Alright Chapter 4! Do you get a small hint of Disney's Tangled I added? :3

"You hesitated."

My eyes shot open to the familiar sounding voice. To my surprise, I found that I was not in any forest path but in a white room. There were no windows or doors, but the open ceiling was filling the room with a blinding light. There was nothing in the room except for a large, white throne currently occupied by an annoyed Goddess. So, Maxie is dream stalking me again. I thought. This was her way of "checking up" on us during our missions to ensure we are completing them to the best of our abilities. I hated this, but she had this power as long as our contract remained intact.

"You hesitated." She repeated.

"Wh-what are you talking-"

"Don't play innocent Kuda." She interrupted. "Why did you not kill that whip wielding whore? There was a perfect opportunity to kill her, yet you didn't take it. Have you gone soft oh great Master Assassin?"

"What does it matter?" I snapped "She is of no importance to this mission, so leaving her alive won't jeopardize anything."

Maxwell laughed "If only you knew…"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Oh you'll find out soon enough." Maxwell replied mysteriously.

"What the hell is that supposed to-"

"Enough. I have contacted you with vital information. Ulkina has scouted out a large human army gathering in Mistral and has overheard their plans to attack in two weeks. "

"And this is my problem because…?"

"Because of your mission." Maxwell finished impatiently. "If you manage to recruit the ice beast, you will be able to put an end to their attack before it even begins! That would cause a massive blow to the worthless human army and it may even end this pitiful war once and for all."

"Well if they are so pitiful then why the hell are we losing-"

"So." Maxwell interrupted firmly. "Now is your chance to redeem yourself and put us in the lead. Succeed and I'll have you promoted to second-in-command…"

I blinked. Second in command? I thought. That'll put me above Rowgen and Narza! I can finally have something to rub in their pompous little faces!

"Fail however, and I'll be sure to put up a large reward among the loyalists for your head." Maxwell finished firmly.

"Very well" I sighed. "But what about the whip-girl? Weren't you saying something about her having an impact in this mission?"

"Whatever you two do together is none of my business." Maxwell said haughtily.

"What-" I began.

"Enough." She interrupted again. "Our meeting is through. Farewell Master Assassin."

She raised her arms above her head and I squinted my eyes as a bright light emitted from her. The light began to fill up the entire room until I could see nothing but white. I closed my eyes…

When I opened them, I found myself back in the forest leaning against a tree. I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head and recalled why I had collapsed in the first place. I slowly took in the familiar sights and feelings of the morning. The warm sun shining through a gap between the tall, red trees, the cool and refreshing morning breeze on my face, the soft screeches of harpies and sylphs flying about, the warm feeling of another body pressed against mine, the-

Wait a minute. What? I looked down slowly and beheld a sleeping Orna cuddled against me. Her hair had been ruffled slightly, and she had some injuries on her face that had presumably resulted from the explosion. Her eyes were shut tightly and her lips were formed into a slight smile as she snuggled against my right side. Her position was actually quite adorable, almost adorable enough for me to allow her to sleep peacefully until she woke up on her own. Almost.

"GAAAH!" I exclaimed, waking her up with a jolt. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!?"

"Wh-whaaa…" She said sleepily. "N-no princess we were…" Her eyes suddenly widened as she realized her position.

"AAAH!" She yelled, jumping away from me and scooting away backward on her hands and feet. "I-I was just…"

"Look Orna, or Little Miss Orna or whatever. I know I'm a pretty attractive guy, but we should at least get to know each other better before you do something like this!" I glared at her.

"N-no it wasn't like th-that!" She explained frantically, a slight pink rising to her cheeks. "It was just really cold last night and I couldn't start the fire and I was really tiredand youlookedreallyuncomfortableand-"

"Enough. That's…okay I guess." I said calmly, silencing her panicked explanation. "It was a one time thing so…"

"Yes, yes" she nodded, suddenly happy. "One time thing, right. I won't sleep with you ever again!" she exclaimed, grinning at me.

"Er…yeah. Whatever." I replied sheepishly. Suddenly I remembered Maxwell's warnings. "Wait, what day is it?"

"Tuesday, 14 days until the winter solstice." Orna replied confidently.

I stared at her in awe. "How do you-"

"I've trained myself to read the sky." She said, smiling again.

