Kai: Hey guys! MWHAHA Lightning is actually soft and kind deep deep down :D AND NOW WE SHALL SHOW MORE OF IT! MWHAHAHAHA XD

Lightning: -_-

Kai: Oh don't be like that Lightning XD

Lightning: .....first you turn me into a beast have me be in a snowball fight and then you put me in a story where I'm a cat girl? Hmph -.-

Kai: Pfft I can't help it XD And you know you enjoyed the Snowball fight.

Lightning: ...........................

Kai: On with the story! ^-^

Chapter 7: Dreams

Back in the small village where Hope use to live, in the dark of the night, the village's bar was lit up with laughter and excitement. People drank and cheered for Cao's successful hunt in the forest. Managing to catch a great buck and fill everyone's bellies in a grand feast. Inside, every man in town was buisly drinking and laughing their hearts out. Cao sat in a chair next to his sister who looked a bit depressed.

"Why won't Hope honey marry me? And he's been gone for weeks now." Ruby whinned unhappily.

Cao sighed at his sister's constant whinning. She wouldn't shut up about the brat. "I'm sure you will convince him when he returns." Cao soothed with a slight mutter of annoyance.

Ruby sighed sadly. "Maybe. I mean who can resist the prettiest girl in the whole village? Or the country?" she boasted with a cocky grin and Cao rolled his eyes.

Cao and Ruby then blinked when Bartholomew suddenly busted threw the doors, out of breath and in a panic. "You've got to help me!" the old man said, fear evident in his eyes.

"What is it now crazy old man?" asked Cao, yawning.

Bartholomew breathed ruggedly, trying to catch his breath so he can explain everything about what had happened to him and his son, Hope. ".....Hope is in trouble!" he yelled out and everyone looked at him curiously.

Ruby slammed her fists against her chair's armrest in anger. "What?! Where is my darling?! I demand to know what happened to him!" she growled fiercly while Cao just looked at the man calmly.

"He's been taken by a beast!" called Bartholomew. There was a long pause, till their was a burst of laughter throughout the whole bar. Bartholomew looked around, his eyes full of confustion as he watched everyone laugh. People called out questions in their laughter.

"Did it have long sharp claws and paws to rip you apart?" asked a man.

"Huge! Able to tear you apart limb from limb!" Bartholomew replied.

"Was it big?" asked another.

"Huge! Maybe standing sixty feet tall! And it was hideous and ugly!" answered Bartholomew.

"Did it have sharp fangs that it uses to rip your flesh off?" asked another man in his laughter.

"Oh so long! And so fearsome!" Bartholomew said as he remembered those fangs that were bared at him.

"Did it have fierce bloodthirsty eyes?" asked a man with a chuckle.

"Oh they were as cold as all of the iciest waters of the seven seas!" cried Bartholomew as he shivered at the thought of those cold blue eyes.

Cao and Ruby grinned at each other then Cao answered with a, "Alright Bartholomew. We'll help." he said.

Bartholomew brightened at that and smiled brightly, ignoring how two men grabbed him on either side of his arms. "Oh thank you thank you! There is no time to waste! We have to save---" he said but before he finished, he was thrown outside.

"We'll help you. Help you out of the door." laughed Ruby in amusement, her eyes sparkling with laughter and the rest of the people in the bar laughed also. Calling the elderly man a 'crazy old coot.'

Cao then had a great idea at that. "I got a idea Ruby!" he grinned evily and Ruby looked at him curiously.

"Like what elder brother?" Ruby asked as she looked at him curiously.

"Well everyone knows that old Bartholomew is a big loon. That ranting of his proves it! He should be sent to a asylm, sending him away from poor Hope's grasp." Cao explained with a smirk on his face.

Ruby looked at him curiously. "Ya but what does that have to do with anything?" she asked as she raised a eyebrow at Cao's smirk.

"Oh it's simple. Hope can't stand having his father tooken away, and he would do anything for his father. Even marry you." Cao grinned and chuckled at Ruby's glare.

"Hey! What do you mean by that? But I suppose your right. He will be way easier to seduce if we did that." she giggled evily, her smirk on her face looking like a chester cat's smile.

Cao and Ruby grinned at each other and started with their planning. Outside Bartholomew looked around at the city, watching the snow fall. Calling to the town, "Will no one help me?"