I have some bad news guys... As you're all aware, I've been having some computer troubles for the past month now. Well... it finally died on me. I had this chapter up on FFN, but the whole of 18 was lost, meaning I need to rewrite what little I had over again. It doesn't help that my new comp can't register the old files I had backed up... So unfortunately, it may be a while before I upload chapter 18 and 19.

I am so sorry I haven't been as reliable to you guys as I should be. I appreciate you reviews so much, and this goes to my quiet readers as well: don't think I don't appreciate every hit I get from you guys!

In the words of Arnold, "I'll be back." Sincerely, Bishie.

x x x

Now, the climatic battle of Glitter in the Air! Enjoy reading: it was just as much fun writing it! And after how much I've written on it, I have a feeling I'll have to split it up in two parts. XD Especially ending it the way I did, which I never planned on but am pleased anyway.

As much as Walter doesn't curse much, when he's impatient or frustrated enough (especially around Senel) he tends to lose control of his language. And actions. So warnings about that.

Themes are: Cloud Age Symphony - Shuntaro Okino (Last Exile OST), One More Soul to the Call - Silent Hill: Homecoming OST, Twisted Logic - Coldplay, Trouble - Coldplay

Chapter 17: Trouble

As Walter walked out of the inn that morning, he felt a great uneasiness lingering in the air. Looking around the town, who's citizens seemed to go about their normal routine like always, he wondered if it was just him. He had been haunted by worrying thoughts about Norma all night, and felt lethargic and tense this morning, his feet scuffing the ground slightly. On his way to the Hospital to see if Norma was awake yet, the Ferines wondered if he could ask Elsa for a cup of tea like last night to help wake himself up.

Walking down the street, he noticed the birds that would normally fill the air with their songs were silent. Not a single bird was singing, in fact, he didn't see a single bird in the sky. The city seemed to be waiting for something to happen.

His eyes furrowing together, he sped up his pace slightly as he passed over a bridge, water rushing underneath it faster then normal, what with the rainstorm they just had. The hair seemed to stand up on the back of his neck as he felt a chill run down his spine. Usually he would say he was paranoid and just overreacting from staying up so late, but the Ferines had learned to listen to his instincts. They were usually right, and had saved his life on more then one occasion.

Senses keen even with his lack of sleep, Walter continued walking up the path before he saw a person running down the path towards him: A young girl, her short hair pulled into two pigtails next to her face. It was Elsa. "Walter!" She gasped, slowing and stopping to gasp for breath.

Sensing something was wrong, the blond ran the rest of the way and slid to a stop in front of her. "Elsa, what's wrong? Did something happen to…?" He started to ask, concern overwhelming him.

"I came… to find the others… and you." She panted, coughing through parts of it. "Norma's gone!"

"What?" His blood ran cold.

"S-she just bolted out of the… Hospital, I couldn't stop her!" She looked up at him with worry in her eyes, watery from coughing and gasping from running this far. "She's in danger… The poison's still in her bloodstream! If she doesn't get the antidote she'll… her fever and pain will come back, and she'll collapse. A-and..." She continued, gesturing with one hand while she coughed.

Images went through Walter's head from what she told him. Norma limping into the Crystal Forest, collapsing after reaching a certain part of it. Her feverish and pained expression from last night… Damnit, he should have figured this out yesterday night! Swallowing his now enormous worry and fear about Norma, he tried to speak to Elsa calmly. "Elsa, do you have the antidote? I think I know where she is."

She shook her head, body shuddering from her coughing fit. "I… I gave it to Chloe. She went to go find Senel and the others." Walter silently cursed to himself, and before he could ask where she went, a sudden screeching sound rang through the air. The blond turned to face it, and his eyes widened in shock at the sight.

The trees around the area suddenly whipped around with pressurized air, caused by the huge wing beats of a massive monster flying overhead. It landed on a nearby building, long claws digging into the ceiling tiles and cracking them under its weight. A scaled reptilian head with wide frills on the side of its face looked down at some of the towns people, who screamed in terror at the dragon's sudden appearance. It let out a piercing roar, and flames licked at the edges of its fangs.

Walter stared up wide-eyed at the dragon before shaking his head and quickly turning to the stunned-silent girl next to him. "Elsa!" He barked at her, and she snapped out of her shock to look at him, "Go back to the Hospital and get Alcott! I have a feeling his skills will be needed. I'll go find Chloe and get to Norma before anything happens to her!"

