Crow woke up one morning to find himself with a mouthful of feathers. He sat up and discovered Firo had her body acting as his pillow. And while it was nice to have something soft to lay his head on, the mouthful of feathers wasn't.
Fawkes trilled. It sounded like he was laughing at him. Crow turned to find Talia snuggled up against him like he was a giant teddy bear.
It felt...nice.
Still, it was getting uncomfortably hot. And as nice as it felt, they had to get up.
"Five more minutes..." said Talia in her sleep.
With experience of clingy ex-dalliances, he easily shifted Raphtalia onto Firo, with the firm pat on the head. Fawkes curled back into Firo's feathery mass and went back to sleep.
Meanwhile Crow went about stretching, making breakfast, and getting the tea ready. He had tried coffee before, but never really liked it unless there weren't any other options left.
By the time Talia and the others woke up, he had already made breakfast for everyone, including the still-growing Fawkes.
"Why is it you never let me make breakfast?"
"I let you do the dishes, because you like to sleep in. Besides, it gives me a little time to myself. Morning Firo, Fawkes," he said.
Privacy and a few hours alone was more precious to him than all the gold in the world. It was the only time he could be himself. So he cherished the brief morning moments he had alone.
"What's on the plan today, Crow?"
"We're going on a dungeon raid, if only so I can get Fawkes back to his adult size. Well that and you could both use some extra experience."
This dungeon used to be a mine, before the monsters moved in and scared everyone off. He had a bad feeling about the place, but he wasn't about to let that stop him. Besides, multiple shop owners had told him about how there was a rare monster inside, and he wasn't about to let the other Heroes try their luck.
From what he saw of the level, there was likely a very high level and difficult beast inside.
Once camp was broken down for the night, and they had all put their armor on (including Fawkes, who would likely grow back into his), they ventured into the mines.
Crow was having an absolutely crappy time in the mines.
Everything had been going so well! Fawkes had 'leveled up' enough to regain his adult form and now fit into the armor he bought for him, Firo was putting her talon guards to very good use and was able to take out monsters without his help (but most definitely with his approval) and Raphtalia was using her skills in illusion to ensnare the enemy to the point where it didn't even realize it was dead until the blow was struck.
He had even unlocked quite a few useful shields, like the one that amplified sound thanks to those odd bats.
Then everything went pear shaped the second Talia saw a two headed dog. From the way she started trembling he had the feeling she had some unresolved fears to deal with...and probably legitimate ones at that.
In the spirit of ending the fight quickly to help Talia with her fear, he used the one spell he hated above all others, if only because of the grief it had caused him for years.
"Avada Kedevra."
The sickly green light passed over Firo's head to strike the two-headed hound squarely. It, like so many other creatures before it, fell dead to the ground before Firo could attack. The odd bird poked the dog with it's feet, before looking at him quizzically. Crow was too busy calming Talia down.
"It's okay. It's dead."
Talia was shaking like a leaf, so Fawkes crooned a gentle song to calm her down. It took five minutes, which was longer than Crow would have liked, but it worked.
"Now, why are you so terrified of dogs?"
"My parents. My village. My friends...they were all killed by a Cerberus. It was a monster of the Wave, and it attacked us without any warning. My mom and dad ran to the cliff, and they sent me off it to protect me...when I got back to the village it was gone, and the adventurers were capturing everyone left to sell to the slave traders. None of them would go after the beast," cried Talia.
"...Sounds like we both had our parents die to protect us. You from a monster, me from a mad man obsessed with certain bloodlines. Raphtalia, look at me."
She did, if only because he called her by her full name, and not the shortened nickname he had given her.
"When we find that beast you are going to help me kill the damn thing. Being struck by that blasted curse isn't good enough. We are going to show it that hell has come to met it head on. But to do that you need to learn how to face your fear and meet it head on."
Raphtalia looked him in the eye. He was strong, fierce, brave, and he valued loyalty and trust above all else.
"You're not afraid of anything."
"Not true. I fear getting close to others because I can't bear to see them die. Why else would I refuse to go anywhere near the other heroes or give them a false name? People around me die, betray me, or otherwise try to use me for their own gain. So I built a barrier to keep them far from me. And yet the one thing I hate more than seeing others die is being alone."
Raphtalia could sense that he had a lot of old scars on his soul. Except he faced them head on and took it a day at a time.
"You think I can kill that monster?"
"I know you can. But first we have to train our asses off so that when we find the damn thing it will have to fear us."
Fawkes trilled something, and Crow cocked his head.
"You really think I should add...those?"
