Mariasta watched her sister mope.

Callypso's eyes were blazing with extreme fury, like a Beserk'ed Gladiator.

"Big Sissie? Hey, calm down..."

Callypso shook herhead. "No. I'm not calming down."

There was a knock on the door.

Mother cracked the door open a crack, a bloody kitchen knife in one hand.

"What?" Mother demanded, cracking the door open a bit more.

A Fighter with tusseled hair stood in the doorway, a Paladin behind him, pushing him forward probably against his will, judging from the ruts his heels lefts in the dirt.

Mother lowered her voice to a whisper. "Boys, you'd better run. Callypso hates Fighters and barely tolerates Paladins," she hissed.

The Paladin gave one hard shove as the Fighter balked a prepared to step back.Unfortunetly, he pushed a bit too hard, and his friend was set tumbling into the doorway with a yell.

He collapsed on the floor in a daze, his wits knocked about by the potted plants near the door.

Callypso saw him.

"Uh-oh..." Mother muttered softly. "RUN!" she screamed. But it was too late. Callypso sighted him and began to build energy in her palms. Before anyone could stop her, she let fly.

Gukko ran straight into Raven, knocking them both over as the energy ball, too hot tobe fire, passed over and out the door.

"RUN!" the middle-aged Assassin yelled, forming a barrier.

"AREN'T YOU HER MOTHER?" Raven screamed in pain as a shards of energy embedded themselves in his skin and exploded.

"YES!" she screamed, pulling bothhumans under the table. "But don't think that means I can control her."

"MAKE HER STOP!" Mariasta screamed, ducking aside.

Gukko scrambled out from under the table. "Callypso?" he asked tenatively.

Callypso slapped him as hard as she could, orchid flames sprouting from the sides of the slap. "You ditched me!" she hissed furiously, comparable to an angry lamia.

Her mother swiped away another energy attack.

Gukko grabbed Callypso and pinned her arms to her back, only to be nearly ripped apart by a whirlwind of flames that leaped up around her, scorching the kitchen ceiling and incineratinga chair in the process.

Callypso began to prepare a Firaga... No! It was beyond a Firaga!

"Callypso! No!" Gukko yelled. He flashed out a bouquet of dark, but not poorly-tasted, red roses.

Callypso dropped the beginning of the fearsome attack into nothingness. Her delicate, slender hands reached out for the flowers.

There was a silence as Callypso looked at them for a moment.

All of a sudden, Callypso vanished in a flash of silver light.

"Huh?" Raven rubbed his head. "OwowoOwow..." he groaned, scraping the dried blood off his clothes and skin.

"She went to her loft. Don't go up there," the Mother warned, her eyebrows furrowing. She sighed and dropped into a chair, the one that wasn't a pile of ashes on the ground. "Please. Don't give up on my daughter." Mystrinia sighed. She suddenly looked older and much more vunerable. "She's really a sweet, loving girl..."

(A/N: Please go ahead and read chapters 74-75 of Things are Different Now. Although you don't need to know the connection with Callypso and the Totema, it's helpful.)

"We'll come back some other time," Raven said. "Where's the nearest hospital?"

Mariasta sighed. "Around the bend. Avoid the fence, don't touch the Panther kit on the sidewalk."

"Thanks!" Gukko helped Raven out the door.

"Please," Mother said. "Don't give up on her."

909090909090909090

Callypso stroked the rose petals gently.

There was a knock on the door.

"Mariasta?" she called.

"No, it's me, Gu-" the voice said.

Callypso slipped a Water spell under the door. "Go away."

"Fine, I will then," he said and she heard footsteps fade into the distance.

""I'll come back some other time," Gukko promised Mother Mystrinia.

"Please."

90909090909090909090

The next day, Mother came home with roses tucked under her arm.

"What are those for?" Callypso asked.

Muglio and Mariasta were sitting in the rafters again.

"Guess!"

Callypso's pretty face soured. "Not for the lovesick whelp?"