That's quite impressive. She'd make a great-. I quickly shook my head to snap myself out of it. Focus on your mission. I reminded myself. "Well it's been great, uh getting to know you Little Miss Orna, but I think I have to go now." I said getting up and walking away. Suddenly I felt a sharp pain from my back and I sank to my knees. "Argh!" I exclaimed in agony.

"Mr. Kuda!" Orna said worriedly. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" I yelled. "Get away form me!"

Orna looked hurt at my outburst but nonetheless stepped back. "This is my fault." She said, a hint of regret in her voice.

"What?"

"I hit you with my Luminous Whip attack remember?"

For the second time that morning I stared at her, completely speechless. She's actually taking the blame for this? The weird feeling returned. Why do I feel bad whenever she looks hurt? "Th-that's okay." I managed as she helped my to my feet and walked me back to the tree. "I started it anyway..." I suddenly realized my predicament. "Damn it, how will I ever get to Mistral now?"

Her eyes lit up. "Mistral? Are you going to the Winter Solstice Festival too?"

"I have no time for childish-"

"Oh it's going to be great!" she continued, ignoring me. "There will be delicious treats and fireworks and we can meet the six heroes and-"

"Hold up there." I said curiously. "What was that last part?"

"You mean you didn't hear the news?" Orna quickly pulled out a flyer similar to the one Maxwell was reading to me back in her temple and began to read. "REJOICE! Citizens of Mistral, for your brave and powerful hero Atro has triumphed over the gods' army while defending the Ruins of Mirza! This marks the 50th victory against the gods and the 10th victory in Mistral!" I resisted the urge to stanch the paper and rip it in two. "The citizens of Mistral have graciously allowed the Six Heroes to be a part of their annual Winter Solstice Festival! A lucky few will get to personally meet and greet the heroes themselves! The prince and princess of-" She suddenly stopped, a melancholy look appearing on her face.

"You okay Orna?" I asked, somewhat concerned about the absence of her usually happy nature.

"I-its nothing. So are you going or not?" She said, her happy mood returning.

"Uh…" Why on earth would I want to go to a festival celebrating a battle with the human army? Especially with a meet and greet with the six heroes! If I even see Atro's face again I'll- Suddenly I had an idea. "Say, you wouldn't happen to know how to become one of the "lucky few" who get to meet the six heroes do you?"

"Well it says here the prince and princess of Mistral are holding a ball for the royalties in the region…" She trailed off. "But it wouldn't matter. With your current condition, we'd take longer than two weeks to reach Mistral and I don't think we-".

"There's a shortcut. I found an old path in The Destroyed Cathedral that leads straight to the Remains of Mirza."

"Really? How did you know that?" She said curiously.

"I've been around." I said simply. That wasn't exactly a lie, I had used that passage multiple times throughout the battle of Mirza to lead a small force of monsters into the back lines. That wasn't enough to win the battle, of course…

"So you're going?" Orna asked happily.

"On one condition. You make me a cure."

"What?" asked Orna, taken aback.

"I know The Blood Forest. There are green springs and green grass everywhere. Make a small bottleful, and my back should be fixed enough for my, uh our journey." I said, hesitating at the end.

"You Promise?" Orna said carefully

"Yes, yes of course" I replied

The next thing I knew, I was being picked up and swung around in a tight squeeze-hug. "Oh thanks you thank you Mr. Kuda!" She exclaimed. "I've always wanted to see the fireworks since I was young! And thanks to you it's finally happening! Thankyouthankyouthankyou."

"Urg..just Kuda…is fine…you're….kinda…crushing me…." I choked.

"Oops sorry" Orna giggled. "Fear not Kuda, for I, Little Miss Orna, shall acquire your cure and safely bestow it upon your injured backside! Orna Awayyyyyy!" She yelled happily as she ran off.

I sighed and struggled to lean back against the tree. "What did I just get myself into?"

What do you think? Should I make Orna more bubbly? I tried to capture her personality as best as I could here but I don't know if I should add anything else. Please continue to review, it means a lot to me!

I know Orna says "Mr. Kuda", but I think of them as only 1-3 years apart (Orna being 18-19 and Kuda being 20-21 ish). Anyway, it's probably just her nature to do something like that.

I apologize for any typos because for some reason, my Mac won't detect them all and I have to read the story over and over again to find them all. :/