She tried to ask him something but he waved an arm at her impatiently. "Now!" Squeaking, she nodded quickly, "She went to the Fountain! If you hurry you might catch her!" With that said, she ran the other way, careful to stay away from the dragon on top of the building nearby.

Making sure to remember her piece of information, Walter turned on his heel and sprinted in the direction of the fountain plaza as his violet eres activated and flared around his fingertips.

A block down from where the first dragon landed, two more had arrived. One sprayed the street with fire, the townspeople jumping out of the blast of heat as it lit the grass aflame. A second orange-colored dragon snapped at a man holding a sword, swinging at the huge reptilian monster when he could. Some citizens ran away from the beasts shrieking in terror while others quickly grabbed weapons to fight. Near to where the second lava dragon was fighting the swordsman, Walter recognized the weapon shop owner passing out weapons to those who had none, with one burly man swinging around a huge broadsword and running towards the dragon with a bellowing battlecry.

As he came close to the first dragon, it spied him trying to run past it and brought down a sharp claw, deep rumbling growls causing more panic from the defenseless citizens. Stopping in place suddenly, the Ferines shifted his weight to one foot and dodged away from the claws of the dragon, sliding underneath its legs and behind it. Leaping into the air, he jumped over the spine-covered tail that swept under his feet as the dragon spun to try and attack him. Not staying a moment more to experience what being roasted by dragon flame felt like, he shot from the spot towards the fountain.

Where the hell had they all come from? The Ferines asked himself as he passed by a swordsmen charging towards the twin pair of dragons behind him. Apparently there have been sightings for a week or so since he fought against the poisonous one in the forest, but why would they suddenly attack Werites Beacon? Did something attract them to this spot?

Shaking his head, he pushed himself to go faster, trying to find Chloe in all of the chaos. The town could take care of themselves: he had seen how powerful the citizens could be when pushed into battle. All that mattered to him at the moment was finding the knight, getting the antidote and giving it to Norma before it was too late.

As if three wasn't enough, a fourth white dragon stood on the stone of the fountain, the nearby trees covered in icy frost. As Walter entered the plaza, he spotted a blast of red eres tear into one of the dragon's wings. It roared in pain and toppled off the fountain to the side of the structure, tearing a piece of rock from the top. Water poured down the broken stone and flowed over the edges of the fountain and onto the coral-covered stone. As it flowed outward and created a slippery battlefield, the dragon rose with its eyes glowing white, seeking revenge on the large spellcaster whom caused it pain.

As it roared, a sword slashed at the chest of the beast, causing it to growl in anger at the swordswoman and claw at her instead. The hit met its mark, and Chloe flew across the length of the plaza. She fell to the ground, sliding across the slick stone to a stop.

"Chloe, are you alright?" Yelled Will as he charged another fire spell to give the other Rexalian swordsmen with them some time to attack.

"Yes, I'm fine!" She yelled back, wincing as she tried to pick herself up off the ground.

A hand grabbed hers, and she looked up to see Walter pulling her to her feet. The blond looked much more like himself then the last time they met, his stance strong and violet eres flared around his fingertips. Gone was the haunted look in his eyes, though they were replaced with an immense look of worry, though not trained towards her. "Walter! What are you doing here?" She couldn't help but ask as she got to her feet.

He shook his head, "There's no time for that. I need the antidote Elsa gave you, where is it?"

The knight opened her mouth to ask him why, but sensed the urgency in his tone and instead answered his question. "I don't have it: I gave it to Senel."

Walter let out a string of curses which Chloe guessed to partially be Relares, and he spoke up again, "Well, where is he now?"

"We split up. I was to go find Jay, Moses and Will while he got Grune and Shirley. We were supposed to meet at the inn afterwards, but the dragons attacked before I got very far. I think he's probably around where Madam Musette lives, in the rich district." He turned his head in the direction of where her house was, then nodded at her and went to leave. A thought came to her, and she called, "Walter, wait!"

He stopped in place and turned his head towards her, "What?"

She hesitated. "…You knew that would happen to Norma, didn't you? That's why you asked me to make sure she didn't go." He averted his gaze, eyebrows furrowed as guilt filled his expression. Chloe suddenly saw the whole picture come full circle, and couldn't help but feel that she saw it coming. Why else would he give her such a strangely-specific request if he knew what would happen afterwards? "I'm sorry I couldn't stop her from getting hurt."

Walter shook his head, hair shaking in and out of his eyes, looking back at her. "The same thing is going to happen at the Crystal Forest, only she won't live through it this time." Chloe's eyes widened. "I know where she's going to be, and I'm the only one that can be there. You all need to stay here and defend Werites Beacon against the dragons."