Mystrinia flushed. "Well, you see..."

There was a knock on the door.

"Callypso, will you get it dear?" Mother called in a strange tone.

Callypso swung the door open.

Gukko stood int he doorway, grinning sheepishly. He thrust a large bouquet of roses in her face with a "Will you go out with me?"

Callypso slammed the door on his face and turned back.

"Mother! You knew, didn't you-"

"Callypso, lower your voice," Mother Mystrinia warned.

Callypso knew the consequences of rudeness. "Yes, Mother. So... You knew?"

"Sure did," Mother said, not looking up from cleaning the vegetables. Her tone meant no question.

Callypso sighed and put her head in her hands. "You know how I feel about boys," she said calmly.

Mother's steely eyes flickered to her for an instant. "Yes, I know."

"So why..."

"Like oh my God! There's a Fighter holding roses walking down the lane!" Mariasta yelled, her voice straining to imitate the voice of one of the brainless wenches to walk around pubs, flirting with clanners and the such.

But Callypso ignored or didn't even heara glimpse ofMariasta'smimicry.She rushed to the opposite window.

"Where?" She readied a spell in her hands, the destruction ball in her hands.

Mariasta lowered Muglio down to the door, her little arms straining under the weight of the bangaa-child.

"Hurry! Under the table!" he hissed.

Gukko nodded and scrambled silently under.

Callypso scowled.

Mariasta grinned. "False alarm." She kicked the table.

Callypso snarled as Gukko bumped his head on the edge. "You!"

Mother muttered something and crossed her hands. Callypso flinched.

"Mo-ther!" she lamented.

Mother smiled and tucked a strand of stray hair. She turned to Gukko. "It's a complex spell but simple by my standards. Just Magic-Stop."

Callypso tried in vain to create energy in her hands. She sighed and put her hands on her hips. "What do you want?"

"Will you go out with me?" he asked nervously.

Callypso scowled. "No-"

"Give a reason, give a reason!" Mother chided.

"No, I will not go with you because.." Callypso nibbled the tip of her finger. "I asked you last time, didn't I? And you never came!"

"There was an emergency, short-notice-"

"Isn't that what they all say?"

"At least stop blowing up Fighters," Gukko snapped back, his temper rising.

"Stop blowing up Fighters?" Callypso's lovely voice took on a mocking, sadistic tone. "Can I blow you up first, pretty please?" She struck her adorable begging look with big, soulful, irresistable eyes and pouting lips.

"Yes, or cour-" Gukko blushed and corrected himself. That look was so... So... Gukko failed Main Tongue one year, so don't expect him to come up with anything brilliant. That he almost gave in.

"If you blow me up, will you go out with me before?" he asked seriously. "Maybe you'll like me enough to decide against it."

"Well, you're just-" Callypso stepped up and poked him in the chest where there was no armor. The physical force wasn't strong, but her anger and willpower blowing up beneath it was enough to send him back a few paces. "Just trying to look good for a friend, eh?" Callypso's depthless eyes narrowed.

Gukko shook his head. "Even if it's in a discreet location?" He had no idea what discreet meant, but he heard Hejaat once use it in a similiar manner.

"You'll just brag about it in the end."

"Being Lovely Callypso and all, you've probably had a lot of people claim of have dated you, so if I went Beserk and starting blabbing, who'd believe me anyways?"

"Good point..." Callypso chewed her lip.

"Second of next Huntmoon," Mother cut in.

"Mo-"

"SECOND OF NEXT HUNTMOON! Spina Lodge!" Mother repeated. "That okay with you?"

Gukko nodded.

"Okay. We're all set then," Mother said contentedly as Gukko exited with a bow.

Once Gukko was no where within one mile of the little house, Mother smiled. "I have connections, honey, they'll make sure no one sees you," Mother said.

Muglio began counting on his claw-fingers. "One... Two... TWO! Misssstresssss, but that'ssss two daysss from now..."

Mariasta giggled. "Can I help you pick out what to where?"