Author's note: Sorry for the late update...the document uploader wasn't working last night.

Also, I totally just realized that there's actually a canon character named Kirin. He was so minor that I'd completely forgotten about him...but I guess that means I picked an acceptable name for canon! ^_^;;

(I briefly considered making them the same person, but...no. Not even. No relation.)

Anyway, without further ado, enjoy your tardy chapter.

Chapter 8: Goals

When they finally rounded the last tent, Hina stopped short in amazement.

In front of her was one of the most incredible sights she had ever beheld, and with everything she had seen since coming to the outside world, that was saying something.

A great heaping pile of logs—it looked like a whole tree's worth—lay in the clearing at the center of the camp, but what drew her attention was the sight above it.

Fire.

It must be. She had read about the theory behind it, even seen paintings of it, but the reality made everything else pale in comparison. No wonder she had mistaken it for a hallucination.

She had always thought fire would have some…substance to it,perhaps like water. But this? It was as insubstantial as mist. It swirled hypnotically, there one instant, somewhere else the next; sometimes swiftly, sometimes lazily. It hardly even seemed to touch the wood it fed on, seeming to simply hover in the air starting a few inches above it, though she knew this was simply an illusion caused by a layer of superheated air. She could almost see patterns in it, but every time she thought she was about to get the hang of it, it slipped away again. For a moment, she fancied that it was made up of curved planes, bending and twisting in an invisible wind, and then that illusion broke apart in a shower of golden sparks.

"Miss Hina?"

Koyu's voice broke the spell. Hina inhaled, remembering where she was.

"Yes?" She tried not to glance back at the mesmerizing flames.

"He's this way," he said, gesturing for her to move around the bonfire.

"Like it?" he said conversationally as they started moving again.

"It's beautiful."

She wasn't sure what made her say it. She wasn't even sure she shouldn't have said it…were there rules of etiquette to cover the impossible situations she was constantly finding herself in? Spontaneous exclamations of wonder didn't seem very ice-maidenly, but then…why did it even bother her what the other ice maidens would think?

"Miss Hina?" said Koyu again, and she redirected her attention to the physical world.

They'd come around to the far side of the fire, and, in front of them, Kirin and another demon were lifting an animal carcass down from a spit. The second demon was tall enough to dwarf even Kirin, and his fierce-looking, almost canine profile and bulging muscles were intimidating. Hina would have preferred not to stand next to him, but Kirin merely thanked him. The giant creature didn't reply, but bowed his head and shoulders to Kirin, revealing what looked like folded green wings sprouting out of his broad brown back.

Kirin turned back from his completed task and noticed the two of them. He smiled, which Hina found unnerving. What was he planning to do with her?

"Thank you, Koyu. Could you please help Ryuko now? I'll take care of our guest."

Koyu bowed and left, and Kirin turned to Hina. "As promised, dinner is almost ready. Come, sit with me, and we can continue our conversation from earlier. I apologize for being called away so abruptly."

He gestured her toward a clear spot on the ground a little ways from the fire.

"I trust Koyu answered some more of your questions?"

Hina nodded. "How you happened to find me, and how I ended up here." She looked up at him with slightly narrowed eyes. "But I still don't know why."

Kirin considered her, and then looked up at the stars that were just beginning to appear.

"Let me tell you a story."

Hina tilted her head in bewilderment.

"It's a story about a young, foolish boy, who thought he knew better than everyone. Unfortunately, this particular boy had enough authority for that to be disastrous."

Kirin bowed his head.

"The boy lost everything, was forced to flee his country with his only remaining family member. But he swore that one day, he would get back what he had lost. So he and his sister hid in the shadows for a long time, recruiting new people…often by rescuing the young or inexperienced ones, those who had yet to realize their potential. They would take them in, give them training, experience, something to call home. In this way, they eventually became a fighting force to be recognized."

He turned back to Hina. "That is why I brought you here: to make you the same offer I made all the others. Join us. Join our family. Learn what we have to offer. Or else, simply accept our hospitality for the night, and be on your way to wherever you wish in the morning."

He paused, and then continued.

"I don't know what your goals are, but if you so desire, there is much you could accomplish with us."

Her goals? What were her goals? She had been looking for a group of ice-women, but she had already realized the impossibility of that. Or perhaps she simply wanted to find a group of ice-wielders, and accept the fact that they would have males among them?

Or was that what she really wanted at all?

"What do you do?" she asked, pushing aside the thought for the moment.

Kirin spread his hands. "We do many things. We fight our enemies. We aid our allies. We gather the resources to one day take back what was ours."

Hina considered that.

"What would you have done if I had lacked "potential"?"

"The snake threatened the whole city. I would have stopped him in any case. But if you had not had the potential I see in you, I would not have taken you in."

Hina was silent, considering everything he had said. Kirin let her remain in silence for some time, and then spoke again.

"You need not make your decision now. As I said, you are our guest for tonight. Indeed, if you wish to delay your decision by several days, you may."

Hina closed her eyes.

"One more question." She opened her eyes again and looked directly at him.

"If I choose to join you now…could I ever leave? Or would it be an irrevocable decision?"

Kirin spread his hand and bowed his head. "If you found a better path…yes, you could leave on good terms." He raised a hand. "However, fair warning. What I have said only applies if you keep your side of the bond of hospitality. If you choose instead to betray our trust…" He looked directly at her, and his eyes seemed to burn without the help of the fire's reflection.

"If you betray us, the best you can hope for is a swift death."

Hina's shoulders relaxed infinitesimally.

This was it. This was the other shoe she had waiting to drop.

She could believe him now.

His offer was genuine: sanctuary, training, acceptance—and he had just laid out the price: loyalty. There was now only one question remaining: was that a price she was willing to pay?

Hina clenched her fist. What would the elders think?

She took a deep breath.

"I want to stay."