONE PLEASE REVIEW! HOPE YOU ENJOY!