He trilled again.
Crow sighed, like it was something he didn't want to do but knew it was inevitable anyway.
"I'll do it once we clear the cave. Those things are a level of overkill that this place doesn't require."
Raphtalia and Firo had no idea what he meant, but the phoenix did because it trilled in agreement. The Phoenix shield alone was so above what the other heroes had it wasn't even funny.
Though the Sword and Bow Heroes did impress him a little. Enough so that he gave them a small scale from his dragon form to add to their own weapons. It wasn't much, but it did provide a limited amount of abilities.
The two slowly made their way deeper into the cave. They had come this far and he would be irritated if he didn't at least clean the place out. Like an itch you couldn't scratch.
Besides, he had heard rumors the Spear Hero was heading this direction anyway and he had wanted to beat the boss and get the upgraded weapon before either of the two came anywhere near the place. If only to piss the idiot and the Princess off.
"This seems like Fate has it out for us. The one thing the boss could have been and it's another canine?" complained Crow.
Talia was shaking, but standing firm.
Firo. Well, Firo was Firo. She wanted to fight and prove herself to her master and the older bird.
Crow sighed.
"Well we could do this the hard way, helping Talia get over her fear and fight the thing until we're all exhausted."
"Or?" asked Talia.
"Or we could do the smart thing and fight with magic, with me overdoing it with my powers and you slowing down it's senses enough for Firo to get some good hits in while Fawkes makes a go at it's eyes."
"What about that spell you used on the one before?"
"There weren't any reflective surfaces around, and I hate using it on a good day. Besides, the last thing I need is to get too used to that spell."
Raphtalia didn't get it, but clearly Crow had some serious deep-seated issues about that spell.
Talia put her ability towards illusions to good work. She made the beast think Firo was coming at him from one side, when she was coming from the opposite. And once that got old, she would make Firo seem slower than she was. So the beast wouldn't be able to trust any of it's senses.
In the mean time Crow would practice his new magic spells on the beast, though he would mostly be using wind blades considering he had a very high affinity for it.
It took them three hours to kill the thing, but in the end it dropped dead from multiple wounds.
"That...was not a level thirty monster."
Now more than ever he was glad he took this beast, because there was no way in hell the Spear Hero could have killed it, even with the red haired idiot's help.
What he saw once he started harvesting the beast made him groan.
"Dammit. This was more like a level fifty beast with all the augments it had!"
"Crow, do you hear something?"
It sounded like whimpering. Crow looked around before he face-palmed.
There, in the very back of the cave was a tiny puppy, barely level five at best. It had the same crystals the big one had, but only one head. The crystals seemed to form a sort of armor around it.
Raphtalia stiffened when she saw it.
"Before you get any ideas I am not killing it or letting you kill it. Hand me my bag," said Crow firmly. If they were lucky he could tame the thing and help Raphtalia over her fear of dogs with more than one head at the same time.
Talia handed him the bag, but refused to look at the pup. He searched and found some meat, because he refused to feed the thing it's own mother.
It certainly explained why the thing had been so adamant about defending it's territory.
The puppy sniffed the food, and tentatively ate a little. Crow went back to harvesting the bigger dog, and since he wasn't about to leave the puppy behind (partly because he was a sucker for animals, but also because he didn't want to leave an enemy that could hunt him down later) he made a make-shift sling.
Most of the monsters were fleeing, and he had already taken everything of worth from the cave. He kept a few teeth and crystals out so he could prove they cleared it, but he also made sure to firmly keep the pup tied away from the village and hidden so no one would try to kill it.
"Impressive," said the guild owner.
"What's the reward for cleaning it out?"
"Let me take you to the mayor so you can work out the details. It's a good thing you did this after the wave, because he can hand it out personally."
Crow walked out with a hundred gold coins, two Mastery level books (one of air magic and the other illusion, though he paid for the second one) and a reinforced cart for Firo, because he had seen how she eyed the ones the other philorials had been pulling around. It had steel on all the joints and was made so that it could go fast without breaking apart. It was mostly sold to the guards who transported supplies, but considering who he was they sold him one.
Talia gave the cart the stink eye, though it was nothing compared to the looks she shot the puppy.
"Why did you keep that thing? Please tell me we're selling it to the slave owners," she almost begged.
"You are going to get over your fear of dogs one way or another, and I refuse to sell this one just because of it. Besides, I like dogs."
Talia looked irritated, like she couldn't wait to get rid of the dog, but she wasn't about to disagree with him. As long as she didn't have to look at the evil thing she would put up with it.