His eyes took on a stubborn light, the exact same which she always saw in Senel's whenever he defended Shirley. The eyes of someone who had a person they cared about, that they wanted to protect. "I'll find Norma... I'll save her, or die trying."

Chloe stood gazing at the blond in front of her, battle behind her forgotten for the moment as she understood. At once, she saw the last glimpses of the arrogant Ferines filled with bitter anger vanish, replaced by this man ready to do anything to defend his friend, an Orerines of all people. Though, perhaps he's always had that person in him, it was just overshadowed by everything else.

Her eyes suddenly bright with a spark of hope, she smiled and nodded. "Bring her back safely, Walter."

"I will." I promise... "Good luck, Chloe." He nodded towards her, then without a second word turned and ran back towards the front of the city, cloak flaring out behind him. A few people ran into the plaza behind him, and when they had finally moved out of her line of sight he was gone.

"You too…" She stated quietly, standing for a moment more before the sounds of battle invaded her ears once more. Turning around, she held her sword in an offensive stance and charged, her eres shining around her fingers once more.

x x x

"Beast!" A sharp cry rang out above the sounds of swords clanging and dragons roaring. A series of rapid kicks followed by a blast of eres shaped like the head of a lion clashed into the stomach of a dragon, knocking it backwards. It toppled backwards into a tree, its weight made the tree groan and eventually snap under the weight. Both dragon and tree trunk collapsed in a heap on a woodshed, thankfully with no one inside.

Senel took a moment to catch his breath after the attack, swallowing a melange gel to recover some of his strength. Three, he counted silently to himself. He had spotted three dragons since trying to find Grune and Shirley, and he was only halfway from the fountain to Madam Musette's home. Where had they all appeared from?

He wiped away beads of perspiration from his forehead staring at the dragon, which growled weakly as it tried to get back to its feet only to fall back onto the pile of splintered wood. The eren only hoped that there weren't as many dragons on the other side of town. Noticing a huge black dragon with fiery red eyes stomping far up the street, he let out a tired sigh of irritation and ran past the various rubble and destroyed buildings to the large monster.

The huge amount of dragons that swarmed the village had attacked at the exact wrong time, the eren thought as he felt a bottle of liquid sloshing around in his item bag. Norma was sick... She needed to get that antidote soon, and the dragons were making the time period of when they could come after her longer and longer. He was worried they might not make it in time, if the dragons kept swarming the city.

With a yell, Senel let loose a few Demon Fists as he ran, the waves of eres landing on the side of its huge legs. The black-scaled creature turned its dark gaze on the eren in front of it, a low growl filling the air with a rumble. Senel felt a drop of sweat run down the back of his neck. "Somehow, I think this one will be a little harder then the others." He said to himself, before the dragon's growl stopped. Its head rose to screech loudly at the sky, the nearby people covering their ears from the shear volume of the voice.

Senel saw the dragon swing its frilled tail around towards him, and quickly dashed out of the way just as it destroyed the front garden of a house. An archway covered in vines collapsed around the front, and the black fiend turned back to face the eren, growling loudly as if daring him to attack.

"Alright, you big lizard. You asked for it." With a yell, he ran towards the dragon and tried attacking it, only to have his attacks bounce off of the hard scales of its legs. Senel recoiled away from the dragon, pain pulsating through his hands from the vibrations of his blocked attacks. It was like punching a wall! The dragon seemed to look at him like an insect, and before Senel could react a fierce claw slashed at the eren. He was sent flying through the air before crashing painfully into a nearby wagon, shifting the various crates and sending a barrel flying out the other side.

The white-haired eren groaned, pushing a piece of a broken crate out of his face. He sat up slowly, feeling a warm stream of liquid drip from the back of his head. He didn't need to check to know his head was bleeding, he believed it. The splintered wood poking painfully into his back was all the proof he needed.

Looking ahead of him, he saw the dragon growling, its tail whipping silently behind it like a cat. Senel got up slowly, and jumped out of the wagon to stand unsteadily next to it. Looking up at the dragon, he winced. Oh, this would be a hard battle. If only Shirley or Chloe were here to lend some support. Anyone to help would be nice, really. This type of dragon, a dark dragon like the one they fought in the Thunder Monument looking for the dragon whelp, was too powerful for just one person. And he was already exhausted from battling three lesser dragons already, taking on this one would be near impossible. Still... he had to try.

Senel took a deep breath before charging again. The dragon roared at it again, making Senel pause to cover his ears from the piercing sound. When the roaring stopped, the iron eren had just enough time to dodge away from a claw trying the same attack from before. He skidded around the attack, and leapt over its tail aiming to slam into him. An idea suddenly appearing in his head, Senel ducked away from the dragon's talons and grabbed onto one of the large spikes on its tail. Fighting to keep his balance, he ran up the length of its back. When he finally reached its head, he grabbed a horn for support and blasted as many attacks into the closest vulnerable spot as possible: its face.

It roared in pain, and shook its head to try and throw off the human. Senel grabbed onto its horns and held on as much as he could, punching at its eyes when he had a chance. After doing this a few times, Senel felt the soft scales above its left eye tear and a torrent of wet blood streamed over his fist. By this time, the dragon had enough of the human bull-rider on its head, and sharply swung its head towards a house.

Senel's blood-soaked hand slipped from the horns, and he was sent hurtling towards the stone building. He only had enough time to correct his stance to catch himself on the wall before falling on his feet in the house owner's lawn. The dragon in front of him thrashed about, rubbing at its face and trying to get the red stinging liquid out of its eye. Senel took a few steps towards it, and the scaled head whipped towards the sound. One red eye locked onto Senel while the other one was closed to prevent any more blood from leaking into it.

A deep hissing sound exited its mouth, lips curled back to reveal huge curved fangs. The iron eren was wary of the dragon, slowly circling across the lawn back to the path. The black dragon focused on the eren, hisses growing more and more gravely until they became downright ferocious growls. Of all of the dragons he had faced on the Legacy, Senel was yet to encounter one as dark and rage-filled as this one. Considering it was probably a top-tier dragon of the species, this didn't help matters.

The growls got louder, and Senel saw something flicker in its mouth. Hair rising on the back of its neck, he made himself ready to dodge whatever was coming next. The flickering turned into a dark smoke-like flame, black fire licking at its teeth as it grew larger. The dragon began to open its jaws slightly, and its head arched back ever so slightly as the fire grew larger and larger, until it didn't seem like it could hold back the flames anymore. Senel's eyes widened when he realized the blast wouldn't be outrun-able, and backed up ever so slightly.

Suddenly, from out of absolutely nowhere, a male voice cut through the air, "Indignation!" A glowing violet circle of light appeared on the ground, ancient symbols which Senel recognized as bits of Relares lined the outside as it slowly circled around. The symbols brightened to a blinding degree and flashed. A huge bolt of electricity shot straight down the dragon's body, and it jolted in pain as the flames started to empty from its mouth. A winged shape of light shot towards its head from farther down the path, colliding with a blast against the underside of its head.

The dragon's chin was forced upwards, and it lost control of the black fire gathering in its mouth, blowing smoky flames into the air. The fire swirled and eventually disappeared into the air, faint sparks falling back down to earth. Its head was pushed back so far that it lost its balance, and fell backwards against a building, the entire front of it collapsing against the heavy monster's weight.

Senel looked back during the monster's loss of control to the owner of the eres. That winged shape… it couldn't be…! As the sparks began to fall down from the sky, he saw the figure as clear as day. Clad in black and red Orerines clothing, blond hair fluttered away from his face from the spell's effect, revealing piercing blue eyes. Walter... Senel thought, shocked not at his being in the city, but defending him from an attack. Of all of the people to save him from the dragon's attack, it was Walter?

The Ferines looked back at the dragon to assure that it would stay down, then ran towards Senel with a clear goal in his mind. Senel stood his ground, ready for any sort of mocking words, or insults, or just attacking that he might have in mind. He still didn't know why Walter was alive, or what he wanted, or if he was even on their side anymore. Either way, Senel knew that he still hated him, and he'd be lying if he said the feelings weren't a bit mutual.

Instead, what Walter said next surprised him. "Where's the antidote Chloe gave you?"

"Eh?" The eren blinked in confusion. How did he know she…? "How do you-?" He began to say before the blond stopped in front of him, waving a hand to interrupt.

"I know because she told me, you idiot." He said quickly. "Now do you have it? Or did you pass it off to someone else I need to look for in this wild goose chase?" He held out an arm, staring at Senel impatiently.

Well, he had insulted him: that much was the same. Senel nodded, but his eyes narrowed in the slightest degree and crossed his arms, "Yeah, I have it." However, he made no move to give it to the blond.

He waited a moment staring at him, then shook his arm, "…Well?"

"I won't give it to you."

Walter waved his arms, his cool patience and temper frayed to the point of throwing civility out the window. "Why the hell not? Don't you see I need it! Just hand it over!"