Out of sight, out of mind, after all.
Crow's eye twitched. They were passing through Ryute again, mostly because they had to double back thanks to the bridge being out and the wagon was too heavy to try and drive through the river, when they noticed a commotion.
The Spear Hero was up to no good, again.
"What's this about?" asked Crow, pretending to be a simple merchant.
"The Spear Hero expects us to pay a tax of a full gold coin just to get in and out of the town as payment for the restoration!" said the citizen, highly offended.
"Why am I not surprised," sighed Crow. "Talia, keep an eye on the cart will you?"
Raphtalia took the reigns, though she didn't look happy.
"Hey Mr. Importency-Issues, are you really that greedy or are you a bigger idiot than I thought you were?" shouted Crow, making sure they got a good look at his face. Oh, there was the Vernon and Hermione shade of puce he had come to enjoy whenever he pissed them off royally. Or showed them up in a way they couldn't compete with.
"What are you doing here, Shield?" spat the Spear hero. At this rate Crow would never remember his name.
"Aside from trying to reach the next town only to find a certain idiot was up to no good? Are you really so greedy you're charging them the equivalent of a full gold piece just to get in and out? They don't even charge that much for a night at the inn, and most of these people could survive on less than a copper a day."
"If they don't like it, they can take it up with the King," said the princess snidely.
Crow noticed the racing dragon on the side. What a tacky choice.
"How about a race. The winner gets control of the town and the loser has to pay up fifty silver pieces," said Crow, an evil idea forming.
"Make it fifty gold and you have a deal, Shield," said Spear greedily. Yup, he was an idiot.
"Do you even have any gold, cheapskate?" said Crow with a smirk.
Spear took the bait and showed off his large sack of gold coins.
Both heroes put a sack of fifty gold pieces (the mayor had counted them out) and then they each took a mount. Spear boy naturally chose his dragon, but much to Firo's disappointment Crow didn't pick her. Instead he pulled out...a broom?
"Going to sweep me away, you stupid Shield?" sneered the Spear.
"Nope. I'm going to outclass you again, Mr. Impotency-Issues."
"IT'S MOYOTAMA!" he yelled.
"Sure it is, Mr. Impotent," said Crow. He felt like that character in that comic he got hooked on before he came here. Sai, something.
Crow waited until the race had already started before he mounted the broom...and promptly flew past Spear boy. Seeing the man's expression when he saw Crow flying easily right in front of him, sitting backwards while lazy reading a book was totally worth bringing out his old Firebolt. Seeing Crow overtake them and complete a lap before he even had a chance to complete one was just icing on the cake.
And unfortunately for the princess, his clothes all had magic-resistance worthy of an arch mage. Her paltry spells and those of the guards with her couldn't even slow him down.
Crow completely outclassed the other hero in less than ten minutes, completing all ten laps before his opponent could complete four. Seeing his face turn an angry red color made his inner Marauder grin wildly.
"You cheated!"
"Ah, but that's where you're wrong! All I said was that you had to be riding something, but I never specified it had to be a beast. And that's not even taking into account the fact that your butch friend and her guards tried to cheat using magic. You just assumed I'd be using Firo," said Crow sing-songed. Oh yeah, Sirius would be so proud.
"I demand a rematch!"
"Why? So Firo can kick both your ass and that of your cheap-ass dragon?"
Seeing the other hero seethe and his dragon hiss, Crow smirked.
"Have it your way. We'll have a best two out of three match, seeing as how I've already won once."
Firo, having guessed it was her turn to run, perked up. Raphtalia unhooked her harness, and removed all but the talon guards.
Crow crooned to his mount, silently adding a spell to make her practically fly and add massive magic resistance if they tried another trick like opening a hole under him. He had noticed that some of the guards had used earth spells.
Once again they lined up, though he had noticed the looks the dragon was giving Firo. Genetic hatred, perhaps?
At the signal, Firo took off like a bullet, outclassing the dragon with ease.
Crow had trained Firo's legs every night to improve her kicking power. As an added bonus it made her much, much faster than normal.
He noticed an odd glow around them both, but thanks to the magic resistance he gave her she barely slowed at all. And the spell to make her lighter made it easier for her to jump over the hole that opened up without any warning.
Once again, Crow had beaten him.
The Spear idiot had little choice but to hand over the deed and the gold.
Both of which he promptly gave to the mayor (except for the bag he had originally started out with, because they were all fakes in the event he lost) before they got enough food to last until the next town.
Needless to say his reputation took a massive boost while the Spear Hero and the Princess' took a major dive.