Senel just gave him a suspicious look. "Why do you want it so badly, Walter?" It didn't seem like he had changed a bit, and his wanting Norma's antidote seemed suspicious... Was he trying to cause them trouble again just to spite him? "Don't you have better things to be doing, instead of barging into our lives and ruining-?"

At that line, the last thread of Walter's fragile self-control, worn down by worry, impatience, Senel's presence and a few battles that had taken too much time out of what precious little he had left, had finally snapped.

Vision practically going red with fury like it had at the graveyard, he unleashed all of his anger into a solid right hook to Senel's face. The other eren fell to the ground stunned, as the Ferines in front of him screamed obscenities, "I am trying to save your friend, you fucking idiot! Norma's in the Crystal Forest, lost and poisoned, while you're here doing what! Nothing! Not a god-damned thing! Your friend is dying, Senel, and you're here asking me, accusing me if I have better things to do then ruining your lives!"

Senel tried to get up and swing at the raging blond, but another hard punch laid him flat on his back. Kneeled over him, A firm grip held the front of his clothes as the Ferines had a fist ready to smack him again if he tried anything, forcing Senel to stare up at him and listen.

"How dare you! What gives you any right to ask me that, of all the fucking things in the world? Need I remind you that you ruined my life!" Walter yelled, bitter anger worked up to the surface of his mind and making him feel all the painful memories yet again. "All eighteen years of my existence on this earth, I was appointed with being the bodyguard of the future Merines, being her protector-" Senel had averted his gaze and he slammed him against the ground, "Will you fucking look at me when I'm talking to you! I was supposed to protect her, it was my duty in life! Mine! And then you showed up…"

A bitter smile appeared on his face. "You showed up when she did. Bright and pure, with apparently nothing against you. Through everything I tried to take her to Maurits safely, you kept interfering. And look what came of that! Not a day later, and you handed her right into the hands of Vaclav!"

"That wasn't my fault!" Senel blurted quickly.

"Bullshit, it wasn't! You couldn't protect her! By the time we managed to save her, Vaclav had managed to fire off the Nerifes Cannon at Gadoria, and they came after her for it." He spit out the country's name like an insult, and his fingers loosened from Senel's shirt, his fist falling to his side. "They tried arresting her, for conspiring with the Crusand Empire." His eyes gazed off into a distant memory, and Senel stared at him like he was a completely different person, having never seen this side of him before.

"They just… They wouldn't even hesitate, not even against a defenseless person, and… those bastards just… She…" Walter's words died on his lips, he couldn't say them. If he did, he's relive that horrible event all over again, and he didn't think he could keep up with his rant at Senel. His sadness would overwhelm him again, and it would all fall apart.

Swallowing his despair not for the first time, he glared down at Senel. "Shirley had finally become the Ferines, and I was the one protecting her. And no matter how hard I fought you, no matter how hard I tried, pushing myself until I couldn't even walk, you still took that away from me." Fingers tightening on his shirt, blue eyes full of bitterness stared down at the white-haired person in front of him. "You took away my destiny, Senel. My life's sole purpose. I died knowing that I had failed in the one thing I was supposed to do in life. …Do you even know what that feels like? You lose the will to live."

The blond looked towards the direction of Lumen Spring, his hair shielding his eyes from the figure below him. "I came back, two months later and didn't know what to do. I was a ghost with no purpose. Then Norma found me, offered me a place to stay. Even though in the past I tried to kill her at one point." Senel's eyes widened slightly at his words. Norma? She had been the one shielding him, the entire time?

Walter let out a breath, and Senel could have sworn he pouted. "Nerifes, is she irritating sometimes. She's the kind of person who won't shut up about something, about everything. She's greedy, lazy and doesn't know when to stop pestering someone to save her life. Though… as much as she's hard to be around, she's probably one of the only people who even cared about whether I existed or not. For Nerifes' sake, she nearly killed herself from mana exhaustion saving my life. Of all the people to risk her life for, she chose me… What an idiot."

Senel's mind spun with all that he was saying. Norma had given Walter a place to stay. Her mana exhaustion was from saving his life. She cared about him, and from the strange tone he'd never before heard in Walter's voice, he cared about her too.

It was almost too much for his mind to take at once. First Walter was screaming at him with such ferocity he wouldn't have been surprised if he tried to kill him again, then he looked like his heart had been shattered. He was emotionless, then when he spoke of Norma he spoke in such an affectionate tone he sounded nothing like himself. All of this happening while Walter had a fist in his shirt reading to punch him was giving such a headache from the mood whiplash it wasn't even funny.

"That idiot…" The Ferines' tone changed suddenly, staring off into nothing again, "Then she decided to get herself hurt. Poisoned. She went to the Crystal Forest alone, with no one to save her. And then… no one will be able to save her from that shadowy women, who's going to kill her." Senel felt a chill at his cryptic words... Who was that shadowy women he spoke of? Did this have anything to do with the black mist?

Staring at Senel, he raised his arm into a somewhat offensive stance, as if to remind Senel who was in charge. "Don't you get it, Senel? Norma is going to die if someone doesn't go to the Crystal Forest and save her. I took on the task of protecting her life the moment she saved mine… and I'd rather die again before failing to protect another person. I need to give her that antidote before it's too late…"

His expression was so pleading that Senel couldn't imagine this could possibly be the same person that punched him in the face earlier, let alone the same Ferines who tried to kill him months ago. "Walter…" He finally voiced, still shocked over his confession.

"Damn it, Senel, please don't make me beg. I don't think my pride could take it." That slight hint of humor, small as it was, brought the eren out of his shock. And he said please. Slowly, he nodded, and lightly pushed the Ferines off of him so he could reach into the item pocket at his side to retrieve the antidote.

Thanking whatever god above that the bottle was intact, he held it out to the Ferines whom he had once shared a mutual hatred with. Now… He didn't know what it was. After everything Walter had vented and confessed, Senel felt some wall break apart between them, piece by piece. He had never known why the blond had despised him so much, but now that he knew the reasons behind that hate, he almost couldn't blame the guy. Really, when he looked at the big picture, they weren't so different.

Walter hesitated for some reason, staring at the bottle like it would be snatched away the moment he reached for it. Blinking, he gently plucked it from the fingers of the other eren and stared at it. "…Thanks…?" The single word seemed hard to say to someone who he had once despised, and whom still felt a great deal of jealousy of.

"You needed it more then I do." Senel replied with a shrug, looking over at the blond man still staring at the small bottle. The moment felt so strange and out-of-place it was surreal.

Walter was silent for a moment, then look up to speak to the other eren when his eyes widened in horror, the blood draining from his face at the gaping maw full of fangs that was right behind him. "...Walter?" Senel asked, wondering why he looked more like a ghost than ever, then feeling the slightest breeze of strangely hot air behind him. ...Crap.

"Senel…" He voiced quietly and evenly, trying not to be too loud or fearful. "When I count to three, duck and roll towards the house as quickly as humanly possible."

Senel had a feeling that something large and ferocious was right behind him, as the crippling fear in the blue eyes of the Ferines in front of him wasn't fake. Really hating his life right now, he nodded his head ever so slightly, tensing his muscles to be able to react quickly.

"On three." The snout of the black dragon slowly opened, and teeth of obsidian shone in the light. The fangs looked as long as his forearm.

"One…" Senel felt his hair move slightly from a breath of hot air, and he swallowed painfully. He saw the blue eyes in front of him clench shut for a second, and felt slightly happy that he wasn't the only one absolutely terrified.

"Two…" Walter saw the same black sparks flickering in the back of its throat, and was glad he was only a second away from possibly surviving the near impossible escape from this dragon. Better say it now before he chickened out.

"Three." At the same moment he breathed out the single syllable, the two dashed out of the positions they had been in as the dragon's jaws snapped shut in the place Senel's head would have been at the number 'four'.

The blond looked back briefly, and saw the red eyes lock onto them, and his shoes slipped on the wet grass in their haste to run, the Orerines in front of him by a few feet. "Run faster!" He yelled as a roar of heat behind him signaled the unleashing of the black flames.

As fast as the two could sprint, the smoky blaze was too fast for them. Just as the blond figured this out and pushed Senel and himself out of the way of the flame's straight path, he felt a searing pain burn its way across the center of his back. A strangled scream of pain left his mouth without his realizing it, and the two ended up on the ground instead of continuing to run. The fire shot past them and into a lamppost behind them, the glass shattering from the wave of heat and the metal glowing from black to orange as the paint melted.

Senel lifted himself up and looked behind him, "What was that…" He started, but his words stopped when he noticed the Ferines still partially kneeling on the ground, his expression scrunched up in pain. Realizing he must have been injured, he "What happened!" Senel quickly asked, only getting a quiet sound in return. He looked back at the dragon, which turned its gaze on them and began towards them. Grabbing Walter's arm, the white-haired eren quickly pulled him to his feet and back in the direction of the inn, planning to question him about that pained yell later. The dragon roared into the air as the two retreated for the moment.

x x x

Reaching the neighborhood Senel lived in, the two slowed to a stop to catch their breath near a lamppost on the side of the road, a location yet to see any dragon activity, strangely enough. Soon after Senel had let go of his arm, Walter had nearly collapsed to his knees cursing. "Damn it…" Another wave of pain made his vision blurry, and he covered his mouth as if to prevent any more pained sounds from escaping.

Knowing that the blond could take a beating and not blink an eye, seeing him nearly doubled over in pain wasn't a very good sign, especially when Senel remembered he knew where to find Norma. "What's wrong, did it hit you?" He asked, concerned. The scene of him being worried over the Ferines was still peculiar in his eyes, but that didn't stop his unease.

"The flames did, agh…" His eyes clenched shut again as he leaned heavily on the metal pole. "Damn it, this hurts…" He gasped out, his voice slightly higher than usual from the waves of hurt centered around his back.

Senel carefully pulled his dark cloak away from his shoulders to look at his back, wincing whenever he brushed against the wrong spot and heard a pained gasp as a result. Under the cloak however, there weren't any marks on him at all. Only his cloak had any damage on it, and even that was slight. But Walter made it seem like he had been severely burned. "But you didn't get burned. It's barely even singed." He answered, slightly confused.

Walter turned his head slightly, "That dragon's attacks are curse element, you moron… They don't leave visible marks."

Senel looked back at him, "Even a curse attack wouldn't put you in this much pain though-"

He sighed in frustration. "Of course you wouldn't understand. You're an Orerines."

"What's your point?" Senel asked, not liking his exasperated tone. He was sorely tempted to poke him.

Gritting his teeth together, he explained, "My point is that Orerines and Ferines are affected by curse differently. Ferines are naturally adapted to the sea, it's in our very souls. Sea element creatures are weakest to curse. Even the smallest curse-imbued attacks can cause Ferines a great deal of pain, and… That wasn't a small attack." Squeezing his eyes shut, the Ferines let out a strangled breath, "Well this… changes things."

"Can't you use a panacea… or a gel, or something?" Senel asked, feeling useless to do anything. It wasn't a feeling he particularly liked.

He shook his head. "It wouldn't do anything, because they only heal ailments and injuries. It doesn't do anything for element-based injuries against a person's soul. Only a healing spell would work, and a powerful one at that. The only person I know strong enough for such a spell is Shirley, and we'd have to go past that dragon to get to her." He answered evenly.

This caused Senel's head to whip up in worry. "Shirley! She's stuck near Madam Musette's house, and-"

"Relax, she'll be fine… Even if that dragon goes after her, she'll take care of it easier then the two of us combined." Senel looked at him curiously, and he returned the look with a small smirk. "Cursed creatures are just as weak to sea element spells as we are to curse. Shirley is a powerful eren: she'll take care of it with a few attacks easily."

Since when did Walter of all people think that Shirley didn't need help? "In that sense, can't we just run up and attack it?" Senel scratched the back of his head, looking towards the direction of where they came from.

Walter was silent for a moment before looking aside. "…Much as I'd like to say otherwise, I don't know very many spells, and the ones I do know aren't sea-based. Given that I can't fight in my current condition, I wouldn't be of much use in a fight." He sounded defeated, and struggled to keep the on a straight face. "As tolerant to pain as I am, even I can't fight through this much and still…"

Senel looked at him, "Is it that bad?"

He winced again, and through gritted teeth gasped out, "Pure agony."

The eren let the cloak drop from his fingers to hide the invisible wound as he circled around to his side. "Around how long does it take to wear off?"

Walter looked up for a moment in thought, "Uhm… Usually the kind of wounds I've experienced are less severe, and only take around ten minutes to wear off. This time… I'm guessing an hour, more or less."

Looking at the blond Ferines, who's eyes were glazed in trying to push back the pain so much, Senel decided on something. Norma needed saving, and he couldn't do this alone, not now. Walter could deal with him helping, though he had a feeling it wouldn't go over well...

Carefully wrapping an arm around the blond, his blue eyes instantly looked at Senel's calm face, "What are you doing?" He quickly asked, as if his touching Senel would cause him even more pain. As if to prove this, he recoiled away from his touch and tried to push him away.

"Helping you walk." He answered simply, not all that surprised at the extreme reluctance of Walter's not wanting any help from him.

This earned him a glare, like he thought it would, "You know what I mean, what in Nerifes are you-Aaargh!" Walter's legs buckled when Senel poked him in the middle of his back, only saving himself from falling by catching Senel's arm in a death grip. Glaring daggers at him, he stood gasping in pain for a moment, trying to work up the strength to stand again.

"You… Asshole…" He panted angrily, before eventually regaining his unsteady posture from before. Starting again, he saw where his old hated foe was coming from, but didn't like it one bit. The fact he was smirking didn't help cool his temper either. "Fine, where are we going?" He corrected himself, his tone dark.

Senel carefully wrapped an arm around the Ferines' shoulder, letting him lean against him for support, which he now gladly accepted. "To go save Norma." He stated, plain as day, as the two started through the streets to the duct and eventually the Crystal Forest.

Through the contact of the blond leaning against him, he could feel Walter's form trembling against his own, breathing quick and halted. He didn't make it seem as bad from how he spoke or held himself, but from reluctantly accepting Senel's help he could feel a sense of just how much he was holding in. Not for the first time, the stubborn Ferines surprised him by just how strong his willpower was.

"You don't have to help me, you know…" The blond tried one last time, though sensing it was a losing battle anyway. His stubbornness helped keep his mind away from thinking about the pain pulsating through his body.

Senel gave the blond a look, who was careful not to meet his own grayish-blue eyes, "Norma's my friend too, and as much as I know you want to do this alone, you need my help Walter." After a moment of the Ferines not saying anything, he looked ahead of them and spoke, "…Hey, do you think we should grab her a doughnut on the way?"

"Oh ha ha, go on and tempt the man in agony who hasn't eaten since yesterday afternoon." He bit out, though a small smirk had appeared on his face after that. Knowing Senel, that may have been his intent.

After the two passed through the gates of the town, and neared the duct, Senel thought something over in his mind, "…What made you change so much? I can't even recognize you anymore from the Walter I knew a few months ago." He asked aloud, not really expecting an answer from the blond. "You used to hate my guts."

"That part hasn't changed." Walter reminded him, staring at the ground.

"Well ok, I never expected that to change much, but you made an effort to save my life back there. You can't despise me that much if your actions against that dragon were sincere."

The blond kept his gaze on the ground. As much as he wished he could say he hated the eren beside him, was trying to be honest with himself. He was honest when he said he no longer wished for the Cataclysm to happen, so what were his feelings here? "…Perhaps not, but that kind of jealous hate I have doesn't fade easily. Maybe I no longer wish you were dead anymore, for your friends and Shirley's sake, but I won't hesitate in punching you in the face."

Senel winced, still feeling the dull throb in his face from earlier. "Yeah, I don't doubt that…"

"I… I have a lot of reasons to loathe you Orerines, reasons that I don't think I'll ever be able to forget. To be honest, I'll probably never be able to forgive you about some of them, but given time I might…" Walter trailed off, struggling to try and make his words come out how he wanted them to.

Senel couldn't help but nod, remembering himself eventually letting go of Stella and beginning to live in the present. "You'll be able to put the past behind you?" He felt a small tremor against his arm, before the blond nodded slightly. "I can deal with that."

The two stepped inside the duct finally and transported to the Crystal Forest, hoping their mission to save their friend would be successful.

x x x

I never thought I'd put Senel and Walter within close distance between each other, especially given how in-character I'm trying to make them. Hopefully they didn't seem too out of character, but I tried to take a different spin on them this time around.

Most of the dragons in this chapter were normal types, but there was also a lava and frost dragon. The dark dragon is technically of the same breed as the Fafnir boss from Will's CQ arc, and as it was only a short time ago since the group fight it, Senel hasn't leveled up enough to fight it alone. All of the stuff about the strength/weaknesses I experimented around with, seeing as how Walter back in the Mirage Palace was a Sea element boss...

Next chapter will be the climax of the story, I can't wait!

Reviewer Comments

Shiroi Iyasu: In the original storyline, the team found Norma taking a nap (...no, really) in the lower areas of the Crystal Forest, gave her the antidote, and she was ok. From what she was talking about (treasure on the other side of a river), she was about the kick the bucket... I'm tweaking it a bit to make it fit into the story, and the ending is gonna be different from the original canon. And thank you for the birthday wishes! The main reason I'm going only this far is... well, look at my other story, Good Help is Hard to Find. I tried followin canon, but it got so boring it became a chore. I don't want the same thing for this story.

Ranchdressing: Don't call Walter's wings glittery, whatever you do... I doubt he'd appreciate it, and he'll probably end up attacking me for it! D: But... He is a guardian angel, in a way... Dead ex-bodyguard with teriques wings. ...Eh, close enough.